Chapter 175: The Shape-Shifting Ring

Words : 1242 Updated : Sep 25th, 2025

With this final magic item in hand, all four of the Lizardmen tribe's treasured relics had now fallen into Lyle's possession. He withdrew his gaze from the simmering magical cauldron and turned his attention to something else. "What's the deal with this magic ring?" Flipping his palm upward, a ring appeared in the center of Lyle's hand—the very same one he'd taken from the corpse of the Subterranean Lizardkin. A curious artifact with the power to alter one's appearance. He had appraised it earlier. The ring's abilities were limited—only capable of simple changes to one's physical form. "It's a magical tool he taught us to use. It can only make slight alterations to our appearance," the Leaf Witch quickly explained, pulling out a similar ring from her robes. "It also needs to be recharged with mana periodically if you want to use it again." Hearing that it had been given to them by the Grey-robed Mage, Lyle's expression shifted, a small smirk playing on his lips. "You two can use this to turn into humans?" he asked, eyeing the Leaf Witch. "Yes, Master," she replied with a nod, slipping the ring onto her finger. As soon as she did, her body gave a slight shiver. The leaves that wrapped around her form fluttered to the ground. Then, suddenly— A pale white light enveloped her, her silhouette beginning to twist and morph. In the blink of an eye, standing before Lyle was a pale-skinned girl with long white hair, looking no older than sixteen or seventeen. "Put the leaves back on," Lyle said casually, glancing away. The witch blinked in confusion, then quickly bent down and rewrapped the fallen leaves around herself without protest. Lyle finally turned back and gave her a proper look. Outwardly, she appeared fully human now. The transformation wasn't perfect, of course, just superficial—but fortunately, the twin witches already resembled humans enough, aside from their unnaturally thin bodies and slightly eerie features. "You. Get inside her," he said, turning to the Mist Witch. Without a word, the Mist Witch nodded, her form dispersing into a swirling fog that quickly merged into her sister's body. "Perfect," Lyle muttered with a satisfied nod. But his next words made the twin witches freeze in fear. "At least now you're marginally useful. I was starting to wonder if I should just dispose of you both." Their faces drained of color. Whoosh! Lyle flicked the second ring into the air. The twin witches scrambled to catch it. "Throw that ring into the Lizardman territory. Then leave the Great Wetlands," Lyle ordered coolly. "Leave?" the Greenleaf Witch echoed, confused. Lyle gave her a heavy-lidded look. She immediately shut her mouth and bowed her head in silence. "Head south. With your combined strength, crossing the Tob Forest shouldn't be too difficult. On the outskirts, you'll find human settlements. Infiltrate them." "Learn how to blend in." He reached into the pouch on his waist and pulled out a small sack filled with gold coins - fifty, to be exact and tossed it to them. Clink—clink— The sack landed in the witches' hands, the coins inside chiming together like an impromptu farewell tune. As the two of them departed into the distance, Lyle stared after them and muttered under his breath. "I really don't have enough reliable subordinates." He had originally considered sending the twin witches to assist Naga, in the depths of the Tob Forest. But after reconsidering, he scrapped the idea. They weren't the same as Naga. The witches had only submitted to him out of fear, especially knowing that Lyle had marked them with a magical seal that prevented escape. Which, to be fair, was a perfectly sound management strategy. Naga, on the other hand, was tied to more long-term plans involving post-conflict experience gains, and Lyle didn't want to risk that. As for the reason he was sending the witches out of the Wetlands? Simple. The Slane Theocracy's next move was unpredictable, and he didn't want any loose ends. His earlier threat hadn't been a bluff. Had they not possessed the ability to pass as humans thanks to the shape-shifting rings, he would've dealt with them just like the Subterranean Lizardkin; swiftly and without remorse. Now— Lyle turned his gaze to the unconscious Grey-robed Mage lying beside him. His expression darkened slightly. Time for the real experiment to begin. "No morality. No mercy," he murmured. "Let your sleep be eternal." Rising to his feet, Lyle conjured a short iron blade into his palm and, without hesitation, slashed downward. A jet of blood sprayed from the mage's throat. His eyes snapped open in a final moment of agonized clarity, bloodshot and bulging—before he spasmed once and fell limp. [Experience Gained: 16,212] [XP: 65,977 / 120,000] Lyle blinked. "A level 29+ target gave that much experience?" he muttered in mild surprise. He hadn't been able to determine the mage's exact level, but that amount was nothing to scoff at. "Time for the resurrection." Resurrect the Dead – Altered. As the thought crossed his mind, the spell activated instantly. Thanks to the passive effect of the Shamanic Adept class, Lyle could see the faint, translucent soul rising from the mage's body. Buzz... A surge of mana erupted from Lyle, forming a three-meter-wide magic circle beneath his feet. The sheer pressure distorted the air around him. Unlike regular resurrection magic, Altered Resurrection had been reengineered by otherworldly humans to function through arcane mana alone. However, the price was steep: double the mana cost. And even Lyle couldn't afford to cast it recklessly. So, he activated a profession skill from his Mad Archmage class—Mad Meditation—to substitute the mana drain. Flash! The magic circle flared brilliantly. The mage's soul, which had been slowly dissipating, was sucked downward, forced back into the body like a plug being jammed into a socket. "AAAAAARGH!" The corpse gasped violently, the body seizing upright as if waking from the world's worst nightmare. "Thank you, my allia—" The mage took several heavy breaths, blinking rapidly as his senses returned. But the moment he saw Lyle standing before him— His eyes widened. Horror, disbelief, betrayal... all flashing across his face at once. "You're—" Before he could finish casting any spell, Lyle was already on him. Thud! A clean strike to the neck knocked the mage out cold again. At this range, no matter how strong the caster, none could stand against Lyle's melee expertise. "Yup... resurrection's definitely soul-based." Lyle observed the mage's twitching form thoughtfully. "His presence is weaker. Probably lost around four levels, just as expected from low-tier revival magic." He wasn't surprised. He already knew resurrection came with penalties. After all, both the anime and web novel versions of Overlord had addressed this, Ainz and Demiurge had run plenty of experiments on resurrection and healing. It's also why Lyle hadn't bothered to revive the Wise King of the Forest. Reviving a slain creature degraded its level—and, more importantly, its materials. Even if you harvested the skin or parts before the resurrection, the spell would simply undo the missing pieces. As Demiurge once confirmed: no exploiting resurrection for infinite loot. Too bad. Though... that didn't mean he wasn't still going to try breaking it.

Chapter 175: The Shape-Shifting Ring

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