Death King Karnak Novel - Chapter 6

Death King Karnak

2. A Good Lord? Who?

The next morning.

Karnak was lying on the sofa in his office, thinking about his morning.

“Oh, it’s delicious.”

Soft omelet, fragrant white bread with sweet jam, salty sausage, and well-grilled carrots. It was good to be rich, yes. Because could you eat such luxurious food in the morning if you weren’t?

“Originally, I thought that even if I returned, I would have to make do with crude meals for a while.”

It was when he was lying on the sofa in the office, rolling around, that a knock was heard.

“This is Barros. Master.”

“Come in.”

Soon, a stout blond young man entered the office. Karnak sighed as he lay down.

“Can I still call you young master? You’re the lord now. Don’t you think I will look strange?”

“It’ll be fine. You seem to have made this kind of mistake often.”

From what Karnak heard, it seemed like he gave up halfway because he couldn’t break the habit even after being scolded by the old butler.

“It looks more natural this way.”

“All right, have you eaten?”

“I ate. It turned out well.”

“Do I feed the servants good food?”

“Yeah, you seem really rich.”

Barros looked at the papers on the desk in the office. He asked with confusion after that, “By the way, young master, can you just live like that? I heard that since you’ve become the head of household, you have many more things to do?”

“Oh, that one?” Karnak shrugged while looking at the estate’s management report.

“I’ve already done it.”

“Already?”

“Am I going to cry with that much work now?”

It would be a tremendous workload for 20-year-old Karnak, who had just become the head of the family and would have to stick to it all morning, but it wouldn’t even come close to a chore for the King of Death, who conquered the whole world.

“I finished it while eating dessert after the meal.”

“Hein! Dessert! I’m jealous! I didn’t get anything like that!”

Karnak smiled bitterly after looking at his attendant paying attention to the wrong point, “Is dessert the important thing right now?”

“It’s important! Did you throw away all that wealth and power just because of that?”

“Yes, it is. I’ll secretly take care of it later. We have more important matters at hand.”

“Oh, yes.” Barros corrected his complexion and sat down opposite Karnak. Then, he asked with a serious expression, “Now, what are you going to do? About the dueling trial.

When Karnak officially became the family head, Viscount Deventer moved again. Baron Zestrad was nervous because he noticed there was no way to deal with Deventer with the power of a baron.

There were only nine knights left, and two of them were recovering from injuries, and about 100 soldiers in his territory were also in poor condition. The only way to save their lives was to hand over the copper mine and pay huge war damages.

But he would then lose all the wealth he had ever acquired and end up even poorer. The civilians will also starve to death one after another. The new lord, Karnak, was the one who saved the family from a situation where they could neither do this nor that.

In front of everyone, he proudly declared, “In the name of Allium, the goddess of the moon and justice, I will participate in the dueling trial against Viscount Deventer!”

According to the doctrine of the Moon Religion, if the righteous wins the duel in the name of Allium, their victory is according to the will of the goddess. The system that emerged from this teaching was trial by dueling.

Under the presence of the Goddess Allium, they competed fairly to determine who was the strongest. At first glance, it seemed like an ignorant way for the strong guy to take everything, but it wasn’t necessarily the case.

Once both parties do not agree, the duel does not take place. In addition, if there is a blatant difference in strength, the application of a penalty is recognized, and it is possible to engage in a duel instead through a great warrior.

“Of course, that’s just what they say, but in reality, only the strong takes it all…”

Barros shook his head, “Aren’t you crazy? What the hell were you thinking?”

That was something Karnak would never have suggested. The difference in strength is noticeable, and there is no one to stand out as a great fighter, and the 20-year-old Karnak is not a huge powerhouse. Even if the other party proposes, it is a position to be highly opposed.

“But you dug your own grave first…”

In a sacred dueling trial, the result was only attained by the death of one side. There had been no surrenders since the start of this practice. So, what if he came forward for withdrawal to avoid the duel? If he would, the Allium Church would slit Karnak’s head.

Karnak dropped his shoulders, “Thanks to you, I found out why the old butler and other villagers’ attitude toward me was so different.”

