Emperor of Steel [EN]: Chapter 142

1. The End of a Villain

1

“Y-You, you’re King Luke of Symphonia?!”

Constantine’s eyes widened in shock as he stared at Luke, who held a blade against his neck.

“Nonsense! Why would the King of Symphonia be here?”

“Hah. Are you really asking because you don’t know? You spread rumors about the Pope and me being in a relationship, but it seems you didn’t know it was true?”

Just before the founding of the Kingdom of Symphonia, rumors had circulated in the Holy Artenian Empire about Luke and Reina’s scandalous relationship.

The rumor was that the Pope was secretly involved with a descendant of a fallen warrior who had mastered dark magic, and that they had already been intimate.

Luke knew immediately who had spread the rumor.

It was none other than Constantine’s faction, the biggest opposition to Reina.

No one else would spread such rumors except those who wanted to drive the Pope out of the Holy Empire.

However, he couldn’t tell if Constantine’s faction had spread the rumor knowing the truth, or if they had just picked up on rumors circulating in the Baroque Empire and other parts of the continent.

“Kuh! So, the reason today’s plan went wrong is because of…”

“That’s right. It’s because of me. I was the one who went into the exploded Grand Temple and met the brainwashed Archbishop Antero, and I was the one who saved the Pope from danger.”

Only then did Constantine realize why the trap he had prepared had failed.

It was all because of that guy!

Everything had gone wrong because of that so-called descendant of a warrior.

If it weren’t for him, his faction would have gained a great deal of credit in the Holy Empire’s civil war a few years ago, solidifying their position in politics, and today’s trap would have succeeded in eliminating the Pope and Grand Duke Gregory.

“You, you ruined everything for me…!”

Unable to speak, Constantine gnashed his teeth and lunged at Luke in desperation.

Luke was slightly surprised by his ferocity, as he didn’t care about the blade cutting his skin, but that was all.

Thud—!

“Kuh-erk!”

Constantine, struck in the abdomen by Luke’s knee, vomited and collapsed.

He was in so much pain that he couldn’t even scream, clutching his stomach and rolling from side to side.

“Hmph, you should know your place before attacking someone. You really don’t know your limits.”

Luke scoffed and turned his head towards the old bald priest who had been with Constantine.

The paladins, who didn’t know any better, had assumed he was on Constantine’s side and pointed their swords at him, but they lowered them at Luke’s gesture.

“It’s been a while, Ambassador Nanda.”

“It’s good to see you, Lord Luke. Or should I call you Your Majesty now?”

“Where have you been and what have you been doing all this time?”

“It’s a long story to tell while standing. Anyway, I didn’t want to come empty-handed, so I brought a gift.”

Luke knew what that gift was without asking.

It was probably that foolish Constantine.

“Your Majesty, who is this person?”

As Luke and Nanda were talking as if they were close, Reina approached and asked with sparkling eyes.

“He is Ambassador Nanda, a high monk of the Arahan Order from the Southern Continent. Ambassador, this is Veronica III, the Pope of the Holy Artenian Empire.”

At Luke’s introduction, the two bowed politely to each other.

“Amitabha. It is an honor to meet the true apostle recognized by the heavens.”

“It is a great pleasure to meet such a virtuous person. I heard about you from His Majesty Luke before. I heard you were a great help in obtaining the latter part of the Gold Sword?”

Frankly, Reina didn’t know much about the Arahan Order and Ambassador Nanda.

She knew that the Arahan Order existed, but there were not many followers in the Rhodisian continent, and even fewer priests.

She had only heard about it when she went to officiate Luke’s coronation.

‘He’s definitely not an ordinary person. There was a reason why he said he was a person with great abilities.’

The subtle energy emanating from Nanda’s body was similar to the energy that Sylphir, the wind spirit king she had met in the spirit realm, had emitted in the past.

She didn’t know it then, but she knew now.

This divine energy was the power that only those who had stepped even slightly into the realm of the gods could emit!

“I heard that the priests of the Arahan Order aim to become gods. Is that true?”

“The World Honored One said that if one attains enlightenment through practice, one can achieve liberation and nirvana [a state of perfect peace and freedom from suffering]. It is not fundamentally different from your order’s doctrine that if one follows the teachings of God, one can become chosen and enter heaven.”

