Chapter Summaries

Kraun developed a versatile Metal Avatar before saying goodbye to his sister’s family and departing Rhine City with a Church expedition to establish Shelter Land. The convoy traveled toward Hamus Mine, where Kraun discovered that Fugin and Bastet were feeding on something unusual.

• Kraun formed a Metal Avatar from his cube and metal alloys, testing its weapons, combat abilities, and capacity to store ammunition.
• Kraun visited Tiffany, Rodney, Julia, and Martin to say goodbye before leaving Rhine City, giving the children bronze family figurines and Rodney ten vials of Golden Light Talisman Water.
• Fland sent Kraun and five other bishops to help build Shelter Land, instructing them to establish a landing field and an initial fortress before winter.
• Kraun rode with the convoy toward Hamus Mine as overgrown roads and occasional deformed Monsters slowed their progress.
• Bastet killed a deformed hyena, and Fugin ate a piece of flesh from its heart, telling Kraun he would need to trade Talisman Water for a share.

Kraun’s pets revealed how their new abilities worked during a wilderness camp, where they encountered a Leshy. The monster summoned wolves around the camp as Kraun hurried to join the assembled defenders.

• Kraun examined a Meat Core from a mutated beast and confirmed it was free of contamination before Fugin ate it.
• At camp, Kraun learned that Fugin could see spirits and Bastet could devour them, then let the pets hunt nearby while he trained.
• Pier saw Bastet swallow two beast-shaped shadows before dark green vines attacked it and a towering Leshy emerged.
• Pier fired a Signal Flare, and the Leshy’s howl brought answering howls from nearby wolves.
• Kraun rushed to the scene after sensing Bastet’s fear and found the Leshy surrounded by a pack of wolves as soldiers formed a defensive line.

Kraun, Fanny, Nick, and the troops fought a Leshy and its wolf pack near the camp. Kraun destroyed the Leshy’s Magic Totem and helped kill it, but Fanny warned that its substitute-death spell meant Leshies could still threaten them.

• The Leshy led its wolves against the camp, and Fanny and Nick decided to kill it before more predators arrived.
• Kraun summoned his Metal Man, then joined Fanny and Nick in attacking the Leshy and its forces.
• Kraun fought through the wolves and struck the Magic Totem until its spiritual shield failed and the stake shattered.
• With the totem destroyed, the Leshy weakened, and Kraun and the others beheaded it.
• Fanny identified the Leshy’s substitute-death spell and warned that they would need to guard against future attacks.

Kraun and the others established the New Parish near Hamus Mine, but the Leshy continued to threaten them. As the bishops planned a hunt, Lisa Smith traveled to the parish with Lia and Lorraine to meet Kraun.

• Kraun led the troops to the Hamus Mine, where they chose a cliff-backed site and began building the Shelter Land.
• Over the next three months, the troops completed seven sanctuaries, the Shelter Array, and a defensive wall, while Kraun advanced his abilities and developed new uses for Golden Light.
• Fanny and Nick discussed future construction and agreed to clear nearby beast dens in hopes of flushing out the Leshy, which had recently killed a Night Watcher.
• Lisa Smith traveled to the New Parish as the Warlock Brotherhood's representative, bringing potions and the Spirit Controllers Lia and Lorraine to help her approach Kraun.

Lisa arranged to work with Kraun, first trading potions and then negotiating for his Golden Light Potions. After Kraun advanced Beast Taming to its limit and unlocked Wild Fury, he tested the ability on Fugin and Bastet as they prepared to grow stronger.

• Lisa traded ten Control Potions to Kraun for twenty Gold Spirit Coins and arranged to rent one of his houses for the Brotherhood's office and residence.
• Kraun practiced the Rock Breathing Technique with a Control Potion, gaining 124 proficiency points, then trained his Golden Light Incantation and refined Moon Radiance.
• Lia and Lorraine suspected Lisa had brought them to Hammer Diocese because of Kraun, though they were unsure how they could help him.
• Lisa offered to supply Kraun with Control Potions or Bear Heart Potions in exchange for Golden Light Potions, and accepted his higher price and return condition.
• Kraun advanced Beast Taming to its limit, unlocking Beast Protection and Wild Fury, then activated Wild Fury and made Fugin and Bastet swell with red spiritual light.

Kraun prepared to hunt the Leshy after Fanny assigned him to the night watch, while trading potions with Lisa and training with the new supplies. At midnight, he opened his eyes in a burst of golden light, ready to patrol.

