Chapter 50: Six Years Later II
Magnus let out a cold snort.
"Any one of those old monsters is enough to make the Church of Light suffer."
Kaiser quietly nodded.
Honestly, it didn’t feel like the highest difficulty trial.
Although he had faced many dangers over the past six years, everything had gone much more smoothly than he had expected.
Sometimes, he even forgot that he was still inside his class trial.
He had learned about scenario trials during his years at the academy.
However, his own trial was on an entirely different level.
It had already lasted six years.
He only needed to remain here for another four years before the class trial was complete.
Once those four years passed, he would leave this trial world and return to the real world.
That was why he never worried about growing a little more slowly than the other students.
Unlike them, this world was only temporary for him.
There was no need to risk everything just to gain a little more strength a few years earlier.
As long as he completed the trial successfully, he would return to reality with everything he had earned there.
Magnus suddenly let out a sigh.
"Though it’s a pity."
"You’ve been ordered to head to the front line and support the others."
"It came directly from the Elders."
Kaiser looked at him.
"Why would the Elders order that?"
Magnus clicked his tongue.
"Tch."
"What do you expect from those old coots?"
"They think keeping the bearer of a Divine Mark hidden makes the Death Church look cowardly."
Kaiser nodded.
"It’s fine."
"I’ll go."
"I also want to experience a real battlefield."
Magnus snorted.
"Who are you trying to fool, kid?"
"I know you’ve sneaked into the Bone Forest countless times over the years to fight those monstrosities."
"Not to mention all the life-and-death battles you had against the assassins sent by the Light, Fire, and Earth Churches."
Kaiser smiled helplessly.
"Those weren’t really life-and-death battles."
"I always had a backup plan."
Magnus’ eyes suddenly turned gray.
He activated Eyes of the Underworld, a Tier 5 spell that allowed him to see beyond the material plane and perceive ghosts, undead, and contracted spirits.
His gaze stopped behind Kaiser.
"Are you talking about the Reaper of Devastation standing behind you?"
Kaiser’s eyes also turned gray as he activated the same spell.
"Yes."
"It took me years of preparation to capture and form a contract with him."
Magnus dismissed the spell, his eyes returning to normal.
He looked at Kaiser with disbelief.
"I have to admit..."
"You’re the most talented Divine Mark bearer I’ve ever seen."
He looked once more at the majestic Reaper standing silently behind Kaiser.
It was a terrifying existence.
A Tier 9 Reaper of Devastation.
A being whose strength was already approaching that of a Tier 10 Demigod.
Very few souls in the world had ever reached that level.
Magnus shook his head.
"Even I’m only at Tier 8."
"I can’t even imagine how powerful it’ll become if it reaches Tier 10."
He suddenly froze.
His eyes widened.
"Wait..."
"Don’t tell me."
"You’re going to the front line so you can feed it more souls?"
Kaiser nodded calmly.
"That was part of our contract."
"I’ll help it reach Tier 10."
"In return, it’ll make sure I stay alive for the next thousand years."
Magnus stared at him in silence.
"...That’s certainly one way to form a contract."
He scratched his chin.
"Why didn’t I ever think of doing something like that?"
Kaiser laughed.
"You should be careful."
"I almost died making that contract."
He still remembered that day clearly.
He had entered the Underworld to seek a Champion of Death.
Instead, he had accidentally encountered the Reaper of Devastation.
At that time, it had already been a Tier 8 existence.
The moment it noticed him, he had nearly died.
Only after desperately proposing a contract had he managed to save his life.
Fortunately, the Reaper had accepted.
Over the following years, Kaiser honored their agreement.
Every powerful monster he hunted in the Bone Forest, along with the souls of the assassins sent to kill him, had been offered to the Reaper.
Those countless souls had allowed it to evolve from Tier 8 to Tier 9.
And now...
Only few more souls remained before it could reach the legendary Tier 10.
Magnus looked at Kaiser for a long moment before shaking his head.
"I don’t know whether you’re fearless..."
"Or just insane."
Kaiser smiled.
"I’ve heard both before."
Magnus laughed.
"I believe it."
He stood up and walked toward the window.
Beyond it, countless Death Church disciples were moving through the training grounds.
Many were preparing supplies.
Others were checking their weapons and armor.
"The front line has become much more active recently."
"The three Churches have increased their attacks."
Kaiser walked over and stood beside him.
"How long before we leave?"
Magnus thought for a moment.
"About three days."
"That should be enough time to prepare."
Kaiser nodded.
"I’ll spend the remaining time making supplies."
Magnus looked at him.
"Potions?"
Kaiser shook his head.
"Undead."
"And equipment."
"My Specter Legion still needs to grow."
Magnus smiled.
"Always preparing."
"That’s why you’ve survived this long."
Kaiser simply nodded.
"I don’t like gambling with my life."
Magnus folded his arms.
"Good."
"Because the battlefield won’t give you second chances."
"The enemy won’t wait for you to recover your Mana."
"They won’t fight one at a time."
"They’ll attack together."
Kaiser answered calmly.
"I know."
Magnus continued.
"Your greatest strength isn’t your spells."
"It’s your preparation."
"Never forget that."
Kaiser smiled.
"I won’t."
Magnus suddenly tossed him a small black ring.
Kaiser caught it.
"What is this?"
"A storage ring."
"It isn’t very large."
"But it’ll help."
Runes of Death Mana were engraved along the inside.
He poured a little Mana into it.
A small storage space immediately appeared before his senses.
"About fifty cubic meters."
He looked at Magnus.
"That’s expensive."
Magnus shrugged.
"It was gathering dust anyway."
"You’ll get more use out of it than I ever will."
Kaiser smiled.
"Thanks."
Magnus waved his hand dismissively.
"Just come back alive."
"I’d rather not explain to the Elders how their precious Divine Mark bearer died."
Kaiser laughed.
"I’ll do my best."
After leaving Magnus’ office, Kaiser headed toward his workshop.
The underground room was filled with shelves of materials collected over the past several years.