novelTo the Land of the Demons (1)
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Chapter 110 - To the Land of the Demons (1)
1
There was always an end to every fight. Countless wars ended to become a part of history, and some of them became legends that people remembered for all times.
The Dragon Demon war was the largest war recorded in history.
The people, who were living through it, felt as if they were in a never ending hell. The act of being alive each day was painful, and the world was filled with the laments of the despairing people.
However, even this long war had to come to an end. People ran forward as they burned all their reservoirs of energy to be able to see the end. When the end started to come into view, everyone became disconcerted.
It was the night before the final battle. Azell and Carlos was sitting in front of each other. An important fight was ahead of them, so there was no alcohol being shared between the two. No one would have blamed them if they had hit the bottle to fall asleep amidst this tiring war. However, the two of them were placing their fate on the impending fight, so they didn't want to do anything they would regret later.
"The elders would laugh if they could hear my words...."
Carlos let out an embarrassed laughter.
"I didn't expect to live long enough to see the end of the war."
"You should never repeat those words to the elders."
Azell smirked as he rebuked Carlos.
At that point, it had been 17 years since the Dragon Demon Wars had erupted. However, it wasn't as if the world had been peaceful before the start of the Dragon Demon war. Wars used to break out in various locations, and the fights had escalated. However, at some point, Atein named himself as the Dragon Demon King, and he started a war to conquer humanity.
Azell and Carlos had spent most of their lives in hardship and frustration as the Dragon Demon war had started in their childhood. For the two of them, the Dragon Demon war had always been in the background of their lives. They couldn't imagine what they would do when the Dragon Demon war came to an end. They hadn't even dreamed about such possibilities.
Carlos spoke.
"I won't. I don't want to hear what they have to say. But..."
"I understand what you are feeling right now."
"Right..."
"However, all of that... It'll only be possible if we win tomorrow."
The stage of the final battle was set. The allied forces had surrounded the final stronghold. It was where all the remaining Dragon Demon king's army was gathered. They had surrounded the'Dragon Horn Fortress'.
After the long era of darkness, it was almost a miracle that the allied forces were able to gather hundreds of thousands of fighters. There had been too many deaths, and there were too few children born and raised during this era.
The warriors continued to fall in battle, and the ones that weren't warriors had to become warriors. They had no choice if they wanted to survive. Now the end was in sight, and they all gathered to see the end of this war.
Carlos spoke. He wasn't really speaking to Azell. It was as if he wanted to hear himself speak.
"We can win this. No, there is no way we will lose."
"I know."
The allied forces had methodically piled up victories, and their enemies were cornered now. In terms of numbers, the allied forces had an overwhelming advantage compared to the Dragon Demon army inside the Dragon Horn Fortress. Normally, one would count this as a victory.
However, they couldn't do so, because Dragon Demon King Atein was waiting for them inside the fortress.
"All our preparations are complete. You just have to defeat that bastard."
In the final battle, Azell would have to fight one on one with Atein.
This was the plan concocted by the leaders of the allied forces. While the large army lay siege to the fortress, an elite force would infiltrate the castle within the Dragon Horn Fortress. They would create a situation where Azell and Atein would be able to fight one on one.
The reasoning behind this plan was simple. If Atein wasn't tied up in a one on one battle, the allied forces wouldn't be able to hold up against Atein's attacks. It would be calamitous.
Atein was ultimate magician.
Atein was able to casually do tasks that defied all magical intuition and magical theory known to this world. If an Archmage of Atein's caliber was able to engage the large army, all the high ranking magicians would be tied up in trying to stop Atein.
This was why someone had to get close Atein, so he wouldn't be able to pay attention to the battlefield. However, only a very small elite unit could infiltrate the castle when two large armies clashed. This elite unit would have no choice, but to fight Atein while surrounded by their enemies.
If the allied forces wanted to win this war with the limited resources the possessed, they needed a viable challenger, who will be able to last against Atein in an one on one battle. It didn't matter if this person didn't win. The most important part was to stay alive until the outcome of the war was determined.
There was also a simple reason why Azell had taken on this mission. It was determined that only he would be able to go toe to toe with Atein in an one on one fight.
Atein was the ultimate magician, yet at the same time, he was in possession of numerous Dragon Demon weapons.
Normally, a Dragon Demon or a Dragon Majin chose to either wield magic or a Dragon Demon weapon. The techniques for both discipline arose from the same root. This was why they had similar special characteristic, yet the techniques was markedly different. This was why if one chose to train both paths to the extreme, one became stuck somewhere in the middle. One wouldn't be able to become good in either disciplines.
However, Atein was special. He was a transcendent magician, and at the same time, he was a terrifying warrior.
Carlos spoke.
"It'll be ok. Atein is a terrifying existence, but you can win against him. You've already done it before."
"I was able to strike him, because I ambushed him. It had been possible, because Reshoo had acted in an unpredictable manner. This is the first time I'll fight Atein in a fair fight."
Reshoo was Azell's fourth teacher. He wasn't affiliated with either the allied forces or the Dragon Demon king's army. He had instigated a fight with Atein, and when Reshoo was in mortal danger, Azell had entered the battle. He was able to grievously wound Atein.
Carlos spoke.
"It'll be different this time. You have something that'll put you on equal footing with Atein."
Atein possessed 13 Dragon Demon Weapons. Each of the Dragon Demon weapons possessed earth shattering power, yet he was able to use several Dragon Demons at the same time.
If Atein brought out multiple Dragon Demon Weapons to use large scale magic, he was unstoppable. He was able to create consecutive phenomena that was akin to natural disasters. It would smash the battle lines of the allied forces. From the allied force's perspective, they had to make sure that Atein didn't enter into the battlefield.
