That evening, Roland and the others saw Rain Hurlengar, who had been brought back by the Arcane Gendarmes.
He no longer looked human. He had transformed into a Hollow Corpse Monster, skeletal and gaunt, yet still bearing traces of withered flesh. An aura of death and evil shrouded him.
A dim red light flickered in his eye sockets, the flames of his soul burning quietly within the hollow cavities.
"So this is a Lich..."
Seeing this evil undead being outside their textbooks for the first time, the young mages exclaimed in genuine wonder.
A Lich was a spellcaster who used special means to prolong their life and seek undeath. The transformation process depended heavily on something known as a "phylactery."
That was why people said capturing or killing one was meaningless unless you could find their phylactery.
Perhaps the committee's only way of dealing with him was to seal him away and let the mighty power of time take care of him.
"Transformation into a Lich is the effect of a forbidden spell. The essence of their life is sealed inside a magical box, allowing them to live indefinitely.
"Supposedly, this special object was created in imitation of a divine core. Just as gods possess immortality, the only way to destroy a Lich is to destroy their phylactery.
"Otherwise, even if you destroy their physical body repeatedly, they'll find an opportunity to be reborn..."
"That certainly makes things difficult. Every Lich knows where their fatal weakness lies, so they won't readily reveal any information about it.
"And before their transformation, Liches were all spellcasters of the sixth rank or above. Reading information from their souls through magic isn't easy either."
"Detect Thoughts only works on the brain..."
"If only there were some way to pinpoint its location directly."
"For finding