“LET ME OUT, YOU STUPID MINION, YOUR MASTER COMMANDS YOU TO!”

  “Be quiet and stop squirming around in me, you’re just making this more difficult than it has to be!”

  Rusty replied in an annoyed tone to the necromancer trapped inside his body. The man was not especially strong, but his constant movement made Rusty sluggish. Under normal circumstances, the paladin standing before him would have been an easy target. Now, with the necromancer interfering from within, Rusty was taking hits from the hammer and being driven back.

  The bridge shifted again as the paladin advanced, boots biting into the planks while he raised his hammer for another crushing blow. Rusty met the strike head-on, shield braced, twilight energy rippling across his frame as metal rang against holy steel. The impact drove him back half a step, and the ropes groaned.

  “LET ME OUT THIS INSTANT!”

  Vesperus shrieked, his voice echoing hollowly inside Rusty’s frame. His current summoner was unaware of what was happening outside and that if he continued to squirm around even more, he would get both of them killed.

  “Shut up already and let me fight!”

  Rusty responded with growing annoyance as he activated his weight increasing skill to keep the man inside him restrained. Coupled with the boost to his attributes from his twilight energies, he charged forward without caring about any blows he might receive.

  His enemy swung a sledgehammer at him, but with his increased weight, Rusty simply plowed through the attack. The paladin was forced back, and both of them flew to the far side of the bridge, where the footing was far more stable. The man slammed into one of the poles holding the bridge in place and, as he rebounded, was struck again by Rusty’s shield.

  ‘There. We are on the other side. Now I can get the rest of them off my back.’

  He quickly switched weapons. His sword was returned to storage, and he drew his halberd. It crackled with lightning energy as it delivered the final blow to the paladin, who was still recovering from the shield strike. Once the troublesome foe was dealt with, Rusty turned and aimed his halberd at the rope with all his might.

  “No, stop him, he is cutting the rope!”

  The paladins, still trapped on the bridge, screamed as they saw him hacking at the thick ropes that held the swaying structure together. Some turned and fled, while a few continued to charge forward. Rusty ignored them and kept chopping with all his strength until the rope finally snapped, sending one side of the bridge tipping over.

  For half a moment, nothing happened. Then the bridge screamed. The severed end whipped free, wooden planks snapping and tilting as the entire structure angled sideways. Paladins lost their footing almost instantly. One man started praying as he slipped, his fingers clasped around the rope that had not been severed. Another tumbled down as the left side folded in on itself.

  For a moment, Rusty watched a couple of paladins fall into the chasm, but he quickly turned to the remaining rope and started swinging. At this point, the paladins still clinging to the bridge continued moving. On the far side, two ropes were still holding, and many of them managed to escape before the second rope was cut and the bridge collapsed completely.

  To Rusty’s surprise, some of the paladins who were still on the bridge survived. They ended up slamming into the far wall of the chasm as the bridge flew to the other side. A few of them even started climbing, and for a moment Rusty wondered if he should pull out his bow and finish them. However, the distance was too great, and the wind would likely make aiming difficult, so he decided against it.

  Horns blared on the side where the paladins remained, probably signaling for help. As it stood, Rusty was now in the clear. On this side, there were no enemies in sight, only a few scattered items, including a large backpack filled with something the paladins and clerics had left behind. Before he could check its contents, the necromancer trapped within him started complaining again.

  “Minion, let me out. What’s happening out there? I heard something snap.”

  Now that they were here, Rusty had no reason to keep Vesperus locked inside. He released the weight increase and opened his frame. Plates slid apart, and Vesperus spilled out onto the rocky ground in an undignified flop. The necromancer lay there for a few seconds, blinking and catching his breath, before finally screaming.

  “You… YOU!”

  Vesperus scrambled to his feet, robes torn and smeared with dirt, eyes blazing with sickly green mana.

  “You treacherous, malfunctioning scrapheap! How dare you imprison your master inside your own body! I should flay your soul!”

  Rusty straightened to his full height and used his limb control skill to assemble himself back into a complete suit of armor.

  “You’re alive. You’re welcome.”

