“Chapter 43”

"Chapter 43"

"Monaya might be young, but she was a saintess trained from childhood in the temple's publicity department!"

"After experiencing the filming process and watching a short clip of behind-the-scenes footage, Monaya immediately realized she must secure the role of the second shareholder!"

"The lure of being 'remembered by all races' was too great!"

"If she really could achieve such promotional impact, she would be a contender for the next Papal succession!"

"Monaya, of humble origin, had her eyes filled with ambition."

"Filos saw the ambition in her eyes, but said nothing, did nothing."

"As long as she could act well and promote 'The Prince of the Sea' effectively, that would suffice."

"'Now we just need a dragon.' Filos mused over the script, contemplating whether to capture one from Dragon Island or hold a casting event."

"Xiao Guai, being a dragon, albeit a bone dragon, had a domineering personality and refused Filos's idea of having a second dragon."

"No matter how many pets Filos had, as long as he had only Xiao Guai as his dragon, it would remain the only child."

"Filos clearly hadn't regarded Xiao Guai as just a program when he raised it, hence it being his only dragon."

"In a sense, bone dragons are no longer living creatures, as all undead are not 'biological'."

"The Cloud Shuttle Devil Fish, upon reaching level 200, could choose to transform into a human form—or another form if desired."

"Xiao Guai, however, could only ever grow larger or smaller."

"Not being a lich, it lacked the special ability to revert to its pre-death form."

"The eighth shareholder, initially seeking revenge on the mermaid but falling in love during their interaction, had two options to consider."

"One was for Filos to capture a giant dragon from Dragon Island and hold a casting call to select one for the role."

"The other was to use Xiao Guai as a stunt double, employing its skeletal frame combined with illusion magic to model a dragon, while a human actor would play its humanoid form."

"Filos was currently leaning towards the first option."

"Xiao Guai’s destructive power was immense, and though it was willing to restrain itself under Filos's command, Filos felt it was unfair to the creature to always keep it filtered."

"'Let's finish the remaining scenes first, and if there’s no suitable candidate, we’ll make a trip to Dragon Island.'"

"Thinking this, Filos continued to immerse himself in the filming of 'The Prince of the Sea'."

*

"'What??! Cancelled?! Why is it cancelled?!'"

"In a city over a hundred kilometers away, another lord, just like Filos, was grappling with the pain and hesitation of decision-making."

"In the study of Lord Starna, the stewards knelt tremblingly, prostrate on the ground, incessantly pleading for the lord's forgiveness."

"Lakdalia City was a bustling metropolis—far more so than the previous Dayak City."

"But now, Lakdalia City was facing a significant financial crisis."

"Situated near the Chaotic Seas, the entire territory was plagued with poor security, overrun with bandits and magical races."

"Yet, this chaos had brought considerable wealth to Lakdalia City."

"Not all magical races were adept at business, and the Starna family had amassed a substantial fortune through 'brokerage' and information arbitrage."

"For some unknown reason, since last month, fewer magical races were doing business with the Starna family in Lakdalia City."

"This month, there were none at all."

"The mountains of gold coins in the treasury were sufficient for the family's lavish spending for centuries, but with only expenditures and no income, relying solely on the worthless commoner slaves, the Starna family couldn't advance further."

"Thud, thud."

"The study door was knocked. The old lord took a deep breath, suppressing his anger: 'Come in.'"

"A tall man entered, Arthur, Arthur Starna, the old lord’s eldest son."

"'Father,' Arthur greeted respectfully with a bow."

"The old lord skipped the polite but tedious greetings customary among nobility, asking bluntly, 'Well? Did you find out?'"

"Arthur’s face showed difficulty. Most of their business partners were magical races. Giants were easy to deceive with their low intelligence and emotional quotient; but with high-ranking magical races like the Vampires, they had to lower their stance towards the stewards; and with cunning races like the Goblins, they had to exhibit their talents to the fullest, winning them over with their capabilities..."

"Treating different races with varied approaches was indeed an art."

"He was once confident that no one in the southern empire could snatch business from their Starna family."

"But now, someone capable of stealing their business had indeed appeared."

"Arthur spoke gravely, 'I have contacted the steward of Count Edward. I’ve offered a 30% commission, but he didn’t reply directly, only saying he’d consider it.'"

