Chapter 416: The State of the War (4)

After that first spar, Malican Thun eagerly followed Karnak's group and sought their guidance. He had rarely even encountered those at the purple tier, let alone fellow silver knights. Simply facing opponents at his own level was already a great gain.

On top of that, Leven and Drel seemed to understand his swordsmanship completely. Through sparring with them, he was able to reflect on himself and even correct his flaws.

Moreover, Varos opened an entirely new path for him. He force-fed him fully completed Tenebrae techniques. Supreme techniques that Malican Thun was originally supposed to develop himself after becoming a martial king were now being handed to him like candy.

He was learning new skills far too easily, so much so that even he began to worry. "Is this really okay?"

Varos, as shameless as ever, replied, "The grace of Serakal has been bestowed upon you. Accept it with gratitude!"

In Leven's case, Varos had deliberately refrained from teaching him future techniques out of concern for his growth. Though, in the end, Leven had gone and created them himself anyway. But Malican Thun was already a silver knight.

Varos shrugged. He's already experienced enough. What's there to worry about?

Even if it did have negative consequences, it couldn't be helped. The fate of the world hung by a thread. Any side effects Malican might suffer were problems for the future. Right now, the priority was to grow his strength as far as possible and deploy him against Tesranach.

"Come on, hurry up and learn it and get stronger! We need you to take down Tesranach." Well, if the goddess allowed it, then it was probably fine. In the end, Malican accepted it.

Sparring with Lapicel was nothing short of a miracle bestowed from the heavens. What better training could there be than a one-on-one battle experience against someone who had reached the level of a martial king?

The sense of humiliation had only lasted during the first day. After that, every single day felt like heaven. This is good.

There were strong people, powerful enemies, and a path to grow stronger. That was everything he had ever wanted. Malican Thun became certain. The Twilight Order was where he truly belonged.

***

Serati clicked her tongue. "Wow... if everyone really puts their mind to it, tricking someone is effortless."

Karnak grumbled, sounding a bit wronged. "When you put it that way, it makes it sound like we're doing something bad."

"It's not exactly bad, but we're not really giving him the truth either..." Looking uneasy, Serati turned her gaze away from the window.

Karnak nodded. "Anyway, Malican joining us has improved things in many ways."

Malican Thun's addition wasn't just about gaining another silver knight. Since Tesranach also had a future version of Malican Thun under his command, this development significantly increased the chances of Karnak's plan succeeding.

Leaning back against the sofa, Karnak glanced at the white cat sprawled limply across it and asked, "What do you think?"

Serati, Karnak, and the rest of the group had all grown considerably stronger. Obviously, they weren't more powerful than Tesranach, but at the very least, they would no longer be helplessly driven back. It was about time to make a decision.

Karnak asked, "Should we head for the capital?"

In other words, was it the right time to fight the final battle against Tesranach? Grateria flicked her tail.

—It is not an easy matter to be certain about.

If they acted too hastily and were defeated due to insufficient preparation, there would be no second chance. A single defeat would mean the end. The dead would replace all the living.

Karnak asked once more. "Then are you saying we should gather more strength and improve our odds?"

Grateria answered.

—I cannot say that with certainty either.

While they strengthened themselves, the enemy was also gathering darkness.

If Tesranach managed to accumulate enough to summon Astra Shunaph first, it would be game over. They might not even get a chance to fight. They could lose everything because they had hesitated too long.

Karnak frowned after hearing Grateria's uncertain response. "You've lived for thousands of years, and you still can't decide something like this?"

—And who do you think caused a disaster so great that even I, after thousands of years, cannot resolve it easily?

After bickering for a moment, the two fell silent again. Both options had a chance of success. At the same time, both carried enormous risks of failure.

As the dragon emperor had said, it wasn't a decision that could be made lightly. A brief silence followed. Then, Serati suddenly asked, "What would the old Lord Karnak have done?"

"Hm? Me?"

"Yes. Back when you were the Monarch of Death."

Karnak paused and recalled his past life. The answer came easily. "If it were me, I would never take such a reckless gamble. I only moved when I was certain."

He would have gathered strength for as long as possible, right up to the very brink. Even if things turned unfavorable in the meantime, he would have looked for another path rather than gamble everything.

"I see." Serati made her decision. "Then let's go to the capital."

And as she looked straight at Karnak, she spoke her reason aloud. "You said you wouldn't live like you used to anymore."

It wasn't logical, but somehow, it was convincing.

***

Even after deciding to attack the capital, they couldn't act immediately. No matter how elite their forces were, charging into Thea Krahan with only ten thousand troops was far too reckless.

"We need at least twenty thousand more."

Simply recruiting ordinary soldiers wouldn't strengthen their army. Any additional forces would need to be elites on par with the current Twilight army to give them a real chance. That, too, was no easy task.

The reason Karnak and Grateria had hesitated to attack the capital wasn't just fear of defeat. Tesranach's subordinates were currently scattered across the continent, committing slaughter and destruction. They were busily gathering the Shadow of Doom and sending it back to the capital.

In other words, any slaughter and destruction in the capital would immediately be converted into the power of darkness. And they planned to march in with the finest troops gathered from across the continent?

