The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor

?Volume 49 Chapter 5 — An eye for an eye

Three warfronts!

The Arpen Kingdom, the Desert warriors and, on top of that, Weed’s appearance was causing liberation of major cities all over the Britten region.

‘Didn’t think he would sneak up on me like this…’

Lafaye was dealt a hard and unexpected blow by Weed’s method of starting wars and increasing the number of battlefields without being bound by borders.

The users in the areas that had been conquered by the Arpen Kingdom had left. Those in the Britten region were also willing to join the rebel army, not following the orders of the Haven Empire any longer.

‘Thinking of all the losses in the Empire’s population and economic power… at this rate, all of our hard work will be for naught. They have snatched away the initiative we were hoping to grasp by revealing the Steel Knights.’

The tide of the war, turned by a single cheap trick!

After some serious and grave considerations, Lafaye came to a decision.

“We were intending to seize the initiative in this war, but it looks like our enemy has taken some cunning actions beyond our imagination. Now, I will use another of the Five Secret Defense Schemes.”

“Hmm… so it comes to this, again.”

“What, so soon?”

“The Steel Knights haven’t even had a chance to take part in a proper fight yet!”

It was such an unconventional measure that there were even objections among the commanding heads of the Empire. The Five Secret Defense Schemes were their ace in the hole, created through massive amounts of money and manpower even by the Hermes Guild’s standard.

“There is no doubt that the Steel Knights are excellent additions to our military power, but they do not have people’s attention anymore. Moreover, considering the sudden change of circumstances during the last couple of days… the Empire needs to bring out an even greater power.”

“We can still defeat our enemies without much difficulty. We have never lost in the regions where our main forces are stationed.”

“The Empire has no future if it can only show power similar to its enemies. If our opponents’ strength is about 3, then we need to bring out 10… or 20, taking into account the potentially huge effects of Weed’s demagogy.”

The Haven Empire’s most significant weakness was its large territory and population.

As Weed and the Arpen Kingdom enjoyed inexplicably high popularity among users, the Empire needed to take precautions against every possible situation in which their enemies would swing the mood to their favor.

‘Other than the low tax rate, the benefits that this Kingdom of theirs provides to its people are far inferior to those provided by the Empire. And yet… Could this be the true impact of founding a nation?’

The story of Morata being rebuilt from ruins, leading to the foundation of the Arpen Kingdom through the collective effort of the users! The strong motivation that this short history gave birth to was what set them apart from the Haven Empire and its ways of ruling, as well as what gave them a competitive edge that the Empire could not match.

Lafaye chose to take a decisive measure in order to break out of this vicious circle.

“The most dangerous weapon out of the remaining 4 Secret Schemes… has a potential for destruction that is hard to predict. Therefore, we shall keep it as the last resort.”

“Agreed.”

“For now, I will summon the Shadow Army of Palma.”

“What? You mean to take out such a strong card…?!”

The Shadow Army of Palma. An organization created jointly by groups of witches and assassins and which had been the most powerful force throughout the history of the Versailles Continent.

The Hermes Guild had first come to know about them while searching for some S-class quests, and not long after, a deal was made: the Hermes Guild would provide secret graveyards and supplies to build their army, and in return they would destroy a target or a place designated by the Hermes Guild.

“Against the Palma Army, the human-wave strategy will only backfire. It is a perfect countermeasure to the Northern army, so they won’t have much trouble reducing the Arpen Kingdom to ashes.”

***

The main force of Grass Porridge Cult was slowly making its way to the south. The reporters of the broadcasting stations attempted to take a good shot of the whole army by flying high into the sky using magic scrolls, but it was impossible.

Mountains and plains, rivers and lakes.

Covering all those terrains was a great tsunami of men, advancing tirelessly towards the southern lands. It reminded people of a giant swarm of fire ants, known to devour everything on the face of the Earth.

“I didn’t know that there were so many Northern users.”

“My god… there must be at least tens of millions of them!”

There were also groups of orcs following behind the human army.

“Chwiik! We need a new breeding ground.”

“Any place will do. We can’t live like this. Chwiik!.”

The orc lords had succeeded in producing many subordinates in a remarkably short time. They raised many fighters and warriors through their commanding abilities and the quick growth in level.

“Here comes the orc army! Tchhwik.”

“Even I’m afraid of my own men. Chwiik!.”

The valiant orcs willingly participated in the war. As for the orc lords, they were certainly not in the position to say no to a fight, for reducing their own headcounts that were increasing way too fast for sustenance if nothing else.

Dwarves, elves, barbarians and fairies.

The users of every race and profession were marching towards the south.

***

Jerome, the leader of the Second Legion of the Haven Imperial Army, was assigned the task of advancing to the North in order to restore the Harpan Region. His troops were composed of the 250,000 soldiers of the Second Legion, reinforced by 100,000 Steel Knights and the 30,000 men of the Magical Army Corps. The lords governing the areas near the capital of the Haven Empire also provided no less than 200,000 additional troops. About 10 percent of the Empire’s powerful military force was now under his command.

“What’s the situation with the local lords?”

“Approximately 127 of them went over to the Arpen Kingdom’s side.”

“Make an announcement to the remaining lords: the Imperial Army is coming. Should they ever desert the Empire for the Arpen Kingdom, not only will an order be placed against them to be killed on sight, but they will also never set foot into the lands of the Central Continent again in their life.”

“Yes, sir!”

While leading his Central Army forward, Jerome sent out several units of soldiers to the surrounding areas. About 10,000 troops moved around, hunting down the Northern users who had been excitedly roaming about the Harpan region.

“Let us fight!”

