Zul

"What is a Rathma Cult priest?"

Having accepted Isendra's commission, Yinsen had pondered this question the entire way as he carried the letter. His understanding of the Diablo World was only superficial; he had no idea what sort of entity the Rathma Cult was.

Following the clues Isendra had provided, Yinsen left the camp and searched north along a narrow path.

Calling it a path was generous. It was simply a slightly flatter stretch of ground worn down by many people walking over it, while also serving to point the way.

In this technologically undeveloped world, the most reliable way to avoid getting lost in the wilderness was to find a road like this, pick a direction, and keep walking. Eventually, one would reach a town.

There was another benefit to following the road: relatively fewer monsters appeared there. In particular, the Quill Rats and Fallen that Yinsen was especially wary of rarely showed up on the road. The creatures he encountered most often were slow-moving zombies, and there were few of them. Even if he ran into a handful, Yinsen's current abilities were enough to handle them.

"According to Isendra, if I follow this road north for around three days, I should find that priest or whatever. If I don't, I can just head back. It's already been two days, and I haven't seen so much as a human shadow, let alone a Rathma Cult priest."

At the same time, the erosion of Dark Energy was growing increasingly severe. Compared to when Yinsen had first arrived in this world, even during the day, the sky had become gloomy and overcast, with little sunlight to be seen. The air was also saturated with an energy that made his entire body feel uncomfortable.

After staying in such an environment for so long, as his Mental Power gradually increased, he constantly felt an urge to draw that energy into his body and convert it into mana.

"Though for a mage, any energy can be used as mana... this much powerful Negative Energy will definitely have a considerable effect." Yinsen carefully recalled the miserable fates of those mages who had been unable to resist the temptation of power and used Negative Energy. He did his best to restrain the impulse. "Power I cannot control does not belong to me, no matter how strong it is."

Yinsen took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled it all, as if using that method to steel his resolve.

Just as he was about to continue onward, Yinsen suddenly noticed several skeletons wandering not far ahead.

"Skeleton Soldiers?"

Each of the skeletons carried a long bone blade. They moved in groups of two or three, patrolling back and forth in a particular pattern.

"That's a little strange..."

Yinsen cautiously edged closer and discovered even more Skeleton Soldiers wandering at the edge of his sight.

"There are too many. Charging through would be suicide."

He decisively retreated. To avoid drawing the Skeleton Soldiers' attention, Yinsen slowed his steps and backed away inch by inch, all while looking around for something suitable to hide behind.

The area was completely open. He could not even find a dead tree that had lost all its leaves.

Just as Yinsen was silently cursing his bad luck, the Skeleton Soldiers noticed him. Oddly, they did not swarm him. Instead, they quickly gathered in one place.

What surprised him even more was that the Skeleton Soldier closest to him did not move. Instead, it waved at him.

"Uh... was that supposed to be a wave?"

Yinsen was a little dumbfounded. Had he actually run into an intelligent Skeleton Soldier? It could not possibly be someone who had transmigrated into a skeleton, could it?

As Yinsen hesitated between leaving and watching a little longer, he soon no longer needed to agonize over it. A man dressed in black and white slowly entered his field of view.

With a gesture from the man, the skeleton that had waved at him instantly scattered apart, then slowly vanished.

"A necromancer?"

Yinsen was extremely familiar with that style. As one of the five playable classes in Diablo 2, he had played the class before.

"Those skeletons were his summons!"

No wonder their movements had been so strange. They had probably been standing watch, protecting the resting necromancer.

Since he was a necromancer, he should be trustworthy... right?

It could not be helped. Necromancers might have been popular among game fans, but in the real world, a mage who toyed with corpses and souls did not seem remotely related to the Forces of Justice.

Turning and running did not seem appropriate either. After all, Yinsen remembered that the necromancer was among the starting classes in the game. According to the official story, they were also among the heroes who saved the world. He should make some contact and judge for himself, though he still needed to remain vigilant.

"Hello, young traveler. I am Zul, a priest of the Rathma Cult. I sensed the aura of an acquaintance on you. Did she send you to find me?"

