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The Turtle Ship ranks among the top-class vessels in the legion.
It was considered one of the three great escort ships alongside Argo of Hades Corporation and Venu of Anubis Corporation.
Especially, the thorned deck of the Turtle Ship, forged from black iron, lacked nothing in either grandeur or durability.
Wooooom—
Beneath a blood-red sunset sky.
A huge black tortoise-shaped craft was fleeing, swarmed by smaller flying mounts.
“Pursue it!”
A point-eared man shouted, raising his staff high.
He rode a wingless, eagle-shaped hoverbike, with dozens of smaller hoverbikes trailing behind him.
Those encircling the Turtle Ship were forest-forsaking elves.
They were ‘urban elves’ who had rebuilt and lived in the old human cities.
“Pour it on again!”
At the warlord’s command, the following elves drew staffs from the sides of their hoverbikes.
They unleashed elemental magic at the Turtle Ship.
From searing crimson fireballs to translucent ice spears.
A riot of multicolored light converged and struck the Turtle Ship’s deck.
Bang— Kwang!
The Turtle Ship held.
It sustained hits on its deck and continued to traverse the sky.
“Damn it…”
The warlord removed his goggles.
With smoldering ashen eyes he glared at the Turtle Ship.
He wanted, more than anything, to land on the deck and infiltrate the craft, but there was no opening, it was impossible.
“Prepare to fire!”
At the warlord’s order, the elves put away their staffs and drew bows.
They nocked arrows and fired on cue.
Swaaaaak—
A rain of arrows poured onto the Turtle Ship.
Beads attached to the arrowheads struck the deck and burst.
A black spell-smog billowed out.
It seeped into the vessel with the purpose of making the Undead kill one another and self-destruct.
A cunning tactic of the urban elves.
“Keep firing! We must catch the Devil’s seed!”
The elves began to spray fire.
They fired spells and arrows, unleashing a fierce assault on the Turtle Ship.
‘It’s still intact like this…’
The warlord’s smooth face contorted violently.
Even if the Turtle Ship was strong, it shouldn’t be this resilient.
He was confident he could blow it apart once he broke away from the main force.
That’s why he had rushed over the moment he got word that Commander Baek’s son was outside Grave’s bombardment range.
But the Turtle Ship’s damage was minimal.
There were scratches, but nothing to be satisfied with.
It seemed to be due to that ominous black magic power surrounding the Turtle Ship.
Even at this distance, their skin tingled.
Just how far has Commander Baek’s son advanced?
What on earth is he doing inside to emit such a nauseating deathly aura?
Boom— Boom—
The dark interior vibrated with explosive sound.
On a screen hovering against one wall, the elves surrounding the Turtle Ship were visible.
Despite living in a high-tech city, they rode hoverbikes painted with trees.
In their hands were mana stone staffs and cutting-edge compound bows.
Hating humans while imitating them.
Even their beautiful appearances seemed grotesque.
“No… this must stop…”
Frank struck his own head.
As if to prove he was under severe stress, the surface of the Necroshell trembled in waves.
“If this goes on, he’ll really die…”
Administrators and their familiars are linked by black magic power.
Severe pain or stress is partly felt by the other linked party.
In particular, much of the stress or pain felt by the Necromancer, the source of black magic power, flows into the familiar.
“Frank said we should go outside… It’s all Frank’s fault…”
Beside the self-reproaching Frank was a firmly shut iron door.
Loud noises were pouring out from inside.
Dum! Doo-dung— Dum! Doo-dung—
From heavy drumbeats to sharp gongs.
Over them, the jingle of bells and Seonhwa’s murmured voice were layered.
“No… Baek Ho, no…”
Opposite the sobbing Frank.
A duo from the Liberation Army sat stiffly.
It was too late to escape with the injured Cow Mask, so they had to follow Baek Ho.
“What are they doing in there…?”
“I heard it’s Yeomra’s traditional ritual… a gut, I think…”
“Even if they do that, can the ship really hold?”
At Chicken Mask’s remark, Pig Mask sighed deeply.
“We have to trust Baek Ho…”
“Yeah… Baek Ho… it still doesn’t feel real…”
Pig Mask rose and paced anxiously.
On one side the elves’ bombardment roared; on the other, instruments and voices clamored.
There was nothing they could do here.
They had been ordered not to communicate outside, so they couldn’t call for help from Liberation Army HQ.
“Ha…”
Just as Pig Mask was berating his own weakness.
The iron door flung open.
Noisy sound spilled out from inside, revealing Seonhwa’s figure.
Sweat streamed down and makeup ran.
She wore a trailing red robe and held a shaman’s bell in her hand.
“Bring the Agony Drink…”
She said this and closed the door.
The Agony Drink is a poison that Necromancers use to fill themselves with black magic power.
Why was she asking them for that?
“…Ah!“
Pig Mask slapped his palm.
He approached the clothes Baek Ho had taken off.
From the coat’s inner pocket he pulled out a pocket whiskey bottle he’d gifted.
It seemed she had heard of its existence and asked for it to be brought.
…How should I deliver this?
