Paladin of the Dead God-Chapter 398: Beneath the Lamp (2)

“Step back?”

[If you proceed like this, you’ll confront the elite forces of the Immortal Order. Sure, I’ve heard about your victory against Archangel Pallor, but their assault will be on a different level. It’s not a force you can handle.]

Isaac found the situation strange.

‘That’ Ciero was genuinely offering advice out of concern for Isaac’s well-being.

From Isaac’s perspective, it was an odd turn of events. After all, he had once beaten Ciero to near death, ripped off his ear, and left him to die in a perilous situation. For Ciero to now advise him, even at some personal risk, was rather unusual.

Isaac never dismissed advice from someone genuinely worried about him.

So, after a brief moment of thought, he replied.

“No.”

[No? You’re saying you won’t back off?]

“Correct, I’m not retreating.”

[That’s sheer recklessness! The Immortal Order is serious about this—]

“It’s not recklessness. I trust the Lighthouse Keeper.”

It might sound laughable to some, but Isaac genuinely believed in the Lighthouse Keeper.

Not because he expected the Lighthouse Keeper to rush to his aid, but because he trusted the Keeper’s obsessive drive to achieve his goals, no matter the cost.

“The Lighthouse Keeper will inevitably betray the Immortal Order.”

The statement, almost derisive towards the top Archangel of the Codex of Light, seemed to leave Ciero momentarily speechless. Yet, if one could not trust another’s goodwill, then at least one could trust their motives.

The Lighthouse Keeper never altered his plans due to goodwill or sentiment. For that reason, he was reliable.

“Anyway, I have my own plans, so there’s no need to worry. By the way, did you say that the Sword of May defeated the Lord of the Graveyard?”

[Yes, that’s right. I also heard Dera Heman suffered serious injuries during the battle…]

Isaac began piecing together who might be sent to deal with him next.

“In that case, the Lord of the Graveyard will likely come here.”

The Lord of the Graveyard was the most combat-capable Archangel within the Immortal Order. Without question, he would be the strongest enemy Isaac had ever faced.

However, if he had been defeated by the Sword of May and Dera Heman, he was likely spiritually wounded.

For the undead, even if their bodies were utterly destroyed, they could recover in an instant. Their souls, however, were a different matter. The body could be intact, but a damaged soul inflicted severe harm.

This was why Pallor fled to the fortress after Isaac severed his head. The spiritual blow had left him incapacitated. Conversely, no matter how many thousands of ordinary mortals one amassed, they could not so much as graze an Archangel.

The Immortal Order would be reluctant, but sending just Death Knights to confront Isaac, who had annihilated an Archangel, would be futile. The Lord of the Graveyard would certainly be deployed.

Isaac didn’t even consider the possibility of the Immortal Emperor personally intervening. After speaking with him directly, Isaac was confident in his assessment.

The god had become a manifestation of his own divine laws. Since he had vowed to persuade Isaac through reason, he would not act directly unless Isaac threatened the very foundation of his faith.

‘If he does step in… well, there’d be nothing I could do but figure it out then.’

For now, he focused on the Lord of the Graveyard. While formidable, the Archangel’s injured state might provide a slim chance for Isaac to devise a strategy.

‘In that case…’

Isaac turned his gaze to the vanguard of the Dawn Army entering the maze-like valley of Issacrea.

Initially, Isaac had planned to rejoin the Dawn Army at this point. However, after his encounter with Beshek, the changing stance of the Codex of Light, and the movements of the Immortal Order, he had reconsidered.

‘They’re all cards I can play to my advantage, aren’t they?’

Isaac smirked coldly.

Beshek’s persistent recruitment attempts, the Lighthouse Keeper’s manipulative strategies, and now the bold maneuvers of his other adversaries—all of it implied that they underestimated him.

But this time, they had chosen poorly.

Until now, Isaac had survived by carefully navigating the divine will and schemes laid before him.

They seemed to think of him as a harmless mortal pretending to be a dignified Holy Grail Knight.

Isaac decided it was time to remind everyone of the terrifying truth: he was a monster, a predator whose existence inspired terror and despair.

His gaze locked with the fragmented Isaac marching at the vanguard. Although physically too far to see, they both knew the other was watching.

‘You, stay as a flawless and noble Holy Grail Knight.’

Isaac’s true nature was most likely to be exposed when he unleashed Predation or revealed his tentacles. Summoning his thralls was also a risky endeavor.

It was already clear that Gebel suspected the truth but had chosen to remain silent.

To make full use of his tentacles, it was better to eliminate the chance of being exposed entirely.

Thus, one of them would need to remain the monstrous figure lurking in the shadows.

Isaac recalled the thoughts of the Dawn Army’s leadership, as relayed through Ciero.

‘They think they’re assigning me trials?’

What a laughable notion. Isaac had been born into this world as a trial, a harbinger of chaos and hardship.

It would not be gods administering trials to Isaac. Isaac himself would become the source of trials for them.

‘First, I’ll show this complacent Dawn Army exactly what a true trial looks like.’

***

Within the Immortal Order, physical forms were categorized into three types.

The body that houses a soul refers to the living, slaves, or potential apostates. These individuals cannot be turned into “new bodies” as they hold the potential to become new citizens of the Immortal Order.

The undead are ordinary citizens.

Having converted to the Immortal Order, they chose the path of immortality. They cannot die unless their bodies are utterly destroyed. Even then, their souls remain bound to the Immortal Order, wandering neither in the living world nor the afterlife.

Lastly, there are the empty shells.

These are bodies that can be supplied to the spirits of the dead within the Immortal Order. However, while the spirits outnumber the empty shells, the supply of new bodies is perpetually insufficient. Many spirits wait in line for a new body, but receiving one is no easy task.

