The legendary Moonlight Sculptor

[V49C06] The Sorcerer of Darkness (part 3)

With a single incantation, Bar Khan cast a set of three area-of-effect curses, the range of which covered the entire region.

"We need blessings! Remove the curses, quickly!"

"Where are the priests? Please, we need help right now!"

The users of the Hermes Guild desperately called for priests. Paladins could withstand curses with their innate resistance or blessing spells, but the damage suffered by the other users was more immense than they had imagined, even though they were equipped with gears that were resistant to Black Magic. Beyond simply preventing his enemies from exerting their full strength in combat, the power of Bar Khan's magic was such that it reduced the victims' overall capabilities by a couple of notches.

In the meantime, the horde of skeletons, whose number amounted to almost a million, was crawling up the castle walls. Unlike human soldiers who needed ladders, they just used their bony hands and feet to climb up the ramparts ever so diligently. The Hermes Guild users tried to stop them using their attack skills.

"Exploding Slash[1] !"

"Thunder Hammer!"

"The Bow of Gamesh!"

A skeleton that had been strengthened by Bar Khan could even match the power of a Death Knight, but the users of the Hermes Guild defeated the skeleton horde without much trouble taking advantage of their position on top of the castle walls as well as their combat strength.

"You need to make sure their bodies dissipate completely! Just pushing them off the walls won't do anything!"

"Suppress them!"

Using their powerful skills, the Hermes Guild users liquefied or pulverized the skeletons that had reached the top of the ramparts. The only way to win a fight against the Immortal Legion was to thoroughly destroy every corpse on the battlefield.

"The Doom Knights are about halfway to knocking down the castle main gates!"

"What, already?!"

"Defense units, quickly!"

In order to hold back the advancing Doom Knights, some of the strongest warriors or knights among the Hermes Guild members came forward to face them. Throughout the fortress, there were explosions of divine force or blazing lights from magical spells, an intimidating sight to the invading undead.

"Up in the sky!"

"Careful! Everyone, duck!"

Thirty Bone Dragons were soaring across the sky, spouting out concentrated acid. Soon a number of places in Valkis Castle had become corrupted, and a rotten smell was coming from the ground.

"Krrrrr… rise up, vessels of unbelievers. Every being that possesses life merely exists to commit evil!"

The wailing ghosts were emitting bloodcurdling shrieks, cursing the living around them.

"I'm wounded!"

"Everyone who's below 60% of their life force, retreat to the rear!"

The Hermes Guild had set up healing posts along the ramparts at every 50 meters. Many priests with divine power were stationed there; the guild had recruited as many as they could from each religious order, using its accumulated contribution points.

From the central tower of Valkis Castle, it could be seen that the treatment of the injured soldiers was proceeding smoothly.

"It's a tough battle for sure, but we are… doing better than expected. Although, I must say, those skeletons certainly are powerful for such low-rank monsters."

"Yes. We have the advantage of defending from inside the castle, so we only have to be careful with those Doom Knights."

"The Immortal Legion has about a million troops. Their numbers will increase by a few tens of thousands when those Doom Knights that have scattered to find more corpses return, but I think we will still be able to defeat them."

The top rankers and other authority figures of the Hermes Guild had gathered in the central tower, with Myul being one of them.

"I'm a bit concerned about those Bone Dragons rampaging through the field…"

"Right now, any attacks against them are not much more than a waste of our strength. If we cannot take them down in one go, it's better to just leave them be and concentrate on the low-rank undead. This fight will be over as soon as we get rid of Bar Khan, anyway."

As their victory seemed more and more certain as the battle went on, the expressions on the faces of the Hermes Guild users became less stiff as well. At first they had been worried about the possibility of the Immortal Legion devastating the whole continent, but now that they had actually faced the undead army they were doing a good job of driving it off. It was of course a tricky fight, as the undead could revive over and over again unless their bodies were completely destroyed. Even when they suffered a considerable loss of life force, with the power of Bar Khan they came back to their full strength in but a second.

The members of the Hermes Guild, the most skillful users of the continent, had joined their strengths to fight against the terrible power of the undead horde, consisting of the dreaded Doom Knights as well as large elite monsters like the Bone Dragons. They annihilated the skeletons crawling up the ramparts and blocked the bone arrows flying from a distance by using protection skills or deflecting them with their swords. The Doom Knights were difficult enemies to deal with, but the users coordinated their attacks to dispose of them one by one whenever there was a chance.

And at the very moment they started to believe that they were proving the strength of the Hermes Guild, as befitted the guild that conquered the Central Continent, about a thousand users who had been standing on the ramparts got almost all of their life force drained at once by Bar Khan's curse.

They were not instantly killed thanks to their magic resistance, but their lives would be in peril if they continued to fight any longer.

"The power of that curse… He is indeed a legendary monster."

"Nobody died, though. It seems that skill cannot kill the victim outright, although it is capable of dropping the life force almost down to the bottom."

