Urgent footsteps and ragged breaths echoed through the darkness.
The remnants of Black Claw, once the terror of the slums, were fleeing like hunted beasts.
The group raced frantically through the dark, narrow alleyway before gasping for breath and glancing back over their shoulders.
After their desperate flight, they confirmed the pursuit had momentarily slackened. The last two surviving men collapsed to the ground like ragdolls.
"Ha... haha... it's... it's over now... they won't chase us anymore...!"
One man let out a twisted laugh. Blood smeared his lips, and his clothes were torn and filthy.
The swagger they once carried as members of Black Claw, strutting through the slums with shoulders squared, was gone without a trace.
All that remained was relief at having survived—and misery at their wretched state.
"Why did it end up like this for us..."
A despairing mutter echoed through the alley.
It had all begun with the appearance of the monstrous leader of the Jin Gang Regiment.
Ever since that day he struck like lightning, executing their king Crow in an instant, everything in the slums had changed.
Especially the kids from Dust Rose.
Centered around Rion, they had begun hunting down Black Claw's remnants like trained hounds.
At first, it only drew sneers.
Lowly slum brats—not even captains or officers of the Jin Gang Regiment—daring to stand against them?
Even without Crow, they figured they could crush weaklings like those kids.
But the kids...
They weren't the same as before.
Ferocious resolve. Madness that feared not even death. And above all, the terrifying transformation of their leader, Rion.
Chilling crimson eyes. Overwhelming speed and power beyond comparison to his former self. He was like a beast stripped of reason—yet a monster with ice-cold judgment.
Rion's movements were those of a seasoned assassin, his strength enough to fell several grown men in a blink.
One by one, their comrades vanished.
Some were found in alleys with throats slit. Others simply disappeared without a trace. The survivors' terror grew with each passing day.
"Haha... but we survived...!"
They panted, staring at each other.
"They probably won't come this far. Not even in their dreams."
Then, a cold voice pierced their ears as they exchanged words of relief.
"So this is where you were."
Their bodies froze at the voice from behind.
Terror-stricken, they turned their heads stiffly, agonizingly slowly.
Two glowing crimson eyes stared at them from the darkness.
Eerie silence. The owner of those eyes was...
Rion.
The moment they saw him, instinct screamed at them.
'Run. Right now.'
Without hesitation, they spun to flee again.
But the moment they turned, the world began to spin unnaturally.
Sky. Ground. Sky again.
Their bodies stayed put, but everything around them whirled madly.
'Why all of a sudden...?'
Confusion. Terror. Bewilderment at the inexplicable phenomenon.
Sky and ground spun endlessly like a broken carousel.
Then, at the edge of their vision, something red and vivid sprayed into the air.
Red mist scattering in the air.
'That's... no way...'
Only then did they realize.
The world wasn't spinning.
It was their heads, severed by Rion's blade moments ago, tumbling through the air—their final sight.
In the whirling vision, blood scattered like red mist, glinting under the moonlight.
'I can't die like this...!'
Just before consciousness faded completely, the last thing etched into their minds was the calm, low voice of the Rion who had killed them.
"Not many left now."
Thus, the remnants of Black Claw met their gruesome ends at the hands of Rion, the vengeful ghost fulfilling the mission Astra had assigned.
* * *
In the officers' room of Cheongam Fortress. Normally, they'd be busy with their duties, but today they were all gathered.
The reason was singular: the first mobilization order from Captain Astra.
And it was an unprecedented one, mobilizing every knight order and officer of the Jin Gang Regiment.
In one corner of the officers' room, Defense Captain Rynel, Intelligence Chief Cervantes, and Combat Captain Scarlet were quietly conversing.
The three key officers faced the situation with varied expressions.
"Have you heard what's going on, Rynel?"
Cervantes asked in his usual smooth, sly tone.
He always used polite speech, but mischief laced his words.
Rynel silently shook his head.
"No, I haven't been told either."
"Hmm, is that so."
