Demon Lord - (New World Book 1)

by K R Zax

  But they are harder to make, for a low tier Darkness Zombie who can retain most of the power he had when alive, I need to insert one crystal into his body.

  And for a high tier one, I need at least five crystals. Which means, that I have to kill five monsters to make a super strong one, while the other four will became ordinary zombies.

  That’s why I had to do a lot of killing.

  “Stop! Everyone! Do not attack the Necromancer! I repeat: Do not attack him!” I turned around when I heard the Duke’s voice, and saw over thirty knights pointing their weapons in my direction. Some of them were on the ground while Lina, Aler, Bjorsal, Velira, and Lillian with the girls from the Demonic Order made a semicircle, blocking every attack directed at me.

  “All of you! Now! I told you to put down your weapons!” Duke McGregorov came riding on his horse, followed by a dozen of his men.

  “My Lord, he’s a Necromancer.” One of the knights was persistent, staring at me and waiting for an opening.

  “Move him aside.” At the Duke’s orders, the soldiers dragged the knight away. “Alright, Princess. It appears that you know this man. Can you vouch for him?”

  “I can, my Lord. His… Monsters are attacking the undead, so I doubt he’d do anything to harm us.”

  “I see.” The Duke said and looked around.

  A Troll crashed several zombies who were stabbing an Imperial soldier. Orcs killing the undead soldiers that were chasing after the humans. Lizardman thrusting with their spears, formed a line between the living and the dead.

  The adventurers were the first ones who tried to support my zombies, launching themselves into the fray. They weren’t too concerned with whom they cooperated, as long as their survival chances went up.

  “How many do you have?”

  “Uh, about 15000,” I replied to the Duke, almost half of them already left my Shadow Storage. I only need a couple of minutes more to have them all on the battlefield.

  “That’s quite something.” McGregorov looked impressed. “Alright, do you think you can handle the Elder Lich once you send them all into battle? Since we don’t have a powerful Light Mage to confront him, the next best option would be a strong Dark one.” He was right, the few Light Mages we had were dispelling the Dark magic from the attacking undead, but there were too many for them to handle.

  “Sure,” if things turn how I want, this could be very profitable for me. “Taking him down is my goal, you just keep the hotblooded soldiers off my back.”

  “Then I leave it to you.” Duke McGregorov smiled and nodded, then issued orders to his men. The enemy forces were already annihilated in this area, and I almost had all of my zombies out.

  “Obey me! Damn you! Obey!” The Elder Lich screamed as he tried to take control of my undead and failed miserably. “I’ll kill you! I will tear the flesh from your bones and then grind them to dust!”

  “Can you do it? I wouldn’t blame you if you just left.” Lillian said in a low voice after the Duke went to another location, leaving some of his soldiers to secure my surroundings.

  “What? you’re not worried about being so close to a Necromancer?” I patted her back while watching my Trolls utterly destroying the ones that the Lich had.

  “No. I wouldn’t expect less from a Demon Lord. As you may recall, my mother is from a demon-kin tribe and we do have a different perceptive on Dark magic than other people do.”

  Oh, God. She might turn into a fanatic now. And by the looks of the other girls, it probably is not just her.

  Crap.

  All my zombies were finally out, but the Lich was taking action himself now, he was sucking up the Dark Magic from some of my undead until they collapsed.

  Muttering to myself, I went to deal with the sack of bones. There were corpses all over the place. Some of them were still able to grab my leg, so I had to tread with caution. I ignored the metallic clashing sounds and angry calls to fight - and followed the mad screeching.

  The Elder Lich had one of my Darkness Zombies enveloped with his magic, trying desperately to take control of it.

  “Dumb Troll! Obey me! Obey!” He was like a child throwing a tantrum, irritated by the fact that my zombie wouldn’t listen to him. So far, he could only affect my ordinary zombies, but not the Darkness ones. Due to them having a crystal implanted inside their bodies, they were more like a magic item type of undead, kind of like a Golem. The crystals not only acted as a magic battery that amplified the zombies attributes, but also like some kind of enchantment, safekeeping a part of the individual’s memories and senses.

  Who knows, maybe someday I could make an undead that will act and behave just like when it was alive. And if I could boost its Strength, Speed, and Mana even more, that would certainly be something akin to a perfect warrior.

  “Pfft! Pathetic,” I said in a tone filled with arrogance. “A Mighty Looser like you, trying to take control of my creation. Just how poor can your judgment be?”

  Chapter 20.

  “Aaaaaa!” With a sharp cry, the Lich rose into the air, grabbed several corpses with ropes of Darkness, and then threw them at me.

