Necromancer Of The Black Bible (163)

The ice spear Hyro launched was truly ferocious.

It was more than twice as long as one made by an ordinary mage, and its speed was beyond what the eye could follow.

Whoosh-

The flying ice spear headed straight for Helion’s chest, and Helion tried to block it by erecting a flame barrier.

However.

Thud-

Despite the two hands Helion had extended, the ice spear pierced the barrier and sank straight into his chest.

“Ghk!”

Helion had an instinct that something was wrong.

Hyro’s magic had become excessively powerful, even compared to his own weakened magic.

He tried to figure out why, but another ice spear came flying in.

Thud-

The ice spear fired this time lodged itself in Helion’s abdomen.

“Ghk!”

Helion wanted to escape this place, but he couldn’t.

The ice spread across the floor was already gripping both his legs tightly, and it was slowly wrapping around his entire body.

“D-damn it!!”

Helion’s red blood dripped onto the white-frozen floor of the arena.

Since he was impersonating Leopold, the sight shocked everyone around him.

House Eckhart, blessed by the Ancient Crimson Dragon.

The head of House Eckhart and Towermaster was bleeding in the middle of a duel.

Those watching from outside the barrier stood up, eyes fixed on the scene.

Some wore worried looks, while others watched with curious eyes.

Then Dolman’s voice rang out.

-The difference in skill is overwhelming. Surrender.

-But…!

-Shut up and surrender if you want to live. You can only take revenge if you’re still alive.

Leopold’s orders and his own life.

Weighing the importance of the two, Helion made his decision at once.

“I-I yield!”

Helion’s voice echoed through the center of the arena.

Yet no one stopped the duel.

The Emperor merely watched, and the Imperial Guard knights overseeing the match also remained silent.

Hyro, standing in front, smiled faintly and spoke.

“What you’ve done is too much to stop here.”

“Wh-what?”

“You dared to lie before the Emperor, so first you must pay for that sin.”

“…!!!”

Helion had no choice but to be astonished.

The illusion magic he had cast had not yet been broken.

Moreover, the magic he had used up to now was also the draconic-word magic Leopold usually used.

Even so, he couldn’t understand how his identity had been exposed.

“What, what trickery is this!”

“The trick… is the one you’re playing, Helion.”

Hyro raised his staff, and in that instant Helion’s entire body was covered in ice.

The force was so overwhelming that he couldn’t move an inch.

The ice Hyro unleashed froze Helion solid, leaving only his face exposed.

The intense cold made Helion’s face go pale.

He drew up all his remaining mana, but it wasn’t enough to counter Hyro’s Ice magic.

Hyro walked up to the struggling Helion and stood before his face.

“How dare you impersonate the Towermaster.”

Hyro smiled darkly, then shouted to everyone.

“This man is not the Towermaster. He is an impostor pretending to be him.”

Then Hyro’s palm turned blue.

At the same time, the illusion magic that had been on Helion until now began to unravel.

Leopold’s face soon changed into Helion’s distorted face, and Hyro continued.

“The crime of impersonating the Towermaster and fighting this duel in his place is no light one. To dare deceive even the Emperor…”

“I-I can explain. Give me a chance…”

“You have already been given far too many chances.”

Without hesitation, Hyro formed an ice spear and drove it into Helion’s heart.

It happened so quickly, and because the inside of the arena was blocked by a barrier, everyone could only watch.

The ministers, including the witnesses summoned from the Mage Tower, were staring wide-eyed in shock, but the Emperor was not.

He watched expressionlessly, as if he had expected it.

“Hk, huhk!!”

Helion breathed laboriously a few times, then let his head fall.

Hyro cut off his head and set it down before the Emperor, saying,

“He is the court mage Helion. This man was impersonating Leopold.”

Hyro’s heavy voice echoed through the arena enclosed by the barrier.

The Emperor nodded with a grave expression.

“It seems you are right.”

He looked left and right, trying to find the rest of the court mages, but they had already hidden themselves.

Hyro spoke.

“Seeing that they’ve hidden themselves, it seems the rest of the court mages have other intentions. Please issue warrants for their arrest.”

“I will.”

The Emperor immediately issued an order to the commander of the guard.

Then he had the barrier lowered and approached Hyro.

Hyro knelt and bowed respectfully, and the Emperor placed his sword on Hyro’s shoulder and spoke.

“As of today, the truth has been revealed. Towermaster Leopold has disappeared. Since we can no longer entrust him with the grave duty of being Imperial Towermaster, I hereby entrust that duty to Hyro here.”

“I am honored.”

And so Hyro became the Towermaster.

The Emperor looked down at the new Towermaster, Hyro, and asked,

“Towermaster.”

“Yes.”

“How do you think we should respond to the appearance of the Necromancer?”

Hyro bowed his head and spoke of what he had long been thinking.