• Kraun tested his pets against the Metal Avatar and saw them damage its Refined Iron Body before he stopped the attack.
• Lisa traded twenty Control Potions and forty Bear Heart Potions for twenty-three bottles of Golden Light Talisman Water, then learned Kraun planned to reduce future trades.
• Fanny told Kraun that the Leshy had begun appearing nightly near the city wall and assigned him to join the night watch; he proposed paralyzing it before the others attacked.
• Kraun learned from Walter Hasluck that the Leshy appeared in the second half of the night and agreed to patrol after midnight.
• Kraun used a Bear Heart Potion to train the Giant Bear Breathing Technique, then visualized the Golden Light Incantation until midnight, when golden light flared around him.

Kraun discovered that his Golden Light Incantation had increased his stamina, then joined the night patrol and confronted the Leshy when it attacked the wall. The Leshy's vines overwhelmed Kraun's Metal Avatar, and Kraun leaped down to fight it himself.

• Kraun sensed a warm current after his Golden Light Incantation passed 40,000 points and realized his stamina had increased.
• Kraun and Watt rode along the wall on patrol while Fugin and Bastet accompanied them.
• Guards spotted the Leshy, which attacked Fugin with a Bone Spike until Kraun shot it off course.
• Kraun summoned his Metal Avatar and ordered Watt and Bastet to retreat as the Leshy approached the wall.
• The Leshy used its Magic Totem and vines to slow the Metal Avatar, then battered it as Kraun prepared his combat techniques.
• Kraun activated Source Armor, the Heart-Clearing Incantation, Golden Light Body Protection, and Bullet Time, then leaped from the wall to fight the Leshy.

Kraun fought the Leshy alone, escaped its attacks, and tested his combat skills before withdrawing after proving he could defeat it. At St. Peter's Cathedral, Osman Deluc burned a letter announcing another Cardinal's advancement and reflected on his damaged Life Essence and his efforts to repair it.

• Kraun evaded the Leshy's attacks, freed the Metal Avatar, and wounded the monster while honing his sword techniques.
• After fighting for twenty minutes, Kraun withdrew, concluding he could kill the Leshy but would gain nothing by doing so because it could revive.
• Watt, the soldiers, Fugin, and Bastet welcomed Kraun back, and he rested and checked his increased skill proficiency.
• Osman Deluc burned a letter reporting that a Cardinal in Cologne Cathedral had advanced to the Silver Realm, while he brooded over other Cardinals surpassing his controlled dioceses.
• Osman recalled that secret arts had damaged his Life Essence and resolved to keep searching for a way to repair it.

Kraun and the parish forces prepared a coordinated hunt for the Leshy, then Kraun confronted it during the operation. The Leshy surprised him with a hidden teleporting attack and vines, leaving Kraun trapped in its embrace as they struck.

• Kraun told Fanny he had fought the Leshy without dealing fatal injuries, and they agreed to launch their operation in three days.
• Kraun spent the next three days practicing and patrolling while the Leshy appeared each night, allowing him to study its abilities.
• Fanny and Kraun briefed the parish forces on how to find and kill creatures cursed by the Leshy, and Nick ordered the warriors to prepare for the operation.
• After the Leshy appeared late, Kraun drank potions, strengthened his defenses, and fought it using the Giant Bear Breathing Technique.
• The Leshy used Magic Crows to conceal a Position Swap, grabbed Kraun, and sent its summoned vines stabbing toward him.

Kraun and his allies defeated the Leshy, ending the threat to the Hammer Diocese and recovering its Heart of Emerald and Spirit Soul. After discussing the spoils and new church orders, Kraun agreed to oversee the Mining Area clearing the next day.

• Kraun used his shield and fire-enhanced attacks to fight the Leshy, while Fanny and Nick joined him as the troops began searching outside the city.
• The Leshy tried to escape using its Magic Crows, but Fanny destroyed its Magic Totem and the three Cardinals drove it toward the city wall.
• Nick broke the Leshy's leg, and Kraun and Fanny dismantled its substitute body before Kraun recovered the contaminated Heart of Emerald and Leshy Spirit Soul.
• Kraun asked to keep the Spirit Soul for a Soul-Infused Weapon, and Fanny warned him that such weapons could affect their owners' personalities before agreeing to an appraisal and an eighty-percent share of the proceeds for him.
• Kraun read the Cardinal's orders to resume weapon forging and volunteered to oversee the Mining Area clearing, which Fanny said would begin at noon the next day.

Kraun led troops to secure the Hamus Mine and prepared its defenses, suspecting the tunnels held mutated rats. That night, Ratmen attacked the camp, and Kraun drove them back while their chief Skaven became fixated on his scent and strength.

