Karnak, Monarch of Death

Karnak’s group had carried their backpacks stuffed to the brim while passing through the Kalenta Great Forest, where Maleficus Dungeon was located. After all, they had to procure their own food and shelter in the wilderness.

However, their baggage was much lighter in comparison as they climbed the Tienparal Mountains.

Adjusting her shoulder, Serati commented, ”It feels a bit unsettling to have so little luggage.”

Varos shook his head. ”It doesn’t matter. It’s not like this will take long, anyway.”

More precisely, it couldn’t take long. They had to infiltrate the dungeon today, accomplish their objective within the day, and rejoin the Brigade of Purification afterwards.

What if they couldn’t do it within that timeframe? Then they had to give up halfway, as the risk of being discovered by Elezar would become too high. Because of that, Karnak’s group carried only the essentials, bringing just emergency rations besides their weapons.

With light loads, even the rugged mountain terrain posed little burden as they climbed. Even monsters along the way were handled with ease by Lapicel before Varos or Serati had to intervene.

“Haaah!” With her grayish hair flying, the small girl leaped forward.

A massive boar charged into the spot where she had just been standing, sending a cloud of dust into the air. It was Deathrat Boar, a monster with lightning-charged horns.

Normally, even a well-trained party of three or four adventurers would struggle to subdue it. Yet, the boar stood frozen after just one charge. Then, from the center of its forehead, a thin line of blood trickled down. Lapicel had taken the brief opening to land a clean thrust.

”Got it!” Flicking the blood from her sword, the girl elegantly sheathed her weapon.

As the group moved past the fallen boar, Leven muttered absentmindedly, ”Ah... This meat is really good. Would be a waste to just leave it.”

In that instant, Karnak and Varos’ eyes flashed.

”Is it delicious?”

”How good are we talking?”

Taken aback by their sudden reaction, Leven replied, ”If we take it to the city, it’d be considered a delicacy.”

At those words, Karnak licked his lips. ”Then hold on.”

”What are you doing?” Leven asked, puzzled.

”We’ll take it with us later.”

Varos drained its blood, Karnak cast a preservation spell, and together, they strung the boar up in a tree, placing a simple barrier around the area.

”This should keep wild animals away until tomorrow.” This way, when they returned, they could pick up a well-aged, high-quality cut of meat! ”Let’s share it with the brigade, young master,” Varos suggested.

”They’ll love it, don’t you think?” Karnak responded.

Seeing the two men grinning ear to ear, Leven shook his head in disbelief. These guys take food way too seriously.

But now, Leven understood why they acted this way. Having become one of Karnak’s vassals, he had learned the truth of their time regression.

And... they killed my future self and turned him into an undead, didn’t they?

To future Leven, they were his mortal enemies. But to his present self, they were his saviors. It might seem like an ambiguous relationship, but for Leven, it was strangely clear-cut.

That guy is that guy. And I’m me. That proves we have nothing to do with each other.

With that, the group pressed forward toward their destination. Compared to their journey to Maleficus Dungeon, this was far easier. Demphis had already provided detailed maps, along with the best route to avoid powerful monsters, allowing them to take the shortest and safest path.

Moreover, Karnak himself had grown stronger. His stamina had improved significantly, and this level of hiking was no longer a struggle.

Feeling proud of his progress, he puffed out his chest. ”At this rate, I could probably hold my own against an average soldier in a fight.”

But his loyal retainer immediately shot him down. ”Everyone thinks that before they get their first beating.”

”Ugh... So it’s still too much for me?” Karnak asked back.

Varos studied Karnak for a moment. Though he had scolded him out of habit, Karnak had certainly improved. He could no longer completely disregard Karnak.

”If the opponent lets their guard down, you might actually stand a chance,” Varos answered honestly.

”So basically, it’s still impossible.”

They chatted along the way, traveling for another three or four hours before finally arriving at their target location. Between the massive trees covering the low-lying hills, a shallow cave entrance led into the earth.

At first glance, it could be mistaken for a bear’s den. But it wasn’t. Deep inside, where no sunlight reached, an ancient metal door stood embedded into the rock. It was one of the back entrances to the Governor’s Vault, as described by Demphis.

After examining its structure, Karnak muttered, ”It’s locked, obviously.”

The lock itself was an intricate physical mechanism, one that couldn’t be bypassed by magic. So, in the past, whenever Karnak encountered a door like this, he simply smashed it open. But now, he didn’t need to. After all, he had Leven, the Man Who Can Unlock Anything.

”Shall I open it?” Leven asked.

”Yeah.”

Moments later, with a creaking sound, the door swung open, and a musty stench rushed out.

”It seems this place hasn’t been ventilated in a long time.” Covering his nose and mouth, Alius stepped forward. ”Just in case, I’ll cast a blessing.”

A purification spell enveloped the party, protecting them from the foul air, mold, and any other potential contaminants.

”Then, let’s head in.”

***

The Governor’s Vault was far more dangerous than Maleficus Dungeon. There was no comparison. At least in Maleficus Dungeon, the cultists had managed to carve out a small settlement. It was somewhat habitable.

But here? The monsters and wraiths that roamed the Governor’s Vault were far too powerful. Even approaching the area could mean instant death for a regular cultist. That was precisely why Elezar stored the governors’ remains here, assigning only a handful of exceptionally strong necromancers to guard the site.

”Because of that, while the necromancers inside are powerful, their numbers are few. It should be possible to slip in and out unnoticed.”

