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HEL SCANS
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Kawaii]
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Chapter 143: Gathdal the Chosen (4)
***
The chaos unfolding in the Country was shown in the mirror Gathdal had created.
– Ugh, ugh! What the hell are these!
– Oh, it’s the undead! The undead have appeared!
– Kyaaaak!
Thousands of skeletons were attacking people.
The massacre was carried out on everyone, from the mercenaries and explorers who had come after the ruins, to the citizens of the Country.
Dominico stared blankly at the sight.
“This is… nonsense… This is… nonsense…”
Dominico had fought a dark mage once before.
The skeleton he had used was less than five. Even then, they were so incomplete that the dark magic would often be dispelled if they were even a little far away.
At that time, Dominico was able to kill the dark mage easily, even though he was a low-class.
But what was that?
Over a thousand skeletons were summoned simultaneously. The dark magic was still being maintained even though they were so far away.
It was an unbelievable sight, even though he was seeing it with his own two eyes.
“Collaborator… Yes, there was a collaborator. This filthy bastard! He secretly brought in another dark mage without our knowledge!”
At Gathdal’s signal, the dark mages hiding in the Country used dark magic.
That was why they were definitely able to summon and maintain so many skeletons.
Dominico thought that it was impossible for a dark mage to do this alone, but it was definitely possible if there were several of them.
“Collaborator?”
Gathdal tilted his head at Dominico’s words. He spoke as if he didn’t understand why he was saying that.
“Come to think of it, I haven’t told you exactly what my level is yet.”
Gathdal had only introduced himself to Freize and Dominico as a high-level dark mage.
So Dominico and Freize had only judged Gathdal to be at least a high-level dark mage.
“I am a Grand dark mage.”
At those words, Dominico’s eyes widened as if they were about to pop out.
“What… nonsense…”
Dominico, who had lived his entire life as a knight, knew very well what a Grand dark mage was.
A level comparable to a Master Class. Weren’t they beings that had transcended humanity?
“This is all child’s play to me. If you still don’t believe me, shall I summon more? I can double the number of skeletons.”
Although they were inferior to Master Class in terms of combat ability, Grand mages had achieved incredible feats in other areas.
Like creating a bridge that crossed a continent and an island overnight.
Or sinking the ground whole to create a large lake.
Thinking about those anecdotes, it made sense what Gathdal had shown.
Dominico shook his head.
If the opponent was a Grand Dark mage, there was no chance of winning. It was a hopeless situation.
It was then.
– Go! Destroy all these filthy monsters!
– Follow Sir Duplessis! Let’s save the people!
Through the mirror, a group of knights were seen saving people.
Centered around the High Class Duplessis, the other knights were tightly grouped together and knocking down the skeletons.
Dominico felt a glimmer of hope at the sight. But the hope was short-lived.
“There were still some fresh ones left.”
Gathdal tapped the ground with his staff again.
At that, skeletons began to pop up around Duplessis.
In an instant, hundreds of skeletons surrounded the knights.
“There’s a High Class here, so let’s work a little harder.”
Gathdal hit the ground again, and the skeletons turned dark. They charged forward, emitting red glows.
– Ugh, ugh! Basil, no!
– H, how can skeletons withstand the aura?
The knights were instantly pushed back by the skeletons.
At that moment, Duplessis stepped forward. As Duplessis swung his sword, the skeletons were instantly cut down.
– Sir Duplessis!
– You are truly amazing!
Before the knights’ admiration could end, the skeletons were restored again.
– Stop them!
– Don’t back down!
The fierce battle began again. Duplessis and the knights fiercely drove back the skeletons.
However, the situation was unfavorable for the knights. The skeletons were restored even when they were destroyed.
Dominico watched the scene with a dark look in his eyes.
The skeletons could be restored infinitely, but Duplessis and the knights’ mana was limited.
If the battle continued like this, it was clear that Duplessis’ side would lose.
Clench!
Dominico gritted his teeth.
He couldn’t just let Duplessis die like this. He had to find a way to join forces with him.
