The Death Mage Who Doesn’t Want a Fourth Time

s of you, but we would like you, the ‘Undead’… Vandalieu, to accept our divine protection.
Through this connection, we will recover our divine protections when you devour the reincarnated individuals’ souls,” said Pluto.
“Will you accept our divine protection?”

“Before I answer, I’d just like to be sure, what should I do if reincarnated individuals with your divine protection disappear without trying to kill me, or if they join me?” Vandalieu asked.

“Then you may leave them be.
There is no need for you to go to the trouble of recovering all of our divine protections,” Pluto replied.

Vandalieu felt a great sense of relief upon hearing that he would not have to devour the souls of those who were not his enemies.

“Then I will gratefully accept,” he said.

“Thank you very much for allowing this, the great Undead, Vandalieu-sama,” said Pluto.

“Well then, this might not seem very grateful since it looks like we’re just going with the flow, but I suppose we should have you accept our divine protections as well,” said Ricklent.

“There’s no point in hiding things from Alda now, too,” said Zuruwarn.

And so, Vandalieu received the divine protection of the gods of Origin from another Pluto, as well as the divine protections of Ricklent and Zuruwarn.

《Earth’s Dark Gods’ Divine Protection has transformed into Earth’s Gods’ Divine Protection!》

《You have acquired Origin’s Gods’ Divine Protection, Ricklent’s Divine Protection and Zuruwarn’s Divine Protection!》

Vandalieu was still in a dream.

“You’ll wake up from this dream soon, and Gufadgarn is moving your body to stay in line, so don’t worry about anything.
Just wait for a while,” said Zuruwarn.

“If fate would have it, you might meet someone.
As for what to do with that person, that is up to your discretion,” said Ricklent.

With that, they left.
It seemed that they had picked Vandalieu up, but would not take him back.

But from Ricklent’s words, it seemed that they were not simply unwilling to take him back.
But just who would Vandalieu meet?

“I mostly only meet people I know in my dreams… Was there anyone from Origin or Earth that I know?” Vandalieu wondered, walking forward at a leisurely pace.

Maybe I’ll wake up from this dream without meeting anyone after all, he thought.

But just as this thought occurred to him, he saw a small object.

Something pitch-black, about the size of a cat or a medium-sized dog, turned to stare blankly at Vandalieu, who returned a perplexed gaze.

Most of those he met in his dreams had mostly the same appearance as they did in reality.
But he had never seen anyone in the real world with the appearance of ‘a black something.’

Vandalieu and this black thing exchanged perplexed stares for a while.
However, it was the black thing that recovered from its confusion first.

It let out a high-pitched noise, stood up and waddled unsteadily towards Vandalieu.

The black thing then grasped at the horns and tumors growing all over Vandalieu’s body, trying to climb onto him.
Vandalieu then realized what it was.

“Ah, a baby.
You don’t have much self-perception, so that’s why you have that form,” said Vandalieu, but knowing what it was didn’t help him know what to do with it.
“I don’t suppose your parents would appear in a dream,” he said, looking around, but there was no sign of the black thing’s… the baby’s, guardians.

He couldn’t just roughly shake it off himself, so Vandalieu decided to rock it gently as he moved forward… Incidentally, he had no idea which way he was supposed to go, or whether it was necessary to go anywhere at all.

This was a result of his thoughts having become hazy because he was dreaming.

“Eyes? Eyes?” the baby said curiously.

“Yes, those are my eyes, so please don’t poke your fingers in them,” said Vandalieu.

“Squiggly?”

“Those are antennae.
Please don’t pull on them too much.
Maybe because this is a dream, but you’re much stronger than you are in the real world.”

The black baby seemed to be enjoying itself as it poked its fingers into the eyes in various places on Vandalieu’s body and pulling on his antennae.
It was quite the aggressive baby.

“But it seems you can speak a little, so I suppose you’re about one or two years old.
Can you say your name?” Vandalieu asked.

“Meh.”

“Meh-kun?”

Vandalieu suspected it was a boy, since it was mischievous and showed no signs of being timid, so he decided to add -kun to his name.

“I’m Vandalieu,” he said.

“Bandalieu?”

“Yes, yes, Bandalieu,” said Vandalieu, ignoring the fact that a part of his face was missing as he matched Meh-kun’s imprecise pronunciation.

He was trying to think about who this child was, but… he was still dreaming, so he couldn’t gather his thoughts together.

I’ll think about it when I wake up, he thought, giving up on it for now as he continued on, rocking the Meh-kun who was still using his body as a playground.

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After a while, he encountered a Noppera-bou that was whispering to itself.

TLN: A Noppera-bou, or faceless ghost, is a Japanese youkai (legendary creature).

“Ah, a Noppera-bou-san who is one of the gods of Earth,” said Vandalieu, calling out to the genderless silhouette that was wearing white tights that covered its whole body.
“… Or not,” he murmured as the silhouette gave no response, continuing to whisper to itself.

Despite not being a baby that didn’t have much self-perception, it was wandering around in a mental state resulting in it even having a body that was genderless in addition to its face; it was in quite the serious state.

