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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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Chapter 5: This is Why I'm a Necromancer (2)
There is a saying among Necromancers:
- Well begun is half done.
It means that anything is difficult to start, but once you make up your mind, things will go smoothly.
However, for Necromancers, who use corpses as mediums, it means that creating even one undead is that difficult.
To put it another way...
"Answer my call."
[Raise Undead activated.]
[The completion rate of 4 zombies is very high.]
[All stats increased by 97.5%.]
[All stats increased by 98.1%.]
The number of zombies steadily increased.
Yoojin ventured deeper into the forest with more confidence.
"Kiki-kik."
Thud! Thud!
Spittle flew from all directions.
It was coated with paralyzing poison, made by mixing goblin venom sacs with weeds.
The zombies marched forward, unfazed even as they were pelted with the rain of spittle from the bushes.
The poison had no effect on the dead.
"Kireuk. Rotten corpses. They won't go down."
"Kik, paralyzing poison. It's not working."
The goblins, putting down their blowpipes, chose to charge.
Their speed was much faster than the zombies', whose movements were hampered by rigor mortis.
Utilizing the agility that came with their small stature, they aimed for vital points like the neck and Achilles tendon.
"Grrr."
On the other hand, the zombies' actions were simple.
They flailed their arms or bit with their teeth.
The reason the zombies were doing so well was thanks to Yoojin's excellent undead creation skills.
If their stats hadn't been doubled, they would have been beaten down and collapsed by the goblins' swift attacks.
And then...
"Bone Control!"
A long rod, enveloped in a whitish energy, pierced a goblin's chest.
The true value of a Necromancer.
The chaotic battlefield was where Yoojin's power was maximized.
The corpse, flung back several meters, was impaled on a rock. The power contained in Bone Control was not something a mere goblin could withstand.
"Come here."
The bone rod, embedded in the rock, flew back to its caster.
A spear made using bone as a catalyst. Casting and retrieving it consumed mana, but it was better than creating a new one.
〔As my contractor, I wish you would maintain some dignity in battle.〕
"I've seen a lot of people die trying to find that dignity."
〔Indeed, a fight is a clash of wills. Your method is quite undignified.〕
"Get used to it. This is how a Necromancer fights."
A clash of wills?
For a Necromancer, such a battle was a luxury.
They break the enemy's will to fight, raise their lifeless bodies, and even desecrate the death of the deceased.
"It would be in your best interest to adapt quickly, Constellation."
"Otherwise, you'll be forced to witness unsightly scenes repeatedly."
[Unique Trait - Midnight Sun activated.]
[Life Drain activated.]
While walking through the forest, he intermittently researched Life Drain and discovered a few of its properties.
'From the moment of death, life force escapes the body.'
It's like food; the moment you open it, its shelf life rapidly decreases.
Immediately after killing or while there's still breath left is the opportune time.
If more than a minute has passed since death, the life force remaining in the body drops below 10%.
Furthermore...
Converting life force into stats isn't limitless.
As he absorbed the life force stolen from the goblins, his stat increases slowed, as if they were developing a resistance.
It seems there's a limit to how much he could increase his stats with the life force of a single species.
'It'll be confirmed if I use Life Drain on other monsters.'
The number of zombies increased as the battle dragged on.
On the other hand, the goblin horde was gradually being pushed back.
"Kirreuk..."
"Answer my call."
[The number of controllable undead has reached its maximum.]
[20/20]
[To control more undead, you need to increase your realm or acquire necromancy-related items.]
‘Tsk.’
He had reached the limit of undead he could control at 1 Star.
'Even without the necromancer penalty, this is a separate issue, huh?'
It's not a penalty for other classes, but an issue related to one's realm.
He experimented with it just in case and this is the result.
‘Tch.’
Yoojin smacked his lips in regret.
"Kiki-kit. Let's run away."
"Kikit. We can't beat those stinking corpses."
The goblins turned their backs and ran in the opposite direction from Yoojin.
"Chase them."
These were zombies with their stats nearly doubled.
Even with their stiff bodies, they moved at a speed similar to the goblins.
And since they were already dead, they wouldn't get tired, so the outcome was obvious.
Just as the zombies were about to catch up to the fleeing goblins...
[Fire Arrow]
A flaming arrow, shot from the direction they were escaping, pierced a goblin's neck.
The goblin collapsed with a scream.
"Stop for a moment."
Yoojin ordered the zombies to halt their pursuit and glanced beyond the bushes.
"These zombies are my summons. Stop hiding and come out."
"I apologize. I didn't know they were the prey you were chasing, Hunter-nim..."
Three hunters emerged from the bushes.
It was only a few years later, in his previous life, that necromancers became known to the public.
