Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

I will tell you that secret, a secret of the highest order.

The Tragedy of the Holy Light.

……

The sunlight no longer shone on the thorny vines; the sunset's glow, distorted by Andrei's barrier, turned into a bewitching red. The explosions and arguments ceased; it was time for the lich apprentices to begin their lessons.

Sheriwu and the reporter appeared in the original passageway. Sheriwu was very surprised to see the reporter looking exhausted.

"The Secret Pact Master is truly amazing. Revealing the secret you've been keeping has actually weakened you to this extent."

"Mystery is my power, and pulling that power out of my body is not an easy thing to do. Even so, don't expect to defeat me easily."

Sheliwu shook his head listlessly.

“Those who champion the rules are always troublesome. I’ve gotten what I wanted, and I’m about to begin my escape. Goodbye, Mr. Reporter.” Sheriu pulled his hood back up and walked into the shadows of the corridor.

“I won’t let you succeed.” The reporter, half-paralyzed on the ground, raised his head. “Even if I can’t reveal the mystery you got from me to anyone, I will stop you in my own way.”

Sheriwu smiled.

“Help Lyle grow, Mr. Reporter, only the evil god can stand against the evil god.”

"...You guessed what I wanted to do? This...is also part of your plan? Lyle's growth is beneficial to you?"

Sheliwu stretched out his hand from beneath his robe. His arm, pale as a corpse, grew jewel-shaped scales. As the arm slowly rose, it gradually transformed into the forepaw of some kind of reptile.

“I am Lyle’s other half, our powers are shared. The power of the Dragon King, the nemesis of the Holy Light. I look forward to the day Lyle becomes a god. You will help me, won’t you, sir, for that is your only way to rid yourself of guilt. Help Lyle grow, and pray that he can kill me.” Sheriu disappeared into the shadows, leaving the problem to the reporter.

"That secret... Damn it, Lyle has to get stronger as soon as possible..."

The reporter draped the tablecloth over his face again and drifted toward the depths of the Andrei corridor.

……

At this moment, Lyle is on the border of Hamlet, expressing his desire to visit the new Lord of Hamlet to a hunched night watchman carrying an oil lamp.

The eerie human with deep-set eyes that obscured his eyeballs chuckled and slowly opened the gates of New Hamlet.

New Hamlet is a noisy town.

In the center of town stood a gaunt, leafless tree, its branches laden with one or two skeletons, likely belonging to bandits or outlaws. The skeletons grew increasingly emaciated, some completely dried out over time.

The eerie scene began with the mummies and skeletons swinging on the Tree of Death until their nooses snapped. The fallen zombies got up and dragged the ropes behind them toward an area where the undead gathered or a burial ground of skeletons.

Nobody cares about these things.

Whether it's the living, humanoid fungi clinging to the sculptures or the ugly fish-men in the fountains, they've all become accustomed to these newly transformed corpses.

Outside the shop, blood-stained, fallen believers gathered and argued, each trying to sway the other's corrupt faith. The instruments of torture in their hands repeatedly reached for each other's heads, yet they all restrained themselves fiercely. For they knew their destiny was not in God's embrace, but rather in that ghastly tree.

Slovenly orcs patrolled the streets pushing small wooden carts, picking up the trash abandoned by other species, which they liked. The new lord had allocated their territory to a sheltered area a mile from the town, where Hamlet remained relatively clean and tidy.

All the slime-eating fungi roaming the wilderness were warmly welcomed, while the spore-spreading Jolla fungi were deprived of the right to enter the town.

The fanatics and bandits were making a huge fuss in the tavern when the bartender, a retired veteran, threw them both out. The ghosts lay on the tombstones, pointing at the unfortunate bastards who were face down in the mud and laughing.

Hamlet has changed, and the one who started it all, Kevin Hamlet, is sitting alone by the Hanging Tree, lost in his own melancholy.

The two terrifying-looking vengeful spirits following behind him were definitely not human.

"Kevin! Why are you so down?" It must be the management style. Hamlet has gathered so many monsters; Kevin, as a human, must be under a lot of pressure.

"Lyle, you've come." Kevin's eyes welled up with tears.

"I've been ostracized!"

“My people drove me out of the casino, accusing me of cheating on trumped-up charges.”

"Damn it, I'm the lord, and I'm the one who owns that casino!"

