"Hey, how can I use my new Cross faster?" Inquired Fuo impatiently.

  "How would I know that?" I replied with a disinterested shrug.

  "Because you were able to use all of yours immediately!"

  "Exactly, so I have no idea what it feels like to not be able to use them," I pointed out, but that just earned another glare from her, "Atticus should have more insight into it than I do. How did you learn to use your first Cross anyway?"

  "I just kept trying, I guess……oh, that reminds me, my Nightmare Gaze didn't work against the Were King. Atticus isn't sure why either."

  Huh, come to think of it, I vaguely recall that. Maybe it was the Were King's eyes……you know how animal eyes are all glowy when you take a picture of them, if I remember right, that's because they have something in their eyes that reflects light and lets them see in the dark……I don't really understand the science behind it, so I'm not gonna bother trying to explain it to her……

  "Eh, who knows? I certainly don't."

  It had been about a week since we left Platinberg, today was the 1st of September, and it'd been pretty smooth sailing since then. We were about a day away from where the Imp King was, after which it'd probably be a little more than a day before we reach Silvland.

  "So, are you going to use the Vampires to fight Shiro?" Asked Fuo, as we continued on.

  "Nah, probably not, I think I'll save them for later, they're pretty valuable pieces, so I don't want to waste them, especially since they'd be useless against Shiro……no, they'd be worse than useless, since he could power up by consuming their life force."

  "Oh, that's true……and after the way they reacted when they saw your power, they'll probably have a similar reaction to his."

  I abruptly stopped walking as it hit me like a bolt of lightning……oh, no……

  "I might have fucked up……hey, listen, by no means can we let anyone know that I used up the last of my King's Decrees……because if Shiro also has them, then he can use his Decrees to undo mine and take control of the Vampires for himself. Wait a sec, speaking of that, that Vampire, Nezera, recognized me……that means that the Vampires' memories weren't altered……"

  Did not-God overlook them? No, I doubt that. After all, technically speaking, there was no need to alter their memories, since I don't think the Vampires actually know about the whole reincarnation thing, and they probably don't know about not-God's existence either. Not to mention the fact that they had been trapped in Platinberg until recently……

  "I don't think that's as important as the possibility that Shiro could steal control over the Vampires from you……that could really spell disaster if he undoes your Decrees to keep the Vampires from attacking people from the Rustlands," Remarked Fuo with a look of concern.

  "Yeah, that's true……I'm hoping that the fact that he hasn't used the Decrees already means that he doesn't have any……he could have used one to have the Vampires attack the Rustlands in order to try and draw me out, I certainly wouldn't be able to ignore that……"

  Hey, Lazarus, I need more details on how your Cross works! What's the worst case scenario, like what's the most damage Shiro can do if he realizes that I've used up my Decrees, assuming he has two left as well?

  "I'm not sure, I don't know if this Cross has any weaknesses or what it's limitations are. I do know that you can't fully undo multiple previous Decrees with just a single Decree……if you want to fully undo two previous Decrees, you'll need to use two more Decrees to do so. Additionally, Belia Lasmodeus only told me that no Vampire can disobey these commands, that's all I know for certain."

  That's not ideal, I'd have preferred to know more about how it works……still, so long as he doesn't find out that I used up my Decrees, I doubt he'll even think about using his Decrees to bring the Vampires under his control. And even if he did think of it, the fact that he can only undo a maximum of two of my Decrees is a positive……

  When I issued my first Decrees, I tried to word it so that it'd count as one big Decree, but it ended up using three Decrees instead. Shiro should know about my first three Decrees to the Vampires and how each Decree is split……first, to stay confined within Platinberg and away from Bronztan, Silvland, the Rustlands and their respective citizens, second, to only target the Platinberg nobles and religious figures while ensuring that their slum residents live reasonably decent lives, and third, to ensure that the people of Platinberg wouldn't try to attack another nation by keeping them from leaving the nation.

  Yeah, I'd say that my third Decree wasn't utilized as effectively as it could have been, if I'd known about how these Decrees worked, then I'd have worded it more carefully. Anyway, while I was in Platinberg, I partially undid the first Decree using my fourth Decree, more specifically, I removed the conditions that keeps the Vampires trapped in Platinberg and from attacking Silvland and it's people, while keeping the conditions that kept them from attacking Bronztan and the Rustlands.

  And I used my fifth Decree to command their loyalty and add the Goldlands to the list of places that were off-limits to them. But Shiro won't know about the partially reduced first Decree. If he does get the idea to use his two Decrees, assuming he had them, to get the Vampires on his side, and assuming that he figures out that he can only undo one Decree with each of his Decrees, what would he be most likely to Decree?

  He could easily ignore the second and third Decrees and just undo my first Decree completely……and then he could use his last Decree to command their loyalty. Previous Decrees can be edited and removed, so they can almost definitely be overwritten. Well, I guess there's no point in overthinking it, the chances of him finding out about me using up my last two Decrees were pretty slim.

  Like I said before, things had been relatively easy-going since we left Platinberg, so with my mind less occupied, I was worrying and overthinking a lot more……the closer we got to the Rustlands, the stronger my sense of dread grew, it was paranoia more than anything, but knowing that didn't stop me from worrying.

