Chapter 072
Chapter Title: The Curse of the Dead
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Fire Wall.”
The moment Leo completed the incantation, a wall of fire engulfed the orcs.
Screeeeeech!
Watching the orcs turn to ash in an instant, Leo dispelled the magic.
Lunia and Eiran began to walk forward, looking at the orc corpses that were now nothing but bleached bones.
“Wait.”
“Hmm?”
“Yes?”
Lunia and Eiran stopped in their tracks.
Having halted the two, Leo stared intently at the orcs.
Whoooosh—!
The orc skulls began to emit black smoke and levitate into the air.
Click— Clack—
The bones snapped together one by one, forming skeletons.
Lunia and Eiran’s expressions tensed.
Until now, all the undead had emerged from the ground.
They were pre-summoned undead lying in ambush.
But this was different.
Monsters that had just become corpses were rising as undead.
“Is there a necromancer nearby!”
Lunia’s eyes narrowed sharply.
Fwoosh—!
She raised her phoenix mana, remaining vigilant of her surroundings.
Eiran, too, donned her Animus armor and readjusted her grip on her sword and shield.
Clatter-clatter-clatter—!
The orc skeletons gripped their weapons and charged.
Lunia scoffed and raised her palm.
Fwoosh—!
A small orb of fire materialized above her palm.
It was Fireball, the most basic fire attack spell.
A simple spell, but one whose power varied immensely depending on the user's skill.
Fwoosh-fwoosh-fwoosh—!
The Fireball instantly multiplied into several.
Seeing this, Leo’s eyes gleamed.
‘Layered Incantation at that speed, at her age?’
A technique for chanting the same spell multiple times simultaneously.
The technique itself wasn't difficult, but executing it at high speed was a challenge even for veteran mages.
‘And she’s pulling it off with pure talent alone. Impressive.’
While Leo was genuinely impressed,
Lunia's Fireballs descended upon the orc skeletons.
Kabooooom—!
They erupted in a fiery explosion, instantly shattering the orc skeletons.
“Simple enough.”
The corners of Lunia's lips curled up as she surveyed the area.
“I’ve dealt with all your pathetic skeletons! Show yourself already!”
Lunia’s fierce voice echoed thunderously throughout the winter forest.
But the only response was the echo of her own voice.
“What's this? Not coming out? Then I’ll just have to blow this whole area to smithereens—”
“Stop. There's no necromancer around.”
Seeing Lunia raise her hand to cast a powerful spell, Leo grabbed her wrist to stop her.
“Leo, you just saw it too. The orcs turning into skeletons.”
Leo calmly replied to Lunia's questioning gaze.
“That wasn't reanimation by a necromancer.”
“Then what was it?”
“A curse.”
“A curse?”
Lunia’s eyes widened.
Eiran also looked puzzled.
“Is there a curse that creates undead?”
“The Curse of the Dead.”
“The Curse of the Dead? I've never heard of it.”
Seeing Lunia tilt her head in confusion, Leo looked at her quizzically.
“Don't they teach you about curses at Seirun?”
“Th-They do! We just haven't gotten to that part yet! The curriculum pace can be different, you know!”
“Even so, it's a famous curse.”
“Ugh?”
Lunia flinched.
“It’s true that elves have high resistance to curses, and that Star Magic’s blessing spells make it easier for you to deal with them than other races, but curses are one of the demons' most powerful offensive tools. You shouldn't neglect your studies. Even Luna had trouble with curses more than a few times.”
“Urk?”
Unable to refute his words, Lunia darted her eyes around.
“The Curse of the Dead… isn't that the curse of the Necro King, Hell Kaiser?”
Eiran asked timidly.
“That's right. You know your stuff, Eiran.”
“It appeared often in the tales of the Great Heroes, so I know it well.”
Seeing Eiran’s bashful expression, Lunia shrank even more.
“So, what is the Curse of the Dead? If it's related to a Legion Commander, it must be dangerous, right?”
