Witch Troupe and the Undead

Its slender claws gripped decaying weapons and shields, and even completely rotten equipment was layered on its body, making it look like a moving junkyard.

In an empty tomb deep within the cemetery, the leader pulled down her hood, revealing a delicate woman's face and neat, pale short hair. However, between the strands of hair were numerous writhing, deep red, tentacle-like growths that appeared and disappeared as her head moved. Her body beneath the cloak was highly mutated, with deep red tentacles hanging down her arms, leading one to suspect that even her legs had turned into tentacles.

This phenomenon indicates that her core sin is blasphemy, a rather extreme kind of sin. Generally, what the church calls blasphemy, such as dissecting corpses, is not considered a sin by the Great Sin Master. True blasphemy refers to acts that are against humanity or that "humans cannot, or at least should not," or things that "even God would find disgusting."

Others also took off their hats. Some looked as if they were charred by burning coals, their anger burning themselves before it spread to others, especially when it was unprovoked. Others looked as "lies," their bodies covered with all sorts of mouths, but their faces devoid of features.

And hidden among this group, the mildest symptoms are "arrogance" with large and small silver-white scales appearing on their faces. Dragons are the best embodiment of arrogance, so a mage whose core sin of arrogance will eventually be covered with shimmering silver dragon scales that are actually rotten inside.

The talented are proud, the incompetent are arrogant; therefore, beneath the gleaming dragon scales lies a rotten and weak body.

"Jealousy and blind faith didn't meet in time, what happened?" The youngest, Pride, was a little nervous. She felt very uncomfortable among these inhuman monsters, not only because of her own sinful core, but also because her not yet fully corrupted mind found it hard to accept the bizarre shapes of these people.

"She's just a little girl, not even an apprentice-level arcane mage. These two are really good at this." The irritable [Rage] spoke up as a figure dragging a blind letter appeared at the entrance. Countless cursed thorns rushed towards the figure, but were eventually stuck by the fleshy tentacles summoned by the leader.

"Don't fight amongst yourselves," the leader said indifferently to "Jealousy." "Tell me why you're late." "We encountered a very troublesome witch and alerted the knights, so we had to take a detour." [Jealousy] glared at the furious man with resentment, keeping his head down as much as possible to avoid letting the leader see the fire of jealousy in his eyes.

"A witch? Who?"

“I don’t know, I’ve never seen a newcomer before, but the Golden Secret Eye can’t be faked, and the strength is also…” Being able to shatter the wall of blind faith in one blow is enough to show that the other party is not only better than her in the field of arcane arts, but also in the field of great sins. This made the jealousy in her heart burn fiercely, and her whole body was completely enveloped by the twisted magic.

The dark red thorns grew more numerous and tighter, as if they were trying to completely shred the body. Each thorn dug deep into the flesh, but under the torment of jealousy, this slight physical pain became insignificant.

"Hmm, I understand." The leader reached out, and the tentacles quickly sucked away the twisted magic, even licking her face. This jolted Jealousy back to her senses, and she trembled. For these sinful mages, you couldn't subdue this strange group of people without some skill.

"According to our inside information, the Military Intelligence Bureau has found a clue to the prophecy of the Great Diviner. We don't have much time left. We must find that thing in the royal city before the curse is lifted, otherwise our plan will be in vain," the leader said calmly and emotionlessly, like a machine.

"Pleasure and gluttony, rage and folly, and an arrogant emperor who believes he can control everything... A nobleman whose heart is consumed by greed and who also desecrates human reason, only one 'pillar' remains." Lies' mouths were all speaking, making it difficult to understand what he was saying.

"Ah, the capital is a nest shrouded in lies, desires, and blind faith. With the pillar at its core and sin as its bait, we will complete the ultimate sin that the ancient kingdom of Luster failed to accomplish, the final ritual of rebellion."

To seize the authority of God and the right to eternal life, and to elevate oneself to a higher level, is, in Hell, the ascension ritual—the process of upgrading from an ordinary demon to a great demon who can compete for the position of lord and become a candidate for God.

The difference is that one is in hell and the other is in the present world. The process is simpler in hell because it is the remains of the world and the embryo of the new world; but it is very difficult in the present world, and the things required to complete this ritual are also enormous.

