Marzim POV
I, Marzim, Archbishop of Imperium.
Originally born in slums before I become a person with high position
Before, I've used every possible means to climbed on the top from being an ordinary soldier of Imperium then accumulating combat experience for 15 years of constant war in the Ver'z continent, from 20 countries down to mere 3, after the warring states period, I became a holy Knight, a high priest before reaching the rank of Archbishop.
I am a sinner. I indulging myself on debauchery, stealing, extortion, bribery even worse killing my opponents that would jeopardized my position.
I keep my sinful life until the goddess came to my dreams and completely reformed me. Then she ordered me to completely destroy the current corrupt system of the church and the disgusting norms of this world like slavery and discrimination on the sub-humans. Thus here I am now, gathering strength to fight the current system lead by the pope--He is an absolute piece of scum humanity ever seen even far worse than my former self.
It's near Impossible to kill him due to various ancient items that protecting him from any harms and even if I'm lucky to kill him, someone will likely gonna take his place and I guarantee that person will be also a piece of shit like him.
Right after I completed my reorganizations. I managed to gathered 8 heroes as my allies for the upcoming revolution. I intend to kill the pope and every corrupt officials of church in one go and install decent one's for the greater good of the world. However, the goddess conveyed an oracle that a berserker hero is coming--Berserker heroes are extremely powerful in the battlefield as more damage they accumulate the stronger they became not to include they are virtually immortal as long as they have mana to regenerate their lost limbs or even head as long as it's not been carbonized by the likes of fire and void elements.
Upon orders, I travelled towards the territory of Count Burduex in hope to recruit this powerful hero in my ranks. But in my surprise the hero that should be in the village and should bare in witness on the brutal death of her families and friends thus awakening the powers inside her, but currently I'm questioning myself what's this? why are they in the gates of the fortress city Burduex? Why they are here? This is no good I should send her back even it pains me--She must be awakened no matter what.
I ordered the use of ancient item that could control the consciousness of the people in the vicinity. It had also memory manipulation ability thus making a very useful tool to reduced the witnesses without physically getting rid of them.
I intend to control them and return them in the village with some revisions before a catastrophe happened--we the forces of church save her and the villagers, so she will owe us nevertheless someone are able to resist the ancient item, a person that almost 2 meters tall. It felt like he is not a living thing, the mannerisms are also quite refined is he possibly an aristocrat? Additionally, strangely speaking he doesn't felt scared or backing down on the immense pressure emanating from the holy knights, what kind of nerve he got?
I send off Adel to measure his abilities and unexpectedly he managed to play around with Adel despite being my right hand man. Even with the limiter release. Adel can't lay a finger on this person at all, so I decidedly use peaceful means to have this person backed down but he shot me down. Questioned him a little more then what he said next surprised me "Because I already defeated it" he arrogantly said that he defeated a high orc king.
"....Prove it to me then. Let's duel" I unconsciously muttered then followed immediately by my subordinates which protesting "Archbishop you shouldn't!" "That person is dangerous!"
"Enough!" I silence them and stared on the person who looked surprised with a expression as if saying 'are you sure?' unexpectedly this youngster thinks I'm just an old fool that climb in ranks of Imperium with such soft experience.
"Let's begin" with a grin I closed the distance.
Liam's POV
What's wrong with this old timer? Duel? What kind of farce is that...The subordinates of this pedo archbishop seems trying to stop this runaway old timer however he silenced them. Are you sure? The words I wanted to say on him but he said "Let's begin" and instantly appeared in my view as if he was teleported. Unable to defend myself on his right swing I was blown meters away then while mid air he continued his pursuit, aiming at my landing point. Seeing this i decidedly to forcefully land by stabbing my rifle on ground, after firmly standing on ground I charged up my legs and immediately accelerated towards him and tried to send a kick but he jumped over me, stomping my head with a force that smashed my face on ground.
"You damn pedophile!"
I got up to retaliate but he didn't himself so I ran straight ahead and tried to punch him once and for all, sending a straight punch to his annoying face but I painfully got countered on the face with a left hook. 'shit!' I'm faster than him but why I can't touch him! Wait?! He is not fast but he is disappearing? No that's not it! He is teleporting!
