Amelia the Level Zero Hero

Chapter 109

Ar’elith finally returned.

He was the Lord of All Undeath. The One Who Tamed the Five Grand Revenants of Arelioth’s Path. He was the Lich King himself.

He basked in the moonlight as he stared up at the starry sky. It was his third time coming back to life after perishing. The first time was when he had transformed himself into a Lich Lord when he had reached Level 50. It was a dangerous process, and many [Necromancers] failed their transition. In doing so, they would either become a mindless lich or simply be reduced to ash.

But Ar’elith succeeded. Not only that, he became the first being to ever ascend into the status of a Lich King. He was unstoppable. He created an army of nigh-invincible undeads that brought the Valeri Empire to its knees— the very same Valeri Empire that had crushed the remnants of the Grand Nova Empire

At the time, the Valeri Empire had spanned from Laxo to Alius. And yet, Ar’elith had nearly destroyed them on his own. In fact, he would have won the war if not for the intervention of the great [Hero] Leon.

He had been summoned from another world to Vacuos to put a halt to the conquest of the undead. And with devices and tools which Ar’elith had never seen before, the great [Hero] Leon defeated the Lich King.

It was the second time Ar’elith had died. But he would return— even in the unlikely event that his bones were somehow destroyed, he knew he would return. After all, the location of his phylactery was a secret, and one of his many followers would be able revive him with a grand ritual.

Unfortunately, the great [Hero] Leon knew of this fact, and he cast a seal on the Lich King’s bones so that they could not be reassembled. Even if the phylactery remained untouched, Ar’elith could not be revived because his bones were scattered across the world.

And for ten thousand years, he lay in death. But after one of his devout followers spent a century gathering his bones, he finally returned. It was supposed to be his grand revenge— he could finally exact vengeance against the world.

But he was killed in an instant.

It was his third death, and it happened so swiftly, he didn’t even realize what happened until he was already dying. He hadn’t even been alive for more than an hour when he was killed. And to make matters worse, he was killed by some random girl!

Who was she? She had been dressed like some street beggar, but she defeated him with a single swing of her sword.

And he was overtaken by darkness once again.

It was an odd sensation— dying. Even though he had already died three times now, and he had come back to life three times as well, he still wasn’t accustomed to it. It was like going from a state of pure nothingness— where time didn’t exist, and he could feel no emotion.

It was said that when one died, their soul was returned to the World System. But since the Lich King’s soul never left his body, it was like he was being held in stasis. And when he finally was revived again now, he could finally process his thoughts prior to his previous death.

He could finally perceive the world again.

And the first thing he heard was—

“Submit.”

Ar’elith lowered his head. His eyes flickered for a moment as he felt like he lost control of his body— just briefly. But he regained control of himself and shook his head. He dismissed the strange feeling and the odd voice. It was probably a result of the revival process.

Instead, he took in his surroundings. He saw the rubble covering the rocky ground. He felt the wind blowing against his back. He took in his thoughts. He took in his feelings. He bathed in what it was like to be alive again.

And he swept his gaze over the four figures surrounding him. He looked down at one of them— a man who was lying bloodied and prone on the ground, dressed in robes like a [Necromancer].

“Are you the one who rev—” Ar’elith started.

And a voice screamed, interrupting him.

“Die!”

A blonde girl leapt before the Lich King as he raised his head. She carried two blades— each one shining with a scintillating golden light. And she swung down as he stared at her.

“Glorious and Elegant Noble Slash!”

A blast of powerful golden magic engulfed him as felt his bones being ripped apart from each other. And his skull went flying, separated from the rest of his body.

—--

Noele leapt back as she unleashed her most powerful attack against the First Lich King. The explosion was smaller than the blast that had engulfed Guardian Angel Z357. But it was expected.

She was exhausted. She thought that she had nothing left in her— she felt within her [Greater Mana Core], and there had been nothing left. But somehow, she still managed to muster up something directly from her soul.

It wasn’t enough. Not to kill Ar’elith. She knew it wasn’t a fruitless effort. And yet, she tried anyway. She raised her blade as the smoke and dust clear—

…only to blink when she saw a pile of bones lying in the center of the crater.

“What?” Her eyes narrowed.

Saros ran up to her side, cursing as he glanced around. “Where did that damn angel go— oh.”

He stared at the scene with her. Garron stumbled forward, blinking as he looked down at the scattered bones of the First Lich King.

“Y-you…. you did it,” the burly man gasped. “You beat him!”

Noele’s eyes flickered. She didn’t lower her guard as she remembered her battles with Odell, Zevya, and the kretus boar. She shook her head.

“No,” she said as she took a step forward. “It’s not over yet.”

And right as she spoke, the bones of the First Lich King began to shoot through the air. She watched as a skull floated high into the sky as a terrible laughter echoed around the three adventurers.

“Do you think that was enough to defeat me?” Ar’elith said as his body pieced itself together beneath his skull. “Ridiculous! I am the Lich King! I cannot be killed by the likes of you!”

