Halochassis

Killing the resurrected dead was almost effortless for the Halochassis. The undead might have once been living people, but whatever Saint Elwyn had brought back was little more than rotting flesh held together by magic. Their pale bodies stumbled forward with empty eyes and stiff movements, their footsteps scraping against the polished white tiles of the Cathedral Exa. Against the massive metallic bodies of the Halochassis, however, they were nothing more than obstacles. Even a single punch from one of their armored fists was enough to send an undead crashing apart.

Azazel swung his metallic arm and drove his fist straight into the face of a resurrected old man. The impact produced a sickening crack, followed by a burst of blood and fragments of bone. The old man’s head was flung effortlessly across the cathedral, his body collapsing a moment later with a heavy thud. Nearby, Samael raised his rifle and swung its barrel like a club, smashing it against the skull of a female undead. The blow split her head open with a wet crack, dark blood running down her face as her lifeless body collapsed onto the floor.

The battle had become a slaughter.

Resurrected corpses continued pouring through the cathedral halls, but the Halochassis tore through them with terrifying efficiency. Metallic fists crushed ribs. Heavy boots sent bodies sliding across the tiles. Mana-powered weapons tore through rotting flesh, filling the once-sacred cathedral with the sounds of gunfire, breaking bones, and the clanging footsteps of armored machines.

Then Samael noticed an opening.

Through the moving mass of undead, he caught sight of Saint Elwyn. The saint stood several meters away, desperately trying to maintain control over her resurrected servants. Her hands trembled around her staff, and the usual calm expression associated with the renowned healer was gone. She looked small beneath the towering arches of the cathedral.

Samael immediately raised his rifle.

The weapon hummed as mana gathered inside its barrel, a bright glow building around the muzzle. Aether’s finger tightened around the trigger.

The mana beam exploded forward.

Saint Elwyn’s eyes widened.

Before the beam could strike her, one of her undead guards threw itself between them. The corpse slammed into Saint Elwyn and shoved her toward the left. The beam passed through the undead’s torso instead, vaporizing flesh and leaving a smoking hole where its chest had been. The corpse collapsed at Saint Elwyn’s feet, sacrificing itself without hesitation.

“Tsk.”

Inside Samael’s cockpit, Aether clicked his tongue. His expression hardened as he watched Saint Elwyn stumble away from the corpse that had just saved her.

Saint Elwyn stared at the Halochassis in horror.

She had heard stories about them. She had heard whispers about their strength, their strange armor, and the monstrous power hidden inside their metallic bodies. But stories were different from reality. Seeing one of them tear through her resurrected dead like they were made of paper made the difference painfully clear.

If that beam had struck her directly, she would have died.

There would have been no healing spell capable of saving her from such an attack.

“I-I need to get away!” Saint Elwyn cried.

Her voice echoed through the cathedral halls. She tightened both hands around her staff and turned around, her white robes dragging across the blood-smeared floor as she began running deeper into the cathedral. Her footsteps became increasingly frantic, the sound of her shoes striking the tiles mixing with the screams and groans of the resurrected dead behind her.

“She’s escaping!” Azazel roared.

Shin immediately raised his magnum.

He aimed at Saint Elwyn’s fleeing figure and pulled the trigger.

The gun erupted with a thunderous blast.

Several bullets tore through the crowd of resurrected dead standing between them. Bodies jerked violently as the rounds punched through flesh and shattered bones. One corpse lost an arm, another was struck through the chest, while another was knocked backward into several others. Blood splattered across the white walls and stained the immaculate cathedral floor.

However, the bullets had already passed through too many bodies.

Their trajectories shifted slightly after striking bone and flesh, causing them to lose much of their original force. By the time they reached Saint Elwyn’s direction, they no longer possessed enough power to strike her.

Saint Elwyn kept running.

“You won’t get away from me, Saint Elwyn!” Samael roared.

The metallic wings attached to Samael’s back suddenly moved. Their segmented armor folded and rearranged themselves with a series of sharp mechanical clicks. The enormous wings compressed into a strange, powerful configuration, resembling a gigantic pair of metallic flappers.

Samael lowered his body.

“Blitz Mode!”

The instant he activated the technique, his wings snapped downward.

BOOM!

The force of the movement sent dust and loose debris flying across the cathedral floor. Samael shot forward like a missile, his metallic body cutting through the horde of resurrected dead. Several corpses were knocked aside by his passing, their bodies tumbling across the floor as his armor accelerated through the narrow corridor.

Saint Elwyn heard the thunderous noise behind her. She looked over her shoulder. Her face went pale.

Samael was already there.

The distance between them disappeared in an instant. Samael clenched his metallic fist, the joints of his armored fingers tightening with a series of mechanical clicks. Then he swung.

His fist slammed directly into Saint Elwyn’s left cheek.

“Kaaah!”

The impact lifted her feet from the ground.

Saint Elwyn spun through the air before crashing onto the cathedral floor. Her body rolled several times, her staff flying from her hand and clattering loudly across the tiles. Blood poured from her mouth, mixing with broken teeth as she finally stopped against the base of a stone pillar.

