Chapter 19.1: Darkness and Light Part 1

A bear undead made huge by magic, rushes in, with its massive, hairy arm raised for attack and is met with and slayed by a holy sword.

The army of the undead was overwhelming like an avalanche. I assume they are the pitiful husks of the monsters that once lived in the forest.

Each and every one of the monsters had been strengthened beyond their limits.

The limb that had poised to sink its claws into the enemy had been sliced off, and blood mixed with saliva splatters everywhere from the sliced open jaw. The sight of it single-mindedly attacking even as its body crumbled away, certainly made it look like a demon that had been brought back from the depths of hell.

Senri was aware.

That it was the power of the abominable necromancer that was making it all happen.

Nevertheless, all of this is still not capable of stopping the Death Knights.

The light energy, the power of blessing that Senri and the others wielded is capable of keeping darkness at bay.

The sword when imbued with light is capable of cutting through darkness and in armor becomes a retardant of death. When activated it increases one's physical attributes. Thereby enabling the Death Knights wield extraordinary power in order to oppose the followers of darkness.

"Anyone catch sight of the necromancer?!"

"No! Shit! To think he can control such a large number of undead from a distance!"

The Death Knights were out of breath, slaying the incessant onslaught of flesh wild.

Light and Darkness. Positive and Negative energy. We have the advantage of affinity. Therefore, necromancers close the gap by fighting in large numbers.

The monsters that have all been strengthened by the necromancer at the cost of the destruction of their souls, only further made it seem like hell.

So much so that it posed difficulties even to the Death Knights who were accustomed to purifying undead.

"Senri! Should we take a step back? We can destroy these monsters, given time."

"No."

"Haha. I figured you'd say that! That's what makes you a candidate for first class."

Said the sweaty Lufry and grinned widely at Senri.

We can still afford to pace ourselves but the consumption of power is extreme. The power of blessing of my fellow knights is being chipped away at an alarming rate.

The Death Knights possess an enormous amount of power of blessing but that does not mean it is infinite. When exhausted, it takes time to replenish, and when completely drained, they have no other way to protect themselves from the retainers of darkness. Senri was hardly tired but the power that others possessed was only one tenth of hers.

The undead that are attacking now are all the weak ones. Senri reflected as she cut down the wolves with an easy flick of her sword.

A second class necromancer is an existence very close to a Lord of Darkness. I hardly think this is going to end with only a mere army of fleshwild.

The other Death Knights need to conserve their energy. Bringing them back home in one piece at the very least, is also a part of Senri's responsibility.

"I'll take care of them all at once."

"?! W-wait, Senri! These are still—"

"That's what Master would do."

There was no hesitation.

The weapon was bestowed upon her when she was made a second rank knight. Senri held the sword made of precious holy silver and prayed.

She thrust the sword into the ground. The power of blessing in her gathered at the tip of the sword and burst forth in a wave.

It was not made to destroy; hence the pure positive energy became a wave of light that enveloped the whole place.

"Soul Release!"

There was no explosion. The bear undead that was about to swing its huge arm and the pack of wolves that charged at them with no regard for their fallen brethren, all quietly crumbled to dust.

The incessant swarm of undead that charged on relentlessly was not even able to make a single sound before disappearing as if they were an illusion.

Senri watched it all happen silently with a sad look on her face.

'Soul Release' was one of the most basic spells of purification. It fills their abyss with widely spread positive energy and helps them rest in peace. It was a power only Death Knights possessed.

It was almost impossible to defend against it and there was no other way to better deal with a large swarm of lower rank undead.

Silence is restored. The heavy atmosphere is purged. Neville stops waving around his mace, throws it over his shoulder and starts whistling almost joyfully.

"To purge that large swarm of undead all at once, as expected of a second class knight."

"I decide that complete consumption of energy would put us in a bad situation."

Senri drew her sword out of the ground. She held it in her hand a few times, affirming the condition of her body. Satisfied, she nodded and not an eyebrow was out of place.

'Soul Release' is a powerful skill but since it releases a massive quantity of light energy all at once, it consumes a lot more energy than using a weapon imbued with the power of blessing. Therefore, the Death Knights in order to maintain a proper control over the exhaustible power of blessing first learn the skill of imbuing a sword with it.

Nevertheless, Senri the power of blessing in Senri rivaled that of an authentic first class knight.

Since she had released a large quantity of power all at once, she felt a little fatigued, but even that would disappear soon.

She can still press on. She has not even used up one tenth of her power yet.

The purple pair of eyes was fixed on the woods the whole time. Souls violated by darkness were still in there. They need to be delivered from evil.

"It's alright. It's all good. Horus couldn't have predicted this attack. We will put an end to this before they find their bearings."

