Monarch of Death

“The corpse has been completely drained of blood.”

“It matches the victims of the cursed sword Mareda.”

Confused, Jiken asked, “Are you saying the cursed sword appeared in the middle of the city?”

That was odd enough, but there was something even stranger.

“And neither of you sensed anything?”

The King’s Order’s lodgings and the place where the body was found were only about a block apart.

If the cursed sword had used the power of darkness, there was no way the clerics wouldn’t have sensed it.

Shrugging, the two priestess answered in uncertain voices.

“I don’t know…”

“I was asleep…”

It wasn’t entirely their fault.

The surroundings were unnaturally clean. There was no trace of darkness, like malevolent energy or an aura of malice, to be felt.

It was no wonder they hadn’t sensed anything.

[Even I didn’t feel anything.]

[You too, Young Master?]

Baros asked, perplexed.

[But necromancy was involved. How could you not feel anything, Young Master?]

[I know, that’s why I said I was shocked too.]

It was absurd.

If the cursed sword had used its power, there should have been traces left behind.

But if no force had been used, why had Wallace and Beric fallen?

“Let me ask in return.”

Jiken, who had been thinking about something, questioned the two clerics.

“In what scenario could these two be killed without either of you sensing anything?”

Meili and Millia exchanged glances.

“Huh?”

“Um, well…”

This was a situation they hadn’t considered before.

After a long pause, Meili was the first to answer.

“In a situation like this, it could be possible.”

Someone unconnected to necromancy subdues and kills Wallace and Beric, and then the cursed sword Mareda simply drains their blood afterward.

“In that case, we wouldn’t have sensed anything. The blood-draining process happens inside the body, so nothing would spread externally.”

Millia offered her own explanation.

“This scenario is also possible.”

The place where Wallace and Beric were killed might not be here at all.

“If they were killed far enough away that we couldn’t sense it, and then their blood-drained corpses were brought here, we wouldn’t have noticed anything.”

Jiken’s expression hardened even more.

“Both lead to one conclusion.”

There was an accomplice.

This means someone was either helping the cursed sword Mareda from behind, or a third party with the ability to control the sword’s movements was involved.

“Because the cursed sword itself wouldn’t be capable of making such a decision.”

At this point, the most suspicious culprits were clear.

“Could it be the Cult of the Dark God?”

At Jiken’s words, Karnak narrowed his eyes.

[That seems unlikely.]

[Why?]

At Serati’s question, he glanced at the two clerics.

[If those cult bastards had used their power, I would’ve noticed. Even if these two didn’t.]

[But they could have avoided using necromancy, right?]

[Does the cult even have someone that skilled?]

Wallace and Beric were members of the King’s Order, elite among the elite. Would such a powerful individual, capable of killing them without necromancy, really be part of the Dark God’s cult?

Serati thought it was possible.

[Faith isn’t always born from practicality.]

[You’ve got a point there.]

Karnak tilted his head in thought.

[Come to think of it, maybe those cultists really were involved?]

[Why the sudden change of mind?]

[It’s just… this is another method I don’t know.]

Looking down at the shriveled corpses, Karnak frowned.

[Since my return, any necromancy I didn’t know about has always been related to those guys.]

***

Jiken gathered the entire 1st and 7th Battalions at an inn. There was a chance that the cursed sword Mareda might strike again during the night.

They even set up night watches, remaining on high alert.

Night watches in the middle of the city seemed ridiculous, but no one complained.

After all, two comrades had just been killed.

Most stayed up all night or only slept lightly, so it was questionable whether night watches were even necessary.

Thus, the entire King’s Order spent a tense night.

However, the cursed sword did not reappear by the time the morning sun rose.

***

A small room on the second floor of the inn.

The leadership of the 1st and 7th Battalions gathered to discuss what to do next.

Looking at Jiken, Harris asked, “What do we do now, Captain?”

Originally, the plan was to remain here in the city of Archenbart, waiting for another victim of the cursed sword to appear so they could focus their search there.

Since they had already lost the trail, they had no other choice.

They couldn’t just wander aimlessly through the wilderness with no leads, could they?

The cursed sword Mareda had been attacking villages in this area, so they had assumed they could easily track it down again.

But now, it had shown up in the middle of the city. Their starting premise had completely changed.

Trib frowned. “This is troublesome. This is entirely different from tracking an ordinary fugitive.”

If the target were cultists, there was a specific method to track them.

Since they were human, they couldn’t escape the basic needs of food, clothing, and shelter, allowing a somewhat limited search range.

However, the cursed sword drained human blood to supply energy to its host. This meant it had no need for meals.

Furthermore, it didn’t care about the host’s health, so there was no need to sleep under a roof or wear decent clothes.

Meili, a priestess of the Goddess of Fire, Katerra, clicked her tongue.

“We’re dealing with a cannibal monster, so we can’t use the usual tracking methods.”

Karnak, who had been listening from the side, suddenly muttered.

[It is a monster, but it’s not exactly a cannibal.]

Serati was puzzled.

[Isn’t it?]

[Sucking human blood is more like absorbing nutrients. If you call that cannibalism, then wouldn’t a fetus in the womb also be a cannibal for getting nutrients through the umbilical cord?]

[Why are you being so defensive? What’s going on?]

