According to the driver, they had about three hours of travel left before reaching their destination.
However, the night had fallen faster than expected, forcing him to call for a stop.
They could have pushed on if Michael had insisted, but for the people of this world, traveling at night was a risk few were willing to take.
In fact, along the way, he had already noticed several carriages stopping by the roadside, their occupants setting up camp for the night.
One thing stood out to him—each group kept a respectful distance from one another.
Michael wouldn’t call himself the smartest, but this simple observation, combined with the driver’s unspoken caution, made it clear that wild animals and monsters weren’t the only dangers lurking in the dark.
As they settled in, a campfire crackled at the center of their makeshift resting spot, while Michael’s four undead stood watch.
Seated near the fire, he ate the dried meat and fruits Ace and Lia had bought earlier. His mind, however, was elsewhere—thinking of a way to slip away from the group.
A short distance away, Ace, Lia, and the old driver sat around a smaller fire of their own.
Despite traveling together, they maintained a clear boundary. It wasn’t out of disrespect or distrust, but rather an ingrained habit.
A noble and a commoner dining together?
The thought alone felt unnatural to them, almost like a sin.
As the fire crackled and the night deepened, the group finally set up their tents.
The driver, accustomed to long journeys, had a simple canvas shelter that barely offered protection from the elements.
Ace and Lia shared a more modest tent, hastily put together but enough to shield them from the cold night air.
Michael, on the other hand, had his own tent, but it was no different from theirs. He had no intention of wasting money on unnecessary comfort.
Instead of a thick bedroll, he laid on the bare ground with only a thin layer of cloth between him and the dirt.
In a typical traveling group, when it was time to rest, they would take turns keeping watch—one group sleeping while the other stood guard, then switching in a cycle until morning.
But thanks to Michael’s undead, there was no need for such precautions.
The four silent figures stood at the perimeter of the camp, their unmoving forms barely distinguishable in the dim firelight. Their presence allowed everyone else to rest without worry.
Ace, settling into his tent, couldn’t help but glance toward Michael’s resting spot.
It was still strange to him—traveling with a noble.
Lia felt the same. In fact, they felt even more.
Today was surely going to be a memorable day in their lives.
They weren’t sure if they had truly escaped death, but at the very least, they had avoided immediate execution at the hands of a noble who had every right to kill them.
Yet, somehow, instead of corpses left in the dirt, they had become his servants.
And for some reason… it didn’t feel as bad as they had expected.
Lia never imagined a day would come when he would think like this—when he would see a noble in a better light.
However, he quickly dismissed the thought.
It was nothing more than a fleeting moment of uncertainty.
Even if he someday came to believe that not all nobles were evil, it wouldn’t erase what he had seen from the worst of them.
The proof of that was his sister’s fate.
As for the driver, he could only think that this noble was very strange.
Michael carried himself like a noble, yet he acted nothing like one.
Though it was rare for a noble to use his services, in his many years as a driver, he had transported more than a few.
But only a handful had ever stood out to him the way Michael did.
No, wait. Now that he thought about it, perhaps it was because of the Duke of Evermoon event…
But lately, he had indeed been encountering a few interesting individuals.
The driver, however, seemed to have no problem with it.
Years on the road had taught him one thing—everyone had their own way of doing things.
If Michael was content with sleeping on the ground despite his status, then so be it.
The night grew colder, the wind whispering through the trees.
Most of the camp had settled into a quiet stillness, but Michael remained awake. He had been thinking of how to leave the group for a while and return to his real world when he suddenly realized—he didn’t actually need to.
Everyone would be asleep by the end of the day.
And when he was back in Aurora, wasn’t this body going to sleep anyway?
Of course, Michael couldn’t just leave his body defenseless.
Anyway he wasn’t going to stay in the real world for long and might not even stay for half an hour if he was met with no welcome in his real world.
Inside the makeshift tent Ace and Lia had set up for him—spacious enough to move comfortably—Michael summoned a female orc to stand guard.
Satisfied with his precaution, he closed his eyes and connected his consciousness with his body in Aurora.
A moment later, a pair of green eyes opened.
Michael found himself staring at the familiar ceiling of his room.
Reaching for his phone, he checked the time—10:30 PM.
Spreading his senses through the apartment, he realized he was the only one moving. Apart from the orc in his room, Beginning and Lily stood guard outside, just as he had instructed.
He had expected this, but it was still strange to process.
Before reaching civilization in the Land of Origin, balancing his time between both worlds hadn’t been too difficult. But now?
Michael wasn’t so sure.
How was he supposed to live moving forward?
Which of these two worlds would he truly call home?
Now, he found himself asking the same question almost every Awakener had pondered at some point.
“Aunt Mia and Lily are asleep now. No, almost everyone is asleep.”
Michael spread his senses wide, confirming the stillness around him.
To him, this was better.
With no more hesitation, he got to work.
After so long, it was finally time to attempt Undead Summoning on his existing undead again.
He hoped to increase the number of undead he could summon and, with his remaining evolution points, evolve a few special ones he was particularly interested in—if possible.
Michael left the undead in his room as they were and quietly slipped out the window.
The ruined cityscape stretched before him, desolate and still beneath the moonlight.
Aside from the eerie silence and the occasional gust of wind kicking up dust, there was nothing worth noting.
Without wasting time, he began placing a few of his undead into his storage space.
The process was quick, given the limited capacity.
When the space was full, he landed near one of his patrolling undead.
“You, guard this place,” Michael ordered.
The undead didn’t respond, but it didn’t need to. He could feel the command take hold. Satisfied, he focused inward.
A moment later, his consciousness shifted.
—
The sounds of crackling fire and rustling leaves filled his ears as he opened his eyes in the Land of Origin.
The transition was seamless, as if he had merely blinked. His orc guardian still squatted in his tent.
Michael sat up.
He could tell from the silence that the others were asleep.
His undead remained at their posts, standing motionless like statues around the camp.
Without making a sound, Michael dismissed the undead within his tent, sending her back to the netherworld.
The orc vanished in an instant, leaving behind only a faint wisp of energy before fading completely.
He sat still for a moment, listening.
The distant crackle of the fire. The rustling of leaves in the night breeze. The faint breathing of Ace, Lia, and the driver in their respective tents.
Satisfied that no one was awake, Michael slipped out of his tent.
The cold night air brushed against his skin as he moved, his footsteps light against the dirt.
The undead at the perimeter remained in place, their watchful presence ensuring the safety of the camp. If anyone woke up, they would assume he was still inside.
Without hesitation, Michael disappeared from his position as he moved swiftly through the forest.
He weaved between the trees, ensuring that he was far enough from camp before finally stopping in a secluded clearing.
Only then did he release his undead.
One by one, figures emerged—hulking forms stepping forward from the void.
A dozen undead surrounded him now, their cold, lifeless gazes locked onto their master.
After this, Michael summoned Lucky and his human undead mage.
The former so it could guard him as he still had more undead to bring from Aurora, and the latter to free up space in his storage and also guard him.
****
A/N: Please continue to cast your votes! ಥ‿ಥ