The Undead King of the Palace of Darkness

“Wha-, you’re――”

Dell Gordon’s weapon could be classified as a sturdy sword, unlike the one Senri had. A single swing could cut through the ogres along with their armor.

His body was overflowing with the power of blessing and his every muscle was throbbing erratically. His movements were like a storm and in the blink of an eye, he subdued the 3 demi-humans we accidentally met in the treasury.

Dell alertly holds the wide sword he found in the treasury. It goes without saying that I’m also somebody he’s wary of.

Having seen his ferocious way of fighting, I thought.

―― He’s not that big of a deal.

He’s strong. He’s certainly strong. Dell could defeat most members of Rainel’s army and if we fight 1 on 1 there is a chance I could lose because of the compatibility between us.

But he’s too weak for the duty I wanted to give him.

If we forget about compatibility for a moment, Dell is weaker than me. A long time has passed ever since my tag with Senri at the waterside. My strength right now is different from what it was back then.

If we tested our strength one-on-one, I’ll definitely come out victorious over Dell, who has been strengthened by the blessing. Right now, I can instantly slay demi-humans like Dell, and while I’m at it, I can do it fast enough to not even give them a chance to make a sound.

I didn’t expect that much from him, but this is definitely not enough to defeat Rainel. I wanted to use him to distract Rainel, but it’s doubtful whether he’ll even be useful for that.

That beast is definitely very strong. His overwhelming power meant that no small tricks could work on him. He is probably a bad match for Senri too. Even if I used explosions to destroy the castle, that Demon King still wouldn’t die.

Or perhaps, could Senri’s ‘Photon Delete’ the skill that blew away the Lord’s evil dragon, defeat him?

…Well, that would be the last resort. If possible, I want to finish everything before Senri arrives.

Dell seems to be extremely motivated, but he doesn’t seem to intend to take on the whole army by himself.

I suppose my betrayal hasn’t been exposed yet. I leave the other prisoners alone, leave the treasury before Dell and check the surroundings.

The camp is much noisier than usual. Black smoke is rising from the direction of the mountain. An obviously non-human voice enters my ears.

“There’s an intruder! ―― Don’t let him escape!!”

I suppress my whispering instincts telling me to fight with reason. The high-ranked demi-human warriors of Rainel’s army are passing me in a hurry. I see them off expressionlessly. Some of them are surprised at my appearance, but perhaps they have seen my fight with Man-Eater, as nobody tries to attack me.

The fight was just two days ago. It’s not a full moon yet, so I don’t think Demon King Rainel could imagine that I would make my move so fast.

From here on, it’s the race against time. I don’t know the structure of Rainel’s castle. I did hear about it from Monica, but I don’t have a map.

Fortunately, the castle is very close to the treasury.

Demon King Rainel is the strongest in this army. He’s different from a human king. The castle shouldn’t be very heavily guarded and what little guards there were present should have gone towards the ‘source of the fire’

I make sure that nobody is paying attention to us while we are running towards the castle. Dell, who has covered himself with a heavy coat, follows after me.

“Don’t tell me you don’t have a plan…”

“A plan is useless against that thing.”

The words Dell spat out sounded exasperated. If I was in his position, I would think the same thing too.

However, while it cannot be said that the current rebellion is unrelated to my personal feelings, some things have been properly planned out.

I thought about quietly taking out the small flies from the inside, but in the end, it’s meaningless if I don’t defeat Rainel. I don’t have time for it either.

“Rainel is planning to attack Romberg soon. We must strike before he is done with the preparations.”

“… Why is a vampire like you protecting a human city? Romberg is your enemy.”

“I have my own circumstances. Just like… how you have yours.

Dell doesn’t know that I’m allied with a Death Knight. I don’t intend to tell him either.

This matter is complicated. My actions are carried out because of my personal feelings, because of Senri, and ―― because of the merchant group that gave me sweets.

I can say for sure that protecting the city or risking my life is not my intention at all.

However, I could never imagine that Undead like me would end up working together with a Death Knight other than Senri.

Even when we’re like this, the Death Knight is still trying to see through my actions.

“I went out of my way to save, so you better work well to repay me. Don’t betray me during the decisive battle.”

“Tsk… I don’t remember asking for your help!”

Looks like getting along well is not an option here.

Rainel’s castle is made of smooth stone. I wonder if it was made with magic?… I go inside through the unguarded wide-open entrance. Dell follows after me stealthily.

There’s a bestial smell in the air. It’s the unforgettable familiar odour, the scent of Demon King Rainel. It seems to be coming from far above. No, ――wait.

I can smell the faint smell of Senri mixed with the horrible stench of Rainel’s army. It’s coming from behind me―― from the foot of the mountain. It’s still far away, but she’s definitely heading towards me.

Did she come to pick me up?… Now I have even more reasons to hurry up.

At this moment, I heard a familiar voice from the back of the castle.

“End… why are you in the castle?”

“… Selzard.”

Who appeared from the front was the Lizardman warrior that landed a heavy blow to me on my first day in the army ―― Selzard. Lizardmen, impossible to differentiate from each other except for their weapons, were bustling behind his towering, large body.

I instinctively click my tongue without showing it on my face.

Selzard and his underlings were fully armed.

He was holding a long spear, wearing a helmet that’s been tailored for his body and glaring (then again, I can’t really read the emotions of lizardmen) at me.

I opened a giant hole in his body just the other day, but he seems to be doing fine. I can’t underestimate the regeneration ability of living beings.

Can I kill him? But the reason I was able to so easily open up another hole in Selzard’s body was because he had his guard down. This time, while he might not have the strongest warriors with him, they still far outnumber me. He’s looking at Dell, who’s sneakily hiding behind me.

I hesitate a bit and try not to put much emotion in my voice.

“There’s an intruder in the camp. You better get moving if you want credit, Selzard.”

“Oh, no wonder it’s so noisy.”

Selzard didn’t show any reaction to my words.

His nostrils twitched and his eyes rotated. Do lizardmen also have a good sense of smell?

“I smell the cursed flames. That is some troublesome intruder we have on our hands.”

“Then go. If you are loyal… retainer of Lord Rainel, you must go.”

I first met Selzard outside. He probably doesn’t usually come to the castle.

Why is he getting in my way at such an important time?… Hearing my frustrated voice, Selzard glanced at his underlings and said.

“Yesterday’s fight was truly admirable.”

“Yeah, thanks. Man-Eater was more formidable than the rumours suggested. I only won by chance.”

“If Lord Rainel didn’t stop you, you would have killed ‘Man-Eater’.”

“No way. I was going to stop at the last minute. After all, killing is forbidden. Even vampires follow the rules.”

Hurry up and get lost. I don’t have enough time to stand here and make small talk with you.

Unlike the first time we met, Selzard’s eyes are very calm. He’s calmly looking at me.

I smell something. It’s not the scent of fear. What I’m smelling is not the fear ―― It’s the excitement.

Selzard hands his trident to his underling and pulls out the sword hanging from his waist.

At this moment I finally understood the situation.

Selzard hasn’t heard any of my words. He had no intentions to listen. But he knew the real reason why I was here.

Strictly speaking, it was not just any sword that this lizardmen, known to have one of the strongest combat abilities even within the army, pulled out.

It was a single-edged sword that shone with silver luster. The sword was made of holy silver―― it was Dell Gordon’s main weapon that we couldn’t find in the treasury.