(A/N: We're flashing backward in time.)
Right after the souls of the Eternal Drakkens were taken…
The masked man stood below the great, summoned Undead creature in Corinthian armour, a world plough, a Death Knight, embellished by its shadow. Greenish-black Undeath energy exploded from his outline and twisted violently as though to shield him from the eyes of the onlookers – a force consisting of Unlimited Stars, Stark Troops, the Five House Heads of Pelia, and several hundred combatants from Pelian Families.
For the moment, Rias didn't concern himself with them. It was rather degrading that he had been diminished to his battered state by a single mortal, and he had to admit that in his fight against Kintar, he had indeed lost.
But there was a rhyme and a reason for all things.
'A week ago, mortals, anomalies and Heralds gathered to defeat me. History repeats itself, I suppose,' the masked man thought. 'But I too was a mortal last time. I died with a bad answer nesting in my ears. A rejection from my own mother. That no longer matters, though.'
Kaella, or rather, Suzamete had been the original masked man's objective last time.
But what about now? And how in the world did Rias seek to achieve his new objective?
Well… Fulgardt had been instrumental in forging the current masked man's shape.
What is your relationship with Void anyway? Rias recalled asking the Immoral when they were within one of the drapes of time on Aigas.
The Immoral had grinned, as he usually did when mixed with company he considered pleasant.
Calling it a relationship is rather… generous. Void and I are bound by powers that surpass even the Existential Parallels. My darkness and my light are things she is very familiar with. In the past, she touched upon their source – terrible powers. Haha. Beyond that, however, my old self discovered something deeper that could bring she and I together. Unlike her sisters, Void is very much interested in appealing to the Wanderer Who Seeds. She does not hate him. She seeks to revere him as he deserves. It's for that very reason that she's made herself a blanket of darkness that hides a truth of this Reality, all to attract his mercy.
She and I have come to an agreement, one facilitated through an Unlimited Contract. She has needs she knows only I can provide where the Wanderer is concerned – things that may come after Aigas, of course. In exchange, she lends me a lot of perks. Information primarily.
Rias remembered being rather confused. The Wanderer wasn't a subject Fulgardt discussed in depth with him, and in truth, Rias wasn't all that interested in it. However…
What kind of information would be valuable to someone like you? You despise all high beings, Rias had said.
The Immoral laughed. Let me give you a sample, then. I'm sure Void won't be pleased with this, but there was never a clause in our agreement that said I couldn't share what she revealed to me to whoever I pleased.
Rias had cocked his head curiously. He would never have guessed what Fulgardt said next.
Emmae relies solely on her Liches to extract power from Rich Worlds. There is a nigh infinite army of Undead creatures in her domain and Liches of all levels – very many indeed – are her primary fighting force. She normally doesn't pick Bearers because of that very reason. But conversely, most living beings don't have a way to communicate with her as she's usually restricted to her domain. Oh, indeed, living beings can appeal to the Parallels for their power, even without the Books of Alignment.
Rias' attention was peaked then. Fulgardt thoroughly enjoyed the stunned look on his face.
How about I teach you how to reach Emmae? With your new Andori, Aimon, and my help, it shouldn't be too difficult. Not even the Deities of Aigas will be able to stop you.
That little conversation had blossomed to become the current crisis on Aigas.
Using the sword with a cylindrical blade that Aimon had created, Rias had just stolen the souls of the Eternal Drakkens – Aigas' anchor.
Because the artefact was designed to offer up the souls to Emmae directly after extraction through a mechanism Fulgardt had orchestrated using his guidance field, Quintess and Listafelle couldn't stop Rias even if they knew what he would do beforehand.
And as it were, in exchange for the Richness of Aigas, the masked man got what he wanted.
Emmae made him a bearer of Undeath.
Unlike Actuass, Rias was no longer a mere necromancer. Instead, he had entered the domain of Liches! Follow current novᴇls on 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭⚫𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦⚫𝘯𝘦𝘵
The ghost of the masked man threw away the cylindrical artefact and gave a sigh.
'So there really is such a distinction to souls, is there?' he thought. His vision had changed under his hard, green mask. Certain things were revealing themselves to his senses. 'Organic and inorganic souls. Somanda did explain this back then, but I could never wrap my mind around it.'
It was Somanda, possessing SoSei, who had taught Actuass so much about Undeath and souls centuries ago, but for a mortal who merely inherited Undead through a simple Class, it was impossible to grasp its true potential.
And speaking of true potential…
A large, twisted-looking deer head descended from the sky and stood over the Death Knight.
Aimon was a conduit for Rias' Imagining Technique. Everything the ghost of the masked man could imagine manifested through its mouth.
However… because Aimon had been stuck forging the cylinder-bladed artefact Rias had used just now for almost a whole hour since Fulgardt revealed what Rias stood to gain, the masked man hadn't been able to use Aimon to its full potential. He had been heavily restricted.
'Even though you are still creating that other little piece, I should be able to use secondary conduits effectively now. This should be fun. Living should be a thrill. So should creation.'
A smile cropped up on the masked man's face and he turned to his side. His Eye of Backfire was the first to reflect Nigerra's beaten figure. She was still recovering from the loud clanging noises that had erupted when Pherdanta unleashed a storm of slashes on Boron's halberd just now.
"At this rate, your eyes are more useful than the actual combat prowess you represent, being from a stronger age and all," said Rias with a lethal condescending tone. "Your entire force was annihilated. Only you remain."
Nigerra spat a tooth. "I'm very much aware."
Her Eyes of Moving were twitching, her skin contorted in rage. What looked like a grey shadow was pouring out of her shoulders. It was the power of a Beyond The Veil Stager.
"Do you feel any grief?" asked Rias.
"Will it be useful to me?"
Nigerra pinned the masked man with a glare. "Just you watch."