The human and elvish heroes, Lloyd and Erian, were heading towards the location of Silene Viesaās distress signal (a level 4 danger zone and a city nearby Bayran) as fast as they could. Whilst doing so, Lloydās face remained tense and displeased.
āI canāt believe it. I thought he valued his comrades more than anyone else.ā
āMm, but you canāt really blame him, Lloyd.ā
Erian, who was running beside him, just smiled bitterly. She, like Lloyd, had attempted to persuade Lee Shin Woo within the chatting channel, but she was doubtful that their rescue attempt would even work.
āLee Shin Woo has the right to prioritize his life over anotherās. Moreoverā¦ Do you remember, Lloyd? When he was still a rookie, Shino asked for our aid, yet we abandoned him. We also did the same with Jin Jin as wellā¦ā
āJin Jinā, she muttered and felt a dull pain in her heart. Though she doubted his plan, she still ran beside him nonetheless; perhaps it was her atonement for not mustering up the courage to save Ye Jin Jin before.
āHe learned how to be a hero from us, soā¦ Itās the correct choice to make as a hero.ā
āUgh. Still, back thenā¦ There was nothing we could do.ā
āI know. I couldnāt do anything either. ā¦And Lee Shin Woo is likely in the same position right now. He told us, didnāt he? That he canāt move right now. I donāt think heās lying. I know because Iām an Elf.ā
āā¦Are you saying heās right?ā
āItās not a matter of right or wrong. You already know, right?ā
Lloydās unfriendly expression remained. Erian sighed softly so that he wouldnāt hear her.
Following their extermination of two of the 12 Generals, Lloyd had been affected by Lee Shin Woo in a variety of ways, two of which being his desire to improve and an unerasable shame.
Lloyd was always hot-blooded and somewhat exhausting to deal with, butā¦ he became even worse following that event.
āIn any case, after the events of that day, Lloyd has continued to train without taking care of himself. Because of that, I was somehow able to reach level 7 too. ā¦Lloyd must think that heās stronger than Lee Shin Woo at this point.ā
In her honest opinion, he had absolutely no chance. āEven if 2 Lloyds were to attack him simultaneously, Lee Shin Woo would still win with easeā, she thought, but she was afraid that saying that would hurt Lloyd, so she couldnāt be honest with him.
āBut then, Silene Viesaās distress signal came at such an auspicious time. That probably made Lloydā¦ remember how Lee Shin Woo had saved Jin Jin. Itās unfortunate, but Retadane died too. ā¦Lloyd must be thinking that Lee Shin Woo failed to save his comrade this time, so if he were to succeed with Silene, then heād be a greater hero than Lee Shin Woo.ā
She couldnāt help but sigh. This pointless competition, which wouldnāt allow him to be outdone by Lee Shin Woo, had caused him to make such a foolish decision.
Erian thought she may actually die this time. She hadnāt taken Lee Shin Wooās warning lightly.
But what could she do? She loved the idiot. So, sheād decided to go with him, regardless of the dangerā¦ or so she thought, but then she felt her temper flare. Following him to their deaths without voicing her opposition would be nothing more than a dogās death. And so, she stopped running.
āā¦Lloyd.ā
āI donāt think Lee Shin Woo was wrong either. But please understand, Erian. With how powerful weāve become, I donāt think we can turn a blind eye to our comrades who are in dangerā¦ā
āLloyd.ā
āUghā¦ā
He kept piling on the excuses, yet Erianās calm voice stifled him. Her unyielding voice had caused him to shut up.
āIām not going to talk about that anymore, Lloyd. I was against it because I thought it was too dangerous, but I came along since you were willing to stake your life on it. Since it would be better for us to die together than to let you die alone.ā
āErianā¦?ā
āDo you still not get it, Lloyd?ā
She really didnāt know what to do with him. Erian smiled bitterly and said.
āI love you enough to risk my life for you.ā
āHuh? Huhā¦? Erian, you loveĀ me? Wait a sec. Huhā¦? You mean like, as a friend?ā
āYou really think I canāt differentiate between the two? Iām not you. The love that all our parents shared; Iām talking about that love. You understand, right? Right?ā
āHey, I know Iām dull and all, but that kind of hurtsā¦ā
Lloydās face reddened instantly. He hesitated and was unable to reply; truly a trait befitting a hero. But Erian sighed in relief, as she had avoided the worst situation; after all, Lloyd hadnāt said something like, āI donāt think this is the time for jokesā and rejected her.
āIām afraid of dying without telling you my feelings, so Iām telling them to you now. You donāt need to answer me right away, so letās get going. Letās go. We have to go save Silene.ā
āā¦I-I got it. Yeah, we have to rescue him. No matter what.ā
And so, Lloyd began running once more, albeit awkwardly. Erian stuck closer to him and just smiled.
It was so easy, so why hadnāt she done it all this time? She almost felt as stupid as Lloyd. āThen again, thatās why we get along so wellā, she thought and smiled softly once more.
Unfortunately, her smile didnāt last long. They went through the city and entered the facility where Silene was trapped, but suddenly, their body and minds tensed up.
[Tch. So only you two showed up, huh?]
āY-Youāreā¦ the Lich!ā
[Guā¦Gahahkā¦!]
They had anticipated some traps, but they didnāt know what types of traps there would be, as well as who would be waiting for them. And the person waiting for them far exceeded their expectations.
[Lv8 Archmage Feotane Von Seldin]
To thinkā¦ the level 8 Lich was awaiting them.
