Chapter 59: Rest (2)

Delante, the Corpse Player.

How could he ever forget the necromancer who, as a legion commander of Dorgo, contributed to the annihilation of humanity?

The Corpse Player's specialty was the creation of Flesh Golems.

A Flesh Golem was an undead creature made by stitching together the bodies of various organisms.

The Corpse Player had the ability to identify organisms with superior physical attributes.

Thanks to this ability, the Flesh Golems created by the Corpse Player displayed terrifying combat prowess.

In particular, the 'masterpieces' that the Corpse Player boasted of could rival high-class beings.

In the late stages of the Cataclysmic War initiated by Dorgo, the number of Flesh Golems controlled by the Corpse Player exceeded tens of thousands.

The materials for a Flesh Golem were living organisms.

To create a single Flesh Golem, dozens of different organisms were required.

This meant that over hundreds of thousands of organisms had lost their lives at the hands of the Corpse Player.

One of the individuals who had to be killed to thwart Dorgo's ambitions was the Corpse Player.

'Come to think of it, the Corpse Player's dungeon was discovered in my previous life as well.'

This happened after Damian was expelled from his family and wandered as a beggar.

While begging on the street, he had heard rumors about the discovery of the Corpse Player's dungeon.

In that life, the church had also formed a raiding party.

'The result... was the complete annihilation of the church.'

Despite the inclusion of many mid-class members, the raiding party was entirely wiped out in the dungeon.

Due to this incident, the Corpse Player was reclassified as a Grandmaster-level necromancer, increasing his threat level.

'The reason for the complete annihilation of the raiding party was never clearly revealed.'

However, it could be roughly inferred.

There was one survivor, a Holy Knight, who had managed to escape the dungeon.

The Holy Knight mentioned that there was a traitor before he died, his injuries too severe to be healed even by divine power.

'Wait, isn't this a bit too early?'

As Damian recalled his past memories, he noticed something strange.

The period when he lived as a beggar was etched vividly in his memory, filled with suffering.

He could confidently say that the discovery of the Corpse Player's dungeon was supposed to happen later.

'The Corpse Player was originally a necromancer affiliated with Ulan. Could my killing the leader of Ulan have influenced this?'

While Damian was deep in thought, Agnes spoke.

"You seem hesitant. I understand. It is a necromancer's dungeon, after all."

Agnes, interpreting Damian's silence as refusal, said with a bitter smile.

"Magicians are believed to be two to three ranks higher in their dungeons. A necromancer's dungeon is even more dangerous."

Dungeons came in various forms.

A magician's dungeon was essentially a fortress.

Stored mana for a long time, pre-prepared high-level spells, meticulously crafted traps, and more.

A magician inside a dungeon could be considered invincible.

A necromancer's dungeon was even more dangerous.

The reason was that, unlike magicians, necromancers had no moral boundaries.

Poisons, curses, monsters, and more.

Necromancers utilized every available method.

"I won't hold it against you if you refuse."

Interestingly, the church generally did not force cooperation from other nobles when forming raiding parties.

This was partly due to the scripture that actions should be taken voluntarily, but also for practical reasons to manage the nobles' discontent.

The church interfered with the nobles in every way if they were even slightly associated with black magic.

If the church were to act coercively in such dangerous matters, the nobles' discontent could explode.

Therefore, the church only requested cooperation and did not force it, nor did they retaliate if cooperation was refused.

"I apologize for the rudeness. Then..."

Agnes tried to pass by Damian.

Unconsciously, Damian grabbed Agnes's wrist.

Agnes's body froze as her wrist was caught.

"No, I was just thinking about the Corpse Player's intentions. I never intended to refuse."

Damian quickly spoke to clear up Agnes's misunderstanding.

"Far from being hesitant, I am grateful for your suggestion."

This was sincere.

Thanks to Agnes, Damian had the opportunity to directly cut off one of Dorgo's limbs.

Moreover, in his previous life, the church suffered significant losses due to the complete annihilation of the raiding party.

This incident had a negative impact on the war against Dorgo.

From Damian's perspective, this was a two-for-one opportunity to thwart part of Dorgo's plans and prepare for the war.

"I will accept Lady Agnes's request..."

Suddenly, Damian noticed something odd about Agnes's face.

It was as red as a ripe apple.

"Lady Agnes?"

"Um... Sir, could you... let go of my hand..."

Agnes wiggled her hand, which was held by Damian.

When Damian released her, Agnes quickly put some distance between them.

"Thank you for accepting my request."

Agnes, still with a red face, said.

"I have a carriage waiting at the edge of the village. Please gather your belongings and come out."

Agnes then left, looking somewhat flustered.

Damian looked at Agnes with a puzzled expression.

"Master... Are you really going to join the raiding party?"

Victor, who had been watching the situation, asked with a shocked face.

"Yes."