And overseeing the management of these bodies was none other than the Lord of the Graveyard.

Like most of the undead, the Archangel Lord of the Graveyard had no flesh.

Instead, he adorned himself with the bones of hundreds of warriors who had perished in battle.

Although his duty was to allocate bodies to spirits as part of the administrative process, he would sometimes repurpose the empty shells as soldiers by allowing spirits to possess them or distribute them as rewards.

The Lord of the Graveyard cherished his role in extending the unending cycle of undeath through these new bodies.

He also introduced the aesthetic appreciation of skeletal forms within the Immortal Order.

In the early days of the Immortal Order, believers struggled to adapt to their new undead existence, often attempting to hide their decaying appearances. It was the Lord of the Graveyard who introduced the concept of skeletal beauty.

“Bones reveal no skin color, no fat, no emaciation. They are the ultimate and fair beauty that all should aspire to.”

There wasn’t much choice in aesthetic expression beyond this.

He was the first to strip all his flesh, entering the state of “pure bone,” which became the standard for true devotees of the Immortal Order. To him, respecting rotting flesh was absurd.

That the undead couldn’t smell the stench of decaying flesh was irrelevant.

Culture follows the trends set by nobles and celebrities. The Lord of the Graveyard, as both a king and Archangel, decreed the praise of skeletal beauty, and it quickly became ingrained in the culture of the Immortal Order.

Now, the Lord of the Graveyard lay buried beneath the ground.

He was not dead but on a sort of vacation.

Despite his constant admiration for the beauty of bone, there were moments when he experienced the unique emptiness of the undead. Sometimes, he longed for the warmth of flesh, the embrace of others, or even the sensation of fullness.

In such moments, he would bury himself in the earth, treating the soil, insects, and plant roots entwined around his bones as a substitute for flesh, seeking a fleeting sense of satisfaction.

But his repose was interrupted by a voice—one he could not refuse. The Lord of the Graveyard rose from the earth.

As he stood, he was greeted by the sight of an undead figure clad in ragged traveler’s garb.

Recognizing the figure immediately, the Lord of the Graveyard prostrated himself.

[Your Majesty, forgive me for appearing in such a disheveled state.]

The sight of the colossal Lord of the Graveyard, over sixty meters tall, bowing before a humble undead figure was peculiar, yet it was a display of respect due to the one who stood at the end of all life.

[How is your body?]

[The injuries are not severe.]

Though his body had been split in half during the recent battle, it was of little consequence. What stung more was the wound to his pride from being defeated by mere mortals.

[Was it Dera Heman, you said? The abilities of his Holy Body were extraordinary. Absorbing divine energy… I thought I should kill him on the spot, but… the Sword of May was poised to strike the moment I showed any opening.]

The Lord of the Graveyard attributed his loss largely to the presence of the Sword of May. Indeed, its menacing presence in the sky had kept him from fully focusing on Dera Heman.

But the Immortal Emperor knew that the result was not solely due to the Sword of May.

Humanity favored narratives of heroes standing against angels, overcoming them. That belief influenced the outcome more than the Lord of the Graveyard realized.

The Codex of Light wielded Urbansus far more effectively than the Immortal Order.

Recognizing that the Lord of the Graveyard could no longer contribute significantly on the frontlines of the Dawn Army, the Immortal Emperor issued new orders.

[Go west. Stop the Holy Grail Knight.]

[Your Majesty? What about the Dawn Army?]

[We have reached an accord with them.]

The Immortal Emperor had already been briefed by Al Bilayet.

Whether the Dawn Army honored their agreement was irrelevant. The Emperor distrusted the Lighthouse Keeper just as much.

But like Isaac, he trusted the Keeper’s objectives—or obsessions.

[The Lighthouse Keeper is scheming something with the Holy Grail Knight. Before the situation worsens, we may need to kill him and then persuade him. After all, Isaac holds the key.]

[Understood, Your Majesty.]

Though filled with questions, the Lord of the Graveyard obeyed without resistance.

The Immortal Emperor knew the knowledge of all the dead. None were wiser.

Yet, the Lord of the Graveyard found himself uneasy about Isaac.

[Your Majesty, may I ask why you hold that Holy Grail Knight in such regard?]

After all, he was but a mortal—a mere paladin. While his accomplishments were impressive, it was doubtful they warranted such divine and angelic intervention.

The Immortal Emperor, ever willing to share his wisdom, responded.

[Isaac is a chaos that has breached the world.]

[Chaos…?]

[Throughout history, there have always been such individuals. They bring light into unseen realms and discover order within chaos.]

In a dark and unsettling tone, the Immortal Emperor continued.

[Light enters through the cracks. Ironically, change often begins with the Codex of Light. Just as Luadin ushered in the Age of Light, Elil discovered the methods of order, and the White Owl twisted Urbansus… Isaac is a new entity emerging through the cracks.]

His voice turned grim.

[Until now, he has moved quietly atop the Lighthouse Keeper’s tablet. But Isaac is unlike the changes that came before.]

[Do you mean… Your Majesty cannot predict him?]

[No. It’s… his perspective. During our conversation, I realized something unsettling. Isaac views the gods from above, as though he sees through our every move and motive.]

The Immortal Emperor shuddered.

The Lord of the Graveyard doubted his own eyes. Could the Immortal Emperor, incapable of feeling temperature, have truly trembled? It seemed the Emperor himself did not notice.

[What lies hidden within the Holy Grail Knight is no ordinary tentacled beast. It is something far greater.]

For the Immortal Emperor, death and apocalypse were the only fears he thought he knew. Yet the unpredictability of Isaac—the unimaginable future he represented—terrified him far more. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓

[Before it is too late, we must either bring this change to our side… or stop it.]