Chapter 84

"L, Laumpup has been bisected...? By just the strength of a humanoid undead...? Gailof's spirit has been defeated...?"

Manshi could no longer comprehend the scene before him.

In the gap between Laumpup's severed head and tail, Rambert stood with his greatsword at the ready. Undead remnants, felled by the shockwave from Rambert's bisecting strike, lay scattered, and new undead approached Rambert.

However, Rambert paid little attention to the army of undead controlled by Lilith. His focus was solely on the two parts of Laumpup he had bisected: the head and the tail.

"Do you think this is enough to finish off Laumpup? To call yourself Gailof's successor is quite the bold claim."

Rambert heard Manshi's voice and responded with a bored tone. As if to prove his words, Laumpup, who had been writhing in agony, rolled over and returned to its crawling position. Not only the head, but the tail as well. The two parts of Laumpup crawled around Rambert, crushing the undead army controlled by Lilith.

Even when severed from the head, Laumpup's parts could act autonomously for a while. Manshi, who was unaware of this characteristic, did not realize that Laumpup's greatest strength lay in its overwhelming durability and the autonomous actions of its severed parts.

Indeed, to defeat Laumpup, it was necessary to whittle down its massive body. However, bisecting it from the center, as Rambert had done, increased the number of enemies. If not careful, it could lead to a self-imposed trap.

The two long bodies of Laumpup pressed in on Rambert, repeatedly striking and entangling him.

Rambert anticipated the movements of the joints and narrowly avoided them. He deflected Laumpup's attacks with the flat of his greatsword, barely managing to survive the relentless assault. Laumpup's attacks were so fierce that they were altering the landscape.

Undead controlled by Lilith, despite their damaged bodies, continued to attack Rambert. However, they were crushed and killed by the indiscriminate violence of Laumpup's massive body. Even so, some of the undead corpses on the ground were vibrating ominously.

Manshi, who had been in a daze, suddenly came to his senses.

(W-What is happening...? Is this really the city of Baraila?)

Manshi, who had summoned Laumpup and Lilith, could not understand the hellish scene before him. Despite his usual claim that necromancy would transform the living world into a realm of the dead and his praise for Laumpup's beauty, he was now feeling fear. The harsh evaluation of Rambert as a "mere puppet controlled by books" flashed through his mind.

(N-No! I am the one who carries on Gailof's will! And one day, I will stand at the top of the Eight Sages of the Flute Demon...)

Manshi suppressed the fear that was beginning to take root and glared at Rambert, who was battling Laumpup.

Frustrated by Rambert's skillful evasion, Laumpup changed its tactics. Suddenly, the head part quickly moved away. The remaining tail part slammed its body into the ground and thrashed about.

Confused by the large body's movements, Rambert failed to avoid it and was finally caught. The massive body slammed into Rambert's back, launching him into the air.

"Y-Yes! Finally, I've got him...! As expected, Gailof's Laumpup is invincible..."

However, Rambert was not finished. The overwhelming defensive capabilities of his magic metal armor had significantly reduced the impact of Laumpup's attacks. He gripped his greatsword tightly, twisted his body in mid-air, and prepared to counterattack.

Without mercy, Laumpup's tail part launched a follow-up attack. With a loud crash, Rambert's body was thrown sideways. The head part, waiting in ambush, swung its massive head and struck the defenseless Rambert. The recoil sent Rambert flying, and the tail part on the opposite side slammed into him again.

A single strike turned into a relentless barrage. Trapped by Laumpup's massive body, Rambert had no easy way to escape.

The overwhelming difference between the high-ranking spirit Laumpup and the mere humanoid undead Rambert was evident. No matter how well Rambert fought, he could not inflict a fatal wound on Laumpup. Once caught, the violence would continue indefinitely.

Finally, a massive arm extended from Laumpup's head part, grabbed Rambert's head, and slammed it into the ground. The friction with the ground caused sparks to fly from the magic metal helmet. Laumpup increased its speed, dragging Rambert in a circle while emitting a more intense and eerie cry.

"L-Laumpup is invincible..."

The brutal and relentless barrage left Manshi speechless.

Eventually, Rambert's head was torn off, and the magic metal helmet fell from Laumpup's hand. Rambert's body, thrown to the ground, rolled violently. A white skull was visible through the neck of the armor.

"F-Finally, he's dead. As expected, he was an undead knight. A terrifying foe. He seemed to know about Gailof's grimoire, but who was he...?"

Laumpup lifted the hand holding the helmet and emitted a strange cry. It seemed to be laughing, but there was no way to discern its inhuman emotions.

(L-Laumpup is too strong, too terrifying... Did I really summon such a creature?)

Manshi gazed up at Laumpup, questioning himself. Rambert's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"That was given to me by His Majesty as one of the Four Demon Generals. I will take it back."

Laumpup's arm, holding the helmet, was severed by Rambert's furious strike. Neither Manshi nor Laumpup, who was basking in the afterglow of victory and had let his guard down, could anticipate this move.

Laumpup's severed arm flew into the air, and the helmet, released from the grip, was caught by Rambert.

The eye sockets in the skull glowed brightly, and Rambert glared at Manshi from the corner of his eye. Seeing Rambert's exposed skull through the helmet, Manshi gasped. His breathing became difficult, and his legs refused to move. It was a more intense and different kind of pressure.

(How can he still move after taking such attacks!? Could it be that this undead is really Rambert, one of the Four Demon Generals who ruled the western continent when the Regius Kingdom was in power!?)