Because the Barenna Underground Fortress hadn’t opened yet, and nothing particularly noteworthy was happening on the Alwyn side.
For the next two days, I spent my time in the Mihri Ruins farming undead, pushing hard to meet the targets in the Trial of the Radiant Chapter quest.
With Satahia and Kai and the others helping out, dealing with these fragile undead wasn’t too tough. Only when they clustered up did I occasionally pull out special items from the hidden shop.
It wasn’t that I didn’t want to use them more. These special items just didn’t pack much punch in straight-up fights. The most useful one, the Group Corpse Explosion Technique, was sold out at Naldun’s hidden shop, and I couldn’t think of any other hidden shops in the Constanterna Empire. So I dropped it.
The biggest factor, of course, was my empty wallet. I still had a few dozen gold coins left, but for something this minor, it was smarter to be frugal.
Even after one full clear, the arena’s monster respawn rate was still solid. So Kai and I, along with the others, stuck to circling the arena and clearing the surrounding undead. It also gave us a bit more safety.
Over those two days, we took down a bunch of demonized creatures. I even completed the full Undead Apostle set—just needed to head back and have a craftsman socket in some level-reduction gems before I could equip it.
The first stage of the Trial of the Radiant Chapter quest was done too, unlocking the second stage. But this one left me with a real headache.
Trial of the Radiant Chapter (Special Quest)
Quest Description: The test Holy Knight Enzo placed on the Radiant Chapter, to prove whether you are worthy of this power.
Stage Objective: Eliminate elite demonized creatures on the outskirts of the Mihri Ruins (0/20)
Compared to the last one, it had switched to killing elite demonized creatures. But I was stuck right at the start.
It wasn’t because these so-called elite demonized creatures were hard to handle. With Satahia and Kai and the others backing me up, even boss-level ones were no big deal.
The real issue was that I couldn’t find a single elite demonized creature.
After hitting the first stage’s goal, it meant I’d cleared over a hundred demonized creatures in those two days. The ordinary undead were beyond counting. Yet I’d run into zero elites. You could see just how rare this objective was.
Even after splitting into two teams with Satahia and scouting a huge chunk of the Mihri Ruins outskirts around the arena, we came up empty.
It made me wonder if these elite demonized creatures only spawned in the inner city. But that didn’t seem realistic—the monsters in there were all over level 100. No matter how nasty the Trial of the Radiant Chapter got, it had to follow some basic logic.
So I went back to the outskirts, figuring I might’ve missed some corners.
Boom—
Dazzling holy light erupted in the middle of a pack of undead, searing large patches of purifying corrosion into their fragile skeletons.
The attacked monsters immediately locked onto the aggro. Red light flickered in their skeletal eyes as they pivoted on stiff leg bones, lumbering after the cleric in the distance clutching the holy tome. But midway, three sturdy figures cut them off, locking them into a grueling melee.
In the monster swarm, one undead mage closer to the edge—its bones giving off a faint metallic sheen that set it apart from the rest—halted. It started raising its staff to fling a spell into the distance.
But right then, a cold glint flashed behind it. A dagger appeared from nowhere, slamming straight into its skull.
Stun.
The stun icon barely popped up before a savage assault followed. The thin mage robe offered zero resistance. It shredded on contact with the blade, and then the undead mage’s fragile frame took a lethal hit.
Backstab. Gouge. Bone Pick. Strangle.
Five damage segments flashed in just two seconds, stripping away nearly two-thirds of its health. It might’ve been the undead’s inherent frailty, but it was the same for player classes too. Squishies were like glass vases against a skilled thief.
The two seconds ended, and the assaulted undead mage snapped out of it. It lifted its staff, ready to deliver judgment on its attacker.
But how could I let it have its way? I kicked out hard, my slender little leg cracking into the undead mage’s knee bone and staggering it. The light gathering on the staff fizzled out instantly.
Using the forward momentum, I slipped around behind it and drove the dagger in my hand back into the gaps in its skeleton.
Clack. Clack.
A few patrolling soldiers that had been aggroed by the distant Kai and the others finally noticed the commotion. They swarmed over, weapons raised.
Getting surrounded was a pain, but taking this one down first was doable. Just as I was about to layer on a few more skills, the undead mage—its health now below 20%—opened its mouth. A piercing shriek suddenly rang out.
Was this a demonic power effect?
I froze for a split second, no time to react. A fear icon flashed above my head, and my body lurched uncontrollably to the side.
The undead mage kept shrieking, red light pulsing in its eyes, like it was mocking the attacker for biting off more than it could chew.
But the next instant, a dagger plunged deep into its skeletal eye, snuffing out that red glow for good.
Obviously, if the undead mage didn’t die, the control would stick. Getting trapped in the undead encirclement with no way to fight back? The outcome was easy to picture. Luckily, I had [Death’s Afterglow] from the Harbinger of Death set. It broke the control and added extra damage to my next attack.
This set had also dropped from the Mihri Ruins outskirts over the past few days. Though right now, I only had three scattered pieces.
“Almost got me. Looks like a new demonic power.”
I eyed the undead closing in and quickly fell back into stealth.