“White,” said Meh-kun.

“Yes.
Would I be able to use my Mental Encroachment Skill even if I’m dreaming?” Vandalieu wondered.

Thinking that it was some kind of fate that this was a dream, Vandalieu extended his arms towards the white silhouette and wrapped it in his palms as gently as he could.

He then produced a countless number of eyes and mouths on the surface of his palms, which asked him this.

“Who are you?”

The silhouette gave an indiscernible whisper in response.

“Who are you?” the mouths on Vandalieu’s palms questioned once more.

They repeatedly asked, “Who are you?” “What is your name?” “What are you?”

As these questions continued, the white silhouette’s unclear whispers began to change.

“… Who… Who… am I?” it whispered through a mouth that had appeared on a face that had been completely void of features before, finally speaking words that could be understood.

Its appearance began to change as well.

However, it did not settle on a fixed form; the outline of its body changed from male to female and back to male, over and over.

Meh-kun watched the silhouette curiously, then looked up at Vandalieu as if to say, “It’s not fixed yet, you know?”

“I can’t fix you after just one try after all,” Vandalieu told the silhouette.
“If I go too far, your mind might collapse, and there’s no guarantee that we’ll be able to meet again… I suppose I’ll give this to you as a replacement for medicine.”

He tore off two eyes and a mouth from one of his palms and attached them to the white silhouette.

With this, the eyes and mouth would continue to question the white silhouette.

“I… I am…” the silhouette whispered.

Vandalieu released the silhouette.
With unsteady footsteps, the silhouette began walking away.

“White?” said Meh-kun.

“It seems that this is where we part ways with that person,” said Vandalieu.

Perhaps because this was a dream, he didn’t feel a desire to follow the silhouette.
With Meh-kun still riding on his shoulder, he continued walking.

Vandalieu didn’t know why, but along the way, he was surrounded by crowds of people who offered him mysterious prayers.
He also encountered people who seemed to be suffering, though not as badly as the white silhouette; he helped them with the Mental Encroachment Skill.

“… I thought I might not meet anyone at first, but I seem to be meeting a surprising number of people,” Vandalieu remarked.

As he continued, he came to a boundary line, and the ground beyond it was of a different color to the ground that he had been walking on up until now.

“It seems that I have to say goodbye to you here, Meh-kun,” said Vandalieu, intuitively sensing that this was the end of the dream.

“No!” said Meh-kun, clinging onto Vandalieu’s body.

“I’m happy you feel that way, but all dreams come to an end… Alright, I’ll give something to you too, Meh-kun,” said Vandalieu.

He started to tear off eyes and antennae like the ones that Meh-kun was holding, as he seemed to have taken a liking to them.

But Meh-kun made a dissatisfied noise and started smacking his hands against Vandalieu unhappily.

Vandalieu began tearing off other parts of himself.
Once there was a small mountain of his own body parts assembled, he began shaping them into the shape of a person.
The final result was another Vandalieu, larger than Meh-kun but still far smaller than the real Vandalieu.

“Banda!” said Meh-kun, happily running towards the newly-created Vandalieu.

“Now then, take good care of Meh-kun, me,” said the larger Vandalieu.

“I don’t think I can do anything amazing, but I’ll do my best, me,” said the smaller Vandalieu.

“I’ll attach a treasure orb onto you too,” said the larger Vandalieu, offering his smaller self a treasure orb.

“Having that will make things somewhat better.
That’s very helpful,” said the smaller Vandalieu.

And with that, the smaller Vandalieu took the treasure orb and turned around to walk in the opposite direction with Meh-kun in his arms.

After seeing them off, Vandalieu woke up.

《The Level of the Dark Demon Creation Path Enticement Skill has increased!》

“Vandalieu, are you awake?” a voice asked.

Gaining consciousness, Vandalieu found himself still standing in line.
He would reach the city’s gate soon, but judging from the position of the sun in the sky, it seemed that less than an hour had passed since Zuruwarn had carried his soul away.

“Yes, good morning, Gufadgarn.
Thank you for moving my body for me,” said Vandalieu, thanking the invisible Gufadgarn.

It seemed that Gufadgarn had opened gaps in space to extend fingers or other body parts underneath Vandalieu’s clothes to manipulate him like a puppet.

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“I am unworthy of your praise,” said Gufadgarn in a flat-toned but somewhat happy-sounding voice.

Vandalieu felt the long, thin objects touching his skin withdraw.

At the same time, one of the gate guards approached with a suspicious look on his face.

“What, are you alone? I was sure you were an apprentice of one of the merchants in front or behind you,” the guard said.

What the guard saw was a ten-year-old boy wearing a robe with a hood drawn over his face.
This boy was carrying no belongings but a single bag; he certainly did not look like he was capable of traveling safely.
This was indeed suspicious.

“Yes.
The caravan I was an apprentice for was attacked by bandits… I was lucky enough to escape, but I couldn’t go back to my parents who live in poverty, so I journeyed here,” said Vandalieu, reciting a fake past that he had decided on with the help of Miles and Eleanora.

The expression in the guard’s eyes turned into sympathy.

