#93 Variable (3)
[Hooh—
This is an unexpected gain.]
The legacy was not something material like wealth or magical tools.
The first Immortal King turned half the continent into a land of death, and the second brought an empire to ruin.
No matter how powerful one was, those were feats that could never be accomplished alone. ‘Naturally, he must have had subordinates who followed him.’ To begin with, there was no way anyone could scheme against the entire continent by himself.
It must have been possible because there were those who aided him, not simple undead that merely obeyed orders, but beings possessed of high intelligence. ‘An undying army that stood at the forefront of continental conquest according to the Immortal King’s will.’ Those who had once turned half the continent into a land of death were the legacy the Immortal King left to later generations.
By their very nature, the longer a war continued, the stronger their forces were bound to become.
Even the soldiers who bravely fought against the endless tide of corpses became part of them once they died.
Naturally, the continent’s leadership, including the Church of the Main God, chose to form a suicide squad and strike directly at the head, and in the end, after countless sacrifices, the operation succeeded.
That was true in both cases when an Immortal King rose up. ‘That just means the continent’s underlying strength was incredible. The second was defeated even though he paid considerable attention to his own safety so as not to repeat his predecessor’s mistakes.’ So while the scale of damage the continent suffered was smaller under the second, the number of powerful figures sacrificed to break through the executives guarding the Immortal King was far greater in that case. ‘In any event, the forces under the Immortal King were ultimately left adrift.’ What mattered here was their whereabouts.
Most were subjugated by the enraged people of the continent, but quite a few escaped at the discretion of those commanding their units.
Some simply hid away in remote regions, while others even created dungeons and shut themselves inside.
And the method chosen by a considerable number among them was…
‘Sealing themselves at the boundary with the Abyss.’
Somewhere along that boundary line, neither the surface nor the Abyss.
It was a dimensional rift drifting meaninglessly through unobservable time.
At the time, the walls between dimensions had been weakened by countless wounds torn all over the world, and because they were undead, that method was possible. It was both the safest and the most uncertain method.
They could escape the people of the continent, but there was no telling when they would awaken.
They would have slept there forever until the next Immortal King was born and brought them out. ‘But just then, someone opened the Abyss, didn’t they?’ And not merely weakened the wall, but drilled a hole straight through it.
[Aah—
I can feel them. Those who sleep at the boundary. And on the surface as well… quite a few remain.]
What the residual thoughts of the previous Immortal King left behind was not merely information.
If one had to describe it, it was closer to handing over the original copy of a certain contract.
Had he been devoured by the heart and become one with them from the beginning, he would have realized it naturally, but because he had cut that off at the source, he was only now finding out. ‘It’s enough that I know now. Even if I’d known in advance, there would have been nothing I could do before the Abyss opened.’ The opening of the Abyss was not a good thing, but since it had opened anyway, shouldn’t he take everything he could?
[…More importantly, I delayed quite a bit. I don’t know whether those bastards are still there.]
It was a grand spell that had affected the continent to this degree. There was no way he was the only one who noticed.
The ones who caused it would know that fact best, so they had probably fled the area as soon as they achieved their goal. ‘But that doesn’t mean I can simply choose not to go.’ First, Hans needed to confirm the scene himself.
There, he focused and once again traced the flow of energy.
As if the ritual had ended, he could not feel the violent fluctuation from before, but…
That was a matter of no concern to him.
Whoooong—
An enormous amount of dark magical power condensed in an instant and arranged itself according to Hans’s will.
The mystery constructed in that way became a thick darkness and wrapped around his body. [I hope something is still left there.]
Immortal King Hans headed for the southern part of the continent.
***
Beneath the Great Temple of Picaol, where the Holy Sword had been sealed.
Sizzle—
Crackle—!
‘But this is still going on. Shouldn’t it have ended once I pulled out the Holy Sword?’
For some reason, the pain burning Heinrich’s hand and the sparks racing through his entire body continued without stopping.
Still gripping the Holy Sword that seared his hand, he quietly stared at the roiling Abyss.
If it had been someone else who knew nothing of the situation outside, they would have been flustered by this sudden turn of events, but he had already grasped the situation and was considering how to respond. ‘It seems to be affected by the Abyss that opened this time.’ It was likely also because the seal had weakened just then when the Holy Sword was removed by his hand.
