The Black Necromancer

Leon sat cross legged as he stared at the wispy shadow that was visible only to himself. The shadow was Londo's soul.

'Why can't I raise him?' Leon thought to himself for the umpteenth time.

It had already been a week since the battle and things had settled down more or less. He had been trying to turn Londo into his summon ever since then, but for some reason, he was not able to.

'But I did not have any problems when I rose Dizen, so that means the problem is not the fact that he is an A rank powerhouse. It must be something else I don't know.'

As Leon was still deliberating or this matter, the space beside him fluctuated and Michael appeared.

"Michael! I've been waiting for you!" Leon exclaimed as he got to his feet.

Michael's lips twitched as he heard the tone Leon used to refer to him. When had he ever been spoken to in such a way? He could not remember. Not even during the late stages of the Era of Gods where he had a lot of companions around him had someone spoken to him in such a manner.

"You were looking for me?" Michael brushed off Leon's attitude and asked.

"Yes. In fact, I urgently need you to explain a couple of things for me. Firstly-"

"Hold on there. I am not your dictionary. You cannot just expect to call on me to ask me random questions." Michael cut Leon off with a serious expression.

"I know, but this is really important. If you had left a manual or something with all the knowledge I need, then I would not be such a bother to you." Leon replied and folded his arms with a look that showed he was not backing down from the argument. He was not fond of how Michael dropped missions onto his lap randomly, and then never appeared again unless if was something that would benefit the God.

"Fine, then." Michael sighed and shook his head. "What is it?"

"What is the Paragon of Undeath?" Leon fired the first question on his mind immediately, causing Michael to pause in surprise.

"You have absorbed the core of the final boss of the Tower of Trials, I presume?" Michael asked.

"Yes, I have." Leon nodded his head, glad that it seemed he would get answers to this matter that had been on his mind for a while.

Michael sighed. "That information is too sensitive to disclose to you at this level. Get stronger and you shall know more." He told Leon.

"Get stronger and you shall know more." Leon repeated the words Michael said with a tired tone. "That is the same thing you have told me ever since I knew you. Why don't you give me something more solid? Give me a more tangible goal to work towards!" Leon snapped.

"Watch your tone with me." Michael's tone flared and his hair whipped around him as his muted aura silenced and suppressed Leon.

Leon instantly fell to his knees as he felt the most pressuring aura he had ever felt in either life. Not even the God that had defended Adrian, Malaki and Bella, back then had been as overbearing as Michael right now.

But even still, while all his bones creaked under the pressure, Leon made sure to keep his head up straight, his empty eye sockets that were lit up by flickering purple flames staring straight up at Michael.

Whoosh!

The pressure vanished and Michael sighed again, pinching the bridge of his nose. "What was the other question?"

"Why can I not turn the A rank Necromancer I killed in the battle into my summon?" Leon asked the next question.

The two of them behaved as if the previous incident had not taken place at all.

Michael turned to the corner where Londo's soul lingered by virtue of Leon's hold on it and waved his hand, drawing it forward to him. The purple-black flame flickered wildly as it was moved, but calmed down when it floated over Michael's palm.

"The answer you seek is quite simple, really. This soul has already forged ties with death and undeath. It is many times more difficult to turn a Necromancer into an Undead through unnatural means." Michael explained as he studied the remnants of Londo's soul.

"So, does that mean that I cannot turn him into an Undead?" Leon was a bit let down. It would be quite a bummer if he could not turn Londo into his summon, but he guessed he could simply just decide to absorb the soul and strengthen his body. The gains of an A rank soul would surely be many times greater than that of a B rank soul.

"Oh, you can. But it will be much more difficult." Michael smiled and took a step back. His wrist flicked, and a gem appeared in his hand. Upon close look, Leon realized that it was a similar core to the one he had gotten from the A rank boss of the Tower of Trials!

"Is that..."

"Yes, it is another shard belonging to the Paragon of Undeath." Michael smirked as he handed it over to Leon. "By the time you finish absorbing this core and assimilating its energy into your own core, you will be able to raise this Necromancer's soul."

"..." Leon remained silent, but he had a wide grin on his face that threatened to break his jaw.

"Also, the same goes for those knights that you have been trying to summon." Michael said suddenly, taking Leon aback. For a moment, he wondered what Michael was talking about, before he suddenly realized that Michael was referring to those ten mysterious black knights that had been eluding Leon's attempts to summon them.

He turned around to ask another question, but was surprised to see that Michael had already vanished into thin air.

"That..." Leon wanted to curse the God, but held his tongue in the end and simply shook his head.