Original subtitles

Necromancy

Necromancy.

The art of resurrecting corpses as the undead.

Strict rules govern the practice of resurrection.

It is forbidden to use necromancy without consent from the patient prior to death,

or from a relative within two degrees of kinship.

Before performing the resurrection, the necromancer must also disclose

every detail of the procedure to their patient.

For you see, becoming undead carries with it a grave risk.

And that is...

Hideous.

Thank you so much.

I really owe you one.

I'm simply glad we could be of service.

If you ever run into more magical trouble,

please call us, the Order of—

Oh? What have we here?

Freeze!

Don't! There are too many bystanders!

Don't finish him off, Guideau.

We're with the police. Thank you for subduing him.

You aren't hurt, are you?

No, we're fine. But would you mind explaining the situation?

Oh, right.

This guy is undead,

but it looks like he went a long time without necromantic maintenance and lost his mind.

He's undead?

Is this your first time seeing one?

I figured they'd look freakier.

Resurrection techniques have improved in recent years.

They hardly look different from the living now.

Oh, but for them to remain sound in body and mind,

regular maintenance by the necromancer is required.

Neglect it, and they end up like him.

Of course, such cases are rare.

Funny thing about that lately.

Instead of being rare,

neglected undead folk have been running wild one after another.

That's a real problem, isn't it?

If you've got trouble, how's this?

Magic's involved, so why not ask the Order of Magical Resonance here to help?

The Order of Magical Resonance?

You're with them?

If what you've just described or something worse is happening,

turning to us would be the quickest solution.

But I'm sorry to say that the undead are not my specialty,

and as such, the two of us can't assist you.

Then...

But rest assured.

Naturally, we retain someone who can.

The Order of Magical Resonance's finest...

Beauty and Death: Opening Act

necromantic specialist.

Quite chilly, this town.

Nah, it's plenty warm.

Blazing hot, if anything.

But anyway, have you considered carrying your own bags or—

Johan, what are you to me?

Huh?

Well, I'm your talented right-hand man.

Exactly. My servant.

Don't forget your role.

You're with the Order of Magical Resonance, right?

I'm here to meet you. The name's Jeff Enker.

Huh? Oh, okay. I'll do the talking.

That's right. The Order of Magical Resonance sent us.

This is the necromancer Phanora Kristoffel.

And I'm...

uh, Lady Phanora's humble servant.

Right.

Now, could you give us the details?

S-Sure.

I'll start at the beginning.

Two months ago, crazed undead rampages started becoming a frequent occurrence.

We currently have six undead creatures in custody.

I can't explain it...

but the air seems colder around her.

And all of them are still waiting on maintenance from their necromancers.

How come?

Hurry up and bring in whoever resurrected them.

No other necromancer can do the maintenance, you know.

Yes, we are aware of that, of course.

But unfortunately, we can't locate the necromancers.

Or rather...

We don't know who resurrected them.

We'd have records if it had been done legally,

but for some reason, all six are undocumented.

If we could restore their sanity through maintenance,

we might get some clue to which necromancers are responsible.

Sounds like a chicken-and-egg situation.

In any case, resurrection without following the proper procedures is totally illegal.

We need to find these necromancers.

They could be strays.

What do you mean, "strays"?

How much do you know about resurrection?

Not much, I'm ashamed to admit.

Only that the person themselves and their family need to consent to it.

And when performing a resurrection,

a necromancer must disclose all the facts of the procedure to their patient.

A litany of other strict regulations also apply.

Reviving oneself or a relative as an undead person is a delicate subject.

But sometimes, even all that isn't enough.

"Strays" are people who were resurrected illegally and given no explanation.

They don't even fully understand that they're dead.

Turning undead comes with risks.

Strays aren't ready for that, but they're forced to suffer the consequences.

What risks?

Still, this is all simply speculation.

Right now, we don't know

if you really have strays here or if the same necromancer raised all of them.

For now, let's take what steps we can.

R-Right.

Oh, that reminds me.

The gentleman who recommended you to us left some instructions.

Locate all the registered undead in this province and their necromancers.

Note their movements and contact information.

Have it all ready before my colleagues arrive.

They're sure to need it.

Huh...

I wasn't told who referred the case, but that will save us time.

How long ago did he pass?

Two months.

And you come visit every month?

Every week. Twice this week already.

If you care that much for him, this country allows necromancy.

I could never afford it.

Not to worry.

What?

Just leave everything to me.

You'll see your love again.

What lovely hair.

Is that its natural color?

We have four necromancers in the province, and each one oversees multiple undead,

for a total of 21 undead creatures.

21, huh? That's a lot.

Is it?

Sure it is. Most other provinces ban it on ethical grounds or whatever.

Can you blame them?

Resurrecting the dead goes against nature.

Oh, so you're against it?

No, not entirely.

When you lose someone, wishing to see them again is natural enough.

I see.

Well, hey...

I won't tell you what to think.

But if you want to stay on Phanora's good side,

you'd better stop calling them "creatures."

She doesn't discriminate between the living and the dead.

Ms. Kristoffel, what are we doing in this ruin?

I'd like to lure out any undead who have lost their sanity or are about to.

What?

But how?

I'll use this lantern.

Or rather, I already am.

Um, but it's not lit.

Only the undead can see this lantern's light.

And in the eyes of those who have lost their reason through neglect,

it outshines all else.

Like a lighthouse in the dark.

Its rays reach quite far,

so we'll see how many more undead have slipped through the cracks in the law once—

Whoa, whoa, whoa!

