Reborn As A Ghost: Time To Build My Undead Army!-Chapter 1836: What Happened To Mom?

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"I need more comprehension; I can’t reach it yet..."

Maria pushed herself to achieve the next stage of her unique Cultivation Method using the gained Enlightenment, but she couldn’t advance further.

Still, it helped her attain mastery over the third stage, so it wasn’t entirely wasted.

Maria grabbed Bobo and swiftly placed him inside her Nebula, just as before.

"Woah, how did you...?" Laura asked, confused.

"It’s a storage spell," Maria explained. "Anyway, come on. Tell me what happened to Mom..."

"Right..."

Laura sat on the bed and sighed deeply.

"It was around five years ago, during our worst moment. We were drowning in debt, and the hospital threatened to disconnect you if we couldn’t pay... We were desperate. We refused to give up on you. I hadn’t yet climbed to a good rank in the guild and was still struggling to develop my power. Olympus hadn’t even noticed me yet.

Then Mom did something drastic. Out of nowhere, she vanished. A few days later, a large sum appeared in my bank account—enough to cover your hospital bills for the rest of the year. I was stunned. I didn’t understand what had happened. I kept trying to contact her, begging for an explanation.

After a year of feeling lost and unable to find her, Mom reappeared... inside the house, at night. Her eyes were red, and red strands had appeared in her hair. She looked visibly younger too."

"...What?"

Maria’s eyes widened in disbelief.

The reason her mother disappeared, the reason she found so much money out of nowhere...

"Mom... had become a Vampire and joined the Crimson Order. She offered herself—body and soul—to their cult. In return, she earned enough to pay your bills and let me live comfortably while I progressed as a hunter..."

"..."

A chill ran down Maria’s spine, raising goosebumps. She fought the urge to vomit; her vision spun.

These were emotions she had forgotten in her previous soul body, now surging back in her human form.

"Mom..."

She stared at her trembling hands. Despair flooded her eyes as black tears began to fall.

"She did all of this... for me?"

"Yeah... for both of us... I see her sometimes—maybe three times a year. We barely keep in touch now. I have no idea what she’s doing, but she still sends money every month..."

Laura started crying, covering her face in shame.

"Maybe she helped them kill people... Mom became a criminal... I don’t... know what to think anymore... I just miss her... I don’t care what she is—I just want her back..."

"..."

Maria finally grasped the full weight of suffering her family had endured to keep her alive and survive in the new world shaped by the Tower.

They had already been a poor family barely holding on after their father vanished without warning.

"I had to join Olympus eventually. They placed strong blessings on me, but they also restricted me... Still, I earned enough for all of us. Even then, Mom refused to come back. The last time I saw her was three months ago, at night. She appeared inside the house again. She asked how I was; we talked a little. I tried to convince her to stay, told her I didn’t care... but her face was filled with sorrow and shame. She left after that. She couldn’t even eat food anymore—said it all tasted like dust to her... Mom..."

Laura sobbed against Maria’s shoulder while Maria absorbed every word.

Her resolve hardened.

"We’ll find her. That Vampire had a lot of information. Even though he didn’t know Mom personally, I believe we can locate her through the Vampires’ Archives—or by questioning enough of them."

"What? How are you even going to do that?! It’s dangerous to go against Vampires! Absolutely not, Fran! You just woke up today!"

"Laura..."

Maria sighed again.

"I know it’s sudden, but we don’t have time to waste. I can’t just sit here and wait years for things to happen."

"...Fran?"

"I already told you, Laura. My soul reincarnated inside the Tower in a world called Yggdrasil. I lived an entire life there, then died and became a ghost. As a ghost, I came back down here and returned to my body."

"...?!"

Laura watched as Maria floated upward, surrounded by a ghostly aura. Her appearance shifted to white hair and red eyes.

"I possess enough power to kill gods—and I’ve killed many already. I came back with an entire family. I have lovers... yeah, and even a child."

"W-Wha...! What the hell are you talking about?! Okay, you can transform—so what? It’s awesome, but you’re still not making sense!"

"So it’s hard to believe, huh? I don’t want to scare you, but... okay."

Maria opened a black portal in front of her and stepped inside.

"Come on. Let me show you my Soul Realm."

"...Soul Realm?"

Laura hesitated but took Maria’s hand. She was gently pulled through.

Inside, she panicked. She found herself floating high above a gigantic world.

"W-What...! Aaahhh! What the fuck?! Fran...! FRAN, WHERE DID YOU DRAG ME INTO?! IS THIS A DUNGEON—NO, IT’S TOO BIG! WHAT IS THIS?!"

Maria held her sister tightly, refusing to let go. She hugged her close to calm her.

"This is my Soul Realm. After becoming a god-like being, I developed it. It’s an entire world inside my soul... millions of living beings live here. Want to see it up close to confirm it’s not an illusion?"

"Whaaaaat?!"

Laura screamed as Maria guided her downward. They floated gently over beautiful grasslands. Laura touched blooming cherry trees, then watched martial artists sparring in an arena near a mountain.

She saw hordes of skeletons and zombies moving through a wasteland, some rising from nether rivers. Then she looked up—at a black star in the sky.

The black star gazed back.

"Ahhh!"

Laura screamed, clinging to Fran and squeezing her eyes shut.

"Okay, I believe you! I believe you! Bring me back! Fran, bring me back!!!"

"C-Calm down! It’s okay. The Void Star is harmless."

Maria sighed and stepped out of her Soul Realm, returning them home.

Laura collapsed to the floor, gasping for breath, then rushed to the bathroom and vomited.

Maria slowly helped her recover with gentle healing magic.

"Ugh... don’t do that again!" Laura said angrily.

"I’m sorry..." Maria apologized. "I’m so sorry..."

Laura sighed and stared at the ceiling, eyes wide and eyebrows raised for a long while.

"What the fuck..."

That was her only response after nearly ten minutes of silence.

"Yeah..."

Maria couldn’t help but agree.

After ten more minutes, Laura nodded and accepted what she had witnessed.

She began to realize her sister had become far more than she could ever have imagined.

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