“Grass Porridge, Grass Porridge, Grass Porridge!”

The Northern users tried to hold their ground, but they were no match against the Second Legion, the elites among the Imperial Army.

“Unleash the Steel Knights.”

“Yes, sir!”

Helpless against the power of the Steel Knights, the army of Northern users collapsed before they even got a chance to fight back.

Since the days of the Empire’s conquest of the Central Continent, Jerome’s Army had been highly respected for their prowess in battles.

“Attack! A war is won through courage!”

As the Legion Commander who had led countless users and soldiers through many a battle, he was aware of the importance of morale more than anyone else. During the conquest of the Central Continent, he often got the start on the enemy by fighting on the front line ahead of everyone, and those who fought against Jerome’s army were afraid and expected defeat even before the actual battle broke out. With the large number of seasoned elite soldiers under his command, it was often said that his army was invincibility itself.

Each day they fought 12 battles, wiping out tens of thousands of Northern users with ease and gradually taking control over the Harpan region.

“This is an excellent opportunity to train my soldiers in preparation for the war.”

Jerome felt quite satisfied as he led his troops to hunt the Northern users.

While the Second Legion was subjugating their enemy in the Harpan Region, the Shadow Army of Palma emerged in the Haven Empire.

Witches and assassins, heinous criminals and demonic creatures that had been confined for hundreds of years, were now released and beginning their march towards the North. With their numbers reaching a hundred thousand, word of their appearance spread among the users in no time.

Wherever they went, they left behind a trail of foul stench that caused the surrounding flowers, grass and trees to wither.

The users who had heard the rumors gathered together to watch from the distance the army of demonic creatures, towering with their heights ranging from 5 to 7 meters, advancing to the north.

One of those users named Darkford, a ranger with a level over 470, scanned the Shadow Army of Palma using his long-range observation skill.

“Ehh… Those things are freakishly strong!”

“How strong, exactly?”

“Between levels 600 and 700, probably. I cannot even get an estimate for a couple of witches over there. We wouldn’t be able to match their power with the current level of the users.”

“Whoa… where on earth did all those monsters even come from?”

As the Shadow Army continued their march towards the north, the neighboring cities and towns took considerable damage as well.

Benzoim, Tarek, and Bahana. Three villages came up with a plan to join forces to fight and lure them to another place, but ended up being annihilated altogether. Even the villages themselves were thoroughly destroyed, and the witches offered the spoils as sacrifices to create even more of the foul creatures.

Upon hearing this news, the Hermes Guild issued a new imperial order upon the lords of the neighboring areas.

- Do not engage them. Clear everything away from their path. Just leave them be until they encounter the main force of the Grass Porridge Cult.

Since the whole event drew much attention from the broadcasting stations, through the mouths of several rather talkative local lords this supposedly secret order was disclosed to the general public.

- The Shadow Army of Palma! The Hermes Guild introduced some dangerous beings into the fight through quests. Their target: the Grass Porridge Cult!

- Some brave users of Agoltha launched an assault on the several demonic creatures that had strayed from the rest and had been wandering aimlessly. They were victorious, but they were surprised to discover that the level of each individual creature is over 500.

- We just got more news about the Palma Army. Apparently they are planning to perform a special ritual once they take over the Arpen Kingdom.

- And what kind of ritual is that?

- A ritual to create great magical borders. They are going to turn the entire Northern Continent into an ideal habitat for the demonic creatures.

-Then, what will happen to the Arpen Kingdom’s territory?

- It will most likely become a wasteland. People would still be able to live there, but their survival would be constantly threatened by the overflowing demonic creatures residing in the lands.

While it was at least fortunate that these secrets were revealed early on, to Weed and other users of Grass Porridge Cult the appearance of this new enemy posed a threat as urgent as their pants catching fire.

At the same time, the public opinion with regard to the Hermes Guild was reaching a new low in the Central Continent. People had not complained that much when the members of that guild got rather ambitious while playing Royal Road, zealously waging wars and expanding their control. True, ordinary users had to suffer some losses when the guild raised taxes or whatnot, but most of the time they could tolerate those inconveniences because they were having so much fun. However, now that they had found out that the Hermes Guild was going to turn the whole Northern Continent into a land of evil creatures, the resentment they harbored towards the Hermes Guild became irremediable.

***

“The Shadow Army of Palma…”

As soon as he got wind of their emergence, Weed asked Mapan to take a look at the records in the Great Library of Morata.

The Great Library, where countless users ranging from novices to high level users record and store even the most trivial bits of information.

After the subordinate merchants belonging to Mapan’s Trading Company carried out a research on frightening villains, they found some well-organized information on the Shadow Army of Palma.

—————————————————————————————————————————

Things that endangered the entire Versailles Continent, #22.

The Shadow Army of Palma.

Witches and assassins who hated the world around them joined forces to destroy every kingdom in existence. There are not many studies on them, but their existence became widely known through the enormous amount of bloodshed recorded in history […] They are under the control of a king named Palma and had the ability to modify the life force and body of a human to turn them into a strong demonic creature. Each kingdom succeeded in putting them under a magical seal by taking decisive actions […]

—————————————————————————————————————————

The moment Weed took a look at these records, he got a general idea of their overall strength.

“Not as powerful as the Embinyu Church, but certainly quite strong.”

The experiences that he had accumulated as he defeated various forces threatening the peace of the Versailles Continent, as well as his days as the Great King of the Desert during which he WAS one of the forces threatening the peace of the Continent, made him quite an expert of threat assessment.

“I have encountered plenty of magic users, but assassins… they can be a bit tricky.”

