Stop, Friendly Fire!

"Don't you want to know what's happened on the surface during the time you were away?"

The Light General, Sorura Von Lilaine. She seemed to have some strange feelings towards Arema Steelworker... No, it was probably an ongoing thing. That's the conclusion that Lee Shin Woo came to.

[I'm happy so long as His Majesty is safe.]

"You still say the stupidest of things. I told you before, without you, the Empire and the Emperor won't exist."

[Watch your mouth.]

At first, Lee Shin Woo had thought that there was some sort of bad blood between them. When he considered her and Arema's personalities, he assumed that they had disagreed in politics or values. However...

"Don't you want to know what's happened to your family ever since you stuffed yourself and your relatives into golems and went underground?"

[His Majesty told me that he'd bestow upon me the highest position in the Empire, second only to his own. I trust that my family's still going strong.]

"What unshakeable loyalty. All the other members of the Four Heavenly Generals got married and had kids, but you're the only one stuck in that metal shell of yours. Don't you feel miserable?"

[Not at all.]

"...I got married too. Though my husband died already."

Lee Shin Woo was starting to catch on. He'd thought, 'There's no way she likes this half-wit, does she?', but after listening to her, that suspicion became absolute certainty.

It seems like these two had feelings for each other when they were young! ...If not, then this beautiful lady had a one-sided love for Arema!

'Why now? What a pain in the ass.'

He already had enough trouble as it was dealing with the women in his life, but now he had to deal with a woman who still loved an already dead man?

It felt really awkward. Since there was a higher chance that she would figure out that he was a fake. But she didn't know that Arema was actually dead. And with a complicated expression, she grumpily quarreled with him.

"Don't you have anything to say?"

[Should I? Am I supposed to ask about your husband?]

"...Has your heart become metal as well?"

She responded despondently. Lee Shin Woo did his best to ignore her while Jin, who he had been riding on before, snickered. Jin was also disguised as a golem right now. Her body was originally covered in steel, so it was easy to disguise her.

[You usually talk a lot more. What's wrong? Is it too much for even you to accept a middle-aged woman?]

[Knock it off, Jin. The more I talk to her, the more awkward it'll get. I guess I just have to hope that we arrive at the capital quickly...]

That didn't work as he wished either. He'd created these golems as consumables. He adjusted them so that their cores' energy would be depleted, in return allowing them to move faster and stronger than normal. Thus, they would be able to keep up, no matter how fast the surface's troops marched. But the issue lay with the Vampires!

"Keuk. That's an artifact created through powerful light mana. Those Retadane bastards, did they predict the Emperor's course of action and prepare this in advance...?"

[...You all know that Seagald can wield light, right...? If this is enough to stop you, then you'll never be able to defeat him.]

"I know! We prepared a countermeasure!"

Lee Shin Woo said sarcastically, unable to hide his disappointment at how pathetic they were. But then, the Light General replied temperamentally.

As her name implied, it seemed like she could originally wield light. And apparently, after becoming an Elder Vampire, she would hurt herself whenever she used the light element. Meaning that not everyone could be like Seira or Seagald, and balance both light and darkness together.

In other words, her becoming an Elder Vampire had effectively sealed her greatest ability. She was a complete idiot.

[So what exactly is that countermeasure of yours? ...Did His Majesty perhaps...?]

"Exactly. The Emperor created an artifact that can convert the undead curse into a darkness element barrier. It's not very strong, but it's effective over a wide area and makes one unable to use the light element. How is it, Arema? This is an artifact that was created by His Majesty himself."

The Sun Spear General passed him a metal disk and Lee Shin Woo observed it.

He obviously didn't ossify it. Not only was it not his, but the Emperor was a higher level than him. Above all, Lee Shin Woo's Bone Reinforcement had advanced recently, allowing him some control over it.

'As expected, it's growing. I don't need to feel restless.'

He assumed that his recent advances in Bone Reinforcement were due to his training in the Manatization skill. As he studied this skill, which allowed him to transform his body into mana, he became more capable of controlling mana and matter.

His Manatization skill had gotten to level 5 just recently, and this was the fruit of that effort. He was sure that the day he mastered the Manatization skill would also be the day that Bone Reinforcement and Rule of Bone fundamentally changed!

'But more importantly...'

He put that past him and observed the disk. It reminded him of the pieces of metal within those liquid hand warmers he'd used when he was a student...

[Dark Red Solar Eclipse +5]

[Lv7]

[Durability: 5/5]

[Options: Once activated, the object breaks into pieces and the magic contained within is released, creating a widespread barrier of darkness. A Vampire's abilities are doubled within this area, and the power of light is weakened. But this artifact cannot block light that far exceeds its level.]

[This is... a consumable artifact that contains His Majesty's power. It's truly amazing. However...]

"Don't worry, we have a few more like this. His Majesty wants this operation to succeed no matter what. Doesn't us (three of the Four Heavenly Commanders) being here prove that?"

