Chapter 370: Why They Seek Temar's Tomb (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 370: Why They Seek Temar's Tomb (2)
The blood spilled by Rick and his subordinates stretched into long streaks, crawling across the ground like snakes. The phenomenon had begun only after Rick drew his last breath.
Jin slowly shook his head.
“Body modification? Something like a bio-golem?”
“Similar, but slightly different. Ancient dark mages used to call this ‘Demonization.’”
“I think this every time I see you, but you really do know everything, don’t you?” Jin said with a shrug.
She never taught me, but my master was certainly capable of wielding high-level dark magic. I’m not sure if she can use it in this timeline, though.
In his previous life, Valeria had acquired dark magic from a Hister family heritage site. However, because it was dangerous and required gruesome catalysts, she never used it herself, nor did she teach it to her only disciple. She believed dark magic was a blight that deserved to vanish from the world.
“First bio-golems and Masterpieces, and now Demons. How annoying. I’m always getting tangled up in things like this. Rick Helter… I thought he was a decent fellow, but to think he’d stab me in the back like this.”
The mercy Jin had shown by allowing Rick to pay his final respects to the Emperor now seemed laughable.
He had assumed they were warriors of pride and honor. Anyone would have, seeing them maintain their loyalty even when facing an overwhelming foe.
An honor to serve even after death… Rick Helter knew this would happen.
Looking back, the first time he had encountered an enemy that transformed out of nowhere was during his cadet days. Starting with the guards who turned into bio-golems during the mission to retrieve the relic in Colon, Jin had frequently dealt with victims of magical experiments.
“The magic circle isn’t perfect,” Valeria noted.
Jin nodded. “I agree. The activation is slow, and even at a glance, it looks unnecessarily complex and crude.”
“That complexity is common when someone tries to force a spell to work when it shouldn’t,” she added.
Just as they’d observed, the magic circle being drawn by the Imperial Guards’ blood was incomplete—a clear sign that the magic was still in its experimental stages.
The fact that they used the Imperial Guard as test subjects means the Viment Imperial Family has a certain level of confidence in this magic.
Ethical issues aside, the Imperial Guard was undoubtedly the elite of Viment. They wouldn’t have been used as mere test subjects without a good reason. Jin concluded that Viment had reached the final stages of perfecting the magic called ‘Demonization.’
Furthermore, unlike the bio-golems or Masterpieces he had encountered before, Rick and his men could not be called victims. They were disgusting zealots who had participated in the experiment under the guise of loyalty to the Imperial Family.
While anger welled within him, a part of him felt it was for the best.
An unexpected harvest. Kinzelo is making golems called Masterpieces and Zipple is continuing their bio-golem experiments. I figured Viment was preparing something, and now I have definitive proof.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind.
Viment is looking for Temar's body…
Temar's remains—the reason the Imperial Guard had come to the Wantaramo Forest.
I wondered what on earth they intended to do with that body. Demonization… was this it? Do they intend to use Temar’s body to create a Demon?
Grit…
Jin ground his teeth. If that were true, as a Runcandel, it was a matter he could never overlook. Even destroying the entire Imperial Family wouldn't be enough to satisfy his rage.
Of course, nothing was certain. As far as Jin knew, no magic used a corpse as a material. But ancient dark magic was uncharted territory, even for him, making it a distinct possibility.
Does the clan know about Viment’s Demons?
It didn’t matter if they knew or not. Even if the clan had intelligence on these Demons, they wouldn’t have shared it with him. It was certain that Rosa and Joshua would hoard that information, using it only when it benefited them most.
Therefore, whether the clan knew or not was irrelevant.
I will use this information before the clan does.
Jin’s mind was already racing, calculating how to use the intelligence on Viment’s Demons.
Whether they intend to use Temar's body to complete their Demonization or are seeking it for another reason, the moment they began secretly searching for his body, they committed a mortal sin against Runcandel. I’ll make them pay the price.
Boom!
Jin struck the ground with his fist. Saturated with aura, his fist caused the dirt floor to explode violently in an attempt to destroy the magic circle.
“…A mage trying to destroy a magic circle with a fist?”
He hadn’t actually expected to erase the circle with a punch. But since it was a spell both he and Valeria were seeing for the first time, he had tried it just in case.
“Well, it’s an unstable circle, so I gave it a shot. As expected, it didn’t work.”
Even though the ground was torn up, the blood continued to draw the ominous magic circle, its wriggling lines looking exactly like a swarm of bright red insects.
“We need to leave evidence, Aria Owlheart.”
“And why did the person who needs evidence just try to destroy the magic circle?”
“I thought I could just cut off the magic and take their corpses. If I handed them over to you or another brilliant mage for research, it would have been easy to prove that dark body-modification magic was used on the Imperial Guards… Hm. Oh, dear.”
Jin cut himself off and turned his head, hearing the grotesque sound of the dead guards’ flesh and bones twisting.
Crunch, crackle!