The best assassins on the Continent. Perhaps it would be safe to assume that those included a couple of Master assassins. It wasn’t pleasant to imagine this kind of threat forcing its way into the North.

“If the Grass Porridge Cult engages them in battle… hmm.”

One thing was for sure: Weed could count on the Northern users to willingly take part in the fight if those creatures dared to set foot into the territory of the Arpen Kingdom. But the Grass Porridge Cult was relatively weak against large demonic creatures, as it mainly consisted of users with underwhelming strength.

“An eye for an eye. If this is how they want to play, then I have an idea, too.”

***

- The true identity of the Shadow Army of Palma!

- The emergence of the beings threatening the stability of the Versailles Continent!

- The Hermes Guild unleashes an atrocious assault with questionable means.

- Weed, a living example of a great adventurer! Will he be victorious again?

- The fate of the Arpen Kingdom hanging by a thread!

Even with his busy schedule, Lee-hyun checked out the newspaper articles while surfing on the Internet. As Royal Road was everyone’s favorite topic, it was easy to find relevant news reports wherever you went.

“Hmm… I can see that the public opinion is in our favor.”

Lee-hyun drank the orange juice Seoyoon had made by herself. The computer he was using now was not the one he had made by picking up spare parts in the back streets of electronics market; it was a state-of-the-art desktop which he had extorted from CTS Media. He had set a new record in Minesweeper with this piece of cutting-edge technology, and had been using it for Internet surfing as well.

‘Looks like people are feeling quite protective towards the Arpen Kingdom, too.’

Indeed, many comments he read were showing very favorable attitudes towards the Arpen Kingdom.

- The Hermes Guild. They are the worst. I just can’t believe their douchebaggery.

- Nooo… I was just planning to take my vacation soon. My Puhol Waterpark…

- We are planning a family trip to Morata for a week. Would there be any trouble that can affect our travel plan?

- Weed-nim must stop them by any means! Grass Porridge Grass Porridge Grass Porridge!

- I’m a member of Grass Porridge Cult. I belong to the brave Poison Mushroom Porridge, but those… things… making a demonic creature with my body… that’s NOT an honor. Ugh.

- I own two stores in the Earth Palace and one in Morata. I have invested my entire property in Royal Road. Please. Brave Warriors. Stop them. I beg you.

In most of the comments people were getting extremely worried that the Arpen Kingdom might be destroyed. If the Shadow Army of Palma took over the Northern Continent, they would not be able to stay in their living place any longer and would be forced to flee.

The people’s worries also reflected that the Hermes Guild had indeed taken a very threatening measure, but Lee-hyun was feeling quite relaxed.

“So they chose to take everyone’s blame by committing an evil deed first.”

The Shadow Army of Palma!

Since he had already studied their characteristics using the resources in the Great Library, he was not out of means to deal with them.

“And do they think they are the only ones who are capable of wrongdoings? Looks like it is safe to use that method now without having to worry.”

That night, Lee-hyun had a very deep and sound sleep; he was dreaming of dealing a mighty counter blow to the Hermes Guild.

The Agoltha Region!

It was the name of the vast grassland to the northwest end of the Central Continent.

When you crossed the shallow sea from here you would enter the Northern Continent, and currently there were quite a lot of users flocking to this region that did not have any cities.

The powerful army of assassins, witches and demonic creatures were heading their way towards the North. Soon there would be a big war between them and the Grass Porridge Cult, hence all those users came out to see it.

“I’m really looking forward to this fight.”

“It will be one massive showdown that will determine the fate of the Northern Continent. I think even Weed-nim will have to show up.”

“Yeah, but all those weak beginners will be more of a burden than any help they can bring. I can’t imagine how they are going to fight this war. “

“Well, their side will eventually win… I mean, they have even managed to drive back the Embinyu Church.”

“But everyone had to go through so much hardships during that time, and it also took a long time… If luck is not on their side, this might be the end for the Arpen Kingdom…”

Users from the Central Continent and the Northern Continent alike came to watch the march of the Shadow Army of Palma from afar. There was enough distance between the users and the troops to fit a whole mountain, but they still found it fun to watch the army of monsters.

“We’re selling chicken skewers!”

“I have potatoes! Have some grilled, boiled, and fried potatoes! “

The wealthy users of the Central Continent were enjoying some snacks at leisure in the meantime: the Northern merchants had already come over and were selling a wide range of foods, and they found the stuff very palatable indeed.

“Is this Northern wine?”

“Yes, it was made in Morata.”

“Wow, no wonder it tastes so delicious!”

“There is also some dried rat meat [O1] , one of Morata’s specialties made with fresh rats which were caught while happily running about in the sewers!”

The users who were watching the Shadow Army of Palma noticed that another large army was following after them.

“Who are they?”

“Don’t look like the Northern troops, judging by their equipments…”

“I see their banner; it has a burning sword-it’s the Imperial Army!”

The Fifth Legion of the Haven Imperial Army!

They had set out from the castle of Aren, the capital city, and caught up with the Shadow Army. But the task that the heads of the Empire had assigned their Legion Commander Bucking was far from something like the eradication of the Shadow Army of Palma.

Bucking recalled the conversation he had had with Lafaye.

“Weed and the Northern users will have to use all of their strength against the Palma army.”

“Yes, I think so too.”

“You need to follow the Palma army, and watch for a chance to strike.”

“You mean, with the entire Fifth Legion?”

“Yes. The role of the Fifth Legion is to kill Weed while following after the Palma army, and to at least completely devastate the Northern regions while their users are too busy fighting them.”

“Indeed…” Bucking was very impressed when he realized what Lafaye’s intentions were.

