Bang! Bang!
Blood splattered across the battlefield as the hunting leader Lizardman's body shuddered under the impact.
Sukyu Juju's stone projectiles carried impressive force, each one striking with devastating precision.
But—
"Too weak. Magic Arrow!"
Sakeer's voice was calm yet commanding as he channeled his mana.
In an instant, multiple magic arrows materialized in midair, forming a deadly barrage.
With his magic power continuously depleting, he summoned ten arrows in a single breath, sending them hurtling toward Sukyu Juju.
"Damn it!"
Sukyu Juju's expression darkened.
Reacting on instinct, he dropped low, rolling across the ground to dodge the first few arrows.
But there were too many—
Without hesitation, he snatched another stone from his pouch and fired it at the incoming barrage.
Clang! Clang!
The stones and magic arrows collided midair, producing sharp metallic echoes as they cancelled each other out.
"Plant Entanglement!"
The old priest Lizardman, now fully alert, swiftly invoked his magic.
From beneath Sakeer's feet—
Thick vines erupted from the ground, twisting like serpents, attempting to ensnare him.
But before they could tighten—
Sakeer flipped his palm, revealing the enchanted artifact "Forest Crossing."
As soon as he activated it, the vines recoiled, slithering away from him like frightened creatures.
"Magic Arrow!"
Without missing a beat, Sakeer retaliated, redirecting his spell toward the old priest.
"Flash!"
The old priest roared, unleashing a blinding burst of light.
The battlefield was momentarily illuminated in a dazzling white, meant to blind his attacker.
But—
Sakeer merely squinted, his passive ability, "Blessed Body," dulling the light's effect.
His vision remained clear.
And his arrows had already been fired.
"Aghh!"
The old priest staggered back, his chest pierced clean through by a magic arrow.
Blood spurted from the wound.
His body trembled—
Then, he collapsed.
"Elder!"
Sukyu Juju's face twisted in horror as he heard the agonized cry.
His hands clenched into fists, but the old priest's weak, bloodied voice cut through the chaos:
"Run…! We are no match for him!"
More warriors fell around them, their death wails piercing the air.
The old priest's vision blurred, yet with the last of his strength, he lifted his staff, aiming at Sakeer.
"Earth Bind!"
Rumble—
The ground quivered, shifting beneath Sakeer's feet.
Like ripples in water, the earth surged, turning into a swamp-like pit.
It pulled at his legs, swallowing his feet along with the Barghest and the Lizardman on his side.
But—
The spell's effect was limited, barely reaching up to his calves.
From where he lay, the old priest's voice came in a hoarse whisper:
"Go… Sukyu Juju… now!"
"A binding spell?"
Sakeer let out a quiet chuckle, testing the restraint.
Then—
With one powerful stomp, he shattered the earthen hold, forcing his legs free with ease.
His warrior class, nearly at level 30, gave him a natural resistance to such low-tier binding magic.
Breaking free was effortless.
Boom!
At the same time, the Barghest slammed its bone chains against the ground, splitting the shifting earth apart and leaping free in a single bound.
The battlefield shook from the impact.
"None of you are leaving."
Sakeer's voice was calm—absolute.
With a single command, the Barghest let out a feral roar and lunged at Sukyu Juju.
"Magic Arrow!"
Sakeer cast his spell again, unleashing another trio of glowing projectiles.
Sou! Sou! Sou!
Three magic arrows tore through the air, closing in from different angles—sealing off Sukyu Juju's escape routes.
Trapped.
Nowhere to run.
Sukyu Juju's face contorted, his breath ragged.
He could see it—
The Barghest, fangs bared, barreling toward him.
The magic arrows, locking him in place.
A cold sense of helplessness gripped him.
Despair flooded his eyes.
Meanwhile…
The Archangel Flame had already slaughtered the last of the Lizardman warriors and, under Sakeer's command, surged forward toward the heart of the tribe.
Soon—
A fresh wave of screams and wails erupted from within the settlement as the restrained Archangel Flame broke free.
Now, with two Archangel Flames rampaging through the village, the Lizardmen's already fragile defenses crumbled completely.
Their resistance was over.
Amidst the carnage, Sakeer approached the fallen old priest Lizardman, who lay motionless on the blood-stained ground.
Weakly, the priest lifted his head, his dark, hateful gaze locking onto Sakeer.
"Why… why would you do this…?"
His voice was hoarse, trembling with sorrow.
"The children of the tribe…" he rasped, his breath ragged, his body barely holding on.
Then, through sheer hatred and willpower, the old priest spat out a curse:
"You wretched human… I curse you! You will be struck down by righteous Lizardman warriors! Your severed head will hang high, condemned under the watchful gaze of our ancestral spirits!"
His voice, though weak, carried a venomous resolve.
Sakeer, however, remained unmoved.
