#63
Attack on the Great Temple (2)
Rosellia Great Temple was thrown into chaos by the intrusion of an external enemy, something it had never once permitted before.
Yet even amid that, the response came in an instant.
This place was the sacred ground of the Order, where elites acknowledged across the land gathered.
Every perimeter, outer and inner alike, was reinforced.
Fully armed crusaders and battle priests formed ranks around the Great Temple, and the summoned holy knights moved as one.
And to the powerful, including the commander of the holy knights, a covert order was issued.
Gather at the sealing site immediately.
That was why.
Before Heinrich’s eyes unfolded the rare sight of figures he had not often been able to see, all gathered in one place.
‘Even after dispatching so many, there are still this many left.’
Those who stood at the top among the ones currently remaining in the Great Temple.
Even those who had already retired had gathered in full armor, and their number exceeded a hundred.
Just then, the Saintess came running down the passage with a group of people.
She must have come in quite a hurry, for her hair was disheveled and her clothes were in disarray.
“Let’s move at once! Everyone, follow me!”
Without stopping for even a moment, the Saintess immediately rushed into the passage, and the people who had been waiting hurried inward after her.
‘There’s no need to guard this passage anymore, right? She did say everyone should follow…’
After gauging the mood, Heinrich quietly joined their group.
“What happened? Were the Great Temple’s defenses breached? All the way to the sealing site, just like that?”
The Saintess asked the person running in step beside her.
A female inquisitor who seemed to be a high-ranking official ran without making a single footstep and answered her question calmly.
“No signs or traces of an intrusion from the outside have been discovered. They did not enter the sealing site by ordinary means.”
“What do you mean? Are you saying they teleported directly inside the sealing site?”
“At present, that is the only explanation I can give. However, no traces of teleportation have been found in the Great Temple’s defensive barriers either. It is as if they suddenly sprouted up right there.”
“That’s impossible… Do you know how many divine barriers surround this place…! Ignoring all of that and intruding directly into the sealing site, where space is distorted, is impossible!”
But something they had believed absolutely impossible had actually occurred.
The Saintess, who had rushed over after hearing only that an intruder had appeared in the sealing site, could not help becoming even more bewildered once she learned the details.
“I don’t want to think it, but… the intruder couldn’t possibly be…”
“…Yes. There was a final message from the Director, who headed inside first.”
“After that, contact was cut off. Whether he is alive or dead is unknown.”
“Hans…!”
With the sound of gritted teeth, sparks flew in the Saintess’s eyes.
“Saintess, please calm yourself for now. If you get worked up now, even what can be done will not be done.”
“Ah! You’re right. Hoo~ hoo~.”
At Cardinal Cordelia’s gentle voice as she moved beside her, the Saintess took deep breaths and settled her heart.
The leaders wore grave expressions, but Heinrich was watching them while thinking of something else.
‘None of them even get out of breath while running.’
The Saintess, who could still be called young, and Cardinal Cordelia, a woman in her late fifties, were conversing calmly even as they ran.
It was likely because the enormous divine power flowing through their bodies supported their flesh.
“Ha ha ha, in any case, I cannot raise my head before the Supreme God. To think we allowed a heretic’s intrusion into this holy ground, into the deepest part of the Great Temple… Ha ha ha…”
A man in his mid-sixties let out a hollow, powerless laugh.
He was Cardinal Fion, the owner of the voice that had given orders with divine power at the outset of the incident.
“How could he possibly move from the western end of the continent all the way inside the Great Temple of the holy ground? Or perhaps…”
Even after finding the Immortal King’s heir, the search by the High Elf Lafori had continued up to this very day.
It was so they could immediately detect it if the bastard changed locations.
The last location confirmed this evening had still been the Demonic Beast Forest in the west, and yet he had abruptly appeared here in the center of the continent.
And at an exceedingly coincidental time, at that.
“In the records of the battle with Hans, the Immortal King of this generation, it was noted that he escaped while ignoring Archbishop Latius’s spatial isolation barrier.”
The inquisitor, who had been moving with them as if she were both there and not there, quietly added once more.
“…That’s right. We cannot be certain now whether he truly was in the Demonic Beast Forest, but it is a fact that he ignored the Great Temple’s barriers and intruded. But for him to possess this level of ability when he is not yet even a complete Immortal King…”
“If this fragment is taken as well… A true calamity of the continent will be born.”
Not only those leading the conversation, but also those who had been quietly following behind them and merely listening, realized once again how serious the situation was.
“…Let’s hurry a little more.”
As the Saintess’s halo intensified, the divine power pouring from it settled into the bodies of those around her, and they raced through the sealing site even faster.
***
Thud—
The last remaining Director of the Inquisition collapsed to the floor.
[…I expected as much, but he was far more troublesome an opponent than I thought.]
Hans looked around.
Around the black priestly robes fallen here and there lay an enormous number of undead remains.
