Death King Karnak

Chapter 94: Chapter 93

The only woman among the Four Martial Kings, Laficel Crotéum.

She is the youngest person in history to have earned the title of Martial King and a great hero of humanity who continued to fight against the Death King, even after the entire world had succumbed to his terror.

Karnak and Baros looked at Serati with disbelief.

"How do you not know?"

"She's one of the Four Martial Kings, right?"

Serati still didn't understand.

"There's no one named Laficel among the Four Martial Kings."

The name Crotéum was familiar, though.

Beltia Crotéum, a swordswoman from Syphras, was currently one of the Four Martial Kings and the only woman among them, known as an absolute powerhouse.

However, she was now over forty years old, a mature woman. She wasn't some young girl.

"Oh, right..."

Karnak and Baros finally realized.

They had momentarily gotten confused, but in retrospect, it made sense that Serati wouldn't know Laficel.

"At this point in time, Laficel hasn't become a Martial King yet, has she?"

"More than that, most of the future Four Martial Kings haven't attained that title at this point in time."

Laven Strauss was still acting as the successor to his father, Martial King Gallard Strauss.

Malikan Tun was still training in seclusion in the eastern refuge and hadn't yet reached the level of a Martial King.

"Dreltain Telix should be active, though. He was a Martial King even in this era."

However, instead of being the elderly swordsman they remembered in his sixties, at this time, he was a vigorous young swordsman in his thirties, having just become a Martial King.

As for Laficel Crotéum...

"She hasn't even become Beltia's disciple yet in this era."

It would be another 20 years after becoming Beltia's disciple and taking on the surname Crotéum before she finally earned the title of Martial King.

Serati glanced at the gray-haired girl confronting the King's Order.

"So you're saying that girl is a future Martial King?"

"Yes."

"Then how...?"

The girl continued elegantly and gracefully knocking out the members of the King's Order, one by one.

Even though she was wielding a sword, she didn't slash at them. She bluntly gathered her aura into her weapon, using the sword like a club rather than a blade.

It was a completely different demeanor from how she had treated Karnak and his group.

"What did you do to this future Martial King that makes her act as if she's facing her sworn enemy?"

Suddenly, Karnak looked sheepish and avoided eye contact.

"Well, it's just that..."

With a sigh, Baros answered for him.

"...Because we are her sworn enemies, of course."

***

It happened when Karnak was fully establishing his infamous reputation as the Death King, turning the world upside down.

By then, most of humanity had already bent the knee to his undead army.

Even the three Archmages and most of the Four Martial Kings had fallen helplessly before the vast powers of the Death King and his cursed subordinates.

However, Laficel did not submit.

She never bowed, no matter what trials and hardships she faced. Even when despair came her way, she rose again and steadfastly opposed the darkness.

Her unyielding resolve was nothing less than a beacon of hope for humanity.

From the perspective of the Death King, she was a major thorn in his side.

As Laficel's continued efforts against the Necropia Empire persisted, Karnak finally decided to personally intervene.

"What did you do to her?"

"My original plan was to capture her master, Beltia, and use her as a hostage."

But the hostage plan didn't work.

Even though she shed tears of blood for her beloved master, Laficel abandoned her and continued to resist the Death King.

She was fighting for justice, for humanity, with unwavering resolve.

"So, I turned Beltia into an undead and ordered her to capture Laficel," Karnak said.

Serati's mouth dropped open.

"What?"

So, he turned her only master, practically like a parent, into an undead and forced them to fight each other?

"I mean, I captured her, so I had to make use of her somehow, right? And Beltia, while past her prime, was still quite useful..."

"You... monster."

"Huh?"

"Nothing."

Listening to this, Serati thought it made perfect sense why Laficel would consider Karnak her sworn enemy.

But Baros then interjected.

"The real story hasn't even started yet."

"...That's not the end of it?"

After Laficel cut down Beltia, she was consumed by even more fury and resisted Karnak with all her might.

