MAEPG: Episode 93
Episode 93 Variable (3)
[Oh— This is an unexpected gain.]
It wasn't a material legacy like wealth or magic tools.
The first Immortal King turned half the continent into a land of death, and the second destroyed an entire empire.
It was a feat that couldn’t be achieved alone, no matter how strong you were.
‘He must have had subordinates following him.’
After all, he couldn’t have attempted to conquer the continent alone.
It must have been possible because there were those who assisted him with higher-level thinking, not just mindless undead who followed orders.
‘An immortal army that stood at the forefront of conquering the continent, following the Immortal King’s will.’
Those who once turned half the continent into a land of death were the legacy the Immortal King left behind for future generations.
Their power inevitably grew as the war continued.
The endless army of corpses and even the soldiers who fought bravely against them became part of them after they died.
Naturally, the continent’s leaders, including the Main God Church, formed an expedition and chose to directly target the head, and the operation was finally successful after countless sacrifices.
It was the same for both times the Immortal King appeared.
‘That shows how strong the continent’s foundation is. The second one was defeated even though he was very careful about his own safety, learning from the mistakes of his predecessor.’
So the scale of damage to the continent itself was smaller during the second Immortal King’s reign, but the number of strong individuals sacrificed to break through the executives protecting the Immortal King was much higher.
‘Anyway, the Immortal King’s forces were eventually scattered.’
The important thing here was their whereabouts.
Most of them were eliminated by the enraged people of the continent, but quite a few also escaped under the discretion of those leading the units.
They hid in remote areas, and some even created dungeons and holed up there.
And the method chosen by many of them was…
‘Sealing themselves on the boundary with the abyss.’
Somewhere on the boundary between the world and the abyss, neither here nor there.
It was a gap in the dimension, adrift in a timeless space, impossible to observe.
It was the safest and most uncertain method, possible because the dimensional wall was weakened by the countless wounds inflicted on the world at the time and because they were undead.
They could avoid the people of the continent, but there was no telling when they would wake up.
They would have slept like that forever, until the next Immortal King was born and released them.
‘But someone just opened the abyss?’
And it wasn’t just weakening the wall, they had created a hole.
[Ah— I can feel them. Those sleeping on the boundary. And there are… quite a few left on the surface as well.]
What the previous Immortal King’s thought left behind wasn’t just simple information.
It was closer to handing over the original copy of a contract.
If he had been consumed by the heart from the beginning and become one with them, he would have naturally realized it, but he only learned about it now because he had blocked it from the source.
‘It’s better late than never. I wouldn’t have been able to do anything even if I knew beforehand, before the abyss opened.’
It wasn’t a good thing that the abyss had opened, but now that it had, he had to take everything he could.
[…But I’ve wasted so much time, I don’t know if they’re still there.]
He wouldn’t be the only one who noticed such a large-scale grand magic that had this much impact on the continent.
Those who carried it out would know that best, so they probably left as soon as they achieved their goal.
‘But I can’t just not go.’
Hans had to confirm the scene himself.
He focused on the spot and tracked the flow of energy again.
It seemed like the ritual was over, as he couldn’t feel the violent fluctuation like before, but…
That didn’t matter to him.
Whoosh—
An enormous amount of dark magic power gathered in an instant and arranged itself according to his will.
The arcane art that was built became a thick darkness and enveloped his body.
[I hope something’s still left.]
Immortal King Hans headed towards the southern part of the continent.
[Oh— This is an unexpected gain.]
It wasn't a material legacy like wealth or magic tools.
The first Immortal King turned half the continent into a land of death, and the second destroyed an entire empire.
It was a feat that couldn’t be achieved alone, no matter how strong you were.
‘He must have had subordinates following him.’
After all, he couldn’t have attempted to conquer the continent alone.
It must have been possible because there were those who assisted him with higher-level thinking, not just mindless undead who followed orders.
‘An immortal army that stood at the forefront of conquering the continent, following the Immortal King’s will.’
Those who once turned half the continent into a land of death were the legacy the Immortal King left behind for future generations.
Their power inevitably grew as the war continued.
The endless army of corpses and even the soldiers who fought bravely against them became part of them after they died.
Naturally, the continent’s leaders, including the Main God Church, formed an expedition and chose to directly target the head, and the operation was finally successful after countless sacrifices.
It was the same for both times the Immortal King appeared.
‘That shows how strong the continent’s foundation is. The second one was defeated even though he was very careful about his own safety, learning from the mistakes of his predecessor.’
So the scale of damage to the continent itself was smaller during the second Immortal King’s reign, but the number of strong individuals sacrificed to break through the executives protecting the Immortal King was much higher.
