Necromancer

[[ Gateway connecting… Connection secure… Transporting… ]]

Darkness swallowed his vision again as he was yanked back—except this wasn't the same room where Sana had been.

He was somewhere else entirely.

Riven floated in the center of a vast domed chamber, suspended in midair alongside the skill book. Below him stretched a massive circular table, around which sat a handful of acolytes like Sana, along with several members of the Solis Academy staff. Among them, he spotted his instructor, brow furrowed in deep concentration as he stared at Riven and the shadowy tendrils binding him to the book.

Riven tried to speak, but just like when he had learned the fireball skill, his body refused to obey.

[[ 50%… Time remaining: 3 days 12 hours 0 minutes 01 second ]]

The sharp crack of a voice shattered the silence.

"How the hell did this happen?!"

A man clad in golden finery stormed into the chamber, his crimson velvet cape billowing behind him. His presence alone commanded the room, authority radiating from every step. Riven didn't need to be told—this was the king.

"We followed your orders, Your Grace," an elderly man replied, his voice calm yet carrying undeniable authority. "The box distributes skill books based on the mana type best suited to the mage. It appears… this boy is a carrier of dark mana."

The king's expression darkened. He slammed a fist onto the table, frustration crackling in his voice.

"Headmaster, how is this possible?! Necromancers have been extinct for over two hundred years!"

The headmaster's gaze didn't waver. "And yet, here he is," he said, gesturing toward Riven. "The box recognized his affinity. Our system does not lie."

Murmurs spread through the room, a mixture of fear and fascination. The acolytes whispered among themselves, casting wary glances at Riven as if he might suddenly rise and unleash an undead horde upon them.

Riven, still paralyzed by the unseen force binding him, fought to speak—to move—to do something. But his body remained frozen, held captive by the very book that had chosen him.

The king exhaled sharply, running a hand through his graying hair. "Then we burn it," he declared. "Both the book and the boy."

[[ Wow, he gets straight to the point. I kinda like him. ]]

'System, please tell me there's a way you can get me the hell out of here if they start raising their pitchforks and torches at me.' Riven asked the system mentally.

[[ Eh, I guess I can do something. Let's wait and see first. ]]

A few gasps rang out. Even the headmaster's expression wavered. "Your Grace, with all due respect—"

"You know what dark mana leads to, Headmaster. Corruption. Madness. War." The king's voice was unwavering. "We cannot allow history to repeat itself. We're already dealing with remnants of the undead still to this day."

The silence that followed was suffocating.

Then, a new voice—calm, measured, and edged with quiet defiance—broke through.

"Killing the boy would be a mistake."

A woman stood near the chamber's entrance, clad in deep violet robes embroidered with silver sigils. Her presence was subtle compared to the king's, yet it commanded attention all the same.

The headmaster straightened. "Archmage Elara."

The king's jaw tightened. "This is none of your concern."

Elara stepped forward, her gaze locking onto the floating skill book. "You're all missing the big picture here."

She turned to face the council fully, her expression unreadable.

"There hasn't been a necromancer in two centuries," she continued, "But still we have to fight off hoards of the undead daily. Even now mages are losing their lives fighting off these monstrosities."

"Get to the point Elara." The king snapped.

"We use him." Elara grinned, studying Rivens face. "We raise and nurture him so that he can protect this kingdom for any further attacks from the remnants of the Demon King. Don't you all see? He is the key to total peace!"

[[Wow, I guess they don't know what your personality is like. ]]

Riven would have laughed if he had been able to move his body. Me? The key to peace? As if I give a shit about protecting this damned kingdom. 

The king scoffed, folding his arms. "You expect me to believe a necromancer will protect this kingdom? Have you lost your mind, Elara?"

[[ Wow, he's not stupid. I guess that's why he's the King. ]]

Elara's smile didn't waver. "No, Your Grace. I'm simply the only one thinking beyond outdated superstition." She gestured towards Riven, her robes shifting with the movement. "He is young, his mind malleable. We could make him into the perfect weapon and protector."

