An indefinite amount of time ago...

In the skies, Kasiel soared at supersonic speed, aiming for the city of Sinif. Approaching it, he landed, masterfully camouflaging his figure with various spells. Like a ghost, he moved on foot inconspicuously, approaching the city gates while maintaining his stealth.

With regret, Kasiel took out a piece of skin from a box. This white and soft patch, akin to the skin of a newborn, immediately captured his attention. In his thoughts, he saw its beauty, dreaming of becoming one with this wonderful material. A knife shimmered in his hand, ready to peel off his own skin. However, at the last moment, he overcame the temptation. Instead, he pricked his finger and spelled the word "Vallynor" with his blood.

The piece of skin soared into the air and headed towards the castle, while Kasiel felt his life energy being drawn out of him, shortening his lifespan. Without a second thought, he left, believing his mission to be complete.

***

Atop the castle tower, a man in a stylish suit, complemented by exquisite glasses, comfortably sat. In one hand, he held a book with the name “Vallynor” engraved on its pages. In his other hand, he held a cane, occasionally creating invisible waves with virtuoso movements. As the cane performed a unique dance, one of the defense systems slowed for a fraction of a second, opening potential paths for mysterious maneuvers.

The skin, unnoticed by the outside world, began to smoothly move, evading the attention of the defense systems, thanks to the skill of this mysterious man.

Watching the piece of skin penetrate the castle, the man stopped his cane dances, deeply immersing himself in reading his book. On its cover were engraved the words: "A Step from Man to Enemy of the World." A fire of curiosity sparkled in his eyes, diving into the mysterious world of words as if through a portal to unexplored stories and events.

***

The piece of skin, having penetrated inside the castle, easily glided through the winding corridors, eventually stopping in front of a massive door. Passing through it as if it existed only to obey his will, it entered a room where the body of Vallynor rested. At that moment, the skin unfolded, covering the floor, walls, and even the ceiling with its soft, yet undeniable presence. From this ethereal covering, a creature clad in the same soft skin emerged, and the room was filled with a sinister light.

***

Kasiel returned, entering the room. Sighing, he looked around his space, raising his pricked finger. But instead of healing, the wound continued to bleed, and pain enveloped his body and soul.

"Ah!" - Falling to the ground, he felt his energy draining towards the city.

Isda and Forkas entered the room, drawn by Kasiel's screams. Both looked at him as if he were a monster, seeing him age before their eyes.

"It's a demonic curse," - Yena coldly replied, looking at the dying Kasiel.

"A demonic curse? How? Where could curses come from in the demonic world?" - Forkas, stunned, began to panic, and his faith started to crack.

"Where? You think there are no demons behind this seal? Yes, there is a demonic God capable of creating an unnoticed crack," - Yena replied, looking at Isda.

"A demonic God? How?…" - Forkas muttered in confusion, not understanding what was happening.

"See, Isda? (Yena)... Yes(Isda)... I always told you, not everything is clear here. Our situation is unique, and I've long thought we were caught in a conspiracy..." - Yena interrupted.

"You mean..." - Isda began.

"Gods and demons have formed a secret alliance, but for what purpose? Demons I can understand, but why the Gods?" - Yena continued.

Forkas, pausing, looked at Isda with some doubt, and said, "I don't know what's going on here, and what awaits us. And I don't want to regret. I love you."

"I know. But... sorry," - Isda smiled, considering this moment the most unfortunate for a declaration of love, next to the corpse of an angel.

***

Vallynor's gaze lingered on the necromancers, and in response, they did not stand aside. Tension hung in the air, like flames in a forest on a summer evening. Duke Mogil emerged from the shadows of the necromancers and, laughing, said:

"The lad surprised us! A bold one, daring to use against us our own creations. Knowing what punishment he might receive for this. You've proven that true necromantic blood runs through you. Interesting, is he worthy of becoming a full-fledged member of our brotherhood? To become one of our comrades?"

He turned to the other necromancers, carefully studying each one. Waiting for an answer, the necromancers, initially shocked, exchanged looks, then nodded one after another. Krina stepped forward and said:

"Vallynor has proven his passion for necromancy, his willingness to go beyond the rules in search of knowledge and power. I consider him worthy."

