Myths Reawakened

“Girls, we’re in Londan.”

Wayne handed each of the vengeful spirits their personal document. “These are your IDs. The church’s wanted notices have been retracted. From now on, you have nothing to do with the Church of Nature. If you’re not used to life without faith and have to find something to believe in, believe in me.”

The vengeful spirits accepted the suggestion readily. As Wayne’s subordinates, they couldn’t worship anyone but their master.

“I’ve promised to fulfill your final wishes. Most of you want to head back home. I’ve wired the money to your accounts...”

The vengeful spirits’ wishes were simple. Most of them wanted to return to their hometown after all these years, checking if any of their loved ones were still alive. Regina also hoped to return home to confirm if her sister was safe.

Ottilia didn’t have a home, so her wish was even simpler: she wanted to date. She didn’t care how long it would last as long as her future boyfriend didn’t dump her.

“Those who don’t have a body, don’t worry. At night, you’ll be able to roam Londan freely. During the day, you can still move around in the library. No one will be able to see that you’re spirits. If you really want to go outside during the day, there’s a shared body in the basement of the mansion. Take turns using it.”

“Ottilia, you’ll be the director of this library from now on, in charge of managing the library and the others. Regina will lend you a hand.”

Wayne then added, “This is Secretary Mona. If there’s a major issue you cannot solve, contact me directly. You can also ask for her help on smaller problems.”

“Now, let me introduce you to three colleagues...”

Wayne led the group of vengeful spirits to the backyard of the library, introducing them to his dog servant, horse servant, and manservant. The much larger group made him remember the time right after he came to Londan.

His undead army had consisted of a single dog then, and he had had little wealth, with seven or eight buckets of potatoes being his greatest asset. He had also been forced to move around because of the bigshot targeting him.

Back then, he had relied on his dog to pick up new equipment. Only after he adopted Julia was he able to keep his head high. Things had changed for the better.

Bo would beg to differ. All his new colleagues were females. Whether they were alive or dead, none of them were born with the same bits as he was. Even Do had been a female dog.

So... he suddenly felt like the odd one out.

He was anxious, eager to escape. He braced himself as he went up to Wayne, saying that he had to work overtime tonight, so he would like to return to work as soon as possible.

“No rush. Let me study you first.”

Wayne reached into the void... and wasn’t able to draw Elemental Mantra. It seemed that Moula had logged into the Nature Knight account. Since he had a greater priority, Wayne couldn’t replace him.

It didn’t matter. One third of Misty Forest had been transformed by life force, giving him comprehensive control over the forest. He entered the state of a perfect elf and became one with nature, allowing him to manipulate the energy of life.

He tried and managed to revive Bo and Do halfway, making them half-dead. Their forms were fixed the moment they were contracted through the Book of Greed, though. Whatever the vengeful spirits looked like when the contracts formed, they would stay that way.

As their master, Wayne had full control over the vengeful spirits, able to guide their evolution at will. He granted Bo and Do each a fake living skin, making them seem alive.

In reality, however, their bodies were dead, unlike Ottilia and Regina.

“This is worth exploring...”

Wayne’s eyes lit up. Inspiration struck and enlightened him to new possibilities. If he could control a vengeful spirit’s evolution, could he also modify them with different faiths?

Let’s try!

Do’s and Bo’s forms were more or less fixed. Based on the classification of biology, they both belonged to Kingdom Magical Creature, Phylum Vengeful Spirit, Class Apparition, Order Walking Dead. Do would be categorized as part of the Canidae family, while Bo would be part of the Hominidae family.

At the end of the day, only Ottilia and Regina were worth the attempt of transforming them with faith.

***

Later that night, the twelve vengeful spirits gathered in Misty Forest, discussing their shifts around Flora. One second, they were commiserating with each other, but the next second, they were fighting for priority to pilot the body and visit home.

“Sis, I died earlier. First come, first served. I should have priority.”

“Sapphire, you’ve only been dead for sixty years. You’re still young. Wait another two days, and let me use the body first. I owe you one!”

“Why should I? We died in the same year. Your death only preceded mine by a few dozen seconds, in fact!”

“You think I don’t know that you’ve been dead for eight decades and you’re an orphan adopted by the church’s district office? You have no family. You only want to get closer to Master with this body, don’t you?”

“Nonsense!”

“Then let me go first. I want that. This body belonged to the previous Holy Maiden, and her first time is valuable. Master will surely remember my name afterwards.”

“Bah, how shameless!”

A fight soon broke out.

Meanwhile, in the office at the library, Wayne sat on the sofa with Mona standing behind him. Across from him were Ottilia and Regina.

