Daily Life With A Lilim Chapter 27

~Class Is In Session~

“Now let’s give you a proper wardrobe to suit your new look.”

Natalie might have misconstrued what Ezraphel meant by this. At best, she thought she would be getting a couple outfits to wear out, like a ‘Mamono starter pack’ for going out on the town. She realized that wasn’t the case when Ezraphel gave her a freaking fashion catalog to go through. And this wasn’t a catalog from any of the brands either; oh no, this was a catalog of clothing designs made by Ezraphel herself.

That’s right Ezraphel made a fashion catalog, and it wasn’t a small thing. The decently dense collection was about as thick as a hardcover notebook and contained detailed hand-drawn design ideas for clothing of all types, including formal, casual, business, and even sleepwear, all of which had Natalie blushing with how risqué some of them were. Clearly, she had ideas of what those clothes would be used for, and Natalie found herself more or less enraptured by the possibilities.

“You designed all of these?” the Wight asked after a long moment.

“Well, I cannot take credit for all of them. I’ve appropriated a few Mamono fashion choices from my world and redesigned a few things that caught my eye from Earth.”

“I can’t tell which is which,” Natalie commented before flipping a page and recoiled. “Never mind; this is definitely something from out of this world.”

Ezraphel went to take a look and said, “Actually, I found the original design while browsing the internet.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“It’s the truth.”

“Then you must have gone nuts with the redesign.”

“Less than you think actually. I’d say I made it more practical.”

“You made it more practical?”

They both looked back at the catalog, and Natalie turned it vertical, causing both women to tilt their heads sideways in sync.

“Yeah, no, I can’t believe you.”

A moment later, a tablet slid into view, showing a vaguely similar dress being worn by someone she could vaguely remember seeing at some point.

“What the fuck?”

Then she saw the words ‘Met Gala’ in the description and it was as if a light bulb lit up on top of her head.

“Oh,” her shoulders slumped, “yeah, that tracks.”

“The humans of Earth have an interesting sense of fashion.”

“Whoa, don’t get it twisted sister!” She pointed at the tablet and said, “this is not fashion. I don’t even know what the hell this even is.”

“I asked Stanley, and he referred to this particular gala as human narcissism and vanity taken to its dumbest conclusion.”

“He’s not wrong,” Natalie mumbled. “Freaking clown show, I swear.”

“It actually reminds me of something similar in the Royal Makai.”

“Really?”

“When you have an entire generation of Mamono with more wealth than they know what to do with, political connections that can move entire nations, powers similar to demi-gods, and life spans that measure in centuries, it is quite easy for boredom to set in. When that happens, they tend to stave the boredom away by any means necessary, which does result in events that, in hindsight, are actually quite ridiculous.”

“Really? Like what?”

Natalie’s eyes then widen as she beholds the Ezraphel’s cheeks turning a faint red before she looks away.

“I’d rather not say.”

Witnessing Ezraphel of all people not wanting to talk about an aspect of her home life really put things into perspective. Rather than going down that particular rabbit hole Natalie opted to change the subject back to the topic at hand.

“Ahem, so anyway, as much as I like some of these designs,” she flipped the page. “I mean, I can’t stress enough that I really like these designs, but…”

“But…?” The Lilim urged her to continue.

She bit her bottom lip in frustration “I just cannot see myself wearing some of these without people getting the wrong idea.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t think you would care for what others thought of you.” Ezraphel admitted honestly.

Natalie clicked her tongue “I don’t, but I’d rather keep things tasteful, you know? The last thing I need is people wondering if I got an OnlyFans.”

The Lilim looked at it for a moment before taking the catalog and flipping the pages “well, in that case, how about this?”

Natalie took the catalog, and her eyes widened “now, that’s what I’m talking about.”

They spent the next hour or so sifting through the catalog and talking shop, eventually coming to an agreement that would see Natalie receiving a dozen new pieces of clothing over the course of the week. That was frankly an absurd timeframe for tailor-made clothing of assumed high quality with added enchantments to allow said quality to persist, among other effects.

One thing Natalie can’t say about Ezraphel is that she wasn’t committed to the hobby, which was starting to feel less and less like one the longer she went on about it.

Yet even more absurd was the fact that Ezraphel thought she would be doing this for free.

“Yeah, that’s not happening” Natalie immediately vetoed that idea.

“Really, there’s no need to pay.”

“Ez, you’re not going to make me force you to take payment for a clothing commission because I will get Stan involved.

“Yes, there is,” Natalie insisted “look, I get that since you’re a magical princess you don’t really have a clear concept of money.”

“That’s not true,” the Lilim muttered with a frown.

“And Stan is your sugar daddy who spoils you on occasion” Natalie continued.

“Okay, I will concede your point there.”

“Good.”

“We can speak on the details at a later date. In the meantime, let us move on to the main focus of why we’re here.”

“Oh, are we finally ready to do magic?”

“In a sense.”

The Lilim led Natalie back through the only door in the room; however, rather than ending up in the closet, they ended up walking back into the bedroom.

‘Huh?’

*Click*

She turned around to find the door she just walked through, no longer there.

“What?” She pointed a finger and turned to Ezraphel with a question on her tongue, only to pause at seeing the amused expression on her face and slump. “You did that on purpose to get a reaction out of me.”

“I have no idea what you mean, Natalie; I simply used a shortcut to save time,” she said, gesturing to a door that Natalie knew with certainty wasn’t there before.

Her eyes narrowed “why not just take us inside the room itself?”

“Because I imagine the experience would be quite jarring for you.”

And with that she opened the door causing Natalie’s nonexistent breath to somehow hitch. Beyond the door was not a room but what appeared to be the outside world, which was impossible. By now she already knew it was another type of magic; however, at this moment she cared not for the impossibility of the visage as her full attention was settled on the feeling emanating from beyond the door.

The surrealism only got worse once she entered the area proper.

Stepping through the threshold of that doorway was like stepping into a whole new world. Natalie felt the atmosphere wash over her like a tangible force through her fledgling sixth sense, causing her to startle. Natalie couldn’t help but freeze in place as her senses attempted to make sense of what was going on.

She felt a tingle all across every inch of her skin; the mana running through her veins raced, causing the heat within her to throb. Despite not having a pulse, Natalie felt herself panting lightly, though not due to any kind of exertion. Natalie raised a hand to her chest as if to steady her beating heart; however, just as she suspected, there wasn’t a single heartbeat to be felt.

“Can you feel it?”

Ezraphel’s voice caused Natalie to look startled.

Seeing Lilim’s expectant look, Natalie swallowed ineffectually, “I can definitely feel something.”

In response, Ezraphel chuckled, “what you are feeling is concentrated demonic energy.”

“So that’s what that is.”

“You are familiar?” Ezraphel observed.

“Sort of,” she said, clenching her hand into a fist and feeling the mana coursing through her veins. “It’s about the only thing I can feel moving in here, to be honest. I never thought I’d notice the lack of bodily functions in this sort of way.”

“Theoretically, you are a corpse whose body is being animated through mana in a way that mimics some human bodily functions but not all.”

Natalie mulled over the words for a moment before asking “so I’m guessing there’s a point to exposing me to this, or am I reading too much into it?”

“No actually, your body needs to have mana to properly function, and while you can now generate mana naturally through your newly developed mana core, due to its fledgling nature, you won’t be able to cast and maintain spells. Since the Earth is barren of mana and without a husband to supply you with spirit energy, you will need to stay in a mana-rich environment to aid in further developing your mana core. The more developed your core, the more you’ll be able to produce higher quantities of mana in better quality.”

