Paladin of the Dead God-Chapter 405: Lord of the Graveyard (5)

The Lord of the Graveyard was a king and a warrior by nature.

Born as Sarka Noir, a descendant of a fallen imperial lineage, he grew up with endless tales of the glory of the Unified Empire and the ancestors who once led it.

Naturally, he believed he was destined to lead wars that would restore the splendor of the Codex of Light, securing victory in its name.

His gaze was fixed solely on glory.

But the imperial bloodline carried a dark curse: a degenerative hereditary disease that caused the body to gradually wither until it crumpled into death. This truth was far from glorious. Even more horrifying was the fact that his own son exhibited signs of the disease before his tenth birthday.

The Lord of the Graveyard detested anything small and pitiful.

He desired to revere only glory and grand endeavors.

[How dare you!]

The Lord of the Graveyard, eager to test himself against a Holy Grail Knight, one of the era’s greatest heroes, roared with anger as a harpoon pierced his body. A mere harpoon was meaningless to him, even if it struck him a hundred times.

He bellowed in fury and struck the chain attached to the harpoon with immense force.

However, contrary to his expectations, the chain merely trembled and swayed but did not break.

Baffled, he tried pulling the chain with all his might, only to find the harpoon embedded in his back firmly anchored. It felt as though attempting to remove it would tear half his body apart.

[What is this…?]

A mere harpoon used for whaling could not possibly boast such durability. Then, suddenly, the scent of divinity emanating from the chain reached his senses.

The realization of what he smelled made him shudder.

"This is the harpoon that pierced the body of the Archangel Drowned King, you skull-faced fool!"

Eidan shouted, his voice trembling with a manic intensity.

"It dragged ships weighing tens of tons and never once faltered! Do you think you can break it?"

Perhaps against a normal chain.

But this harpoon had slain the Archangel Drowned King, making it a sacred relic of immense power.

Miracles echo historical events, and relics carry fragments of those narratives. The whaling harpoon Eidan wielded was a weapon destined to unleash devastating power against celestial beings.

Boom!

While the Graveyard Lord staggered, another harpoon shot into him, this time piercing his left side.

He struggled to comprehend how vermin like these could hinder him when he needed to retreat urgently.

To him, sailors were clowns, farmers, and merchants—base creatures. He could accept being thwarted by Isaac or an archangel, but sailors crawling out of the sea?

[If death is your wish, I’ll grant it!]

Roaring, the Graveyard Lord grasped the chain and yanked with all his strength.

Whaling harpoons were akin to ballistae with chains and were incredibly heavy, designed to be mounted on ships. Eidan had dragged them here on carts with immense effort.

Yet, with a violent twist of his body, the Graveyard Lord hurled the harpoon equipment, carts and all, into the air. As Eidan watched in horror, the Graveyard Lord swung the harpoons embedded in his body like flails, using them as wrecking tools.

Crash! Boom!

The devastating power swept through the area.

Even a mere brush of the massive, chain-laden harpoons crushed the bodies of Death Knights into oblivion. Ironically, being at the center of his undead army, the Graveyard Lord inflicted more damage on his Eclipse Army than the enemy did.

Still, the sheer display of power was enough to halt the Dawn Army’s advance.

The Graveyard Lord approached Eidan, who had collapsed to the ground, spinning the harpoon threateningly.

[Come here, you salt-scented worm. You dare impede a king’s march…?]

At that moment, a powerful gust of wind surged from Eidan. It carried the thick, salty scent of the sea.

[I would advise you to refrain from calling my first mate a worm, Graveyard Lord.]

[What…?]

The Graveyard Lord’s eyes widened as he saw a ghostly white sea serpent emerge from the air above Eidan. His hair had turned salt-white, and his eyes glowed with a deep, oceanic blue.

[When the Codex of Light was but a nomadic superstition, I was the ruler of these seas, plundering everything upon them. Humans may forget easily, but for you, an archangel, to forget? Unforgivable.]

The ancient terror of the seas, Archangel Amundalas, was now possessing Eidan.

The Graveyard Lord was struck speechless.

‘How many archangel-chosen warriors does this coalition even have?’

He couldn’t fathom how so many conflicting faiths could come together. The Codex of Light and Elil were sworn enemies, while the World’s Forge scorned both. Even the cause of reclaiming the Holy Land Lua hadn’t been enough to unite them.

Yet, this coalition not only existed but had also drawn in the Archangel of the Salt Council?

‘Isaac, what in the world are you…?’

***

Isaac believed they had to take this opportunity to either eliminate the Graveyard Lord or at least deal a crippling blow.

Whether it was feasible or not was irrelevant.

Dealing significant damage during the Eclipse Army’s chaotic retreat was important, but leaving the Graveyard Lord alive would render all of this meaningless.

The Graveyard Lord would raise the corpses from the Dawn Army’s casualties, rebuilding his forces at an alarming rate.

But Isaac’s path forward was far from clear.

“Out of my way!”

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The Death Knights holding Isaac back at the Graveyard Lord’s urgent command were none other than the elite Death Knights of the Milishar Holy Knight Order.

These were veterans who had trained and fought alongside Kalsen Miller, forging legendary exploits together.

Isaac, though pressed for time, recognized that these were no ordinary opponents.