From the perspective of these sinful mages today, the colleagues or predecessors who assisted the Kingdom of Luster in completing the Seven Deadly Sins ritual were too conservative. They only committed the Seven Deadly Sins and were even unwilling to sacrifice the entire population of the kingdom.

But they are different. They want to sacrifice the vast majority of people in the entire capital and even the entire empire. They expand upon the ritual nodes and ritual foundations of the ancient kingdom. After all, the great sin mages of the past were on a legal path, and many of them were indeed on the right path. But these guys who have been corrupted by their own sins, whether they have any humanity or not is rather vague.

Some may still retain a shred of humanity, but most are devoid of it. After all, if their humanity or conscience were still intact, they wouldn't cross the line between sin and innocence and become part of the sin.

"Who cast the curse?" Pride finally asked the question that had been puzzling her. At first, she thought it was Jealousy, but now, listening to the leader, it seemed that they didn't know who had done it either.

"It doesn't matter. Maybe it's one of those two precious items, or maybe it's some nobleman. They can even commit the heinous crime of blasphemy, so the trivial matter of regicide is not worth mentioning."

"The grave sin of blasphemy?"

"For example, cannibalism or something." Jealousy glanced at the leader without leaving a trace, trying to guess in what direction she had crossed this taboo, thus constructing the core of her great sin.

"Want to know?" The blood-red fleshy tentacles slowly crawled towards her.

"I'm sorry, Chief." [Jealousy] skillfully dodged the tentacles and bowed its head in submission.

Chapter 102 Coup

The capital city, the Black Iron Palace.

The palace is actually an abandoned large prison. The name comes from the black iron cages and steel gates painted with black anti-rust paint that remain in the cell. It is shaped like the Bastille, with a square castle shape. It is the headquarters of the Imperial Intelligence Bureau and the location of some of the Empire's secret research institutions.

It utilized former prisons and underground mines dug by prisoners; the labyrinthine underground prison served as a natural defense and a place for researching dangerous projects.

With the rumble of machinery, the wheel-sized black steel gears slowly began to rotate, rubbing against each other to create tiny arcs of electricity. The steel gate opened little by little to the inside, and the metal ball at the bottom rubbed against the groove, producing a grating sound.

The gates of the Iron Palace are not opened easily, only on specific days and under certain circumstances. Normally, people enter and exit through a small door next to the main gate. But today is different, because a heavy carriage bearing the royal insignia is parked at the gate, followed by a procession of honor and the Imperial Guards on the left and right.

The Imperial Guard was uniformly selected from orphans and foreign slaves who had at least three attributes that reached the second level of the extraordinary talent level and were trained from childhood. The soldiers' salaries and equipment were paid for by the royal family, or at the very least by the emperor himself.

In a sense, his confidence in not being afraid of those nobles stemmed from this, as did the issue of succession. If he were to let his son eat, live, and train alongside these Imperial Guard officers, even though there was no Xuanwu Gate in this world, some other kind of coup might still occur.

If they didn't do that, those two precious and useless men would never be able to subdue these arrogant and fierce soldiers, and the Imperial Guard's succession law wouldn't be anything special.

But at least for now, these Imperial Guard knights, riding winged winged horses imported from the Central United Kingdom in a uniform color and said to have celestial blood, and clad in heavy silver-white armor inlaid with gold patterns and magic gems, resembling a four-legged fortress, remain his sharpest blade and his most trusted force.

The Imperial Guard Knights' equipment includes an enchanted lance bearing a swallowtail banner. This lance is not only a weapon but also maintains a stackable and amplified "Victory Pledge Banner" effect. On the battlefield, when the Imperial Guard Knights begin their charge, all units receive a significant morale boost.

A golden heavy shield forged from anti-magic metal and imbued with a powerful anti-spell blessing, a holy enchanted greatsword, and a military heavy crossbow hanging on the horse. The knights of this world are not so pedantic; the reason they didn't draw their muskets was simply because they didn't have such weapons. However, they did have enchanted heavy crossbows, the kind with quivers, capable of firing three times in succession.