‘Anyway, the Immortal King’s forces were eventually scattered.’
The important thing here was their whereabouts.
Most of them were eliminated by the enraged people of the continent, but quite a few also escaped under the discretion of those leading the units.
They hid in remote areas, and some even created dungeons and holed up there.
And the method chosen by many of them was…
‘Sealing themselves on the boundary with the abyss.’
Somewhere on the boundary between the world and the abyss, neither here nor there.
It was a gap in the dimension, adrift in a timeless space, impossible to observe.
It was the safest and most uncertain method, possible because the dimensional wall was weakened by the countless wounds inflicted on the world at the time and because they were undead.
They could avoid the people of the continent, but there was no telling when they would wake up.
They would have slept like that forever, until the next Immortal King was born and released them.
‘But someone just opened the abyss?’
And it wasn’t just weakening the wall, they had created a hole.
[Ah— I can feel them. Those sleeping on the boundary. And there are… quite a few left on the surface as well.]
What the previous Immortal King’s thought left behind wasn’t just simple information.
It was closer to handing over the original copy of a contract.
If he had been consumed by the heart from the beginning and become one with them, he would have naturally realized it, but he only learned about it now because he had blocked it from the source.
‘It’s better late than never. I wouldn’t have been able to do anything even if I knew beforehand, before the abyss opened.’
It wasn’t a good thing that the abyss had opened, but now that it had, he had to take everything he could.
[…But I’ve wasted so much time, I don’t know if they’re still there.]
He wouldn’t be the only one who noticed such a large-scale grand magic that had this much impact on the continent.
Those who carried it out would know that best, so they probably left as soon as they achieved their goal.
‘But I can’t just not go.’
Hans had to confirm the scene himself.
He focused on the spot and tracked the flow of energy again.
It seemed like the ritual was over, as he couldn’t feel the violent fluctuation like before, but…
That didn’t matter to him.
Whoosh—
An enormous amount of dark magic power gathered in an instant and arranged itself according to his will.
The arcane art that was built became a thick darkness and enveloped his body.
[I hope something’s still left.]
Immortal King Hans headed towards the southern part of the continent.
__________________
The basement of the Picaol Cathedral where the holy sword was sealed.
Sizzle—
Crackle—!
‘But this is still going on. Shouldn’t it stop after I pulled out the holy sword?’
For some reason, the pain that burned his hand and the sparks running through his entire body continued without end.
He firmly gripped the holy sword, which was still burning his palm, and quietly looked at the fluctuating abyss.
Others, who didn’t know the situation outside, would have been flustered by this sudden situation, but he had already grasped the situation and was thinking about countermeasures.
‘It seems like it’s being affected by the recently opened abyss.’
The fact that the seal was weakened when he pulled out the holy sword must have also contributed.
The Saintess’s words, ‘the cathedral alone is enough’, must have been said without considering the current situation where the abyss was open.
Then the simplest solution would be to put the holy sword back into the abyss.
Sizzle…
At that moment, the sound that had been ringing from his palm gradually subsided.
The energy of the holy sword, which had been rampaging through his body, also calmed down.
《The individual meets the conditions and gains enlightenment. You have acquired the special skill “Blessing: Holy Sword”.》
He slightly opened his hands, which had been gripping the hilt, and saw a stigma of the Main God Church’s symbol engraved on his palms like a brand.
‘The energy that entered my body also settled down stably. Was it not just a test, but a process of fully accepting the holy sword?’
Heinrich examined “Blessing: Holy Sword”, still wary of the abyss.
‘Not only can I strengthen my attack power and body with the holy sword’s energy, but it can also freely transform, and the stigma on my palms even has a subspace function?’
Needless to say, its quality as a weapon and its holy power amplification function were top-notch.
It was the best weapon he could obtain, incomparable to any magic tool.
He couldn’t get something like this anywhere else.
But there was no way he would give up the holy sword and leave just because of this small abyss!
‘Not a chance. What’s in my hands is mine.’
He had come here to retrieve the holy sword under the Saintess’s order in the first place.
He hadn’t even considered the option of giving up.
And with the cathedral’s barrier, an abyss of this size wouldn’t have any significant impact…
Gulp, gulp~!
At that moment, the abyss suddenly started to fluctuate violently.
Its size had slightly increased compared to before, even though the barriers surrounding it were emitting light.
And finally…
Splat—!
Something emerged from the abyss.
Crackle—!
At the same time, pure white lightning from the surrounding barrier struck it.
Countless holy barriers started activating simultaneously.
‘As expected, the Main God Church isn’t that careless. They were prepared. But that…’
An arm, which had suddenly emerged from the abyss in the midst of the exploding white light, was writhing under the continuous attacks.