[Well, uh…]

Karnak suddenly started dodging the question.

Baros smirked and chimed in.

[It’s probably because he used to consume a lot of it himself.]

Serati glared at Karnak in shock.

[You didn’t actually eat people, did you?]

[It’s not cannibalism!]

Absorbing human blood made one an evil monster, but actually enjoying eating people would make one an evil perverted monster. Being just a monster was better than being a perverted monster.

[Still, the fact that you don’t like being called a cannibal means you’ve become more human.]

At Baros’ comment, Karnak tilted his head.

[…Have I?]

In any case, since their opponent was a blood-sucking monster, they needed to come up with an appropriate countermeasure.

After some thought, Jiken spoke up.

“In the end, the question is this: Is the cursed sword Mareda deliberately targeting the King’s Order?”

If it was indeed targeting them:

“Then there’s no need to leave Archenbart City. We just need to prepare thoroughly and face the cursed sword when it attacks again.”

If it was just a coincidence:

“The cursed sword will probably attack nearby villages again. In that case, we can resume our original plan of tracking it.”

Everyone agreed with Jiken’s conclusion.

Either way, the King’s Order’s task wouldn’t change.

“In that case, we need to find a different location than this inn.”

Looking out the window, Karnak added, “We need a fortress within the city—someplace where we can respond effectively to external attacks, rest, and reorganize.”

***

What seemed like a challenging condition was surprisingly easy to resolve.

They simply requisitioned the largest mansion in Archenbart City.

The place was grand enough to house the entire 1st and 7th Battalions of the King’s Order with room to spare, to the point where Baros was concerned.

“Is this really okay? The owner of a mansion like this must belong to a very powerful family. Won’t there be any backlash?”

Serati shrugged.

“They said there’s no issue.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, apparently it’s Captain Jiken’s cousin’s house.”

“Ah, I see.”

In addition to being high-ranking mages, one of the requirements for becoming a captain in the King’s Order was to be a noble of influential lineage.

Captain Jiken, for example, was a high-ranking mage with the 7th Circle, but he was also the second son of a marquis family.

He wasn’t involved in his family’s affairs and instead pursued the life of a mage, but his noble blood was on a level that rural nobles like Karnak couldn’t even dream of.

Of course, nowadays, Karnak also had considerable status thanks to the seal of Prince Lloyd, making him just as influential as Jiken.

“Even if that weren’t the case, it wouldn’t be a problem. Right now, Archenbart City is fully cooperating with the King’s Order.”

Due to the chaos caused by the cursed sword Mareda, trade in and out of the city had significantly slowed.

Since the economic impact was severe, it was in Archenbart’s best interest for the issue to be resolved quickly.

As a result, the King’s Order was receiving abundant—almost excessive—support.

Not only did they get the mansion, but they were also provided with the finest food supplies.

Skilled blacksmiths were sent to ensure their weapons and armor were in perfect condition.

Trustworthy servants, sent by local nobles, took care of the chores, freeing the members of the King’s Order from all mundane tasks.

All the soldiers had to do was stay in the mansion and maintain their top condition.

It didn’t feel like they were trapped either.

They were living in a luxurious house, being waited on, eating excellent meals, and sleeping in comfortable beds. Honestly, there wasn’t a better vacation than this.

After spending so much time in the field, this was the perfect opportunity for the soldiers to focus on training that had been neglected.

Only Karnak and his group felt a little uneasy.

“We already used up all our delayed leave, and now it feels like we’re on another vacation.”

“Exactly. We’ve already rested enough.”

It had been three days since they moved into the mansion, but there had been no developments.

No attacks, no news, nothing.

Watching Serati and Baros lounging around, Karnak gestured with his chin.

“Let’s eat. They say food is the one thing that stays with you.”

“Sounds good! I heard we got some excellent deer today.”

Excited, the two men sauntered off toward the dining room.

With a sigh, Serati followed them.

“Ugh, I’m going to gain weight at this rate.”

***

Karnak spread a generous amount of butter on a freshly baked loaf of bread and stuffed it into his mouth, washing it down with rich ale.

With a satisfied expression, he chewed slowly.

“Ah, delicious. Yum.”

It was a luxury he could never enjoy while on a mission.

It wasn’t that butter or bread was expensive, but the luxury lay in the fact that the bread had just come out of the oven. Out in the fields, there were no ovens.

Baros sliced a piece of grilled deer leg and placed it on Karnak’s plate as he asked, “What’s the plan for today, Young Master?”

“Same as always.”

They would remain on standby, do some training, stretch their bodies, and stay alert for any emergencies.

Serati glanced out the window.

“Well, nothing’s likely to happen during the day. We only need to worry about the nights.”

Malevolent energy and aura of darkness are greatly weakened in the sunlight. Those who wield the power of darkness never act during the day.

“Still, don’t let your guard down.”

Picking up a piece of meat with his fork, Karnak added, “Mareda might not move during the day, but the cultists could still attack.”

“Oh, come on. If they did that, they’d have to disguise it as Mareda’s doing. The chances of that happening are really—”

Baros was about to wave it off when suddenly, an explosion rocked the mansion from the other side of the dining hall.

KABOOM!

Baros stared blankly, his mouth still full of meat.

“…Huh?”