  He said calmly as he moved toward the backpack. While he could not use much as a summoned monster, there were a few items inside that would aid him if the necromancer refused to cooperate, which already seemed to be the case.

  “I will not tolerate this disrespect. Begone, you defected creature!”

  Vesperus thrust a hand forward, fingers clawed as strange sigils ignited in the air. His voice deepened as he muttered a chant Rusty could not understand.

  “Hm?”

  Rusty looked at the system prompt. His new summoner was clearly unhappy with how things were progressing, but Rusty felt the same. Returning now might have been reasonable if this treatment continued, but he had already overcome one of the biggest hurdles of the mission. Stopping now did not sit right with him, so he selected no.

  For a fraction of a second, something tugged at him. It was not physical but conceptual, like an invisible hand trying to peel him out of reality. After he declined the option, the sensation vanished, and nothing happened. Vesperus stared at his own hand in confusion.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  “What?”

  He tried again, but Rusty received the same prompt and declined it once more.

  “No. No, no, no… this isn’t possible. I am the master. I hold all the power. How can this creature keep resisting me!”

  Vesperus cast the spell a third time, but once again, nothing happened. After that, he finally gave up. At that point, Rusty knew he could not trust this necromancer. It was even possible that the man would try to escape on purpose, since moving too far away from his summoner would forcibly unsummon him. Rusty was not sure if Vesperus knew this, but he was not willing to take the risk.

  “Wait… what are those? What are you doing?”

  “I’m sorry, but I’m not going to fail this mission. I also don’t think I can trust you, so don’t resist.”

  Rusty rummaged through the backpack and pulled out a large bundle of rope and bandages. If he wanted to complete this mission, he would have to take the necromancer to the destination by force.

  “No, stay back, you foul creature! I am the great Vesperus Mortis! I will not be bullied by the likes of… ACK!”

  The necromancer let out a high-pitched scream as Rusty jumped on him. He could not resist Rusty’s overwhelming strength, and soon his entire body was tightly bound, knees pressed into his chest. Rusty had chosen the position deliberately, as it was the only way the man would fit into the backpack he intended to carry him in. Keeping him inside his body was far too dangerous, but there was still one major problem with the plan. Mana.

  “Hey, Vesperus.”

  “I’m your master. This doesn’t make sense. Release me!”

  Vesperus continued struggling even though he could barely move his neck. Rusty grew annoyed with the constant noise and struck the man on the head to get his attention.

  “You’re getting on my nerves. We can do this the easy way or the hard way, and you really don’t want the hard way.”

  Rusty drew his sword and pressed it against Vesperus’s cheek.

  “Wait, let’s not get hasty here, Minion…”

  “My name isn’t Minion. It’s Rusty!”

  In a fit of anger, Rusty smacked the necromancer’s cheek with the flat of the blade. At last, fear began to overpower Vesperus’s pride.

  “Ah… yes, of course… my apologies, Rusty. There’s no need for violence here. Let’s all calm down.”

  “Good. Now that you’re listening, share your mana with me. I’m almost out.”

  Rusty had already used up eighty percent of his mana in the previous encounter. Gwen supplied him with energy at a steady rate, but Vesperus had been withholding his own, and even now he was clearly reluctant to give in.

  “Sharing mana? My apologies, but I am all out of it.”

  He turned his head away, as if refusing to look at Rusty would make the problem disappear.

  “Aburdon said that if humanoids do not cooperate, a bit of torture is the best solution.”

  “Torture? You would not!”

  Vesperus flinched as Rusty grabbed his head and forced it to face him.

  “Yes. I believe he suggested starting with broken fingers. The physical damage is minimal, but the pain is excruciating.”

  “Fingers?”

  “Oh, and he also mentioned pulling out nails or teeth. I think there are some pliers in this backpack.”

  As Rusty turned back to rummage through the backpack in search of the pliers, Vesperus finally gave in.

  “Fine. Take your damn mana, you monster!”

  A refreshing sensation washed over Rusty as his MP was fully restored by Vesperus. When it was over, Rusty discovered something even more useful in the backpack: a map of the entire area. After studying it twice, he located both the Snowy Yeti Mountains and the Lake of Stormy Serpents.

