Megumi had spent the next several hours dispatching and replacing palace guards until almost all of them were now undead soldiers under her command. The plan had worked out perfectly and she now had an iron grip on the palace security. She now commanded just over 40 undead and the strain on her mana was starting to make itself apparent.

"You said you would let me go once I got him in. I should have known that a vile monster like you would not keep her word!"

The woman's comment stung, just a little bit, but Megumi ignored the insult. "Megu will keep her word. There is just a bit more to do and you will have your release. Until then, be quiet and do as Megu says."

Velyie ground her teeth and cursed under her breath. Poro-tan had been pacing around the guard house in his new uniform and appeared to be quite troubled. "What is wrong, Poro-tan? The plan is going perfectly."

"We're going to get in there, and what? Kill the king? Best case scenario is that we succeed and then we're wanted throughout the whole kingdom for regicide. You do realize that we have to escape all the way back down the mountains to even get out of this cursed country, right? This whole thing is suicide."

Megumi had left out a couple important details in what she had told Poro-tan about her plan, but that was because she hadn't been sure herself on what she was going to do. As of now, she kept quiet about that. "By the time he's found, no one will even know."

"There's also the matter of the amount of guards in this place. You can only control so many at once, there are still tons of guards that patrol the inside of the palace. I can't protect you from an entire palace worth of guards, you know?"

"You worry too much, Poro-tan."

This caused him to fume even more and he left the room. She shrugged and went back to debating on her ultimate course of action. The best thing she could do would also be the most painful and difficult, but it seemed that it would be the only way to make this work. Velyie just stared out the small window on the side of her office that overlooked the courtyard and they ignored each other in silence.

Once night had come, Megumi had maxed out her allotment of undead. It was time to move into action. Poro-tan had finally come back in after he had gone out on patrol with a group of undead. They had to keep up appearances to make things seem like they were normal. It was time for a shift change and Megumi gave commands to several undead to continue the patrol patterns as Velyie had written down on a map on the wall.

"We're going into the palace now. Velyie, you're going to come with us, and you're going to keep your mouth shut. Once the operation is done, Megu will release you, but not sooner."

Megumi didn't trust the woman to stay silent, and so she forced her. The woman was surely still loyal to the throne, and Megumi was certain that she'd try to pull something if she got the chance. She put her dark cloak back on and pulled the hood up over her head before the three of them exited the guard building and headed towards the palace.

She had intended to go about this infiltration at a slower, more careful pace, but it didn't seem that would work. After all, she couldn't just wander around the palace and turn soldiers to her side whenever she wanted to. This would be their only chance and it was important that no one saw her.

Megumi stayed back and remained hidden within the shadows of the palace. The guards that weren't on patrol trailed behind them at a distance, also keeping to the shadows. There were over thirty of them, and they were her backup plan should stealth fail them. Velyie had clearance to enter the palace proper and the guards waved them by without a word. Megumi watched and grinned as her two soul trapped minions took the two sentries out from behind after passing them. Megumi had some of her undead take their place at the door and had others drag the bodies away after she cast Sanguine Infusion on them.

Neither corpse yielded any TP, which was a disappointment, but she couldn't always be lucky. The entry hall of the palace was extravagant and polished marble floors shone in candlelight from chandeliers hung above them. This palace, like anywhere else in this kingdom, was built for defense, but she had an idea of where she was going and where the old man would be.

The group waited until everything was clear and then ducked down a hallway to the left, following a spiraling staircase up to the second floor of the palace. It had taken a little patience, but a group of undead guards were crowded in the second floor hallway behind them.

"We need to move forward carefully. There will be guard patrols and we'll need to take them out. We can store the bodies in these rooms as we go and replace the patrols with the minions we have here."

Poro-tan nodded and now that they had all assembled, they could move forward. The palace as humongous and they wound their way through halls for what felt like forever, taking out guard patrols as quietly as they could each time they came across them. Having Velyie with them had turned out to be a great plan.

