In the Name of the Knight (1)
Demons and undead are not the same.
Demons are a fusion of those who crossed over from the demon realm and the present world.
The term "demon race" comes from those who have accepted ma.
The undead, on the other hand, were once closer to the present world and have been called back from the realm of the dead.
Yet demons and undead share an inseparable bond.
This is largely because those capable of creating undead are themselves tied to ma.
However, the power of the undead they create has nothing to do with ma.
Their strength stems from their origin.
From death itself.
Whooooosh······!
The chilling aura now coiling around Death Knight Dross's blade was no mere ice attribute.
People called it seorim.
It was not simply cold.
It was the very aura of death that made the living shudder instinctively.
'Only high-ranking undead or those who can draw out that energy can wield seorim.'
Undead capable of wrapping death's aura around their sword strikes like this were rare.
That death now descended.
In the form of blade, knight, and frost.
'Here it comes.'
While some might flee from death in fear, Junil's eyes widened.
He swung the whip in his left hand.
Whoosh—
"!"
It happened in an instant.
Most never even saw Junil move.
Yet the Level 40 Death Knights were already reeling backward as if struck senseless.
Sound travels slower than light; only now did the air tear with a deafening roar.
Bang!
The Level 40 Death Knights collapsed entirely, while the Level 50s took it as their signal to charge.
Whoosh—
Despite his heavy armor, Dross blurred past Junil in a trail of frost.
His sword strike left seorim in its wake along a straight line.
The other two Level 50 Death Knights carved through the surroundings with similar skills.
Kwa-kwa-kwang!
Their sword auras carried enough power to bring death to everything they touched.
Fortunately, Junil was no longer in their path.
Instead, killing intent surged from Dross's left.
"!"
Clang!
Dross instinctively moved to block.
In the midst of a speed battle too fast for even an eyeblink, a brief contest of strength unfolded.
Dross used the opening to ask,
"This is······ what kind of sword?"
Narrative Trick Hwando.
Even the eyes of the dead, which could see spirits, could not perceive it.
It was nearly impossible to even register its existence.
"It's not a sword. It's an axe."
"?"
Shing.
Junil twisted the blade while flowing like water and thrust forward with the lie.
Thud!
The blade finally pierced near the heart.
"!?"
Dross's eyes widened.
"It really is a sword."
He had assumed an axe could not thrust.
It was the classic form of a sword.
Yet Dross could not understand what Junil hoped to achieve by stabbing him.
They could not be killed by ordinary physical attacks.
"You cannot kill me by stabbing with a sword."
Dross pressed deeper into the blade and swung his own sword at Junil.
Junil's answer was already decided.
Fwoosh!
A blue gleam flashed in his eyes as mana surged along the blade.
Only then did the sword's true form become visible.
"!"
Dross did not foolishly charge forward and risk his body exploding.
He instantly retreated.
Flash!
The moment the blade withdrew, blue flames erupted.
Kwaaaaang······!
Dross's left arm was blown away.
Had he been even a moment slower, everything would have vanished.
Constellations who had not seen Junil during the Archidia Gate incident expressed their admiration.
To them, this was a brand-new technique.
It was the act of injecting mana into empty blood vessels, instantly accelerating it to cause an explosion—a ghostly skill specialized against the undead······
"Mana Pop."
Ever the knight, Junil announced the skill name as well.
Perhaps their pride had been wounded by the absurd name of the technique that threatened them.
Rumble!
The other Death Knights charged.
Not the Level 50 knights. Countless Level 40 knights joined them.
'The effect wore off already?'
Sssss······!
The whip he had summoned with Belzerack's Tears vanished along with a faint fragrance.
The duration of fragrance-type artifacts grew shorter the more they were used in the same space.
'Can't be helped.'
Junil thrust forward with the same hand that had held the whip.
The spot he struck was not a knight's jaw.
Thud!
It was the floor.
"?"
The knights were all puzzled.
"Mana Punch!"
Only when they saw the floor crack and emit a glowing blue light did they understand his intent.
Crack—
In an instant, the Death Knights surrounding Junil—including himself—plummeted downward.
Kwa-kwa-kwang······!
Amidst a tremendous cloud of dust and roar, countless knights and Junil vanished from the rooftop together.
* * *
Crash!
Because the building had once been an academy, the space directly beneath the rooftop was filled with classrooms.
Narrow corridors and densely packed desks and chairs.
Knights were fundamentally warriors who fought on horseback across open plains, or, if unhorsed, wielded heavy weapons on flat ground.
'How will it be here?'
Junil rose in the corridor between classrooms.
'As expected, it's cramped. Good that we fell.'
He had deliberately struck near the elevator machinery on the rooftop—the building's "core."
Emergency stairwells, restrooms, corridors······
All the narrow, essential spaces clustered together.
Many had fallen into a confined area.
Thus, Junil and the Death Knights alike were scattered in all directions.
Exactly as he had intended.
'One of them is here.'
Only one remained in the same corridor as Junil.