“The Curse of the Dead is a dangerous curse that continuously summons undead in the surrounding area.”
“What?”
“Any place where the curse is cast literally becomes a land of death.”
Seeing Eiran shrink back with a frightened look, Lunia's face went pale.
“Then what? Does this mean Tartaros is making a major move on Elsalvekia?”
An endless summons of undead was no small threat.
“No, not quite. Even with the Curse of the Dead, powerful undead can't be created unless Hell Kaiser casts it himself. This was probably cast by one of his subordinates.”
Leo glared into the forest.
“However, if Hell Kaiser is making a move, it's certain that there's something in this forest that Tartaros wants.”
“What would a Legion Commander want?”
“Well. For example…”
Leo stroked his chin.
“An item related to a Great Hero?”
“An-an item related to the Founder?”
“That would be a total jackpot!”
“We can't know for sure. In any case, we'll find out when we get there…”
Leo’s expression changed instantly.
Seeing the sudden shift in Leo's demeanor, the two elves, who had been looking puzzled, flinched and shuddered.
Whoooooosh—!
A cold blizzard raged.
Piercing through the blizzard, a pair of crimson eyes flashed.
“Heheheh— Welcome, hero cadets.”
Seeing the Death Knight, who exuded an aura fundamentally different from the undead they had faced so far, Lunia’s face hardened.
“A Death Knight?”
“Indeed! My name is Kargor! A proud knight who serves the great Necro King, and the messenger who will guide you to your deaths!”
Thud—!
Groooowl—!
As Kargor slammed his greatsword into the ground, the surrounding plants began to turn pitch black.
An aura of death began to seep from the earth.
Thwump! Thwump-thwump—!
A tremendous number of undead began to claw their way out of the ground.
It wasn't just skeletons.
Zombies and ghouls.
Even corpse chimeras.
All sorts of undead creatures revealed themselves.
“Despair! Tremble in fear! I will make you regret ever coming to this forest! Mwahahahahaha!”
Groooaaaar!
Along with Kargor’s maniacal laughter, the roars of the undead echoed.
Kargor let out a chilling laugh and looked at Leo.
“You won't be able to escape today.”
“I'll handle the Death Knight. Eiran, you take on the undead. And Lunia, prepare your most powerful spell.”
“Yes!”
“Got it.”
“Hoh? So you've chosen to fight me this time?”
“I'll be your opponent.”
“Hmph!”
Kargor chuckled lowly at Leo’s words.
A dark aura flowed from Kargor’s body as he readjusted his grip on his greatsword.
Leo lowered his sword and summoned the Jerdinger aura.
Fwoosh—!
The phoenix flames blazed fiercely.
As they faced each other,
Whoosh—!
Leo’s body vanished as if extinguished.
“How clumsy!”
Kargor swung his greatsword behind him.
Clang—!
The greatsword, swung at incredible speed, was blocked by Leo’s longsword.
Kargor’s glowing eyes twitched.
He had expected Leo to be sent flying, but he held his ground.
Grip—!
As Leo put strength into his sword, veins popped out on his hand.
Leo's sword pushed Kargor's greatsword back.
Creating an opening, Leo didn't hesitate to close the distance and press into Kargor’s space.
“Haha! Foolish boy! Did you think I was some ordinary human knight?”
Seeing this, Kargor sneered and released his dark aura.
Whoooosh—!
The dark aura washed over Leo.
“Mwahahaha!”
Whoosh!
But his expression hardened when he saw Leo emerge through the dark aura.
As if he had anticipated it, Leo's entire body was cloaked in a fiery aura, and flames danced fiercely on his sword.
‘The Jerdinger family's secret sword art: Prominence.’
Leo’s sword drew a crimson line as it flew toward Kargor.
Clang—!
Kargor swung his greatsword, barely managing to block Leo's attack.
But the crimson flames, which seemed capable of devouring everything, raged wildly.
“You're no ordinary brat!”
As pure knights, Leo and Kargor's skills were on par.
In a fight against such an opponent, the deciding factor was experience.