In fact, from the Zestrad family’s point of view, this wasn’t a horrible condition. If the battle continues like this, the copper mine will be taken away, and a huge amount of war compensation will have to be paid.

But what if they drag you to trial by dueling?

There is no chance of winning, of course. However, even if they were defeated, it would be over as long as they handed over the mine, which is the cause of the duel.

At the point of judgment, all grudges are ended in the name of Allium, so there is no need to ask for a huge amount of compensation. At least, the situation of starving villagers could be avoided.

“I don’t understand why Viscount Deventer agreed to this duel. If we just fought, we could have reaped a lot of rewards, right?”

“Because you have to care about your reputation. Wouldn’t it look good to persecute the weak? It’ll become a huge topic among the other nobles.”

In the first place, the Deventer family is not that poor.

“If you can take the copper mine cleanly through a dueling trial, you’ll give up the reward. It’s not a bad story from that point of view.”

Thus, the dueling trial between Lord Randolph, the strongest knight of Deventer, and Baron Karnak, the new lord of Zestrad, was decided.

Who could not respect the young lord who risked his life for them?

“Damn it. Somehow, everyone’s eyes are looking at me brightly…”

Barros asked Karnak, who was grinding his teeth, “Then, why did you come out yourself? You’re going to make a great warrior.”

“Hey! Did I step in? Karnak, a fucking 20-year-old kid, stepped in!” Karnak, who was in a fit of rage, calmed his anger by catching his breath.

He then quietly asked, “So, Barros, can’t you go out as a great warrior?”

Of course, Barros was no longer a Death Knight. He was just a weak human being, the owner of a body that had not even been properly trained.

“You couldn’t possibly defeat a knight of the county like that, no matter what you did, right?”

“Oh, so that’s why you called me?” Barros shook his head while scratching it.

“You want to overdo it right now?”

“Huh? Why? How much experience do you have, but it’s not even that good?”

The period he fought beside Karnak alone was close to 100 years. No matter how fragile a human body is, the accumulated experience is enormous.

“You were the second-in-command of Necropia! You captured three of the four great kings.”

“Wasn’t all of it possible thanks to the power given to me by the young master?”

“The other party who received all the power was you, right?”

“Right, it’s a misunderstanding that people who haven’t mastered martial arts often make…” Barros smiled bitterly.

“Even though your body has changed, you have a lot of experience, and you still can’t beat a third-rate knight? There must be some kind of misunderstanding here, right?”

No matter how excellent swordsmanship he had, he couldn’t use it with those arms, and no matter how excellent his leg technique was, he couldn’t use it if he had become disabled.

It was an extension of this concept. At least you have to create a ‘body that can unfold the experience you have’. This is the minimum condition.

“Doesn’t the young master remember that I stopped him in Darha Village? I didn’t lie that time because if a fight broke out, I couldn’t do anything alone.”

After that, Barros explained that the body of a child who had trained even in basic martial arts would be better than that of a big boy without any training.

“Of course, I would win if I fought against a child, but using my experience is another matter.”

Karnak made a disappointing impression.

“Euk, doesn’t a guy with over 100 years of combat experience look too weak?”

“I’ll grasp the techniques faster since I’ve been fighting for over 100 years. Of course, once I start training, I’ll progress way faster than others. There will be no trial and error.” Barros continued after calculating something for a while.

“Half a year? I can become strong enough to contend with a decent knight if I decide to train seriously during that time.”

A mere attendant who hadn’t even properly held a sword talking about surpassing a regular knight in only half a year? His arrogance made that story perfect to be treated as the words of a madman. Again, his experience was an asset that couldn’t be ignored.

The problem was…

“Isn’t the dueling trial in a month? We’re running out of time.”

“Then, there’s no other way.”

“Damn it…”

Barros asked him while in deep thought, “I think that’s not the case, young master. I could still stand up for other knights this time around because I was a servant, right? But why did you personally risk your life? You weren’t such a proud person, were you?”