Each time they encountered a small group of patrolling guards, they tended to stop and salute the woman. Megumi never got tired of the looks on their faces as they went down with a surprise shortly afterward. At this point, she was getting extremely low on guards, however. After ages of winding their way through the palace and through internal security barriers, they found the staircase leading to the third floor.

Velyie had refused to give her any more information, and so things had taken a long time. Megumi didn't want to resort to torturing the obstinate woman any more, so she just kept using her in the best way that she cold. The third floor would be where the king's private rooms would would be. So far they had been lucky enough to not run into any of the other guard captains or elite guards. Just as she thought they were in the clear, that was when the worst possible thing that could happen, did happen.

A young man in his early twenties with short-cut, dirty blonde hair stepped out of one of the rooms down the hallway with four heavily armored guards next to him wearing gold cloaks. Damn. Megu thought he was dead.

Megumi hadn't had anywhere to hide and so she stood there between Poro-tan and Velyie with her staff in hand.

"Intruders! Velyie, you traitor! Who are these people? You dare bring an intruder into the castle?! Your highness, get behind us."

The sound of ringing steel echoed down the corridor and the man's azure eyes met hers beneath her hood. His eyes widened in realization of who he was looking at. He shoved his way forward through his guards. "Megumi? Is that... really you?"

The jig was up. She used her free hand to remove her hood and reveal her face. Poro-tan turned his head slightly and gave her a wary look as he drew his sword and stood defensively between her and the enemy.

"It's me," she replied flatly.

"Put your weapons down you fools, do you not realize who this is? This is Megumi Yasuzuno, crowned princess of Vaeliea, and my betrothed."

Poro-tan's jaw literally dropped when he heard this. Megumi had simply told him that she was of a noble family from Vaeliea and that the king of this country had played a part in her family's downfall. All of that was true, but it had mostly been that the man had failed to send aid and let her family die as the noble houses of Vaeliea turned against them and commenced a coup.

The enemy guards slowly lowered their weapons and Poro-tan as well as Velyie did the same. "Why have you come into the palace like this, Megumi? If you had let it be known that you were here, we would've welcomed you instantly? Surely you don't blame father for the terrible things that happened?"

Megumi wavered slightly. She had thought Reynard had been killed in action a few years ago. Maybe the information that Cerberus had given her was in error? This was far from their territory, but why would he lie about that? What else had he lied about? No. The information she had been given had to be true, didn't it? Reynard was trying to trick her.

"He orchestrated the coup! My family... my parent's they died believing you would send aid! Miki and I ended up in an orphanage where she was beaten to death like a dog! He must pay! I won't let even you get in my way! I'm here for revenge! For justice!" Tears streamed down her face as she gripped her staff so tightly her knuckles were turning white.

It hurt her to say what she just had and she never expected to see him again. Megumi had actually loved the man who stood before her now. He had aged, and she had not, but they had spent years playing together from the time she was very young. His face looked pained and shocked at what she was saying.

"Father fell ill last week... The healers say he is dying. You don't have to do this, you seek revenge against the wrong person. I will protect you. I'm sorry that we couldn't be there for you, but reports came to us saying that you had died in the coup. I don't know where you've got your information, but it is false."

Her free hand trembled. Who should she believe? Cerberus had saved her. Saved her from that awful place and raised her as if she were his own daughter. Why would he lie? She was his favorite. But this was Reynard. Reynard was alive and he was right here in front of her. I don't know what to do anymore. I wanted to kill the king... and then leave this place once and for all. I will lay waste to the usurpers and reclaim my throne on a pile of a thousand corpses. This is what I've lived for. Who's really been pulling the strings? Could it have been... Cerberus all along?

Megumi looked down at her hand and felt as though she saw it covered in the blood of all those she had murdered to get where she now stood. She had just murdered over fifty people, people with families, and for what? For nothing? She dropped her staff to the ground with a clang and sat down hard. She shook with the realization that she had been played for a fool. She had been trained like a loyal hound and sent out into the world. How could she not have realized? She had seen first hand the terrible things the vampire king had done to achieve his goals. She was an idiot.

