Death Knight (1)
"Whew."
A week had passed since Heinkel and Garrison clashed.
Even now, the servants were still cleaning up the traces left behind by their confrontation.
'If it weren't for Arin, I really would've died.'
Just a single exchange and brief standoff.
Seeing the damage caused to the estate by that short moment alone made the reality sink in all over again.
'I got through the immediate crisis, and I gained something from it too… but now an even greater danger has appeared.'
Even while walking back into my room, my thoughts never stopped.
One of only three Executors in the Holy Church.
Among them, the strongest in pure martial might—the Judicator, Garrison Berkman.
The fact that that lunatic priest had marked me naturally left my mind in turmoil.
"You've returned."
As soon as I entered the room, Dunkel greeted me.
"Yeah. What about the things I asked for?"
"The medical texts and anatomy theory books have arrived. The remaining items should arrive by tomorrow."
"Good. Now I'm finally starting to feel motivated."
Answering Dunkel, I sat down at the desk set up in the corner of the room.
My room, once filled with luxurious furniture and decorations, had over the past week become crammed with theories, formulas, and research notes I had written.
"Butler Berkman was really shocked!"
While placing newly arrived books on my desk, Arin spoke excitedly.
"Shocked about what?"
At my question, Arin—already munching on cookies beside me—answered immediately.
She already took three?
No, five?
"He said it's the first time Young Master has ever worked this hard!"
"Hah. So that's what you meant."
I lifted my teacup and reviewed the notes I had organized yesterday.
'Well, how could I not be excited? There's so much new stuff.'
I tried acting normal, but every time I saw the growing pile of new books, the corners of my mouth inevitably curled upward.
'Do they even realize what a luxury it is to obtain knowledge this easily?'
Recalling my previous life as Archimond, obsessed with the pursuit of knowledge, I unconsciously tightened my grip on the book in my hands.
To learn even a single formula, I had once worked like a dog as a servant in the Magic Tower.
There was even a time I cut off my own fingers while desperately deciphering a torn page from a grimoire I'd schemed endlessly to obtain.
Unless one belonged to a noble family or a lineage of magicians, knowledge and scholarship had once been things completely beyond reach.
But unlike back then, I could now freely access knowledge from any field I desired.
'As expected, this hypothesis was wrong. The correlation between mana circulation systems and human blood vessels has already been disproven…'
And on top of that, two hundred years had passed since my death.
New discoveries.
New theories.
Entirely new concepts regarding mana circuits.
For the first time since reincarnating, exhilaration flooded my mind and sent my thoughts spinning wildly.
"By the way, why are you collecting so many anatomy books? And this here…"
"Oh, this?"
As Dunkel stared at the mountain of books already stacked like a tower, I continued reviewing the formula written on the white parchment.
"It's a spirit-body construction formula."
"A spirit… body construction formula?"
The moment Dunkel repeated the words, a grin naturally spread across my face.
"You remember the skeletons I summoned, right?"
"Yes."
Watching Dunkel nod, I released demonic energy and drew a summoning circle in one corner of the room.
"Young Master, you're using necromancy in here…?"
"I'm not summoning anything. If I call spirits for something like this, I'll end up having nightmares."
Saying that, I opened the drawer of my desk.
"Now, if I sprinkle this here…"
I opened a box I had taken from the drawer and poured its contents out.
Fwoooosh…!
What I scattered was mana-infused sand—mana dust.
The gray particles floated into the air before moving according to my formula, eventually forming a sand doll shaped like a skeleton.
"Wooow!"
Arin stared at the skeleton-shaped sand with sparkling eyes.
"The necromancy I use works by making contracts with souls through demonic energy, then using the mana possessed by those souls to create spirit bodies."
Watching the skeleton, Dunkel nodded.
"But most souls can't control anything more complex than a skeleton. They may possess mana, but they lack the ego necessary for anything beyond that."
Though stronger than ordinary corpses thanks to being constructed from mana, their structure was no more sophisticated than wooden puppets.
They could follow simple commands like attack and defend, but against true mana users such as knights or mages, they would inevitably collapse helplessly.
'In the end, Dalton couldn't stop them, so I had to handle it myself.'
Thinking back to the battle in the forest, I dismissed the summoning circle.
"But what if the soul isn't ordinary?"
"Not… ordinary?"
At Dunkel's question, my smile deepened further.
"What if the soul belonged to a powerful knight or mage?"
As I spoke, I drew an entirely new formula using demonic energy.
Unlike the skeleton summoning circle composed of two geometric patterns and a single rune, this one was completely different.
Eight interconnected points.
Twenty runes woven flawlessly together.
This was not a summoning circle for mindless spirit bodies.
It was a contract circle designed to call forth powerful souls.
Psssssh—!
The mana dust scattered across the floor reacted to the circle and rose upward.
Not bones.
But black smoke.
And surrounding that black smoke were sturdy armor and weapons.
Seeing it, Dunkel's eyes widened.
"This is…?"
"Well, it's still under construction, so it needs more adjustments."
Perfectly recreated mana circuits, designed to allow the spirit to use the power it possessed in life.
Mana reactors reinforced through demonic energy to guarantee stable output.
And on top of that, Archimond's signature triple-layer reinforced armor.
"For a prototype, this turned out pretty damn good."
I nodded in satisfaction while observing the result produced by the contract circle.
Even if this was merely an upgraded version of a design from two hundred years ago, there probably weren't many people capable of creating spirit bodies this precise.
