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Chapter 45. Angelina
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2024-10-29 19:42:56My eyebrows flew up by themselves. Was I imagining it, or did he really ask me about the Nocturne of Death? Or maybe where he lived, they have their own nocturne, not the one Reive Eridanus Castro-Firel played seven hundred years ago? He, who invented that melody raising spirits from nothingness…
“Reive,” I said uncertainly, “could you tell me please which nocturne you’re talking about?”
The necromancer smiled broadly. His eyes were glowing with such dark mystical light that a wave of goose bumps ran down my spine. Prickly sparks flowed under my skin, and it felt like every little hair rose on my body.
“I’m sure you’ll like it,” he whispered suddenly, drawing me closer for a moment and slightly touching my ear with his lips.
No, it just couldn’t be. Simply because it could’ve never been.
“Reive, are you going to play right now among all these
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Do not awaken the Undead king Chapter 46. Reive
Yeah, he liked how it looked. He liked being as before, the very same Reive, who had easily controlled hundreds of the dead. The very same Reive whom ghosts feared, and to whose music they were coming to dance. Firel, his home, became his own for a few long intoxicating minutes. It began to breathe. It was resurrected as it felt the dance of death. Reflections of old tapestries flittered on the walls and the dark polish shone on the lacquered wooden floor. The shameful miniatures on the walls and the pictures on the ceiling disappeared.Alas, it was only a memory, spirits of the past enclosed within the castle stones together with the death of several dozen builders. Their souls became the ghosts of the castle. Reive had no mercy on his subjects. He had thought he was doing the right thing.The music was still playing, and Reive was sitting on his former throne surrounded now with the familiar Dark. He had only to snap his
Do not awaken the Undead king Chapter 47. Zomzom
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To say I was put into a flutter didn’t describe it. All kinds of thoughts were whirling round my head, threatening to tear me to pieces.Reive was the Undead King! Let him even try to say it wasn’t so!Every graduate of the Josh the White City Academy of Magic with a modicum of reason knew that it was impossible to play the Nocturne of Death without knowing the exact order of the Ashgenrian characters. One had to weave special magic into each note. This magic was known only to the creator of that very same nocturne. There came the man who could play the melody. He called a mob of ghosts into the royal castle and made them dance! Then, he said he was only improvising and made it all up! Where did he come from? From right under the ground!What nonsense! Reive never made a secret of his name. From the very beginning, he’d been doing things that were beyond the ability of a regular necromancer! I didn’t know why I couldn’t
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“This vial was to have saved my life in the case of violent death. If an arrow had pierced me during a battle, or some lucky beggar had come close enough to chop off my head,” he continued with a doleful half smile, “that artefact would have restored me and diverted my injuries onto the one I’d been connected to. What’s more, I should have lived much more than a common person. Maybe two or three centuries. Exactly as long as the energy stored in the artefact.”Reive paused and sighed deeply. He knit his brows and his lips twisted slightly, “My best friend betrayed me and imprisoned me in a cursed grave. His spell submerged my body into so-called antibiosis. I’m still not sure how it affected the vial of blood. Judging by appearances, after that the artefact had no need to expend much energy to maintain my life. I was almost dead. And that’s why its reserve has lasted for so long.”“Does that
Do not awaken the Undead king Chapter 50. Angelina
“My wife. She was my wife.”I gasped.“Likely she suffered after your death. And maybe she was looking for a way to have you back.” I paused, “I would.”Reive smiled, but there was a taste of wormwood in his smile.“Very unlikely, little one. My wife two-timed me with Ulfricus. Right before he buried me alive.”“But...”“I don’t want to talk about that, Angel. It’s a sad story without a very happy ending.”“But you’re alive! It means the ending’s still happy,” I smiled hesitantly, and without realizing what I was doing, I suddenly reached out my hand and touched his palm. Just a very little, with my fingertips.This movement burned me. I suddenly understood Reive wasn’t just a human. I felt frightened. He was the one about whom many books had been written. The one because of whom necromancy had become a cursed scien
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Do not awaken the Undead king Chapter 52. Reive
“Sorry, little one, sorry,” the necromancer gasped and stood up. “I think we’re both too tired today. And you likely don’t want to hear a seven-hundred-year-old necromancer snore beside you.”With these words, he grabbed his jacket from the table where he’d thrown it no more than an hour ago and headed towards the door, breathing heavily.“Reive!” the girl exclaimed nervously. Almost offended.He stopped, pursing his lips. Her frustration felt like a knife in his ribs. He turned to her and, trying not to look at Ulfricus looming before his face, said, “Go to bed, Angel,” a forced smile distorted the mask of anger on his face, but Reive tried not to think about how he looked. He just finished, “It turns out I have a couple of urgent things to do. I won’t be back anytime soon. Don’t worry. Go to sleep”.He left the room as fast as he could.Actually, he just nee
Do not awaken the Undead king Chapter 53. Zomzom
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***Five years later the kingdom of Aldenor was renamed ‘Empire of Shadow’.Reive and Angelina were awarded the titles of emperor and empress. A year later their triplets were born, two boys and a girl. All three possessed a strong dark gift for twilight magic. In time, they entered the academy their mother had founded, CYANIDE— Central YOUNG Academy for Necromantic Ideology and Demonology Education.Therefore, the royal couple introduced a new fashion for necromancy. Henceforth, all influential families in the empire dreamed of sending their children to CYANIDE, still sometimes jokingly called ‘Academy of Death’.Twenty years on, necromancers had become the main combat unit of the army of the Empire of Shadow. Not one of the neighboring states would even dream of transgressing the borders or otherwise offending the continent’s most dangerous empire.Until the day of his death, Reive saw Ulfricus from time to tim
