Chapter 56

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Lucy, riding her Death Mount without rest, arrived at Howard Castle by sunset.

Howard Castle was heavily guarded.

Numerous soldiers were stationed at the castle gates, and vigilant eyes filled the castle walls.

Lucy moved stealthily along the castle walls to avoid being spotted by the soldiers.

Then, she stopped at a relatively less guarded area and used Shadow Step.

Swoosh—

Lucy transformed into a shadow and climbed the castle wall.

“Whoa…”

Finn marveled.

Lucy’s skill seemed fascinating to her.

Once on top of the castle wall, Lucy quietly surveyed her surroundings.

Nearby, she could hear soldiers talking.

“…Lord Leyton really put up a tough fight. Even covered in blood and surrounded by knights, he kept swinging his sword. In the end, three knights were sacrificed just to capture him.”

“Wow, impressive. If it were our Lord, one knight would’ve been enough.”

“Hehe. Our Lord could’ve been captured by a ten-year-old kid.”

“To think there’s such a difference between lords… Well, not that it matters now. Lord Leyton’s locked up in the dungeon.”

“Swordsmanship isn’t everything.”

Listening to the soldiers’ conversation, Lucy’s eyes gleamed.

It seemed Lord Leyton was currently imprisoned in the dungeon.

Lucy immediately moved.

Although there were many soldiers on guard nearby, Lucy used Shadow Step to move stealthily.

Soon, she found the stairs leading down to the castle’s underground.

Lucy descended the stairs slowly, listening carefully.

The air grew colder as she went down, and faint voices of soldiers talking could be heard.

Finally, at the bottom of the stairs, a dimly lit hallway came into view.

Lanterns hung on the walls struggled to illuminate the darkness, and a few soldiers were gathered in the passageway, chatting.

“So, about that new girl in the kitchen, Rose…”

Thud—

As Lucy stepped forward, the soldiers turned their heads.

“Huh? Kid, you’re not supposed to be here.”

One of the soldiers approached Lucy.

“Wait, I’ve never seen you before. Where did you come from…”

Lucy immediately activated her skill.

Darkness.

A skill that summoned black mist to obscure the enemy’s vision.

Thick darkness enveloped the hallway, and the soldiers panicked, shouting.

“W-what is this!”

“I can’t see!”

“It’s that girl’s doing!”

“Grab her!”

The soldiers fumbled in the darkness, trying to find Lucy.

But what awaited them wasn’t Lucy.

“…Keke.”

A demon with glowing red eyes.

It was Amon.

Crunch—!

“A m-monster!”

“Attack!”

A battle broke out between Amon and the soldiers.

Though it was less of a battle and more of a one-sided massacre.

The soldiers’ weapons had no effect on Amon, and the demon devoured their heads without hesitation in the darkness.

Thud—

Meanwhile, Lucy approached the iron bars where the knights of the Leyton family were imprisoned.

“…?”

The knights looked puzzled.

The dungeon had suddenly become chaotic, and now a young girl had appeared.

“I feel like I’ve seen this kid before…”

“Me too. Wait, isn’t she that commoner girl who hangs out with Lady Ellie?”

“Yeah. What’s she doing here?”

Lucy quietly surveyed the inside of the cell.

The knights were all locked up together, but Lord Leyton was nowhere to be seen.

“Where’s Lord Leyton?”

When Lucy asked, the knights were stunned again.

Not only had the commoner girl who hung out with Ellie appeared here, but she was also speaking informally.

Under normal circumstances, they would’ve scolded her, but given the situation, they answered her question.

“…His Lordship is in the cell at the end.”

Lucy walked in that direction.

The cell at the end.

Inside was Lord Leyton.

His entire body was wrapped in bandages, and he lay collapsed on the floor.

The bandages were soaked in blood, indicating severe injuries.

“We should treat him first, right?”

Finn said.

Finn had already entered the cell and was examining Lord Leyton.

“Can you heal him?”

When Lucy asked, Finn smiled and nodded.

“Leave it to me.”

Flutter, flutter.

Finn spun around above Lord Leyton.

Her movements were delicate yet mesmerizing.

Sparkling dust fell from Finn’s wings, and Lord Leyton’s body began to glow.

“Ugh…”

Soon, Lord Leyton regained consciousness and sat up. He blinked as he looked at Lucy.

“You… you’re…”

Lord Leyton recognized Lucy.

She was Ellie’s closest friend and the girl Ed and Ron were always chasing after.

Lucy spoke to Lord Leyton.

“I’m here to take you back.”

At that moment,

Crash—!

