Beyond the destroyed buildings and the distant white walls, flashes still cracked across the sky—distant thunder for the magic combat unfolding here. The spectacle in the distance where lightning cracked and fire rained from the sky intensified suddenly. I've seen that bullshit on so many missions, why does it feel so ominous now?

  Rüdiger tilted his head, and after a long pause, he smiled at her. Turning, he whistled sharply through two fingers.

  Five zombie wolves emerged into the courtyard, their eyes glowing with a pale light. Adarin focused his attention on the wolves’ glowing eyes, veins of faint light pulsing beneath their matted fur.

  Rüdiger glanced toward the distant chaos. “Looks like the elites have started fighting. Some of those flashes might be divine archetypes.” He stroked his goatee thoughtfully.

  The wolves formed a half-circle around Liora, whose breath had quickened. Rüdiger pointed at the largest one, and it slumped to the ground, its glow fading to nothing, the pristine corpse suddenly lifeless. Liora froze, staring into the eyes of the other wolves. They were calm. Almost... relaxed.

  Adarin gently probed her mind until she relaxed, soothed by the calming meditations he sent into her subconscious.

  'Good. Walk up to the wolves and follow Rüdiger’s lead. Nothing will happen to you. I promise.'

  Liora stepped forward and knelt beside the fallen wolf.

  Rüdiger nodded. “The control matrix of any zombie spell taps the central nervous system. You need to touch the top of the spine to control it.”

  He nodded expectantly. Liora hesitated, then slowly extended her hand.

  If I get out of this, this’ll be valuable intel. Their techniques... annoying to see high-tech paired with such primitive methods.

  She placed her hand on the base of the spine, just behind the wolf’s ears.

  Rüdiger hummed in acknowledgement.

  “All right. Every spell has three phases—feel it, bind it, release it. Focus on the energy inside the corpse and let your senses flow into it.”

  Liora nodded, exhaled shakily, and focused on the wolf. At first, there was only the cold, damp fur—slick with blood and mud. Then, something more.

  Her perception stretched along the spine and skull. She felt vertebrae, the brain, the nerves. Next her awareness flowed along the nerve fibers into the limbs—until it felt like the wolf’s nervous system was growing from her hands.

  Liora whispered, eyes dreamy and distant. “It’s beautiful.”

  Adarin, for once, had no argument.

  Rüdiger’s voice cut through the moment, steady and calm. “Sehr gut. Now, the next step.”

  Liora nodded, calm replacing her earlier fear. “Draw what you’re feeling in,” Rüdiger said, extending a finger, then a white bone wand. He traced lightly along her arm. “Through your hand and into the core. Keep the construct intact.”

  Liora followed each word. It was as if the construct of lines was drawn in by a breath, flowing through a channel.

  I feel it should warp and break apart any second, but somehow only the space it occupied reshapes—the structure itself stays intact. Fascinating.

  Finally, the structure circled the core—a sun of cold purple light in his mind’s eye. The webwork settled around it, a cocoon fused with an accretion disk. Pale blue outlines glowed sharply against the core’s light.

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  Liora breathed slowly and steadily. Adarin pushed calming, focused thoughts into her mind. I have to make sure she can do this—for my survival.

  Rüdiger spoke again. “Very well. I see you have the construct—the matrix—around your core. Now let the core’s energy flow into the construct.”

  Adarin sensed Liora’s attention encasing the core like a shell. For a moment, confusion flickered, but then she focused from all sides, and the star of purple light seemed to take a breath. It expanded, flooding the pale blue webwork of the dog’s nervous system with rich violet light.

  Rüdiger’s calm voice came again. “Now, let it flow out again—spiral it out.” His wand traced over her body, making her shiver. “Up the spine, through the shoulder, down the arm, into the dog. As you do this, think on your intentions: what you want the creature to be. Its character. Its actions. It won’t change much now, but intention separates a great mage from a good one.”

  Liora nodded absently. Like a video running in reverse—with colors shifted—the spell matrix traveled outward. Images of a loyal family dog flashed through Liora’s mind—playing with it as a child, feeding dogs at the temple.

  When images of her dead dog surfaced, Adarin whispered calming words. Liora shuddered, then pushed the spell forward.

  As the spell touched the dog, it twitched violently, jerking repeatedly as if shocked electrically, until the structure began to unfold. The spasms grew faster, stronger. Liora dug her fingernails into the dog’s fur as it convulsed wildly. But in the end, it lay still.

  Slowly, pale blue light spread across its body and seeped from its form. Its eyes began to glow. Then the dog inhaled with a rasp, its body shuddering as it rose. When its glowing eyes locked on Liora, her breath caught—half joy, half terror. She smiled before quickly masking the expression.

  Adarin noted her flicker of joy with cold amusement. You can’t hide it from me, girl.

  Her eyes dropped to the black ink swirling on her arm. A strange glow pulsed in her gut.

  Raise Zombie upgraded: Early Tier 1 → Middle Tier 1

  Adarin nodded, committing the entire sequence to memory. Just in case I ever get debriefed. He signed, feeling the likelihood of that decreasing by the minute.

  Liora looked up at Rüdiger. “How did I do?”

  Rüdiger pointed at her arm. “The system… upgrading a skill on first use is rare. But with your potential...” He trailed off.

  The lights in the sky intensified. Torrents of incandescent blue fire shot upward, illuminating the whole courtyard. His face tightened in concern. “Something... something is happening,” he murmured.

  He gestured at the remaining dogs. They collapsed limply to the floor. “Stay disciplined. One done—four remain.” His tone was calm, but the command carried the weight of iron.

  “Once you’re done, you’ll take command of Johan’s unit and advance in—” He spun halfway around and nodded toward a vague direction.

  “—that direction.”

  Liora’s eyes went wide, and Adarin winced. What is wrong with this man?

  Liora was about to stammer something inane, but Adarin spoke up in her mind. 'Ask him to give you actual information. What is your mission? Who are the enemies? What’s the objective? What does he want us to achieve?'

  Liora nodded and repeated the questions aloud.

  Rüdiger grinned knowingly and winked—at me?—and a chill ran down Adarin’s spine. The necromancer gestured, and a pale grey glow encased him—and then her.

  Adarin blinked. Where has he gone?

  He scanned the area, catching a glimpse of the black robe, but Liora’s attention slid off him like oil on water. Rüdiger just smiled, suddenly back in their awareness. “Redirected attention. Do not worry. It’s a safety precaution, so we don’t become a target.”

  Liora looked at him. “A target?”

  “Ja, ja...” he murmured.

  Then he whispered another spell—and the ground tore away beneath her. With a blur and a screech in her ears, Liora was hurled skyward, the encampment shrinking to a patchwork below.

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