Edra grabbed the bedpost, struggled to stand up straight, staggered to the window, pushed it open, and cautiously glanced out.

He saw Bazel standing outside the house, staring at the back of the forest in a daze, with indescribable loneliness and sorrow, as if looking at his hometown, which he could not see beyond the dense forest.

As if sensing his gaze, Bazel turned his head a little stiffly. Ed's hand shook unconsciously, and the window snapped shut, cutting off the sight of the unusual "undead" he had always dared not face.

The sky was overcast, and the hut hidden deep in the forest was even more gloomy. The smell of snow was still in the air that had just poured in from the window...... Maybe a heavy snowfall can stop Huo An's return journey and give him one more night's peace......

It's a bit of a shame to say. Ed had a visceral fear of the half-taller but thinner-looking young man, even though Hoan took good care of him...... Even Naria may not be as thoughtful as he is.

This humble and warm room belongs to Hoan - doubles as a kitchen and pantry. Huo An would leave every few days, go out at dawn, and come back after dark. Oylan spends most of his time in his room.

They didn't seem to be too worried that Ed would escape...... Of course, Bazel was guarding the door, and Ed didn't even have the strength to climb up to the windowsill now, so even if he could escape, how far could he go in the vast forest outside the window?

Even now, he could barely stand, and the pain all over his body was silently expressing strong dissatisfaction. His wounds had not healed, nor had his strength returned. No one of his real friends knew he was here...... Completely, utterly powerless and helpless.

He just took advantage of Huo An's departure to sneak up and move his rusty body, and check the situation around him by the way. But until his body recovered, he was at a loss - his dagger was gone, and even the brooch under his coat was missing. It is possible that the sword had fallen in that cave, but the brooch was definitely taken by Oylan or Joan. With the prudence of the necromancer, they would never give anyone else a chance to find Ed.

At least, Hoane didn't seem to have any intention of chaining him around his neck and locking him in the basement - that's all Ed could comfort himself with.

He didn't know how Huo An could still take himself for granted as his friend. It's like he didn't stab Ed in the chest at all...... But the cold and burning feeling that ran through his chest at that time, as well as the shock, anger and unwillingness that surged into his heart at that moment, Ed could not forget it in his life.

He didn't know what they wanted to do with him...... Ever since he realized that the pungent medicine would relieve his pain and make him delirious. Ed spent most of his time gritting his teeth and enduring the pain, lying in bed and pretending to be asleep. That would allow him to escape many problems—from Hoan's attentiveness that made his scalp tingle, from Bazel's silent stare, from any conflict with Joan and his "teacher" Jay Oylan because of his refusal to drink pills or any other problem.

At least. In him has enough power...... Or what feasible plan before escaping here. He'd better be nice.

He suspected that Oylan had seen through everything, but the indifferent old man said nothing—perhaps he didn't care.

What was Ed to him, a prisoner, a test subject, or just a toy that his seemingly naïve and shy apprentice wanted?

Ed even suspected that he couldn't use spells because of what Oylan had done to him while he was unconscious...... After all, what necromancer would allow a priest who still has power to stay in his room?

However, to sever the connection between the priest and the gods he believes in...... Can a necromancer really do that? If so, Bye-Young...... Maybe not a degenerate at all?

Also, he knew that Hoan was most likely still alive, and Iss had told him. But he thought that Hoan had become Lydia's apprentice...... He now respectfully addresses the other person as "Teacher."

Does Lydia know this? How much does Oylan know? Is he also Lydia's subordinate? Why the hell did they save him?Is Bazel an undead or not?......

Ed had never seen a dead man like Bazel. But it still has a soul and a ...... "thing" of its own consciousness.

"It" brought him unease. than the monsters of the underground, the demons from hell, their own situation...... More intense than all of them.

That's something that shouldn't exist in the world...... Less than the undead. If necromancers were already able to create something like this, they would be far from the "eternal life" they had so desperately pursued...... How far is it going?

More and more questions piled up in Ed's mind, but none of them could be answered...... At least, it wasn't that he could get the answer by slumping on the bed and pretending to be dead.