The knights all nodded earnestly.

☠ ☠ ☠

It was not hard to locate the mansion.

I forcefully opened the locked gate and entered inside.

Inside the fence. A strong smell of death lingered in the vast courtyard. However, the presence of undead could only be sensed inside the mansion.

The flesh wild that attacked us a while ago must have all been on standby here. The image of the dead wolves circling the courtyard came to mind for just a moment which made Senri knit a pair of well-shaped eyebrows.

Powerful mages have a strong aura due to the enormous power they possess.

Gloomy magic emanated from the mansion. Its strength no doubt placed him in the top five of most powerful people Senri had fought against so far.

He is in there. There is no mistaking it. Horus Carmon is inside that mansion.

He is arrogantly lying in wait for us, despite knowing that his archenemy, the Death Knights are upon him.

"Hmph. He doesn't think of escaping despite knowing about our arrival. Even though he's just a coward, he's awfully confident for someone who's going to be turned into a corpse before long."

Neville smiled, unfettered as usual. However, he looked a little pale.

He was being overwhelmed by the evil aura.

"Scared?"

Neville looked a little taken aback at the words uttered accidently but soon regained his composure and clenched his teeth.

He shook his mace, the head of which was made of holy silver and exclaimed gruffly.

"... Who do you think you're talking to? I am a Death Knight, you know? What's more, I've been doing this a whole lot longer than you Senri. I've crossed paths with many a necromancer of his level. You just worry about yourself. It's your job to destroy whatever Horus' trumps card is."

"... I got it. Trust me."

"Sheesh. I know about your personality, but you really don't respect your seniors enough Senri."

We will not face any obstacles in the fight if we maintain our pace. As Neville said, the Death Knights who accompanied Senri on the mission were all seasoned fighters who served under Epée the 'Destroyer'. Even if they find themselves threatened by the necromancer's power, they would not cower in fear.

There was no sight of monsters outside the mansion. We must have fought the last of it.

Horus intends to settle everything inside the mansion.

The door to the mansion was provokingly ajar.

I focus and activate the power of blessing to increase my physical abilities.

The others followed suit and activated their power just enough to remove any look of fatigue.

The necromancers become stronger by accumulating deaths and in the same way, the beings of light, are protected by light. There was nothing to fear.

And thus, the Death Knights infiltrated the mansion.

☠ ☠ ☠

It was truly a long journey. A difficult one. Nevertheless, I finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel.

It has been twenty years since I was classified as a second rank necromancer.

The earnest wish of any necromancer... is to create the King of the Undead. And with its birth, Horus Carmon could be officially categorized as one of the world's strongest beings, a first class necromancer.

It is not a coincidence that the Death Knights chose now to attack.

They could subconsciously sense it. The birth of the King of Darkness. And so, they mean to prevent it by any means necessary.

It was really my good fortune that brought an extraordinary talent such as End into my life.

Be it the speed of his growth or the size of the vessel, it was the best Horus had seen in his long life as a necromancer.

End, who had left to get the equipment, had yet to return. Whatever is keeping him...?

However, the Lord, who is his creator, can still sense that he is nearby. Although his smarts are a cause for concern, he is under orders. He should return once he is done.

What Horus needs to focus on, is driving back the Death Knights.

If I were to lose End right now, I do not know how many more decades it would take for me to get my hands on such an undead.

Nevertheless, there is no need to worry. Once, just once, I need to succeed in repelling the knights.

Originally, I was going to be prudent and wait until he progressed further in the ranks, but considering his quick wittedness and his intelligence, the ritual may succeed even if he is just a ghoul.

I slit my palm open and use my own blood to draw a magic circle.

It would cast burden on Horus since he is a human, but the undead that were released were all decimated in such a short interval of time.

The enemy is stronger than expected even without the first class knight present.

Horus Carmon decided to use everything under his disposal.

So, this is the last trial.

He scowled at the frightened slave who carried out his instructions. Everything was prepared. The slave was no longer necessary.

"Roux, I'll have you put to use as well..."

"...!?"

Roux pales and takes a step back upon catching the look in his eyes.

Bony limbs and body. Deeply sunken pair of eyes and dishevelled hair. Tattered clothes, a small existence that looked worse than a 'Skeleton' undead.

And above all else, her eyes no longer held the spark of life. A typical slave.

Horus smiled at his slave for the first time.

"Even a weakling... has its use. The source of their power is their very own life, faith and pride. They can be weakened if those are defiled."

"Wh-what do—"

Roux let out a weak sounding cry.

Horus raises an eyebrow, but soon regains his composure and issues an order.

"I don't remember permitting you to question me... oh well. This will be... the last time. Roux. Roux Dorris! Join the Skeleton Knights and attack the Death Knights!"