To confirm my claims, I sent out a lousy kick but it only hits the air and thus this geezer mocked me "What kind of kick is that? Boy?" He grinned irritatingly.
Fuckers!
I immediately aim my rifle and fired it like crazy on the old timer but it got emptied without hitting the old geezer as he disappeared rather too quickly for me to hit anything, the reaction speed is ridiculous to evade and teleport for safety from the hail of bullets I've unleashed. Due to uselessness of the long range capability of my rifle, I activated it's razor bayonet in mind of hacking this person in half.
"Stay cool boy? Can't you even properly aim?."
He really irritates me as I charged and forcefully swing my rifle with a bayonet attachment on the geezer. But he disappeared once again and appeared on my heels then unleashed a kick sending me few meters away head first on the ground.
"Kuuuuhhh! Shit!" I groaned as this person are way too much for me to handle.
"Giving up?" The geezer speaks up "Like the hell I would." Then I stand up in attempt to floor the ass of this irritating pest.
"You are too prone in provocation... Are you even sure that you manage to defeated a high orc king with that mindset and lack of combat experience? After all I noticed your kick and punch despite the power they carried, is all but amateurish."
Shit... This geezer even managed to assess my combat abilities and my lack of experience on this battle? Isn't he is an archbishop? How and why the fuck he is strong?.
"Mind hearing your response?." Smiled at me, then broke of this poker face for the first time. "Does you know the consequences on what you've done?." Then he let out strange aura on this body. The heck is that?
"On what--." Before i could finish my response, he appeared on my side with roundhouse kick.
"You Bastard!." I tried to fire a left swing but he managed to evade it and catch my arms then threw me away.
"Here you go again.... You can't even properly control your emotions" then he sighed. "Do you know if someone messed with the oracle will be immediately punished and the next trial will be worsened, I don't much have an idea but... On the texts of ancient manuscript, a princess defied the oracle given to her to marry a prince but she chose a commoner instead and the consequences--a war happened."
What the heck you're talking about? Of course, there would be a war if the princess chose the plebian over a prince you know? "Isn't it obvious? If the princess didn't marry that prince there would be a war right?."
"Not war between humans."
I see, so they aren't humans on the first place huh? This is another world after all, I thought.
"It is a war between undead and humans...the undead didn't attack any neighboring countries, they only specifically attacked the kingdom where that princess belong. If you are still aren't convinced by it.... Then, Look at that behind you"
When he said that I looked on my back there's a huge black object landed on the Burduex. That's looks familiar... That's a freaking dragon!!.
"I already evacuated the hero candidate and villagers but unfortunately... I can't save the people in Burduex."
What.... Isn't that coincidence only? Oracle's are impossible right? Aren't they just made to swindle the people for their money?
But in Burduex, the dragon roared. This is bad, if that thing attack the city. It would cause unimaginable destruction. One thing that I only could do is...
"Old man! You can teleport anything right!."
"Hmm?...Yes, but if that size is kinda heavy for me to handle."
"It's alright how far you can teleport that thing?."
"500 kilometers? If that dragon is a little bit small... I might able to threw it 1,000 kilometers away."
This damn cheat. I wanted to retort but i need disposed that dragon now. "Teleport it in the devil's den, then I'll take the rest coz I'm letting that thing taste a minuteman."
"Minut--?."
"Well it's only 12,000 kilometers away so... oh Nevermind, just leave the rest on me."
"I see.."
"Just a confirmation, once I cleared this... There's shouldn't be a follow-up right?."
"Yes. As long as you cleared the final trial."
"Alright, so teleport it now before any casualties--."
"I think you are misunderstanding here. The bigger the target, the longer chanting I need to complete it."
"Chant?." I was confused, can't he do it within split seconds right? If not, he will undoubtedly get killed by my rifle fire.
"Anything heavier than 10 tons, are needed to be chanted to send them off. Based on the size and dimension of that dragon, it should be an adult dragon with a weight of around a thousand tons, in conclusion I need about 20 minutes of chanting before creating a magic circle of that size."
Is that so... I needed to buy some time then. "Shit.... Send me there."