“It seems you know our Elkasel Order’s doctrine well.”

“Missionaries from your order sometimes visit the Southern Continent. And I stayed in the Baroque Empire for a while to proselytize [convert or attempt to convert someone from one religion, belief, or opinion to another].”

It was as if they had met someone who understood them.

Reina, with her eyes sparkling, began to ask Ambassador Nanda about the doctrines and faith of the Arahan Order, as well as the Elkasel Order.

Grand Duke Gregory approached Luke, who was quietly watching them, and spoke to him.

“Your Majesty, the battle is over, and there seems to be no need for further searching, so let’s settle down and interrogate the villain.”

Luke nodded at the Grand Duke’s suggestion, who wanted to know how to turn the zombified people back into humans as soon as possible.

“Let’s do that. However, I will interrogate this one myself.”

“Your Majesty, you will do it yourself?”

“Yes. It seems it will take less time if I do it.”

‘Well, His Majesty Luke is an excellent mage and dark mage….’

Since mental magic is most effective for interrogation, Luke would be more suitable than them.

Luke said to Gregory, who seemed to agree.

“Then I will return after the interrogation.”

“Yes? Aren’t you going to do it here?”

“There are too many eyes watching. I’ll be back soon, so don’t worry and wait.”

Frankly, Luke didn’t want Reina to see the interrogation scene, rather than the Undead Knights.

Interrogation was bound to involve cruel violence and harsh language.

Swoosh!

As soon as he grabbed Constantine by the scruff of his neck, a light flashed and the two disappeared.

He had used teleportation magic.

“No, where did he go?”

Reina, who was talking to Nanda, was surprised to see Luke disappear and asked.

Grand Duke Gregory shrugged and replied.

“His Majesty said he would interrogate him himself to find out the mastermind behind this and find a way to turn the zombies back into humans.”

“Is that so?”

“I agreed because it seems His Majesty will find out faster than us.”

“I see… Then, while he’s interrogating, let’s set up a camp and clean up the surroundings. There are still zombies left in various parts of the city.”

“Yes, I will issue the order immediately.”

As Gregory saluted and stepped back, Reina led the remaining people to the Bremen City Hall.

She planned to set up camp there and wait for Luke to return.

2

Whoosh—!

The place where Luke teleported Constantine was on a cliff in a valley near Bremen.

Constantine trembled at the sight of the dizzying view below the cliff.

“It would be best if you answer my questions honestly. Unless you want to experience the rare experience of not dying even if all the bones in your body are crushed.”

“Ugh, you vile bastard! And you call yourself a descendant of Rakan?”

Luke smiled lightly at Constantine’s accusation and released his grip on his neck.

“Aaaah!”

Thud—!

Constantine, who had fallen off the cliff, was thrown to the ground.

A dull sound was heard, and a terrible pain, as if his whole body was breaking, washed over him.

The fall had crushed all the bones in his body.

“Aaaah! Aaaah! Aaaah!”

It hurt so much that he felt like he was going to die, but strangely, he didn’t die.

That was because Luke had cast the physical enhancement magic Strength and the instant healing magic Treatment on his body like lightning just before dropping him.

“Are you willing to talk now?”

At Luke’s voice, which seemed to be ringing in his ears, he gritted his teeth and said.

“Just kill me.”

“Oh, you’re going to hold out?”

Luke used anti-gravity magic to pull Constantine back up to the cliff.

Then, after healing his body, he dropped him off the cliff.

After repeating the process several times, Constantine surrendered.

“I, I’ll talk! I’ll talk, so please don’t drop me off the cliff!”

He had gone through many hardships, but the pain of having all the bones in his body crushed was on a different level.

Luke healed Constantine’s body and began the interrogation in earnest.

“Is Arsen behind this?”

“……Arsen? Who are you talking about? Surely you’re not talking about the great archmage from 500 years ago?”

Luke smiled bitterly at Constantine’s question.

“That great scoundrel you mentioned is still alive as a lich [an undead creature, often a powerful sorcerer, who has achieved a form of immortality].”

“T-That can’t be!”

“You must have heard of it. The Veritas Magic Tower was destroyed for researching dark magic.”

He had certainly heard of it.

