As soon as Kenta opened his eyes, it was as if the entire surroundings became a domain that belonged solely to him.
The aura of death in the atmosphere churned and gathered around him.
They seem to be drawn to the tattoos imprinted on his body.
Kenta truly felt like he had understood the true essence of "Death", Even if it was just a little. As his understanding of the concept increases, his strength, compatibility and control over the concept of death also increase.
However, there was a frown on his face as though he was dissatisfied with something.
"Only eleven per cent... I would've become even stronger if I had increased my comprehension to at least twenty or twenty-five per cent." He muttered bitterly.
During the later stages of his comprehension, he had tried to break through the eleventh barrier and go a bit further beyond that, but whenever he was about to break through an unbreakable barrier would suddenly interfere with his comprehension and prevent him from progressing any further, which left him quite frustrated.
When he closed his eyes and gazed into his soul, which seemed to have changed slightly along with his comprehension, as not only was the colour a deep shade of purple with specks of crimson, but it also seemed to have become slightly bigger and stronger.
Kenta also noticed an isolated space had been created within his soul.
It was possible to store items within it if he wanted to, as for how much space was within his storage space, he didn't know, but he felt he could store a large quantity of items within it.
'But this is good, with this I won't have to worry about carrying anything too heavy, not to mention inside my soul space, my most precious belongings would be more secure.' He thought inwardly.
Kenta once again opened his eyes and sighed, "Maybe I should try to comprehend the law of death again?" He murmured.
He at least wanted to reach twenty per cent; his comprehension speed is faster in this world where the law of death was at its strongest, who knew how many months or even years it would take to comprehend the law of death to twenty per cent in the outside world.
"Are you perhaps disappointed your comprehension couldn't go any further?" As Kenta was lost in a sea of thoughts, he raised his head and looked up at a black-haired woman who had suddenly appeared without him noticing.
"... Yeah. Although I have become stronger, I felt like I could've done better." He replied.
"He Hehe... I see. Indeed, if it were you, then maybe you could've." The woman said, nodding her head in understanding.
"However, there is a good reason why you couldn't progress any further. When one gains an understanding of a law that governs one of the many fundamental aspects of the universe, they not only gain the ability to manipulate the concept, but their soul also undergoes a mutation for the individual to control the concept, like in your case, the universal law of death... Your soul has already started its evolution, but if you try to gain too much power while being in such a state that would put a heavy burden on your soul. Which would put it at risk of collapsing." She explained in a fluent tone.
"I... I see. Come to think of it, I think Agni said something similar to me before, didn't he?" Kenta mused. And with a wave of his hand, the accumulated aura of death in the surroundings swirled together in accordance with his will before vanishing inside the tattoos on his skin.
Now that his comprehension of the concept of death has increased, he understands how to control the aura of death even if only a little.
"... I can sense I don't have much time left in this world; in a few minutes, I will be sent back to the world of the living. Until then, there is something I want to do." He said as he got to his feet.
The black-haired woman, Anna, observed him curiously as she followed along. Kenta once again stood before the soul of the undead, who kept uttering words of malice.
Their eyes were filled with killing intent, and the words they muttered were mostly broken sentences; it was extremely difficult to understand.
After appearing a few meters before them, Kenta looked over his shoulder and gazed at Anna before asking. "These people were once citizens of the kingdom of Oura, weren't they?"
"Huh, wh-where did you hear that name?!" Her dark pupils contracted slightly as her lips quivered.
Kenta said nothing more as he turned his head and gazed back at the many deceased souls.
Now that his strength has increased, he can see and understand the concepts of the souls before him.
From within the souls of the many deceased, he could see an unknown curse placed on them.
'This must be what was responsible for claiming their lives when they were alive, if I'm not wrong.' He mused as his crimson eyes reflected a strange magic formation hidden within the souls before him.
"... I'm curious about what really happened between Hendrix and the kingdom of Oura, but... If I were to ask you right now, you wouldn't tell me, won't you?" His gaze did not stray from the souls as he asked.
"..." Anna kept her silence with a complicated expression on her face.
Even though he received no answer, Kenta's expression didn't falter. Slowly, he reached out his hand towards a particular soul. It was the soul of a middle-aged man with short silver hair who seemed to be a general who was proficient with the sword.
Once his hand made contact with the soul, it underwent a strange awakening.
He didn't stop there; his crimson eyes landed on a black-haired woman who seemed to be in her early twenties.
