Chapter 126: The One Who Was Not Forgiven (1)

Yuri’s group was following Pierre.

The mandrake’s effect was about to wear off. The plan was to lure Gert toward where Pierre was as soon as he approached.

“Could that be the Grand Archive?”

“Looks like it.”

Soon, a rectangular structure appeared, covered in uncontrollably growing vines. Compared to the Empire, it wasn’t very large, but it was probably an important building within Adelein.

Pierre’s group lit a campfire in front of the Grand Archive and began preparing food.

“It’s calmer than I expected.”

Pierre had said he came to the archive to study Adelein’s history.

Yuri thought he would rush inside the moment he arrived, but his reaction was surprisingly composed.

“He’s definitely suspicious.”

Hidden in a spot from which they could observe them, Yuri’s group also started eating. They didn’t light a fire, but ate dried meat and hard biscuits soaked in water.

And they prepared for Gert’s arrival. They took the horses far away, fed them mandrake, and tied them up. That way, they could remain hidden for several days.

Jose was meditating with his eyes closed. Yuri approached him.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m calming my body and mind. We’ll soon be fighting a formidable enemy.”

“Do you think he’s getting close?”

“I can’t feel it, but I have that sense.”

A flash of light reflected briefly in his eyes. The others were also preparing in their own way for the battle.

Gert’s presence still wasn’t felt, but everyone sensed something would happen soon.

Laurent, who had been cleaning his sword, stood up.

“What do we do when Gert arrives?”

Since they were no longer consuming mandrake, if Gert appeared, he would target them.

“If he shows up nearby, everyone take a bite of mandrake.”

“Huh?”

“I’ll draw him toward them.”

Yuri spoke while observing Pierre’s group.

“We’ll find out who Pierre really is. If he’s an innocent scholar, he’ll fight with us. If not… we’ll see what happens.”

“Understood.”

Since entering Adelein, they’d had no signs of Gert, which made some doubt his existence. But everyone fell silent immediately.

Something was approaching from the distance.

“Is that Gert…?”

Jared, watching the horizon through binoculars from the bushes, murmured.

“Just seeing him is terrifying.”

“Everyone, eat the mandrake.”

“Are you sure about this?”

“Of course.”

Yuri’s group each took a bite. Now the only enemy Gert could sense was Yuri.

Gert’s steps began to quicken.

Yuri looked at his figure through the binoculars and let out a sigh.

“So that’s Gert…”

A knight covered with a tattered cape approached. He wore a full suit of plate armor. Though it had many dents, it wasn’t rusted.

His right arm guard was shattered, exposing a white bone. Inside the closed helmet must have been a worn skull. This was the form of the death knight that had brought Adelein to ruin.

Unlike the Ten Greats they had faced before, Gert didn’t hide his energy. Each step he took caused violent gusts of wind.

“Prince.”

“Yes?”

“Will you be able to face him?”

“I don’t know.”

Yuri suddenly lost all confidence.

“If it goes badly, you guys save me.”

“Well…”

“You should be starting to suspect something by now.”

Yuri stood up. Just thinking of facing Gert directly made his hands sweat.

He removed his gauntlets, wiped his sweat, and tightened them again. Then he hoisted Guilty onto his shoulder.

“Cory.”

“Yes.”

“Cast a spell on me.”

“Hmm…”

In an environment without dispel, spells could make a difference. Cory thought for a moment, then raised both hands.

Although he had recently focused more on physical training, he hadn’t completely abandoned magic. Thanks to Hernando’s guidance, Cory had become a genuine mage.

“‘Wing.’”

A white light, like a feather, enveloped Yuri.

“What is this?”

“A spell to increase your speed. You’ll probably be running constantly…”

“Not running. Drawing him in.”

“Yes, yes, drawing him in.”

“Either way, it’s a timely spell.”

Yuri jumped a couple of times in place.

“Alright, everyone hide.”

“Yes.”

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone scattered. Now alone, Yuri looked toward the horizon and sighed.

“Hmm…”

The speck in the distance grew larger and larger. Yuri raised his sword and waved it toward Gert. If he had eyes, he’d see it immediately.

As expected, Gert accelerated. He charged like a rabid dog that had smelled food.

Now even Pierre’s group seemed to sense his presence and stirred.

Yuri smirked. The instincts of the former hunter dormant inside him awakened.

“Hunting, huh…”

Hunting orcs wasn’t much different from dealing with beasts. Enemies overcome by madness reacted strongly to stimuli and easily fell into traps.

Yuri looked back. One of the mercenaries had a bow ready and was aiming toward Gert.

Calculating the speed, Yuri ducked. The sinister energy emanating from Gert made his skin crawl.

He knew if he stayed still, he’d be crushed.

He felt the urge to run immediately, but suppressed that instinct and forced himself to stay put. The silhouette of the Death Knight in plate armor was becoming clearer.

He was coming faster than expected. It was time to move.

Yuri yanked out a leafy plant nearby and used it for cover, then ran like a beast diving to the ground. He overused his mana to create a loud sound burst.

The mercenary, tense with his bow drawn, released the string reflexively.

Thwack!

He was an advanced archer, capable of imbuing mana into his arrows.

“Well done.”

Yuri changed direction. The arrow, now without a target, whizzed by and flew off.

Right in Gert’s direction. Yuri tossed the plant and hid behind a nearby rock.

“Whew…”

He wiped the sweat from his forehead and peeked out. Just then, Gert clashed with Pierre’s group.

“Oh?”

Ivan crossed swords with Gert. The impact echoed like an explosion. Ivan didn’t immediately retreat.

The mercenaries began attacking Gert from behind. They were stronger than expected.

