Even if the Duke was wary of him, he couldn't just leave her like this.
Had the opponent been a resident of the Gag World, he might have hesitated or easily spoken to persuade them, but she was a resident of the Gag World, whose durability was effectively infinite.
Thus, he strode toward the Duke without hesitation. Consumed by extreme tension, the Duke drew the short dagger at her waist and swung it at Rian.
*Thwuck!*
The swung dagger pierced Rian's thigh. It was the Duke who was startled. She opened her eyes wide and parted her lips slightly. She knew that a powerhouse of Rian's caliber could dodge an attack like this with his eyes closed.
Only then did her reason, paralyzed by survival instinct, return. Sensing this keenly, Rian carefully took the hand of the Duke, who was gripping the dagger embedded in his thigh.
"It might sound ridiculous to say this now, but I am not your enemy."
"What nonsense... Kkuh, cough!"
As she spoke, she spat out blood. The unhealed wound on her stomach had reopened. Her lips were pale, bordering on blue, and her pupils flickered in and out of focus.
Seeing her in a state where something truly terrible might happen if left alone, Rian decided it was better to show her through action rather than words.
"Excuse me."
"D-don't come closer!"
As Rian reached toward her thigh, the dagger dug deeper into his leg. Had she possessed even a shred more stamina, she might have tried to sever his leg entirely.
Her trembling hand could only drive the blade deeper; it could perform no other action. Rian's blood mingled with the Duke's, which had soaked the floor. Rian, not caring whether his thigh was stabbed or severed, placed his left hand on her leg and channeled his divine power.
*Hummm.*
A familiar crest shone brilliantly on the back of his hand, and the Duke's wound began to heal rapidly.
"This is...?"
The Duke's eyes slowly softened at the warm and peaceful energy. As her extremely tense body was forcibly relaxed, she felt dizzy. With a dazed expression, she parted her lips and lost consciousness.
***
A worn, dark study located somewhere.
Inside the study, a pale purple light faintly illuminated the surroundings, but the source of the light was unknown, creating an ominous atmosphere.
Bookshelves towered along the walls of the study. In the empty spaces, there were skulls with candles protruding from their eye sockets, dried frogs, herbs, bones, and statues of unknown origin. Some items dripped black smoke or red blood.
There were books on the shelves, but not many.
'How to Handle Souls: A Guide for Necromancers'
'Language of the Afterlife: Conversing with the Dead'
'Bone Magic: Secrets of Structure and Reinforcement'
'The Boundary Beyond Death: A Soul's Travel Guide'
'Soul Binding: How to Gain Eternal Loyalty'
'Curses and Protection: Necromantic Defense'
Whether the owner of the study was merely interested in 'Necromancy' or was a 'Necromancer' themselves, several books related to the subject were shelved.
In the center of the room, which was about 8 square meters, sat a wide, dark brown wooden desk that looked quite old and worn.
On the desk was a thin, three-legged stand, and atop it sat a large crystal ball the size of a human head. It shone brightly, as if well-maintained.
In the leather chair behind the desk, a pink-haired woman with the hood of her black robe pulled low over her head was smiling deviously. Her jawline was sharp, and her neck was slender. Her slightly exposed lips were curved alluringly, and a beauty mark sat just beneath them.
"Haa... Just a little longer, and it'll be in my hands."
She let out a sultry moan, staring at the inside of the crystal ball as if possessed. Inside the crystal ball, the Duke was clearly visible, being attacked by a girl in a pure white dress.
"If I make that woman, called the Empire's strongest, mine, my spot among the Four Heavenly Kings is guaranteed. Then, I'll be by Erboan-nim's side... I'll be... Hehehe!"
She twisted her body in ecstasy, as if unable to contain herself. Soon, she began to ramble on about facts no one had asked for.
"To think I managed to pierce the Empire's protection magic... Even Erboan-nim couldn't destroy the Empire's protection magic...! This must be the Demon King trying to unite me with Erboan-nim. It has to be, yes, yes!"
The entire Empire was under protection magic, making infiltration via spatial magic from the outside impossible. Furthermore, divine magic was cast near the borders, making it nearly impossible for anyone harboring Demonic Energy to infiltrate the Empire.
