Chapter 131: In Shambles (5)

The abominable mass writhed grotesquely under the bloodied sky. Bones and viscous fluid floated within the shapeless form. Its five legs trampled buildings beneath them, while eight arms stretched outward in every direction. A warped face, fused to its shoulders, rippled like a mirage.

It resembled a giant slime, stretching several dozen meters tall, but this was far more horrifying than any ordinary slime. Its grotesque appearance was nightmarish.

The priests of Saisha recoiled in shock, crying out.

"By the heavens! How could anyone commit such a vile act?”

"He consumed his own comrades!"

This was necromancy at its most depraved. What he had performed was an atrocity no human should ever undertake.

Karnak, glaring at Hudel, erupted in fury. "What monstrous cruelty is this? These were the subordinates who trusted and followed you!"

His righteous indignation and upright stance, as though he were a man of impeccable honor, left Serati with her mouth agape.

Wow, the nerve of this man!

𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

Wasn't this the exact thing Karnak had tried to do during his fight with Lapicel? Standing nearby, Varos smirked and shrugged his shoulders proudly.

—That's our young master, putting on a performance again.

—You're proud of

that

?

—Better than not being able to act at all, isn't it?

Varos's relaxed demeanor showed no sign of concern. No matter how powerful or terrifying the display, in the end, it was still necromancy. And among them was a former Monarch of Death.

I’m sure the young master will handle it.

As expected, the spreading darkness began to recede, starting from its edges. Spheres of light formed within the black mass, emitting strange noises as they burrowed into its surface.

Scrrrreeeeech...

Karnak's Redeemer of Necromancy was eating away at the monstrous darkness.

So, this is how it goes,

Hudel thought calmly as he assessed the situation.

I don't know how that man knows this magic...

He understood the principles of the spell through Elezar's teachings. Though Hudel wasn't a mage and couldn't cast it himself, he knew its workings. It exploited gaps in necromantic structures to create errors, ultimately turning the magic against itself. To counter it, one either had to use necromancy simple enough to leave no openings...

...or concentrate one's necromantic power to the point where no gaps can form!

Floating within the dark mass, Hudel opened his mouth to chant. "To the nameless being, I grant a fate."

The darkness that had spread outward contracted rapidly, compressing into itself. The massive form, spanning dozens of meters, shrank to a compact size of just a few meters, tearing the air with its sheer density.

"Come forth, the one who bears the name of Death!”

***

The formless monstrosity, once towering dozens of meters high, was no more. In its place stood a three-meter-tall giant of darkness. Though it was significantly smaller, it was far from weaker. If anything, its concentrated form exuded an even more oppressive aura. Its polished, obsidian-like surface shimmered with an ominous black sheen.

"No matter what tricks you try to pull..."

The dark giant, now fully merged with Hudel, glared with glowing red eyes.

"...they mean nothing before absolute power!"

A black storm erupted above the village, its destructive winds sweeping across the castle village, engulfing Karnak and everything else in its path.

Boom!

But the onslaught didn't end there. The storm split the heavens, unleashing a rain of blood that poured relentlessly over the battlefield. Wherever the crimson rain touched, buildings and stone pavement melted away, releasing thick clouds of steam.

"Take cover!”

"Raise the holy barriers!"

Priests and temple soldiers scrambled to shield themselves, huddling beneath divine protection to escape the corrosive rain.

Hudel looked down upon the scene with a haughty smile. "Hmph! Just like a bunch of rats!"

He had every reason to be arrogant. With just a single strike, the entire area had been turned into a wasteland.

Looking up at the rooftop, Alius shuddered. "That's an incredible amount of power..."

Amid the billowing smoke, the half-destroyed remains of a building came into view. Standing atop it was Karnak, his entire body shielded by a magical barrier. He swept his hand through his dust-covered hair.

"Impressive, I'll admit."

Although he was covered in dirt, he didn't seem injured in the slightest.

Hudel narrowed his eyes. "Ho, so you managed to avoid it."

Serati, watching from below, sent a telepathic message.

—Should we step in, Sir Karnak?

—Not yet.

Hudel's voice rang out again, dripping with disdain. "What's next? Another one of your petty tricks?"

"Who knows?" Karnak replied cryptically as he began to rise into the air.

Hudel's expression hardened slightly.

Flight magic? That's not exactly efficient in the middle of a fight.

A mage gracefully flying around, shooting fire and lightning? It might look impressive, but in reality, it made them an easy target for counterattacks. Sometimes it was used in large-scale battles to demoralize the enemy, but in a situation like this, it was practically useless. And yet, he was deliberately making himself an aerial target.

"Hmph, I'll swat you down like the annoying fly you are."

With a sneer, Hudel raised his arms. From behind him, dozens of jet-black beams shot forward like lightning.

"Let's see if you can dodge this!"

True to expectation, Karnak failed to dodge. Every single beam struck him directly.

Boom!

Yet, Karnak didn't fall. He had erected a barrier that absorbed the full force of the attack while being suspended in air by his flight magic.

Hudel gave a begrudging nod. "Not bad. Your defense is decent."

But in the end, it was merely a sixth-circle barrier spell. On the other hand, Hudel had devoured the lives of dozens of cultists and necromancers, consolidating their energy into an immense, compressed power.

"How long do you think you can last?"

The explosions continued relentlessly.

Boom! Boom!

Hudel's brow furrowed slightly.

Something isn't right.

His opponent was holding out better than expected, far better, in fact.

Can a sixth-circle barrier really be this durable?

By all logic, the barrier should have shattered long ago. It would make sense if Karnak was rapidly recasting it after each break, but holding steady with a single spell for this long?