"I don't... I can't—" Megumi curled her legs up against her like a ball and began to weep. Poro-tan was at her side in an instant with his reassuring hand on her back. Reynard had run over as well once he had seen her fall down.

"I will protect you, Megumi. Tell me what happened? Where have you been all these years? How have you not aged a day since I last saw you? I will be your shield. It seems like you've done something horrible this day to get this far... but I will find a way to make it right." Reynard's warm hand brushed her cheek, wiping away tears and he pulled her into an embrace. "Come with me. Your... knight can come as well."

He scooped her up in his arms and carried her into the king's private quarters. Megumi continued to weep. It all flowed out of her. Nearly a decade's worth of tears and repressed emotions flooded to the surface. I've been such a fool. What have I done? I've killed... so many people. So very many. For what? For a lie? I'll make him pay for making me into his dog. My journey is only just beginning.

END of Book 1 of The Necromancer and the Would-Be-Hero

Epilogue:

Cerberus, King of the Vampires, and most powerful of the council of 9 listened to the report that Revia, his spy master delivered. His well laid plans had been ruined. His plans had all been ruined and simply because that fool Reynard had returned from his post in the south at the news of his father becoming ill. Revia was supposed to have killed him and disposed of him before he could meet up with Megumi. She had failed him.

He felt an incredible amount of rage as the spy continued to give him information. She continued blathering on and on and he grabbed a nearby chair and threw it with all his might. It smashed into the wall, shattering into splinters of wood. My well laid plans! Wasted!

Cerberus had meticulously raised that girl and molded her into what he had wanted. She was ruthless, a perfect dog for him to use who he could point in whatever direction he wished. She was a prodigy and had gained the rare skill Sanguine Infusion. She was unique and could become ridiculously powerful. He had sewn chaos in Vaeliea for the fun of it, and saw an opportunity to take the kingdom as his own through the girl. He had planned everything so carefully, all for naught. It all began when 'saved' the girl from the orphanage that he had arranged for her to be ushered into after his subtle moves had sewed chaos within her kingdom. He had then trained her and helped her to gain her class. It was all for nothing!

Things had been going so well. She was on the road to becoming stronger and would have not only ruffled the feathers of Thera, but was poised to take over the kingdom of Castellum for him as well as she had enough royal blood to lay claim to that throne as well. If only his assassin had been faster. Revia had failed to kill Reynard before he had returned to the palace, and so his plans were ruined all because of her.

His hand reached out like a viper and gripped the throat of the spy tightly. Her eyes bulged and she kicked her feet weakly as he effortlessly raised her off of the ground. "Do you realize what you have cost me? Do you realize the enemies that we will now have rallied against us? Over a decade's worth of planning is ruined. Megumi knows too much and now she will have a kingdom at her back."

The woman continued to kick and squirm, but she couldn't get free. Her face was beginning to turn blue. Cerberus squeezed and crushed her neck with ease. Her body convulsed and went limp. The vampire king threw the body at the wall in much the same way he had tossed the chair. Her body crashed through the wall, broken and lifeless.

He clenched his fists at his side and strode out of his room with purpose. He would have to change locations, much had to be done and there was little time to do it. There was no question that the girl would come for him, she wasn't so stupid that she wouldn't have figured everything out already and he would need to ensure that she was crushed before she was allowed to get any stronger.

Cerberus ordered all of his things to be moved to a new location and he stepped out of his manor and into the pouring rain. This was a setback, but a minor one. He could still salvage the situation, he still had one more ace up his sleeve. He smiled as he sat down. A beautiful girl sat across from him. She had silver hair tied into a ponytail and violet eyes, just like the others in her bloodline. "Miki. It's time for us to leave this place." The girl nodded silently and the carriage began to pull away.