Karnak didn’t pay any attention to the tone of the attendant, who showed no respect for his master. He had lived listening to that tone for over 100 years, so it didn’t bother him in the slightest.

Instead, he was serious.

“After hearing the story, I can understand why it happened.”

Anyway, no knights in the current Baron Zestrad family would go on to become great warriors.

“The family’s strongest knight was Parratt and was said to have died too.”

At this point, the odds of the remaining knights defeating Sir Randolph converged to zero.

“It’s meaningless to put forward a warrior who couldn’t even win.”

The dueling trial was held in the name of the goddess, so the defeat of the great warrior was also regarded as the defeat of the dueling party. In other words, Karnak must also commit suicide if the Great Warrior was to lose.

“Since the situation is like this, I seemed to have found a way for myself for this time.”

Those were the words Karnak suddenly said about a couple of months ago.

‘I have something in mind. Trust me, and wait a little bit.’

And he left on a trip without telling anyone the reason and returned yesterday.

“Now, it’s obvious what a guy like me was thinking, right?”

Barros held back the accusation. It was so obvious. His master had done similar things in the past.

“It was necromancy.”

What kind of guts did Karnak of this timeline have to do such crazy things?

That was something he couldn’t figure out by searching the old butler’s memories. During this time, he kept his necromancy a complete secret and did not say anything.

“I can guess it to some degree, though.”

Karnak’s discovery of necromancy books was due to his old habit. From an early age, he used to run away to the family’s old warehouse when things got tough. Rummaging around in a warehouse in a dark place without people gave me a sense of peace.

“Now that I think about it, I was a very gloomy little boy.”

“You were a gloomy adult even after growing older. What’s new?”

“That, it wasn’t like that, right?”

“Do sociable adults kill people with their fingertips, leaving only bones left?”

“Shut up…”

Perhaps Karnak had followed a similar path in the previous timeline. As the situation escalated after becoming a lord, he must have found a necromancy booklet after throwing himself into a warehouse while attempting to escape.

If he had learned necromancy near the territory, he would be caught immediately, so he would have traveled to Darha Village. The reason for choosing Darha Village was also clear.

It wasn’t very common for a territory to have a distant place with no population in the depths, but it was easy to procure supplies from there.

“It’s the same 20-year-old me with a slightly different situation, but of course, the conclusion must have been similar.”

The difference was that he ran away from home with only Barros in his previous life without his family’s knowledge to learn necromancy, but now he left after proudly announcing that.

“I’m starting to understand a little bit now.”

Barros shook his head, “When I asked why is the current young master, who has nothing to regret, is learning necromancy…”

He suddenly asked right after.

“But can you beat a regular knight with only three months of necromancer training?”

The opponent was Sir Randolph, the strongest knight of the Deventer Territory. Of course, it would be inferior to the knights in the center of the kingdom with a high reputation, but it was a level that ordinary people wouldn’t ever dare to touch.

“No matter how powerful necromancy is, it’s a forbidden secret technique that deceitfully strengthens the user, but the period seems too short.”

Karnak then looked at Barros with a puzzled expression.

“Hey, how could you say that when you’re some nobody?”

“What am I?”

“You’ve seen me die from the sidelines in the past, haven’t you?”

“Wasn’t it 100 years ago? And I don’t even have many memories of you when you had flesh on your bones anymore.”

“Haah, about that flesh…” Karnak, who had been treated like a dog treat, frowned arrogantly. But it’s not wrong…

“Honestly, we can win.”

He changed the subject.

“In the first place, necromancy is the most taboo of the taboos. Every church on the continent tries to eradicate it at the slightest sign of use, and even though the risk is that high, what is the reason why necromancers appear?”

Necromancers can become powerful all too easily. In a short time, without effort, even without talent.

“If anyone other than me decides and learns it, there is a good chance.”

Barros tilted his head, “Then, what’s the matter? You mean there’s a way to win?”

“Yes, there is a way to win.” Karnak sighed deeply. He was a necromancer, not a wizard. It is said that only he knows necromancy.

“There’s no way we won’t get caught.”

[To be continued.]