Do, Bo, and Julia had long departed. Most high-ranking mages in Lodan knew them as the Death Knight’s servants. The meeting tonight was only meant to make sure his vengeful spirits could recognize each other. To prevent others from making the connection between Wayne and the Death Knight, there would never be another gathering like this.

Ottilia was mourning her love. With the power dynamic between her and her boyfriend skewed, it was difficult for her to have an equal relationship with him. Using her wish to restrict him still wouldn’t restore their relationship. It would be one-sided charity rather than a reciprocated relationship.

Ottilia deeply regretted her decision. If she had known that she would die after participating in the Holy Maiden selection, she should’ve said yes to Wayne back in the cinema in Cambrook County. Whatever would happen, she should’ve started dating him; if things didn’t work out, she would break up with him then.

Regina didn’t share the concern. She just wanted to go home.

“No rush. I’ll let you go soon. Remember to return quickly. You need my mana to sustain you once you’re out of Londan, and the longer you stay away, the weaker you’ll become.”

Wayne reassured them and contacted them with his thoughts to tell them about the enhancement of faith, proposing the possible solutions and giving them the choice: they could choose the three faiths of the Life Alliance, Darkness, Death, Heaven, or Hell.

Ottilia and Regina discussed it. They were both smart, only appearing less so because they were too kind to engage in mind games. After some deliberation, they reached a conclusion.

First, Life Alliance was out of the question. They hated the Church of Nature and thus hated the alliance as a whole. They also rejected Darkness and Death because those powers had been omnipresent in Misty Forest.

Moreover, Ottilia thought that they would be dispensable if they didn’t set themselves apart from the other vengeful spirits.

Without Flora acting as her cage, Ottilia was allowed to pursue freedom under the framework of Wayne’s making. She glanced at Mona and felt a pang of jealousy. No matter where he went, Mona followed. She would like that for herself.

When Ottilia remained silent, Regina spoke up bluntly, “Master, is Secretary Mona also a vengeful spirit?”

“No, she’s a complicated case,” Wayne explained patiently. “Her faith is in the Heavenly Father.”

Mona’s eyes glinted with golden light. The faint projection of her wings unfurled behind her back, making her look sacred like a descending angel. That helped Ottilia and Regina make up their minds.

To set themselves apart and win favors, they had to be different. Since Wayne already had someone heavenly by his side, they would choose Hell!

“Hell...” Wayne thought of the Bat Demon. After a moment of consideration, he extended his hands to the two women. “This is my first time modifying vengeful spirits. It can hurt, and I have to warn you again: the evolution is irreversible after it’s done. Are you sure you’re going to choose Hell?”

“Yes!” x2

Ottilia and Regina placed their hands on Wayne’s palms. Since they were so certain, Wayne closed his eyes, the large eyeball on the Book of Greed’s cover met the smaller eyeball of Hell, drawing Hell’s insidious energy to the entries of the vengeful spirits.

On the pages, deep darkness poured into the drawn figures of Ottilia and Regina in various shades of black. Across from Wayne, the two women bit their lips, pained groans leaking out of their mouths. Black bat wings unfurled from their backs and wrapped around their bodies. Their evolutions officially began...

Mona frowned. The hellish energy was grating to her. Drawing upon the power of the Golden Law through her stigma, she condensed light into concrete white wings. She was hoping to keep her thoughts stable with Heaven’s power, but the transformation only made her hate the hellish energy more.

Golden light overflowed from her eyes. Holy light spread from her fingertips...

Slap!

“Behave. We’re all on the same side. They have to call you ‘Sister Mona’!”

Mona lowered her head, her face flushed. Her master’s rewarding punishment made her detection system fall apart completely, and she no longer sensed any hellish energy.

They were one of theirs!

Ten minutes later, the black light that had engulfed the Book of Greed’s pages for Ottilia and Regina faded. Their changed appearances made Wayne gape in shock.

He looked again. Then again.

Two pairs of bat wings unfurled. The red burning light swirling around the voluptuous bodies dissipated. Amid the fragrance permeating the office, two completely unclothed succubi stood proud and captivating, unleashing their irresistible charm.

Mona narrowed her eyes, her dysfunctional detection system activated once more. An energy spear took shape in her grip.

Slap!

The spear disintegrated.

“You two...”

There were seven major categories to choose from. Why would they turn into succubi?

Good choice!

Wayne’s eyes widened in shock. Feeling his mouth dry, he unbuttoned his collar, unsure how he should describe their evolution.

So smooth.