"That would be because we have utilized every available piece of equipment that can block curses or Black Magic. Those users would have died if we had underestimated our enemy."

The Hermes Guild had spent approximately 15 percent of the total wealth they had accumulated in preparation for this battle: they had been collecting an enormous amount of items that could resist Black Magic or curse spells from every possible source, including auction halls, stores and individual users.

'We can win this. At this rate, we will defeat them.'

'Even the Immortal Army will fall by our hands.'

The eyes of the Hermes Guild users were ablaze with fighting spirit. They were on guard, waiting for the moment when the formation of the Immortal Army would lift their continued siege and the core units of the guild would penetrate through their ranks to deal with Bar Khan directly.

However, one must not underestimate their enemy until the very last moment when facing a monster as powerful as Bar Khan.

"This land is under the dominance of my commandments of darkness. The eternal power of immortality shall reign over all beings. Dark Rule!"

Bar Khan cast one of his three major spells: a spell of Necromancy that automatically raises every corpse in the region as undead!

The users who had been fighting on the central defense tower, on the ramparts or near the castle gates saw his spell manifest itself.

"There will be no effect, though."

"We've made every preparation for that spell. At this rate, all of the other major spells are as good as sealed."

There had not been many users who had fallen in battle, while more than 20 percent of the skeleton soldiers had been put out of existence and the Doom Knights had also considerably decreased in number. The users were certainly wary of Dark Rule, which was the highest rank spell of undead summoning, but they predicted that it would not have much effect as they had led the battle to their favor so far.

However, after Dark Rule was cast, the ground around the Valkis Castle's plaza and castle gates began to shake, as if there was an earthquake.

"Wha, what the…?"

The maximum number of users that could fight on the ramparts and at the gates was 65,000. The rest of the users had been standing by as the reserve force, when they saw hands made of bones erupt from the vacant ground.

"Krrargh."

"Kwaaaarrrrgggghh!!"

Ancient skeletons with worn-out joints, zombies and ghouls crawled out from the earth and rose up, the last few strands of hair falling off from their skulls. The phenomenon was occurring throughout the entire Valkis Castle, whether it was the marketplace, the town square, or the lord's estate. Bar Khan's undead summoning spell was raising the bodies of every single person who had died in Valkis Castle since a long time ago.

***

The initial strategy of the Hermes Guild was to destroy and reduce the number of undead in the Immortal Army and send out a group of elite shock troops in order to defeat Bar Khan himself. Out of these troops that had been organized in advance, the warriors would clear a path to the boss so that Bard Ray and the paladins could suppress Bar Khan. In terms of safety, it would have been a better choice to eradicate the entire undead army first, but the core of the strength of the Immortal Legion was Bar Khan; the users were apprehensive about the possibility that he might choose to leave the battlefield after losing all of his undead, and hence they had been desperately waiting for a chance to strike directly at him.

"The Immortal Legion! They are…"

"There are too many undead being raised!"

However, the Hermes Guild's plan had gone awry the moment Dark Rule spell came into effect.

The endless stream of undead, with numbers far beyond any of their previous predictions.

According to old historical records, since the opening of Royal Road there had been a lot of wars over the ownership of Valkis Castle. And now the bodies that had been accumulating underground over the course of those battles were all being revived as undead monsters, crowding both the inside and the outside of the castle walls in no time. Most of them were low-rank skeletons, but due to the effect of Death Aura that enhanced their abilities, they were crushing buildings and setting things on fire with outrageous strength. Zombies and ghouls were running amongst the structures, attacking the users.

"It's on the roof!"

"Zombies are falling from the ceilings!"

"The town plaza on this side is full of zombies already!"

The street battle of the undead! Something that had never been recorded in any history books was currently taking place. With the skeleton mages and archers shooting fireballs or fire arrows all around them, the houses and major facilities of Valkis Castle were consumed by uncontrollable flames.

"The fire is spreading. Spirit masters, please summon water spirits and start putting out the fire first."

"Save the consumables with divine power for later! Do not pour down all the holy water - we need to prepare for a long battle, too!"

As the undead were rising up from the whole land, the Hermes Guild users were forced into a very confused fight, defending themselves against a horde rushing in from every direction. On the other hand, Bar Khan was blasting Valkis Castle with a stream of Black Magic by offering the endless life force and mana he had been draining from those undead.

"Rise from the eternal corruption and drive the existence itself to decay! Fog of Gultan!"

The land around Valkis Castle was split into huge crevices once again. It was a remarkable sight to behold, the dark purple aura that had risen from beneath the ground gradually covering the entire Valkis Castle.

< You have inhaled the Fog of Gultan and are now poisoned.

349 points of life force will be lost every second.

Defensive abilities and magic resistance will be continuously reduced.

The durability of the Blue Coral Armor has decreased by 3 points.

