Dark Fantasy: Magical Eye Knight – Chapter 52

Chapter 52: Undead

TL: Potato-tan

Proofreader: Asianpotato

 

Russell could also sense what was approaching. It was a damp, wicked, cold energy that lay low to the ground. There weren’t many beings who carried that cold energy with them.

 

“Hailyn. Jess. Wake up.”

 

Russell’s low voice instantly drove away Hailyn’s deep sleep. Hailyn stood up like lightning, holding a sword and shield, and said it without opening his eyes.

 

“Russell-nim? What’s the matter?”

 

“Enemies.”

 

Russell seemed to think that was enough and didn’t add any further explanation, while Hailyn didn’t ask. To wash away the drowsiness, he just rubbed his eyes roughly with his hands and shook Jess, who was still half asleep.

 

“Jess. Enemies. Arm yourself.”

 

“. . .Ah, yes, sir. . .”

 

Jess also rubbed his eyes and picked up the weapon he had placed next to him. Russell slowly stood up. Ulca had already gotten up and was looking at the forest, which was filled with nothing but darkness.

 

“What do you see?”

 

“Nothing. I can smell it, though. The smell of dead bodies. The scent of cold energy. My nose is about to fall off.”

 

Ulca sniffed like a dog (unfortunately, there was no other way to describe it). Russell also took a deep breath, but all he could feel was the smell of charcoal from the campfire and the cold air. But he wasn’t disappointed. He had another way.

 

For the first time since the underground labyrinth of Calisden, Russell opened his ‘eyes’. Russell avoided opening his ‘eyes’ as much as possible.

 

This was due to the peculiar appearance of his eyes, which appeared to be burning like firelight, but more importantly, the impact on his mind and the minds of others after he opened his ’eyes’ was not pleasant.

 

But now was not the time to hide such things, and Russell was not the kind of fool who was afraid of his own abilities. You won’t be able to block the blade that is stabbing you if you don’t hold a knife out of fear.

 

Once again, like that time in the underground labyrinth, a purple will-o’-the-wisp flared in Russell’s eyes.

 

He could see it. The deep darkness and cold concealed the beings from view. They were the ones who trampled the earth against death. They were those who had surrendered their warm hearts and lungs. They were the ones who exhaled frost, not hot blood or breath.

 

“Undead.”

 

“That’s right. How did you know. . . why are your eyes like that?!”

 

When Ulca nodded and turned her eyes to Russell, a scream erupted. Of course, it was because she had seen his eyes. Ulca immediately realized what had happened to him and reached out to grab Russell’s cheeks.

 

Russell looked down at Ulca. Then he saw something he hadn’t seen before.

 

The white wolf spirit wrapped around Ulca’s body. And the faint moonlight. She was truly a child of the moon. Russell had been careful not to make eye contact with Ulca for a long time, and he took her hand down.

 

“It’s okay.”

 

“. . .Your eyes are on fire.”

 

“It’s okay. Let’s worry about what’s ahead for now. Give me the book.”

 

“Huh? Huh.”

 

Ulca handed over the illustrated book and looked back at the front. She glanced at Russell from the corner of her eye.

 

Russell put the illustrated book that Ulca had given him in his coat. Upon removing his hand once more, he clutched Nahilnir’s long hilt tightly. Russell put his other hand in his coat and pulled out the Final Frost.

 

With a huge single-edged axe in his left hand and a greatsword in his right, Russell looked intimidating all by himself.

 

“Did you say undead?”

 

Hailyn, who had finished arming himself, came and stood next to Russell. Russell stared at him, and Hailyn flinched in reflex as he looked back at him. Even Hailyn, who had been hunting demons, demon worshipers, and monsters for a long time, had never seen eyes like that.

 

“Russell-nim. Those eyes?”

 

Russell turned his head as he watched the radiance emanating from behind the paladin’s head. And he closed his ‘eyes’. That was because he could still see what he had previously seen. The purple will-o’-the-wisp disappeared, and instead, eyes filled with magical energy flashed in the darkness.

 

“I’ll tell you later.”

 

“. . .I understand.”

 

Hailyn was a man who could weigh the pros and cons. He judged that it was better to turn the sword’s tip on the undead right in front of him than on his companion’s ominous eyes, and Hailyn had no way of putting aside the judgment he had made.

 

Jess, who had belatedly completed his armament, approached, scratching his dull head.