"The business with Edward was their family's largest source of income."

The Bloodkin are wealthy and love to show off; their wealth differs from that of the merfolk.

Merfolk adore beauty, embodying an earthly, "simple" opulence, indifferent to money due to its easy acquisition.

The extravagance of the Bloodkin is genuinely lavish!

Among items of similar taste, they favor the priciest, embodying the belief: "The more I spend, the greater my joy."

Their understated luxury is evident at a glance—an intentional paradox.

Thus, Starner, having mastered the Bloodkin's taste, has profited immensely over the years.

Losing the Bloodkin as a major client would slash the Starner family's income by more than half!

The weary old lord, waving his hand, said: "The Bloodkin's 'elegance tax' is even higher than the duke's; keep gifting and persuading, and they'll agree eventually."

"How are things with the giants?" Trading with giants is hassle-free; their emotional intelligence inversely relates to their size, making them the easiest to deceive, as per the old lord.

Arthur revealed a pained expression: "They... they've decided to supply their shops first with future goods."

Discovered.

Their practice of buying low from the giants and selling high or at market rate was uncovered.

The old lord's face soured immediately.

It wasn't fear of retribution; Arthur's safe return home suggested the giants bore no grudge.

The Starner family's client relations mostly evolved from the chaotic marketplace.

The marketplace's chaos provided their greatest shield.

With countless battles daily, secrets don't last in the market, as those who know them might soon become merchandise themselves.

Hence, a bold heart can certainly get away with a few deceits!

The dangers of such a strategy were clear to no one more than the old lord.

But being deceived was a result of their "excessive weakness"; it was their own fault.

Such were the rules of the chaotic marketplace.

As long as he doesn't stumble upon entering the chaotic marketplace, no harm will come!

Therefore, after the phase of wooing and consolidating clients, the old lord had not set foot in the chaotic marketplace for decades.

But from then on, he, including his son and grandson, could never enter the chaotic marketplace again.

The old lord's face darkened: "Do you know who stole our business?"

Giants are simple-minded; Arthur easily extracted the information he needed from them.

"It's the lord of Lansville."

At this name, the old lord couldn't help but show a perplexed expression: "Where is that?"

Spellcasters have strong mental powers and good memories, but with the empire so vast, it's not rare for minor nobles to sell their lands to maintain basic dignity.

Arthur, with a complex expression, said: "That's Dayak. It was renamed after the new lord arrived."

Mentioning Dayak, the old lord recalled something; his 58th son, blessed with light talent, had some connection with Dayak city, what was his name, Chidi?

"That waste Chidi?!"

The old lord had always looked down upon the poor Chidi family, so learning that it was Chidi who took the Starner business, he immediately became furious.

Arthur remained calm: "Chidi is just a magistrate. His talent is so poor that the giants could blow him away in one breath. I think the key lies with this new lord."

As one of dozens of sons who stood out to be groomed as an heir, Arthur was indeed intelligent.

The Bloodkin are proud, even their butlers too arrogant to converse much, but the information from the giants made him suspect that the new lord of Lansville might be a formidable opponent.

"That place, how could a truly powerful figure go there to be a lord. Father, leave this to me! I'll go and kill him. Once he's dead, those clients will naturally come back to us!"

Speaking was Jack, the old lord's 66th son, the most talented among his many sons. At twenty-two, he was already a 45-level knight, and breaking 50 before thirty was almost a certainty.

Without a doubt, he would surpass his father in the future.

He was also the greatest challenger to Arthur's position as heir. Arthur was over three hundred years old but only at level 59.

In the world of magic, level is king.

The old lord, merely over 400 years old, could still reach 600, given that the average lifespan of a high-level spellcaster is around 500 and their family's wealth affords regular Holy Light baptisms.

With over a hundred years left, he has ample time to establish an absolute advantage in levels.

Perhaps due to his age, or because the business was stolen by the disregarded Chidi, the old lord also felt a raging anger ignite.

"Fine, I'll give you 50 men. Go and teach those ignorant fools a lesson!"

"Father—"

Arthur attempted to interject, but was silenced by the old lord's angry glare.

"The dignity of Starner must not be compromised."

