Paladin of the Dead God
Chapter 425: Immortal Emperor (7)

Countless skeletal figures staggered toward Isaac, their numbers so vast that they resembled waves surging in a turbulent sea. They climbed over each other, forming grotesque towers before collapsing under their own weight. They crashed together, shattering into pieces, then fused and erupted into new masses.

Isaac calmly swung Kaldwin, cleaving through the tide of bones.

Shhhh… Rather than slicing through solid bone, it felt like cutting dried stalks of brittle reeds. These remains had endured too many centuries, their very structure eroded by time, barely able to support their own weight.

“Calcium isn’t the only thing that’s missing.”

There was no intelligence behind their movements. The skeletons merely surged forward like an overflowing river, mindlessly drawn by an unseen force.

The endless years had stripped them not only of flesh but also of the wisdom and power they had once possessed in life.

"What do you see?"

Thankfully, the Immortal Emperor did not unleash a greater miracle or attempt to bury Isaac completely under the horde of undead.

That meant the "puzzle" was still ongoing.

He had not abandoned persuasion. He still left the door open for Isaac.

Rumble! Isaac gritted his teeth and unleashed Isaac Swordsmanship: Eight Branches, obliterating the battlefield. The tide of skeletons parted for a brief moment, granting him time to answer.

"That loneliness breaks people easily."

Whether the Immortal Emperor was satisfied with the answer or not, he did not immediately reply.

Isaac thought he could understand what the emperor was seeing.

A god who had loved humanity enough to grant them an escape from death had, in the end, created a living hell upon the earth.

But there was no turning back now.

He was the very law of immortality itself.

Crash! Isaac continued cutting down the undead while conserving his strength.

There was no need for aura. These beings were even weaker than typical zombies or skeletal soldiers. But no matter how strong a person was, no one could believe they could cut down an entire ocean.

“I need to get close to him somehow.”

And then what? That, he would figure out when the time came.

He couldn’t afford to remain here forever.

There was no guarantee that the Knights of Issacrea would secure Midas’ Hand in time—or that they would even follow through on his request if they did.

But no matter how much Isaac advanced, the Immortal Emperor remained just as distant, his shadow always out of reach.

Isaac suddenly wondered—was the emperor truly satisfied with this endless landscape of eternity?

"Why is he trying so hard to bring me in?"

By his own admission, Isaac was an Agent of Nameless Chaos. Would making him an angel of the Immortal Emperor really mean securing his loyalty?

Unlikely. Even angels could turn apostate. The Lighthouse Keeper himself wielded divine authority, yet used it as he pleased.

"If I joined the Immortal Order, what would happen to the world?"

The Immortal Emperor had said that Isaac introduced uncertainty into a predetermined future.

"Are you dissatisfied with the future? Is that why you want to change it?"

"That is a difficult question to answer."

A good sign.

It meant the Immortal Emperor was not entirely rigid in his beliefs.

Isaac had found the flaw in his logic.

The Immortal Emperor sought eternal life, but in doing so, he had made eternal life meaningless.

In a world where nothing changed, what value did an unending existence truly have?

This was the contradiction at the heart of the puzzle.

"There must have been a reason you chose to live forever! You, of all people, should know that simply existing isn’t the same as being alive!"

"That does not mean I wish for this world to be destroyed."

Isaac had no desire to destroy the world either.

But how could he convince the Immortal Emperor of that?

The emperor continued speaking.

"Even if you have no such intent, if no faith emerges victorious, then the balance of the Outer Boundary will collapse. And then, Nameless Chaos will flood in, completing the delayed apocalypse!"

Isaac clenched his teeth.

He understood where the Immortal Emperor’s fear came from.

It all traced back to the White Plague—the apocalyptic ritual orchestrated by the followers of Nameless Chaos to bring about the world’s end.

His terror of the end times was not without reason.

Isaac exhaled sharply, then stopped Kaldwin’s blade.

And then, he extinguished the Watcher’s Lighthouse as well.

