The First Lich Lord

Chapter 18

The village of Omark was built at the head of a mountain lake where the valley was flat enough for a few small fields of crops. The forests around Omark were primarily cedar, with a mixture of a few other hardwoods dotted around.

I stood on a low rise outside the village. Smoke rose from chimneys rising out of thatch roofs. It was a sleepy little town. Hopefully a place I could survive in.

In the center of town was a large stone building, with a holy symbol of Olattee carved at the peak of its steeplea circle with a four-pointed star in the middle. I headed down the rise, checking that my spell to hide my true nature was still in place.

I gained a few more levels during my long travel, enabling me to devote more mana to the spell. Now it masked almost all aspects of what I was. Even my projected death aura. This came at the cost of using close to ninety percent of my mana. A small price to ensure my safety. If people ever found out what I was, that would be the end.

Trusting the power of the spell, I let my hood fall back as I neared the village. Entering as a mysterious cloaked figure, while romantic in its own right, was a good way to garner unwanted attention. My clothes were simple, and it was common for travelers to carry weapons, so my blade-staff, while an odd weapon, shouldnt draw more than a few raised eyebrows. Most of the inhabitants of this region lived out in homesteads. The only people in the town proper were the garrison, merchants, and the clergy.

One of the first shops I came to held what looked to be adventuring supplies. There were bags, rope, simple weapons, and tools. A robust man greeted me. Dont right recognize youmust be new to the area. What are you looking for, stranger?

I just got into town, I responded. Im hoping to find a home here and need to purchase a map of the local area to find a place to settle down.

Ah, I see. The shopkeeper shuffled through a few shelves at the back of the store, producing a map. The map was highly detailed, and covered enough of the area to prove useful. If your goal truly is to settle, youll need to talk with the governor. And it wouldnt be a bad idea to stop by the temple too, they often assist new settlers.

Thank you. I stretched out my hand on instinct. My name is Ezekiel, but you can call me Zeke. I gave him a warm smile. Being the buddy of merchants was always a good thing.

Names Charlie. As his big hand closed around mine, I had a moment of panic, having forgotten I was a skeleton. Thankfully, the power of my illusion spell provided a certain added substance to my hand, and when his smile didnt change, I knew hed not detected anything amiss. A pleasure to meet you, Zeke. The map will be five gold.

I winced a little internally. When taking another look over the map, I noted not only its incredible detail, but it also had many notes and markers for different things of interest in the area. I handed over the gold and got directions to the governors office.

Visiting the governor was more of a tedious process than anything. Amounting to nothing more than waiting around for his secretary to draw up papers giving me the rights to build a house on any unclaimed property within a minimum and maximum range of the village. They also provided me with markers to indicate that the land had been claimed. The value would be determined afterward. In the event I couldnt afford to outright buy the land, a payment option would be offered. I never actually met the governorhe was evidently out on important business.

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I soon found myself standing outside of the temple, not wanting to enter. Worry over whether or not my spell would hold up plagued me. While it was a powerful illusion spell, I was still relatively weak, and this was a place of holy magic. If anywhere was going to be able to see through my magic, it would be a place like this.

We dont bite. A kind voice reached my ears, and I turned to see a woman with fiery red hair dressed in priestly garbs approaching me.

I let out a soft chuckle to hide my nervousness. Its not that. I just dont feel like Im worthy to enter. I figured sticking as close to the truth as possible was for the best.

What nonsense. Please, come with me, she said sternly.

No, I said firmly, though quietly. You cannot be the judge of whether or not I am worthy. You do not know the path Ive walked.

The priestess looked at me for a long time, and I began to worrythen she nodded. Though there is truth in what you say, know that Olattee is for those who need healing and restoration. What is your name? Mine is Rhea Caffrey.

Ezekiel. I refrained from holding out my hand, figuring shaking hands with a priestess wasnt a great idea. Instead, I handed her the note from Friar Brown.

