Viktoria and Oleg Ugryumovs present readers with an exclusive author’s version of the first book of the famous fantasy cycle “The Necromancer”. At the center of the plot are the adventures of a young necromancer, Zelga of Kassar, a minotaur, Takanhor Toptan, a troglodyte sorcerer, Karluza, and their monstrous friends as they battle the dark creation, the Unborn King of Behetekhvald Galeas Gensen. The heroes of the book have long won the hearts of readers, and it promises to delight new fans too. The story tells of an heir of a powerful clan of mages and necromancers, Zelga Galeas da Kassare. A young scholar and pacifist moves to the Kassar estate, where he is met by unexpected encounters: a stone golem butler, a mummy of his great-great-grandfather, ghosts, zombies, and even a noble vampire. But his cousin-king, egged on by ministers, declares war on Zelga, believing that an inexperienced young man won’t be able to gather an army. Yet the position of general is already claimed by the energetic minotaur Takanhor Toptan, who became champion of Bloody Payalpa. War with his cousin is only the beginning, because power over the magical center of Kassarri has always been fought over by powerful ancient beings for whom human squabbles are trivial.