Level Up Legacy

"I did not mean to fool you," said Dal with regret as he stared at them. "My body was demonized, and the only way I managed to survive is to separate it from my head. However, I got thrown away, with no chance of reobtaining it."

"Save the talk, asshole," said Joey as he stretched his shoulders. "I carried you all the way here, and in the end, we have to kill you? You are just another enemy. You knew that we were being entrapped here, but still guided us to this demonic palace."

"We should have stabbed the head before it returned to its body," said Nixie with regret. "Even if it remained alive, we would have an easier time fighting a creature that cannot see or hear things."

"Has it been spying on us the entire time?" asked Fae with a frown. "If so, then the dark mage knows our abilities and weaknesses. We should not have trusted a head we found lying around."

"There is no use crying about it, as it would not change a thing. Dal wanted to reunite with his body, and we were the only way he could get there," said Arthur as he defused their anger. "The situation remains the same. We have to conquer this fortress."

"That is very understanding, Alexie," said Dal with newfound hope. "I know for a fact that my demonized body cannot defeat you. Thus, I ask that you restrain it instead, so I would be able to regain control of my former self."

"That needs a lot of self-control," said Arthur with a shake of his head. "I\'m afraid that I still have a long way before attaining it. Do forgive me if I accidentally kill you."

"That is…" paled the head at the thought and appearance of the black dagger. The rest of the group also prepared themselves for the horde of undead coming their way.

"Fae and Nixie should take the back. Alexie and I are going to take the front, while Koby will be in the middle launching fireballs," said Joey, prompting the rest to assume formation in preparation to invade the fortress.

An undead corpse rushed toward Joey, throwing itself at him. The fighter threw a fist that sent the corpse flying with its head flying in a different direction. However, after the body fell to the ground, it rose against like nothing happened.

"I had enough of headless monsters," said Koby as he swung his staff and threw a giant sphere of fire that struck the headless undead alongside several others. They screamed in pain as their corpses began to melt under the extreme heat.

"Blunt attacks seem ineffective against them," said Arthur as he dodged the rotten hand of an undead and stared at him from the side. "How about we chop them?"

As he flicked his wrist, a wind blade sliced through the undead, cutting them in half. Arthur stared at them rise again, each half moving on its own. With a sigh, he turned toward the fire mage.

"It seems fire is the only way," said Arthur to the thin mage. "Are you ready?"

"Always," said Koby as he waved his staff, throwing another sphere of fire at the undead. Arthur smiled and pocketed his dagger before raising his hand as well.

Fire surrounded his fingertips before they exploded in a massive pillar of flames, like a snake that headed toward the horde of undead. Arthur controlled the pillar to move it around, making countless undead scream.

Although the tower restricted his runes, he could still imitate them using the technique that Koby taught him. For that reason, he felt indebted to the mage who did not know that he has given Arthur a way to access his original power.

Joey and the twin sisters started to fend off any approaching undead, who walked through the flaming hell without a care. In fact, most of them reached the group while on fire and threw themselves toward them. Arrows rained and fists flew in all directions as the group began advancing forward.

Unlike runes, this technique used mana to imitate the actual rune. Therefore, it consumed a lot more mana than genuine runes, but it allowed the person to use artificial runes as they wished. Arthur still had the knowledge he gained from Gaia, but his mana was not infinite.

The horde of undead was turned to crips under their flames. The group advanced toward the gate before they were surrounded with their backs to the giant door. Joey leapt in the air and kicked the gate, sending it flying several meters in the air before it crushed a platoon of undead with its weight.

"Whew, that felt satisfying," said Joey as he landed. The twin sisters fired several volleys of arrows as the two mages walked into the fortress, and then they leapt inside too. "Maybe I should\'ve kept the gate so that we could block the undead."

"No worries," said Arthur as he reached out with his hand, and a strange force left his hand and carried the giant gate. Underneath it were the crushed undead soldiers, wearing armor and wielding blades. Even in their mangled form, they still tried to move. "As good as new," he announced before directing the gate to its original place, blocking the entrance to the undead.

At this point, the rest could only watch as Arthur pulled new abilities out of thin air. Their minds were more occupied by the undead legion surrounding them. Inside the fortress, the Dullahan controlled the undead and made them more organized.

"I hate to scare all of you," said Arthur while surrounded by undead, "but some of us might die in this battle. There are countless monsters that cannot be killed except with fire. Although we managed to break through the crowd outside, these veteran corpses know better than to rush forward without a plan."

"Then, we just need a plan of our own," said Fae with eyes that studied the enemy\'s formation. "The Dullahan is atop that tower. If we manage to take it out, we can expect the fight to be a lot easier."

"Easier said than done," said Koby with a pale face. "I don\'t have any more mana in me. We have been fighting for nine hours straight. No one can keep fighting for this long."

"If your staff cannot spew flames, then it can smack away enemies," said Joey while knocking his knuckledusters together, letting sparks fly. "We cannot give up on a fight before we die."

"Fae is right," agreed Arthur as he stared at the Dullahan. "Since it protected itself with so many walls and soldiers, the Headless Horseman is scared for its life. We can safely assume it to be the center of this room."

"What is our plan?" asked Joey as he stared at the soldiers taking a step forward to them. The lights in their skulls were craving to devour their living flesh. "Do we make a run for the central tower?"

"There is no other way," said Arthur before he tightened his fist before his eyes, and then looked forward. "We break through with everything we have, putting our lives on the line. I\'m running out of mana too, so don\'t rely on me too much."

Arthur was still human, restricted by the tower. His black lightning did not need mana, but it did consume his mental strength to retain his sanity. Thus, he needed to rely on his battle instincts this time, which was not a bad feeling after so long.

The five prepared themselves for the fight, each of their faces covered in sweat and dust. As if knowing that the battle began, the Dullahan raised its hand and a platoon of undead knights rushed forward. Their movements were organized, and the one to meet them was Joey.

Although he used nothing but his fists so far, the fighter was more powerful than the rest. Arthur noticed that there was now a soft glow covering his knuckles, and realized that he began showing his real strength.

The moment his fist connected with the shield held by the undead, a powerful shockwave sent the knight flying toward its comrades. A loud metallic sound echoed throughout the battlefield as a path opened before them.

"You hid that for long enough," said Arthur with a smirk at the fighter, who did not turn toward him. Instead, he rushed forward, kicking the next undead with the same strike.

Joey pushed forward with the four behind him, taking care of the sides. Although Arthur did not wish to use more mana, he had his dagger which managed to slice the undead in half as they advanced.

Realizing that Joey was a close-combat fighter, Dullahan pulled his hand back and ordered the undead to keep their distance. Then, they aimed their crossbows at the group, who have now been surrounded.