  The main reason why things had been so easy for the last week or so was because there were hardly any monsters in this mountain range. There were Griffins and Storm Wyverns, monsters that were also found in the grasslands to the west of Silvland, they were the most powerful monster types in this area. Then there were Giant Worms, but they were under my control since I consumed the Giant King's life force. There were only two other monster types besides the ones I mentioned, Devilgoats and Pixies.

  Devilgoats are basically just goats with sharp teeth, sharp hooves and sharp horns. And as for Pixies……sadly, they're nothing like the Pixies in fantasy fiction in my old world, they're more like humanoid bugs, and they were maybe slightly bigger than the average rat. They do have arms and legs, but their joints are segmented like insect limbs, and their eyes look like the eyes of house-flies. And they don't have wings, though they can still fly around. They fired off these annoying beams that kinda stung, but they weren't that dangerous, even to normal humans.

  "Hey, how much longer till we reach the Imp King's location?" Inquired Fuo, with more than a hint of impatience.

  "……you've been asking me that nonstop like, every hour. We'll get there tomorrow. Oh, and if you ask me that one more time, I'll consume the Imp King's life force myself."

  "What!? No!" She cried in alarm, "O-okay, I-I won't ask again."

  I didn't actually mean that, I was just saying it because I wanted her to shut up and stop asking me that over and over. The Imp King ruled over Forest Imps, Snow Imps and Pixies……all three were among the weakest monster types in this world.

  "By the way, how much stronger have you gotten from that Vampire life force?" I asked her.

  "Um……according to Atticus, my Vampire Mode is now about as strong as yours was before the Vampires attacked the Rustlands, and I can stay in that form for about eighty seconds, and if Atticus is in control, that goes up by twenty seconds."

  "Oh, nice……maybe we should try sparring."

  "Sure, that sounds g……wait, hold on a second, when did you stop training me!?" She suddenly stopped and exclaimed.

  "Huh? What are talking ab……?" I began to ask, before my eyes widened with realizing, "……ohhh, right, I was training you whenever we took breaks. I think the last time was……before the fight with the Giant King, if I remember right. You were constantly tired after that, so I eventually forgot about it, I guess."

  "Grr, I wasn't constantly tired, you started making the breaks we took less frequent, so I was more worn out during the breaks, which meant that I didn't have enough energy to even think about training!"

  "Yeah, yeah, same difference."

  "Asshole."

  It probably wasn't going to take longer than two more weeks before we're back at the Rustlands, and I couldn't help dreading it. The easily-possible worst case scenarios kept plaguing my mind and thoughts, all I could think about was what would happen if I lost……I'd undoubtedly be killed, and once that happens……

  No, I……I can't let that happen. Even if I didn't have anything to lose, the fact remains that if he kills me, then that's it for me, my existence will be eradicated without a trace, my soul will be used to turn his artificial soul into a real one. Damn it, I was worrying again……I need to stop letting my mind wander, I need to keep my thoughts occupied……

  The next day, around mid-afternoon, we reached the location of the Imp King. Fuo looked like she was about to burst with impatience, she was incredibly restless and impatient, but didn't bug me about it, thanks to my empty threat yesterday.

  "We're here, Fuo. It's just about three hundred meters through those trees," I informed her, pointing at a large grove of trees.

  "Really!? Then what are we waiting for, let's go!" She exclaimed giddily, rushing forward.

  Talk about enthusiastic……I'd tell her to slow down, but by the look of it, she can't contain herself anymore, so it'd be a waste of breath. I hurried after her as she practically sprinted into the grove.

  "Hey, that's not quite the right way, it's a bit more to your left," I called out after her, she didn't reply but adjusted her direction as she rushed forward.

  We soon reached a dead end, at the base of a steep mountain cliff.

  "Huh? Did I go the wrong way?" She asked, turning around and looking at me inquiringly.

  Well, Lazarus?

  "The Imp King should be right here……what's there about ten meters to your slight left?"

  I turned in the direction he specified, to see a tree……there were dozens of trees all around us, but this one was a bit different……it had a much thicker trunk than any of the other trees in this grove.

  "Hey, Fuo, check that tree," I suggested, nodding at it.

  "Hm? Is there where he is? Alright!" She exclaimed, forming an ice arrow and firing it at the tree.

  Suddenly, a yellow beam fired out of the tree and deflected the arrow……that looks like the same energy that Pixies fire, but it was a much bigger beam than those were. The tree then cracked open and something emerged……it looked like a Forest Imp but slightly taller and more slender, with the same eyes as Pixies. Is that the Imp King?

  "Who are you!? How dare you attack me," Came a threatening growl.

  Huh, that voice……it sounded feminine. Is it a she? Well, it doesn't matter either way, because……

  "You're mine!" Exclaimed Fuo, as she formed a pair of ice blades in her hands……

  _____________________________________________

  Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to vote, and feel free to leave a comment, I appreciate any and all feedback and criticism!

  Also, check out my Instagram account @aimdaqs for posts relating to this book.