However, even she couldn't withstand Karnak after he had transformed into Astra Spiritus.

In the end, her sword broke against the overwhelming onslaught of his undead army.

Karnak inflicted a truly horrific punishment on the captured Laficel.

He stripped her bones to turn them into skeleton soldiers, tore off her flesh to create a flesh golem, and separated her soul to seal it within Living Armor.

—You insolent woman who dared to defy me! I will make you suffer in a hell where you can neither live nor die for all eternity!

"...or so he said," Baros concluded.

Serati turned to look at Karnak, her gaze colder than it would have been if she had spotted a cockroach.

"Wow, even demons would weep at this..."

"I have made many demons weep, actually. You saw it yourself, Serati. Maz-nun, that demon weeped as he disappeared..."

"Stop changing the subject."

"Okay, sorry."

Seeing him hang his head apologetically, it seemed Karnak finally understood just how atrocious his actions had been.

Not that this excused him in the slightest, of course.

With a sigh, Serati muttered under her breath, "Now I understand why she screamed and ran the moment she saw you, Lord Karnak."

If she had experienced something like that in a past life, she would have done the same.

It also made perfect sense why Laficel was so intent on trying to kill both Baros and herself.

One was a close subordinate of the Death King, and the other was his servant.

But then Serati tilted her head in confusion.

'Wait, a past life?'

As she spoke, she realized something important.

"Are you saying that girl is the future Martial King?"

Not 'a girl who will become the Martial King in the future,' but the actual future Martial King herself.

That would explain why she reacted with such fury and hatred upon seeing Karnak.

"That's right."

Karnak had a grave expression on his face.

"That's the future Laficel. Her soul has traveled back through time like ours."

He had realized that her soul came from the future as soon as he identified her.

No matter how strong the future Martial King was, in this current time, she was only around twelve or thirteen years old and hadn't even met her master, Beltia, yet. There was no way she should possess that kind of power.

The real mystery was how she had followed them to this point in time.

"How did she manage to follow us back here?" Karnak wondered.

***

The 1st and 7th battalions of the King's Order were still trying to block the girl's path.

The 7th battalion, fully trusting Karnak, threw themselves into the fight with all their might...

'Oh man, I'm gonna die.'

'I wonder when Captain Karnak will come back.'

The 1st battalion, on the other hand, fought with skepticism they couldn't entirely shake off.

'Are we really following some sort of plan?'

'Didn't he just run away?'

Even so, none of them retreated.

They had begun to realize something important: it was fine to get knocked out by that girl.

Those who had been struck by her fell with such grace. There wasn't even a bruise or a sign of serious injury.

She was fighting with a thoroughly cautious, safety-first attitude.

'Not sure why, but...'

'If things go on like this, we can charge in without worry!'

Though, realistically, they shouldn't have felt so relieved.

Just because there were no external injuries didn't guarantee they were fine. They could look unharmed on the outside but have a broken spine and be paralyzed inside, right?

But they deliberately ignored that thought. Considering such things wouldn't help in the current situation anyway.

With their fighting spirit rising, the 7th Battalion relentlessly charged forward.

"Just hold her back!"

"We're fine even if we fall!"

"If we buy enough time, Captain Karnak will figure something out!"

Karnak's response to this deep trust and beautiful camaraderie was:

"The others are getting hunted down, so let's use this chance to put more distance between us."

Watching the battle unfold, Karnak and Baros quietly edged backward.

Serati was shocked, and asked, "Are you really going to use your comrades as bait?"

"They'll be fine. I told you, they won't die," Karnak replied.

Baros had a similar reaction. "They won't end up crippled either. Laficel wasn't that kind of person."

She was the hope of humanity, someone who never did anything unjust, no matter the situation. Even when her own life was at risk, she never sacrificed the innocent.

Though she was their enemy, both Karnak and Baros acknowledged that Laficel was a true hero.

Which made Serati stare at them in even greater disbelief.

