The Immortal King looked up at them from below, his hollow eye sockets gleaming with what seemed to be amusement.
"Well, well, well," he said, spreading his arms wide. "I was just about to come looking for you. To think you decided to pay me a visit instead." He placed his skeletal hand over his chest in mock gratitude. "How honored I am."
Cipher just looked at him. "Give it up. We already know your secret. Release the captives."
The Immortal King seemed taken aback, his posture stiffening for just a moment. But he quickly recovered his confidence, his jaw clicking as he let out a dry laugh. He opened his arms wide, and the ground beneath Cipher and Maya began to shake violently.
The cliff collapsed.
Massive chunks of rock and earth tumbled downward, carrying the two of them with it. Dust and debris exploded outward, obscuring everything in a thick cloud.
When the dust settled, Cipher and Maya stood casually amidst the rubble, as if nothing had happened.
"Stop these games," Cipher said.
At that moment, he noticed them - thousands of undead emerging from the ground and surrounding them from all directions. Skeletal warriors, rotting corpses, twisted abominations. An entire army.
The Immortal King laughed, raising his arms triumphantly. "Do you see now? You may have found me, but you’ve walked right into my..."
Cipher cleaned his ear with his pinky, looking thoroughly bored.
"Should I kill him?" Maya asked.
"No need," Cipher said. He looked at the Immortal King.
"Die."
The Immortal King collapsed instantly, his skeleton crumpling to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.
Maya extended her hand, and a shimmering barrier formed around them and the Immortal King, separating them from his undead army. Then the two walked toward the remains of the Immortal King.
Cipher glanced at Maya, and she instantly understood. Mana chains materialized from thin air, wrapping around the Immortal King’s bones and binding him tightly.
Cipher placed his hand on the Immortal King’s skull.
He activated Resurrection.
...
If the Immortal King had skin and a face, his current expression would be one of extreme terror.
He looked around frantically, his skull darting left and right before his gaze finally settled on Cipher and Maya. Without hesitation, he tried to teleport...
Cipher killed him.
Then resurrected him.
The Immortal King tried to teleport again.
Cipher killed him.
Resurrected him.
Killed him.
Resurrected him.
This cycle repeated dozens of times. Hundreds of times. Each death instant, each resurrection immediate. The Immortal King’s attempts to escape became more desperate, more frantic, until finally...
"We’re getting nowhere," Cipher said flatly. "Every time you try to teleport away, you will be killed. So you’d better cooperate."
The Immortal King stared at him, his empty eye sockets somehow conveying pure dread.
"Now," Cipher continued, "tell me where the captives are. The people you’re killing to maintain your immortality."
The Immortal King was silent. He really had been found out.
Still...
"Kekekeke... KEKEKEKEKE!"
The Immortal King’s laughter erupted, maniacal and unhinged, echoing across the battlefield.
Maya frowned. "Is something wrong with him?"
The Immortal King’s laughter slowly died down. "You think you’ve won? You think you have me cornered?" He tilted his skull. "I’m not going to tell you anything."
Cipher raised his hand to kill him again.
"What are you going to do?" the Immortal King taunted. "Kill me? Only to revive me again?"
Cipher paused.
"I don’t know how you’re preventing me from resurrecting on my own," the Immortal King continued, "but I know you won’t kill me permanently. You’re worried about those people, aren’t you?" His jaw clicked in what might have been a grin. "Actually, now that I’m dying permanently, my undead holding the captives are killing even more people trying to revive me - to no avail. Do you know what this means?"
He leaned forward as much as the chains would allow.
"Their blood is on your hands."
Cipher just stared at him.
"Well, technically, you’re the one killing them," Cipher said flatly.
He then sighed.
"Don’t play these mind games with me. While I want to save those people, I can still do without." His gaze hardened as he stared directly into the Immortal King’s empty eye sockets.
The Immortal King was silent for a moment.
"You’re bluffing," he finally said.
Cipher grinned. "Try me."
"If you’re really not bluffing, then kill me and don’t revive me," the Immortal King taunted. "Go ahead. Do it."
"Ho..." Cipher’s smile widened.
He extended his hand toward the Immortal King.
This was useless. He should have just done this from the start. While he cared about the captives, he wasn’t some moral hero fighting for justice. If he played mind games with the Immortal King, he would have to compromise. And he and the Immortal King simply couldn’t coexist.
Besides, he wasn’t really going to abandon them. After killing the Immortal King, he would steal his skill to create undead. This would disable the undead, so the captives should be safe until he could find them. That would be the hard part, but not impossible. With Maya’s help...
At that moment, his phone rang.
Cipher paused. He retrieved his phone. The caller was the Chairman.
He put the phone to his ear.
His expression froze.
"Did something happen?" Maya asked, noticing the change in his demeanor.
"Deal with him," Cipher said.
Before she could respond, he launched himself into the air at top speed, leaving a crater where he had stood.
...
Maya remained with the Immortal King.
The barrier she had created still held firm, sealing them both within along with the frozen undead army. She stood there silently, her face bent downward, hair obscuring her expression.
The Immortal King watched her for a moment before letting out a dry laugh.
"Your friend abandoned you," he said. "Left you here all alone with me." His skull tilted mockingly. "I’ve already called my main undead army. It will be here soon."
Maya didn’t respond. Her shoulders seemed to tremble slightly.
The Immortal King’s confidence grew. "If you know what’s good for you, you should remove these chains immediately." His voice took on a falsely gentle tone. "Do that, and maybe I’ll let you die peacefully."
Still no response. Just that trembling figure with her face hidden.
The Immortal King laughed again. The girl was clearly terrified. How pathetic. Without her master around, she was nothing but...
Maya’s head lifted.
Her eyes had changed. Where her pupils should have been, golden clock faces now glowed with ethereal light, their hands ticking in perfect synchronization.
She exhaled deeply and pushed back her hair.
"Finally back," she said.