Chapter 37

Chapter 37: Lord of the Underworld vs. Sealing

A series of unpleasant explosions resounded along with intense flashes of light, dyeing the vision of those present pure white. It was the activation of the Wind's 8th Staircase, "Great Discharge."

The human body is sturdy yet fragile.

While it can endure lightning, it can also be stopped by a small electric current. Ultimately, it depends on where it hits.

And this Wind's 8th Staircase, "Great Discharge," is a magic that generates a large electric current throughout the surrounding area. It is no exaggeration to say that anyone caught within its range will undoubtedly die. Of course, it is a different story if there is sufficient defense.

"Gah... Ku, so..."

The boss with the Red Claw barely endured with an indiscriminate barrier magic. He suffered burns all over his body, making him seriously injured but still alive. However, he could no longer move with his current state. He would die if left alone.

And he was one of the few who endured well, as most others had been struck by lightning and died.

Numerous bodies were scattered, and the smell of burnt flesh filled the air.

Only one person managed to withstand the surprise attack of such a powerful magic.

"What... is this..."

Celstar Altarain, who protected himself from the electric current with a split-second barrier magic, was at a loss for words. Indeed, it was understandable that such a result would occur when a massive magic attack was unleashed in a densely populated area.

However, whether it could be tolerated or not was a different matter.

"Seems like putting up the barrier to prevent the dark organization's guys from escaping backfired..."

And the reason why the "Great Discharge" became so powerful was also due to the five Holy Knights who had set up a barrier of solar magic. The electricity did not diffuse due to the barrier but reflected back inside, causing the power to increase.

If it weren't for this, there would have been a few more survivors.

"Captain! What on earth happened?"

Underneath Celstar, who stood dumbfounded, the Holy Knights who had set up the barrier approached. Although it was an unintended consequence, they managed to eliminate the dark organization's mage knights. There was no point in maintaining the barrier.

Seeing them, Celstar immediately gave orders.

"Focus on healing first. If anyone is still alive, they might be saved!"

"Understood. We'll get to work, everyone."

The other four Holy Knights nodded in response to the call of one Holy Knight. They approached the surviving Holy Knight who still had a pulse and began the healing process using solar magic.

In the meantime, Celstar looked around.

"Come to think of it, where is the Vice Captain...? Did they manage to escape through teleportation?"

Celstar trusted the Vice Captain of the Sealing Holy Knight Order. It was not only because of their skills but also their personality and their diligent work. It was hard to believe that the Vice Captain, who was also an A-ranked mage knight, would be taken down easily. Celstar immediately started searching for their presence.

However, they had no choice but to interrupt their search.

"Death"

"Ugh..."

Suddenly, a voice was heard from the sky.

As the voice reached Celstar's ears, he felt a sensation of losing strength. It was as if his magical power had been drained all at once, causing him to involuntarily kneel.

"Hmm, it's the first time I couldn't kill someone with one strike."

"It's unfair to attack unexpectedly."

"It's your fault for being careless. If you had been attentive to your magical power, you would have noticed it."

"Oh no, that's right..."

Indeed, Celstar thought so.

He didn't know what kind of attack it was, but he was caught off guard because he had let his guard down. If he had paid attention to the culprit who launched the "Great Discharge" and been cautious, he wouldn't have made such a blunder.

After recovering from the sense of exhaustion caused by the loss of magical power, Celstar raised his eyes.

Then, two people descended from above and landed.

"You...!"

It was a face Celstar remembered.

He had marked him as a person to be cautious of even within the Holy Knights. He couldn't forget.

"Shuu... no, King of Darkness, Arclight!"

He must have guessed his true identity. Shuu narrowed his eyes and spoke.

"What's wrong? So you found out after all."

"Is it okay to say it, Shuu-san?"

"There's no point in trying to deceive. Besides, I plan to kill them here. The reward of 10 million gold is quite appealing."

The purpose of killing me is for a reward.

