Chapter 78: The Bone-us Round
The battle was over. The field was littered with the crumpled bodies of the armored skeletons. The air still hung heavy with the reek of ozone and the scent of pulverized bone. Karl’s soldiers, now clad in the gleaming green-steel armor, looked formidable, their blue eyes now a cold promise of power.
Later, as the group approached the ziggurat, the sheer scale of the structure became terrifyingly apparent. It was a massive, stepped pyramid of obsidian-like stone, its glowing green circuits snaking up its sides like an impossibly large spider’s web. The air grew even colder, the dark mana so thick it felt like a physical weight on Schalezusk’s shoulders. A low, rhythmic hum emanated from the ziggurat, a sound that seemed to resonate in their bones.
They had not been detected yet, but the number of enemies surrounding the ziggurat was staggering. Their blue-glowing eyes dotted the landscape, a sea of silent, wandering sentinels. They were outnumbered not 20 to 1, but perhaps 50 to 1. Schalezusk, his bravado from the earlier fight gone, gulped. "How do we exactly enter that structure? There’s so many of them," he said, his voice a low tremor. "As much as I want to fight them, I think there’s at least 1,000 of them just wandering around."
Leo didn’t say anything, his eyes already analyzing every possible tactical approach. His mind was racing through strategies: diversionary tactics, stealth insertions, or a full-frontal assault. But the numbers were a cold, hard fact. Karl agreed with the orc. He’s right. We might not be outmatched in quality, but we’re so outnumbered. The worst-case scenario is they’ll bury us alive with sheer numbers alone.
Then, Leo saw something on the upper reaches of the ziggurat. He pointed with a subtle gesture. "My lord, what’s that?"
Karl squinted, focusing his vision on the figures. He activated his system, zooming in to read the text above their heads. His eyes widened in a mix of fear and excitement.
[ Level 20 Undead Knight ]
"Oh, shit!" Karl said. "That’s a knight." They had been fighting Level 5 Footsoldiers all the way to the ziggurat, but the appearance of a Level 20 Undead Knight was a wild card. And there wasn’t just one; there were several guarding the main entrance. The Knights’ armor was even more intricate, their swords glowing with an inner, malevolent light.
Rook stepped forward, his hand resting on his katana’s hilt. "I think I can take them on, my lord."
"Yeah, you sure can," Karl said, "but we’re still outnumbered by the footsoldiers down there."
"I agree," Leo said, his voice calm but firm. "We need a new approach."
Karl scrolled through his skills, searching for a solution. His attention was immediately drawn to a specific skill: [ Re-Summon ]. The description stated he could re-summon the Corpse King wherever he was for 50 mana. Perfect, he thought, a smirk forming on his face. He only had 95 mana, so it would be a costly move, but the Corpse King was the perfect tool against these massive numbers.
Just then, the atmosphere changed again. The air grew so thick with dark mana that it felt as if they were submerged in a viscous fluid. Everyone felt a chilling aura that was far more powerful than the ambient energy of the floor. Karl looked up and saw it.
It was a headless knight on a spectral, armored horse. In its arms, it held its own helmet, its empty eye sockets glowing with a hateful, red light. The creature emitted a natural miasma of dark mana, unlike the ziggurat which simply had it in the air. The very space around the knight seemed to distort, filled with a primal, suffocating fear. Everyone tensed. Rook’s hand tightened on the hilt of his katana, Leo readied his spear-hand, and even the one-armed Schalezusk gripped his axe.
"I feel like that one is extremely dangerous," Schalezusk whispered, his voice trembling slightly.
Karl squinted, focusing all of his vision to read the text above its head.
[ Level 60 Dullahan ]
His eyes widened in fear, but also in awe. "Th-That’s a Level 60 Dullahan," he said, his voice a dry rasp. "Nearly twice as strong as you guys." He looked at Rook and Leo, whose silent rivalry was a constant undercurrent between them.
Rook, ever the pragmatist, turned to Leo. "Do you think you can work with me on this one?" he said, his voice unusually grave.
Leo smirked, a hint of respect in his eyes. "I wouldn’t have it any other way. We can’t defeat that alone." It was a moment of mutual understanding, a shared acknowledgment that their combined skill was the only thing that could challenge this new threat.
Rook then looked at Karl. "Don’t worry, my lord. The men will protect you from the inferior ones."
Karl’s face split into an evil grin, the sight more terrifying to his minions than the Level 60 opponent. He scrolled through his skills and selected the one he had been waiting for.
"No," he said, a low, guttural sound. "Let’s level the playing field."
