Karnak, Monarch of Death

What was the best way to stab someone in the back to maximize the pain? Naturally, backstabbing hurt the most when it came from someone one trusted completely. However, such a method was out of the question for Karnak.

To plant a trustworthy spy within the Black God's cult would require a meticulous operation spanning several years. Karnak neither had the intention nor the resources to invest that much effort.

Then what was the next best option? It was to deliver a blow in a way the opponent would never see it coming. Strictly speaking, this was aligned with the first condition. After all, the reason one never expected betrayal from the one closest to them was because they trusted them.

But this wasn't exactly what Karnak was planning right now either. It was true that the Black God's Cult had grown complacent after taking Astlin City. But even so, they still maintained a basic defensive posture.

If an enemy was prepared, they would not crumble easily even if they were struck by surprise. That was why Karnak had been waiting precisely for this moment. Now, with the 10,000-strong imperial army encamped outside the city, every eye of the cult was turned outward.

"No matter how prepared you think you are, if you're looking the other way, one strike is enough to take you out."

***

Under the faint moonlight, the streets of Astlin City lay quiet. Karnak and his group were walking carefully along the main road in the middle of the night. Normally, they would have chosen back alleys to avoid any eyes. But there was no need for that now.

Every night, the undead prowled the city under the guise of patrols, and no one dared to step outside their homes. As long as they were careful with their footsteps, they could even walk along the main road without getting caught.

Of course, this meant they often encountered the undead along the way, but that posed no problem. Zombies and skeletons approached them, letting out eerie moans. Drel tensed in response, moving his hand toward his waist as the undead drew near.

In contrast, Karnak, Leven, and Milia ignored them and calmly walked past the undead. Likewise, the undead simply passed by the group and continued on their way.

Drel shook his head while watching the backs of the zombies. "I know it in my head, but it's still hard to get used to."

Currently, Karnak's group was under the effect of the chaos spell, Circumventer of Necromancy, which fooled the undead's senses. Unless they encountered any living beings, there was no way they would be discovered.

Drel hurried to catch up to Karnak and lowered his voice. "But is there a reason we need to act the night before a battle?"

If they were aiming for a gap in the enemy's defenses, wouldn't it be more effective to strike during the chaos of a battle between the imperial army and the cult? That way, they could eliminate the leaders of the cult in the confusion.

"That's not a bad plan either." Karnak nodded. "But striking right before the battle is the best choice for me."

With the imperial army encamped right outside the city, the cult had positioned their forces accordingly. They were closely watching the movements of the imperial army in preparation for the battle to come. But what if chaos suddenly erupted inside the city?

"They'd assume it's a diversion," said Karnak.

In such a suspicious situation, they wouldn't dare to move the forces stationed on the walls recklessly. Just the presence of the army outside the city significantly reduced the risk of Karnak's group being surrounded.

"Besides, most of the forces that were inside the city have moved out to the walls," explained Karnak.

The more they paid attention to the outside, the weaker the defenses around their leadership became. But if a full battle broke out, the fallen popes and the remaining cult forces would all head to the battlefield at the walls. In that case, their targets would end up in the middle of an army, making the situation far more complicated.

Drel's expression was mixed as he listened. "So that's why?"

At a glance, it didn't seem like a bad tactic, but from the perspective of someone well-versed in military strategy, it felt like a second-best option rather than the optimal choice.

Drel explained his thoughts. "If it were me, I would have simply joined forces with the imperial army instead of acting first."

Of course, given that most of Karnak's group were from the Seven Kingdoms, there was a high chance the imperial army wouldn't immediately accept them as allies...

"Even if they refused, we'd still have a better chance of victory by using the chaos after the army began their attack."

Karnak wasn't opposed to the logic of Drel's strategy. "You're right, Drel. In most cases, your plan would be better."

Drel voiced his question. "Then why this approach?"

Karnak gave his explanation. "Because, you see, there are a lot of methods I can't exactly use out in the open."

Drel understood immediately. That's right, Lord Karnak is a necromancer.

The more sins one carried, the quieter their footsteps had to be. Though Karnak planned to rely mostly on chaos magic and avoid necromancy as much as possible, one could never predict what might happen in this world.

If their lives were truly in danger, he would have to unleash the power of darkness without hesitation.

There was another reason Karnak chose this plan. "And it's not something I can use openly even after we capture Leoslav and Relfiana."

He needed to seize and imprison their souls, which was a fairly powerful necromantic art. "That's why moving with the imperial army isn't a good choice."

Meanwhile, in Astlin City, there was not a single imperial knight, mage, or priest of the seven goddesses left alive. The cult of the Black God had purged them all. This meant even if Karnak used necromancy openly, there was no one left capable of discerning whether it was his doing or the cult's.

"Yes, I understand." Drel quickened his pace after nodding in understanding.

They headed first to the Dremental mansion, where Lapicel had infiltrated. There, they waited for her at the designated spot. Half a day earlier, they had discreetly passed her a code through the supplies entering the mansion, one that only Lapicel would recognize. If she had intercepted the message properly, she would be slipping out around now.

Drel cast a worried glance around at the necromantic domain and undead scattered throughout the garden. "Will she be able to get out safely without being caught?"