After hearing that, Celstar was convinced that Shuu was the assassin known as the Black Cat, the "Grim Reaper." And he was the enemy that had to be defeated here.

"Captain! I'll assist you!"

"If he's the King of Darkness, then the one next to him must be the Witch!"

"We'll subjugate them here. We'll avenge our comrades!"

"You wicked being who harms people! I'll defeat you here!"

"Be cautious of their magic. First, protect yourself with Solar Magics!"

The Holy Knights, who had been focused on healing, must have considered the King of Darkness a higher priority. They quickly approached Celstar's side and manifested their magical armors, preparing for battle.

Celstar also stood up and summoned his own magical armor, wielding a rapier.

Shuu became wary of this.

(My death magic is a magic that drains energy. It should have taken away all of Celstar's life force and magical power... Why isn't he dead?)

Perhaps the fact that he was awakened was related to it. Shuu thought so.

However, he didn't know the details of the awakening of magical armors. Therefore, he didn't know the reason why Celstar didn't die.

"Iris, I'll handle it from here. Just watch."

"Understood."

In response to Shuu's words, Iris stepped back, and Shuu took one step forward.

In turn, Celstar took a step forward as well.

"I am Celshtar Altrain, the Holy Knight of Seals and an S-rank Mage-Knight. I shall defeat you."

"Dark Lord Arklight. I will kill you."

The other five were getting in the way of Celshtar's fight. Shu thought so and immediately cast Death Magic.

"First, let's get rid of the interference. 'Death Des'."

As a result, without even a chance to utter a sound, the five Holy Knights collapsed. Their magical armors shattered into magical particles and remained motionless. It seemed that only Celshtar was immune to instant death magic. Awakening must truly be something special.

Realizing that their fellow Holy Knights had been killed in an instant, Celshtar calmly expressed his anger and thrust his rapier forward.

"Hah!"

"Tch."

Shu couldn't avoid the lightning-fast thrust. Basically, Shu was a sorcerer and not skilled in close combat. Furthermore, with Celshtar as his opponent, his magic formation for vector reversal through acceleration magic would also be broken.

The rapier pierced his left shoulder, and Shu cast Death Magic once more.

"Guh...!?"

Once again, his strength drained away, and the force behind the rapier weakened considerably. Taking advantage of this opening, Shu kicked Celshtar in the abdomen and pulled out the rapier stuck in his shoulder.

Since Shu was a spirit-type creature, no blood flowed, and there was no pain.

However, there was a strange discomfort in his shoulder.

"My left shoulder feels stiff..."

"It seems you've noticed."

"Huh!? You're still alive..."

Celshtar had survived two rounds of Shu's Death Magic.

Shu was astonished by this fact.

But leaving that aside, Celshtar stood up and readjusted his rapier.

"Does that rapier possess the power to paralyze where it pierces?"

"Paralyze...? I see. I intended to immobilize you completely, but it seems it only caused a slight discomfort."

"I see. By delivering attacks that slow down the opponent's movements, you, as a rapier wielder who can deliver swift thrusts, gain an accelerating advantage. It's a troublesome power."

As Shu murmured, Celshtar responded by thrusting again at lightning speed. This time, Shu was able to predict the movement and used acceleration and teleportation magic on himself to evade.

In response to his evasion, Celshtar swung his rapier horizontally, sending out a slash. It was a type of non-systematic magic that launched magical power, which even spiritualization couldn't pass through.

"Damn it..."

Blown away by the strong impact, Shu put his hands on the ground, somersaulted, and regained his posture. And when he returned his gaze, Celshtar was ignoring Shu and heading towards Iris.

"What...?"

"First, let me dispose of the witch."

In an instant, Shuu's mind went blank.

Since Iris was primarily a rear guard who fought with magic, she couldn't avoid Celeste's attacks. A series of thrusts were unleashed, piercing multiple holes in Iris's body.

"Ouch... Aah..."

"This is the finishing blow."

"Like I'll let you!"

Shuu used death magic and aimed for Celeste's rapier. The magic armor was formed by magic power, so if he killed her, the magic armor would shatter.

