Rebirth of the 8th-Circle Mage-Chapter 116: The Second Coming (2)

‘Hector…!’ Henry was certain that the majestic being with flowing red eyes was the Sword King, Hector Meyer. He was so happy that he almost spoke out loud, but he kept quiet as Herarion ordered.

Rumble!

There was another vibration. Janus’ task was complete now that the dead were back in the world. The gap in the sky closed up. The ceiling of the temple returned to its original state as if nothing had happened at all.

Thud.

“Your Majesty!”

Herarion fell to the ground. Surprised, Henry quickly supported Herarion.

‘Damn it!’

He was bleeding from both his eyes and mouth.

Henry had been so fascinated by the mystical power of Janus, that he never thought that it would adversely affect Herarion.

“Your Majesty, are you okay?”

“I’m, I’m alright…”

“No, you do not need to speak. Your Majesty’s safety comes first.”

Herarion struggled to speak, and Henry took out his finest healing potion and pulled the stopper out.

Pop!

The healing potion had been made by a high priest after praying for days and days, which made its effects better than any other type of medicine.

Glug glug glug.

Henry slowly poured the potion into Herarion’s mouth. Herarion gradually seemed to get better and his breathing became stable.

“Phew…”

After resting for a little while, he could finally speak.

Herarion sat on the steps in front of the altar and opened his mouth slowly. “The ritual was successful.”

“Good work, Your Majesty.”

“No worries. I made a promise to you, so of course I had to endure the process. But as you can see, summoning the dead is a very dangerous act.”

The blood running down Herarion’s face was evidence. Henry agreed and asked, “It seems so, which is why I’m even more grateful. But Your Majesty… Is it okay to leave him like that?”

Henry had kept an eye on Hector. He stood like a statue with glowing red eyes, making Henry feel concerned.

“He has been summoned, but the process is not over. I still have a few more rituals to complete, but my body is not in a state to… So I hope you understand that this entire process can’t be done in one sitting.”

“No worries. Your Majesty’s health is the most important to me, so don’t worry and take care of yourself first.”

“Thank you for your understanding.”

Herarion sighed again and said, “Lord Henry?”

“Yes?”

“Even though I showed the power of Janus to the counts the other day, this power shouldn’t be revealed to the outside world.”

“I always keep that in mind.”

“Of course I also know very well that you are always truthful… So if you really respect me, can you sign a pact of silence?”

“A pact of silence?”

“Yes.”

Henry didn’t know what a pact of silence was, but presumably it was simply some kind of contract to guarantee secrecy. It didn’t take long for Henry to agree since he had decided from the beginning that he would pay any price to resurrect Hector. “Alright. I will do it.”

“Thank you for your understanding.”

A pact of silence was a secret art that was passed down to every generation of the Khan royal family that enforced silence. After Henry listened to Herarion’s explanation, they pricked each other’s right thumb. Beads of blood appeared and then they twisted their pinkies together and told each other the secrets they wished to keep.

“Please keep everything you’ve seen and heard about Janus today a secret for the rest of your life, including the resurrection of the dead.”

“Of course.”

Henry nodded obediently. “Your Majesty, can I tell you a secret before the pact?”

“I will listen first and then decide.”

“Mine is quite simple. Even if Your Majesty learns the truth about me and those around me in the future, please keep it a secret the rest of your life too.”

“What does that mean…?”

“It’s just as I said. However, I swear to you that I won’t do anything to deceive Your Majesty. This is simply my wish.”

Herarion saw Henry's sincerity through the eyes of La, and he nodded and said, “I swear.” After making the pact, the two men put their bloody thumbs together.

Swoosh!

The drops of blood mingled, and Henry felt his body grow hot for a moment. However, once the heat was gone, he asked Herarion, “Is this all?”

“That’s right. Anyone who breaks this pact will die on the spot.”

The pact of silence was complete. It wasn’t as bad as Henry had thought, because Henry also got something out of it. After resting sufficiently, Herarion stood and said, “I will continue with the ritual.”

The effects of the healing potion were incredible. Herarion approached and stood in front of Hector, who was as still as a rock.

Hector was still standing with glowing eyes. His translucent appearance made him seem like a ghost who had yet to reach the afterlife.