In the original flow of events in the game, they served as Kalsen Miller’s personal guard, appearing alongside him as the final boss of the Immortal Order. In the game, under the buffs of Emperor Kalsen, each one of them was as formidable as a knight commander. Fortunately, in this moment, they were not as empowered. Still, they were stronger than most Paladins.

Clang! Crack! Boom!

The Death Knights of the Milishar Holy Knight Order skillfully blocked Isaac’s superhumanly powerful strikes through flawless coordination.

Whenever Isaac tried to cut one of them down, another would flank him, attacking his sides. If he attempted to break through, they would form an impenetrable wall like the tide itself.

Isaac couldn’t help but admire their precision.

This coordination wasn’t the result of mere days or weeks of practice.

This was the culmination of decades of battles, with comrades they could entrust their lives to in life-and-death situations. It was the essence of a true Holy Knight Order.

But now, Isaac lacked comrades to rely on or stand shoulder-to-shoulder with. ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com

“No choice, then.”

Isaac summoned the hunter within him.

A solitary white predator stalking its prey upon a snowy mountain emerged in his presence, a predator’s instinctive focus radiating from him like a breath upon the cold.

The Death Knights faltered slightly at Isaac’s shift in demeanor. Though suppressed by the Graveyard Lord’s mental domination, their unease was still perceptible.

But the moment Isaac raised his sword, everything changed.

‘Persuasion and appeals won’t work here. But…’

Isaac had a stronger tool for persuasion.

Swish. Crack. Slash!

The duel between Isaac and the Death Knights suddenly transformed into a synchronized dance.

It was as if they had sparred together for countless years, each attack aligning perfectly with a counter, their blades narrowly missing each other in a mesmerizing rhythm.

The Death Knights, enthralled by Isaac’s lead, found themselves following his movements as if compelled.

At one point, a strange mental disturbance rippled through the Death Knights, as if an egg had cracked open in their minds.

[Commander?]

Isaac answered with a smile.

He hoped that even the undead could be swayed by the charisma of a Nephilim.

Whether or not his charm succeeded, the Death Knights’ coordinated movements faltered for a brief moment.

Their precision broke, and though Isaac retreated with a shallow cut on his cheek, the Death Knights didn’t capitalize on the opportunity. Instead, they appeared bewildered by their “mistake,” unsure of what had just happened.

Isaac had conveyed a clear message—not through words, but by demonstrating the pinnacle of their own swordsmanship.

[What… who are you? What did you just…?]

The Death Knights, caught between the Graveyard Lord’s mental suppression and the familiarity of Isaac’s replication of Kalsen Miller’s swordsmanship, found themselves in turmoil.

The Graveyard Lord’s mental domination was powerful.

But the bond among the Milishar Holy Knight Order was stronger.

Isaac didn’t expect them to switch allegiances. Kalsen’s swordsmanship had merely captivated them temporarily.

“I’m going hunting.”

Isaac imitated Kalsen Miller’s tone as he spoke.

“Don’t get in my way.”

Thud. Isaac slipped through the ranks of the Milishar Holy Knight Order, darting toward the Graveyard Lord. To their confusion, the Death Knights didn’t stop him.

Had the Graveyard Lord had more time, he might have reasserted his control or summoned reinforcements.

But he didn’t have that luxury.

***

The Graveyard Lord was startled by Amundalas’ appearance and her authority, but he quickly realized that this was no more than a nuisance.

Though it was astonishing for Archangel Amundalas to break her celestial isolation, this battle was happening far inland. The miracles of a Salt Council angel had limits here.

[What will you do here, Amundalas?]

He growled menacingly.

[Flap about like a fish? Will you summon a ship to crash onto the land?]

[Oh, such arrogance suits you. The prouder you act, the more satisfying it will be to see you grovel. Oh wait, you don’t even have a nose to hit the ground with, do you?]

Instead of anger, the Graveyard Lord swung his chains in fury.

At that moment, his footing gave way, and the harpoon veered off course, tangling the chain around his right arm and neck.

Snarling in frustration, he looked down and saw mud clinging to his legs.

[What is this?]

The once-dry ground had turned into a swamp, ensnaring the retreating Eclipse Army. It was as though the earth had become a sponge, soaking up water and trapping them.

As the Graveyard Lord glanced around, he noticed the fog that had blanketed the battlefield was gone.

Or rather, it had been drawn into the ground.

[Notice anything? Thanks to you gathering all that precious water, I was able to perform this miracle even here.]

[Don’t mock me!]

The Graveyard Lord roared and unleashed a blast of freezing energy.

Even without Pallor, cold magic was a hallmark of the Immortal Order’s power. The Graveyard Lord froze the swamp, hardening it beneath him.

However, this move backfired.

The Death Knights, already slowed in the swamp, became completely immobilized as the icy mire trapped them entirely. Even if he hadn’t intervened, the natural cold radiating from the Death Knights would have caused this outcome soon enough.

Realizing the dire state of the retreat, the Graveyard Lord clenched his teeth.

‘I should have attacked the Dawn Army instead of retreating…’

Doubt about divine judgment crept into his mind once more.

If things had come to this, he needed to at least deal a decisive blow to the Dawn Army. As he swung his chains toward Eidan, he felt a dull sensation beneath his knees.

Isaac stood there, cloaked in dark energy, staring up at him.

“You’ve been watching me all battle long, and now you’re distracted? That’s a death sentence.”

With a twist of the Luadin Key, Isaac swung his blade, slicing cleanly through the Graveyard Lord’s left leg below the knee.