Return of the Calamity-Class Death Knight

Chapter 57

With a swift motion, Damien’s blade severed Jacques’ neck. The headless body staggered briefly before collapsing to the ground, its decapitated head rolling away.

“A knight should not be swayed by emotions.”

Jacques, who was blinded by rage, Damien found it easy to deliver the finishing blow. Otherwise, it might have posed a bit of a challenge in the end.

“You seem to have learned quite a few peculiar things.”

The technique Jacques used at the end was good.

However, if it was a technique meant to unleash destructive power, Damien had encountered plenty of that in his past life.

As a Death Knight, Damien himself had been a force of destruction, and many knights had been forced to use extreme measures to halt his rampage.

However, none of the techniques he had witnessed back then displayed a sudden surge of power quite like Jacques’.

In particular, the final strike Jacques delivered was terrifying, rivaling that of high-class knights.

“I better leave this place quickly.”

The forest lay in ruins, with only a massive sword left on the ground. It didn’t make sense that no one had noticed despite the chaos he had caused.

It was certain that knights would be sent for investigation from nearby territories. If they encountered him and it was revealed that he killed Jacques, things would get complicated.

However, leaving empty-handed was not an option. Damien quickly searched Jacques’ body.

There wasn’t anything particularly eye-catching. All he found were the sword Jacques had wielded and the pouch on his waist.

Damien examined the sword; unfortunately, it was just an ordinary steel sword. But the pouch was different.

Surprisingly, it was enchanted with subspace magic. Although it looked like a small leather pouch from the outside, the inside was quite spacious. Any magical item enchanted with subspace was a priceless treasure.

However, it didn’t compare to the spatial ring Damien possessed, which was far more valuable both in terms of space size and practicality.

Damien took out the items from the pouch one by one: emergency rations, healing potions, gold coins, and two swordsmanship books.

The Phantom Sword and The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation.

Both were techniques used by Jacques.

The Phantom Sword was in an incomplete state, but The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation was complete.

“Is there any information about the Mana cultivation technique?” He was currently developing his own Mana cultivation technique.

For his goal, He needed as much reference material as possible. He already had plenty of knowledge of combat techniques stored in his mind. If it was lacking, he could learn from other knights.

However, the Mana cultivation technique was different. It was much more intricate and complex than combat techniques, working within the body rather than externally.

No matter how skilled he was, he couldn’t completely steal the Mana cultivation technique. That’s why a book containing information about Mana cultivation technique was crucial for him at the moment.

He eagerly flipped through The Phantom Sword. However, his expression soon turned to disappointment.

“The section about Mana cultivation technique is completely missing.”

Most of The Phantom Sword was lost. Not only the swordsmanship part but also the Mana cultivation technique was entirely gone.

Feeling disappointed he set aside The Phantom Sword and opened The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation.

Unlike The Phantom Sword, The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation was intact. However, He still couldn’t get what he wanted.

“Sacrifice your life, and you shall gain power,” he read the inscription on the first page.

Upon reading those words, He immediately realized something. This was the technique Jacques used at the end.

“I don’t need combat technique right now, I need the Mana cultivation technique,”

“Despite his initial disappointment, Damien recognized the potential of The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation. So if there might be something useful, Damien decided to read further.”

“…Huh?”

As he read a few more pages, Damien began to feel uneasy. The content regarding the combat technique was too good and detailed for his liking. Damien remained seated, carefully studying The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation.

“…Mana cultivation technique, right?”

Though skillfully concealed, Damien could discern it. For those with superficial knowledge, it might appear as nothing more than a normal technique.

The true identity of The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation was that it was a Mana cultivation technique. Moreover, it was of a remarkably high level and possessed unique effects.

“A Mana cultivation technique that accumulates mana through combat.”

The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation was not a seated meditation technique for absorbing mana but a dynamic method of accumulating mana through physical movement. Unlike seated meditation Mana cultivation techniques, dynamic ones had significantly fewer numbers due to their high difficulty.

“Not only that… This Mana cultivation technique has a function to enhance the body.”

The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation was a Mana cultivation technique that stored magical power in muscles. The stored magical power brought about unique effects, transforming the muscles to be faster and stronger. The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation aimed to create a body specifically for combat.

“Deceptively recording such an extraordinary martial arts technique…”

It was natural that Jacques didn’t recognize the true value of The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation. Whoever developed it was unknown, but their character was undoubtedly cunning.

“This is quite a find.”

With a happy expression, Damien placed The Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation into his spatial storage.

Damien returned to where the carriage was. Staying there any longer risked being discovered by others.

“Let’s go.”

Damien cast Mana Illusion on the horses pulling the carriage. Being infused by Damien’s mana horses surged forward with extraordinary speed, the carriage vibrating with the force of their gallop.

Despite the intensity of the ride, and everyone slept peacefully, it was all thanks to the black magic Damien had cast on them.

“Let’s stop around here.”