There were numerous beings, who possessed multiple Dragon Demon weapons. These weapons could be transferred to others. However, there were only three beings, who were able to summon multiple Dragon Demon weapons at once.
It could be done by Atein, Azell and Duke Croix Nidel. Duke Croix Nidel was a veteran knight, and he was the allied force's best technician. However, his power was lacking compared to Atein and Azell. Duke Nidel possessed four Dragon Demon weapons, and he could summon two at the same time.
Azell was the same as Atein. He possessed 13 Dragon Demon weapons. These were keepsakes left behind by his dead comrades. The Dragon Demon weapons had been transferred to him by them.
Suddenly, Carlos grinned.
"Truthfully, I'm envious of you."
"What are you talking about?"
"You will be on the brightest stage, and you will have the most important part to play in it. After tomorrow, the bards in the future will sing about the hero Azell. I'll probably be relegated to one of your nameless comrades, who stood next to you as you killed Atein. Now that I think about it, it feels like I'm receiving the short end of the stick. Jeez."
"We still haven't fought the battle yet. Why are you talking about the distant future?"
"It'll happen. We'll become legends tomorrow. The world doesn't revolve around certain people, but tomorrow... For one day, the world will revolve around us."
Azell looked at him for a moment, and he put on the same grin as Carlos.
"Yes. I'm sure it will."
2
It was the present. Dragon Demon war had been over for 223 years.
A cold silence had descended inside the ruins of the Count Karzark's castle. It was because, the blonde haired Dragon Demon girl, who had her whole body restricted, had spoken the truth.
"......."
The Dragon Demon King's revival was imminent.
This was a belief shared by all Dragon Demon King worshippers. They believed time was just something that had to be endured, and their belief would be proven true. The great Dragon Demon king would return to this world, and he would change this world into the way it should be.
The existence of this belief was the reason why the worship of the Dragon Demon king hadn't died off. Within their religion, they believed the Dragon Demon king was able to transcend the providence of this world.
It had been 223 years since his death, and he was about to revive. It was occurring as prophesied. The Dragon Demons within the Plain of Darkness was sure of this truth.
"You guys......."
When he heard Laura's story, Kairen spoke as if her words was preposterous.
"You guys really believe it is possible for a dead being to come back to life? Are we talking about making an Undead through Black Magi? Or will he come back to his original living body?"
"When our king was alive, he was basically like the living history of this world. He was an existence that had transcended the common sense of magicians. If you had the chance to see the relics left behind all over the world by him, you wouldn't think returning from death to be particularly difficult for him."
"......."
"You've already seen the result of magic that's akin to a wish. You have seen the Guardian Shadows. They are an example of how illogical it can be."
"At the very least, you guys seem to believe it. I guess it makes sense. The belief in his revival had basically kept you guys going for 200 years. However..."
"No. Wait a moment."
Azell cut off Kairen's words. He asked Laura with a serious expression on his face.
"How long until Atein revives?"
"... Azell?"
"You guys went to the trouble of kidnapping Dragon Demon royalty from outside. At the very least, this means you don't have the people you need inside the Plain of Darkness. Or maybe you guys failed in making something for him. Is that right?"
"Azell. Do you really... Are you actually taking her seriously?"
Kairen asked the question as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. However, Azell didn't even turn around as he answered the question.
"Yes."
"......."
"I don't know if it is possible or not. However, I had a friend with excellent judgement speak regarding this problem. He said it was possible, so I trust him. The worst possible outcome may be staring us in the face right now. If we don't believe it, we might be hit in the back of the head when we aren't looking. It would be better to be safe, and look back at this event in dejection and relief."
Last time, Carlos had appeared in Azell's dream, and he left a message saying Atein might be able to revive. This was why he believed Laura's words. Whether it was the past or now, Azell always trusted Carlos in regards to any topics related to magic.
Azell spoke.
"In the Dragon Demon war, Atein died, and his corpse was destroyed. Is this why he is looking for a different vessel? Was his soul preserved?"
In the final battle, Azell was thorough in destroying Atein's corpse. He didn't want to leave open the possibility of Atein coming back as an Undead.
Laura tilted her head.
"You speak as if you've seen it."
"That is none of your business."
"It doesn't matter if we have the corpse or not. In truth, we are trying to gather ingredients to create his vessel, but that might not even be necessary."
"What do you mean?"
"The various magic left behind by him inside the Plain of Darkness is still active. The most astonishing one is the one that'll carry out the Revival Ritual."
Laura had seen this magical model once. The Revival Ritual was to take take place in the deepest part of the Dragon Demon castle. There was a spring of darkness refined by magic underground, and the Revival Ritual was ongoing inside this abyss. This process hadn't stopped for the past 220 years.
Yuren asked a question.
"Is it some kind of a Soul Return technique?"
"No, it is something different. It isn't something as crude as that. If it was the Soul Return technique, there's no reason why he would have used up such a vast amount of time."
The Soul return technique was a type of Black Magic. It used a different method as the Undead spell to bring back the dead. The soul was kept from moving on, and it was put into a different vessel. It could be put into an artificial body, or one could erase a stranger's mind to create a vessel. This was a workaround method for a revival.
However, the probability of success for this method was very slim. The dynamics of magic only allowed a soul to unify with one's own body. This was why most chose to bring a person back as an Undead instead of using the Soul Return technique.
Moreover, even if the method did succeed, the result never turned out right. There wasn't a single case in history where the soul hadn't suffered damage or degradation. This was why even if one was successful in putting a soul into a vessel, a large number of unpredictable problems followed.
Laura spoke.
"The heads of our organization hadn't been trying to prepare the Dragon Demon Princess and the Dragon Demon Prince as a vessel. They weren't trying to pull off something akin to the Soul Return technique."
"Then why?"
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