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The traders initially tried to flee the fortress when they heard they were about to be attacked, but immediately backed off when they learned the attacker’s identity. The demihumans didn’t chase the fleeing humans, but the undead wouldn’t stop as long as there was someone alive.

Being protected within the walls with the army preparing for battle was far better than being alone with just a few guards. All of them were currently ensconced within the fortress.

The general was currently on top of the wall, his silver armor gleaming with light and a longsword at his waist his backup weapon. The undead were not yet visible, but scouts sent to monitor the army and make sure they did not change course informed him that they would arrive soon.

Strangely, the undead army didn’t react very strongly to the scouts. They pursued them a bit when they were spotted, but soon gave up and returned to their positions. The supposed necromancer was nowhere to be seen in the army. Some of the mages who had flying familiars tried to investigate from the air, but the skeleton birds killed them all without exception.

They seemed heavily on guard against aerial surveillance.

The sun finally set and the first undead appeared on the horizon. It would be some time before they reached the keep, but the tension between the soldiers on the walls was as if they were already in battle.

“Give me.” Astrus reached out to a nearby soldier, using binoculars to watch the undead. The soldier handed him over and he started looking for the undead who fought him, but it was in vain.

These skeletons all looked the same to him and it would be impossible to discern the small details on their weapons. Astrus tried to look for the necromancer, but there was none. He suspected that the necromancer was hiding in one of the carriages.

.....

He handed the binoculars to the soldier and took a deep breath, but a clang of metal came from under him, on the inner side of the wall. Astrus looked down only to see a soldier hurriedly grabbing his spear and bowing in apology to the others around him.

The general noticed the nervousness in the soldiers around him and decided that this would not be good. He waited for the undead to come a little closer and become visible to all, before standing at the edge of the wall, where all the soldiers could see him.

He coughed once to clear his throat and amplified his own voice with wind magic. “WARNING!”

His magically amplified voice caught the attention of all the soldiers, who immediately jumped into readiness, thinking that the undead had already reached the walls.

“In no time at all, a necromancer leading an army of the undead will reach our walls, the same who attacked our stronghold last night and killed hundreds of our own.” Some of the soldiers touched their own limbs, as if they could still feel the acid wounds.

“He has also destroyed our barrier, our greatest defense against the demihuman empire, putting all the people of this realm in danger out of sheer greed and lust for power. He sees us only as resources for his army, nothing more than corpses for your collection.” The expressions of some of the soldiers turned slightly terrified, while the priests and paladins grimaced in anger.

“He has already destroyed the small town of Faltra a few days’ journey from here, killing all of its innocent citizens, regardless of whether they are men, women or children. This necromancer is ruthless and will not stop until everyone we know and love is dead.” The general lied through his teeth. It was still unknown what happened in the city and it was just a guess by the scribe, but Astrus decided to spread it to the soldiers as if it were the truth to ensure that hatred outweighed their fear.

It worked like a charm. Almost all the soldiers here came from villages and small towns, more than a few dozen came from the city of Faltra itself, so knowing that all the families they left behind were dead came as a shock to them. Screams of rage sounded among the soldiers and Astrus hammered while it was hot.

“Will you allow this assassin to come and take our lives without a fight?! This necromancer to live while their families are dead, sentenced to become the eternal slaves of a madman?” Astrus yelled and the soldiers roared in response.

“Then raise your weapons, my soldiers! Let’s avenge those we’ve lost and protect those we still have! Let’s put an end to this necromancer and stop his madness, so that no one else has to die in vain!” Astrus raised his sword above his head and made it shine, the soldiers did the same as they gave a battle cry.

Astrus nodded in satisfaction and took the black cube before calling the scribe. The call connected immediately, but the scribe was nowhere to be found. Instead of the small office last time, the throne room was in the background, with the king himself seated on the throne and several important figures lined up on either side of the hall.

Members of the royal family, dukes, marquises, the cardinal of the church of Eishin, a master of magic sent by the order, the supreme commander of the kingdom’s army, the head of the royal guard, the chief court mage and...

Nearly every important person in the kingdom was there, their sharp gazes piercing his body. They probably gathered to watch the battle, as if they were watching a show.

Astrus straightened his posture and cleared his throat, turning his face slightly to the right so that the cube’s hologram caught his good side.

“General Astrus, nice to see you. How are things on your side?” King Balfas Mirkor Aske asked from his throne, a disinterested expression on his face. The king was one of the most horrible people Astrus had ever seen in his entire life.

He was a man who looked to be in his late 60s, with blue eyes and light blond hair, at least where there was still hair. The top of his head gleamed as if there was an enchantment of light there, some of the nobles around him needing to look away so the glint of his bald head wouldn’t blind them.

Balfas was an obese man from decades of sedentary lifestyle and compulsive gluttony, to the point of having difficulty moving without the aid of magic. The throne he sat on was made of adamant, one of the strongest alloys of magical metals known to humans. It was a golden metal and was considered the strongest metal physically.

It was well known throughout the nobility that the king had ordered the throne “adapted” to its grandeur more than once and from the way its sides touched both armrests, it was likely that another “adaptation” was on the way.

His clothes were totally tacky and mismatched, it was likely that he wouldn’t have liked the ensemble chosen by the castle maids and dressed himself. Balfas was wearing a pure white tunic with gold embroidery over a yellow wool shirt and emerald green pants.

The crown on her head was made of the same metal as the throne and was studded with magic stones. The crown reflected the light from his bald spot and amplified it, increasing the glow to another level.

Balfas was sweating profusely, despite the cold inside the throne room. Astrus avoided looking at him, mainly because the buttons on he pants were undone and he seemed unable to close his legs, none of the surrounding nobles daring to warn him.

“All preparations have been made and the army is ready for combat.” General Astrus deactivated the hologram and activated a second enchantment, a kind of peephole. A circle of light appeared in the middle of the black cube and began recording.

Astrus moved the cube so the king could see all the soldiers screaming in rage and then moved it outside the walls towards the undead army. Most of the nobles didn’t react much, just raised a questioning eyebrow as to how such a large army could be created so quickly.

“Oh...!” The king exclaimed in surprise, his neck bobbing with every syllable he uttered. Balfas had never seen an undead army or a battle royale, so he was incredibly excited. No good general would waste his mana just to entertain the king, but Astrus was desperate.

The next battle would be bloody and the loss of life would not be small, so he wanted to please the king as much as possible. Astrus tried and failed to find his own brother, the current marquis of the Mifar family among the nobles in the throne room, and that was not a good sign.

“I’ll have to command the army, so I’ll leave the communication cube with a subordinate and he’ll record the entire battle for you.” Astrus spoke and handed the cube to a mage, who frowned at the tedious task.

Astrus realized that the undead were already almost within range of the catapults and shouted for the catapults to prepare to fire.

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