Damien stopped the carriage in the new forest. He slowly put down everyone and set up a campsite similar to the original forest.

By the time the work was done, the day slowly began to break. He released the dark magic that kept the party asleep.

“Ugh.”

The first to wake up was Abel. Stretching, he yawned.

“Hm? Brother, are you up already?”

Abel asked, looking at Damien, who was sitting by the campfire. Damien added logs to the fire and replied.

“The night air was chilly, so I woke up early. Oh, do you want a cup of tea?”

“If you don’t mind, I’d appreciate it.”

He poured water into the iron kettle and placed it on the campfire. After a while, Damien poured the steaming tea into an iron cup and offered it to Abel.

“Here, drink.”

“Thank you.”

Abel blew on the tea to cool it down. As he sipped, he suddenly noticed something odd.

“By the way, Brother, was the forest always like this?”

The scenery he saw before going to sleep and the one he saw upon waking up seemed somehow different. Although not being a hunter, Abel couldn’t quite pinpoint it, but he felt a sense of discomfort.

“Did you not get enough sleep?”

Damien said with a puzzled expression. Abel made a sheepish smile.

Even when he thought about it, it was an odd remark. However, Abel’s suspicion grew stronger as the other two woke up.

“Ugh? My lord, something seems off about the forest.”

“What nonsense.”

“Before going to sleep, the trees seemed taller… and thicker…”

“All trees are the same.”

“That’s true, but…”

Victor, rising from his slumber, rubbed his eyes repeatedly.

“It’s noisy; get up and prepare the breakfast. I’m hungry.”

“Yes, My lord.”

Victor quickly took out the ingredients and started making a simple stew.

“Good morning.”

Following suit, Olivia woke up from her sleep. She stepped out from the carriage while stretching her body.

“…Huh?”

Olivia looked around, tilting her head with a continuous puzzled expression.

“Why does the forest seem… something… hmm?”

With Olivia’s reaction, Abel became convinced.

“Brother.”

“Yeah?”

“What on earth have you done this time?”

“I haven’t done anything.”

“Don’t play dumb! Already three people are saying the forest is weird!”

Abel’s words made one of Damien’s eyebrows raise.

“What’s weird about the scenery? Did I secretly trim the trees last night or something?”

As Damien countered, Abel hesitated in his words.

“Or maybe I brought you guys and relocated to another forest in the middle of the night? Am I crazy to do such a thing?”

The more Damien spoke, the more Abel felt uncertain.

Was Damien really up to such antics?

“Usually, the forest feels different in darkness and light. So, the misconception that the scenery has changed, I guess.”

“…Yes.”

“If you understand, stop talking nonsense and go fetch the utensils. We need to eat.”

Abel rose from his seat with a sheepish smile.

Watching Abel leave to fetch the utensils, Damien exhaled softly.

***

“…”

Arriving at the scene, the paladins were speechless.

A completely devastated forest, and on the ground, clear sword marks.

Evidence that a fierce battle had taken place here last night.

What shocked the Paladins even more was the body of Jacques lying on the ground.

“…He was beheaded.”

Paladin Thomas spoke with a deeply shocked expression.

According to the reports, people heard a commotion nearby, they had requested assistance from other nobles in the neighboring territories.

As soon as the news reached the Church, they urgently dispatched the Paladins, thinking it might be Jacques.

It hadn’t been more than a few hours since then.

To think that Jacques had lost his life in such a short time?

It was impossible unless the opponent’s skill far exceeded Jacques’.

“Sir Thomas, who do you think killed Jacques?”

One of the Paladins asked Thomas. After a brief hesitation, Thomas spoke.

“Jacques is a top Mid-Class Knight. Someone with the ability to kill him in a single blow… it must be…”

Thomas fought Jacques just a few days ago.

Although they were both Mid-Class Knights, the difference in skill was clear. Jacques easily dealt with Thomas and then escaped.

An individual capable of killing someone like that…

“Most likely, a High-Class.”

High-Class.

A position just below the Master, a true elite.

Not as powerful as a Master, but High-Class knights were monsters sufficient to be called monsters.

If it was a High-Class knight, they would possess enough skill to kill Jacques.

However, the Paladins couldn’t easily accept Thomas’s words.

“But Sir Thomas, if there were a High-Class knight in this vicinity, we would have known.”

Currently, there are three High-Classes in the Apple kingdom.

If any one of them moved, rumors would spread throughout the kingdom.

“It’s likely they encountered an unknown High-Class knight.”

“An unknown… High-Class knight?”

“The world is vast, and there are many talents. There have been instances where Masters were discovered deep in valleys, so it’s not an unreasonable assumption.”

Above all, Thomas had reasons to believe it was a High-Class knight.

“And if it’s not a High-Class knight, who else could have easily killed Jacques like this?”

Upon hearing this, the Paladins could only nod in agreement.

That day, a report announcing Jacques’ death flew towards the Church.

***

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