As the Imperial Guard officer wearing a white bird feather headdress walked to the gate, the gate of the Black Iron Palace was fully opened, revealing the exquisite courtyard behind it. In the eyes of the common people of the empire, the Black Iron Palace was like a demon king's fortress standing in the eastern part of the capital, shrouded in a mysterious and terrifying atmosphere from the very beginning.

However, the real Iron Palace, at least the part above ground, is not so gloomy and terrifying. The courtyard that was originally used to execute prisoners is now an exquisite garden with white fountains, neat vegetation, and statues representing the seven aspects of God. The original ground prison has been transformed into offices.

The elderly emperor, supported by his attendants, stepped down from his carriage. The chief of military intelligence, who was some distance away, hurriedly came forward, but the emperor waved him away, indicating that he should not block his way. "Your Majesty... your health..."

"It's nothing," the emperor said wearily. Everyone could see that the curses, the heavy burden of government affairs, and the precious possessions of the empire had almost exhausted the last bit of energy in his body. Yet, there was a chilling light in his cloudy eyes, which was why the nobles were restless but dared not actually make any moves.

No one knows whether this fierce man, who used the fraternal succession method in his youth and caused bloodshed in the palace, will pave the way for his beautiful but useless daughter by taking away all the troublesome lords and nobles in one fell swoop. Perhaps those regional officials really have no way to escape, but those who are still in the capital will definitely not be able to get away.

The old emperor had practically emptied his coffers, scrimping and saving to maintain the 3500 Imperial Guards, which were not just for show. Together with their attendants, infantry, and the Knights' own magical counter-enforcement units (equivalent to the regiment's artillery), they numbered nearly 12000, almost a third of the total garrison in the capital.

In other words, if he wanted, he could massacre the entire capital overnight. Of course, the price would be that the empire would be engulfed in flames of war. If he killed all the hostages, the powerful nobles in those regions would truly be emboldened. Even so, he could also wipe out the nobles and their private armies of several large territories near the capital.

At most, they were reduced from the level of Julius Caesar in the Roman Empire to that of the Emperor of Constantinople in the Eastern Roman Empire (not referring to a person's name, but only Constantinople and the surrounding territory), but those nobles truly lost the lives of their entire families! (Sound)

In fact, he had indeed considered this idea, but after thinking about whether his own "vase" could survive on just this circle of directly controlled territories, he gave up the idea. The main problem wasn't the "vase" itself, but the lack of a reliable regent. It was just like how Liu Bei would have had a difficult time dealing with Liu Shan if he hadn't had Zhuge Liang.

If there were Zhuge Liang, things would be simple. It might be a good thing if the monarch was just a pretty face. If there were Zhuge Liang in literature and Yue Fei in military affairs, then even if this pretty face did nothing but eat, drink, play, and enjoy flowers and gardens in the palace all day, he could become a great emperor who could restore the dynasty. The problem is that there isn't one!

"Lead the way, let me see your new toy." The old emperor caught his breath for a while before straightening up and trying his best to maintain a steady pace as he walked towards the gate of the Black Iron Palace above ground. The royal guards quickly took up positions at the entrance of the Black Iron Palace and the gate of the office area.

This actually relieved the chief steward and the chief judge who had come with him. The Imperial Guards were not doing this because they didn't trust them; on the contrary, they were putting on such a precautionary act precisely because they trusted them.

If they really seem to be lax, they should seriously consider whether the old emperor is preparing an excuse to purge them. After all, sitting in this position for too long has indeed become a hidden danger to the empire.

Meanwhile, at the Imperial Guard camp.

Unlike the Iron Palace, this architectural complex known as the Silver Duke Fortress is the number one tourist attraction in the hearts of the people of the capital. This is not only because it was once the emperor's residence when he was young and the architecture is magnificent, but also because, although it was converted for military use, you can still see the magnificent silver-white dome and tall towers inside.

It is said that the domes were cast in pure silver, and servants had to maintain the anti-oxidation and anti-rust coating every few days, otherwise the gleaming silver domes would start to turn black over time.

The people of the empire regard this place as the pride of the capital and a source of security for its inhabitants. Compared to other garrisons and city guards, these imperial guards are well-paid and equipped with luxurious gear, so the imperial guards, who are ruthless towards ordinary people, are more popular with the imperial guards.

