Death King Karnak

Chapter 44: Chapter 43: Curse of the Dawn (4)

A red-haired beauty moved erratically through the basement.

Her red sword danced brilliantly across the field of vision.

"Hah!"

Muz-nun also engaged in full force.

He swung his sword at super speed, unleashed a storm of mana, and pressured his enemies with his roar, launching a fierce offensive.

"Graaaah!"

Blood splattered.

It wasn't human blood, but the blood of a demon.

Muz-nun glared.

"This, this bastard?"

It was the same slashing strike that had occasionally broken through his defenses when Baros had charged at him before the possession. Although it hadn't been much of a problem back then, he had indeed been cut several times.

But now, when struck, it inflicted clear wounds.

"It doesn't matter!"

Unexpectedly, the opponent had grown stronger, but they were still at a red-level.

On the other hand, though not an aura user, Muz-nun was at the purple-level demon, comparable to a Purple Knight.

Even in simple comparison, there was a two-level difference.

"I'll crush you like an insect!"

The excited demon began to rampage violently.

Mana of hell manifested as fire and explosions, engulfing the entire basement.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Yet the red-haired beauty still wasn't hit. No, she wasn't even grazed.

"It's been a while since I used battle aura, so this is fun."

She dodged with ease, closed in to slash, and then retreated.

It was no longer even the movements of a Red Knight. A red-level aura user wouldn't be able to flow and move so smoothly.

Before long, Serati's sword began to shine with a blue hue.

"...A blue aura sword?"

Muz-nun was shocked.

There was no doubt about it. It was the blue-level aura, the level of a Blue Knight.

'Not only does he control someone else's body as if it were his own, but he even wields it far better than the original owner?'

As he stared at the blue light enveloping the sword, Baros within Serati murmured.

"Up to this point, huh? The kid lacks experience, but she has quite a bit of potential."

A cold sneer was conveyed through the lips.

"Thanks to that, I can fight a bit more comfortably."

***

A vein bulged on Muz-nun's forehead, pulsing with rage.

"A lowly human dares!"

Serati was observing herself in a daze.

'Unbelievable...'

The demon relentlessly swung its claws. It was an ultra-fast onslaught, almost invisible to the naked eye.

Yet, her body was evading every single one of the attacks cleanly.

Simultaneously with each dodge, her blade glided along the demon's arm as if slipping down it. The slash struck, and blood splattered again.

Each of these movements flowed together seamlessly without a single gap.

'I didn't know my body could move like this...'

The blood-soaked demon roared, continuously unleashing hellfire. It was a wide-area attack, leaving no room to escape.

"Graaaah!"

So she didn't dodge.

Instead, she drew a circle with the aura sword, sweeping away the flames.

The blue aura swirled, engulfing the flames, redirecting them, and sending them veering off harmlessly.

'I didn't know my aura could flow like this...'

The fear of losing control of her body was no longer there. All that remained was awe.

Muz-nun was still faster and stronger. Even though she had reached the level of a Blue Knight, her physical abilities were still slightly inferior.

But with overwhelming skill, she was covering all those gaps.

It was truly astonishing, and at the same time, incomprehensible.

'How is this even possible?'

Was Baros such an exceptional swordsman compared to her?

But that alone didn't explain everything.

Men and women have different skeletal structures. It might seem minor, but this structural difference leads to subtle variations in how the body is used.

If one were to use such precise and intricate swordsmanship, the difference in physicality would become incredibly significant.

Yet, Baros moved in a way that took even those differences into account. And he did it with the ease of someone who had done it dozens, if not hundreds, of times.

This wasn't something that could be achieved merely by being a swordmaster.

What could this possibly be called?

'...A master of possession?'

It was as if he had possessed countless others, regardless of gender or age, and learned to control them flawlessly.

There was no other way he could move so naturally.

'What in the world are they?'

By this point, it no longer mattered what kind of people they were.

A more fundamental question enveloped Serati.

'...Are they even human in the first place?'

The demon's arm flew through the air.

"Ugh!"

Muz-nun, having lost his left arm, stumbled backward. After being pushed to the brink, he had finally suffered a critical blow.