A red smear remained across the pristine white floor where her body had dragged across it.

Samael slowly turned toward her.

“Unlike your soulless allies, you’ll die a slow death, you fake saint.”

His metallic footsteps echoed through the cathedral as he approached. Each step was heavy and deliberate.

His glowing green eyes remained fixed on Saint Elwyn, illuminating the bloodied darkness around him. The enormous Halochassis towered over her like an executioner, his armor covered in splashes of blood from the undead he had already destroyed.

Saint Elwyn trembled.

Her hands pressed against the cold tiles as she desperately tried to crawl backward. Her breathing became ragged, and her once-pristine robes were now stained with dirt and blood. Whatever confidence she had possessed as the famous Saint Elwyn was gone.

“W-What did I ever do to you?” she pleaded.

Her voice cracked.

“Please forgive me already!”

She dropped onto her knees and clasped her hands together.

“I’ll do anything!”

Desperation twisted her face.

“I’ll fucking suck your dick!”

Samael stopped. For a moment, there was only silence between them.

“Pathetic.”

The word came out cold and contemptuous.

Samael’s metallic wings suddenly shifted again. Plates slid over one another, locking into place with loud mechanical clicks. The massive wings transformed into a gigantic sword, its edge glowing with concentrated mana.

Samael raised the weapon.

He aimed the blade directly at Saint Elwyn’s shoulder. He intended to cut her arm off before finishing her.

Saint Elwyn’s eyes widened.

But before the blade could descend, she suddenly slammed her bloody hand against the cathedral floor.

Her blood spread across the white tile. A crimson magical circle immediately appeared beneath her palm.

The circle pulsed like a beating heart, sending red light across the surrounding walls. Strange symbols rotated around its edge as mana surged through the floor. The air itself seemed to grow colder, while the smell of blood became overpowering.

Saint Elwyn gritted her teeth. Then the magic activated.

Two corpses lying among the remains of the battlefield suddenly began to move.

Bones cracked.

Dead fingers twitched.

Bodies that had already fallen began dragging themselves upright as crimson light wrapped around their remains.

Samael’s glowing eyes narrowed. Saint Elwyn had resurrected them again. Two of her defeated allies slowly rose from the dead.

The Silent Warlock... and the Mount Kaiser.

The Silent Warlock looked almost exactly as he had before his death. His body still resembled that of a twelve-year-old boy, making his presence on the battlefield look disturbingly out of place. He wore the same youthful appearance, with a wand firmly gripped in one hand.

But there was one gruesome difference. A thick stitch ran all the way around his neck.

The uneven line of thread marked the place where his head had previously been separated from his body. The skin around the stitches was pale and discolored, while dried blood remained trapped between the seams.

Mount Kaiser was also there, standing among the resurrected dead like a grotesque imitation of the dwarf warrior he once was. The massive dwarf gripped a gigantic warhammer in both hands, its broad metal head nearly as large as a man’s torso. Dust clung to his armor, while old scratches and dents covered the weapon’s surface. Yet there was something deeply unnatural about him. He stood perfectly still, his body devoid of the small movements and breathing of a living warrior.

Both resurrected Celestial Wardens had horns growing from their heads, twisted and unnatural, while their eyes glowed a furious red against pitch-black sclera. Their appearances alone were enough to send a chill through anyone who saw them. More disturbing was the emptiness behind their expressions. There was no anger, pride, fear, or recognition in their faces. Their personalities seemed to have been sealed away along with their souls, leaving nothing behind except bodies that obeyed Saint Elwyn’s commands.

Mount Kaiser swung his enormous warhammer with enough force to shake the air. The weapon slammed into Samael’s giant sword with a deafening metallic crash. Sparks exploded between the two weapons, scattering across the cathedral floor like tiny stars before burning out.

”Your disrespect really knows no bounds, you fake saint. You even resurrected your dead allies just to do your bidding,” Samael said, his mechanical voice carrying through the enormous chamber.

”Shut up!” Saint Elwyn cried.

Her voice echoed through the hall, raw and desperate. Blood leaked from her nose and gathered around her upper lip. As she screamed, the thick crimson fluid bubbled and popped, staining her pale face. Her breathing had become ragged, and every breath sounded as if it hurt.

The Silent Warlock raised his wand.

Several magical circles immediately manifested around him, each one spinning in different directions as intricate runes lit up across their surfaces. A faint magical hum filled the air. One after another, the circles fired glowing magic missiles that streaked toward Samael, leaving thin trails of light behind them.

Samael was already locked in combat with Mount Kaiser and barely had room to react.

Then a series of gunshots cracked through the hall.

Azazel was standing far behind the fighting, his large magnum held firmly in one metallic hand. He fired repeatedly, each weaker bullet traveling straight toward the incoming spells. Normally, such bullets would have been too weak to accomplish anything, but Azazel had activated Triple Accel. His crimson-purple eyes glowed intensely as his calculations rapidly adjusted the trajectory of every shot.

One bullet struck a magic missile.

Then another.

Then another.