“He commands an undead legion that can think and act on its own. The number I’ve confirmed is 20,000, and if Graneum Castle has fallen, it will be 50,000. If we face them head-on, even a million soldiers won’t be enough. For however many they kill, those same numbers will rise again as undead.”

At Hyro’s words, the Emperor’s expression grew grave.

It wasn’t just him.

The ministers with him also stiffened, and the expressions of the mages dispatched from the Tower became serious as well.

Deep wrinkles formed between the Emperor’s brows.

“To rise again as enemies in the same numbers as those killed… Just imagining it is chilling.”

He looked down at Hyro and asked again,

“Is there a way to fight and defeat them?”

“I can’t guarantee it, but there is one method worth trying.”

Hyro met the Emperor’s gaze and continued.

“Request aid from every nation on the continent. Send word not only to the kingdoms with peace treaties, but also to the Dead Lands that have not yet been conquered. You must ask for aid from the Elves and Dwarves in the Pristine Forest and the Light of the Abyss as well. And we must ask this person for help too.”

When Hyro fell silent, the Emperor asked again,

“Who else must we ask for help?”

If one gathered the armies of every kingdom on the continent and the Dead Lands, along with the Elves and Dwarves, you could call it all the armies in this world.

The Emperor could not even guess who else should be added to that.

Knowing this, Hyro opened his mouth in a clearer voice.

“We need the power of a Demon King.”

Instantly, the Emperor’s pupils trembled.

At the same time, everyone around them began to murmur.

But Hyro continued in an even louder voice.

“If the Demon King does not help us, we will lose.”

Hyro’s words were sincere.

Hyro, who had finally become Towermaster.

It was the moment when a deep wish spanning decades was realized, but Hyro’s expression was dark.

From here on, he would have to challenge something no Towermaster in history had ever succeeded in.

The sky over Graneum Castle was still a deep gray.

The blizzard continued to rage fiercely, and the cold persisted.

Damian intentionally kept it that way.

It was to avoid drawing the enemy’s attention.

-We detected movement in the western forest. Should we pursue?

It was the report of the Elementalist Laerin.

I borrowed Laerin’s sight for a moment and checked the target.

A soldier wearing imperial leather armor.

Since he was riding a fairly good horse, he seemed to be a scout sent on urgent business.

“What should I do?”

Honestly, leaving him alone wouldn’t be a big problem.

They couldn’t defeat my undead legion anyway.

But the words my master used to repeat habitually flashed through my mind.

<Complacency brings great regret. Especially in battle, a moment of carelessness can change the outcome. So be thorough in everything. That habit will save not only your life, but ours too.>

‘There’s no need to leave behind future trouble.’

Having reached a conclusion, I immediately ordered Laerin.

-Take care of it.

-Yes, sir.

Laerin responded instantly.

As she murmured something to the ether, lightning struck the soldier, and he turned to ash in an instant.

‘Better than most mages.’

Laerin had been impressive when dealing with the mages before as well.

They were mages of a fairly high level at a glance, but Laerin handled them alone.

She had even badly injured a mage of around the 6th circle, who was quite high-level.

‘She’s almost on par with Leopold in a fight.’

Honestly, I hadn’t expected much, but finding unexpected talent didn’t feel bad.

‘By the way, not yet?’

I went out onto the balcony and looked down inside the castle.

In the wide square, the soldiers of Valbern, who had recently been surrounded and killed, lay sprawled about.

In the middle of it stood Valbern’s severed head, impaled on a spear.

This was Kael’s doing.

To crush the enemy’s morale, he struck Valbern down the moment he entered the castle and mounted him on a spear like a banner.

Seeing this, the enemy lost the will to fight.

Thanks to that, our forces could surround them and wipe them out in an instant.

I had Ceres prepare suitable souls so I could raise them through Necromancy.

I had asked her to exclude in advance any troublemakers who might stage a rebellion like before, so it would take some time.

‘But spending a few days like this is desolate.’

The square strewn with frozen corpses looked utterly bleak.

Empty eyes and twisted expressions.

The final struggle to live.

Looking at them, I am reminded of my former life’s self.

‘Enough.’

I closed my eyes.

I didn’t want to recall the miserable and shabby memories of my past life again.

Then a familiar voice came to my ear.

-Master. It is ready.

It was Ceres’s voice.

I asked her back without changing my tone.

-There aren’t any weird ones mixed in like last time, right?

-Yes. I tightened the screening standards and made new contracts as well. I can’t stop those who change their minds midway, but there won’t be anyone dumb enough to act openly foolish.

-Got it.

That was enough.

I spread both hands toward the Ethereal Gate.

Then I could feel the presence of the souls Ceres had prepared.

‘Warm. And strong.’

Feeling a strange thrill, I stroked each and every one of them.

My mana was already overflowing.

And with the mana stored in the Ethereal Gate as well, I could connect with all 30,000 souls.

I spoke to them.