"Hoh? With your power... sure thing it would be a force to be reckoned with... But I doubted you have the ability to keep up with that dragon nor keep it at bay while protecting the city from it's attacks."
"Just send me."
"What's that? Heroism? You see, it's actually unnecessary, only morons would do that, you wanted to save the people there?.... With your half ass ability supplemented with your cheap heroism, will only lead to your death."
Damn this pedo.... Then let's finish it off with my signature words of "I don't plan dying you know, just do it"
"....." The pedop-i mean the archbishop paused for a moment. "In one condition, have my Holy Knights fight with you."
Okay ? Is that so? I don't really mind but "Won't these dude stab me on the back... I mean most specially that Adel, look at him, it's like he's going to stab me without a second thought." Several Knights are definitely have a grudge on me. I won't be surprised if they attack me from behind.
"Don't worry" then he looked on them with intimidating aura, forcing the knights to avert their hateful glances on me. What a bossy man. "You can go now."
Then a second later, the world become void and when the light returns, a dragon jet black dragon appeared in my view.
"Alrighty, come in." Dashing towards the dragon to take his attention off from the city. I took noticed the knights are doing some sort of weird chanting, I ignored them as I charged my legs for a power jump sending me 15 meters high, then overload the supercharger to maximize the damage on the dragon in one attack, specifically on it's neck. Due to the overloading and incredible rapid output accumulation, my appearance right now is like being clad in thunder which boosted my destructive power.
"Hey!." I landed on the neck of the dragon, due to impact, the dragon was lightly shaken and fortunately my legs didn't break on the attack.
"It only cracked a couple of whoa!." Dragon shaked me off from it's neck. I immediately retreated but the dragon didn't chase however he twisted by body fast 'Umm what are you doing?'
I didn't know that moment I was completely fucked up, the tail of the dragon are approaching on me fast, if it hits, i'll be sure a goner. Before the tail smashed my pitiful Spartan, something stopped the tail of dragon.
"You plebian! Get your ass out of there!" It was Adel, who unexpectedly saved my ass, he generate a pale blue shield that stopped the tail from smashing me into pieces.. "Oh thanks a lot!"
"I didn't do it for you.!"
"I see, didn't expect that you are such a tsundere."
"Say what!."
"Nevermind!." Back to the business after my banter on the Holy Knight, lacking with offensive armaments. I opted for a attention grabbing movements by launching a hit and run tactics, but seems my attack aren't working on the dragon at all. The holy knights on the otherhand are firing magic, a very destructive one's that give a powerful shockwaves, some of them are firing projectiles like short sword, knife and arrows and the close quarter specialist are wounding the wings and the limbs of the dragon.
The dragon's attack save from the tail whip are quite slow and on top of that, this dragon aren't breathing laser like that one I've encountered in devil's den at all nor a fireballs that burns the surrounding. Seems this type of dragon are incapable of any sorts of breath attack other than physically attacking it's enemies. The time passed by as we lured the Dragon out of the city and then, a large circle engraved by foreign words appeared on our foot then we are teleported in devil's den.
"You plebian! How you could disposed this dragon now! You have a plan aren't ya?!." Adel shouted on me, of course it's already in the air, and a minute from now it should toast this sonuva bitch here.
"Yes! We needed to get our asses out of here! As far as possible now!."
"Is that so."
"Whoa! Shit! Don't appear out of nowhere you fucking pedophile?! And move our ass out of here now!,"
"You are such a slave driver on an elderly, well whatever."
The dragon tried to attacked us but it only hits nothing. We are teleported on a mountain about 40 kilometers away from the dragon. "....this distance should be enough?." The old man ask.
"Barely? By the way, why you didn't send us back in Burduex?."
"Because I wanted to see how you defeat the Dragon...." The archbishop cut it's murmurings. I don't know what the heck he is thinking right now, but one thing for sure he is not a hostile in my perspective, at the moment only.
"Hey old man? Don't you think I might bluffing on defeating that dragon?."
"Are you bluffing?."
"Well...Of course not, I could defeat it, without a hitch." Moments later, an object disintegrating from the air falls later on the dragon who are currently confused,
"Is that a comet!"
"In the name of goddess Alumina! What in the world happening!"
