The Necromancer Who Was Despised

Especially against dark magic, he said he would never lose.

[But if it’s not you guys, it’s only a matter of time before I’m complete. If you protect me until then, I’ll grant you anything you want. You’re a magician, so you must have a goal, right?]

If I were to obtain power rivaling the Demon King, I could achieve anything, he said.

[What do you want? A higher realm? Eternal life? Just say it.]

He even said that secular things were possible, and it would be even easier.

But I didn’t want anything.

From the start, when I first returned, I wanted a safe life.

And if possible, I wanted to add revenge to that.

And those things were progressing one by one, leaving only one last step.

In reality, if I could just bring down the Holy Empire, everything would be achieved.

Tinos seemed to want to add the destruction of the Black Star and the Red Ogre to that, but I couldn’t refuse.

‘In the past, I only had to take care of myself, but now it’s a little different.’

Those two would ultimately become threats to the continent as well.

If the continent falls into chaos, I’ll have a hard time surviving too.

If I didn’t have the power, I wouldn’t know, but it’s impossible to do it now.

Just as I was about to reject it outright, a thought suddenly occurred to me.

“Can we go to another world?”

[Huh?]

My sudden words drew the attention of my companions, who looked at me with curiosity, not suspicion.

“It’s not about the demon world. I mean a completely different world.”

I have no attachment to this earth. I’ve lived here for too long, and even if I went back, I wouldn’t be able to adapt to that place.

I just blurted out the thought that came to mind.

It’s common knowledge that such a world exists.

Especially for a mage like me, who’s reached the level of a demon sorcerer, it’s impossible not to know. And for a dark mage who’s made a contract with a demon, it’s even more impossible.

It’s not like the demon world is the only one invading our world.

There’s the demon world, the spirit world, and even the giant’s forest, where giants and dragons have fought, so I know of the existence of giants.

It’s impossible not to know that other worlds exist.

[…You’re asking for something difficult. It may be impossible in the short term, but I’ll try my best….]

“So, you’re saying it’s impossible?”

I didn’t have high expectations from the start. As I said, I didn’t plan to return, and I just asked out of curiosity.

So, I didn’t feel disappointed.

“What’s with the disappointment? You said anything was possible.”

If I really wanted to return, I would have talked to Tinus, not that guy.

With a dragon by my side, I wouldn’t ask that useless guy for a method.

My words seemed to have stung him, and his face contorted for a moment.

But soon, he regained his composure and made another suggestion.

[Is there anything else you want? If you want, I can even build a country for you.]

“Since we’re dreaming big, why not aim for conquering the demon world?”

[…I didn’t plan to accept it from the start.]

“You just realized that, did you?”

[You can’t do anything to me, no matter what. I just want to achieve my goal as soon as possible. If you get in the way, it’ll just take a little longer, but the result won’t change.]

It wasn’t like he suddenly became a being close to the demon king just because I was chatting with him.

Still, I could somewhat anticipate the reason why he was talking like that.

“You don’t need the priests’ help to kill me, specifically.”

He reacted to my words.

I said that dark magic barely worked, but it wouldn’t be the case with divine power.

In reality, the priest’s attacks were quite effective against the demons.

So, I could understand that he wanted to deal with the priests somehow.

‘It seems you’re not completely unaware of the situation.’

However, I could fully anticipate that control and information transmission would be extremely limited.

[…It’s too late to realize it. They’re completely isolated. You can’t save them from the start.]

It seemed like I was just watching, and he was laughing at us.

Of course, his intention to pull me in was sincere.

If I succeeded, it would be the best result for him, so it was worth the risk.

However, the possibility of me surrendering to him from the start was 0%.

“Tinus, is there a way to defeat him?”

“There is. The Abyssal Fragment is not invincible.”

Tinus had seen his attacks being nullified. He wasn’t just playing around while talking to him.

“A stronger and higher-level magic might work to some extent. But that’s too inefficient.”

Our current situation makes it difficult to do so.

“There’s an easier and simpler way,” Tinus said.

His gaze was directed at Kayla.

“…The Oracle Blade might work.”

“It’s not because the foundation is magic; it’s because the Abyssal Fragment doesn’t allow black magic to affect it. If you try to use black magic, you’ll just get caught.”

But mana is different.

“It’s already a fragment that has fallen from the Abyss. Black magic can’t fully block it, so there’s no way the Oracle Blade can stop it.”

Stronger and higher-level magic wouldn’t work in the first place, so it’s normal.

In other words, we had to confront him with Kayla at the center.

[…You’re going to get caught.]

When we openly talked, Rochis looked like he was being ignored and distorted his face.

“You’re going to get caught. I acknowledge that the Abyssal Fragment is dangerous, but you’re not.”

You’re not using it properly, Tinus said.

“You did something you shouldn’t have. I promise you. You won’t be able to die easily.”

Tinus’s expression was brutal.

Just listening to the story, you could tell how dangerous it was.

