Karnak, Monarch of Death

In the barren outskirts of the Kingdom of Altail, there lay an unnamed wasteland. Within it stood the ruins of an abandoned village, dating back to the days of the old royal dynasty.

Once prosperous, the settlement had withered away after a long drought dried up its water source. The people had fled, leaving behind only crumbling bricks and piles of rubble. It was the perfect refuge for the persecuted followers of the Black God.

The cultists claimed the ruins for themselves, naming it Avaros and establishing it as their base of operations. The cultists commanded legions of evil spirits and monsters to commit all manners of atrocities.

Neither the local nobles, the army, nor the priests of the goddesses could contain their rampage. The people’s suffering pierced the heavens, their tears flowing like rivers. But the cultists’ reign of terror did not last forever.

***

A fierce battle was taking place in the isolated ruins of the wasteland. Through the harsh, sand-laden winds, figures clad in gray robes charged forward. With shouts of fury, they extended both hands, unleashing jet-black energy. ”Die, servants of darkness!”

On the opposing side stood a man in black robes, Damis, the branch leader of Avaros. He who snapped in disbelief. ”What nonsense are you spouting!”

It wasn’t the label minions of darkness that enraged him. After all, they worshipped the God of Death and Darkness, Tesranach. Being called the servants of darkness was practically a badge of honor.

What irritated him was the hypocrisy: these gray-robed zealots were using necromancy themselves, yet had the gall to brand his side as servants of darkness.

”You lot use the power of darkness too, do you not?” he roared.

The gray-robed men scoffed. ”Hah! Fool! You do not see clearly!”

Then, raising both hands high, they drew forth power and proclaimed proudly, ”Does this look like darkness to you?”

For a moment, Damis was left speechless. It was very much darkness. No matter how you looked at it, it was pitch black.

I might be mad, but these bastards are just as bad!

Well, the gray robes seemed to have their own excuses. ”This is the power of twilight!”

”The divine blessing bestowed upon us by the great goddess Serakal!”

Their brazen declaration made Damis scowl even deeper.

Damn these lunatic Twilight cultists!

The gray-robed fanatics were followers of the Twilight Cult. Lately, they had been clashing more and more with the Black God’s Cult, and now they had stormed right into their stronghold.

”Advance, brothers of twilight!”

”Spread the will of Lady Serakal upon this land!”

The cultists of twilight charged across the ruins, swinging swords and spears, their thunderous footsteps shaking the earth. The followers of the Black God gritted their teeth and fought back.

”Why the hell are these lunatics only coming after us?!”

”Weren’t you lot once servants of Tesranach as well? What is the meaning of this madness?!”

They fired arrows and unleashed blasts of shadowy flame, pouring out their ferocious assault. Each side infused their weapons with dark energy, slashing and hacking away relentlessly. They denied one another with words and with steel alike.

”We have found the true goddess!”

”Sinners! Repent through death!”

Flames and arrows crisscrossed the ruins, weaving through the remnants of weathered stone and desolate landscape. Battle cries echoed throughout the devastated battleground.

”Aaaaargh!”

”For Lady Serakal!”

”Tesranach, guide us!”

As time passed, the ruins became soaked with blood and sweat. No one knew how long it had gone on. Suddenly, a woman appeared behind the ranks of the gray-robed fanatics. ”You have all fought well.”

Her arrival made the Twilight cultists erupt in cheers. ”Lady Maloka!”

With a wave of her hand, the woman beckoned the gray robes to retreat. ”Step back. I will handle them from here.”

Damis frowned. The newcomer was a strikingly beautiful woman. Her skin was smooth and clear like quartz, her long, dark hair shimmered like the night sky, and her eyes sparkled like precious gems. She was undeniably a beauty capable of enchanting anyone. But what use was a pretty face in this situation?

”And just who the hell are you supposed to be?”

At Damis’s crude remark, Maloka simply gave a smile. ”Oh-hohoho...”

And in the next instant, she transformed. Her skin melted away, her bones emerged, her eyes burned with flame, and shadows unfurled in every direction.

Her beauty rotted, and her voice twisted and warped. ”You fools do not see even though you have eyes...”

The cultists of the Black God recoiled in terror. The beautiful woman had transformed in an instant into a grotesque skeleton. Even those accustomed to necromancy found the sight chilling beyond words.

”In the name of Serakal, Goddess of Twilight and Chaos...” A tremendous surge of dark magic erupted as Maloka, the archlich, soared into the air. ”I shall reap you all!”

The hideous skeleton let out a bizarre laugh. It sounded like metal scraping against metal, and it reverberated from the depths of horror.

***

Beneath the ruins of Avaros, priests of the church and villagers from nearby settlements had been imprisoned. They were the offerings the cultists of the Black God had gathered to sacrifice to a demon.

The iron bars of the prison swung open. The captives stepped out of the cell, led by the gray-robed cultists.

Parshal, a priest of Alium who had been among the prisoners, looked around and asked cautiously, ”Wh-who are you people?”

”We serve Serakal, the goddess of twilight,” replied a black-haired beauty, her voice graceful and poised. She led the grey-robed cultists. ”In the name of the goddess, we have come to save you.”

One of the middle-aged priests frowned deeply and shouted, ”What nonsense is this?”

Priests of the goddess, in particular, were sensitive to sensing darkness in others. ”You are evil necromancers too, are you not?!”

