[V49C06] The Sorcerer of Darkness (part 1)
“Undead …”
“What the heck…? Their number is huge!”
The users of the Fifth Legion were appalled by the size of the Immortal Legion that had been raised by Bar Khan.
The undead rushed in frantically as soon as they spotted the humans.
“Kwehehehe!”
“Death to the living!”
“I will end your worthless lives!”
Bar Khan and the undead!
Once the humans caught their eyes during their chase after Weed, they didn’t even attempt to communicate.
“Humans. I am Ulloombo, a Knight from Hell. I welcome you into our ranks.”
“Begin the assault of destruction.”
The phantom steeds on which the Doom Knights were riding spread out and began their soundless charge into the enemy camp. Following behind them were a great number of Death Knights and skeleton soldiers, as well as large undead demonic creatures which were once part of the Shadow Army of Palma, shaking the ground in great rush.
Karstein, the Commander of the Doom Knights, raised his broken sword and cried out.
“Immortal Legion! Charge!”
*Koohoowaaa!*
A cursed purple aura covered the Immortal Legion. This effect alone was enough to grant the undead army improved speed and the ability to steal life force.
“What?! You mean Weed has appeared here?”
At that moment, Legion Commander Bucking was contacting the heads of the guild.
As they didn’t receive the news about the Shadow Army of Palma until late, he had only realized now that the lich who had just passed through their camp was in fact Weed.
“Unbelievable. And we just let him go?”
Bucking was groaning with regret, but the assaulting Immortal Legion was already right in front of him.
“It’s too late to avoid the fight. We’ll just have to fend them off with all we’ve got. Place the shieldbearers in front and divert the knights.”
The infantry force attempted to stand their ground, blocking the frontal charge of the undead. Since there were so many undead mounted troops like the Doom Knights, not to mention the Bone Dragons, they had decided that it would be impossible to flee from them.
“Damn it. Why do we have to fight against those… things…?”
“They say in the Guild Channel that this is the Immortal Legion, is that true?”
“What? Surely not! No way!”
The Hermes Guild’s members were also preparing for combat, their expressions grim.
“Bring forth the day, when everything you believe in collapses into nothingness. You shall be betrayed by your own kin, and die in pain and suffering. The Rhapsody of Destruction[1] !”
Bar Khan waved his bone wand and chanted an incantation of Black Magic, which caused the specters to scream from all directions. Horrible, nerve-grating sounds resonated far and wide as if a well-trained orchestra was playing them[JO2] . In addition to being ear-splittingly loud, the sounds also made a listener feel heavy-limbed and sick.
< You hear the Rhapsody of Destruction.
Extremely weakened state!
Physical abilities will be diminished.
Attack and defense abilities will be weakened.
Resistance against mind-affecting magic spells will be lowered, and all stats will be reduced by 22% or more.
6,492 points of life force will be lost per second.>
A curse of Black Magic using the undead! The Imperial soldiers could not bear it and were quickly succumbing to death, their bodies collapsing like a surging wave.
“We shall grant you the glory of Immortality!”
“It is the order of Bar Khan-nim. Be grateful, you living things.”
The Doom Knights pierced through the barriers set up by the shieldbearers of the Fifth Legion with sheer force. The soldiers who were crushed by the powerful charge flew all over the place and lost their lives.
“The shieldbearers have been neutralized!”
“Stand closer together! Use whatever skills you have to stop them! We were in the middle of a march: if they manage to reach our base, they’ll ruin everything!”
The Doom Knights penetrated the camp of the Imperial army. Even when they were interrupted by spearmen and shieldbearers, they pushed forward to the last of their strength. They drove their swords into the opponent’s chests even after losing their heads. Due to the fact that they had an infinite supply of life force and mana provided by Bar Khan, in the end this only increased the number of undead.
“The, the undead!”
The soldiers who had lost their lives were revived as undead. Without any blessing or cleansing spells, the Doom Knights regained their life force as well, climbing back on their phantom steeds.
The situation was already beyond chaotic, but Bar Khan started to utter yet another incantation.
“Offer your feeble life to me, the eternal being. I shall reward you all with an immortal life. The Reaper’s Gift. “
About one third of the soldiers in the Fifth Legion were branded with a vivid shape of a ghost holding a black scythe on their foreheads.
A portion of your total life force and mana will be drained every second. The damage you take will increase when you are wounded. When your remaining life force gets below 20% of the maximum amount, there is a high chance of a sudden death.> “Urrgh. Using this sort of Necromancy…!” “We need divine spells! Get rid of these brands first, quickly!” The users of the Hermes Guild in the Fifth Legion could not repress their shock and thrills of terror. They had all defeated numerous boss-level monsters before, but they had never experienced such an unparalleled powerful presence like that of Bar Khan. Worst of all were his unprecedented ability to cast curses over a wide area as well as his absolute dominance over the undead. The streams of life force and mana concentrated on Bar Khan were divided again, strengthening his entire undead army. With the black and purple aura hanging around their bodies, the undead soldiers were demonstrating deadly combat strength as they fought on, even if they were mere Death Knights. The Doom Knights were absolute overlords of battle, rampaging through the enemy lines mercilessly. ‘Weed really defeated this thing before?’ ‘There’s just no way. He is hideously strong.’ ‘It is impossible to win against these undead. Even if we kill them, they just get revived again, stronger than before. The only solution is to get rid of Bar Khan.’ Some of the Hermes Guild users realized that Bar Khan was the key to this battle and quickly launched an attack against him. “Kill him!” “The Hermes Guild is the strongest of all!” The Hermes guild users jumped into the fray, shouting dramatically in case they would appear on a broadcast. The undead tried to stop them but they broke through, throwing every skill they had at them; the Fifth Legion had many users who were quite famous in their own way. “Fortress of Howling Corpses.” Upon seeing the Hermes Guild users’ bold attempt at attacking him, Bar Khan cast another spell. The land on which Bar Khan had been standing started shaking, and pillars that were made of countless tangled bones began to shoot upwards, tens of meters high. Soon, a magnificent hill of bones was formed.