After donning his armor and assuming his identity as Jin, Commander of the 8th Legion, Knox immediately headed toward the mansion where the battle between Death Land's most dangerous forces was about to unfold.
At its center were two Ancient Undead whose forces were about to collide. One was Prince, the Zombie General who had once served as the third Ancient Undead of the 7th Legion. The other was Manus, the former Swordmaster of the Talhern Empire who had ruled this land long before becoming an Ancient Undead.
By the time Jin reached a high point overlooking the mansion, he wasn't alone.
Several figures were already waiting for him among the shadows. Igris and Beru stood at the front, while the shadow soldiers they had brought with them remained silently gathered behind them.
The moment Jin landed, every shadow turned toward him.
[My liege.]
[My liege!]
Igris, Beru, and the shadow soldiers all dropped to one knee before their monarch.
"At ease, everyone."
At Jin's command, they immediately rose.
His glowing violet eyes shifted toward the mansion below.
The entire area had already descended into chaos. Explosions erupted one after another around the estate with such ridiculous frequency that Jin briefly wondered whether Klee and Deidara had possessed the battlefield at the same time.
Hundreds of zombies and skeletons filled the grounds surrounding the mansion. They tore into each other without hesitation, claws colliding with blades and spears as the two undead armies fought in a frenzy.
"Hee~. Looks like the war's already begun."
[Yes, my liege], Beru answered. [Approximately, the battle began less than half an hour ago.]
"I see..."
Jin calmly observed the battlefield for a few more moments. Despite the chaos below, he made no move to intervene.
"Then for now, we just need to wait until every actor has arrived on the stage."
Just as those words left his mouth, Jin suddenly sensed a familiar presence approaching from another direction. His helmet turned slightly toward the dense forest near the mansion.
"Hmm? Ohh, what do we have here?"
A lone armored figure was rapidly approaching through the forest.
Jin immediately recognized him.
"Simon... or, to be precise, Pion has arrived."
A faint violet glow flickered behind Jin's visor as he looked back toward the battlefield. Prince and Manus were already clashing, Pion had finally arrived as the representative of the 7th Legion, and the shadows of the 8th Legion now stood behind their own commander.
All the pieces were finally in place.
"Now, with Prince, Manus, the 7th Legion, and us, the 8th Legion here..."
Jin's voice carried a hint of excitement.
"Let's start the four-way clash!"
***
The skeleton army led by Manus, once a Swordmaster of the Talhern Empire and now an Ancient Undead, was pouring relentlessly into Prince's mansion.
Prince's zombies, which had once dominated Death Land through sheer numbers, were steadily being pushed back. They had already suffered heavy casualties during their earlier battle against Pier, but even that wasn't the greatest problem they were facing now.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Something enormous marched at the front of Manus's forces.
Then another followed.
And another.
Javier's masterpieces, the Meat Golems, had been deployed onto the battlefield.
Their legs were unusually short compared to their massive bodies, making their swollen torsos resemble grotesque roly-poly dolls. A disproportionately small head sat atop each enormous frame, while a thick, rubbery layer of living flesh covered them from head to toe.
That outer shell was exactly what made them so troublesome.
"Aaargh!"
"Grahhhh!"
Prince's zombies swarmed the Meat Golems, sinking their teeth and claws into the creatures from every direction. Yet no matter how violently they attacked, their efforts produced little more than rough scraping sounds against the resilient flesh.
The Meat Golems, on the other hand, had no such difficulty hurting them.
BAM!
One enormous arm swept horizontally through the horde.
Nearly ten zombies were sent flying at once, their bodies tumbling through the air like discarded toys. Others were simply crushed beneath the Meat Golems' feet as the enormous undead continued advancing without slowing down.
There were sixteen Meat Golems in total.
With that many massive creatures forming the front line, Prince's zombies had little chance of stopping the advance. Their overwhelming numbers meant far less when their teeth and claws couldn't even penetrate the enemy standing before them.
From inside the mansion, Prince watched his army being steadily driven back.
[...Damn it!]
He ground his teeth in frustration.
The Meat Golems had clearly been modified for this exact purpose. Most of their unnecessary functions had been stripped away, while their defensive shells had been reinforced as much as possible.
In other words, they were undead specifically designed to fight zombies.
Prince didn't know who had created them.
But whoever it was, he already hated them.
"Graaaaah..."
[I know already!]
Prince snapped irritably at the nearby zombie before turning away from the window. With the battle outside continuing to shake the mansion, he strode deeper into the room and approached the throne at its center.
There sat his true body.
It was nothing more than a withered corpse now, motionless upon the throne. Yet resting atop its head was something far more important than the corpse itself.
A crown.
Prince wore a crown on his current body as well, but his was merely an imitation created through his power. The crown resting upon the withered corpse shone with a dazzling brilliance that immediately distinguished it as the genuine article.
Prince stared at it solemnly.
"The crown must never be taken."
He then turned toward the zombies waiting nearby.
[Simon will be here soon. Once he arrives, bind him tightly with chains and throw him into the underground prison.]
Prince's expression twisted into a confident grin.
[He knows that woman is being held hostage, so he won't dare do anything reckless.]
"Graaaaahhh..."
Prince gave the zombie one last glance before walking toward the window.
Click.
He pushed it open.
Before leaving, Prince turned his head and looked once more at the withered body seated upon the throne, his gaze lingering on the brilliant crown resting atop its head.
Then he leapt out of the mansion.
***
[Sigh.]
Manus looked down upon the battlefield, watching the two undead armies tear into each other across the mansion grounds.
Despite being heavily outnumbered, his forces were steadily gaining the upper hand. With the Meat Golems at the front proving almost impervious to the zombies' teeth and claws, the tide of battle had clearly begun to shift in his favor.
Still, these zombies are quite aggressive. They shouldn't be underestimated.
As if proving his point, several groups of zombies began forcing their way through the gaps between the advancing Meat Golems. They crawled over their fallen brethren and squeezed past the enormous creatures, desperately trying to break through the formation.
Seeing this, Manus calmly began walking toward them.
His hand settled on the sword at his hip.
Shhhk!
The blade left its sheath.
With a single effortless swing, a sword slash tore straight through the approaching horde. A hideous splatter followed as blood sprayed across the battlefield, and dozens of zombies collapsed almost simultaneously, their bodies sliced cleanly in half at the waist.
That single attack was enough to close the opening in the formation.
Clap, clap, clap!
"Ah, as expected! As expected!"
"Amazing, Sir Manus!"
Two of Javier's subordinates standing behind him immediately burst into enthusiastic applause. Their eyes practically sparkled as they showered the Ancient Undead with praise.
Manus ignored their flattery and calmly returned his sword to its sheath.
[The war has already begun. Where is Javier?]
The two men briefly glanced at each other.
"There was a minor issue!"
"But he'll be back shortly!"
[Hmm.]
Manus wasn't particularly fond of Javier. The old necromancer was cunning, unpleasant, and clearly pursuing his own agenda, but even Manus had to acknowledge the man's abilities.
Javier had not only developed the Meat Golems currently breaking through Prince's army, but had also discovered a method to bypass the barrier protecting the mansion. Even the timing of their assault had been carefully chosen, allowing them to strike precisely when Prince was distracted elsewhere.
Everything had gone almost exactly according to Javier's plan.
There was only one thing neither Manus nor Javier's subordinates knew.
The man they were waiting for would never return.
Because Javier had already encountered Knox. And after that encounter, there wasn't even a single speck of ash left of him.