"Once we reach Gospel, you will handle corpse disposal with me, and then I'll find you a part-time job doing death scene cleanups. The necromancy faction doesn't have many books; introductory study is entirely hands-on. Corpse disposal is the fastest way to master the physiological traits of different races."
Chikala nodded repeatedly as he listened, asking, "Mentor, does cleaning death scenes help with the necromancy faction?"
Harvey thought about it seriously, then shook his head. "No help at all."
The orc froze. "Then why should I take a part-time job cleaning death scenes?"
"Hm?" Harvey wore a puzzled expression. "You ask why... Death scene cleanup is fun."
"Fun?"
"Yes. Through this part-time job, you get to see almost every kind of death scene. When people hang themselves, due to gravity and incontinence, feces and urine stream down their legs all over the floor; drowning victims develop putrefactive bloat, that swollen form is truly breathtaking; and when the weather is hot and someone has been dead for days, they become a breeding ground for maggots. When you turn their head over and see maggots and flies writhing out of their mouth, nose, and eyes, it is truly... wow..."
Harvey spoke with dreamy yearning, even licking his lips, as if reliving fond memories. But noticing the orc's grim expression, he asked, "Don't you find that interesting?"
"Because you are now my mentor, I don't want to say anything too harsh," Chikala said.
"But," Harvey thought for a moment, "I became a necromancer starting from death scene cleanup."
"Since it doesn't help with the necromancy faction, we can just skip it."
"Yet death scene cleanup is very meaningful." Harvey gave an example. "For instance, I once cleaned up a homicide at a shared apartment. Six people lived there, all good friends, and five were murdered inside. I cleaned the scene immaculately, scrubbing away every drop of blood splashed on the walls. The sole survivor, seeing such a clean apartment, must have felt so comforted."
*Would the survivor really keep living in that apartment?*
Chikala said, "Mentor, do you mean that through death scene cleanup, I can learn to respect life and understand death?"
Harvey paused, then nodded immediately. "Right, exactly. That's what I meant."
"All right, then."
Chikala glanced at Harvey and added, "It does sound somewhat interesting, I suppose."
"Indeed, indeed." Harvey found the orc looking much more agreeable now. "You have great talent in the necromancy faction. You will surely become a running dog under the great Haagen-Dazs, just like me."
By now, Harvey's lower body had also regenerated, though of his limbs, only his right arm had recovered; after all, Chikala didn't have much sorcery power left either.
"So we're going to the Gospel Realm later?"
"Yeah. After all, the Empress of Gospel is Yaxiu's daughter," Harvey said. "If we want to settle down, Gospel is the best choice."
The orc was taken aback, thinking for a moment before asking, "Empress—is she the most powerful person in the whole country? Like an Age of Gods grand law?"
"That's right."
"The Empress is Mr. Yaxiu's daughter?"
"That's right."
"How did you end up stranded in Senluo?" the orc asked from the bottom of his heart.
"Yaxiu always triggers bizarre events. I've gotten used to embarking on sudden journeys with them." Harvey cautioned his only disciple, "If you don't want to die, stay far away from Yaxiu in the future."
"But aren't you Mr. Yaxiu's close friend, Mentor?"
"I'm not afraid of dying," Harvey said. "My main reason for sticking with him is that I feel he can bring me a magnificent death."
The orc began regenerating his own left hand, chuckling, "And also because traveling with Mr. Yaxiu and Mr. Igola is fun, isn't it?"
"Calling it traveling is generous; most of the time it's fleeing, being hunted, lying low, or even being enslaved. There's always some crisis hanging over our heads," the necromancer said. "Still, it's true that it's never boring. With them, even if you have a destination, you never reach it, because you never know when they'll come up with a new idea."
"Yet you don't hate it, do you?"
"How could I hate it?" Harvey chuckled softly. "I crave this kind of life full of surprises, of wrestling with death. If I didn't manage to die this time, maybe next time."
"Mentor, you ought to cherish your life more." Chikala didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "At least don't die before you finish teaching me."
"If I really am going to die, there's nothing to be done," Harvey said leisurely. "When it's time to die, die properly. When that happens, prepare my corpse carefully. It will be your mentor, your textbook, and your tool."
Chikala knew he couldn't convince the necromancer. After a moment's thought, he said, "Mentor, do you know what post I held in the Calamitous Fire Sanctuary?"
"Weren't you a bishop?"
"Bishop is a rank, not a post," the orc said. "My post was end-of-life caregiver."
Harvey blinked in surprise. "End-of-life care?"
"Most people in Senluo only live to age twenty-eight. When the time comes, their physiological functions deteriorate rapidly in bed," Chikala said. "From losing the ability to work until death usually takes about thirty days. Unless one commits suicide, those thirty days are excruciatingly painful for anyone."
Harvey nodded. Death was one thing; helplessly watching death approach thirty days away was another.
"The Calamitous Fire Sanctuary doesn't advocate suicide, so to help them embrace death in peace, there is the post of end-of-life caregiver." Chikala thumbed his chest. "Healers are basically all end-of-life caregivers. Truth be told, my end-of-life care service received rave reviews from everyone!"
Harvey looked doubtful. "Even if someone left a bad review, they're already dead..."
"So if the Gospel Realm has end-of-life caregivers, I highly recommend you take it up as a part-time job, Mentor. Even if it doesn't, you could start a service like that," the orc said. "The reason I cherish life so much is because I've seen too many people clinging desperately to life before they pass. After all, if even ordinary people want to live so badly, how can we sorcerers give up so easily?"
Only then did Harvey realize Chikala's point. He thought it over and nodded. "I'll be an end-of-life caregiver, and you take the part-time death scene cleanup job."
"It's a deal." The orc reached out his palm. "Our Calamitous Fire Sanctuary's end-of-life care is definitely the most professional. We even have eulogies sung at funerals for the living. In a bit, I'll teach you properly..."
Harvey reached out his hand, but at that moment the world shook violently, and his hand struck empty air.
A colossal rift suddenly tore through heaven and earth, and Chikala was right on its edge. The orc reacted with lightning speed—unfurling his void wings, deploying his Sanctuary, and activating movement miracles. He did everything in his power, yet as if swept away by an invisible torrent, he was inexorably drawn into the rift.
Chapter 727