“Okay, but does it have to be here?”

She asked this while glancing at the area, which seemed to come straight out of a dark fantasy movie. They were in an open, plain area surrounded by a forest of black trees topped with purple leaves. The sky was as dark as night, but without a star in sight, and a full red moon was hanging prominently in the sky. That’s not even mentioning the thick miasma of what she’s certain is demonic energy hanging in the air, almost like a pleasant fog.

“What’s wrong with this place?”

“Nothing just,” she said, taking the time to inhale, and a pleasant aroma entered her nostril, sending a shiver down her spine and “it’s a lot to take in…literally.”

“So still ‘processing’ then?”

Natalie gave her a mock glare “I’ll stop doing that as soon as you stop dropping bombs every few minutes.”

“Then perhaps we should postpone this session.”

“No!” Natalie immediately crossed her arms in an ‘X’ and said, “We are not putting this off now after you went through all the trouble.”

“Well, it’s not as if I’ll be teaching you to cast spells immediately.”

“You won’t?”

“Of course not.”

“Well, there goes my motivation,” Natalie muttered with slumped shoulders.

Rolling her eyes Ezraphel continued, “you need to learn the requisite theory of magic before we can get to that. Not to mention information on the Wight race itself and the role they play in undead society.”

“This is starting to sound an awful lot like a school lecture, and I’m not sure I like that.”

To her dismay, Ezraphel began rubbing her chin in contemplation “that’s not a bad idea.”

“Yes, it is.” Natalie immediately retorts, but it was too late.

*Snap*

And just like that, they were no longer standing in an open field. Natalie found herself seated behind an unfortunately familiar desk in an even more unfortunately familiar setting: high school.

“Noooo!”

*THWACK*

The loud noise interrupting her Vader-esque shout was followed by Ezraphel’s words, “Settle down, student.”

Natalie went to give Lilim a piece of her mind, only to end up choking on the words that got stuck in her throat. Ezraphel stood before her with her hair done up in a business bun, wearing a white long-sleeved dress shirt with the top buttons undone to show off the deep plunge of her cleavage, as well as a black lacy bra, a black pencil skirt short enough to show most of her thighs, stockings, and to accentuate her long legs and heels to exaggerate her already exaggerated height.

After observing this, Natalie only had one thing to say.

“What the fuck?” She breathed in disbelief.

“Hmm” the Lilim tilted her head “that’s a reaction I would expect from Stanley.”

“You…you don’t say” Natalie trailed off.

Totally understandable as far as Natalie was concerned.

“Now then…” Ezraphel adjusted the square framed glasses on her face.

*THWACK*

Natalie jumped at that sound again which turned out to be a long ruler Ezraphel used to smack her table.

“Let us begin your education.”

Looking up at the taller woman as she loomed over her Natalie could not help but to swallow nervously.

“B-be gentle?”

To that Ezraphel gave her beatific closed eye smile and uttered three words that sealed her fate.

“Nonsense, pressure makes diamonds.”

“It also makes rubble” the Wight retorted.

Ezraphel’s eyes narrowed “and if you give it a good whipping” she punctuated by slapping the ruler in her palm causing Natalie to jump “cream rises to the top~”

“So does scum.”

“…”

Ezraphel said nothing as she stared unblinkingly at the undead woman and Natalie had the distinct feeling that she may have pushed a bit too far with the sass.

“I can see that wit is a familial trait.”

“Thank you?”

“But much like with Stanley I shall have you put that tongue to better use.”

‘Holy shit.’

“I think you’re awakening something in me.”

Ezraphel’s grin was all teeth.

~Wight History~

She stared into the crimson orbs that were like a fiery inferno of lust and passion for what felt like an eternity but could have only been a few moments. If Natalie had the mental faculties to produce coherent thoughts in that moment, then it would have been a long line of…

‘I have no idea what’s going on right now… but I really like it.’

“Now before we get to the magical stuff,” began Ezraphel in a rather husky tone of voice.

“Y-yes?”

A million thoughts ran through Wight’s head in that moment.

“Let’s start with something fun.”

“Yes” she breathed out, her internal heat getting high enough that she was panting.

“I think it would greatly benefit you.”

“Yeees!”

“To know the history of the Wight Race,” the Lilim finished abruptly dropping the flirtatious undertones as she backed away.

*SKRRT*

*CRASH*

“Huh?”

Like recovering from a literal car crash, it took a moment for Natalie’s brain to compute what was just said. The fact that she had to sift through the haze of lust did not do her any favors but once she finally computed her eyes widened.

“No,” her voice whispered.

Then Ezraphel conjured a whiteboard.

“No!”

A floating marker wrote Lessons in Mamono Culture along with bullet points.

“Noooo…”

*Slam*

Natalie’s head hit the desk with an audible groan.

‘Oh god, it is just like high school,’ her mind screamed.

“I can’t believe you’ve done this.”

Ezraphel rolled her eyes “oh don’t be so dramatic.”

“I graduated college with the express purpose of never setting foot in another school environment again, Ezraphel!” she exclaimed.

The Lilim had the audacity to shrug, “well, too bad. Regardless of how you feel this is important information that you need to know.”

Natalie looked to the whiteboard at the bullet-point topics and couldn’t help but frown.

“Do I really need to know all this?”

“Natalie…”

“I’m just saying, some of these stuff won’t really matter-”

“Natalie!”

Ezraphel’s tone caused the woman in question to straighten up as she looked to Lilim, who regarded her with a seriousness she’d never seen before.

“Y-yes?”

“You are the first human born on earth to be converted into a Mamono. It is important for you to understand and grasp the history and culture of the race you are now the sole embodiment of.”

Natalie chewed on that sentence for a moment before she hesitantly said, “you say I’m the first, but what about that other girl?”

“Amelia’s transformation is still underway,” she paused, “and beyond the two of you, it remains to be seen whether there will be any more.”

“So you’re saying there’s going to be more mamono running around in the future?”

“I think we both know that is an inevitability” she said while placing a hand over a specific part of her stomach.

Natalie’s eyes widened “are you…”

“Unfortunately, I am not with a child”

“Yet?”

Ezraphel let out a small chuckle “naturally.”

“And would having kids be the only way for more mamono to be running around?”

Ezraphel pursed her lips. “I have no deliberate intentions of converting any more humans. Stanley is strongly against it, and I have come to accept and support him on this.”

“That implies that you didn’t before,” Natalie noted.

“I’ve always supported him,” she clarified, “at least I thought I did. The incident with Amelia has opened my eyes to the fact that my actions have contrasted with my words.” Her shoulders slumped “I am a hypocrite in that regard.”

“I thought that was supposed to be an accident.”

“I wonder…” she trailed off then shook her head “regardless, such an incident will never happen again, and in all honesty, I am less worried about my self-control at this stage.”

Natalie stiffened and raised her hands in surrender “hey now, I don’t plan on making anymore mamono.”

“I wasn’t referring to you, though, depending on the situation, you might not have a choice.”

“Ugh, I turned down being a lich because I didn’t want to fuck around with magic and find out.” Natalie grouched with an annoyed expression before letting up and switching topics. “And who was it that you were referring to if not me?”

“At this stage, barring any time-lapse shenanigans, I am sure that my mother must be very aware of my absence and will be making attempts to locate me.”