The magic tower, which had competed with the Artenian Imperial Magic Tower for the best on the continent, had secretly summoned high-ranking demons and turned Nemesis into a wasteland, and was destroyed.

At the time, Emperor Rudolf of the Baroque Empire was so angry that even after destroying it, he was not satisfied and dug up Arsen’s tomb and cut up his corpse, which was just bones.

Anyway, it was a surprising story.

Arsen, the founder of the Veritas Magic Tower, which was destroyed by dark magic, was alive as a lich!

“Among the guys who attacked me and tried to kidnap Reina, there were remnants of the Veritas Magic Tower, Arsen’s subordinates.”

“S-Subordinates?”

“The guys wearing gray robes. They were disguised as priests, but they were all dark mages. One of them was quite strong, but they all died at my hands.”

‘T-That can’t be!’

He had cursed Beymon and the Gray Order for not answering his magical communication, but they were all killed by Luke!

Constantine waved his hands frantically as Luke glared at him menacingly.

“I, I don’t know. I’ve never met Arsen. I just received a revelation from God!”

“Pfft, a revelation from God?”

Luke’s lips curled into a sneer.

What would God have to do to give a revelation to this greedy, self-centered, rotten priest?

He knew that revelations were only given to devout priests or those who had practiced God’s word for a long time among the believers.

Even that had been cut off a long time ago.

“If it’s a revelation from a demon god, it’s understandable. He’s a god too, after all.”

“Don’t speak blasphemy!”

Constantine, enraged by Luke’s ridicule, shouted.

“I clearly received a revelation from God and gained God’s power! Who in this world can turn zombies back into humans!”

Luke realized that Constantine, who was squealing like a frightened kobold, didn’t know anything.

He was just a pawn on Arsen’s chessboard.

Luke shook his head and glared at Constantine with a murderous aura.

“Forget about Arsen, just tell me how to turn zombies back into humans.”

Shudder!

Constantine, exposed to the murderous intent that Luke emitted, trembled all over and his heart shriveled.

He even peed his pants.

But knowing that this was his last chance, he mustered as much courage as he could and opened his mouth.

“W-Who would know how to say that? I, I’ll tell you if you meet my conditions.”

“Conditions?”

“Y-Yes. If you guarantee my life, my followers’ lives, status, and position in the name of mana, I’ll tell you.”

‘He wants me to make a mana oath now? Ha! What kind of guy is this…!’

Luke looked dumbfounded at Constantine’s request.

Even after causing the zombie incident and killing countless people, and even after experiencing the pain of almost dying just now, he still couldn’t let go of his desire for power?

This guy was not a human who would ever repent.

Luke was sure of that.

He wanted to make him suffer until he died, slowly burning him from his toes.

But he held back.

Finding a way to cure the zombie disease was his top priority.

Whether he kept his promise or not could be considered later.

“Okay. If you tell me the method, I swear by mana to guarantee your life and the lives and positions of your underlings.”

A mage’s oath on their mana could not be easily broken.

The mana circle would disappear the moment it was broken.

Constantine’s face lit up at Luke’s answer.

He explained in detail about the power he had received from Arsen, whom he firmly believed was a god.

“The day after the god gave me power, he came to me again and said that small evil spirits were dwelling in the people who had become zombies as punishment from God.”

‘Small evil spirits… It must mean the parasites that transmit the zombie disease.’

“He said that the evil spirits are very vicious, so if you try to kill them or remove them carelessly, they will turn the host into ashes. However, if you irradiate them with divine power that contains the special energy that God gave me, you can get rid of the evil spirits without any side effects and turn them back into humans.”

Luke asked after hearing Constantine’s story.

“What is that special energy of divine power?”

“Well, that energy is… a mysterious power that is difficult for a lowly human to dare to explain.”

“Really? It seems that even a true apostle of God is nothing special. He can’t even explain something like this.”

Constantine’s face turned red at Luke’s sarcasm.

He seemed to want to argue, but Luke spoke first.

“Even if it’s hard to explain, you can show me a demonstration, right?”

“O-Of course.”

At Constantine’s assurance, Luke teleported him to a village with zombies.

Believing that seeing it once was more certain than hearing it a hundred times.

Kuh-uhh, kuh-uhh….

In a small village of about twenty houses, a dozen or so zombies wandered aimlessly.