[Ugh— What is this? Of all places!]
A scraping sound echoed from the hole in the abyss.
‘Huh?’
It felt familiar.
[Ugh… Those damn Church bastards. But I can’t give up like this!]
Splat!
The other hand emerged from the abyss, tearing the hole open.
The attacks intensified, but he didn’t stop, even though his arms were trembling.
[Huu… Now that I’m back…]
His upper body slowly started to emerge.
Its appearance was also very familiar to Heinrich.
They had been fighting just a moment ago.
‘The Arch-Lich from the third trial?’
Of course, he was wearing tattered robes and was nothing but bones, but there was a feeling, wasn’t there?
And he now had new information he had obtained from an unexpected incident.
Hans’s analysis results, based on what Heinrich observed, immediately came out.
‘Dwell McCain, he was one of the Immortal King’s Royal Guards.’
He was one of the Royal Guards that the previous Immortal King had stationed around him to prepare for the expedition.
He was ranked around 50th, and he was more talented at commanding troops than individual combat, so he used to control numerous undead and restrain the enemy’s army rather than fighting himself.
[I have to somehow escape this place… Huh?]
At that moment, Arch-Lich Dwell, who was trying to crawl back into the hole, made eye contact with Heinrich.
“…”
[······]
A moment of silence.
Dwell, who met his gaze, slowly turned his head and looked around, then started to scan Heinrich up and down.
The interior, filled with the Main God Church’s symbol and prayers, and the space emanating a devout aura.
The pressure of the holy barrier that was constantly pounding him…
And the hero standing right in front of him, holding the holy sword.
There was no way he wouldn’t recognize the sword that symbolized the hero.
How could he forget, after so many of his companions were cut down by it?
Even the Immortal King he followed was defeated by that sword, and he had to seal himself to escape.
To prepare for the future.
But…
The moment he tried to escape from the boundary, seizing the opportunity he had been waiting for, he encountered someone who seemed to be the hero of this generation.
[…This is bullshit…]
He couldn’t help but curse.
While Dwell was frozen in place, unable to do anything, Heinrich was quietly looking at him and organizing his thoughts.
‘Did he get sucked out of the boundary while drifting and pulled up because of the abyss opening? The reason he appeared in the trial was because the holy sword read the information of the guy who was floating in a nearby phase?’
And his situation was pitiful.
He had naturally escaped the boundary, but he happened to come out in the middle of the cathedral where the holy sword was sealed.
Even if he somehow managed to escape this place, he wouldn’t have been able to take a single step outside the cathedral and would have been eliminated.
That’s what the cathedral was.
[Ugh… Damn it! Why won’t it go in…]
At that moment, Dwell, who had been looking at Heinrich, quickly tried to go back into the hole and let out a frustrated groan.
He judged that the situation wasn’t good and chose to be sealed again, but even that failed.
The passage he had come out through had become one-way because of the force pulling him up from below.
Now he was truly trapped.
‘It can’t be helped, I have to eliminate him here.’
It was a shame to eliminate him like this because he could have become Hans’s subordinate, but he couldn’t help it in this situation.
Even if he let him go, he wouldn’t be able to escape this place and would be eliminated anyway, so it was better to finish him off himself.
‘Hmm? What’s that?’
Just as Heinrich gripped the holy sword to eliminate him, he caught sight of something familiar between the Arch-Lich’s robes.
Something he had already seen once.
The Arch-Lich’s essence that he had destroyed.
‘Well, he must have summoned and taken his essence before hiding in the boundary. Otherwise, there would be no point in hiding. …Wait, if he has that…’
A good idea came to mind after seeing it.
Heinrich smiled meaningfully and approached him, slowly raising his sword.
Holy power, like a raging torrent, surged into the holy sword with the blessing of “Capacity Increase”, and the blessings of “Holy Blade” and “Holy Sword” intertwined, creating a brilliant golden light on the blade.
And…
He charged at Dwell, swinging his sword.
[Damn slave of the Main God…! You think I’ll go down this easily?!]
Thick dark magic power erupted from the enemy, who wouldn’t just stand there and take it, but the situation was very different from the trial.
Crackle—!
He couldn’t summon undead because he was in the heart of the cathedral, and holy energy from all directions surged in, biting him relentlessly.
He had just been released from his seal and his body wasn’t in good condition, and Heinrich, who had obtained the holy sword, was cutting through his dark magic like butter…
[…Ugh! Dam…n it—!]
In the end, he couldn’t resist much and turned into a handful of ashes, burning in holy flames.
Leaving behind only his essence.
