Chapter 71: The Return of the Doom-Grade Death Knight

Chapter 71: Aftermath (1)

A spiritual space.

Thousands of the dead surrounded the soul of the Corpse Play.

"Stay back! Don't touch me!"

The soul of the Corpse Play, a high-ranking necromancer, was enormous.

The dead, overwhelmed by the Corpse Play's aura, could hardly approach.

But it was only for a moment. Seizing the opportunity, the dead surged forward like a flood, surrounding the soul of the Corpse Play.

"Stop! No! Don't!"

The dead were too weak and small, but the soul of the Corpse Play was vast enough to withstand them all.

Thousands of the dead began tearing at the soul of the Corpse Play simultaneously.

"Aaah! Kuaaah!"

The pain of the soul being torn was dozens of times more excruciating than being ripped apart physically.

Even one of the dead clinging to him was unbearable, yet thousands were tearing at his soul at once.

The pain had long surpassed what a human could endure.

"Please... stop... just let me fade away... stop the pain..."

The Corpse Play pleaded desperately with them. However, they only sneered, harboring deep resentment.

The dead had no intention of letting the Corpse Play's soul fade away easily. They intended to make him suffer endlessly.

"Kuaaah! Aaaah!"

This was a spiritual space.

The concept of time here was vastly different from reality.

In this place, the Corpse Play suffered for what felt like an eternity.

* * *

Damian watched quietly as the Corpse Play suffered at the hands of the dead.

After screaming for a long time, the Corpse Play's eyes rolled back, and his breath stopped.

Only after confirming the Corpse Play's death did Damian release the dark magic. The iron chains that had burst from the ground scattered.

The dolls bound by the dark magic were also freed. However, they remained motionless like corpses, no longer moving.

All their functions had ceased because the Corpse Play, who should have been giving them commands, was dead.

"The disposal of the flesh golems will have to be left to the Order."

This way, Damian could earn favor with the Order, and the Order could study the flesh golems, benefiting both parties.

Next, Damian began to gather the dark magic in the cave.

The dark magic he originally possessed, the dark magic released from the destruction of the flesh golems, and the dark magic of the Corpse Play all flowed into his bracelet.

"The capacity is almost full."

Although he had used a considerable amount of dark magic in the battle, he had gained even more.

The capacity of the bracelet, which he had thought was endless, was now nearly full.

"It would be nice to get another similar artifact."

Damian knew this was an impossible wish.

He had never seen such a rare artifact even in his previous life. It was unlikely he would obtain another.

At that moment, Damian noticed a hole in the opposite wall.

It was a well-carved cave large enough for a person to pass through.

Out of curiosity, Damian headed towards the cave. Inside, he saw a gruesome scene.

Anatomical diagrams of various creatures were scattered everywhere, and various organs were preserved in vials. On one side, half-completed flesh golems were placed.

"...This must have been the Corpse Play's laboratory."

He looked around the lab, wondering if there was anything useful.

There were many items, but most were used for creating flesh golems. There was nothing Damian could take.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, Damian noticed a map attached to the wall.

As he examined the map, he recalled that it was familiar.

"Ah, this is the location of Yuran's secret warehouse."

He had seen this place through the memories of Yuran's leader and officers in the past.

He had planned to visit it but had forgotten.

This time, he decided to go and check it out, so he took the map.

Damian went deeper into the cave. Then, he saw a large mirror.

It was so tall it almost reached the ceiling and was extremely large.

The moment Damian saw the mirror, he felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

It was a magical tool created by Dorgo to communicate with his subordinates.

"I never thought he would have this..."

With this magical tool, he could see Dorgo's face and have a direct conversation.

His heart began to race.

Damian reached out to the mirror, but his face soon turned to disappointment.

"It seems they haven't been in contact for a long time."

Upon examining the magical tool, Damian found that the Corpse Play had requested contact many times, but there had been no response from Dorgo.

"The Corpse Play was important enough for Dorgo to appoint him as a commander. Why would Dorgo cut off contact...?"

The first hypothesis that came to mind was that Dorgo had felt threatened by Yuran's downfall and cut off contact.

Due to Damian's active efforts, Yuran had fallen much faster than in his previous life.

