Chapter 5: Banshee! Curse!

The unexpected happened, in line with Felix's uneasy premonition. At midnight, one man died, a knight who had been standing guard.

Felix was the first to notice the anomaly, as he sensed a deep, bone-chilling cold, as if a terrifying power was attempting to freeze even his soul. This power made Felix extremely uneasy and afraid. Having some knowledge of dark magic, he could clearly sense that this was the fluctuation of frost magic, wielded only by the kings of the undead!

"Could there be a lich hiding here? Or maybe a death knight? Surely it can't be a frost dragon..."

Regardless of which, the disaster they would bring would be catastrophic!

These undead, who have forsaken their faith and willingly allowed their souls and bodies to fall into corruption, are undeniably formidable and terrifying. If a monarch of the dead were to appear here, not a single person would leave this place alive.

The magical charging of the spell "Death's Touch" takes only three seconds, which, in a sense, is already the limit of casting speed that a spellcaster can achieve.

Even with instant-cast magic, one still needs to mobilize the magic power within their body to form a magic network channel, then graft external magic elements onto it, and finally complete the casting. Using the body's superior magic conductivity to accelerate the filling of magic power and reduce the consumption of magic power during filling is the fundamental starting point of the "Shadow Alchemy Compendium."

Undead creatures have a considerable resistance to dark magic and shadow magic. Felix has no chance of damaging the Lich King with "Death's Touch."

The second to be alerted was the central knight, Yaxi. As a warrior who grew up on the battlefield of life and death, he had an extraordinary sense of danger. This acquired sixth sense was so accurate that it could even rival the "Little Book of Prophecy" in arcane magic.

"Enemy attack!"

From outside came cries of alarm, the sounds of swords being drawn, followed by the roar of Knight Yaxi.

Felix immediately stood by the shattered window. These knights stood no chance against the Lich King. The best choice now was to seize the opportunity and flee.

However, to Felix's surprise, as Central Knight Yaxi roared, the strong frosty aura began to fluctuate and eventually dissipated into nothingness.

"Illusion magic?!"

Felix took out his oak staff from the heavy luggage. If it was indeed illusion magic, he had to make the prankster understand what the 'Wrath of a Gamma Mage' was like!

Illusion magic is one of the most humble branches in the arcane system. It has almost no destructive power, and its only strength lies in its ability to create realistic element imitations. Only the least gifted casters would learn this flashy yet useless elemental system.

In the world of spellcasters, illusionists exist more for entertainment than for practical use.

Over 80% of minstrels have studied illusion magic. They rely on it to please nobles and audiences who can afford Caesar gold coins. Illusionists are the magicians of this world, providing entertainment for others. They are humble and despised by other spellcasters.

The "Basic Arcane Compendium" mentions that illusion magic is a unique application of arcane magic. Unfortunately, this humble branch of the arcane system will never find the "True Eternity." Only the least gifted spellcasters will study it, so the decline of illusion magic is inevitable.

Opening the door, Felix saw the heavy face of Central Knight Yaxi.

"Lukeso is dead," said the Central Knight, his slightly narrowed eyes flashing coldly.

Felix's hand, holding the oak staff, trembled but then steadied. Whether or not it was the Lich King, the enemy who could silently kill a mid-level knight was undoubtedly formidable!

"What method?" Felix discreetly raised his left hand, cautiously guarding against any potential attack from the darkness. Illusion magic has no attack power. Since a mid-level knight was killed, this couldn't be the work of an illusionist's prank.

Yaxi raised his hand, and two knights carried a withered corpse to Felix's side.

Looking at the face twisted in fear and despair, Felix gripped the oak staff tightly, his face somber, and slowly uttered one words.

"Succubus!"

It was a succubus!

Vengeful spirits of the wronged dead, they hated all living creatures, were masters of illusion magic and mental magic, found joy in the fear and despair of their prey before death, and devoured souls.

Succubi were not the most dangerous, but definitely among the most troublesome of undead creatures. They existed between the physical and spiritual, almost immune to physical attacks, and even magical attacks struggled to pierce their anti-magic shells.

Succubi were natural masters of illusion magic. They created the most beautiful dreams for their toys, only to shatter them with their own hands!

"The succubus seduced Lukeso with beauty," Felix pointed to the murky white stain near the dead man's crotch and said gravely, "As Lukeso reached the peak of desire, the illusionary beauty began to rot, flesh peeling off, facial features and organs falling away, finally turning into a hideous undead, clinging to Lukeso, who couldn't escape..."

"Using extreme contrasts to break the psychological defenses of the prey has always been the succubus's preferred method. Finally, when the prey's mind wavers, they devour his soul. This is recorded in the 'Dark Magic Defense Studies' about succubi."

This was originally recorded in the "Advanced Dark Magic Course." To avoid trouble, he made some small changes.

After explaining the process of the succubus's attack, Felix looked up at the central knight Yaxi, and then locked his gaze on the statue in the main hall, an inexplicable unease enveloping him like a dark cloud. "I think we should leave immediately!"

Felix pointed to the statue's leg, and then to a protruding section of the statue's damaged hip, saying, "If we don't leave now, we might all die here..."

The central knight's gaze followed Felix's finger and landed on the statue. Before entering, he had carefully observed this statue, which had long since been ravaged by time, its face unrecognizable and the divine power it once held gone. Yaxi looked at the statue's leg with a puzzled expression, then walked around to the section Felix had pointed out. He racked his brain for any deities he could remember, trying to associate them with the statue before him.

"This used to be a tail..." Felix said bitterly. Even though he had not found a horn on the statue's forehead, the appearance of the succubus made him almost certain that this was a temple of that race of gods, representing disaster and ill omen – the Plague Goddess!

Upon hearing Felix's words, central knight Yaxi's face suddenly turned somewhat pale. He tilted his head back to observe the statue's forehead closely. The more he looked, the darker his face became, until it finally turned ashen.

"Clang!"

The central knight drew the greatsword from his waist and pointed it at a small, inconspicuous protrusion, saying, "Though it's heavily weathered, this should be where the horn was."

"What do we do!?" Yaxi's ashen face showed a hint of despair as he looked at Felix, hoping the young spellcaster before him could come up with a solution.

"Leave! Leave now!" Felix firmly gripped his oak staff and spoke in a deep voice. His handsome face bore a determined expression; he didn't believe that fate would let him die in such a ridiculous manner!

To die powerlessly in pain and fear!

.........

The group trudged along the muddy road.

Three magic hours had passed, and the first death had occurred. It was a young, handsome pauper knight, a very talkative and cheerful Nukoman person. Felix even learned from his jovial conversation that he had won the heart of a viscount's daughter and would be marrying his beautiful bride next month...

Fear and despair hung over everyone's hearts...

About the Plague Goddess, about the curse...