“I see… So, what do you intend to do after coming to this city?” he asked.

“I want to go to the Commerce Guild and look for work there.
Fortunately, I have a little money that the bandits missed,” said Vandalieu.

“Alright.
I think you will face some difficult times ahead, but it’s fortunate that you survived.
Do your best to stay out of trouble with us.
Children under the age of fifteen are exempt from the toll, so you’re free to pass.
Welcome to Morksi –”

“Hey, wait,” interrupted another, older guard.
“You’re going to let him pass without even checking his face? Don’t slack off just because he’s a kid.” He turned to Vandalieu.
“Hurry up and take off your hood.”

The older guard’s face was not that of a diligent man who was dedicated to his job… There was an unpleasant smile on it.

However, what he said was correct, so Vandalieu lowered his hood and showed the guards his face.
He was already wearing a cloth over one eye to conceal the fact that he was a Dhampir.

“Oh, so you’ve only got one eye.
I’m surprised you made it this far in one piece,” the guard sneered.
“By the way… for the sake of the city’s public order, there’s a rule in place forbidding us from letting suspicious people in.
Those suspicious people include parentless, jobless brats.
Even brats resort to theft and pilfering to survive, you see.”

“Aggar-senpai, you’re taking it too far –” the younger guard began.

“Shut it, Kest.
You’re new on the job, and you want to complain about me?” said the older guard named Aggar, glaring at the younger guard.

The young guard named Kest gave a small squeak and stepped back.

It seemed that Kest was new to his job, and was in a far lower position than his senpai Aggar.

Aggar turned back to Vandalieu.
“But it’s a different story if you have enough money to live properly for a while.
The kind of money to, say, pay a larger toll than adults,” he said, holding a palm out towards Vandalieu.

It seemed that he had heard Vandalieu say that he had money that the bandits had missed, and he was now here to collect a bribe from a helpless child who had not yet registered with a Guild.

I thought of this lie so that people wouldn’t become suspicious as to why I have the funds to start a stall, but it’s backfiring on me now, Vandalieu thought.

He had plenty of funds.
He had money in the Baum currency that the people of the Sauron Duchy exchanged for Lunas when they immigrated to Talosheim, as well as the money that he had taken from the ‘Hyena’ Gozoroff’s base.

Handing some over as a bribe wouldn’t be a problem at all.
However, it would be troublesome to keep becoming a target who was known to have money.

If I remember correctly, an adult’s toll around here is five Baums, Vandalieu recalled as he placed double that amount – ten Baums – into Aggar’s hand.

“… Very good.
Welcome to our city, Morksi,” said Aggar, stepping out of Vandalieu’s way with a broad grin.

“If you’re looking for an inn, you can stay at Starling Inn for cheap.
As for food, you should be able to fill yourself up at Swallow’s Nest,” Kest whispered as Vandalieu walked past him to go through the gate.

Vandalieu whispered his thanks in return, then entered the city of Morksi.

He had run into some bad luck early on, but it was a good, lively city.
Just as the preliminary investigation had suggested.

Vandalieu had actually entered the city several days ago without passing through the gate, because the headquarters of the ‘Hyena’ Gozoroff’s criminal organization was located here.

The headquarters had already been completely taken over by Miles and Isla, and Vandalieu had turned all of the criminal organization’s main members into Undead after extracting information from them.
Unlike Gozoroff, it was possible that he would use them for a while, so he could not simply end them.

This had been worth doing; Vandalieu now had Morksi’s underworld essentially in his grasp… though his grasp hadn’t reached the kind of low-life underlings who would take bribes.

I have a grasp on the people higher-up, and don’t have a good understanding of the members and non-members below them, Vandalieu thought.

“… Vandalieu, how do you wish to dispose of that human?” Gufadgarn asked through a gap in space.

Vandalieu’s mind went blank for a moment.
“Do you mean that guard named Aggar? I’m not going to do anything,” he said.

“… Are you sure? If you give me the order, I can conceal his death for an eternity in a labyrinth.
Of course, there will be no evidence left behind,” Gufadgarn said.

“No, I’m not going to do anything,” Vandalieu repeated.

“Then should I kill him?” asked Orbia, who was hovering behind him.

“My growing children are hungry for meatballs,” said Quinn, poking her face out from inside Vandalieu, underneath the hood that was covering his face again.

“Nutrients… My fruit will become tasty,” said Eisen, poking out under Vandalieu’s hood as well.

Kühl poked out to express its hunger as well.

“I just said, I’m not going to do anything.
If I dispose of every insignificant villain, there’s going to be a mountain of missing people in no time,” Vandalieu told them.

The only damage that had been suffered was ten Baums, after all.

“… Is that right? Just say when,” said Eisen, perhaps convinced by Vandalieu’s words or perhaps simply seeing if he would change his mind.

Everyone withdrew inside Vandalieu again.

“… It would be good to not be taken notice of by unwanted vultures, though,” said Vandalieu.

If he wasn’t careful, he would become the person at the center of a series of missing people in the city of Morksi.

For now, Vandalieu started heading towards Starling Inn, the inn that Kest had told him about.