Chapter 151
Chapter 151
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 151
Chapter Title: rsk yv ct ymu bhy 151i
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 151
Chapter Title: Implanted Memories
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Above the scorched black ground.
Leyzon descended slowly, still maintaining his undead fusion.
Not a single knight remained on the ground.
They had all been swept into the Abyss and vanished.
Leyzon slowly folded his bat wings.
At his side, the Salvation Lord, reduced to dust, began regenerating from its bones.
It was an awe-inspiring recovery even on a second look.
Leyzon left the Salvation Lord behind and stepped forward.
Before him lay the Knight Captain of the White Lion Order, battered beyond recognition.
Both arms had been severed, and his legs had crumbled away.
From lungs poisoned by the Abyss's toxin, only faint breaths barely escaped.
No one could imagine this wretched figure as the man who once bore the Empire's military might—the Captain of the White Lion Knights. Leon was a total wreck.
Without hesitation, Leyzon gripped his staff in reverse.
From his back surged darkness and curses, blood and shadows all at once.
The moment Leon had sought him out, Leyzon had been certain.
The Empire would no longer overlook him.
'Especially.'
The Imperial Necromancer.
That traitorous bastard would surely keep coming for him.
War with the Empire.
What had once been a vague notion had now become reality.
The magics Leyzon had invoked began fusing one by one.
At that moment, pure white light seeped from Leon's eyes.
Leyzon's eyes widened slightly at the sight.
"Heh, heh heh... A fatal mistake at the end."
A rasping voice emerged from Leon's lips.
"Vampire... Queen... Abyss."
Leyzon glimpsed the resentment dwelling in his eyes.
And he wondered why Syria had been mentioned.
'Why Syria?'
Did Leon have some connection to her?
An Imperial knight tied to Syria? It made no sense.
"It's... too late... to dodge."
His final choice was self-destruction.
A Platinum Hero-grade knight's self-destruction.
At this close range, escape was impossible even now.
"Farewell."
Pure white light erupted from Leon's body.
White Flash [SSS]
Self-destruct sequence initiated
The blinding flash swept through the area.
Valantia Village, struck by devastation once more, was utterly annihilated.
Above the spot the light had ravaged.
Leon, his skin pallid and warped white, barely drew breath.
This had done it. He was certain he had killed that damned Abyss and the Vampire Queen.
The instant that conviction took hold.
"As expected, the skills are identical."
Leyzon's voice rang in his ears once more.
There stood Leyzon, staff still aimed at him, wearing a subtle expression.
The Rigidity [Special] effect on Leyzon's body faded away.
A one-time invincibility.
Leyzon had endured Leon's self-destruction by exploiting it.
And in that process, Leyzon had uncovered one peculiar fact.
Leon lay collapsed on the ground, staring up at him in a daze.
"H-how?"
His face was blank as he asked.
Leyzon had anticipated every move Leon might make.
He had just remarked, "As expected, the skills are identical."
Leon saw his own reflection in Leyzon's eyes.
Those multicolored irises harbored an eerie chill.
As always, Leyzon slowly smiled.
Bathed in moonlight, his smile seemed utterly cold, as if it could freeze anything.
"I've done my homework on quite a few things."
The moment Leyzon prepared to finish Leon off.
Suddenly, Eden, fused with Leyzon, spoke up.
Eden never interrupted at timings like this.
For him to speak now meant there was something urgent he had to say.
Leyzon's eyes narrowed slightly.
"A Memory Curse?"
Leyzon looked back at Leon.
At the same time, he recalled the resentment Leon had shown toward Syria.
The same hatred as toward the Sword Saint.
Leyzon wondered if Syria was entangled in something again, but she had stared at Leon without any reaction.
"Syria, do you know this guy's face?"
Syria reacted as if she'd never laid eyes on Leon.
Syria did tend to ignore people she found annoying.
But that didn't mean she'd forget a powerhouse like this.
Leyzon's brows furrowed slightly.
He turned back to Leon.
Leon, rolling in the dirt, utterly broken.
To Leyzon, he felt like a perfect replica of the former White Lion Knight Captain.
Leyzon didn't know the full extent of the Knight Captain's power.
But he did know the former White Lion Knight Captain's skills.
'His skill set matches the former Captain's from one to ten.'
One user had accidentally dissected the White Lion Knight Captain's code.
Based on that, the former Captain's specs and skill set were public knowledge.
Leyzon had memorized them all back then.
The Captain ranked among the world's strongest in the lore.
Leyzon had been shocked by the Captain's strength.
If other Knight Captains were on this level, it made sense why you weren't supposed to challenge them.
But Leyzon had dismissed that info as outdated.
The Captain was human.
Upon death, a new one would rise.
So Leyzon distrusted his knowledge of the Captain.