The Abyss itself is a powerful dimension that poses a serious threat to the mage world, and bringing that fragment to this continent…

Even if it’s just a part that has been released, it’s impossible to guarantee what kind of danger it will bring.

Tinus, who had become undead to protect the continent, wouldn’t tolerate bringing such a dangerous thing to the continent.

And that guy is the leader of the Black Star.

The Empire, and the power that has joined hands with the Red Ogre, thinking about the things the Black Star has done in the past… Tinus’s anger was natural.

Even with Tinus’s threats, Rochis just laughed.

[Who’s going to say it. Go ahead.]

“Do-in-ha.”

“Yes?”

“Build a temporary base. I’ll help.”

“…Will you help?”

“As I said, strong magic will work on him. I’ll amplify the power of your magic by intervening in your temporary base.”

It may be possible for others, but as Tinus, my undead and my mage, it’s definitely possible.

“Kayla will take care of the rest, but we can’t leave it all to her.”

Using only black magic to kill him is inefficient, but helping with the process is definitely possible.

“Kailla, focus on cutting off that guy’s breath. I’ll open the way with Do In-ha. That guy won’t be able to do anything.”

Tinus’s words made Rochis burst into laughter.

[It seems I was quite ridiculous.]

“Get ready.”

Tinus ignored the guy’s words and demanded of me, and I nodded briefly.

Although the materials were running low, if Tinus helped, it might somehow work out.

I opened the dimensional fragment, and a person came out from inside.

“…Artina?”

And at the same time.

[Contractor]

The abyssal fragment began to writhe ominously.

◈ Black Star

When did I wake up?

The girl I had left inside the dimensional fragment revealed herself.

The phantoms and undead I had arranged for contingencies also followed her out of the dimensional fragment.

“Are you okay…?”

But there was no time to check her condition.

Something was changing on Rochis’s side.

As soon as he said “contractor”, the abyssal fragment began to writhe ominously.

A strong shockwave spread out.

“…….”

It wasn’t difficult to block it.

Tinus’s simple barrier prevented the shockwave from reaching us.

But that wasn’t the problem.

The abyssal fragment started to writhe rapidly.

Tentacle-like branches spread out around us, beginning to engulf the entire space.

The dark elf mages hastily used their shields to protect our party, and the undead handled the approaching tentacles.

But the tentacles were a bit more troublesome than before.

-…It’s absorbing power!

Just as Entin said.

The tentacles themselves absorbed power, but it wasn’t as if they could drain power away in an instant.

However, this time, the ability itself was strong due to its proximity to the main body.

“It’s troublesome.”

I quickly began to set up a temporary base, and Tinus assisted me.

The two of us couldn’t act carelessly, as interfering with someone else’s magic and providing support was a high-difficulty task that required prior agreement or preparation, and only someone like Tinus could do it on the spot.

I was unable to do so, and even the dark elf elders might struggle to do it on the spot.

So the two of us focused on supporting the dark elf elders on defense.

The problem was that their power might also be absorbed.

Therefore, we had to move quickly.

And then, Artina moved.

Her back no longer bore the same dragon-like figure as before.

From the start, her opponent was not a being with the power of a giant.

The dragon that lent her its power was a descendant of the red ogres, fighting against the giant’s power.

Of course, the fragments of the abyss were also a tremendous threat to this continent, but in her current state, she couldn’t make such a judgment.

Even seeing the magic didn’t elicit a notable reaction, making it difficult to ask for help in the current situation.

However, despite this, Artina’s movements were not different from before.

No, to be honest, they were even better.

Her movements, which couldn’t be called expert, made me realize anew that she had surpassed the wall.

Of course, there were some awkward moments.

As a mage, I could see that her movements were a bit clumsy, unlike Kailra’s smooth actions.

Her movements were big and somewhat unnatural.

But that was all.

Artina was relatively in control of her body and was handling the attacking tendrils well.

In fact, her movements seemed to be getting better every moment, and unlike the undead, she didn’t seem to be absorbing power.

And at some point, I could see that an Oracle Blade had appeared in her dagger.

Lochs seemed taken aback by the sudden appearance of a new master.

[She’s definitely…].

Since we had observed our battle, it seemed they knew something about Artina, and seeing her use the Oracle Blade, they looked incredulous.

[…It doesn’t matter if it’s one or two. It’ll just take a little more time. You won’t be able to escape from here.]

With those words, some of the tendrils suddenly expanded, and a demon emerged from within.

It was the same demon I had seen before, with a dull expression, connected to a pipe.

And they showed the same appearance as before.

As the demons, targeting me, rushed towards me, Artina looked taken aback for a moment before quickly prioritizing the demons.

No surprise, Lochs seemed flustered by the demons’ incomprehensible behavior.

[Why… what kind of trick is this!]

His gaze was directed at me.

He seemed to think I had done something.

[It’s faster than I thought… what kind of trick…].