(xxvi)

Lazarus had what remained of his troops make a search of the area for the carriage and guards that had been there at the start of their battle. Unfortunately, they seemed to have escaped entirely. This would more than likely frustrate Lazarus’s abilities to get inside of Delton without a major confrontation.

The Lich decided staying the night within the confines of the now ruined fort was the wisest path forward. It was the only one that afforded him a chance to regenerate his Mana in its entirety. Aside from dismissing his spells, waiting was the only thing he could do.

This time was used for additional experimentation, only in a rather roundabout way.

Using Mana when he was attempting to rebuild his stores was counterproductive. So instead, he tested his undead minions by giving them increasingly complex tasks over the course of the evening and night.

From repairing and upgrading the wagon they had arrived in, to patrolling using specific marching formations, the Lich put them through their paces. Surprisingly, it was his newly risen Lesser Lich that held the most intelligence. Outside of the Ghoul, of course.

Unfortunately the damn thing wouldn’t shut up. Fortunately for it, however, the ability to Summon Lesser Bandits remained intact. This made the Lesser Lich a valuable layer of his own shielding.

Another boon of the Lesser Lich was its ability to Command Undead. This allowed it to give basic orders to other undead that were of a lesser intelligence than itself. Fielding small groups away from the main one was no longer an issue. At least temporarily.

The drain of maintaining summons was still there, and the Lesser Lich was a sizable one. Lazarus would need to find a way to build some kind of focus that increased his Mana regeneration in order to control and maintain a larger squad. If he could discover a highly efficient way of doing so… raising an army of semi-intelligent undead was not out of the question.

As soon as the morning hit, he had the group loaded up what loot they could find and fell into formation around the wagon. Lazarus sat in the back, contemplating options and formulas while the Lesser Lich commanded from the front seat of the wagon while driving.

Delton couldn’t be much further away now.

Lazarus double checked the map to be sure, and while he was positive he recognized some of the land marks he couldn’t be certain. More testing and exploring was required. Something he didn’t want to undertake.

“Leader,” croaked the Ghoul with a noticeable twitch as it emerged from the forest next to the moving wagon, “there is a city ahead upon the shores of a large lake. I believe this may be Delton.”

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Lazarus stared at the Ghoul for a while, attempting to find any level of subterfuge in its words. He still could not bring himself to fully trust the creature. Perhaps something to ensure his entry into the city was needed. Some kind of disguise.

Opening his Spell Craft ability, he got to work. He would need something… deeper than what the Appraisal skill could find. Putting the spell together in his mind, he slotted the pieces in his mind together.

Then he grinned, a chilling sight as the red text appeared before him.

“All hail the Red Text,” he sang.

Spell Created: Amalgamated Body: Create a temporary body crafted from Mana itself. This body is, at every level, living. Inspection and Status spells will fail their checks against it. Upon being dispelled or cancelled, invested Mana will return to the caster. Mana cost: 1500. Level 1.

“All hail the Red Text indeed,” he muttered, reviewing the new spell. He quickly called it up… and then cast it upon himself.

Mana burst from his finger tips, however, unlike other spells it was in a nearly gelatinous form. It flowed up his arms, covering his bones and entire body in a thin filament. Once the first layer was complete, the filament thickened, filling out into fleshy arms, legs, and torso.

Lazarus’s skull was covered in the goop and hair began to grow from his scalp. Bright turquoise eyes flecked with gold populated his eye sockets, and for the first time since waking he felt his heart beat within the confines of his chest cavity. This spell was truly amazing.

If this was level 1, what would other levels bring with them?

The Ghoul and Lesser Lich gaped at their Master, stunned into inaction at his new body.

Lazarus examined his flesh. Unlike humans, it was a deep azure, matching the color of his first set of bones. Rotating his arm in the sunlight, he could see gold flecks contained within it.

“Oh dear me, but I am beautiful,” he muttered, appreciating his own beauty.

He could only hope that this would be enough to get him within the confines of the city. Taking the opportunity, he eyed the Ghoul. “You are to cover yourself completely and say nothing. Merely nod or shake your head in response to my instructions and do nothing to risk our discovery,” Lazarus ordered.

The Ghoul frowned, but immediately covered itself in a cloak he fetched from the back of the wagon. Wrapping it around his body, particularly his face, arms, and hands, it was now completely concealed. Only its dark beady eyes, which were hardly visible, could be seen under its disguise.

“Good. You, assistant,” he said, directing his attention to the Lesser Lich.

“Yes, Master?” it repeated back to him, a new level of respect apparent in its voice.

Lazarus nodded. Servants should respect their betters. This was far more appropriate than the casual conversation of earlier. “You will take the remaining undead back into the forest and hide. The Ghoul and I will infiltrate the city and find out next source of materials and research. You are not to be discovered under any circumstances by humans, am I clear?” Lazarus ordered.

“Yes, Master. I will not fail one as great as yourself,” the Lesser Lich repeated back with fervor.

As it should be.