“Oh…” began Natalie. “And your mother is…”

“One of the most powerful entities in my world capable of matching the strongest gods, commands the respect and allegiance of gods and similarly powerful mamono alike, as well as vast legions of armies numbering in the hundreds of thousands, possibly millions, and is an overprotective worrywart of a mother who should be deathly concerned about my whereabouts. It is not a matter of if she will find me, Natalie, but when. If I manage to find earth, then she will be able to duplicate my feat a thousand times over with a fraction of the difficulty.”

“Okay and what happens if she finds you?”

“She will be relieved at my safety, joyful at my marriage, and very curious about this world. I don’t think it needs to be said that she will not leave the earth alone. I highly doubt she would be reckless enough to send an invading force into this world but the same cannot be said for certain other parties.”

Natalie did not like the sound of that but before she could comment Ezraphel shook her head lightly and continued.

“It should be fine so long as I talk to her about it first. The last thing any of us wants is a war.”

“Yeah, I’d rather not have to pick sides on that,” Natalie admitted.

“And you won’t,” Ezraphel assured, “but enough about that; let us focus on the lecture now.”

“Ugh,” Natalie sank into her chair with a despondent groan, “fine, anything to not make me the catalyst for Dawn of the Dead.”

“Eh,” Ezraphel made a so-so gesture, “in your circumstances, it could either be that or Ghostbusters.”

“…explain.”

“I will get to that, but first, ahem,” she said, clearing her throat, then using the ruler to point to the first bullet point on the board. “Allow me to tell you a tale.”

…

It began in the era when a powerful Lich ascended to the throne of the Monster Overlord. One of his first actions was to find a capable general who could lead his forces. Being a former human mage, he recognized the capabilities of heroes and so ‘acquired’ the corpse of a relatively well-known one to be used in an experimental necromancy ritual.

So potent was the spell that the reanimated corpse not only held awareness that most other undead monsters at the time lacked but also maintained the intelligence, skills, and instincts it had while alive. Of course, the Lich Overlord also suppressed selective parts of its memories and personality to ensure total obedience. And thus Lucius Wight became the general of the Lich Overlord’s undead army and his most effective weapon against humanity.

Boasting incredible strength, combat skills, magical abilities, high-speed regeneration, and control over the lesser undead, second only to the Lich Overlord himself, the undead hero proved himself to be the lynchpin of the Lich Overlord’s near success at world dominance.

Despite his strength, Lucius was unable to save the Lich Overlord from being slain by the Chosen Hero and upon his death the control he held over Lucius vanished allowing his original memories and personality to resurface. After regaining his identity, Lucius used his limited control over the dregs of the undead army to distract the Chosen Hero’s party and flee in the ensuing chaos.

For a time, Lucius traveled the wastes of monster territories in a fugue state as he came to grips with the atrocities he committed under the Lich Overlord. This was by no means an easy thing, as unlike past and future Overlords, the Lich had no interest in uniting the monsters against the other races. He simply sought to bring death upon the world itself, by whatever means.

To that end, he had Lucius scour the monster territories, slaughtering any and all who crossed his path as he sought more bodies to his army of undead. Much like in the human territories, Lucius’ deeds spread amongst the established monsters, branding him an infamous figure on both sides. Needless to say, Lucius would not be accepted by any monsters and was likely to be attacked by them just as he would by humans.

After a few close calls, he was forced ever deeper into the Makai continent, far removed from most established monster territories into places unknown at the time. His undead physiology allowed him to travel without the need for sustenance or rest, so he continued to roam for a very long time.

At some point, he came upon a small village of peaceful monsters that were lucky enough to avoid being conscripted into the Lich Overlord’s army and were, for the most part, far removed from the war itself. Without knowing his identity, the village of monsters accepted him, and from there, he lived as one of their own.

Eventually enough time passed that he was able to heal mentally from the trauma of the memories of his time as the undead general of the Lich Overlord. Lucius, who started as a stranger, eventually became the village leader who used his knowledge and skills for the betterment of the villagers.

As time flew by the wounds from the Lich Overlord’s reign gradually healed and the monsters repopulated. The small village located on the fringes expanded as other monsters would journey to either seek refuge or attempt to take it over only to be defeated, driven off, or subjugated. The small village became a city and Lucius as its leader and protector became a prolific figure in monster society at the time.

Lucius was so respected that when the time came for a new overlord to be chosen, many considered him to be the clear choice. Not only was he charismatic and very powerful, he oversaw a kingdom that stretched over a vast amount of territory, with thousands of monsters living under his leadership and commanding a sizeable army he personally trained.

It was a feat that not many monsters at the time could accomplish without much bloodshed, and while his rule wasn’t ‘clean’ he still commanded the respect of other powerful monsters. By that metric, he was as close to an overlord as one could get without it being official. So it came as no surprise that when the time came for a new Overlord to rise up, he was the first person to be approached as a candidate.

However, being the chivalrous hero he was and still somewhat reeling from his time under the yolk of the last overlord, he turned down the position and refused to participate in the war. Instead, he opted to act as a neutral party and his kingdom would become neutral grounds and a refuge for those who did not want to participate in what he saw as meaningless bloodshed.

Many of the monsters, while angry and confused by his decision and citing him as cowardly, could do nothing but accept his decision, for he was simply too powerful, commanded too much respect, and had too many pivotal resources for any monster to force him into compliance.

And so, for the rise of yet another overlord, he remained a neutral party in the war. At least it was such until the new Chosen Hero and his party began their journey to defeat the Overlord. Following their journey were the human armies who started to breach into the monster territories. It wasn’t long before conflict came to Lucius’ kingdom, and despite his vehemently denying any direct involvement in the monster’s war efforts, diplomacy was never an option.

Lucius and his army of loyal monsters were forced to defend their home against the human invaders resulting in a protracted siege that lasted days. Despite holding a home advantage the monsters quickly lost ground after the Chosen Hero and his party appeared with reinforcements. Unable to hold or drive off the human army and having no allies in the Overlord’s army due to his refusal to submit to his rule, Lucius was forced into a last stand against the Chosen hero.

Unfortunately, even with all his power, skill, and experience, the undead hero could not compete with the Chosen Hero’s holy weapons and armor which were both blessed by the Chief Goddess herself. Though he fought bravely, in the end he fell to the Chosen Hero’s holy sword.

Or at least that’s what should have happened; however, unbeknownst to Lucius, his actions held the interest of the god of death at the time, Hades. The death god had kept his gaze on the undead hero from his resurrection throughout the ages and found merit in his actions. The reason being that the calamity that was the Lich Overlord’s reign had far-reaching consequences for the undead and the death god, who would be seen in a massively negative light.

The undead were hunted, spirits were exorcised and worshippers of Hades were ostracized or worse by humans and monsters alike. Liches specifically would be hunted and put to true death by either with extreme prejudice. And as the god presiding over death, his standing among mortals plummeted as his temples were razed and the number of his followers dropped. This in turn resulted in a loss of power and prestige within the pantheon that, in time, would threaten his very existence if not addressed.

Unknowingly, Lucius played a pivotal role in restoring the reputation of undead monsters and, by extension, Hades. His very existence gained the god’s notice and with his actions he gained the god’s favor, a fact that did not come into play until he was once again on the cusp of death.

Before the Chosen Hero could strike Lucius down, Hades intervened and gifted the undead former Hero a divine blessing worthy of his contributions. This blessing not only granted him increased strength and vitality; it also gave him resistance to holy weapons and the ability to manipulate souls through mana. But perhaps the most significant aspect of the blessing was allowing Lucius to have a permanent connection to the realm of death itself, becoming a champion of death.

