The OP Lich is a Returnee, Chapter 172

Chapter 172 – Dragon on the Border

“Ah, Queen Akagawa, so good to see you again.”

I smiled as I saw Emperor Zhu Zhexian, the Dragon Emperor and Hero of Shadow, walk up to me. “Ah, Emperor Zhu. The pleasure is mine, I assure you. Came to see how we were setting up?”

We were in the mountains just east of Huocheng County, near the border Kazakhstan. In fact, there was a crossing just down the road, where the Kazakh A353 highway met the Chinese G30 highway. As for why we were here? Well, Risen Athelia was doing its part as a member of the EAA.

For the first time since I had returned home, all fifty of my legions were out in the world. Each legion was ten thousand undead, roughly divided up as five thousand infantry, three thousand cavalry, one thousand mages, five hundred siegeworkers and combat engineers, and five hundred support and logistics personnel. Five percent of a force being logistics was low, compared to modern armies, and lower still compared to medieval ones, but most of those support troops were crafters dedicated to repairing weapons and armor, or crafting ammunition. Most undead did not need to concern themselves with things like food or medical care, after all.

That was an army of five hundred thousand, but it was not the full extent of my forces. I had the five times that number in individuals who were not part of the legions. Some were my special forces, of course, and some were researchers, or dedicated teachers and trainers. I also had garrison units that had guarded different areas of my domain back in the other world, and, thus, were not organized like the legions, but were still military. The majority, however, were mindless undead, useful primarily as laborers.

Well, they were primarily laborers in the other world. They were not strong enough to serve as combat personnel, since they were mostly raised from commoners who had barely cultivated their mana in life. Undead did gain some power based on the ability of the one that raised them, of course, but that only went so far if the base material was low-ranked. There was a reason I focused on raising the professional soldiers who fell to my armies over the untrained levies who were slaughtered in bulk.

In this world, however? The mindless laborers would actually be somewhat effective, if supplied with some basic weapons and armor. They wouldn’t be at the same level as my normal troops, of course, but they could at least match up against soldiers who were still learning to cultivate their mana, as most troops in this world were.

At any rate, the reason we were here, on this mountainside, as my mages and laborers used Earth magic and brute force to carve out a suitable base and build up fortifications, was simple. While Kazakhstan was technically still its own country, it had fallen under the New Soviet Union’s control over a decade ago. Much like the Eastern European countries of the Warsaw Pact during the Cold War, it was only technically independent, and was, in fact, completely beholden to the NSU for everything.

There was a bunch of nuance to things, naturally, but it basically, if Russia wanted to invade the EAA by land, the best routes were through Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and the Heilongjiang province of China. The Chinese already had defenses in place in Heilongjiang, but Mongolia and the Kazakhstan border were more problematic. Much of the border region was mountainous, and there were the Gobi and Taklamakan Deserts to consider. The logistics of stationing large numbers of living troops in the area were daunting.

Which is why, as part of helping our allies, my troops were setting up a base, here, and in other parts of the region. A full twenty legions would be based along the EAA’s borders with Kazakhstan and Russia, seven legions were stationed along the borders from Kyrgyzstan to Pakistan, and ten more were setting up in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Myanmar. The remaining thirteen legions were stationed in the deserts as both a response force and reserves, allowing them to respond to or reinforce any threats that came from the north or west, whether the threat was Russian, Indian, or someone else.

The bases weren’t on the border, of course. That would be a provocation. However, they were all close enough that they would be able to respond to any ‘accidental border crossings’ easily enough. Furthermore, where possible the bases were being built underground or in mountainsides, both as a means of hiding the true strength and disposition of the forces there, and as an extra layer of defense. Once the wards and shields were in place, there was little chance of even a nuclear bombardment succeeding.

The Emperor just smiled at me. “Yes, checking to ensure that your people were settling in well enough was part of it. However, it was also a very convenient excuse to get out of the Palace. Sometimes, the whole ‘ruler’ thing gets to be a bit of a pain, you know?”

“I am painfully aware of the trouble that leading a country can be at times, yes,” I chuckled. “What about you, though? Have you had any trouble adjusting to the changes since your ascension?”

Zhu had, after all, been transformed by the Seal of Shadow. In the process, he had become at least partly a dragon. Naturally, it wouldn’t be odd for him to have some lingering issues from the change.

For his part, Zhu looked down at his black-scaled arms, and flexed his claws briefly. “The changes to my senses took getting used to, but I am no longer being surprised by smelling someone’s mana, or things like that. As for the other changes? Being stronger and healthier is nice. My control over my body has increased, as well, so having claws instead of fingernails isn’t too inconvenient. The only troubling part is, well, another part of my body.”

I couldn’t help but smile, and tease him a bit, since we were basically alone, apart from our respective bodyguards, who were, at least, keeping a bit of a distance. “Ah, yes. That did get shaped to look more like a dragon’s member, as I recall. Fortunately, it is still sized somewhat proportionally to your body. Sure, 31 centimeters long and six wide is larger and girthier than a normal human, but, so long as you wield your sword with skill, I’m sure you’ll find those willing to sheathe it.”