After studying for some time, coupled with how greatly his Mental Power had strengthened his memory, Yinsen could now understand far more than before. Though he could only speak in individual words and short phrases and could not carry on a lengthy conversation, he could understand most dialogue without difficulty.

The words left him dazed for a moment before he realized that this necromancer was actually the priest he had come looking for.

"There hasn't been some mistake, has there?"

His hand still did not leave his sword hilt as Yinsen pulled the letter from his clothes with his left hand. "You are a Rathma Cult priest? Isendra's friend?"

Upon hearing Isendra's name, Zul first nodded, then shook his head. "Isendra and I have only met once, so we are not friends. But we currently share the same goal, so we can barely be considered companions. We agreed that if either of us uncovered a clue and could not personally notify the other, we would send someone with a letter bearing our own Mental Imprint."

Hearing that, Yinsen handed over the letter he had been gripping. He truly had not expected the necromancer to be that priest. The whole thing just felt wrong somehow.

As if sensing his doubts, Zul read the letter Isendra had written while explaining his identity. He had encountered similar misunderstandings many times and did not mind in the least. He even took the opportunity to promote the teachings of the Rathma Cult.

It turned out that the necromancers of this world were vastly different from the necromancers Yinsen had originally imagined.

They were a sect followed by only a small number of people, and their central doctrine was the pursuit of balance in all things.

Judging by their doctrine, they belonged to an absolutely neutral faction.

The magic used by Rathma Cult priests was not some evil power. It was Primal Magic, cast by drawing upon the energy that existed within all things. In fact, many sects and races in this world used this type of energy, with the Amazon being a typical example.

Through Primal Magic and their pursuit of the balance between life and death, Rathma Cult priests had gained the ability to control undead creatures. For that very reason, most people were prejudiced against them and classified many of their spells as 'Dark' Magic.

"Actually, that is wrong, and it is not rigorous."

The necromancer, who had seemed aloof until then, immediately turned into a chatterbox whenever his faith was mentioned. He gave Yinsen a long explanation of the Rathma Cult's teachings and repeatedly complained about their magic being crudely lumped in with Dark Magic.

"We can discuss that later. Isendra asked me to take you to the Rogue Encampment."

Once the conversation turned to business, Zul finally stopped rambling and carefully put away Isendra's letter. "The letter says that she found some clues at the Rogue Encampment. The surge in Dark Energy is connected to a mysterious person. She also discovered that a large number of Dark Creatures had gathered in the Blood Moor. Andariel has even occupied the fortress and blocked the road east."

Zul paused, seemingly troubled by the information as well. "No matter how I look at it, I need to make a trip to the Rogue Encampment."

He turned and looked Yinsen over. "Young man, Isendra said you are working hard to improve your Mental Power so that you may become a mage?"

"Yes." In truth, Yinsen himself did not know whether he could successfully become a mage. It was simply that all the 'study materials' he had gathered were geared toward becoming one.

"Would you consider joining the Rathma Cult?"

After only a brief pause, Zul had started preaching again. Unfortunately, ever since Yinsen had learned that necromancers in the Diablo World were actually a bunch of fanatics like Puritan ascetics, he had lost interest in the class.

"No. I think it is better to steadfastly follow the path I have chosen. Wavering from side to side will only lead nowhere."

Unexpectedly, those words earned Zul's praise.

"Well said, young Sorcerer's Apprentice. With that mindset, I believe the day you become a true mage is not far off."

Then he looked at Yinsen's thin frame.

"However, in this dangerous environment, you need to improve your ability to protect yourself as soon as possible. Otherwise, you may not last until the day you become a mage. Since Mental Power cannot be increased quickly right now, you can consider improving your fighting ability."

Yinsen nodded, but then realized something seemed off. Why did this priest look as though he disdained Yinsen for being helpless in a fight and wanted to teach him a thing or two?

Did Zul think he was part of some anti-darkness demon squad too? And why was he teaching melee combat instead of magic? Was becoming a mage really all about first becoming a melee expert?

"Um, are you going to teach me close-quarters combat?"

"What? Do you think I cannot teach you?" Yinsen only saw a blur. Zul, who had been two steps away, was suddenly standing before him, a cold dagger pressed tightly against his throat. "You should know that as a priest of the Rathma Cult, close combat is a required course."

"..."