Aside from the robe, the skeleton mage's body adorned a pair of rings. Luckily they were both ones I recognized: one increased spellcasting ability, allowing the user to memorize one extra spell above their normal limit; The other was a simple defensive ring which increased resistance to physical strikes. Since rings did not have typically have downsides, I put them both on.

The skeleton's robe may have been enchanted, so I decided it was in my best interest to procure it. It was, however, firmly lodged behind the boulder. Perhaps I could move the boulder if my strength was higher, but at the base level of 10 it was not nearly enough. Instead I pulled on the robe with all my might. It seemed to actually work, just before I heard a ripping sound.

"Whoops."

The robe was torn in two. Well, so much for that. I might at least have use for it as scrap cloth, right? I stuffed the torn half into my bag.

I went back into the now-unoccupied study room and looked for anything of value. The shelves contained a library's worth of books, but they were far too complex. They talked about magical theory which far surpassed my understanding of how magic worked in the game; It might take me years to decipher all of it on my own. The alchemical equipment looked useful for potion creation, so I grabbed it. Afterwards the last place left was the mage's personal desk.

Most of it was covered by notes and scribbles. Posted on the wall, however, was a map. From the looks of it, it showed all nearby points of interest. The biggest landmark must be the adventurer town, and the symbols to the side are other settlements. The cave symbol must be the undead cave I was currently in. Interestingly, the cave was marked with an "x". There were several other settlements, including a fortress and a mansion, that shared that marking. Was this something to signify a dungeon? Or were those locations the skeleton mage was interested in? Well, a map was a useful tool in its own right, so I grabbed it as well.

The last thing to grab by attention was an open envelope on the desk. It was empty, but the broken wax seal looked fairly important. Did skeletons somehow get mail in this world? I turned it over, but what I read on the back shocked me. I dropped to the ground in disbelief. I wasn't sure I was reading it right.

"Kid? What's wrong? What's on there?"

"Haha. That's impossible. That's not supposed to be a thing. Calvar, can you read it and make sure I'm not going insane?"

The skull did as I asked and read the back of the envelope.

"It says the letter is from Spirit of Darkness."

That's not supposed to exist. The game was called Spirit of Darkness, but at no point were those words uttered in the game itself. It wasn't an organization, on object, a person, or anything. It was supposed to be symbolic, something that only the players would understand. If this world was truly based on the game, then that phrase must never be uttered. It would break the sanctity of its existence.

"Calvar, do you know what that phrase refers to?"

The skull gave me a puzzled look.

"Huh? Of course I do."

Again I could do nothing but wallow in disbelief. What was he going to say next, that he knew this was a game? Or perhaps this was all an elaborate prank, or a dream? I began doubting everything I thought I understood.

"See, that's what the Demon Lord calls himself. He and his organization go by that name, but it's super tacky, so nobody else uses that term. I mean, Spirit of Darkness? How pretentious do you have to be?"

I began to regain my senses. So, this wasn't a common term in this world, but something introduced by the Demon Lord? The Demon Lord himself is a new an unfamiliar entity, so it could be possible. This of course raised more questions. The Demon Lord has already come up in my travels before, so coming across his work here again is suspicious. Why did he possess the same silver pendant as me? How did he know the term Spirit of Darkness?

A thought occurred to me. It's far-fetched, but isn't it possible the Demon Lord is the same as me? He might have been a normal human who was transported into this world, just as I was. Using SoD's title so casually might have been a lure, a draw to get other players like myself to find each other. But if so, why would he become a Demon Lord? If he just wanted to meet other players, that seems completely overboard. Surely a billboard ad would be enough?

I needed more information. From what I've just learned, it does seem the Demon Lord has established communications with the skeleton mage of this cave. If I take the map into account, it seems as though they are establishing a plan, or coordination with other settlements. This was very reminiscent of SoD, and the World-Devouring Demon. The ancient Demon also made connections and established a chain of command. It had several demon generals, each served as the final boss of their own dungeon. Once all the demon generals were defeated, the player could finally challenge the World-Devouring Demon itself.

If I looked at it on those terms, then the skeleton mage would be a demon general. Each of the locations marked on the map would then be a dungeon, each with its own demon general at the helm. Once I defeat each of the demon generals, I would cause a big enough of a concern for the final villain to show himself before me. Then, after defeating the big bad, I could possibly save the world.

Of course, I couldn't care less about saving the world. A noble goal like that goes against the principles of SoD. All I wanted at the moment was to meet and speak with this Demon Lord, and either confirm or deny my suspicions. The best bet for accomplishment of this goal would be to continue hunting these demon generals.

"So no clues as to the whereabouts of my master, is there?" said the skull.

"I don't think so. Your master was a human necromancer, right?"

"Yes. Since this is the cave he commanded me to guard, I was sure I could find something here. But life isn't ever that easy, eh? Never that easy..."

He grew visibly saddened. The opportunity did make me think of a suitable ice-breaker.

"Calvar, you said you don't follow politics, right? So home come you know about the Demon Lord and his organization?"

The skull rolled its eyes.

"Please, Eren, even I know basic facts like that. Anyone who set foot in Tristaria in the last decade would know about the Demon Lord or the great Holy King. If you didn't, you'd have to be a stupid man. A sick man too. A stupid and sick man with sick hobbies, like decapitating skeletons."

"Sorry, the Holy King?"

The skull sighed.

"The Holy King is the ruler of Tristaria. He is known to be immortal, and has reigned over the land for over 100 years. Tristaria's great war is between the Demon Lord and the Holy King."

That is another entity which did not exist in SoD. Politics and human figures were of little relevance in the game, as the main plot was a conflict between gods and demons. Perhaps I should look into the Holy King as well?

With everything in place, I bid the cave farewell.

Back in the adventurer town, everything looked the same as when I left. Toberno did say it was quiet lately, but there truly did not seem to be a single visitor besides me. I carefully opened the door to the general store.

A woman was sleeping in her chair. She looked to be in her 20s or 30s, but when looking at her, the first thing that came to mind was boredom. I could only sense apathy towards me and the world in general when we previously spoke.

"Ferra, are you awake?" I ask.

The woman made only minimal efforts at a response.

"Oh, you're that kid from before. You're still alive? I'm surprised."

I pulled out a pair of swords.

"Do you think I could get anything for these?"

She briefly examined the weapons.

"Old, dented, obviously unkempt. Pretty bad. Where did you find these, a crypt?"

"Actually, yes. I got them from a pair of skeletons."

Ferra was surprised at my response.

"What? A beginner like you defeated skeletons? You mean from that nearby cave filled with undead?"

"Yes. There was a skeleton mage, too, but he wasn't too trouble. Managed to get quite a haul from raiding his headquarters. I think he might be have been an underling Demon Lord, too."

Ferra looked at me with shock. It was precious.

"Damn. That makes me feel bad for ripping your off earlier. Well, I could probably smelt down these swords, so they should be worth something."

She ripped me off? I thought everything seemed oddly expensive.

"Smelt it? You mean you're a blacksmith? I thought you were a shopkeeper."

"Shopkeep, blacksmith, priest, mayor, whatever. I'm in charge of the slack that Toberno doesn't pick up. Not like there's much competition in this ghost town."

Could it be that this lazy woman is actually an incredibly talented resource? For some reason I had trouble imagining it.

"But kid, where are you off to now? I know you're pretty proud of clearing that cave, but I wouldn't want my best customer to get in over their head and meaningless lose his life."

I'm her best customer now? That was awfully fast. She did have a point, however; heading to a location that was above my skill level would be a bad idea. I took out my map and showed it to her.

"Well, I had several locations in mind."