Karnak, Monarch of Death

The party was led to an office on the third floor of the King’s Order headquarters. There, a man in his forties with a dignified presence greeted them.

“Welcome. I am Erantel, commander of the King’s Order.”

Erantel von Naiad. He was one of only two purple-tier aura users—known as purple knights—in the Eustil Kingdom, alongside Sir Alond, the commander of the royal knights. Formerly the vice-commander of the royal knights, Erantel was renowned for his upright and honorable character. He earned both the public’s respect and the trust of King Wiscott I. His appointment as the commander of the King’s Order was proof of how seriously the royal family regarded this institution.

The group introduced themselves.

“I am Karnak of Zestrad.”

“I am Serati, and I serve Baron Karnak.”

“I am Varos, also serving Baron Karnak.”

Erantel nodded while gesturing to the recommendation letter in his hand.

“All three of you meet the qualifications. Your identities are confirmed, and more importantly, this is a recommendation from Inquisitor Alius. He’s someone I trust implicitly.”

Karnak and Varos exchanged a subtle glance.

Alius must be pretty famous, huh?

Yeah. Even people in the capital seem to know him.

While they hadn’t realized it before, Alius was indeed well-known. He possessed immense divine power, which allowed him to rise to the rank of first-class inquisitor, and he had remarkable achievements.

In Derath City alone, Alius and the Hatoba Church had successfully eliminated over fifty necromancers. It was truly an accomplishment rarely matched across the church branches of the Eustil Kingdom.

“If Inquisitor Alius has personally selected you, then you are certainly worthy of joining the King’s Order,” Erantel continued. Then his expression turned stern. “But I trust you also know that a recommendation alone doesn’t make you full members.”

Karnak, as though expecting this, replied calmly. “I’ve been made aware of that.”

Joining the King’s Order did not mean becoming a full-fledged member immediately. All new recruits underwent a probationary period as trainee members. During this time, they would be assigned to veteran officers, learning to confront heretical cults in the field while the King’s Order evaluated their capabilities and trustworthiness.

“Until then, you won’t truly be King’s Order members. You’ll only carry out duties under the order’s command,” Erantel explained.

In other words, they wouldn’t yet receive potentially abusable privileges, such as the authority for immediate executions or unrestricted interrogations. The focus would be on assessing their ability to handle tasks.

“It’s not just you. Every new recruit goes through this process,” Erantel added.

Karnak had no objections. In fact, if they had been accepted too easily, it would’ve been concerning. That would have implied that even cultists could infiltrate the organization without difficulty.

“Anyway, this is quite an intriguing group,” Erantel mused. “A lord and his knights, all joining at once...”

“Is that a problem?” Karnak asked.

Erantel waved a hand dismissively. “Huh? Ah, no, not at all. It’s not unprecedented.”

There had been prior cases of lords joining with their retinues. Viscount Roland, captain of the Third Squad, was one such example. While a great noble joining such a dangerous institution might seem irresponsible, for rural nobles, it was a chance to elevate their family’s prestige. It was a particularly tempting opportunity for ambitious young lords.

Since noble families couldn’t simply let their young lord head into danger by themselves, it was natural for powerful knights to accompany them. Of course, unqualified retainers wouldn’t pass the selection process, but the dynamic itself wasn’t unusual. What truly caught Erantel’s attention, however, was something else.

...Is the Zestrad family really capable of having an aura user as a knight?

Though he phrased it politely, Serati’s strength was clearly unusual for a knight of a backwater barony. For someone to awaken aura at her age and reach the red-tier level, even a grand duchy would consider her a talent worth coveting.

Is she a treasured sword in a goblin’s hand, or is there something I don’t know?

According to Alius’s letter, Karnak possessed exceptional magical potential despite his current level, with immense room for growth. Perhaps as an aura user, Serati had instinctively recognized his talent. Erantel shook off his curiosity.

Well, we’ll see soon enough.

Karnak had to go through a probationary period anyway. If he truly was an unpolished gem, he would prove it through his actions. If not, there’d be no need to pay him any further attention. He would either fail and die or return to his territory.

Clasping his hands behind his back, Erantel spoke leisurely. “Very well, I’ll assign you your first mission.”

Varos and Serati looked startled.

“What? Right now?”

“But we only just got here!”

The middle-aged man smiled knowingly, as though he’d anticipated their reaction.

“That’s the nature of our work. Crises are always unfolding, and we’re always busy. You’d best get used to it.”

It was the kind of smile that said, Prepare yourselves—your struggles start now.

“Welcome to the King’s Order,” he added.

***

The King’s Order was composed of seven squads centered around their commander, Sir Erantel, with each unit consisting of a small, elite group of 8 to 10 members. Karnak and his companions were assigned to the Fourth Squad. There, they met the senior members they would work with on their first mission.

Among them was Tarman. He was the second son of the prestigious Alban County and a mage of the 5th circle. There was Kald, a swordsman who had worked as a shadow hunter before joining the King’s Order. Lastly, Alice, a 2nd-grade inquisitor of Atima, the Goddess of the Sea, completed the trio.

The following morning, the group set out at dawn from the capital, Drunta, heading toward the southern regions of the kingdom.

As they traveled along the main road, Serati grumbled. “I didn’t expect we’d leave right away without even getting a look around the capital.”

Karnak and Varos shared her sentiment, despite having grown tired of Drunta in their past lives.

“Tch, I even had a list of all the good restaurants ready.”

“Exactly. I planned to visit them one by one, starting from the west.”