While the holy knights are confused and causing some ruckus, 3x 400 kilotons nuclear warhead already smashed on the dragon, creating 3 distinct fireballs that rises up on the sky. It's not only eye-catching but it's also disturbingly flashy and noisy despite how far we are currently on the epicenter of the detonation.
"See? It obliterated to smithereens right? Easy peasy in exterminating some flying lizards."
But when I looked on the Holy Knights, they are simply too scared. Wait? Didn't this world have a freaking hero capable of slicing the ocean several kilometers away? Having a nuclear missile detonating in front of them is kinda a big deal or something?.
"This power are comparable to the myths."
"Myths?."
"As I thought, you are lacking knowledge about this world that means... You didn't came from this world, a reincarnator right?."
I frozen on the declaration of the old man... Freaking no way! he knows I am a reincarnator?!.
"Thought so... Hmm Indeed something "irregular will arrived on this world' and you are the irregular huh..?"
What the heck you are talking right now? I'm hella confused here. Should I self destruct to escape this place?
"What are your thoughts about the hero candidate?."
"Lynette huh? Nothing why?."
"Don't you think that you are just a mere stranger and yet you save her from her inevitable fate .... isn't that strange?."
I think for a minute, indeed there's something wrong with me, if Lynette associated with it. "Wait Yeah, I indeed think several times of abandoning her. However, for some reason I can't just be help but to go around Lynette to protect her.... I also removed my helmet that I shouldn't done on the first place, and on our first encounter...I immediately scram to save Lynette without thinking, what the hell is happening?"
"Because you are fated with each other"
"Huh? Fated? She is 10 years old and I am 17 you know."
"Is the world where you originally belong.... Is there's some restrictions on marrying a younger one's? I see but don't worry here, because on this world even a 50 years old man could marry a 15 years old lady."
"Hey that's illegal."
"Hmm? Is that so... Even the youngest in the standards of this world. You are allowed to marry as young as 12 years old, so wait for 2 years and have a happy married life."
"Bullshit! I felt that I'm going to jail so I'll pass."
"Your tone on me become unexpectedly turned soft...hahaha the younger generations as they said."
"Don't laugh that's creepy."
The next words of the archbishop, coupled with a serious tone which forcing me to straighten my back. "I'm planning of coup in the Alumina Imperium.... Will you join on my cause?."
"......" I was silent, oh come on. A coup? You are asking me to join of all things? "Well.... What are your objectives? Let me hear it and depending on your reasoning I might lend a hand."
"....Because of the corrupt practices of the church, I needed to cleanse it thoroughly and return back the believers on their senses."
"Senses?."
"Hmm...come to think of it, you aren't original native of this world hah? Let's see, what are your thoughts on discrimination and slavery?
"Umm? Those things are relatively uncalled and disgusting on the modern day perspective of my world."
"Thankfully, I'm planning of getting rid of the discrimination on the sub-humans and abolishment of slavery, there's also other such as extermination of unnecessary clergy who only tarnishing the church."
"Abolishment and extermination huh... So what are your planning on Lynette?."
"If she still managed to awakened I'm hoping of recruiting her on my ranks."
"I disprove that."
"Oh. The husband figure are sure strict "
"I'm not her husband."
"Depends on her, if she joined the training to become a hero and joined my ranks."
"Sounds good. But I'll think about your offer...so shall we return back first?."
A few moments ago. Dark side of the moon.
Noel Kamui, an Ancient Shadow Dragon. She currently felt boredom as she resides on the moon for tens of thousands of years. There's no practical reason why she is staying on the moon rather that on the world. It's not that she is harmful or anything in the world but she prefers to be lonely.
"There's something flying again? Those things are getting annoying."
She looked at it and began forming a circle on her back but when she realized there's something wrong with it. "It's completely different from the previous things that I destroyed and it's too fast.... What is this thing Hmm? Let's wait for a sec then."
A minute later, an explosion are could be seen in the moon (actually for normal human, it's impossible). "That's not an ordinary feat that anyone could pull up on this era.... Seems something have sprouted out of nowhere." Then she looked at the territory of Liam that originally didn't exist on this world. "Let's take a look shall we?." She pleasantly smiled.
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Note*
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