This Lich is a Better Landlord Chapter 28

Naomi, unaware that her collaboration with an undead had been discovered by her kin, followed closely behind Ambrose, terrified of being left behind.

Before today, Naomi's life had been a blank slate. She had heard the world was dangerous but had never witnessed it firsthand. The appearance of the hag was the first time she understood the world's true face, and meeting Ambrose was the second major turning point in her life.

Legendary rank. She had only heard tales of it.

It was said that a Legendary druid could turn an entire city into a forest in a short time, their nature magic like a natural disaster.

But that was just hearsay. She had never seen it with her own eyes.

And now, Ambrose was personally showing her what "Legendary" meant.

Dozens of small, alien-like skeletons moved under Ambrose's control like a perfectly coordinated army. As they advanced, they encountered hidden slimes, kuo-toa, and mutated crocodiles.

No matter the monster, it was torn to shreds by the skeletons in an instant.

Their souls then became spell components for Ambrose, providing his army with powerful buffs—spells like mass Bear's Strength and Cat's Grace, which multiplied the skeletons' combat effectiveness over and over. The leftover bones from the monsters were then fashioned into new alien skeletons, swelling Ambrose's ranks.

The combat power of these small skeletons was so terrifying that Naomi estimated even the City of Alchemy's army would be effortlessly annihilated by this skeletal legion.

Ambrose's mana seemed inexhaustible. If this lich wanted to deal with her tribe, he could probably slaughter the entire Golden Vine Tribe in less than half a day.

Was this the power of a Legendary Lich?

Ambrose effortlessly commanded his small skeletons to sweep through the entire sewer.

Against the sewer monsters, which had few spellcasting abilities, the slaughter was easy for Ambrose. How could melee fighters possibly stand against a tide of skeletons, especially these alien skeletons that Ambrose had modified to be several times stronger in close combat?

These small skeletons were all similar in form to the Kha'Zix Model I: a tripedal structure with a pair of simple claws. They couldn't perform complex movements, but their strength and speed far surpassed those of standard skeletons of the same level.

Combat didn't need to be complicated. They just had to pounce and tear. After all, no one expected a skeleton to perform a Sun Fist barrage like a monk, so there was no need for so many joints.

After Raul's field testing, Ambrose had even optimized the structure. This version should be considered the Kha'Zix Model II.

With Ambrose going all out, he advanced through the sewers at an incredible speed. His skeleton army continued to expand until Naomi could no longer see the end of it. Then, suddenly, Ambrose stopped.

"What's wrong?" Naomi asked, puzzled.

"Hmm, looks like we found it."

Ambrose pointed forward, but Naomi could only see darkness and nothing else.

Ambrose didn't explain, simply commanding his skeleton army to press forward.

Soon, a cacophony of squeaking noises erupted from ahead, as if the skeleton army had encountered a swarm of rats and a fierce battle had begun.

In less than half a minute, the squeaking sounds quickly died down, leaving only the clattering of bone frames moving on the ground.

Clearly, the rat swarm had been utterly crushed.

Ambrose's skeletal face remained unchanged as he calmly directed his army forward. Before long, a roar echoed from the other end of the sewer.

Naomi heard the strange cry too. It was as unpleasant as the screech of a night owl, or the dying caw of a crow.

"Is that the hag?" Naomi asked.

Ambrose nodded. "Correct. Her rat swarm is almost completely wiped out."

"Huh? Why didn't she pull your skeleton army into her illusion? Wouldn't her rats have had a better chance then?" Naomi asked, confused.

Logically, the skeleton army should have entered the illusion and been affected by the hag. Why would the hag give up such a favorable position and send her rats out to fight the skeletons?

Ambrose turned to Naomi. "How do you not know something so basic? Oh, right, I forgot. You druids don't invest in intelligence. Your nature spells rely on wisdom, borrowing power from the natural environment."

Though both druids and mages could cast spells, the principles behind their spellcasting were fundamentally different.

"Alright, let me teach you some common sense. All spellcasters who rely on their own power have to consider consumption. For a large-scale illusion like this, if you want to trap people inside, you have to constantly influence their senses, right?"

Naomi nodded, half-understanding. It seemed to make sense.

"Ultimately, illusions are a clash of souls. Creating an illusion consumes one's own spirit. The illusion is already holding a group of druids, and keeping them trapped is already straining the hag. If my entire skeleton army were to flood into the illusion, how could a single hag possibly bewitch hundreds of skeletons at once? Are skeletons' souls not souls? Her head would instantly explode, and the illusion would shatter on its own."

With Ambrose's explanation, Naomi had a moment of epiphany.

The hag couldn't affect so many individuals at once, so she had sent out the rat swarm instead. She just hadn't expected the rats to be so utterly helpless against the skeletons, leading to a complete rout.

Naomi's face flushed with excitement. She opened her mouth and shouted, "Old Man Jones, I'm here to save you!"

Ambrose glanced at Naomi, too embarrassed to tell her that the illusion hadn't been broken yet and her voice couldn't get through.

But it was close enough. No need to waste any more time.

Ambrose's earlier boasting about how powerful hags were and how only a Legendary could deal with them was all just to fool this novice druid. For a Legendary, a small fry like a hag could be dealt with in the snap of a finger.

Ambrose's consciousness had already penetrated the crude illusionary barrier, locking firmly onto the hag. Now, with just a wave of his staff, a few quick Rays of Frost would send her to her doom.

However, just as Ambrose raised his staff, he heard the hag shout, "Enough! We can talk about this! If I have offended your territory, I can leave right now! We're both creatures of evil, there's no need for us to kill each other. Can't we negotiate?"

The hag's voice was high-pitched and shrill, hurting Naomi's ears. But she didn't have time to cover them. She turned her head to look at Ambrose.

Naomi was deeply worried. What if Ambrose listened to the hag and turned on her instead? Even with the protection of the Statue of Silvanus, Naomi was no match for this Legendary Lich.

What should she do? This Lord Lich, would he keep his promise?

Naomi tried to reassure herself. Throughout their journey, this Master Ultraman had acted rationally and properly. He didn't seem like the type to break a contract. He wouldn't agree to the hag's proposal, would he?

However, Ambrose blurted out with almost no hesitation, "How much gold can you offer?"

Naomi: (°ー°〃)

Maybe she should just run for it now?