Learning Deathbed

Mognog's spirit flames moved until they pointed at Ritzy.

"Kiddo…– Well, I was going to tell you to learn that spell and do it quickly. It's going to be key for solving all your troubles. But since you've already started, continue."

Mognog's eyes shifted to Gerhart as Ritzy went back to reading his spellbook.

"Although it would be good if you learned your spell too, I'm going to have to ask you to tell me everything about your situation down to the last detail. How you ended up in it, why things went as they did, and what kind of threat you're facing. Tell me everything you can remember. Be concise but don't skip the details."

Gerhart nodded. He understood why Mognog wanted him to tell him everything. He was a little disappointed that he wouldn't get to learn his spell while Ritzy got to learn his. But, just like Mognog, Gerhart had also realized the implications of Ritzy's spell.

If Deathbed weren't only limited to harboring the undead creatures controlled by Ritzy, it could hold Talia's body. If it could do that, Ritzy and Gerhart could bring her body along with them as they escaped. Or, tried to escape, at least.

Even if they had solved the problem of whether to bring Talia's body along or leave it behind, they still had to deal with Baron Michmond's knights and subordinates tracking them. Before long, they would also have to deal with the mercenaries and assassins that the baron would have hired.

They would probably be mostly safe after crossing the forest since the Shiria and Chitron kingdoms were at war. And due to Chitron's alignment with mercenaries and fighters for hire, it would be difficult for mercenaries from Shiria to chase Ritzy and Gerhart into the depths of Chitron. At least, that's what Ritzy and Gerhart hoped.

Although the Michmond Barony was in the outer reaches of the country, and Baron Michmond rarely showed his face in any of the towns he governed, his son was famous. And so were the rumors that the baron had connections with high nobles in the government.

If those rumors were true, and Baron Michmond made use of those connections to guarantee revenge on Ritzy and Gerhart, it was very likely that a single country border would keep them protected.

However, before they could worry about getting even further away, Ritzy and Gerhart still had to first cross the Banta Forest while evading their pursuers and the dangers of the forest itself. And, at the moment, their resources were incredibly limited.

They had gotten a few tools, weapons, and food from clearing the Red-Toe Goblin Village dungeon. But they hadn't gotten any opportunities to lighten their accumulated fatigue. If anything, it had gotten even worse due to Talia's death.

Even as Ritzy and Gerhart focused on learning the spell and telling Mognog about their situation, neither of them could ignore Talia's lifeless body next to them or do more than forcibly suppress their feelings of loss and anger.

They had to survive. And for them to do that, they had to push down their emotions and not let them cause trouble or distract them from what they had to do.

Ritzy could use his love for necromancy and the fact that he was learning a necromancy spell to help put his emotions in a jar and seal it tightly. But Gerhart had to talk about how they had ended up in the situation they were in as well as every important detail about where they were, where they were headed, if there were any other places they could go, if there was anyone they could get to help, if they knew the weather and whether it would rain tomorrow as well or not.

Gerhart didn't have to talk about Talia each time he told Mognog something, but she had been a part of their group, and each time he mentioned something, it would remind him of her.

He knew there was a river that snaked through some parts of the forest because the three of them had gone on an adventure once and found where it led out of the forest not too far away.

Unfortunately, they had been too young and weak to explore the river's path through the forest or where it led after leaving the forest, so it didn't provide much help to Mognog.

Then, there was the fact that it had rained as if it were the end of days when they had entered the dungeon several hours ago. That piece of information was helpful.

Heavy rains usually didn't last too long unless there was something special going on. So, if things went as expected, Ritzy and Gerhart wouldn't have to trudge through the cold and hard rain. Unfortunately, it meant they would be leaving footprints in the soft, muddy ground, which would make it easy for even inexperienced Rangers and hunters to track them down.

But Baron Michmond had no reason to cheap out on the men he sent after Ritzy and Gerhart, and the Rangers he sent would probably be skilled enough to pick up their traces even if it were raining. In that case, it would be better for Ritzy and Gerhart if the weather was good since it would be easier for them to move.