Dorgo might have thought Yuran was hopeless and cut ties.

"...No, that's not it. Dorgo wouldn't abandon the Corpse Play for such a reason."

The Corpse Play had even placed restrictions on himself to prevent Dorgo's true identity from being revealed.

Dorgo was not the type to abandon a loyal and capable subordinate. He would use them to the end and only discard them when they were beyond repair.

"Is he researching something?"

Dorgo, being a black mage by nature, tended to isolate himself in his laboratory and cut off communication when he had something to research.

Perhaps that was why there had been no contact for a long time.

"That's more likely."

Damian clicked his tongue in disappointment.

Once Dorgo entered his laboratory, he wouldn't come out for at least a year.

It meant that hanging onto this mirror would be futile.

With a sense of regret, Damian headed deeper into the laboratory.

There, he found something peculiar.

A small human figure was bound in shackles, sitting there.

Its appearance was so androgynous that it was impossible to determine its gender.

"...A human?"

At first, Damian thought it was a human. Unlike the flesh golems, it had no visible stitches on its body.

However, it felt too strange to be a human.

Upon closer inspection, Damian realized it was a flesh golem.

"Interesting. A flesh golem that looks exactly like a human."

The "masterpieces" created by the Corpse Play sometimes resembled humans, but they were easily identifiable as flesh golems.

The visible stitches, different skin colors, and asymmetrical features.

Most importantly, they would mutate into monsters when their true nature was revealed.

This flesh golem, however, was so similar to a human that Damian had momentarily mistaken it for one.

While examining the flesh golem, Damian noticed a magic circle on the floor that blocked dark magic.

The magic circle could be activated and deactivated.

"It seems I can deactivate it using this orb."

Damian grabbed the orb attached to the wall. As he channeled dark magic into it, the magic circle stopped working.

The moment the magic circle was deactivated, the flesh golem's eyes snapped open.

It immediately lunged at Damian.

However, the sturdy shackles on its limbs prevented it from reaching him.

Each time the flesh golem writhed, the entire laboratory shook.

It was using sheer brute strength to shake the laboratory without using dark magic.

"#$%@$#%@!"

A monstrous scream erupted from the flesh golem's mouth, filled with pure hatred and malice.

"Interesting. A flesh golem that has awakened its self-awareness."

Flesh golems are created using the bodies of living creatures.

Thus, the thoughts and emotions of the creatures used as materials inevitably mix.

This is not a significant problem. However, occasionally, a self-awareness can emerge from the tangled thoughts and emotions.

This flesh golem was one such case.

"Moreover, it hates black mages."

The self-awareness that the flesh golem had awakened was a feeling of hatred.

In a way, it was natural. The self-awareness of this flesh golem was born from the mixed thoughts and emotions of people who had been sacrificed by black mages.

The reason the Corpse Play had bound this doll was likely because he couldn't control its hatred.

"#$%@$#%@!"

The flesh golem became even more violent, its wrists bleeding from the shackles.

However, the wounds began to regenerate almost instantly.

Damian's eyes widened slightly.

Flesh golems are undead created by connecting dead bodies. He had never heard of an undead with regenerative abilities.

"Is this why the stitches have disappeared?"

Not only did it possess incredible strength, but it also had this regenerative ability. It was a flesh golem of terrifying quality.

"Ultimately, he couldn't erase the hatred, I see."

In his previous life, the Corpse Play had never used a flesh golem with such capabilities.

He must have failed to find a way to erase the hatred and discarded it.

"#$%@$#%@!"

The flesh golem tried its hardest to bite Damian.

It was likely because it sensed the traces of black magic from Damian.

Using black magic consumes dark magic, leaving a residue on the soul or body.

The less skilled the black mage, the more noticeable the residue.

For someone like Damian, the residue was almost non-existent, and it would disappear completely after some time.

The flesh golem was reacting to the faint residue.

"I do use black magic, but I am not a black mage."

The flesh golem hesitated at his words.

"#$%@$#%@!"

It roared as if telling him not to make such absurd claims.

"I have never desecrated graves or tormented human souls. You should know that, right?"

If Damian had done such things, the resentment of the dead who hated him would have followed.