“Ah, I am so glad that my misfortunes are entertaining you, my Queen.” Zhu’s face was grumpy, and I could hear a grumbling tone to his voice, but it was clear his heart wasn’t truly in it. After all, I was one of the few who could speak to him as an equal, and I was teasing him as an equal, which was likely a rare experience for him.

“I am playing, of course. But still, have you managed to unlock your abilities any further? You were a Shadowsoul before becoming the Hero of Shadow, as I recall. And the few minor changes to your body, even if they feel substantial, are not the full extent of your ability.”

Zhu frowned softly, as he considered my words. “You can see souls, according to the reports I’ve read. So, you’re seeing something in my soul? And, given how you worded it, probably some form of physical transformation?”

“Indeed. The other vessels who became Heroes all transformed fully into creatures of the element they took in. The Troll Patriarch, the Nereid Pair, the Seraphim, the Phoenix Matriarchs, the Bronze Paragons, and the Corpse Lords were all truly changed. Do you think that you alone were made into only a slightly draconic being, Zhu?”

The man stiffened. Ah, he had thought that. Or, at the least, he hadn’t considered the implications. “So, you’re saying that I could turn into a dragon?”

“I am saying that you are a dragon, as you were in that moment after breaking free from your egg in the Seal of Shadow. However, Dragons have an instinctive power that they can draw upon, when they reach adulthood, allowing them to appear as humans, elves, or other such creatures. It is the magic the spell I’ve used for so long is based on, though I use it to give flesh to my bones, whether as a lich or a dracolich, rather than taking on human forms.”

Zhu nodded slowly. “So, I could turn into that dragon again? And I could make myself look fully human? Why am I seemingly stuck like this, then?”

“Because you have not mastered it, yet. Normally, a young dragon has plenty of time to learn the ways of their kind, and builds their knowledge until they are able to master the Mortalform ability. You jumped straight from a human adult to a dragon. But you still thought of yourself as a human. And so the ability tried to turn you back to your human form, but you did not yet have enough control. And, since your mind believed this was your new truth, it settled as such.”

“Thangvald’s First Rule of Magic, is it? ‘Magic is Mana shaped by the Mind. The Mind is Knowledge, Perceptions, and Intent. Therefore, each facet of the Mind influences the shape of the Magic.’” Zhu sighed. “I should have thought about it being something as fundamental as that.”

“Oh, don’t be so hard on yourself. Few people would have just up and considered whether their new clawed hands meant that they could shift into different forms. Especially when they had all the other ‘fun’ of gaining a hero’s powers, as well, without considering the business of running an Empire. You responded as well as could be hoped, and a tad bit better than I expected, honestly, or I would have come by to give you a metaphorical kick in the pants long before now.”

“Well, that’s something,” he chuckled. “So, what is the secret? I’m assuming that there is a form of meditation or something similar I need to do to get into the proper state of mind?”

“At this point, I doubt you will be able to go back to ‘fully human’ without a great deal of will behind the change. Your mind has already adjusted to you, as you are. This will likely be your ‘default’ human form, the one that comes most easily to you. However, it is still magic, and still affected by the mind. So it is entirely possible to change your appearance, or even move from male to female, if you wish. After all, your bones and organs are moving all around and reshaping themselves already, so what does a little more hurt?”

“Ahem. Well. I do not think I’d like to experiment with something like that right now. Possibly ever. I can’t imagine such a change would come without some mental strain, of one form or another.”

“Yes, most people don’t think along those lines. A lich, however, has nothing but time, and no need for mortal things like sleep, so…” I shrugged. “But, on to unlocking your ability. I want you to close your eyes and bring up your mental self-image from that moment you broke out of the egg. Focus on it, and just let go of your mortal flesh. The magic is a part of you. It will guide you.”

He took a breath, and closed his eyes, as I commanded him. I could see it in his mana as he concentrated, trying to focus, and subconsciously circulating his mana with greater pressure as he did so. Not uncommon for a Warrior of the Soul, to be honest.

And then, it happened. He reached enough of a tipping point that the magic cascaded through him as shadows swirled about him, changing him. His clothes were subsumed in the transformation, as I knew they would be. They weren’t enchanted as my outfits were, to shift with my body. Thankfully, when he turned back, he would find himself dressed, instead of standing naked.

The shadows fell away, revealing the Dragon Emperor in his true form, a Shadow Dragon twice the size of a normal human. Small, for a dragon, but in dragon years he was barely past childhood. Indeed, it was only because he could change forms that a dragon would consider him an adult at all.

“Very good, Hero of Shadow, the Dragon Emperor, Zhu Zhexian. When time permits, you must train in this form, to fight and fly and breathe the shadowed breath that is your nature. And you will learn to wield your magic in both this form and your human guise, so that it is second nature. Thus says the Hero of the Elements Undivided, the Dragon Ascendant, the Lich Queen, Kaori Akagawa.”