image [https://i.imgur.com/yFu9mOD.png]

III

Lich Queen

After digging through the book, I’d found mention of a ‘Warden’. The Warden (more fully: The Frost Warden) was the Supreme Commander of the Frostguards. Commonly, that duty was held by the Ruler of the Duchy of Vrost. It just so happened that my Father was ill, and I had been assigned as his replacement until he recovered.

It’s why I was making my way back to the shed. Now that I knew I had a duty to defend our border, the priority of finding the limits of my power had shot up.

image [https://i.imgur.com/z6G5s0x.png]

The bodies were in the exact same position as I’d left them.

‘Let me inspect you more carefully, my pretties,’ I said, closing the entrance behind me.

I moved towards the frostguard with the gash across his face. The wound originated from his ear, which dangled in two pieces, and roved down his face like a river. His frost-blue uniform was cut up in multiple places, revealing pale skin that was a shade of what it must’ve once been.

Whatever had done him in had done a number on him.

‘It didn’t try to eat him, though.’

I inspected the others. All of them were in various states of disrepair, yet none bore postmortem consumption marks. That ruled out natural predators.

I returned to Mr. Gash. My finger moved along the cut. The blood had long frozen so it left no bloodstains, but a hint—the touch of a smidgen of darkness—clung to my fingertip.

‘Mana,’ I said. Or rather, miasma.

Either his killer could use magic, or they had an enchanted weapon. I doubted the latter. The wounds were too ragged for a blade or other sharp tool.

These were claw marks.

That left…pretty much anything. And I had no way of figuring out the answer, so I turned back to the corpse.

‘Let us see what I can do with you.’

I moved a finger across, and the dark energy clung like mucus. I raised it to eye level. There were two layers to it. The top layer was the miasma, which swirled and slowly dissolved into the air. The second layer didn’t move.

Death energy, I thought, feeling my lips curve.

Gathering miasma in my hand, I pulled the bottom layer towards me. The stagnant energy skipped forwards like a child and bit the candy I was dangling in front of it.

The corpse remained lifeless.

Frowning, I pushed out more miasma but the result stayed the same.

I thought for a moment.

The third time, I placed my palm on the freezing flesh. The cold jabbed into my fingers. My awareness unfolded like a sixth sense, and for a moment I was back on the balcony, overseeing Necropolis. I could see everything. Could see the way the ice ate into the arteries and blackened the flesh, the way the nerves had once connected to and animated the man. In this clear world, the second layer of energy was a trail of tar, and I followed it to its mouth: the heart.

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Frost necromancy, the skill said. Not necromancy.

I focused on the cold, imagined it spreading. Faint crackling echoed from the body as ice grew to surround the organ in a protective layer. I kept pouring miasma until, finally, a pulse reverberated through the shed.

I briefly glanced at my miasma.

Miasma =

356/895

Over half of my energy, that felt about right.

The guard’s eyes shot open, and blue husks pierced through me. When I stepped away from the table to give it space, I noticed the air around it was a lot colder than the rest of the room.

[Undead soldier, lvl 1.]

Levels, I thought. Another one of those game mechanics Lucian told me about. That should mean it could grow stronger through gaining experience.

The undead soldier grabbed onto the table, raising and separating itself from its former brothers. It fell after trying to stand and didn’t get back up.

No. It didn’t fall.

The undead was kneeling. I felt an imaginary line connect us. Through that connection, I could make out a thought—nay, thought was too sophisticated. It was an instinct, which screamed:

Lich Queen.

…I shivered. The title coursed through me, shocking my limbs as it went.

I grinned. ‘I like it.’ The sensation of power that accompanied Death was the same no matter which world you inhabited. ‘But Queen is too small.’ The undead didn’t do anything as humane as tilting its head, but I sensed confusion.

‘Don’t worry about it,’ I chuckled. It would learn in time.

The door behind me rumbled. I considered while the undead rose to its knees. They knew of my power—there was no reason to hide it.

‘Come in,’ I called.

‘Warden—’ came the guard captain’s voice. He froze inside the doorway.

‘Close the door behind you, Captain,’ I said. I stepped to the side so he could see the undead soldier better.

The captain swallowed. Then, the door closed.

‘Don’t worry,’ I said. ‘He won’t attack.’

I’d worried about control before—controlling undead was always a risk—but my connection to the soldier was tangible. It wouldn’t break even if I fell asleep or unconscious.

‘…Did you raise him, Warden?’

‘Yes. He was a test. The others will be raised in due time.’

He breathed out sharply and looked at the soldier, who motionlessly stared ahead of him, lacking any animation you would expect from a person.

‘What do you think of him, Captain?’ I asked after letting the silence ride.

‘Horrifying,’ he said without hesitation. ‘It feels like its staring straight through me.’

‘His appearance wasn’t what I was referring to.’

He frowned. ‘I’m afraid I don’t—’

‘What do you think of me using the bodies for my necromancy?’ I clarified.

The guard captain shifted in place. He didn’t speak right away, perhaps hoping I would retract the inquiry.

I waited.

‘If I may speak freely, Warden?’ he said eventually.

‘I command you to do so.’

That loosened his shoulders. ‘With all due respect, Warden, I think this ungracious. The Frostguard do a thankless job for the entirety of Erst. They deserve better than this.’

Despite the admonishment, I couldn’t help but smile. Having someone reject what you were saying, standing opposite someone with their own thoughts, there truly was nothing better than that.

Reigning in my enjoyment, I turned my sights on more practical considerations: if a guard captain not linked to the frostguards thought so, what must the actual frostguards think of my power? Something to keep in mind. Especially, since they were supposed to be my army.

‘Thank you, Captain,’ I said.

The Captain looked like he was expecting me to say more. He spoke up when I didn’t. ‘I came to deliver a message, Warden.’

‘What is it?’

‘Sir Levi Vrost has sent word ahead. He is to arrive in Snowspire this evening and wishes to meet with you come morning. What shall I reply to the messenger?’

I frowned. Hearing the name hauled memories to the forefront. That was my older brother. He was also a member of a Temple, a faith absolutely opposed to necromancy. I knew because my brother had made his gripes known to me on numerous occasions, which often ended in a fight.

But none of that knowledge could squash my excitement. A real blood relation.

‘Accept his request,’ I said, lips trembling. ‘Tell him my servants will expect him around ten.’ I considered. Lucian had loved tea. ‘Tea and refreshments will be prepared,’ I added.

‘Understood, Warden.’

I signalled for him to take his leave, and the captain fled the shed like the wind.

image [https://i.imgur.com/z6G5s0x.png]

Levi nearly spit out his tea on the bald head before him. ‘She accepted my request?!’

The old servant bowed deeper, placing a hand upon his heart. ‘It is so, Sir. The guard captain came to tell me himself.’

Levi sagged back in his chair. ‘What in the world…’ And here he thought he would need to spend a month just to gain entry to the estate. Wouldn’t have been the first time his sister did such a thing in order to spite him, either.

He shook his head. ‘She probably wants this be over quick.’ His fingers tightened around the handle of his mug. Well, then she’s dead wrong. He wasn’t leaving until she promised not to use that horrible power of hers!