This flesh golem, born from the hatred of the dead, would have sensed it.

"..."

The flesh golem fell silent, seemingly acknowledging the truth of Damian's words.

"Most importantly, I hate black mages. I was the one who killed the Corpse Play who created you."

The flesh golem's eyes widened. It glared at Damian as if telling him to stop lying.

"If you don't believe me, ask the dead. You were born from the thoughts of the dead, so you should be able to hear their voices."

The flesh golem remained silent for a while. Then, its eyes widened again.

"...Kang?"

The monstrous scream was replaced by a fox-like cry.

It seemed to be asking if Damian had really killed the Corpse Play. Damian nodded.

"Yes, I killed the Corpse Play. To be precise, the dead killed him."

The flesh golem slumped to the ground. With its target of hatred gone, it had lost its reason to act.

"So, rest in peace."

Damian drew his holy sword to destroy the core of the flesh golem.

Just as he was about to stab the core, the flesh golem grabbed the holy sword.

The holy power of the sword began to burn the flesh golem's skin, but it did not let go.

"Why are you resisting?"

Damian asked, puzzled.

"It might sound cruel, but you are an undead. You shouldn't remain in this world any longer."

The flesh golem's eyes turned fierce again, but not at Damian. It was directed at black mages.

The flesh golem's hatred was not just for the Corpse Play but for black mages in general.

"Do you want to remain in this world to kill black mages?"

The flesh golem nodded. Damian was conflicted.

A flesh golem with such capabilities would be a great help to him.

However, in his previous life, he had been forcibly modified and used by Dorgo.

If he used this flesh golem, it would be no different from Dorgo's actions.

"Kang! Kaeang!"

The flesh golem let out a sharp cry, as if telling him not to hesitate.

Upon further reflection, the relationship with Dorgon was more of a cooperative or transactional one based on mutual goals.

Their goals were somewhat aligned, and the flesh golem refused to die until it avenged its grudge.

After much deliberation, Damian swung his holy sword. The shackles binding the flesh golem were cut off.

"Let's work together."

Damian extended his hand. The flesh golem tilted its head, as if asking what this gesture meant.

Damian realized he had overlooked the flesh golem's newly awakened self-awareness.

It was natural that it didn't understand the act of shaking hands.

Damian took the flesh golem's hand and shook it. The flesh golem's eyes widened.

"...But how do I take you with me?"

The extermination team was spread out inside and outside the dungeon.

If Damian were to bring an undead out, it would be problematic.

"Kang? Kaeang!"

The flesh golem moved towards something. After searching the laboratory, it brought something to Damian.

It was a travel trunk made of leather. The leather was dark and aged.

"What is this?"

The flesh golem opened the trunk. The inside was filled with darkness.

"Kang!"

As the flesh golem approached, it was suddenly sucked into the trunk.

"...Oh?"

Damian immediately examined the trunk. He soon understood the magic attached to it.

"It's a subspace magical tool designed to transport undead."

Unlike the subspace ring he possessed, this trunk could only store undead.

In exchange for the limited type, it had a very large capacity, capable of storing hundreds of flesh golems.

Moreover, it could be placed inside another subspace.

Normally, subspace magic repels each other, making it impossible to store one subspace inside another.

This trunk, however, had been improved to allow such storage, as it was limited to storing undead.

"Thanks to this magical tool, the flesh golem has managed to avoid being caught by the Order."

Damian opened the trunk again. The flesh golem emerged from the darkness.

"Kang!"

The flesh golem looked proud. Damian said approvingly,

"You remembered how to use the trunk after seeing the Corpse Play use it. You're smart."

"Kang!"

The flesh golem nodded, looking pleased.

Suddenly, Damian noticed writing on the flesh golem's collar.

"Nine (나인)?"

At the mention of the name, the flesh golem's expression crumpled.

It tore off the collar and threw it to the ground, stomping on it repeatedly.

It seemed to detest the name given by the Corpse Play.

"A new name is needed, then."

The flesh golem looked hopeful at Damian's words. After much thought, Damian said,

"...Mia?"

The flesh golem nodded, apparently liking the name.

"From today, you are Mia. Let's work together to destroy all the damn black mages."

Mia nodded in agreement with Damian's words.