‘Weed will barely be able to hold off the Palma army alone, so if we show up on top of that… the Arpen Kingdom will be thoroughly trampled. The prosperity it has enjoyed until now will go up in smoke, only leaving behind a pile of rubble.’

If things all worked out in their favor, the Fifth Legion may intervene and achieve an overwhelming victory against the Arpen Kingdom, ending the war once and for all.

‘It’s a good strategic move. It seems this clever guy knows to prepare for a number of different scenarios.’

* * *

Weed had arrived in the Agoltha region, riding Wy-3.

“Sigh. I’ve just reached the levels above 500, and now I have to suffer this loss.”

For the top-tier users of the Versailles Continent, achieving level 500 was one reference point for measuring their strength.

The Hermes guild, which had been monopolizing hunting grounds and quests for a long time, had quite a lot of users above level 500, but among average users there were only about 1000 of them with levels over 500.

“True, it’s got a lot easier to level up after I became a Necromancer, but it’s still a damn shame.”

The hidden card of the Hermes Guild that had just been pulled out: the Shadow Army of Palma!

Weed had tossed and turned in his bed all night, designing the best strategy that could not only stop them, but even launch a counterattack upon them.

And all the while, he was almost beside himself with excitement.

‘I have only ever imagined it in my head until now… it just felt so evil I could not bring myself to actually use it before, even against the Hermes Guild.”

A mean smile appeared on Weed’s face as he patted Wy-3’s head.

“Doesn’t it make you happy, just thinking about it?”

-Kyuoo…?

The large and clear eyes of Wy-3 shook uneasily: what kind of preposterously dangerous plan had his master come up with this time?

“I guess I can tell just you. There is something called Sculpture Resurrection. It revives a person who lived a long time ago. “

Telling all your plans to your pet: a classic move of a token villain in kid’s animations!

Weed was now almost humming. He realized that it was actually a very fun thing to do, talking to someone close to you about the insidious plan you have envisioned in your head before executing it.

“Though thousands of heroes must have lived on the Versailles Continent, not all of them were good and kind. Once upon a time, there was a man named Bar Khan, a sorcerer of darkness.”

Wy-3 wondered who this person had been for a while, then recalled the master of that precise name and screamed.

- Screeeeech!

Bar Khan Demoph!

There was a time when the wyverns were born only to be dragged into the battle against the immortal legion led by Shire, Bar Khan’s student.

The one who was at the very pinnacle of dominance over the perpetually rising undead army!

“It is as you think. I will revive Bar Khan.”

- No. master.

“Yes. And no matter what reason you have against it, it won’t change my mind.”

- Why?

“Because when I’m told not to do something, I just want to do it more!”

Weed’s plan to fight against the Shadow Army of Palma was to resurrect Bar Khan.

Having succumbed to the dark mana, Bar Khan Demoph was an awfully dangerous and treacherous being to deal with.

The desert warrior Hestiger might be of some use as well, but the person who had been revived once could not be called again, and thus the last time had been the final parting with his former subordinate, never to meet again. If his skill level in Sculpture Resurrection got higher it might be a different story, but even then Weed thought it would be quite impossible.

‘It is a war. Bar Khan would be a better choice than another subordinate from my time as the Great King of the Desert.’

There was nothing in existence that could match the capabilities in warfare that Bar Khan and his Immortal Legion possessed. In addition, just reviving one person would bring a comprehensive gift set of an army of immortals as a package product.

‘The deadliness of them will be… Well, it was sold at an expensive price, I can say that much.’

He had already sold the exclusive broadcast rights to the KMC media and several broadcasting stations when executing his Bar Khan plan.

Weed took out the carving knife and began to sculpt using a nearby rock.

‘What’s there to lose? The rest will work out somehow once I’ve done it.’

Scrape scrape!

Pieces of solid stones were being cut off with the fluid dance of the carving knife, moving as part of his body.

The sorcerer of darkness and the ruler of the immortal army.

The statue of the wizard Bar Khan, right before he turned into a lich, was complete.

“Ummm…”

Now that he had actually finished sculpting, Weed’s heart was beginning to pound. This was not an easy person to handle, like his loyal Hestiger, but an extremely dangerous being that wouldn’t be easily swayed even by Weed’s skills in flattery!

“I can just raise him and run off. This is the best plan I can think of. Sculpture Resurrection!”

-

- You have used Sculpture Resurrection skill.

- Bar Khan Demoph, the Sorcerer of Darkness and the Lord of the Undead, will walk upon this land once more by the call of art.

- Art stat will permanently decrease by 45.

- Faith stat will permanently decrease by 10.

- Your level has been lowered by 3.

- 18,000 points of Life force and Mana have been spent.

- The person revived by Sculpture Resurrection has the knowledge and abilities they possessed in life. They may be grateful for being able to see the world and move around in it once again, albeit for a short time, or they may not.

- Your skill proficiency in Sculpture Resurrection has increased.

-

***

The resurrection of Bar Khan!

As soon as he moved, Wy-3 spread his wings wide.

- Farewell, master!

“Wait! Take me with you too!”

Weed revived Bar Khan Demoph using his Sculpture Resurrection skill, and ran off with Wy-3. The mages were so intelligent that it was often difficult to manipulate them by simple means, as it was the case with Hestiger. And so Weed chose to just let him be, not willing to take the risk of failing to persuade him.

- So you don’t have to do anything from now, master?

“Yeah. As they say, man proposes, God disposes.” [O2]

- Those words are difficult to understand.

“It means when you buy a lottery, you have to wait until Saturday.”

Weed observed the ground while flying high in the sky on the back of Wy-3.

