Chapter 145
Chapter 145
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 145
Chapter Title: Legion (2)
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The oppressive pressure from dozens of mid-class skeletons was enough to send chills down one's spine.
“Impressive, but...”
Gasdal was a grand black mage, however. His pride wouldn't allow him to be overwhelmed by something like this.
“You still can't surpass me!”
It was certainly a fearsome force, but the situation wasn't disadvantageous for him.
In battles between undead, a black mage's capabilities played a major role.
Demian had imposed restrictions on himself, sealing away black magic.
That meant those skeletons had to fight solely with their own power.
Gasdal, on the other hand, could freely employ any black magic he wished.
“I'll make you clearly understand what I am.”
Gasdal gathered all his black mana. He then simultaneously unleashed multiple types of black magic.
‘Composite Bone,’ which consumed reserve souls to increase skeleton hardness.
‘Vicious Surge,’ which infused black mana to boost all skeleton stats.
‘Death Throes,’ which drove skeletons into a frenzy, multiplying their abilities several times over.
Numerous other black spells were cast as well. With each overlapping enhancement, the red skeletons' glowing eyes deepened in intensity.
“Go and smash them!”
At Gasdal's command, the red skeletons charged. White and red clashed head-on.
And the red ones were shredded.
“...What?”
Every time the white skeletons swung their weapons, the red skeletons shattered.
They weren't even fighting back—they had no chance to resist. The red skeletons were simply being torn apart.
“Th-this is impossible...!”
Gasdal hurriedly cast more black magic. He restored the broken skeletons and layered on even more enhancements.
But it was futile. The red skeletons were helplessly overwhelmed.
“How can the power gap be this wide...?”
Gasdal muttered in a daze. But he quickly regained his composure.
“Nonsense! I haven't shown all my cards yet!”
Gasdal struck the ground with his staff again, summoning more skeletons from the shadows.
These new skeletons wore armor. They also exuded a far more sinister aura than the initial ones.
“If you're leading with mid-class, then I'll counter with the same!”
Gasdal extended his hand forward. The second wave of red skeletons moved.
-Kieeeek!
-Kieeeeek!
The mid-class red skeletons leaped at the enemy, roaring ferociously as they swung their weapons.
And they shattered.
Even mid-class made no difference. The white skeletons parried the red ones' attacks and crushed them.
They fared no better than the low-class red skeletons.
“...”
In that instant, Gasdal realized his mistake.
Not all mid-class were equal. There were disparities even within that rank.
The red skeletons he had summoned were merely at the entry level of mid-class.
The white skeletons, by contrast, had all reached the pinnacle of mid-class.
That was why no matter what he tried, his elite minions couldn't win.
“This... is impossible... How did I even raise those things...?”
Gasdal ground his teeth. His eyes turned venomous.
“To think I'd have to resort to my final measure here...!”
Gasdal slammed his staff into the ground. Black smoke erupted from the shadows.
Tattered knights burst forth from the smoke.
Specter knights.
Unlike Death Knights, these undead were created using only souls.
Specter knights made from the high-class knights' souls that Gasdal had painstakingly collected.
They were truly his last resort.
“This time, I'll smash you all!”
At Gasdal's order, the specter knights charged the skeletons.
This time, even the white skeletons were helpless. The specter knights' weapons began shattering the skeletons.
“Hahaha! See that?”
Gasdal laughed triumphantly. But immediately after, the specter knights' advance halted.
The white skeletons had blocked their weapons.
“Skeletons... blocking specter knights?”
In that moment, a thought flashed through Gasdal's mind.
The skeletons Demian had created were a mix of soldiers and knights.
The ordinary soldiers and low-class knights had all been promoted to mid-class.
So what about those who had started as mid-class? What realm had they reached?
“...No way.”
Before Gasdal's doubt could fully form, the white skeletons began pushing back the specter knights.
Despite both being high-class, the skill gap was stark. The specter knights were sliced apart in moments by the white skeletons' blades.
“Wh-what... What are you doing! Why are specter knights losing to mere skeletons?!”
