Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 662 - 613: Malevolent Spirit Servant

"In the week that New Hamlet Town was established, you should have seen the things happening around me. Killings and attacks unfolded every moment at my side, with poisoning, assassinations, ambushes, and traps. My world was a blur of chaos, with flying knives and deadly toxins brushing past me, and blades and arrows stabbing into others right beside me."

Without realizing it, the tavern had gradually quieted down, and the harmless Lord Kevin described the scene as if he were merely a spectator. Yet all the villains and strange creatures knew that he was at the center of that chaos, and he walked out as if nothing had happened, leaving behind a sea of corpses.

"The latest settlers to arrive in Hamlet Town are probably mostly dead now. I usually only met them once, and then they were gone, their skulls ceremoniously placed in the graveyard. Sometimes I think about paying my respects or at least trying to remember their names, and then I realize their names are too complicated to remember."

"The turnover of Hamlet’s population is too rapid for me to even make a single acquaintance. But despite that, the town’s development has been swift, and everything here has been going my way."

Lyle swallowed. How could it not? The desperadoes had become companions to Kevin, sacrifices to his fortune. They had met unfortunate ends, and it was hard to imagine just how much luck Kevin had absorbed.

"Fortunately, when I grew tired of the status quo, the heads of the various chaotic factions came to me. They, too, were weary of the endless fighting. We drafted laws and turned New Hamlet into a safe zone. Anything goes here, as long as no one gets hurt, and I became their recognized Lord, managing the town and exerting a certain degree of control over the factions, whenever they have the time, that is."

"Bandits and fugitives seek the treasure of Hamlet’s monster dens, while demons and ghosts crave human flesh. Some of the weary wanderers settle in the town, their bold hearts quickly acclimating to the bizarre guests, and my domain prospers day by day."

Kevin spoke with a lively glee, gesticulating excitedly with his hands before taking another drink.

"It’s just that I haven’t seen any normal people around recently, it feels a bit lonely. I’ve warned the thugs not to attack travelers, but it’s hard to believe they’ll listen, and Hamlet is quite remote—full of executioners, deserters, killers, and thieves. Hamlet is a haven for all sorts of madmen and lunatics!"

"Here’s to the madness of Hamlet!!!"

"To madness! To despair! To death!"

"To treasure!" "To human flesh!"

Kevin’s complaints incited cheers from the scoundrels, with waves of drink and boisterous laughter surging to a climax.

Kevin chuckled, then leaned over and whispered in Lyle’s ear.

"Watch, half of these people won’t be able to pay their tab soon enough. Barlock will call in his enforcers to make them pay with their bodies, with a beating. I forgot to mention, business owners in Hamlet have the right to collect debts, with no limits on force."

Leaving a small stack of gold coins on the bar, a half-drunk Kevin took Lyle and left the Fallen Horse Tavern. Those few sips of low-grade liquor were hardly worth that much, but Barlock was a profiteer—if anyone actually paid up, those adventurers who risk life and limb would likely never save up a dime in their lifetimes. But Kevin didn’t care. He was the Lord of this place, and his money was endless.

"Casinos, brothels, taverns, hospitals, and even churches are all gold mines. The people of Hamlet need to relieve stress, their lives lacking any plans always lead to money flowing like water. I finally understand why my father forbade me from getting involved in these businesses. He always said I’d become consumed by idleness."

"And in reality?"

"In reality, these are too profitable! The Borey Family’s expansion would provoke envy from other nobles, but a Baron with a bit of good fortune would avoid drawing jealousy. But now, I’m the only noble in Hamlet, the true boss! I do whatever I want!"

As dusk fell, a resonant bell rang out from the cliffs, probably from the castle, though Lyle hadn’t noticed any prominent bell structures. This puzzling thought morphed into an inhuman curiosity within him, as Lyle realized that the loud sound did not seem to be a single entity, but rather many similar sounds blending to imitate a bell.

"Curfew is approaching; we must head back to the castle," said Earl Kevin, abandoning his grandiose tour and leading Lyle up the stone path on the cliff.