“Let’s see…”
Heinrich slowly walked towards the essence, which was lying on the ground, emitting smoke.
It would naturally disappear in this space’s power, unable to resurrect, if he just left it alone, but…
Wooong—
That wasn’t what Heinrich wanted.
He recalled the knowledge he had newly acquired and raised his holy power.
And after applying the holy power manipulation technique included in “Logia Holy Combat” and using “Auterica Holy Magic”…
‘…Done. As expected, my seniors are amazing.’
He was able to ‘seal’ the Arch-Lich’s essence.
It was thanks to the know-how of “Logia Holy Combat”, which was used to deal with beings that couldn’t be killed immediately.
Heinrich examined the essence, which was firmly crystallized and didn’t leak a single drop of dark magic power, and then put it in the ‘stigma’ on his palm.
‘It’s not that big, but I can put things other than the holy sword in this subspace. It’ll be a good gift for Hans.’
Feelings blossomed as gifts were exchanged.
Heinrich smiled contentedly and nodded slightly.
It didn’t matter that they were both him.
It was just a matter of feeling.
The basement of the Picaol Cathedral where the holy sword was sealed.
Sizzle—
Crackle—!
‘But this is still going on. Shouldn’t it stop after I pulled out the holy sword?’
For some reason, the pain that burned his hand and the sparks running through his entire body continued without end.
He firmly gripped the holy sword, which was still burning his palm, and quietly looked at the fluctuating abyss.
Others, who didn’t know the situation outside, would have been flustered by this sudden situation, but he had already grasped the situation and was thinking about countermeasures.
‘It seems like it’s being affected by the recently opened abyss.’
The fact that the seal was weakened when he pulled out the holy sword must have also contributed.
The Saintess’s words, ‘the cathedral alone is enough’, must have been said without considering the current situation where the abyss was open.
Then the simplest solution would be to put the holy sword back into the abyss.
Sizzle…
At that moment, the sound that had been ringing from his palm gradually subsided.
The energy of the holy sword, which had been rampaging through his body, also calmed down.
《The individual meets the conditions and gains enlightenment. You have acquired the special skill “Blessing: Holy Sword”.》
He slightly opened his hands, which had been gripping the hilt, and saw a stigma of the Main God Church’s symbol engraved on his palms like a brand.
‘The energy that entered my body also settled down stably. Was it not just a test, but a process of fully accepting the holy sword?’
Heinrich examined “Blessing: Holy Sword”, still wary of the abyss.
‘Not only can I strengthen my attack power and body with the holy sword’s energy, but it can also freely transform, and the stigma on my palms even has a subspace function?’
Needless to say, its quality as a weapon and its holy power amplification function were top-notch.
It was the best weapon he could obtain, incomparable to any magic tool.
He couldn’t get something like this anywhere else.
But there was no way he would give up the holy sword and leave just because of this small abyss!
‘Not a chance. What’s in my hands is mine.’
He had come here to retrieve the holy sword under the Saintess’s order in the first place.
He hadn’t even considered the option of giving up.
And with the cathedral’s barrier, an abyss of this size wouldn’t have any significant impact…
Gulp, gulp~!
At that moment, the abyss suddenly started to fluctuate violently.
Its size had slightly increased compared to before, even though the barriers surrounding it were emitting light.
And finally…
Splat—!
Something emerged from the abyss.
Crackle—!
At the same time, pure white lightning from the surrounding barrier struck it.
Countless holy barriers started activating simultaneously.
‘As expected, the Main God Church isn’t that careless. They were prepared. But that…’
An arm, which had suddenly emerged from the abyss in the midst of the exploding white light, was writhing under the continuous attacks.
[Ugh— What is this? Of all places!]
A scraping sound echoed from the hole in the abyss.
‘Huh?’
It felt familiar.
[Ugh… Those damn Church bastards. But I can’t give up like this!]
Splat!
The other hand emerged from the abyss, tearing the hole open.
The attacks intensified, but he didn’t stop, even though his arms were trembling.
[Huu… Now that I’m back…]
His upper body slowly started to emerge.
Its appearance was also very familiar to Heinrich.
They had been fighting just a moment ago.
‘The Arch-Lich from the third trial?’
Of course, he was wearing tattered robes and was nothing but bones, but there was a feeling, wasn’t there?
And he now had new information he had obtained from an unexpected incident.
Hans’s analysis results, based on what Heinrich observed, immediately came out.
‘Dwell McCain, he was one of the Immortal King’s Royal Guards.’
He was one of the Royal Guards that the previous Immortal King had stationed around him to prepare for the expedition.