‘Efficiency drops a lot inside this space, but I had no choice if I wanted to buy time.’
Even though he had imbued them with plenty of black magic power, their combat strength had been shaved down to less than half of usual.
He had no choice but to make up for what was lacking with quantity.
Fighting while simultaneously undoing the fragment’s seal in an unfavorable space had forced Hans to pay attention to many things at once.
The Director of the Inquisition, who approached in an instant like an assassin and attacked directly, could not be stopped even by undead.
[Still, the seal is almost completely undone now. I can finish the work before additional support arrives.]
[Mas…ter.]
Just then, the Death Wizard Malcolm, whose lower half had vanished, crawled across the floor with his one remaining hand.
Like a scene from a horror movie.
[Oho? You managed to survive, did you?]
Though he was already dead to begin with… it was fortunate that he had not been destroyed beyond recovery.
It had not been a situation where Hans could afford to save anything, so he had even thrown Malcolm in, but the fellow who had grown all this time was a fairly useful subordinate.
‘At that level, he can be restored well enough.’
Was that not another advantage of the undead?
[You did well. I’ll fix you later, so go in and rest for now.]
[Yes…]
Malcolm immediately disappeared into the shadow cast beneath Hans.
[The rest of you too, collect those that can be restored. This isn’t a situation where I can pay attention to them right now.]
Clatter— clack!
[Grruoooh—]
The undead around him busily rummaged through the remains and carried them into Hans’s shadow.
The things left abandoned were only corpses smashed so thoroughly that there was no possibility of restoring them.
Hans’s gaze turned again to the inquisitors caught among them.
‘I didn’t kill them, but I made sure they won’t be able to move for a while. Thanks to the Great Temple’s barrier, they were actually easier to bring down.’
Thanks to the divine barrier that protected the believers inside, they had become excessively sturdy and would not die instantly no matter what attack struck them.
And when he saw that the barrier also kept alive those who had fallen into such near-death states, he was able to project his power freely and bring them down.
‘If I had tried to subdue them by force, it would have looked unnatural instead. I didn’t have much leeway either. In that sense, this is fortunate.’
Well, it might be considered strange that he did not finish them off.
But if he paid attention to every little thing like that, Operation “Home Theater” would never even be able to begin.
Crack—
At that moment, a crack formed in the sole remaining pillar of the altar, and the silver chain connected to it corroded and crumbled away.
With that, the final seal was undone.
[…It’s done. Kuhahahaha—!]
Black magic power surged explosively from the fragment.
Hans fully savored that energy and seized it.
Ignoring the negative emotions that naturally invaded his mind, he carefully brought it into the passage connected to himself.
The final fragment clung to the origin extracted through “Immortality” as if it had been one with it all along.
However, even after entering Hans’s pseudo-subspace, it continued spewing uncontrolled streams of black magic power.
[…I thought this might happen, but I’ll need some time to get it under control.]
Since they shared the same root, they were quickly blending together, but the power contained in it was similar to that of all the fragments he had absorbed so far, so they were in a back-and-forth struggle for dominance.
Hans poured all of his mental resources, excluding Heinrich, into slowly making the heart his own.
Even if he unsummoned himself now, he was not confident he could perfectly conceal such a violent flow of energy.
And after a brief time passed.
Just as he was feeling exhilarated by the explosively increasing black magic power and the rapid rise in strength…
[Huu… I think just a little more will do.]
Unfortunately, the time limit arrived.
Kwaaang—!
From beyond the shattered door, a thick beam of light shot in and shook Hans’s barrier.
At the same time, dozens of people charged in at tremendous speed.
The Order’s elites had arrived.
***
“Are we… too late…!”
Those who had rushed over gritted their teeth upon seeing that the seal on the altar had been destroyed.
“We’re not too late yet! Save the survivors first!”
The Saintess shouted as if to awaken their spirits and gave her orders.
At the same time, the inquisitors who had followed like shadows launched themselves forward, took the fallen people on the floor, and withdrew to the rear.
Immediately after, priests clung to the injured and poured divine power into them, while the holy knights had already formed ranks at the front and confronted the Immortal King Hans and his undead subordinates.
“Focus! Now, while he has yet to fully settle the fragment’s energy, is our last chance!”
Cardinal Fion shouted once more in a resounding voice, leading the battle priests as they chanted prayers in unison.
Fwoosh—
A beautiful cluster of light settled into the bodies of the holy knights.
In addition to all manner of strengthening effects, a channel was opened through which they could convey their intentions to one another using only divine power for smoother joint attacks.
The man at the very front of the holy knights stepped forward, adjusting his grip on his shield and war hammer.
[“I will face him from the very front, so I ask you, sirs, to focus on supporting me.”]
[“Understood, Sir Jonien.”]
He was the only Paladin remaining in the Great Temple, so there was no one more suitable than him to fight at the very forefront.