Life was slowly instilled into the statue of Bar Khan Demoff, until finally it came alive.

Although he was just a pale man in a black robe, he was the one who once led the whole Versailles Continent into chaos.

‘Now. What will happen?’

A short while after Weed and Wy-3 fled into the sky, the ground began to shake.

The Shadow Army of Palma.

Witches, assassins, and giant demonic creatures were rushing to the place where Bar Khan had just risen in order to get to the Arpen Kingdom.

‘And now they have met.’ From his position high above the ground, Weed could notice that the Shadow Army was making the first move after spotting Bar Khan; several large demonic creatures tore out of the rest of the troops, dashing their way to trample on Bar Khan who was standing in the plain.

“Indeed. Neither side needs a friendly conversation or persuasion.”

The massive creatures approaching from afar towards the sorcerer.

Bar Khan, who had been standing blankly after his resurrection, raised his hand and gestured towards the creatures.

“Bind them.”

Thorned vines grew from the ground with an enormous speed, covering the creatures’ bodies like a net.

- Grrrraaagghh!

The vines were growing layer upon layer, tightly gripping the monsters and making them unable to move.

“Destruction of Flesh. Crash their blood and bones.”

As Bar Khan uttered an incantation, the magical curse took its effect.

The demonic creatures howled in pain, and soon after, they perished, unable to endure the agony. Then their bodies disintegrated and turned into hundreds of skeleton fighters.

There was something inherently different about those skeletons from the ones Weed had summoned so far. Frightening red glows were coming out from their empty skulls, and they were wearing powerful armors made of bones.

“Krrr…”

“I gaze upon thee, Master of Immortality.” The skeletons bowed politely to Bar Khan at once like some sorts of royal knights, and soon began to fight against the demonic creatures.

Although the skeletons were overpowered by the strength and size of the creatures, they spread out systematically into battle formations. The skeleton warriors directly pit their strength against the creatures in front, while the archers ran around and shot arrows.

Even as their bones broke and shattered, the fighters climbed up to the bodies of the creatures and furiously slashed their swords. The broken skeletons repaired their bodies in less than a second, only to hurl themselves into the fray again and again.

The battle of the undead, with their endless life force.

The skeletons were continuing their fight in frenzy, overwhelming the demonic creatures one at a time. The creatures that fell on the ground seemed as though they were caught by a curse, their bodies disintegrating and turning into about 40 to 50 more skeletons.

In no time, the number of skeletons had reached several thousands.

“There is a wizard who’s blocking our way.”

“Get rid of him. We’ll lead him to the path of death. “

As witches and assassins arrived, the battle began to grow in scale even more.

“Exploding Worms!”

“Grim Whispers!”

“Deepening Hate!”

The witches attempted to blast Bar Khan with all kinds of attack spells and curses. The purple aura was pouring in like a wave, but Bar Khan blocked the magic before it reached him with gestures and incantations, and put a powerful curse in reverse.

“Inhale the breath of inexhaustible poison.”

Soon the witches were wailing, clutching their necks.

The invisible assassins quickly penetrated the battlefield and snuck onto him, but there was a wall of souls built around Bar Khan that was made of screaming demonic creatures.

- Aaaaargh!!!

The assassins were caught in the wall of souls, and perished after suffering a great pain.

Their bodies rose again as Doom Knights: the knights from hell who had sworn an absolute obedience to Bar Khan. And it was not just any ordinary Doom Knights: each one of them was a sub-boss level monster, with a name of their own.

“Give us an order, O Ruler of Life and Death.”

“Wipe them out.”

“As you wish.”

Doom Knights stormed towards the Shadow Army of Palma. As they ran, all sorts of strengthening enchantments were being put on them by Bar Khan. The perfect ‘golden-spoon [O3] ’ undead that are equipped with everything from the moment of their birth!

Weed saw that some red energy was coming out of the bodies of the assassins and witches who had lost their lives by the Doom Knights, to be absorbed by Bar Khan.

“It seems he is sucking life force and magical power from them.”

- Is that dangerous, master?

“Yeah. When a wizard is gathering his mana, there’s only one reason for it: he is getting ready for something huge.”

Weed put his hand into the backpack with a serious face, then pulled out a dried apple and chewed it.

“You’ve got to have some snacks when watching a fight!”

- If you have some horse meat…

“Here, eat.”

- Thank you. master.

“That’s the riding fee for this year.”

Weed and Wy-3 continued watching Bar Khan’s fight at leisure.

‘He’s a dangerous person, but as long as I don’t get involved in his affairs, there’s nothing to fear. Anyway, this Sculpture Resurrection is quite handy, since its effect only lasts for a day. It’s really convenient to be able to call and make use of him like this.’

In fact, at one point Weed was considering resurrecting Bar Khan in the place where the Hermes Guild was; he was not one to let any damage done to him slide by without any retribution. But he had to restrain himself since there was a possibility that the Hermes Guild, with their enormous strength, would simply hunt down Bar Khan by showering him with divine spells or by some other means. Weed himself had succeeded in defeating him once, although he had gotten some help from Geomchi and the disciples.

“Although… he does seem to have gotten stronger since then.”

Bar Khan’s undead legion only increased in number over time. In the beginning their numbers were not enough to match even a tiny portion of the Shadow Army of Palma, but the number and quality of the undead increased exponentially as the battle went on, until eventually their strength seemed to be toe-to-toe against the Palma army.

And then this delicate balance of the battle swung towards Bar Khan in a blink of an eye.

As the undead began to overwhelm them, the powerful and dangerous card that the Hermes Guild had pulled out, the Palma Shadow Army, was collapsing from everywhere.