It was natural that they didn't know.
One of the wary hunters suddenly exclaimed in surprise.
"It's that person from before?"
‘Ah.’
It was them.
The hunters who had expressed concern for Yoojin right before he entered the gate.
Two men and one woman.
Yoojin stared at the mixed-gender party and let out a short gasp.
〔What are you so surprised about?〕
'They're called Mirror Hunters. I saw them in my previous life.'
Yoojin's eyes narrowed.
＊ ＊ ＊
Kang Minho and Kang Minyeong.
They were fraternal twins and freelance hunters who had gained fame in his previous life.
Hunters who toyed with their targets using uncanny teamwork, as if they were one body.
'Those guys. They're pretty strong.'
〔Hmm. To me, they look quite unimpressive.〕
'That's because the twins are only at the 1 Star realm.'
This was a gate with an entry requirement of 1 Star.
Even the future Mirror Hunters were just beginners now.
He had crossed paths with the twins in his previous life, so he knew how formidable they were.
Excluding Dmitri, they were among the top ten strongest people he knew back then.
But...
'There were three of them, not two.'
He had encountered three hunters on the other side.
He had wondered why he didn't recognize them immediately when he had met them before entering the gate, and it was because there was one more person in the party.
A hunter with a troubled expression stood in the back.
They seemed to be a magic-user... but no matter how hard he racked his brain, he couldn't remember them.
〔Then, eliminating future enemies early on could be a solution.〕
'Why would I kill them?'
〔Don't you remember what you just said? You clearly said they were troublesome...〕
'They were hired to assassinate me. It wasn't that bad of a relationship.'
All his interactions with the Mirror Hunters were purely professional.
The only problem was that they were in the dramatic roles of the assassination target and the assassins.
He didn't have any strong personal feelings towards them.
'This actually works out well.'
〔What do you mean?〕
'I needed a porter anyway.'
If there was one thing he knew about the Mirror Hunters, it was that they were utterly reliable.
'Wasn't their reason for becoming hunters money?'
They were the perfect candidates to be his partners.
There was an extra person he didn't recognize, but what did it matter?
At least, judging from their actions in his previous life, he could trust the two of them.
They were hunters who always kept their contracts.
"Hey, you guys. Do a job with me."
"What kind of job are you talking about all of a sudden...?"
"I'll leave the mana stone collection to you. The ratio is 8 to 2."
Mana stones.
After the Great Cataclysm, they became the core raw material for the magic-powered fourth industrial revolution.
They were found in the hearts of monsters, making them the core source of income for hunters.
'It's a difficult task to leave to the zombies.'
Collecting mana stones required a certain level of delicate dexterity.
Cutting open a monster's chest and extracting the mineral from within.
But it wasn't cost-effective to personally handle the corpses of every monster he hunted.
If he added dissection to Life Drain, his hunting speed would drastically decrease.
"I'll take care of all the hunting. You guys just earn the money. Isn't that a pretty good offer?"
At Yoojin's words, the team [Little Runts], composed of three 1 Star hunters, couldn't hide their bewildered expressions.
＊ ＊ ＊
The members of the Little Runts team, Kang Minyeong and Lee Seongmin, glanced at the zombies with pale faces.
"Oppa, what is that person saying?"
"Kang Seonbae, I've never heard of a hunter who uses zombies as familiars."
Lifeless eyes like those of a dead fish.
Drool dripped from their gaping mouths.
Low-ranking undead, zombies.
Facing these monsters, driven only by hostility towards living beings, it felt draining just to stand still.
"Let's do it."
"Are you serious?"
"Yeah. It doesn't seem like he's lying."
Kang Minho was quick to assess the situation.
If Yoojin had intended to attack the Little Runts team, there would be no need for him to bother with a proposal like this.
'Collecting mana stones is a lot of work. He probably intends to push the tedious task onto us.'
Kang Minho, after observing a few exchanges and the circumstances, read Yoojin's intentions.
The judgment worthy of someone who would later gain fame under the alias [Mirror Hunter].
Although he couldn't help his trembling heart, Kang Minho, feigning composure, opened his lips.
"That ratio. Is it 8 for us?"
"2."
"Make it 5 to 5. Even if we split it amongst ourselves, it's 1.7 each."
"7 to 3. If you want more than that, go your own way."
"Alright."
As Kang Minho accepted Yoojin's proposal, Lee Seongmin glanced forward.
"Seonbae, are you sure this is okay?"
A complaint emerged in a small voice.
Looking at the zombies awkwardly moving their stiff bodies due to rigor mortis, they seemed several times more dangerous than the goblin horde they had just defeated.