He lifted his hand, his skeletal palm facing the vast, open space a distance away from them. A dark purple vortex appeared in the air, rippling like liquid darkness. It spun and swirled, growing larger and more chaotic, before a gigantic form burst from within it. The Corpse King, summoned and roaring with a primal, bone-shaking fury, landed on the cracked earth. The footsoldiers and knights, who had been lumbering aimlessly, turned their heads in unison, their red eyes fixed on the new threat.
"I summon you, Corpse King!" Karl roared, his voice amplified by his necromantic power. Everyone, even the enemies, looked from Karl to the golem in awe. Schalezusk smiled. "Let’s go and smash some skulls!"
The Dullahan, sensing the true power of the Corpse King, drew its sword and pointed it at the golem. The footsoldiers and knights, in a massive, coordinated charge, rushed towards Karl and his men.
"Form a shield wall!" Rook commanded. The soldiers positioned themselves in a tight formation, their newly acquired green-steel shields gleaming in the strange, artificial light.
"Corpse King!" Karl roared again. "Go on a rampage!" The golem let out a deafening roar that made even Schalezusk cover his ears. With an impossible leap, the colossal creature soared high into the air, its shadow momentarily eclipsing the artificial sunlight. It met the ground with a devastating smash, a bone-jarring impact that sent a massive shockwave rippling through the battlefield. The footsoldiers near ground zero were instantly pulverized, their bones and shattered armor flying in all directions. The rest were sent tumbling backward, their formation shattered.
"Charge!" Rook yelled, leading his soldiers into the now-disorganized ranks of the enemy. Schalezusk, ecstatic, charged with them. From a distance, Leo watched, his mind already calculating the Corpse King’s destructive potential and the next phase of the battle. The Dullahan, its attention now fully on the Corpse King, galloped forward, its sword aimed at the immense golem.
The golem easily swatted away the footsoldiers surrounding it, its massive fists smashing into the ground and pulverizing anyone nearby. Each blow sent a shockwave that launched more of the lesser enemies into the air like rag dolls. The Undead Knights, however, were more intelligent. They flanked the golem and began to slash at its ankles, their swords sparking against its stone hide. The golem, undeterred by the lack of pain, turned its attention to the knights, who were using hit-and-run tactics.
They were confident on their speed and thought that the golem that size must be slow. Little did they know that the golem was more than just raw power. It sped up, intercepting one of the knights, and caught it with a speed that defied its massive size. The Knights were surprised at this. The golem then roared in the knight’s face, a sound that shook the very ground, and with a monstrous heave, threw it like a baseball pitcher at one of the other knights in the distance. The accuracy was shocking; the two knights collided in a shower of sparks and shattered metal.
The Corpse King then turned back to the footsoldiers, who were now engaged with Karl’s soldiers. With another impossible leap, it launched itself not into them, but onto the ziggurat itself. The Dullahan, who had been galloping forward to engage, turned in place, its attention now fully on the immense golem on the Ziggurat. All the enemy footsoldiers, their singular-minded focus shifted by the new threat, also turned their backs on Karl’s forces. Their priority was not the threat that Karl and his forces had brought but protecting the ziggurat that was now being smashed by the golem to attract their attention.
Leo was amazed by the sudden flow of the battle, his predictions was that the Corpse King would use it’s strength to distract most of the forces, so that Rook’s team would intercept the knights and Rook and himself would defeat the Dullahan. But the unexpected flow threw him and the Dullahan off guard.
Rook, sensing the opportunity, yelled, "Advance!" His soldiers, their formation now a tight, disciplined wedge, charged forward into the ziggurat.
Leo smiled, looking at Karl with a newfound respect. My lord’s plans are incomprehensible. By using the Corpse King as the ultimate distraction, our forces can now approach the ziggurat and eliminate the enemy forces easily. The enemies would have no choice but to be constantly distracted, protecting the ziggurat from both sides.
Karl, however, never had any plans; he just went along with it, confident that everything would go right.
Leo bowed politely. "I’ll leave you be, my lord. I must help Rook fight the Dullahan."
Karl nodded. "Go on. I’ll be safe here."
As Leo dashed towards the battlefield, weaving through the chaos and eliminating stragglers, Karl stood alone, a silent observer of the spectacle. He was smiling, a cold, satisfied grin, as he watched the unfolding chaos. "I could use some popcorn and Dr. Pepper right about now."
He raised his hand and fired a [ Necrotic Bolt ] at one of the footsoldiers on his right side, who had been blown away by the initial shockwave. The bolt hit the skeleton’s chest plate, and with a shower of sparks and a deafening explosion, it was instantly vaporized.