• Kraun brought engineers and supplies to the mine, then practiced the Giant Bear Breathing Technique while the soldiers settled in.
• Watt organized the nighttime defenses, and Kraun joined him on patrol before returning to his room to Visualize and refine Sun Essence.
• Ratmen emerged from the mine and attacked the camp, prompting Watt to fire a Signal Flare and order the troops to fight.
• Kraun summoned his Metal Avatar, reinforced himself with armor techniques, and charged into the battle while the avatar helped defend the camp.
• Kraun’s Blade Storm cut down the attacking Ratmen, forcing Skaven to order a retreat and plan to offer Ratmen to the gods for help against him.

Kraun treated soldiers poisoned by Ratmen and led the Crusader Order into No. 1 Mine to clear it. He reached a vast underground chamber packed with starving Ratmen and began cutting through them.

• Kraun used Holy Water to treat the wounded soldiers and ordered the Crusader Order to clear the mine while conserving supplies.
• Kraun collected Ratmen remains to study their toxin and requested more troops and potion-making tools from the Central Church.
• Kraun entered No. 1 Mine with the Crusader Order, using his Metal Avatar to scout ahead before pressing deeper into the Gray Fog.
• Kraun fought Ratmen throughout the mine and reached a huge chamber filled with starving creatures and new rat holes.
• Kraun activated Bullet Time and charged into the Ratmen with two swords, rapidly killing them and increasing his skill proficiency.

Kraun discovered that Ratmen had taken over all three mines and prepared for a prolonged campaign, securing reinforcements and developing a toxin-countering potion. After ten days of fighting, forging, and training, he brought the Giant Bear Breathing Technique to its limit and unlocked Earthquake Slam.

• Kraun inspected three mines and found that Ratmen had occupied them, then reported the threat and requested craftsmen, Tier 2 Transcendentalists, and Flying Curios.
• Kraun wrote to Fanny and Nick, planned to fortify Mining Area Castle, and began working on a potion to counter the Ratmen's toxins.
• Fanny's reply arrived with stonemasons, five hundred Crusaders, and Star Steel, while the request for reinforcements went to the Holy Fire Cathedral.
• Over the next ten days, the Cardinal sent a hundred Tier 2 Transcendentalists, Kraun forged Evil Extermination weapons, and potion makers prepared to mass-produce his antidote.
• Kraun sparred with twelve Tier 2 Exorcist Priests and unleashed a shock wave that knocked four charging priests backward.
• Kraun reached the limit of the Giant Bear Breathing Technique and unlocked its Earthquake Slam special effect.

Kraun advanced his Rock Breathing Technique while the Ratmen underwent a dark ritual that transformed them into stronger creatures. After the mutated Ratmen inflicted heavy casualties, wounded soldiers began turning into violent mutants inside the camp, forcing Kraun to order their deaths.

• Kraun practiced the Rock Breathing Technique, whose proficiency rose rapidly after he used a Control Potion.
• Skaven sacrificed Ratmen at an altar, and he and the others emerged from blood-red cocoons transformed and strengthened.
• Watt reported that mutated Ratmen had killed eight Tier 2 Transcendentalists and more than forty Flame Warriors during mine-clearing operations.
• Mutated wounded soldiers attacked a nun in the camp, and Kraun fought off the attackers while discovering that their poison had caused severe transformations.
• Kraun ordered Watt and the others not to hold back, then killed several of the transformed Flame Warriors.

Kraun tested several remedies on a Mutated Human and discovered that repeated doses of Golden Light Talisman Water could reverse its symptoms, though the subject died. As a huge Ratmen swarm attacked Smelting Castle, Kraun prepared the defenders and baited Skaven, the enemy leader, into charging him.

• Kraun forced No. 2 Holy Water, Heart-Clearing Talisman Water, and then repeated doses of Golden Light Talisman Water on a Mutated Human; its symptoms eased, but it died.
• Kraun learned that people killed by bites were rising again as monsters, then ordered Fugin to scout while the Gray Fog closed in.
• Fugin reported a huge Ratmen swarm approaching, so Kraun summoned his Metal Avatar and ordered the soldiers to prepare for battle.
• Skaven advanced with Mutated Humans, while Kraun shielded and armored the soldiers; their crossbow volley failed to injure the Ratmen.
• Kraun identified Skaven as the Ratmen's leader, shot at it, and provoked it into charging with its main force and hurling Bone Spikes at him.

Kraun defeated Skaven and the Ratmen attacking the camp with the Lunar Thunder Seal, then tried to save the wounded with Talisman Water. The treatment killed one wounded Crusader, and Yosef Fere offered to help the other doomed soldiers find release.

