Became the Unjust Contract Slave of the Archamage’s Book

Mimung’s voice, filled with a hint of glee, echoed.

Having been deprived of absorbing life force while in Priya’s grasp, it was now hungrier than ever for a strong soul.

It had barely sated its thirst with Bernstein’s blood, but that was not enough.

Mimung commanded Bernstein.

– Capture him! I will devour him!

“Devour… him?”

Bernstein hesitated, not obeying the sword’s command.

Unlike the lich Balram, revived by Mimung’s power, Bernstein’s contract with the sword was still incomplete.

He sought to rival Mimung, or rather, to literally ‘consume’ it.

“I will devour…”

Mimung was taken aback.

A mere human-turned-demon, who had lost most of his consciousness, dared to claim he would consume it?

Binaeril noticed that Mimung’s power was not complete.

He dismounted from Inyakan’s back and prepared his magic.

– You foolish servant! Attack him now!

“I will devour!”

Bernstein opened his mouth wide and tried to bite the sword, which pushed him away.

“…What are you doing?”

‘Veritas, you said obtaining the cursed sword would cure my addiction. That better be true.’

Veritas didn’t answer immediately.

But in the silence, there was a faint hint of amusement that Binaeril missed.

– Of course. Trust me.

“Inyakan, let’s end this quickly. Help me.”

Binaeril clapped his hands together and then spread them apart.

He had become accustomed to manipulating intangible concepts in his magic.

Following his gestures, Bernstein’s shadow expanded into a circular shape about one meter in diameter.

“Swallow them!”

He clapped his hands again, chanting the spell.

The circular shadow opened wide like a maw, swallowing Bernstein and Mimung.

The shadowy maw enveloped them like a black coffin.

“Is that it? Did you defeat them so easily?”

Inyakan muttered the words, watching the scene unfold.

Crack! Bang!

No sooner had Inyakan finished speaking than the shadowy magic shattered.

Binaeril hadn’t expected to hold them for long.

– I will feed you! I will feed you until your teeth rot from the sweetness! Capture him!

The power breaking the magic was the red aura of Mimung.

Bernstein and Mimung seemed to have reached some sort of agreement.

But before they could act, someone else moved.

Inyakan drew his curved sword, Sikrun.

The barbarian’s crescent-shaped blade swung in a long arc, like a drawn bowstring.

Clang!

Inyakan’s powerful strike forced Bernstein to drop Mimung.

The cursed sword flew through the air.

– What kind of monster…!

Mimung groaned, surprised at the power behind Sikrun’s blow.

“I feel the same.”

Binaeril replied to Mimung’s lament.

Inyakan’s brute strength was beyond ordinary power; it was something almost inhuman.

As Mimung flew, it extended red tendrils of mana to grasp Sikrun’s blade.

– Fine, I will devour you first!

As Inyakan pulled Sikrun, Mimung was dragged towards him this time.

“You… I’ll eat you!”

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Bernstein lunged at Binaeril.

The battlefield split into two distinct confrontations: Bernstein against Binaeril and Mimung against Inyakan.

Bernstein, with claws extending like those of a beast, charged at Binaeril.

Binaeril could hardly recognize the man who had once been the kind mage who helped him in Fairhill.

“Sigh, I’m sorry, Bernstein.”

Neither of them could have predicted such a reunion.

The dark mana from Bernstein and the cursed power of the sword Mimung fueled his inner turmoil.

Kill the enemy in front of you. Break his neck and drink his blood.

Embrace the flow of violence and madness!

Binaeril felt something throb strongly within him, deep in his heart, as his blood rushed.

If that’s what you want!

From afar, it seemed like he could hear the sneering laughter of a treacherous old book.

Binaeril took a step towards Bernstein instead of retreating.

Before Bernstein’s claws could reach, Binaeril’s form disappeared.

Bernstein let out a confused grunt.

He hadn’t vanished. Binaeril had submerged into his own shadow, avoiding the attack.

His lower half was hidden within his shadow.

Bernstein hastily raised his other hand to strike Binaeril’s head.

But it was too late. Binaeril’s entire body had already sunk into the shadow.

“Where are you?”

Bernstein swung his head around, searching for him.

“Here.”

A clear voice called from behind him.

Binaeril’s magic bullet pierced Bernstein.

The right shoulder—exactly where Professor Pierre Blanchot had been hit.

“Grrr!”

Even Bernstein, who was dulled to pain, let out a low growl, clutching his shoulder.

He couldn’t afford to lose.

Even as he was thrown back by the impact of the magic bullet, Bernstein chanted a spell.

A lightning spear shot towards Binaeril.

It was the exact same spell used by Gospelt Louis at Elfenbine.

But the power was entirely different.

Looking at the incoming lightning, Binaeril had an instinctive feeling that he could consume it.

So he did.

The lightning, crackling with fierce energy, was absorbed into his palm and enveloped his entire body.