With a single strike, the magic armor's rapier shattered, surprising Celeste. Seizing the opportunity, Shuu approached Celeste with acceleration magic and blew her away with a body slam.

"Are you okay, Iris?"

"Ugh... It hurts."

"What about the immortal magic armor? Aren't your wounds healing?"

Iris possessed the power of immortality. As long as her magic power lasted, she could heal any wounds, illnesses, or abnormalities. However, the wounds inflicted by Celeste showed no signs of healing.

This surprised Shuu as well.

"Could it be that it inhibits regeneration? It's not a paralyzing power?"

Just as he reached that thought, Shuu felt a sense of a puzzle piece fitting in his mind. The power he thought would paralyze the target, the power that inhibited Iris's magic armor, the recognition inhibition he saw in Alte, and the reason he was called the "Sealed" Holy Knight...

"Seal!"

"It seems you've realized."

Celeste, who was blown away by the body slam, returned and responded to Shuu's words. In her hand, the rapier of the magic armor had already been regenerated.

"If I seal the recognition of oneself, I become imperceptible to the surroundings. If I seal the muscles of the pierced target, they become unable to move. If I seal the magic power, the magic armor and magic cannot be used."

Celeste revealed her abilities in a casual tone.

In other words, everything that happened so far was caused by the power of sealing. Now that Iris's immortality was sealed, her wounds couldn't be healed.

"Ugh... Shuu-san..."

"Iris."

Shuu could only speak to Iris, who let out a feeble voice in a painful state. Because Shuu hadn't acquired healing magic.

He briefly considered using death magic to kill the seal, but immediately dismissed the thought. It would be disastrous if he accidentally killed Iris as well.

That's why Shuu used the power he didn't intend to use.

"Kill"

Black magical power welled up and engulfed Shuu's body.

Then, the black magic coiled and attacked Celstar. Hurriedly evading, Celstar was surrounded by death magic imbued with the concept of death, which split like tendrils and closed in on Celstar from all directions.

"What is this..."

And Celstar saw it.

Grass touched by death magic crumbled into pieces and even the ground turned to ash. Even large trees had been invaded by "death" in an instant.

The approaching death magic was clearly dangerous. Celstar realized this and evaded with all their might. And to seal the death magic, they slashed it with their rapier.

However, something unexpected happened to Celstar.

"What! How foolish!"

It was unavoidable to let out such an exclamation unintentionally.

Because in an instant, the rapier touched by death magic crumbled away. The power of the Demon Lord, imbued with the concept of killing everything. Now, they understood who they had made an enemy of.

(This is futile... I can't seal it even with my power!)

The death magic, twisting and swirling, finally entangled Celstar's right arm. And in the blink of an eye, it began killing their body, causing it to lose color and crumble like ash.

Even the spurting blood was killed, and the magic armor they had confidence in was useless.

Despair filled Celstar's mind in an instant.

However, Shuu mercilessly manipulated the death magic. And as Celstar desperately tried to escape, Shuu reached out their right hand and spoke.

"If you die, Iris's seal will be released... right? So please die. For my sake."

And as if crushing something, they tightly clenched their right hand.

Simultaneously, the death magic enveloped Celstar's entire body. In less than a second, their presence vanished. The death magic exterminated every atom, every magical element, erasing every aspect that constituted the person known as Celstar from this world.

"Phew..."

Confirming Celstar's disappearance, Shuu dissipated the death magic. This death magic not only consumed a significant amount of magical power but also caused severe mental exhaustion. It was not a power they wanted to use often.

To obtain magical power, one needs to absorb it through death magic, eat meals, kill living beings, and perform similar acts. It doesn't naturally replenish. Shuu felt a considerable decrease in the magical power they had accumulated.

However, there was no regret.

With Iris's life at stake, there was no other choice but to use death magic against Celstar, who was immune to death magic.

"Are you alright, Iris!"

And Shuu immediately turned toward Iris, confirming her safety.