The icy coldness of the emperor’s domain sank into his bones instantly.

Now fully immersed in the Immortal Emperor’s world, Isaac dropped his sword and slowly walked forward.

Unsurprisingly, the tide of undead swallowed him instantly.

Jagged claws, rusted swords, and corroded spears pierced into him.

And then—

The wave of skeletons froze in place.

Sensing something unnatural, the Immortal Emperor halted their attack.

Isaac’s body was already beyond ruin—"mangled" was not even sufficient to describe his condition.

But he remained standing.

Leaning on Kaldwin like a staff, he glared at the emperor.

And from the torn flesh along his arms and torso—

Tentacles slithered forth.

The tendrils slowly pushed out the embedded weapons from his body.

They writhed sluggishly, but did not extend beyond Isaac’s immediate reach.

They simply stirred in the air, empty and hollow.

A sight most profane.

But to Isaac, this grotesque display might be his best chance at persuasion.

"If I truly intended to destroy the world, there are at least a hundred easier and more definitive ways to do it."

That was not a joke.

It was far easier to break something than to protect it.

Isaac didn’t know the exact victory conditions for Nameless Chaos, but if their goal was to collapse nations and shatter faiths, there were countless simpler ways to accomplish that.

If anyone in this world knew how to do it, it was Isaac.

"But like you, I want this world to endure. That’s why I became a Holy Grail Knight of the Codex of Light."

Knowledge was power, and ignorance was fear.

Nameless Chaos thrived in the darkness, an unknown terror lurking beyond understanding.

The Codex of Light shined into that darkness, revealing the monsters that dwelled there—giving people the strength to confront their fears.

By casting light on his own darkness, Isaac hoped the Immortal Emperor could do the same—so he could free himself from fear.

Believing that the Immortal Emperor would not strike him down, Isaac stepped forward once more.

His injuries weakened him, making it even harder to maintain the Watcher’s Lighthouse.

But now was the moment to strike—not with a sword, but with reason.

Finally, Isaac stood face to face with the Immortal Emperor.

The emperor’s shadow shifted, reaching out.

His ethereal fingers brushed against the tentacles sprouting near Isaac’s eyes.

And then, he spoke.

"Isaac. You have walked in and out of Urubansus, have you not?"

"Yeah."

"Then tell me—do you believe this ’now’ that we are experiencing… is truly the present?"

Isaac was caught off guard. He had never considered that possibility before.

But he should have.

If the "present" could be undone at any time and rewritten by returning to the past, then the present was never truly fixed.

He had already experienced this firsthand in Lichtheim. The world could be revised, and unless they were angels, no one would even notice.

There had already been hints that this world itself was Urubansus.

Isaac had played Nameless Chaos, a game that mirrored this world—a game where all possible victory paths and historical outcomes had already been inscribed.

That meant all of time was already recorded—it was all in the past.

***

"This world was born in chaos."

The Immortal Emperor abruptly changed the topic.

"‘Order’ is nothing more than a fleeting moment when the endless chaos, after an unfathomable passage of time, just so happened to align in a structured form. We fought desperately to preserve this fragile order—to prevent it from dissolving back into chaos."

The Codex of Light and Nameless Chaos were not equals.

Not even close.

The gods knew this.

That was why they had created the Outer Boundary, why they upheld the Codex of Light, why they struggled to keep the world intact.

"Until you appeared, we were endlessly repeating the timeline up to the fall of Holy Land Lua. Searching for the best answer, the outcome that would allow us to open the next chapter in the most satisfying way."

Isaac felt a chill run down his spine.

So they had been rewriting Urbansus indefinitely? Replaying the fall of Lua over and over? Searching for a better result?

That sounded an awful lot like a game.

"Then why not just… not let Lua fall?"

"Because everyone’s goals are different."

If the Dawn Army never rose, then they would face a different, equally undesirable future.

There had to be a reason the Codex of Light was so desperate to hold onto Lua.

A reason why they had fought side by side with the Immortal Order, risking everything.

