Return of the Calamity-Class Death Knight

Chapter 59

Chapter 59: Rest(2)

***

Delrunt the Corpseplay.

How could I forget the dark mage who played an important role in the downfall of humanity and was the Legion Commander of Dorugo?

Corpseplay’s specialty was the creation of Flesh Golems.

A flesh golem is an undead creature created by splicing together the bodies of living creatures.

Corpseplay possessed the ability to recognize creatures with exceptional physical bodies.

Thanks to this ability, the Flesh Golems created by Corpseplay displayed formidable combat prowess.

The ‘Masterpiece’ creations boasted by Corpseplay could even rival high-class knights.

At the end of Dorugo’s War of Destruction, the Flesh Golems under the command of Corpseplay numbered in the tens of thousands.

The materials for the Flesh Golems were living beings.

To create one Flesh Golem required dozens of different creatures.

The fact that tens of thousands of beings lost their lives in the hands of Corpseplay implied the scale of the operation.

To thwart Dorugo’s ambitions, one of the key figures to eliminate was Corpseplay.

‘Come to think of it, there was a dungeon of Corpseplay also discovered in my past life.’

It happened when Damien was expelled from his family and wandered as a beggar.

While begging on the streets, he heard rumors about the discovery of the Corpseplay’s dungeon.

In his previous life, the Church had also formed a crusade to raid the dungeon.

‘The result was….the total annihilation of the Crusade.’

Despite including many paladins with powers equivalent to middle-class knights, the crusade got killed in the dungeon.

Due to this incident, Corpseplay’s danger level escalated to that of a high-level dark mage.

‘The exact reasons for the annihilation of the Crusade was never clearly revealed.’

However, there were rough speculations.

There was only one paladin who survived the dungeon.

He left a message before dying. There was a traitor among them. He couldn’t recover due to severe injuries even with holy powers.

‘Wait, isn’t the timing a bit off?’

As Damien was recalling his past, he noticed something strange.

The time he spent as a beggar was etched vividly in his memory, painful yet clear.

So he could say for sure, the time when the Corpseplay dungeon was discovered was later than the present.

“Corpseplay was originally a dark mage affiliated with Yulan. Did killing the Yuran’s leader influence this?”

As Damien pondered, Agnes spoke with a bitter expression, as if understanding his concerns.

“It seems you’re concerned. I understand. After all, it’s a dungeon of a dark mage.”

Whether Agnes interpreted Damien’s silence as a refusal, she continued with a wry smile.

“A normal mage is considered to be two or three ranks higher in the dungeons he builds, and a dark mage’s dungeon would be even more dangerous.”

There were several types of dungeons.

“Mage’s dungeon could be seen as a kind of war fortress.”

Long-stored mana, meticulously prepared high-level spells, carefully crafted traps, and more.

A mage inside his dungeon was considered invincible, and calling a Dark mage’s dungeon more dangerous was not an exaggeration.

The reason was that, unlike normal mages, Dark mages had no concept of good and evil.

Poison, curses, monsters, and more; a Dark mage would use every available means.

“I won’t blame you if you refuse.”

Interestingly, when the Church formed a crusade, they generally did not force cooperation from other nobles unless absolutely necessary.

This was partly due to the belief that one should personally engage in acts of goodness, but also for the practical purpose of managing noble discontent.

The Church would interfere with any noble who had even the slightest connection to dark magic.

Amidst all this, if they were to act aggressively in such a dangerous matter?

There was a high possibility of noble dissatisfaction exploding.

Therefore, the Church only sought cooperation and did not force it. Even if cooperation was refused, there was no retaliation.

“There were many violations. Well then…”

Agnes tried to pass by Damien.

Damien absentmindedly grabbed Agnes’s wrist.

When he grabbed her wrist, Agnes’s body abruptly stopped.

“No, I was just contemplating what Corpseplay’s intentions might be. I had no intention of refusing.”

Damien quickly spoke to dispel Agnes’s misunderstanding.

“Rather than being afraid, I’m grateful for the offer.”

This was sincere.

Thanks to Agnes, Damien had the opportunity to directly cut off one of Dorugo’s limbs.

Not only that, in his past life, the Church suffered significant damage due to the annihilation of the crusade.

This incident had a ripple effect, negatively impacting the war with Dorugo.

From Damien’s perspective, it was a chance to hinder some of Dorugo’s plans and prepare for the war.

“Agnes, please accept my request…….”

Suddenly, Damien noticed that Agnes’s face looked strange.

It was as if she had turned as red as a ripe apple.

“Agnes?”

“D… C-could you please… let go of my hand…”

As Damien released her hand, Agnes hastily distanced herself.

“T-thank you for accepting the request.”

Agnes still spoke with a reddened face.”

“I’ve parked the carriage at the village outskirts. If you gather your belongings and come out, I’ll pick you up.”

After saying so, Agnes left the room, looking somewhat urgent.

Damien looked at Agnes with a face indicating he didn’t understand.

“Young master… Do you really plan to participate in the crusade?”

Victor, who had been observing the situation all along, asked with a shocked expression.

“Yeah.”

