"Gahh!" Saint Scepter grunted as the tall, regally robbed undead pulled the bone spear out and flew far away to stand beside Sylvester.
Saint Scepter was left behind, coughing out some blood. However, the wound in his chest immediately healed.
Due to the sudden attack, Felix and Soulbreaker came out of their fanatical state. They looked around themselves in confusion. Finding their bearings, they quickly gathered around Sylvester and asked for an update.
"He can use Mind magic. You were both affected by it," Sylvester revealed, bracing for the impending battle. "Now, Emperor Raz will be the main character of this battle, with the rest of us as support. Remember, create as many opportunities as possible for Emperor Raz to strike at Saint Scepter."
"A brain magic user." Emperor Raz muttered. "Lucky for us, I have no brain left—I'm merely an immortal spirit occupying this vessel. He cannot affect me, even if he knows the dark arts. The only way he can defeat me is by being truly stronger than me."
That was certainly some relief to the rest. So, Sylvester allowed Emperor Lich to take the lead. "You know how battles at such a level are fought better than I do. You've faced more than a dozen Grand Wizards alone—tell us what you need."
After thinking a little, Emperor Raz lifted his right arm. He was wearing nothing but black, thick regal robes with large and pointy shoulder armor that made his figure seem big. He also adorned a black hood on his head, which highlighted the shining eye sockets and skull.
Emperor Rax formed multiple six-foot-long spears made from his own bones. He handed one to each of them. "If you get a chance, stab him with this. This isn't just a random spear, but the bone of a Supreme Wizard—if anything, this will injure him. Other than that, as the Bard said, try to distract him—as will I."
"What do you m—" Felix stopped asking midway when the earth suddenly started to shake.
"THIS!" Emperor Raz turned around; arms opened wide.
Right before their eyes, emerging from the deep, dark ravines carved by Saint Scepter, came out millions upon millions of undead, slowly crawling out. Ranging from small skeleton warriors to armored ones, giant ones, ghouls, zombies, animals, and of course—the undead dragon.
"WRAAAA!" Blue flames as cold as the extreme north came out of the ravine, but instead of burning the undead, it only made them stronger, as if they had received a buff.
"I've named this Thunderash." Emperor Raz proudly proclaimed when the dragon came out. "Let's resume the battle."
Without hesitation, Emperor Raz flew back toward Saint Scepter, and without stopping, he extended his spear to strike the man once more. "May the mighty win!"
Saint Scepter responded in kind and firmly held his spear forward to greet the undead. There were no new expressions on the man's face despite being impaled before. Even at that moment, when millions of undead swarmed, it appeared as if things were under control.
BOOM!
When two Supreme Wizards fight, the world can only stand aside and watch. That was the case from the sidelines, as each time the two exchanged blows, the spilled-out energy ruined the landscape even further. From a wasteland, it soon began to look like hell—as their speeds were such that stones began to turn into lava.
"Everyone. Use your most powerful ranged attacks on Saint Scepter." Sylvester ordered and prepared himself for another Wrath of Heavens.
Boom!
Just as they had started, they heard a loud noise in the sky and saw Saint Scepter creating a colossal, red orb resembling the sun. He sent it hurtling toward Emperor Raz, who only countered it using a shield made of some green energy.
'As expected, Saint Scepter has more battle experience.' Sylvester bit his lips and tried to consume as much solarium from his surroundings as possible. But since there were two Supreme Wizards in the vicinity, not much was left for Sylvester to devour.
'Timing is everything.' Sylvester mumbled and focused on Saint Scepter's moves to see when he went forward and when he hesitated. Every man has a weakness, so he tried to look for it.
"Lord Inquisitor, use your strongest fire magic when I tell you to." Sylvester started preparing. "Felix, stand behind me and hold me when I attack. Guardian Soulbreaker, attack Saint Scepter's soul when I tell you to. We have to overload his senses to confuse him."
Meanwhile, Emperor Lich was battling the strongest man of the Holy Land in the sky. Their strength seemed almost evenly matched. Nonetheless, the difference in experience was evident in everyone's eyes. Saint Scepter was slowly gaining ground and doing more damage to Emperor Raz.
However, the undead were also helpful. They created towering mountains from their own bodies, scaling the macabre structures in an attempt to reach Saint Scepter. Every time they did that, they clung to Saint Scepter before exploding in a blue light. Furthermore, there was a huge dragon spewing cold, blue fire.
Every time the two Supreme Wizards moved and clashed, be it physically or magically, the destruction spread even further. The sounds of their battle echoed vast distances, in the castles of the south or the east.
"Hold—" Sylvester kept his feet firm on the ground. "He'll stop to take a breath. When I say 'go,' unleash everything you have."
No verbal agreement was needed, as everyone kept their eyes plastered on the battle before them. The two Supreme Wizards were moving so fast that it was getting harder for them to focus as well. But Emperor Raz was trying to slow Saint Scepter down from time to time.
"GO!"
Sylvester chanted the elder magic hymn again and extended his palms toward the Saint Scepter. This time he was faster and unleashed all the solarium in his body. The burning, white beam of plasma erupted and struck Saint Scepter right in the center of his chest, throwing him back in shock.
Boom!
Inquisitor High Lord wasn't too far behind, as the ground beneath Saint Scepter began to erupt like volcanoes, and from each hole came burning red lava, along with fire. They accurately targeted Saint Scepter whenever he passed over any one of them.