The projectiles shattered the spells in midair, exploding into harmless fragments of fading mana. Azazel continued firing with mechanical precision, eliminating every missile before any of them could reach Samael.

Samael did not have time to thank him.

He immediately shifted his weight and swung his giant sword with both hands. The blade crashed into Mount Kaiser’s warhammer, knocking the enormous weapon away. The dwarf’s hands were forced open, and the warhammer spun across the floor before striking the stone with a heavy clang.

Samael continued the motion without stopping.

His giant sword disappeared from his grasp as he switched weapons in the middle of the swing, replacing it with a standard iron sword. The sudden change in weight made the movement even faster.

The sword slashed across Mount Kaiser’s chest. Metal screamed against metal.

The blade cut through part of the dwarf’s armor and tore into his flesh. His long beard was sliced apart, strands of gray hair falling through the air as blood immediately spread across his chest. A deep wound opened across his body, dark red blood running down his armor.

Samael paused. He had expected the attack to be blocked.

Mount Kaiser’s Autonomous Guard Block should have rendered him invulnerable to physical attacks. Yet the wound was real. Blood continued to drip onto the floor, mixing with the dust beneath his feet.

Their blessings do not work anymore, Samael thought.

His glowing eyes narrowed as the realization settled in.

This is my chance!

”Buster Mode!” Samael shouted.

The armor around his back shifted with a series of heavy mechanical clicks. His metallic wing parts unfolded and expanded around him, each segment rotating into position until they resembled a cluster of enormous weapons aimed directly at Mount Kaiser.

For a brief moment, the cathedral seemed unnaturally quiet.

Then the wings fired.

Mana lasers erupted from the metallic wing sections in rapid succession, filling the chamber with piercing flashes of light. The beams struck Mount Kaiser from every direction, burning through his shoulders, arms, chest, stomach, legs, feet, and finally his head. Explosions erupted across his body as chunks of armor and flesh were blown apart.

Mount Kaiser staggered backward. His body finally collapsed, hitting the floor with a thunderous impact that sent dust rolling through the hall.

The Silent Warlock immediately prepared a counterattack.

He raised his wand, and several magical circles spawned directly in front of Samael’s face. Their glowing edges rotated rapidly, gathering enough magical energy to blast him at point-blank range.

Azazel was already prepared.

His crimson-purple eyes burned brightly in the darkness. Without hesitation, he aimed his weapon and released a concentrated pair of crimson-purple lasers. The beams cut through the Silent Warlock before he could complete his spell.

The resurrected Warden was sliced cleanly in two, the separation perfectly symmetrical from the top of his body down through his torso. Both halves fell away from each other as blood and fragments of magical energy spilled onto the floor.

Once the two resurrected Celestial Wardens were dead for the second time, Samael looked around for their master.

Saint Elwyn was gone.

The only evidence of her escape was a trail of blood smeared across the cathedral floor. Drops of crimson stained the white ceramic tiles, some fresh and still wet, while others had already begun to darken.

Samael followed the trail.

His heavy metallic footsteps echoed through the underground corridors as he passed through the ruined chambers beneath the cathedral. The deeper he went, the colder the air became. The smell of blood grew stronger until the trail finally led him into another enormous hall.

Saint Elwyn stood at the far end.

She was exhausted, blood covering her mouth and clothes, her staff still clutched tightly in one hand.

”There’s no running from your fate, Saint Elwyn. You should succumb to your destiny, and everything will be easier,” Samael said.

Saint Elwyn smirked.

The expression might have looked confident under different circumstances, but with blood smeared across her lips and chin, it appeared almost sinister. Her eyes remained fixed on Samael with a strange determination.

”I still have one more card to play.”

”It doesn’t matter. You’ve lost. And now, your worthless life is at its end,” Samael said.

Saint Elwyn’s smile widened.

”No. It has only just begun.”

Suddenly, the entire floor of the enormous hall began to glow.

Samael looked down.

A gigantic magical circle had been engraved across the ceramic floor, stretching almost from wall to wall. It was made entirely from blood. Thick crimson lines connected countless symbols and runes, while smaller circles were layered over one another like the pieces of an enormous ritual.

The blood began to shimmer.

The air grew heavy.

A low vibration passed through the floor, causing dust to shake loose from the ceiling.

Saint Elwyn raised her staff toward the center of the circle.

”Arise, Oh Demon King!”

A crimson flash erupted from the floor.

The light was so intense that it blinded everyone in the hall for a moment. The magical energy surged upward like a pillar of blood-colored fire, accompanied by a deafening roar that seemed to come from beneath the earth itself.

Something was emerging. A massive muscular figure began to manifest from the ritual circle. But only its upper body appeared.

Its enormous torso rose from the ground, stretching upward until its head was at least fifteen meters above the floor. Its muscular arms were thick enough to resemble pillars, each movement causing the surrounding air to tremble.

Ten enormous horns curved from its head.

Its face resembled a skull, with deep, hollow features that made it look less like a living creature and more like death itself given flesh. Its skin was divided between blood red and jet black, the two colors twisting together across its massive body.

A crown rested upon its head.

The newly summoned Demon King slowly opened its eyes.