Cervantes stroked his chin.
"I thought he was someone who didn't trust those around him much, even going to the slums alone. For a man like that to summon all of us—must be something huge."
Rynel recalled the sight of the captain in the slums as he listened.
The overwhelming presence that crushed Crow in one blow, an existence no one could even dream of defying. Just the memory tightened his chest.
The captain's aura had instinctively overwhelmed even him, the one called the Crusher.
If he had been in Crow's place back then...
He would have chosen the same powerless suicide.
"If it was something the captain couldn't handle alone, he would have called the other captains, not us."
"Ahaha, Rynel, you've gotten awfully meek since your slum trip—unlike your usual personality?"
"If you'd glimpsed even a fragment of the captain's power, you'd act the same."
"Hmm, that intense?"
"Don't doubt it."
A stiff, resolute voice cut in. It was Combat Captain Scarlet. She stood ramrod straight as always, like a blade.
Her loyalty to the captain burned fiercer than anyone's.
"We just need to obey and follow Astra's words."
Scarlet's voice carried an unshakeable conviction: his orders must be followed, reason be damned.
Cervantes flashed her another mischievous smile.
"Scarlet... being so rigid like that... the captain won't like it, you know."
Scarlet's face flushed red in an instant.
'The captain... doesn't like me...?'
The mere thought was unbearable.
"Urgh...! I-Is that so...? Then... what should I...?"
Delighted by her flustered state, Cervantes teased further.
"Women should be... a bit softer... gentler, right? Especially in front of someone like the captain...?"
"That's sexism, Cervantes."
Scarlet glared at him with icy eyes.
"You wanna die?"
In the tense atmosphere, Cervantes grinned slyly and backed away.
"Think about it. A man who has everything like the captain—wouldn't he prefer a cute, sweet woman over a stiff one?"
"That's enough!"
At that moment, Elbern opened the door to the officers' room.
All three sets of eyes snapped toward him.
"The knights—"
Elbern sighed at the vibe he walked into.
"Did you and Cervantes fight again, Scarlet?"
"Haha, no fight, Elbern. I just spoke the truth. Hysteria from an old maid is too—"
"Shut that mouth! I'll kill you if I catch you, Cervantes!"
"Kill me? Try catching me first!"
Cervantes bolted from the room, with Rynel chasing after.
Elbern shook his head at the sight.
What could he do? They were Jin Gang officers, even if like this. And their skills were top-notch.
"Elbern..."
Scarlet, still in the room, grabbed him.
"Yes, Scarlet."
"Is it true... that Astra prefers soft, gentle women over someone rigid like me?"
"..."
Elbern felt truly dizzy.
* * *
I was waiting for Elbern in my office.
The first full assembly of knights and officers for mobilization. To anyone unaware, it might look like we were heading to war.
But the place we were going was tougher than any war.
A necromancer lich sealed away for thousands of years lurked there.
As a special-grade trait from Tier 1, its difficulty was absurd even among special-grades, but Ultimate Bastion was worth it regardless.
Why are liches so feared in fantasy worlds?
Their black magic?
Manipulating the dead like puppets, twisting the souls of the living into their own—cursed spells that were disastrous enough.
But black magic wasn't a lich's true terror.
The real horror was their immortality.
That infuriating regeneration—no matter how you sliced or blasted them, they revived given time. Beings that rejected even death.
And at the root of all immortality lay the Lich Vessel.
A lich's soul-anchored heart, the cursed device guaranteeing their eternal life.
As long as the Lich Vessel remained intact, the lich could never truly die.
Their body might crumble temporarily, but they'd return. That's why liches inspire dread in fantasy.
Like the monsters or traps in special-grade opportunity sites, Ultimate Bastion offered something akin to a Lich Vessel.
I was lost in thought when—
A knock sounded, and Elbern entered quietly.
"Astra, all preparations are complete."
"Good. Let's go."
Today, I kill the immortal being—and become immortal myself.
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