What's going on?

Suddenly, Karnak posed a cryptic question. “Can you see me?"

Startled, Hudel focused his attention.

An illusion or hallucinatory magic?

No, Karnak was definitely there, right in front of him.

"What are you trying to say?"

"Can you

really

see me?"

"Why are you asking such an obvious question?!?”

A sense of unease crept into Hudel, and his tone became sharper, tinged with nervousness.

Karnak smiled faintly. "Then I suppose you're not watching what's below."

Below?

Hudel instinctively glanced down toward the street beneath the building. His face turned pale. Twenty golems were standing there, each with an outstretched hand aimed directly at him.

What? How did they get there?

On the massive stone palms, circular magic arrays flickered, emitting a low, menacing hum. Twenty magical projectiles charged with energy, ready to unleash devastation.

Whirrr!

With a playful tone, Karnak snapped his fingers.

"Fire!"

Twenty blazing projectiles streaked through the air, splitting the sky above the village.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

***

Amid the smoke and chaos, the three-meter-tall dark giant crashed to the street below.

Thud!

The impact echoed, shaking the ground. Without hesitation all of the golems charged forward. From every direction, the stone giants swung their massive fists.

"Ugh! Ughhh!"

Startled, Hudel scrambled to counterattack. What followed was an unrelenting melee of brute force—punches, grapples, kicks, and strikes flew between the dark giant and the golems. With each blow, shards of stone and fragments of darkness exploded into the air.

Crash! Smash! Thud!

"Urgh!"

Groaning, Hudel struggled to keep up. Every time a golem was destroyed, a piece of his darkness shattered along with it.

Why... why is my body breaking so easily?

Karnak's golems were undeniably strong. That much he admitted. But even accounting for their power, his necromantic armor was crumbling far too easily.

Could there be some kind of magic that breaks through the darkness's defense?

Hovering in the air, Karnak stroked his chin thoughtfully as he observed the battlefield below. "Tsk, tsk. You should at least understand what you're doing."

Magic relied on concentration, while necromancy thrived on dispersion. That was how their respective powers reached maximum potential.

"But what happens when you try to focus necromantic energy into a single point?"

Clumsily concentrated necromantic power was no more than amorphous, brittle darkness. While the candy witch had been a rare exception to this rule, the principle generally held true. In contrast, Karnak had concentrated his magic to create precise, devastating force. In other words, Hudel was pitting his weakness against Karnak's greatest strength.

"It's like attacking someone’s fist with your gut and wondering why you're the one who's in pain.”

And yet, Hudel couldn't simply revert to using simpler necromantic spells to counter Karnak's Redeemer of Necromancy. Simpler necromancy lacked sufficient power to be effective. It had only worked against Karnak until now because his necromantic abilities had been insignificant in the past. But even with the overwhelming disparity in their abilities, Karnak still managed to turn the tide.

That was the true strength of Redeemer of Necromancy

.

no matter the counterstrategy, the opponent was always forced into a disadvantageous position. The only true way to counter it was to reverse its principles and turn the penetrating spellwork back against it.

"Not that he's capable of that," Karnak muttered as he pointed his magic rod at the battered Hudel below. "Can't let the golems do all the work. I should lend a hand."

A radiant bolt of light sliced through the air and struck the ground with ferocious force.

Boom!

The deafening explosion sent the dark giant hurtling through a building, leaving a massive crater in its wake. Destruction carved a brutal path through the castle village, marking the scene of utter devastation.

"Da-damn it!"

Hudel thrashed and writhed as he unleashed darkness in every direction.

"This can't be happening!"

He couldn't understand it. Even if his necromancy violated certain principles, the sheer magnitude of the power he had gathered was immense. There was no way such overwhelming strength could falter like this.

"This is the power gained through everyone's sacrifice!"

As Karnak descended slowly from the air, he came to stand in front of Hudel. "Exactly. That's another reason why you're weak."

"What are you talking about?"

Hudel tried to push himself up, but his body betrayed him, sending him crashing back to the ground.

"Urgh!"

He didn't know what Karnak had done, but his necromantic energy was thrashing wildly. It was quickly escaping his control.

Karnak clicked his tongue as he approached the fallen man. "You still pity the humans you consumed, don't you? That's why you keep calling it a sacrifice.”

For a moment, Hudel froze, confusion etched across his face.

What else would you call a sacrifice if not a sacrifice?

Karnak raised his right hand. "And that's why you fail."

An unavoidable sacrifice for a greater cause? If one deluded oneself with such justifications, one could never become a true necromancer. If one felt guilt for using sacrificial lambs, one shouldn't have sacrificed them in the first place. Or one should have killed them so dispassionately that the thought of them being sacrifices never even crossed their mind.

"Do you weep for the farmer's blood and sweat every time you lift a spoon to eat? Can you even digest your meal like that?” Karnak's finger pointed directly at Hudel's chest. "You have to eat comfortably."

He murmured a low incantation. "Piercing light, Arcane Burst

.

"

A brilliant explosion of light erupted, obliterating all of Hudel's remaining darkness. With the deafening roar, Hudel's tattered body was thrown to the ground. He didn't scream. Only faint, labored breaths betrayed that he was still alive.

"There's too much I need to learn from him, so I'll keep you alive."

Karnak clicked his tongue as he gazed down at the defeated Hudel. Hudel's necromancy wasn't weak. But his inability to wield it properly had left glaring vulnerabilities.

And the reason? His lingering humanity. To become a true necromancer, one had to abandon all semblance of humanity. And if one wanted to live like a human, one could never truly embrace necromancy.

"It's hard to live like a proper person," Karnak muttered with a wry smile.