He fretted, bottle in hand.
He worried he might have to take it in himself, was he even allowed to enter?
He’d been repeatedly told not to enter before the ritual began.
They claimed a living human could be struck by malevolent force or something like that.
So he looked at Frank.
He wondered if the Undead, Frank, his only familiar, could bring it.
But he couldn’t bring himself to ask the one slamming his head in despair.
As he swallowed nervously, thinking he’d have to hand it over himself.
“I’ll do it…”
Nana, curled up in a corner, spoke.
She had awoken from a coma shortly after being brought in and had been given a rough briefing by the Liberation Army.
Demonic beings, Baek Ho, elves, escape.
And she believed all that was happening now was her fault.
She thought it was because she’d tried to escape her life as a doll.
“Miss Nana, if a living person goes in there…”
“She’s an Undead. You know that.”
“Ah… that’s right…”
Nana accepted the pocket whiskey bottle from Pig Mask.
She recalled Baek Ho’s last moments as he drank this.
She remembered him sitting and praying beside the dying Cow Mask, but after Baek Ho poured black magic power into her, memory grew blank.
She stood before the iron door with a tense face.
Loud sounds rolled out from within.
Dum! Doo-dung— Dum! Doo-dung—
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Even she, who had lived with music all her life, had never heard this type before.
It was a quick, brisk rhythm, but it felt tense rather than joyful.
It muddled the mind and squeezed the heart.
And Seonhwa’s voice laid atop the melody, what about that?
She murmured like prayer, then screamed as if in agony.
Just hearing it sent goosebumps all over.
“Hoo…”
She was scared, but she held on.
She wanted to be of some help.
So she opened the door and stepped inside.
Seven stars gathered in the Grave conference room.
They were admirals commanding capital ships, here representing the seven major corporations.
Seven gazes fixed on the holographic screen ahead.
Through reconnaissance drones they watched the Turtle Ship fleeing from the elves.
“It’s no use anymore.”
“It’s remarkable it’s lasted this long.”
“Why did they disable the cloaking system? Lack of experience, perhaps?”
“It’s useless against elves proficient in magic. They probably tried to conserve output energy. Don’t they even know that?”
“Impossible. I mean, it’s odd they didn’t use it from the start.”
“…You two seem oddly pleased by this situation?“
Like the admirals’ relations, the Turtle Ship looked precarious.
Its flight had slowed and its hull was dented.
It wouldn’t be surprising if it crashed at any moment.
It seemed to be holding out by focusing on escape rather than fighting, but that couldn’t last long.
“Truly regrettable.”
The admiral representing Izanami Corporation clicked his tongue.
“Because of Yeomra’s blunder, they’ve lost twenty top-grade Reapers and even a special escort ship?”
“……“
“Also that promising child who would lead Yeomra’s future. It’s a shame, but what can be done? He foolishly went out alone.”
The admiral from Yeomra trembled with anger at Izanami admiral’s sneer.
He wanted to shoot him in the head, but that wouldn’t do.
This incident would already disadvantage Commander Baek’s promotion to Supreme Commander.
He could not add fuel to that fire.
Izanami acted that way knowing precisely that.
“Still, it’s impressive.”
The admiral from Anubis wore an intrigued expression.
“A boy who hasn’t even become an official commander showing such a black magic power wave, honestly, it’s astounding.”
“I agree. Even if he’s squeezing out life force, it’s hard to believe he’s just a cadet who hasn’t graduated.”
“……“
The Izanami admiral fell silent.
It was a clear fact; he had no retort.
If today’s events hadn’t happened and he had smoothly become commander, what would the future have held?
Would that boy have become a hero?
Would Underheaven and Grave have been Yeomra’s world?
From Izanami’s long-time rival perspective, today’s events were very fortunate.
Still… he won’t survive that situation, will he?
Just as seeds of unease sprouted in the Izanami admiral’s mind.
A Reaper, who had been watching the radar in the corner of the conference room, sprang up.
“It has appeared!”
The screen that had been showing the Turtle Ship switched to the radar display.
A single red dot was rapidly heading toward the Turtle Ship.
“It’s the leader of the urban elf tribe!”
At that one word, the seven admirals’ expressions twisted.
The very one responsible for scattering the Grim Reapers had finally arrived.
The culprit who had made them hesitate to send reinforcements had arrived.
Some lamented that everything was over.
Others inwardly celebrated that it was completely over.
The drumbeats were thunderous.
They pounded as if to burst Nana’s already racing heart.
Dum! Doo-dung— Dum! Doo-dung—
Numerous candles flickered inside the dark room.
Yellow talismans plastered the four windowless walls, and on the floor a large magic circle was inscribed in blood.
Around the edge of the magic circle, twenty Grim Reapers sat at even intervals.
Some beat drums and gongs, others played the transverse flute and pipes.
The rest clasped their hands and chanted the same phrases repeatedly.
-Om somani hum harihanna banaya barabe sabaha… Om somani hum harihanna banaya barabe sabaha…
With a low resonance, the Grim Reapers’ Necroshells pulsed with a soft light.
