Clinking shackles, a blue elixir, awaiting the dawn's light.

"Tsk tsk tsk tsk. What an unkillable monster," I muttered from the treetop, gazing into the distance. "The Church must've spotted it ages ago. Why let this Corpse Fiend grow so huge? Laziness?"

When you face an armored foe, you might still slash through that armor.

When you assault a walled city, a forbidden spell could blast it open.

But when your opponent reshapes like putty after any wound?

When a city heals any hole you blast in its walls?

That’s despair. Your enemy isn’t unbreakable—he’s immortal.

"Get down! Bad vibes," Lott called from below.

"Huff! Coming." Karma for sloth, I guess. It’s a cardinal sin.

"By the way—" His face darkened. "Did you enjoy badmouthing me just now?"

"Badmouthing? No way! QWQ Meow meow?" I played dumb instantly. Who knew what happened?

"Stop acting cute!" He flicked my head. "That phantom puppet thing—you could’ve mocked them yourself. Why use my name?"

"Ow... Meanie." I rubbed my head, tears welling. "That show-off chance? Your favorite! I was helping you seize it!"

He shook his head like I was hopeless. "Sigh. That wasn’t showing off! I’m not that chuunibyou!"

"Totally are!" I pouted, poking his soft waist.

"Slander." He flicked my head again to protest.

"Sniffle... Bully." I rubbed the sore spot. "Big folks forgive little faults, hmph~"

"Who’s little here..."

"Your chuunibyou level’s maxed out. If Clock installed launchers in your arsenal and forged golden armor, you’d be real-life Gilgamesh!" I sized him up. "Totally possible."

He pondered, then muttered three words:

"Not bad."

"Not bad my ass! No streetlights here for you to pose on!" I snapped. "Ouch! Stop flicking me!"

"Can’t wait for your alchemy to light this world’s streets~" He gave me a meaningful look. "Transmigration MCs all bring modern tech to—" His voice cut off. He froze, head snapping forward.

I sensed it too. My gaze locked ahead. How could anyone miss it?

Mighty golden Battle Aura, streaked with Purple threads, drifted like windblown gold dust. A knight in gold-trimmed armor emerged from the forest, hefting a massive lance.

"Halt!"

---

"Lure that giant back! Into the pit!" The Sword Knight summoned lightning strikes against the Corpse Fiend—useless. They were overwhelmed. Casualties were the least worry now. Had the Corpse Fiend mutated? Or was it a monster wearing its skin?

"Fall back! Only block the ghost tide—don’t attack its spawn!" The Holy Grail Knight raised his cup. Water arrows shot out, piercing holes in the Corpse Fiend.

Never underestimate the Four Knights. Half the Archbishops rarely win one-on-one against them. But mages outrank Battle Aura users in lower tiers—mages unleash apocalyptic blasts, while knights lack range.

Only Archbishops wield prophecy magic.

Skeletons stood frozen in the forest—horses, knights—still clad and armed like lifeless statues. Elite knights from the Four Orders.

The ground crawled with root-like tendrils, pale and bloodless, draining all life. Plants and trees withered into yellowish, soggy husks reeking of decay. Up close, blood vessels webbed their trunks, fleshy lumps bulging between bark.

The Corpse Fiend had already drained their lives through this flesh.

It had transformed. A colossal black mist swirled where it stood. At its heart, a five-petaled fleshy flower flickered—jagged teeth rimming its edges, countless human faces crushed together in its core.

A faint gray light pulsed within.

Ghost-aura tentacles lashed from the mist like black whips. One touch meant doom.

"This isn’t a Corpse Fiend! Nothing drains life force like this—not even plants! Some mad mage’s pet again?" The Coin Knight deflected a whip with a light shield. This thing countered him and the Holy Grail Knight perfectly. Healing magic rarely worked; touched knights turned to bones instantly. Only legendary resurrection arts could save them—and those were myths.

The Coin Knight’s plant control meant nothing here. Even divine flora withered in seconds, becoming the Corpse Fiend’s meal.

"Silence suits you!" The Scepter Knight fired fire arrows. The flower shrieked—fire hurt it.

"The Dark Lord’s last strike was a minor forbidden spell. So even those won’t finish this. We need its weakness," the Sword Knight said. "But where? A core? We’ve hit everywhere—nothing."

"What about the Hero and Dark Lord?" The Holy Grail Knight asked suddenly. Silence fell. The Dark Lord was the real target.

A golden light pillar erupted from the distant forest. An explosion boomed.

"Well~" someone said. "Isn’t there the Sacred Knight?"