The fact that it had rained also meant another thing. Gerhart's Sparking Arrow wouldn't get to see much use, even if he learned it. So, it was a good choice to have Gerhart focus on giving Mognog as much detail of their situation as possible.

It would probably take a while until Gerhart was good enough at the spell and had enough mana to make it powerful enough to burn or set ablaze a soaked forest. Otherwise, a forest fire would have been a good deterrent for their pursuers.

Well, lighting the forest on fire would also put them in harm's way, so it wasn't really an option. But as Mognog said and wanted, they explored every possible course of action. Even things that could put Ritzy and Gerhart in more danger were things that had to be considered. If only because it could help them come up with other ways to survive their pursuit.

Trying to start a forest fire was put on the last resort list, partially because it would be difficult. But it wasn't completely ruled out. If they were lucky and ran into the right circumstances, a forest fire could be perfect.

Eventually, Gerhart ran out of details to give to Mognog.

He knew where a few of the nearby towns were, all of which were not possible destinations or places they could get help from. But other than that, he only knew general information, such as the direction the Chitron Kingdom lay in and the fact that it was their only possible escape route.

After hearing that Baron Michmond's territory stretched wide and surrounded the Shiria side of the Banta forest, Mognog had to agree.

Since it was obvious Ritzy and the others escaped into the forest to go to Chitron, Mognog entertained the idea of doing the opposite. Instead of continuing toward Chitron, they would head back deeper into Shiria since no one would expect it. Such maneuvers of deception had great potential, and if it worked, Ritzy and Gerhart would be able to get to the State of Independence, Lynter, without Baron Michmond or his men ever figuring it out.

However, Ritzy and Gerhart weren't even nearly good enough at stealth, camouflage, and sneakiness to succeed. And Mognog wasn't specialized in that area. He knew the basics, which would have been enough for him when he was alive. But now, he was nothing more than a conspicuous, shiny skull with green eyes of fire.

Ritzy and Gerhart were also quite flashy, especially Ritzy with his white hair. Even if Talia's absence and the fact that they were two instead of three would help lessen suspicion, the young kid with white hair and the tall young man with glossy black hair stood out in most crowds.

Then there was the point where they had to evade the pursuit and get rid of their traces or mislead the people chasing them and head back without anyone noticing. Regardless of anything else, finding a way to go the other way while voiding detection wasn't something Ritzy and Gerhart could do even on a good day.

So, their only real option was to continue toward Chitron and seek refuge.

Gerhart and Mognog began talking about how to increase their headstart or slow down their pursuers and other ways that would help increase their odds of surviving.

"Hey! I think I've got it!"

Gerhart and Mognog looked at Ritzy, who stood up with a joyous shout.

"Really? Good work, kiddo!"

"Nice, Ritzy. Can you try it out?"

Ritzy closed his eyes for a moment as he sensed how much mana he had left. He nodded.

"Yep. I should be good to go."

He grabbed the skeleton he had carried with him ever since he first summoned it. At the moment, he only had three potential targets he could use Deathbed on, Talia, Mognong, or Maya.

Ritzy didn't want to experiment on Talia, and if something went wrong when he did it with Mognog, Ritzy and Gerhart would lose the one thing keeping them on track and guiding them toward salvation. So, the only option left was the skeleton that had been abandoned by its spirit when Ritzy summoned it.

If Deathbed worked as they thought it would work, there should be any trouble putting Maya inside, even if it didn't have any spirituality left. It was still a dead body, after all. If anything, the lack of a contract and spirituality would support their theory that Ritzy could carry Talia with Deathbed.

Ritzy took a deep breath and arranged the skeleton so that it looked like it was in a sleeping posture on its back with its arms crossed over its chest. The spell hadn't mentioned any requirements on the target's posture. Ritzy just felt that it was suitable if the target lay like they were sleeping if they were to lie on their Deathbed.

Ritzy gathered his mana and followed the instructions on how to use it as written in the spellbook.