 

“What did you say you would tell me later? Ah, are you finally going to tell me about the identity of that bag?”

 

Hailyn’s strong fist struck Jess’s head again. Jess, who had made a final remark, sat down and rubbed his head. Russell smiled bitterly as he recalled how Jess had asked him what was in the bag every hour before he fell asleep.

 

Jess knew that Russell’s coat was a precious magical tool that had been given a sub-space, which is why he was curious about the bag that Russell carried on his shoulder rather than putting it in his coat. Russell said.

 

“As I said before, I’ll tell you when I get the chance. Even if I tell you now, it will be hard to believe, and I don’t have the ability to confirm its truth. Rather, let’s think about those corpses that are getting closer and closer.”

 

“Yes? Corpses?”

 

Hailyn said it with a solemn face to Jess, who asked back.

 

“Jess, if you are a paladin who follows the light, or if you want to become such a paladin, look at the light within you. And tell me how you feel.”

 

At that, Jess closed his eyes. The boy, who had lost his father to war when he was young and then lost his mother to illness, grew up in the church. The boy, who had lived with the teachings of light as a lullaby, came to have a dream. That was why the young man was here. Jess felt a light in his chest.

 

Jess opened his eyes. A clear, bright light flickered in his brown eyes for a moment and then disappeared.

 

“They are definitely undead. I can see the death energy all around me.”

 

Hailyn nodded, his eyes full of admiration, but he didn’t say it out loud.

 

“That’s right. But such dense death energy. Herokeinin’s ability shouldn’t have been this strong.”

 

“Didn’t you say he was injured?”

 

“Yes, Ulca-nim. The paladins and priests of our church cut off one of his arms. However, looking at the current situation, it seems that he has recovered his strength or gained something more.”

 

They stood up and faced the darkness with weapons in their hands. The campfire’s light source was just behind them. That was why the shadows of the four of them were swaying back and forth in the wind-blown flames on the snowfield and trees in front of them.

 

Their shadows dancing between the trees were like the temptations of ghosts beckoning from the darkness. Come here and become one with us.

 

The sound of countless footsteps trampling the snowfield became audible. Jess stammered.

 

“W, Well, that is.”

 

Russell replied simply:

 

“We’re surrounded.”

 

A huge crowd surrounded the four of them. It was an army of the dead who had rejected death.

 

Most of them were monsters. There were various types: huge ones, medium ones, small ones, ones that stood on four legs, and ones that stood on two legs. However, all of them had lost one part of their body, and many of them had lost three or more parts.

 

Russell also discovered ghouls’ bodies among them. They were probably the ones he and the Paladins had killed the day before. How thoughtful.

 

All of the corpses’ skin was pale. That was because no blood was flowing. Their faces were also hard, like wax dolls. An army of expressionless monster corpses.

 

The corpses all approached, emitting death and cold energy. The stream that had been flowing nearby seemed to have frozen and made no sound.

 

The light source’s size was getting smaller and smaller. Looking back, Hailyn saw that the corpses’ energy was gradually weakening the campfire.

 

Darkness took on a physical form and devoured the light. The trees were also disappearing into the darkness, and the night sky’s starlight was flickering. If this continued, they would have to fight the corpses in the darkness, where they could see nothing.

 

Hailyn immediately recited a divine spell.

 

“I will build a fortress of light here that will cut through the darkness!”

 

Hailyn’s sacred armor had golden letters engraved on its surface, flowing down to his feet. The letters, which spread along the floor, drew geometric patterns, a huge circle, and rose into the night sky with light. Suddenly, the brightness surpassed that of firing dozens of flares.

 

Kuaaaah!

 

Karhuah!

 

The approaching corpses stepped back, covering their eyes with their hands or arms. Some of them even had smoke rising from their skin. Jess also read Hailyn’s intentions and revealed the divine power in his whole body. He did not stop there; he breathed divine power into the campfire behind him, causing it to burn with raw materials.

 

Instead of wood, the campfire now burned with divine power. Hailyn nodded.

 

“Well done.”

 

“Yes. But there are too many corpses.”

 

Russell surveyed the corpses around him and spoke to Ulca.

 

“Most of them are monster corpses. I don’t see any humans. Didn’t you say that you were the protector of this forest and mountain?”

 

“That’s why there are only corpses. I, my mother, and the other wolves are likely responsible for their deaths. You can tell by their wounds.”

