<h4>Chapter 35: Chapter 34: Lanfelt Mansion (4)</h4>
"Huh-up!"
Letting out a sharp cry, Boras lunged at the golem in front of him with a body tackle.
It might have seemed like a brute-force move at first nce, but it was actually a very refined wrestling technique, deeply digging in with his shoulder to unbnce the golem.
No matter how tough the golem was, it still had a humanoid form, meaning its center of gravity was simr to that of a human. In an instant, the golem lost its bnce, and its two feet lifted off the ground.
Not missing the opportunity, Boras thrust his sword into the golem''s torso.
"Eiit! Just break through already!"
The steel de forced its way through the dark armor. ck blood gushed out from the wound.
"Did it work this time?"
The massive body of the golem slowly began to copse.
Boras quickly withdrew and swung his sword left and right. The darkness clinging to the de sttered in all directions.
"Ha, taking down just one of these things is a real pain..."
Serati was shocked as she watched the grumbling of a giant man.
He had just taken down something that even she, an Aura User, couldn''t handle—yet this knight, who hadn''t even awakened his battle aura, had done it?
And it wasn''t as if Boras''s sword was some kind of powerful magic weapon either. It was a well- crafted but ordinary steel sword, with no special magic infused into it.
"How did you do that?"
"Uh, well..."
Boras couldn''t finish his sentence.
Goooo-!
Other Golems were charging at him again.
"Ugh!"
Boras hastily resumed the battle.
He dodged to the left to avoid an attacking golem, shed at it, then quickly retrieved his sword and turned to strike at another one on the right.
ng!
A loud metallic sound rang out as the golem, with its shoulder shed, spurted ck blood.
On the other hand, another golem that took a de to the abdomen remained unscathed.
Serati realized something.
<i>''So that''s it!''</i>
Not the entire body of those golems was strong enough to withstand a battle aura-infused sword. There were spots here and there that were weak enough for even a normal sh to break through!
Sheunched herself forward, targeting one of the golems with her battle aura-infused sword.
<i>''This is its weak spot!''</i>
The red aura struck the Golem''s shoulder—the same spot that Boras had aimed for.
It was an amazing disy of precision, urately targeting the same area with just a single observation.
...But it didn''t work.
ng!
Her battle aura-infused sword bounced off again.
Feeling the tingling in her hand, Serati was bewildered.
<i>''I definitely aimed for the exact same spot!''</i>
Meanwhile, Boras was still relentlessly fighting the golems.
He attacked and retreated in a flurry, slicing through the golems as he went.
Some fell with each strike, while others continued to move as if nothing had happened.
But there was no consistency in this process.
One golem was brought down by a sh to the waist, while another one, hit in the leg, remained perfectly fine.
It seemed logical to assume that the waist was a weak point, but that wasn''t always the case.
One golem had its leg cut clean off, while another, struck in the waist, remained unaffected. Earlier, stabbing the chest had worked, but now the same strike to the chest was simply deflected.
<i>''What is going on?''</i>
Serati was utterly confused.
<i>''Could it be that each golem has a different weak point?''</i>
That seemed unlikely.
If that were the case, it would mean that Boras was somehow identifying the unique weak points of each of these countless golems.
<i>''How on earth is he doing that?''</i>
***
Boras nced at the panic-stricken Serati and inwardly clicked his tongue.
<i>''How should I even exin this?''</i>
As the second-inmand of Necropia and the top confidant of the Conquering King of the world, Boras had many subordinates of darkness at his disposal. Among them was a legionposed of Golems.
Thanks to this, he knew their weaknesses well.
Golems didn''t operate independently. They were powered only within a certain barrier, moving only by the force provided within it.
Right now, the blood-soaked swamp surrounding them served as the medium injecting power into them. They were functioning by continuously receiving energy.
<i>''This was always their w.''</i>
During the process of magic infusion, there inevitably came moments where the flow would falter.
When the magic flow was at its peak, they could even block the battle aura-infused swords of an Aura User. But when the flow faltered, even a normal sword could pierce through them.
Of course, this didn''t mean that Golems were entirely useless.
The gap in the flow didn''t always appear in the same ce. The flow of energy changed with the movement of the golem, and so the gap in their defenses shifted ordingly.
To exploit these weak points, one would need to analyze every single movement of the golem, memorize the ever-changing location of the gaps, and then strike at the precise moment in the correct spot. Only then could the golem''s weaknesses be effectively targeted.