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The order in Ashgenrian sounded more powerful and confident that ever before. Shivers ran down my spine.That very second a small pale shadow formed beside me, a few seconds later it acquired an outline.“Byelndevir!” Reive exclaimed, his eyes opening wide. Such a wide smile appeared on his face that I felt truly happy.“I’m sorry I nearly bit your head off,” the little spirit said, spreading his wings. Real ones, not bones.The dragon was of human size and so took up an impressive amount of space. However, that was nothing in comparison to his former dimensions. I knew his size could now be changed at will – bigger or smaller.“Fantastic!” the necromancer gasped and struggled, then succeeded to stand up from the bed. He went up to the ghost and carefully touched his wing, as if they were blood brothers. “And I didn’t take offense, my friend.”It seemed to me that
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hree months have passed since I became Queen of Aldenor. Reive has spent the best part of this time lolling about in bed and has only now begun to rise himself. See, I’ve taken upon myself the none-too-easy burden of governing the country.To tell the truth it hasn’t been very enjoyable. Especially having to resolve conflicts with the not inconsiderable number of disgruntled people who wanted to see someone else in power. I had much help. Advisors, mages, military leaders. Those who had come across to our side when things had quieted down a little. When it had become clear that we had a rightful claim to the throne. Reive was the enthroned ruler who had never renounced his crown. And I... I was the Gerhard Ayris’ bastard. The only illegitimate daughter of the recently deceased king.This became widely known not just to the highborn nobles, but to the common people. And, as I understand, not without the help of Asper Glane.The day after t
Do not awaken the Undead king Chapter 93. Angelina
There were screams of horror from somewhere to the side. I turned round and saw the gates finally open and the drawbridge come fully down. Now, crowds of the transformed undead – frightening, strong and dangerous – were slowly crawling out. Even from here I could see their empty eye sockets flash with hunger and hear their sharp teeth clatter in their skulls.However, the undead weren’t hurrying to attack. There was no longer anyone to give them the order.I began to panic. I closed my eyes and forced myself to slowly breathe out.My hands were shaking. The chain in my hand was twitching, its links rattling barely audibly.Suddenly, behind my lowered eyelids I saw the threads of the Dark. In their hundreds and thousands, they were stretching out from Reive to the subjugated undead. They were chattering and tightening, demanding the order that couldn’t come.Nevertheless, there was also something else. Almost unnoticeable. Al
Do not awaken the Undead king Chapter 92. Angelina
Dark and Twilight, how could this happen? Why?!“Duchess Myria Clarian Castro-Arcs broke away from the ranks of the main army and raced through the rows of our zombies under her own initiative,” Glein answered gloomily, drawing his sword uncertainly.It seemed I had asked the last question aloud. The garrison commander, Reive man who had been covering our rear all this time, didn’t know what he should do now. How he could bear arms against the woman he had formerly sworn to protect. Gerhard Ayris’s sister, the Princess of Aldenor.Also her own brother’s lover and my mother. Nevertheless, it was hardly likely that would be known to anyone.“And all this for the sake of killing Reive?” I moaned, struggling to help Glein keep the necromancer on his feet.The Undead King lost consciousness, and I could feel how heavy he was. I wanted to make a joke like: ‘you couldn’t tell by the look
Do not awaken the Undead king Chapter 91. Reive
Angelina smiled confusedly but didn’t let him distract her, “You must stop this battle. Right now. You started it, so you stop it.”Reive pursed his lips, thoughtfully rubbing his chin with one hand while continuing to hold Angelina’s wrist with the other, “Hmm... The battle’s already started. The Council is continuing its attack despite the throne guardian’s death,” he was deliberating. “I suppose either they don’t know that, or someone else is acting as supreme commander. But...” he made a short pause and then smiled and winked at the girl. “But I have a plan.”He clicked his fingers and the canopy of the Dark above them dispersed like mist.“Your Dark Majesty, it’s dangerous,” broke in Glein, standing at a respectful distance from Reive all this time. “The arrows, the magic, the flying beasts. We may not reach the walls of the fortress.”He looke
Do not awaken the Undead king Chapter 90. Reive
The Ashgenrian words left Reive’s lips, immediately breaking the higher undead’s attachment spell. Now, Biellendevir was attached neither to him nor to Angelina.The huge beast opened his mouth wide and cried aloud. A terrifying roar tore through the surroundings, freezing the wide-open eyes of the soldiers and chilling the hearts of the living.A bloody film clouded the gaze of the higher undead. No one controlled him now.It was no longer the same Biellen the necromancer’d known all his life. It was a higher undead, incredibly strong and incredibly hungry.“Forgive me,” Reive repeated, creating a ghostly noose and throwing it over the dragon’s neck.One movement – and the huge monster’s head drooped, his bones creaking.Biellendevir was roaring, making sounds like the howl of the cursed Abyss. No one dared to approach the three of them at that moment. Neither the enemy’s soldiers nor th
Do not awaken the Undead king Chapter 89. Reive
All the last day flashed by like a whirlwind before the eyes of the necromancer. He saw himself coming out of Angelina’s room. He saw the broken potion bottle, and Zomzom’s crippled body hidden behind the flight of stairs.The necromancer didn’t have any time to search for the killer just then. He ordered the zombie brought to his laboratory, promising himself he would find the brazen mage who had decided to make such a stupid joke with his personal servant.Now, the puzzle had come into place. This brazen mage was Livia Rendan. She had turned out to be a much stronger opponent than he had realized. The woman hadn’t only been able to delay the effect of the curse but with time might manage to completely neutralize it. Reive saw she was already able to speak perfectly well and even get to her feet. It was worthy of admiration. Reive had always respected strength of mind.However, Livia didn’t want to live. She had something els
