Karnak, Monarch of Death

Lapicel continued to confront the King’s Order with calm precision. Instead of using the blade of her sword, she cloaked it in blunt aura, turning it into a makeshift club. Each strike was calculated, landing just hard enough to knock someone unconscious. At this point, it wasn’t so much combat as it was a masterclass in controlled sedation.

By now, over half of the First and Seventh Squads were sprawled across the ground. Only about ten remained standing.

Damn it...

How long are we supposed to keep this up?

What the hell is Captain Karnak even doing?

Even if their opponent lacked any intent to kill, it was grueling to keep charging at someone so vastly superior. The fact that they had lasted this long was a testament to the elite status of the King’s Order.

But even their morale was cracking. One by one, the remaining members began retreating. A few even subtly opened gaps in the encirclement. The message was clear.

We’ve done our part. Now go deal with Captain Karnak!

But Lapicel’s behavior suddenly shifted.

“Humans...” She glanced between the fallen and the retreating, her voice low and almost mournful. “I must save them...”

Then, defying everyone’s expectations, she leapt toward the retreating soldiers. The startled soldiers widened their eyes.

“What the—?”

“Wait, aren’t you supposed to go after the captain?”

For the first time, Lapicel went on the offensive. She was no longer resorting to counterattack, but actively targeting the King’s Order. Her strikes were as merciful as they were devastating. The aura-wreathed club pummeled through the remaining soldiers like a storm.

“Gah!”

“This is insane!”

They didn’t stand a chance. Any semblance of resistance crumbled as they fell one after another. Even running away proved futile. The human psyche was, after all, governed by inertia. The instinct to stand and fight took root at the beginning of a battle. Switching to a flight response wasn’t instantaneous. Soon, the last soldier collapsed under Lapicel’s calculated strike. No one remained standing.

“Urgh...”

With that, every member of the King’s Order in the area was rendered incapable of continuing the fight.

Lapicel surveyed the scene.

“Humans...”

A faint smile crossed her lips.

“I’ve saved them...”

The unconscious soldiers would certainly disagree, but to her, the outcome seemed satisfactory. With the immediate threat neutralized, Lapicel turned her attention to her true target. A violet light glowed in her eyes as she scanned the far side of the canyon.

A growl rumbled in her throat, and her voice was filled with fury. “Monarch of Death!”

***

Near a massive boulder at the edge of the canyon, Karnak crouched in the shadows, nervously biting his nails.

Did she take them all down?

In the distance, the ash-haired girl was slowly making her way toward his hiding spot.

I thought they’d hold out a bit longer...

Serati glanced back at the fallen soldiers and asked hesitantly. —Will they be okay?

From a distance, they seemed unharmed, almost as if they were merely sleeping. However, they showed no signs of waking anytime soon. They wouldn’t be up for at least another half-day.

—It’s okay. They’ll be fine.

Karnak shook his head, almost as if reassuring himself.

—Lapicel has a lot of experience knocking people out.

Apparently, she was talented at making sure her targets didn’t suffer any lasting damage.

—Why does she even have so much experience with that?

—Uh, well, it’s...

Karnak averted his eyes again, refusing to meet Serati’s gaze. And in that moment, she understood.

Why wouldn’t she?

It had to be because of this despicable Monarch of Death, who constantly enslaved innocent people with mind control.

What a mess...

Even as Serati sighed in exasperation, Lapicel continued searching through the canyon, her movements measured but relentless.

“Karnak...”

Her voice was chilling, drenched in malice, yet carried a mournful undertone as it echoed across the ravine.

“Karnak...”

Karnak and Serati shrank further into the shadows of the boulder, their nerves taut.

—She’s coming this way!

—Don’t move. She’ll sense us.

For now, their invisibility spell kept them hidden, but with Lapicel’s razor-sharp instincts, any movement could easily give away their location.

—If we can just hold out until Varos gets back.

But then, unexpectedly, Lapicel turned around. Retracing her steps, she began heading back toward the basin.

Huh?

Karnak was bewildered.

Where’s she going?

While it was a relief to see her move away, the direction was a problem. If she kept heading that way, she’d run straight into Varos, who was stealthily moving under an invisibility spell. And no matter how effective the spell was, if Lapicel got close, her keen senses would detect him the moment he moved. If they lost Varos, their slim chances of victory would vanish entirely.

Karnak had to draw her attention back toward him, and there was only one way to do that.

No choice. It’s do or die.

The two burst out from behind the boulder.

Drawing her crimson aura blade, Serati let out a piercing battle cry. “Over here!”

Lapicel turned her head.

“Hm?” Her narrowed eyes lit up with recognition, and a dazzlingly bright smile spread across her face. “I found you.”

***

Her ashen hair swayed in the wind, and her piercing blue eyes glowed bright. The aura blade in Lapicel’s hand shifted.

Vrrrrrmm!

The soft blue aura erupted into a blazing violet flame, transforming the blunt weapon into a razor-sharp sword. The message was unmistakable. She no longer intended to merely knock anyone out. This was a blade meant to kill. Serati winced.

Of course she’s going all-out.

Luckily for Serati, Lapicel’s attention was wholly fixed on Karnak. A mere vassal like her wasn’t worth considering.

“Monarch of Death!”

With a burst of aura, Lapicel hurled herself toward Karnak.

“Die!”

Karnak activated a chaos spell in response. “Rise, spirits of the earth!”

All around him, mounds of dirt erupted, coalescing into massive earthen golems.

No fewer than twenty of them rose, towering and menacing. Karnak shouted the incantation to command them. “Obey my commands and strike down my enemy!”

The golems thundered toward Lapicel. Twisting mid-air, she slashed through the incoming swarm with arcs of violet energy.

“Hyaaah!”

