His throat was on fire. His muscles shrieked in protest. Simon was at his absolute limit, his entire body on the verge of collapse. He had lost all track of how long he’d been fighting, of how many undead he had slain.

[Can you keep going?]

Even now, the Grand Duke—a true monster of stamina and mental fortitude—kept her breathing perfectly controlled. Despite having shot down several times more undead than Simon had killed, she was matching his pace, her concern a silent weight. How could he dare complain?

Fueled by sheer grit, Simon shouted back, "I’ll follow you even if I die!"

He could picture her smiling face behind the visor of her helmet.

[Hmph. At least your resolve is first-rate.]

The Abyss. There was no telling how deep the chasm truly was. They just kept descending, endlessly, eliminating the Northern God’s final elite troops.

A high-pitched shriek cut through the air. As he was madly swinging the Greatsword of Ruin, his focus entirely below, winged serpent undead lunged at him from behind.

’Tch!’

The moment Simon twisted his waist to send a slash backward, a voice echoed in his mind.

[Keep going, Legion Commander!]

Silken threads, faster than the undead themselves, descended from above. In the distance, Simon could see Erzebet waving her arms. The bodies of the serpent undead were instantly sliced to pieces, their forms reduced to severed chunks of flesh. He realized her spiderwebs were different from usual.

’Is she mixing in a bit of her Geheim?!’ Simon looked up and shouted, "Thanks, Erze!"

[Ohoho! I’ll be awaiting my reward when the war is over!]

The performance of his Ancient Undead was nothing short of astounding. The moment an enemy appeared, Erzebet would slice it apart with her webs, or Akemus would dive in and smash it into the wall. They followed close behind Simon and the Grand Duke, doing everything in their power to escort them to the Northern God.

[Keep going!] Prince’s voice boomed as he shouted, "Hidden Card Punch!" and sent a massive undead beast flying.

At last, Simon and the Grand Duke landed safely on the floor of the Abyss.

’Solid ground.’ Simon had missed the simple feeling of his feet planted firmly on a level surface.

[We are here! Let us go!]

"Yes!"

Having reached the bottom, they dashed forward. Inside her helmet, the Grand Duke’s eyes gleamed.

[This is the place! The Chamber of the Northern God, passed down from our ancestors. I see the traces and features I’ve only heard of in stories!] Her voice was filled with a new vigor, a raw strength. A hint of deep emotion laced her words. They were truly here. The long war between the Northern God and the Grand Dukes of the North, a conflict that had spanned ages, was finally about to end.

[Pick up the pace!]

"Yes, ma’am!"

There were no more attacks. They just had to follow the pulsing veins that crisscrossed the floor. And finally, they arrived at the place where all the veins converged, standing before the chamber of the Northern God.

Everything was a visceral, bloody red. The floor and walls throbbed as if alive, and before them, a crimson membrane hung like a curtain of flesh.

[Follow me carefully.] The Grand Duke conjured an arrow above her palm, then gripped it and shook it forcefully. With a sharp ’shling’, the arrow transformed into a spear in her hand.

She moved forward, the joints of her armor rattling with each step. Simon raised his Greatsword of Ruin and followed close behind.

She pushed aside the red curtain and stepped into the chamber.

’Thud.’

Simon sensed her steps come to a dead stop. He immediately rushed in beside her, his sword held ready. But his own feet froze to the spot. Both of their pupils trembled uncontrollably.

"What... is this?" Simon breathed.

---

[Hahaha! No undead is a match for the great Prince!]

After crushing countless of the Northern God’s forces, the Legion’s Ancient Undead walked side by side. The atmosphere was cheerful now that they had reached the bottom of the Abyss and the attacks had ceased.

[You fought pretty well too, 2nd Legion,] Herseva said, looking down at a small blue rabbit hopping about at her feet.

[Of course! Myon myon!]

Though it looked like a simple rabbit, it was the 2nd Legion’s ace, a powerful Ancient Undead named Pluto—the infamous vanguard known as the Monstrous Cat of the Snowfield.

[You’re the ones having a tough time cleaning up after the baby Legion Commander! Myon! You’d all be much stronger if you fought with our Grand Duke’s Jet-Black! Myon myon!]

[Cut the nonsense,] Akemus said, his eyes flashing with a cold light.

