Monarch of Death

Reflected in it was the image of a man, stripped to the waist.

At a glance, his physique seemed ordinary.

A moderately built body with just the right amount of flesh and muscle, neither particularly large nor small. If you brought any young man and had him undress, he would look similar.

However, Karnak felt a deep sense of satisfaction.

“Wow, my body has really improved, hasn’t it?”

He smiled brightly, flexing his muscles.

His body, which had always been somewhere between a weakling and dried fish, now looked quite human.

“Aren’t these muscles pretty decent, Varos?”

As Karnak admired the results of his intense training, his loyal servant sincerely responded.

“After rolling around like that, any man should have at least that much muscle. No, even a woman would reach that level. You’ve been eating a lot of meat, after all.”

“Considering I’ve changed this much in just a month, can’t you at least give me some praise?”

“How little must you have moved before if you changed so much in just one month? Please, be aware of your own limits.”

Karnak paused in slight bewilderment.

Varos’ usual attitude was arrogant as always, but something felt different.

Realizing the reason, Karnak patted Varos on the shoulder.

“Don’t worry too much. It’ll be fine.”

Karnak would soon face Randolph in a duel trial. Varos was understandably anxious about this.

“How can I not worry?”

No matter how well-prepared one might be, the world is unpredictable.

“If things don’t go as planned, use necromancy right away. Just kill everyone watching and run.”

“Ah, that would just be repeating the past, wouldn’t it?”

“Isn’t that better than dying on the spot? Winning the duel won’t mean much if you lose your head first.”

For most people, losing their head would be the end, but Karnak was different. Even if killed, he could use necromancy to resurrect as an undead.

Though he would lose human sensations in exchange.

“Even if I flee, I have to escape alive. I gave up everything and came back because I wanted to live like a human.”

“Fine, fine.”

Soothing Varos, Karnak turned his head.

He saw the armor, longsword, and shield standing in one corner of the room. These were the weapons Varos had meticulously prepared for this day.

As he moved towards them, Karnak murmured seriously,

“Let’s go, to the dueling ground.”

* * *

The temporary arena for the duel trial had been set up in the northern plains where Alium’s temple was located.

This area, on the border between the Zestrad and Deventor territories, was usually a place where few people ventured. Aside from priests and shepherds, almost no one frequented this location.

But now, a large crowd had gathered.

Varos, upon arriving at the arena, looked around with his mouth agape.

“Wow, there are way more spectators than I expected!”

On both sides of the arena were people from the Zestrad Barony and the Deventor Barony, along with priests of Alium who were there to oversee the trial.

The crowd easily exceeded a hundred people.

Karnak, dressed in armor, moved forward and whispered quietly,

“Of course. This is a duel that will determine the fate of the territories.”

“This isn’t the time to be speaking like it’s someone else’s problem, is it?”

Still unable to hide his worried expression, Varos asked,

“If things go wrong, do you think you can escape?”

“With this number, it’s definitely possible.”

Finally, Varos let out a sigh of relief at Karnak’s calm demeanor.

Inwardly, Karnak gave a bitter smile.

‘Well, it’s not exactly a lie.’

He was confident he could escape.

But he had no confidence in killing them all.

‘If I run, my identity will be exposed immediately.’

He knew all too well what it would mean to live the rest of his life as a necromancer, constantly hunted.

‘I have no choice but to win this duel.’

Amidst the bustling atmosphere, Karnak walked towards the entrance of the arena.

As he moved, the people of the barony wiped their tears and offered prayers.

“Oh, young master…”

“May Alium watch over our lord…”

“Please avenge the former head of the family!”

The response was more positive than he had expected.

They weren’t treating him as if he were already dead; they genuinely believed there was a chance he could win.

To Karnak, this was laughable.

Logically speaking, how could a clueless scholar who had trained in secret for only three months possibly defeat a seasoned knight?

‘I must’ve really talked them up well.’

Then again, if he had intended to use necromancy during the duel, it made sense that his confidence had rubbed off on those around him.

‘Though they don’t realize that would’ve been the path to ruin, sigh…’

Soon, a priest appeared in the center of the arena.

The middle-aged priest raised his hand to quiet the crowd.

“Silence before the authority of Alium!”

The surroundings quickly fell silent.

The trial had begun.

“Both sides have claimed that the other’s evidence is false, so under the great protection of Alium, the truth shall be revealed!”

The priest’s voice rang out.

“Lord of Zestrad, duelist Karnak, step forward before the Goddess!”

Karnak entered the arena.

Clad in gleaming steel armor and carrying a shield bearing his family’s crest, he cut an impressive figure. Cheers erupted from the Zestrad side.

“Waaah!”

The priest’s voice echoed once more.

“Sir Randolph, duelist of Deventor, step forward before the Goddess!”

Another round of cheers erupted, this time from the Deventor side.

“Waaah!”

Amid the applause, a large man stepped into the arena.

It was Randolph, dressed in simple everyday clothing.

Unlike Karnak, he wore no armor and carried no shield. He had only a large, familiar greatsword strapped to his back.

This was a prearranged agreement. Given the skill levels of both sides, this was deemed necessary for the duel to be fair.

Of course, even with these conditions, Randolph still had a significant advantage. This was evident in the confident smile that remained on his face.

The two men walked slowly until they finally stood face-to-face in the center of the arena.

