Book 1 Chapter 786
786.
The magic of light unfolding from Iliana’s fingertips swept away the Death Knights.
“Wow, the magic power has gotten even stronger, hasn’t it?”
Karl exclaimed in admiration and pulled a potion bottle from his pocket.
And he threw it straight towards the undead army.
Just before the potion bottle hit the center of the undead army.
Karl took out a small hand crossbow, aimed at the potion bottle, and shot it.
Bang! Shwaaaaaa-!
The potion bottle exploded as if bursting, and its compressed contents rained down.
Grrroooaaaah!
Screams erupted from the mouths of ghouls, the low-ranking undead.
“Is it a purification potion?”
“It’s a new one I made recently, and its performance is pretty good!”
Karl grinned and reloaded his crossbow.
Then he took out another potion bottle, held it, and shouted boldly.
“Come as much as you want! I’ll sweep you all away!”
Grrroooaaaah!
Simultaneously with Karl’s shout, a massive number of undead legions began to gather from afar.
Seeing this, Karl spoke to Iliana.
“A tactical retreat would be best, wouldn’t it?”
“Yes.”
The two nodded and immediately began to flee.
“First, joining up with Chelsea and Leo is the priority!”
“They must have seen my magic, so they’ll be here soon!”
No sooner had Iliana finished speaking than a strong wind swirled in front of them.
Chelsea, who appeared with the strong wind, pointed her staff towards the undead army.
Seeing this, Karl and Iliana hurriedly split left and right, creating a path for the magic to fly.
“Wind Storm.”
A powerful spell was rapidly completed through Chelsea’s specialty, high-speed incantation.
The raging whirlwind swept through the undead army.
It was then that Chelsea made a meaningful expression after seeing it.
“Ah, my cute corpses are all messed up.”
With a mournful voice, a woman wearing a hood appeared among the undead.
The woman was holding a large human head in her arms.
It was a hideous corpse with missing eyeballs and festering flesh.
But the woman rubbed her cheek against the corpse’s head as if it were adorable.
At that sight, Chelsea made a disgusted expression.
Clack-
Iliana stood in front of Chelsea and pointed her sword at the woman.
“Are you a demon?”
“Nice to meet you, youngsters. I am Eran, a necromancer serving the great Lich King.”
Iliana’s eyes twitched.
“Eran….”
“Flesh Glutton?”
At the appearance of the notorious high-ranking demon, the party’s faces hardened.
Eran, who smiled faintly, bit the corpse she was holding in her hand.
The three who saw it felt an instinctive revulsion.
“This corpse doesn’t taste very good.”
Spitting out the flesh she had in her mouth with a ‘Ptooey!’, Eran wiped her mouth with a handkerchief and then looked at the three.
Soon, Eran’s gaze turned to Karl.
“Orange-haired friend? You look like my type?”
“Lucky you, Karl. You’ve never heard anything like that when you were at school.”
“Are you making jokes in this situation?”
Karl clicked his tongue and pulled out a potion bottle from his subspace.
Chelsea gripped her staff tighter, and Iliana held up her sword.
It was true that their opponent was a high-ranking demon.
But they had no intention of backing down.
“What about Leo?”
“I came in a hurry first. He’ll join soon. Even if he’s skilled, I don’t know how much help he, a civilian, will be.”
At Chelsea’s words, Iliana said firmly.
“It’s alright. We can defeat him on our own.”
At that, Chelsea nodded.
“Karl, please be our supporter.”
“Leave it to me.”
Karl took a deep breath, his expression tense.
Chelsea and Iliana’s skills had grown to an incomparable degree compared to when Karl knew them in their first year.
‘I, too, put in some effort… but I wonder if it’ll be fortunate if I don’t just hold them back.’
Karl let out a small laugh and looked at Eran.
‘By the way, what’s a high-ranking demon like that doing all the way here?’
High-ranking demons like Eran, who have established such notoriety, rarely show themselves due to the bounties placed on them by various nations.
They are high-ranking demons that one would only encounter deep within the Death Lands, if at all.
‘Moreover, this isn’t even the Death Lands.’
The current location of the group was not far from the Death Lands.
While undead occasionally appeared, it was strictly speaking not the Death Lands.
‘It’s definitely unusual.’
Karl quickly organized his thoughts and looked towards the campsite.
‘Leo, that guy. He should be safe.’
***
Lumern’s Warp Gate.
Despite the late hour, students were bustling back and forth in front of the Warp Gate.
Meanwhile, Elena, the vice-student council president, was lying on a nearby bench, trying to sleep.
“Senior Elena! Wake up! Are you some kind of homeless person, Senior Elena?!”
Celia prodded and woke Elena like that.
Elena, annoyed, tried to roll over and sleep.
But Celia forcibly made her stand up.
“I was dragged out while I was sleeping.”
When Elena whined, Celia flared up.
“We were all dragged out while sleeping, weren’t we?”
“The principal can do the welcoming, can’t he~?”
“This is a student event!”
“Why are they causing a fuss coming in the middle of the night? Tell them to come back tomorrow.”
“When have you ever seen them move considering our circumstances? They’re self-centered elves!”
“Just like Senior Elena in the old days.”
Lil supported the stumbling Elena.
Elena stomped firmly on Lil’s foot.
“Hwaaam!”
Elena yawned broadly and rubbed her eyes.
“Senior Elena! Button up your top! Your underwear will show.”
“I didn’t put any on because I came out in a hurry.”
“Ah! Really!”
