CHAPTER 5
THE DARK LORD ENCROACHMENT
Leo… Leonis…
Her slender fingers gently caressed his cheek.
In the Goddess Temple located in the interstice of time, she heard the sounds of the Dark Lord returning victoriously from battle. Her dark eyes looked down upon him. His head resting atop her lap, he reached out to her. At that point, his hand still had flesh, as this was before he fully became undead. It was only through repeated deaths in combat that his body became that of an undead monster.
“Roselia, I… I lost it. The precious memento you gave me…”
“…I see. That’s no good.”
She smiled, her sleek, black locks falling over his cheeks.
“Yeah…”
“But it’s strange…,” she said.
“Eh?”
“After all, your sword is right here, is it not?”
Her fingertips clasped Leonis’s outstretched hand—
“—eo… Leo?”
“Hm…” Leonis awakened, hearing a lovely voice whisper into his ear.
“Oh, Miss Selia… Good morning,”
“Morning,” Riselia smiled at him and patted down his messy air.
The battle vehicle was on the move, rattling. Raising his head from Riselia’s lap, Leonis rubbed his eyes sleepily. It was dark on the other side of the windshield.
“Sorry I woke you up…”
“It’s all right. Did something happen?”
“Sakuya said it smells of Voids, so we should be careful.”
Leonis looked up to the ceiling. Sakuya was seated on the battle vehicle’s top, acting as lookout. The Thunderbolt was equipped with a mana radar meant for detecting Voids, but Sakuya’s intuition was more reliable than that.
“…I see. We should exercise caution, then,” Leonis said, and made to take the Staff of Sealed Sins out of the shadows.
But…
“…”
“…Leo?” Riselia looked at him, concerned.
“It’s…nothing.” Leonis shook his head wearily.
She placed a hand on his head. “Were you dreaming?”
“…? Yes. Did I say something in my sleep?”
“Yes, you, erm… You called my name.”
“Your name…?” Leonis asked, puzzled.
He saw Roselia in his dream, not Riselia. But then, the realization dawned on him.
Oh, she must have mistaken Roselia’s name for her own…
Indeed, their names did sound similar. But that said, why did he have that dream?
The unease of not having the Demon Sword in arm’s reach must have affected me subconsciously…
“Hm, Lady Selia, not to get in the way of you making out with the kid—” Regina used the intercom to speak to them from the driver’s seat.
“I—I am not making out with him…!” Riselia pouted, her cheeks rosy.
“Yes, if you say so… But be careful, here they come!”
“…?!”
The battle vehicle suddenly sped up.
“Whoa!”
The vehicle jerked, sending Leonis plummeting into Riselia’s bosom.
“A-are you all right, Miss Selia?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Are you hurt, Leo?” Riselia asked, hugging Leonis tightly. “Regina, what happened?”
“Look out the window!” Regina replied.
“…?” Riselia turned her eyes out the window.
A flock of gigantic, bird-like monsters soared through the sky, pursuing the vehicle.
“…Large-type Voids?!”
“Database search complete… Looks like they’re unknown specimens.”
Sakuya’s intuition was spot on, it seemed.
The battle vehicle jerked hard.
“…Leo, hang on tight!”
With his face pressed against a pair of sizeable breasts, Leonis’s heart rate skyrocketed.
…My minion has impressive cushioning functionality… Such inappropriately idle thoughts crossed his mind.
Screeeeeeech…!
The swarm of flying Voids swooped down on them from the dark sky.
“Fall already, you pests!” Regina shouted.
The Thunderbolt’s 35mm autocannon spewed fire, but conventional weaponry was mostly ineffective against Voids.
“…They’re trying to ram us!”
Leonis sighed and cast his eyes out the window. He nonverbally casted a fifth-order instant death spell. And so, moments before the flying Voids rammed into the battle vehicle, their heads fell limp and they all crashed to the ground with a loud thud that kicked up a spectacular cloud of dust.
“H-huh?! What just happened?” Regina exclaimed.
“…Leo?” Riselia caught on.
“I’ll be scolded if the Thunderbolt gets damaged.” Leonis shrugged.
…He could keenly imagine the Dark Lords’ Armies treasurer’s angry expression.
“Hey there, boy.” An upside-down face looked at him through the window.
“Whoa!” Leonis fell back in shock. “Don’t scare me like that, Miss Sakuya!”
“Hmm, so you’re vulnerable to this, are you? I’ll keep that in mind.” Sakuya smiled, clinging to the window. “What we just saw was only their advance force. There’s more of them on the way.”
“…Eh?” Riselia asked in surprise, only for Regina to chime in a moment later.