“That’s the undead for you…” Weed watched on in awe.

His strategy in battle engagement was a textbook Necromancer approach. The disadvantage in number means nothing: it will sort itself out in your favor as the battle continues.

As Bar Khan managed to summon a Bone Dragon from the gathering corpses, they had to distance themselves even further since it became too dangerous to stay where they were and watch.

“Is a Bone Dragon normally this easy to summon? His specs are getting a bit suspicious now. “

- The Master of the Immortal Legion, Bar Khan Demoff has made his appearance and is now driving off the Shadow Army of Palma.

- Look at the sky. Those are Weed and Wy-3.

- Weed the God of War showed up!

- Weed has brought back Bar Khan from death.

- Weed manages to foil the evil scheme of the Hermes Guild with a brilliant move!

The broadcasting stations that had been monitoring the Shadow Army of Palma began their live coverage of the battle, and the users who had been following them closely also cheered in delight.

“It’s a war! And even better, it has undead!”

“All the high-class undead units are here.”

“That is the Immortal Legion. Look at how powerful their skeletons are.”

Of course, the users had also retreated to a far place in order not to be seen by Bar Khan.

Each time Bar Khan’s undead summoning magic unfolded, dozens of Death Knights and Doom Knights appeared. Not only the bodies of the witches, assassins, and demonic creatures, but also the bodies of the animals buried long ago beneath the ground rose to become undead as well.

Weed smiled contently, observing that the numbers of the Shadow Army of Palma had been reduced to a mere tenth of their original amount.

It was a good time to stop spectating and leave; he had run out of dried apples, too.

“All is well now. Bar Khan and his immortal army will drag this Agoltha region into chaos… Even though they will disappear as soon as the spell’s time is up.”

It was possible that the Hermes Guild did not know that the time limit for Sculpture Resurrection was short. If so, the Fifth Legion, which had been following the Palma army, would rush into the battle before the undead gain even more strength.

“When fighting the Immortal Legion, you need to make them collapse from within or try to hit them unexpectedly. It would be near impossible to beat them with a frontal attack, and if you don’t have any divine spells with you, it is best not to touch them at all. “

Bar Khan was the greatest Necromancer in history, and his capabilities in directing a battle were incredible. Not long after, even Palma himself, the commander of the Shadow Army, suffered in great pain with dozens of curses put on him by Bar Khan, and finally lost his life to the coordinated attack from the Bone Dragons and the Doom Nights.

Even as they tried to flee, due to the prison of bones that shot up high into the sky like a pillar from a temple, not a single troop of the Palma army managed to escape: they all met their horrible demise, surrounded by the woeful screams of specters.

- The Shadow Army of Palma was destroyed!

- Bar Khan Demoph has exterminated the entirety of the powerful demonic creatures. No, let me correct that. He turned all of them into undead.

- An unbelievable fight. Bar Khan finished this battle completely untouched.

- So this is the true capabilities of a Necromancer in battle…it is truly marvelous. Of course, there are big gaps in strength among swordmasters, too, so one would not be able to reach that level of power just by mastering the undead summoning skills…

“Looks like my job here is done now.”

Weed was about to leave, intending to let the aftermath of the event unfold itself. At that moment, Bar Khan, who was on the ground, muttered in a low voice.

“This pitiful body… failed to overcome death.”

The body revived by Sculpture Resurrection.

Bar Khan precisely identified the limitations that body entailed.

“I shall save the eternal life of immortality from death.

With the power of the endless mana, I will transcend the very boundaries of life and death.”

From Bar Khan’s body, black sparkles of light bloomed and shot up high into the sky.

“…Huh?”

As the sun was beginning to be covered in black clouds, darkness reached the sky where Weed and Wy-3 were.

‘It’s as if the light itself is being devoured…Has Bar Khan always been this powerful? “

Weed’s survival instinct was frantically sending his brain a warning sign.

‘Something’s up! Bar Khan is stronger than I expected, and he’s behaving strangely.’

Until now, there had never been a case in which everything worked out smoothly once some unexpected event started to unfold. Life is not easy; one time he had rented a semi-basement flat at a price lower than the market value only to find out that the house was a natural habitat for cockroaches. At one point he had gotten seriously worried that the walls might collapse because of the layer of mold that had reached a thickness of over a centimeter. Through these experiences, Weed had learned to be wary when things were going a bit too well, and his instinct had almost always turned out to be right. Just as people say, an ominous hunch is never wrong.

On the other hand, he was bound to let his guard down from time to time no matter how careful he had been, and in those cases, some sort of mishap followed without fail.

‘Something went wrong.’

Weed and Wy-3 were flying from far away to prepare for any situation. They were keeping a safe distance, at least three times farther than the users who had gathered on the ground to watch what was happening.

‘It doesn’t look like Bar Khan is going to attack me. But what is he up to?’

Endless darkness was erupting from within Bar Khan’s body like a volcano, and the Immortal Legion was gathering close around him as if they were worshiping him.

Doom Knights, the most elite undead knights, were also on high alert, guarding the perimeter.

‘There is something serious going on. I’m sure of it.’

Weed and Wy-3 moved a little farther to observe the situation.

“Wy-3.”

- Kyuooo…

“The moment something looks off, we’re out of here.”

- Understood. Master.

The users who were on the ground, too, had enough wits to sense the danger.

“What… what is that?”

“Why are the undead gathering around him like that?”

“This doesn’t feel quite right…”

They didn’t run away, even though they knew something was wrong. Just like how people are unable to move their feet to escape an impending disaster, because of curiosity if nothing else.