Holding up a sacred relic of Alium, the priest asked,

“Duelists, do you swear to fight honorably in the name of Alium?”

Karnak drew his sword and brought it before his helmet as he answered,

“I swear upon the honor of Zestrad!”

Randolph did not draw his sword. Instead, he simply declared with arrogance,

“I swear upon the honor of Deventor!”

Nodding, the priest stepped back.

“Under the protection of the Goddess, the scales of justice shall tip.”

The middle-aged priest, now outside the arena, made one final proclamation.

“Let the duel trial begin!”

***

Randolph drew the sword from his back.

*Shrring!*

The chilling sound of steel slicing through the air was unnervingly sharp. Though the sword wasn’t particularly large, the sound made Karnak’s body instinctively tense.

But Karnak did not flinch.

He had anticipated this, and Varos had made sure to repeatedly practice drawing and sheathing the sword to produce the intimidating *shrring* sound.

“Youngling of Zestrad.”

Letting his sword hang loosely, Randolph sneered viciously.

“I don’t know what you’ve been up to these past three months…”

He casually stepped forward. At the same time, a slash aimed at Karnak’s shoulder came flying in.

Karnak swiftly raised his shield to block.

*Thud!*

With a clash of metal, Karnak was pushed back several steps. But he didn’t fall.

Randolph didn’t seem particularly surprised that his attack had been blocked. In fact, it was a strike so light that it would have been surprising if Karnak hadn’t blocked it.

“The path of the sword isn’t so shallow that it can be mastered in just a few months.”

Randolph sneered as he pressed his attack, while Karnak responded seriously.

After blocking Randolph’s strikes with his shield, Karnak would counterattack. But Randolph would easily dodge and launch another strike. Karnak would block again with his shield and then counter once more.

*Clang, clang!*

The sound of clashing steel echoed as the exchange continued.

To an observer, it seemed like a fairly impressive duel, prompting cheers from the Zestrad side.

“Ooooh!”

“The young master is fighting well!”

“He’s not the young master anymore! We should call him Lord!”

Karnak, too, felt a sense of relief.

‘Luckily, the opening has gone as Varos predicted.’

Randolph’s attacks weren’t particularly fast or powerful. They were clearly intended to gauge Karnak’s skill level.

Even the trajectory of the attacks was so predictable that Karnak could easily block them by following his training.

So, there was only one thing for him to do.

He let out the loudest battle cry he could muster…

“Take this!”

…and with every ounce of his strength and determination, he showed a fearless spirit, as if he had no regard for his own life.

*Clang! Clang! Clang!*

Several more strikes were exchanged before Randolph muttered with satisfaction,

“Your resolve is impressive.”

To be honest, Karnak’s skill was nothing special.

He couldn’t be considered a proper knight. In fact, he wasn’t even at the level of a competent soldier.

But his attitude towards the fight was commendable.

‘This should be enough to make this duel trial seem legitimate.’

Randolph’s swordsmanship stepped up a level. A more forceful and deliberate strike came straight at Karnak.

“Hup!”

If he tried to block it with his shield, it seemed likely that he’d be cut down entirely.

But Karnak wasn’t fazed.

‘Just as expected!’

As if he had been waiting for this moment, Karnak threw himself to the ground and rolled away.

“Huh?”

Randolph was momentarily taken aback. He hadn’t expected his opponent to dodge so pathetically.

On the battlefield, this would have been the moment to simply chase after Karnak and stab him to end the fight.

‘But this is a duel, and such a move would be inappropriate…’

So, Randolph waited for Karnak to get back up. Then he swung his sword again…

*Roll!*

“Huh?”

…only for Karnak to roll away again.

Randolph swung once more…

*Roll, roll, roll!*

“This little…?”

Randolph was both baffled and starting to get a bit irritated.

Did Karnak really think that rolling around would eventually give him an opening to win?

‘Does he really think so little of a knight’s honor?’

Randolph’s demeanor shifted slightly.

“This… seems like it requires a bit more seriousness.”

He was moving from merely testing his opponent to applying a bit more pressure. Any experienced warrior would know that a more serious assault was about to begin.

Of course, Karnak had no experience in swordsmanship. He wasn’t even aware that Randolph’s attitude had changed.

But what Karnak did have was a loyal servant overflowing with combat experience.

“Young master!”

Varos shouted out. It was the prearranged signal.

‘Ah, is it now?’

Honestly, Karnak couldn’t tell what had changed, but if Varos said it was time, then it was.

Suddenly, Karnak dropped his shield.

“Huh?”

Randolph was momentarily taken aback.

‘Has he lost his mind, discarding his shield like that?’

Of course, in reality, it didn’t matter whether Karnak had a shield or not. If Randolph wanted to, he could take Karnak’s head at any moment.

But that was from Randolph’s perspective, not something Karnak should be doing.

With his shield discarded, Karnak assumed a formal stance.

“I shall take this seriously as well, Sir Randolph!”

He gripped his longsword with both hands and pointed it at his opponent. It was a stance that Varos had painstakingly drilled into him over the course of half a day.

A murmur spread through the ranks of the Deventor knights.

“What?”

“That stance…”

“Could it be?”

This wasn’t the swordsmanship of the Zestrad family.

It was a far more renowned technique, particularly in the northern part of the Kingdom of Ustil, where any knight worth their salt would recognize it.

Randolph muttered in disbelief,

“Delphiad Swordsmanship?”