“Just as I thought…”

They weren’t merely bodyguards hired to protect a scholar.

Yuri saw Pierre, who had been at the back, begin to act. A dark energy rose from his hands.

Yuri gripped Guilty.

“A dark mage?”

It was the same energy he had sensed from other dark mages. Pierre wasn’t a scholar.

“So that’s what it was.”

With that power, at least they’d help weaken Gert.

Yuri smiled and looked at his hidden companions. They watched from afar as if witnessing a fire across a river.

Laurent nodded, Jared clenched his fists in excitement, Jose struggled to hold back from jumping in.

Simon, Guinness, and Cory trembled, huddled together.

Yuri signaled them to wait a little longer.

“Let’s see how long they last.”

***

They were fighting better than expected.

Each time Pierre used dark magic from the back, a dark aura enveloped the mercenaries and their bodies were strengthened, while Gert’s movements became slower.

Gert’s plate armor already showed several marks of damage all over his body. However, he didn’t retreat.

He continued swinging his sword with the same strength as when he first charged in.

The energy of his sword tore through the air and ripped the ground apart as it passed. One of the mercenaries was dragged by the impact and sent flying, crashing into the ground.

Right near where Yuri was hiding. Judging by the spasms in his body, he didn’t seem dead.

Yuri let him be and returned to observing the battlefield.

Ivan was at the front, directly facing Gert. The difference between the two was great, but thanks to Pierre’s support with dark magic, he managed to hold on.

Suddenly, Pierre shouted.

“Gert! Regain your consciousness, Gert!”

Yuri frowned, puzzled. He had told him that if something went wrong, he should try talking to Gert… and it seemed Pierre was serious about it.

“Your mission is over. Now you can rest, Gert.”

But it had no effect.

Ivan, who was at the front, only had it harder. The other mercenaries tried to help, but they weren’t much use. Gert’s plate armor deflected all the attacks coming from around him.

Yuri thought.

Should I help now, or wait for them to tire him out more?

“If those idiots can wear him down a bit more…”

At that moment, Pierre shouted.

“You can’t die at Gert’s hands! If he absorbs your life force, he’ll become stronger! Don’t die! Hold on!”

Yuri stood up.

“So that’s it. As a Death Knight born of dark magic, he absorbs life force to regenerate.”

In that case, it would be better to fight alongside them now.

Yuri lightly kicked the mercenary lying nearby. The mercenary, who looked like a corpse, opened his eyes startled.

“Huh?”

“So you were playing dead, bastard?”

“N-no, it’s not that…”

“While your comrades are fighting and bleeding, you’re pretending to be dead? Is that the spirit of a mercenary?”

“I’m sorry…”

With Yuri’s appearance, the other companions began to show themselves too. Pierre, who was still fighting Gert, looked at Yuri in disbelief.

“What’s going on here?”

“What do you think? I pitted them against each other.”

“Don’t tell me you brought Gert…?”

“That’s right. It was me, damn warlock.”

“Tch…!”

“Scholar? Please. I’ve read books too, but you don’t smell like a scholar at all. Who did you think you were fooling…?”

Yuri, as if he had known all along, looked at Pierre with disdain and hoisted Guilty over his shoulder.

Then he kicked the mercenary who was standing idly and pushed him forward.

“Fight! What are you waiting for?”

Pierre joined his fingers into a seal while excusing himself.

“I am a scholar, that’s true. It’s just that I’m also a dark mage. I’m an active member of the Continental History Society. And you, knight…?”

“Shut your mouth, scum.”

Yuri looked in disgust at the black energy rippling around Pierre’s body. Dark mages stole the life force of living beings.

Usually from humans. If he was capable of using magic strong enough to fight Gert, that meant he had sacrificed many lives.

“Let’s finish off Gert first. I’ll punish you later.”

“Hehehe… a temporary alliance, then…?”

Pierre, showing his true face, adjusted his crooked glasses with a twisted smile.

“Just stay out of the way!”

“I should be saying that to you!”

Yuri unleashed his Cut of the soul and the heart, and using that explosive energy, he charged directly at Gert.

Immediately, he brought Guilty down. The sound of the explosion was like a lightning strike.

The power was so overwhelming that even Ivan, who was nearby, and Pierre, who was supporting from the back, opened their eyes wide.

Gert’s helmet was partially destroyed.

“Did I damage him that much…?”

But he didn’t seem to have suffered much. Gert’s skull was exposed, and glowing red eyes gleamed within it.

He opened his mouth.

[Annihilation.]

A sound so sharp and piercing it made you want to cover your ears, as if your bones were shattering.

Gert, saying that, struck Ivan, who was holding the front. And then changed targets — aimed at Yuri.

[By order.]

In that instant, a blast of dark energy spun like a whirlwind and exploded like a hurricane.

It was a completely unexpected attack. Yuri didn’t react in time and barely raised Guilty.

His vision went black. Sky and earth flipped.

And suddenly, he was flying. His body hit the ground countless times.

“Prince!!”

Laurent’s voice was heard in the distance, but because of the ringing in his ears, it wasn’t clear. Even that voice faded.

His body kept rolling across the ground. Finally, he slammed his back into something solid and fell.

He felt something rise from his stomach. Yuri opened his mouth and vomited. Black blood soaked the ground.

A metallic taste filled his mouth.

With his head hanging, Yuri took a deep breath and slowly stood up.

“No, no…”

Beyond his blurred vision, Gert was approaching.

“You could at least give a warning, damn bastard…!”

Yuri cursed. The pain was so intense he couldn’t hold it in.

The energy of the Cut of the soul and the heart surged violently from his body.

“You’re one of the Ten Greats, huh?”

Yuri grimaced.

“So you’re that good at fighting?”