...
Even through her Mage Robe, Lynch could feel the suppleness of his mentor's skin and her body heat.
Annabella clearly tensed up.
But given the urgency of the situation, she didn't throw him off. Instead, she urged her Undead Warhorse onward, pushing it to an even greater speed as they cut through the night.
Lynch, meanwhile, hugged his mentor's waist tightly, burying his face in her back to reduce the wind resistance, a blissful expression plastered on his face.
'If only I could hold my mentor like this forever...'
Unfortunately, Annabella's Undead Warhorse was simply too fast—the Ferrari of its kind. The ride was a lightning-fast blur, both bumpy and thrilling.
In no more than a quarter of an hour, the warhorse had plunged into the nameless forest and located the ravaged battlefield.
Upon their arrival, the Undead Warhorse dug in its hooves, coming to a dead stop as if rooted to the spot.
In one smooth motion, Annabella plucked Lynch—still lost in his bliss and clinging stubbornly to her waist—and tossed him aside.
"Oof!"
Caught off guard, Lynch landed on his butt in a thick pile of dead leaves and twigs. It didn't hurt, though.
He scrambled to his feet with a sheepish grin, brushing the dust and leaves from his clothes and pretending nothing had happened.
Annabella had no time for him.
She dismounted gracefully, her gaze immediately sweeping across the battlefield.
When she saw the four Holy Light apprentices lying nearby, their chests still rising and falling, she let out a faint sigh of relief.
With a casual wave of her Magic Staff, a large hand of pale, ethereal energy materialized from thin air. It plucked Barry and the other three from the scattered bone heaps and gently deposited them on a relatively flat bed of dead leaves nearby.
After a quick check confirmed their lives weren't in immediate danger, she turned her attention back to the battlefield as a whole.
Seeing the deliberately disturbed piles of bones, Annabella's brow furrowed slightly. She shot Lynch a look. "Did you disturb the scene?"
"Er, yes, Mentor," Lynch admitted meekly. "Things were a bit chaotic, so I thought I should try to cover our tracks..."
"A clumsy attempt at a cover-up. Pointless," Annabella said noncommittally, but she didn't press the issue. Instead, she asked, "So, what about the Necromancer's body?"
"Heh heh~" Lynch grinned. "I recycled him. Turned him into a Skeleton Servant and hid him away."
As he spoke, he quickly took out the rest of the spoils and presented them respectfully. "Mentor, these are the guy's effects. Please, have a look."
Annabella didn't seem to mind that he had converted the corpse. After all, it was hard for any Necromancer to resist the temptation of a body that had been powerful in life.
It was like how some teenage boys find it hard to resist...
As her thoughts drifted, Annabella suddenly shot Lynch an irritated glare. She held his gaze until he felt his skin crawl with unease, only then did she look away and accept the items.
She first gave the Magic Staff and notebook a cursory glance but didn't pay them much mind.
They were just the standard-issue gear for a Necromancer.
But when her eyes fell on the hastily scrawled note, her brow instantly furrowed. She sneered, "So someone in Saint Roland City really was helping him cover his tracks, providing him with a place to hide... I knew it. No wonder this guy was so hard to find."
Next, the ancient map caught her attention, and she studied it closely.
"Hm? Is this a treasure map belonging to Lester the 'Ashbringer'?" She seemed surprised at first, then couldn't help but scoff. "Who in this day and age still believes in this nonsense?"
"Ashbringer? Lester's treasure map?" Lynch, standing to the side, had his curiosity piqued. "Mentor, what's that?"
Annabella explained nonchalantly, "Lester was a notorious High-Tier Necromancer from two hundred years ago. His power supposedly reached the Tier Thirteen Peak, just one step shy of Sainthood."
"His greatest pleasure in life was opposing the Holy Light Church Court. The incident that made him infamous was when he abducted a Quasi-Saintess from the Bright Church Court and successfully transformed her into a powerful Death Knight. That act thoroughly enraged the entire Holy Light System."
"Holy..." Lynch swallowed the "shit" that was on the tip of his tongue as his mentor glanced at him. His face was a mask of awe. "That's so badass! He's a role model for people like us!"
"Don't you dare say that in front of anyone from the Holy Light faction," Annabella warned, glaring at him. "Otherwise, when you're thrown into the Court's dungeons, I certainly won't be the one to bail you out."
"Yes, yes, you're absolutely right, Mentor." Lynch put on an obedient expression before his curiosity got the better of him. "So, what happened next, Mentor? The Church Court couldn't have just let that slide. What happened to our predecessor?"
Annabella continued, "The story goes that the Church Court dispatched a Holy Sanctuary powerhouse, along with numerous High-Tier Holy Light Knights and Priests, to corner him. After a huge battle, Lester was critically injured and on the brink of death, yet he somehow managed to escape."
"Before disappearing without a trace, he left behind numerous treasure maps, making it impossible to tell the real from the fake. He claimed that whoever was fated to find his hidden treasure would inherit his legacy and all his wealth."
"For a time, these treasure maps were all the rage. Countless adventurers, mercenaries, and even many Necromancers and members of other professions went mad searching for the treasure, sparking a great deal of bloodshed."
Annabella sighed. "But a long time has passed, and no one has ever found this supposed treasure."
"Over time, everyone came to believe the whole treasure map story was just a final prank Lester pulled before his death, designed to fool everyone and make them tear each other apart over a myth. After that, the maps gradually became worthless junk that nobody paid any attention to."
"I see," Lynch said, nodding in understanding.
Then, he looked longingly at the spoils of war that had, for a moment, been his.
"What's with that look?" Annabella couldn't help but laugh at his miserly expression. "Do you really think I'd covet this little pile of junk?"