[Guā¦ooohā¦]
[Kihiiā¦]
āWhatā¦ What the hell is this?ā
āS-Senior. Why are you hereā¦?ā
They hadnāt expectedĀ himĀ to be waiting for them, with dozens of high rank undead at thatā¦ no, undead heroes.
āSeniorā¦ Even our great seniors who weāve only heard stories about. Why? Why are you all hereā¦?ā
There was no way they couldāve expected this. The Lich had known about the heroes long ago and collected the heroes that had died within the Empireā¦!
[Now that I think about it, one of you was quite sharpā¦ But he must not have known that I was tracking you as well. With my new power that connects space through darkness, Dark Space!]
āD-Dark Spaceā¦? What are you talking about!?ā
[As I thought, you donāt know. It just means that that lucky fellow will soon become like you.]
The Lich was delighted, as heād finally obtained an innate element, something heād never achieved in the past. However, Lloyd and Erian couldnāt understand him, as they didnāt even know what an innate element was. The Lich just clicked his tongue at their reaction and extended both hands.
[Now, come over here. Donāt worry, Iāll try and keep you intact. Since youāll soon be a part of our Imperial Army!]
[Kihik, undeadā¦ Undeadā¦!]
āKeuk, Sileneā¦!ā
Silene Viesa, whoād baited them here, had become an undead as well. The undead curse had affected him in the worst way possible; although he had become an undead, he still hated the undead, so he was trying to strangle himself.
However, an undead wouldnāt go down from just strangling them. So he, who had lost his life to the Archmage and was imprisoned here, just rolled on the floor, continuously trying to end his life despite being unable to.
It wasnāt enough to call the sight āhorridā. It was much, much worse.
āWhyā¦ Why did you kill Sileneā¦!? What did he do wrongā¦!?ā
[Thatās just junk. To think he couldnāt even accept his new life and tried to end it. How could he be so foolish? He was quite skilled, so I recruited him into the Imperial Army, but if he keeps making such a fuss, then I have no choice but to leave him behind. Now then, I have high hopes for the two of you.]
The Lich, unable to conceal his excitement, continued.
[To think your first reaction upon seeing this many undead was āseniorā. Iām astounded. You consider them heroes, not undead, I see. Itās proof that youāve āovercomeā the curse like us. I donāt doubt that youāll be able to accept reality, even after becoming undead like us!]
āMmā¦!?ā
Hearing that, Lloyd understood. Even if they were previously his seniors, the first emotion that shouldāve come to mind was āhatredā. This was the effect of the undead curse, something that even the heroes couldnāt avoid. Then whyā¦?
āPerhapsā¦ Perhaps itās because I met Shino that one timeā¦ā
What did he think back then? When he saw Shino Rendu rush into the fray to save his comrades, despite becoming an undead, was the first thing he thought of killing him?
No, it wasnāt. Heād said that he was happy to see him, that it was unfortunate that this had happened to him, and that despite everything, he was thankfulā¦ Thatās what heād thought back then. Yeah, now that he thought about it, thatās when everything changed.
But did he reject those feelingsā¦? Nope, not at all! On the contrary, those feelings were natural! It was only natural for a human to feel that way. It didnāt matter whether they were an undead or not!
āIt doesnāt matter to me if theyāre undead or not.ā
The hero, Lloyd H.K., gritted his teeth and gripped his sword. The approaching seniorā¦ the level 6 undead hero that heād met just once several years ago, was cut down and he then declared.
āThey were all heroes with such noble souls. Iām not cutting them down because theyāre undead; Iām putting them to peace so that their wills arenāt defiled any longer. And you, Lich. Iām notā¦ā
[Not going to what?]
The Lich, seemingly interested, brandished his staff and intensified the darkness surrounding the undead heroes. Though he faced a power akin to a Necromancerās, Lloyd didnāt back down. Seeing that, Erian followed suit, gritting her teeth and raising her bow.
āGoing to forgive you. I swear Iāll kill you. In place of all the heroes youāve killed!ā
[Hahahaha. Truly a response befitting one of Godās heroes! I think Iāve heard that same lineā¦ about ten times now.]
The Lich laughed in excitement and Lloyd merely gritted his teeth. Though heād said all that, he was getting pushed back bit by bit by the wave of undead heroes. It was unavoidable; the more confident you sounded, the weaker you appeared!
āSeniorsā¦! Iām sorry. I promise Iāll avenge youā¦!ā
[Canāt you say something original? Every word you say is so cliche that I canāt take it. Are all heroes as frustrating as you? Is that it?]
āEntry number 2, Lee Shin Woo. Iāll try coming up with something original.ā
Thenā¦ the Lich, who was floating in the air, heard a voice coming from behind him.
āHi, the nameās Lee Shin Woo. Iām right behind you.ā
None of the undead had sensed him. Even Erian, with her astute senses, couldnāt sense him, nor could Lloyd. And even the Archmageā¦
[W-Whatā¦]
āI donāt have a heart, soā¦ letās trying breaking yours.ā
This man, whoād managed to fool the āsuper modeā Lich, was obviously Lee Shin Woo, whoād come after finishing his preparations.
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āHow about it? Original enough for you?ā
In one hand, he gripped a crystal shrouded in deep darkness, and in the other, he gripped the Death Godās Shining Bone Sword and winkedā¦ And the Archmage screamed.
[Aieeeeeeh! My heart! How do you have that!?]
Heās the one who wanted them to come up with something, so he couldnāt help but be disappointed by the Archmageās reaction.
Lee Shin Woo snorted and raised the dark red crystal. It was quite the appetizing crystal, which contained the Archmage, Feotane Von Seldinās soul.