Inside that deep-blue glow, Seongyu was beating a drum.
He struck the drumhead as if to tear the skin with his sticks, leading the band.
Dum! Doo-dung— Dum! Doo-dung—
In front of Seongyu his enormous sword stood fixed with its blade pointing upward.
On that razor-sharp blade.
Seonhwa, in red robes, stood barefoot atop it.
Jingling a golden shaman’s bell in her hand, she hopped up and down.
Matching the accelerating drums, she danced fiercely and continued murmuring song in a low, hoarse voice.
“Bound by grudges, grudges turned to bindings, wind spirits, vengeful ghosts, bear your grudges and descend to this place—”
Nana’s heart thudded violently as she watched.
This felt like a stage, with unknown presences seated all around, watching.
She was terrified.
She wanted to run.
More than the blood-scented space.
More than the pounding percussion.
More than Seonhwa shaking the bell atop the blade.
She wanted to leave because of Baek Ho, sitting cross-legged among them.
His eyelids shut tight.
A bare upper body covered in scars.
Red letters etched across it.
IV lines pierced every part of his body, and from IV packs hanging from the ceiling, unknown liquids bubbled.
Dum! Doo-dung— Dum! Doo-dung—
Seonhwa stepped down from the cleaver and continued her murmuring.
“If thirst keeps you from coming, fall into the river of blood, if you get lost and cannot find the way, cross via the endless iron bridge—”
She smeared blood from a bowl beside her over both her hands.
Like washing her face.
Without stopping her dance, she strode toward Nana.
With eyes reddened as if holding back tears, she spoke.
“Hand it over.”
She snatched the pocket whiskey bottle from Nana’s hand.
She opened the cap and poured the poison into her own mouth.
Shaking her body, she approached Baek Ho.
She drew a small knife from her robes and cut the edge of her lip.
Forcing Baek Ho’s mouth open, she pressed her wounded lips to his.
She forcibly poured the poison she held in her mouth into his.
-Om somani hum harihanna banaya barabe sabaha… Om somani hum…
Baek Ho’s Adam’s apple bobbed.
Eyes rolled beneath his eyelids.
Dark red veins surfaced all over his torso starting from his heart.
Black, viscous black magic power steamed from his skin like vapor.
It swallowed the surrounding candles, took over the room, then seeped into the two palms resting on his knees.
Like rotten water being sucked down a drain.
“Hoo…”
Nana broke out in a cold sweat.
She clenched her dampened hands tight.
She didn’t know what this ritual was, but the longer she watched, the more dizzy she became.
It felt similar to before her memory had faltered while treating the Cow Mask.
Dum! Doo-dung— Dum! Doo-dung—
Grasping at her wavering mind, Nana stared at Baek Ho.
He didn’t move, like a dead man.
A hazy memory of a conversation between Baek Ho and Seonhwa surfaced.
‘You want me to perform a gut! How can a girl spill her flesh for the young master!?’
‘This is the only way to sustain black magic power.’
‘Absolutely not. We shrine-maidens have passed down the gut to prosper Yeomra, never to…’
‘Bong Seonhwa.’
’…Yes, young master.’
‘I don’t want to see people die anymore. Especially my people.’
‘We Grim Reapers have died hundreds, thousands of times already. Death holds no fear for us.’
‘So you want me to abandon you all and run alone? Someone will be completely annihilated. They might become test subjects for another species.’
‘But, young master…’
‘Help me so I can save everyone.’
‘Even if you say that…’
‘It’s an order.’
‘You might die…’
‘Don’t worry. For now, my life is the most precious.’
Baek Ho was now squeezing his life force to use black magic power.
He was killing himself to save others.
He was wielding power far beyond his usual spellwork.
“You are…”
Nana didn’t understand his situation.
She didn’t know what kind of person he was.
She couldn’t tell whether this was a grand resolve or sheer recklessness.
But she knew one thing.
That all this had happened because of her own foolish decision to become a dead person.
“I’m sorry… because of me…”
So she wanted to help that foolish man.
How?
When she stood distraught before the dying Cow Mask, she remembered what Baek Ho had told her.
‘Do what you can. Even pray, if you must.’
She had healed the Cow Mask.
She didn’t know how it happened, but she had.
Couldn’t the same be possible for Baek Ho, a fellow human?
If so, could she stop that dying act?
“Let’s try…”
Nana knelt.
She clasped her hands and began to pray.
“To the Heavens above… light… gently embrace…”
The prayer wouldn’t come.
Her mind was blank as a sheet.
She couldn’t think of Reaper’s chronic brain problem, she was just flustered.
What to do? What now?
Should she sing to use her ability?
Her eyes caught Seonhwa’s intense dance.
The humming liturgy reached her ears.
The dense black magic power drawn from Baek Ho’s core seeped into her body.
Nana’s expression slowly changed.
“…Ssuup.“
She clicked her tongue.
She licked the twitching corner of her mouth with her tongue.
With more visible whites in her eyes, she looked at Seonhwa and thought.
…Should I imitate her?
I could do it better.
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