I became a legion lich

200 Disgraceful retreat

Despite the darkness surrounding them, the surrounding light element concentration was rapidly increasing.

The frozen ocean below began to glow as the darkness dispersed, unable to maintain itself because of the overwhelming amount of light at the bottom. The ice started to glow as its surface cracked, the pressure Eishin was exerting was enough to destroy it.

The ice exploded as a pillar of light rose, slicing through the space between Illum and Canan/Eirin, forcing them both back to avoid being hit.

Eishin stood on top of the pillar, glaring at Illum from above. He was in his true form, no longer daring to underestimate Illum.

His body now measured approximately 40 meters in height and was made of pure light element, shining like a lighthouse. Three pairs of white feathered wings rose from its back, while a white halo floated on top of its head.

He was wearing full armor that was actually part of his body. In his haste, Eishin had forgotten his equipment in the divine palace, so he was completely unarmed.

His helmet was completely closed and had only two slits for his eyes, with two white flames coming out of the slits.

The eclipse was behind him and contrasted with his glowing body, making his view even more impressive.

He wasn’t holding back any longer and decided to go all out, activating his Sun Ruler racial ability. The ability allowed him to convert all sunlight into elemental energy that would be absorbed by the halo floating on his head, maintaining a constant source of energy as long as it was daylight.

.....

“Finally tired of being beaten and decided to fight for real?” Illum was unimpressed with his transformation and scoffed.

“You will pay for your words. I will not let my guard down anymore.” Eishin spoke arrogantly and raised his arm, conjuring a ring of white lightning, but he was stopped.

“Eishin, enough of this. We must not fight him, not here and not now.” Canan/Eirin spoke as she stood in front of Eishin’s face.

“Get out of the way. I’m going to kill that man and then the giants he’s protecting.” Eishin spoke and as he waved Canan/Eirin out of the way.

“You, kill me? I think I hit you so hard it gave you a concussion. You’re suffering from hallucinations.” Illum chuckled at him as he crossed his arms, earning an evil look from Canan/Eirin.

Eishin was about to resume the attack but was forced to stop.

A gigantic purplish-black orb appeared right behind Illum, interrupting him. An approximately 50 meter black dragon appeared, roaring furiously towards Eishin.

The dragon had two pairs of wings with more holes than a sieve and spikes of bone at the ends. Its black scales had a diamond pattern and ended in sharp spikes, forming a natural spiked armor in addition to the dragon’s natural protective scales.

A row of sharp bones started at the back of its head and ran to the base of its tail, which looked like a bony whip, ending in a black stinger.

Its head had five horns that formed a crown and its eyes were golden, but the strangest part was its jaw. The lower part of the dragon’s jaw was split left and right, with a tongue forked in the middle.

It was Kalesi, the death lord and only dragon lich in the world.

She glared at the titan of light as it flew, each beat of its wings generating black lightning that connected the clouds above and the ocean below. Kalesi wasted no time talking and tried to move forward, but Illum stopped her.

“Wait. Let’s give them one last chance. If you agree to back off now, I’m willing to overlook your breach of agreement, on the condition that you don’t act directly until the end of the war to come.” Illum spoke seriously, but got only a mocking response from Eishin.

“And why should I accept your deal? That would be an ultimatum for the human realms and without our interference, the giants would butcher countless innocent lives!” Eishin shouted and this time Canan/Eirin had to agree.

“I’m sorry master, but Eishin is right. We cannot accept such absurd terms.” They spoke while keeping one set of eyes on Kalesi and the other on Illum, ready to react to any attack.

“I said you are forbidden to act directly, but I didn’t say you are forbidden to help. You are free to help through the order or the church, as long as you don’t act personally.” Illum spoke and this time Canan/Eirin stopped to think seriously, much to Eishin’s chagrin.

He felt confident to defeat Illum while he was alone, but if Kalesi got involved it would be a different story. Despite Illum’s arrogant bravado, Eishin knew his power was limited away from the yggdrasil and every spell he cast consumed amber energy that would take years to recover.

“I accept your offer. I will retreat here and assist in the war just by order, without getting directly involved. That’s enough for you, right?” Canan/Eirin spoke and retreated a few meters, showing that they did not intend to continue hostilities here.

Alone, Eishin had no choice but to retreat. If he chooses to fight and is killed, Canan and Eirin would be next and humanity would be doomed to live in a world ruled by inhuman Gods. He shrunk back to human size and reverted to his human appearance, before departing back to the Carian empire without saying a single word.

Eishin had recovered all the damage suffered under the sun ruler, but his pride was still bruised from being forced to flee with his tail between his legs and his hatred for the giants burned brighter than ever. He was already thinking of a way to stop the attacking demihumans, as well as a way to get revenge on Illum for today’s humiliation.

“Farewell, master.” Canan/Eirin said and disappeared in a purple orb, leaving Kalesi and Illum alone.

“Did you really have to kick them out now that I got here? Couldn’t you have at least let me hit that bastard a few times?” Kalesi asked in frustration. She was late for the attack because Illum had moved without warning her, and it took her a few minutes to find a crystal large enough for her size.

“I stopped the fight just because you arrived. Eishin was impatient and wasn’t thinking straight, so it was easy for me to take him down. But unlike me, you wouldn’t be able to control yourself once you started fighting and it would just end when one of the two runs out of mana or dies.” Illum shook his head, thinking of all the destruction that would ensue if they both fought.

“At that point, my former disciples would get involved to try to save him and I would be forced to fight as well, destroying all our efforts to delay the war. Don’t forget that our objective is not only to defeat them, but also to prevent the world be destroyed by the aftermath of battle.” Illum spoke and he conjured a red wave and shot it into the ocean below to prove his point.

A few seconds later, several withered corpses of sea monsters began to float on the surface of the sea, showing that even a quick confrontation like that was enough to take a few thousand lives.

“You’re right, I’m sorry about that. I admit I wouldn’t be able to contain myself if we started fighting seriously.” Kalesi took a deep breath to calm himself, causing a small typhoon and used shapeshifting magic to return to human form. She admitted he was right, but from the icy steam that rose from her nostrils every time she took a breath, she was still irritated.

“Let’s get back to Nytrer before you decide to de-stress against the environment.” Illum grabbed her arm before she could react and teleported them back to the Nytrer continent.

They appeared at the top of the yggdrasil, on one of the branches of the world tree. A few dozen meters away was a small wooden hut where Illum lived. Unlike other Gods or royal families, Illum felt no need for luxury and a cozy little cabin was all he needed when he felt tired from work.

Here, Illum would have fantastic eyesight, not that he needed eyes to see when he was near the yggdrasil. His mystical senses were so strong that he could sense every living and undead being hundreds of miles away, but he usually suppressed this ability for the sake of his own mental health.

He would eventually forget his duty as the guardian of life and become arrogant, forgetting the value of life. Illum created this small hut instead of a massive castle or palace to always remember what’s important.

“You didn’t need to drag myself around like a child like that. I wasn’t going to destroy an already destroyed environment.” Kalesi spoke as he let go of her arm and walked towards the hut.

Despite being a humble one-story hut, it was made of yggdrasil wood and possessed defensive enchantments that would put a royal palace to shame. It was something he had created just for fun, as the world tree itself possessed much more power.

They entered the small hut and Kalesi sat down on one of the sofas, before finally asking the question that had been bothering her.