“More flying Voids coming in from four o’clock! There’s several of them!”
Leonis focused his sight out the window. More shadows than he could count were soaring toward them on the backdrop of the black sky. They were smaller than the earlier ones, but there were more of them.
“I’ll shoot them down,” Regina said. “Lady Selia, could you take the steering wheel?”
“I’ve never driven a large battle vehicle before…”
“Don’t worry about it. Just keep driving at top speed.”
“…All right.” Riselia nodded nervously. “Leo, you watch the fort, okay?”
“Don’t treat me like a child.” Leonis said, offended.
“Heh-heh, sorry.” Riselia patted him on the head and opened the hatch to the driver’s seat.
Leonis turned his eyes to the Void outside.
…Helping them too much might be a bad idea.
He also had exhausted much of his mana in the last few days, so he wanted to focus on recovering it however possible.
And this could be a golden chance to watch my minions’ growth…
But just as he decided to settle into his seat…
Bang!
He tripped over something on the floor and bumped his head on the ceiling’s corner.
“…!”
“L-Leo, is everything okay back there?! I just heard something!” Riselia shouted from the driver’s seat.
“I—I’m fine…!” Leonis replied, cradling his forehead.
…Wh-what errant obstacle has the audacity of damaging the Undead King…?!
He angrily looked down to the thing he tripped over, only to spot…
“…”
The upper half of the Deus Machina, lying tugged under the seat.
“…My word.” Leonis sighed and picked up its head so as to push it back into its place.
But then…
“Mana detected… Survival mode… Reboot…”
The Deus Machina’s head, still in his hands, opened its eyes.
“The group’s coming right at us.” Regina climbed the ladder from the driver’s seat and peeked her head out the battle vehicle’s roof.
The wind full of sand whipped back her pigtails.
“I’m counting on you, Miss Regina. I’m no good with fighting flying enemies,” Sakuya said, pulling Regina up with one hand, her other gripping Raikirimaru.
“You can count on me.”
Regina licked her lips and locked her legs on a fixture brace on the roof. This was a standard system set up on Thunderbolt units to support long-range Holy Swordsmen.
“Holy Sword, Activate—Drag Slayer!”
A large cannon manifested on Regina’s shoulder. This was her Holy Sword, the Drag Howl’s anti-large-enemy annihilation form.
“Get smooooked!”
Boooom!
She unleashed a flare of fire that shot down a pterosaur-formed Void.
“Impressive. You shot down such a large Void with one shot…”
“Heh-heh, are you surprised, Sakuya? My Holy Sword powered up recently!” Regina said, puffing up proudly.
All the live combat experience she gained over the last few months greatly increased the Drag Howl’s power. So much so that in its top firepower mode, the Drag Blast could possibly deal damage even to a colossal Void, although she would need time to charge the attack.
“They’re coming from below, too.”
“…Below?”
Regina turned around.
Brrrr…!
With the sound of a rumble, a cloud of sediment burst in the air.
“Wh-what?!”
■■■■■■■■■■■■…!
A gigantic snake appeared out of thin air and let out a deafening shriek.
“…Is that some kind of worm-type?!”
It was a type of large Void that’d only been sighted in Stampedes, and what’s more, it wasn’t registered in the database. It stood in their way, blocking their forward path with a body as long as a high-rise building.
“Regina, what do we do?!” Riselia called out in confusion from the driver’s seat.
“Lady Selia, don’t step on the brakes. Just keep going right toward it!”
“Eeeh?!”
“The moment you stop, it’ll just swallow us!”
“A-all right!”
The Thunderbolt sped up further.
“Sakuya, can you handle it?”
“I’ll make sashimi out of it. I’ll be counting on your covering fire…!”
Sakuya vigorously hopped off the battle vehicle’s roof, Raikirimaru in hand.
“…!”
Leonis dropped the Deus Machina’s top half to the floor in surprise. It landed with a dull thud.
Lying face up, the Deus Machina’s glass-like eyes met his.
“…”
“…”
“…Deus Machina, Schwertleite Terminate.” Leonis gingerly spoke the Dark Lord’s name.
“Affirmative,” she replied.
The horn-like devices attached to her head flickered with a mana glow.
“Did you repair yourself?”
“Affirmative. Thought functionality has been restored,” the girl replied, coldly and expressionlessly.
Looking down at the remains of the Deus Machina at his feet, Leonis regained his cool.
…Hmm. I suppose the Artificial Elemental’s control over it has been lifted.
Or perhaps it was already lifted by the time the Undead King attacked…
…Either way, she’s harmless in this condition.