The world of nobility is even more brutal than the lower echelons; showing weakness with a treasury full of wealth invites greedy peers to tear and devour.

Therefore, this matter cannot simply end like this!

"Father—" Arthur tried to persuade again, but the old lord didn’t give him the chance.

"Enough, you may leave."

Jack glanced provocatively at his older brother.

Seeing his father's mind made up, Arthur dared not say more.

Although the old lord was over four hundred, what's that for a high-level spellcaster? He had at least another hundred years of lordship ahead.

Jack, brimming with confidence and joy, unsheathed his greatsword, hoisted it, and declared with gusto, "I’ll go and kill him!"

*

"How much further? Where exactly is Lansville? Ah, let’s just go back!"

Jack Starner, leading fifty elite city guards, went from high-spirited to utterly dispirited in just eight hours.

"Young master, be careful! Hide!!!"

In eight hours, 50 level-49 elite knights and 3 level-45 elite spellcasters, along with Jack, barely advanced twenty kilometers.

Ten of those kilometers were spent leaving Lakdalia City to enter Lansville, taking a total of 5 minutes.

But upon entering the territory of Lansville, for seven hours and fifty-five minutes, they were dodging and hiding from the undead.

This was their 33rd encounter with the undead; without daring to show any aggression, they mounted their steeds and fled swiftly in the opposite direction.

"Let's head home, we must immediately report this to father! Why has the Endless Plains expanded here so quickly?!"

So far, there had been no casualties, solely because Jack and his group were fully focused on evasion.

But now, their physical strength was at its limit, and their magical energy nearly depleted, death seemed an imminent reality.

"Damn it! How could this happen!" Jack, resentful, his talent the best among all his siblings!

Just a hundred years, in a hundred years, as his father aged and he became a half-step legend surpassing his siblings — his splendid life was supposed to truly begin then!

Not to die in this cursed place, becoming an undead, ending a life that had not yet begun!

"No going to Lansville, I want to return, I must go back to Lakdalia City!"

Captain Ham, with a pallid expression, said: "Young master, we've long been unable to return."

From their first distant sighting of the undead, they had attempted to retreat, but were also confronted by undead armies.

Dodging the undead all along, they were now clueless about their whereabouts.

The escort team following Jack to “visit” Lansville’s new lord was not weak; level 49 and 50 were a watershed, but it didn’t mean level 49 was commonplace.

A pure level 49 and 50 escort team was already the pinnacle force of Lakdalia.

Ostensibly visiting the new lord, but secretly they were prepared to seize any opportunity to eliminate him.

"Damn, if Toneyl and Louis hadn't died, we wouldn't have to be this passive!"

The Toneyl bandits were assets of the Starner family, no secret in Lakdalia.

The bandits' downfall had cost the Starners dearly, with significant investments in three advanced professions!

Not to mention the series of repercussions from the loss of high-end combat strength.

Take this mission, for instance; usually, Louis would scout ahead, they would proceed in the middle, followed by Toneyl and the bandits covering the rear.

"All the dirty work must be pinned on the bandits, including all subsequent arrangements, which require Toniel's involvement."

"The Stana family controls more than just Toniel's bandit group, but due to its destruction, the other groups must pick up their work and deal with probes from other powers, leaving no time to spare."

"The old lord does have other high-ranking professionals under him, but to 'win back' clients, he's sent them all to pull strings."

"For multiple reasons, this group finds itself without an absolute leader to make decisions."

"Although the interim leader Hol's abilities are not poor, something always seems to be missing."

"Everyone's strength is similar, and in a crisis, no one engages in power struggles that could lead to death, but Hol's own confidence and ability are limited. Even if he could unleash 200% of his potential in a life-or-death situation, 2x2 is still only 4, far from the 6 needed to safely lead everyone to a way out."

"Crack, crackle..."

"As darkness fell, the sound of bones colliding became even more terrifying in the silent night."

"What should we do, Hol, what should we do?"

"All eyes, including those of the highest-ranked Jack, turned to him, helplessly placing their hopes of survival on him."

"Hol felt no sense of being moved, only a heavy weight pressing down on him, making it hard to breathe."

"Pain, torment..."

"Crack, crackle, crackle..."