There used to be many more, but Constantine’s faction had swept them all away to Bremen, leaving only a few behind.

The zombies, who had been circling the same spots, rushed towards Luke and Constantine with a look of delight (?) as they appeared.

“Hold!”

Luke, having bound the zombies’ movements with a simple spell, turned to Constantine and said,

“Alright, I’ve set the stage, so go ahead and show me what you can do.”

At Luke’s gesture, Constantine approached the nearest zombie and unleashed his so-called divine power.

Woo-oong!

A hazy light emanated from his hand, enveloping the zombie.

Then, astonishingly, the rotting flesh began to regenerate.

Color returned to its face, and life flickered back into its lifeless eyes.

The zombie had returned to being human.

“Huh? What, what happened to me…?”

“Rejoice! For you have been saved by the apostle of God!”

Constantine spoke with a solemn expression to the person who was confused due to the gap in their memory.

‘Hmph, even in this situation, he’s still pulling off a scam.’

Luke snorted but decided to let Constantine do his thing for now.

Instead, he carefully observed the scene as the man healed the remaining zombies.

Using magic to maximize his vision, he saw what he hadn’t seen before.

It was the sight of parasites escaping from the people’s bodies.

The parasites, fleeing in a hurry from the human bodies, withered and died instantly as soon as they came out.

‘Right, these guys were the ones that moved through water. They have no choice but to die like this when exposed to air.’

Once he confirmed that the healing was effective, Luke focused on the power that Constantine possessed.

‘It’s not a power he got from a real god, and it’s definitely not the demonic energy that a dark mage would use.’

Demonic energy is not a power that can be easily accepted.

The reason dark mages can handle demonic energy is because they have either studied dark magic for a long time or made a contract with a demon.

Moreover, demonic energy is the opposite of divine power.

If Arsen had given demonic energy to Constantine, a priest, either the demonic energy would have been destroyed or Constantine would have been destroyed.

‘If I, Reina, or Karen had ether [a form of spiritual energy], we could coexist with it. We could switch and use it only when needed. But Constantine doesn’t have that either.’

Luke carefully observed the changes occurring in Constantine’s body as he used his power.

He even deliberately exposed himself to that strange divine power.

‘What is this? It’s not mana, demonic energy, divine power, or aura. It’s like…’

A fresh and vibrant wildness.

It was similar to the energy he had felt from wild animals while researching zombie cures, but much stronger.

‘Come to think of it, I’ve felt a similar energy before. Much more vast and vivid… Yes, it’s similar to the Tears of the Earth that resided in Reina’s body!’

The Tears of the Earth.

It was the key that connected the spirit realm, which was currently disconnected from the middle realm [the mortal world].

Reina, who possessed the key through her bloodline, went directly to the spirit realm, met Sylphid, the wind spirit king, and received ether from him.

That caused problems such as Luke and her temporarily separating and her losing her memory.

‘If it’s similar to the Tears of the Earth, then this is definitely the power of spirits, spirit force… No way! Wasn’t spirit force supposed to have disappeared from the middle realm a long time ago?’

Luke was shocked to learn the true nature of Constantine’s power.

As far as he knew, the spirit force in the middle realm had all disappeared thousands of years ago, right after the spirit realm was disconnected from the middle realm.

Naturally, the spirits that used abundant spirit force as an energy source also disappeared one by one, and the lineage of spirit mages who controlled those spirits was cut off.

But now, thousands of years later, that spirit force was reappearing!

‘Where on earth did Arsen get this power and give it to Constantine?’

Luke was puzzled as he examined Constantine’s spirit force more closely.

‘But something’s strange. According to ancient records, spirit force is supposed to be as vibrant as a living flame…’

Even Reina, who could control the power in the form of ether, could move statues or make flowers and trees move like animals.

She even controlled the wind as if it were a living creature.

But Constantine’s spirit force had wildness but no vitality.

‘It feels like a corpse… Yes, now I get it! He’s using spirit stones!’

When a living thing dies, it leaves behind bones, which turn into fossils over time.

The same was true for spirits, and the fossilized remains of dead spirits were called spirit stones by the ancients.

Just as coal, which is fossilized wood, can be ignited, spirit stones also contained spirit force.