The Saintess’s words that “the Great Temple alone will be enough” must have been said without taking into account the current situation where the Abyss had opened.
Then the simplest solution would be to thrust the Holy Sword back into that Abyss.
Siiiizzle…
At that moment, the sound that had been continuously ringing from his palm slowly began to cease.
The energy of the Holy Sword, which had been rampaging through his body and destroying places here and there, had also calmed before he knew it. 《The entity has met the conditions and gained enlightenment. You have acquired the special skill 「Blessing: Holy Sword」.》 When he slightly opened both hands that had been gripping the hilt, stigmata in the pattern of the Church of the Main God had been engraved into his palms like brands. ‘The energy that entered my body has also settled stably as it is. It looks like this wasn’t just a test, but the process of fully accepting the Holy Sword.’ While continuing to guard against the Abyss, Heinrich examined 「Blessing: Holy Sword」. ‘Not only can I strengthen my attack power and body with the Holy Sword’s energy, but it can freely change form, and the stigmata on my palms even have a subspace function?’
There was no need to even mention its quality as a weapon or its ability to amplify divine power.
It was truly a weapon of the highest quality obtainable, something no magical tool could compare to.
One could not obtain an item like this anywhere else.
So there was no way he would give up the Holy Sword and leave just because of a tiny Abyss like that!
‘Not a chance. Anything that falls into my hands is already mine.’
To begin with, he had come here under the Saintess’s orders to retrieve the Holy Sword.
From the start, the option of giving it up had never even been under consideration.
Besides, the Great Temple’s barrier was here as well, so an Abyss of that degree should not be able to have any special influence…
Glug, glug~!
At that moment, the Abyss suddenly began to churn violently.
Although the surrounding barrier was continuously emitting light, its size had grown slightly compared to before.
And at last…
Pwaak—!
Something burst out of the Abyss.
Pajijijik—!
At the same time, pure white lightning that began from the surrounding barrier attacked it.
Following that, numerous sacred barriers began activating all at once. ‘As expected, there’s no way the Church of the Main God would be that sloppy. They had preparations in place. But that is…’
Amid the leaping white radiance, a single arm that had suddenly protruded from the Abyss kept writhing under the successive attacks.
[Keuheu—
What is this? Of all places, why here!]
A sound like scraping metal echoed from the hole of the Abyss. ‘Huh?’ It felt somehow familiar.
[Kuh… filthy church bastards. But I cannot give up like this!]
Pwaak!
As if tearing open the hole of the Abyss, the opposite hand burst out.
The attacks grew even fiercer, but the bastard did not stop even as his arms trembled.
[Heuuh… Now that I have returned…]
At last, his upper body slowly began to rise.
That appearance was also extremely familiar to Heinrich.
After all, he had been exchanging blows with him only a short while ago. ‘The archlich from the third trial?’ To be honest, it was only a tattered robe and a body of bones, but still, there was such a thing as a certain impression.
On top of that, he now had new information obtained through an unexpected situation.
Hans’s analysis, based on what Heinrich had observed, immediately came out. ‘Dwell McCain. He was one of the Immortal King’s guards.’ The bastard had been one of the guards the previous Immortal King had stationed around himself to prepare against a suicide squad.
His rank was roughly in the fifties. Rather than personal combat, he had talent in commanding units, and instead of fighting himself, he controlled large numbers of undead to keep armies in check.
[Somehow, I must get out of this place and… Hm?]
At that moment, the eyes of Archlich Dwell, who was crawling out of the hole, met Heinrich’s.
“……”
[……]
After a brief silence.
Dwell, whose eyes had met his, slowly turned his head and looked around, then began scanning Heinrich up and down again.
An interior packed densely with the symbols and prayers of the Church of the Main God, and a space exuding a deeply pious aura.
The pressure of the sacred barrier battering his body without rest, and…
Even a Hero standing right in front of him, quietly looking down at him while holding the Holy Sword.
There was no way he could fail to recognize that sword, which was practically the symbol of the Hero.
How could he forget it, when so many of his comrades had been cut down by that blade?
