The words had barely left Prince’s lips when Meirin collapsed. Her eyes lost focus, and she crumpled to the floor.
"Meirin!" Simon cried out.
"Ugh!"
Dick was next, clutching his mouth as he fell. Kamibarez, being a vampire, lasted the longest, but her eyes eventually fluttered shut, and she too lost consciousness.
[Hmm.]
Only Simon remained standing.
[You’re holding up well,] Prince observed. [Are you used to the smell of corpses?]
’Damn it! So this was the problem.’ The horse corpse. Simon immediately kicked it into the sewer’s flowing water. A toxic gas had been emanating from it.
[Well, it wouldn’t be fun if everyone went down this easily.]
Simon’s expression hardened as he tapped Pier’s clone twice. ‘Pier, it’s him, right?’
[What?] Pier’s voice was sharp. When he saw Prince, his clone’s eyes widened in fury. [Prince!!]
The shout echoed through the tunnel. Prince’s gaze shifted to the skull-shaped clone pinned to Simon’s uniform.
[So it was you! You knew and still dared to attack us?] Pier roared.
[You haven’t changed a bit. It’s sickening, Pier,] Prince replied, sweeping his bangs from his eyes.
[Stop spouting nonsense and rejoin the Legion! This boy is Richard’s son!]
[Yeah, I figured,] Prince said, cracking his neck. [He looks a lot like him. There are a lot of zombies between here and there, right? I estimate it will take you at least twenty minutes to get through them. Before that,] he added, his lips curling into a smirk, [I’ll tear your contractor to shreds.]
He radiated killing intent as he strode forward. A sudden one-on-one battle with an Ancient Undead. Simon swallowed hard, summoning his Skeleton Archers and spreading them around the tunnel. If he went down, his friends would be next.
Prince crouched low.
In the next instant, he was in front of Simon, his fist already pulled back.
Simon snapped his head back just in time. Prince’s fist sliced through the air where his face had been, the wind pressure alone screaming as it slammed into the sewer wall.
’One clean hit and it’s over!’
But it was an opening. Simon planted his left foot, pivoted on his right heel, and twisted his waist, driving a counter-punch into Prince’s face at a perfect angle.
The impact felt like striking a stone wrapped in leather. He was sure it was a solid hit. But when he looked, Prince was smiling nonchalantly.
Another punch flew from his other hand. Simon threw himself to the ground, barely dodging it.
’This is insane!’ He stared at his fist, which ached and throbbed despite being coated in Jet-Black. It felt like he had punched a solid rock wall.
[That was mediocre,] Prince said, completely unfazed.
Simon gritted his teeth and extended his arm.
An arrow struck Prince in the back. He glanced at it over his shoulder.
More arrows found their mark—his shoulder, thigh, arm, and chest. But Prince just kept advancing as if he felt nothing. Some of the arrows simply bounced off his skin.
’Ugh! What kind of durability is this?’
Simon severed his connection to the archers and opened a Subspace directly in front of him.
Two skeletons leaped out, weapons swinging. A spear struck Prince’s abdomen while a sword slashed at his neck.
[What do you think you’re doing?] Prince asked, bored.
The weapons didn’t penetrate. The skeletons strained, putting all their weight behind their attacks, but it was useless. With a casual swat, as if shooing a fly, Prince shattered them into pieces.
’What is this monster...’ A chill ran down Simon’s spine. This was an Ancient Undead. He often forgot just how powerful they were, seeing Pier and Erzebet act so undignified all the time, but they were beings who truly transcended human comprehension.
[Is this really all you’ve got, Legion Commander?] Prince grinned, raising a foot to stomp on the fallen Simon.
Simon smiled back. "Of course not."
In that brief moment of carelessness, six Subspace gates opened, and the Overlord’s six blades shot out like lances. They slammed into Prince, pinning him against the sewer wall with a deafening crash. The tunnel shook, and debris rained from the ceiling.
Simon let out a long breath and rose to his feet. Prince was held fast, impaled by the six blades.
’Creek. Creeak.’
But even the Overlord’s blades couldn’t pierce him completely. They had only pinned him to the wall, barely scratching the surface of his skin.
[This is surprising,] Prince admitted, grabbing the blades one by one. Veins bulged on his thin arms as he twisted the weapons made of mithril and bone aside with sheer, brute force.
Finally free, he dropped to the ground. Simon clicked his tongue and recalled the Overlord’s blades.
’Seriously.’ Simon’s eyes sparkled. The anger, the fear, the tension—it all receded slightly, replaced by a strange, primal instinct. ‘I want this one.’
Beyond being an enemy, Prince was a marvel. To make a living as a Summoning major, mastering zombies was essential. How much easier would it be with a commander like this leading his undead forces? He had to know more.
"Prince."
[Hm?]
"Let’s at least know why we’re fighting. Why are you so hostile toward me?"
Prince scowled. [Why should I tell you?]
"I’m going to resurrect my father’s Legion. To do that, I’m gathering his old comrades. If there’s some misunderstanding between us..."
[A misunderstanding?] Prince scoffed. [What misunderstanding could there be? That your father, blinded by some Priest, cast us aside and disbanded the Legion? Is ‘that’ the misunderstanding?]
His face contorted with rage, Prince strode forward. Simon sent the Overlord’s blades again, but Prince ignored them, walking through the slashes and arrows as if they were nothing, black blood splattering on the stone floor.
[I’m sick and tired of being tied to necromancers,] Prince declared. [I will become the king of this place!]