And Kargor was confident that he surpassed Leo in experience.
He thought it was absurd that a first-year student from a hero academy could overwhelm him—a Death Knight who had traversed countless battlefields—in terms of experience.
But that was Kargor's delusion.
‘He’s seeing through my every move!’
Leo's experience, forged across innumerable battlefields, was on a different level from Kargor's.
Looking into Leo's emotionless eyes, Kargor felt a chill run down his spine.
The crimson flames ate into Kargor’s greatsword.
Tsssssss!
Under the intense heat, Kargor's sword began to melt.
Whoosh—!
In that moment, Kargor’s body dissipated.
‘Wraith Form.’
Using Wraith Form, one of a Death Knight's skills, Kargor hastily retreated.
‘I'll have to use the undead troops to wage a war of attrition!’
Fwoosh—!
Suddenly, a miniature sun appeared in Kargor’s vision.
Along with a blindingly bright light, the surrounding snow melted rapidly.
Lunia, having cast Scorching Sun, shouted at Kargor.
“Die, you bag of bones!”
A massive orb of fire flew toward Kargor.
The undead caught in the flames were instantly incinerated, leaving not even ash behind.
‘There’s nowhere to run!’
Rumble-rumble-rumble! Fwoooooosh—! Kabooom—!
The flames that spread in all directions raged like mad.
Leo and Eiran lowered their stances to avoid being caught in the aftershock.
A moment later, the flames subsided, revealing a completely scorched landscape.
“This is what happens when you mess with me!”
Lunia puffed out her chest, her expression triumphant.
“Th-The forest…!”
Eiran covered her face, her expression pale.
[Is she really an elf? Why is she so aggressive?]
Peep- peep-!
Even Kiruan was taken aback, while Piora flapped her wings in approval.
Leo, who was staring at where Kargor had been, muttered.
“Persistent.”
“What?”
Lunia froze.
Whoooosh—!
“Uhehehe.”
“What? Still not dead?”
Lunia cracked her knuckles.
“In that case, I'll just have to keep burning you until you are.”
[No matter how I look at her, she doesn't seem like an elf.]
Kiruan whispered.
“Hehe— Did you think you could destroy me, Kargor, so easily?”
“Confident in your durability, are you? Let's see how long you last.”
Kargor, who had been laughing at Lunia’s belligerent smile, spoke.
“Once this mission is over, I will grant you all death.”
With those words, Kargor vanished.
“Acting all high and mighty for someone who's running away.”
Lunia scoffed and said,
“What are you waiting for! Let's hurry up, chase that damn bag of bones, and lift the curse on this forest!”
***
Whoosh—!
Kargor, having disengaged from the battle, appeared before Lauta, who was drawing a summoning circle.
“Did you take care of them?”
“They will be here soon. Hurry.”
“What?”
Lauta’s face twisted.
“Don't be ridiculous! You incompetent undead! You can't even handle a few first-year brats?”
“Hehehe. Yes. Mere first-year brats have done this to me.”
Kargor let out a low laugh.
“What's so funny you're snickering like that!”
“How could I not be pleased! I've been given the chance to eliminate the buds of future heroes! The Necro King will be most delighted by this.”
Seeing Kargor exclaim in a voice filled with ecstasy, Lauta’s face contorted.
“The buds… of heroes?”
“Yes. When I first saw you, I thought the hero academies were finished… but they are truly extraordinary.”
“Watch your mouth. I am your master right now.”
“You, who are weaker than I, dare to call yourself my master?”
“Because the Necro King you serve decreed it so!”
Lauta shouted nervously and showed him a black ring.
“I could annihilate you this very instant!”
“Uhehehe. Go ahead. If you think you can handle the three first-years who are on their way here alone.”
Lauta flinched at Kargor’s sneer.
“Kugh!”
“Hurry up and complete the summoning circle, you maggot of a master.”
Gritting his teeth, Lauta continued drawing the summoning circle.
‘The moment I get my hands on the Founder's power… I’ll deal with you first!’