Baros didn't bother to chase him down and finish him off.

"What? Is that all you've got?"

Instead, he sheathed his blue aura sword and smiled coldly.

"Ah, I was just starting to enjoy using the aura again, and now it's already over."

His attitude was truly arrogant.

Muz-nun ground his teeth in frustration, but he didn't dare to attack again.

He was already covered in blood, while the other remained completely composed.

"Y-You monster..."

In truth, Baros wasn't as composed as he seemed.

'Sigh, forcing my level up is causing quite a few side effects.'

Outwardly, he exuded arrogance, mocking the demon as if it were an insect, but inside, he was busy stabilizing his aura and calming his Qi, breaking out in a cold sweat.

[T/L: ?? ?? - Qi/Chi/internal energy/vital life force.]

'Of course, I won't let it show, hehe.'

Baros had as much experience in bluffing as Karnak, so from his expression alone, he looked genuinely disappointed.

Muz-nun, completely deceived, trembled faintly.

Should he be banished back to hell just like this?

'There's still a chance.'

The reason that guy had become so strong was solely because he was possessing Serati's body.

In other words, if he targeted the necromancer who cast the possession spell, the possession would be undone!

Suddenly, Muz-nun fiercely charged toward the red-haired beauty.

"Graaaah!"

Baros calmly intercepted him. He had already caught his breath during the bluffing.

"I told you, it won't work!"

Just as the demon's side was deeply slashed and blood spurted out like a fountain.

"You bastard!"

Muz-nun quickly turned his head, opened his mouth, and spewed flames.

His target was across the basement, where Karnak was leisurely observing the battle.

Boom!

Karnak, unable to dodge in time, took the full brunt of the flames.

Muz-nun laughed triumphantly.

"Hahaha! You let your guard down, human!"

But his laughter didn't last long.

'...What?'

Something was wrong. Baros was still inside Serati's body, glaring at the demon.

'Why is the possession still in place even though the necromancer was hit?'

A voice echoed from behind him.

"What are you doing?"

And that wasn't all.

"My goodness..."

Karnak's voice resonated from various parts of the basement, like an echo.

"Both the one who summoned and the one who was called..."

Karnak appeared in multiple places throughout the basement.

"...you've both been equally fooled."

Five Karnaks were staring at Muz-nun from all directions.

The demon's expression twisted into a grotesque scowl.

"W-Was it an illusion?"

***

The various Karnaks started speaking.

"Earlier, it was too tight, so it was difficult, but...."

"Now you seem pretty disoriented, don't you?"

"Thanks to that, I've noticed a lot of openings."

"Which makes it easier to cast an illusion spell."

Muz-nun, looking at the illusions of Karnak scattered around him, fell into a panic.

Could it be that he had anticipated that Muz-nun would target him?

Karnak snorted.

"Did you really think I wouldn't know your intentions?"

Baros, who had been observing his confident expression closely, suddenly sent a magical message.

[Young Master.]

[Hmm?]

[You didn't know, did you?]

[No.]

To be honest, he hadn't expected the demon to launch such a sudden surprise attack.

Then why had he cast an illusion spell?

It was just a habit.

He had so many enemies and so many sins on his conscience that, whether it was necessary or not, he always set a trap.

[This proves that the wisdom of the old sages isn't wrong, right? Good habits change your life.]

[...I don't think that's what they meant, though.]

In any case, it was all over now.

Muz-nun had wasted the last of his strength on a futile attack.

"Ha, to think I'd end up like this at the hands of mere humans...."

Feeling defeated, the demon's form began to fade. Having exhausted all his power, he was being banished back to hell.

"Just wait, when I return, I'll come after you first!"

As the summoning was undone, Muz-nun cursed them.

"I'll make sure you can neither live nor die! I'll inflict every imaginable pain upon you! This is the promise of hell!"

"Oh, that sounds scary."

Laughing, Karnak raised his right hand.

"Are you saying that if I send you back, I'll be in big trouble later?"

Darkness began to rise, wrapping around Muz-nun's fading body.

"Since you've gone out of your way to warn me, I can't just ignore it, can I?"

