Episode 3. Didn't See This Coming (3)
Yeah, well, that's how it is.
The ancient sages of the Gori Scripture once said:
"No work, no food - since ancient times, those who don't work shouldn't eat."
Honestly, I did get excited hearing about being born with a diamond spoon and all, but still...
'Ordering me to die is going too far?!'
The Skeleton King cursed at the gleaming weapon before his eyes.
What they drew was a sharp stiletto knife.
The moment he recognized it as a weapon, that vicious blade came flying toward his heart.
THUNK!
The needle-like edge tore through his clothes and embedded itself beside his shoulder.
"Shit......!"
There was no time to be shocked.
'Damn it!'
The Skeleton King desperately rolled sideways while spewing curses. Though dizzying, he barely avoided the blade.
Well, more accurately, his opponent hesitated rather than him dodging - but that wasn't the important part.
'Are they really pointing knives at a milk-drinking infant?'
He couldn't tell the exact age,
but judging by hand size alone, this was clearly a newborn!
The bewildered Skeleton King reexamined his assassins.
Their outfits - neat beige cloaks with pants and skirts - weren't luxurious but matched standard servant attire from their enemy faction, the Holy Empire.
Their speech and behavior confirmed they weren't low-ranking servants either.
'I naturally assumed they were nursemaids.'
Wait - they're trying to kill me?
Holy Empire people assassinating their own Saint candidate? Why?
The confused Skeleton King struggled to recall these bastards' earlier words.
So... what had they said?
Saint candidate?
'Did they claim Saints must originate from their own families?'
But before he could think further, another blade came flying.
The Skeleton King flailed desperately upon seeing it.
THUNK!
Having dodged again, he spat out more curses.
'Did these ill-mannered brats never learn about dialogue and communication?!'
The exposed blade failed to stab the child and withdrew.
Simultaneously came a tongue-clicking sound:
"Why's our little lord squirming so suddenly?"
Why? Because you idiots won't feed me while doing this nonsense!
"Should we bind all his limbs?"
At this increasingly absurd conversation, the Skeleton King tightly shut his eyes.
'Magic... seems impossible right now.'
Fresh after body-swapping, even with knowledge and skills, his new form couldn't keep up.
Or rather - this body could theoretically contain any power through divine blessing,
"theoretically" being the key word when nothing had been contained yet!
'It'll take time to channel mana...!'
Just a trickle would suffice. Enough to knock these bastards out!
That's when:
"Um... isn't this going too far?"
Yes!
The youngest-looking servant glanced around uncomfortably.
'At least there's one sane person here.'
No matter what, Holy Empire people assassinating their own Saint candidate wasn't normal behavior.
'Right, talk some sense into them...'
"Knives make such a bloody mess. Let's strangle it instead."
Oh for- This one's worse?!
The Skeleton King mentally grabbed his own neck. What families bred these lunatics?
Part of him wanted to find their house heads and smash their skulls, but more pressing matters demanded attention.
'First, I need to create a .'
Simply put, the reservoir containing magical energy that fuels spells.
Only with it could magic be used.
For survival, and to evade divine eyes, magic was essential.
Getting caught by gods might mean being trapped in that wretched beetle again,
or being obliterated by priests if discovered.
'The problem is magic was originally the unique power of demons, dragons, and other monsters.'
Thus monsters are born with mana cores like hearts,
while humans must spend years creating theirs.
Of course, this was advantageous.
Unlike monsters with predetermined core sizes,
humans face no limits in development.
Depending on effort invested,
it could become either a vast lake or cramped puddle.
In fact, this largely determined what mages called "heavenly bone" talent.
So creating one in urgent haste now?
'After obtaining a body that could chew through five oceans,
I'm making a mosquito puddle?!'
That wasn't all.
The mana core was an absolute weak point - destruction meant instant death for monsters,
and vegetative states for humans.
Enemies and gods would naturally target it first.
Hence creating an indestructibly hard core was ideal.
'Not that I can manage even an average one now.'
An infant's frail body would burst from core strain.
No wonder even talented mages avoided infants under three.
In other words,
no magic until age three...
'But that's for ordinary fools.'
The Skeleton King was an archmage even gods feared.
Dragons avoided precise designs due to complexity issues,
yet he could achieve perfection.
This body wasn't exactly newborn either - five days should suffice...
except five days might as well be never.
'I'll get caught by priests or killed by these fake nannies first...'
Then suddenly:
"Wait!"
"Yes?"