 

Indeed, the missing body parts of the non-ghoul monsters hadn’t been cleanly cut off. Rather, it would be more accurate to say that they had been torn off by teeth or claws.

 

“They weren’t eaten.”

 

“Why would they eat something that tastes bad?”

 

The question of whether she had ever tried it was about to come out of his mouth, but Russell postponed it for the next opportunity. The corpses were making their way. They watched as the corpses lined up and walked in between them, weapons in hand. Hailyn groaned.

 

“Dullahan. . . . . .”

 

It was an armored knight riding a skeletal horse. Aside from that horse, the only unusual thing was that its shoulders were empty. The knight held a large sword in one hand and a helmet-less head in the other. Ulca opened her eyes wide.

 

The headless knight opened his mouth. A voice like iron scraping came out even though there were no lungs below its throat, a voice like iron scraping emerged.

 

“Intruders who dare to defile this place. Here━.”

 

“You’re a forest ranger, Shimaren. Why are you doing this? What about your son?”

 

Ulca cut the dullahan’s words off. Ulca’s face was distorted. Her yellow eyes burned brightly, and her fangs gleamed in her mouth. With that expression on her face, the dullahan spoke to Ulca.

 

“It seems that you know the original owner of this body.”

 

Those words had many meanings. The dullahan said it plainly.

 

“The forest ranger, Shimaren, is dead. He no longer exists.”

 

Ulca gritted her teeth. Then, behind the dullahan, another headless knight rode a horse and stood next to it. Ulca also saw a familiar face in the newly formed dullahan.

 

“This must be the son. His name was Jude, wasn’t it? But the ring of life and death, the relationship, is already broken. Here, there is only the dullahan, the rider of death and the bringer of judgment.”

 

Kyaaaaah!

 

Russell, the only one not to react, looked up as the Paladin and Ulca gasped in shock. They saw a ghost with a transparent body flying freely through the air like the wind. It was lacy.

 

Above the ground were the hordes of monster corpses, as well as the two headless knights who led them. And under the night sky, there were wraiths screaming as if they were tearing their eardrums. The dullahan spoke again.

 

“Intruders who dare to defile this place. Lay down your arms and follow us. Then you will receive a glorious place under the order of the great will.”

 

Russell chuckled, stuck his axe and greatsword into the ground, and crossed his arms.

 

“What kind of place?”

 

“Russell!”

 

“Russell-nim!”

 

“R, Russell-nim?”

 

The others exclaimed in surprise, but Russell didn’t budge. The dullahan pointed the head in his left hand at Russell like a lantern. The pale skin and blue lips appeared again.

 

“You, warrior. You will become the faithful right-hand man of the great demon Logos-nim. I will break the false chains of freedom that bind you and give you true salvation. You will rule the legions. Paladin, I will engrave the joy of corruption on your whole body. I will let you know the joy of trampling on the light and praising the darkness. Little wolf, I will make you bear the child of Logos-nim. The union of a priest who serves demons and gods, and the cursed child born between them, will be the proof of your existence.”

 

Ulca’s and the two paladins’ expressions turned pale. It seemed that they all imagined the first chapter of the ominous prophecy that the headless knight had uttered. However, Russell had looked bored from the first words of the dullahan, and by the end, he was even yawning.

 

“What a cliché repertoire.”

 

Without hesitation, Russell raised his axe and greatsword. Hailyn also raised his sword.

 

“That’s what all the demons say.”

 

Ulca transformed her two hands into those of a wolf, pulling out five claws sharper than daggers from the end.

 

“I’ll have to wash my ears when this is over.”

 

Jess sighed, pushed back his sacred armor, and raised his shield and sword to take a stance.

 

“Let’s all live to see the morning.”

 

The corpses rushed in.

 

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

 

“Jess! Left!”

 

“Whoa!”

 

At Hailyn’s warning, Jess swung his shield. The corpse shattered into a handful of ashes, attacked by the divine power. Undead and divine power were the ultimate. Thanks to the logic of such power, the Paladin was able to withstand a number that was comparable to an army.

 

Hailyn’s attack and defense were so smooth that he could even give Jess a warning in the middle of a melee. The shield and sword sometimes had opposite attack methods and crushed the undead.

 

He blocked the corpse troll’s club with his sword and struck its shin with his shield. In one go, the shin broke and flew off to the other side of the forest.

