Siege of the Wraith Knights
Meanwhile, up above, a completely different atmosphere hung in the air.
“Guys… got any good ideas?”
Varis tried his best to sound calm, but he couldn’t hide the tremor in his voice. Cold sweat trickled down his back. Surrounding them were dozens—no, hundreds—of wraith knights. Clad in corroded armor, they gripped their swords in grotesque poses. From within their empty helmets, red lights flickered intermittently, exuding an ominous aura.
“Greeek—”
“Kikik….”
A dissonant screech of metal friction echoed through the space. Emitting eerie sounds, the wraith knights slowly tightened their encirclement, like predators closing in on their prey. They showed no signs of attacking yet, but the tension suggested they could pounce at any moment.
Varis’s group pressed their backs together, assuming defensive stances. The air crackled with taut suspense.
“They’re not striking first, at least.”
Elisha scanned their surroundings sharply. Her sapphire eyes darted about, analyzing the situation. She searched for patterns in the wraith knights’ movements, but they merely held their positions at even intervals, silently waiting for something.
“Still, we can’t let our guard down.”
Melina nocked her arrow, drawing the bowstring taut as she glared at them. Her heart pounded, but her hands remained steady. Maintaining her aim, she spoke.
“Is there… any good way out…? The escape scroll was with Senior Lucy, right?”
Eily bit her lower lip, murmuring solemnly into the heavy mood. They’d been given escape scrolls upon entering the dungeon, but Lucy—who now lay cracked—had held them. In other words, their only real option was to break through head-on.
“Damn… Guess we fight our way out.”
Varis gritted his teeth and drew something from his belt: an ancient-looking scroll. Unfurling it, he muttered,
“This how you use it?”
Whiiiing— As the scroll opened, holy light poured from within. A warm yet intense radiance enveloped his sword, illuminating the surroundings. The wraith knights flinched and recoiled momentarily, but they soon growled and regained their momentum.
“That’s…”
Elisha seemed to recall something upon seeing the scroll in Varis’s hand.
“The scrolls Arnold gave us at the start, right? They imbue weapons with light attributes for effective strikes against undead monsters!”
“Then us too!”
At her words, Melina and Eily hurriedly pulled out their own scrolls. As the three unfurled them, blinding light flooded the area in an instant.
Whiiiing—
Shrrrk—
Melina’s bow absorbed the warm glow. Eily’s sword emitted a soft sheen, and Varis’s weapon shone even brighter.
“I feel… something strange.”
Eily murmured, staring at her sword. It was as if a thrill coursed from her fingertips through her entire body. The once-heavy blade felt light, infused with power.
“Me too, sort of…”
Elisha, unarmed, experienced a different effect. Warm light gathered around her, spreading like a protective barrier. The wraith knights noticeably widened their distance from her.
“Elisha, that looks like a barrier!”
Melina said in surprise.
Elisha gazed at the light enveloping her body and took a steadying breath. It felt as though the glow was purifying her very essence.
Varis gripped his sword tightly, flashing a wry smile.
“Alright, this isn’t the worst-case scenario.”
But his smile didn’t last.
“— — —!”
As they activated the scrolls, the wraith knights’ red eyes flashed in unison. As if they’d run out of patience, they silently raised their swords.
“Ki-kikik.”
“Grrraaah…”
With chilling sounds, the wraith knights charged all at once.
“They’re coming!”
Varis shouted. In that instant, Melina loosed her arrow first. The light-infused projectile sliced through the air toward the wraith knights.
Shiiiing—!
Direct hit. The struck wraith knight twisted for a moment before cracking apart and vanishing.
“It works! Keep attacking!”
Varis swung his glowing sword. It cleaved through a wraith knight, dark energy leaking out as it collapsed.
Eily moved as well. Her blade swung fluidly, shattering wraith knights into pieces with unearthly shrieks wherever it touched.
“Greeek—”
“Ki—!”
But there were too many. For every one that fell, new ones surged forward to fill the gap.
“No end to them!”
Melina gritted her teeth. Tension mounted to the point where her ragged breaths were audible. The enemies closed in before she could even nock another arrow. Red eyes gleamed from the darkness, threatening to devour her.
“I’ll handle this!”
Then Elisha stepped forward. Her golden hair reflected the holy glow softly. Determination burned in her eyes.
“Holy light, illuminate our path and drive out the evil. Noble great spirit… grant us here a sanctuary to protect the world from wicked malice!”
⟨ Saint Field ⟩
In an instant, the warm light around her expanded, forming a protective domain over the entire group.
“Saint Field!”
The wraith knights shrieked and recoiled. Their dark forms trembled at the domain’s edge, as if instinctively gripped by fear. Screeching metal echoed as they slowly backed away.