He accelerated, appearing before Simon in an instant. Simon raised a finger.
A blade erupted from the floor, but Prince caught it with one hand and swung his fist. Simon crossed his arms in a desperate guard.
The blow shattered his defense, slamming into his chest and sending him flying several meters back.
A sharp pain shot through his lungs, as if a nail had been driven through them. It snapped him to his senses. Guarding was impossible. He had to evade. Only evade.
’Run!’
No blocking. No counterattacks. Purely hit-and-run.
Simon focused solely on fleeing, sending out blades and arrows as he dodged. A flicker of puzzlement crossed Prince’s face as he calmly walked through the barrage.
’Without a decisive blow, he’s just tightening the noose around his own neck,’ Prince thought.
As he dodged another attack, Simon suddenly thrust out his palm. ‘Exhaust!’
The versatile curse flew toward Prince, but right as it made contact with his chest, it shattered.
[A student-level curse won’t work on me.]
’He has curse immunity, too...!’
Prince grinned and threw a kick. Simon rolled out of the way and sent another blade to slice at his skin.
"Hah! Hah!"
The frantic pace was taking its toll. He was at his limit. The ring on his left hand was as hot as a boiling kettle, and his lungs burned for air. His back was against the wall, his strength gone.
[Looks like you’ve reached your limit,] Prince said, reaching out and grabbing Simon by the neck. [Now, then. I’ll kill you.]
His grip tightened. As the world began to darken, Simon managed a pained smile.
Prince’s eyebrow twitched. [You can afford to smile at a time like this?]
"...Who’s... ...dying," Simon rasped.
Suddenly sensing a presence behind him, Prince whirled around. Kamibarez, who had been unconscious, was staggering to her feet. Her hair stood on end, and streams of Jet-Black, like tears of blood, flowed from her eyes.
"Let go of him!" she shrieked, a fierce aura of Jet-Black erupting from her body. "Now!!"
’Great Hemorrhage—Overflow’
From every single wound Simon had inflicted on Prince, fountains of black blood began to gush. Prince’s pupils wavered.
’Hemorrhage magic?’
"Simon!" Dick’s voice shouted.
A spear flew through the air. Simon caught it and immediately stabbed Prince’s left arm. Dick’s enchantments were on another level. The spearhead bit deep, and as the Great Hemorrhage spell drained his blood, Prince’s grip finally loosened.
Simon dropped to the floor, coughing.
"Simon, get back!" Meirin yelled. She dropped from the sewer ceiling where she’d been perched and swung her arm violently, unleashing a power a tier above Dark Flare.
’Dark Prominence’
A fountain of black flames engulfed Prince, surging like a liquid inferno, burning him over and over. Simon, who had narrowly scrambled out of range, coughed and pushed himself to his feet.
"...S-Simon! Are you okay?" Kamibarez asked, her voice strained.
"Ah, yeah."
It hadn’t been a grand plan. A few minutes ago, when Prince’s punch had shattered his guard, Simon had caught a glimpse of Kamibarez stirring. He knew he had to use her power. He had drawn Prince’s attention, deliberately inflicting as many small wounds as he could. Kamibarez, reading his intent, had prepared her spell and unleashed it at the perfect moment.
Having Dick and Meirin wake up as well was an unexpected bonus.
’Did we just create an opening?’
But given Prince’s monstrous durability, he knew this wouldn’t be enough to take him down. Kamibarez, having forced the spell in her weakened state, suffered a backlash and collapsed again. Meirin and Dick also looked unsteady, having just woken up.
Prince burst from the flames, his body shooting toward Meirin like an arrow.
His punch sent her flying. Her Kizen uniform flashed, its defensive enchantments activating, but the impact was too great. She let out a choked gasp and lost consciousness.
"Meirin!" Dick yelled, imbuing his shortsword with Jet-Black and charging.
"Dick! Get back—!" Simon shouted.
Too late. Dick was slammed into the opposite wall, knocked out cold.
[Did you really think you could beat me?] Prince asked, a grin spreading across his horribly burned and disfigured face. [Don’t get ahead of yourselves.]
He snapped his fingers.
A gaping hole tore open in the ceiling, and more than ten zombies dropped into the tunnel.
[Devour them all!]
"Raaaah!" The zombies shambled toward Simon. He let out a long sigh and drew his arm back.
"Aren’t you a little too late?" he said calmly.
’Clack-clack-clack!’
Bones flew through the air, assembling onto Simon’s arm.
[Don’t tell me!]
The Greatsword of Ruin materialized in his hand. With a single, effortless swing, he cleaved six zombies in half.
[You broke through that number so quickly...?]
"Prince," Simon said, his voice cold as Pier’s bones continued to form his armor. "From now on, I won’t be fighting as a ‘student.’ I’ll be fighting as a ‘Legion Commander.’" The transformation completed, he leveled his gaze at the boy. "I’ll give you one last chance. Will you join the Legion? Or..."
[DON’T MAKE ME LAUGH!] Prince shrieked, charging forward.
In a flash of lightning, Simon was behind him. The final piece, Pier’s helmet, flew into place, sealing him within the Bone Armor.
’...This is bad!’ Prince realized, his body too exhausted from the previous fight to react. He couldn’t even turn his head.
A dazzling arc of white light sliced through the air.
The greatsword bit deep into his neck. Simon planted his foot, let out a guttural roar, and drove the blade through with every ounce of his strength. With a sickening tear of flesh, the red innards parted, and finally...
The greatsword swung free.
Prince’s head tumbled through the air.

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