Nesser stood blankly in the garden, watching Maggie's back in the distance.
"Sister? Didn't you say you had something to tell me?"
He jogged forward a couple of steps and instinctively reached out to grab Maggie's hand.
The next second, his fingers curled up almost imperceptibly.
Maggie turned around, a near-perfect smile on her lips, and leaned down to gently pat Nesser's head, her voice very gentle.
"Yes, Nesser, do you want to be with me forever?"
Nesser tilted his head and looked at Maggie. After a while, the smile on his face became even more radiant, and his voice was crisp and pleasant.
"Of course, of course I want to be with my sister forever."
He readily agreed, and Maggie's smile deepened. Just as she was about to touch Nesser again, Nesser released her hand and gently dodged her.
Maggie's hand paused, frozen in mid-air, while Nesser, still in her line of sight, wore an innocent and adorable expression.
Her smile froze, but she still patiently asked again.
"What's wrong?"
Nesser shook his head without saying anything, but simply pointed to her chest.
"That's strange, sister. Don't you bleed or feel any pain?"
Maggie stiffly lowered her head, realizing that a vine had unknowingly pierced through her chest.
"How...how could this be...?"
It took her a while to realize what was happening, and she murmured softly.
The next second, the vines once again pierced through her limbs.
She didn't react like a normal person would convulse after being stabbed; the light in her eyes remained fixed on Nesser, and her expression was extremely similar to Maggie's.
It still carried the sadness and despair of being betrayed.
Nesser looked puzzled, his expression somewhat strange.
So dull, unable to feel pain, looks exactly like her sister, and even has a physical form, how could such a thing exist?
"Tsk, what a pity that the puppet I commissioned at great expense, how did you recognize that she wasn't Maggie?"
A voice echoed in the darkness, neither male nor female, making one feel very uncomfortable.
Nesser couldn't help but frown. After glancing at the figure emerging from the darkness, he muttered a few words to himself.
"Why do they all like to wear the same cloak as Perkin? It's so ugly."
The man in the black robe not only didn't hear a reply, but also had his clothes criticized by Nesser, causing him to visibly falter. No one had ever dared to ignore him so blatantly before.
Besides, he was just an ordinary elf, merely a high-level mage.
"Don't be too arrogant, you're just an elf cub."
The man in black robes spoke in a somber tone, and his skeletal hand emerged from beneath his robes, pointing at Nesser.
"My sister said I shouldn't talk to bad people."
Nesser seemed to notice him only then, and answered word by word.
His gaze swept over the puppet lying on the ground, nearly beyond repair, and a look of regret or something else flashed in his eyes.
He pointed, then turned to the man in black and asked.
"However, this one lacks soul. Is there anything more exquisite?"
Nesser's question stunned the man in black, who remained silent for a long time. Nesser grew impatient and finally flew into a rage.
“You wretched spirit, you should feel the wrath of the dead.”
Before he finished speaking, ghostly blue flames began to rise from the surrounding garden. The light shone on Nesser's youthful face, giving it an eerie appearance.
Like an exquisite doll displayed in a shop window, suddenly turning its eyes to look at you.
"...Do you know Bella?"
Nesser sighed and asked the man in black a question out of the blue.
"?"
The man in black was once again completely bewildered; what kind of good person would ask an enemy such a question?
But for some reason, he still answered Nesser.
"I don't know him."
Not getting the answer she wanted, Nesser's face scrunched up, seemingly dissatisfied.
"Oh well."
The man in black robes was furious. Anyone would be enraged to the point of being toyed with so casually by their opponent.
"I have decided that you will no longer have the chance to be my companion. That wretched elf should rot in the mud!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the will-o'-the-wisps around him rushed towards Nesser. The will-o'-the-wisps from the dead were enough to scorch the souls of ordinary humans, or even burn them to ashes.
Unfortunately, before the will-o'-the-wisps could get close, the plants in the surrounding garden began to grow wildly, instantly enveloping Nesser completely.
"Luckily, we chose a garden; it would have been much more troublesome if we had chosen a different location."
The will-o'-the-wisps fought against the presence of living beings, and the vines that stretched out from the plants gradually withered and died, until Nesser's figure was revealed.
"Hmm? That's pretty impressive."
Nesser was still pondering when he raised his head in surprise after feeling the chilling temperature of the will-o'-the-wisp.
The next instant, countless vines surged from beneath his feet, dragging Nesser's body upwards to evade the will-o'-the-wisp's attack.
At the same time, he discovered that the man in black robes had suddenly disappeared.
Nesser's expression immediately became wary, his gaze sweeping around as he watched the black-robed man's sudden appearance.
Before he could even notice the black-robed man's presence, the man suddenly rushed out and jumped in front of him.
The skeleton transformed into bone spikes and stabbed forward, but fortunately Nesser was small in stature and barely managed to dodge the attack.
"You're not a lich?"
Nesser dodged aside, looked at the vine shield that had been pierced, and let out a surprised sound.
"Heh, when did I ever say I was a lich?"
The man in black robes chuckled softly, his laughter arrogant and terrifying, as if mocking Nesser's ignorance.
The lich possesses a unique characteristic not found in other undead: the Lich Box, which is both a weakness and an advantage, depending on how well the enemy understands them.
The Lich's Box contains the Soul Flame, which must be carried at all times. The body may seem important, but it is actually just a container for movement.
Nesser had originally wanted to find his Lich Box, but in that instant when the bone spikes appeared, he realized that this guy wasn't a lich.
Nesser finally became serious and stopped being so nonchalant.
If it weren't for the lich.....
That would be much more troublesome to deal with.
...
Meanwhile, Maggie finally arrived at Eve's room, but for some reason she didn't see Perkin, and the court magician hadn't arrived yet either.
Maggie stood alone in front of the door, which was tightly closed, as if it concealed an abyss.
Without a doubt, Joyce, who was about to become a ghost, was on the other side of the door, and she couldn't wait any longer.
She didn't even know if the others would come, or if they had been intercepted by the mastermind behind the scenes.
With a determined look, Maggie's staff flashed with light, and with a 'bang,' the compressed magic exploded instantly.
Wood chips flew everywhere as she violently demolished the door to the princess's room.
Dust filled her vision, and Maggie focused intently on the interior of the room.
When the smoke cleared, she saw Eve, her face streaked with tears, staring in her direction in terror.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com