If things went wrong, they might as well be neatly packaging a grand gift of darkness and delivering it straight to the enemy. The Shadow of Doom became more potent the stronger the soul it was extracted from, such as those of powerful aura users, priests, and mages.

Leaving things as they were would only make the situation worse, so they had chosen to attack the capital. However, would others accept that decision?

"If they won't, we'll make them," declared Karnak.

Soon, word spread across the entire empire through an imperial decree. The Goddess of Twilight had delivered an oracle for the suffering people!

O children of twilight who have endured the cold night. The end of calamity has come. Rise and follow. This is the light that erases darkness, the life that reclaims death. The path of light and glory lies before you. Dawn shall break, and the King of Death shall meet his ruinous end.

It was a message from Serakal filled with hope, delivered through the lips of the saintess. From across the Empire came fervent, boiling responses. The saintess had spoken, and the time of victory was ripe. Now was the moment.

The people reacted more intensely than Serati had imagined, and it terrified her. She couldn't help but wonder, Am I going to end up in hell like this?

What if she brought about the end of the world by luring everyone into a trap with a fabricated oracle? If they all died, how could she ever bear that sin?

Karnak tried to reassure her. "It's fine. Strictly speaking, it's not a forgery."

Serati was indeed wielding the power of a divine being. Thus, calling her an incarnation of the goddess wasn't entirely wrong. "And besides, you made this decision, didn't you?"

Karnak might have improvised the wording of the oracle, but the decision to attack the capital had undeniably been Serati's. The incarnation of the goddess made the decision, and the de facto leader of the Twilight Order conveyed it in a form people could understand. It more or less fit the definition of an oracle.

"And like I said before, hell is the realm of demons. It's not a place humans go just because they've sinned. No matter what you've done, as long as you haven't sold your soul to a demon, you won't go to hell. So don't worry."

Is that supposed to be comforting? She almost said something, but ultimately kept her mouth shut. Well... considering the person he is, he's probably trying his best to comfort me.

She offered her thanks instead. "Thank you for trying to comfort me."

Karnak beamed at that.

Oh my, he likes that?

Even a former Monarch of Death didn't seem immune to praise. In any case, what was done was done. There was no turning back now.

With a sigh, Serati asked, "How do you think Tesranach will respond?"

Even Grateria couldn't be certain of the outcome, so there was no way to predict Tesranach's decision. Resting his chin on his hand, Karnak replied, "Who knows? He'll probably react one of two ways."

***

News of the Twilight oracle spread throughout the empire. Naturally, it reached Tesranach in the capital as well.

"So they've made their move sooner than expected."

The Shadow of Doom had not yet been gathered in sufficient quantity to summon Astra Shunaph. But the enemy likely hadn't accumulated enough power to face Tesranach either. He had already gauged that much through his subordinates who had encountered the Saintess of Twilight. Was this a reckless gamble, or did they have a hidden ace up their sleeve?

Seated upon the Ashen Throne, Tesranach stroked his chin. The Karnak he knew was not one to gamble blindly. "They must have a hidden card. So how should I respond?"

Though it was Grateria's body, he was currently taking the form of Death Knight Lord Varos. Perhaps because of that, he could feel the rough stubble of a human beard beneath his fingers.

"There are two possible approaches," he muttered to himself.

First, he could continue sending his subordinates across the continent to gather the Shadow of Doom, while he remained in the capital and faced Karnak and the Twilight army with only the forces stationed there.

The advantage of this approach was clear. He could gather the Shadow of Doom more quickly and hasten the descent of Astra Shunaph. But the downside was equally obvious. He would have to face Karnak's entire group alone.

That didn't mean he would be overwhelmed. Even though the Saintess of Twilight had grown stronger than expected, the gap between them and Tesranach was still vast. Even if Karnak's entire group attacked him at once, the chances of his defeat remained low.

The real issue was that he lacked powerful guardians to protect the Shadow of Doom. The storage of darkness had already been breached once. There was no guarantee it wouldn't happen again.

Of course, he had reinforced its defenses to the point where no one in the world should be able to tamper with it, but his opponent was Karnak. No one in the world possessed deeper knowledge and understanding of death and darkness than he did.

There's no telling what that bastard might do.

The second option was to recall all the martial kings, archmages, and fallen popes scattered across the continent and establish a complete defensive posture in the capital. This approach ensured that Karnak's group could be suppressed while also safeguarding the repository of the Shadow of Doom.

The downside, however, was that the operations to gather more darkness would slow.

However, that's not necessarily a major disadvantage.

Even in the process of dealing with Karnak's forces, the Shadow of Doom could continue to be extracted. If he crushed the invading Twilight army entirely, it might even turn into a blessing in disguise.

"I should gather them all here."

He made up his mind. He would avoid any gamble and play it safe. That way, even if the situation turned unfavorable, he would still have room to find another path forward. Having made his decision, Tesranach rose from the Ashen Throne and walked toward the window.

Beyond the gray sky, he gazed toward the distant southern lands. The guardian of the world, walking the fate of the Monarch of Death, steeled his resolve once more. "Come, unchanging evil. This time, I will save this world from your grasp!"