The Emperor Has Returned

Chapter 64 – Behind the Cloak (4)

When the Order of Huginn led by Dilmond crashed into the legion of the undead, a huge group was pushed back. The Order of Huginn frantically slaughtered the undead. The undead’s bones broke and shattered into fragments upon encountering the weapons of the knights.

The Order of Huginn pushed deeper into the legion of the undead with the strength of a hundred men. However, their rapid pace of advancement didn’t last long. Normal armies made up of ordinary soldiers would be demoralized by the ruthless charge of the Order of Huginn, but their opponents were those that were already dead.

One of the knights was stabbed in the leg by a spear and fell behind. Shortly after he got separated from the rest of the Order of Huginn, the knight got dismembered into pieces.

The breath of the knights of the Order of Huginn began to get rough.

At the same time, another knight disappeared.

Someone’s sword broke in half, and yet another knight disappeared.

“May His Majesty be honored with glory.”

Although the knight was dying, he held back the undead by grabbing his ankle and dragging him down. The undead chased after the Order of Huginn, and the knight’s wrist was cut off and remained on the undead’s ankle. Another knight had died, and another…

The movement of the Order of Huginn gradually slowed down and grew weaker.

Not long after, complete silence was cast over the herd of white skulls.

***

Juan opened his eyes. His body was hot and heavy. Juan hadn’t felt such a sensation for a long time—meaning that his body was in an abnormal state. He tried to lift his hand, but he couldn’t feel anything; he lost the sensation in his hand. Juan could smell the scent of ash in the air. When his vision returned little by little, Juan realized that he was on someone’s back.

“Dilmond?”

“You’re finally awake.”

“What happened? Where are the other knights? Did we kill all of the undead?”

“Can’t you remember anything?”

“I wouldn’t be asking if I did.”

Dilmond silently continued to step forward with Juan on his back. After being silent for a while, he slowly opened his mouth.

“The Order of Huginn was on the verge of annihilation inside the herd of skeletons. You and I were the only ones left until the end. You couldn’t move properly due to the gusts of wind, and I thought we would all die since we had been completely surrounded by the undead.”

“And?”

“Someone stabbed you in the back. I didn’t even see who it was since there were at least a hundred swords around you. I thought we would all die just like that, but then a fire soared like crazy from where you were.”

Juan vaguely recalled the moment upon hearing Dilmond’s words. Huge flames had soared above his head when he was about to lose consciousness, and the legion of the undead instantly caught on fire and started burning. The view of the undead moving limply while burning and the flames that engulfed the surroundings with the gust of wind was not much different from those of hell. The last thing Juan remembered was Dilmond grabbing and pulling his body burning in the ashes.

“Dilmond.”

Only now did Juan look at Dilmond as his vision properly returned. Unlike one of his nicknames, ‘white-haired old knight,’ his hair was scorched and burnt. Considering that Juan could already tell how badly Dilmond was burnt from his back, Juan couldn’t even imagine what he looked like from the front.

Juan belatedly noticed the haze rising from Dilmond’s body, and realized that his own body was still quite hot. While it was true that Juan felt his body to be hot due to his abnormal body condition, he had also been unconsciously radiating heat from his body. Juan slowly lowered his body temperature.

“It seems like you’re finally starting to remember things,” Dilmond said.

Juan discovered that his body was covered with blood, but it wasn’t his own blood. Dilmond’s back had already been injured numerous times, and it was covered with blood and blisters caused by the burns. His injuries consisted of the ones he got from Ethan, the ones he got from the fight with the army of undead, and the burns he got from Juan. Most ordinary knights would already be dead with such injuries.

“I thought I had said that it’s okay to leave behind those who can’t keep up,” Juan said.

“It’s not like I care about you, so hopefully you don’t misunderstand my intentions. I only wanted to throw you down Nigrato’s throat since I know that the undead can’t stand your fire. The thought of Nigrato running wild while he burned gave me the strength to stick it out.”

