Kieeeeng!
A sharp screech echoed from the Book of the Lion in Baron's grasp.
"Damn it!"
Baron, who had been holding the Book of the Lion, tried to discard it immediately upon sensing something ominous.
But the book, which vibrated faintly, clung tightly to his hand and locked his muscles in place.
Woooooong!
The vibrations from the book grew stronger.
Baron shouted.
"Zeke Draker!"
At that moment, a massive explosion erupted from the Book of the Lion.
Kwarung! Kwarung! Kwarung!
An enormous mana storm engulfed Baron.
Kugugugu!
The explosion didn't end there; a white mist-like wave of mana surged out and swallowed the surrounding mages as well.
Crackle! Crackle! Crackle!
And astonishingly, the bodies of the mages caught in the white mist froze solid.
What Zeke had planted inside the fake Book of the Lion was the authority of absolute sub-zero, harnessed through an elemental stone.
The mages, bearers of malevolent power, were thus all trapped within unyielding ice.
Kugugugu!
The white mist, infused with the authority of absolute sub-zero, froze the entire cavern.
But then it happened.
Kwadududuk!
A sound of cracking ice rang out from the center.
Thud!
From within an ice pillar that stretched to the ceiling, Baron emerged, spewing black energy laced with twisted causality.
However, even he was far from unscathed.
Sizzle—
Steam rose in white plumes from Baron's face and body, where patches of skin had peeled away.
He had somehow neutralized the authority of absolute sub-zero using twisted causality, but he hadn't fully escaped the explosion itself.
With half his facial skin necrotic and raw muscle exposed, Baron—unlike his usual self— displayed raw emotion.
"Zeke Draker! I'll kill you! I'll kill you and offer you to the Lord!"
Kugugugu!
A storm-like aura erupted from Baron's body.
The black energy extended in all directions and gradually suppressed the authority of absolute sub-zero.
Hoooooo!
Behind the surging energy from Baron's form came the hideous cries of aberrant lifeforms.
The twisted energy he wielded connected directly to the abyss beyond dimensions, and nightmarish monsters of indefinable form spilled into the phenomenal world.
At that moment, the space in front of Baron rippled.
Tssstss—
The figure that emerged was none other than the pale-handed one in the black robe who had led Baron here.
Baron glared at him with sharp eyes.
"You...?"
Once more, a voice echoed in Baron's ear.
[Why do you reject my guidance?]
Baron furrowed his brow at the voice that had guided him here.
Then, sensing something, he raised both hands.
Kugugugu—
The black energy that rippled from his hands shot toward the pale-handed figure.
Kwadudud—
As the black energy wrapped around the pale-handed one, cracks spiderwebbed across that space like shattering glass.
Pachiiiing—
With the cracks, the space shattered, and the form of the black-robed, pale-handed figure vanished.
And astonishingly, in its place hovered Zeke, shrouded entirely in shadows.
He looked down at Baron with cold eyes and said,
"Baron, what a pity. I had hoped you'd find repose in eternal darkness."
Only then did Baron realize Zeke had deceived him, toying with him in endless void.
"Zeke Draker! You filthy bastard!"
Seeing Zeke revealed, Baron roared.
If he had wandered the endless darkness as Zeke intended, he would have been trapped in this labyrinth forever, unable to fulfill the Lord's command.
Forgetting his usual virtue of composure, Baron let his rage boil over.
Then, an unnatural change began in his body.
Kudududuk!
As he bellowed, Baron's form swelled.
Tiny tentacles wriggled up from between the raw, exposed muscles where skin had peeled away.
The tentacles began to replace the missing flesh.
Grrrulk!
Soon, half of Baron's body was covered in tentacles, taking on a shape as if outsiderspecies magical beasts sprouted from his form.
At the same time, from within his shadow, grotesque monsters of indefinable shape crawled out. Krrrararar—
The low, growling monsters had forms even more horrific than outsider-species magical beasts.
Baron commanded the monsters emerging from his shadow.
"Seize him and retrieve the Book of the Lion!" The monsters lunged toward Zeke at Baron's order.
Kaaaaak!
As the hideous forms flew at him, Zeke calmly raised his hand.
In his grasp was now Ascalon.
Zeke unleashed a brilliant bolt of lightning infused with holy spirit qi toward the monsters.
Pajijijijik!
Dozens of lightning bolts shot from Ascalon and pierced the monsters' bodies.
Keeek!
The struck monsters burned to ash or melted into sludge.
Yet, undeterred, endless more poured from Baron's shadow.
While Zeke fended off the monsters, Baron—his rage somewhat subsided—approached the mages trapped in ice.
Tssstss—
The twisted causality aura he emitted neutralized the authority of absolute sub-zero.
Soon, the ice encasing the mages melted bit by bit.
The eternal ice of absolute sub-zero, unmelting by any means, was dismantled by Baron's power.
Pajijijijik!
Then, Zeke's brilliant lightning poured across the cavern and swept away the monsters.
Baron had regained his cool composure from his frenzy.
Zeke had clearly arrived first and set the trap.