 

While avoiding the corpse troll that flew forward with its leg missing, he swung his sword and cut off its head. Another undead turned to dust and piled up on the white snow.

 

Hailyn checked that Jess was safe and turned his gaze to his other companions.

 

Ulca ran through the forest like it was her own living room. It was natural, since it was where she was born and raised. She ran to the ground and jumped on the trees, leaping between the branches. She did so, and the corpses fell down with a thud as her moonlight-infused claws pierced them.

 

She was also a priestess who served the moon goddess and knew how to handle divine power.

 

Finally, Hailyn looked to one side. There was a bulldozer there. The bulldozer, wielding an axe and greatsword, crushed everything that approached it.

 

Jess blocked attacks with his shield and delivered sure and steady sword strikes, while Hailyn wielded a smooth combination of shield and sword that became one.

 

Ulca harvested the lives of the corpses with her wolf-like body and three-dimensional maneuvers through the trees.

 

However, Russell was undoubtedly the most splendid of them all. The weapons in both hands never stayed in one place for a moment.

 

The majesty of Russell, who fought in the middle of the gap between the corpses, was beautiful, though it might not be fitting. At least, that’s how Hailyn felt. The battle was beautiful. The sight of ragged bodies crushed by an axe and cut in half by a greatsword was breathtaking.

 

Hailyn was not the only one who felt the beauty. Ulca, too, felt it.

 

With her hands, Ulca grabbed the spear and sword thrown by two corpse orcs, twisted them, and squeezed each other’s necks before pulling them out at once. That was the last of the undead around her. Ulca took a breather and followed Russell with her eyes.

 

Russell, who had not wielded his weapons but had received all of his attacks in a narrow circle, ‘How would he move in a place where all the constraints had disappeared?’ Ulca had such a curiosity inside her, and now she had the answer.

 

He twisted the spear’s blade to one side, dodged it, and brought down the last bit of frost. He sliced the corpse in half, causing it to perish. From the front, there were numerous swords and claws. Likewise, Russell pushed their big claws forward. The greatsword sliced through the swords and wrists, leaving linear marks.

 

The one who tried to bite his neck from behind was blown away by an elbow that broke his lower jaw. The one who had only his upper jaw left seemed to believe that he could still chew and tapped his teeth on the coat.

 

Of course, the teeth did not pierce the coat, but instead broke. Russell’s feet crushed the corpse after it caught on the axe’s blade and fell to the floor.

 

They did not spill a single drop of blood, and the corpses did not scream. They were not even able to match up like well-trained soldiers. They just silently threw their bodies or weapons away.

 

Russell, who faced them, was also quiet. He confronted the weapons and bodies without any enthusiasm, laughter, mockery, or provocation.

 

“Impudent!”

 

At that moment, one of the dullahans, who had been watching the corpses’ futile deaths from afar, came running. The skeletal horse’s nose was filled with blue flame-like energy, as did the dullahan. Blue flames erupted from the eyes, nose, and mouth of the head attached to the side.

 

Inside the circular space that had been cleared by crushing all the approaching corpses, Russell took a stance as he watched the dullahan running towards him. If Kry had been there, he would have been able to have a horse battle worth seeing. That short thought was all the appreciation he had for the large sword swinging toward him.

 

Kwaang!

 

Surprisingly, Russell withstood the attack in place. It was ridiculous considering the speed at which the skeletal horse was running, as well as the weight and strength of the headless knight in heavy armor. However, he did it. Russell’s attack followed.

 

The low-swinging, single-edged axe cut off the skeletal horse’s legs. The skeletal horse collapsed into a pile of bones, and the headless knight riding on it fell out with a loud thud.

 

Thud.

 

Russell looked down at what had rolled to his feet. It was the head of the forest ranger named Shimaren. Shimaren, now a monster, has shed his soul and flesh, transforming into a rider of death through malevolent magic.

 

Russell lifted his head.

 

“Die!”

 

The head that had been lying quietly spewed blue flames from its mouth, as if it had been waiting. However, the blue flames could not advance past a few centimeters in front of Russell’s face.

 

Where the blue flames had scattered, vivid purple eyes shone. Russell said.

 

“It’s just the right size to kick.”

 

The dullahan realized what that meant as he watched Russell’s instep swing towards him. Russell kicked a black skull high into the night sky.

 

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