Chapter 307
Chapter 307
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 307
Chapter Title: Prelude to Battle (2)
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Now in the depths of the Northern Mountains, which had become Auterica's greatest forbidden zone, the Immortal Citadel stood as a veritable stronghold of the Demon King—the Fortress of Death.
A woman who had been busily darting around the place suddenly let out a sigh without realizing it.
"What the hell is this now?"
She was Siana, the demon tribe succubus who had unwittingly become a high-ranking officer in the Immortal Army for the second time.
Stopping in place, she slowly looked around and let out another deep sigh.
The Immortal Citadel was currently in a state of utter chaos.
The cause was that their ruler, the Immortal King, had personally led the legion's elite troops off somewhere...
Naturally, the resulting management vacuum had dumped an overwhelming workload on the few remaining high-ranking officers.
'Ahh—Olivia's off on some mission again, so I barely see her face anymore. With everyone else gone, all the cleanup just keeps piling up!'
Among the high-ranking officers, the ones left in the Immortal Citadel were just herself, Banshee Queen Olivia, and Archlich Dwell McCain, who controlled the lower undead.
Compared to usual, it was practically an empty house.
In this situation, if a hero party came charging in, they'd be overrun without a chance to fight back—but Siana wasn't too worried about that.
'We've got plenty of disposable pawns. If it really comes to that, I can just grab the important stuff and bail.'
The Immortal Citadel was symbolic at best anyway; it wasn't some structurally vital facility.
As long as the Immortal King himself was safe, they could rebuild it anywhere, anytime, with ease.
Still, slacking off on management might earn her an earful from the King when he returned, so she needed to wrap up her assigned tasks properly.
'How the hell did I end up like this?'
This time, she successfully swallowed her sigh instead of letting it out. She shook her head.
Sure, serving a handsome, charismatic boss wasn't the worst, but focusing on the Immortal Army's affairs lately had stalled her personal goals, and that grated on her.
'I thought borrowing their power would make it easier to find... Where the hell is it?'
To be sure, there was a reason a demon tribe succubus like her had joined the secret organization Oath of Reverse Heaven.
The revolutionary had approached her first, but she had her own desires, which was why she'd joined them.
Of course, she'd already asked Olivia—their info specialist—for help, but watching her slave away nonstop made it impossible to press her.
How could she nag someone who barely rested and lived for the job?
"Agh! This sucks! I'll just hurry up and finish my tasks first. Wrap this up quick and go blow off some steam."
Finally snapping irritably, she started striding forward again.
At least she had her stress-relief toy, former Crown Prince Simon, to keep her sane. Without him, her patience might have worn out ages ago.
'Might've been better if I'd just gone with them. At least I could've watched him cut loose.'
No matter how far she was from a combat specialist, Siana's own strength wasn't anything to sneeze at.
She was confident she'd be far more useful than most officers.
Of course, Immortal King Hans had his reasons for leaving her behind.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Deep within the Northern Mountains of the Ion Continent's northeast...
A brutal deathmatch was unfolding, where undead staked their lives—or lack thereof.
***
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ KABOOOM—!
A deafening explosion unleashed a ferocious storm that threatened to rip the roots from surrounding vegetation.
Clashing forces of mutual opposition sparked thunderous flashes and roars that shook the land.
The battle had barely begun, yet the terrain was already irreparably devastated.
Lucky it was deep in the mountains—if this were a populated area, an entire metropolis would've been reduced to rubble.
Even so, Hans didn't flinch, staring straight at his formidable foe, the Reverse Heaven Lord.
Though he had no real eyes.
"No wonder you were so cocky. You've definitely gotten stronger since Japan."
[Kehh, and you're weaker than back then? Put in some real effort.]
"...Hmph. If you insist."
In truth, neither the Reverse Heaven Lord nor Hans were typical martial fighters, so their clash was eerily quiet yet spectacularly dazzling.
Territories of encroaching auras vied for space like a game of territory grab, shifting moment by moment.
Rumble—
Flash!
The arrogant angel's sunset-hued energy flapped massive wings, burning away encroaching black darkness. The wicked demon king's jet-black abyss darted through space, devouring the ruddy glow.
It resembled the chaos of light and dark mingling in creation myths—an exchange so profound even power-hungry onlookers could only feel distant awe.
'...He's still pushing me. Without the officers' support, I might not have lasted this long.'
And amid this cataclysm...
The elite undead Hans had handpicked for support were being ground down in real time.
[Kraaaagh!]
[Scatter! Getting swept up means death! Focus fire!]
[Ritual complete. Coordinates analyzed. Mana amplification ready. Activate.]
Despite space-rending storms and deadly holy power raining down, they flung themselves into the fray at their king's command, desperately creating even momentary openings.
Last time in Japan, they'd fallen into his trap, trapped in another dimension facing all-around spatial collapse...
'...Way better than back then.'