"And I."

"Me too."

Many supported Krina and Duke Mogil's opinion. Iratus stepped forward, slowly beginning to speak, carefully observing everyone. Then he said:

"I've pondered for a long time, watching this fortunate one. How everything falls into his hands. And his innocence has not disappeared. I wonder, will he create the same blood feast with real living people?… Possibly!… After everything I've seen, I'm convinced… That he should be granted the right… To employ the undead created by my races."

Many were astonished by Iratus's statement. The necromancer, usually proud and seldom sharing his thoughts. And here he was, granting him this right. It was a true shock.

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Start Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZpswb95xSQ

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Vallynor listened attentively and was pleasantly surprised. He realized that he could call them brothers and sisters, which added a special meaning to what was happening. Instinct, inexorably leading to doom, made him quickly exit the book. Before his eyes, a strange sword slowly descended.

Dodging at the last moment, he fell to the floor, and the bed shattered into pieces, raising dust. Vallynor only saw the silhouette holding the strange sword aimed at him. Dodging again and drawing his sword, he blocked the next attack.

The dust settled, revealing a person wrapped in something that resembled not so much unusual clothing but rather a skin enveloping the entire room.

Vallynor didn't have time to understand what was happening when he blocked another attack. Clashing swords, he prepared for a counterattack, but suddenly magic flew at him, pushing him back and forcing him to hit the wall.

Hitting the wall, Vallynor tried to dodge, but felt something strange stick to his skin. Knives flew past, summoned by magic, and at the same time, he summoned soul hands, detaching from the wall.

One of Vallynor's hands tore off and flew away. He didn't understand how it happened, but, creating a magical barrier, he jumped to the side where he had just been. There, a second creature emerged from the strange skin, holding the same strange sword. Looking at the floor, Vallynor saw how the skin slowly began to envelop his severed hand.

Using the soul hands, he tried to grab his hand, but the second enemy, after several strikes, cut off his soul hands.

"Aaaa!"

Vallynor felt an ancient, forgotten pain emanating from his soul. The second enemy raised his hand at the level of his stomach and began to cast spells, while the first jumped at Vallynor.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

"I need to escape from here."

Wanting to run away, he looked around, but all paths were blocked. Blocking an attack, Vallynor tried to summon his lich, but his attempt failed. It became clear to him that the Lich remained in the world of the book.

Summoning his undead, Vallynor tore off his hand and stuck it to himself. He blocked the enemy's attacks, spells in the form of fireballs and lightning approaching him. All of this was blocked by his undead.

At one point, one of Vallynor's legs flew off to the side and fell to the floor. Next to him appeared a third enemy, who, like the others, held a sword in one hand, and in the other hand – a whip, with which he sliced the undead into pieces. Tearing off a leg from the undead, Vallynor attached it to the severed one.

In the next moment, Vallynor summoned his soul hands. Blue soul hands, more directed at the undead, merged with the minions, and the red, more decisive ones, attacked the enemies. Vallynor lunged at one of the enemies, not giving him a chance to cast a spell, while the others held the two others back. Using magic and fencing, Vallynor managed to fight on equal terms, but sometimes had to pay with his limbs, using them as a shield.

A fourth enemy emerged from the wall, holding in one hand the same strange sword as the others, and in the other – a knife, with which he cut the undead. Vallynor, focusing on defense, began to summon more powerful undead – ghosts, werewolves, and other creatures. Fortunately, he still had many creatures he had created in his arsenal.

Thinking about what was happening in this arena, Vallynor sighed with joy, deciding to sacrifice the weaker undead, playing the role of people.

However, not understanding how it happened, Vallynor suddenly rose into the air. Seeing half of his body on the floor, he realized that his lower half had fallen off, and his clothing had disappeared in flames. Only now did Vallynor understand that he was wearing a cloak he had received from the God of Death. It didn't help him in defense. Looking where the arm was cut and attached, he saw that it was dressed in a black cloak with golden runes.