With these boons, Lucius was able to turn the tables, using his newfound strength, vitality, and resistance to holy power, to defeat the Chosen Hero in martial combat. After subduing his foe, Lucius used his power and authority as the death god’s chosen to cast widespread necromancy spells across the battlefield that resurrected friends and foes alike to create a new undead army.

In short order, he was able to defeat the invading army and subdue the invading army. After the battle was won and with the fate of the Chosen Hero in his hands, rather than finishing him and the human army off, Lucius chose to spare them much of their combined shock. He would do this, but not before receiving the Chosen Hero’s word that neither he nor the humans would try to attack him in any way, shape, or form, so long as he lived.

As a former one himself, Lucius knew that a Hero’s word is something taken seriously, especially if it is given before witnesses of importance. In that moment, not only were both of their armies bearing witness to the proceedings, but also the gods themselves. In that moment, both Lucius and the Chosen Hero were representing the death god and the Chief Goddess, respectively. Should either break their word, it would be akin to besmirching the honor of their patron deities.

And so on that day, an accord was struck.

In exchange for sparing his life and remaining neutral in the conflict, neither the Chosen Hero nor the Holy Order would attack Lucius or his kingdom, so long as the former drew breath. The accord was made, and the Chosen Hero, his party, and what was left of the human army accompanying them left to continue their crusade against the then-current Monster Overlord.

…

“He just let them go?” Natalie interrupted, looking slightly nonplussed, “Just like that?”

“He showed mercy as befitting a former Hero.”

“That’s…”

She wanted to say stupid and/or nonsensical, but in the end, she went for a less insulting angle.

“Unbelievable,” she finished.

“Well, I imagine that he still held some loyalty to humanity, not to mention his guilt for what he did while under the Lich Overlord.”

“Okay, I get that, but didn’t these guys basically invade his home, ignore his attempts at diplomacy and killed his people?”

‘I don’t care how loyal or guilty you are; people don’t just forgive things like that.’

Ezraphel clearly figured the same thing, for she gave a prompt answer.

“You have to take into consideration that at the time there was another Overlord active. Without the Chosen Hero, the other races would be hard-pressed to defeat him. Not to mention he would also make an enemy out of the Chief Goddess, which he did not want.”

“Isn’t he an enemy by virtue of being a monster?”

“He did not want her focused attention.”

“Well, he got it either way, I would think. Unless she took her ‘Chosen Hero’s’ losing to him on the chin.”

“She did not,” Ezraphel intoned.

“Did she end up breaking the agreement?”

“She did not have to since the Chosen Hero lost his life slaying the Overlord not too long after agreement was made.”

“And the agreement is only valid so long as he’s alive.” With a nod from Ezraphel, she hummed with a raised eyebrow. “That’s pretty convenient. You don’t think she got him killed do you?”

“I cannot say for sure. He wouldn’t have been the first Chosen Hero to die defeating an Overlord. Not that it mattered, as whatever plans she or anyone had would fall short, for while Lucius trusted the hero, he did not trust anyone else, and together with Hades, the two took precautions against any further intrusions into the kingdom.”

“What did they do?”

“They established a Necropolis.”

“Necropolis?”

“A kingdom of the undead.”

“Ah.”

“To this very day, it serves as one of the oldest and most prominent Demon Realms in the world and a connecting point between the realms of the living and dead. Currently, it is the seat of Lady Hel’s power.”

“Hel?”

“The current Goddess of Death…and Life,” the Lilim added.

~Wight Heritage~

“Obvious question here but is there a reason why she’s the goddess of life and death instead of just death?”

“From what I’ve recently read on the website Hel is described as half living and half dead.”

“Do you think that’s true?”

“I cannot confirm validity of this however this unique description lends credence to her title and thus her nature. Even before she became an ally to mother Hel was described as somewhat of an anomaly especially for a god who presides over death. Of all the gods I’ve heard of, Hel is one that is particularly active in the lives of her followers.

“How so?”

“Well…”

…

After Lucius’ ascension as king of the newly formed Necropolis, Hades made it possible for undead monsters of a superior quality similar to his to be created by whispering the means into the ears of his followers. Hades also gave this new race of superior undead the designation Wight, named in honor of Lucius Wight, the first true undead king.”

The Wights created after Lucius were born from the corpses of once powerful humans such as Heroes, knights created through powerful advanced necromancy or his devout worshippers who received his favor. Through them Wights were seen as the equivalent of a ‘Heroes’ and the chosen champions of death acting out Hades’ will on the mortal plane.

Under Hades reign, there would be at best one or two created every century or so but after Hel’s ascension, however, there would be an increase in the Wight population as the goddess enacted several changes that would make the Wight transformation more accessible to her worshippers. As more time passed their overall culture would change and evolve as the Hel made more changes behind the scenes.

As a result of these changes over time, Wights were no longer necessarily seen as ‘champions’ of the death goddess but rather as royalty among the undead that were given the divine right to rule over them.

By the time Lilith became Overlord, the role of Wights became more defined, and their culture had dramatically shifted to mimic highborn human society with all the grandeur, posturing and political intrigue it entailed. At this point Hel had defected from the Chief Goddess’ pantheon and would enact another parameter change dictating that all married lesser undead would be able to become Wights with enough time and a steady flow of their husband’s spirit energy.

As more Wights appeared, so too did budding Demon Realm Necropolises, which further cemented the mythos of their ‘nobility’ and ‘highborn status’ into standard cultural practices. A thousand years later and the nuances of these aspects have thoroughly ingrained themselves as personality quirks inherent to some degree in all Wights.

…

As Ezraphel finished explaining Natalie couldn’t help but ask “so what does that mean for me? Am I going to develop snooty aristocratic tendencies?”

“In a manner of speaking though it is not as if the quirks themselves are all encompassing. Not all Wights I encountered are highborn nobles or aspire to be one. Since all lesser undead types from different paths of life have the opportunity to evolve, Wights have become quite diverse as a race.”

Technically she was already told this when she initially chose to become a Wight but it was good to have context behind the reason why that is.

“Do you have any more queries?” Ezraphel questioned interrupting her thoughts.

“Yeah, what happened to Hades?”

“He was dethroned from his position. If you were to ask the Chief Goddess, then they would say he grew discontent with his position and, through said discontent and jealousy of her, sought to challenge her for the position of leader of the pantheon, forcing her to strike him down in order to maintain order.”

“Ah” Natalie nodded before adding “so that’s a fucking lie, right?”

Natalie blinked as her response came out a bit harsher than she meant it to ‘what the…?’

“I imagine so” Ezraphel broke her thoughts “it is quite foolish to trust the words of a self-righteous warmonger who has manipulated the world for eons for her own personal gain at the cost of an untold number of lives.”

Natalie almost recoiled at the sneer on Lilim’s face. Natalie had no context for the hate the Lilim held for this goddess yet she couldn’t say that it wasn’t unwarranted. For some reason the Wight felt a distinct dislike towards this Chief Goddess despite knowing nothing about her outside the fact that she hated Mamono.

That’s…actually kind of unnerving.

“You know, I know nothing about this person but just from the few things you’ve said just now she sounds like a total bitch.”

“She really is,” Ezraphel concurred “and you’ll find that natural distaste for that particular entity to be the work of Eons of hatred and malice felt by the collective monster/mamono race who have been used and abused as pawns and scapegoats in her bid to maintain control of the world through humanity.”

‘Note to self: read up on the Chief Goddess.’

If she’s going to hate someone then she might as well have a reason for it and while she might be able to get answers from the woman standing before her Natalie felt the conversation might get derailed even further since Ezraphel seemed to be a really passionate hater of this goddess.