With two High Classes, they might be able to stand against the Grand dark mage.
Ugh, ugh!
Dominico grabbed the spear that had pierced his body.
He pulled himself out of the spear with all his might. His body, riddled with holes, fell to the ground.
C, cough……!
Dominico forced himself to move, trying to run as far away from Gathdal as possible.
“You won’t be able to last long since you were stabbed with the Evil Spear.”
Gathdal didn’t chase after Dominico even though he was running away.
“You’re in the palm of my hand anyway.”
Gathdal clicked his tongue as if he thought it was ridiculous.
***
Even amidst the agony, Dominico didn’t stop moving.
He was determined to somehow leave this place and join forces with Duplessis.
Suddenly, all strength drained from his body.
His legs wouldn’t move anymore. He collapsed to the ground.
He had to move. He had to find a way.
His mind raced, but his body wouldn’t respond. Slowly, life faded from Dominico’s eyes.
Moments later, someone appeared where Dominico lay.
“So it ended up like this.”
Damien Haksen.
He looked down at Dominico’s body as he spoke.
Damien had moved to pursue Gathdal as soon as the large-scale dark magic was activated.
And now, he found Dominico lying on the ground.
Dominico’s soul rose from his body. Transformed into a spirit, Dominico took a while to realize his own transformation.
“I… I…”
“You’re dead.”
Damien said coldly. Dominico looked at Damien with an incredulous expression.
“Freize has passed away.”
Dominico said with a dazed face.
“Gathdal, that man killed her. I… I couldn’t do anything…”
“Are you trying to garner sympathy from me?”
Damien said disdainfully.
“I told you. You brought this hell upon yourselves. You’re just paying the price.”
Both Freize and Dominico had not only allied with dark mage but also offered the people gathered at the ruins to Gathdal.
They made wrong choices and committed terrible sins. Now, the consequences were coming back to haunt them.
“If I hadn’t stopped him, Gathdal could have prevented the widespread use of dark magic.”
Even Damien couldn’t disregard the formidable power of a Grand Dark mage.
He didn’t know what havoc they could wreak if given even a slight opportunity. So he tried to prevent it as much as possible.
“Do you even know what’s happening right now? The skeletons summoned by Gathdal are killing people.”
“I saw it. That bastard showed it himself.”
Dominico sighed as he looked up at the sky.
“Gathdal’s initial demand was the souls of the citizens. Freize opened the ruins to outsiders to avoid sacrificing the citizens.”
Dominico lamented, covering his face with his hands.
“We committed the sin, but why do the citizens have to die…”
“Ridiculous. You’re worried about the citizens when you willingly offered explorers to Gathdal.”
Damien said mockingly. Dominico had nothing more to say.
Then it happened.
A massive magic circle appeared in the sky. At the same time, souls from all over country began to be drawn into the magic circle.
“W-what on earth… How can a person cast such a large-scale dark magic…”
Damien wasn’t particularly surprised.
Such dark magic was nothing to a Grand Dark mage.
“Aah!”
“I-I’m being pulled in!”
Sounds came from behind. The souls of knights and soldiers who secretly followed Damien were being drawn into the magic circle.
“We… we can’t resist…”
Not only them, but Dominico’s soul was also being pulled in.
“Tsk.”
Damien clicked his tongue. Whatever happened to them wasn’t his concern.
But it wouldn’t be good if their souls fell into Gathdal’s hands.
Damien loosened his bracelet slightly, releasing some dark magic.
Then he cast protective dark magic on the souls present here.
Thanks to this, the souls of knights, soldiers, and Dominico were no longer being drawn in.
When Damien used dark magic, Dominico asked with a surprised expression.
“Victor… Are you… by any chance, a dark mage?”
“Don’t you dare compare me to those trash.”
Damien said with annoyance.
“I can use dark magic, but that doesn’t make me a dark mage.”
Dominico blinked at Damien’s words.
His expression seemed to question if being able to use dark magic didn’t make one a dark mage.
Leaving Dominico like that, Damien moved on.
“Where are you going?”
Without looking back, Damien replied to Dominico.
