Chapter 102: I’ve Found Your Phylactery?

It was as if Brutus had been castrated while he was still alive.

To make it worse, just as he was about to annihilate his most hated Marino family, Raine intervened, forcefully stopping him.

The pain, the frustration, the crushing despair of being kicked off the brink of his long-awaited revenge—words could hardly describe it!
But would Brutus yield?

No!
He absolutely would not!
Brutus knew all too well: he wasn’t just facing an unbelievably powerful legendary mage; he was also facing that mage’s tower.

He didn’t understand how his opponent had managed to teleport a mage tower here, since it involved spatial magic that he was unfamiliar with.

Attacking would be like throwing eggs against a rock.

Under normal circumstances, he should have retreated.

But this was no normal circumstance!

Raine had taunted him.

“Heh, little lich, attacking yet not attacking, retreating yet not retreating—what are you even doing? Are you afraid I’ve found your phylactery? Don’t worry. If you scram now, I might not have the time to waste on you.”

Though Raine’s words were rude, he was simply stating the truth. He had never played a game called “Chaos World,” so he certainly had no idea where Brutus’s phylactery was hidden. Raine genuinely didn’t have the confidence to fully eliminate an unfamiliar lich.

He was only stepping in as a last resort. A grand mage like Raine, who had seen countless beautiful women, wasn’t about to risk his life for some so-called duchess he’d never even met.

Anyone could claim to be beautiful.

Before he was transported to this world, there were beauty filters on cameras.

After crossing over, there were absurdly powerful illusions.

What if she turned out to be a “delicate” lady weighing 300 pounds?

That pink letter wouldn’t be worth a dime.

As long as Brutus retreated, Raine’s “face fruit” would be his to claim.

If Marino got attacked again, that wouldn’t be his problem as the “Grand Mage Tesla.”

He saved them once; he never promised to protect the Duchy of Marino for life!

Don’t call Raine cowardly—he wouldn’t forget that every lich worth their salt could use the classic one-shot kill technique, Finger of Death.

That spell was a total bug against the living.

It forced a Fortitude save; fail, and you’d die instantly. Pass, and you’d still be severely injured. Most absurdly, if this spell rebounded onto an undead creature, it would actually add a massive temporary health bar.

Since the battle began, Raine hadn’t shown himself, just to guard against this very move.

But who could’ve guessed?

Raine’s intimidation had backfired.

To Brutus, the words of this damned “Lich’s Bane” translated to: Gotcha! I’ve already located your phylactery. Since you can’t break through, you’d better run! Just like the other lowlife liches I’ve hunted down before, I’ll drain your soul in despair and crush your last hope.

It was only natural that Brutus’s mind raced with these thoughts; otherwise, he couldn’t explain why so many liches had fallen to this guy.

He was convinced Raine possessed some higher-level divination technique—especially since Brutus himself was an expert in this field, he believed it all the more.

Since the moment the advanced Insight into Legends spell had misfired, Brutus had spiraled deeper into his misconceptions, layering wrong assumptions one on top of the other, yet completely unaware of his errors!

Raine’s taunts only further inflamed the already sensitive soul of the archlich.

The lich’s voice was twisted with rage: “Hahaha! Grand Mage Tesla, you truly are a ‘Lich’s Bane.’ To pinpoint my phylactery’s location in such a short time! But if you think that’s enough to scare me off like those idiot liches before, to indulge in your sick hobby of lich-hunting, then you’re sorely mistaken. Because… here! Right here, right now! This is my one chance to defeat you!”

The archlich’s voice echoed widely, its eerie timbre rippling through the air. Nearly a hundred thousand soldiers and civilians were left in stunned silence, their minds blank for a brief moment.

Wait, what?
Wasn’t it just a standoff?
In such a short time, had Lord Tesla already gained an overwhelming advantage?

Remember, sometimes a true enemy understands you better than you understand yourself.

If these words had come from an ally, they could have been dismissed as mutual flattery.

But hearing a hostile archlich personally admit that Tesla was the Lich’s Bane? That changed everything.
Grand Duchess Sofia and her knights, after a brief moment of shock, felt an overwhelming surge of joy.

“By the gods! Lord Tesla is that powerful!”

“This time, victory is ours!”

For the first time in her life, the duchess felt a shiver of excitement. Cheers of praise drifted from the city walls like a wave.

The tens of thousands on the Marino side, including Thomas and Harry, even Brutus himself—all believed that Raine had gained a crushing advantage.

Only the man himself was utterly confused.

Huh?
When did I supposedly locate your phylactery?

Was there even such a thing?

For a moment, Raine’s head was spinning, leaving him questioning reality. He even double-checked his system notifications, and—nope—nothing related.

What was he supposed to do with this script now?
Raine’s response was simply to:

“Hah!”

Praise be to the almighty “hah!”
Think I’m confirming your theory? Sure, sure!
Think I’m denying it? Sure, sure!

That single “hah” left a thousand interpretations to a thousand listeners.

The Marino forces naturally assumed their grand mage was calm and poised to strike down the cursed lich.

On Brutus’s side, the mix of mockery, disdain, pity, and indifference in Raine’s laugh infuriated him.

“If there’s no retreat, then I won’t hold back! Tesla, you are the strongest opponent I’ve ever faced—now bear witness to an archlich’s wrath!”

What’s this, Wrath of the Lich King?
But your name isn’t Arthas, is it?

Alright, never mind then.

The ground trembled with dark winds. The bright red glow in the moat dimmed as flames seemed to flicker out, overwhelmed by a sudden surge of negative energy, shrinking into what looked like a dying matchstick.

A ghostly green web spread out from under Brutus’s feet, extending past his undead guards, creeping toward the city walls.

Countless undead had the last bits of energy drained from their bodies, forming waves of green pulses. Each pulse linked with the others, creating a bright green chain, battering against the perimeter of the mage tower’s domain.

Only then did Grand Duchess Sofia realize what had become of the land she had entrusted to the grand mage.

It had become an unfamiliar elemental domain.

As the chaotic winds blew through her fiery red hair, strands of loose hair brushed her cheek, subtly stirring her heart.

With a sigh, she murmured, “Truly, this is a world-shaking battle beyond mortal control.”