Although these guys are arrogant, they neither rob nor extort, and they do not ride horses in the market (the Imperial Guard's warhorses are far more valuable than the lives of commoners). Occasionally, in order to maintain the reputation of the Imperial Guard, they will even give some commemorative silver coins to civilians or tourists from other places. These are silver-plated copper coins, which are not worth much, but they are still money!

[Silver Knight] Azur sat upright in a chair in front of the fireplace, with a desk piled high with official documents in front of him. The warmth of the fireplace made his back feel cozy in the cold winter, making the centenarian feel a little more relaxed.

The emperor had complete trust in this incredibly loyal old minister, and even on this trip, he did not allow this veteran general, who could theoretically mobilize the entire Imperial Guard, to accompany him.

If Sir Charles Silver were twenty years younger, the Emperor could consider making his daughter, a figurehead queen, a queen in name only. As long as the power could be smoothly transferred to the third generation, her mission would be accomplished.

Unfortunately, Count Azur was too old to go to the battlefield, let alone handle the daily affairs of the Knights Order. He could only do some symbolic work. After all, the Silver Knight Fortress was named after him, and the title of Silver Knight was earned when he fought bloodily on the battlefield wearing silver armor during the emperor's ascension to the throne. At that time, he was already an old man with a full head of white hair.

For him now, working here is just a symbolic job. As long as he is still sitting here, it means that the Silver Duke Fortress is guarded and the Royal Guard Knights have a backbone. He is the symbol of the Knights, but no one knows how long this symbol can last. Even he himself doesn't know if he will fall asleep in the next second and never wake up again.

"Bang bang bang!" The thick oak door was opened. "Come in," the old man said, glancing at the sky outside the window. At this time, the elite of the Imperial Guards had all gone to the Black Iron Palace with the Emperor. Could it be that there was some urgent military situation?

Outside the pushed-open oak door stood an elderly knight, around 60 or 70 years old, with a resolute face as if sculpted from marble. The familiar face reassured Count Azur. "Banri, it's you?"

"It looks like it's going to snow soon. Want to grab a drink?"

"At this time?" Count Azur watched as his son approached with a plate. The plate contained not wine, but diluted milk with distilled water. This was less of a burden on an old man's body, which dispelled the count's last trace of wariness and unease.

"Hmm, having something hot to drink wouldn't be bad." After all, the weather didn't look good; leaden-gray clouds covered the capital like a layer of steel, and it would start snowing soon in the afternoon.

"Banrui, what made you suddenly decide to come and have a drink with this old man?" The count poured the milk from the pot into his own cup. Years of military service and secret guard work had instilled in him the habit of using his own utensils, not someone else's, even at this moment. Without this caution, he would have died countless times already.

The evaporated milk was swirled in the glass, seemingly being observed, but actually being checked for signs of poisoning. This glass was a treasure from the emperor's treasury; if it was poisoned, it would emit a faint green light, the stronger the poison, the stronger the green light.

The count took a small sip. It still tasted the same, somewhat unpalatable, bland like water with a milky flavor. This was the diet of the Imperial Guards. All their supplies were of the highest quality, except that, to ensure optimal physical condition, they were not allowed to drink strong liquor. Fermented light grape juice and this light milk were their daily drinks.

Of course, this was only true in terms of enjoyment; the actual food was not bad, after all, an extraordinary physique requires considerable nutrition and energy to maintain. The Earl drank the milk in one gulp, and the warm, light milk did indeed make his old bones relax a little.

“You’re still as cautious as ever,” Commander Banrui grumbled, then poured himself a glass and gulped it down. “This damn taste! When I become commander-in-chief, I’m definitely going to change this damn rule.”

"Hahaha, let's talk about it when you become the lord. Anyway, I don't have many days left," Count Azur laughed heartily. If it were ten years ago, he might have suspected that this kid had some ulterior motives.

But now, the imperial physicians have even openly told him and his family that his lifespan may now be measured in months.

He even arranged his will and the succession of his property, lands, and titles. As the eldest son, Banri was aware of this. He even personally arranged the coffin for Count Azur and the tomb was completed. He was just waiting for the old man to fall asleep one morning and move in.