The King's eyes narrowed. "Or we could be raising our kingdom's greatest threat."

Elara's gaze remained steady. "Then we make sure he never becomes a threat."

The room fell into silence, thick with tension. The headmaster shifted uncomfortably, the instructors and other staff members glancing at one another, and Riven - still suspended, still utterly trapped - felt like a specimen under a magnifying glass.

He had to admit, Elara was damn good at playing politics. She wasn't pleading for his life out of kindness - she saw an opportunity. A living necromancer was a resource too valuable to discard and she knew it.

Smart woman. He'd have to watch out for her.

The king exhaled sharply. "And if he refuses to serve?"

Elara's expression didn't change. "Then he dies."

Okay, yep. Definitely have to watch out for her. 

The headmaster cleared his throat. "Your Grace, if I may… the academy exists to cultivate potential. To deny the boy a chance to prove himself would go against our purpose."

The King rubbed his temples. Riven could see the war waging in his head - the fear of history repeating itself versus the cold logic of power.

Then, he finally spoke.

"Fine. He lives."

Riven exhaled mentally, tension easing - but the king wasn't done.

"Under one condition." His piercing gaze landed on Riven. "He will be bound."

Murmurs spread again, but this time, they were darker, more uncertain.

The headmaster hesitated. "Bound, Your Grace?"

The king nodded, a malicious grin curving at his mouth. "A magical binding where I hold his leash. A binding where I have the power to crush his heart the moment he steps out of line."

Silence fell over the chamber. Heavy. Suffocating.

Riven might not have been able to move, but his mind was screaming. Oh, you've got to be kidding me.

[[ Yikes. That's a bit extreme, don't you think? ]]

'System, tell me you can do something about this.'

[[ I won't know until I see what type of magic they're using. ]]

Fantastic.

The headmaster frowned, clearly uncomfortable. "Your Grace, such a measure is… excessive."

The king turned his gaze to the old man. "Do you really believe that?" His voice was dangerously soft. "Because I believe it is necessary."

The headmaster hesitated. "There are other methods of ensuring his loyalty—"

"I won't take that risk." The king cut him off, eyes sharp as daggers. "If he does not want to serve, he will die. If he does serve, he will serve under control."

Riven gritted his teeth. So that was his choice - serve or die. It didn't surprise him. No matter the world, no matter the people, greed was always the same.

Elara, to Riven's mild surprise, seemed unfazed by the king's demand. Instead, she nodded thoughtfully. "A binding of that level requires a willing subject."

The king's eyes narrowed. "Then we make him willing. When the boy awakes from learning the spell, you tell him truthfully. Either he accepts the binding and obeys, or he dies."

"Then we must wait for the boy to awake," Elara nodded. "We must act normally towards him to make sure we don't make him wary of us. You, Elder Thorne." Elara glanced over at the instructor that hosted the trials. "Take this boy under your wing, gain his trust and get him to accept the binding. You have spent the most time with him out of everyone here."

"Of course, Archmage." The instructor, Elder Thorne, bowed his head in acceptance.

"Then I guess there's nothing else to do until the boy awakes." The headmaster sighed. "Meeting adjourned."

The group of people began to dissipate and Riven was left to seethe in his fury.

What the hell had even just happened?! All of this just because a random skill book was assigned to him?! Damn it all! He knew when he first saw the undead puppeteer skill book that it would be suspicious if he learnt it - but what choice did he have? Sana was there with him and saw the book and he didn't have time to argue and ask to change it. The whole reason for even learning the skill book was because he wanted to pass the third trial and be accepted into this wretched academy.

Fine - they want to use me? I will use them right back. Just like with my Family, I'm going to bleed this whole kingdom dry. I'm going to take everything I can and climb the ranks of mages here before I move onto the next god forsaken place and bleed them dry too.