[...That wasn't like me. I might've been scared of being defeated by him once before. Laugh if you want to.]

"No. I'm not going to laugh at you, Arema."

The Sun Spear General sported a serious expression and patted his shoulder.

"On the contrary, you did well to survive against him. Not only did the Emperor realize how dangerous he was, but you also went as far as to sacrifice your subordinates to find out where his bases were and what his goals are. There's no one that can deny your accomplishments because of that. You're still the Empire's greatest shield. Keep your head up high."

[You're still as silver-tongued as always.]

Lee Shin Woo replied and smiled bitterly. Then, the Sun Spear General smiled in satisfaction. The Light General watched their interaction and gritted her teeth, as if in disapproval. What about the other Vampires? They were just moving their feet in silence, not daring to interfere in the Four Heavenly Commanders' conversation.

[Hoo, it's gotten quiet all of a sudden.]

It was the second day of their march. Once it became daytime, the Vampires set up camp and took a break. While Vampires looked so human-like that they could be called demi-undead, they still possessed a critical weakness: they couldn't operate during the daytime.

'For undead, they're quite a strange species. Seems like they can reproduce too. It also seems like the undead traits are minimized, like the stubbornness and the impulsiveness...'

This must've been the reason why the Emperor decided to become a Vampire, despite the undead being an imperfect existence. But did Vampires overcome all the disadvantages that came with being an undead...? If asked, Lee Shin Woo would shake his head.

Lee Shin Woo could tell, as one who had overcome all of these disadvantages. The Vampires possessed an imperfection, a more pronounced flaw than the other undead species. Their weakness during the day was one such flaw.

'They're not even in direct sunlight, but they're half-asleep already. Their resistance to sunlight is weak, their senses weaken, and their mana becomes inactive... No, is this because the artificial sun is just that strong?'

[...Huh?]

Lee Shin Woo observed the Vampires and wondered how he should fight the Emperor when the time came. But then, he suddenly felt a presence from behind him and turned around. There stood the Light General, Surora Von Lilaine. She seemed completely different from before, when she agonized under the light of the artificial sun.

[Huh...?]

[I know you're surprised, but don't be so loud. Just listen to me.]

She was likely talking to him telepathically through darkness element mana. He didn't really know what was going on, but Lee Shin Woo nodded his head. Then, she sighed as if she were relieved and then continued.

[The others are affected by a Vampire's natural weakness to sunlight, but I'm different. I could originally wield the light element, so I can move around during the day without any problems. Though I suppose you could say that I bear a penalty just as severe myself.]

He thought she was a dumbass for becoming a Vampire when she could originally wield the light element, but that wasn't entirely the case. Lee Shin Woo nodded his head in acknowledgment and then she confessed something even more shocking.

[That's not all. I was able to sever my connection with the Emperor. You told me that your own connection with the Emperor was severed when you were encased in a golem's body. Isn't that right?]

[...]

How surprising. She was transformed into a Vampire through the Emperor's power, yet she was able to sever the connection with him? What the hell was she going on about?

[That's what light is all about. The Emperor's strong, but he cannot use the light element. That's why he had no choice but to make use of me, and that's how I was able to grasp the Emperor's weakness.]

[You...!]

[Listen to everything I have to say and then make your decision. Since I brought enough information to make even your loyalty waver! If I hadn't, then I wouldn't have humiliated myself and become a Vampire and then come all the way down here to see you!]

'Arema would be fuming right now', Lee Shin Woo thought, but she continued sharply, so he kept his mouth shut for now.

[Your body! Do you even know what happened to your body!? You don't, do you!? Let me tell you. It's gone. It's gone without a trace! The Emperor just realized this, but he did everything he could to keep you from finding out!]

[...!]

[He hasn't kept a single one of his promises to you; he's just using you. Now you... don't have a body to return to...]

'How did she hide these feelings from him all this time?' he wondered, as her voice was so intense, even through telepathy. Lee Shin Woo saw tears flow down her cheeks and didn't say anything. 'Arema, you're pretty good...', he thought frivolously.

When she'd asked if he had any interest in what happened on the surface... she probably wanted to tell him about this.

[I can give you anything you want as proof. I didn't come here to kill Retadane. I came here to convince you. The Emperor's losing power. If you want to take your revenge, then now's the time! ...If you want to keep listening, then nod your head. If not, then you can kill me or let me go. Do as you wish.]

She finished, and then opened her arms wide and stood there defenselessly. But her eyes were staring straight at him. To think that not only did she have feelings for Arema, but she would bring such a bombshell to light... Lee Shin Woo tried desperately to keep his lips from curling upwards.

Does he take the safe choice and kill her here, or does he risk exposing his identity... There was only one choice he could take.

[It looks like a storm's coming.]

The Joker nodded his head without hesitation.

The woman in front of him just smiled sadly.