- It seems Bar Khan Demoph has fallen into some sort of strange condition…

- The battle is already over, what’s happening?

- It looks like a kind of high-level magical ritual…

Broadcasting stations were also reporting the situation with interest.

All the while, an aura of darkness originating from Bar Khan was spreading far and wide.

And then…

Ding!

{83,329 points of life force have been drained.}

{92,130 points of life force have been drained.}

{122,984 points of life force have been drained.}

The users who had been standing closer to the scene got nearly half of their life force taken away on the spot. The Immortal Legion and other summoned undead were all deprived of their vitality as well; they crumbled like sand and disappeared.

Shortly thereafter, Bar Khan’s body itself began to change.

His skin rapidly aged and withered, then eventually melted altogether, running down his body like dirty water.

“What?!”

Now Bar Khan’s body had been reduced to mere bones, and there was a red aura hanging around him.

This was a somewhat familiar sight. Someone in the crowd spoke out.

“That…looks like a skeleton monster, but it looks a bit too high-class… isn’t that a lich?”

“A lich?”

“Yeah. Weed-nim transformed into one before.“

Kkwakwakwakwaaa!

A powerful shock wave spread out from Bar Khan across the distance of several kilometers in radius, as if a great explosion occurred around him.

{ You have been touched by the enormous energy of death. 83% of total physical ability will be temporarily reduced.

Maximum life force will be reduced to 41% of the original amount for two days.

Hunger!

Terror!

Disorientation!

Resistance against Necromancy spells will be lowered to the minimum level. As you are unable to focus your mind, the success rate and power of skills and/or magic will be reduced. The effect of Faith will be diminished.}

“Wha, what is this?”

“What on earth is going on…?”

Bar Khan did not use any attack spell; this was just a side effect that spread out as something deadly and enormous was manifesting itself in the Agoltha Region.

Ding!

{Remnants of the terrible darkness have gathered in one place.

Bar Khan Demoph!

He has demolished the boundaries of death itself and successfully transformed himself into an Arch-lich}

An Arch-lich.

It was a superior being of a rank even higher than a lich, and just an ordinary lich was already a very difficult enemy belonging to one of the boss-level monsters. Necromancer-type liches were most common, but even a lich who had mastered Black Magic was not killed easily. Due to its powerful magic and near-infinite pool of life force, a lich could not be dealt with by just an individual or a small party, and even an entire army could not guarantee a victory against it.

While Weed had once managed to get rid of the lich Shire, he had received a considerable amount of help from the Dark Elves and the Orc tribes, on top of using a special holy relic.

And now, Bar Khan, who was already terribly strong in the first place, became an Arch-lich.

{Restrictions of Sculpture Resurrection skill have been relieved by force.

Bar Khan Demoff has been freed from the limited life force. His fate, which was to disappear from the world after 16 hours, has changed, and now he has obtained immortality.}

‘…’

Weed looked at the message window and said nothing.

‘I’m doomed.’

He had summoned a historic boss monster that could threaten the peace of the whole Versailles Continent, the one being who had reached the very pinnacle of Necromancy.

‘I’ve defeated Bar Khan before… but things were very different back then.’

During one historical event, every religious order and race had united their power to stop Bar Khan. As a result, The Holy Sword of Lugh had been driven into his chest, diminishing his strength significantly.

‘I see, the problem was the Holy Sword of Lugh! The Bar Khan I have revived was in his top condition, so his power hasn’t been weakened.’

And now he was not only magically and physically complete, but his bony body seemed so healthy and robust as if the joints were freshly oiled as he had just been born anew.

‘Still, the average strength of users has improved a lot since back then. He is far from unbeatable. It’s just that… the sacrifices we’ll have to make will be enormous.’

Should Bar Khan choose to advance towards the North, he would become a disaster even greater than the Hermes Guild. Skeletons would swim in Puhol Water Park, and the Death Knights would take control of Morata’s streets.

What Weed had intended was just to get rid of the Shadow Army of Palma, but now he ended up creating a deadly threat to the safety of the Versailles Continent.

‘I really didn’t expect this… but still, I need to turn this situation to my advantage by any means. Then the only solution is…’

Weed’s eyes flashed like those of a politician who visited a marketplace during an election.

* * *

Bar Khan!

He summoned the undead army again with his overflowing power.

“I want blood!”

“Blood!”

“Let us begin the night of corpses!”

“Corpses!”

The undead shouted on top of the tower of bodies.

Doom Knights, Death Knights, and even skeletons and ghosts were all making a giant ruckus.The Bone Dragons were also soaring across the sky, spouting sprays of deadly poison in all directions.

This was the dreadful sight created by the return of the Immortal Legion.

“What is this? I’m so scared…”

“That’s Bar Khan. Bar Khan has come back to life?”

“Oh no… It’s the Immortal Legion.”

The users who had kept on watching despite the fear were now beginning to sneak away. Even the users with relatively high levels laid flat on the ground to make themselves look inconspicuous in Bar Khan’s gaze.

“So this is how I die.”

“I’m so hungry but I’m not gonna eat. I’ll die anyway. “

“I think my body will be good enough for a Death Knight, at least.”

“If we become undead and invade the cities, do you think we can appear on TV?”

The grimness of the situation was such that the users were wondering if they had to leave some last words before their demise. Even if they managed to avoid drawing Bar Khan’s attention, it was impossible to escape as long as the Bone Dragons were flying in the sky.

“Huh? Someone’s coming.“

“Is it a user? Shouldn’t we tell him it’s dangerous? “

“I don’t think it’s a user. Take a closer look. That’s a lich. “

The spectators just watched on while lying on the ground, holding their breath.