"Trust me. If he wanted to attack us, he would have done so already."
Kang Minho calmly replied.
Entering the gate bare-handed without proper equipment—it spoke of absolute confidence in his abilities.
He believed that following Yoojin's proposal would earn them more money than usual.
30 minutes later.
"Is that hunter planning to wipe out the goblins?"
"What do you think? Let's consider this a big score."
1 hour later.
"Wow, they're swarming again. I guess the Ancient Garden isn't that popular after all."
Yoojin smiled brightly as he watched the goblins popping out one after another.
On the other hand, the Little Runts team looked like they had aged 20 years.
"...Heok, heok."
"Just kill me. I want to rest."
Kang Minho shook his head as he looked at his team members.
'I thought he wasn't an ordinary person.'
An astonishing hunting speed.
Without giving them time to breathe, he slaughtered the goblins, and the Little Runts team couldn't keep up.
"Why don't we take a little break?"
"There are mana stones scattered here too."
"..."
"Ah, I'm not emphasizing it, just saying that money is lying on the ground."
Yoojin grinned.
To the Little Runts team, that smile was more terrifying than anything else.
"I'm not pressuring you, so take your time, relax."
Even at that moment, the goblin corpses piled up one by one.
＊ ＊ ＊
[Life Drain activated.]
Yoojin tossed the withered goblin corpse onto the ground.
"That's the last one in this area."
Three hours had passed since he started hunting.
In that short time, his stats had risen significantly.
[Strength: 7 → 13.1]
[Agility: 6 → 15.3]
[Health: 7 → 10]
[Endurance: 5 → 6.5]
[Divine Power (Mana): 10 → 11.3]
A total of 21.2!
Converted, he had gained stats equivalent to 4 levels through Life Drain.
"Wow."
A cheer escaped his lips.
Even Yoojin, who had accumulated all sorts of experiences in his past life, couldn't help but be amazed.
He hadn't even allocated the bonus stats from leveling up, and he was already this strong.
'I wonder how strong I can become.'
Yoojin's mind also held the experiences and knowledge of his past life.
The "Death-Defying" constellation, built by exploiting the loophole of self-worship.
The thought of the new divine spells that would be added as he grew stronger made his heart surge with ambition.
Although the efficiency of absorbing the goblins' life force gradually decreased as he repeatedly drained them...
He wasn't disappointed.
Wanting more would be greedy.
He continued slaughtering goblins and finally reached the edge of the forest.
"Um, Hunter-nim."
"Call me Yoojin."
"If you cross the boundary, you'll enter the domain of the Goblin Shaman, the boss monster."
"If you want to back out, now's the time. I'll pay you for the work you've done so far."
He had come this deep into the forest not only to level up but also...
To activate the hidden element in the [Ancient Garden], he needed to obtain the shaman's blood.
"Really?"
Lee Seongmin replied with a bright expression.
If they turned back now, they would receive a settlement worth tens of millions of won.
The number of goblins they had hunted in the past three hours had already exceeded a hundred, so even if they only took 10%, it would be a huge profit!
The Goblin Shaman was one of the more difficult bosses in 1 Star gates.
It was a profitable deal even if they backed out without taking any risks.
However...
"We'll follow you."
Kang Minho replied in a clear voice.
'If we follow this person, Yoojin-nim, we can earn a lot more money.'
He was certain of it.
The [Ancient Garden], accessible only to 1 Star hunters.
How many hunters of the same rank could wield such overwhelming power?
And how difficult could collecting mana stones be?
'That's why we must follow him.'
Yoojin, reading his thoughts, smirked and led the zombies forward.
Goblins were gathered in the middle of the plaza.
Unlike the ones they had encountered so far, these were fully armed, numbering around seventy.
Behind them, a goblin adorned with all kinds of bones sat on a chair. Upon closer inspection, even the ornaments were made of bone.
It held a black staff, the material of which was indiscernible from afar.
This was the boss monster of the southern region of the [Ancient Garden], the Goblin Shaman.
"Behold. A foolish human has arrived."
"Kikkik. Foolish goblins relying on their numbers."
"What?"
"And what's with you? Do you have a bone fetish or something? You smell even worse than the zombies."
Yoojin covered his nose with his right hand.
"You, you insolent human!"
"Retarded goblin. You can't even speak properly, yet you try to fight with your mouth?"
The Goblin Shaman, seemingly at a loss for words, sputtered before abruptly rising from its seat.
"Bring that human before me on his knees."
"Kiki-kit!"
The goblin troops rushed forward, vying with each other.
Those who are bad at arguing are always the first to get angry.
"Chew them up, bones and all."
As Yoojin's command, the 20 zombies lurched forward to attack.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Hestia
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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