Herarion started to cast a spell. “Wkrsusdp dhkTejs rkrtjfdl wnrwleh dksgrh Eh dhkTsp.”

Zapp!

Hector’s red eyes began to glow even more brightly before they faded again.

Hector cracked his neck and turned his head around.

“Haaa… How long have I longed for air.”

It was almost funny to see him crack his neck when he seemed little more than a ghost, but it was definitely Hector’s voice.

“It’s a success.”

Thud!

Herarion fell to the ground again in exhaustion.

Hector made eye contact with Henry. The corners of Hector’s lips rose and said, “Henry Morris, you really did keep your promise.”

“Of course.”

The two tried to shake hands out of habit, but Henry couldn’t grab onto anything except the air.

“Huh?”

Herarion said, “Oh, I forgot to tell you. I have only brought Sir Hector’s soul from the underworld. I would’ve brought back his body as well, but it’s been lost a long time ago and cannot be restored.”

“...I see.”

Hector looked disappointed that he couldn’t make physical contact.

“Lord Henry, did you bring the thing I told you about before?” asked Herarion.

“Of course. I prepared it with extra care.”

Henry quickly started taking out the items from the Chest and laid them on the ground one by one.

Clank clank.

It was pitch-black armor with no engravings or symbols on it. It looked like something that would be used to decorate the imperial palace.

Herarion asked, “Did you deliberately choose a big one?”

“You said the weight or size didn’t matter, so I took special care.”

“Hmm, thanks to that, it’ll be easier for me to cast the spell.”

Herarion took out a small paintbrush. Then, he tried to pick up the helmet, whose single horn looked like a shark’s fin, but…

“Huh?”

Herarion almost fell over because it was much heavier than he had expected.

“...Lord Henry? How much does this weigh?”

“I heard it weighs just over 700 kilograms altogether.”

“...I see.”

Since the armor would become Hector’s body, Henry had asked Vulcanus to make it out of only the finest metals.

Hector asked, “Is it really that heavy?”

“It’s quite heavy and it probably weighs as much as an ogre.”

“It even looks like something that an ogre would wear.”

“A human wouldn’t be able to handle it, but you can.”

“Okay, it doesn’t matter.”

With Henry’s help, Herarion started to inscribe a spell in the Shahatra language onto the inside of the armor. When he was done, Herarion wiped the sweat from his forehead and put his hands together. “Gkqcp (Combine)!”

Zapp!

Small blue sparks appeared around the armor. The ritual was over.

“Sir Hector.”

“Huh?”

“From now on, this armor belongs to you, so please check it out.”

“It belongs to me?”

Herarion gave no further explanation.

Hector stared at the pieces of armor scattered on the ground for a while and…

Creak.

Whoosh!

Clank clank clank.

The pieces of armor began to stick to Hector's body as though he were a magnet.

Clank! Clank! Clank!

It was a cool sight. After all the pieces attached themselves to each other, they formed a huge, inhuman-looking black knight in front of Janus’ temple.

“Ha…”

The huge and heavy black armor made Hector's red eyes stand out even more. Hector started to get used to the armor by moving his limbs.

“Feels good.”

Hector smiled contentedly and raised his giant palm to shake Herarion’s hand.

“You said your name was Herarion? Thank you for getting me out of hell. If you ever need my help in the future, call me anytime and I will arrive within a month.”

“It was a promise I made to Lord Henry, so thank him instead.”

“How humble.”

Hector was from the unification war era, and since he had died decades ago, he didn’t see any need to show a lot of courtesy to Herarion. Herarion also didn’t seem to care too much about it.

Hector reached out to Henry as well. “Thank you for keeping your promise.”

“I only did what I had to do. Anyway, why don’t you check?”

“Check what?”

“Your strength.”

“Ah, right.”

Shzzz!

A clear blue Aura the color of a sapphire flowed over Hector like a river. It looked beautiful, making him look like a work of art.

“This is my first time ever seeing such a beautiful black knight,” said Herarion.

“Black knight… That’s a pretty good name.”

The two were genuinely amazed.

Hector smiled in satisfaction, although his smile was hidden behind the huge black helmet.

“Can I eat with this body?” asked Hector.