“I’m going to kill him.”
***
“It’s going smoothly.”
Gathdal said with satisfaction as he looked at the large number of souls gathering.
“Soon my wish will come true.”
A Master Class Death Knight.
Once he had that, he would no longer have to fear the Master Classes.
“Then that person will also favor me even more.”
Gathdal’s eyes shone.
Dorugo.
The founder of dark magic and the master of all dark mages.
Everything Gathdal did was to follow his holy will.
It was then that he felt a presence nearby.
He smiled strangely and looked towards the source of the presence.
“Oh, you’re finally here.”
Damien aka Victor.
The man who had pushed back his clone in the ruins was standing there.
“You’re foolish. You didn’t run away and instead came all the way here to me.”
“I have a personality where I can’t just pass by trash when I see it.”
Gathdal burst out laughing at Damien’s words. He had felt it at the ruins too, but he was quite an amusing fellow.
“Still, since you came to see me, I should treat you well.”
Even though he had seen Damien’s skills in the ruins, Gathdal was relaxed.
The skeletons used by the clone were only low-level. But the skeletons Gathdal was about to bring out were different.
They were his main force, which he had raised for many years by feeding them souls and memories.
“Let me show you. My loyal followers.”
As Gathdal slammed his staff on the ground, the shadow at his feet spread wide.
Soon, the shadow began to stir.
It churned like a stormy sea. Skeletons rose from within.
***
Loyal followers.
As Gathdal confidently spoke, these were different from other skeletons.
First of all, they were not white but red in color. Not only that, but their appearance was also different.
The skeletons that Gathdal had summoned so far were so uniform in size that they seemed to be made from a mold.
However, the red skeletons were all different sizes.
There were skeletons as small as boys, skeletons as large as bears, and even giants reminiscent of ogres.
Furthermore, the weapons they held were also different. There were skeletons holding not only swords and spears, but also greatswords and maces.
‘I see them again.’
Damien looked at the red skeletons and fell into thought.
In his previous life, they were also famous as Gathdal’s elite army.
They were much weaker than in his previous life, but that was only when compared to his previous life.
“They all have the strength to surpass the Low Class.”
Gathdal’s voice was filled with pride.
“Do you know what happens when you add my support to that?”
Skeletons supported by a proper dark mage can exert combat power beyond their own abilities.
Hundreds of Low Class skeletons.
What if they were supported by Gathdal, a Grand dark mage?
Their power was so strong that it was impossible to estimate.
– No… this… this is impossible to win…
Dominico, who had followed Damien, said in a trembling voice.
– Victor, run away. At least your life…
Damien ignored Dominico’s words. Instead, he drew out the Dawn.
Dominico, seeing this, asked with an incredulous face.
-……You’re going to fight?
“That’s why I came.”
Damien said calmly. Dominico’s eyes widened at those words.
A conflict arose on Dominico’s face. After a while, Dominico opened his mouth.
– Victor, can you create skeletons?
“You’re talking nonsense. dark mages have different fields. Not all dark mages can summon skeletons.
-……I see.
“But I can.”
Dominico looked at Damien with a dumbfounded face.
– Then turn me into a skeleton.
This time it was Damien’s turn to be dumbfounded.
“Don’t you know what it means to become an undead?”
– I know. Souls that have accepted dark mana cannot reincarnate and remain in the world.
The human soul constantly reincarnates and transmigrates.
However, souls tainted by dark mana can no longer reincarnate and are left in the world.
And then they slowly lose their power and disappear.
– Even so, I want to be of help in your fight.
Dominico said calmly. He had the face of a man who had already made up his mind.
– I beg of you too.
– I beg of you too!
It wasn’t just Dominico. The knights and soldiers of the Country who had followed him also cried out earnestly.
“You will all regret this.”
Damien said to them. Dominico smiled bitterly.
– We have to pay the price for this.
Damien looked at them silently. Soon, he slowly unbuckled the bracelet on his wrist.
All the dark mana contained in the bracelet was released.
***
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HEL SCANS
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Kawaii]
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