Chapter 109 - The One that Chose the Name Soaked in Sin (5)

Afterwards, he had killed countless Dragon Demon king worshippers. Leone wandered around the continent as he located the Dragon Demon king worshippers, and he assassinated them. While doing so, he kept hope for the day when the prophesied person would show up.

In the past several dozen years, Leone escaped numerous near-death experiences. Usually, the Keepers of Prophecy prioritized keeping themselves alive instead of assassinating the Dragon Demon King worshippers. Their existence was solely for the prophesied being that'll show up one day. However, Leone possessed a deep grudge that caused his rationality to dim. This was why he often walked into danger.

Just like now.

<Leone.>

Zeta held Leone in his arms as he called out Leone's name. However, Leone had lost consciousness, so there was no response.

A cloud of dust was rising in front of them.

An explosion of great power had blown away a portion of the forest. Zeta had rescued Leone with exquisite timing, yet Leone's body had been torn into shreds.

<Unfortunately, I won't be able to say my goodbye to you. I'm dead, yet I have grown somewhat fond of you.>

Zeta put Leone on the floor as he spoke.

"…I would have said to tell him yourself, but I can't say such heartless words. All right. What message do you want me to deliver to him?"

"Understood. I'll be sure to deliver your message."

Zares was breaking out in cold sweat. He had almost died earlier. He was almost swept up in the explosion. If the Dragon Demon Undead Delta hadn't put him on his shoulder and ran away, he would have been dead.

Delta spoke as he tossed Zares on the ground.

<I'll let Theta accompany you. Will that be enough for you to run away with Leone?>

"Ughh. You treat Leone with care, yet you just throw me around like a sack. Why is there such a difference in how we are treated?"

<Hmmm. However, I need to point out that a versatile mage like me should stay behind instead of the two sword-swinging brute.>

The Undead Magician Theta spoke in a crooked manner. Delta gave a retort.

Delta couldn't finish his words. An explosion rang out from the other side of the forest.

Kwah-kwah-kwah-kwah-kwah-kwah!

The cloud of dust parted, and a powerful seismic wave came towards them. A terrifying impact rammed into the barrier put up by Theta, and an explosions occurred.

Ggwah-gwah-gwahng!

Delta spoke.

<…see? I want you to take the kids, and get lost in a versatile manner.>

<Understood. Since you are already dead, I won't have the chance to meet you again after your death. I hope you travel to a good place.>

Delta let out a hollow laugh as he turned away. Theta used his magic to lift Zares and Leone. He was about to get out of there at high speeds.

Delta mumbled to himself.

Zeta and Delta could identify and order the nearby Guardian Shadows. When the battle started, there had been around 100 Guardian Shadows gathered here. They had been confident that they would be able to kill their enemies, since Zeta, Delta and Theta was present too.

However, they were sorely mistaken.

There were much more enemies than expected. Moreover, there was a ridiculous monster amongst them.

Hoooooooooooo!

The violent gust of wind pushed away the cloud of dust. A silhouette of a person appeared from within the dust.

No, it wasn't a person. The two thick horns on his head gave away that he was a Dragon Demon, but this wasn't the issue. It wasn't right to refer to a dead corpse as a 'person'.

The being that was confronting the Guardian Shadows was the same as Delta. He was a Dragon Demon Undead.

However, one could tell at a glance that he was different from Delta. The evil energy of the Black Magic flowed around him. He wore black armor above his bones, and he looked similar to a Skeleton Knight. However, his size was much bigger. It made one wonder if he was really a Dragon Demon.

He was almost 3 meters tall. Moreover, his armor was twice as thick as a normal armor. He moved wearing an abnormally bulky armor, and he was like a small moving mountain. He was imposing.

His hands held an large battle hammer. The head of the hammer was three times larger than a person's head. The shaft was almost 2 meters long. The very thought of a human wielding such a hammer was preposterous.

Its outer appearance was also bizarre. It was as if it was carved out of ivory. The head and the shaft had same texture and color of white. Moreover, only one side was designed for impact. The back of the hammer was intricately carved with a face of a man.

<Anyways, I have business with the live ones, yet only the dead ones stayed behind... I guess I'm not popular.>

<Aren't you also dead, Reygus?>

Delta took a dig at the other being.

The large Undead Dragon Demon was one of the four Dragon Demon Generals, who had followed the Dragon Demon king during the Dragon Demon War. He was, 'The Hammer that swallowed the scream of the land', Reygus.

After he died during the Dragon Demon War, he kept existing by becoming an Undead. The bizarre battle hammer was a symbol of Reygus. The Dragon Demon weapon was called 'The Seal of the Broken Soul'.