“They’ve stopped moving!”
Eily cried out in astonishment, her eyes wide.
“Finally, some breathing room for us.”
Varis let out a hollow laugh. But they couldn’t relax. The wraith knights prowled the domain’s perimeter, murmuring as if seeking a way to breach it. Ominous energy lingered.
“We break through now!”
Melina shouted decisively.
“How?!”
Eily asked urgently, sweat beading on her forehead and trickling down.
“We hold here while Elisha expands the barrier. When the path opens, we sprint like hell!”
Elisha drew a deep breath, focusing her power. The holy light from her fingertips intensified. The wraith knights retreated further.
“Now! Full sprint!”
At Varis’s cry, the group bolted forward without hesitation. Wherever the barrier touched, the wraith knights shrank back, clearing a path. Hope glimmered ahead.
Thud—!
But suddenly, the ground quaked. A powerful vibration surged up from their feet.
Screeeee—!
A chilling wail tore through the air, piercing their ears. Instinctively, they all turned back.
“Danger!!”
Melina shouted desperately, but it was too late.
“Ugh?!”
A bluish sword strike pierced the barrier, hurtling toward Elisha. It carried an aura that seemed to sever souls themselves; even grazing it felt like it would rip skin apart.
“Everyone, get out of the way!”
In that moment, Varis leaped forward. His sword flashed, slashing down at the incoming strike.
Boom!
Tremendous force collided. Varis’s sword shuddered, and the ground cratered beneath him.
“Nngh… grrrraaah?!”
Varis clenched his teeth, straining to block it. But he was slowly being pushed back. Everyone instinctively realized how threatening the attack was.
“Raaah!”
He barely mustered his full strength to deflect it desperately—but thud—!
The repelled strike slammed into the temple ceiling. The cracking wall finally collapsed with a scream.
“Dodge!”
Dust billowed as rock chunks rained down on the group. The fight for survival was far from over.
Thud!!
A massive shockwave rocked the vast temple. Thick dust clouded vision everywhere. Stone fragments flew, and the ground split with deafening cracks.
“Ugh… is everyone okay?”
“Y-yeah… somehow…”
Eily quickly steadied herself and scanned around. The group had narrowly avoided the falling rocks, but gauging the attack’s power was easy. The deep fissures and shattered floor amid the dust were proof enough.
“Who the hell launched that?”
Elisha muttered, tension thick in her voice. She swallowed dryly, trying to shake off the foreboding chill seeping into her bones, but it clung relentlessly.
That was when it happened.
“You managed to block that, huh. Humans with some backbone.”
A dissonant male voice sliced through the space, as if whispered by something defying the world’s laws.
“What the hell is that…?”
All eyes turned toward the source. There—
“I’ve come to claim your worthless lives myself.”
From beyond the rubble, a certain being emerged. Exuding an overwhelming presence far beyond the ordinary wraith knights, it advanced confidently, wielding a massive sword. Its mere existence weighed down the air, suppressing the surrounding mana in an instant.
Unlike the rusted, crumbling armor of the other wraith knights, this one’s was pristine, untouched by time—like black iron harboring the abyss of a midnight sky. Its smooth, unyielding surface seemed impervious to the ravages of ages. Blue mana flows seeped faintly from the armor’s joints, spreading eerie energy with every flicker. It even gave the illusion that the armor itself writhed like a living thing.
The sword in its grasp was the same. A demonic blade glowing with blue light, as if it had claimed countless lives. A chilling aura clung to its edge, enough to freeze souls on contact. Blue mana coursed along the blade like blood it refused to relinquish, distorting the air where it dripped to the ground.
“Such parlor tricks won’t save you.”
It stepped forward slowly. No—each step warped the atmosphere, as if its power dominated the world itself. Elisha’s domain withered powerlessly before its advance, as though the being denied her magic outright.
“A boss-level one…!”
Varis’s voice hardened. Sweat streamed down his back.
“Die.”
Galan raised his massive sword and swung mercilessly. The strike whipped through with force enough to tear space itself. The group dove aside, but the shockwave pulverized the ground in a wide radius. Earth split, and dust swirled like a fierce gale.
“This… won’t be easy…?”
Melina gritted her teeth, raising her bow. But her fingertips trembled faintly.
“No kidding!”
Elisha snapped irritably, eyes locked on the foe as she rapidly gathered mana.
“Who the hell are you?!”
Varis leveled his sword warily. But the question was pointless. This was no mere wraith.
“I am Galan.”
Thrusting his sword into the ground, he declared boldly. In that moment, his blue gaze pierced the group. The raw killing intent ensnared them. It was no mere threat—his very existence was a death sentence.
“Servant of my master, knight… and the one who will reap your souls.”