Once again, he found himself thrown off by the unexpected reactions around him.

"Get caught?"

"Lapicel?"

"Oh, come on, as if that would happen."

Drel's could not understand where their confidence came from at all. No matter how promising a future martial king she was, she was still only a purple knight, and a child at that, yet they trusted her this implicitly? I'll never get used to these people...

And indeed, Lapicel did not betray that trust. Using nothing but her instincts, she detected every necromantic domain and undead presence. She slipped out safely and rejoined the group.

She asked, "Have you been waiting long?"

"We only just arrived," responded Karnak.

She took out a notebook filled with intel. "Good. Here, this is a map of the enemy's troop placements."

They then set out for the Targel merchant guild, where Serati had infiltrated. She was already waiting for them at the rendezvous point.

Serati exclaimed, "You're safe, Lapicel!"

"Yes, sis."

Seeing Serati join them safely, Drel once again clicked his tongue in disbelief. "You actually got out without being caught?"

It was definitely impossible for a mere blue knight to detect and avoid all the necromantic domains in place. So how on earth had she managed it?

Serati simply shrugged, as if it were nothing. "If you just look, you can see the gaps. I may be slow and dense, but not so much that I can't slip through them."

Leven shook his head. "That's what I'm saying. We can't see them."

It was fascinating, to the point of being unsettling. Was this truly normal? Leven voiced his concern.

—Is this really okay, Lord Karnak?

—I don't know, I find it rather fascinating too. I'll have to study it when I have time.

Incidentally, Serati could hear these secret transmissions as well.

—Now that you say that, I'm starting to get worried too.

Having experienced so many strange things traveling with Karnak, she hadn't thought much of it until now. In any case, with Serati safely rejoining them, it was now time to head for the central administrative building where Varos had infiltrated.

As they were about to move, Serati suddenly turned to Karnak with a question. "What about Floke?"

Karnak shrugged. "I just left him at the house."

They were about to stir up massive trouble, after all. There was no way they could bring a baby dragon along.

Serati seemed concerned about her dragon. "I hope he'll be all right, my little Floke..."

Karnak reassured her. "No matter how young he is, he's still a dragon. What could possibly happen?"

"You say that, but..."

Serati's brow furrowed in worry. It's because something always ends up happening whenever you say things like that, Lord Karnak.

***

Unlike the others, Varos did not meet the group outside the building. After all, their targets, Leoslav and Relfiana, were inside. What reason did he have to leave? Instead, he welcomed Karnak's group from within. "Come on in."

Well, technically, he had stepped out into the back garden to quietly open the rear entrance for them, so it was practically the same as coming out. Karnak's group slipped inside while carefully checking their surroundings.

All was silent. Despite the cult's extensive necromantic domains surrounding the building, there was not the slightest reaction. It was thanks to Varos, who had already disabled them in advance.

No matter how effective Circumventer of Necromancy was, it could not fool domains. But as an insider, Varos was not a target of the domains, so all he had to do was strike at the key points from within.

To Drel, it was still an utterly baffling feat. How could he know which points were critical and pierce them so easily like that?

—Are necromantic barriers usually this easy to disable?

Varos replied, sounding smug.

—It's easy only because it's me.

Next to Karnak, Varos might have seemed somewhat unrefined, but in truth, Varos was a man who had mastered necromancy more thoroughly than anyone else alive. He simply could not cast it himself, but he had seen it enough to grow sick of it.

Drel nodded.

—I see.

He felt as if he was finally beginning to understand Karnak's group. I guess I just have to accept it.

In any case, this allowed them to slip inside with ease.

Karnak declared, "Now we just need to find Leoslav and Relfiana."

Varos replied in a hushed voice. "I couldn't pinpoint their exact location. They didn't let me past the first floor."

Unlike the other mansions, the security at the central administrative building was exceptionally tight. However, they didn't seem particularly worried about assassination. If they were, they wouldn't have hired servants from the outside in the first place.

Unlike the simple-minded commoners who had become cultists, the two fallen popes had come from the future. Having lived through many experiences, they had developed a habit of maintaining strict security by default.

Varos explained, "We'll have to head upstairs ourselves to see what's there."

Leven's eyes glinted. "Then we'll need to move quietly and secure the cultists first."

After that, they could persuade whoever they captured to spill the location of the fallen popes.

Karnak shook his head. "That's what we would usually do."

Then he pointed to the windows on the second and third floors of the building. "But there's no need for that now."

Leven's expression shifted strangely as he followed Karnak's gaze. "Ah, you're right."

***

The candlelight flickered in a small office on the second floor of the central administrative building. Once the mayor's office, it now belonged to Leoslav. "Good. We've positioned our forces to match theirs..."

The odds that the imperial army would launch an attack in the middle of the night were slim. For the living to choose to fight necromancers and the undead after sunset was to throw away their own advantage.

He muttered to himself. "Tomorrow morning will be the time for the final battle."

Suddenly, an explosion erupted behind him.

What, what is this?

He didn't even have time to turn around. A silver blade came flying through the shattered all and embedded itself in Leoslav's chest.