Prologue
"Urgh…!"
A lump of blood surged up my throat.
The Holy Sword of the Order had pierced my heart with perfect precision.
It was a fatal wound. There was no surviving it.
"This is the end, Archimond."
"Yeah. It's over."
While the allied forces slammed against the defensive lines, a small elite unit had infiltrated deep inside to eliminate me.
I had anticipated such a move and layered countless defenses upon defenses, yet this man had broken through every single one and struck me down.
It was my complete defeat.
"To think… my revenge would turn to dust because of a single knight…"
"It wasn't the work of one man alone."
A resolute voice cut through my lament.
The knight who had driven the Holy Sword into my heart—Berkel Leinrant.
The leader of the Northern Knights who had withstood me for two whole months.
And now, the Duke of Leinrant, hailed as the hero of the entire continent.
"That's right, Archimond! It was the will of the alliance that defeated you! The will of mankind united as one—!"
"Shut up—!"
Blood sprayed from my mouth together with the roar.
At the deeply resonating shout, the knight babbling behind Berkel flinched and stepped back.
"You think… you think I don't know what you people are like!?"
I could already picture their faces relaxing in relief at my death.
Emperor Meldir, the Archmage Arkan, even Pope Prahan.
The mere thought of them made bile rise in my throat.
"If it's for their own benefit, humans will do anything! Trample anything! Devour anything!"
I roared like a beast.
A deep-rooted distrust and hatred toward humanity.
That was the very origin of me, Archimond—the necromancer who had swept across the continent.
"Duke Leinrant, you know that too, don't you!?"
The moment I mockingly mentioned his territory, Berkel clenched his teeth.
"When the plague swept through the North, those bastards just stood there watching with their arms crossed! Yet only after a blade was pressed to their own throats do they start babbling about alliances and peace across the continent!"
"W-What did you say?!"
"You bastard…!"
The knights flew into a rage at my words exposing the alliance's disgrace, but Berkel blocked them from rushing at me.
The great plague that had blanketed the entire North.
Ignored by neighboring nations, twenty million people had died.
And now, they had become my army.
Among them were the people of Leinrant—Berkel's own homeland.
"Yeah. That was the spark that ignited this war."
My legs threatened to give out, but I forced myself to remain standing.
At least for now.
As long as my will remained, I would never kneel.
"The Round Table of Five Kings? An alliance for peace? Ha! I guarantee it! It'll collapse into infighting before even a year passes!"
After that final shout, my body staggered violently.
Watching me, Berkel finally opened his mouth as if answering my last cry.
"You're right. Now that the public enemy Archimond is gone, the alliance will soon lose its strength."
A single sentence acknowledging their own hypocrisy.
My blood-caked lips curled upward.
How laughable.
Those who had ignored their own people's suffering now called each other comrades.
"And knowing that, you still chose to become their dog? Why?"
I truly found it regrettable.
Berkel.
If this man had never appeared, I really could have swept the continent clean.
"To leave behind proof that I existed for the children."
But after hearing his answer, I could no longer mock him.
"What… did you say?"
With a stiffened expression, I asked again.
"To turn my life and my choices into a symbol. To leave them in history."
Speechless, I stared at Berkel.
The knight's clear, shining eyes reflected my appearance.
Dark. Twisted. Corrupted.
"And if you leave that behind… what changes?"
At my question, Berkel answered in a low voice.
"It creates a new hero. The next generation's Berkel Leinrant."
"Ha…"
I was dumbfounded.
A knight from the North who had arrived here carrying pain much like my own.
And yet the ideals he embraced were the complete opposite of my twisted convictions.
Thud.
At last, the body that had endured to the very end finally collapsed.
Not only because my strength had failed me, but because even my heart had been defeated.
"Do it."
With a drained voice, I lifted my thumb and pointed at my neck.
"A wound like this won't kill me. Cut off my head and make sure I stop breathing."
Hearing my words, Berkel discarded the Holy Sword in his right hand and drew his own blade.
"Berkel, wait—!"
"If you pull out the Holy Sword, then—!"
His companions shouted something behind him, but I could no longer hear them.
"At least for this… you have my thanks, Archimond."
I lifted my head at the small voice meant only for me.
The sword raised above his shoulder was pointed directly at my neck.
"Because of your death, the North… will never fall apart again."
With those final words, my vision spun.
My severed head hit the ground, and the cheers of the knights filled the frozen castle.
This was the end of the great war that had lasted ten years.
The final moments of the continent's public enemy—
the necromancer Archimond.
***
…Or so I thought.
"Oh my? Head Maid! Young Master's mouth is moving!"
"Really? Where, where?!"
The first thing I saw upon opening my eyes was a dazzling room.
The woman soothing and coddling me appeared to be my nanny, while the one holding me was apparently the head maid.
"Young Master, look over there and say 'Mama~'! That's the Duchess!"
The nanny shaking my body held a portrait in front of me.
A portrait of a beautiful woman.
Judging by her extravagant dress, she was clearly someone of high status.
"Say it, Young Master! Mama! Mama~!"
"Uh… mm…!"
Looking at it, I gathered every ounce of strength and shouted:
"Gatekeepers of Darkness, servants, and soldiers! I, Archimond, summon you—heed my command!"