Leonis kneeled down, picked up the Deus Machina’s wreckage, placed it on a seat, and then asked, “Schwertleite, do you recognize me?”
“…Negative. There is no recollection of you,” she shook her head.
…So her memory’s gone.
He got that impression from their exchange thus far. Even if she didn’t recognize Leonis as a fellow Dark Lord due to his current form, they did have an intense battle in the ruins. Surely she would have remembered that.
“Who are you?”
“I am Schwertleite Terminate. Guardian of…■■…Star…lamity—” The Deus Machina suddenly fell quiet.
“What’s wrong?”
“Damage detected to…self-awareness region… Attempting to repair… Failed.”
“Hmm. So self-destructing really did damage your memories…” Leonis nodded. “Next question, then. What were you guarding in those ruins?”
“…Unknown. Relevant memory area damaged.”
“So you don’t remember anything…” Leonis sighed in disappointment.
It didn’t seem like there was any point in asking her about the Voids or this world.
…No, wait. In a way, this is a fortuitous turn of events. Leonis reconsidered.
If her memories were gone, that meant he had a golden chance to use this powerful weapon for his ends.
Leonis held up his index finger to the Deus Machina’s face.
“Hear me, Deus Machina. I am, in fact, your master.”
“…” Her eyes widened for a moment.
One of the horns on her head flickered.
“Incorrect. You are not my master,” she retorted with an artificial voice.
Leonis grumbled loudly. Things didn’t go that easily, it seemed.
“So your master would be the Goddess of Rebellion, then?”
“Affirmative. My only master is Roselia Ishtaris.”
“…Hmm. So that memory is still intact.”
Perhaps it was because her memory of her master was at the very basis of her identity.
What to do, then…? Leonis pondered, bringing a hand to his chin.
Given mankind’s advanced technology, they could possibly repair her damaged memories… Or they could connect the Deus Machina’s thought circuits to the Astral Garden, and dive directly into her memory banks in hopes of finding useful information.
…I’ll need to rely on Elfiné for that.
But then, the vehicle jolted hard, like something had flung it up.
“Whoa!”
The back of Schwertleite’s head bumped against the wall.
“…Minor damage…to memory area…”
“…What?!” Leonis hurriedly picked up her body.
Is she more sensitive to impacts now?!
“Leo, I just heard something, are you all right?!”
“I-I’m fine!”
“It’s going to get a little shaky, so hang on tight!”
“U-understood!”
Leonis shouted back to the driver’s seat, but then—
“Master?” Schwertleite spoke up.
“…What?”
“Is my master over there?” Schwertleite turned her eyes to the partition hatch.
“By master, do you mean Riselia?”
“Affirmative,” Schwertleite’s horn lit up in agreement.
“Why is Riselia your master?” Leonis asked her.
He needed to hear why she had called Riselia her master after claiming just moments ago her sole master was Roselia, and why she had abducted her in the Rognas Kingdom ruins. And to top it all off, it looked like she had attacked the Undead King, despite being severely damaged, to protect Riselia.
“A part of the master’s existence resides in her.”
“…What?” Leonis’s eyes widened in disbelief, and he grabbed Schwertleite’s shoulders. “Deus Machina, what do you mean?!”
She couldn’t be saying Riselia was…the incarnated body for the Goddess of Rebellion’s soul, was she…?
No, that can’t be true. Such a coincidence can’t possibly—
When he first met Riselia, she just happened to be exploring a ruin, and besides, if she was Roselia’s incarnation…
…The Demon Sword Roselia gave me would have reacted to her in some way.
But so far, the sword never showed any reaction toward her.
“You said a part of Roselia resides in her. What did you mean by that?”
“I merely detected the master’s soul. That is all.”
“…”
Leonis grit his teeth silently. It seemed her memories had holes in the most crucial spots…
“Take me to the master’s side.” Schwertleite craned her head toward the driver’s seat.
Leonis paused for thought…
“…Very well.”
And picked up Schwertleite’s top half.
She won’t hurt her, that much is for certain.
And seeing Riselia might jog her memory. Leonis opened the hatch for the driver’s seat and walked through it, the Deus Machina in his arms.
“Erm, Miss Selia…”
“Leo? I’m sorry, I have my hands full right now!” Riselia answered, her eyes fixed forward and her hands on the steering wheel.
The road ahead of them was covered in a cloud of dust, making for poor visibility.
“What’s happening?” Leonis asked.
“Large Voids just— Eh?”
Schwertleite placed a hand on Riselia’s shoulder. “Master.”
