33. The Black God’s Archmage
After a long night, morning finally came.
The town of Seongha, which had become a battleground, had turned into hell.
There are corpses of zombies and monsters scattered everywhere. The bodies of dead cultists and necromancers are also lying around the town.
No matter how evil the cult was, they were still precious family and neighbors. There were many innocent people who were manipulated and died.
The survivors cried out as they looked at the dead.
“father!”
“Ugh!”
“Oh my god!”
But those responsible for cleaning up this mess no longer exist.
Most of the vassals of the counts who ruled the territory were socialists.
They all died after having their dark energy stolen by Hudel.
Instead, the priests of Saisha, including Alius and Belton, were busy moving around.
The count’s castle was burned, the castle town was half destroyed, and the great temple of the fief was in tatters. In many ways, the cleanup was a big deal.
I scraped together necessities and food ingredients to somehow prepare a meal. Then I started cleaning up.
Select relatively intact village buildings to move the injured to. Provide temporary shelter for those who have lost their homes.
Because there were so many dead and injured people, there was a severe shortage of manpower.
So Serati and Lapiselle also tried their best to help despite their tired bodies.
“Are you okay, Grandma?”
“Lapiselle, take this child to the temporary shelter too!”
“Yes, Sister Serati!”
Karnak and Baros were also busy.
Of course, it wasn’t to help people. They weren’t human enough yet.
I ran straight to the inn where I was staying and packed my bags.
“Fortunately, no one stole it.”
“Wow, I didn’t know the innkeeper was a cultist.”
“Actually, it wouldn’t have been a big deal if we lost it. We weren’t carrying around anything that expensive.”
“What are you talking about? Elf underwear is really expensive.”
“… … Sir Serati bought something like that too?”
As I packed my bags and returned to the village hall, Serati glared at me.
“Thank you for helping me pack my bags, but could you help me with this too?”
Karnak blinked.
“Huh? Why?”
Baros also blinked.
“Should we help too?”
“I don’t think all the people here combined would have helped this village more than I did by taking out Hudel.”
“If an outsider has done this much, what more is there to add?”
Both of them kept tilting their heads.
But Serati didn’t bother to criticize.
Now she knows too.
It’s not that I’m doing it because I find it annoying or because I don’t want to do it, but because I really don’t know why.
And I think I’m starting to know how to deal with it.
“that’s right.”
“huh?”
“Everything Karnak said is correct.”
“Then can I just rest?”
“Yes, it is possible.”
Serati slyly changed the conversation to a secret message.
[If you want to live like a human being, please help.]
[Why is helping them the way to live like a human being?]
[Did you understand other people’s behavior in the first place?]
[no.]
[Then of course you still don’t understand.]
She glanced back at Lapiselle.
[So don’t try to understand and just follow Lapiselle.]
[Lapiselle?]
[Yes. She was the last hero of humanity, right?]
Even after losing all his memories, losing all his powers, and returning to the body of a child, Lapiselle was still running around trying to help people in some way.
[If you don’t want to go back to being a villain, wouldn’t it be best to follow someone who never becomes a villain under any circumstances?]
Baros and Karnak looked at each other.
[Persuasive… ….]
[……there is!]
Afterwards, the two people also joined the rescue team.
Karnak used his magic to clear away the debris from the broken building and rescue the survivors, while Baros also worked hard to carry the wounded.
Both of them looked like they had absolutely no idea why they had to do this, but they didn’t care.
‘Since Lapiselle also lost her memories, it’s probably the same as not knowing the reason… … .’
‘But you do it instinctively, right?’
‘Then there must be a reason.’
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The villagers who received help expressed their gratitude with tears in their eyes.
“Thank you. Thank you.”
“May the grace of the Goddess be with you… … .”
I wasn’t particularly moved by people saying thank you.
Anyway, once I leave here, I won’t ever see your face again, right?
Moreover, the gratitude of the people is like an illusion, and it easily disappears in the storms of the world.
However, the expressions on the faces of Saisha’s priests looking at Karnak’s party were very warm.
“You all must be having a hard time.”
“You must be tired… … .”
Even though Karnak and his party were not citizens of the Empire, but of the Seven Kingdoms, they still defeated the cultists and saved the territory, and they are still helping them as if it were their own work.
It is impossible not to be moved.
“There are so many people in the world who have the power but do not fulfill their duties… … .”
“They truly understand the responsibility that comes with power.”
This was quite a refreshing experience for Karnak and Baros as well.
It wasn’t like that when I was dealing with the social crowd last night.
[I see. Even if they do the same good work, the types are a bit different.]
[Doing good things alone doesn’t build a reputation.]
[Only when you add color can you get nutritional value!]
Serati sighed again as she watched the two who had achieved enlightenment.
[… …Why is that interpreted that way?]
* * *
A whole day had passed while I was busy trying to control the situation.
It was not until late afternoon that the Karnak party was free from their work.
After putting Lapiselle, who had stayed up all night, to sleep in a corner of the room, Karnak discussed the upcoming schedule.
Roughly calculated, the expected arrival date of Pasa’s brigade is between tomorrow and the day after.
“We have to wait until then.”
I was planning to hand over Hudel and the captured cultists while putting on as much makeup and liveliness as possible.
That way, when the Empire comes again later, it will be more convenient in many ways.
Serati stuck out her tongue.
“You don’t understand the human mind, but you’re good at this?”
Karnak protested, as if he felt wronged.
“It’s not like I don’t know anything about human emotions, right?”