Emperor Raz didn't waste any moment and leaped towards Saint Scepter. This time he threw his robes away, revealing his bare undead skeletal body. It was large, and his bones were incredibly dense with a peculiar black luster all over them.
From the rib cage, arms, head, and spine—all around Emperor Raz's body, various long spikes came out with needle-like sharpness. They extended in every direction, leaving no room for Saint Scepter to dodge.
"Got him!" Emperor Raz exclaimed in delight when multiple bone spears thrust into Saint Scepter's body. His face, neck, chest—every part got stabbed to the degree that the bone spears came out from the other side.
Crack!
With his job done, Emperor Raz broke the bone spikes from his skeleton, allowing Saint Scepter's impaled body to plummet. It fell rapidly as the weight of the bones was massive.
Thud!
When Saint Scepter's body met the ground, he was still impaled on the dozens of spikes. He remained suspended a few feet above as the bone spears became his bed. His body was drenched in blood, and he coughed out desperately while trying to breathe. His exposed jaw made clacking noises, trying to say something.
'This doesn't feel right.' Sylvester felt it. He didn't know why, but his senses were telling him there was something wrong there. 'He wouldn't die this easily...'
Wasting no time, Sylvester immediately took out a vial of healing potion from his pocket and threw it on Saint Scepter's neck so he could speak something. "What do you want to say? That you didn't expect this loss?"
"B-B…" Saint Scepter stared at Sylvester, trying to raise his hand. "Be…"
Sylvester's senses now rang like church bells, and he performed healing magic personally. "Accept your defeat and die."
"No!" Finally, Saint Scepter responded. "B-Behind… you!"
Claps!
Quickly, everyone's heads turned to look back. To their sunken hearts, Soulbreaker stood there, whose body had started to shapeshift. As his body morphed, the truth behind their grave blunder became clear.
"Congratulations—You defeated your own man."
Sylvester looked at the bed of bone spears, and there rested the impaled, bleeding body of the real Guardian Soulbreaker, not Saint Scepter.
Bam!
Completing his shapeshifting, Saint Scepter punched Felix in the guts as he was the closest, knocking the air out of him. With a single, normal swing, he brought the mighty Darksaber to his knees; the Skygem armor cracked around the stomach, as did the bones inside.
Sylvester immediately jumped away, as did the Inquisitor High Lord and Emperor Raz. They were all confused about what had happened or when the change had happened.
"This is impossible! You can't affect my thoughts!" Emperor Raz questioned.
Saint Scepter sighed and shook his head, looking at Soulbreaker's dying body. "Such talent—I had no animosity with you, Guardian Soulbreaker. This is merely the consequence of Bard's decision—May your soul find the Lord's embrace."
From a distance, Sylvester clenched his teeth. He wanted to heal Soulbreaker and save him. "When did you switch bodies?"
Saint Scepter lifted his staff and prepared to tap it on the ground. "True, I cannot affect the undead's thoughts—unless..."
Thud!
Everything in the surroundings changed with just a single soft tap from the staff. It was as if someone had flipped a switch. Sylvester, Inquisitor High Lord, and Emperor Raz found themselves standing in a void, and everywhere they looked, they just saw a glimmering night sky with countless stars and celestial formations. Even the ground they stood on looked celestial—yet they walked on it.
"This isn't good!" Emperor Raz's skeletal jaw clattered. "We lost before the battle even started."
Sylvester took a long, deep breath; since he had experienced this before—the sensation of appearing in a new world suddenly.
"This is his Supreme Void!" Inquisitor High Lord exclaimed. "Trapped, we've been kept—since when?"
'This is a complete Supreme Void. Unlike Niel—I can't sense any weakness.' Sylvester silently gulped. 'The last resort then?'
"I'll give you the key." Sylvester made the logical choice, so he could save Soulbreaker and head back to ensure the city was safe. On top of that, he was exhausted, and Emperor Raz was inexperienced and underpowered. "Take it and leave."
Saint Scepter remained silent for a very long time after hearing Sylvester's indirect surrender. The man was hard to read as he had no lower face, and his eyes were always shining bright white, not letting anyone see his pupils.
"I didn't expect you would surrender this soon," Saint Scepter spoke with amusement. "Truth be told, the key was going to be mine, regardless of your choice."
'As expected, there's more...'
"What do you want then?" Sylvester barked, nervously looking at the void-like realm he was in. He felt completely powerless there.
Saint Scepter lifted his hand and pointed at him, "You, Sylvester Maximilian—the anomaly, I want you—Commit to a Blood Contract to me, and you shall have freedom, Popehood, and your people—alive."
"Don't do it!" The Inquisitor High Lord immediately advised Sylvester. "It's eternal enslavement! For power, it's too high of a payment."
Sylvester gritted his teeth and asked. "Is this how… you enslaved Pope Axel?"
"He's a friend from childhood, no slave. He's loyal to me, as is Darksaber to you." Saint Scepter replied and showed his palm. Magical, realistic imagery formed over it, showing something. "He should be close to your city by now."
Sylvester frowned, "He's alive?"
"Never died—Merely resting. Doing his part in the grand gamble we play." Saint Scepter said and again pointed at Sylvester. "You know why I sent him there, Sylvester Maximilian."
"Mum!" Sylvester's gaze turned cold. "Why do you want my servitude?"
Saint Scepter shook his head, widening his arms.
"Not I—They want it."
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