I Became My Elf King Character In A Game-Like World
Chapter 102: Decision!

Chapter 102: Decision!

"Master, slow down," His disciple urged, carefully helping Varn to his feet and guiding him closer to the barrel.

Seeing the milky white liquid filling the large barrel, Varn was speechless once more. Like undead dragon, he wondered if his old eyes were finally failing him.

’Oh Gods!’ he thought wildly. ’Since when was the elves’ most precious Life Water so common they needed a huge bathing barrel to hold it all?’

Hearing Varn’s thought muttered aloud, Renjiro’s mouth twitched. He had worried he might be away from his territory for a while, so he’d prepared this large barrel... and yes, the Life Water inside was originally meant for him to take a bath. He just hadn’t known it was this valuable to humans.

’So... last night, did I basically wash myself with a king’s ransom?’

Thinking about it, Renjiro’s face twitched again, more noticeably this time. If he’d known it was so precious, he definitely wouldn’t have set aside a whole barrel for bathing! Even selling it to the Temple would have been a smarter move!

"Oh Gods... don’t tease an old man like me like this!" Varn whispered, half praying, half cursing his disbelief. He stood trembling beside the wooden barrel. With shaking hands, he carefully dipped his small crystal cup into the liquid, filling it. He raised the cup, hesitated for just a heartbeat, then drank the Life Water down.

Almost instantly, healthy color flooded back into his pale, drawn face. Beneath his torn clothes, they could almost feel the mending happening, broken bones knitting together, torn muscles repairing themselves at visible speed.

Varn took a deep, shuddering breath, his voice thick with shock and awe. "Yes... yes! This is the taste of the Life Water! But... how? The elves lost the Lake centuries ago! How could you possibly have so much of it? Even the Temple couldn’t produce this much!"

Renjiro just looked at him calmly. "I believe it’s time for you to make your choice, Varn."

Varn’s shocked expression froze. He looked down at the barrel brimming with the life-giving liquid – enough to take a bath in, apparently. Then he thought about giving up his soul’s core, the very essence of his being. He suddenly felt torn.

There was so much Life Water here... enough to completely restore his fading life force, maybe even make him stronger than before. With this, his chances of becoming a Lich, achieving that form of immortality he’d chased for so long, would skyrocket.

All he had to do was surrender his pride, his freedom, the core of his soul... and his longest-held wish might finally be within reach.

This meant losing his freedom, perhaps even his dignity.

He thought of the Bone Dragon. Despite its great power and dragon status, once Varn summoned it, it had to obey his every command. If the Bone Dragon resisted, Varn could easily destroy it. Why? Because he controlled the source of its soulfire.

And now, the Elf King before him wanted the same thing – to control Varn’s soul source, end his freedom, and strip away his dignity as a powerhouse at the peak of the Saint level.

How could he allow this?!

A large, bony skull leaned close to Varn’s face.

Varn recoiled, startled. "~, What do you think you’re doing?!"

The Bone Dragon let out a dry chuckle. "Varn, we’ve been together so long, I know what’s going through your mind. My advice? Just do what the master wants!"

Varn’s face turned grim.

This damned Bone Dragon! It had turned traitor completely in such a short time! Absolutely infuriating!

He struggled internally for a long moment.

Finally, Varn made his choice.

Compared to losing his freedom and dignity, dying and meeting the King of the Underworld so soon seemed much worse.

Varn slowly raised his very old face and looked at Renjiro. "Your Majesty, the Elf King... you win. You will gain the loyalty of one of history’s greatest necromancers!"

As he spoke, a pinpoint of light, his soul source, flew out from between his eyebrows, drifting towards Renjiro.

....

"Master?!"

Nina stared at Varn in shock.

She knew how proud her master was.

As a necromancer herself, she understood exactly what handing over one’s soul source meant.

Freedom gone. Dignity gone. Even your life was no longer your own.

Varn didn’t speak, just shook his head slightly.

His mind was made up.

He didn’t want to meet the Underworld King yet. He wanted to stay in the Continent and become an immortal Lich. As a demigod Lich, he could achieve things he only dreamed of now.

Compared to that future, freedom and dignity seemed less important.