"What is this clothing?" Vallynor wondered, puzzled. He wanted to know more about the mysterious cloak. But in the next moment, his head flew off. A ghost, catching Vallynor's head, lowered it down. In the next moment, several spells flew. The ghost lowered the head onto the undead, which had cut off its own head to give its body to its master. The black cloak wrapped around Vallynor, pleasantly surprising him.

Parts of Vallynor's body began to be consumed by this skin. Enemies dressed in the same skin sliced everyone in their path, striving to kill Vallynor.

In the continuation of the fight, Vallynor continued to summon the undead and create various kinds of spells, from necrotic fire to decomposing lightning. The enemies blocked the spells and approached, often causing Vallynor injuries. Several times they almost completely severed his head, but loyal servants always came to the rescue at the last moment.

From the leather floor emerged a new enemy, holding in one hand the same strange sword, and in the other – scissors. The pressure on Vallynor only intensified. He understood that he couldn't hold out for long.

Surrounding himself with the strongest undead, Vallynor took advantage of the moment and pulled out precious materials from his inventory. Beginning to curse himself and the entire room, even before finishing the curse, he felt everything around age and lose strength. Even the enemies became slower and weaker, but this only enraged them even more. They tried to reach Vallynor and tear him apart.

The enemies began to chant a spell, black flames appearing on their hands, emitting cold. The fire was thrown directly at Vallynor, and the enemies, one after another, tried to kill him. But Vallynor continued to summon the undead and cast spells, despite often losing limbs or body parts. The leather floor hindered the hands from emerging, and hundreds of hands tried to break free, but they were repelled by force.

And then, from the leather floor emerged another enemy, holding in one hand the same strange sword and in the other – scissors. The pressure on Vallynor increased. Realizing that he couldn't hold out for long, he surrounded himself with the most powerful undead and pulled out precious materials from his inventory. Taking advantage of this, he began to curse himself and the entire room. But even before finishing the curse, he felt everything around age and lose strength. The enemies slowed down and weakened but became even more furious, striving to tear Vallynor apart.

In Vallynor's magic, powerful spells were cast, hurling at the enemies with an enhanced curse. Under his control were the undead, already subjected to attacks by the enemy.

In response to Vallynor's spells, the enemies began to show their anger, emitting a growl full of inexplicable fury. Twisting and dodging attacks, Vallynor reflected on the reasons for their sudden indignation. Gradually discovering a weakness in the forces of the creatures, he pondered, perhaps they had lost part of their energy or divided it, making them less powerful. Perhaps they did not have an infinite source of energy, and therefore they were forced to move faster.

The flesh of the room was suddenly enveloped in black fire, and the skin that filled the space began to contract. Vallynor easily blocked another strike but noticed how his mithril sword was disintegrating, turning into the finest dust.

"How is this possible?" Vallynor wondered, hesitating for a moment, which resulted in a whip piercing his chest. Without thinking, he leaped aside, tearing his body in half. After that, he cast a spell on the enemies while their attention was on him. Ignoring the undead, the ghosts managed to enter them, taking control only for a moment before being destroyed, but the undead had time to respond with an attack.

Every hit from the undead, although not causing serious damage, only scratched the enemies. But there was less and less time for maneuvering.

Vallynor continued his fight, jumping and attacking, sometimes changing bodies to avoid taking serious damage. The undead were summoned by him again. After several strikes with swords, Vallynor noticed the source - a cube made of skin, from which four more beings emerged, not yet fully out.

The moment Vallynor began contemplating his next move, his body was torn apart. The head, remaining intact, was quickly surrounded by the undead. At the same moment, Vallynor wondered why his head wasn't destroyed, as if his killing wasn't a priority.

Destroying the undead protecting their master, the skin people turned their gaze in one direction. There, where everyone was looking, a hole opened, and Alexander and Caesar entered.

"Who would have thought that someone would take advantage of our absence to invade and wreak such havoc?" said Alexander, holding a spear with which he easily destroyed several enemies.

"I'm surprised myself. Why didn't I notice their arrival? But I'm more concerned about how these fanatics of the Demonic God of Skin ended up in this world," added Caesar, raising his hand. One of the skin people rose after it, then disintegrated, clenching his hand.

