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Death is a wonderful thing—it always brings me benefits.
For example, a corpse that hasn't even cooled yet. I can, while it's still warm... turn it into a puppet, adding another member to my army of the dead.
Collecting corpses is my greatest hobby in my demonic life. Humans, magical beasts... even the long-extinct Dragon race—I even have a fine dragon skeleton.
But the corpses I yearn for the most are those of my brethren.
Unfortunately, that damned Seilah always manages to take our brethren's "corpses" before I do.
Whenever a special corpse appears, it brings me satisfaction. That wonderful feeling is as joyful as the happiness of a bountiful harvest.
And in the more than four hundred years since I was created by Lord Zeref, among the countless corpses I've collected, there was one human corpse that my necromancy could not corrupt.
That reawakened soul even shattered my understanding.
This living dead man named Silver, despite harboring an almost insane hatred for demons in his heart, still acts respectfully toward me on the surface. How interesting.
So I offered him to Lord Mard Geer.
And he lived up to expectations, becoming my colleague.
Relying on the Devil Slayer Magic he obtained from who knows where, and a terrifyingly firm resolve, this endurance... I believe Silver will surely give Lord Mard Geer, and me, a huge surprise in the future.
But I have absolute confidence in controlling him.
Because I am the Necromancer Devil created by Lord Zeref himself. I am the eternal skeleton without flesh and blood. I am the evil monk who toys with the deceased. I am the last undertaker!
Recalling his thoughts, Necromancer Keyes gazed at the nearby village, dismissed the corpse soldiers he had sent to investigate, and spoke to the middle-aged man accompanying him.
"Silver, it is indeed as you said—a dead village with no warmth. It seems my army will gain dozens more skeletons."
"It's just... Silver, you actually took the initiative to tell me such good news. It couldn't be a trap targeting me, could it?"
"Cunning skeleton."
Silver cursed silently in his heart, meeting Keyes's hollow eyes with an expressionless face. He knew the Necromancer Devil's personality well, so he had already prepared his words.
"What, afraid I'm setting a trap to kill you?"
Facing Silver's indifferent provocation, Keyes scoffed.
He had always known Silver had ulterior motives, but he had never truly taken it to heart. Without his necromancy, no matter how powerful Silver's Devil Slayer Magic was, he would just be a dead man.
Even if that village really was Silver's trap against him, Keyes had no fear, because he had absolute confidence in his own strength.
If Lord Mard Geer hadn't severed Keyes's control over Silver's body, he could have made Silver grovel before him.
Keyes thought he had Silver completely under his thumb, standing on the second level.
In reality, Silver was on the third level, having already anticipated Keyes's thoughts and, in turn, manipulated him with words.
Watching the Necromancer Devil stroll toward the village, Silver's lips curved slightly upward. "Walk faster, you arrogant fool. That place is your point of no return."
"It is also my place of liberation."
Silver had already made up his mind: if Noah eventually freed him from the Necromancer Devil's control, that would be for the best. If not, then he would choose to pass on Ice Devil Slayer Magic to Gray.
Anyway, his enemy Deliora was dead, and his son had a good home. So taking another enemy—one who desecrated his and his fellow villagers' corpses—to die together would also be a satisfactory ending.
Keyes knew nothing of Silver's thoughts.
His corpse-collecting obsession drove his steps faster and faster, so fast that he unknowingly stepped into the Jutsu Shiki specifically targeting Demons from the Books of Zeref.
It wasn't until he crashed into a wall of runic script that appeared in the air that Keyes realized the existence of the barrier.
Rule: Demons from the Books of Zeref cannot leave.
This Jutsu Shiki, laid down with all of Freed's power, although incapable of weakening the Necromancer Devil's strength, was sufficient to trap him for a considerable time.
After two attempts failed to break the barrier, Keyes finally realized this truly was a trap set for him. He then looked furiously at Silver, who could move freely within the bounded field.
"Silver! You tricked me!"
"Idiot, I never denied it."
Silver gave a cold smile and retreated directly outside the Jutsu Shiki's range.
Due to the necromancy, Silver couldn't attack Keyes, and he didn't need to. In the plan, Silver only needed to bring Keyes here.
However, to prevent Keyes from having any hidden means to control him and cause additional trouble, Silver steeled his heart and directly released magic to freeze himself.
He was a ruthless man.
Watching Silver suddenly freeze himself, the enraged Necromancer Devil's mind hadn't even processed it when he saw eight or nine figures surrounding the barrier.
"Is this a Demon from the Books of Zeref? Freed, you're truly amazing to be able to trap him." Bickslow marveled at his captain's methods while also being wary of the dense Magic Power surrounding Keyes.
But for Natsu and Lucy, who had personally experienced the Lullaby and Deliora incidents, they felt nothing special. After experiencing certain things many times, one's threshold naturally increases.
Erza Requipped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor, with circling sword blades behind her, and said in a deep voice to the white-haired woman beside her. "Mira, do you have confidence?"
Mira nodded. In the plan, after the Necromancer Devil was eliminated, she would quickly use Take Over to absorb the Demon Soul, using necromancy to allow Silver to continue existing.
If it were before, Mira would still need some time to adapt, but Silver couldn't wait.
But ever since absorbing a portion of her original power from Satan Soul on Galuna Island, Mira's control over Demon Souls had reached a proficient level.
"Stop talking nonsense! What's with all the dawdling over a mere demon!"
Evergreen was unwilling to take orders from anyone other than Freed. She directly used Fairy Magic to attack the Necromancer Devil.
A storm of fairy light bullets poured down on Keyes.
Evergreen wanted to prove to these people that she was more deserving of the title of Titania than Erza.
However, reality would not bend to her will.
After a barrage of fairy light, the Necromancer Devil was completely unharmed.
The attack, not even worthy of an itch, made the Necromancer Devil feel humiliated. "This level of magic... you truly underestimate me, Necromancer Keyes."
"Come forth! My army of corpses!"
Keyes could only not control Silver, but he had countless corpses and skeletons under his command.
With the activation of Magic Power, countless undead appeared in the expanding aura of necromancy. Human and various magical beast corpses were densely packed, and there was even the skeleton of a dragon.
Overwhelming—the army of corpses erupted forth.
At this moment, Keyes also saw the terrified "dead people" in the village. Deceived and toyed with, he decided to first turn these actors into real corpses.
However, a melancholic black-robed youth, shielded behind a blonde girl, was like a magnet, preventing the Necromancer Devil from shifting his gaze.
Spriggan paid no attention to Keyes's stare. His eyes were only on the pink-haired youth engulfed in flames, charging fearlessly toward the giant dragon skeleton.