You are friends with the friar? she asked after reading the note.

Yes, maam. We went on a little adventure together.

I must say, its always good to have a friend of the friar. What brings you to Omark? Rhea asked.

Im looking for a new place to call home, I explained. A place away from all the business and chaos of the bigger cities.

Rhea gave me another appraising look. You will be a good fit for the area. Let me know if you need any help. And, you seem a capable fighterare you willing to investigate some places for me?

I was a little surprised to be getting a quest from an NPC who no doubt saw me as an NPC. Then again, with all the chaos thats been going on with NPCs, I couldnt see why it was impossible. Of course, what seems to be the matter?

Its nothing major, at least not yet, Rhea said, concern crossing her face. There has been an increase of monsters coming out of the mountains to the west. Can you find the source for me, and if its within your ability, deal with it?

I nodded and accepted the quest. Even though the quest prompt didnt appear, I was sure I just received one. May I ask why you dont have the local garrison or adventurers deal with it?

Rhea let out a small laugh. We have no local adventurers to speak of, much less an adventurers guild. My temple normally serves as a place for the few adventurers that come through to pick up jobs. As for the garrison, none of them are well-equipped for scouting the mountains. The few scouts they do have periodically go deep into the mountains to scout the neighboring kingdom on the other side.

I guess that makes sense. Maybe once I get my home established, I can make it my job to create a kind of bounty board for jobs like this.

That would be quite useful, Rhea agreed. Come find me when youve found where we are going to build your home. The church likes to help new homesteaders in the area establish themselves.

Ill do that. I gave her a genuine smilethe first one Id had in a long time. Even if it was just the illusion smiling. Something about her made me want to like her, and if my situation were different, Im sure things would go much differently.

I used my newly purchased map to navigate farther up the valley. The lakes edges extended right against the steep mountains on either side. Only passable by way of a narrow trail on one side that I would have likely missed had it not been marked on the map.

The quest Rhea gave me had shown up on my user map, one of the few features that remained somewhat operational. I added the information from Charlies map to that and used the waypoint to give me directions as I headed deeper into the mountains away from the village.

Before long, the narrow trail opened up into another valley leading off into even more mountains. The lake did not continue up the valley, it came up to a pebbly shore where a small dock had been built. Leading away from the dock was a small trail extending to a house with a large storage building near it. The floor of the valley flattened out into tilled fields of corn and other crops I hadnt recognized at a glance. A few people worked out in the field, and they waved as I approached. A strongly built woman broke off from the group, warily walking up to me.

I am on a mission from the temple, I called out in an attempt to assure her of my intentions. Im also looking for a place to settle down, though I can see this spot is taken.

My assurances that I was working for the temple changed her demeanor, and she smiled. If you keep following the trail, youll find a stream that feeds into the lake. If I remember correctly, that should be a decent spot to settle down. My name is Helen Worthens.

Thank you, I called back. My name is Ezekiel, but my friends call me Zeke. Maybe well end up as neighbors.

Following her instructions, I continued the hard trek. Id left the town proper around noon, and the sun was starting to wane by the time I reached my destination. It seemed like a long way, but in reality, it wasnt. Standing at the edge of the lake where the indicated stream crossed, the glow of the village at the other end was visible.

I decided to make camp for the night. Even though I could keep going in the dark, I preferred not to.

I used the sharp blade of my Mercy to cut a small clearing in the tall grass and bushes that covered the area. No need to set up a tent; the sky was clear, and my undead body didnt mind the cold. I did make a campfire, not because I need to cook food, but because something about fires was nice. Sitting next to the warm flames, looking out on the lake and the faraway village, it was quite the picturesque areathe steep mountains leading down into the clear lake framing it all.

Not a breath of wind disturbed the water. Its mirrorlike smoothness reflected the stars above so perfectly, it was hard to tell the difference. I didnt know what the lakes name was, but I hoped it was something that reflected the beauty of this place.