Her aura blade carved through the golems mercilessly. Every swipe of her sword left jagged, smooth cuts, reducing the massive figures to rubble. Chunks of stone slammed into the ground with deafening crashes.

Thud! Boom! Booom!

It was like slicing butter with a red-hot knife.

Watching the golems crumble so effortlessly, Serati yelled in panic. “It’s not working!”

“They’re not supposed to work!” Karnak snapped.

The golems were merely a tactic to buy them time. Summoning twenty of them had drained Karnak of nearly all his chaos mana. Even so, it bought precious seconds—five, to be more precise.

“What’s the point of that?” Serati asked incredulously.

“There is a point! I bought time to use necromancy!”

Given their current capabilities, there was no way they could defeat Lapicel head-on. Ziken was a more powerful mage than Karnak, and Triv was a stronger aura user than Serati. But even the two of them had fallen so easily. It was clear that conventional magic and aura were futile.

Their only hope lay in necromancy. Having emptied his reserves of chaos mana, Karnak now summoned deep darkness.

A shroud of deep shadow enveloped him as he chanted, “Come forth, my servants! By the name of the King of the Dead, I command you!”

From every corner of the darkness, evil spirits began to emerge, their forms twisting and writhing in the air. The spirits writhed in the air, their sinister presence spreading malevolent waves as they let out blood-curdling shrieks.

Screeeech!

Serati’s expression stiffened as she watched the basin fill with these unholy apparitions.

“Is it really okay to use necromancy?”

“As long as we don’t get caught, it’s fine!” Karnak snapped back.

That was exactly why he’d waited until all the other King’s Order members were incapacitated. With no one around to witness it, he could unleash his necromancy freely. Sure, the remnants of dark magic would raise some eyebrows when the others woke up later, but Karnak could always pin it on Lapicel.

Manipulating the dark energy with his fingertips, Karnak issued a commanding order. “Go forth, you who are summoned from the abyss. Meet the light with unending agony!”

The spirits howled as they surged toward Lapicel.

Kreeeee!

Hyaaaaa!

By now, Karnak had recovered much of his dark energy. Using necromancy at full power made things noticeably tougher for Lapicel than earlier.

“Monarch of Death...”

Of course, it was still just a stalling tactic, much like the golems had been.

“Die!”

Lapicel unleashed another barrage of merciless strikes against the encroaching spirits. One by one, they dissolved under her relentless assault. Meanwhile, Karnak began preparing another spell.

“Servant, I grant you form!”

At Serati’s feet, a crimson aura surged, wrapping around her entire body. It solidified into a grotesquely ornate set of full-plate armor.

She looked down in shock. “What’s this?”

“It’s the armor of a Blood Demon, summoned from Gehenna! Now you’ll have a fighting chance!”

Serati felt uneasy. Didn’t this mean her entire body was now wrapped in the sinister power of hell itself? Any normal human would find this deeply disturbing.

So why does this feel so comfortable?

This was the coziest armor she’d ever worn in her life.

Just how corrupted is my soul?

She wanted to cry, but now wasn’t the time. Suppressing her dismay, Serati launched herself into battle, her crimson-clad figure a blur in the darkness.

“Take this!”

The armor’s abilities were indeed remarkable. She closed the distance to Lapicel’s back in an instant, her physical abilities enhanced to a startling degree. Lapicel’s expression shifted slightly.

“A vassal of hell.”

Lapicel had previously ignored her as a mere vassal, instead choosing to focus solely on Karnak. But now, Serati radiated the unmistakable aura of the Monarch of Death’s power. That meant Lapicel had to prioritize this evil being.

“Die!”

A wave of killing intent slammed into Serati like a tidal wave. She felt like a frog staring down a serpent.

Oh no...

Yet her body moved.

“Wh-who said I’m dying today?!”

Serati’s crimson aura blade clashed against Lapicel’s violet strikes.

Boom! Boom!

Surprisingyl, Serati managed to block Lapicel’s attacks three times. Considering the gap between a red-tier and purple-tier aura user, this was nothing short of miraculous.

Hey, I might actually stand a chance—

Her moment of confidence was abruptly shattered.

“Humph.”

With a scoff, Lapicel swung her aura blade upward in a long arc. Serati twisted desperately to avoid the attack, the tip of Lapicel’s violet energy grazing the edge of her armor. It only grazed her. Yet—

Boom!

And yet, the impact sent Serati flying dozens of meters, as though she’d been hit by a runaway carriage. She bounced off the ground like a skipping stone before crashing to a halt.

“Guh! Argh!”

The realization hit like a second blow. Lapicel hadn’t even been fighting seriously. She had only been testing the waters to gauge her opponent’s strength, a common practice among elite warriors.

“Ugh...”

Groaning, Serati forced herself back to her feet. Thankfully, the hellish armor’s defense was as formidable as its offensive enhancements. She could still move, though barely.

But she knew she couldn’t keep this up. Clenching her teeth, Serati cast a desperate glance toward the far side of the basin.

When is Sir Varos coming back?

***

On the western edge of the darkened basin, Varos crept forward under the cover of night. Even as he moved, his gaze darted back to the chaotic battlefield behind him.

What a mess.

Bright flashes of light lit up the night sky, illuminating the fierce clash between Lapicel and Karnak’s forces.

I need to hurry.

But Varos knew better than to rush. Moving too fast would disrupt the invisibility spell Karnak had cast on him. Frustrating as it was, he had to maintain a steady pace, no matter how dire the situation.

At last, he reached his destination. Among the tall grass lay the unconscious bodies of Ziken and Triv. But they weren’t the reason he was here.

Sorry, you two. I’ll come back for you later.

Varos stepped past them toward his true target—the massive, dual-edged sword bound tightly in magical chains. It was the demonic sword, Mareda.