LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 76
Chapter 76: The Undead King’s Intentions
“Hun-hun-hun-hun~♪”
In the underground of the Demon Lord’s Castle. A damp and dark spiral staircase that seemed to descend endlessly into the abyss—
There was a figure humming to himself as he made his way down this gloomy place.
It was none other than the Undead King, Enma, in one of his physical forms.
“Ah, what a masterpiece that Zil-kun’s face was…”
After finishing an exhilarating exchange with Demon Lord’s Prince No. 7, Zilbagias, Enma was in high spirits. That adorable, dumbfounded look on his face when he was told that the underworld did not exist—
The concept of the underworld is somewhat universal across almost all races.
A resting place where ancestral souls sleep. A sanctuary where the deceased arrive. Depending on the race or religion, the rulers of that realm might either be gods of light or gods of darkness.
Within the underworld, there can be purgatories punishing the souls of sinners, and paradises only accessible to those deemed “good” in their respective cultures, but generally, the idea that “there is a realm for the dead” is quite consistent.
“—What kind of basis do you have to assert that it doesn’t exist?”
Snapping back to reality, the Prince of the Demon Lord quietly asked as he gazed intently at Enma.
Recalling that sharp gaze sent shivers down Enma’s spine, but he couldn’t help letting out a dreamy sigh. This was one of the reasons he found Zilbagias appealing. If he were another demon race, he’d likely have been showered with insults like, “Stop spouting nonsense!” or “What foolishness!”
To say such things to the Undead King, a death expert, nonetheless! Yet Zilbagias, as he had stated himself, paid due respect to a different school of thought and its successors.
“Of course, I researched it—”
Enma spoke earnestly.
“Let’s call this world we’re conversing in the material world. On the other side of the thin barrier we have here, there is a domain we might as well call the spiritual realm. When one dies, their soul descends there—and I dove right into its depths to explore.”
Shrugging as if it were nothing special, Enma continued.
“Well, to conclude, even after diving deep down, there was no realm for the dead. Just remnants of souls crushed by the world’s pressure, and a source of pure power floating about.”
Zilbagias wore a face that seemed half in disbelief.
Well, that’s only natural.
“You probably can’t believe such sudden claims. So, why not study necromancy and verify it for yourself someday?”
It’s extremely difficult to separate the soul to access the spiritual realm while having a living body—but he kept that to himself.
After discussing a few details regarding the arrangements for the necromancy class with a somewhat dissatisfied Zilbagias, Enma left the scene.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of necromancer he becomes!”
Continuing down the spiral staircase, Enma eventually reached the bottom.
At the entrance to the territory of the undead.
The light of lamps made from luminescent moss. Before the gate imbued with protective magic, armored skeleton guards stood at attention.
At first glance, their heavy armor could easily be mistaken for that of iron golems. Of course, these were Enma’s creations, undead skeletons reinforced with artificial muscles, allowing them to move with surprising agility.
“Hey there, having fun?”
When Enma asked, the skeleton guards rattled their jawbones cheerfully in response.
In truth, they were thoroughly enjoying their duty as gatekeepers.
That was precisely how Enma had limited their intellect.
“Glad to hear that. If you all look like you’re having fun, it makes me happy too.”
With the brightest of smiles, he watched as the skeletons opened the gate respectfully, narrowing his eyes as if indulging in the moment like a grandmother doting on her grandchild—
Not knowing is bliss.
Enma truly felt that way deep down.
To ensure that these skeletons would not suffer, he had stripped away all negative emotions during their creation. They remained oblivious to the pains and troubles of life.
Thus, even as they continued their watch at the dark depths, they could remain perpetually joyous. This fact brought Enma immense joy and happiness.
“Living is nothing but miserable.”
Now that there were no living beings around, he could say it freely.
“Living is nothing but miserable.”
He vowed to keep saying it loudly.
Enma was born into this world around 200 years ago.
In the rural outskirts of a small nation inhabited by humans, he was born to a family of plaster craftsmen.
—A rarity among humans, possessing darkness attribute magic.
At that time, the conflict with the Demon Lord Kingdom was fiercely escalating, and the human nation was brutally persecuting those with dark attribute magic.
Well, it wasn’t the state that was leading the persecution, but the citizens couldn’t allow such beings to coexist as neighbors.
His kind-hearted parents tried to protect Enma, but—after the day of the adult ceremony, when his dark attribute was revealed, Enma was persecuted to the brink of death.
He was persecuted until death.
He realized, near death, that living was suffering. Enduring every torment alongside his parents, cursing the entirety of this world, Enma met a gruesome end.
Even after being freed from suffering through death, his grudge persisted. In the spiritual realm, even when reduced to mere spirit, he continued cursing humanity.
During this turbulent time—he was taken in by a master.
A male necromancer.
“Oh my, what a pitiful soul. Yet, the core remains intact. Allow me to give you a body—”
Thus began Enma’s life as the Undead King.
“The soul is the source of emotion. And reason is built upon the foundation of emotions. The essence of self is the collection of the emotional base and the reason constructed upon it.”
While teaching Enma necromancy, his master had spoken.
“The self of the undead is, at its core, a reconstruction of reason through magic based on the original emotions.”
That’s what’s referred to as the transformation of the mind that occurs when learning necromancy.
“The difference between lower and higher undead lies in the foundation, which is the soul. A fragile foundation can support nothing more than a makeshift hut. Conversely, a robust foundation can support any colossal fortress—”
Just like I or you, the skeletal, bony master remarked, rattling his jaw.