"Put it down. I sense demonic energy from this child."
Instantly, the Skeleton King's heart dropped as servants hastily set him down with changed expressions.
"A Saint candidate with demonic energy? Could it be a fake sent by demons?!"
"Wait, then what about our orders? The family head demanded we bring back the candidate's eyes and heart..."
"No matter - orders are orders. Prepare extraction. Everyone cover your mouths."
As they pinned him down:
'Fuck! This is child abuse!'
Using every ounce of baby strength, the Skeleton King rolled off the chair.
BAM!
His forehead hit carpeted floor.
Tears welled up involuntarily. Great - after centuries without sensation,
the first thing I feel is pain!
'How touching. I'm so moved I'm crying buckets.'
The plush carpet alone prevented worse injury.
A rich family's carriage indeed.
But relief was brief.
Tap!
Tiny hands pressed against the carriage floor as the baby Skeleton King's crimson eyes flashed.
Then -
KUGUNG!
Light erupted where his hands touched.
Maids reaching for him recoiled in shock.
"What?! ...Ah!"
Flames rapidly engulfed the interior walls.
The fire threatened to consume everything within seconds.
"Do something! Put it out!"
"It won't extinguish!"
Watching their panic amidst flames, the Skeleton King grinned.
'If I lack a mana core, I'll just borrow someone else's.'
Every faction had basic life magic.
And this carpeted luxury carriage?
'Meaning installed magic systems.'
Lighting, warming, demon-proofing spells required mana cores as fuel sources.
Finding this one's location was easier than blinking.
'Overloading it briefly is child's play.'
As proof, the heating spell ran wild, tormenting assassins.
WHOOSH!
In such confined spaces, fire meant certain death for normal humans-
CREAK!
'There we go.'
Seeing the carriage door open, the Skeleton King smiled.
Humans instinctively seek exits in emergencies.
As planned, the baby crawled desperately toward escape.
Having caused the overload,
he easily kept flames at bay.
'Freedom!'
But then-
"You little brat."
Something sharp pierced his back.
The pain surpassed imagination. Blood flowed freely.
Turning revealed burned servants now approaching.
Simultaneously, the flames vanished abruptly - the mana core had shattered.
'Dammit! Their core quality couldn't handle my output!'
He'd merely boosted a basic spell temporarily,
but their infrastructure proved too inferior.
Not his fault as a 10th-circle mage.
Demon realm cores were far superior regardless of grade.
Human realm quality clearly differed.
Though understandable given Holy Empire's magical underdevelopment...
'Shit. No other cores nearby either.'
No magic available now.
As calloused hands grabbed him:
SNAP!
Dammit.
Holy spells remained unusable too.
At this rate, sacrificing quality for immediate mana channeling seemed necessary-
Then-
FLASH!
"Gasp...!"
Divine light burst from his body.
Startled servants released him immediately.
Such radiance existed nowhere else in the world.
"Divine power...!"
But not merely emitting holy energy-
'Holy magic?'
If arcane magic utilized mana,
holy magic channeled divine power.
This unmistakably was-
'Body Enhancement holy magic?'
Thus intriguing despite circumstances.
They hadn't realized yet,
but he recognized instantly:
'This strengthens physique and boosts regeneration.'
Roughly 2nd-circle level - qualifying as junior priest already.
His back wounds were healing.
So while pleased, he grew more confused.
Holy magic required divine contracts normally.
Was this body pre-contracted?
Impossible - he'd have noticed.
Priest oaths essentially exchanged servitude for blessings anyway.
Regardless, a fortunate development.
With ,
blades became temporarily manageable!
'Five minutes!'
Previously estimating five days accounting for fragile form.
But if durability improved-
As he reached out:
SHATTER!
Servants suddenly dropped weapons.
"Your story changed! You said mere candidate..."
"Indeed! Using holy magic unbaptized proves Sainthood!"
Their panicked reactions made him blink.
Well then.
Unintentional, but perhaps beneficial.
He smirked internally:
'Original plan involved escaping after killing them all...'
This alternative might warrant mercy.
Not forgiveness - just temporary limb substitutes.
Navigating unknown territory in infant form was impractical anyway.
Now inhabiting Holy Empire Saint's body too.
Time to adapt using wits over strength.
"We won't kill this child."
Their words pleased him greatly.
'Good good. Unnecessary fights are wasteful. If you've come to senses-'
"We'll kidnap instead."
Right then.
Kill them all.
Light erupted from the Skeleton King's body.
