Secret Parchment

"Lord Medivh, please come this way. We've prepared a special reception for you!"

After the newlyweds had finished their ceremony, Medivh rose to leave. Just then, a Cat-girl came over.

Medivh recognized her. She was the great-great-granddaughter of the former Riddle. Her talent as a Warlock was exceptional, and she was one of the leading candidates to become the next Riddle of the Spirit Cat Tribe.

"Sure."

Medivh paused, then agreed to see what she had in mind.

He didn't think the Cat-men would harm him. He wasn't some helpless weakling—he was a first-tier, low-level Necromancer and a first-tier, high-level Earth Knight.

Many Transcendental Skeletons were gathered inside and outside the wedding venue, and Spirit Cat Skeleton Warlocks and Spirit Cat Skeleton Warriors had also attended the ceremony.

If anyone tried to attack him, a single thought from Medivh would bring a horde of Transcendental Skeletons rushing to protect him.

It would turn into a massacre. The Cat-men trapped in the district would be wiped out by the Skeletons.

Medivh had done the Spirit Cat Tribe a great kindness. With no grudge between them, the Cat-men had no reason to risk their tribe's destruction by assassinating him.

After Medivh entered the inner hall, the Cat-girl Warlock smiled and walked to the center of the room, clapping her hands softly.

At her signal, several young Cat-girls with exquisite figures and looks emerged from behind a screen, wearing gauzy veils. They began to dance gracefully in the middle of the hall.

Their veils fluttered in the air, and the special reception began.

After relaxing and enjoying several performances, Medivh didn't stay to rest. He planned to return and forge more Skeletons.

Skeletons didn't grow in the fields. The tens of thousands of Skeletons in Kurd City had all been forged and resurrected by him through endless day-and-night labor.

Getting up in the middle of the night to forge Skeletons was nothing unusual for Medivh.

But the Cat-men didn't know that. When the Cat-girl Warlock realized he was about to leave, she hurriedly changed into a gauzy veil and emerged from behind the screen.

"What do you mean by this?"

A while later, Medivh held the Spirit Cat Warlock in a vulnerable spot and asked what she'd arranged this for.

At first, he'd thought it was simply an act of gratitude. After the Spirit Cat Tribe had moved to Kurd City and begun living better lives, the affectionate Cat-girls had become very grateful to him, their lord.

Over the past few days, aside from Queling and the other Cat-girls whom Suixiang and the others had brought into the High Tower Castle, he'd often had chance encounters with Cat-girls while patrolling District Two and District No. 4.

At first, he'd thought it was just a normal show of gratitude. Now, it seemed the Cat-girl Warlock had another motive.

"Lord Medivh, have I not served you well?"

Lingxi, the Cat-girl Warlock, gazed up at him with pleading eyes and murmured for mercy.

"Tell me the truth."

Medivh's grip tightened, and his smile faded.

"Lord Medivh, I heard that human lords take their subjects' brides' first time. Baichuan and Qingya worked so hard to be together. I wanted them to have a happy marriage."

"So I took it upon myself to find a few sisters to serve you in Qingya's place."

"This was entirely my own decision. Please punish me, Lord Medivh, but don't take your anger out on the Spirit Cat Tribe!"

Lingxi didn't cry out in pain. Looking flustered, she begged Medivh not to punish the Spirit Cat Tribe because she had offended his authority as their lord.

"No. Who told you that?"

Medivh was at a loss for words.

He'd thought it was some kind of scheme, but it turned out to be this.

Since when did human lords need to display their authority this way?

It was true that some spoiled noble heirs abducted women or kept some of their subjects as mistresses.

But that sort of territorial law simply didn't exist.

The former involved only a few people, and if trouble arose, it was easy to hush up.

The latter threatened the very foundation of a territory. Any noble who tried it would be inviting a hail of arrows in the back.

The Knight path was known for vigorous appetites because of the Blood Refining Technique, and Knights did have considerable needs.

Noble families were largely made up of Knights, and rumors of their love affairs were a constant. That was normal in noble circles.

But no noble would indulge their private desires by enforcing such a perverse policy in their territory.

Noble Knights had their own refined ways. The noble circles dealt in high-quality female slaves.

When Medivh was young, his father had taken him to a slave auction to see female slaves being sold. He'd grown up surrounded by that sort of thing.

If a noble Knight needed to satisfy his desires, he could simply pay a visit to a slave market. Why undermine the foundations of his own territory?

If Medivh really did something like that, it wouldn't be long before resentment built up among the Spirit Cat Tribe and they stabbed him in the back.

"Huh? That's not true? The Secret Parchment I read said it was..."

Lingxi's eyes widened. She'd gotten it all wrong, believing some slanderous stories made up by her ancestors.

It wasn't really the Cat-men's ancestors' fault. Special groups like the Cat-men were often targeted by human Slave Hunter Groups, so their ancestors had good reason to portray humans as wicked and brand them as evil.

"Why are you still standing there? It's time to make amends!"

Medivh was in a good mood. He wasn't angry over a misunderstanding caused by false information.

The smile returned to his lips, and he reminded Lingxi that it was time for her to do what she was supposed to.

"Oh, right!"

Lingxi cheered, grateful for the Medivh People's mercy.

Once Lingxi's breathing had calmed, Medivh didn't get up to leave. He didn't want another Cat-girl who'd heard the same false stories to come in and offer him another treat.

His energy was limited, and he didn't indulge when it was time to rest.

When Medivh left the next day, he gave Lingxi a task: burn the Parchments spreading this false information and share the truth with her people.

Given the situation, Medivh only had to beckon to attract several affectionate Cat-girls eager to show their gratitude. There was no need to let false stories spread and cause unnecessary misunderstandings.

Medivh usually stayed in the No. 1 High Tower Castle. After the Spirit Cat Tribe moved in, he had the Skeletons build a High Tower Castle in District Two as well.

He assigned the No. 2 High Tower Castle to the Spirit Cat Skeleton Warlocks and Cat-man Warlocks.

The No. 2 High Tower Castle was the Spirit Cat Warlock Hall, responsible for guiding the tribe's heritage and development.

The Spirit Cat Warlock Hall regularly selected tribespeople with Warlock talent, as well as those suitable for having Inheritance Spirit Runes inscribed.

Warlock Apprentices would study at the Spirit Cat Warlock Hall. Spirit Rune Warrior Apprentices would come in batches to have their Inheritance Spirit Runes inscribed or completed.

The No. 2 High Tower Castle also contained a Combat Technique Hall, where Spirit Cat Warriors could learn all kinds of Cat Clan Combat Techniques.

The No. 2 High Tower Castle had become the center of the Spirit Cat Tribe's Transcendent Heritage.

"Lord Medivh, we found an Ancient Battlefield!"

The information provided by the Spirit Cat Tribe proved incredibly useful, and good news kept coming over the following weeks.

The Skeleton Assassins located one after another of the Ancient Battlefields marked vaguely on the map, and the Skeleton Caravans hauled cartload after cartload of aged Green Bone back to Kurd City.

Forging and resurrecting Skeletons was a form of cultivation, and Medivh was passionate about his work.

One skeleton after another was forged from bones. Then, under Medivh's command, they came back to life and rose to their feet.

"Not bad. Keep it up!"

One day in late November, Medivh's spirits lifted, and he let out a hearty laugh.

Thanks to his tireless work, his spiritual power had steadily increased until it surpassed the threshold of the first-tier intermediate level. He was now a first-tier, intermediate-level Necromancer.