"The big boss of Hamlet, you never cared about curfews back in Cassandra. If only you had half these rules at the Borey estate, Ralph’s opinion of you would have improved a lot."

Lyle’s teasing left Kevin, who had just boasted, somewhat embarrassed. He scratched his blond hair, but made no move to show off his strength.

"This is for Hamlet," he said. "As the leader, of course, I have to set an example."

"Give me a break, you just got banned from the casino," Lyle turned around and saw that the residents of New Hamlet were all tidying up their shops, and the monstrous guests who had gathered were leaving. The gloomy chimes seemed to be a warning to all the people of Hamlet, "Kevin, what exactly is that sound? Tell me the truth, why do the ruffians of Hamlet obey the curfew? And why do you abide by it? I thought the rules set by nobility were only for controlling commoners."

"Well said! The problem is, I didn’t set the curfew, and the curfew set is actually to control me. There’s nothing much to it, it’s just my servants calling me back home," said Kevin, turning his head, "damn Lyle, you never told me Naslan’s maids don’t count as regular Resentful Spirits! Resentful Spirits don’t look like that at all!"

"Like what?"

"See for yourself." Kevin pointed at his back, and the two Resentful Spirits following him shifted their terrifying gaze onto Lyle. Their faces were horrifying—one’s features were displaced, and rotting wounds covered the face like freckles. The other’s head was missing half, revealing a cracked skull and mummified skin.

Lyle understood what Kevin meant.

Resentful Spirits are tortured souls that cannot accept their death, clinging to their obsessions. They often die in horrific ways. The form of a Resentful Spirit retains the moment of their death, which is generally a terrifying sight. Only extreme pain can fill a soul with such resentment. Naslan, on the other hand, Helena, in order to protect the servants, became a Soul Reaver. She and all of Naslan’s deceased became one, enduring their madness and pain. Thus, the Specter Maid’s death was painless. They retained their dignified appearance from life, and despite being Resentful Spirits, they were rational.

Now it seemed that Young Master Kevin, who had had his eye on the Resentful Spirit Maids for some time, had gathered some lost souls as his servants, which apparently did not seem well-suited for taking care of people.

"Bad news, Master Kevin, you will have to bear with it. How many Resentful Spirits did you find to become maids?"

"Over a thousand..."

"...Where did you find them,are the Ghost Maids’ obsessions that deep for you..." Over a thousand forlorn ghosts—and Naslan’s total population is not even half that number. Heaven knows how many sinister ghost realms he had to traverse to gather so many Resentful Spirits.

"It wasn’t me who captured them. Do you know Mr. Bold from the Advanced Magic Research Society’s Meme Theory department? I conveyed my obsession with hatred to Nameless, and Nameless brought Mr. Bold, and Mr. Bold brought a whole bunch of Resentful Spirits..."

[My lord, I never thought there would be a third person in this world interested in researching Resentful Spirits. This is splendid. These "friends" have always been lying on my shoulders, which is somewhat inconvenient. So here is what we’ll do, Mr. Kevin, I’ll leave half of my "friends" to you as servants. Don’t worry, I have adjusted them, they will be the best of servants.]

"Every oil lamp in Hamlet Castle is now crawling with a Resentful Spirit. A few days ago, I couldn’t stand waking up every morning to see a dozen rotting faces crowding my vision, so I made an agreement with my new servants."

"As excellent servants, they would disguise themselves with makeup, providing the finest service. And I, too, must act like a good Lord. I highly suspect Mr. Bold has confused ’servant’ with ’family,’ as these Resentful Spirit servants always try their utmost to make me maintain etiquette in the castle. It almost drove me insane, which is why New Hamlet is like heaven to me."

"But the good times are always short-lived. When curfew arrives, I must return to the castle to rest, ensuring the quality of my sleep and mental state."

"What would the aggrieved spirits do if you were to stay past curfew? Hurt you?"

Kevin shook his head.

"Then they would leave the castle and come to my side, wherever I am. They would create a quiet and comfortable sleeping environment for me."

"They will kill every living thing that can make a noise around me."