  He had something like a Domain activated around him, the energy was mostly concentrated on his feet. It wasn’t that advanced as my skill, but he surprised me when he tossed the dead bodies in my direction. Damn, I used something similar to play with Lina, so I knew that I can wrap the Dark ropes to bind enemies and restrict girl's limbs. The thought that I could throw objects didn’t cross my mind, and why would it, since I could fire magic bullets?

  “I can play your game too, shithead.” I put an Air shield and deflected the flying corpses, then used my Dark magic to grab some swords and spears. “I’ll even show you something cool.”

  This was a good chance to try and investigate the possibilities of Dark Magic. I put up my Domain, covering a big part of the battleground. My Dark Magic grew a lot since I left Tsarigrad, and now it was at least two times stronger.

  “You dare underestimate me? Hmm, you made a big Dark bubble, and think you can defeat me? Preposterous.”

  When I attacked him with several weapons, Uhra put a shield of Darkness, and when a sword connected with the magic, it disappeared. Then I sensed his magic behind me so I dodged, and saw the sword that I used a moment ago, flying above my head.

  Space Magic? This was getting good. C’mon Mr. Lich, show me more skills, I will make sure to analyze them all while they’re inside my Domain.

  But in order to do that, I had to attack him again and again, so he could use his magic. It was a huge bother to have to dodge, jump and evade the attacks one after the other while hearing the bonehead call me an idiot. Anyway, we’ll see who will have the last laugh.

  “Haha, just because you are a Dark Mage, you dared to challenge me? Ridiculous!”

  Magic projectiles and physical objects, anything that I used against him was directed back at me, even sneak attacks weren't effective. Fighting a Dark Mage was entertaining and convenient for me, there were so many things to learn from this battle.

  Air Shield, for example. I almost perfected it. Now, not only was I able to form a barrier to block an incoming object, but I also managed to deviate their trajectory, which was a lot easier, and I had to spend less mana. After some time, I manipulated the Air and made it constantly circulate around my body while retaining its defensive power, so I stopped avoiding anything that came at me.

  “You can use Dark, Fire, and Air? No, it must be a magic item.” The Lich was surprised at first, and then he convinced himself that I was using an item to help me fight him. “But it’s of no use, you can’t reach me despite how many tricks you have up your sleeve.”

  “I wonder.” While holding Trinity firmly in my hands, I created a swarm of Fire Bullets. Over 60 fiery projectiles shot towards Uhra, who tried to defend himself like before and failed. About half of the bullets went inside the space holes and were redirected at me, but some did manage to hit him.

  With my Air Shild protecting me f
rom all sides, I watch the Lich lose a leg and stumble forward, falling miserably on his face.

  “Damn you! How can those tiny balls be so strong and fast?! It is that strange staff you have? Another magic item?”

  There were fewer screams now, so I looked around while I waited for the Lich to get back on his foot. My Trolls, Vogors and all the other Darkness Zombies were beating the shit out of the enemy undead. The Imperial Knights and adventurers were systematically destroying the heads, while the soldiers took the corpses and threw them on several piles, where the Mages then proceeded to burn them.

  The smell was awful, so I used a bit of Air to redirect it. And while I leisurely played with my magic, I looked at Lina and the Demonic Order. They didn’t participate in the zombie extermination but instead set themselves in a place between the army and me. The girls kept a reasonable distance from so that they wouldn’t interrupt my fight, and were close enough to intercept any possible attack that may come from the side of the living.

  “You...” Uhra was standing again with the help of his Dark magic that acted as a substitute for the broken leg. “I will take your life.”

  The Lich pointed his cane, and Darkness enveloped me. I couldn’t see a thing inside this pitch-black magic cocoon. And if that wasn’t enough, he started draining my energy.

  Lame, to think that he can’t even comprehend the abilities of my Domain.

  “What?” Uhra’s victory laughter was cut short when he saw me Absorbing his magic. “Another magic item? No, this bubble… There’s something strange about it.”

  “You finally sensed that? Great! Now let me show you something interesting.” I used the Darkness to bind him firmly so he couldn’t move, and then begin Absorbing all the energy he had. Uhra screamed as his bones glowed in a ghostly blue light that got sucked by my Dark magic.

  “You can’t be this strong! An item! You have another trick!” He struggled wildly, but it was in vain. And in the end, when every bit of energy was sucked away, his bones detached themselves and fell in a heap on the ground.

  Now that the Elder Lich was gone, I could focus on the undead. I sent the Darkness to the remaining enemy zombies, there was some resistance at first, but they all gave in and submitted to my rule.

  “You did it.” Lillian was wearing a big smile as she and the others approached me. Behind them, loud cheers could be heard as the soldiers and adventurers saw the zombies stopping their attacks.

  “Sure, I had it all under control.”

  “Darling!” Lina threw herself at me and then made a lewd sound when I accidentally grabbed her butt.

