**Chapter 26: King of the Void Shadow**
I roll the words “3D Magic Circle” around in my mouth.
When it comes to magic, I am almost an Elemental Person. I’ve read through spellbooks and memorized a few practical spells for daily life, but none of them are suitable for offensive use.
It’s often quicker to just punch something, but powerful attack spells are, by their very nature, closely guarded secrets. Even among the spellbooks that Senri has gathered for me, there were no attack spells that I felt were worth memorizing.
To learn powerful magic, I must seek guidance from a Mage master. Aptitude is also necessary. Despite the existence of miracles known as magic in the realm of the deceased, scientific technology has continued to advance.
The spells I’ve managed to learn over the course of several days are the most basic of the basics, ones that can be activated with just my own body. However, originally, magic was something that required numerous tools, catalysts, and rituals to wield.
A magic circle. I had heard of the term before, but the concept of a “3D Magic Circle” is new to me. If it’s called a 3D Magic Circle, then it must be… three-dimensional.
My head and body ache as if they are being torn apart due to the curse of Seーブル. The fact that I haven’t shed any tears yet is merely a show of bravado. In this situation, the Lord, who refuses to provide clear information, should be obliterated immediately.
Senri furrows her brow at the words that come through my mouth from the Lord.
“A three-dimensional… magic circle?”
“Y-yes. So that means… it’s a three-dimensional magic circle. It’s three-dimensional.”
“And that means…?”
Senri still doesn’t know that the Lord resides within me. Her suspicion arises from the Lord’s failure to communicate properly.
To buy some time, I feign looking around, scanning my surroundings.
The Lord, who had been darting around freely, chuckles.
‘The caster is quite the formidable one. However… hmph. The King of the Void Shadow… has made a mistake…’
I want to cleave him in two with a hatchet.
It seems I still have much to learn… I should consider what improvements I can make.
Upon reflection, ever since I began my journey with Senri, I have been in constant battle.
I wanted to feign dizziness and cling to Senri to buy some time, but with the Golem attacking, I couldn’t afford to do so. Senri is staring intently at me, waiting for my words.
“So…?”
“…So… it might all be the fault of the King of the Void Shadow.”
“I see…”
Senri’s gaze turns cold due to the influence of the useless Wraith. My attempt to gain favor with her using the Lord’s words was a failure. The skeletal Lord cackles.
‘Heh heh heh… End, behold. There is no longer a caster capable of forming such a magic circle. This is—once known as “Reincarnation,” Necromancy.’
Reincarnation Necromancy. What an unsettling string of words.
However, I was brought back to life through Necromancy. In a sense, can’t that also be called a form of reincarnation (even if I’m not truly alive)?
If this underground passage itself is a magic circle, then it’s of considerable scale. The Lord’s mansion was vast, but it pales in comparison to this. The power of magic is said to increase in proportion to the scale of its preparation.
…So, what should I destroy? Should I smash the magic circle? Should I return Senri to her former self and obliterate the underground?
Hey, how can I get back quickly?
‘Foolishness is N/A! This circle is already filled with the appropriate power— the power of the Dead! If you recklessly attempt Destruction, you may face annihilation!’
“…Senri, we can’t destroy it. This magic circle is already gathering the power of the Dead, we absolutely must not attempt Destruction! Even if you’re considering breaking it, it’s absolutely a no-go! We must endure!”
“…”
Well, I’ve given a proper warning to Senri.
Senri cuts down an arrow fired from a Golem with her sword, putting considerable force into it.
But… yes, I’ve thought of a quick solution.
First, I’ll head up to the surface. From a distance, I’ll use Senri’s “Annihilation” to blow apart the castle’s underground. The power of the Dead might go berserk and explode, but since we’ll be far away, we’ll remain calm. The castle will be gone, but the 【デSeN/ADoro】 won’t complain. We can just pretend we didn’t see anything and leave. It’s a shame I won’t be able to obtain any Night Crystals, but I’ll just have to accept that.
‘N/A… End, those who come with brute force like you are the most terrifying! Regardless of the circumstances, as one who inherits wisdom, do you not have any pride?’
