Chapter 62. A Gift from Death
A strong wind swept through the forest, but it was unlike any ordinary wind. Woven into it was a strange, bone-deep cold that seemed to reach straight through the body. In the middle of that eerie gust, Necrotize, Dominic, Alana, Hana, and Sarliya all stood watching the bush ahead of them. It kept shaking, as if something was about to burst out from behind it.
Necrotize kept his hands in his pockets, his eyes fixed on the bush with an icy stare. Yet buried somewhere within that cold gaze was something impossible to put into words. Dominic drew his sword from its sheath, gripping the hilt tightly with both hands.
Alana moved Lucy and Masy into position ahead of her. Lucy dug all four paws firmly into the ground, a low growl rumbling from her throat. Masy hovered just above Alana’s head, every bit of her attention locked on the bush.
Hana pulled her throwing weapon from her bag, already loaded, so there was no need to reload it again, and aimed it straight at the bush, bracing herself for whatever might emerge.
Sarliya stepped back slightly behind the others and immediately cast a protective buff over the whole group.
Everyone now stared at the bush with total focus, fully braced for whatever was about to come out.
But what emerged from that bush was nothing any of them had expected. Dominic had assumed it would be some kind of monster, but what stepped out was far beyond anything he could have imagined, because instead of a monster, three people walked out of the bush. They weren’t students of the academy, nor professors. All three wore strange black robes that covered their entire bodies, faces included. Nothing of their features could be seen except a sliver of their lips.
The moment Dominic laid eyes on them, he felt the need to grip his sword even tighter. Something inside him let out a strange, instinctive warning the instant he saw them, a sense of danger more intense than anything a monster had ever given off. He had no idea how strong they actually were, but he was certain of one thing: the four of them together stood no chance of defeating these three. Only Lord Necrotize could do anything against them.
At that moment, Necrotize, who had been standing behind the group, walked forward slowly until he stood in front of everyone. His hands remained in his pockets, his expression as calm as ever. The three robed figures stepped forward a short distance from the bush and came to a stop. The instant they did, their eyes settled on Necrotize, locking directly onto his gaze. What looked back at them were a pair of otherworldly violet eyes. Yet their reactions didn’t shift in the slightest, no trace of fear crossed them, as though they already knew exactly what was coming, and exactly what their fate would be.
After staring for a moment, all three prostrated themselves before Necrotize almost in unison, speaking together as one.
"I prostrate before Thee."
But Necrotize didn’t respond the way he usually would after such a display. He simply stared back at them, his gaze steady and unreadable. After holding their bow for a while, the three of them lifted their heads. The one standing in the middle stepped forward slightly, as though he had something he wanted to say
"This is the greatest blessing of my life...that I was able to meet you."
He looked at Necrotize with sincere admiration.
"Who would have thought I’d encounter not one, but two Ancient Origin beings in my lifetime... and that one of them would be standing right in front of me? This life has truly been sublime.".
But even after this display, Necrotize said nothing, not even his usual remarks. He simply kept his gaze fixed on them. After a moment, his eyes drifted up to the barrier stretched across the sky, lingered there, then returned to the three figures. Just as he was about to speak, Dominic’s voice cut in from behind his right shoulder, directing a question at the strangers.
"Who are you? What are you doing here? Who gave you the authority to enter a forest under this academy’s control?" He glanced up at the massive barrier sealing off the sky. "And that barrier surrounding the whole forest, is that your doing? Answer me."
Dominic’s voice trembled slightly as he spoke. Though he tried to sound bold on the surface, fear had turned his whole body cold underneath, and the sword gripped in his hand was shaking.
Necrotize turned his head slightly toward Dominic. Seeing his display, a faint trace of satisfaction stirred within him, and he turned his gaze back to the front. That’s when the first figure spoke again.
"How rude of you, to speak in front of the great one with such a tone, child of Aslan."
The instant Dominic heard those words, his eyes went wide. This man knew him.