"The sound of bones striking grew closer, and in this situation, Hol made a decision—"

"He released his mount, the Great Earth Dragon, from their bond, took out his heavy sword from the space ring, took a deep breath, and looked at his companions: 'I'll draw their attention away. You use this chance to run. Go back and tell Lord Lansville that the undead have occupied and the Scourge of the Undead is about to enter Lakdalia City—'"

"'Please, make it back to Lakdalia safely!' Hol bowed deeply, 'My family is in your hands!'"

"'Hol...'"

"Where there are people, there will be struggles. They certainly had their share of overt and covert conflicts, but all the grudges and past issues became insignificant when Hol was willing to sacrifice his life to carve a path of survival for them."

"'Don’t worry, we’ll take good care of your family!'"

"They solemnly promised, but did not stop his sacrifice."

"Everyone wants to live, and being moved by his act is one thing, but the desire to survive is another."

"Survive! As long as they can survive, they'll do anything!"

"Hol, trembling, gripped the hilt of his heavy sword."

"He too wanted to survive, but he had children, parents, siblings, and a wife."

"If he didn't go out, he would die."

"Going out meant death too, but if his companions could escape—his family might at least be saved."

"'Come on! You stinking pile of bones—' Hol, as if to vent all his anger and fear, charged forward with a roar."

"'Lost tourist detected, aggressive behavior noted, but with increased heart rate, magic disorder, and unstable mental waves... No threats, robbery, or intimidation detected... Probability of misunderstanding over 90%. Initiating self-defense explanation mode.'"

"Under the cover of night, the flickering soul fire shone like an incandescent bulb, casting a bright light on Hol's face, momentarily stunning him. But his 49 eyes were unaffected by this 'harmless light', and he continued his charge towards the undead."

"The undead changed tactics, the stilted male bass voice replaced by a gentle female's: 'Hello, I'm Siri, your travel guide. Are you lost, sir?'"

“？？？”

"'Dear tourist, I think there's been a little misunderstanding. I'm not a nefarious undead brigand, I'm your live Siri map!'"

"'Of course, if you need, I can also be your tour guide, emergency doctor, errand runner, mount, or bag watcher... But that's a different price.'"

"Hol didn't understand a word of the skeleton's mumbling, but—"

"The undead can speak?!"

"A skeleton, devoid of flesh and vocal cords, can speak?!!!"

"At this moment, Hol was more shocked than when he had made the decision to sacrifice himself for others!"

"Was he hallucinating out of sheer terror?"

"'Dear esteemed guest, hello, I am Siri12543215, your dedicated customer service representative. Are you lost on your way to Lansville?'"

"What is it like to have a skeleton emerge from the ground at your feet, desperately digging itself out?"

"'Thud!' Hol fainted."

Two helpful Siris summoned an ambulance for him and thoughtfully "found" his companion to bring back.

“Ahhh, don’t come any closer!!” Becoming undead does not grant eternal life; on the contrary, once undead, one can never attain immortality.

Jack and his group ran for their lives, wishing they could sprout additional legs. But no matter how fast they fled, could they really escape the omnipresent undead calamity and the everywhere security plus service Siri army?

With Siri12543215's call, "Siri, are you there? We've found a group of lost tourists needing assistance. Requesting support."

"Siri received."

As countless voices echoed, numerous skeletons emerged from the ground.

A sea of undead, their eye sockets aflame, spoke in unison, "This is Siri. Where would you like to go, guests?"

“Ahhhhhhh—”

"54 of them, not one left standing, all collapsed."

540,000 Siri units, bewildered, gazed at the fallen tourists and then activated the emergency plan for handling situations of tourist fainting.

*

“Ugh...” Jack felt extremely uncomfortable upon waking; he dreamed of being chased and cornered by an undead calamity, with no escape from their clutches.

Countless hands reached out from the ground, grasping his limbs, tearing his body apart.

“Phew—just a dream!” Jack jolted upright in bed, relieved and frightened, only to open his eyes to the sight of a ghastly skeleton.

The voice in my dream said, "Greetings, guest. I am your temporary caretaker, Siri233333. You fainted in the forest due to magical exhaustion, and it was Siri444444 who brought you back."

“Since your body is healthy, this rescue did not incur much expense. Siri has applied for a waiver of the service fee. If satisfied, please rate our service. Five stars for highly satisfied, four stars for...”

