Swordsman's Regression: Reawakened as a Necromancer-Chapter 164: Immaculate Hero

Before Percival’s boots had even fully crossed the threshold, a booming laugh echoed off the stone walls.

"Haha! He lives! The world is still turning, and the Hero returns to us!"

Baron Eutheo stood from his throne, his theatrical bombast returning in full force. He was completely different from the man Percival had seen before he entered Hollowcreek.

All the fear of treason had completely evaporated. The wrinkles left his face and he was all smiles now, descending the stone steps with wide, sweeping strides, his emerald coat billowing behind him.

He opened his arms as if preparing to embrace an old friend.

Percival stopped walking. He stood perfectly still, his blue eyes locking onto the Baron with a look so chillingly flat that Eutheo’s arms awkwardly lowered before he closed the distance.

"Percival Nightstar," Eutheo adjusted, clearing his throat and settling for a broad, relieved grin. "I felt your aura from the array. I can almost feel the demons you now carry with you. Did you do it? Did you actually do it?"

"Yes," Percival said. His voice was a rasp, stripped of any emotion. "It’s done."

"Incredible," Eutheo breathed, pacing a tight circle, running a hand through his beard. "Tell me. The reports... were they true? What was it like inside? Were there truly Demons?"

"Yes," Percival replied, offering nothing more.

Eutheo paused, his eyes gleaming with a mixture of morbid curiosity and greed. "And my Vanguard? The Awakeners I sent before you... did you see them?"

"I found their bodies," Percival said smoothly. It was the truth. He had found the five Awakeners in the Haunting of Suicide Manor, though he saw no need to detail how the Vampires had drained them.

Or that one of them was actually alive and he was the one that killed him.

"Nothing was left to salvage."

Eutheo offered a fleeting, practiced look of sorrow—a politician’s grief—before his eyes lit up again. "A tragedy, but their sacrifice paved the way for you. And the treasures? The Aspect of a Demon Gate World must be spectacular. What did you get?"

"I claimed what was mine," Percival answered. He didn’t mention the enslaved Vampire Lord, the fifty demons resting in his shadow, or the immunity to lies and betrayal that he now possessed.

Eutheo chuckled, holding up a hand. "Fair enough, fair enough! A conqueror’s right. I won’t pry into your inventory."

The Baron clasped his hands together behind his back, rocking on his heels. "And what of Duke Ithalan? How do the people of Hollowcreek fare? Did the old Elf require anything else? Provisions? Rebuilding funds? I plan to visit by the week’s end so we can formally come to terms on the ownership of the Gate World, and perhaps celebrate our little... triumph."

Percival’s gaze remained locked on the Baron. The ignorance of the man was almost comical.

"I wouldn’t do that," Percival stated.

Eutheo’s grin faltered. "Why?"

"Because you aren’t the only one who noticed the Alpha Gate," Percival said, his tone casual but laced with absolute authority. "The Crown sent Awakeners. Not just any, but the Heroes. The Prince of Valoris and his party."

The color drained from Eutheo’s face so fast he looked as though he might faint. The jovial Baron vanished, replaced instantly by the terrified conspirator. "Prince Aethelstan? The Heroes’ Party? Are you certain of this, Percival?"

"I saw them," Percival deadpanned. "They arrived just as the Gate was cleared."

Again, this was entirely truthful, though he omitted the part where he had drawn his blade and bisected a royal Elven Mage in front of them.

"They are likely going to be there for a while. I suggest you shut down that portal now. If you go there now, or if you leave that portal active, they will trace it back to Luvengart."

Eutheo swallowed hard, a bead of sweat forming at his temple. "Gods... you are truly a hero! Telling me this in time..."

He pointed to a guard to carry that out immediately.

"I am only trying to protect my part in all of this," Percival said plainly.

"Yes. Yes, of course. You’re right." Eutheo rubbed his temples, his mind racing through the political ramifications of the Heroes snooping around his illegal supply chain.

He took a deep, shaky breath, trying to reclaim his composure. "Well. The danger to the province is handled, at least. We have our lives."

Percival didn’t care about the Baron’s political survival. Every second he stood in this hall was a second the Heroes were using to track him down.

"The payment, Baron," Percival prompted.

Eutheo blinked, snapping out of his panicked reverie. "Ah. Yes. A deal is a deal."

The Baron gestured to a servant hovering nervously in the shadows. The servant rushed forward, presenting a small velvet tray. Resting upon it was a fine, pitch-black rectangular card etched with the golden sigils of the Luvengart Bank.

Eutheo picked it up, holding it out to Percival. "The account is secured under your name. Untraceable, highly classified. As agreed."

Percival took the card. After inspecting it, it dissipated in his palm, entering his inventory.

Then, Percival summoned his system interface to initiate the transfer of Gate World ownership.

⸢Owned Gate Worlds⸥

⸢Hollowed Kingdom of Thorns (D-Rank)⸥

⸢The Rending Marsh (A-Rank)⸥

⸢Haunting of Suicide Manor (A-Rank)⸥

He selected Suicide Manor and transferred the ownership rights to the Baron’s designated proxy. In exchange, he kept The Rending Marsh, where the continuous revenue would be sent directly to the account linked to the black card in his hand.

⸢Ownership transfer complete⸥

⸢Owned Gate Worlds updated⸥

⸢Hollowed Kingdom of Thorns (D-Rank)⸥

⸢The Rending Marsh (A-Rank)⸥

Eutheo let out a long breath as he received the prompt on his end. He looked up at Percival, joy in his face.

"You truly did," he beamed. "You are immaculate, dear Percival. A true Hero even if you refuse it. I would have offered you gifts but I know you would refuse them as well."

Percival said nothing, only gazing plainly.

Eutheo’s brows furrowed as he finally registered the extreme rigidity in the Necromancer’s posture. Despite the monumental victory and the fortune he had just acquired, Percival looked like a coiled spring ready to snap.

"You seem... rushed," Eutheo noted, his eyes narrowing slightly with renewed suspicion. "Is there an issue with the Awakeners? Did something else happen?"

Percival looked away. "All is fine," he replied. "I’m just tired."

Eutheo smiled with understanding. "Very well then. I bid you a good rest and hope to see more of you, Percival."

With nothing to say, the Necromancer turned his back on the throne and walked briskly toward the doors, leaving Baron Eutheo alone in his hall to wait for a storm he didn’t even know was coming.