"Now then… the question is where I'm supposed to get the soul of a knight…"
The moment my gaze drifted toward a certain direction, Dunkel's weary voice followed.
"…Don't even dream about doing anything strange in the mausoleum."
Ah. Busted.
The moment my most anticipated candidate location was exposed, my shoulders slumped.
"No, but… if their adorable grandson finally comes to visit after all this time… wouldn't the ancestors forgive me?"
"Even if the ancestors forgive you, do you think His Grace the Duke will?"
"…Right."
Using necromancy in the ancestral graves.
The moment I imagined it, I became certain.
I'd absolutely get thrown back into the Church again.
And this time, probably for fifty years at minimum.
"When he said to do as I wished, he didn't mean I could do whatever the hell I wanted."
Saying that, I reinforced the formula before dismissing the contract circle and copying it back onto parchment.
Srrrk!
Meanwhile, the mana dust floating through the air drifted neatly back into the box as though nothing had happened.
"Then I guess I'll have to visit somewhere that recently saw battle. For example…"
Just as I was sinking into thought over where to find a soul worthy of contracting with, hurried footsteps echoed from the distance.
And a moment later—
"Y-Young Master Klein!"
One of the servants who usually followed Berkman burst the door open and shouted my name.
"Whoa, just barging in like that?"
"N-no, um! I'm sorry! It's just…!"
"I'm kidding, kidding. What is it?"
Seeing the servant's pale face, I decided this wasn't the time for jokes and immediately asked him.
"A messenger from Her Grace Archduchess Helian has arrived!"
"My aunt sent a messenger?"
I replied casually, but I couldn't remain completely calm.
Helian Leinrant.
Heinkel's younger sister, who had married into House Paul Wyvern—one of the Empire's Three Great Ducal Houses alongside Leinrant.
And after the death of the Paul Wyvern Duke, she had seized full authority and risen as the leader of the branch family faction.
'The fact that a servant came specifically looking for me means the main reason the messenger visited… is me.'
And honestly, the reason was obvious.
'After all, I destroyed an entire count family and killed one of the Empire's pawns. Of course they'd feel nervous.'
As I was thinking that, loud commotion erupted from one side of the estate.
'Sounds like they're making a scene demanding I come out. Guess the shock hit them pretty hard.'
Considering it wasn't Heinkel or Delline—the people they were wary of—but me who had caused all this, it made sense.
A hidden monster had appeared from a completely unexpected direction.
"Let's go."
"Y-Young Master Klein?!"
Without hearing another word from the servant, I immediately rose from my seat and stepped outside.
"I already told you. The message is not for His Grace the Duke, but for Young Master Klein—!"
"Even so, barging in without first going through the master of the house is a grave discourtesy."
"Ah, honestly, you people are impossible!"
Just as expected, the servants and knights led by Berkman were blocking the path toward my room.
'Normally, Heinkel would be the one handling this situation. But things are different now.'
Thinking that, I stepped forward.
The Archduchess herself hadn't come.
Only a messenger.
There was no reason for Heinkel to involve himself personally.
"That's enough!"
The moment I spoke in a firm voice, the noisy hall instantly fell silent.
"H-ha! Young Master Klein!"
The messenger recognized me immediately and rushed toward me with a smile.
"This is perfect, Young Master! I am Buken, sent as a messenger!"
"And?"
I frowned as I answered, but he continued smiling as he spoke.
"Her Grace Archduchess Helian has something important she wishes to convey. Here, this letter is for you."
With that, Buken handed me a parchment scroll.
High-quality parchment.
Gold-thread binding.
And a seal bearing the crest of House Paul Wyvern.
'An invitation. They're trying to recruit me.'
Backed by House Paul Wyvern, Helian had steadily gathered the branch families beneath her banner.
People in positions similar to mine.
Those who possessed succession rights but were not part of the direct bloodline.
She would support them, help them seize control of their families, and expand her influence that way.
'Given the current situation, it's definitely a tempting offer.'
And at the same time that thought crossed my mind, a cold sneer spread across my lips.
"Go on, please read it! Her Grace holds Young Master in extremely high regard—!"
The arrogant look on his face, unable to even imagine rejection, only made my sneer deepen further.
'But you know…'
Before he could even finish speaking, I slowly lifted my foot.
'Rather than cooperate with vermin like you, I'd rather crush the entire North beneath my feet.'
And the next moment—
I drove my foot straight into his chest while he was still smiling.
Craaack—!
Along with the sound of ribs shattering, Buken's body was launched backward.
"Ku-ugh…?!"
Not even understanding what had happened to him, Buken tumbled across the floor.
"Y-Young Master Klein!"
"What are you doing?!"
Even the servants stared at me in shock, as though my actions were beyond belief.
Buken seemed no different, his eyes wide with disbelief.
"You barge into another family's home covered in filth, and yet you dare raise your voice so arrogantly?"
My low voice made Buken flinch violently.
"T-that's…"
"Did I give you permission to answer?"
"Urgh…!"
At my words, Buken instantly shut his mouth.
Though weakened, Leinrant was still one of the Empire's Three Great Ducal Houses.
Only now did Buken seem to fully grasp the situation, his legs trembling uncontrollably.
"I can't exactly kill my aunt's messenger, so this time I'll settle for expelling you."
I stared down at him coldly and continued.
"Get out. If you wish to meet me again, then first learn the proper etiquette for addressing the lord of the North!"
At my shout, the terrified Buken immediately turned tail and fled the estate.
And the next day, instead of Buken—
knights from House Paul Wyvern arrived.