After all, becoming a Lich was his life’s goal, and the chance was right in front of him.

The Bone Dragon’s voice rumbled, "Varn, you’ve disappointed the master!"

"Get lost!!" Varn roared back.

This blasted dragon seemed eager for him to die! Besides, who was the first one to betray their master?

The soul source, glowing with a golden light, floated before Renjiro.

As usual, he had the system scan it. After confirming there were no tricks, Renjiro accepted the soul source. Instantly, he felt the connection to Varn, just like the one he had with the Bone Dragon.

He could destroy Varn’s very soul just by crushing this pinpoint of light.

"System," Renjiro asked mentally, "if Varn or dragon grow stronger, say, reach the demigod level, can I still control their life and death through the soul source?"

[Rest assured, User. Current system parameters ensure that, regardless of divinity accumulation or ascension to godhood, target entities remain incapable of executing actions in violation of Host authority.]

"That’s good."

Renjiro finally felt completely relieved.

"Varn!"

Hearing Renjiro call his name, Varn hesitated for a second before bowing his head respectfully. "Your Majesty, what are your orders?" He understood his current situation perfectly. The Bone Dragon used to be his servant; now, both he and the dragon were servants to Renjiro. The Elf King could kill him as easily as he could have killed a dragon before.

Renjiro stated, "While I won’t force you to return the source of soulfire, that doesn’t mean you are still its master. From now on, you two are a pair."

Varn looked puzzled. "A pair?"

The Bone Dragon tilted its skull too.

Renjiro explained, "Recover your peak Saint-level power as fast as possible. Then, raise a massive army of the undead within the borders of the Empire. The Bone Dragon will be your assistant. Together, you will command a plague of undeath in the Empire!"

"A plague of undeath?!"

Varn was completely stunned.

He hadn’t expected Renjiro to have such an idea.

It was incredibly bold!

Varn knew he himself would never dare to raise a large undead force openly within a human empire, not under normal circumstances.

It wasn’t because he had a kind heart, but because of the Temple.

The Temple and necromancers like him were natural enemies, locked in conflict for thousands of years.

Renjiro looked at him. "Are you unwilling?"

Varn quickly explained, "Your Majesty, if you want to deal with the Temple, my power alone isn’t enough! You must understand, the Temple’s power is immense. Temples radiating the power of Light cover the entire Empire; even small towns have a Shrine of Light."

Nina, standing beside him, added timidly, "Yes, Your Majesty. Even the powerful Temple of Darkness is suppressed by the Temple of Light, they don’t dare enter the Empire."

When Renjiro’s gaze shifted towards her, Nina quickly lowered her head, not daring to meet his eyes.

Renjiro said coolly, "I am not sending you to your death. After all, you’re a necromancer and that too a strong one. It would be a waste if you died."

Varn managed a dry laugh.

He really had been afraid Renjiro would order him to fight the Temple head-on, which would be suicide.

Of course, if he became a Lich... things would be different.

Once he transformed into a Lich, he would be promoted to the demigod realm, becoming one of the continent’s top powerhouses. With that power, and his necromancy, destroying the Temple wouldn’t be so difficult.

Varn glanced at the large vat nearby.

The Life Water inside was his key hope for becoming a Lich.

While the transformation required more than just the Life Water, he had spent years collecting almost all the needed materials. He just needed a few more items to boost his life force, ensuring he wouldn’t accidentally die and meet the Underworld King during the transformation process.

The Life Water could perfectly restore his vitality!

"Your Majesty, the Elf King... what do you mean?" Varn asked, a little confused.

"I need gold coins!"

Renjiro’s answer took Varn aback. He never knew elves actually liked gold coins this much. Enough to start an undead disaster in the Betema Empire just to get them.

The Bone Dragon grinned its bony grin. "His Majesty the Elf King loves gold coins very much. Their shiny gleam is like the stars in the sky. Sleeping on a big bed covered in gold coins every day..."

Varn cut in, "You Greedy Dragon, maybe you should give up your gold coins then."

The Bone Dragon, glared at him.

"You shameless old fool! You’ve been eyeing my gold for ages. Even if I die, I won’t let you take a single coin that belongs to me! Don’t even think about it!"