Chapter 497 Horde? Nah, An Army!
Chapter 497 Horde? Nah, An Army!
"A Lich?" Bismark mumbled.
"A kind of undead being with the power to control other undead-" Ashton began explaining in simple terms, momentarily forgetting about Bismark's age.
"I know what a lich is," Bismark sighed while rubbing his chin.
Before turning into an undead, he had lived on earth for more than a century. Only someone witless would think he wouldn't know what a lich was. Nevertheless, he suspected Ashton was simply trying to annoy him.
Bismark was shocked because, despite his ample age, he had never heard of someone raising a lich. Usually, there were only two ways by which a lich would appear. Either an undead was born as one, or they accidentally evolved into one.
However, even the mentioned conditions were natural, and even the undead from Nirvana had had no success in artificially creating a lich. Yet Ashton boldly claimed he could turn him, an impure undead, into a lich?
Bismark was quite sceptical of Ashton's offer, and rightfully so. Nonetheless, Ashton couldn't be judged based on the conventional rules of the world, and logical thinking or analysis didn't apply to him.
"Can you really do that?"
Ashton nodded, "I can. In fact, I can do it right here and now if you want to, of course. No pressure."
However, since Bismark was hesitant, Ashton decided to egg him on. Thankfully, he had just the skill he needed in these times.
<Skill: Coercion has been activated.>
"Let me help you make an informed decision for old times' sake." Ashton mumbled, "You want revenge on the undead, just like I do. Our goals align, but unfortunately, our strengths do not. I will take my revenge on them, and it wouldn't matter to me whether you're with me or not.
"That said, I know you hate them just as much as I do, if not more. Those bastards took everything away from you. Your kingdom, your honour, your family... everything and then, as if wanting to rub salt on your wounds, they turned you into one of them."
Bismark kept staring at the sky, and his fists curled up tightly as anger clouded his mind. Ashton's words were slowly reminding him of the grand life he once had. A life that was snatched away from him.
However, it was only the beginning. Ashton wasn't planning on abandoning the fire he had created within Bismark's 'heart'.
"Anger is like the flame in a forge," Ashton remarked while carefully analysing Bismark's behaviour, "However, no matter how intense the flame is, it won't forge a weapon by itself. For that, you'd need metal and a blacksmith.
I can offer you both of those. As long as you become my lich, you'll have a solid weapon to erase those undead freaks from existence! Abandon yourself and be reborn under my command!"
"I'll... do it." Bismark replied, kneeling before Ashton, "I'll be your pawn, your slave, whatever you want as long as I can get my revenge. My life is your's to play with."
As Ashton heard those words, he couldn't hide his crooked smile anymore. The next moment, Astaroth confirmed Bismark's eligibility to turn into a lich.
[Got a guide for you. No need to thank me for it. After all, by helping you, i'm helping myself!]
__
How to raise your lich 101:
Step one: Find a power-hungry, soulless bastard.
Step two: Make them drink the carefully crafted transformation potion.
Step three: Kick back and relax.
__
'...'
[What?]
'Your 'guide' only consists of the information I already knew?'
[...yes.]
'Why am I not surprised?'
***
Back in the outskirts, the battle was finally dying down. However, it wasn't a perfect win for the Ghosts. Roughly half of them got wiped out, even though Anna, Ricochet and Nora did their best to reduce the losses.
Despite being drenched in the disgusting blood of the undead, Anna's beauty was still untouched. However, her expressions weren't at ease. She knew Ashton's strength better than everyone else.
Yet at that moment, she couldn't help but feel worried for Ashton's safety. The undead they faced were no joke.
"Don't worry about your man, princess." Nora smacked Anna's back before joining her for sightseeing, "I bet had he been here instead of us, these undead bastards would've died the moment they stepped out of the city."
"I know. But thanks for uplifting my spirits." Anna replied before suddenly strangling Nora, "However, it would be better for you if you kept your hands away from me."
"Kinky!" Nora bit her lips as if she had no intention of struggling against Anna.
Meanwhile, the rest of them were busy disposing of the corpses. But the moment the catfight broke out, they said, "hell with the undead". Only a madman would miss such a sight.
However, their fun was interrupted when Anna saw some strange movement within the city. Immediately letting go of Nora, she stood up to ensure her eyes weren't playing tricks on her.
Unfortunately, her eyes weren't lying. Thousands upon thousands of creatures could be seen rushing towards them. Soon everyone else saw them, and a wave of despair washed over them.
A hundred undead were enough to slice their forces in half. But now, thousands were headed their way. Not to mention most of them were either out of stamina or were riddled with injuries. Fighting wasn't an option anymore.
While everyone was worrying about their lives, Anna couldn't care less about hers. If the entire city of undead was heading towards them, then did Ashton fail? That was the only thought inside her head.
"I'm afraid you're wrong, mistress," Sven mumbled while sneaking up to Anna, "Our lives are linked to our master's. The fact that we are alive and well is all the proof you need to affirm master's survival."
Even Celeste decided to chime in, "As much as fun it'd be to see you cry, the master will kill me if that happened. Moreover, I'd suggest you take a closer look at the horde before killing off our beloved master."
"What do you-" Anna mumbled before complying with Celeste's suggestion, "Wait, is that Ashton leading them!?"