In the end, even the Immortal King he had followed had fallen to that sword, forcing him to flee by sealing himself away.
For the sake of a future opportunity.
And yet.
Just as he seized the chance he had awaited for so long and tried to escape the boundary, he had encountered someone who appeared to be the Hero of this era.
[…What a goddamn mess…]
It was a situation where curses could not help but come out.
While Dwell was unable to do one thing or another, Heinrich quietly looked at him and organized his thoughts. ‘Did he drift along the boundary and get pulled up by the influence of the Abyss opening? The reason he appeared in the trial was because the Holy Sword read the information of someone drifting through a nearby phase?’ On top of that, the bastard’s circumstances were absurdly unfortunate.
It was good that he escaped the boundary naturally, but of all places, the spot he emerged was the middle of the Great Temple where the Holy Sword had been sealed.
Even if he somehow lucked his way out of this place, he would not have been able to take a single step outside the Great Temple before being annihilated.
A Great Temple was, from the start, that kind of place. [Keuheu… damn it! Why won’t this go in…?]
At that moment, Dwell, who had been watching Heinrich’s reaction, tried to slip quickly back into the hole, only to let out a frustrated groan.
Having judged that the situation was bad, he had chosen to be sealed again instead, but even that failed.
Because of the force forcibly pulling him up from below, the passage he had come through had already become one-way.
Now he was truly unable to go anywhere. ‘It’s a shame, but I’ll have to deal with him here.’ It was a waste to dispose of a bastard who might become Hans’s subordinate, but there was no helping it in the current situation.
Even if he let the bastard go as he pleased, he would not be able to leave this place anyway and would be dealt with, so it was better to finish him off with his own hands. ‘Hm? What’s that?’
Just as Heinrich was gripping the Holy Sword to deal with him, something familiar caught his eye between the archlich’s robes.
Something he had already seen once before.
It was the archlich’s source, which he had once destroyed. ‘Well, of course he would have summoned and taken his source with him before hiding in the boundary. Otherwise, there’d be no point in hiding. …Wait, if that’s there…’
Seeing it, a good idea happened to occur to him.
With a meaningful smile, Heinrich approached him and slowly raised his sword. With the blessing of “Increase,” divine power like a raging wave surged into the Holy Sword, and the blessings of “Light Sword” and “Holy Sword” harmonized, filling the blade with dazzling golden light.
And then.
He charged straight at Dwell and swung his sword.
[Cursed slave of the Main God…! Do you think I will fall so easily!]
Naturally, thick dark magical power burst from the bastard’s body; he had no intention of simply taking it. But the situation was very different from the trial.
Pajijik—!
Because this was the heart of the Great Temple, he could not summon undead, and the power of the sacred barriers gathered from all directions, tearing at him without rest.
He had only just been released from his seal, so his body was not intact, and Heinrich, who had obtained the Holy Sword, was slicing through the dark magic he had already faced once as though cutting radishes…
[…Kuhak! Damn… it—!]
In the end, the bastard could offer no real resistance and was reduced to a handful of ashes as he burned in sacred flames.
Leaving only his source behind.
“Let’s see…”
Heinrich slowly moved his feet and picked up the source lying on the floor, sending up billows of smoke.
Even if left as it was, far from resurrecting, it would naturally be extinguished by the power of this space.
Wooong…
But that was not what Heinrich wanted.
Recalling the knowledge he had newly obtained, he drew up his divine power.
Then, by applying the divine power operation technique included in 「Logia Holy Combat Art」 and using 「Auterica Sacred Art」—
‘…Done. As expected, my seniors are amazing.’
He was able to “seal” the archlich’s source as it was.
It was thanks to using the know-how of 「Logia Holy Combat Art」, meant for dealing with beings that could not be killed immediately.
Heinrich examined the source, which had crystallized solidly and was not leaking even a single drop of dark magical power, then placed it into the “stigmata” on his palm. ‘It isn’t very bulky, but this subspace isn’t only capable of holding the Holy Sword. This will make a good gift for Hans.’
Affection was said to sprout through exchanged gifts.
Heinrich nodded slightly with a satisfied smile.
The fact that both of them were himself was not important right now.
It was a matter of mood.