Chapter 148

Chapter 148

Spendthrift Necromancer (148)

The Orcs marched along cheerfully.

The Elves, on the other hand, rushed over in horror to stop them.

“More than ten thousand Orcs died! And now you want to march straight into the center where the Witch lives?!”

“This is suicide!”―Gruk! Knife-ears are all cowards after all!―Cowards don't have to follow! Orcs are enough!―Smash Witch's head!

Their reactions couldn't have been more opposite.‘Honestly, the Elves are the normal ones.’Twenty thousand Orcs remained after conquering the fortress. Add roughly one hundred Elves, and that was the entire expeditionary force.

And the situation had become even worse than before.

The Witch and Ice Dragon.

Two great evils occupying the continent.

And now there was a high chance even higher-ranking beings than them had arrived.

Any normal commander wouldn't march directly toward the center.

Now that the North was warm, they could stall for time while letting the Orc population recover, maybe seize the eastern and western fortresses along the way.

Drive a wedge between the Witch and Ice Dragon, make them fight each other.

Trying messy little schemes like that would've been normal.

But the reason you'd take such a long route was.‘Because you're weak.’The conquest of the Northern Fortress had been the same.

Coldly speaking, he'd thrown festivals and raised every kind of commotion to gather Orcs precisely because his own combat power had been that low.

Without enough Orcs backing him up, he couldn't have broken through.

But now, there was no need.

Instead of answering the Elves' protests, he looked at Merhen, who was following closely behind.

“Merhen.”―Yeah.

“Ever fought Witches before?”―Yeah.

“How were they?”―They're all idiots. Oh, except exactly seven.

“Seven?”―Yeah. The Great Witches.

Oh?

Beings Merhen didn't consider idiots.

Great Witches.

Even the name sounded dangerous.

Nine times out of ten, they were high-ranking members of the Witch Society.

He casually asked.

“Are the Great Witches better at magic than you, Merhen?”

Merhen puffed out her cheeks.―Minwoo. Don't you trust me?

“I do. I was just curious because you said they aren't idiots.”―They're worse at magic than me. Cedric?―You called?―Tell him. Quickly.―She's right. At her peak, she could handle three Great Witches by herself.

“Oh, you were that strong?”

Kim Minwoo looked at Merhen with mild surprise.

He already knew her magical ability was extraordinary.

Even so.

He hadn't expected her to be powerful enough to completely outclass even officers of the Eastern Witch Society who traveled freely between dimensions.

At his admiring gaze.―Ahem!

Merhen cleared her throat.

Her nose rose proudly as though proclaiming, That's right, I'm this amazing!

“But why did you fight them?”―The Witch Society and Dragon Legion. Both expanded into our dimension. Their initial purpose was trade.

“Trade?”―Think of them roughly as merchant companies.

Kim Minwoo nodded in understanding.

If Witches and Dragons could move between dimensions, there was nothing strange about them entering the Death Lord's dimension to barter various goods.―Both factions made offers. They said they'd sell things the Lord lacked. Payment through barter.

“And then?”―Master saw it yourself, so you know what the early Lord was like.

“Uh…… was he still early-stage back then?”―Roughly. I think the Lord's thought process at the time was: rather than fussing over little trades, why not rob the merchant companies first, then hit their headquarters and take everything in one sweep?

Kim Minwoo nodded in understanding.‘That personality never went anywhere.’During the Academy period, the Death Lord had been the textbook definition of an evil Lich.

If he'd encountered the Witch Society and Dragon Legion while still behaving similarly, what would he have done? Rather than bother with trading, he probably would've thought it easier to annihilate them and take everything at once.‘The Witches wouldn't have stood a chance.’Merhen said she'd handled three Great Witches. Then the Death Lord, who was even stronger, went without saying.

Even all seven Great Witches together probably couldn't have fought him.

Meaning he could've killed every last one and taken the loot without even feeling burdened.

“With that much difference in power, it wouldn't be strange if the Eastern Witch Society had been destroyed.”―Five Great Witches died fighting the Lord. Then they hid.

“Hid?”―Yes. Something like sealing their entire sect away. Even the Lord couldn't break that seal. So he planned to deal with them later…… but by the time later came, our side was the one that had collapsed.