'So you did something so monstrous to such an incredible hero, tore apart her soul, and tortured her? Why am I following these guys?'

Serious doubts about her choices began to creep in.

"Come to think of it, it's strange. Why does she harbor so much hatred for me as well?" Serati wondered aloud.

Karnak? Anyone could see that he deserved her fury.

Baros? The same.

But Serati hadn't done anything to Laficel, so why the intense hatred?

Karnak shot her a glance. "Maybe it's because she sees you as a cowardly human who sold their soul to a vile necromancer to save your own life."

"..."

Leaving the now deflated Serati behind, Karnak and his group continued deeper into the canyon. Eventually, they found a suitably secluded rock to hide behind.

"Curtain of Chaos, drape over me and deceive the eyes of my enemies...."

A 6th Circle concealment spell spread around them, cloaking them in an illusion and hiding not only their appearance but also their presence and scent. It was a higher-tier invisibility spell.

Only after this did Karnak allow himself to relax.

"We'll figure out how she got here later..."

Right now, that wasn't the problem. Surviving was.

"How do we catch her?" Karnak asked, watching Laficel fight.

Baros replied, "Her combat instincts are still as sharp as ever. Just like back in the day."

"Yeah. Ugh, I really don't want to face her."

As the two shuddered at the thought, Serati asked, "Just how strong was she?"

Karnak and Baros answered simultaneously.

"She was the strongest of the Four Martial Kings."

"She was strong, obviously. But the weakest of the Four Martial Kings."

Serati blinked, confused. "Why are you two saying completely different things?"

***

The other Martial Kings were born into noble families and received systematic training from a young age.

In contrast, Laficel's childhood was anything but privileged.

In fact, it would be more accurate to say it wasn't even ordinary.

Born into a poor, common family, she grew up struggling, eventually losing her parents to bandits and becoming an orphan.

Before she was taken in by Beltia, she didn't even have the luxury of training in martial arts. Her daily life was a constant struggle just to get by.

But on the flip side, despite such circumstances, she was so exceptionally talented that when the Martial King of the time saw her, she immediately took her in as her personal disciple.

"Her talent was truly overwhelming."

Of course, talent alone wasn't enough to surpass the other Martial Kings.

After all, no one reaches the level of Martial King without being a genius.

To become a Martial King, one had to be naturally gifted, receive ample support, dedicate themselves to grueling efforts, and even have a bit of luck on their side.

That's why Laficel was considered the weakest of the Four Martial Kings.

"But she had a knack for adapting quickly to any situation."

She was strongest when facing enemies no one had ever encountered before.

No matter how bizarre the enemy's techniques were, she always found a way to break through.

From Baros' perspective, as a warrior, she was somewhat easier to deal with.

But for Karnak, a necromancer, she was the most troublesome of the Four Martial Kings.

"Oh, she was such a pain," Karnak muttered, glancing over the rock.

"Fortunately, she's not as formidable as she used to be."

Serati, shocked, asked, "You mean she's weaker now?"

"Of course. You think someone could become a Martial King with just that level of skill?"

"Exactly. The sky's still blue, and the ground hasn't split open, has it? She's stuck in a young, untrained body right now, that's why she's like that," Baros explained.

Serati's face went blank.

So, when Laficel was in her prime, the sky would change color and the ground would crack?

How strong are these Martial Kings supposed to be? And what does that make Baros, who defeated them all?

"So what's the difference between Sir Baros and that girl?" she asked.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

She understood that both of them were once monstrous beings who had fallen from their prime.

But the degree of their decline seemed different.

Unlike Baros, who couldn't even use his aura anymore, that girl was freely unleashing a purple aura.

"You said you two were equals back in the day, but now the gap between you is enormous..."

"Well, it's different circumstances. Baros and that girl..."

In the middle of their conversation, something clicked.

"Aha!"

Karnak's eyes lit up.

"Of course! There's that method!"

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