The durability of the Golden Winged Boots will decrease by 2 points, and all of its stats will be reduced.>

Dark red fungi started to bloom on the sturdy castle walls, corroding the entire structure and reducing its durability. It was a corruption that covered the whole ground, and it inflicted damage on all constructions and living creatures.

*Krrrrruuuuuumm.*[2]

The earth began to shake. The buildings and ramparts of Valkis Castle were collapsing down violently as a result of the corrosion. The Bone Dragons howled in the sky and gushed out their Breath onto the ground in unison.

"Defend the position. The paladins will come into action soon."

"Attack! Quickly, hurry up!"

The paladins that had been recruited from various religious orders of the Versailles Continent joined the fight. With the grace of the divine power that made them several times deadlier against the undead, they rushed into the Immortal Legion, risking their own lives.

Almost ten thousand users had been killed by curses and Black Magic, and another ten thousands were lost in battle against the Bone Dragons and the Doom Knights. Now they were being resurrected as high-rank undead units, which meant that the circumstances were very far from the initial calculations of the Hermes Guild.

"Things are not looking favorable."

"It seems a good chance isn't about to present itself anytime soon."

Near the top of the hill that overlooked the whole Valkis Castle, the shock troops that consisted of the top elite users of the Hermes Guild were gathered, waiting. They were on the alert for an opportunity to strike at Bar Khan when the lines of the Immortal Army lift their prolonged siege.

"Valkis Castle has suffered more damage than we had expected."

"It doesn't matter if they die… but there is a possibility that the undead will grow even more numerous if we wait too long."

The users that had been assigned to the shock troops were actually quite tempted to leave the battle, as theirs was a very difficult mission indeed. They could not just drop out of it, though, because besides the fact that this battle would be broadcast live, Bard Ray himself had joined the fight.

Arkheim of the Elite Guard spoke to Bard Ray.

"I'm afraid the situation is worse than our initial plan."

"We can't expect to have a perfect opportunity all the times. It looks like things will only become more disadvantageous to our side as we drag this on. This Black Magic is also very unpredictable. We can't predict what will follow next."

"Then, are you going to begin the assault?"

"Let's go now, before it's too late."

"I shall order the shock troops to move immediately."

Arkheim conveyed Bard Ray's decision through the communication channel of the Elite Guard and the battle channel of the Hermes Guild.

- Arkheim: Time to go hunting.

Bard Ray and the other members of the shock troops started to speed across the hill on horseback.

"Our target is Bar Khan."

"Eradicate the undead!"

The forces that had been hiding in and around Valkis Castle also simultaneously rose to action. At this one moment, all the Hermes Guild users were actively joining the fight, slaying the undead army. The Doom Knights were well matched in strength against them, but the users were burning their mana too quickly to neutralize all the other weaker units of undead.

"Clear a path!"

"The Emperor has begun to move!"

The Hermes Guild users, who had so far been defending the fortress in accordance with the meticulous battle plans, jumped and slid down the ramparts all at once. As they were taking the risk of drawing the attention of the undead to themselves, Bard Ray and the shock troops struck the rear of the enemy forces. They were penetrating through the sea of skeletons in order to reach Bar Khan, who was in the center of the Immortal Legion.

"Guard against Black Magic and cursing spells!"

"In the worst case, the users in the front must advance to block the curses with their bodies!"

They managed to get rid of the skeletons with area-of-effect skills, but shortly caught the eyes of Bar Khan and the Bone Dragons.

- Those despicable humans are coming after Bar Khan-nim.

- We shall rot them into a pool of water.

The Bone Dragons that had been attacking Valkis Castle hastily changed direction and began to fly towards Bard Ray and the shock troops.

"Come, mortals. I will gladly show you the way to Immortality."

*Krrrruuuumm!*

Bar Khan uttered an incantation, summoning Fortress of Howling Corpses - a grand spell that changed the entire terrain, with giant pillars of bones shooting from the ground. Due to the increased number of undead belonging to the Immortal Legion, the fortress of bones had become even larger than before, reaching the height of 150 meters. All the undead monsters that had been guarding him in the neighboring area also became stronger by the effect of the fortress of corpses.

"Damn it."

The shock troops of the Hermes Guild were still charging furiously towards him while destroying the swarming undead in the process, but even they could not help gulping in terror as they witnessed this terrible sight. At the top of the giant fortress made of bones, Bar Khan was sitting on his throne. The Doom Knights, specters, and countless other high-rank undead were looking down upon them from the high ground. By instinct, the users were struck with an ominous premonition - as if they were about to be engulfed by this sea of monsters.

(Continued on next chapter…)

Notes from the translator

[1]The direct translation of the original text is something like "Depth Bomb Slash". I'm guessing that it might be a sort of sword-slash skill that causes an explosion.

[2]This is a rumbling sound coming from the shaking earth. I couldn't come up with a better onomatopoeia, so I'm happy to have any suggestions from the proofreading team.