Chapter 54. Corpse Princess (1)
A detached palace located deep inside the Royal Palace of Algiers.
“This is my daughter’s room.”
The King of Berber’s expression darkened as he stood in front of the room belonging to the ‘Corpse Princess.’
His child had died.
His first child, at that.
It was only natural for him to feel devastated.
The Duke of Veneto had been the unusual one for remaining so calm.
Most parents would lose their appetite and stop sleeping.
“Let us enter.”
After dismissing most of his attendants and keeping only a few escort knights, the King entered the room.
A large bed stood in the middle of the spacious chamber, surrounded by a canopy.
“Show him my daughter.”
At the King’s gesture, the canopy was pulled aside.
Kieeeek.
A zombie lay on the bed with its arms and legs chained down.
It wore expensive silk clothes and a tiara decorated with jewels.
Its clothing was unmistakably that of a princess.
This is ridiculous. I’m marrying a zombie...
The King looked sadly at his zombified daughter, then turned toward me.
“Are you afraid?”
“No. I’ve seen things... people like this many times.”
“Someone turned my daughter into a zombie and killed her.”
As expected, the princess had been murdered.
And her father was desperately searching for whoever had turned his child into a zombie and killed her.
“Why did they turn her into a zombie?”
“The Algiers Mage Tower has mages capable of using a spell called [Memory of the Dead]. But they say memories cannot be read once someone becomes a zombie. The assassin used this method to prevent us from identifying the culprit.”
So they had been aiming for the perfect crime.
“But what exactly can I do?”
“I don’t know either.”
What kind of answer was that?
“I was merely told that you would do something.”
“By whom?”
“There is a shaman who received a divine oracle. She said, ‘One blessed by a god will come from the north, marry the princess, and resolve her grudge.’ Around that same time, one of my subjects in Marcel reported that you had received divine blessings. So I called you here.”
As expected.
Once the Fatima Dynasty contacted me, the spy in Marcel had reported it.
The report that I was blessed by a god had apparently been what brought me here.
It seemed the King’s hope that I could resolve the ‘Corpse Princess’s’ grudge had influenced everything.
The easy royal patent.
The huge share of the sugar profits.
All of it.
And he had casually called the spy he planted in Marcel ‘my subject.’
As expected of a king, he did not even bother hiding it.
But what the hell am I supposed to do?
I had no skill that allowed me to talk with zombies.
[Convenient Lesser Appraisal] only showed a person’s name, age, parents, current occupation, and the god they worshiped.
The same was true even when used on a corpse like a zombie.
[Ramita Berber, 20, deceased]
[Eldest daughter of the King of Berber. Unemployed. Worships the God of Abundance.]
No useful information. How exactly am I supposed to talk to her? Zombies can’t speak, so she can’t tell us who killed her.
While thinking again, I remembered the skill I had received from Hela, the God of the Dead.
[Ghoul Creation].
It was a skill that could raise corpses and create up to two ghouls.
I had never heard of a zombie being turned into a ghoul.
Still, if it was possible, it was worth trying.
A ghoul was still a monster.
But unlike a zombie, it was an undead creature capable of conversation.
This is still dangerous. I have no idea how the King will react if his daughter becomes a ghoul on top of already being a zombie. It’ll be even worse if [Ghoul Creation] fails and destroys the corpse.
There was another problem.
Ghouls had knight-level combat power.
It varied between individuals, but many reached Sword Expert level.
I glanced at the escort knights.
There’s even a Sword Master among them. If the princess turns into a ghoul, they might immediately cut her down.
My thoughts became increasingly complicated.
While I was considering everything, the King seemed to notice.
“Do you have something you can try?”
“There is one possibility.”
“Tell me. I don’t care what method you use. If it lets me tear apart the bastards who killed my daughter, I will do anything.”
The King’s intense gaze looked strong enough to devour someone alive.
I had never had a child.
Still, that did not mean I could not understand his feelings.
Seeing his eyes, I made my decision.
“I can create ghouls.”
“What? How? Are you the King of Corpses?”
The King was shocked.
The escort knights grabbed the handles of their swords.
The King of Corpses was, in online game terms, basically something like the Lich King.
Obviously, someone like me whose heart was still beating perfectly well was not the King of Corpses.
And ghouls were unusual beings.
Contradictory as it sounded, ghouls were dead, yet still considered people.
“No. Even the King of Corpses cannot create ghouls. This ability was given to me by a god.”
“A god?”
“Yes. So you must make the decision. Will you allow me to turn your daughter into a ghoul?”
“My... To think your arrival really was divine providence.”
It felt more like a god’s prank to me.
Even if this was a valuable opportunity, my life was on the line.
“What will you do? If it succeeds, she becomes a ghoul. If it fails, there is a possibility her corpse will be destroyed.”
The King thought for a long time.
Then,
“Turn her into a ghoul. Whether you succeed or fail, I will take full responsibility. I promise that no blame will fall upon you.”
In that case.
Without wasting any more time, I walked toward the ‘Corpse Princess’ and placed my hand on her body.
“[Ghoul Creation].”
Kieeeeh...
The princess’s body began twisting.
Her rotting flesh sealed itself.
Her blackened skin changed to blue.
Her cloudy gray eyes became bright yellow.
Her body grew taller until she was around 170 centimeters.
Her fingernails lengthened and sharpened like daggers.
Her hunched back straightened.
Her limp body became firm and balanced.
An aura radiated from her that would make even knights hesitate.
Holy shit. She looks fucking strong.
In only ten seconds, the Corpse Princess transformed into a ghoul.
She raised herself from the bed as though trying to stand.
Crack!
The chains binding her shattered instantly.
I quickly stepped backward.
Why is she this strong? Mid-rank Sword Expert... No, Upper-rank. And an extremely powerful Upper-rank at that.
She looked stronger than Sir Pierre, the strongest knight in Marcel.
The escort knights became agitated.
They drew their longswords and pointed them toward the Corpse Princess.
“Do not attack unless she attacks first! That is an order!”
The Royal Knight Commander, who was a Sword Master, shouted.
