Suspected Necromancer - Chapter 22 - Traitor

Chapter 22 – Traitor

Conrad and his two subordinates, accompanied by Luna, headed towards Khan’s mansion.
As they approached the mansion, a feeling of unease washed over Conrad, making him hesitant to proceed further. However, he knew in advance that it was the effect of the magic barrier, so he suppressed his fear and followed Luna.
His two subordinates also wore uneasy expressions but managed to keep up.

Luna passed through the mansion’s gate.

“Follow me. Unless you want to be grabbed by ghouls.”

Conrad and his men lined up closely behind Luna and cautiously entered the premises.
When Luna opened the mansion’s door, they were greeted by three skeletons.

“Grim Reapers. You’ve been awaiting my return, haven’t you?”

Conrad went pale as he addressed the ominous skeletons.

“Luna, I’m sorry, but could you ask them to stay outside the mansion? Honestly, I’m scared. I’ve always been uncomfortable with ghosts and such…”

Conrad shivered.

“So, Sir Knight is surprisingly timid, huh? Well, then, how about you three guard the gate?”

Luna teased and pointed towards the gate. The Grim Reapers slowly moved in the direction she indicated.
Conrad and his men breathed a sigh of relief.

“So, there are no more undead here, right?”

“That’s right, you scaredy-cat knight.”

Luna taunted.

“Can you guide us to Khan now?”

“Sure, he’s in the back. Follow me.”

As they followed Luna into the mansion, Conrad signaled to his two subordinates.

“Here.”

Luna tried to open the door to the back room, but Conrad’s subordinates restrained her.

“Kyaa!”

Luna let out a short scream, but Conrad paid no heed. He drew his sword, barged into the room, and slashed at the man sitting at the desk from behind.
The sword tore through the man, chair and all, from his shoulder to his chest. The man couldn’t utter a single word and bled profusely. It was undoubtedly a fatal wound.

“We need to escape immediately! Deal with the girl too…”

Conrad began to turn around to instruct his men but saw something unbelievable.
His two subordinates wore expressions of agony as they clutched their throats and collapsed.
Luna stood between the fallen men, smiling mischievously.

“Is your business finished, Sir Knight?”

“What’s going on? Why have they collapsed?”

Conrad was utterly baffled about what was happening.

“Just a little punishment for not escorting a lady properly. It’s unacceptable to be rough with a lady’s body out of nowhere.”

“Did you do this!?”

“That’s right. I can manage simple magic like this.”

Luna raised her right hand, indicating that she was holding something. An invisible force began to tighten around Conrad’s neck.

“Stop…”

Conrad couldn’t even speak, and he was on the verge of suffocation.
Just before losing consciousness, Luna opened her clenched right hand, and the invisible force choking Conrad disappeared.

“Who… who are you?”

Conrad gasped, clutching his throat, making sure he was safe.

“I introduced myself earlier, didn’t I? I’m Khan’s disciple.”

“If you’re his disciple, why are you still so calm after your master was killed?”

“My master died about 50 years ago. Well, his ashes are still downstairs, though.”

Conrad turned to look behind him at the man he had just killed.

“Then, who is this!?”

“That was an illusion.”

Luna said as she snapped her fingers, causing the bloodied man to vanish, leaving only the chair with a sword stuck halfway through it.
Conrad’s eyes widened in fear.

“Are you a necromancer!?”

“That’s right.”

Luna admitted without a hint of remorse.

“You deceived me!”

“How rude. I didn’t deceive you. Did you ever ask me if I was a necromancer? Did you say, ‘are you a necromancer?'”

Conrad had no recollection of asking such a question, but who would believe that someone as young as Luna could wield advanced magic like this? Learning high-level magic at such a young age was ridiculous.
However, there was one possibility that occurred to Conrad. It was the immortal creature he had learned about while researching necromancy.

“Are you a vampire?”

Vampires were the worst kind of undead, turning humans into their minions by sucking their blood. They represented the ultimate form of necromancy.

“I’m something similar, but not quite the same.”

“Why would you ally with the Rama Kingdom? You shouldn’t be involved in human conflicts!”

Conrad thought it was unreasonable for a supernatural creature to meddle in human affairs.

“Well, I am connected to the Rama Kingdom, in a way.”

This vampire had a connection to the Rama Kingdom? Conrad had been in charge of intelligence and espionage for the Order of Knights, but he had never heard of such a thing.

“Wait, wait. What do you desire? If there’s something you want, I’ll give it to you. Do you want people? Because you feed on human blood, right? How many do you need? I can provide as many as you want. I’ll prepare them every day! Taking over the kingdom will be a piece of cake for me! It’s not just humans; I can give you money and anything else you desire! What do you want? What is your wish?”

“You’re saying such complicated things, Sir Knight.”

Luna sighed in exasperation.

“What I wanted was just a modest happiness like everyone else. But it’s lost now and can never return. In Ratt, that should be something anyone can attain. Why didn’t you settle for that?” Luna questioned.

“What are you talking about? Why would a creature like you be talking about ordinary people’s concerns?”

“Calling me a creature hurts, you know?”

“Wait! I apologize! I apologize for what I said! I’m sorry. Please forgive me.”

Conrad slumped to the floor and crawled backwards.

“So, how about this then? Drink my blood. Turn me into a vampire, give me eternal life. I’ll become your companion, your servant. Will that be acceptable?”

“…You’re not very appealing.”

Luna remarked, losing interest in the man before her.

“I pick the people I drink blood from too, you know. I don’t do it with just anybody. Although I’ve been rejected many times.

As Luna said this, a man entered the room.
He was an elderly man with white hair clad in knight’s armor. He was tall and sturdy, with an eyepatch covering one eye, and his body bore numerous scars, indicating his status as a battle-hardened warrior.

“I apologize for the delay, Luna-sama.”

The old man bowed to Luna.

“It’s been a while, Killian. You’ve become quite impressive, haven’t you?”

Luna smiled wryly, recognizing very little of Killian from their past. Only his remaining eye and voice seemed familiar.

“Commander! Why are you here?”

Conrad exclaimed in surprise. Killian looked down upon Conrad in disappointment.

“I never expected that one of my direct subordinates would be a traitor… No matter how hard we searched for you, we couldn’t find anything. It was a disgrace.”

“Well, with one eye, what can you expect? There are more and more things you can’t see.”

“Why do you and the Commander know each other?”

Conrad cried.

“Didn’t I mention Rato and Killian before? Oh, by the way, Rato’s real name is Ramunato. You should remember the nickname of your King, at least. But I don’t think it matters anymore; you won’t be of any use.”

“But, what about the story you told me…”

“That was a tale from about 50 years ago. It’s quite an extraordinary story that not many people can claim to have heard, so I appreciated you listening. Thank you.”

Luna said with a smile. Conrad’s gaze had lost focus completely.

“Luna-sama, leave the rest to me. Please head to the palace. His Majesty is waiting for you.”

Killian spoke, his sole eye filled with sadness.

“…I understand. You should make sure you never have to worry about this man again.”

Killian nodded silently in response to Luna’s words.