Chapter 617 The Basic Law of Villains

“I have come to Hamlet with some servants, including the knight Matt. The journey from Cassandra to Hamlet is much easier now, but it lacks the sense of adventure we once had…”

Kevin, leading Lyle, pushed open the tavern's wooden door. The boisterous atmosphere of the various oddballs froze for a moment, then erupted into even louder noise. The lord and his guests sat at the bar, between the tomb raider and the gargoyle. Judging from the vomit on the table, the previous guests in those two seats were a fungal man and a pig-headed man, respectively.

The bar wasn't exactly a great place, but Kevin and the bartender didn't seem to care. The tall, burly bartender casually swept his leather-sleeved arm across the bar counter, clearing away all the filth and directing it toward the customers.

"Damn it!" Tentacles stretched out from under Lyle's feet, dragging him and the simple bar stool away. Incidentally, although it was a two-person swing, due to the angle of the sweep, it all ended up hitting Lyle.

Kevin took the glass from the bartender, the bubbling yellow liquid flowing down the side of the glass onto the bar. He smiled, clinked glasses with the female thief next to him, and drank it all in one gulp.

"Welcome to my territory, Lyle. Have a drink. The only thing Mr. Baroque has to offer is the taste of his wine."

The bartender, however, laughed with pride, crossing his arms and letting out a silly, pig-like chuckle. Baroque, who had always maintained a cold and tough image, made such a sound, which once again ignited uproarious laughter.

Relieved, Lyle approached the bar again, picked up the glass in front of him, and felt the slippery grip on the handle. Thankfully, he was wearing gloves. "You've changed a lot, my Count."

“If you can’t control your life, then you have to adapt to it.” Kevin spread his hands, the movement of his clothes just enough to allow his purse to escape the thief’s grasp.

"Kevin, your..."

“Don’t be nervous, my brother. In Hamlet, petty theft isn’t illegal.” Kevin picked up the pretty purse and showed it to the female thief sitting next to him. The purse contained stones. “My dear, taking it will only loosen my belt. My tailor’s gone home for a visit. This is just a temporary measure.”

After seeing off the disappointed thief, Kevin turned back to his friends.

"It's not just you who's changed, but Hamlet too. It's certainly more lively than it used to be, but this liveliness isn't exactly pleasant."

Kevin patted Lyle on the shoulder, smiling gently.

"That would be a long story. Shall we talk about it over drinks?"

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do." Lyle drank the fizzy beverage; it wasn't exactly delicious, and the more he drank, the more he felt...

Pfft! Lyle spat out a mouthful of air. Kevin and the bartender Barlock, who had anticipated this, dodged to the side. Kevin buried his head in his arms, his whole body trembling.

"What did you add to the drink?!"

Baroque is as cold and indifferent as a stone.

"Hamlet characteristics".

"What's special about it?!"

"The fishman's milk adds a smooth texture..."

“And horse urine!” Kevin said, trembling, finally revealing the answer. “A Baroque specialty. Every newcomer to the Fall Horse Bar gets a drink mixed with horse urine, a prank, pfft… Hahahaha! I’ve been looking forward to this moment!”

"You son of a bitch, Kevin!!!"

In the midst of the lively atmosphere, Kevin finally began to recount the changes that had occurred in Hamlet.

"When we first arrived at Hamlet, it was just as desolate and barren as it had been after our last journey. The town was in ruins, the castle was full of potholes, and there was no living creature. We cleaned up a bit and spent the first night there. The next night, many of my servants had nightmares, and they said they saw ghosts in the shallows by the cliffs and in the forest."

"When I made the decision to inherit Hamlet, I was already mentally prepared. To put it bluntly, my father had me bring these servants with me so that they would become the expendable fodder of my luck. I had to find the source of Hamlet's magic before those monsters found us. I was confident that luck would give me a head start."

"But I was wrong."

"The first person to find me was Mr. Nameless. He was from the same Andre Academy as you, a member of the Advanced Magic Research Society. We became good brothers when we were in Loshutar."

"The Nameless Man is a kind-hearted gentleman who helped me a great deal with the construction of Hamlet, as well as his friends from the Higher Magic Society..."

Lyle was stunned. Kevin... had gotten in touch with the Advanced Magic Research Society? As a human?

"How did you do that?"

Kevin shrugged.

"The Nameless Man seemed to have convinced his colleagues, under the guise of conducting academic experiments in Hamlet, and the gentlemen of higher magical studies provided some assistance. However, the Nameless Man never actually began his research project; he spent far more time conducting geological surveys in Hamlet than writing."