A look of shock appeared in the demon's eyes.

"What?!"

His banishment to hell was halted. At the same time, his own demonic energy began to turn against him, causing him to self-destruct.

'What is this? Does such a method even exist?'

"In the past, I'd have bound you with a contract and used you as a slave, but I don't have the necromantic power for that right now. Controlling a demon takes a lot of effort, you see."

Boom!

The darkness crushed the demon. The presence of hell dispersed at a terrifying speed, leading to his annihilation.

"So I'll just cleanly obliterate you."

Muz-nun, now desperate, waved his hand.

"W-Wait a moment!"

He was so desperate that even his tone had changed.

"I'll make a subordinate contract! I'll become your slave!"

"No need."

Unfortunately for Muz-nun, Karnak seemed completely uninterested.

"That's just going back to the way things were before."

A desperate scream filled the basement.

"Aaaaargh!"

***

Muz-nun's form completely vanished from the human world. With that, Karnak released the possession.

Returning to his own body, Baros scratched his head.

"You handle your body yourself, Miss Serati."

But she couldn't express the anger she felt at having her body taken over so freely.

"Ah! M-My body...!"

Baros had pushed Serati's body so hard that her entire body was in tatters.

"I guess I overdid it a bit, huh? Circulate your aura, it'll hurt less that way."

"I don't know how to do that!"

"Oh, should I teach you later?"

"Ugh..."

What was the use of regretting now, after becoming the subordinate of a vile necromancer?

Gritting her teeth, Serati struggled to endure the pain.

Now, the only ones left in the basement were Karnak's group and the dazed Shutraff.

"Well, I suppose we should deal with this one too."

Shutraff looked as though he'd bitten into something bitter.

The vast necromantic power he once wielded was completely gone. He had no power left to protect himself.

"Sigh..."

With a sigh, he raised his hands.

"I surrender."

"What a laughable human."

Karnak scoffed, clearly unimpressed.

"What makes you think we'll accept your surrender?"

"You won't kill me."

A vile smile spread across Shutraff's face.

"You'll want to extract the information I have, right?"

"Of course, we need the information. But why does that mean we shouldn't kill you?"

"Huh?"

"It's easier to extract information after killing you."

"...What?"

Shutraff's face turned pale.

There was something he hadn't considered.

Karnak wasn't an ordinary mage.

He was a wicked necromancer.

"If I kill you and summon your soul, I can easily extract what I need through torture. Why keep you alive?"

In the face of necromancy, not even death could be a means of escape.

As Shutraff stood paralyzed by fear, Karnak suddenly turned to look back.

"Still, let's double-check."

No longer wanting to live as he had before, he made a point of asking Serati.

"Do you think I shouldn't kill this guy? You know, from the perspective of a normal person."

The answer was quite fitting.

"Kill him immediately!"

"So that's that."

Karnak took a step forward. Darkness swirled and formed into a giant blade.

Seeing death approaching, Shutraff cried out in desperation.

"W-Wait! Just wait a momen—"

Before he could finish his plea, his head was cleanly severed and sent flying through the air.

"If killing you is all it takes, why would I bother talking to you?"

It was a death far too trivial for a high-ranking cleric of a religious order, a necromancer who had ruled an entire city with fear.

Karnak flicked a finger toward the blood-spilling corpse.

"Now, let's get down to business."

Black smoke rose, forming into a sphere that began to be absorbed into him. It was the Darkness of Doom that Shutraff had been collecting all this time.

"Oh! This is a feast."

"How much did you get, young master?"

"Enough for about 30 Lords of Darkness."

"Does that mean we can go home?"

"Yeah. Since it's all over, shall we head back?"

Serati, who had been listening in a daze, cautiously raised her hand.

She couldn't quite follow the conversation, but she had to address this.

"Excuse me, aren't you going to rescue Mr. Alius and Mr. Riltein?"

Karnak and Baros blinked.

"Oh, right..."

"That's what we came here for in the first place, isn't it?"

"We completely forgot."

"Yeah, doing something we're not used to feels awkward."

Serati shuddered again as she looked at the two of them.

'What kind of people are these?'

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