Chapter 38
Richmond and Ariella went down to the castle’s underground area.
There, in a coffin brought from the grave, lay Geru.
With a small hand gesture from Richmond, the coffin lid opened without anyone touching it.
Ariella peered inside.
“He looks… cleaner than before.”
Richmond said proudly,
“I did some work on him, just like you asked.”
The horrible stench she’d noticed when they first found him was gone. The torn skin had been sewn back together.
“I invested in him, after all.”
“Invested? Oh — you mean that magic stone?”
Richmond had even used one of his own possessions — a massive magic stone — and placed it inside Geru’s body. It now pulsed with magic, keeping him active.
“The magic stone stopped the decay. You won’t have to worry about him leaking his insides all over the castle like someone feared before. His active time has also increased a lot.”
“So the body’s ready to work — now we just have to convince his soul.”
“Right. That’s been the hard part from the start.”
At Ariella’s signal, Richmond chanted a spell.
The link between Geru’s body and soul was restored.
Sssss—
“Grghh… grrrrk…!”
The zombie opened his eyes, making a strange rasping sound. He slowly sat up and looked around.
“You… again?”
His tongue still wasn’t fully repaired, so his speech was choppy.
“Geru, I have a favor to ask,” Ariella said firmly.
The zombie’s eyes went wide. His mud-colored skin trembled.
“I haven’t… even signed… the employment contract yet!”
There was anger in his voice.
“And you’re already… giving me work?”
Ariella blinked.
Well… technically, yes.
“Unpaid… labor! Absolutely… against it! Making me work before a contract is signed… what law allows that?!”
Geru had his principles. Technically, he wasn’t yet an employee or vassal of Ludwig’s domain.
“I haven’t… received a single coin… in pay!”
“Didn’t you say the dead don’t care about money?”
“This… is different!”
Even the dead hated unpaid labor.
“Do you think… workers’ rights… mean nothing?! All employers… the same… greedy!”
He sighed as if despairing at them.
If they wanted him to work so soon, it looked like they were eager to squeeze as much out of him as possible. Some things didn’t change — alive or dead.
“Then sign the contract right now!” Ariella said.
“Is the… Fedwick company head… dead yet?”
Ariella shook her head.
“No. That’s why we woke you.”
“…?”
She explained the problem.
“To take down Vaggis Fedwick, we need inside information.”
“Is that… just an excuse… for lack of ability?”
“Fedwick’s power isn’t small. You know that better than anyone — you ended up in a coffin because of him.”
Geru hesitated at her sharp reply.
“But… I left the company… long ago.”
Since then, he’d only heard a little about what was going on. After dying, he had no idea what happened in the past year.
“That’s why we need an ally inside.”
“An ally… inside the Fedwick Company?”
“Yes.” Ariella’s eyes glimmered with determination.
“You said there were still people in the company who supported you even after you retired — the ones who came asking you to start a new company.”
Geru frowned.
“Of course. I wasn’t… the only one… who clashed with him.”
After becoming company head, Vaggis Fedwick had shown his greed openly. His cruel, unethical way of running things had caused huge backlash inside.
For example — crushing long-time trade partners and absorbing their businesses, or cutting off weaker Demon Kings entirely to starve them if they didn’t agree to his terms.
“But… after I died… he may have… purged them all.”
“Really? You were retired when he had you killed — but if he killed or drove out everyone else, the company wouldn’t run at all.”
Geru paused, then suddenly said,
“…Ah! Yes!”
He became excited, trying to speak faster with his clumsy tongue.
“There are… a few… he couldn’t… possibly cut!”
Ariella’s eyes lit up.
“So you remembered some friendly insiders Vaggis couldn’t remove?”
The zombie nodded hard. He’d clearly thought of someone.
Richmond gave Ariella a strange look.
How could she understand that broken speech so perfectly without mind-reading?
“Paper…!”
Ariella quickly handed him sheets of paper — and even a pen without him asking. She knew exactly what he wanted.
Geru began writing quickly. Writing was much faster than speaking for him.
Looking at the paper, Ariella asked,
“A letter? Or… a will?”
She almost laughed — could it even be called a will if it was written after death?
Well… who cares.
After signing it, Geru handed it to her.
“My handwriting… is proof!”
He assured her this would be useful.
Fedwick Company Headquarters
“Sir, you have visitors.”
“Who?”
“Demon King Ludwig, and the human contracted to him.”
Vaggis Fedwick raised his eyebrows from behind his desk.
“Already? They came all the way here? My letter must have shaken them badly.”
He had offered to visit them himself, but instead, they had come to him.
Clearly, they were scared — desperate to act first.
“This makes things easier.”
If they came on their own, it would be simple to threaten them under the guise of negotiation.
He smirked.
“Let them in.”
A moment later, a demon man and a human woman entered.
Fedwick looked them over with a calm, assessing gaze.
This is our first time meeting face-to-face.
First, he looked at the man.
Shoulder-length black hair like melted night, deep red eyes with a cold shine. His soft features gave him a boyish look — but Fedwick saw open anger there.
Heh. His temper’s already at its peak.
Showing emotions so plainly in a formal meeting was like revealing your cards.
Strong in power maybe… but socially, still a child.
He turned to the girl beside him.
She had short red hair brushing her neck, a contrast to the long-haired man.
Unlike her partner, who showed his emotions openly, her expression was calm, with only a faint, businesslike smile.
Fedwick guessed she was the truly dangerous one here.
Yes… this is the real opponent today.
Standing up as if greeting honored guests, he spread his arms wide.
“Welcome! I was just about to visit you, and here you are.”
He was confident.
He knew the Demon King was strong, but he’d also heard how Ludwig dealt with enemies before — and had records from his informants about the trouble in Delrak’s domain.
Still, Fedwick felt no fear.
The room was layered with protective magic, and guards waited nearby ready to rush in.
This is not a place where you can act freely, Demon King.
No matter how strong an individual was, they were nothing against the might of the Fedwick Company.
“So, what brings you here? Did you bring the compensation I asked for? Or is that a contract guaranteeing me the slime compound’s formula and exclusive rights?”
He smiled like a predator savoring the advantage.
“I was going to collect it myself, but this is quite considerate of you.”
A clear provocation.
Ludwig’s teeth ground audibly.
“You son of a—!”
Ariella gave him a sharp look. For a brief second, their eyes met — and Ludwig remembered what she’d told him during the Bephar affair:
“If you want to be a real ruler, learn to endure first!”
He unclenched his hand from his sword’s hilt, curling it into a tight fist instead.
Fedwick noticed and smirked.
“No, this isn’t that kind of document, Vaggis Fedwick,” Ariella said in Ludwig’s place.
Fedwick turned to her.
“I’ve heard of you — the contractor who recreated a secret northern material. I’m curious… how did you learn that?”
As a princess, Ariella had learned to hide and control her emotions.
She answered calmly,
“That’s not something we need to discuss here.”
Her voice was cold and firm, leaving no gap for him to press.
Fedwick was a little surprised — even demons usually acted nervous before him. And this was a human.
Not bad… for a human.
Still, she was human — far beneath him.
“So, what are those documents?” he asked lazily.
Ariella slammed the stack onto the table.
“These prove your claim that Bephar caused the Fedwick Company losses is a lie—”
Fedwick cut her off.
“A waste of time, human.”
“…!”