Now was about the time to switch topics but luckily Ezraphel seemed to understand the tangent she went on and corrected this herself.

“Ahem, so as we’ve concluded, your personality changing is less of a concern than the possibility of the other effects your transformation may have in the long term.”

“What other effect?”

“Due to the circumstances of their creation, all Wights, regardless of their origin, have a connection to the goddess Hel and the Realm of the Dead. This connection is what gives them the ability to control lesser undead and spirits, as well as the authority to command the greater undead and spirits.”

Natalie let that information sink in for a moment with furrowed brows before realization dawned.

“Now when you say connection…you don’t think she’ll notice me, do you?”

“As a goddess beloved and revered by many I am sure that she has more than enough on her plate to notice a singular Wight in another dimension mostly devoid of mana and magic to support her existence. I dare say it would be akin to, how do you say, spotting a needle in a haystack the size of a city?”

“That’s reassuring, I think.”

Natalie didn’t know if Hel noticing her would be bad per se since, from what she’s been told, Hel is by all intents and purposes a most benevolent goddess, and if she were honest, there is something deep within that wouldn’t mind being acknowledged by her.

Before the words could get filtered through her mind, Natalie ended up asking, “would it be so bad if Hel noticed me?”

“I suppose Hel being aware of Earth wouldn’t be the worst thing by itself” Ezraphel hazarded.

“You sound a little unsure there.”

“I don’t know enough about her to gauge what her response would be with knowledge of this world’s existence. She certainly doesn’t seem the type to facilitate an invasion, if that’s what you’re worried about. Not to mention her existence as a deity adds another layer to the ambiguity of what actions she would take. The gods have rules, and while Hel is very much one of the more active ones within the sphere of her religion, it’s just within that sphere. Gods tend to not bother with things outside that sphere.”

“That tracks,” Natalie mused “there are a lot of myths floating around about gods having rules and taking a hands-off approach with us mere mortals.”

“With that said, considering you are the only undead in this world and a Wight of all things, she may just be curious enough about your existence to reach out if she ever notices.”

“Is that an actual ‘if’ or is it inevitable?”

“Eh,” Ezraphel said, making a so-so gesture “like I mentioned before, she won’t notice so long as you don’t do anything to stand out and it would take a lot for you to stand out.”

“Right, needle in a haystack,” the Wight muttered.

“The size of a city” Ezraphel added.

Natalie huffed at that “would I even be able to get her attention then?”

“Theoretically there are a few ways to do it, unlikely as those are to be.”

“Well what are they?”

“Why do you want to know?” she asked curiously.

“Curiosity.”

Ezraphel narrowed her gaze “you’re not planning to actually try contacting Hel are you?”

“N-no” Natalie stuttered more at the Lilim’s pointed gaze than the accusation “unless you think I’d be able to do it with the information you give me.”

Ezraphel’s frown became more pronounced but she acquiesced to the question “the easiest method to gain Hel’s notice involves leading religious ceremony.”

That confused Natalie for a moment “so if I pray hard enough then she might notice?”

“She is a goddess you know. But of course you wouldn’t be able to get her attention alone in that aspect. You’d need to establish a religion based around her and gather a significant following.”

“So basically start a cult?”

“More or less” the Lilim confirmed “and to ensure maximum efficiency you will of course need to convert the female members into undead mamono.”

“…of course it’s a literal death cult” the Wight grumbled “I don’t know why I’m even surprised by this.”

“It’s a valid method, if not without some extra steps such as spreading mana and increasing the number of worshippers.”

“The worshippers I get, but why spread mana? Is that just for converting the people?”

“It also works to pierce the veil between dimensions essentially acting as a signal boost for prayers. At least, that’s my theory. Gods are magical beings, and mana acts as a fuel for magic, so it stands to reason that prayers spoken in a mana-rich environment would have a better chance of reaching them.”

“Naturally”

“These steps are not mutually exclusive, and to accomplish them in the most optimum environment you would need to erect a Demon Realm Necropolis.”

“Huh, well, I guess I’m going to be flying under the radar without too much worry, since, uh, I’m not really interested in following in the footsteps of Jim Jones while also being the catalyst for a possible undead apocalypse.”

“It wouldn’t be an apocalypse.”

“Yes, it would,” Natalie retorted, “just not the kind people expect.”

“Hm” Ezraphel hummed at that “alternatively you could try to increase your own might to where your personal power would be noticed though obviously that would be an even more arduous undertaking.”

“Not interested in going through that sort of hassle.”

“Then the only other thing I could think of is to take part in a ritual specifically designed to make contact with the goddess. Obviously I won’t be teaching you that.”

Natalie raised her hands up in surrender “wasn’t going to ask? Honestly aside from curiosity I just didn’t want to accidentally do something that might get the wrong sort of attention from beyond the veil. Then again if Hel is such a good person would that be such a bad thing?”

“Considering Hel is an ally to my mother and she would be obliged to tell her my location, I would say it is a pretty bad thing. We already went over what would happen should that occur; however, in this scenario, the death goddess would have a stake in it. That means you would be dragged into the ensuing chaos.”

‘That sounds bad.’

“And who is to say that Hel wouldn’t try to establish a foothold on Earth regardless of my mother? As the first and only undead and native of this world Hel very much has a claim to spread roots before the other gods through you.”

‘That sounds even worse.’

“Ugh,” Natalie massaged her head, suddenly feeling a headache coming on. “okay my curiosity is satiated now. Can we change the subject? Better yet, are we done here? I think I’ve met my quota for these kinds of discussions.”

“Very well, I suppose enough time has passed for you to be properly acclimated to the mana of the demon realm.”

That got Natalie’s attention “what?”

“Did you forget where you are? Why we’re even here?” The Lilim gestured around them.

Natalie did and she rolled her eyes “sorry if I got distracted by the lecture and ensuing conversation.”

“It’s good that you’re distracted. It means that your body has absorbed enough mana while your attention was preoccupied for the effects to be lessened.”

“I still feel horny, though.”

“Don’t we all?” Ezraphel mused before shaking her head, “don’t worry about it.”

“When has saying that ever worked?”

“I am telling you it is not something you should think too much about since whatever you are feeling right now is perfectly natural for us.”

“This is natural? Do you always feel this horny?”

“Always,” Lilim replied without missing a beat.

The slight look of mania in her eyes made Natalie feel mild discomfort and she made this known to the woman.

“I’m not sure I’m comfortable with this.”

“You’ll get used to it. As a matter of fact, you’ve been getting used to it. I’m actually rather surprised you’ve managed to keep your libido so manageable.”

‘This is manageable?’

“The fact that you aren’t attempting to masturbate right now means that it is manageable.”

Natalie stared, her pale cheeks brightening as the thought stuck in her mind for longer than she’d like. The fact that, for a brief moment, she considered doing it had her feeling mortified.

“Why’d you have to go and say that?”

“As if you were not going to do just that after this?”

“Yeah, but no one wants to be called out for it.”

“You should adjust that prudish behavior when you’re amongst other mamono.”

“I don’t think I do, and I won’t apologize for not becoming a degenerate.”

In response Ezraphel’s lips quirked upwards in amusement, “heh…”

“What’s with that look?”

“Nothing~”

“I’m not becoming a degenerate!”

“Sure-sure~”

“I’m not!”

“I would say I support you but *snrk* that would be a lie.”

‘This bitch!” Natalie felt a vein throb in her forehead as her eyes twitched.

“The degenerate advocating for degeneracy” she drawled “shocking.”

