Chapter 98: Commander Soul Guardians
Edgar cracked his neck before walking toward the two enormous corpses.
The first was the Headless Nightmare that summoned the Bell Demon last night.
Even in death, the mounted commander radiated an oppressive aura.
Its rusted armour was riddled with cracks, while its gigantic sword remained tightly clutched in one hand.
The grotesque horse beneath it had finally gone still, lying just beside its body.
The second corpse belonged to the albino gorilla. Its six-metre-tall body lay sprawled across the ground.
Even after death, its muscles remained unnaturally taut.
"...Still ugly."
Edgar muttered before crouching beside them.
Around both Commanders, dozens of ordinary Nightmare corpses had already been piled together by Andrew’s workers.
The blond boy rubbed his hands together.
’Let’s see what you can do.’
With a thought, he willed the ⟨Tower of Souls⟩ to start the refinement while also giving it Soul Essence.
From the blooming ribcage-like structure, crimson runes began to glow brightly.
Tentacles that looked nasty and noxious came out and began to devour the Nightmares closest to it.
The first to go inside was the albino gorilla, whose body cracked and broke until it could fit inside the archway.
Once the tower took in the body, it pulled in nine other regular ape-like Nightmare bodies and started the refinement.
After a few minutes of waiting, the horned skull atop the tower suddenly opened its jaw.
BOOM!
Countless bone fragments burst from the entrance, much bigger than average.
At first, they appeared completely random, but they quickly took the shape of different parts.
Dozens of bones floated into the air as though pulled by invisible strings.
Slowly, they began to take the shape of an ape-like being.
Thick black vertebrae locked together one after another.
Then came the enormous ribcage, broad enough to shield a grown man.
Its massive arms formed next.
Unlike the ordinary Soul Guardians Edgar had created earlier, these arms were grotesquely oversized.
Each finger ended in thick obsidian claws instead of ordinary skeletal digits.
Only after the body had fully formed did pale azure flames ignite within its empty eye sockets.
WHOOSH!!
The flames burned far brighter than those of the ordinary Soul Guardians.
Ancient azure runes slowly appeared across every bone, pulsing rhythmically with Soul Essence.
The giant skeleton slowly flexed both hands.
CRACK... CRACK...
Its bones shifted naturally as though testing a body it had never possessed before.
Then, it lowered itself onto one knee before Edgar.
"...It’s huge."
The skeleton stood nearly four and a half metres tall.
Although smaller than the living albino gorilla had been, it was far broader than the ordinary Soul Guardians.
A familiar notification appeared before Edgar.
---
⟨Commander Soul Guardian Successfully Created⟩
Designation: Commander Soul Guardian
Grade: Yellow
Origin: Albino Gorilla Commander
Status: Active
Remaining Refined Souls: 9
---
"Stand."
The Commander Soul Guardian obeyed immediately.
"Stand on the side."
The enormous being moved and obediently stood on the side.
Edgar then turned his gaze toward the Headless Nightmare’s corpse.
He willed its refinement as well.
The crimson runes flared once more, and the tentacles stretched toward the Headless Nightmare.
The fleshy appendages stopped just short of the corpse.
"...Hm?" Edgar frowned. "Why is it hesitating?"
The tentacles slowly wrapped around the grotesque horse first.
CRACK!!
Its body was crushed apart before being dragged into the tower.
Only after swallowing the mount did the remaining tentacles creep toward the Headless Nightmare itself.
The moment they touched its rusted armour--
SHRIEEEK!!
An ear-piercing scream erupted from the corpse.
Edgar covered his ears as his eyes remained fixed on the Nightmare’s corpse.
The fingers of the Headless Nightmare moved.
Edgar immediately became alert, bringing out all four of his Sage Hands.
The Headless Nightmare tried to grip its rusted sword for the briefest instant before becoming motionless again.
A crimson symbol slowly appeared across its cracked breastplate.
It resembled the very ritual circle that had summoned the Bell Demon.
Edgar’s expression immediately turned serious.
’...The Bell Demon’s mark?’
BOOOMMM!!
More than twenty tentacles erupted from the archway simultaneously.
Like starving serpents, they wrapped themselves around every part of the Headless Nightmare’s body.
The tentacles dragged the Commander inch by inch toward the archway as black mist leaked endlessly from the corpse.
It was odd, but Edgar felt like the ⟨Tower of Souls⟩ was eager to refine the Nightmare.
As if it had begun refining its greatest prey yet.
’Is this just my imagination?’
He didn’t know what to believe and what he should put aside.
The refinement of the Headless Nightmare took a lot more time than that of the albino gorilla.
The Tower of Souls continued trembling without producing anything.
Unlike before, the crimson runes no longer pulsed steadily.
Instead, they flickered violently, as though something inside was resisting.
Only after half an hour did the rusted sword of the Nightmare float out of the archway.
Only moments later, bone fragments finally emerged.
Unlike those of the albino gorilla, these bones were long and unnaturally slender.
Each carried faint crimson engravings that slowly turned azure as Soul Essence seeped into them.
The skeleton assembled itself piece by piece, and before long, a monster was ready.
The neck ended in a cleanly severed stump.
Azure soul flames drifted endlessly from the opening where a head should have been.
The towering skeleton stood nearly three and a half metres tall.
Its black bones were covered with intricate azure runes.
Unlike every other Soul Guardian Edgar had created, this one reached down and calmly picked up the rusted sword lying before it.
WHOOSH!!
The moment its fingers wrapped around the hilt, the rusted blade ignited with pale azure light.
The sword itself remained old and battered, yet its edge radiated a terrifying sharpness.
The headless skeleton slowly turned toward Edgar.
Without hesitation, it knelt down on one knee like a loyal servant.
A notification appeared.
---
⟨Commander Soul Guardian Successfully Created⟩
Designation: Headless Soul Knight
Grade: Yellow
Origin: Headless Nightmare Commander
Status: Active
Unique Trait: Soul Blade, Summon Bell
---
Edgar stared at the final line. "...Unique Trait?"