Of course, it wasn’t as much as a living spirit, though.

The problem was that spirit stones were a resource only known from ancient literature.

They were used as a valuable resource until the ancient magic empire era, before the spirit realm was disconnected.

Spirits had to be controlled through spirit magic, but spirit stones could be used to harness spirit force with just a few simple steps.

As a result of such convenient use, spirit stones were completely depleted during the ancient magic era.

‘Were there some left? Did they end up in Arsen’s hands and then passed on to Constantine?’

Luke asked himself the question, but he couldn’t find an answer.

Anyway, he had the answer.

The reason why wild animals that drank contaminated water did not contract the zombie disease was because they had a unique power that suppressed the zombie disease parasites, a wildness similar to spirit force.

Constantine had gained spirit force through spirit stones.

Unlike demonic energy, it did not clash with divine power, and like Reina’s case, it would have been considered a mysterious power, almost like a divine ability.

‘He must have ground the spirit stones into powder and absorbed them. The fact that the old man has become young again must also be due to the power of spirit force.’

Anyway, the important thing was that spirit force could eradicate the parasites that caused the zombie disease without any resistance.

As Luke was rejoicing at having found the answer to solving the zombie disease crisis, Constantine spoke to him.

“Well, I’ve shown you as much as I can. Now you keep your promise.”

“Before that, I have one question. How many people infected with the zombie disease can you turn back at once?”

“Well… maybe three or four at most?”

“What? That’s all you can do?”

There were hundreds of thousands of people infected with the zombie disease right now.

But at the rate of healing three or four people at a time, when would they ever be able to turn all those people back into humans!

“Hmph, it’s only natural that that’s all I can do. Did you think being chosen by God would be so easy?”

“It’s not God who chooses, it’s you who chooses.”

“Isn’t that obvious? I am the apostle of God, after all.”

There was a reason why Constantine was acting cocky even after having tasted bitterness on the cliff earlier.

He judged that Luke and Reina would have no choice but to rely on him to save the people.

“I guess I can’t just leave you alone.”

A sinister smile appeared on Luke’s lips, and Constantine, startled, stepped back and asked,

“A-Are you going to kill me? Hey, if you break your promise, your mana circle will disappear, you know?”

There was no greater blow to a mage than the loss of mana.

The moment a large amount of mana was suddenly lost, there was a high probability that the mage’s body would collapse due to the backlash.

“Hah. Who said I was going to break my promise? Your life and your lackeys’ positions will be guaranteed. However, you will be completely forgotten by the world.”

“W-What? Then, could it be…”

“It would have been better if you had just asked to be killed cleanly, tsk tsk tsk.”

Constantine’s face turned pale.

He was not foolish enough not to understand what Luke meant.

It was common to treat a person as missing, confine them in a secret location, and then torture them.

And he himself had done such things before.

“And you know, even if my mana disappears, I have many other powers to replace it. It doesn’t matter if I kill you.”

Luke was not worried at all even if his mana disappeared.

He had the Ether Glove, so if he needed mana, he could just convert ether into mana.

In other words, unlike other mages, he did not need to desperately preserve his mana circle.

“At first, I thought I should get rid of you and all your lackeys. But that would be too light of a punishment for your sins. So, I’ll make sure you can repent for a long time.”

“N-No! Uwaaagh!”

Snap!

Luke, having snapped his fingers, bound Constantine with Black Bind [a dark magic spell]. And then he absorbed the spirit force within his body.

The spirit force, turned into gray smoke, seeped into Luke through the Black Bind.

The moment he lost his spirit force, Constantine’s body aged rapidly.

“Hee-eek. What did you do to me… Uwaaaagh!”

No sooner had the spirit force been completely absorbed by Luke than flames erupted on Constantine’s face.

The wrinkled face was instantly disfigured by burns.

“Hwaaak! It’s hot! Save me! Please save… Kehek!”

Constantine’s tongue, which had been screaming, was cut off by Luke’s sword.

“Don’t worry. I won’t kill you, ever.”

Over 500 years ago, during his Seymon days, Luke had enslaved corrupt nobles and treated corrupt priests like livestock.

He intended to give Constantine the same treatment.

“You turned innocent people into zombies and used them. Now, you will pay the price for your sins.”