“Fhaaa?!” Riselia screeched in surprise and unintentionally stomped on the brakes.
“…?!”
The rapid braking shook the Thunderbolt, making Schwertleite’s body hit the vehicle’s meter board hard.
“—Damage to memory area.”
“M-Miss Selia, be careful!”
“E-eeeeh?!” Riselia hit the accelerator again and turned around to look. “O-oh. She’s awake.”
“Yes, but she lost her memory…”
“So she doesn’t remember kidnapping me or attacking us?”
“So it seems. But she does say you’re her master—”
“Lady Selia, no good, they’re catching up to us!” Regina shouted from the roof.
“Leo, I’m sorry, but now’s not the time!” Riselia gripped the steering wheel again.
Brrrrrrr!
The ground rumbled, shaking the Thunderbolt.
“Wh-what’s happening?”
“Large Voids. Sakuya’s trying to stall them, but…”
Leonis squinted, looking through the dust-filled window. He could make out Sakuya, running on top of and attacking a gigantic worm standing dozens of meters tall. But she was having a hard time of it, as her blade couldn’t penetrate its armored skin. And if that thing were to attack the Thunderbolt, it would certainly reduce it to scrap.
…I guess I have to help.
But just as Leonis decided to chant a spell—
“Is that your enemy, master?” Schwertleite asked.
“Y-yes…” Riselia nodded, confused.
“…What, are you saying you’re going to fight that thing?” Leonis asked.
“Affirmative,” Schwertleite answered expressionlessly.
“No, you can’t fight in the state you’re in.” Leonis shook his head.
Schwertleite rested her hand on the vehicle’s meter board.
“Please connect me to this magical apparatus.”
“…What?”
“The fundamental technology for this magical apparatus is the same as the one used for this body. Connectivity between us should be possible.”
What Schwertleite was saying came across as impossible.
An anti-Void weapon built by mankind sharing its basic technology with the Deus Machina produced by an ancient civilization…?
The Emperor’s younger brother, Alexios, did say mankind based its advanced technology on knowledge granted by the stars. Perhaps the civilization that created Schwertleite went through the same development.
“Wait, don’t do anything without permission—”
“Connection complete. Synchronization complete. Control over unit established.”
The horn on Schwertleite’s head lit up with mana.
“…?!”
“H-huh?!” Riselia called out in surprise. “The steering wheel’s moving on its own!”
Indeed, the steering wheel started swerving like it had a life of its own, and the vehicle was accelerating.
“Whoa…” Leonis lost balance from the sudden spike in speed and tumbled under the seat. “What are you doing?!”
“L-Lady Selia, what happened all of a sudden?!” Regina called out from the roof, confused.
“These armaments are feeble,” Schwertleite remarked. “Doesn’t this unit have a Light Particle Blaster?”
“No, it doesn’t!” Leonis snapped at her as he turned over on the floor.
“No choice, then. I will have to convert some of my compressed mana furnace’s energy.”
“What?”
The Thunderbolt’s connection port glowed with mana, and the following moment—
“—Ragva Leite!”
The Thunderbolt’s sole weapon, the 35mm autocannon, let out a blinding flash.
Bwooooooosh!
A spear of light fired out of the cannon, boring into the Void’s skull and rupturing its head. At the same time, the 35mm autocannon’s barrel exploded with heat.
“Lady Selia, what was that?! Something like the Drag Blast just—” Regina called out from outside.
“…”
Leonis and Riselia stared in blank amazement. On the other hand…
“Target eliminated.”
The Deus Machina connected to the Thunderbolt spoke with a mechanical, emotionless voice.
The Otherworldly Castle was a looming structure in the interstice between the real world and the Void world. Lying upon the altar was the half-destroyed body of the Undead King.
“…I must say I’m surprised. I didn’t expect such life… No, such death force.” Nefakess Reizaad breathed out in wonder, kneeling beside the altar. “Still, that was a close call. I never expected the Deus Machina to self-destruct…”
Had Nefakess not dragged away the Undead King into the interstice when he had, even the Undead King would have perished.
“I am proud to have been of assistance to you, my lord.”
Nefakess then dropped his eyes to his right hand, his fair features contorting in displeasure. Etched onto his hand was a seal of servitude. The moment he had carelessly touched the seal crystal, he incurred the Dark Lord’s wrath and was killed on the spot.
But in the face of this Dark Lord, death was not the end.
The Undead King had resurrected him as his undead minion. Maybe it was on a whim, or perhaps he saw him as a useful pawn… What the Undead King was thinking was beyond Nefakess’s understanding.