I, too, have a sense of adventure, but right now, I just want to return quickly and receive Blood from Senri.
I can’t reach the Night Crystals that should be nearby, my stomach hurts, my back aches, my head is pounding, and Senri is in danger, so my tension is at its absolute limit.
Generally speaking, the Lord tends to ramble on. In other words, he is self-righteous. Because he doesn’t pay attention to his surroundings, he gets betrayed by me or Ruu. I wish he would explain things in a way that even a fool could understand.
As I send my thoughts in silence, the Lord finally seems to give up and lets out a deep sigh.
‘End, this is— a magic circle of reincarnation. It gathers the power of the Dead and alters the curse of the アN/AデN/ADoro to Impossible, that is the nature of this spell.’
Finally, we’ve reached the essence of the matter. To alter the アN/AデN/ADoro to… Impossible?
The Lord transformed me, a human corpse, into an アN/AデN/ADoro animated by the power of death through a curse. What does it mean to further change that アN/AデN/ADoro?
The summoned magic objects are all Golems, and none of them are アN/AデN/ADoro.
As I measure the timing to convey this to Senri, the Lord snorts in amusement and says.
‘This is… a circle to change the curse of Skeletons into the curse of Corpse Eaters. This castle is— a place for the ritual, so to speak.’
That’s what I said, the King of the Void Shadow has— made a grave mistake. The Lord shrugs.
However, I cannot comprehend what the Lord is saying.
To change Skeletons into Corpse Eaters… for what purpose?
Indeed, Senri previously mentioned that the King of the Void Shadow was a Skeleton-type アN/AデN/ADoro. However, is there any reason for an アN/AデN/ADoro that has undergone such mutations to change itself?
From the Lord’s words, I can sense a nuance that this castle itself was built for the purpose of the ritual.
It certainly felt strange.
The King of the Void Shadow was said to possess the ability to conceal his presence from the Eclipse Knights. Therefore, even if the location of the castle was revealed to the Order of the Final Knights, escaping shouldn’t have been too difficult. Unlike me, who is relentlessly pursued no matter how much I flee.
Yet… the King was destroyed within this castle. I don’t know what happened at that time, so it’s possible that the Order of the Final Knights was simply too strong, but it’s hard to believe that a King leading an army couldn’t even escape.
Before I could ponder that further, the Lord turned to the direction where the presence of the Night Crystals could be felt and uttered something unbelievable.
‘And, End. The magic circle is still active. The ritual is not yet— complete. The ancient King of Darkness who once ruled the old world shall rise again.’
—
That King had a divine appearance, reminiscent of the night itself. A pitch-black body that absorbed light. Though his body was made of bones, it exuded an awe-inspiring grandeur akin to a great tree that had lived for a thousand years.
While he gave no hint of Life, his existence bore the “transcendence” of the stagnated Deceased.
The farthest point of the Mutation of Skeletons.
A Mage who gained power at the cost of his physical body. The King of Death who consumed light and lived through stagnated time.
The Ruler of the Underworld.
Few know that the Mage, feared by all as the King of the Void Shadow, had not completely cast aside his humanity.
“It was a mistake. No matter how much I despised humanity and grew weary of the world, I should not have discarded my physical body.”
Those words were painfully dry.
Surely, they were the side effects of a Deceased who had reached godhood while still retaining his humanity.
Having lost his physical body, he lost his life, and with it, his desires.
His long-time right arm. The Night’s Necromancer, born from his power, could never understand the heart of a god.
The heart of the demonic god of Yuan, could not be understood by the Immortals he created.
“I sense mutual suicide. However, you are infinitely close to the night.”
“There is nothing beyond this point. There is hatred born from curses, but I do not understand the reason behind it. It remains unfulfilled. Ah, complete stagnation… what we, the Necromancers, aspire to— does not exist.”
The army of Dead summoned through immense magical power existed solely to alleviate the King’s ennui.
They retained memories but lacked emotions. What remained was only power. The Night’s Necromancer could do nothing in response to the King’s lament.
“To cast away this body— I have no choice but to reclaim it. Before I become nothing more than a mere phenomenon…”