The words of the self-proclaimed caregiver Siri didn’t fully register in Jack's mind, overwhelmed by the thought—My God, it wasn’t a dream!! My God, I survived the undead calamity! My God, the undead can talk!

Undead can indeed talk, but not all of them do.

For legendary necromancers like Antonio, level 169, speaking is normal, and they can even revert to their pre-death states.

Lower-ranked level 130 Bone Dragons can also speak, using vocal magic since they lack vocal organs.

The lower-level undead, those below level 100, are nothing more than skeletal frames.

The reason these "siri" can emit sounds like legendary undead is not because they've mastered some vocal magic, but because Phelos has networked each of their skeletons into a massive system.

Within this network resides a 100+ level legendary undead, and once synchronized, all undead are equipped with siri's intelligent voice package.

This is currently the most convenient method, but the downside is that the voice of the undead providing the voice pack carries an inescapable eerie, somber, and mechanical tone. Phelos tried to soften it with some tuning, but it doesn’t seem to have been very effective.

"Five, five stars," Jack stammered as he gave a five-star rating.

"Thank you for your positive review," siri said with a "smile." "Do you need any more assistance?"

Almost subconsciously, Jack wanted to say, "Your immediate disappearance is the best help you could give me," but his survival instinct forced a stiff and insincere smile: "Where am I, exactly?"

The room wasn't in the familiar opulent style. This wasn't the home of a noble or a supernatural being. The bed was by the window, and the half-open window let in a warm breeze. The bright, splendid sunshine did not resemble that of a necromancer's abode.

Nor did it resemble the Endless Plains.

Caregiver siri233333 said, "This is the Lanceville Tourist Center. Since you and your companions didn't specify a location before fainting, we brought you back to the medical room at the Lanceville City Tourist Center by default."

"Please rest assured, our principle in Lanceville is not to exploit any visitor's wallet. We won't charge you extra."

Lanceville?! I'm in Lanceville City?!

Wasn't Lanceville City that poor, backward, remote, and filthy place before? How could it look like this now!

Jack's major competitor, Ove, is the grandson of the governor of Dayak City, Pok Chitty. Both of their mothers were gifts sent to please the old lord. He had exceptional knightly talents, while the other possessed a rare and valuable talent for light.

It's just that Jack's background was worse; his mother was merely a female slave.

To understand whether Ove's background could pose a disruptive threat to him, he had visited Dayak City a few years ago.

Compared to Lakdalia City, the inner city of Dayak was filthy, filled with huge pits left after the transfer of entire magical buildings.

Manure, garbage, and corpses on the roadside were blown into these pits, emitting an extremely unpleasant smell.

There were hardly any people on the streets. Even adventurers passing by for supplies hurried in and out, and the entire city lacked any high-level professions.

Such an inner city was only slightly better than the outer city of Lakdalia.

What of the governor! Such a poor and rundown small city is not worth mentioning!

Thus, Jack returned home, filled with the joy and pride of imminent victory.

But just a few years had passed, and Dayak City had transformed into the astonishing Lanceville City.

The view from the medical room's window was already stunning, but stepping onto the streets, standing on a spacious road wide enough for two giants to walk side by side, left him indescribably awestruck.

The clean and tidy streets were free of any litter. Trees, bushes, trash bins, public restrooms, mini-maps... and the perfectly square and orderly streets and factories would satisfy even those with the most severe OCD.

The buildings in sight weren't luxurious, certainly not fitting a noble's extravagant taste, but their symmetrical, square designs were pleasing to the eye.

Even the critical Jack couldn’t find fault with them.

But these aspects alone weren't enough to amaze him.

The tourist center where Jack was placed was the closest to where he had fainted, located in the satellite industrial city outside of Lanceville.

At eight in the morning, it was time for workers to head to their jobs. Streams of people poured out of the subway, carrying milk tea, coffee, or soy milk, chatting and laughing on their way to the factories. Their faces bore smiles free of any gloom, exuding a hearty and happy aura. Individually, their auras might be weak, but together, hundreds or thousands of them shone like fireflies, palpably present.

