Rise of the Supreme Necromancer-Chapter 73: A Dwarf?

Samuel chased after Irkan. The undead slaves around him attacked Karill and Farlan, preventing them from stopping Samuel in time.

Irkan recited a prayer, and a Shield of Light appeared in front of him, stopping Samuel’s blow, but breaking into pieces in the process. However, gave Irkan enough time to prepare his next spell.

"Begone, in the name of Light!" Irkan shouted, raising his sword.

A blast of Light energy came from Irkan, turning the nearest undead slaves into charred carcasses without any animating force in them. Those who stood farther away were simply thrown aside, stumbling, singed, and weakened. Only the living were entirely unharmed by this magic.

Samuel stumbled back several steps. His armor offered almost no protection against this spell, and he was only a few hits away from being destroyed entirely. He could only grit his teeth and endure, while feeling his skin melt and his tongue char inside his mouth.

Pain, unlike anything he felt since his death, was coursing through him.

This was Turn Undead, a second rank spell that was often used by templars from one-time artifacts. But Irkan could cast it without an artifact, although this drained almost all his remaining mana. Even his Halo of Light spent all of its energy and went out.

"Good one!" Karill cheered. "Let’s finish him!"

"No... We are getting outnumbered!" Irkan said. "Look around!"

Undead were all around them.

Aleric’s spell raised not only enough to distract the inquisitors for a moment, but also defend nearby ladders. Now, the first undead servant soldiers climbed them.

They weren’t as well-geared or skilled as Samuel, but they held enough Dark magic to not fall apart from a single weak spell or a strike of a blessed blade.

Although each inquisitor was still worth dozens of undead, there were way more than dozens. And there were fewer and fewer living...

Irkan awkwardly slashed a zombie, but he wasn’t very proficient with his left hand.

"Retreat, now! Before we get swarmed. We already killed many undead today, but we need to live to kill the necromancer some other day!" he ordered.

"We did what we could. Now only Light can save these poor souls," Maria added, nodding.

The inquisitors turned and began cutting their way off the wall. There was no doubt that they could find a way from the city, perhaps from the other gate, which was only slightly monitored by Aleric’s scouts.

Samuel growled and clutched his sword harder in burning hands.

"Not so fast, you cowards! What kind of templar flees a besieged city?!"

He charged after Irkan, but was slowed by his injuries. Karill’s shield stopped his next blow. with ease. In the next moment, the templar pulled out a familiar amulet from his belt.

Samuel threw himself back just in time to avoid the second Turn Undead spell, done from an artifact this time. The wave of Light only singed his legs and back somewhat, but destroyed a dozen undead slaves that were trying to chase the inquisitors alongside Samuel.

But by the time he got up, the inquisitors were almost at the staircase leading down.

Before leaving, Farlan pulled a vial of holy water off his belt and threw it at Samuel, but the former justicar hit it with a flat of his sword, sending the holy water to splash over some already singed zombies.

Below, Aleric sensed Samuel’s sorry state and that the inquisitors were leaving the wall. He called Samuel to leave the fighting and come down.

With the inquisitors gone—at least for now—the taking of the city could proceed in a usual way.

***

Just half an hour later, Aleric and Samuel were leading soldiers down the city’s main street, toward Castle Mirrand. His other people spread in all directions, chasing down the few defenders that still dared to raise their weapons against the undead.

BANG!

The sound was so loud that it was easily heard even among the shouting and sounds of battle that were coming from the nearby streets.

Aleric halted his horse, looking toward the sound’s source—a street to the side.

"What was that?" he asked Samuel. During the past half an hour, Aleric had fixed the magic on Samuel, returning him to full strength, or close to it. However, the former justicar smelled strongly of burned meat.

"That sounded like... Dwarven fire-weapons! They must belong to dwarven traders—the royal decree prohibits humans owning them without his permission." Samuel’s words were slurred by his burns.

Aleric closed his eyes for a moment.

He remembered seeing dwarven traders going through his town, back when he was a child. But these memories were hazy—he only remembered that they were short and that their carriage smelled like smoke.

"Then let’s look. My soldiers didn’t have instructions on how to act with dwarves." Aleric directed his horse down the other street and was immediately followed by Samuel and his entourage. There were a dozen Black Riders and way more regular zombie soldiers.

"Master Fenn, be careful, the fire-weapons can shoot even through shields."

Aleric was about to nod and slow down his pace when he heard shouting.

"Get away, Dark ones! This house is a territory owned by a citizen of Allwealth, and by agreement signed by King Rafael Sandrain the Second, it is subject to Allwealth’s laws of private property! I take no part in your local conflicts, humans, but anyone else who will step on MY cobblestones will get a bullet, too!"

"He’s resisting! Soldiers, break down that door and take him—Master Fenn!"

Aleric rode out to the street, forcing the zombies to stop.

The street in front of him had many wealthy shops and houses of merchants made from bricks and painted bright colors, but one house stood out. It was made from solid stone instead of wood or bricks, with small windows close to the ground—almost like a fortress.

A dozen zombie soldiers surrounded it with weapons at the ready. One of them had an inch-sized hole in his metal breastplate.

"Don’t attack, soldiers." Aleric turned to the house. "Did I hear that right? You don’t want to fight me and my army... whoever is inside?"