Enma’s resentment was monumental. That’s why his core remained intact, allowing him to construct reason beyond what he had in life. He could manipulate vast amounts of magic.
Life as a dead being was wonderful.
Freed from the burdens of flesh, each day was spent absorbing knowledge of necromancy.
But as time passed, he began to feel pity for the living. Living entails some good moments. That is undoubtedly true, but in the constant conflicts among people, misfortunes and suffering are mass-produced, while only a minuscule fraction of life surpasses happiness.
Wasn’t it rather that most people end up suffering just like he did?
At first, he merely thought that way. While there was some resentment towards the living, he never intended to wipe out all of humanity.
“I’m just going to peek into the depths.”
Until the day his master became unreturnable.
Was there really a country for the dead at the very bottom of the spiritual realm? His master ventured down to verify and never returned.
He knew it was dangerous. If he continued to sink deeper, the world’s pressure would crush his soul, causing his self to vanish.
That’s why his master had taken meticulous precautions—but something must have gone wrong.
Once alone again, Enma lived in hiding while honing his own skills.
After much time preparing and ensuring all precautions, he finally dove into the depths in pursuit of his master—
At the end, he discovered the truth.
“Sorry, Zil-kun, but…”
At the gate, which was slowly opening with a creaking sound, Enma sighed.
“There’s something I haven’t told you.”
It was true that he had reached the very bottom.
It was also true that there was no realm for the dead.
However, he held one thing back.
“—The world is cyclical.”
In the spiritual realm, there was no “bottom.” To be more precise, once one plunged to a certain depth, they would return to their original spot.
At first, he thought it might be a barrier against recognition, but that was not the case.
He realized that at the “bottom,” the world itself folded back.
The waves of magic he emitted and parts of his torn sanity—fell to the bottom and simply returned.
The souls of the dead sink into the spiritual realm. Under the world’s pressure, they gradually lose their self and contours. The remnants of souls are further crushed and become a source of pure power.
Then at the “bottom,” they fold back—again rising.
What happens to the source of power that rises? Enma, who scattered magical factors in the spiritual realm to track them down, was astonished.
The factors had been incorporated into newly formed life in the material world.
These were small animals, insects, or fish.
Upon death, the soul disassembles and is reborn as new life—
He learned that this cycle of rebirth and reincarnation was the law of the world.
Interpreting this fact with cold reason, Enma was—surprised, angered, and saddened.
“What the hell does this even mean?!”
There was no heavenly realm, as everyone believed.
Just dying, losing the self, being born again as different life, dying again, losing the self, and being born once more—
What’s the point of that?!
Trapped in the prison of flesh, having a little fun, and suffering far more!
As a whole, the meaningless suffering of life is produced endlessly!
What’s even more hopeless is that as long as life exists, the cycle of reincarnation remains unchanged.
Unless the world is destroyed, this torment will continue for eternity!
Upon thinking that far, he suddenly realized.
“Oh, then let’s just destroy it.”
Destroy the world. Or perhaps, annihilate all lifeforms.
If that happens, there will be no more reincarnation.
He can prevent the cycle of rebirth.
By ending this pointless cycle of life, he can cease the suffering of flesh.
A paradise without pain, a true underworld will be brought to the surface—!
“Oh…”
Thinking of that grand dream and the endlessly distant journey, Enma sighed wearily.
Annihilating all lifeforms—realistically, that was incredibly daunting. Especially from a methodological perspective—
“More than that, there’s no way the living could easily empathize with this revolutionary idea.”
Enma’s comrades, that is, the committed undead of the Demon Lord Kingdom, were all those who shared this ideology.
However, they were able to accept this thought because they understood the horrors of living, the realities of death, and the truths of the world that Enma had unraveled.
“There’s no reasoning with folks who cling so tightly to their fleshly bodies as if they had regrets. Even if I tried to explain it in detail, it wouldn’t get through to them.”
Even if he spoke the truth, they would likely tell him he was lying. After all, one can’t know what death is like until they experience it.
“That’s why I must lead them…”
With these hands.
To cut off the pointless suffering of life, to sever the cycle of reincarnation.
First, he would start by exterminating humans. Then, he would enlist the numerous humans as allies to eradicate the other races as well.
Everyone should become undead. People would resist, of course.
—The gate opens. Beneath the Demon Lord’s Castle, in the territory of the undead.
There stood countless skeletons lined up.
The human nation that had been absorbed into the Demon Lord Kingdom—where had its former inhabitants gone?
There were far too few to be considered slaves.
The answer lay right before him. They were here.
“In the end, we will win.”
Extricating the aspects of holy attributes or light magic—dark beings have a hard time exterminating the undead.
But that was still a tale for a distant future. He needed complete resistance against sunlight and fire.
More than anything, securing his own position within the Demon Lord Kingdom was paramount.
“Oh, Zil-kun… Will you cooperate with me?”
With a dreamy expression, Enma murmured.
He was such a serious Prince, there was no doubt he wouldn’t resonate with the idea of exterminating all life.
At least while he was still alive.
“While necromancy among demon race is strictly prohibited by the Demon Lord…”
Because the demon race foolishly believed that after death, they would be welcomed by the gods of darkness and live happily while being praised for their past valor and achievements—
“But—if by any chance something were to happen to you—”
For some reason, alluringly, he thought of Zilbagias—
“No matter what means I must use… I’ll resurrect you…”
Enma gently placed a hand on his cheek, wearing a sinister smile.
“Oh, I’m so looking forward to that day…”
When it arrives.