"Whoosh~ Got the limited edition super deluxe pancake today, so happy, so happy~" Star Fairy, with his glittering effects, joyfully held a breakfast several dozen times his size, singing snippets of songs. Under his command, numerous magical fireflies transformed into several layers of buff.

Magic recovery speed +30%

Health recovery speed +30%

Stamina limit +30%

Meditation speed +30%

Magic affinity +30%

Elemental affinity +30%

Mental clarity +30%

Work efficiency +50%

Today is another day brimming with energy!

Jack, lacking a gaming system, couldn't precisely perceive the effects of this long string of buffs, but with the Star Fairy's appearance, his body, heavy from the shock and chaos caused by the undead, suddenly felt lighter, floating in a state of extreme comfort!

Clenching his fist, he felt he could take on an err... Level 46 without any problem!

"Is that a Flower Fairy?" Jack eyed the fairy nibbling on a pancake, a hint of greed flashing in his eyes.

What a treasure! If only this little creature could stay by his side every day, bestowing him with these buffs—

"Kind reminder: All life in Lanceville has its own rights to freedom and existence. We urge our visitors to respect themselves and others."

The voice that suddenly appeared in his mind was like a sledgehammer, offering a 'kind reminder' but with a brutally harsh approach.

"Ah!" Jack clutched his head. Although it was only a moment, the intense pain nearly made him black out.

If an employee works for him, basic safety guarantees are a must.

Scalping behavior is only a reminder at first, followed by a warning if unheeded.

But for dangerous tendencies like 'imprisonment', 'human trafficking', or 'kidnapping', don’t expect Phelos to be polite—even thinking about it is not allowed!

Displeased? If so, then challenge him! Defeat the lord and you take his place, but if you lose, you must live honestly according to his rules.

"Ssss..." Jack, holding his head, noticed that no one dared to approach and ask if he needed help.

With the increase in visitors to Lanceville recently, the workers had seen all sorts of people.

They could recognize someone who had been warned just by their behavior, no need to ask further.

Of course, there were more direct cases—like those who had actually attempted robbery, only to be struck down by a bolt of justice (lightning) before they could harm anyone.

Ignored by everyone, Jack scowled, but recalling the recent 'kind reminder' towards the undead, he dared not act out.

As he gritted his teeth, trying to convince himself not to feel embarrassed, two female workers, arm in arm and chatting happily, walked by him, their scent similar to that of the Flower Fairy wafting into his nose.

One of the workers, eyeing her companion's pancake enviously, swallowed hard, "Were the pancakes so easy to get today? I’m so tempted. No, no, I must get one tomorrow too!" A basic pancake cost just 10 copper coins, including an egg, crispy skin, a bit of pork floss, and diced sour radish – not a stingy serving.

But there were so many new items each day to try, one’s wallet couldn't keep up!

This indulgence was something they only allowed themselves every few days.

—So why is it so hard to get one! Everyone here started as slaves with nothing, finally encountering a kind lord. Shouldn't they be saving their work points?!

Even without tourists, the long, long line at the pancake stall in the industrial area stretched as far as the eye could see.

The influx of tourists in the city had reached a point where it was affecting the normal life of Lanceville's residents. Phelos was expanding the capacity of the commercial district, but this distant solution didn't quench the immediate thirst, as residents' quality of life was still impacted by the long, long lines.

The best solution to a problem is to deal with the people causing it!

Since too many tourists in the commercial area prevented residents from making purchases, the plan was to open several more stalls in the industrial area and implement a system where only employees with cards could make purchases.

Without an employee card, tourists wouldn't crowd this area.

Of course, the stores in the industrial area weren't issuing cards. Recently, the entire group of tourists had fallen into a craze for collecting cards, and if they knew they could get cards here, the diversion policy would be useless!

"It smells so good..."

Jack was hungry. Since eating breakfast and leaving home yesterday morning, he hadn't had a drop to drink or bite to eat.

Of course, as a level 45 knight, not eating for a day or two had little effect on him. He could survive healthily for half a month without food or drink, as long as he had mana.

But the smell of those pancakes!

He initially thought the enticing aroma was from the Flower Fairy, but as one, two... ten workers passed by him with their pancakes, his stomach couldn't withstand the hunger any longer and started rumbling loudly.

At that moment, Jack felt he could probably swallow ten people whole!