"A curse?" he echoed, his tone indifferent. "Sorry, but curses don't seem to work on me."
He took a step closer, standing over the defeated priest.
"Evil? Justice?" He let out a soft chuckle. "To me, justice belongs to the victor."
His gaze sharpened.
"Just like the rise of the future Bone King and the Great Tomb… What does it matter if the wise see through the facade of 'good' and 'evil' among nations?
"In the end, the winner is justice.
"And the loser? Just a pathetic clown."
The old priest trembled, his expression twisting with pain and anger.
"You… vile—"
Before he could finish, Sakeer activated his magic.
"All-Race Charm."
A surge of mana spread outward, enchanting everything in its radius.
For a brief moment, the hunting Lizardman—who had been under Sakeer's previous control—suddenly snapped back to consciousness.
Confused, he blinked rapidly, struggling to comprehend the situation.
But before he could react—
His body convulsed violently.
The wound Sukyu Juju had inflicted on him with a stone began to swell, his flesh twisting unnaturally.
"Aghhh!"
A scream tore from his throat as he collapsed, writhing in agony before finally going still.
Sakeer observed him with indifference.
"Multiple uses of charm magic have their limitations," he noted to himself. "While I can precisely control one target at a time, if I amplify the spell, I can extend its influence to multiple creatures."
The battle near the Barghest had also reached its conclusion.
Kuro, who was covered in blood, ran excitedly from a distance. Its face twisted into a crazed grin as it approached Sakeer.
"Good work."
Sakeer glanced at Sukyu Juju and was not in a hurry to deal with him for the time being.
Sakeer shifted his attention back to the old priest Lizardman.
"First things first," he said coolly. "Take me to your tribe's knowledge repository."
Without waiting for an answer, he retrieved a regeneration potion from his inventory.
He poured the shimmering liquid over the old priest's wounds, watching as they rapidly sealed and scabbed over under its effects.
The priest wavered, disoriented, as he pushed himself unsteadily to his feet.
Then—without a word—he turned and began walking.
Sakeer followed, his Barghest trailing behind, dragging the unconscious Sukyu Juju along with them.
Within the ruins of the tribe, the aftermath of the slaughter was unmistakable.
Blood pooled in the dirt, its deep crimson staining the ground.
The bodies of countless Lizardman warriors lay strewn across the village—mangled, broken, lifeless.
The air was thick with the stench of iron and death.
Yet—
Sakeer felt nothing.
He walked through the carnage, stepping over corpses without hesitation.
Then, a quiet realization surfaced in his mind.
"When did I become so indifferent?"
A bitter chuckle left him, hollow and weary.
"Maybe… deep down, I never truly saw these subhuman species as my equals." He exhaled, shaking his head as if the motion could dispel the weight in his chest.
"But in the end, it doesn't matter. I have no right to pity them… or any other race."
His gaze hardened, resolve settling in. "They are not the only ones struggling to survive. But when it comes down to it—between my life and theirs—mine will always matter more."
His gaze swept across the devastation, unflinching.
"Besides, I didn't wipe them out entirely."
From the start, he had noticed that many of the tribe's women and children had already fled—preemptively arranged by Sukyu Juju before the battle even began.
Sakeer had made no effort to pursue them.
They had another purpose in his grander scheme.
"They'll be useful for the future Bone King."
As they moved through the ruined village, Sakeer spoke at last.
"Tell me about the treasure your tribe lost."
The old priest hesitated briefly before answering.
"The Lizardmen race has a strict hierarchy," he began, his voice low.
The highest authority was naturally the patriarch, followed by the priesthood, which advised and assisted the ruling leader.
However, since the patriarch's role was based on strength, their leadership changed frequently, whereas the priesthood remained constant, holding the tribe's sacred knowledge.
Thus—
The priests knew far more about the tribe's secrets than even the patriarch, let alone ordinary Lizardmen.
And now—Sakeer finally understood.
The lost treasure the priest spoke of wasn't just any relic.
It was a magic cauldron.
The priest's explanation was vague, but Sakeer pieced together the implications.
Among the four supreme treasures, this cauldron had never once fallen into the hands of the Small Fang Tribe, even before it was lost.
But—
Through fragments of information, he deduced its purpose.
The Lizardmen revered their ancestors, believing that their spirits granted them strength.
During sacred rituals, they consumed a potion made from special herbs, inducing a state of warmth, euphoria, and fearlessness—a concoction believed to facilitate ancestral possession.
They even painted totemic markings on their bodies to further enhance this phenomenon.
Yet—
Sakeer recalled that when the Lizardmen fought against the Undead Legion, these rituals had failed to produce any noticeable effects.
Now, he wondered why.
Had their lost cauldron played a role?
Thinking about it carefully, the twin witches left the most powerful "The Frost Pain" and didn't want it.
The things they robbed must be more useful to themselves.