The Necromancer Commands Slaves, Not Undeads

24 – Liberation, Freedom, and Phantoms

“Every person here acknowledges one thing. That would be that without you, we would have suffered many more casualties.”

“Even saying that you single-handedly defeated manticore wouldn’t be an exaggeration.”

The lord was talking to me in a very flattering way.

“Magicians are extremely closed and mysterious existence. It was my first time facing a magician, but I now understand why people praise and fear them.”

“You flatter me.”

The lord gripped my shoulder. Then he smiled kindly at me.

“I would like to apologize for the mistaken judgment I made based on your young appearance.”

“That’s alright. If I was in your place, I would have acted the same way. Your actions were wise and prudent.”

I nodded at him. How could he believe a 13-year-old kid claiming to be a magician?

Even though the black wolf vouched for me, it was difficult to trust me.

“Once the punitive action is safely completed, I will grant you three requests that I can fulfill, as promised.””That’s what it was all about.”

“Indeed. Was there one more thing left?”

“The two favors you used to persuade the mercenaries before, ultimately, were not for your personal gain but for the public good. Let’s forget about that. How about mentioning three things you want now.”

The young lord spoke with a smile. I wasn’t sure how much I was in his good graces, but treating a soon-to-be-leaving guest like this was not that common.

I looked at the young lord with an awkward smile.

As a person about to leave, it seems proper to refuse, but it would be quite regrettable to kick away such an opportunity on my own.

“Then I will express my desires now, expressing my gratitude for your care and generosity.”

I mentioned three things I wanted now to the young lord.

“I plan to go to the capital from now on. However, there’s a reason I need to hurry. Please lend me a good horse that can cover a long distance quickly.”

“What’s the second?”

“Please offer a new opportunity to the slaves we caught in the Manticore subjugation. Please lend them land, lord. And let them work as your tenant farmers. And if they pay off their own price, please liberate them from slavery.”

“I would like to know the reason.”

“No matter how much evil they’ve done, they didn’t have free will. I think it’s possible to pardon them because they were manipulated by the Manticore. Also, my assistant and I dislike the institution of slavery. That’s about it.”

Dorothy moved her gaze towards me. But for now, I couldn’t make any gestures to Dorothy as I was talking to the lord.

“What’s the third?”

I whispered to the lord with my mouth close to his ear.

“Please remove my assistant’s slave mark.”

At that, the lord’s eyes widened. He was looking at me.

And eventually, he answered after a short silence.

“I see. I will accept all of the three requests you have mentioned.”

“Thank you.”

And then, he lifted his wine glass and spoke out in a hearty voice.

“Great warriors who saved Freud, there’s one thing I’d like to ask you all here. Do you think it’s okay for the wizard who led the Manticore Subjugation team to not have a name?”

Thereupon the mercenaries and everyone gathered here started to speak out one by one.

“I don’t think it makes sense!”

“A great wizard needs a name!”

Many people gathered here started shouting that the lord’s opinion was right, raising their glasses.

“I think the same as you all! A great wizard who has white servants, strong power, tolerance, care, and humility needs a name!”

“In this regard, how about celebrating the name ‘Baekgolgyeong’, meaning the controller of white skeletons, for this great wizard here!?”

Baekgolgyeong. It was a fitting nickname for a necromancer who wakes up souls. People responded to the lord’s voice. Everyone started to call out my new name in this world.

“Long live the Baekgolgyeong!!”

“Long live Lord Freud!!”

The young lord emptied the wine in his glass and addressed me.

“This is the last gift I give you before you leave Freud’s territory.”

“It is an honor to receive such an excessive gift.”

Thus, the party celebrating the Manticore subjugation ended gradually with people’s attention and cheering.

After the party, the lord called me and Dorothy separately unlike others.

We sat in the reception room waiting for the young lord while drinking tea guided by him.

The young lord said he had a little preparation to do, then disappeared. Dorothy was looking at me with an incomprehensible expression.

I slowly explained to her.

“Dorothy. Please listen carefully to what I’m going to say from now on.”

“Hmm.”

“From now on, I’m going to remove the slave mark that’s imprinted beneath your chest.”

IHe spoke calmly. At that, Dorothy looked at me in surprise.

“Dorothy, you’ve done a lot for me. You’ve already paid your dues.”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden…”

“What I’m saying is, if you fulfill one favor for me from now on, Dorothy, you will be free.”

Dorothy looked at me, a flustered expression on her face. I continued to explain.

“I’m currently being pursued by Morse. He’s a skilled thief and his goal is probably the wizard’s possessions, but he said he won’t leave any witnesses alive.”

“And that includes Dorothy, not just me. So Dorothy is in danger, too.”

“If you travel with me to the safe capital, then with that, you will have completely paid your dues to me.”

In other words, once we reach the capital, her journey with me will end.

Thinking about Dorothy leaving my side, a lonely feeling arose in my chest. But it wouldn’t be good to restrain her or take her by force just because I felt lonely.

I don’t regard her as a slave. In my ethics, she was no different from a normal person.

She was a citizen of the kingdom, not the empire. She surely became a slave due to some circumstances and must have a hometown to return to.

“Master… I…”

Dorothy’s response did not complete. Because the lord of Freudt entered the place.

Dorothy and I looked at the incoming lord.

The lord went through a simple procedure. It was to confirm that Dorothy was my property. I explained everything that had happened so far.

And the lord was convinced. He nodded and gently lifted Dorothy’s t-shirt to her chest.

The clear slave mark that was imprinted on Dorothy’s skin began to fade slowly as the lord began to rub it with a medal.

The magic item he was holding was a medal engraved with unidentifiable letters made of black metal.

“I heard you can erase the slave mark if you tell the lord, no matter which territory. Do all lords have this item?”

Lord Freudt nodded.

“It was a gift from a wizard to the founding emperor of the empire. They said to distribute it to those with the special power to erase the slave mark.”

“The effect of this magic item is nothing more than erasing the ink engraved on the skin, but it’s special as a symbol because only the lords can have it.”

“It’s called the Rune Medal. A symbolic item that only the lords who have been directly granted land by the emperor can have.”

As he finished explaining, the slave mark engraved on Dorothy’s body was completely erased.

“With this, now Dorothy is free.”

“Thank you.”

I thanked him.

“Outside the mansion, the servants have prepared a horse. Now it’s really time to say goodbye to you.”

Dorothy was rubbing the spot where her vanished slave mark had been, her face blank.

“Baekgolgyeong, and his assistant Dorothy. If fate allows, let’s meet again.”

“It was an honor to meet you.”

Dorothy and I bid farewell to the lord that way. And we left the reception room and mounted the prepared horses.

The horse was black, robust, and muscular. It was 1.5 times larger than the others, but its temperament was quite gentle, so we could get on without any problem.

I had no experience riding a horse in this world, but I had ridden one in my previous life. And it seemed like Dorothy also had experience riding.

As we were both small, even including the luggage, we weren’t too heavy for the horse, so there was no problem even with two of us riding.

“I’ll ride behind. You ride in front because you’re smaller.”

For that reason, Dorothy was holding the horse’s reins right behind my back.

I took out my smartphone from my pocket after a long time and took a picture of Dorothy and me and the Freudt castle in the background.

Click. With the shutter sound, the picture was taken, and I put my smartphone back into my pocket.

“Then let’s get going.”As soon as I finished speaking, Dorothy kicked the horse in the ribs. The horse immediately took off at a dash, with a cry.

The night sky was still beautifully illuminated above us.

We were headed towards the capital.