Reygus laughed.

Reygus hadn't come here by himself. In the first place, the Guardian Shadows had come here, because there was a large group of Dragon Demon king worshippers gathered here. It seemed they purposefully revealed their location to lure in the Guardian Shadows here.

Reygus spoke.

"Reygus-nim. We can't……."

Dragon Demons and Dragon Majins appeared from within the dust cloud. Each of them were officers within the Plain of Darkness. They all possessed great power.

If this was a normal circumstance, they would take orders from no one. However, even if he was an Undead, Reygus was basically nobility to them.

"Understood. Well, then……."

The Dragon Demons and Dragon Majins followed Reygus' will. They left.

Theta and Zeta tried to stop them, but in a flash, a terrifying energy surrounded their bodies.

"Koohk……!"

It was the power of a black curse, and it felt as if an invisible hand was pressing down on them. In fact, the black curse became densers as time passed, and it started to exhibit physical effects.

Pah-jeek! Pah-jee-jee-jeeeek!

The Black Magic, which maintained the Undeads, started to clash with the new magic as black sparks erupted.

Theta and Zeta was slowly being pushed back. Normally, they possessed powers much greater than an Undead, yet their combined power was being pushed back by Reygus.

<Mmmm!>

Zeta stepped forward to swing his sword. When he swung his sword, a black wave erupted to cut the power that was pushing them backwards.

When the gridlock was broken, Zeta quickly sent 30 Guardian Shadows after their enemies. Then he asked Reygus a question.

This was a trap from the start. Reygus and the officers from the Plains of Darkness had been waiting for them. The appearance of the officers were considered to be a possibility, but the existence of Reygus had transcended expectation even for the Guardian Shadows.

'I never expected the four great Dragon Demon Generals to be this strong. Was he stronger when he was alive? Or did he get stronger after death like us?'

The Guardian Shadows were strong. Each Guardian Shadows possessed a very threatening amount of power, but their powers increased rapidly as more gathered in a single location.

Then there were the beings that existed to command the Guardian Shadows. Basically, the existence of Theta and Zeta, who were the 'Sleepless Guardians', had a big synergistic effect on the Guardian Shadows. This was why they hadn't been afraid of the officers from the Plain of Darkness.

If Reygus wasn't here, the Guardian Shadows would have won. However, Reygus' power was beyond imagination. When Reygus swung his Seal of the Broken Soul,the mountaintop was blown away, and the several hundred meter stretch of trees were uprooted. In terms of destructive power, it was akin to fighting a Dragon.

'Still, he isn't at a level where we can do nothing to him. Still, it is unfortunate that we'll cease to exist after this.'

There were a total of eight Keepers of the Prophecy. Aside from their newest member Zares, every one of them possessed 'Sleepless Guardians'. If two Keepers of the Prophecy and their Sleepless Guardians were gathered in the same location, it would be possible to stand up against Reygus.

At that point in his thought process, Zeta became suspicious. No matter how he thought about it, this was too weird. Reygus was an ace card that had been hidden up until now by the Plain of Darkness. The fact that he had shown up in front of the Guardian Shadows meant that there was something here that was worth revealing the secret.

The Plain of Darkness didn't really know about how the Guardian Shadows were structured, but they knew that the Keepers of Prophecy were special. If they could lure and kill all the Keepers of the Prophecy, maybe they might have thought it was worth the risk.

Still, how did they track the Keepers of Prophecy? They would have needed their precise location to set up this trap. When he asked this question, Reygus didn't even bother hiding the information.

<…so all the men we killed arriving at this location were intentional sacrifices?>

<No, it isn't anything like that. We were practical in our use of data. We just matched your whereabouts with the deaths.>

Dragon Demon king worshippers were scattered all over the world. However, the information gathered in their deaths were gathered, and sent to the Plain of Darkness. Aincera was encased within the Great Darkness, and it was possible for her to connect to others linked to the Great Darkness. They could be anywhere on the continent, and Aincera would be able to contact them instantaneously. This network allowed her to gather and analyze information. She was able to respond to any situation in an abnormally fast manner.

The Keepers of Prophecy had appeared when the Plain of Darkness tried to kidnap the Dragon Demon Prince Seigar. Afterwards, a great amount of effort was put in to keep track of the Keepers of the Prophecy. The result of this effort allowed Reygus to ambush the Guardian Shadows.

Reygus placed the head of the Seal of Broken Soul on his palm as he spoke.

<Hmmm. I guess I don't have to ask this question to the living. You guys might know about it too.>

He asked the question as blue flames ignited from the eye sockets of Reygus' skull.

<Carlos. Where did you hide that tough to kill human?>

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