The Sunbathing Ghost

Edric sought the origins of the Fountain of Greed, and the best way to uncover the truth was to interrogate high-ranking ghosts.

Among them, the highest rank besides the Queen of Greenblade herself were the golden-ranked ghosts.

However, taming and interrogating a golden-ranked ghost was no simple task. Edric lacked the magic, skills, or equipment necessary to brainwash them. That left only one option—the old-fashioned way. If necessary, he would resort to torture to extract the answers he needed.

His legendary-ranked spells were practically nonexistent, and his other spells were far too weak to manipulate a golden-ranked ghost's mind. But when it came to raw power, that was a different story.

Ghosts were immune to physical attacks, but his internal energy, which was legendary rank, could easily obliterate them. The real challenge wasn't killing them—it was capturing them alive and forcing them to talk. And that was infinitely more difficult.

Looking down, Edric spotted his target.

A woman in a white dress lay sunbathing, basking in the sunshine.

Ghosts couldn't endure sunlight.

Unless their rank was high enough to form specialized physical bodies.

These bodies acted as shields, allowing them to move freely under the sun.

But what exactly were the sun and the moon?

Edric had no answer. He didn't understand why the Demon King of Greed's corruption had only tainted the moon, nor why ghosts were unable to walk beneath the sunlight. These mysteries were beyond his current knowledge and rank.

What he did know, however, was that the ghost before him was using her physical form to protect her true self from being burned away by the sun.

That was his opportunity.

If he could tear her soul from that body, even for a moment, the sunlight would sear it. Maybe not enough to destroy her—but enough to weaken her, making her far easier to capture.

"I should use a demonic spell..." He shook his head. No. That path always left him more twisted, more violent. He was already tied too closely to the demons. He couldn't afford to let their influence seep any deeper.

"I'll do this the hard way."

...

The ghost resided inside a castle, surrounded by patrols of armored specters. They lined the walls, stationed like sentries, their numbers overwhelming. Every single one had a physical body shielding them from the sun's wrath.

Edric frowned. "So this type of physical form isn't as rare as I thought…"

For days, he had encountered silver and great-ranked ghosts, but not one of them had possessed a body that could resist the sun. Yet here, in a single place, he saw hundreds.

"That golden-ranked ghost must have a technique to create these bodies," Edric mused.

 "Fine. Take this!"

Edric drew his Mythal Lance. He poured his legendary-ranked internal energy into it—red as blood, thrumming with deadly force—and swung.

The castle's defenses activated instantly. A golden-rank formation flared to life, a barrier shimmering in the air.

But against a Mythic weapon? It may as well have been paper.

The lance, designed for piercing rather than slashing, cleaved through the golden-rank formation with ease. The barrier shattered upon impact.

A clean cut.

The walls of the castle split in two, severed in a single strike.

Blunt force caused destruction. Clean cuts were precise, swift, and effortless. Edric's lance, honed with legendary energy, sliced through stone and steel as if they were butter. Everything directly in its path was obliterated—yet everything outside of its arc remained untouched.

It all happened in an instant.

The formation, the walls, the very structure of the castle—all cut in half. No resistance. No struggle.

For a few moments, no one even realized what had happened.

The cuts were too precise. The walls and buildings, though severed, did not immediately collapse.

Then, a scream broke the silence.

"Enemy attack!"

The golden-ranked ghost, the one who had been sunbathing, leaped to her feet and shouted. She had been the one maintaining the defensive formation, so she was the first to sense its destruction.

The guards hesitated for a split second, confused—then sprang into action.

And then… the walls began to fall.

One by one, the buildings—each cleanly severed—started to collapse. In mere seconds, the entire castle crumbled into ruin.

For someone of Edric's level, destroying a castle was effortless. A legendary-ranked warrior wielding a Mythic weapon… such devastation was a trivial feat.

Beyond the golden rank, beings could no longer be considered human. For them, reducing entire cities to rubble was simple.

Edric found himself smiling, enjoying the sight of destruction a little too much.

His voice rang out across the ruins.

"Is there a ghost named Alexandria here?"

He had learned the name from Orrin.

The ghost he sought—Alexandria, the sunbathing ghost—hesitated for only a moment before stepping forward.

She was no fool. The man before her was a legendary knight, wielding a weapon that could tear through anything in its path. Even as a golden-ranked ghost with powerful magic, she didn't believe she could fight him.

Mages were versatile, yes. But versatility alone couldn't bridge the gap between ranks.

She might have a chance to flee… but was it worth the risk?

No. Not unless she had no other choice.

With a calm yet cautious expression, she emerged from the rubble. Her physical body, only silver-ranked, had withstood the collapse without serious damage.

"Your honor," she said, her voice measured, "may I ask what business you have with me?"

Edric grinned. "Just a few simple questions."

He raised his Mythic lance and pointed it at her.

"First question—where is Queen Greenblade?"

At that, Alexandria's cautious expression shifted into one of pure astonishment.

"Your honor is looking for my master?" She hesitated for only a moment before quickly adding, "Please, wait here for a few hours. I will summon her at once."

Despite her composed response, her mind raced.

Queen Greenblade had once been a legendary knight when she was alive. But after becoming a ghost, she had transcended even that power. Now, she was both a legendary-ranked knight and a mage.

Among all legendary-rank beings, she was undoubtedly one of the strongest.

For this man to request an audience with her meant one of two things.

First, he was supremely confident in his strength. That wasn't impossible, especially considering he wielded a Mythic weapon—perhaps he believed he could stand against Queen Greenblade herself.

Second, he was simply too arrogant to understand the danger he was walking into.

Either way, Alexandria didn't particularly care.

Though Alexandria was forced to recognize Queen Greenblade as her master, she held no true loyalty to her.

It didn't matter to her who won—whether it was the man before her or the queen herself. No matter the outcome, she would find a way to reap the benefits.

Summoning Queen Greenblade now, as the knight requested, was the safest choice. It allowed her to escape this situation without risking her life.

Seeing how compliant Alexandria was, Edric was momentarily taken aback.

He had expected resistance. He had even prepared to torture her if necessary. But she surrendered to his request so easily… it almost felt unnatural.

"Fine. Call her while I wait here," Edric said, offering no further questions.

There was no point in interrogating Alexandria. No matter what she said, her knowledge would pale in comparison to that of Queen Greenblade herself.

So instead, he would wait and question the queen directly.

He wasn't afraid. If it came down to it, he was prepared to use his self-consumption skill.

Of course, he would fight her at full strength first. But if he failed to defeat her quickly, he wouldn't hesitate to use self-consumption.