[Death Knight Lv.50]
One of the three Level 50 Death Knights.
He charged, swinging a massive mace.
Rumble!
The mace embedded itself in the narrow corridor wall.
He had failed to adapt to the terrain.
Junil would not miss this opening.
"Flash Step."
Junil's form closed the distance instantly as a dagger was drawn from his inventory.
Thud!
The dagger buried itself in a single motion.
"Mana Pop."
Mana flooded along the blade.
The mana carrying 35% of Yulian’s legacy, at tremendous density, surged through and collapsed the knight’s entire body.
Kwaaang!
One Level 50 Death Knight vanished from a single mistake.
[Experience 20.7%]
He became Junil's experience.
'Whoa.'
Was it thanks to the triple event(?)?
Or because it was Level 50?
Unlike before, a considerable amount of experience flowed in.
Thanks to the Constellations' sponsorship, things seemed to be going smoothly.
As expected, the only ones Junil could rely on were these Constellations.
And the help they gave him was not limited to such obvious sponsorships.
'I need to check that.'
Junil carefully walked down the narrow corridor toward the restroom.
Creak.
There was no one inside.
He entered a random stall and opened the shop window.
[Coins Held: 2.7 Hearts (HT)]
Even after purchasing the Narrative Trick Hwando, he still had 2.7 Hearts.
'Impressive.'
It was the power of the Sub-Stream activation.
[Shop Upgrade Available!]
[2.5 Hearts (HT)]
The glowing text even displayed this message.
However, there was no time to upgrade and browse items now.
More importantly, upgrading would leave him with no money left to spend afterward.
[Narrative Trick Bulletproof Coat]
[550 Feelings (FL)]
Converted to Hearts, roughly 0.5 Hearts for the coat.
[Narrative Trick Walker]
[250 Feelings (FL)]
0.2 Hearts for the boots.
[Narrative Trick Night Vision Lens]
[200 Feelings (FL)]
He equipped the night vision lenses as well.
The Constellations assumed some big spender had appeared and was showering gifts.
* * *
Thud······ Thud······
The Death Knights, bewildered by the unfamiliar space, began moving while following sounds as best they could.
Thanks to this, three or four gathered near the spot where the mace had smashed the wall earlier.
They were briefly surprised to see a Level 50 Death Knight lying dead.
Soon after, they looked around for Junil's traces.
Then—
Thud!
Suddenly, a sword burst through the wall and pierced one knight's neck.
"!?"
Mana surged along the blade, swelling every blood vessel before the knight's neck burst like a balloon.
[Mana Pop]
Pop!
White frost rose as the massive knight's body collapsed backward.
[Experience 29.1%]
The knight in front was dumbfounded.
Coming through the wall.
Could he see through walls?
Yet no sound came from the other side of the wall, and not the slightest presence could be felt.
Still, he swung his sword at the wall based on instinct.
He swung in a way that detected killing intent.
Bang!
Only the innocent wall crumbled—nothing else.
Instead, another wall was breached, and the same gift was delivered to him.
Thud!
[Mana Pop]
Kwaaaaang!
[Experience 37.2%]
Narrative Trick Night Vision Lens.
The item's characteristics were exactly as described.
When Junil wore the lenses, he gained the ability to toggle night vision on and off at will.
He could detect temperature and movement beyond walls.
Though the undead had no body heat, the area around them became extremely cold.
Therefore, they stood out even more clearly to these eyes.
Yet the knights could not predict Junil's footsteps.
Thanks to the Narrative Trick Walker.
These boots not only silenced footsteps completely but could also project fake footsteps elsewhere if desired.
Thud, thud—
Another knight followed the fake footsteps and swung his flail, but only met a sword in the back of his neck.
Thud!
The outcome was the same.
Mana ignited and exploded.
[Experience 42.5%]
After eliminating four or five using fake footsteps and striking through walls, five Death Knights burst into the classroom where Junil was.
They had finally noticed.
He could not keep fighting like this forever.
This time they faced each other in an open space.
There was nowhere to run.
The Death Knights charged with fire in their eyes.
Rumble······!
Numerous classroom desks obstructed them.
Their strength was immense, so they pushed through quickly, but desks crumpled and bent from all sides, resisting.
It was enough to give Junil time to react.
Tap—
He stepped onto a desk and leapt.
"!?"
Suddenly, Junil vanished from the knights' sight.
Narrative Trick Set Effect: Page Turning
Equipping the full Narrative Trick series grants this set effect.
Disappears from all sensory perception for a short time, allowing actions to be taken.
Duration: 10 seconds.
All beings can only perceive the user after 10 seconds.
Cooldown: 6 hours
Rustle—
The sound of pages turning echoed, and the Constellations' chat reactivated.
What they saw were the corpses of five Death Knights.
[Experience 90.8%]
Only one Death Knight remained until Level 30.
Creak······!
The classroom door opened and he entered.
"Impressive. Sir Sagosul."
It was Dross.