21st Century Archmage

“Uurghhh…”

“Aaghhh…”

Bzzzzzzzzt.

Red vapor the color of blood and the agonized screams of humans were pervading the inside of an underground building.

Whirr, whirr.

In the middle of the exquisitely and sturdily constructed underground building was a large magic array exuding a great deal of yin-attribute mana.

“S-Save me! I beg you, save meee!!!!”

In the center of the magic array laid a single stone bed dyed by the blood of countless victims. Atop that bed a man who appeared to be in his mid-thirties was struggling desperately, mana bracelets on his wrists.

The sound of footsteps could be heard approaching the magic array, which was giving off a gloomy light in the unlit room. The struggling man frantically raised his head and looked at the person approaching.

“Save me! I am the chief knight of the Empires northern 5th Army, Karmanx! Please let me gooo!!!”

For some unknown reason, Karmanx had been sleeping in his bedroom when he was dragged here. He was a successful knight with a fairly promising future in the Laviter Empire, but right now, he was frozen in fear. Karmanx strained his neck to look up, but the mans face was obscured by a black robe.

“Huhuhu…”

The robed man silenced Karmanx shout with a cold laugh.

“W-Who is it! Who do you think you are, to persecute a knight of the empire in such a manner?! If the empire finds out about this, you and your family will all be ripped to pieces!”

Having realized from the robed mans dark laugh that he wasnt here to rescue him, the knight Karmanx threatened the man with the empires name.

“Youre a noisy one.”

The robed mans voice was quiet and lacked emotion.

“Why… why are you holding me captive?! Do you have a grudge against me or something?!”

Feeling the mans invisible bloodthirst, Karmanx resolved himself for death and asked why he was there. Even if he died, he wanted to know why, why someone had kidnapped and wanted to kill a knight of the empire.

“I need your mana.”

“What?!” screamed Karmanx, shocked.

“I need your hot mana… My loyal knight.”

“W-What nonsense are you spouting?! Why would I be your knight!”

Karmanx desperately scanned his opponent.

As he did so, the man slowly lowered the hood concealing his face.

“!!!”

Upon seeing the exposed face, Karmanxs eyes widened the furthest theyd ever been in his life.

“You will be reborn. Your mana will receive love in my heart for all of eternity, and your flesh will be reborn anew as a knight of death that does not die. Karveshavedian… lohindaimahu…”

“W-Why are you… why… gugh!”

Unable to swear at the person who was about to kill him, the knight Karmanx was polite to the very end, his eyes filled with despair. The magic array activated with the mans mysterious chant, causing an enormous amount of pressure to assault Karmanxs body.

Clank, clank. Bam bam bam.

Hundreds of stakes suddenly protruded from the stone bed, plunging themselves mercilessly into Karmanxs prone body.

Driiip, driiiiiip.

As the body, which had been flattened by pressure, was pierced by stakes, blood quickly flowed down the stakes onto the magic array.

Siiiizzzzzlllllee.

As Karmanx blood touched the magic array, it transformed into red fog.

“Huhuhu. Come. Hurry and come to me.”

The man stared at the fog made of blood with a look of rapture. Shockingly, the fog of blood hanging over the magic array was sucked into the mans nose.

“Kukukuku…”

As the man laughed in delight while inhaling the fog, his eyes slowly began to turn red.

* * *