He was ranked around 50th, and he was more talented at commanding troops than individual combat, so he used to control numerous undead and restrain the enemy’s army rather than fighting himself.
[I have to somehow escape this place… Huh?]
At that moment, Arch-Lich Dwell, who was trying to crawl back into the hole, made eye contact with Heinrich.
“…”
[······]
A moment of silence.
Dwell, who met his gaze, slowly turned his head and looked around, then started to scan Heinrich up and down.
The interior, filled with the Main God Church’s symbol and prayers, and the space emanating a devout aura.
The pressure of the holy barrier that was constantly pounding him…
And the hero standing right in front of him, holding the holy sword.
There was no way he wouldn’t recognize the sword that symbolized the hero.
How could he forget, after so many of his companions were cut down by it?
Even the Immortal King he followed was defeated by that sword, and he had to seal himself to escape.
To prepare for the future.
But…
The moment he tried to escape from the boundary, seizing the opportunity he had been waiting for, he encountered someone who seemed to be the hero of this generation.
[…This is bullshit…]
He couldn’t help but curse.
While Dwell was frozen in place, unable to do anything, Heinrich was quietly looking at him and organizing his thoughts.
‘Did he get sucked out of the boundary while drifting and pulled up because of the abyss opening? The reason he appeared in the trial was because the holy sword read the information of the guy who was floating in a nearby phase?’
And his situation was pitiful.
He had naturally escaped the boundary, but he happened to come out in the middle of the cathedral where the holy sword was sealed.
Even if he somehow managed to escape this place, he wouldn’t have been able to take a single step outside the cathedral and would have been eliminated.
That’s what the cathedral was.
[Ugh… Damn it! Why won’t it go in…]
At that moment, Dwell, who had been looking at Heinrich, quickly tried to go back into the hole and let out a frustrated groan.
He judged that the situation wasn’t good and chose to be sealed again, but even that failed.
The passage he had come out through had become one-way because of the force pulling him up from below.
Now he was truly trapped.
‘It can’t be helped, I have to eliminate him here.’
It was a shame to eliminate him like this because he could have become Hans’s subordinate, but he couldn’t help it in this situation.
Even if he let him go, he wouldn’t be able to escape this place and would be eliminated anyway, so it was better to finish him off himself.
‘Hmm? What’s that?’
Just as Heinrich gripped the holy sword to eliminate him, he caught sight of something familiar between the Arch-Lich’s robes.
Something he had already seen once.
The Arch-Lich’s essence that he had destroyed.
‘Well, he must have summoned and taken his essence before hiding in the boundary. Otherwise, there would be no point in hiding. …Wait, if he has that…’
A good idea came to mind after seeing it.
Heinrich smiled meaningfully and approached him, slowly raising his sword.
Holy power, like a raging torrent, surged into the holy sword with the blessing of “Capacity Increase”, and the blessings of “Holy Blade” and “Holy Sword” intertwined, creating a brilliant golden light on the blade.
And…
He charged at Dwell, swinging his sword.
[Damn slave of the Main God…! You think I’ll go down this easily?!]
Thick dark magic power erupted from the enemy, who wouldn’t just stand there and take it, but the situation was very different from the trial.
Crackle—!
He couldn’t summon undead because he was in the heart of the cathedral, and holy energy from all directions surged in, biting him relentlessly.
He had just been released from his seal and his body wasn’t in good condition, and Heinrich, who had obtained the holy sword, was cutting through his dark magic like butter…
[…Ugh! Dam…n it—!]
In the end, he couldn’t resist much and turned into a handful of ashes, burning in holy flames.
Leaving behind only his essence.
“Let’s see…”
Heinrich slowly walked towards the essence, which was lying on the ground, emitting smoke.
It would naturally disappear in this space’s power, unable to resurrect, if he just left it alone, but…
Wooong—
That wasn’t what Heinrich wanted.
He recalled the knowledge he had newly acquired and raised his holy power.
And after applying the holy power manipulation technique included in “Logia Holy Combat” and using “Auterica Holy Magic”…
‘…Done. As expected, my seniors are amazing.’
He was able to ‘seal’ the Arch-Lich’s essence.
It was thanks to the know-how of “Logia Holy Combat”, which was used to deal with beings that couldn’t be killed immediately.
Heinrich examined the essence, which was firmly crystallized and didn’t leak a single drop of dark magic power, and then put it in the ‘stigma’ on his palm.
‘It’s not that big, but I can put things other than the holy sword in this subspace. It’ll be a good gift for Hans.’
Feelings blossomed as gifts were exchanged.
Heinrich smiled contentedly and nodded slightly.
It didn’t matter that they were both him.
It was just a matter of feeling.
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