[Kahahaha! Lackeys of the Order! You are already too late! The Immortal King’s heart has become wholly mine!]
“Do not be deceived! Attack!”
The holy arts of the battle priests flew toward Hans, and the holy knights charged, led by Paladin Jonien.
Of course, Heinrich was among them as well.
‘Ah, stalling for time won’t work either.’
Since he had absorbed the fragment to some degree, his black magic power output had risen dramatically, but it was still burdensome to fight immediately.
However, perhaps the Order’s side had noticed that as well, for they did not seem inclined to give him any more time.
“Haaap!”
Divine power dwelled in Heinrich’s sword, creating a radiant blade of light.
He swung his sword without a shred of hesitation and cut down the undead blocking his path.
It was a waste, but there was nothing he could do about that; now he truly had to immerse himself in the role he had been assigned.
[Kieeeek—!]
Clatter, clack—
Undead continued crawling out around Hans, blocking the path of the holy knights, but…
“Hup—!”
[“These things are nothing! Focus on opening a path!”]
“Supreme God! With Your glorious light, burn away these wicked things!”
Despite being reinforced by the now-mighty black magic power poured into them, they could not endure long against the holy knights wreathed in divine power and the support of the battle priests’ holy arts pouring in from the rear, and melted away.
‘Do you know how long it took me to gather all of those!’
Hans seethed inwardly and wrung out the undead down to the very last one.
For now, he needed even numbers if he was to hold out.
Kwaaang—! Bang!
A beam of light that once again began from the Saintess, along with the hammer of light summoned by Cardinal Fion, created cracks in Hans’s barrier and exploded.
[You troublesome pests!]
Black mist rising from Hans’s staff gathered together, transformed into the hand of a giant demon, and shot toward them, but…
“Supreme God— please protect Your children!”
Crraack!
Blocked by the blue shield Cardinal Cordelia had created, it vanished.
It was a situation that had repeated itself countless times already.
‘Ganging up on me? How cheap!’
Cardinal Cordelia, devoting herself to defense and the treatment of the wounded.
Cardinal Pion, focusing on supporting the paladins and keeping Hans in check.
And even Saintess Riesta, who was attacking with all her might, aiming solely for Hans.
From his position, having to pay attention even to the others pushing in with irresistible momentum, it was enough to make his blood boil.
‘If this had been before I obtained the final fragment, I would have fled long ago by now.’
And yet the reason he could hold out was because he was continuing to grow stronger even at this very moment.
The work of securing control was also gradually entering its final stage.
“Haaah—! Die, Immortal King!”
Paladin Jonien, who had broken through the undead before anyone knew it, swung a massive hammer at him.
Hans naturally extended his hand and fired a shockwave, sending him flying backward.
But at that moment.
Taking advantage of the brief opening when he had knocked the paladin away, two paladins suddenly burst out of thin air and charged at him.
It was a covert operation carried out under even the holy art of concealment.
All sorts of offensive holy arts flew in simultaneously with perfect timing, temporarily tearing a hole in his barrier, and the two paladins’ two-handed sword and spear surged in from left and right, aiming for Hans’s heart.
A critical moment, with him caught off guard.
[Heh...]
Hans naturally lowered his stance and gripped the skull staff in his right hand, wreathed in black mana.
Kakak—
He twisted aside the trajectory of the spear thrusting in from the left, stepping back and bringing his staff against it.
Kaaang!
At the same time, he spun the staff in a circle and struck the flat of the two-handed sword slashing in from the right.
An exchange of offense and defense that unfolded in an instant.
And after that fleeting moment had passed, the black flame already completed in Hans’s left hand was aimed squarely at them.
Kwaaang—!
“Keheuk!”
“Ugh—!”
[“Hurry, bring them this way!”]
The paladins, sent flying far away by the black magic activated right in front of them, were immediately transported to the rear and put into emergency treatment.
It had been a painstaking, decisive operation, yet it had come to nothing in vain.
[Keuhuhut! To think you dared try to deceive this body. You are a hundred years too early!]
Hans burst into confident laughter.
No operation would work on him.
Because every situation was already in the palm of his hand.
[“Kuh, his reactions are faster than expected!”]
[“Has he learned martial arts? The paladins’ responses were a beat late because of his unexpected movements.”]
This situation, too.
Through real-time eavesdropping via Heinrich, he had been able to grasp all of the Order’s operations in advance and respond accordingly.
‘Ah!’
And thanks to that...
‘It’s over.’
At last, he had bought enough time to seize control of the fragment.
《Achievement Accomplished! You have become the calamity of the Auterica dimension, the “Immortal King.”》
《You experienced death, overcame it, ruled over it, and transcended. As a reward, you are granted the special privilege “Instant Death Immunity.”》
《You have accomplished an achievement and greatly influenced the world. Karma increases additionally.》
And so, Hans became the true Immortal King.