“Now there’s no need for passive aggressiveness it’s just that I find your reaction to be nostalgic.”

“Nostalgic how?”

“You remind me of a heroic maiden who is in denial of her situation. Sufficed to say degeneracy is an inevitable reality.”

“Well I reject your reality and substitute my own.”

“That is a bold declaration Natalie let us see if you manage to follow through.”

‘Ah shit, I walked right into that one and why the hell did I even say that anyway!? Whatever not like it has any meaning.’

Except it does have meaning or at least she felt it did. The thought of devolving into degeneracy chafed at her human sensibilities but having made that declaration and worse having said declaration acknowledged by Ezraphel meant that her pride as a Wight would not allow her to dismiss it.

“Whatever, I’m already dead but I’m sticking on this hill anyway.”

“Sure-sure” Ezraphel spoke like an adult indulging a child, which caused the Wight to scowl. “I think now we can move into learning magic.”

Natalie perked up “finally”

Then Ezraphel’s smile gained a sinister edge as she quite literally flipped the whiteboard to a whole new set of topics to be reviewed.

“Magical theory, that is,” Lilim finished with a saccharine smile.

Natalie’s response?

*Slam*

Ezraphel looked at her student with an unimpressed gaze “must you be so dramatic?”

“Yes,” came the muffled reply followed by

*Slam*

“Why even do that?”

“Maybe if I hit my head hard enough I’ll get a concussion and knock myself out.”

*Slam*

“Well, good luck with that. Wights have unnaturally high regeneration so long as they have the mana to spare and in this high density mana environment nothing short of a holy weapon or decapitation will put you in any meaningful danger.”

*Slam*

*CRACK*

That was the sound of a forehead hitting a wooden desk so hard that something broke.

“I hope that hurts.”

“…worth it,” came the slurred response.

~Magic 101~

Surprisingly, it wasn’t her skull that gave way in the brief yet tepid battle between it and the wooden desk. As she rubbed her aching forehead, Natalie made a note to not do that again.

In front of her Ezraphel huffed, “well, now that you’ve gone and done that, I might as well turn it into a learning experience. Can you feel the mana circulating your body still?”

“Yeah.”

“Where do you feel its concentration the most?”

“Kind of like near the center of my chest.”

“Try taking hold of it. Just concentrate on the feeling, imagine yourself reaching out and grasping it. That should be simple enough for you.”

Natalie didn’t believe her until she did it not a moment later.

“Right now, you should already feel some of your mana healing the damaged area.”

Now that Ezraphel pointed it out Natalie could feel the pain in her forehead lessening.

“Try to redirect more of the flow towards it.”

Natalie followed the instructions, and the pain subsided to a dull ache before completely receding. The area that had before been tender now felt fine.

She was completely healed.

“Whoa,” Natalie marveled, “that was easier than I thought it would be.”

“All monsterized humans will gain instinctive knowledge of certain skills and attributes inherited from the mamono they are converted into as a means of combating dissonance. For instance, just as a newly monsterized harpy, centaur, or mermaid would have no difficulties traversing the air, land or sea with their new appendages, so too would a Wight not have much issue with directing their internal mana.”

“Hmm…”

Natalie’s brows raised in wonder before furrowing in concentration as she raised her hands. She concentrated, focusing on her hand, her mana core, and a certain image.

“What are you doing?”

Natalie didn’t answer the question, as not a moment later pale blue-white demonic energy formed over hands in the form of pale blue-white clawed ethereal hands.

“Huh, I didn’t think that would work, actually,” she mused, all the while manipulating the ghostly energy hands.

Her concentration was broken by the sound of clapping, and she looked up to find Lilim with a smile on her face while golfing.

“Congratulations, Natalie, you’ve performed your first necromancy spell.”

“This is a spell? Also Necromancy?”

“It may not seem like it with the ease with which you’ve performed it, but that is just a result of being a race of naturally sorcerous mamono. And necromancy involves more than just raising and manipulating zombies.”

“So what is this, and what can I use it for?”

“That spell is called Spectral Hands and is primarily used to interact with and manipulate souls to a certain degree.”

Natalie’s eyes widen in shock as she regards the now-named spectral hands with renewed awe and caution.

“Uh… I’m not sure what to think of this.”

“Feeling overwhelmed by the idea that you hold that kind of power?”

“A little, yeah.”

“That is one of the reasons why I wanted to educate you with theory first before going into spell casting. As the saying goes, you have to learn to crawl before you can walk. Unless you feel you are already equipped enough to forgo wanting information on your abilities and choose to ‘wing it’ instead,”

“Ugh,” the spectral hands dissipated as Natalie leaned back in her chair with a huff “proceed.”

With a triumphant smirk, Ezraphel then pointed her ruler to the first bullet point: What is magic?

“Magic is a general term for techniques used to create phenomena via manipulation od mana. ‘Mana’ is vital energy contained within the bodies of animate beings; all living things have mana.”

“Didn’t you say that Earth is devoid of mana?”

“Supposedly,” Ezraphel frowned, “considering that on Eos mana is life energy and the absence of it would surely spell doom for anyone without it, I assumed the Earth was simply a world in which the presence of mana is antithetical to the world. As in it didn’t exist, cannot exist and will never exist at any point on Earth.”

“But you don’t think that’s the case anymore?”

“If it was, then I wouldn’t have gotten any spirit energy from Stanley’s semen. Of course, the amount of spirit energy was so paltry that I needed to use my own mana to bolster his own production.”

“Ugh…”

“What is it?”

“I don’t want to hear you talking about my brother’s spooge girl,” she then sighed, “but I understand this would be inevitable, so… I’m guessing the world isn’t as devoid of mana as you thought.”

“Oh no, it very much is,” Ezraphel assured, “however, I am of the belief that the current state of the Earth and its people was not by design, I don’t think.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, for a world that has supposedly never known mana, it works surprisingly similar to my own world when mana is introduced. On three separate occasions, I was able to kick-start an Earth human’s natural mana production by simply injecting mana into their body. The world itself soaks up mana and as such magic is capable of being utilized as a result. As far as my investigation into the state of Earth vs. Eos goes, there isn’t a difference outside of mana being prevalent in one and not the other. Take away mana from Eos or put mana on Earth, and the two worlds would virtually be the same.”

“So what you’re saying is that something made the Earth like this?”

Ezraphel nodded “that is my theory, though, as to what could do such a thing. I have ideas, but…” She trailed off.

“Well, don’t leave me in suspense here,” Natalie half demanded.

Unfortunately for the fight, Lilim shook her head and said, “No, I’d rather not get into it.”

“Oh, come on!” Natalie complained

“No, however this world came to be this way, clearly it had no bearings on humanity.”

There was a note of sadness in her tone as she said this, which Natalie picked up.

“Are you okay there? You sound…not alright.”

“Yes, I am. I just…” she paused to bite her lip “if the Earth had been like Eos at one point, then in the absence of mana and magic, the only race to survive the fallout was humanity, and you’ve clearly flourished.”

“Eh, things are a bit iffy on that front nowadays.”

“Trust me, compared to Eos, Earth is flourishing. You only think that is not the case because your media chooses to emphasize and sensationalize the negative aspects of the world and its people.”

Natalie can acknowledge this, but she wasn’t wholly convinced.

“I guess I’ll just take your word for it.”

From there, Ezraphel got her lesson back on track touching on an earlier point of magic being able to be utilized by any living being with access to mana.