In the past, the only group capable of such a feat was the Imperial Knights, known as the strongest on the continent. Having fought countless battles against Karnak''s army, they had gained enough experience to pull off such crazy tactics.
And Boras, who had endlessly fought against those Imperial Knights, could do the same. Had he not seen them bring down Golems countless times?
Having dealt with them so frequently, he couldn''t help but memorize the movements and weak points of the Golems, whether he liked it or not.
That knowledge was now keeping him alive.
<i>''Who would''ve thought I''d find myself mimicking those Imperial Knight bastards I hated so much?''</i>
Since this was a technique based entirely on experience, there was no way he could exin it to Serati.
He didn''t have the leisure to exin it to her anyway, and even if he tried, it would probably just confuse her more and mess up her movements.
Feeling her panicked gaze, Boras silently apologized.
<i>''I''m sorry. Do your best to survive. If we''re lucky, we might be able to escape together.''</i>
In truth, Boras wasn''t in afortable situation either.
In his previous life, he had been the Death Knight Lord, but now, he was just a regr knight who hadn''t even awakened his battle aura. No matter how long he held out, he would eventually run out of stamina and be finished.
If he wanted any chance of escaping, he had to rely on Karnak...
<i>''What on earth is the Young Master doing?''</i>
Panting heavily, Boras nced at the former Death King.
Since earlier, he had been dealing with the Golems using only chaos magic.
<i>''Shouldn''t he start using necromancy by now? This isn''t the time to worry about hiding his identity, is it?''</i>
***
A massive golem charged head-on.
Goooooo!
In a calm tone, Karnak recited the activation words.
"Arcane Disc."
A disc of mana flew forward, slicing through the golem''s leg with precision. The enormous figure staggered and crashed into the blood-soaked swamp.
Boom!
At the same time, a follow-up fire spell was cast.
"Fire de."
The heart of another golem was pierced by a de of fire. Two of the advancing golems were swiftly neutralized.
However, their numbers were still overwhelming. Despite theirrades being struck down, the golems kept mindlessly pressing forward.
Goooooo!
But Karnak wasn''t overwhelmed.
"Wind Walk."
Using wind magic, he glided smoothly to a more advantageous position. Without missing a beat, he unleashed another attack.
"Mass Magic Arrow."
Kwakwakwakwang!
A volley of magic arrows flew out, aiming for the heads of the Golems.
These creatures, which had withstood a 6th-circle fire spell, had their heads blown apart by mere 1st-circle basic magic arrows.
Kwakwakwakwang!
Karnak effortlessly felled the golems, using only spells of the 4th circle or lower.
After all, if Boras could do it, there was no reason Karnak couldn''t.
Even though the flow of darkness had been disrupted by the contamination of light, he could still clearly see the weak points. Naturally, identifying their vulnerabilities wasn''t difficult.
The problem was that defeating these golems didn''t improve the situation. As he continued casting spells, Karnak grew increasingly anxious.
<i>''Ah, this is troublesome...''</i>
The Golems kept drawing power from the blood swamp.
In other words, as long as the blood swamp remained intact, no matter how many golems were destroyed, they would just keep regenerating from within it.
He needed to destroy the main source...
<i>''...But it''s not working, is it?''</i>
Contrary to Boras''s suspicion, Karnak had already been using necromancy. It simply hadn''t been visible on the surface.
Even during battle, he discreetly let necromantic power flow through his feet, attempting to infiltrate the blood swamp and wrest control away with his necromantic power.
But he kept hitting obstacles.
The cursed contaminated divine power was mixed with the necromantic power.
Though Karnak, as the Death King, had managed to find gaps in the barrier''s structure, he couldn''t seize control of it.
<i>''At this rate, we''re done for.''</i>
Karnak''s expression grew increasingly grim.
<i>''I need to find another way....''</i>
***
In the damp, dark space beneath the Lanfelt Mansion.
A ck shadow loomed over the blood-red barrier.
A grotesque figure of a middle-aged man, twisted by dark tendrils that writhed through his entire body —it was the fallen priest, Shutraff.
"Mmm..."
He was puzzled.
<i>''What on earth did those guys do?''</i>
In truth, he was just as bewildered as Serati.
''Why are the Golems falling so easily?''
Golems were monsters that even Alius, the powerful priest, and neither a 6th Circle mage nor an aura user could handle. Their power was exactly as described in the necromancy book.
