Not long after climbing the stairs from the warehouse, Erich arrived at a spacious first-floor area. At the far end of the space stood an elevator.
Erich had truly never expected to see an elevator in Garein's castle. What was even more absurd was that this one looked more modern than the one built at the academy. It had polished metal doors and a neat button panel, looking almost identical to the ones in shopping malls from before his transmigration.
Just where had the tech tree of this alternate world branched off to? Standing in front of the elevator, Erich couldn't find any other mechanism, so he reached out and pressed the protruding button.
The button lit up, and a dull, heavy rumble echoed from within.
Then, he began to wait.
He waited for a very long time—so long that Erich eventually began to wonder if the elevator had fallen into disrepair, or if the undead's elevator was just a showpiece that looked impressive but was actually primitive and incredibly slow.
Just as Erich made up his mind to give up, the metal doors finally slid open.
There was already someone inside the elevator. It was a figure wearing a white chef's uniform, pushing a food cart. He and Erich stared at each other in silence across the threshold.
Erich sized up the other party. The chef's uniform was in tatters, barely recognizable as once having been white. Now, it was closer to a scorched yellow, with several holes torn in the hem and cuffs. Through those holes, gray, decaying skin was visible, faintly revealing the rotting muscle tissue underneath. It was a rather sickening sight.
Erich's advice to this undead chef would be: it would be better to wear a black robe to cover that up.
Just like Erich was doing.
The figure opposite him clearly didn't recognize who the black-robed Erich was. However, in his eyes, someone who could stand so openly in front of the elevator waiting for it couldn't possibly be a suspicious character. Thus, he stepped aside, gesturing for Erich to come in.
Erich stepped inside, only to realize things weren't that simple.
The space inside the elevator was already small, and the chef and his food cart took up most of it. Once Erich stepped in, the handle of the cart got wedged right against his waist, leaving him stuck. The two of them scrambled to adjust their positions for a while. The chef pushed the cart further into the corner, and Erich turned sideways, squeezing in almost flush against the elevator wall.
The elevator doors closed. The iron box shuddered slightly and began its ascent.
Erich stood beside the chef, with the food cart positioned between them. Only then did he belatedly realize that he hadn't pressed a floor button at all.
In the row of buttons not far away, only the one for the very top floor was lit.
“Brother,” Erich spoke up, “is Garein on the top floor?”
The chef turned his head to look at him, seemingly puzzled as to why this stranger was asking such an obvious question, but he nodded anyway.
Having received his answer, Erich asked nothing more. The elevator fell silent, save for the hum of its machinery.
With nothing to do, Erich began to ponder the elevator's construction again.
How could such a thing appear in an undead castle? Was its driving force mana? Yet he hadn't sensed any obvious mana circuits along the way. Was it some kind of mechanical engineering, or was it a trophy Garein had plundered from somewhere?
While his mind was wandering, the chef beside him suddenly spoke:
“You smell very good. Have you also eaten a lot of meat?”
There was a hint of envy in the chef's tone.
Erich nodded. He had absolutely no idea what the other was talking about, but nodding was never wrong.
“That must be nice,” the chef lamented, his gaze falling back to the food cart in front of him. “I wonder when I'll be able to eat that much meat. The reserve meat in the city is still too scarce. I really hope Lord Garein can capture more reserve meat soon.”
Those turned out to be the chef's last words, because Erich had already crushed his head.
Decaying flesh and bone fragments splattered onto the white cloth of the food cart. The headless body wobbled for a moment before slumping limply to the floor.
Erich withdrew his hand, wiped the grime off on his black robe, and cast a glance at the food cart. The white cloth was bulging, making it impossible to see what was under it. He had no intention of lifting it to check.
Silence returned to the elevator. Erich began to do what he always did before a boss fight.
Check his attributes.
【Name: Erich】
【Level: 30】
【EXP: 3100/3800】
【Attributes: Strength: 82; Constitution: 56; Spirit: 73; Willpower: 54; Charm: 12】
【Free Attribute Points: 0】
【Skill List: 【Straight Punch Lv.5】, 【Rising Dragon Fist Lv.6】, 【Sliding Step Lv.5】, 【Elementary Ice Magic Mastery Lv.2】, 【Elementary Wind Magic Mastery Lv.1】...】
His level was still thirty, but his Strength and Constitution had increased significantly. This body was clearly much more durable now. However, the most important things were his close-combat skills, which were the fruits of his diligent practice over the past few months.
For this meeting with Garein, Erich had never intended to use any fancy magic from the very start. What he was looking for was intimate physical contact.
Erich rolled his wrists and cracked his neck. Once everything was checked and verified, he raised his hands to adjust the collar of his black robe and tugged at the hem to make himself look more presentable.
The elevator drew closer and closer to the top floor.
Rate on N.U.
