The teleportation deposited me in the middle of a vast grassland.
A group of about twenty armed soldiers stood before me. At their head was a woman clad in white armor. Her blonde hair cascaded down her back, and her eyes were closed. I could feel a surging magical pressure emanating from the spear she held.
She was the Valkyrie.
I had heard that despite her blindness, she was a master of the spear. Looking at her dignified presence, it was clear those reports were no exaggeration.
I touched down on the grass and activated the magic formulas integrated into my dedicated machine. Mana-blades extended from both arms, spinning at high speeds. They were weapons capable of cleaving through a tank with ease, designed to shatter an opponent along with their defenses.
A grim expression clouded the Valkyrie’s face. She halted her advance and leveled her spear in a quiet, ready stance.
"You are..."
"The Valkyrie, I presume. I have business with you."
I walked toward them without hesitation. The soldiers instinctively shrank back, step by step. A thick, suffocating tension hung in the air.
While the Valkyrie was the most prominent presence, the others appeared to be highly capable warriors in their own right. I could tell just by looking at them; their strength far exceeded that of ordinary soldiers. Furthermore, they were equipped with armaments enchanted with holy magic. It made sense why they had been hand-picked as an elite unit. If I focused solely on the Valkyrie, I would likely suffer a heavy blow from her subordinates. They were a formidable group of experts.
I gestured with my rotating blades and spoke. "You intend to destroy the Valley of the Dead. That is an act I cannot permit."
"As I thought, it is a land deeply connected to you..."
"Yes. It is my source of power."
I nodded. The Valkyrie’s expression turned suspicious.
"Why state that so clearly? Now that we know, you have given us all the more reason to proceed."
"Corpses do not spread information," I replied instantly.
The soldiers gasped. Some looked visibly shaken, their spirits likely wavering as they sensed their impending deaths.
Amidst their unease, the Valkyrie pointed the tip of her spear at me. Though a fair distance still separated us, it was well within the margin of error for our respective combat ranges.
"...I see. I understand your resolve. It seems battle is unavoidable."
"As long as you aim for the Valley of the Dead, yes."
Even if they had offered to retreat, I fully intended to eliminate them here. I could not leave a group targeting my home base to roam free.
The Valkyrie knit her brows, her expression hardening. "Facing you like this, I understand. You possess a terrifying power. Your presence is every bit as ominous as one would expect of the Demon King. However... no, that is precisely why I am the one who can surpass you."
"You speak with confidence. Do you have a basis for it?"
"I do. Allow me to demonstrate."
The Valkyrie hoisted her spear high. Magic power gathered at the tip before bursting into a diffusing wave that permeated the entire area.
In that instant, a crushing weight pressed down on me. The responsiveness of my dedicated machine plummeted. My limbs refused to move properly, and I was forced to drop to one knee. Because the magic formulas were disrupted, the blades on my hands vanished into mist.
Among everyone present, I was the only one affected. Not a single person in the enemy camp showed the slightest sign of discomfort.
The Valkyrie looked down at me with a resolute gaze. "How do you find it? Do you understand now?"
"...Requiem Power," I answered.
The unique ability the Valkyrie had gained upon becoming a hero was the power of Requiem—an anti-undead art of a different lineage than holy magic. She had used this very power to inflict massive damage on the Demon King’s Army. During the recapture of the Republic, she had undoubtedly slain more undead than anyone else.
"It only works against the undying, but the effect is absolute. I have suppressed your entire army with this ability. Requiem does not target the soul, but rather the consciousness of the target. This power reaches you even if your true body is far away, does it not?"
"............"
She was exactly right. This dedicated machine was merely being operated remotely. Normally, purification and other holy attacks would be far less effective against a remote-controlled vessel. I had chosen to use a golem specifically for that advantage.
In reality, however, the influence of the Requiem reached all the way to my physical body in the royal capital. That was why my control over the machine had been disrupted. Requiem was a unique ability, a power that followed a logic different from standard magic. Common sense did not apply here. I could not complain, even if she had dealt a heavy blow to me from across the continent.
"Now you cannot exert your true power. The victory is ours."
The Valkyrie walked toward me with her spear still leveled. Believing the fight was already over, a calm, almost serene expression returned to her face.
"Please, remain still. I shall purify you as painlessly as possi—"
I activated a spell, cutting her words short. An arrow of pure mana fired from my hand, streaking accurately toward her.
"...?!"
She shattered the arrow with a single flash of her spear. Despite her blindness, her movements were flawlessly practiced.
I stood back up, moving my limbs to test their mobility. There was a slight lingering heaviness, but it was far from fatal.
"—How naive. Did you truly believe a mere debuff was enough to defeat me?"
"What...?"
The Valkyrie stood stunned. Her soldiers were openly shaken. Until now, they had used the power of Requiem to effortlessly neutralize the undead. Their confidence in it had been absolute. To see it overturned so casually was a shock they couldn't hide.
"I knew of your Requiem. I appeared before you despite it because I was certain I would not lose. It is a powerful ability, yes, but it possesses a fatal flaw compared to holy purification. It lacks direct lethality against the undying."
"Lethality...?" she repeated, as if the concept were foreign to her.
I gave a slow, deliberate nod. "Unlike purification, Requiem is too specialized in weakening the undead. While its influence is difficult to block, it lacks the power to deliver a finishing blow."
"Ugh..."
The Valkyrie groaned and unleashed more magic power through her spear. My body grew even heavier as she increased the output of the Requiem. However, even this was within my expectations. It was not enough to make me fear for my life.
The Valkyrie’s power shows its true value when facing a horde. One cannot use the violence of numbers against her, as any undead in her presence will lose the majority of their strength and be overrun.
However, the story changes when the opponent is an overwhelming individual. A highest-ranking undead like myself or Grom can move by sheer force of will even under the influence of Requiem. Even in a weakened state, I was not so frail as to fall behind a handful of humans.
"You seem panicked by our encounter, but you were careless. You are treading the same path the Saint once did."
As I spoke, I cast my magic. The ground began to heave and bulge across the grassland. Dozens of golems crawled out from the earth—makeshift subordinates I had created by spreading my mana like roots through the soil.
Under the influence of Requiem, there was no point in summoning undead. An alternative approach like this was a refreshing change of pace.
Facing the army of earth golems, the Valkyrie braced her spear. I sensed no fear in her; she remained steadfast and dignified.
"I am a hero. I will not retreat here."
"A fine spirit," I replied.
Then, I set the golems upon them.