It was a spell charged with rampant mana, dangerous to consume.

Crack!

The magic Binaeril expelled was far more threatening than before.

Bernstein bit his lip and swallowed the incoming lightning, just as Binaeril had.

His lips burned and smoke rose, but he managed to consume it all.

Then the two men locked eyes.

Did you see that?

See what?

I can consume magic just like you.

I don’t think so.

“Ugh…!”

Crack! Crack!

The consumed mana backfired, violently tearing through Bernstein’s insides.

“Grrr…”

Foam bubbled from Bernstein’s mouth as he fell to all fours.

Barely holding on to consciousness, he lifted his head to find Binaeril.

He wasn’t there. Gone again.

“Where…”

“This time, I’m here.”

The voice came from directly under his chin.

Binaeril’s fingertip touched Bernstein’s chin.

“Pierce.”

A chilling sound of mana gathering under his chin echoed.

The magic bullet fired, piercing through Bernstein’s chin and straight through his skull.

Meanwhile, Mimung was lashing out at Inyakan with red mana tendrils.

But it was futile.

Inyakan swung Sikrun, cutting through the red mana effortlessly.

Slashing, hacking, slicing, and crushing.

With each swing of the crescent-shaped sword, Mimung’s mana was rendered powerless.

-…Are you even human?

Mimung was utterly baffled.

How could a human resist the power of a fragment with mere physical strength?

What is mana? The crystallization of realized imagination.

What is a fragment? The purest essence of mana.

Yet, how could a human, with just a sword and brute force, oppose its power?

Even though Mimung couldn’t exert its full strength due to the lack of a proper host, it was still magical.

In fact, Inyakan’s raw power seemed almost magical.

As Mimung’s attacks waned, Inyakan immediately lunged at the cursed sword again.

Now there was even a faint sense of fear.

– Come on then!

Mimung spread its red mana like a mist, a technique learned from the witch who had tormented it.

– This you can’t avoid!

Without hesitation, Inyakan charged into the red mist.

The mist seeped into Inyakan’s eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.

– You crazy one-eyed bald bastard, your soul is mine now!

One of Mimung’s abilities was to corrode human souls and control them.

– Ha, ha ha!

Mimung chuckled in satisfaction.

Though simple and brutish, such traits had their advantages.

This human couldn’t resist this attack.

Once this human was subdued, Mimung could feast on his rich life force.

It would drain him to the bone and revive him as an undead minion.

Trample on his living honor and use him like a dog!

That was the plan.

Until it peered into the one-eyed bald man’s soul.

-…What is this?

Mimung tried to dominate his soul.

But it failed. Every attempt to subjugate him was thwarted.

-What is with this soul’s numbers?

The one-eyed bald man wasn’t alone.

His body housed countless souls.

Mimung was thrown into confusion. How could a single human body hold so many personalities?

– What is this madness!

To Inyakan, whose sensitivity to mana was limited, Mimung’s screams sounded like distant echoes.

Emerging from the red mist, the king of the Inya tribe raised his crescent sword high.

As he closed in, even he could faintly hear Mimung’s voice.

– Aren’t you human? How can you harbor a pantheon within you!

Inyakan blinked his one remaining eye.

“What nonsense are you spewing?”

Sikrun came down in a vertical slash.

Clang! Screech!

Unfortunately, Inyakan’s strike landed on a previously fractured part of the cursed sword.

-Grrrrrr!

Mimung let out a pained groan. Despite trying to hold together with its mana, it couldn’t withstand the barbarian’s strength.

The cursed sword Mimung split into two pieces.

Bernstein, still on all fours, collapsed to the ground.

His head had been cleanly pierced. He was beyond saving.

“What about over there?”

Binaeril had planned to quickly deal with Bernstein and then join Inyakan to face Mimung.

“This man is unbelievable.”

But it seemed unnecessary.

Inyakan appeared to be overwhelming the cursed sword.

Binaeril watched as one half of Mimung’s blade shattered and flew off, shaking his head in amazement.

‘Does it die like that?’

He decided to check.

“What happened?”

Mimung’s red mana had settled like dust.

Inyakan turned to look at Binaeril.

The broken sword lay lifeless on the ground.

The shattered area showed just how powerful the strike had been.

‘Veritas, what do we do now?’

– Not yet.

Binaeril spoke aloud.

Inyakan gave him a questioning look.

– It’s not dead yet. It hasn’t lost the will to fight. Be careful.

As Veritas finished speaking, the remaining half of the cursed sword floated into the air.

It flew between Binaeril and Inyakan.

“Is it running away?”

Inyakan shouted. But his guess was wrong.

The flying sword embedded itself deep into Bernstein’s back.

The dead mage’s body began to rise as if it were alive.

They had forgotten. Mimung’s true power was its ability to control the dead.

– Rise, my army!

Its sinister command echoed across the desolate battlefield.

Creak, crack!

The dead began to rise.