Hey, Phanora!

What the hell? Look at them all!

I heard her parents won't opt for resurrection. Too bad.

If you'd made it official, you would've had a say, too.

You're wrong.

Huh?

It was never an option.

I've seen the undead go crazy more than once. It wasn't pretty.

You call those things people?

Techniques may improve, but no way are they "just like they were when they were alive."

I love her.

And that's why.

I could never turn someone I love into one of those monsters.

How the hell are there so many?!

There's gotta be 40 of 'em!

I certainly didn't expect to attract so many in such a short time.

And they've all suffered severe mental degradation.

I doubt they have any reason left.

In which case...

Get to it, Johan.

Damn it, Phanora!

You lit me up like a beacon, didn't you?!

We have to help him!

There's no need.

My assistant Johan handles the manual labor.

You can leave him to it.

But...

Come on!

Help me out here!

He seems to disagree.

Not to worry.

More importantly, these numbers are abnormal.

Could your lantern have drawn legal undead, as well?

I can't deny the possibility.

Then...

That's why I asked to have the legal undead monitored for unusual activity.

Hence the request to gather their addresses and contact information.

I see.

And I believe all these people came from the same place.

Why?

The undead can't move instantaneously.

Why, you...

Take a hint!

You mean, if they'd been scattered around town, laying low,

the distance would stop so many from arriving at once like this?

Yes.

I doubt this many could even hide in town.

Just under 40 minutes have passed since I lit the lantern.

They were somewhere a human can reach on foot in that time.

I chose a deserted area to minimize the risk,

but it appears we unintentionally hit the nail on the head.

Phanora!

What good is your necromancy if I always end up—

Well done, Johan. You looked very dashing.

Watch out for beautiful women.

My wife's got me whipped, too.

I am not whipped!

What a shame.

What is?

Their fingers haven't all grown in.

Some are missing arms, too. And none have fully formed faces.

Such slapdash resurrections.

It's as if the necromancer who raised them never intended to make people.

Necromancy once reached the heights of prosperity as an art of control.

Essentially, undead are familiars,

and necromancers can switch them between three states at will.

First, a state free of control in which the undead obey only their own wills: Auto.

Autonomy

Second, a state in which the undead retain their own minds,

Mind Control

but the necromancer imprints an objective onto them: Semi-auto.

Third, a state in which the necromancer fully usurps the undead's minds,

Domination

and controls them as they would their own body: Manual.

The lantern only attracts undead in Auto or Semi-auto states.

Though even in Semi-auto, they may prioritize a definite imprinted objective over its light.

And what happens when they lose their minds?

They pursue imprinted objectives in an even greater frenzy,

as if they have nothing else left to cling to.

So what are you getting at?

I'm wondering why they were resurrected.

They must have simply been let loose without any imprinting.

Maybe whoever did it just didn't need them for anything.

Then what about when the time came to call on them?

The necromancer would need them close at hand.

Who knows where they might go in their crazed state?

Most necromancers would lock them up or imprint an order to stay put.

And since this one didn't, they were already done using them?

But done using them for what?

Who knows?

Seriously?

Just being human-shaped and mobile makes them suitable for any number of uses.

Even human experimentation.

We can't let someone get away with that!

You're saying these undead had not only their bodies, but even their minds

in the hands of some necromancer who used them, then abandoned them?

They might as well be toys!

I knew nothing good could come from resurrection!

Uh, I was looking at the undead you took down,

and I see an awful lot of redheads in this bunch.

Mostly women, too.

Hey, you're right.

Hmm...

Maybe the necromancer's into that?

Looks are pretty easy to tweak, after all.

Speaking of which, we're here looking at them,

but these undead won't get up and start moving again, will they?

They'll stay put.

I killed their bodies.

Their souls are stuck to their flesh by magic,

so they can always come back with proper maintenance.

But on the other hand...

Without maintenance, their broken bodies will never move again?

Pretty much.

Phanora!

Sorry. I missed that one.

Are you all right?

Were we being watched?

Oh, the trail keeps going this way.

They passed through here.

Man, a place this deep in the woods has to be perfect for shady business.

I can see a building.

It's an old mansion.

What the hell is that smell?

What happened in here?

Johan! Behind you!

Ah, you're as lovely as I thought.

Thank you for coming all this way.

You saved me the trouble of coming to you.

Are you the necromancer?

I think not.

The mind is, but the girl isn't. She's on Manual.

Welcome. Please come in.

Oh, and kindly drop your communication devices.

Let's run for it.

Luckily, that big guy's the only thing in our way.

I would rather not leave so much as a mark on that woman. Won't you please do as I say?

I have no taste for violence.

And I believe you lost someone dear to you,

Sergeant Jeff Enker.

How do you know who I am?!

I have undead stationed everywhere.

The police are no exception.

Losing your fiancée must have caused you sorrow beyond imagination.

But have no fear.

With necromancy,

no parting lasts forever.

What have you done?

What have you done?!

Scumbag.

This will suffice for him,

but as for you, woman, despite my efforts, I couldn't learn a thing about you.

I'll avail myself of a bargaining chip now.

Johan!

No!

Let go of me!

I need to treat him now!

Just what I hoped to see.

You must care for him.

Worry not.

Do as I say, and you'll see him again soon.

Now, follow me.

But even knowing everything, some still offer themselves to necromancers.

Next time: "Beauty and Death: Final Act."

Beauty and Death Final Act