  “A-anyway, my Lord, what are we going to do now?” Lillian was watching my hand as she asked me. “Are we going back to Tolia, or would you like to kill the remaining people.”

  “Huh?” What the hell was she talking about? And what’s up with her attitude? “Why would I kill the others? And why do you look like you wouldn’t mind, even if I do?”

  “Because you’re a Demon Lord?” She said that like it was an obvious thing, and the rest of the girls from her order were all nodding their heads, only the members of the Three Wolf Fangs looked a bit reluctant.

  “Isn’t this going a bit too far? That Demon Lord thing is just a nickname, after all.” I slapped my property’s butt so hard, that she yelped and detached herself from me.

  “Darling is so mean.”

  “No,” Lillian sigh and started explaining. “Your eyes, your aura, and even your smell. I could sense all of that while you fought the Lich. I am a demon-kin, I can feel it with my soul – you are not someone from the races, definitely not a human.”

  My eyes. They glowed again, didn’t they.

  “They’re still shining with blue light, but don’t worry, you only look more handsome, Darling.”

  Shit, they all saw it.

  “Even so, shouldn’t you all be scared or something? You even talked about killing people like you were fine with it.”

  “Well, Demons usually want to destroy and kill. And as the commander of the Demonic Order, what can be greater than following an actual Demon?” After she said that, Lillian drew her sword and knelt before me. “I Lillian Az’Grotil Voznesensky, swear to serve you, Demon Lord Alex Miller, with both body and soul, to the rest of my life.”

  Crap.

  ***

  Nalisia Voznesensky was reading a letter from Duke Irval McGregorov. The fact that there was an Elder Lich leading thousands of undead surprised her. When she first came over that bit of information, she thought that the Duke wanted to request for more reinforcements, but then an even greater surprise was waiting for her. The undead ringleader was successfully dealt with, and by none other than Alex Miller – the Demon Lord.

  By the time she went through the letter, her whole body was covered in sweat. He was not just an ordinary Dark Mage as she thought at first, but a Necromancer as well. And like that wasn’t enough, there were more disturbing details added. According to the Duke, who witnessed the battle from a safe distance, the young man’s eyes glowed with a ghostly, bluish color – a thing that was attributed to Demons only. And even more outrageous, he claims that the young man was playing with the Elder Lich, which was a feat unheard of in all of the Empire's history. No one plays with such an adversary, even an S rank adventurer would strike it down with the first chance he got. Sure, an Elder Lich was classified as A rank, but not because of his strength as an individual. His magic power was sufficient for him to amass an army of over 50000 if given enough time.

  Maybe I am looking at things from a wrong perspective? Alex Miller isn’t normal by any means, he must have his reasons, even if it was just for fun. But wouldn’t that be even worse? That kind of character?

  But if he is a real Demon it would make sense. He certainly doesn’t look like one, according to the descriptions. Was there a magic that could change physical appearances? And if there was, why would a Demon go to such an extent?

  No, most probably he has some amount of Demonic blood, now that sounds like a real possibility. Wait, what did Saril say in her prophecy?

  “Felisy, bring me the High Priestess’ prophecy.”

  “Yes, Your Grace.” The girl opened a drawer, and after a few seconds, she brought a sheet of paper. “Here it is, Your Grace.”

  ‘The Lord of Darkness has been born!

  He is ancient and yet new.

  His blue eyes shall be the only light in his Domain.

  He’ll feed on souls and command the dead.

  If you show him kindness, you will get kindness in return.

  Ill intent will make Him happy,

  But make You dead!’

  If the part about ‘been born’ refers to him arriving at the Empire, then it could be understandable. Lord of Darkness, she didn’t call him a Demon, and the rest does fit perfectly. But there is something else. She did mention a Demon Lord some time after she recovered.

  Uh, I may be looking into this too much. Demon or not, he is a Necromancer for sure. The highest penalty for that is execution, and the lowest he can get is expulsion from the Empire.

  And then, there were Lillian and her Demonic Order. According to this report, they all sworn allegiance to him.

  Was that girl out of her mind? Could it be that she is in love with him?

  I can’t make a decision without consulting her mother, and our husband who is fond of all of his children, first.

  Of course, we cannot forget that he did a service for the Empire by defeating an opponent that could turn to be a nightmare for all of us. Yes, letting go of such a powerful and capable man would be a foolish thing to do.

  I need to find a task for him, something that'll keep him away from the capital. If he stays here, some nobles will make a fuss about it.

  “Felisy, bring me the map.” That’s right, there was that place. There will be benefits for everyone if he agrees to do it.

  The Warden Empress laughed joyfully as a plan took form in her head.

  END of BOOK 1


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