While not entirely impossible, the losses far outweighed the gains, so only those with near-zero Demonic Energy had infiltrated the Empire as spies.
There was no way for a woman who only knew rumors about Erboan from admiring him to know such detailed information. She was simply happy, believing she had succeeded in infiltrating the Empire where even Erboan-nim had given up.
How could a woman who looked pretty but seemed somewhat lacking in intelligence manage to pierce the Empire's protection magic and trap the Duke, known as the Empire's greatest sword?
It was all thanks to the God of Luck bestowing a blessing upon her.
Her first stroke of luck was obtaining a Doppelganger, which is extremely difficult to find. Not only that, she obtained a specimen that was on the verge of death and was able to enslave its soul. Thanks to that, unlike other undead, the Doppelganger could fully retain its abilities.
Her second stroke of luck was successfully synthesizing the Doppelganger with a terrifying monster known as the Reaper of Darkness.
It was the result of an incident where, while learning the basics of undead synthesis, she accidentally synthesized her two most prized undead instead of two skeletons during practice.
The success rate was a mere 0.004%, but... perhaps the God of Luck was smiling upon her, because she succeeded on the first try!
The reason the Doppelganger the Duke was fighting kept returning unscathed instead of dying was that it had been synthesized with a shadow-type monster known as the Reaper of Darkness.
If not for that second stroke of luck, the woman would have been busy running away, let alone thinking of turning the Duke into a Dark Knight.
Her third stroke of luck was that the moment she attempted spatial magic to teleport to Erboan's office, the Spirit King connected a passage between the Empire and the Demon King's Land.
The security magic on Erboan's office repelled her teleportation magic, and the deflected magic connected to the Empire—a chance as slim as finding a needle in a desert.
The place it connected to happened to be the dwelling of the Master of the Forest, who had fallen into a deep slumber. That was her fourth stroke of luck.
Like someone simply placing a spoon on a table set by another, she corrupted the sleeping Master of the Forest, polluted the forest, and controlled the Master of the Forest to strengthen the Doppelganger.
'A Doppelganger that can extract and imitate the appearance of the person the opponent cherishes most... With this, Erboan-nim will... will praise me. Haa...'
Because it was a trap created by a series of coincidences and absurd luck, it was natural that no matter how much Rian searched the original work, he couldn't find the answer.
"Haaa... What a beautiful masterpiece will be created!"
She grinned foolishly, happily gazing beyond the crystal ball. But that smile did not last long.
*Static...*
"Huh?"
Static began to appear on the crystal ball that had been showing the Duke. As the image repeatedly blurred and cleared as if fogged over, the woman tapped the crystal ball with a flustered expression.
"Damn it! What's wrong with this? Did it break?"
Anxiety spiked as this happened right before she was about to harvest the luscious fruit. She tapped the ground with her staff to summon a Skeleton Mage. A skeleton draped in a black cloak clattered as it rose from the ground.
p>
"Fix this crystal ball!"
The Mage immediately thrust its brown staff forward and cast a spell.
*Zzzzt...*
"Aaaah! It turned off!"
With no effect, the crystal ball simply turned off. She threw her cloak hood back and nervously shook her pink hair. Her alluring eyes, reminiscent of a haughty noble lady, her full lips, and her dainty nose were revealed.
"Ugh... Now I have to go and check it myself..."
She had intended to approach quietly and turn the Duke into a Dark Knight once she had completely collapsed, but because the crystal ball broke, she had to go check it herself.
"She's called the Empire's greatest sword, so... couldn't I just go out in two days? B-but what if she dies in the meantime? Then I won't be able to harvest her soul, and my stats will drop by several times!"
Accustomed to talking to herself, she bit her nails and muttered anxiously. Then, as if she had lost her mind, she lifted the crystal ball and began to wail.
"Fix it! I said fix it! Waaaaah!"
While wailing, she missed the scene that had flashed very briefly inside the crystal ball: a man with white hair and gold eyes falling into the trap.
*Clatter..*
She failed to notice the Mage beside her turn its head.