Human greed is understandable.
Emotions such as fear, resentment, hatred and anger are also generally understandable.
I just don’t understand things like love, sympathy, compassion, and protectiveness.
“So, I’m actually a very emotional person, right? Then why did people say I have no emotions?”
“Well, well.”
Serati was at a loss as to what to say.
Anyway, there is something to do before Parsa’s brigade arrives.
“I have to find out what I need to find out from Hudel.”
Baros stroked his longsword.
“Will you kill me and take my soul?”
It is not as easy as it sounds to kill someone while keeping the soul intact.
It is easier to use necromancy later on if you realize that you are definitely dead.
Sometimes, you may fall asleep and die without even realizing that you are dead, becoming a wandering ghost. This greatly increases the difficulty of summoning a soul.
So, Baros was definitely quite adept at killing people ‘with the knowledge of death’.
Karnak shook his head.
“Let’s try sticking a needle in first.”
If the information was good, there was no need to kill them, so it was better to hand them over alive and incur more debt to the Pasa Brigade.
“If there is strong resistance, we should say we killed him by mistake and just hand over the body.”
* * *
Hudel was trapped in the basement of a warehouse building on the outskirts of town.
Originally a food storage facility for winter use, it was now the strongest building after both the Saisha Temple and the Count’s Castle were destroyed.
It is suitable for imprisoning prisoners, as the iron bars are thick to protect against thieves.
After telling the guards to leave for a moment, Karnak and his party went downstairs.
“How have you been, Mr. Socialite?”
The divine being gnashed his teeth at Hudel, whose command power was sealed in handcuffs.
“Huh! No matter what I do, my mouth won’t open!”
Karnak responded indifferently and opened up a barrier.
“Yeah, don’t open it.”
After blocking out the surrounding noise, he immediately draws out his chaos magic to create a long needle.
Hudel was terrified when he saw that sight.
“What, what is it?”
Phew!
Suddenly, a needle was stuck in the back of his head. In an instant, the bastard’s expression changed.
“Ugh… … .”
Hudel opened his mouth and started drooling.
“If you do this often, you’ll get the hang of it.”
You’ve become accustomed to manipulating your brain with chaos magic, so it’s starting to become as effective as necromancy.
“As they say, there is nothing in this world that you can’t achieve if you work hard for it.”
Baros snorted.
“I think this is the first time I’ve heard a remark that so tarnishes the purity of effort.”
Serati was listening to their conversation with an ambiguous expression.
I’ve gotten so used to those two that I don’t even feel strange hearing that kind of talk anymore.
‘Oh my, I really don’t know if I’m okay.’
After completely subduing Hudel’s thoughts, Karnak gave the order.
“Now, tell me your fortune.”
* * *
Hudel Grenthal’s childhood was in many ways similar to Karnac.
Although he was not an illegitimate child, he had three older brothers, so there was almost no chance of him inheriting the land. He also grew up without receiving love under a father who only viewed his children as possessions.
The only difference is that, unlike Karnak, who was treated like a scoundrel, Hudel was a smart child from a young age.
But this actually became a problem.
His older brothers, wary of Hudel’s talent, often harassed him.
His father, the former lord, also only told Hudel to serve and follow his eldest brother, and did not tolerate any rebellion.
So there was a time when I wanted to leave my family and become a magician or priest.
However, wizards and priests were not simply people who were smart enough to become one. They had to be born with a talent for mana, or divine power.
Unfortunately, Hudel didn’t have that talent, just like Karnak.
The change in him occurred five years ago, when the darkness of the apocalypse was first spread across this world.
Having absorbed the darkness of the apocalypse, Hudel was able to control the powerful power of death through will alone.
It must have been a huge temptation for a boy in his late teens.
However, Hudel showed a different side from other sorcerers.
Rather than feeling joy in the face of power, I felt fear first.
‘Uncontrollable power is nothing but disaster.’
At the time, little was known about the Darkness of the End, but instinctively it was known that this power was related to necromancy.
So, I asked my father and went to study abroad in Te A Krahan.
He asked for support because he wanted to study more deeply in order to faithfully assist his older brothers.
This was a very desirable choice from Count Grenthal’s point of view as well.
There was no reason to oppose it since the troublesome issue of succession was neatly resolved.
So, Hudel entered the school of the system.
While studying administration and other subjects, he also studied magic and ancient books diligently in order to find information on necromancy.
‘I have to find a way to use this power properly. Before that, I absolutely cannot be found out.’
I was very careful and very careful again.
For a full two years, I collected the data without anyone finding out.
Actually, I have learned the basics of necromancy to some extent.
But in the end, the tail got stepped on.
While he was secretly practicing his magic in a deserted forest, a woman appeared before his eyes.
“You learned that much on your own? You’re quite an interesting kid.”
I already knew who she was.
I have seen him from afar a few times, as he occasionally showed up at the academy.
So Hudel gave up everything.
Imperial Royal Wizard, Eleazar de Ripplacion.
What could he do before that great archmage?
That was when.
A secret dark aura emanated from her body.
“A, a sorcery?”
Hudel was astonished.
He also knew the common sense that the energy of the world cannot mix with each other.
But the Archmage? A 10th Circle Seeker learned necromancy?
How on earth?
“I will take you in, child.”
A soft voice tickled Hudel’s ears.
“If you wish to master the true power of darkness, follow me.”
* * *
“I see.”
A flash of color passed through Karnak’s eyes.
“Was it Eleazar?”
The evil spirit king Karnak
