Peaceful Life System: I only need to live peacefully-Chapter 103: A Necromancer?

"There is the grave."

The tombstone was modest, a simple grey stone with the name "Clara Robinson" and a single, faded carving of a wild rose. The earth around it was slightly overgrown, but a small, clear patch showed signs of recent tending – likely Elara’s work on previous visits.

"Alright," Riku said softly, placing the shovel he’d acquired earlier onto the ground. "We’ll dig here, beside her."

They began their grim task. The night was quiet, the only sounds the rhythmic scrape of the shovel against the earth and Elara’s soft, intermittent sniffles. Lila worked beside Riku, her expression somber but determined, while Elara sat huddled nearby, watching them with tear-filled eyes.

As they dug deeper, an occasional, inexplicable chill would pass through the air, raising goosebumps on their arms despite the mild night. It wasn’t a natural cold; it was more like a fleeting presence, a whisper of unseen eyes.

"Did you feel that?" Lila whispered to Riku after one particularly strong wave of coldness washed over them, her breath misting slightly. Riku nodded, his gaze sweeping the shadowy tombstones around them. "Yes. It feels like... we’re being watched." His suspicion, already piqued by the strange events surrounding Elara’s family, began to grow.

Elara, overhearing them, hugged herself tighter. "I... I always feel that way when I come here," she admitted, her voice trembling. "Ever since Father first brought me. A coldness... and that feeling... like someone is standing right behind me, watching. I thought it was just the graveyard making me feel creepy."

Lila shivered. "A ghost? Riku, do you think it’s a ghost? Maybe Elara’s mother is watching over her?"

Lila’s innocent suggestion solidified Riku’s unease. A lingering spirit, perhaps. But the intensity of the feeling, the way it seemed to focus on them... A normal soul wouldn’t linger with such presence for so many years, Riku thought. Not without a powerful anchor, or... if it wasn’t a ’normal’ soul to begin with.

His suspicion reached its peak. He had to know. "Stand still, both of you," Riku said, his voice low and serious. He set down the shovel, and prepared to cast a spell.

Senses of the Wraith (-5 Goodwill Points)

Riku quickly cast a spell, aiming to see or hear any lingering spirits in the vicinity. His eyes and ears glowed with a faint, ethereal silver light, then faded again.

And then he saw her.

Hovering near Clara Robinson’s tombstone was a luminous, ethereal figure – a beautiful woman, clad in a flowing gown of shimmering, pale green light. Her features were delicate, her expression one of profound sorrow as she gazed at the body in the makeshift casket, tears of light tracing paths down her translucent cheeks. "My love... my husband..." the spirit whispered, her voice a mournful echo that only Riku could hear. "They took you too..."

Riku was puzzled. The spirit was undeniably Clara, Elara’s mother. But her form was remarkably coherent, her energy strong, far more so than a typical grieving spirit who had passed years ago. This wasn’t just a lingering echo; this was a conscious, powerful presence.

He turned to Elara, his silver-lit eyes still perceiving the weeping spirit beside her. "Elara," he asked gently, "your mother... you said she passed from an illness when you were young. Do you remember what kind of illness it was? Or anything unusual about her, anything at all?"

Elara looked surprised by the sudden question but answered, "Father said it was a wasting sickness. It came on quickly. She grew weaker and weaker. He tried every healer, every herb... but nothing worked." She paused, a frown creasing her brow. ƒrēenovelkiss.com

"One thing... I remember her room always smelled strange. Like... like old parchments, and a sweet, cloying incense. And she had so many books, filled with symbols I didn’t understand. Father kept them locked away after she died. He said they were... difficult memories."

Riku’s mind raced. Wasting sickness, strange symbols, locked-away books, a powerful lingering spirit... "Elara," he pressed, "did your mother ever talk about... life after death? Or perhaps... ways to preserve oneself, to overcome the body’s frailties?"

Elara thought for a moment. "She... she once told me a story, a very old one, about wise women who could... transfer their spirit. If their body grew too weak, they could find a new one. She said it was a dangerous magic, forbidden. I thought it was just a fairy tale."

Riku looked at the weeping, ethereal Clara, then back at Elara. The pieces clicked into place. This wasn’t just a spirit; this was a skilled practitioner.

"Elara," Riku said, his voice gentle but firm, "I don’t think your mother died from a simple wasting sickness. I believe your mother, Clara, was a necromancer. A powerful one. And the ’illness’... I suspect it was the result of a ritual gone wrong. Perhaps she was attempting to transfer her spirit into a new, healthier body to escape a disease, and something interrupted the process, or it failed, leaving her spirit anchored here, strong but trapped."

Elara stared at him, her face a mask of stunned disbelief. "A necromancer? My mother? But... Father never said...!"

The ethereal Clara, who had been focused on her husband’s form, turned her luminous head sharply towards Riku, her sorrowful expression shifting to one of half-shock, half-impressed surprise. Her gaze flickered between Riku and Elara, then lingered on Lila with a new, appraising intensity. A faint, almost spectral sigh escaped her lips, and she nodded slowly to herself, as if acknowledging a truth Riku had just unveiled.

He knows... Clara’s ethereal voice was a whisper in Riku’s mind.

My Elara... she has found a very perceptive young man. You see that, dear? We do not need to worry about her anymore. However, she might face a little bit of competition from the other girl.

Should I help her secure that man? Maybe I can scare him into choosing Elara over the other one by giving him some occult signs. Whoa, his eyes are so beautiful, I could get lost in them as well.

Wait, why does it seem like he is looking at me?

Riku stared right into her eyes before extending his hand.

"Hi, I am Riku Sakamoto. You must be Clara Robinson. Nice to meet you."