Pluto just laughed nonchalantly. [Getting all serious over a joke, myon myon!]

[The Young Master will become far greater still. To have reached this level in just a year and a half of being a necromancer, in another year and a half, he will stand at the pinnacle—]

[Wait a moment.] As she was speaking, Erzebet’s expression hardened. [I think there’s a problem in the Northern God’s chamber.]

[Let’s go!]

With Prince leading the charge, the Ancient Undead broke into a run. They too pushed aside the red membrane and entered the chamber. They walked past Simon and the Grand Duke, who stood frozen in place, and beheld the scene before them.

[Ah!]

The Chamber of the Northern God. But in the place where a god should have reigned, there was only a colossal, lifeless mass of flesh. It was slumped over, drained of all strength—a motionless corpse. Judging by its saggy, discolored skin, it had been dead for a long time.

[What is this,] Prince’s voice trembled. [The Northern God... is already dead?]

The Grand Duke finally managed to compose herself and removed her helmet. She strode forward, knelt on one knee, and examined the husk closely.

"This is indeed the Northern God. It is exactly as my ancestors described," she said, her voice trembling faintly. "If the Northern God was already dead, then what have we been fighting all this time?"

’...Grand Duke.’ Simon thought this was the first time he had ever seen her so shaken. It was only natural. It was as if every truth she had ever known had been utterly shattered.

[I will see for myself!] With a rasping sound, Pier detached from Simon’s body and walked forward.

[Jin, step back.] From the 2nd Legion, Hate stepped forward. The two Legion managers slowly circled the motionless husk, inspecting it.

[Hmph!] Pier offered a grim smile. [This certainly appears to have been the Northern God, but the most important thing is missing!]

"The most important thing?" Simon asked.

[The core.]

The headless Hate straightened up and spoke in its place. Only now did Simon realize it was a female undead, its voice distinctly feminine.

[Only the undead core is gone. There are no signs of it being shattered or destroyed.]

[Khahaha! So that’s how it is!] Pier crossed his arms and looked at the Grand Duke. [So don’t be too disheartened just from seeing a little husk, woman. The enemy the North has been fighting was most certainly the Northern God.]

The Grand Duke silently rose to her feet. "Don’t be ridiculous. Who said I was disheartened?"

[Khuhuhuhu!]

Simon was lost in thought. There were two main possibilities. First, the Northern God had moved its lair to lure them into a trap. Second, someone had stolen the Northern God’s core and was using its power to attack the North. The second option seemed less a possibility than a delusion. The first was the most likely, but...

[The idea that the Northern God intentionally moved doesn’t make sense either!] Pier declared, running a skeletal hand along the chamber wall. [The Northern God is an undead whose body is fixed to its nest! It must have been here for at least a thousand years! To think it would abandon such a well-established nest just to trap the Northern Army, which might not even come. It doesn’t add up! It would be better to use that energy to create more troops.]

"Then what?" Simon pressed.

[There must have been some unavoidable reason for it to move. Though only the Northern God would know why.]

Erzebet shrugged. [Whatever the reason, it doesn’t matter. So where in the world is the Northern God now?]

No one could answer. The true location of the relocated god. It was certainly somewhere in the Frost Field, but they couldn’t possibly search the entire vast, frozen expanse.

"Pier, is there any way to get information from that husk?" Simon asked.

Pier rubbed his skull. [Khuhu! Impossible with a husk that doesn’t even have a core! The other undead are just under its control, so we can’t get information from them either!]

This time, Hate spoke. [We’d have to capture a hive individual directly connected to the main body to get information, Jin.]

"Then one of the Three Brothers," Simon concluded.

Prince shot to his feet. [That Chronos bastard is still out there, right? He seemed to talk well and have a proper head on his shoulders! We have to chase him down and catch him right now!]

[But how do we know where he fled?] Erzebet countered.

While everyone was lost in thought, Simon raised his hand. "I think Grayson is calling me through a mental link. Just a moment."

[Oh! The third one has already recovered?]

Simon opened his subspace. The connection told him that Grayson’s condition was still poor. It was only natural. The shock of being ripped from the Northern God’s control and integrated into Simon’s legion was equivalent to having his entire body torn apart and reassembled. It would take a long time for him to recover. However...