Because they had already tried all the other possibilities.

"I understand your intentions."

Isaac nodded.

"But the burdens we carry are too heavy to be settled with mere trust."

The Immortal Emperor slowly lifted his shadowy hand and placed it around Isaac’s throat.

A crushing pressure tightened around his neck.

The Immortal Emperor whispered lethargically.

"Did you truly think, even by chance, that I would ever turn the page to a new era for you?"

Isaac understood now.

The Immortal Emperor had no intention of winning.

If necessary, he would keep Isaac trapped forever, preventing chaos from consuming the world.

But Isaac smirked.

"Of course not… A god wouldn’t back down so easily. What could I possibly do to… break a god’s will?"

The Immortal Emperor didn’t ask why Isaac would throw his life away.

Because he already knew—Isaac was up to something.

Gritting his teeth through the pain, Isaac looked up at the sky.

He could not defeat a god.

A god’s will was not something that could be overturned by personal logic or reason.

But shining a light was not the only way to overcome fear of the dark.

One could also dive into the darkness and confront the fear head-on.

"Yeah… It’s impossible for me alone."

Reaching the Immortal Emperor had already been half the battle.

Everyone was striving for different things.

And among them, there were gods who would rather see the world burn than live in peace.

Suddenly—

The Immortal Emperor’s world split in two.

A wave of scorching heat surged in from one side, while a gentle breeze carried the scent of autumn leaves from the other.

The Immortal Emperor’s eyes widened as he saw grass sprouting from the frozen wasteland, golden leaves scattering into the wind.

And then—

Isaac’s fist slammed into his face.

The Immortal Emperor recoiled, momentarily releasing his grip on Isaac’s throat.

And in that instant—

He understood what had intervened in the fabric of this world’s order.

"Elil!"

***

"Your Majesty!"

Kwwwwaaaaang!

A devastating arrow of the Netherworld tore through the air, and Lianne shouted in alarm.

It was a direct hit—there was no escape.

But Edelred tightened his grip on Kaldwin and deflected the arrow with a single swing.

The projectile veered off course, crashing into Khan’s army and leaving a path of destruction in its wake.

"Sister! Are you alright?!"

Even though the arrow had missed, its impact was immense.

Even a Swordmaster like Lianne was shaken, her vision blurred.

But she did not let go of her reins—instead, she spurred her horse forward.

"Don’t worry about me—focus on Khan!"

Blood trickled from her lips, and crimson veins streaked across her eyes.

But she refused to slow down.

If she faltered here, she would no longer be General Georg’s right hand, no longer the Guardian of Holy Land Elion.

She would not even be worthy of being called Elil’s knight.

And behind her—

Countless knights of Elil charged forward.

"Protect the King of Aldeon!"

"Elil! Elil! Elil!"

Edelred gritted his teeth and turned his gaze toward Atlan.

Atlan was already drawing another arrow.

The Netherworld’s long-range bombardment was devastating.

If left unchecked, the Dawn Army’s victory would slip away.

Only an angel could stand against an angel.

That meant Edelred had to stop him.

"Knights, with me!"

Kaldwin’s power surged through him, bestowing upon him the might of the Lion Knights.

With each strike, he tore through Khan’s forces, and the knights of Elil followed behind, dealing irreparable damage to the enemy ranks.

Of course, it was suicidal.

The orc horde vastly outnumbered them.

Their sheer mass and numbers bore down on the knights, forcing them to endure relentless losses.

The further they pushed in, the greater the casualties.

And yet, Edelred did not stop.

Because his knights would not stop.

"Elil! Elil! Elil!"

Their voices were hoarse, their bodies battered, but with each death, they did not scream in pain.

They roared Elil’s name.

They had come here for honor and glory.

And now—

They had their chance to prove it.

’Is this what you wanted, Elil?’

In the midst of their war cries, Edelred felt his mind burning.

’Is this what you desired?’

’Are your devoted knights dying a righteous and glorious death?’

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