“The Great Dark Lord Leonis Death Magnus. You have only just awakened from your slumber, so you should take your time and gather your strength.” Nefakess kneeled, hanging his head in a show of fealty.
The Undead King’s half-destroyed skeletal body was already in the process of repairing itself, but he wouldn’t be able to act for a while.
“It seems the Void Shift project, the encroaching into the real world, will be delayed…”
Originally, the plan had been to use mankind’s creation, Seraphim, to take control of the eighth Dark Lord, the Deus Machina Schwertleite.
“But so be it. The goddess’s prophecy has partially been accomplished.”
But then—
“I see you finally gained control of the Undead King.”
A figure appeared from a tear in space—a fencer with the head of a dragon, clad in scale armor, carrying a double-bladed sword in one hand. One of the Six Heroes—the Divine Dragon of the Six Heroes, Divine Dragon Gisark. One of the Six Heroes who had fought the Dark Lords’ Armies alongside the Swordmaster Shardark.
“Ah, Lord Gisark…” Nefakess got to his feet and turned to face him. “You come bearing good tidings with regards to the Swordmaster, I hope?”
“Sadly not. He’s too far gone,” Gisark whispered bitterly. “He’s like the will to destroy the goddess made form. He’s far too much for us to handle.”
“Are you suggesting we give up on the Lord of Rage he consumed, then?”
“Our plan does not require all the Dark Lords,” said the Divine Dragon, placing a hand on the Undead King’s altar. “Can you lot control the Undead King?”
“The only thing that can truly control the Dark Lords is the will of the goddess.”
“Spoken like a true Priest of the Void…,” Gisark whispered ironically.
And saying this, the Divine Dragon placed a hand on the forehead of the body lying on the altar.
But at that moment—
Oooh… Oooh, ooooooooh…!
The skull’s eyeballs suddenly lit up with a crimson glow.
“What?!” Gisark exclaimed in alarm.
The next moment, a sword manifested in the Undead King’s hand, and was thrust forward, piercing the Divine Dragon through the heart.
“Kah, aaah…!” The Divine Dragon’s blood splattered over the altar, painting it red. “Curse…you…!”
Gisark reached for his double-bladed sword—one of the Arc Seven, the Dark Lord–slaying weapons produced by the Gods—Lesca Kishar. But before he could draw it, the sword gouging his heart shined with a malevolent glow.
“It can’t be… That’s…the Demon Sword…?!” Gisark’s eyes widened.
And then, with a burst of dark light, the Divine Dragon’s body was torn to pieces.
“Oooh…!” Nefakess huffed out in amazement. “You have beaten the strongest of the apostles with such ease…!”
The king of the dead lying atop the altar slowly got up, his shining sword in hand. His bony fingertips, covered in miasma, touched on the Divine Dragon’s detached head.
But then—
“Lord Nefakess, what is the meaning of this…?”
A tear appeared in mid-air.
“The Divine Dragon of the Six Heroes was the strongest of us apostles…”
“Our goddess did not prophesize the Divine Dragon’s death…”
Malformed Void monsters appeared from the Void tear.
The tenth apostle—the Demon Ocean King, Neredigoth Void Destroyer.
The seventh apostle—the Monster Duke, Bolzaaza Void Lord.
The fourth apostle—the Underworld Knight, Steizer Void Knight.
They were the strongest of the apostles, raised from the dead by the Void goddess’s call. Former generals of the Dark Lords’ Armies, each of whom boasted great might.
“Undead King, you are but the goddess’s hand—”
“Indeed. Dark Lord though you may be, the prophecy must not be ignored—”
The three apostles surrounded the Undead King.
“…What are you thinking?”
“We shall seal it…once more…”
“This may be the Undead King, but if he’s not fully awakened, even we can complete the ritual.”
The three apostles began moving their fingers, attempting to bind him with a barrier spell. However…
Oooh… Ooooh, oooooooooooh!
The Undead King raised his fingers, which were covered in death miasma.
“…What?!”
“O-ooooh!”
“It cannot be… Is he so… Aaaah…!”
Cries of agony filled the dimensional interstice. The death miasma instantly snuffed out the apostles’ lives, causing their flesh to decay.
“Such—Such power…” Nefakess shuddered, faced with the bodies of one of the Six Heroes and the apostles.
So this is the power of the master of death and greatest of the Dark Lords, the Undead King…!
But a crazed smile played over his lips. The Undead King already had contained the Goddess’s soul and inherited her will.
The fingers of the king of the dead touched on the decaying remains of the apostles and charged them with mana.
“You shall become my servants, and lead my armies…”
The light burning in his eye sockets glinted a brilliant red.
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