Before he could make sense of it, the figure continued.
"Since you have asked, let me answer your question simply so that you can understand. I am the second flag bearer of the Death Order, a temple that worships the ancient origin of Death. As for how I got in here, the answer is simple: Death can roam anywhere. And as for that massive barrier overhead, yes, it is our doing." A faint smile crept across the sliver of visible mouth beneath his hood. "Does this answer your question, little fellow? And next time, do not interrupt the conversation of a great one."
The moment Dominic heard that answer, ice ran through his entire body. The name "Death Order" wasn’t unfamiliar to him, he’d heard it many times before. They were the largest criminal organization in the empire, a group of fanatics who worshiped the ancient origin of Death.
Worshiping an ancient origin wasn’t a crime in itself, the empire and the holy land alike even encouraged it. What made them criminals was *how* they worshiped. They carried out mass sacrifices in Death’s name, human sacrifices. Village after village, they kidnapped people and offered them up, sparing not even children. So when Dominic heard the name Death Order fall from this man’s lips, his whole body went cold with dread.
It wasn’t just Dominic. Alana, Hana, and Sarliya, standing beside him, had all gone completely silent as well. None of them had any idea what to do.
When Dominic tried to speak again, Necrotize pulled one hand from his pocket and stopped him with a gesture. He kept his gaze on the man standing before him, then drew out his other hand and began to clap.
"I applaud your courage, speaking before me with such confidence. This is exactly what I expect from Death’s followers. Truly a magnificent display of courage."
At that moment, the coldness in Necrotize’s expression suddenly sharpened, and his gaze bore down on the men standing in front of him.
The instant that gaze landed on them, the two black-robed figures standing behind their leader began to tremble. But the one addressed as Lord Second, standing at the front, remained perfectly composed, though beads of sweat were rolling down from behind his ears beneath the hood.
"It is truly the greatest honor of my life to be complimented by the great one. Thank you so much."
Then he heard Necrotize speak again.
"Good. Let me ask you one thing." He paused for a moment before continuing. "Do you not fear the thing you worship? And did you expect me to remain calm after what you’re attempting here?"
Hearing this, Lord Second smiled.
"If we feared death, how could we worship it? Death is the only truth in this world of lies." He paused briefly before going on. "And we never expected you to stay calm. But we have something that can ease your anger."
Necrotize felt a flicker of surprise at those words. What could they possibly possess that could ease his anger? Nothing came to mind. Just as he was about to ask what it was, Lord Second drew a box out from behind his back.
At first, Necrotize stared at the box without understanding what it was, because in that moment, he’d momentarily forgotten one crucial fact: he had sealed away his full power, and because of it, his ability to sense things around him had been dulled. But he did notice one thing. The instant that box was drawn out, everything around them began to change.
Every tree, every blade of grass, every bush, even the birds nesting in the branches, all of it began to die at once. The leaves withered and dried. The grass beneath their feet turned brown. Behind Necrotize, everyone’s breathing grew ragged and strained; they were struggling to draw air into their lungs.
It was only as he registered all this that it struck Necrotize. He had sealed his own power.
To think I couldn’t even recognize his energy, because of my own sealed power.
The moment that thought crossed his mind, he decided to unlock the seal within himself, and began releasing it with tremendous speed. He moved so fast that everything around him seemed to freeze in place, even light itself seemed to slow as it struck objects and bounced back toward him. But in the middle of that frozen stillness, the box in Lord Second’s hands snapped open. From within it, something black shot out toward Necrotize, moving so fast that, next to it, light itself appeared utterly still, as though a tree standing beside a road took an eternity to pass a galloping horse.
Necrotize watched the black shape hurtling toward him, his eyes widening. He threw everything he had into unlocking the seal inside him, but he couldn’t move fast enough against the speed of that black object. Before he could break the seal, the black mass had already plunged into his body.
And the instant it did, he vanished from where he stood.