“So the Witch Society is wandering around again because the seal finally opened?”―Most likely. A very long time has passed since then.

“What about the Dragon Legion?”―They sealed themselves too. Four Ancient Dragons died. They became my new body and my comrades.

Again.

It reminded him just how much of a thug the Death Lord had been.

And.

He realized one more thing…….

“By what you're saying, they're going to hate my guts.”―The surviving Great Witches of the previous generation will vividly remember that nightmare. If they learn Master is the Successor, I doubt they'll sit still. The Dragon Legion will be the same.―Hmph, Minwoo doesn't need to worry. I'll protect him.―You're far from your prime. In your current state, you would struggle even against one Great Witch.―So what? It's not like a Great Witch came here right now.―That changes if they discover our existence.―Cedric, are you stupid? Those cowards wouldn't move immediately even if they found out. They'd spend forever testing the waters first.

“Enough, enough.”

He stepped in before the two kept going.

Cedric's concern and Merhen's confidence both had merit.

Merhen in particular could now use all four major elements instead of only Death Magic like in the past. Maybe not yet, but once her Level rose and more seals came undone, she could probably crush several Great Witches again.

Even so, being cautious right now was appropriate.

Great Witches. Ancient Dragons.

Just from their names, they didn't sound remotely easy. If he fought something like that immediately, he'd probably need to start with the Nuclear Bomb.

Either way.

The conclusion was.

“…….”

Without meaning to, he'd effectively explained to the Elves listening blankly why he was advancing so confidently.

The Witch and Ice Dragon weren't much anymore.

That was the core of it.

Of course, from the Elves' perspective, only a few minutes had passed since they conquered the fortress before Minwoo suddenly went insane and started rampaging.

What could he do?

He had neither the time nor desire to grab them one by one and persuade them.

The Orcs continued marching stubbornly forward.

Eventually, the Elves cautiously began following behind them as well.* * *The warm North.

The moment they crossed it and entered the center of the continent, winter winds began blowing again.

And that wasn't all.―Neiiigh!

A group of undead mounted on pitch-black spectral horses blocked the road ahead.

There were more than five hundred of them, and their equipment was far superior to that of ordinary Wraith Knights.

“T-The Necromantic Knight Order!”

The Elves recoiled in horror.

Conditioned fear had been engraved into their eyes.

The Witch's personal knight order, obeying no command but hers. They were infamous for leaving behind not even proper corpses wherever they swept through.

Even Elise's ears trembled.

Kim Minwoo had been a reliable leader until now.

Despite being only one human.

He'd united the different races of the North and brought down a fortress that had seemed impossible to break forever.

His reckless plan to sweep through the center and continue all the way to the Ice Dragon's stronghold in the South. That was why she'd agreed to join such madness.

At least he wasn't the kind of man who acted without thinking.

And if the Resistance and Kim Minwoo collapsed here, even the North they'd only just reclaimed would lose all meaning in an instant.

But even accounting for that.

Gulp.

She couldn't hide her fear of the Necromantic Knight Order standing directly before them. There were only five hundred, but each one's strength was beyond imagination.Twenty thousand Orcs and one hundred Elves?

Sometimes numbers barely mattered.‘We'll be torn apart…….’This was one of those times.

Even if they resisted desperately, they'd be lucky to kill a hundred knights. The difference in quality was practically violence. Their only hope was Kim Minwoo.

Please.

Let him have something.

That was when.

One figure stepped out from the Necromantic Knight Order.

Unlike the other Wraith Knights, this undead wore a crown upon his head.

Mederan, Commander of the Necromantic Knight Order.

The most infamous undead among the Witch's servants.―I shall grant you a merciful judgment. Turn back. I will spare your lives.

The gloomy voice echoed across the surroundings.

The Orcs and Elves shuddered as chills ran down their spines.

Only Urkan and the Great Chieftains widened their eyes, forcing their fighting spirit higher. Even battle-crazed Orcs flinched beneath the unimaginable pressure.

Kim Minwoo, however, stared with shining eyes.

The Witch's undead.

Every one of them was precious experience.

And the Necromantic Knight Order before him had an average Level far beyond the undead of the northern region.

Even a rough estimate put them around Level 600 to 700.