The iron bars of Lord Leyton’s cell were blown away.

“…!”

Lord Leyton stared ahead with trembling eyes.

Someone stood in front of the shattered cell bars.

A knight clad in black armor.

Where eyes should have been, blue flames flickered, and a greatsword was gripped in his hand.

“An… undead…”

The undead stood frozen in the stance of having swung his sword.

He had just used his greatsword to blow away the cell bars.

An incredible display of power.

This undead was no ordinary one.

Judging by its appearance, it was likely a high-ranking undead known as a “Death Knight”.

A knight resurrected from death.

Becoming a Death Knight meant that the knight had been exceptionally skilled in life.

At the very least, they must have been a knight renowned throughout the kingdom.

When such a knight dies with a curse on their soul, they become a Death Knight.

That was Lord Leyton’s knowledge about Death Knights.

‘But more importantly…’

The fact that Lucy controlled a Death Knight meant she was no ordinary girl either.

She was either a witch, as her appearance suggested, or something even higher—a necromancer…

And this Lucy had just told Lord Leyton, “I’ve come to take you back.”

Meaning she had come to save him…

“Hurry up.”

Lucy urged.

“People will swarm here soon.”

Lord Leyton nodded and stood up.

As he stepped out of the cell, he saw the Death Knight swing its greatsword again, shattering the bars of another cell.

It was the cell where Lord Leyton’s knights were imprisoned.

“Uh… isn’t that an undead…?”

Lord Leyton’s knights were equally bewildered.

Lord Leyton quickly spoke to them.

“Come out. We’re escaping this place immediately.”

“B-but, my Lord… the undead…”

“Don’t worry. The undead is on our side.”

Lord Leyton glanced at the Death Knight as he spoke.

He wanted confirmation of what he had just said.

The Death Knight’s blue flames flickered as it nodded.

“Our master has ordered us to free you. So, I am on your side.”

“…”

The knights still looked uneasy, but they stepped out of the cell.

Just then.

“Lord Leyton has escaped!”

Knights came rushing through the black mist.

They were Lord Howard’s knights.

Though not many in number, they all looked like elites.

On the other hand, Lord Leyton and his knights were unarmed.

A look of tension crossed Lord Leyton’s face.

At that moment, the Death Knight stepped forward and swung its greatsword.

Crash—!

Lord Howard’s knights were sent flying.

Lord Leyton and his knights were speechless at the overwhelming sight.

Tap tap.

Just then, Lucy tapped Lord Leyton’s hand.

“Over there, escape through the back.”

“Ah…”

The back of the dungeon.

A large hole had been torn through what was once a blocked-off area.

As if the wall had melted away.

Lord Leyton nodded and spoke to his knights.

“We’re escaping through the back.”

As Lord Leyton and his knights began to move, black mist started rising around them.

At the same time, skeletons rose from the ground and surrounded them, as if to escort them.

Lord Leyton was startled but assumed this was also Lucy’s magic and continued walking.

◈

“Lord Leyton is escaping!”

The voices of Lord Howard’s knights echoed from behind.

But those voices soon turned into screams.

After confirming that Lord Leyton had escaped the dungeon, Lucy immediately turned around.

Ahead, Darcan was mercilessly swinging his greatsword, slaughtering Lord Howard’s knights.

The knights were blinded by the black mist, and they were too busy dealing with the skeletons Lucy had summoned to focus on anything else.

Chasing Lord Leyton would be impossible for them now.

[Kill them all.]

Lucy gave Darcan the order and then moved through the black mist.

The passageway was completely under control, so now it was time to block the entrance.

She had already summoned Amon near the entrance, but with so many knights and soldiers, there was a chance someone might slip through.

If that happened, they would try to capture Lord Leyton again.

It was better to kill them all here.

Swoosh—!

Using Shadow Step, Lucy instantly moved to the entrance stairs.

Just as she was about to descend, she heard voices from below.

“M-my Lord! You must retreat! Undead are swarming in!”

“What?”

“There are at least a hundred of them. The soldiers and knights are holding them off, but this black mist… and among the undead, there’s an incredibly powerful knight…!”

“Undead? What are you talking about?”

“F-father, we need to retreat.”

“Damn it…”

Lucy’s eyes turned cold as she listened to the conversation.

It seemed Lord Howard and his son Gulden had arrived.

She had been planning to deal with them after finishing here, but they had come on their own.

Thud—

Lucy moved forward.

“…?”

And then, she locked eyes with Lord Howard, who was about to climb the stairs.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
Being dissed by your own men is something else though.