“Ugh… Uuh-uh-uh!”

Tears of blood streamed down from Constantine’s eyes, which had lost their light due to the burns.

It was the miserable end of a man who had once aimed for the position of Pope of the Holy Empire.

4

“Hmph, what a sight. I could believe you were a zombie.”

Luke, seeing Constantine’s face, which was covered in burns, gave a sinister smile.

He aimed for good, but he was not a kind person like Reina.

He believed that evil people should be punished accordingly.

“Huu… Huuh-uh-uh….”

Constantine, who was in pain due to the burns, tried to heal his wounds by using divine power.

But he could not use divine power.

Luke had sealed Constantine’s divine power while absorbing his spirit force.

Luke had fought priests and paladins in the past when he was called the Black Sage, so he knew how to block divine power.

He had learned that method by chance during a battle.

He had been angry at the words and actions of the priests who treated him as trash who had sold his soul to demons, so he had branded their bodies with a mark symbolizing a demon using fire magic.

“If I am a demon’s lackey, then you, who invoke God and squeeze the blood of good people, must be followers of the demon god!”

From that thought, the branded mark unexpectedly exerted power.

The branded priests could not use divine power.

In the case of high-ranking priests, they could still use it, but their divine power was significantly reduced, and they could not recover their power until the brand was removed.

So, after that, the priests were very careful not to be branded when fighting him.

‘Thanks to the demon’s brand, I learned that the ‘taboo’ that priests and sorcerers invoke actually exists. I was too busy fighting to figure out how it worked, though.’

It was the same now.

He did not know the mechanism of taboo and divine power.

However, seeing that even a corrupt priest could use divine power, he thought that divine power might not be related to faith, even if taboo was.

Besides, Luke was not very interested in theology, either in his Seymon days or now.

It was already difficult to focus on one thing, and magic and swordsmanship were much more systematic and efficient.

The actions of the religious orders on the Rodisia continent also played a part in this.

Most of the religious orders revered the existence of God so much that they were reluctant to rationally analyze divine power, making it difficult to study.

‘Perhaps divine power is similar to magic. The fact that they can’t use divine power just because they’ve been branded is similar to how mages can’t use magic because their mana is sealed by a sealing magic circle.’

Moreover, divine power and magic were not incompatible.

This could be seen in the mages of the Artenia Imperial Magic Tower, who could use both magic and divine power.

‘In the first place, divine power, magic, and aura all originated from ether, so it’s not impossible. Wait, then… could I also be able to use divine power?’

Reina said that she converted her ether into divine power and used it.

Then, theoretically, it was possible for Luke, who had ether, as well.

He could now switch to using the Black Circle only when needed, so he didn’t have to worry about clashing with demonic energy, which was the opposite of divine power.

‘That’s right. Lakan’s Gold Sword alone has anti-magic properties. Considering that, it might be easier than I thought.’

With that thought, Luke once again cast Black Bind on Constantine.

He was trying to absorb the man’s divine power.

“Huu-uh-uh-uh!”

Constantine screamed in pain as his divine power was sucked away.

But Luke tilted his head as it didn’t seem to be working well.

‘What is it, can’t I absorb it? No, it’s only natural that I can’t.’

Black Bind was dark magic.

It might be able to absorb mana, aura, and spirit force, but it only clashed with divine power, which was completely opposite in nature.

Thanks to that, Luke only failed, and Constantine only wasted his divine power.

‘I can’t do it this way. Is there another way?’

There were two reasons why Luke was belatedly greedy for divine power.

The first was that he could also learn it.

Until now, he had thought that divine power could only be used by priests or believers who had a strong faith in God.

So, he had never even thought of acquiring it.

But now, it was different.

The second was that he judged it would be useful in the fight against Arsen, the lich.

Honestly, he had to admit that magic and dark magic were no match for a guy who had lived for over 500 years.

The Gold Sword, which had anti-magic properties, was useful, but it was not enough.

To defeat him, he needed a sure hit, a power that could deal a proper blow.

Divine power, which was the opposite of dark magic, was the only answer.

‘It’s impossible to accumulate a large amount of divine power with Black Bind… Should I ask Reina for some ether?’

Thinking that, Luke quickly teleported to Bremen City, where she was.

Burning with a desire for a new power.