Considering the undead in the North had been roughly in the mid-200s to 300 range, this was an enormous jump.

And there were around five hundred of them.

It was easy to see why the Necromantic Knight Order was so infamous.

If five hundred monsters like these charged on spectral horses, what exactly were the other races supposed to fight them with?

And the undead standing at the front was equipped far more lavishly than all the others.

At a glance.‘This screams power-leveling.’He couldn't let this go.

He looked at Merhen.

“Kill them.”

Nod.

Flutter!

Wings sprouted from her back. Merhen shot instantly into the sky.[Rampage activates!][For 10 minutes, the power of all magic increases by 30%!][Magic can be stacked up to five times!]

Blue Mana surged violently toward both her hands as though she were stacking magic.

“……?!”

Mederan recoiled in horror.

As the Witch's servant, he'd naturally witnessed countless spells.

But he could say with certainty.

Even his master, the Witch Iris, couldn't produce fluctuations like that from a single spell.‘I have to stop her!’If he failed to interrupt the cast, he had no idea what would happen. He hurriedly drew his sword and prepared to launch sword energy toward Merhen.

Whoosh!

Something approached at terrifying speed.

BANG!

Mederan's eyes widened as he hurriedly blocked the ominous attack.

An enormous bone spear had collided with his sword.‘A Skeleton?’And one whose head looked exactly like a Dragon's. Though Mederan rode an enormous spectral horse, there was no height difference between them.

Because just like the Mage floating in the sky, wings spread behind this bizarre Skeleton.

Dragon-like wings.

Mederan was driven backward again and again beneath the relentless storm of spear techniques.

Countless questions swirled in his murky pupils.

Had the Northern Resistance possessed a being like this?

No.

If monsters like these had existed, the fortress would've fallen in less than half a day.

Only one possibility came to mind.―You bastards, don't tell me…… you've joined hands with the Dragon Legion?

Overwhelming strength.

Even wings resembling a Dragon's.

What if the Dragon Legion had provided something to the Northern Resistance?

They had more than enough motive.

After all, hadn't the Northern Fortress fallen precisely because the Witch's side had stood by and watched?

The Skeleton continued pressing him without answering his urgent question.

Gradually losing ground, Mederan shouted desperately.―Spread out!

The magical force coming from the sky now radiated presence like a sun.

If they took that attack while clustered together, it was over.

The Necromantic Knight Order scattered instantly.

That was when.

A single breeze blew.

By the time the spectral horses sensed it, everything was already too late.―Neiiigh!

Their spectral bodies lifted into the air.

As though caught inside an enormous vortex, the entire Necromantic Knight Order was sucked inward. Mederan couldn't escape the calamity either.

Flailing helplessly in the air, he witnessed a bizarre sight.

Though a storm raged around them.

Everything on the ground remained untouched.

The soil, worthless twigs, tiny plants and animals.

Not one so much as trembled, as though the storm didn't affect them at all.

Mederan was horrified.‘She controlled the wind?’The stronger a spell, the greater the shockwaves around it. Even Mages couldn't easily control that collateral effect.

If she could unleash a hurricane powerful enough to sweep away the entire Necromantic Knight Order while perfectly controlling even its effect on the surroundings…….‘Just how high is her realm?’That was Mederan's final thought. Dragonblood Slash erupted from Cedric's spear. Then Merhen's five-stacked Great Explosion magic struck as well.

The two attacks overlapped and annihilated every member of the Necromantic Knight Order trapped inside the storm.[Your Level increases by 23!]

“Damn.”

Kim Minwoo exclaimed at the message.

He'd done nothing but breathe and shot from Level 270 to 293. And he wasn't the only one enjoying the comfortable carry from his Legion Commanders.

Skeletons.

Skeleton Mages.

Specters.

And Dullahans too.

It became a full-blown power-leveling party.[Average Level of the Skeleton Mage unit has reached 101!][Skeleton Mage unit grows!][They have learned special magic!][Title, ‘Master of the Dragon Knight,’ activates!][Class Advancement System activates!]

A Class Advancement window even appeared for the Mages.

“You guys seriously lucked out with your master. You know that?”

Clatter!

Mail nodded vigorously and raised a thumb.^_^.

Complete with the cute emoticon expression Merhen had taught him.