“Sounds reasonable,” Juan grinned.

“So basically my first sacrificial offering to the god of death would be you, you little rascal.”

“I’ll gladly accept it. Nigrato would suffer from indigestion though.”

Juan and Dilmond laughed in a low tone. Juan couldn’t even remember the last time he had felt this way. The undead weren’t very dangerous as opponents compared to the beings Juan had fought in the past. It was the same back then, and it is the same now—Juan only felt jolly when he reached a fatal situation.

“Dilmond, how old are you?”

“Old enough.”

“Pharell would have laughed out loud to hear the little brat that used to stutter all the time say that.”

Dilmond paused at Juan’s words for a short second, then continued walking. Dilmond was grinning.

“Maybe he would have. Then I would punch Sir Pharell in the chin. Now I’m older than sir Pharell had been when he died, you know. I have nothing to lose anymore. Besides, sir Pharell died to those puny Templars. And here I am, about to die to the god of death. I feel like I deserve to be a little arrogant,” Dilmond burst into laughter.

“Pharell would be proud of you, Dilmond,” Juan laughed in a low tone.

“Indeed.”

“And I’m sure the emperor would be proud of you as well.”

“Nonsense. His Majesty killed gods like Nigrato in a bundle with ease.”

“No, I mean it.”

Dilmond looked back at Juan. Juan was no longer smiling, but he was looking at Dilmond with a serious and determined look in his eyes.

“The emperor would be impressed. He would admire your courage and praise your accomplishments. I’m sure.”

“...What a fool to say that,” Dilmond uttered as if Juan was being absurd, but he seemed to be in a good mood.

Juan was happy, but at the same time, he felt sad. Just like in the past, Juan liked and respected his comrades and friends. He loved them all, and he didn’t doubt they felt the same way. However…

When Juan was about to bring something up, he realized that Dilmond was looking in a strange direction. Juan followed Dilmond’s gaze, but couldn’t see anything.

“Is there something there?” Juan asked.

“Someone calling my name…didn’t you hear it?”

Juan raised his eyebrows. It wasn’t a good sign to hear something that others couldn’t hear in such a place. Juan tightly held Dilmond’s shoulders.

“Someone called your name? I don't think you should follow that voice.”

“No. It’s not doing anything else other than calling my name. I know that it’s trying to lure me and I’m not falling for it. But… Hmm. That voice helped me to save Annabelle earlier. I think we should follow the voice for now. Let’s run away if we feel something is off.”

Dilmond seemed to be certain that the voice would be helpful.

At that moment, a hissing sound began to ring around Juan’s ears. It was an unpleasant yet irresistible voice.

『Juan.』

It was Ras’ voice. Juan could guess what voice Dilmond was talking about. Ras’ voice was easy to modulate since it was composed by magic. Juan was shaken to hear his son’s voice. If Ras’ voice helped to save Anya, then perhaps there was hope that Ras was still alive. However, he couldn’t tell whether it was a good thing or not for Ras to be alive when Nigrato was close to completing his form.

At that movement, Dilmond dropped down to his knees. Juan quickly got off of Dilmond’s back. Dilmond’s breath was heavy as unholy energy aggravated his injuries. The closer they got, the harder it would be for Dilmond to hold out.

“...I wanted to stab Nigrato in the throat with my own hands, but I guess I’ll have to ask you to do it for me,” Dilmond said as he beckoned to Juan with difficulty.

Juan stared at Dilmond and silently nodded. Juan left Dilmond behind and moved on. It was unknown as to how long Dilmond would last on his own in this place, where ordinary people’s skin would rot and dry out.

After a few steps, Juan could hear another voice. It was a scream rather than a composed voice. The scream carried by the wind was desperate and hopeless. Soon, Juan found something that glowed red despite the darkness and emanated unholy energy that could crush skin and bone. It didn’t take long for Juan to recognize what it was.

“Ras.”