The current White Lion Captain would be a different person entirely from the former one.
Naturally, skills and stats would differ.
Yet seeing Leon before him left Leyzon's mind in turmoil.
And for good reason.
He seemed like an exact copy of the former White Lion Knight Captain.
This man matched the former Captain's skills and specs perfectly.
That was Leon.
Leyzon had gradually realized this while fighting him.
That's how he'd gained the upper hand against Leon.
No matter the all-SSS skills, 20 Ascensions, or Platinum Hero grade—if you knew every spec and skill, there were ways to counter.
'Even using the self-destruct at the end is identical.'
And now, in this situation, Leon bore a Memory Curse.
'Talent Concentration.'
Leyzon recalled the hypothesis he'd formed.
A bizarre system extracting talents from others and concentrating them into one.
At the same time, Leyzon's eyes slowly widened.
'It's not just talent.'
The Memory Curse implanted in his mind.
He grasped its purpose.
'It's experience.'
Having the skill allowed use, but proficiency was another matter.
How to instill that proficiency instantly?
By extracting another's experience and implanting it.
A chill ran through him!
Leyzon felt unease bubbling from deep within.
He sensed a massive undercurrent of malice.
His gaze fell back on Leon.
The massive scar crossing his face.
It looked as if it had been carved by forcibly shoving memories in.
The strongest Knight Captains.
They were entirely artificial creations of the Empire.
'That explains why the Captain has a self-destruct skill.'
When the skill set first leaked, it painted him as a knight sacrificing himself for chivalry in crises.
Now, it felt like a tool to use and discard.
"Eden, can you absorb the curse?"
"If possible, I'd like to see those memories too."
Perfect.
He was curious what memories had been planted in him.
Leyzon placed his hand on Leon's head as Eden instructed.
"N-no... Let... go."
Leon thrashed and trembled, but Leyzon paid no mind.
After self-destructing, Leon had no strength left.
Soon, Eden's curse activated.
"Can you implant specific memories on purpose? I'd like to make use of him if possible."
A Platinum Hero-grade knight.
If there were no risks, he'd love to exploit him.
He couldn't become like Number Five.
Even Syria couldn't turn a Platinum Hero into a familiar.
It was regrettable, but even this would suffice.
"Do it."
Leyzon's hand gripping Leon's head soon turned pitch black.
At the same time, Leon's scar tore open, black blood oozing out.
"N-no! Stop, stop it!"
Leon screamed in agony, but there was no reason to hold back.
Leyzon extracted every last bit of the Memory Curse from Leon.
With the curse removed, Leon went limp.
His eyes glazed over completely.
He drooled silently, unresponsive.
Into that empty mind, Eden implanted a new Memory Curse.
Thus, he became a doll obeying only commands.
Leyzon pulled a bag from the shadows.
He took out a potion and a curse vial from within.
Leyzon roughly splashed a high-grade potion over Leon.
A temporary fix, but at least he wouldn't die.
As a precaution, Leyzon also cast a weakening curse on him.
True to form, he added safety measures beyond Eden's words.
Shadows surged, swallowing Leon whole.
That finished Leon.
Leyzon raised his right hand, aligning a finger with the curse vial.
Curse essence trickled from his fingertip.
Once the vial was full, he sealed it tight.
He'd examine the memories somewhere safe.
At that moment, Syria spoke up.
Just as she said, the undead fusion was ending.
A faint light shimmered over Leyzon's body.
Soon, his original dark blue hair flowed freely.
Without his mask, his refined young noble face was revealed after so long.
'Yeah, gotta air out the face now and then.'
No matter how functional the mask, it always felt stifling in subtle ways.
Syria and Eden materialized beside Leyzon—Syria as a shrunken white bat, Eden as a curse doll.
Leyzon scooped them both up.
"Whoa."
At the same instant, dizziness hit him like a spin.
'First time fusing with both at once.'
The backlash was bigger than expected.
Plus, the recoil from dumping massive mana hit simultaneously.
He had expended mana like an overflowing ocean.
The price came as the fusion ended: pain wracked his entire body.
His vision blurred badly.
Balance faltered.
Leyzon took a long breath in and out.
Gathering his wits, he could at least stand.
"Urgh!"
In the meantime, Hanok tumbled out from the shadows.
The Shadow Warlord emerged beside him.
"I-is... it all over now?"
Hanok asked anxiously, and Leyzon nodded with effort.
Then, squeezing out his last strength, he forced a grin.
"Hanok, got any stamina left?"
"Y-yeah? I think so."
The blast had obliterated the area—no shelter anywhere.
Now it was time to pay for unleashing havoc.
They had to trek out on foot.
"Carry me... please."
"Le-Leyzon!"
With that, Leyzon collapsed to the ground.
This time, he had truly reached his limit.
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