“…It seems taking intact corpses will be difficult.”
Jin stepped in front of Valeria. He watched as the bodies of the dead guards rapidly swelled and shrank in a repeating cycle. It was a horrific sight that would make anyone with a weak stomach retch.
Worse, the decapitated corpses were picking up their own heads and reattaching them. Even the severed heads were hideously bloated, the sight nauseating even Jin and Valeria.
There was no need to keep watching the mess.
Swish!
Jin lunged forward like an arrow and slashed the corpse that was reattaching its head. The creature fell forward, losing its head and hands once more. Since his opponent was no longer human, he followed up with a finishing blow.
A swift strike—before the corpse could even hit the ground, Bradamante traced a frantic trajectory. Pitch-black sword energy swept over the body like scattered ink.
Reddened flesh and bone showered down. Not even a high-ranking monster with super-regeneration could recover from being reduced to such mincemeat.
Still, as if determined to leave nothing behind, Jin used mana to ignite a fire, setting the shredded remains ablaze. The burning flesh turned to ash in the blink of an eye. Valeria cast a spell of her own to help incinerate them.
In an instant, they had dealt with three of the corpses attempting to revive.
However, the remaining three were already finishing their transformation. In fact, the one that finished first was already pointing a sword at Jin.
Clang!
Jin spun and parried the creature's blade. The shock that traveled up his wrist was heavy—a strength clearly superior to that of the Imperial Guards he had been fighting just a moment ago.
It was a natural progression for them to become stronger once the transformation was complete. The power behind the strike had increased, but it wasn't enough to put Jin on edge—not unless they were fighting with their minds intact.
More than the creature's transformed appearance, the Viment-style scimitar caught his eye. Jin immediately recognized it as the sword of the squad leader, Rick Helter. But the moment he instinctively checked the face…
He couldn’t help but flinch.
No face? And this appearance is…
When he saw the magic circle complete and the corpses repeatedly swelling and shrinking, Jin had naturally expected the Imperial Guards to transform into something hideous, just like the bio-golems and the incomplete Masterpieces.
But that wasn’t the case.
The corpses that had finished their transformation resembled figures sculpted from marble. They had smooth, eerie faces, completely devoid of hair or features. They were like blank, life-sized dolls.
“I don’t suppose you still have your reason?”
The Demon that had once been Rick did not answer. Lacking anything that could be called a mouth, it couldn’t make a sound. And though it had no eyes, it seemed to track his movements perfectly, whether by instinct or some other method.
Rick calmly widened the distance. Meanwhile, the other two finished their transformations and took up positions beside him.
They might not have reason, but this isn’t just animalistic ferocity.
The Imperial Guards were showing a more composed demeanor in battle than they had before becoming Demons. This was a completely different pattern from the victims of other biological experiments Jin had seen so far.
They were, for all intents and purposes, combat weapons ready for immediate deployment. Despite being incomplete, Viment's Demons were in a different league from Zipple's bio-golems or Kinzelo's Masterpieces.
Whoosh…!
The spirit energy dwelling in Bradamante grew even denser.
“Jin.”
“What?”
“The three Demons you just killed burned to ash too quickly. They were likely designed to oxidize so that no information remains once they take a certain amount of damage.”
“Are you saying I should capture one alive?”
“If possible. As you said, it would be better to leave evidence. If capture is impossible, give me a signal before you kill them. I’ll use magic to preserve at least a part of the body so it doesn’t oxidize.”
Jin nodded. With Valeria’s magic, that was possible.
The Demons formed a sword formation and rushed toward Jin. The absolute command ‘do not damage the forest’ seemed to be deeply ingrained in them. They used only condensed sword energy, avoiding any harm to the surrounding trees.
Shuaak!
With a single strike, the waist of the first Demon was severed.
The creature had definitely blocked Jin’s swing with its own sword. The Demons did not lack the physical ability to parry even a frontal strike from Jin.
Yet, the Demon couldn’t comprehend why its waist had been sliced through, sending it toppling miserably to the ground.
It was because Jin hadn't used his Spirit Sword at all when they were still human.
What had sliced through the creature’s waist was Spirit Sword 2nd Technique: Scissors. The moment it blocked Bradamante, a blade of spirit energy had extended from behind it like a mirror, gouging out its midsection.
The moment he was about to attack the next Demon…
Chiiiing—!
Suddenly, several streaks of light shot from the other side of the forest, targeting Jin, Valeria, and the Demons alike.
While Jin parried the shots aimed at Valeria and even counterattacked with sword energy, the Demons barely managed to roll across the ground to avoid the beams.
“Zipple. A second uninvited guest has arrived.”
It was another moment where he couldn’t help but think it was for the best. He had planned to clean up all pursuers before entering the tomb anyway.
“You might have to fight while protecting the Demons. If Zipple kills one without a signal and it oxidizes, we might not be able to preserve the evidence.”
“That’s why I told you to conserve your strength. Now, show me what you can do, Aria.”