With that, she irritably shoved everything back into Lynch's arms, keeping only the note for herself.
"You can use the notebook for reference, but don't let the jumbled nonsense inside lead you astray. If there's anything you don't understand, just come and ask me," she instructed, her tone becoming slightly motherly. "As for the treasure map, you can keep it as a souvenir, but don't waste your time getting invested in it. It's pointless."
"Yes, yes, this student understands! Thank you for the guidance, Mentor!" Lynch agreed hastily, carefully stowing away his newly recovered treasures.
Although his mentor always spoke with a hint of disdain and a tendency to nag, Lynch could clearly feel the concern in her words. 'She really sees me as her student.' The thought warmed his heart.
After a moment, Lynch asked, "So, Mentor, what's the plan? I don't want to expose myself. It would be a huge pain if the hidden faction behind that Necromancer targeted me. And I want to deal with those bastards from the Holy Light Court even less."
'The Court, especially, gives me the creeps,' Lynch thought. 'I have way too many secrets. It would be bad if they started paying attention to me.'
"Mm, that's for the best." Annabella mulled it over for a moment before making her decision. "For now, don't say a word about this. Just focus on your studies and your training. And make sure you get some decent results for me in the upcoming academy-wide exams."
"Leave the rest to me."
"Yes, Mentor." Lynch instantly felt a great deal of relief. 'It feels good to have my mentor looking out for me, especially when she's so powerful and easy on the eyes.'
After giving Lynch his instructions, Annabella glanced again at the withered bones covering the ground.
She casually raised her Magic Staff. With a mere flicker of her will, a vast and pure wave of death energy erupted from its tip, instantly blanketing the entire battlefield.
The next moment.
As Lynch watched, dumbfounded,
every remaining bone on the battlefield began to stir. Whether it was a relatively complete human skeleton, the fragmented remains of a Fishman, or even the smallest shards of bone, all of it was seemingly seized by an invisible hand, then willfully kneaded and pieced together.
One after another, Skeletons shakily rose to their feet.
In the blink of an eye, a troop of several dozen Skeleton Servants stood in the clearing.
The ground had been picked clean, not a single decent bone was left behind.
"Holy shit..." Lynch stared, his eyes wide. His mind was reeling. 'Mentor... she's so strong!'
That casting speed, that area of effect, that level of control... compared to his own Skeleton Resurrection Skill, which required him to laboriously chant for ages with an uncertain outcome, the difference was like night and day.
And this clearly wasn't even her limit. If not for the limited number of available bones, she could have undoubtedly raised far more Skeleton Servants in a single cast.
'Is this the power of a High-Tier Necromancer?'
Lynch now understood why his mentor had called his efforts to cover their tracks pointless. It turned out she'd never planned on leaving a single bone behind in the first place.
Annabella seemed to enjoy Lynch's shock. The corner of her mouth twitched into a small smile, but she quickly resumed her usual cold expression.
Then, with a heroic flair, she swung herself onto her Undead Horse.
With a wave of her staff, she levitated the four Holy Light apprentices with her magic. Without a single glance at Lynch, she led her vast, motley army of Skeletons at a rapid pace toward the academy.
As for Lynch?
The special treatment he'd enjoyed on the way there was gone. He could only trudge miserably among the Skeletons, jogging to keep up with the troop on his own two feet.
Back at the academy, Annabella led the skeleton army straight to the Chaotic Burial Grounds.
With a casual wave of her Magic Staff, all the Skeletons instantly collapsed. With a great CLATTER, they dissolved back into a pile of bones, providing some fresh practice material for the other students.
After that, she made a trip to the Holy Light System department, handed the four apprentices over to their mentor, and only then returned to her own villa.
Just as she reached her door, she noticed Lynch was still trailing right behind her, looking as if he wanted to say something but was hesitating.
Annabella crossed her arms and asked irritably, "What is it? Is there something else?"
"Well, uh..." Lynch wrung his hands, a fawning smile plastered on his face. His eyes were full of expectation. "Mentor, you see, this time... I sort of, accidentally, performed a tiny little service, right? Heh heh, so... isn't there some kind of, you know, tangible reward?"
"A reward?" Annabella's focus returned to him. She looked his tall, sturdy frame up and down with great interest, her lake-blue eyes narrowing slightly. Her voice became laced with a soft, seductive charm. "Then why don't you tell me... what kind of reward... do you want?"
'Huh? No way...'
'How did the atmosphere suddenly get so... intimate?'
'I was just hoping for some money! I never expected something this good!'
'Wait, this seems completely out of character for my mentor...'
'But what if...?'
'Take the gamble, and maybe this Skeleton becomes a bone dragon!'
At that thought, Lynch's heart began to pound traitorously in his chest, but he maintained a simple, honest smile. "Well... whatever you think is best, Mentor. This student... I can accept anything."
"Oh? You can accept anything, you say~?" Annabella purred, her voice drawing out the words. A foxy smile played on her lips as she nodded. "Very well, then. Tonight, you'll stay here with me. I'll personally give you... a thorough lesson."
'W-what?!'
'She's getting straight to the point? With no foreplay at all?'
Lynch was completely stunned. This sudden bliss felt unreal. He stammered, still unable to believe it, "R-really? Is that okay?"
"Enough nonsense. Let's not waste any time," Annabella said with a seductive chuckle. She suddenly shot out a delicate hand, grabbed Lynch by the collar, and pulled sharply.
Lynch felt an irresistible force yank him forward. With a cry of surprise, he was dragged bodily into the villa.
SLAM!
The door was slammed shut.
Faintly, Lynch's cry could be heard from inside.
"Mentor, please... b-be gentle~~"
...