Ras stood in the middle of the darkness with a burning sword studded in his chest. On the handle of the sword were the remains of a burnt and blackened hand, whose owner was unknown.

The scream seemed to be coming from somewhere within Ras’ blackened body that shook ominously. While the scream seemed to be coming from one person, it also sounded like there were several more people.

“Dilmond, do you see…”

Juan turned back to Dilmond and stopped talking. Juan had only taken a few steps from Dilmond, but Dilmond was nowhere to be seen—the only thing left was the black blood stain he had spilled on the ground. Juan stared at the place where Dilmond had disappeared in silence.

『You are.』

Juan heard a voice from behind his back. Ras stood still like a statue and remained motionless as he quietly stared at Juan.

『The black-haired boy.』

Ras began to move his body with a squeaking sound. The fiery sword made a sharp clashing sound as it cut through wind. Ash rose thickly everywhere Ras’ feet touched.

『Where are the other Templars? And why is it so dark? I…this is my hand? What on earth…What had happened to me?』

Ras muttered in a confused voice as his shoulders trembled in fear. It seemed that Ethan had been absorbed with Ras into Nigrato’s body. It was difficult for Juan to understand the current state of Ras. Juan wondered if Ras’ consciousness still remained inside Nigrato's body just like Ethan's, and how much of him was left, or even if he was really still alive. However, everything about how Nigrato behaved and thought was unknown to Juan.

『There’s a sword in my chest…is this my sword? Wait, perhaps… No way.』

At that moment, Ras’ neck jerked back with a squeaking sound as if he had been hit by something. His trembling head slowly moved to face Juan. Nothing could be seen from his hollow eyes where black smoke was rising.

『Juan. No, I mean… His Majesty. No, father.』

“...Ras.”

Juan muttered Ras’ name like a groan, but he could easily tell that the man standing in front of him wasn’t Ras. Juan had figured that Nigrato showed himself in the mortal world by imitating the characters of those who had been absorbed as sacrificial offerings. Juan was convinced that Ethan had become a victim of a sacrificial offering to Nigarto, just like Ras.

Nigrato, who had taken control over Ras’ body, slowly approached Juan and reached both of his hands toward Juan. Then he placed his hands around Juan’s face as if he was stroking Juan’s face, and quietly muttered.

『No, you heretic.』

In an instant, Nigrato began to squeeze Juan’s body with both hands and crushed him.

***

In the midst of saving the refugees of Hiveden by fighting the undead, Sina saw flames soaring from the darkness. It was only a small flame like a candle compared to the huge darkness, but it looked dazzling bright to Sina.

At that moment, Sina felt aching pain from the burn that covered her left eye as soon as she saw the flame—it had now been a second time since she felt pain from the wound on her left eye. Sina felt as if she was re-experiencing the pain from the past when Juan scorched her wound.

When Kamil saw Sina suddenly stagger, she hastily approached and supported her.

“Sina, what’s going on? Weren’t you like this earlier too?”

“No, it’s not—it’s nothing. It’s just…”

“Sina, your eye…”

Sina tried to touch her left eye at Kamil’s words, but quickly pulled her hand away due to the burning heat; Sina’s wound was glowing a bright orange. Sina couldn’t understand what was happening to her. However, she was certain about one thing—the flame that burst out of the darkness clearly had something to do with Juan.

“Sina, stay behind if you are in discomfort. Don’t worry about the undead and focus on protecting Bishop Rietto,” Kamil said.

The usual vitality and craziness of Bishop Rietto was nowhere to be seen, and there was only a weak old man who was trembling in fear. As Sina and Kamil couldn’t leave him alone while they fought against the undead, few of the refugees had been supporting and protecting him.

Sina shook her head.

“No, I’m fine now. Actually, my body feels much lighter for some reason. Let’s find more refugees and…”

Sina’s words stopped as she saw foreign beings amongst the refugees pouring out of the darkness.

Kamil’s eyes sparked with anger when she noticed the beings as well.

“The Order of Huginn!”