“A few days later, Mr. Nameless gave me an excellent resource management plan. It detailed Hamlet’s existing resources and the best way to use them, and all he asked for was a nominal position as an advisor. Mr. Nameless is a really good man.”

"There's a problem, a big problem. That Nameless guy is definitely plotting something." Lyle was a little worried and subtly inquired of Kevin.

“Kevin, don’t you think Nameless is being a little too nice to you? The Andrei people… are very cold-hearted. To put it bluntly, idiot, there’s no such thing as a free lunch.”

Kevin's eyes widened, and his head tilted back slightly.

"No?! But I remember eating it a few times..."

"..." Lyle had forgotten about "Owen's" good fortune again; presumably, this same luck would also help Kevin fend off the Nameless One. "Please continue your story. How did the Nameless One help you?"

Kevin's eyes were wide open as he described it, as if the strange things performed by the lich were still unfolding before his eyes.

"The Nameless Man told me the truth about the so-called Hamlet family secrets: they are a group of ancient magical rituals buried in this territory. For ease of management, these powers were divided into countless parts, confined to their respective areas: beaches, ruins, wilderness, and caves. It seems that Hamlet's ancestors conducted a series of insane magical experiments in this territory. Those experimental rituals are already operating deep within this land. Various monsters often appear in my territory, like weeds. [An inexhaustible resource], these are the Nameless Man's exact words."

"In the mystical realm, I am the lord of these freaks and outcasts, but that doesn't guarantee my safety; even a house cat can scratch its owner. So, Mr. Nameless and the members of the Higher Magic Research Society helped me strengthen my connection with these outcasts. Mr. Nameless moved the earth and stones, Mr. Laser buried conduits underground, and after about three attempts, we created a place where all chaotic forces and evil rituals converged. This is New Hamlet Town."

"Those monsters are no longer confined to their respective areas. They can leave their dark lairs and come to the town. Over time, this place has become a safe zone for various races to enjoy themselves, and it is nominally under my management."

Lyle looked at the ogres and bloodthirsty madmen around the tavern, their fanaticism undiminished. One could imagine the immense power required to keep these lunatics in the same room.

"How do you manage to manage these outlaws and monsters?"

“Manage? No, they may be my subjects, but they are not under my control. They are driven by themselves, doing whatever they want. The only law I have enacted is that there can be no armed conflict in Hamlet's New Town. Theft, insults—none of that matters.” Kevin blinked, pointing to the bandits and fanatical believers staring blankly at him. “Believe it or not, if they step out of town, they'll tear each other to shreds.”

"Hamlet's men will be killed by the Hanging Tree, their flesh will become food for the Orcs, their internal organs and bodily fluids will return to the beach, their remaining nutrients will be absorbed by the wild plants, and their bones will become new members of the tomb. This is the agreement we have all reached, the only law for all villains."

As Lyle listened to Kevin describe the bloody scenes, he couldn't help but worry about his defenseless brother.

"Kevin, is this the kind of environment you live in? They have no respect for you, and someone might want to kill you at any moment."

“They tried, my brother. Remember Mr. Nameless’s arrangement? He seemed to know my lucky talent mechanism very well. The new Hamlet not only brings all the chaos together, but it also brings me closer to my people.”

"It means, whatever they are doing."

"My good fortune will always regard them as my companions."

Chapter 618 Evil Spirit Servant

"In the week since the new Hamlet was built, you should have come to see what was happening around me. Killing and attacks were happening all around me every moment: poisoning, assassination, assaults, and traps. For a while, all I could see was chaos. Throwing knives and poison grazed past me, and blades and arrows were stabbing into other people right next to me."

Unbeknownst to them, the bar had gradually quieted down, and the seemingly harmless Lord Kevin described the scene like an onlooker. All the villains and monsters knew that he had been at the center of the chaos, then walked out unscathed, leaving behind a trail of corpses.

"Of the newest inhabitants who arrived in Hamlet, there are probably only a few left. I usually only meet them once before they die, their skulls placed symbolically in the cemetery. Sometimes I think about remembering them, at least I should remember their names, but then I find that their names are too difficult to pronounce, and I can't remember them at all."

"The people of Hamlet are changing so fast that I don't know a single one of them. But the town is developing very quickly, and I'm doing very well here."

Lyle swallowed hard. How could things not go smoothly? Those outlaws became Kevin's companions, victims of the stroke of luck. They even died tragically; it was hard to imagine how much luck Kevin had absorbed.