But why were those two, who were weaker than the others, handling them so easily?
<i>''Does the Golem have some kind of weakness?''</i>
He didn''t know.
There was no mention of such a thing in the necromancy book he had read.
Shutraff''s knowledge of necromancy came entirely from books stored by the Hatoba Church.
Ironically, the ce with thergest collection of necromancy books on the continent were the Churches of the Seven Goddesses.
Knowing the enemy''s methods well was the best way to counter them. Every time they defeated necromancers, they stored the necromancy books the necromancers carried in the temple, just in case.
As a high-ranking priest, Shutraff secretly stole and learned from a few necromancy books, and as a result, he was able to wield power of darkness nearly on par with top-tier necromancers.
However, since his knowledge wasn''t built up steadily from the basics, itcked depth. He could perform necromancy, but he didn''t understand the principles behind it.
He just followed the book''s instructions: set up a barrier, recite the incantation, and then it would work —this was all he knew.
<i>''Those guys seem to know something I don''t...'' </i>
In any case, one thing was clear.
The Golem was not very efficient.
But it wasn''t much of a problem.
<i>''I''ll just change my approach.''</i>
The necromancy that he had mastered didn''t just include the summoning of Golems. There were plenty of dark beings that could be summoned using the Swamp of Blood.
Shutraff began to draw upon his necromantic power.
"It seems you were lucky enough to know how to deal with the Golem..."
Dark energy began to flow through the tentacles and spread out through the stone walls.
"Then how about this? Hehehe..."
***
Just because Karnak and Boras were dealing with the Golems easily, it didn''t mean Serati''s situation improved.
The golems weren''t just fighting them; they were still attacking her as well.
Although she barely escaped the immediate danger, that was all—Serati was still being pushed back.
"Huff, huff...!"
No matter how skilled an aura user was, their stamina wasn''t infinite. Especially when they were constantly using aura and expending energy in chunks like this.
The intervals where her aura flow was disrupted became increasingly frequent. She had reached her limit.
He anxiously looked back at Karnak.
They were weaker than her, but at this very moment, they were her lifeline.
"What... what should we do now?"
As she urgently shouted, the situation changed abruptly once more.
All the Golems copsed simultaneously, returning to the Swamp of Blood. At the same time, a crimson wave surged from the center of the swamp, engulfing the group.
Paaaaaat!
Serati was swept up by the shockwave and thrown backward.
There was no warning, leaving her no time to respond.
"Ugh!"
On the other hand, Karnak and Boras only staggered back a few steps but managed to hold their ground.
As if anticipating this situation, Karnak had deployed a shield to deflect the shockwave. Boras had also moved to that position beforehand.
"Truly fascinating fellows. I wonder where you acquired such knowledge."
Shutraff''s mocking voice continued.
"But aren''t you neglecting yourpanion a bit too much?"
The recent shockwave had created a significant distance between Serati and Karnak''s group. From the Swamp of Blood, blue specters soared up and rushed toward the now-isted Serati.
Kyaaaaaah-!
<i>''Damn it!''</i>
Boras hurriedly tried to save her, but it was toote. The specters reached Serati first.
As she fell, she forced herself to lift her sword and unleashed one final aura sh.
"Take this!"
As expected, the aura had no effect.
Like illusions, the specters passed right through the crimson sword light and shed at Serati with their ws.
sh!
Both of her arms were severed.
There was no blood. The cross-sections were charred ck, emitting only a pungent smell.
"Aaaaaaah!"
Serati let out a desperate scream from the extreme pain.
Shutraff''s satisfied voice echoed.
"With this, we''ve secured an aura user as well."
Just as the specters were about to snatch up the copsing Serati.
With a triumphant smile, Karnak swung both arms.
"Finally showing a weakness, aren''t you, rookie necromancer!"
An immense darkness erupted from his entire body. The wave of darkness engulfed the specters and dissolved them in an instant.
"Kieeeeeeeek!"
Simultaneously, the entire space began to tremble violently.
Shutraff''s astonished voice resounded.
"Necromantic power? So you were a necromancer too!"
The shaking space copsed with a series of explosive sounds.
Boom! Kwang! Kwaaaaang!
Beyond the copsing space, the entrance of the mansion they had entered became clearly visible. Karnak''s exhratedughter followed.
"It''s wide open! Hahaha!"
[T/L: Please support me: /revengerscans ]