CHAPTER 88

"That crystal!"

Hazard, noticing his gaze, turned toward the crystal that no longer held much use for him.

"What do you want?"

"If that crystal is used... yeah, if it's that one, it's better!"

With trembling hands, he slowly stepped toward Hazard. Hazard, seeking the best outcome, removed the crystal from his chest and handed it to him.

"If you mess this up, you'll pay for it with your life!"

Genibas didn't care. He placed the obsidian armor in the center of his magic circle, using the crystal he had taken from Hazard to engrave a seal onto it. Then, he set the crystal inside the skull's jaw while placing the skull within the helmet. Numerous crystals surrounded the magic circle, emitting a massive surge of energy.

"Inject your mana—slow and steady!"

Genibas, whose mana was nearly depleted, instructed Hazard. Hazard extended his hand toward the inscribed magic circle, allowing his mana to flow gradually into the seal. The engraved seal began to glow, and the armor at the center started to tremble.

"Yes! This is it! A living armor! With these resources, I can finally create one!"

Hazard decided not to ruin the old man's excitement and continued injecting his mana, feeling the surging energy intensify within the armor.

Two hours passed, and even Hazard's mana was running low. Yet, the armor's tremors did not cease. Every few minutes, a finger or foot of the armor twitched randomly, while a blazing flame flickered within the skull.

"It's time!"

Hazard glanced at Genibas, who hadn't taken his eyes off the armor for the past two hours and was now stepping into the circle.

"What are you doing?!"

Hazard, alarmed by Genibas interfering with the magic seal, prepared to strike. He was ready to attack when he saw Genibas summoning a fireball, preparing to hurl it at the armor. But there was no need for Hazard to defend—an explosion erupted.

Through the dust, Hazard saw it.

The dark purple obsidian armor, now engulfed in blazing blue flames inside, had lifted Genibas by the neck with one hand while staring at its other hand in confusion.

"Where... am I?"

"It was a success! It's alive!"

"What just happened?"

Hazard, bewildered, observed as Genibas had simply created a sense of danger to awaken the living armor. Realizing this, Hazard approached the armor and pulled its hand down to release the old man. As Genibas coughed, Hazard turned to the confused armor.

"Welcome to your new life!"

The living armor, still dazed, recalled its last memory—being slain in a duel by a legendary bandit. Now, it no longer felt its former body. Instead, an immense, heroic power radiated from within.

Hazard extended his hand.

"I am Hazard, the Undead Demon King."

"The Demon King of the South?"

"Yeah, you still have your memories, don't you?"

"Yes, but... what have you turned me into?"

The count's son hesitated as he looked at Hazard's outstretched hand and pulled his own back.

"A living armor. Crafted from obsidian armor and the masterwork of a heroic dwarf, you're highly resistant to magic and practically immune to physical attacks."

The young count then looked down at his own body.

"This power..."

He lifted his foot and stomped on the ground, causing the entire hall to tremble.

"Hey! Don't bring the castle down!"

Realizing his strength, he restrained himself. He had been given a new life—with a power beyond his wildest dreams. Then, he turned to Hazard.

"What happened to my parents?"

"You should be asking what you did to them! The old man and woman are still huddled up in the castle, shutting themselves away."

Hazard walked toward the door.

"You know... maybe it's best to forget them."

The young count turned.

"Why should I forget them?"

"You're a hero to the people now. A statue of you is being built. Hundreds have worked on it for a month, and it's still not finished. But returning as a spirit in armor...?"

"The people?"

He was confused. What did the Demon King—who had killed him, crushed his father's army, and razed his homeland—mean by that?

"You have to see it for yourself to understand."

With that, Hazard summoned several warlock witches, ones he had recruited from an army of a hundred thousand and bound by eternal contracts.

The four witches arrived swiftly. As they left with the young count, Hazard lifted Genibas, who was kneeling on the ground, meditating.

"We still have work to do. Get up!"

"I have no mana left. Do you want to kill me?"

"Drink this!"

Hazard pulled out a blue potion, exclusive to the Slime Demon Kings, which could replenish mana, and handed it to him.

"Slime mana?!"

"Drink it!"

Hazard forced him to drink the potion before descending to the castle's lower levels, where significant events were unfolding.

"Tell me what you think."

"This..."

Before them, in a vast storage hall, three dragons were feasting on the flesh of a colossal corpse, from which an overwhelming force of death radiated.

"No matter how much they consume of this heroic flesh and blood, it's useless. I tried resurrecting it, but its soul refuses to respond. My power isn't enough to suppress it."

Hazard then stared at Genibas—the best advisor in the world and the sole expert in dark magic.

"Behemoth... what about its heart?"

Genibas' gaze shifted to the massive heart, which several liches and undead giants were transporting.

"The blood inside the heart is its purest essence. After extracting it, I planned to feed it to the dra—"

"That's a mistake!"

Genibas glanced between the dragons and the heart.

"Once the blood is drained, it's just a lump of legendary meat! I don't know how you acquired this, but such a treasure is the perfect catalyst for that dragon!"

He pointed at the largest, dominant male dragon, which growled in response, locking eyes with him.

Hazard pondered over this. He had heard that bathing in the heart's blood of powerful creatures could reinforce newly formed bones and muscles. But if he could gain an immortal-level dragon from a fallen race instead? The choice was clear.

"Take the heart to him!"

With his command, the giants turned back and carried the twenty-meter heart toward the largest dragon, which, sensing its powerful mana, eagerly stepped forward and began devouring it.

Hazard then looked back at the massive corpse, still uncleaned of its flesh.

"What do you think about resurrecting it?"

"Because of its powerful race, its soul has far greater resistance than lesser beings. Once it reaches a legendary level, that resistance multiplies several times, making it incomparable to heroic beings."

Genibas fell into thought, while Hazard watched the heart being consumed, giving the genius old man enough space to consider the matter.

"If you fulfill its last wish, its resistance will weaken... What was its last desire before it died?"

Hazard turned his gaze back to the corpse.

After summoning it, no other legendary summons had succeeded for days. No legendary being saw any benefit in answering his call, which made Hazard consider himself lucky for having succeeded on the first try. In subsequent attempts, splitting his mana across summons had only yielded heroic creatures—mostly skull giants and a few spirits.

"I can't fulfill its wish."

Its last desire was to return to its master in the Abyss. No matter how much Hazard thought about it, granting that wish would bring him no benefit.

"Then replace its soul... its power might be diminished, but at least resurrection will become possible!"

With that, Hazard recalled a being who had been trapped in a lower power level for far too long—one of his very first followers.