Bro, I'm not an Undead!

“Well, well, well…” Theurien said with hints of ridicule oozing from his voice as he alternated his gaze between two familiar, shaken faces. “…Jadin, Somwell… So you do have an interest in my Family after all. Haha.”

The air shifted to a darker tone with Theurien’s words, tinges of various emotions spilling from the several people discovering two things for the first time.

One that Theurien had awakened, and the other, that Theurien was very familiar with these new business partners. Not in a good way.

The tall woman, Jadin, stammered before turning to Silrat who looked just as surprised as she was at what was before The look on his face made everything she wanted to say with the fierce frown she had donned dry up like the bits of amusement she had been feeling moments ago.

Somwell on the other hand – the short, older man – breathed out a harsh breath and scratched his chin to maintain composure.

“Theurien… As I live and breathe. I imagined you had been sealed to your bed for eternity,” he said with a subtle, nervous cough hidden behind his words.

The fiery haired man chuckled.

“So did I…” he said, allowing Somwell to derail the subject he had invoked. “Being trapped in a long dream has its merits, though if I had been conscious, I would have asked to be killed instead of continuing to be a burden.”

Somwell gave a sombre look to the Theurien and then to Skullius.

The Hybrid Luman was doing everything in his power not to slap his own face.

Why hadn’t he thought of this before bringing Theurien here?

Of course he’d know some of these people, and of course he might not have a good relationship with them!

Even if it was Stylla who invited them, it didn’t mean Theurien’s view of them was the same as hers!

Blasted sockets!

Jadin also looked to Skullius who donned a stone-like calm facade, but she remained particularly flustered about seeing Theurien than Somwell, and thus remained silent.

“How about the three of us catch up, hmm? I would love for us to reminisce about old times,” Theurien proposed with a smile, much to Jadin and Somwell’s discomfort. There was no friendliness in the man’s voice at all.

Nostalgia, but not friendliness.

It wasn’t only these two who felt this.

The other guests who did know about Theurien, but didn’t have a personal connection with him could only look on from the side and wonder if this quasi-hostile air was going to be bad for business.

Fortunately for them, the fiery haired man cleared it up while Skullius and Silrat were trying to find ways to save their investment that was likely to crumble because of this unforeseen circumstance.

“Don’t be so tense. Luckily for you, my Family is currently in foreign hands and I have no intention of disturbing the flow of events since my… incapacitation. So, feel free to join me,” Theurien said to everyone, and then to Jadin and Somwell while walking past the group and heading into the mansion with graceful steps.

Ed and Arisa followed, leaving Skullius rooted to his position.

‘I should probably stay out of this one,’ the Hybrid Luman thought to himself.

Jadin composed herself and turned together with her entourage, and moments later, Somwell too. Soon, all that was left was a strange void despite there being plenty of confusion and people to go around.

Thankfully, Silrat retained his senses and took charge.

“Come, dear friends. Let me escort you to your carriages,” he said, urging the rest of the Family partners onward.

As he did, he gave Skullius a series of hidden gestures that inquired a variety of questions, each only fully understood by the Hybrid Luman.

Skullius sighed.

‘I wish I had thought about it sooner.’

He conveyed his ignorance subtly, to which Silrat nodded with suspicion. Clearly, the Supervising Overseer had been shaken, and it would take a verbal back and forth to calm him down, but that was for another time.

Red Rage walked up to Skullius.

As the only party not too invested in the current events, he retained a carefree attitude.

“Is that who I think it is, Master?”

“You bet your sockets it is,” Skullius replied with the click of his tongue.

Strangely, Theurien seemed to want to keep the status quo as it was. Him declaring that he wouldn’t disturb the current developments was good, but also anxiety-inducing.

For how long would that remain the case?

Several carriages passed by Skullius and Red Rage, all carrying the various Families that had decided to partake in relations with the Bryne Family. Skullius folded his arms.

Thankfully, it didn’t seem like many of them were too rattled, especially after Theurien’s statement, and from the look of Silrat’s face who was approaching, he had realised it too.

When he reached the Hybrid Luman’s position, he exhaled his earlier, cultured pretence and grabbed Skullius’ shoulder.

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“With what I was dealing with for the past three quarters of an hour, this was an unwelcome surprise for me too,” Skullius said.

Silrat puckered his lips.

“When did he even wake up?”

“Not too long ago. An hour, I guess. I’m sure it didn’t look that way to everyone though. The man has too healthy of a body.”

“You’re telling me?” Silrat shook his head. “Why didn’t you go inside with him?”

“Because it’s your turn to introduce yourself. You at least have some connection with those other two. I don’t. I’m done getting embroiled with personal dilemmas for a while. I’m the brawn, you’re the brain. Now get to it.”

“Wait now?”

“When else? The sooner he gets to know you and what you contribute, the better it is for both of us.”

Silrat wore a dark look before turning to Red Rage and grasping his arm.

“Fine, but I’m going to need this tin can! He’s like… portable luck and charm! If I want to make the best impression, I need him!” he said.

Skullius frowned.

“I came back here so I can finish my business with Red Rage! Go find your own luck and charm!” he barked.

“In your dreams!” Silrat hissed while pulling Red Rage. “You can have him later!”

The Apostle didn’t resist either way he was swayed, and as he was pulled away, his greaves scraping against the dirt, Skullius slapped his own face.

Fine, damn it!

He relented. He could hold off on Red Rage since he had other matters to do deal with still.

He regrettably let Red Rage go before heading to the wall where other desired task would begin.

After acquiring the Gravel Runes from Hobbu Gogo, Skullius had made various plans on how to apply them, some concrete, and some shaky. One was how he had used them to attempt to seal Null Life Essence in the full, severed arm he had given to Aurolio to actualize the Tie of Exchange, and the other was creating a Temporary storage which he had yet to exploit.

However, the best way to exploit having acquired these runes so far, was to use them to augment the Bryne Family Estate’s security.

Just as he had seen the goblins from the most recent Cluster he had raided do, he was going to apply runes to the wall to reinforce it, and better yet, create a powerful dome that was capable of vetting who entered and who didn’t.

The application of the latter was going to be complex, but Skullius knew the process, having absorbed Hobbu Gogo’s memories and all.

As he reached the tall, thick construct, which with a closer look gave the impression that wouldn’t offer much resistance when powerful enemies came by, Skullius sighed.

“Let’s get to work,” he said.

As a start, the Hybrid Luman pulled a pair of estocs from his storage, one of the weapons he had drawn against Hobbu Bobbu, the Finite Sword god but hadn’t used.

These estocs were called the Paired Interregnum, and they were the first thing he needed before he began crafting a splendid security detail.