Spoiler: Hideki Name Hideki (Poro-kun) Level 029 (59,144/59,230 EXP to next Level) Class Warrior HP 2000/2000 MP 75/75 TP 0 Adventurer Rank B Attributes Vitality 71 Magic 32 Endurance 66 Magic Resistance 37 Strength 63 Luck 6 Agility 54 Dexterity 45 Passive Skills • Warrior's Essence - Level 5 (+50 HP regeneration/min)

• Sword Mastery - Level 7 (+70% proficiency with swords)

• Tiger Style - Level 2

• Turtle Style - Level 2

• Stalwart - Level 1 (+10% natural defense)

• Fortify Health - Level 3 (+150 HP)

• Adrenaline - Level 5 (Killing an enemy gains you one stack of Adrenaline. Each stack adds +5 to Strength, Vitality, and Agility for 4 minutes. Maximum stacks: 5) Active Skills • Holy Blade - Level 1 (Envelope blade in holy aura for 15 seconds)

• Shockwave - Level 3 (Release shockwave from blade) Spoiler: Megumi Name Megumi Level 030 (64,600/65,513 EXP to next Level) Class Necromancer HP 475/475 MP 1550/1550 TP 0 Villain Rank C Adventurer Rank D Attributes Vitality 19 Magic 81 Endurance 12 Magic Resistance 53 Strength 6 Luck 19 Agility 10 Dexterity 10 Passive Skills • Mage's Essence - Level 6 (+180 MP regeneration/min)

• Fortify MP - Level 2 (+100 MP) Active Skills • None Necromancer Magic

• Sanguine Infusion (50 MP) - Level 15 (Absorb life essence of recently deceased, 15% chance to gain +1 TP from human victims [Cap reached. Lvl Requirement for Lvl 16, (50)])

• Corpse Explosion (30 MP) - Level 7 - (+70% damage from explosion)

• Corpse Absorbtion (10 MP) - Level 1 (Absorb a corpse's essence. Recover 80 MP)

• Raise Undead (20 MP) - Level 11 (Raise weak undead to fight for you. Max: 55)

• Undead Mastery - Level 4 (+20% to stats of Raised Undead)

• Summon Blood Golem (500 MP) - Level 1 (Raise a Golem to fight by your side by using the blood of the fallen. Max: 1)

• Blood Golem Mastery - Level 3 (+12 Minutes to summon duration. +15% defense, +15% attack power)

• Soul Trap (350 MP) - Level 2 (Trap soul of a recently defeated foe. Max: 2 [Cap reached. Lvl Requirement for Lvl 3: (60)] )

• Soul Trap Mastery - Level 7 (+28 to all stats of Summoned Soul, except luck. Max level reached. Lvl requirement for Lvl 8: 50)

• Spirit Barrier (100 MP) - Level 2 (Erect a barrier using souls of the dead for fuel. Blocks spells and projectiles)

• Magic Skin - Level 5 (Actively consumes MP to negate physical and magical damage. Higher levels lower the MP cost)

• Decay (120 MP) - Level 5 - (25% chance of success. Causes body to rot from the inside out causing extreme pain and slowing movement at joints)

• Siphon (70 MP) - Level 1 - (Drain health of enemy at a rate of 10 HP/second for up to 5 seconds. 30% chance of success.)

• Eldritch Blast (75 MP) - Level 14 (Unleashes a roiling ball of Eldritch energy that burns its subject on contact for 5 seconds)

Spoiler: Velyie Name Velyie Level 017 (12,117/13,655 EXP to next Level) Class Guard HP 1250/1250 MP 75/75 TP 2 Rank Lesser Captain Attributes Vitality 48 Magic 33 Endurance 46 Magic Resistance 31 Strength 46 Luck 5 Agility 43 Dexterity 40 Passive Skills • Heavy Armor Mastery - Level 1 (+5% mobility when wearing heavy armor)

• Spear Mastery - Level 7 (+70% proficiency with spears)

• Fortify Health - Level 1 (+50 HP) Active Skills • Detect Truth - Level 2 (When questioning people this skill will cause a red aura to glow around a person if they tell a lie)

• Impale - Level 4 (Stab an enemy with extra force using a spear. +20% speed and power behind spear thrust)