  ‘Good. With this map, I will not need his help to reach the Deathly Primeval Woods.’

  Thanks to time spent in the soul library and watching Aburdon handle pathfinding, he had learned a thing or two. Their current location was clearly marked on the map, making it easy for him to read. While he might not choose the most efficient route, it was the best he could do now, especially since his summoner refused to cooperate.

  With his mana restored and a clear route ahead, the journey to the Deathly Primeval Woods no longer felt impossible, only inconvenient. Vesperus, meanwhile, lay inside the backpack with his mouth gagged and all his limbs bound. The rope restraining him seemed unusual, likely crafted by the religious followers who had been hunting him. It weakened his powers, yet still allowed him to function as a mana battery for Rusty, which was all Rusty required.

  “Listen carefully. I am taking you to the Deathly Primeval Woods whether you like it or not. Now be a good necromancer and stop squirming.”

  After slipping on the backpack and delivering a few well-placed elbows to silence the writhing necromancer inside, Rusty set off on his journey. His next destination was the snowy mountain range, home to monsters known as Yetis.

  The wind grew colder as Rusty moved away from the chasm. Behind him, he could still hear the paladins making noise, but if the map was correct, they would need to take a much longer path to reach him now. That should give him enough time to avoid them for good, or so he thought.

  The path ahead narrowed into a stone trail dusted with frost, winding upward toward massive peaks that cut into the clouds like enormous horns. Snow crunched beneath his boots as he reached the next location, the Snowy Yeti Mountains.

  With each step, the air thinned and cooled, and faint specks of ice mana drifted lazily through the atmosphere. Rusty did not feel particularly affected by the cold. As long as he kept moving, the ice could not fully settle on his body or impede his joints. Fortunately, the necromancer he was carrying was similar, unaffected by the temperature, much like undead monsters, though not fully immune.

  “Mmmph, mmph!”

  Rusty sighed and reached back without slowing, delivering another precisely measured elbow strike.

  “Quiet. You will attract something with your squirming.”

  Although Rusty was still annoyed with Vesperus, he took no joy in treating him this way. He made sure to stop occasionally along the journey. They passed several abandoned log cabins where they could have warmed themselves by a fire, though that proved to be a bad idea. Once smoke rose into the air, the Yetis appeared.

  Rusty left the bound necromancer inside one of the cabins and stepped outside to investigate the source of the growling. That was when he saw it.

  A massive monster stood hunched just next to a few pine trees, its white fur matted with ice and snow. It was easily twice Rusty’s height, with enormous arms dragging along the ground and four thick fingers that looked capable of crushing boulders with ease. It was a Yeti, drawn in by the smoke.

  The creature lifted its head slowly, nostrils flaring as it sniffed the air. Its small, predatory eyes locked onto Rusty almost immediately. It roared and charged at him with reckless abandon. Its pale blue eyes shifted to a bright red, as if it were under the effect of a berserk skill. Despite its fearsome appearance and raw power, it did not seem to possess much of a tactical mind.

  Rusty slowly moved forward, both hands gripping the halberd. He glanced back toward the cabin where he had left the necromancer. Because of the restrictions placed on him, he could not move beyond a fifty-meter radius from the cabin, but that was more than enough to deal with this monster.

  As the yeti charged, it leapt into the air. Its massive arms rose high before swinging down to deliver a devastating blow. Before it could strike, Rusty simply stepped aside. The attack missed him entirely and cracked the ice-covered ground instead.

  “You’re slow and predictable.”

  Rusty thrust his halberd forward, piercing the monster’s head from behind before it could recover. The blade met some resistance as it sank in, since the creature’s hide was tough, but not tough enough to stop a well-made weapon.

  “GRAGH!”

  The monster released a second roar, louder than the first, before collapsing onto the ground. It lay still as blood spilled from the wound at the back of its head. As Rusty turned to return to the cabin and retrieve the necromancer, he noticed something else. A low rumbling filled the air.

  “Wait, what is that…”

  He could feel something approaching as his metallic body began to vibrate. Then he saw it. A massive wave of snow was cascading down from one of the nearby peaks…