’Kirururuk—’

A crow, an undead he had never seen before, emerged from the subspace. It landed on the floor, hopped about, and then, upon seeing Simon, fluttered up to perch on his shoulder.

"Did Grayson send you?" Simon asked, connecting his mind with the crow.

The world washed out.

A scene began to form in his mind, blurry and indistinct, like a black-and-white film.

’Where is this...?’

The landscape of the Abyss spread out below him. He was seeing it from the perspective of a bird soaring through the sky.

The view shifted, and he could feel the rush of wind against feathers. The bird was still flying.

’The Abyss... where we are right now.’

The chasm was teeming with undead. It seemed to be a point in time before the Northern Army and the 7th Legion had arrived.

’Huh? Where is it going?’

The bird flew far north of the Abyss. After crossing several mountain ranges, it finally arrived.

Another Abyss came into view. Simon couldn’t believe his eyes. This new Abyss, presumably where the Northern God had relocated, had ten gaping maws.

’Is that the real one?’

’Zzt! Chk!’

The view shifted again. He was back in the sky near the old Abyss. In the distance, he could see humans beginning to climb a mountain range.

’Ah, that’s us!’

He could see the Northern Army, and the 7th Legion. From a distance, Simon could make out the figures of the Grand Duke and himself. It was a recent memory.

’Flap—’

After showing him the army, the bird moved again, flying for a long time to the southwest.

It landed on a lone tree in a field of white snow.

’Why is it showing me this?’ Simon wondered.

’Whoa!’

Suddenly, a giant arm shot out and grabbed the bird. The tree was ripped from the ground as a massive body erupted from the earth. A cold sweat ran down Simon’s spine.

’That’s...!’

It was a giant. An undead giant, one that looked disturbingly similar to the third brother Simon had fought.

’Ssss—’

The vision cut off as the giant shoved the bird into its mouth. The sound of crunching sent a chilling sensation through his body. A moment later, the perspective shifted to another bird, farther away. The giant, after eating its prey, burrowed back under the snow, but the heaving drifts allowed Simon to roughly guess its direction.

And the direction the giant was heading...

’Don’t tell me!’

The world snapped back into focus. The figures of the Grand Duke and the Ancient Undead reappeared around him.

"Insolent one! What did you see!" the Grand Duke demanded, her voice tight with anxiety.

Simon panted, steadying himself before he spoke. "I’ve found the location of the new Abyss. And..."

"And?"

Simon met the Grand Duke’s gaze, his voice tense. "An undead individual that looks like one of the Three Brothers is heading for Vilkenos."

At those words, everyone’s expression froze.

---

"Try this too, young lady."

"Yes, thank you!"

This was Vilkenos. Kamibarez, who had already fully adapted to the North, sat on a chair, nibbling on a snack. Though the Northerners were highly wary of outsiders, they were strangely different with her. It wasn’t just her appearance. A purely good person, it was said, exuded a certain aura without even trying. The Northerners who had exchanged a few words with her found their guards melting away.

"It’s so delicious!" she exclaimed, flapping her wings in delight. "Thank you! Everyone in the North is so kind!"

"Glad you like it!" The warriors, who had been holding their breath, finally clapped. These burly, muscular men were flustered by every little action of a girl who barely came up to their chests.

Kamibarez swung her legs, then looked up at the sky. ’I hope Simon comes back soon.’

Having finished her special class early, she could have returned to Kizen, but she had decided to stop by the North and travel back with Simon. The Kizen officials had approved her request, opening a teleportation circle when the blizzard briefly subsided. She couldn’t go directly to Vilkenos, so after arriving in a nearby city, Kamibarez had hitched a ride on a merchant’s wagon. She had even bought a local specialty from the region of her special class as a gift for Simon.

"If you have no place to sleep, you can stay in the castle," Godric said, his arms crossed. "The inns are probably full due to the emergency. We’ve set up a shelter inside; you can stay there."

"Thank you!" ’Whoooosh.’ Her purple hair fluttered in the wind. After finishing her sandwich, she hopped down from her seat. She sniffed the air, then turned her head.

"What is it?" Godric asked.

"Umm..." She pointed a small hand. "Is that a common monster in the North?"

At the edge of the Vilkenos city wall.

A giant face was staring down at them from over the ramparts.