The entire room of skin flared up with black fire, ten times more powerful, engulfing both the skin people and Alexander and Caesar in flames.

"Useless," Caesar waved his hand, dispersing the black fire, but even this dreadful material left no trace.

Approaching the multitude of undead, Alexander and Caesar noticed Vallynor, emerging in a black cloak. Both saw how a bright head was attached to a dark body.

"You lost your body... Sorry, if I had come faster, you might have kept your efforts," Alexander began to apologize, knowing Vallynor's dislike for training. However, now all efforts were lost, and he would have to start over.

"It's okay. I still remember my training. Moreover, I can start new techniques better. The head remains, and it will help me accelerate training," Vallynor said, somewhat sadly. He realized that all his efforts related to the body were lost, but fortunately, the trained head would help speed up the tempering process. He knew the process, and thanks to this, he would be able to train twice as fast.

"Now I'm more worried about how this demon's slaves managed to penetrate the castle. I couldn't foresee this..."

"Do you have any idea who it might be?" asked Alexander, observing the destroyed room while Vallynor gathered the remaining undead.

"Hmm. Only one person in this world could have interfered with my vision," Caesar looked attentively at the window as if he saw a man in a black suit.

"What shall we do?" Alexander looked closely at Caesar, waiting for instructions. But at the same time, the tech department would return to his daughter.

"Nothing."

"Why?" Caesar's answer didn't surprise Alexander much. As one of those who managed the city, he knew Caesar very well and what motivated him.

Caesar didn't answer immediately, but looked at Vallynor. Vallynor, ignoring the conversation between Caesar and Alexander, finished gathering the undead, then began to deal with the backlash from the curse. Caesar, stopping looking at him, turned his head to Alexander:

"I'm more concerned now about how the servants of that demonic god appeared. Fortunately, based on the energy used and their emanation upon death, it can be said that they had a very small amount of energy at their disposal. Did you notice?"

"Divine energy?" Alexander immediately responded to Caesar's question, watching as Vallynor dealt with the curse's backlash. After that, he began to train his body right there, even pulled out a time artifact and various types of minerals that should help strengthen the body. – "This guy."

"Yes. It's very strange how a demonic god, using demonic energy and everything related to it, would use divinity as the main energy. Essentially, a slow-acting poison. As if..."

"It's not his energy. Could it be that some god interfered?" Continuing Caesar's thoughts, Alexander asked him what was troubling.

"Possibly, possibly. Fortunately, because I saw it. Such a thing will not happen again soon. But still, we need to strengthen the guard."

"Hmm, millennia of silence and peace. Made us lazy and dulled our senses. I would like to punish them. But... they are all heroes and villains, who should rest. Rest one last time from everything. And I don't want to spoil their last moment."

"Tell them they will have more time to train Vallynor. Let's leave Vallynor to train. And I will talk about preparing a room. And after that, with Gavriil, to strengthen the time artifact even more," Caesar, turning around, disappeared, leaving Alexander. After which Alexander also left.

***

Sitting on the roof of the castle, the man in the suit stood up and adjusted his suit and glasses. He sent the book into his spatial pockets, saying:

"I could never have thought that the old man, who had taken a hit from me, would be able to find me and not be afraid to appear alone, Caesar." – The man turned to Caesar, who looked at him warily.

"As always. You love to jab at me... Tell me, why did you summon these abominable spawns?"

"Hm? Has old age affected your mind? Fortunately, I'm not foolish enough to get involved with such a disgusting and dangerous god. I merely helped a little."

"Why?" – Caesar almost shouted, looking intently at the man's face.

"You teach and train him. So, I decided to show him reality. That he is weak and that this gift fell into his lap... Honestly, I'm surprised he managed to last so long..." – the man in the suit slowly disappeared, leaving Caesar with a pale face.

"Could it be..."

***

Forkas and Isda wanted to move Kasiel's corpse. But at the mere touch, it turned into dust. Both looked at Kasiel's dust and then at each other. They noticed how the corpse dust began to move and formed into the word ‘Vallynor’. Isda and Forkas frowned, not understanding what was happening here. But everything was related to the one called Vallynor.