Episode 343
The advance party that entered the ancient castle ruins was tasked with locating the relics of the Sacred King.
Soldiers, brainwashed by the cult’s magic, clumsily tore through the ruins in search of any trace of the relics. Yet, in their frenzied state, it was unlikely they would find anything of value.
The hunting dogs watched the soldiers’ reckless destruction with growing unease, but none dared suggest to the impatient Emperor that the soldiers be pulled back.
Surprisingly, the cultists managed to pinpoint the exact location of the relics using a sacred artifact given to them by the “Black Serpent of the Mouth.”
The cult’s magicians discovered a hidden passage beneath a well at the site of a collapsed ancient temple.
The Emperor ordered the hunting dogs to secure the passage first. His plan was to eliminate any threats and then lead his elite guard safely into the relic site to claim the Sacred King’s remains.
Soon, the hunting dogs returned, having confirmed the passage was clear.
The leader of the hunting dogs reported back to the Emperor’s carriage.
“Your Majesty, there are no other threats in the underground passage.”
This meant there were no monsters or guardians, unlike typical dungeons or other relic sites.
Upon hearing this, the Emperor issued his command.
“Station the army here and prepare to explore the relic site immediately. We must obtain the Sacred King’s remains without delay.”
“Understood, Your Majesty.”
As the hunting dogs began setting up camp and preparing for the exploration, something unusual appeared in the sky.
At first, they thought it was a large bird. But as it drew closer, it was clear it was far too large to be a bird.
The hunting dogs, the only ones maintaining their composure within the Emperor’s army, were horrified when they recognized the creature descending from the sky.
“A dragon!”
It was none other than the tyrant dragon summoned by Zeke, the same creature that had previously devastated the imperial garrison.
The tyrant unleashed a torrent of black flames upon the Emperor’s forces.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Emperor’s camp was engulfed in a sea of black fire raining down from above.
The soldiers, under the influence of the cult’s brainwashing magic and drugs, only snapped back to their senses when the flames began to consume them, the heat and pain finally breaking through their stupor.
“Fire! Fire!”
As the sudden attack jolted the soldiers back to reality, chaos erupted throughout the ranks. This was precisely what Zeke had intended.
Maintaining control over a large number of soldiers through magic was no easy feat. It was likely that, in addition to magic, they had used drugs to enhance the soldiers’ awareness, and an external shock could bring them back to their senses.
The soldiers panicked under the fiery assault from above.
At that moment, the knights of the Scorpion Palace stepped forward, shouting at the soldiers.
“Hold your formation! Anyone who flees will be executed on the spot!”
But the panicked soldiers could hardly hear the knights’ commands.
In the end, one of the knights swung his sword, beheading a fleeing soldier.
Only then did the soldiers, terrified, stop running and regrouped, moving to areas untouched by the flames.
The cult’s magicians waved their staffs, sprinkling a black liquid over the flames. The fire writhed like a snake, converging into a single point.
Simultaneously, other magicians chanted spells towards the sky, summoning dark clouds that soon brought rain.
With the fire quelled by magic and rain, the flames were extinguished faster than expected.
Just as the soldiers began to calm down and reorganize, screams erupted from all around.
Horrific monsters appeared before the soldiers, as if they had just emerged from the depths of hell.
These were illusions created by Zeke’s power, the “Mirror of Illusions.”
Even though the soldiers had awakened, they were still under the influence of the drugs, making the illusions even more vivid and terrifying.
Some soldiers, attacked by the illusory monsters, felt real pain and even died from the shock.
The camp, which had just regained some semblance of order, fell into chaos once more.
The rain, summoned to douse the flames, turned the ground into a muddy quagmire, making movement difficult.
“Ahhh!”
Soldiers, their feet stuck in the mud, floundered and scattered, breaking formation.
One of the cultists, finally grasping the situation, shouted with a pale face.
“Quick, dispel the illusions on the soldiers!”
The cultists hurriedly cast spells to break the illusions.
However, the illusions were the work of Zeke’s “Mirror of Illusions,” a power of the high demon Pan. Even magicians wielding the power of the constellations couldn’t dispel the magic affecting so many soldiers at once.
At that moment, something appeared before the soldiers.
Clank! Clank! Clank!
These were not ordinary skeletons but ones personally crafted by Richmond.
A fully armed skeleton unit emerged, targeting the magicians busy behind the soldiers.
Slash!
“Argh!”
Caught off guard by the sudden skeleton attack, several magicians fell, unable to respond properly.
Seeing this, other cultists cast spells at the skeletons.
“Return to the afterlife!”
But Richmond’s skeletons ignored their magic, charging forward to push the magicians back with their shields before stabbing them with swords.
The cult’s magicians died with eyes wide open, unable to comprehend what had happened.
With the soldiers thrown into disarray by the illusions and skeletons, and the cult’s magicians falling, the knights meant to control the situation began to panic as well.
Then, from the flank, new adversaries appeared.
Mounted on shark dragons were dragon warriors.
At the forefront, Kaiman, riding atop Gurab, raised his Eastern-style sword high.
Whoosh!
In an instant, Kaiman’s sword severed a knight’s head.
Gurab roared at the knights.
Roar!
Startled by Gurab’s cry, the knights’ horses reared and bucked.
Finally, Kalito, commanding the Scorpion Palace knights, shouted.
“Abandon your horses and fall back!”
Following Kalito’s order, the knights discarded their horses as bait and retreated.
The dragon warriors, riding their shark dragons, swept through the Emperor’s flank like a cavalry charge.