“I-Isn’t it extremely dangerous? It’s… it’s Corpseplay, an evil dark mage who turned an entire village into an undead nest!”

Victor spoke with a face full of worry.

“I-I would prefer if the young master didn’t go…”

Damien chuckled at Victor’s words.

“Do I look like someone who would be worried about by others?”

“Y-Young master, I know your skills very well. But it’s a dungeon…”

Although Victor was just a servant in the rural noble estate, he was well aware of how dangerous dungeons could be.

Every time news came of promising knights dying, the dungeon was always mentioned.

“Above all, I hope young master won’t go…”

Damien hesitated at Victor’s words.

There were cases among noble parents who pushed their children into danger, urging them to stand out.

However, his father was not that kind of person.

“Umm…”

Damien tried to think of a way to convince Viscount Haksen, but nothing came to mind.

“Victor, you’re right. There’s no way my father would allow it.”

“Of course. So, young master, please give up…”

“That’s why I have to go secretly.”

“…What?”

Victor looked at Damien with a bewildered expression.

Damien clenched his fist as if he was really sorry.

“I don’t want to disobey father, but…… I can’t .”

“Uh… young master, if you know it’s wrong, wouldn’t it be better to endure?”

“Father will be furious but I think you can handle it on your own.”

“No, I won’t! Do you realize how terrifying when he gets angry?”

“That’s why I’m making this request.”

Victor was visibly moved by Damien’s words.

Being with Damien all this time, he had never seen him this angry before.

“And Victor, you seem to be misunderstanding something, so let me clarify.”

“What other strange thing are you going to say…”

“I’m not going to die.”

Damien said, his face full of conviction.

Victor seems to think he’s walking into a limb, but it’s not the same.

Damien can fight his way through the dungeon with pure swordsmanship.

But that wasn’t the only weapon Damien possessed.

His mind is filled with high-level dark magic spells, and he possesses one of the seven authorities.

Most importantly, Damien had watched Corpseplay for many years as a Death Knight.

He knew what type of dark magic he used, and how his Flesh Golems were constructed. He knew it all.

“So you don’t have to worry…… what’s with that face?”

Victor looked at Damien in disbelief.

“Young master, I’m worried about you. If you keep acting like that, I’ll get angry.”

“Hey, man, I’m not acting.”

“Alright. Anyway young master, you absolutely can’t go. I’ll stop you.”

Suddenly Damien moved behind Victor. He struck Victor’s neck with the edge of his hand.

Victor let out a short scream and passed out.

“Say something nice to father.”

Damien laid Victor gently on the floor.

Then he ran to where Agnes was.

***

“Sir Damien, over here!”

Upon arriving at the village outskirts, he saw a carriage with the Church’s emblem. Agnes stood in front of it.

As he approached Agnes, he paused in his tracks. It was because of the burly woman standing next to Agnes.

With a height exceeding two meters, broad shoulders, long and well-defined limbs, and large, thick hands that spread out like pot lids, the woman possessed everything necessary for a knight.

It wasn’t just the outward appearance; the energy emanating from the woman was substantial. She was at least of mid-class or higher.

“Oh-ho… So, this man is the Damien Haksen, you’ve been dying for.”

“…Sister, please refrain from making statements that could be misconstrued by others. When did I ever say such things?”

Agnes sighed and spoke.

“Uh-huh, when did I ever say anything that would be misunderstood, I just told it like it is, and I want you to go back to the Chuch and tell the elders and the others how great Damien Haksen is…….”

Agnes raised her foot and stepped on the woman’s foot.

Despite the powerful step, the woman didn’t bat an eye.

“Eehh, it seems like I’ve teased her too much. Alright, I’ll not do it anymore.”

The woman walked over to Damien and extended her large hand.

“Pleasure to meet you. I’m Margata, a 2nd-grade paladin.”

2nd-grade Paladin.

A rank equivalent to mid-class. Moreover, considering that Agnes referred to her as ‘Sister,’ this woman also seemed to be a disciple of the Cheongyeum.

A 2nd-grade paladin and a disciple of the Cheongyeum, one of the Five Great elders. As Damien anticipated, she was an immensely strong individual.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Margata.”

Damien shook hands with Margata. Her hands were filled with calluses.

“I hope it’s not too presumptuous, but I thought you wouldn’t come. After all, it’s a dungeon created by Corpseplay.”

“Miss Agnes requested it. I couldn’t refuse. Besides, I hate dark mages before anything else.”

Margata seemed impressed by Damien’s response.

“Agnes, I was worried you didn’t know any men, but it looks like you picked the right one.”

Agnes raised her foot again and stomped on the woman’s foot.

“Ouch, be careful! She might get really mad. Alright, I got it.”

Margata gestured, and a soldier brought a long box.

“Agnes insisted and argued strongly with the Master, so this is what she received. If you participate in the crusade, we’ll have to repay them with something equivalent, she says.”

Margata handed the box to Damien.

Damien received it with a bewildered expression. It was much heavier than he expected.

“What is this?”

In response to Damien’s question, Margata, with a proud expression, answered.

“Holy Sword.”

***