Noele was certain he wasn’t even regenerating thanks to the Void’s power. The way he had simply recovered from her attack was distinctly different from how the other battles she had with the Void thus far.

He pointed at her as her eyes widened. The sky crackled as dark clouds gathered overhead. She activated [Dance with Death]— focusing on [Flash Step] before she teleported away.

“[Frost Lightning],” the First Lich King said.

All at once, a blast of blue lightning crashed down from the sky. It struck the ground where she had been just moments ago, shredding the earth open as the nearby ground was wreathed in frost.

Garron and Saros were far enough away from the explosion so that they weren’t struck by a direct hit. However, the shockwave sent them flying back as flakes of snow eddied up into the sky.

Noele appeared atop a pile of rubble as Ar’elith glanced her way. His flaming purple eyes flared as he made an annoyed sound.

“Hmph, impudent,” he said as he pointed her way. There was a thundering crack before he even spoke the words of his Skill. “[Frost—”

And a streak of purple lightning flashed down before he finished speaking. Noele cursed, teleporting away with another [Flash Step] thanks to [Dance with Death].

This time, when she reappeared, the ground trembled and cracked open. Even though she was a hundred feet away from ground zero of the blast, she was still knocked back by the explosion. She was sent flying into a rock wall as a pulse of the Void’s power rippled over the area.

And Ar’elith just stared at the massive second crater that dwarfed the first. He lowered his hand as he tried to work his jaw.

“What…?”

—--

The Lich King was taken aback by his own power. He had tried to call upon his [Frost Lightning], but something else was beckoned forth. A bolt of purple lightning that drew from something else.

His [Bountiful Mana Core] did not drain of magic. And he knew he hadn’t been able to use a Skill just yet. That attack didn’t come from him. It came from another source of power— one that far surpassed his own.

He looked down at himself in confusion, and he heard the voice again.

“I can give you power.”

His vision distorted— the world twisted as the sky seemed to darken. But he knew that it was simply his perception being muddled with. The twisted voice continued to echo in his head as he stumbled back.

“I can grant you your revenge.”

“What is this?” Ar’elith asked, gripping his skull. “Who is that? Reveal yourself!”

But his vision returned to normal. His eyes flickered as he shook his head. He looked down at himself as he saw ribbons of a purple magic gathering at his fingertips. He stared at this power in confusion.

“This is…?”

“It’s the Void’s power!” an enthusiastic voice exclaimed.

Ar’elith looked up to see the [Necromancer] from earlier stumbling to his feet. He was disheveled and bloodied, but he still forced himself up to greet the Lich King.

“The Void’s… power?” Ar’elith asked as he looked back down at himself.

He saw the flakes of the Void’s essence— he finally recognized the twisted magic for what it was. And he froze.

The [Necromancer] shook his head. “I apologize for my unsightly appearance, but—”

“Explain,” the Lich King cut him off.

“Uh, pardon me, my King?” the [Necromancer] asked in a puzzled voice.

“Why have I been infected by this… this… vile power!” Ar’elith spun around and snarled at the blinking man. “How dare you taint me with the Void! You shall pay for your insolence!”

The [Necromancer] paled as he raised his arms. “But my King, I did it so you could—”

“Perish.”

And a blast of [Frost Lightning] obliterated him before he could protest. He screamed for a fraction of a moment, before his voice was silenced. What remained where he had stood were thousands of pieces of broken ice.

—--

“What… just happened?”

Noele watched as Ar’elith obliterated Tristan Devon without any hesitation. She had just been about to strike the First Lich King from behind— another surprise attack— but she paused when she saw that interaction play out.

Ar’elith hates the Void? That… didn’t really change much— he still wanted to slaughter everyone in Vacuos to achieve his undead dream. But she also wasn’t sure whether attacking him was the best idea right now.

Not when he was shuddering and stumbling back, whispering at himself.

“Get out of my head— begone from my soul!”

He spread his arms wide and faced the sky. A plume of purple mist expelled from his mouth, and the aura of the Void coating him partially dissipated. He was still Void-touched or Void-blessed. But it was weaker now.

The Lich King bent over, panting as his hands balled into fists. Noele lowered her two blades. If Ar’elith dispelled the Void from his body… would he even still be alive anymore?

She thought there was a slim possibility that he’d perish since the ritual that revived him drew from the Void’s essence. However, even if that didn’t happen, it still meant that she actually would stand a chance against the Lich King.

…well, more of a chance than right now.

Noele looked on as Ar’elith roared as he clawed at his face. And then he paused. The blonde girl blinked as a figure suddenly appeared before him. Her eyes went wide when she saw who it was.

“That’s—”

Guardian Angel Z357 stood before the Lich King. For a moment, neither of them moved as Noele just stared. And then Ar’elith stumbled forward as he clacked his jaw together.

“You’re… an angel?” he asked.

In response, Guardian Angel Z357 hurled his lance at the First Lich King. And Ar’elith exploded into a million broken pieces.