"You still haven't said why you came to see me at this time," the count slowly stopped laughing, put down his water glass, and frowned as he looked at his eldest son. "Given my personality, you shouldn't have come at this time. You know what you'll encounter."

“You’re still as perceptive as ever, but this time it’s not me. I just came to have a drink with you. I don’t want to do anything, and I can’t do anything anyway.” Ban Rui shook his head and poured himself another drink. “Won’t you have another one?”

"Damn it, what have you done?! Are you trying to drag the entire family into hell?"

“It was you who dragged the family to hell, Father,” Banrui said earnestly. “His Majesty’s time is as short as yours. Even if we find clues to lift the curse, then what? The Imperial Guard may be preserved, but the Silver Duke family will inevitably be purged. You know that no matter who goes up, unless it is His Majesty’s personally chosen successor, we will be the first to be purged.”

Every prince, whether or not they had a right to the throne, wanted to win over this Imperial Guard. However, none of them considered trying to win over [Silver Knight], whose status and relationship with the emperor were too special.

"Which one is it?"

These elite officers could tell the difference between the "boss's" precious possessions and the worthless junk.

“I thought you were going to talk about the princess,” Azur scoffed, then stood up. “Are you trying to stop me?”

"No," Banri said, remaining seated at the table without doing anything. "There's nothing more you can do."

A deafening explosion came from outside the window. It was the Knights' armory, which stored a large number of alchemical bombs and alchemical tools, such as blazing glue. Flames spread throughout the camp, and the billowing black smoke made the Imperials look on in surprise.

“It seems I was right not to let you inherit my position,” Count Azur said with some difficulty as he drew a light sword from the weapon rack behind the door.

He was too old to wield the Royal Guard's standard enchanted greatsword, so a sturdy yet lightweight light sword was specially crafted to fit inside the greatsword's scabbard. After all, it was unlikely that he would personally engage in combat now—the real solution was to have the left and right Grand Knights hack and slash the enemy to death.

"Servants? You've won over those servants!?"

Compared to the knights who were loyal to the emperor, these squire infantrymen were not so loyal. After all, the emperor's treasury was not unlimited. Although the treatment of these squire infantrymen was better than that of other knightly orders, it was still limited, with the majority of the money going to the knights.

Faced with a sudden ambush by their squire infantry, the knights in the camp who were not wearing heavy armor suffered heavy casualties. However, as one of the Empire's most capable forces, they quickly rallied their trusted personal attendants and, without armor, used their swordsmanship to maneuver and the terrain to their advantage.

Inside the Silver Duke Fortress, a cacophony of battle cries filled the air. It seemed as if the knights had been caught off guard, but the seasoned old knight, skilled in warfare, could tell at a glance that apart from the initial panic, the knightly order was actually unharmed. They hadn't managed to recruit enough squires and infantry, and less than a quarter of the mystics had betrayed them.

The knights had already captured part of the armory. Even though the explosion destroyed the main armory, there was more than one armory in the fortress. Once they put on spare armor and took up their weapons, the knights were completely different from before.

They occupied advantageous positions such as towers, built defenses, and began a methodical counterattack. Meanwhile, the attendant infantry who had been caught up in the chaos and were unaware of what was happening gradually came to their senses, and order was slowly being restored.

"It seems you haven't managed to win over enough people," Azur said sarcastically, but his eyes showed tension and worry. It was obvious that this was a feint attack; they didn't intend to eliminate the Royal Guard, as that would be too difficult. Moreover, the Royal Guard was an indispensable force for the new emperor. Their goal was to hold off the Royal Guard so that foreign troops could enter the capital and fortresses.

Then they would make an issue of the emperor. It was a fact that the Iron Palace was easy to defend and difficult to attack, which was precisely why the emperor did not bring enough attendants and royal guards. If an attack were launched from within the Iron Palace or if the attack were launched from both inside and outside...

As the saying goes, what you fear most is what will happen. A violent magical explosion came from the direction of the Black Iron Palace, and the conspicuous black gate had clearly failed to close in time.

"With the Crown Prince's intellect, he couldn't have come up with such a tactic. Who's behind him?"