The Emperor’s forces, attacked from the side, were split in two.
As the army’s formation crumbled, Kalito withdrew with the knights.
At that moment, he noticed the cult’s magicians entering the relic site with the Emperor’s elite guard, carrying a palanquin.
Suddenly, Kalito felt a jolt of clarity.
“What am I doing here?”
Kalito, who had been brainwashed by the cult’s magic, regained his senses due to the external shock.
Having been directly subjected to drugs and magic more than the regular soldiers, he finally broke free from the brainwashing.
He recalled how the Emperor had forcibly cast magic on him and Gillian.
“Damn it! We should never have come to this place.”
But it was too late for regrets.
Kalito shouted to the Scorpion Palace knights.
“Everyone, snap out of it! We can’t die here like dogs! Head into the relic site!”
Responding to his call, the Scorpion Palace knights moved towards the relic site.
Kalito, dragging the bound Gillian, rushed to the entrance.
But as they arrived, they saw the hunting dogs trying to destroy the entrance to the relic site.
“Those bastards!”
Kalito activated the magic engraved on his sword.
Boom!
The explosion magic obliterated the hunting dogs at the entrance.
Seeing Kalito and the Scorpion Palace knights charging towards the entrance, the hunting dogs drew their swords and shouted.
“His Majesty has ordered us to hold the line! Do you intend to defy the Emperor’s command?”
In response, Kalito activated a hidden device on his wrist, launching a small arrow that struck the shouting hunting dog right between the eyes.
Thud!
The other hunting dogs were taken aback by Kalito’s ruthless action.
Kalito addressed them.
“Stop spouting nonsense and step aside. It’s the Scorpion Palace knights’ duty to ensure His Majesty’s safety.”
At that moment, skeletons were seen approaching them.
Realizing they couldn’t stop Kalito, the hunting dogs reluctantly stepped aside.
Kalito quickly led Gillian down the entrance.
“Hurry down!”
As the Scorpion Palace knights descended, the hunting dogs attempted to follow, but the skeleton soldiers attacked them.
“Argh!”
The hunting dogs abandoned their fallen comrades and hurried down, triggering a pre-set explosive scroll.
Boom!
The explosion caused the entrance to collapse.
Some of the hunting dogs who entered late were caught in the blast and buried under the debris, but no one paid them any mind.
Inside, Kalito caught his breath.
“Damn, we need to get out of here quickly, but how…”
For now, pretending to follow the Emperor’s orders and surviving this ordeal was the priority.
He shouted to the hunting dog members.
“I’m concerned for His Majesty’s safety. Lead us to where he is immediately!”
The hunting dogs nodded grimly at Carlito’s threat.
“Understood. Follow me.”
“What the…? This is a mess.”
Watching the battlefield unfold from the perspective of his summoned creatures in the underground catacombs, Zeke was taken aback by how easily the Emperor’s army crumbled. Despite the surprise attack, he hadn’t expected them to fall apart without even mounting a counterattack.
“It wasn’t a proper army to begin with.”
The troops had been hastily conscripted to seize the remains of the Holy King. The plan was to intimidate the Holy Kingdom with an orc legion, enter without bloodshed, and claim the Holy King’s relics. Logistics had been completely overlooked.
The soldiers, brainwashed and exhausted from relentless marching without rest or food, were in no condition to fight effectively. The mad Emperor’s greed had driven his men to their deaths.
Just then, Richmond contacted him.
“Master, most of the soldiers have scattered and fled. Should we pursue them?”
“Just block their path to the main force. If any manage to inform the main army of this situation, it could become troublesome. Make sure they don’t get through.”
“Understood, Master.”
After ending the communication with Richmond, Zeke summoned another creature.
With a chilling aura, a lich with eyes set with blue gems appeared.
“You called for me, Master.”
Bane, an Elemental Lich who had once been a wizard of the eighth circle in the ice magic school of Nirvana, greeted him respectfully.
“Bane, go to the location I’ve designated and hold them there until I give the signal.”
“Your loyal servant, Bane, will obey.”
Zeke summoned a ghost soldier and assigned it to Bane.
“Follow the ghost soldier and monitor their movements. It seems there are knights of both blue and red ranks near the Emperor. Keep your distance and focus on holding them back.”
“Understood, Master.”
Bane followed the ghost soldier to the position Zeke had specified.
Having issued his orders, Zeke took a deep breath and turned around.
Before him stood a massive door.
“Now, let’s get inside and prepare before they arrive.”
Zeke reached out toward the door.
[Attempting to access the Advanced Administrator System.]
[Code verification in progress.]
[Title: Confirmed as Blessed by the Ancient Dragon.]
[Title: Confirmed as Knight of Radiant Light.]
[Title: Confirmed as Heir of Terracan Draker.]
[Access to ‘Sanctuary of Radiant Light’ granted.]
[Hidden code acquired due to condition fulfillment.]
Rumble—
The tightly sealed door began to open.
At that moment, a new message appeared before Zeke’s eyes.
[Welcome to the ‘Sanctuary of Radiant Light,’ Heir.]
“Heir?”
Though he had visited other relic sites through the system, this was the first time he had encountered such a message.
Simultaneously, something emerged from within the door.
A massive knight clad in pristine full plate armor approached Zeke.
The knight, larger than any barbarian, knelt before him.
『Welcome, Heir. We have awaited your arrival for a long time.』
Zeke couldn’t help but be astonished at the sight of the knight.
“A golem?”