Varos, still muttering, asked the ones leading the way. “Is the King’s Order always this busy? Do you never get any downtime?”

“Of course not.”

The reply came from Tarman, the Fourth Squad’s captain, a plump man in his thirties with a cheerful smile.

“You just have bad timing. You happened to arrive the day we got a mission.”

“So it’s just bad luck, huh?”

“You could say it’s good luck too. A long probation period isn’t exactly fun, is it?” Kald, the swordsman, chimed in.

“But even with better timing, you’d only have waited a few days at most. The truth is, there’s always work to do.”

Kald was a sharp-eyed young man. He was a unique practitioner wielding two blades, a longsword and a dagger, and was said to be unmatched in the Delim region.

“Not that it means much in the King’s Order. I haven’t even awakened my aura yet.”

As he murmured, Kald shot glances at Serati. He was clearly curious about the new aura user, a natural curiosity for someone so dedicated to the sword. Meanwhile, Alice, the priestess, seemed focused on something else entirely.

“Miss Serati, your skin is surprisingly smooth. Not what I’d expect from an aura user.”

“What does aura have to do with skin?”

“Well, there are two aura users in our squad, and both of them are covered in scars. I thought all aura users were like that.”

Varos found something odd as he listened in.

Wait, the Fourth Squad has two aura users?

For reference, the Fourth Squad’s leader was the mage Tarman. Which meant...

“Are you saying aura users are just regular members of the squad?”

Aura users were rare enough that he assumed one would naturally be a squad captain.

Tarman smirked.

“Why? Is it strange for an aura user to serve under someone who’s only a fifth-circle mage?”

“N-no, I’m not saying you’re weak, Sir Tarman.”

“You’re not wrong, though. I’m not strong enough to compare to an aura user just yet.”

In general, red-tier aura users were treated as equals to sixth-circle mages. Of course, direct comparisons were rather difficult. In small-scale combat, a red-tier aura user would easily overwhelm a 6th-circle mage. But in large-scale battles, a sixth-circle mage’s spells were far more devastating and decisive. In any case, it was true that a fixth-circle mage like Tarman ranked below an aura user. Even so, Tarman was the captain for a reason.

“First of all, the fact that I’m of a county plays a big part.”

Even in an elite group like the King’s Order, one couldn’t completely ignore social status.

“Most importantly, for our missions, status is a form of power.”

Necromancers could simply be killed once found, but cultists were different. If they were nobles or royals, they often wielded their worldly status to protect themselves. And in the first place, the King’s Order was created precisely to deal with such individuals. Tarman grinned wryly.

“Someone like me, with solid backing and a good lineage, is perfect for crushing cultists with strong connections of their own. After all, there are plenty of people who value family prestige over actual skill.”

And then there was the second, far more important reason.

“When dealing with cultists, combat power isn’t always what matters most.”

Aura users undoubtedly possessed immense strength in battle. But would cultists fight fair and square?

“The main tasks of the King’s Order are gathering intelligence, identifying cultists, capturing key figures, and interrogation. Raw combat skills alone don’t guarantee success.”

Serati clicked her tongue. “Sounds like we’re just doing all the dirty work.”

Tarman burst into laughter. “You saw it as it is! Our job is to do all the dirty work against the cultists.”

As such, when it comes to dealing with cultists, a mage with various tactics was more valuable than an aura user who was simply skilled at combat. This is why most of the King’s Order squad captains were mages. Sir Erantel was the perfect face for the organization as a knight of great renown, but in actual missions, a mage leader with aura user lieutenants worked more efficiently.

“It’s the complete opposite of a battlefield.”

“In war, the commander charging at the front with a gleaming sword raises the morale of the soldiers, so aura users are ideal. But our missions aren’t meant to be seen by anyone, are they?”

Serati, nodding along, raised another question. “In that case, wouldn’t priests also be suitable?”

When it came to versatility, priests were on par with mages. More importantly, priests were far more effective against necromancers.

Even Alius is pretty good at interrogations.

Alice answered for him. “The King’s Order was created to keep the churches in check. They’d never let priests like us lead.”

There were no high-ranking priests who could take such a position anyway. The priests assigned to the King’s Order were all second-class inquisitors. The church couldn’t spare any special or first-class inquisitors because they were already overwhelmed handling their own affairs, while third-class priests simply weren’t skilled enough to handle the King’s Order’s demanding missions.

“Not that I mind. If I build up enough achievements here, I’ll have a good chance of being promoted to first-class inquisitor.”

Karnak, who had been quietly listening to the conversation, finally spoke. “Anyway, isn’t it time we heard more details?”

“Hm? Details?”

“About our mission.”

They had already received a rough briefing:

A southern noble of the Eustil Kingdom, Count Brellant, is suspected of aligning himself with the cult of the Black God. Disguise yourselves as adventurers, travel to Brellant County, and gather definitive evidence. Then, in the king’s name, punish the count!

However, they hadn’t been given anything more specific.

“I want to know exactly what suspicions are placed on the count, whether the information is reliable, and what evidence we’re supposed to find.”

Karnak’s request was reasonable, but Tarman could only respond with a bitter smile.

“That’s all we’ve got.”

“What?”

“That’s it. Everything we know, you know too.”

“You mean we’re moving without even knowing whether the target is truly a cultist or not?”

“Isn’t that what we’re going there to find out?”

In other words, their mission began with blindly throwing themselves into the unknown.

“No wonder you’re always so busy.”

Karnak shook his head, and Tarman grinned—a grin identical to the one Karnak had seen on Sir Erantel’s face back at headquarters.

“Welcome to the King’s Order.”