Celia, with a frustrated expression, personally buttoned up Elena’s top.
Then she even tied her tie, tidying up her appearance neatly.
“Celia. Will you marry this unnie when you graduate?”
“You’re just trying to make me work like a maid, aren’t you?”
“Yep.”
Elena, now looking neat, giggled.
At her innocent, princess-like appearance, Celia sighed deeply.
Chloe, who was watching, asked Lil.
“Is it true that Senior Elena was really called the Queen of Lumern?”
“That’s right. Until you all enrolled, Senior Elena was charisma itself! She was a tyrant herself!”
Lil clenched her fist and her eyes gleamed.
‘…Is she praising her? Or insulting her?’
Chloe let out a wry laugh, yet strangely watched Elena, who was being pushed by Celia towards the Warp Gate.
Now, she felt like a princess who loved to be spoiled, so it was hard to imagine her as a queen in her former days.
Once Elena was also ready, Chen Xia spoke.
“The preparations are pretty much done, aren’t they?”
“Yes.”
“Why did they suddenly say they were coming?”
Chen Xia made a puzzled expression.
Currently at the Warp Gate were the 1st party members of the 3rd, 4th, and 5th years.
The reason they came to the Warp Gate at this late hour, in perfect condition, was none other than to welcome Seirun’s student council president.
They didn’t know the reason for the sudden visit to Lumern, but as Lumern students, they didn’t want to show any flaw to Rune, Seirun’s student council president.
No, they rather intended to show a perfect appearance.
Lumern students are superior to Seirun.
As rival schools, they had to prove that fact, but before that, it was due to Rune’s attitude towards Lumern students.
Rune acted as if Lumern students were beneath her notice.
To the extent that there was a clear difference from how she treated Azonia or Demian students.
Her dry gaze was like an adult looking at dolls displayed in a toy store.
That attitude, showing no interest, subtly made Lumern students feel bad.
‘Why is she like that, I wonder?’
As Chen Xia felt a question arise internally.
The Warp Gate shone, and elves appeared.
Leading them was none other than Seirun’s student council president, Rune.
A beauty that instantly made onlookers lose their breath.
Rune, who exited the Warp Gate with an unexpressive face, scanned the Lumern students who had come to greet her with a solemn atmosphere.
“Thank you for the grand welcome. I apologize for the late-night intrusion.”
“Welcome to our visit, Seirun’s student council president.”
Rune and Elena smiled faintly and exchanged formal greetings.
A moment later, the Seirun students were guided to their assigned accommodations.
“Senior Rune.”
“Why are you calling, Lunia?”
“Senior Rune, are you not fond of the Lumern students?”
Seeing Lunia ask cautiously, Rune chuckled softly.
“It’s not that I’m not fond of them, but rather that I don’t have much interest.”
“Why?”
“They lack individuality.”
“Pardon?”
“They are works created by Rhea. And they are imitations made by projecting someone else’s appearance.”
Lunia and Eiran looked at Rune, who was saying incomprehensible things, with expressions of bewilderment.
***
Leo, sitting on a tree not far from where Chelsea’s group was fighting, narrowed his eyes as he watched the three fight.
‘Karl is… the same.’
He reads the flow of the battlefield and displays brilliant ingenuity.
And he properly supports Chelsea and Iliana.
Exactly like Karl from Leo’s world.
But Chelsea and Iliana were different.
In their movements, someone’s form was visible.
And Leo could easily tell whose movements theirs resembled.
‘Mine.’
Chelsea and Iliana’s unique movements were absent.
The way they fought enemies.
The timing of attack and defense.
Their tempo of movement.
The method of leading the battle.
Everything was too similar to Kyle, the Hero of Beginnings.
It felt as if Kyle’s movements had been intentionally taught.
‘Lysinas, that guy… what exactly is he thinking?’
As Leo frowned.
Chelsea’s group, having succeeded in defeating Eran, high-fived.
‘…If those two are like this, the others must be in a similar situation.’
As Leo sighed deeply.
Rumble-!
The sound of thunder struck from the sky.
Leo looked up at the sky.
Along with it, a dark crimson lightning bolt struck towards where the three were standing.
The faces of the three hardened when they saw the suddenly appearing Lich King.
“Are these puppets made by Lumern’s student council president?”
The Lich King said with a sneering voice.
Swirling dark magic.
An overwhelming presence.
Just as described in the texts.
The three could easily tell that the being before them was the Supreme Commander of Tartarus.
“Su-suddenly… why…”
Karl let out a groan.
Could they survive?
As such thoughts dominated his mind.
Stomp- Stomp-
Footsteps were heard.
The three flinched and turned their heads, seeing a white-haired boy walking towards them.
“L-Leo…”
Karl struggled to speak.
Their bodies were frozen, unable to move due to the Lich King’s overwhelming presence, yet Leo was walking calmly.
“Oh-ho…”
The Lich King showed interest as he looked at Leo.
‘What is this guy?’
The Lich King’s gaze narrowed from the darkness within his hood.
Leo, who had already arrived in front of the Lich King, raised his head and looked up at him.
“My neck hurts. Could you lower yourself a bit?”
“What audacity. Do you know who I am to say such a thing?”
“I know very well.”
Crack-!
“…!”
Thump-!
Leo kicked the Lich King’s shin.
His shin bone shattered, and the Lich King knelt on one knee.
Only then did Leo curl up the corner of his mouth, looking at the Lich King who was now at eye level with him.
“You don’t know me?”
The Lich King’s eyes were filled with shock.
“You… could it be?”