He stood for a moment in front of the closed window, and began to slowly circle the room by holding on to the walls and rough furniture. Occasionally, he would quickly open a drawer, swipe it up and close it at once, and his heart would pound involuntarily, as if he were doing something bad...... He really didn't have much talent for being a thief.

He wasn't expecting to find a sword or a brooch, but he hoped to at least get something useful to hide as a weapon. If you're lucky, you might even find a secret passage or something like that - well, it's pure delusion. It's just a wooden house that was clearly not built very long, but it's not a grandiose, historic castle that hides countless secrets.

He was staring at the tongs by the fire pit as the door was pushed open—it was too big, and if it was gone, Hoan would easily spot it......

The wind pouring in from outside the door caused the flames to roll towards Ed, almost licking the corners of his clothes, but it was the tall figure in the door that made Ed retreat in horror.

Bazel stood there, staring at Ed with a twisted muscle and a hideous face...... The undead look like this, but they don't have ...... in their eyes Light.

It is the light that belongs to life—to the soul, whether it is anger, hatred, or sorrow. Bazel is not an unconscious undead, he can't speak, but he can hear, and both Oylan and Hoan control him with words rather than spells...... It wasn't control at all, they treated Bazel like a living person...... A servant, sometimes even like a family member.

Hayen, in particular, would speak softly to the barbarians, sometimes purely meaningless chit-chatter, and he would also ask the barbarians to do tasks that required strength, patting him on the arm as if to express gratitude or appreciation—a scene that Ed felt even almost absurdly warm when he saw it with his half-open eyes.

In front of Joan, Bazel is quiet and obedient like a big loyal dog, but to Ed, he is clearly not so kind...... After all, all Ed showed to him was fear and disgust.

But it was an instinct that Ed couldn't control. He stumbled back until his back was against the cupboard, reaching out and fumbling around in the hope of finding something to defend himself from, not daring to take his eyes off Bazel for a moment. lest he suddenly pounce and tear his throat......

Bazel raised his hand and made a simple gesture.

Ed looked at him in a daze, and it took a moment to react.

Because of Akhan, he learned simple sign language, and if he read it right, it was......

"Don't be afraid. ”

Bazel repeated slowly, the muscles of his face quivering, as if trying to squeeze out a smile—though that only made his expression more terrifying.

Ed blinked, unconsciously looking him in the eye.

That's what he's always wanted to avoid...... Acknowledging that a dead soul still has memories, feelings, and souls instinctively scares him—even when it's clearly true.

That would shake a lot of things...... That would change a lot of things. And Ed simply didn't know how to deal with this.

"I'm not...... Monster. ”

Bazel continued to gesture slowly and awkwardly. He looked straight at Ed, still unable to control the look on his face, but his eyes were full of sorrow and pleading, which made it impossible not to be moved.

Ed stood stiff, motionless, unable to make a sound in his tense, dry throat. He watched as the savage repeated the simple gesture again and again, hanging his hands in disappointment when he received no response, the faint hope in his eyes vanishing little by little.

“...... Wait!"

As he slumped his shoulders and hung his head to turn away, Ed couldn't help but scream.

Whatever it was, Bazel was trying to communicate with him...... His body may be dead, but the souls trapped in it are still trying to communicate with him...... He can't ignore this.

The soul of a savage should be free...... He didn't deserve such a fate.

Bazel turned and looked at him quietly.

For the first time, Ed noticed that his eyes were a strange iron gray. Although the pupils were too dilated, the metallic luster was barely visible...... But that rare color reminded him of Keller Brian.

He hesitated, cautiously approaching the savage, hesitantly reaching out his hand and lightly touching the muscles of his arm, which were still strong and strong, but too hard and cold, to grip gently.

A moment later, Bazel grabbed his arm with his backhand, a hint of surprise flashing across his eyes.

It was the etiquette of the barbarians - the etiquette of friends.

"My name is Ed...... Ed Singel. Ed looked up into his eyes and mustered up the courage to stand there instead of turning and running away.

"Who turned you into ...... So?" he asked softly.

(To be continued......)