A lich was coming riding on a phantom horse with great speed. The Bone Dragons first found him from afar, and soon he caught Bar Khan’s eye as well.

“Shire! You dare to appear before me after your foul betrayal?!”

As soon as he noticed the approaching lich, a beam of red light sparked from the skull of Bar Khan.

Shire, who had lost his life by the hands of Weed! The thing that was wearing the appearance of Shire was actually Weed, who had used his Sculpture Transformation skill.

Weed stopped at a distance none less than 2 kilometers away, which he deemed as a safe distance, and belted out a lion’s roar.

“Master. I think there is a misunderstanding. Everything I did, I did it for you. “

“Shut up. I will plunge your soul into the very bottom of Hell. “

Shire was the one who had ruined all the achievements that Bar Khan, once a scholar of life, had ever accomplished, and had driven him into the evil of dark mana.

Ding!

{A new quest has been unlocked.}

{The dangerous student of Bar Khan and the Immortal Legion’s second-in-command, Shire the lich!

He tainted his own master, Bar Khan Demoff, with the power of darkness, leading him into the path of corruption. His craftiness was what forced Bar Khan to open his eyes to a new life.

“Master. It is the life through death. You dreamed of immortality, but this is not a complete failure, is it? “

He made Bar Khan embrace the unlife of a lich, and encouraged him to wage war against the entire continent.

Bar Khan’s hatred towards you is an extremely great one. However, after he became a lich, he obtained a grand ambition to build a new world.

Will you persuade Bar Khan to forgive you, and start rebuilding the Immortal Army to conquer the Versailles Continent?

Difficulty: S

Reward: leads to ‘Bar Khan’s Cause’ quest

Quest Restrictions: Bar Khan’s Resurrection, Lich Shire.}

As a person’s reputation grew higher or their strength greater, the quests that could corrupt them occurred more frequently.

Of course, Weed was not in the least interested in such things as conquering the continent using an undead army. If it was in the name of the Arpen Kingdom, perhaps, but what use would there be if some undead conquered the continent? He was not going to collect any rental fees from skeleton’s graves!

On the back of the phantom horse, Weed laughed as he looked upon the face of Bar Khan.

“Hahaha. You’re indeed persistent, coming back from death like that.”

“Despicable thing. Death cannot be an escape for you, either. Follow my will once more, and I shall forgive you.”

“I am not like you, Master. You have failed. Living as a hideous undead… you are nothing but a set of bones that hasn’t fully rotten. How is that life immortal in any way?”

Ding!

{The quest has been rejected.}

“Such arrogance, Shire!”

Bar Khan began to utter an incantation for his magic spell.

Weed did not know what it was, but upon seeing the spell that was forming in a remarkable speed, he hurriedly rode his phantom steed south.

“You will never catch me. I have a lot of reliable human friends.”

He feigned nonchalance, but he was riding his ghost horse with all his might.

Bar Khan ordered the Immortal Legion.

“Pursue him. To the depth of Hell itself, if necessary.”

The Bone Dragons spread their wings wide and took off into the air, and the Doom Knights and Death Knights rode their own phantom steeds, chasing after him.

The Immortal Legion had begun their pursuit.

“Chi-eh!”

“It’s going to be a brutal slaughter. Kukuku. “

The skeletons were all rushing and jumping.

*batabatabata!*

A chase that shook the very earth. As the undead never got tired, they were not slowing down at all. Bar Khan himself was using a flying spell, and his speed was terrifying to watch.

Weed glanced back over his shoulder, and his heart skipped a beat.

‘They’re getting closer. I’ll be caught at this rate.’

Bar Khan with his full power, and all those high-level undead! Their speed was almost twice as fast as Weed’s phantom steed.

The strength of the Immortal Army was such that even Weed during his days as the Great King of the Desert would have had a difficult time fighting against them. The undead would have been raised over and over unless they had been extinguished completely, and he would not have been able to use his full strength while suffering from dozens of curses.

Weed leaned down and rushed across the plain on the back of the phantom steed as fast as he could.

‘Now. I should almost be there…’

After going over a low hill, Weed was able to see the camp of the Fifth Legion which spread widely. They had followed the Shadow Army of Palma, but suddenly lost their purpose with Bar Khan’s appearance. They were currently waiting for the next order from the heads of the Hermes Guild, and now Weed appeared before them, riding a phantom steed.

“Who is that?”

“It’s a lich.”

“A Necromancer? Is he from our guild? “

As Weed was appearing as Shire after using Sculpture Transformation skill, they did not recognize him, so he first greeted the Hermes guild members with a waving hand.

“Good morning, fellow guild members! It’s a lovely day.”

“Ah… Yes. I assume you would be a lich?”

“I’m a Necromancer, but my circumstances are a bit complicated right now.”

“I see. What brings you here, by the way?”

Hermes Guild members talked to him without much doubt. As the Necromancer’s equipments Weed was wearing looked like quite high-quality gears, they thought he was another competent member of the guild. Since Necromancers tended not to participate in the guild’s hunting events or large-scale raids, they weren’t even familiar with the face of Krobidyun.

“I just happened to be passing by and thought to say hello. Good day!”

“Ah. Sure…”

And just like that, Weed went off, skirting around the edge of the Fifth Legion on his steed.

“Who is he, anyway?”

“You’d think that a user who succeeded in transforming into a lich would be quite famous.”

“I haven’t the slightest idea. I cannot even think of any name that might be him. Do you think he’s on some kind of special quest?”

Before they even had time to ponder for long, Bar Khan and the undead emerged from beyond the hill.

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