These past few days farming demonized creatures had shown me all kinds of demonic power effects. Most were repeats, but there were plenty of unique ones that had given me some real headaches.
Still, it was just a hassle. No matter what, with Kai and the others around, my safety was always covered.
Just like now—barely a moment after I took down the undead mage, Kai and the others wiped out the whole pack.
“If it weren’t for Satahia and Kai and the others, this quest probably couldn’t be done at all.” Watching Kai and the few others catching their breath nearby, I couldn’t help but think.
Even Satahia at level 24, and Kai and the others with their elite-level strength, it had taken about two days to finish the first stage. For anyone else—or even a full party—it would’ve dragged on for days.
But even then, the current problem was still unsolved.
Just thinking about those elite demonized creatures I couldn’t find made my chest tight. It felt like hoarding a mountain of stones only to realize the national server hadn’t even added the character yet—pure misery.
I shook it off, deciding to go with the flow, and bent down to scoop up the equipment and items that had dropped right in front of me.
“These things again…” I frowned at the black fragments in my hand.
These black fragments only dropped from demonized creatures. Ordinary undead never did. I’d thought they might have some special use at first, but the description was just “Contains demonic power” with nothing else. It left me completely stumped.
By now, I’d collected around forty or fifty of them, but I still had no clue what they were for.
“Feels like hero fragments from a dungeon drop…”
I pursed my lips, but just as I was about to toss them into my backpack, something clicked.
Wait. The edges of these two fragments look like they line up.
I reached out and fit the two pieces together. They snapped into place perfectly. “So the rest should work the same way.”
With that in mind, I yanked all the black fragments out of my backpack and started piecing them together. The secret hit me right away.
A lot of them overlapped, split into five different shapes. Every five unique fragments formed one complete item. All the ones I had combined into eight.
Demon Contract (Elite)
Effect: After use, summon a special creature.
Staring at the pitch-black blueprint in my hand, I could faintly sense the dark power radiating from it. A very plausible guess bubbled up in my mind.
“Satahia, Kai, over here.”
I explained my discovery to Satahia and Kai and the others.
“Your Highness thinks these contracts are linked to the elite demonized creatures?” Kai caught on immediately.
“It has to be. Otherwise, there’s no way we searched this long and found nothing.” I nodded. “Let’s test it and find out.”
Once Kai and the others were battle-ready, I tore open the Demon Contract.
Thick black energy surged from the shredded paper, rapidly coalescing into a towering figure of white bones not far away. It confirmed my hunch perfectly—
Demonized Undead Martyr [Elite]: Level 25, HP 2500/2500
Compared to the regular ones, elite demonized creatures had a more metallic sheen on their skeletons, like polished silver. Their gear and weapons weren’t tattered anymore.
If ordinary demonized creatures were like village militiamen with some skill, these elites looked like proper soldiers.
But the real difference was in their strength. Elite demonized creatures could have two different demonic powers.
Like this first summoned undead martyr—it boosted its stats when hit and recovered HP on successful attacks.
Those two abilities together could easily catch the unprepared off guard. When Kai and I handled the undead martyr, we nearly got in trouble.
Even so, these elite demonized creatures still couldn’t hold a candle to the elite natives’ power.
I burned through all the Demon Contracts I had. My quest objective shot from zero to eight in one go. Compared to the total blank before, it was massive progress.
But Satahia’s words doused my excitement.
“Over a hundred demonized creatures and only eight contracts…”
She was right. In two days, we’d cleared no fewer than a hundred demonized creatures, but it had only gotten us less than half the second stage’s goal. The black fragments didn’t drop from every single one.
“Take it slow. It’ll happen eventually.”
I thought it over and decided to stay chill. “For now, let’s head back and restock. We’ll be stuck here for a few more days anyway.”
I sent Kai and the others back to the monastery, then used a return scroll.
The next moment, Satahia and I popped up in Naldun’s central square.
Jumping from a horde of undead straight to the white dove fountain always brought a wave of peace and ease. But the bustling voices on the surrounding streets made me glance over. “Weird. Feels like there are way more adventurers… and not just a little more.”
“Demon King, you’re only noticing now? I saw it ages ago. These class enemies have been piling up more and more these past two days.”
Satahia put on a dead-serious face. “Looks like it’s time for a class revolution. We’ll start with Bemira, Daisy, Bilis, and Him!”
“You’re just out for revenge from getting knocked down last time.”
The so-called Flat Chest Alliance Front’s bonds were super fragile. After their chess pieces went down in flames, it was always one-sided temporary breakups. For this idiot, it was basically routine.
So why was Kai the only one left out? That was definitely worth thinking about.
I rolled my eyes and ignored the guy, watching the streams of players flowing through the streets and sinking into thought.
Naldun was a pretty well-known town in the Constanterna Empire, linked to a bunch of famous leveling spots. But the monsters around here were all level 50-60. Clearly not suited for these players who were only 13 or 14.
So why had the player count here exploded all of a sudden? And I was spotting tons of guilds and studios too. Something big had to be going on.
I racked my brain for what had happened in the Constanterna Empire around this time in my previous life and suddenly remembered.
“Right. That place is right around this town.”
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