But since Zeke remained to confront him directly, Baron assumed he hadn't yet secured the Book of the Lion.
'If he had found it first, he wouldn't face me head-on.'
Just as Baron bought time by summoning monsters, Zeke likely stalled to search for the Book of the Lion.
'I needed to find the Book of the Lion first, using the mages.' As the ice melted under his power, the mages inside stirred.
Kwaduduk!
Their movements widened the cracks in the ice.
Soon, chunks of ice fell away.
Kwadududud!
The mages thrashed harder, shattered the cracked ice, and broke free.
Baron addressed the mages emerging from the ice.
"Find the Book of the Lion! It's hidden somewhere in here!"
The sinister mages in their grotesque leather robes nodded at Baron's command. They gripped daggers etched with monstrous forms and chanted spells.
They muttered bizarre incantations in an unknown tongue and exuded an aura of profound irreverence.
Tssstss—
As they continued to chant, crimson mists seeped from the daggers.
The mists spread throughout the cavern, seemingly tracking the Book of the Lion infused with the Demon King's power.
But just as the mists dispersed everywhere, it happened.
Woooooong!
A massive magic circle rose from the cavern floor.
Dozens of chains erupted from it.
Charrarararak!
Chains akin to Zeke's Chains of Solomon—soul-binding restraints—shot from the floor and wrapped around the malevolent mages.
Kwadudud!
The chanting mages were suddenly bound by the soul chains and froze stiff in place.
Chains burst from beneath Baron's feet as well.
Charrarararak!
Baron, who now wielded a black dagger, swung fiercely at the chains seeking to ensnare him.
Kwang!
Though unbreakable by any means, the soul chains severed upon clashing with Baron's dagger.
Charrarararak!
But the severed chains didn't lose power; they reconnected with others and sent even more toward Baron.
Baron realized this was another of Zeke's traps.
'The High Table member with him must have set this up.' He scowled, recalling Nabu, the Hermit of Stories.
He clicked his tongue, dodged the chains, and reached into his bosom.
In his hand now was a small cocoon.
Baron took a deep breath and swallowed the cocoon whole.
Kugugugu!
A change began in Baron's body after he ingested the cocoon.
Kudududud!
Already half his form resembled an outsider-species magical beast.
His shoulders and chest, no longer human but amorphous horrors, accelerated in their transformation.
At the same time, branch-like amorphous growths sprouted from his back.
Krrrarararulk!
Baron slashed at the encroaching chains while he harvested the expanding horrors with his dagger, as if reaping a crop.
Thud!
The severed horror hit the ground, took root, and formed a circular shape.
Kugugugu!
The branch-like amorphous mass solidified into a circular frame and morphed into a gate-like structure.
Charrarararak!
The chains sought to bind not just Baron but the horror-formed gate itself.
Baron extended his hand once more.
Tssstss—
The black energy from his hand touched the chains, discolored them black, and then they crumbled to ash.
The energy flowed into the horror-gate.
Kudududud—
The gate reacted to Baron's energy, and tentacles burst from the frame to fill its interior.
As the writhing tentacles filled the circle, a massive maw astonishingly formed within. Krrrarararar—
The mouth, lined with sharp teeth, gaped wide and revealed a black void inside. From that void, something emerged.
Kugugugugu!
With a roar, the horror-gate vomited it forth like bile.
Chwaaaak!
Amid foul-smelling fluids, a human shape appeared before the gate.
Zeke, who hovered in the air, scowled at the emerging figure.
'That...'
Astonishingly, the being Baron summoned was none other than Harvey Draker.
Zeke had certainly left the captured Harvey Draker under Manna and Ivan's watch and surveillance.
Yet here was Harvey Draker, appearing out of nowhere.
Then the horror-gate twitched again.
Grrruk!
It retched once more and emitted another odd sound.
Charrarararak!
Manna and Ivan, who still gripped the chains binding Harvey Draker, had passed through the gate into this place.
"Wh-where are we?"
Ivan and Manna looked equally bewildered by their sudden translocation.
At that moment, Baron's black energy gnawed at the Chains of Solomon restraining Harvey Draker.
Tssstss—
The energy, infused with twisted causality, neutralized even King Solomon's chains.
Spotting this, Manna immediately tried to erect a barrier.
"Hup!"
As he clasped his hands to form the barrier, focus returned to Harvey Draker's eyes.
Kugugugu!
In an instant, Harvey Draker snapped the binding Chains of Solomon and rose.
Kwadududud—
No sooner had he broken free than he reverted to his half-dragon form, retreated while he glared at Zeke in the air.
"Zeke Draker..."
His eyes flushed red once more.
But just as he lunged toward Zeke, Baron shouted.
"Harvey Draker!"
Baron's eyes gleamed strangely as he commanded Harvey.
"For our Lord! Fulfill your glorious duty!"
With that, Baron snapped his fingers at Harvey Draker.
Boom!
At the signal, Harvey felt as if his heart plummeted.
He clutched his chest at the sudden sensation, and his body trembled violently.
Then it happened.
Kwaduduk!
Something burst through Harvey Draker's chest.