Pre-battle prep, location, and other factors played a role, but his subordinates' presence was huge.
Undead extremes meant clear weaknesses—but equally potent strengths.
Already dead, they feared nothing, needed no sustenance, and fought tirelessly—
Thump—
Death permeating the area pulsed, resonating with scattered undead fragments on the ground.
Shrrk—
Whoosh—!
The death-saturated remains gathered, reforming their original shapes.
Undead shattered beyond revival substituted lost parts with prepared mediums, snapping back to form in seconds.
As if rewinding time.
A heaven-defying necromancy possible only for the Immortal King, master of death, and his death-denying kin.
'Still needs some body left intact.'
Thus, despite constant revivals, total annihilations were mounting.
He maximized abyss death to prevent full erasure, but...
"Hah, cockroaches are tenacious, huh?"
The problem? His foe wasn't stupid.
With those words, a pillar of light tore from the rear sky, slamming into the clustered liches.
KABOOOM—!
A meticulously aimed strike with massive area coverage.
The fate of the swept-up undead was obvious.
Even Archlich Kelipha, one of the high officers, was caught—but regret was fleeting.
'Sacrifice was expected anyway.'
Victory first.
Hans seized the opening, binding the foe's movements with swift aura surges.
[GRRROOO—!]
[KYAAAHH—!]
Simultaneously, twin black beams of retribution descended from the sky.
Rumble rumble—BOOM!
Death Breaths from Bone Dragons Entrachio and Herathos.
The concentrated essence of cataclysmic death mingled, engulfing the bound Reverse Heaven Lord and cratering the ground.
"...Tch. Filthy."
Yet even this massive attack barely scratched him.
Whoosh—!
A gust scattered the thick dust cloud.
He flapped pristine white wings, shrugging off clinging black death residue like dust from clothes.
As if it were nothing.
'As expected. Not enough.'
Power limits aside, elemental advantage wasn't easily dismissed.
Divine power user or outer god lackey, some damage was inevitable.
'But this attack wasn't just about raw power.'
The Death Breaths' residue filled the area with thick, sticky black energy.
A battlefield tilted in Hans's favor.
"Curious, though."
As the renewed clash intensified...
After trading unavoidable blows, the Reverse Heaven Lord—having blasted a distant peak into an avalanche—voiced his doubt in that eerie tone.
"You seemed prepped from the moment I arrived. How'd you know I'd come? Or is this your base?"
From his view, it was baffling.
He'd slipped silently from the abyss seal into the mortal realm, no traces left.
Likely honed from world-hopping.
Yet in Auterica, he'd been sniffed out upon entry.
How could he not wonder?
'Plus, rarely anyone musters this force right from the start.'
His words suggested this was a first.
No wonder—how to predict the Main God's saintess detecting him, with all factions arrayed against him regardless of alignment?
[Pfft—who knows? I just happened to spot you while out hunting. Pretty lucky, right? Kehh! ]
Of course, no intention of explaining.
Hans sneered, spreading his arms wide.
"...Tch. Whatever. Doesn't matter. I'm getting used to this world's constraints. Time to end it."
That attitude irked him; pressure surged from his body.
Whoooosh—
Hans didn't care, but it burdened his overtaxed undead forces.
A third of his troops were fully erased beyond revival; most others strained from multiple resurrections.
Bone Dragon Herathos was half-destroyed, barely mobile, urgently reverse-summoned to his heart.
Considering most were war veterans, the losses were steeper than expected.
Any more, and the Immortal Army's survival would flash red—
'Let's see. At this point...'
Immortal King Hans gauged his foe through the "Eye of the Abyss".
Too high a tier for details, but enough for rough condition checks.
'...Good. Not at full strength. Recovery's down, fatigue piled high.'
Obvious, really.
After the elite forces poured against him, how could he be unscathed?
Hans's own prior damage exceeded Heinrich's holy sword impalement.
Prolonging meant defeat—but no need now.
[Impatient, aren't you? How about a chat?]
"Ha! Now you wanna talk?"
[Kekeke. Fine, no forcing it. Guess I've held up a busy man too long.]
Laden with implication.
Sensing something off, the Reverse Heaven Lord's eyes narrowed suspiciously.
Whoooosh—
Suddenly, a gale sucked scattered undead and debris into black smoke, vanishing into Hans's embrace.
An emergency undead-only recall spell, exclusive to him.
"Hah, running again?"
[Running...? Maybe.]
"I told you. I'll finish Earth's business here. Think I'll let you slip again?"
As he spoke, an eerie aura began sealing the space.
Incomplete amid pervasive death energy, but without resistance, entrapment was imminent.
Denser than the prior 'summon release' he'd recalled.
[Kekeke—you're misunderstanding.]
One correction, though.
This wasn't a retreat.
No...
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ 「Entity Assembly」 Just stepping aside for the waiting guests behind.
A warm courtesy for busy modern folk.