Gasdal frantically cast black magic to reinforce the specter knights.
He threw every means at his disposal to aid them.
But the tide didn't turn. In the end, the specter knights were destroyed and vanished at the skeletons' hands.
Unlike skeletons, specter knights couldn't be quickly restored once destroyed. They required time to rebuild.
With the specter knights gone, nothing remained to stop the skeletons.
The white skeletons began driving out the red ones.
“...”
Gasdal stared blankly at the slowly approaching white skeletons.
The elite minions he had poured his heart into creating were destroyed in an instant.
“...Good thing I prepared in advance.”
Gasdal snapped his fingers. The glass tanks behind him shattered, spilling green liquid onto the floor.
Adrian's corpse floated up from inside one of the tanks.
Its limbs had been replaced with those from others, and its half-rotted face was covered with iron plating.
Once a great master-class in life, now it was merely Gasdal's puppet.
“But I never thought I'd have to use even this.”
Gasdal opened his subspace. He pulled out an object that resembled a broken sword fragment.
A shard of Erebos.
Gasdal embedded it into Adrian's chest.
Power from the sword shard flowed through the meridians, spreading throughout the body.
“Awaken, Adrian.”
At Gasdal's command, Adrian's eyes snapped open.
They weren't ordinary eyes. They were pitch black, with scarlet irises in the center.
“Mom! I'll make lots of money and come back!”
Adrian's first words were that.
“When boiling soup, don't add too much water! Bucks, I told you not to hold the sword like that! An-an ancient golem? R-run away!”
Adrian spewed random nonsense. Gasdal clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction.
“Activating too hastily prevented the memories from settling properly.”
It wasn't a big issue. Adrian was already complete enough to deploy in battle.
Gasdal pointed straight ahead. His long, knobby finger indicated the white skeletons and Demian beyond them.
“Do you see? They're all your enemies. Wipe them out now.”
Gasdal snapped his fingers again. A greatsword rose before Adrian.
It wasn't an ordinary greatsword. It was one Gasdal had reforged from the Evil Spirit Forge for Adrian.
Adrian drew the greatsword. In that instant, his aura exploded outward.
The charging white skeletons were swept away by Adrian's presence.
The foremost ones shattered to pieces, while those behind were flung back like leaves in a storm.
Aura surged along the greatsword in Adrian's grip.
The aura soon solidified. A black blade enveloped the greatsword.
Aurablade.
The absolute weapon said to be creatable only by master-class, the pinnacle of knighthood.
A true transcendent had entered the battlefield.
* * *
“He's activating it after all.”
Seated on his throne, Demian gazed at Adrian.
Even with the birth of a master-class Death Knight, Demian didn't seem particularly urgent.
“It's laughable. Turning a half-formed ego into a master-class.”
In Demian's eyes, that thing wasn't a master-class. It was mere refuse mimicking the shell.
But even that shell was threatening now. Just its aura alone had shattered skeletons.
“Domenico. Are you ready?”
At Demian's question, Domenico rose beside him.
Alone among them, Domenico didn't appear as a skeleton. He looked exactly as he had in life.
His skin was gray, and deathly energy seeped from his entire body.
Domenico had become a specter knight.
—...What just happened to me?
A deep frown creased Domenico's face.
While the skeletons fought Gasdal's minions, Domenico had undergone something else.
He had experienced something in his mental space.
Something vast and terrifying, too immense even for Domenico's talents to contain.
“Now's not the time to worry about that.”
Demian pointed to the Death Knight Gasdal had created.
“If we don't destroy that undead, we're all dead. You'll have to take it on.”
Seeing the Death Knight, Domenico's expression hardened.
—...So he wasn't trying to resurrect Master, just use him like this.
“You're not about to say some nonsense like you can't fight because it's Master's body, are you?”
—Of course not. I just want to grant him peace quickly.
Domenico reached into the air. Black mana began gathering around his hand.
—Is this how it's done?
The gathered black mana converted to aura. The aura coalesced into a single form.
An aurablade formed a greatsword.