Recalling the information he received from Demphis, Karnak explained, ”Of course, Elezar is well aware of this. That’s why she set up detection wards throughout the dungeon.”

The effectiveness of a detection ward depended on the area it covered. The smaller the area, the more precise the detection. The larger the coverage, the lower the accuracy. The Governor’s Vault had a large-scale, wide-range detection ward. It covered the entire dungeon, but its precision was limited.

At a glance, this might seem like a careless oversight on Elezar’s part. But in reality, it was far trickier to deal with.

”If she had set up a narrow, high-precision detection ward, we could have just dispelled a section and walked right through. But since the range is too vast, there’s no way for me to disable it,” Karnak continued.

In the end, Karnak’s group had only one option. They had to move carefully, making sure not to trigger the detection spell. Karnak illuminated their path with magical flames as they walked through the dimly lit corridors.

”The key point is to not use excessive power.”

Magic was limited to fourth circle spells and below. Aura could be circulated internally, but not released as an energy blade. Divine magic was restricted to blessings and healing spells, only ones that didn’t radiate outward.

”These are the conditions for avoiding Elezar’s detection.”

Alius and Varos grimaced.

”What a pain.”

”And the enemies here are supposed to be strong too.”

Leven and Lapicel, on the other hand, seemed unfazed.

”We’ll just do our best, as usual.”

”Same for me.”

Serati, however, found something odd. If Karnak was right, they were about to engage in an incredibly dangerous infiltration, where even a small mistake could alert Elezar. And yet, Karnak’s expression remained oddly relaxed.

Curious, she secretly asked him.

—What about necromancy?

Sure enough, Karnak smirked slightly.

—Necromancy is no problem. The dungeon is already filled with residual death energy, so it won’t stand out.

Of course. There was no way he’d be this confident without something up his sleeve. Serati asked another question.

—So if things go south, you’ll have to use it discreetly, right?

—Discreetly? There’s no need to be discreet at all.

Karnak’s eyes glinted with amusement.

***

The damp stone corridor echoed as five shriveled orcs rushed toward them. It was a pack of undead orcs, known as Revenant Orcs, charging. They were clad in heavy armor, wielding rusted swords and shields, their entire bodies shrouded in dark energy.

Without hesitation, Alius quickly invoked a divine blessing over the party’s weapons. ”Hatoba, bestow your sacred protection!”

A faint light shimmered along their blades. It was a holy enchantment that hindered the undead’s regeneration. Blessed with divine power, Varos kicked off the ground and surged forward. With a sharp cry, he unleashed a horizontal slash as fast as lightning.

Clang!

The lead orc raised its shield just in time, blocking the strike. Sparks flew as metal clashed against metal. Had he been able to unleash an aura blade, he would have cleaved through the shield in one blow, but this was his current limit. Still, Varos didn’t panic.

It’s not like I haven’t fought without using aura before.

His longsword slid along the shield’s surface, flowing naturally to find an opening. In the next instant, his blade sliced cleanly through the Revenant Orc’s neck.

”Guhh!”

Leven and Lapicel rushed past Varos. Each of them engaged a separate orc, their precise swordsmanship guiding their strikes.

The movements of the Revenant Orcs began to waver. The savage swings of the undead orcs kept missing, their attacks slipping past empty air and striking the wrong places. Both Leven and Lapicel were naturally gifted swordsmen, and even though there was a clear power gap, they effortlessly deflected their enemies’ attacks.

And then there was Serati.

She had rushed in at full force, and was sent flying back just as quickly.

Damn it! This isn’t working! Clicking her tongue, she barely managed to regain her footing.

The problem was her habits. She was so accustomed to using aura blades that limiting her aura use to only physical enhancement felt incredibly unnatural.

This is way harder than I thought.

It wasn’t as if she had never fought without aura blades before. She had encountered plenty of weak enemies that didn’t even require her to use them. But this was different.

Setting a strict limit and still trying to fight at her maximum potential was an entirely different challenge. If she pushed too hard, her aura blade would activate. If she held back too much, she would lose in terms of raw strength.

Panting, she swung her sword relentlessly.

Then, Karnak’s voice echoed behind her. ”It’s ready.”

”Yes!”

As if they had been waiting for this cue, Varos leaped back. Leven, Lapicel, and Serati all distanced themselves from the Revenant Orcs.

Raising his wand, Karnak pointed at the empty space between the two groups. ”Arise, dwellers of the abyss. Flow through the darkness and strike down my foes!”

A wailing shriek reverberated through the corridor. From the walls, ceiling, and floor, shadows erupted, forming spectral entities that surged forward. The spectral beings descended upon the Revenant Orcs all at once. Surprised, the undead raised their swords and shields in a desperate attempt to fend off the attack.

But then, a series of thunderous explosions tore through the air. A wave of fire erupted, engulfing the undead in its blazing wrath. Agonized screams echoed through the dungeon as one by one, the orcs collapsed, their bodies turning to charred remains.

As the last of the enemies crumbled into blackened husks, Karnak finally lowered his wand. His sharp gaze swept the surroundings. After a moment, he relaxed slightly.

”Good. We didn’t trigger the detection ward.”

The corridor remained filled with the residual darkness left behind by the summoned evil spirits. Looking around, Alius and Lapicel marveled at the devastation.

”That was incredible.”

”Amazing, Sir Karnak!”

Karnak clenched his fist with a subtle smirk. ”Link of Necromancy is nearly complete as well.”