“I don’t know, I don’t care,” Ban Rui shook his head. “Whether it’s a capable person under him or he himself has hidden his talents, the fact that he can do this shows that he is qualified to become the new emperor. Isn’t our emperor the same?”

"..." The count's sword fell limply to his side. He knew it was true. "I'm going to reorganize the Knights. You'd better hope I die this time. Otherwise... I have more than one son and more than one grandson. Rather than having the whole family buried with you, I'd rather you go with me."

Chapter 103 Battle of Wits

In the cemetery ruins, the Great Sinners used the readily available grave soil, along with jewels and burial goods plundered from those greedy sinners, to gradually construct a large ritual structure. The biggest advantage of arcane magic compared to other types of magic is that you don't know what those lizard tails, dried pufferfish, and the like are for until their ritual is completed and activated.

It could just be a material for making some kind of potion, a catalyst for some kind of minor spell, or it could be setting up a large ritual space that you haven't noticed.

Rituals, or esoteric practices, are the dividing line between idealism and materialism in this world. They are materialistic, and every conceptual indicator has a strict definition that cannot be biased in the slightest. For example, "fool's gold" (brass), which represents the core of greed, cannot be replaced by anything else; it must be this.

On the one hand, it is idealistic; all conceptual indicators have a certain quality: I feel that it represents this meaning, so there is a certain quality in it.

This is also the fundamental reason why Roach could not learn the arcane spells at all. Although he could not understand why he did the first half, he could still do it. But for the second half, he really did not understand the symbolic relationship between the green glass and the wind element. Even if he set it up, the ritual structure could not be formed because he did not believe in or understand it.

The ritual space set up by the sinful mages consists of six parts. Usually, no matter how large the ritual structure is, its magical elements will not exceed six: magic dust, runes, spells, ritual implements, dance/gestures, altar/offerings/catalyst.

In different esoteric systems, these six elements have different symbolic meanings and are not necessarily all required. Even in a single ritual, they can be adjusted, replaced, or removed.

Of course, the final result, as it stands, is basically just exhaustive search – they spend all their time in the lab doing this exhaustive search simulation.

Crushed brass powder was scattered into the magic circle drawn with chalk made of magical dust in the tomb chamber as the fingers twirled it, filling the hollow structure of the text and patterns one by one, turning them into glittering golden runes.

Magic dust refers to dust with magical or spiritual properties, including gem dust or products made from grinding certain magical materials. However, gem dust is the most commonly used because it is the cheapest. A bottle of magic dust made from low-quality scrap gems costs only one gold coin.

The entire tomb chamber, serving as the central node, was completely covered by a large number of runic structures. Lines outlined with emerald glass powder, which was more expensive but would not trigger the greed demons, extended into the distance along the roads surrounding the tomb chamber, connecting multiple tomb chambers, basements, and open spaces. Deep within the cemetery, the sinful mages had erected a simple altar.

All the symbolic ritual implements have been gathered. Several candles made of human oil are stuck in the candlestick. Under the burning of the flames, the ancient silver coins that have been handled by many people slowly melt and gradually fill the brass plate.

"Almost done." All the equipment has been installed and disguised to prevent it from being destroyed by adventurers. The sinful mages used to be as honest and proud as ever, but after their lairs were raided by adventurers many times, they now obediently disguise the ritual site.

"This is the spellbook, memorize it all!" The chanting of the spells is different for each person at each stage. This is why combined spellcasting is a high-level skill of ritual mages, and it also explains why high-level ritual mages can perform spells solo.

Knowing how to keep up with your partner's incantation rhythm is like a magical concert; once the ritual begins, every word you utter has its own meaning and magic.

If the chorus makes a mistake, the ceremony won't collapse immediately, but the pressure will instantly be transferred to the next person. If they can withstand it, the ceremony will fluctuate but will still succeed in the end. However, if they can't withstand it, the pressure will snowball and eventually the entire ceremony will collapse.

In order to enable even novice apprentices to learn this spellcasting method, something similar to a musical score was created. Each person marked the section they needed to chant, the start and end points, and some more particular ones would even set up a metronome on the spot, just like musicians.

If a performance goes wrong, at most you can start over. But if a large-scale ceremony goes wrong, it's like uncontrolled magic igniting every unlucky person at every stage into fireworks.