The black-haired woman might have appeared normal at first glance, but the gray-robed men surrounding them radiated unmistakable necromantic power. They radiated a vile energy no less dreadful than that of the Black God’s cultists.

With a soothing tone, the beauty, Maloka, spoke gently, ”Fire too can be a blessing or a curse, depending on how it is wielded. Darkness is no different.”

There is a saying: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. The doctrine of the Twilight Cult was much the same.

”Evil against evil, darkness against darkness.” Her words flowed like a chant, as if singing a song. ”We do not seek your approval. We act solely in accordance with the will of our goddess, Serakal.”

The Twilight cultists led the captives out to the surface. All of them followed without resistance. The ordinary people were powerless, and even the priests were worn thin from captivity. No one had the strength to defy them.

They were filled with worry and suspicion as they emerged onto the surface.

Maloka spoke once more. ”We will be taking our leave now.”

”You’re really letting us go?” one asked.

”Didn’t I tell you so already?”

At this point, even the priests could not hold on to their doubts any longer. These people had truly come to rescue them.

”Hmm...”

They could not express thanks—that would go against their doctrine. But it was also undeniable that these people had saved their lives.

Seeing their hesitation, Maloka gave them a gentle smile. ”Remember us. We are not your enemies, but those who serve the twilight, the darkness that awaits the dawn.”

***

Half a month after leaving Harthol City, Karnak and his companions finally returned to Drunta, the capital of the Kingdom of Eustil.

As they looked around their home after so long away, the red-haired beauty clicked her tongue. ”Wow, look at all this dust.”

The gray-haired girl following behind wore a similar expression. ”We’ve left this place empty for way too long.”

Both Serati and Lapicel had regained their natural hair colors. The dye had faded. Truly, it had been a long absence.

The Harthol City incident alone had kept them away for over a month, and even before that, they had barely stayed home for a day or two at a time. They were always out and about. In truth, they had barely lived in this house at all.

”Should I just sell it off?” Karnak considered for a moment, then shook his head. ”No. Even so, not having a base in the capital would be a hassle.”

For now, they would just unpack and head out again. They had returned to the capital after so long, and there were all sorts of matters waiting to be dealt with. No matter how freely they acted, Karnak was still the Vice Commander of the Eustil King’s Order, and Varos, Serati, and Leven were all members of the King’s Order as well. For better or worse, they were public officials.

Varos agreed as well. ”Commander Erantel is an easygoing man in many ways, but still, we ought to file at least a post-operation report.”

Serati turned to look at Lapicel and asked, ”What about you, Lapicel? I doubt you have any business there.”

She still wasn’t officially part of the King’s Order. Though she had become an aura user and was certainly qualified, outwardly, she was still Serati’s squire.

”Maybe we should take this chance to officially register Lapicel in the King’s Order. She’d get a salary too,” Karnak suggested.

At that, Varos chuckled softly. ”She’s too young. They won’t accept her.”

”Even if she shows them her aura blade?”

”Hm, well, when you put it that way...”

In any case, that was something to consider later. Since Lapicel wasn’t a member yet, she didn’t need to follow them to headquarters.

So she rolled up her sleeves energetically and urged them. ”Go on ahead! I’ll clean up in the meantime!”

When they first bought this house, Lapicel had been the one who took the greatest care of it.

Seeing the place covered in dust and grime again seemed to spark her enthusiasm.

”Then I’ll leave it to you.” Leaving the house in Lapicel’s care, Karnak stepped back into the street.

With Varos, Serati, and Leven in tow, they headed south across the city. As they entered the King’s Order headquarters, people here and there greeted him.

”Ah, Vice Commander Karnak!”

”Is it true, what they’re saying?”

”I heard you did something incredible in the Kingdom of Lipaul!”

Stories of Karnak, the saviour of Harthol City, had already reached as far as Drunta.

Wow, news sure travels fast.

Well, they had lingered in the city for about a week to help with recovery, and it had taken nearly half a month to return, so quite a bit of time had passed. It wasn’t so surprising that the rumors had arrived before them.

”It wasn’t as grand as the rumors make it seem,” Karnak replied modestly.

Then he asked, ”By the way, where’s Commander Erantel?”

”He’s in his office.”

They went up to the second-floor office, where Erantel greeted them with a pleased expression. ”Welcome back, Sir Karnak. I’ve already heard about the Harthol City incident.”

”Let’s discuss that later. I came to finish off some pending work first,” replied Karnak.

”Indeed, even you must attend to at least the bare minimum of duties.”

As vice commander, Karnak had to handle post-mission reports and a mountain of paperwork. It wasn’t anything too critical, but it was work that had to be done. Once the most urgent matters were settled, Erantel invited him to stay for tea, clearly curious about the Harthol City affair.

”You ought to keep yourself updated on the current state of affairs, after all,” was his excuse.

”Of course.”

Erantel called for a maid to prepare tea. As they waited, Karnak asked casually, ”So, the current state of affairs. Has something happened?”

”You’ve heard of the Twilight Cult, haven’t you?”

He had more than heard of them. He was its creator. But he kept his expression blank as he answered. ”Of course. They’re the new cult that’s been popping up lately, aren’t they?”

”Yes, they are cultists, certainly, but...” Erantel stroked his chin with a troubled expression. ”They’re a difficult lot to pin down, that’s the thing.”