Legendary Necromancer: My First Summon is the Undead Dragon-Chapter 53: Heading to the Ruins part 1

John faced Jake. "Since you have agreed to join, you won’t be doing it for free. We will pay you ten gold per month—if you don’t die."

Jake didn’t have much of an issue with this arrangement, so he took it for now. If there was anything he didn’t like, he would say it later.

"That’s fine with me," Jake said.

"Great. Tomorrow, you and I will head into the Ruin of Olen. According to what I heard, tainted have begun showing up in mass numbers.

"And where there are tainted, there are a few things to look out for—Abyss artifacts, or the Church of the Abyss," John said.

"Oh yeah, you don’t have a place to stay yet. Let’s go, I have somewhere you can use for the time being," John said.

He led the way out of the bar, into the streets, and finally to a one-story house. It wasn’t too big, but for just Jake and Ophelia, it was massive.

"Here’s the key," John said and handed a key to him. "This building has everything you’ll need to stay the night and more," he added before walking away, not saying anything else.

Jake opened the door and walked into the house. A soft whiff of flowery scent and citrus made it to his nose. The moment he walked in, the crystal lamps lining the wall turned on.

The house was without a single speck of dust, as if it had been cleaned a few hours ago.

"I have a feeling that John knew how all of this would play out, master," Crypt said.

"Yeah, everything was playing out all too well, as if he was controlling the flow entirely. Getting information from Rion wouldn’t be enough for this level of flow we had," Jake said.

"Are you suspicious of Mr. John?" Ophelia asked.

"No, not suspicion. Don’t worry about it. Just head up and maybe take a bath or something. I’ll check the kitchen and see if there is something to cook," Jake said.

She nodded without complaint and went toward the stairs.

"Master, if I may ask, what’s the reason you are so protective of Ophelia?" Crypt asked.

Jake paused for a moment. He didn’t expect the question. He looked blank for a few seconds and then finally spoke. "She reminds me of me from before, that’s all," he said and walked in.

There was a living room fitted with two chairs and a couch, a rug on the floor, and a small dark brown coffee table.

A door led to the kitchen from there. There was already food made and warm inside the kitchen, sitting on a mana-powered stove. Jake stared at the pot.

"John is one big mystery," he muttered.

[...]

The next day came faster than Jake expected, and after getting ready, he left the house along with Ophelia and Crypt.

The town was more active than it was yesterday, but people were still not lively. They moved as if their souls had been ripped away from them, and honestly, Jake understood their pain.

Jake made his way to the bar and walked in. There was a lone man seated inside, drinking a large cup of beer in one corner. He was the only customer. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com

Jake made his way to the counter. Rogen was busy cleaning the counter with a rag. He looked up and saw Jake.

"Hmm, you’re the kid from yesterday. Seems like you joined their suicide organization," Rogen said.

"What do you mean?" Jake asked.

"What’s there to be confused about? You decided to fight against the trial. That’s a suicide route if you ask me," Rogen said.

The door at the back opened and John walked out, dressed in a simple black shirt and trousers. His only accessory was the ring on his finger.

Jake, on the other hand, was still with the ring on his finger.

"Old dwarf, stop trying to scare the kid," John said.

"I simply want the boy to consider something with actual meaning, rather than follow this laughable organization," Rogen said.

"Tsk, for someone that is one of the oldest in the organization, you sure badmouth it a lot," John said.

"It’s because I’ve been here long enough that I know how suicidal it is," Rogen said.

"All Chosen are already on a path to death, so why not try fighting it at least?" John said with a smile. He turned to Jake.

"Alright, we should be able to..." He paused, realizing that Ophelia was here. "Where we’re going, kid, we can’t take her," he said.

"Huh? Why not?" Jake asked.

"Because there is an age restriction in the ruins—fourteen," John said.

"I can’t just leave her. What if the second trial comes?" Jake asked.

"Hmm, in as much as the trials are unpredictable, there has never been a time a second trial started anything less than three weeks or a month after the first," Rogen pointed out.

"But this time might be different. Remember we got our marks and the trials started immediately after, instead of in a week," Jake argued.

"It’s true what happened last time was a shocker and no one was prepared, but I’m certain it won’t come too fast. You just have to trust me," John said.

"Sadly, I can’t. The very framework of our partnership is that I never trust you," Jake said.

"Hmmm, true. But regardless of your feelings towards the matter, we need to head to the ruins—and she can’t come.

"You can leave her with Rogen. He might not look it, but he’s good with kids and also quite strong," John said.

"There is no way you are pinning that kid on me," Rogen said.

"Do it, and I’ll get you that recipe you always wanted," John said.

"Fine, deal. I’ll take care of the kid," Rogen agreed.

Jake knew that he didn’t have much of a choice now, and he didn’t want to leave her unsecured, so he summoned two ogres.

John and Rogen were shocked to see the two creatures come out.

"If they can stay to protect her, then she can stay," Jake said.