From her side, she was equipped with a pair of daggers; judging from her dark attire, she seems to be an assassin. Just like the first soul, Kenta touched her soul, and it underwent an awakening.
The aura of death shrouded the souls of the two as they were enveloped in a cocoon, preventing anyone from physically perceiving what was happening inside the cocoon. Anna's beautiful black eyes narrowed slightly as her lips moved, "This... He is turning those souls into the undead." Her clear pupils shone with a strange light as she observed the spectacle happening before her.
Kenta paid her no heed as he started to recite his incantation, "Awaken, break the boundaries between life and death and serve me, resurrection."
As though reacting to his words, the cocoon began to shake violently until cracks began to appear on the surface.
Bang!
Once the cocoon shattered, two figures now stood before Kenta. They were no longer in spiritual form anymore but had gained a body of flesh. A woman dressed in black female-style armour made from the aura of death. And a man who donned a black robe with black armour on the sides.
The woman had pale skin, as though her body no longer had any blood circulating through her system. Her eyes were a deep crimson, and she had tiny fangs.
'Oh, she became a vampire?' Kenta raised an eyebrow at this revelation. After his comprehension of the concept of death had increased to eleven per cent, he knew he could manipulate the souls of others, and to a certain extent, he could also manipulate the dead.
However, as for what would happen after he resurrected them by turning them into his undead, he wasn't quite sure.
'If she is a vampire, then does this mean she won't be able to stay underneath the sun?' He wondered. If she has all of the weaknesses commonly known to vampires, then it would definitely be a problem.
'As for the general, he seems to have become a zombie.' Kenta's bright ruby eyes inspect them both with a scrutinising gaze.
Anna observed them while approaching Kenta from the side. "Impressive, even though your comprehension hasn't reached the threshold, you can create your own undead servants." She said in a cheerful tone.
"... If you want, I can make you and the others my servants as well. That should be enough for you guys to leave this place, right?" Kenta gazed at her as he asked; however, Anna smiled faintly as she shook her head in denial.
"It's impossible, the current you are too weak to turn us into your servants. I recommend you come back once your comprehension reaches at least fifty per cent at best."
"Eh, fifty per cent? With the current speed of my comprehension, wouldn't that take a long time?" A frown appeared on his face as he asked.
"Hehe... The problem is that we are simply too powerful right now. So, your magic won't be able to force us to submit to you." Anna replied.
"I see... So, the strength of the soul determines the undead I can make." Kenta placed his hand beneath his chin as he hummed to himself.
"That's right, the servants you create cannot surpass you in strength; otherwise, the master servant contract would become unstable, and the servants can potentially break the contract and escape your control, so I recommend you be careful." She warned sternly.
At that, Kenta's face contorted into full seriousness as he nodded his head. Both the black-haired woman and the silver-haired man who donned an armoured robe respectfully knelt down before Kenta.
Even though they were meeting him for the first time, they instinctively felt the urge to submit and serve him. Kenta also felt a foreign connection between them.
"I will be depending on you two from this moment onwards, is that okay?" He asked.
"Yes."
"Understood."
They replied in perfect unison. Seeing the respect and loyalty they directed towards him, Kenta nodded his head in satisfaction.
Then, his gaze swept across the other remaining souls gathered there, and a look of amusement appeared on his face.
'I don't have any particular interest in the non-combatant but... The ones who are more experienced in combat would be good to act as my personal soldiers, maybe I should also get some maids too.' Kenta's lips were upturned into a faint smile. He only had a few minutes left; he might as well put it to use.
In the end, his goal is vengeance, against the army of a major nation, he alone would find it difficult to overcome them all, even with three universal laws.
The major nations all had veteran warriors who were well-versed in weaponry and magic.
Honestly, Kenta wasn't confident enough to say with absolute certainty that he could eliminate the prince who was responsible for his parents' death... And even if he succeeded in doing so, he would ultimately become enemies with the entire nation.
But what if he had an entire army working with him?
Would he need to fear the military prowess of an entire nation?
His ruby eyes shone brightly as his figure moved around enthusiastically!
The corner of Anna's lips twitches as she sees him reviving the souls of the deceased one after another.
"... This boy, he really is just like Hendrix." She sighed in exasperation.
"Kenta... You need to become as strong as possible. Once that Princess finds out about your existence, even, I'm not sure how things will turn out in the end. Hendrix's soul within you is still a long way from awakening."
Anna's expression became stern as her pearl-like eyes gazed at Kenta's small back in concern.
'Perhaps I should leave my imprint on him before he leaves, just in case something happens.' She mused.