• Kraun fought through the Ratmen and used Earthquake Slam to reach and retrieve his Metal Avatar.
• Kraun used the Lunar Thunder Seal to freeze the Ratmen around Skaven, then killed the leader with Blade Storm.
• The Ratmen lost their will to fight and fled, and Kraun returned to help the defenders finish off those trapped by the wall.
• Kraun ordered Watt to count casualties and gather the wounded, intending to treat those without obvious mutation using Talisman Water.
• A wounded Crusader drank Talisman Water, suffered a fatal rejection reaction, and Kraun beheaded him.
• Yosef Fere, the wounded Tier 2 priest who had not yet shown a rejection reaction, offered to help the other wounded soldiers die.

Kraun saved Yusef from Evil God corruption with Golden Light Talisman Water, then led an investigation into the mines and found the source of the Ratmen’s mutation. He destroyed the Evil God statue in Mine No. 4, ending the strange phenomena and driving the surviving Ratmen into the tunnels.

• Kraun ordered the Metal Avatar to execute the soldiers who had mutated and gave Yusef Golden Light Talisman Water, which cured his corruption.
• Kraun had the bodies burned, ordered the city walls cleaned, strengthened the watch, and sent a report requesting another bishop.
• Nick arrived, and Kraun briefed him on the Ratmen’s mutation before they set out to search Mine No. 5 and Mine No. 4.
• Kraun and Nick’s force found a Bone Altar and an Evil God statue in Mine No. 4 as a sacrificial ritual neared completion.
• Kraun fought through the Ratmen and destroyed the statue with Solar Flame Art, ending the ritual’s effects and stopping the black shadows.
• Kraun and the others killed the remaining Ratmen, who fled into the narrow tunnels.

Kraun and Nick prepared to eradicate the Ratmen infesting the mines after confirming they could be killed with Red Phosphorus smoke. With reinforcements and a smoke-filled mine operation underway, Kraun rushed to intercept Ratmen escaping through hidden tunnels.

• Kraun destroyed the Evil God Statue and checked how battle had raised his Blade Storm and Golden Light Incantation proficiency.
• Kraun and Nick searched the remaining mines, captured two Ratmen, and learned that Red Phosphorus smoke could kill them, though they were unusually resistant.
• Kraun asked Nick to request supplies and troops from the Cardinal, then told him to prepare a new residence, arsenal, and blacksmith shop for Del and the others.
• Three days later, Nick introduced Kraun to Tula Poplar, who arrived with two hundred Tier 2 Transcendentalists and supplies.
• Kraun, Nick, and Tula set timed Red Phosphorus fires in all five mines while troops sealed the entrances and watched for escape tunnels.
• Fugin found two hidden tunnels, and Kraun rushed to one after Tula's troops began cutting down Ratmen fleeing from it.

Kraun helped eliminate the Ratmen threat in the Mining Area, traded Talisman Water with Lisa, and returned to his new residence. Melissa told him she had advanced to Tier 2 Knight and asked him to honor his promise to train her.

• Kraun used Blade Storm to rout and kill the Ratmen, then agreed to spar with Tula while the mine was cleared and the Mining Area secured.
• Kraun returned to the Shelter Land and traded sixty-four vials of Talisman Water to Lisa for Control Potions and Gold Spirit Coins.
• Lisa said she planned to return to Rhine City to obtain Mithril, and Kraun asked her to bring at least thirty pounds.
• At his new residence, William reported that the blacksmith shop was ready while the Arsenal still needed time before production could begin.
• Melissa told Kraun she had advanced to Tier 2 Knight and asked him to begin the training he had promised.

Kraun used Spirit Vision to assess Melissa and offered her a chance to earn his acceptance by training a force of soldiers. After making preparations at home and church, he learned that the defenders of Lorrent Town were hearing an evil god’s whispers and would need to rotate their duties.

• Kraun used Spirit Vision to read the living beings’ Life Magnetic Fields and heard Melissa swear fealty, but required her to train fifty soldiers, with at least thirty becoming Transcendentalists within a year, before accepting her oath.
• Melissa agreed to the challenge, explained that she practiced her family’s agility-focused Breathing Technique and brewed its supplementary potions herself, and William arranged for someone to take over her housekeeper duties.
• Kraun studied Alchemy, practiced the Golden Light Incantation and Refining Moon Radiance, then met Tula Poplar at the church and planned to spar with him.
• Fanny gave Kraun an equipment production list and said the Mining Area would soon resume operation, while Nick told them that Tier 3 defenders in Lorrent Town had begun hearing an evil god’s whispers and outlined their duty rotations.