“Of course one’s aptitude varies; however, generally, the only thing holding someone back from utilizing magic is their intelligence and knowledge. In human kingdoms, such knowledge is kept hidden from the wider population by nobles in concert with sorcerous organizations, the latter of whom are put in charge of selecting and training potential mages in order to maintain order, leading to the misconception among most humans that only a select few are capable of utilizing magic.”

“As for mamono, it mostly comes down to a combination of personal preference and aptitude. Most people generally don’t have the patience or dedication to study the magical arts.”

“Can Stan use magic?” Natalie questioned.

Ezraphel frowned. “Yes, Stanley has a rather high aptitude for it and is even able to cast a few spells.”

“You don’t sound too happy about it.”

Ezraphel opened her mouth to comment, but she shook her head instead and said, “It’s nothing for you to be concerned about.”

“If you say so.”

After that, she went on to discuss spell casting,

“This is the process of imposing one’s will on the world utilizing mana and generally requires a means of issuing commands to one’s mana. This can be done in several ways,” Ezraphel explained. “The most popular form of casting is chanting out loud, but depending on a mage’s mastery of the spell, they could reduce the chant to a short phrase, a single word, or even a simple gesture.”

“Like snapping your fingers?” Natalie asked with a raised eyebrow.

That got a smirk out of Lilim, and she did just that, causing Natalie’s desk to repair itself.

‘Showoff.’

“Large-scale spells are a bit different in that regard and usually require a mage to set up a ritual. This involves spending time laying the groundwork and preparing intermediaries and offerings in advance. No matter what method you use to cast spells, the most important factor is the power of your mind,” she said, tapping the side of her head. “You need to focus your thoughts and visualize the thing that you want to happen to make it so.”

Natalie nodded, remembering her earlier successful attempt to cast the ‘spectral hand’. The spell only really took form when she thought about the image of the Wight on the wiki and how her hand was enveloped by that ghost-like aura and managed to produce a damn near identical version.

“You’ll notice many of the artifacts and equipment to aid mages such as wands, staffs and staves are rather specialized in concentrating the castor’s focus. For example, ahem,” she cleared her throat and spoke, “spirit of fire, I call you forth. Arise from the eternal spark and let your endless streams of light erupt in manifestation to burn away anything that hinders my true will. Fireball!”

After such a long-winded chant Ezraphel managed to produce a small ball of fire over her open palm.

Needless to say, Natalie was underwhelmed.

“All that just for a little ball of flame?”

“The words themselves are less important than the effect they have on the caster’s mind. Novice mages make the mistake of placing importance on the words rather than the thoughts they invoke. While this does succeed in getting them to cast proper spells, this is only short-term as it handicaps them, and many end up failing to achieve proper mastery as a result. As I said before chants or invocations are only a means of focusing the caster’s mind.”

“I think I get it. If they’re doing a fire spell, then they need to think fiery thoughts.”

“Essence of flame, actually,” Ezraphel corrected, “but yes. I could just as easily chant fire-fire-fire like a mantra and achieve the same results. In fact, different sorcerous groups across the world even have different chants for achieving the same spell.”

“It seems a little inefficient, don’t you think?”

“Well, such chants are primarily used by beginner mages for practice. The point is to get them familiar enough with the feel of casting the spell, and verbal invocation is a tried and true method to eventual mastery. Ideally, you’ll want to get to a point where you can shorten it to be practical outside of a controlled setting.”

She then demonstrated calling out “fireball” and then snapping her fingers to produce the same result.

Yeah, that makes significantly more sense than to wax lyrical every time you wanted to do a simple spell.

“So what exactly counts as mastery? Will you just be able to do spells using your thoughts, cutting out the middle man entirely?”

“Theoretically, you could cut out chants, gestures, rituals, and whatnot to cast spells with your thoughts, but that requires continuous, uninterrupted, detailed thinking about so many complex data and processes that it would be unrealistic for anyone outside of the Gods to attempt.”

Ezraphel gave her a brief summary of the complex data and processes for the fire spell, to which Natalie conceded her point.

“Okay, but aren’t you basically doing all that already? What’s the technical difference between chanting, gestures, and rituals versus just pure thought power? How does the method of the former deal with the disadvantages of the latter?”

“Ah, for that, we’ll need to go into the various systems of magic.”

“What are magic systems?”

Ezraphel took a moment to consider the question before speaking: “Consider that if you’re trying to solve a math equation, then a magic system would be the formula you’ll use to attempt solving it. That is the difference between casting spells through traditional methods and using pure thought.”

Natalie considered this. “I think I get it.”

“And because magic is so diverse and is really only limited to one’s imagination, mages have discovered and created magic systems that would best utilize their talents to achieve the desired results. We’ll start with the very first one, Archaeomancy.”

Just from the sounds of it alone, Natalie could tell it was old, even ancient.

“Archaeomancy is a magic system born in the era of the first recorded history known as the Age of Genesis and is the result of simplifying and improving the originally complex processes of magic originally given to mortals by the gods. It has since been cultivated and refined by countless number of mages of all types over the course of eons. Today, it is considered the most complete magic system, with very few kinks. As such, it is the foundation of all magic utilized by all mages on Eos.”

‘Called it.’

“It is from this system that the basic knowledge of spell casting as well as all other magic systems are derived. Due to its general purpose, mages specialized in or naturally predisposed to one magic system can utilize spells from it.”

“Wait, so you can only use one magic system?”

“Not at all, mages can and have used spells from different magic systems all the time for one reason or another. The issues come in when they attempt to go in depth with their practice. There are variables to account for in studying more than one magic system. For one, you will be sinking a lot of time and resources into the endeavor. Magic is expensive, resource-intensive, and time-consuming to master. Typically, only sponsored individuals, prodigies and/or those races with long lifespans even seriously make the attempt.”

“What about learning just enough to be competent and moving on?”

“That is typically frowned upon. No mage wants to become a jack of all trades but master of none in a vocation where mastery is the end goal.”

“That sounds a little extreme.”

“I feel the same way,” Ezraphel spoke up. “I myself have dabbled in several magic systems, and I find myself better for it. They have served me well thus far. Even though, in some cases, I wish I had dabbled just a bit deeper.”

“So you’re a jack of all trades, master of none, but it’s still better than being a master of one?”

Ezraphel blinked at the phrase and gave a beautiful smile. “I could not have said it better myself. Of course, there are natural barriers that would prevent a mage from studying more than the magic system. One such example I can give is with necromancy.”

Natalie perked up at that as she listened to what Lilim explained.

“Necromancy is a magic system that allows for the control of life and death. In human settlements, this magic system is considered controversial as it violates the taboo set by the Chief God. It is also one of the few magic systems where the practitioner gets corrupted by the energy produced by the spells; as such, all necromancers are either undead or, in the case of humans, will become corrupted by the necrotic mana generated by each spell, turning them into undead or Incubi predisposed to the undead.”

“Oof, sucks for them.”

“Another barrier that has to be taken into account is race. As a Succubus, I cannot perform necromancy; however, as a Wight, you are already predisposed to this magic system. There are ways to overcome this barrier; for instance, in the case of learning necromancy, I would have to become a follower of Hel.”

“That doesn’t sound too bad.”

Ezraphel shrugged. “I am not interested in throwing my lot in with any divinity, even if I was interested in necromancy.”

“So what magic system do you prefer?”

At this, Ezraphel grinned, “My preferred system of magic is Nymphomancy, of course.”

“I wonder what that one’s about,” Natalie said dryly.