"Isn't it extremely dangerous? The Corpse Player is a wicked necromancer who turned an entire village into an undead lair!"

Victor spoke with a face full of worry.

"I hope you won't go, Master..."

Damian chuckled.

"Man, do I look like someone who needs to be worried about by others?"

"I know your skills, Master. But it's a dungeon..."

Victor, though just a servant in a rural noble's territory, knew very well how dangerous dungeons were.

Whenever news of promising knights dying reached him, it was always mentioned that it was due to a dungeon.

"Most importantly, the Viscount will never allow it."

At this, Damian hesitated.

While some noble parents occasionally pushed their children into dangerous situations to gain glory, his father was definitely not one of them.

"Hmm..."

Damian thought about how to persuade Viscount Haksen but couldn't come up with a solution.

"Victor, you're right. Father will never allow it."

"Of course. So, Master, you should give up and..."

"Then I'll have to go secretly."

"Excuse me?"

Victor looked at Damian with a bewildered expression.

Damian clenched his fist as if truly regretful.

"I decided not to be disobedient to Father... but there's no other way."

"Master, if you know it's disobedient, wouldn't it be better to just endure it?"

"Father will definitely be furious. You'll have to deal with that."

"I don't want to! I know how terrifying the Viscount can be when he's angry!"

"That's why I'm asking you."

Victor was taken aback by Damian's words.

He had never been this angry while being with Damian.

"Also, Victor, I think you're greatly mistaken about something."

"What strange thing are you going to say now..."

"The Corpse Player is not a match for me."

Damian said with a face full of confidence.

Victor seemed to think Damian was walking into a death trap, but the reality was different.

Damian could break through a dungeon with his pure sword skills alone.

Moreover, Damian had more than just that.

His mind was filled with high-level black magic, and he possessed seven powers.

Most importantly, during his time as a Death Knight, Damian had observed the Corpse Player for a long time.

He knew what black magic the Corpse Player used, the structure of his Flesh Golems, and everything else.

"So there's no need to worry... What's that face for?"

Victor looked at Damian with a disbelieving expression.

"Master, I'm worried about you. Don't boast like that. I'll get angry too."

"Man, I'm not boasting."

"Enough. You absolutely can't go. I'll stop you..."

Damian moved behind Victor and struck the back of his neck with the edge of his hand.

Victor let out a short scream and fainted.

"Please talk to Father for me."

Damian gently laid Victor on the ground.

Then he ran towards where Agnes was.

* * *

"Master Damian, here it is!"

Upon arriving at the edge of the village, Damian saw a carriage with the church's emblem.

Agnes was standing in front of it.

As Damian approached Agnes, he paused. A towering woman stood next to her.

Over 2 meters tall, broad shoulders, long and well-proportioned limbs, and hands as large and thick as a pot lid.

She possessed all the qualities of a paladin.

Not only did she look formidable, but the aura she exuded was also significant.

She was at least a mid-class or higher.

"Ah, so this is the Damian Haksen you couldn't live without."

"...Senior, please stop saying things that could be misunderstood. When did I ever say that?"

Agnes sighed.

"What? When did I say anything that could be misunderstood? I just stated the facts. When you returned to the main temple, you praised Damian Haksen so much to your teachers and senior disciples..."

Agnes stepped on the woman's foot.

She stepped on it so hard that the ground shook, but the woman didn't flinch.

"Ouch, if I keep teasing you, you'll get really upset. Got it. I'll be quiet."

The woman approached Damian and extended her large hand.

"Nice to meet you. I'm a 2nd-class Holy Knight, Margarita."

A 2nd-class Holy Knight.

Equivalent to a high-class paladin.

Moreover, since Agnes called her 'senior,' this woman was likely also a disciple of Blue Flame.

A 2nd-class Holy Knight and a disciple of one of the Five Great Saints of the church.

As Damian had expected, she was an incredibly powerful individual.

"Nice to meet you, Lady Margarita."

Damian shook Margarita's hand, which was calloused.

"To be honest, I didn't expect you to come. After all, it's a dungeon created by the Corpse Player."

"Sir Agnes asked me, so I couldn't refuse. Besides, I have a personal grudge against necromancers."

Margarita seemed pleased with Damian's answer.

"Agnes, I was worried you didn't know how to choose men. But it seems you've made a good choice."

"...Senior."

"Ouch, you're giving me the evil eye. I'm scared to death."

"Stop saying unnecessary things and give this to Sir Damian."

"Tsk, what a waste... but a promise is a promise."

Margarita gestured, and a soldier brought a long box.

"This is something Agnes strongly requested from her teacher. If you were to join the raid, she said you deserved this as a reward."

Margarita handed the box to Damian.

Damian took it with a puzzled look. It was much heavier than he expected.

"What is this?"

Margarita, with a proud face, answered Damian's question.

"A Holy Sword."