“I’m glad you asked Natalie, for you see, Nymphomancy is a magic system for which the Succubi were the original progenitors and practitioners before monsters became mamono. This magic system requires Succubi mana and is imprinted in a Succubus’ instinct, but since every mamono is already part Succubus, it’s not hyperbole to say that every individual mamono has an aptitude for it.”

‘That tracks.’

“Additionally, this is one of the few magic systems where casting spells doesn’t require any chanting and is primarily done through gestures. There are even cases where spells can be cast unconsciously.”

“What’s the catch?” Natalie immediately asked.

“The spells are fueled by your desire rather than your thoughts. You don’t even need concentration to fuel a spell’s effectiveness; rather, you only need to indulge in pleasure.”

“You’re not really selling me on this, Ez.”

The Lilim shrugged, “I wasn’t trying to. In present circumstance, the spells of this magic system are more suited for an intimate setting with your husband than casual practice. Unless you’re into charming men and want to gather a harem for yourself.”

“You don’t have a problem with that?”

“Stanley would. I have met a few mamono who indulge in harem practices with multiple men. Personally, I don’t see the appeal beyond a casual romp. Harems with multiple mamono married to a single man make sense because they would all become pregnant. Marrying multiple men just seems needlessly excessive, not to mention messy, and not in a fun way.”

Yeah, Natalie can’t see herself having more than a single husband.

‘But if it’s just casual…’

Natalie’s thoughts momentarily trailed off as x-rated images of herself with a few faceless pornstar-esque men flashed through her mind.

“Oh…”

She wasn’t that type of woman, really; she wasn’t, but fuck, she was feeling horny right now.

“Heh~”

That single sound directed Natalie’s attention to a smirking Ezraphel, looking like the world’s most smug bitch.

“Thinking of something good?” Lilim asked with that infuriating expression.

Lust battled with pride in an internal war within the Wight, ultimately resulting in the latter supplanting the former through an alliance with wrath. Despite her internal conflicts, however, she managed to maintain a calm façade as she answered.

“Nope, and I’m not really into the harem thing either.”

“Stanley said something similar.”

And on that note, Ezraphel continued going over the other magic systems. It was real fascinating stuff, though it became clear to Natalie that those other systems didn’t really offer much use for her.

Elemental Magic is severely handicapped without a contracted spirit.

Hieromancy is useless without divine mana from a god.

Teletomancy is done primarily through rituals that involve long prep time.

Theriomancy wasn’t at all appealing or practical to her.

Pharmacomancy seemed interesting enough but lost its appeal when she found herself needing to study a few subjects in the medical field to get the most use out of it. After her whole ordeal with leukemia she wanted to divorce herself from the medical field for a while.

After getting through that lecture, Ezraphel said, “I believe that should be enough theory for today.”

‘Thank fucking God.’

“We can start your practical lessons.”

“Finally.”

“At another time.”

“…”

The glare Natalie pinned her with could make even an emotionless Lich flinch. Unfortunately for the Wight, it is something the Lilim has experienced enough times from Stanley to be wholly desensitized.

“We’ve been here for quite some time, Natalie. I can feel the strain these lessons are placing on your mind and heart. It would do you well to rest, and we can resume this at a later date.”

Natalie kept her gaze fixed for a moment longer before inhaling through her nose and exhaling through her mouth.

“Fine, I could use a break anyway.”

That is an understatement.

“Outstanding!” Lilim clapped. “I’ll even prepare a snack for you.”

Later…

Natalie exited the bathroom which wasn’t the usual one but the massive swimming pool style bathhouse Ezraphel created and was gracious enough to enchant so that an entrance would be attached to a door in her room.

‘God magic is so fucking convenient.’

Thought on her future as a heh, Wight Mage came to a halt as she looked to her wardrobe in disappointment.

“Wish she could have magic me up something to wear to bed at least.”

In the end, she went with a pair of her best (read: sexiest) panties for no particular reason and a tank top that strained against her new assets, forgoing a bra entirely because what would be the point?

“At least I don’t have to wait long for it.”

Natalie fell on top of the bed with a groan, feeling mentally exhausted.

“That was fucking miserable.”

Once again, it was reaffirmed that school is and will always be the bane of Natalie Berkowitz. Not even an interesting topic like magic being taught by a sexy Succubus teacher is enough to change that fact.

‘But at least it was informative,’ she thought then scoffed a little.

It would be a lie to say that Natalie wasn’t grateful for Ezraphel’s taking the time to teach her about aspects of her world. Admittedly, the history of the Wight race didn’t really do much for her. Natalie didn’t really have a particular care for the history of her new race, but the information on the goddess Hel was appreciated.

Natalie wasn’t a religious person, but there was lingering comfort in the idea of there being a God, especially recently with her diagnosis. It meant that when she died, there might be something waiting for her beyond this life. To have Ezraphel more or less confirm the absence of such an entity on Earth…

The concept and its implications unnerved her.

As for the goddess Hel, Natalie felt buoyed by her existence, even if she’s a literal dimension away and unlikely to even notice her.

Natalie turned her body to lie on her back and gazed at the ceiling. Idly, she noted, she was practically in the same position she was in when she woke up after the conversion. Once again, her hand reached up to her left breast to feel the absence of a beating heart.

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to this.”

Or at the very least, it would be a long time before she did.

The lecture on magic was truly the highlight of the evening.

‘Really wish she started with that, but whatever, better late than ever.’

And even if Ezraphel didn’t teach her spells, she still managed to practice; she still managed to cast a spell and learn about casting others too.

Raising her hand to partially obscure her vision, she concentrated once again, activating the first and only magic spell she knew. Like a slow-burning flame, demonic energy coalesced into a pale white-blue aura enveloping her hand up to her elbow.

Sure, the spectral hands spell was supposed to be something inherently known by her race, but that didn’t take away from the feeling of accomplishment she felt in casting the damn thing off nothing more than a few tips on mana and artwork.

She really wished Ezraphel went into proper casting, but…

Natalie furrowed her brow in thought. “I did technically learn how to cast spells.”

And Ezraphel did provide her with the knowledge of how to do it…and an invocation.

Natalie shot up to sit on the bed, her spectral hand spell winking out even as she stared at her hands.

“Surely not,” she mumbled before shrugging, “fuck it.”

Now she had to know.

Holding up her hand Natalie swallowed a bit then closed her eyes, readied her mana even as she kept an image in mind.

Then she began to speak.

“Spirit of fire, I call you forth. Arise from the eternal spark and let your endless streams of light erupt in manifestation to burn away anything that hinders my true will. Fireball!”

*Fwoosh*

Natalie’s snapped open and was startled to find a ball of flame the size of a baseball appeared floating above her palm.

“H-holy shit!” she exclaimed in disbelief.

For a moment, Natalie simply stared at it, too afraid and mesmerized by what she’d done to do much of anything else.

Then…

“Heh”

It started out low but immediately escalated.

“Hehehe…ha…Hahahahaha.”

It was a sight to behold, seeing a beautiful corpse woman holding a ball of fire and dancing in her red panties. Eventually, she managed to calm herself down and start fiddling with the damn thing. That was when she realized something that put her in a bit of an awkward position and wiped the smile from her face.

“Fuck yeah! I’m magic now, bitch!”

~To Be Continued~

Author’s Notes: Sorry for the late update, just know that August 2024 sucked for me and leave it at that. Also I did not have a fun time writing this chapter. So. Many. Rewrites. Plus it just felt like one big info dump which is kind of the point and something that needed to be explored. On the flip side I like the relationship being established by Ezraphel and Natalie.

Advance chapter available on my Patreon if you’re interested.

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