Chapter 117
Chapter 117
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 117
Chapter Title: The Necromancer's Questions
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“You really okay dragging that thing around with you?”
Finally unable to hold it in, Halloween Pumpkin spoke up.
“That again?”
Beauty Art scowled. Even back in Moros Gorge when it had tripped them up, Halloween Pumpkin had asked the same thing over and over. She was sick of the constant prodding.
But Halloween Pumpkin felt genuinely wronged on this point. He had no intention of provoking her. He was truly, honestly just curious.
“It’s none of your business.”
“What do your guildmates say?”
“…Our guild respects each member’s actions and thoughts.”
As expected, the Wayward Guild members might be headstrong and full of personality, but they seemed to have their hearts in the right place.
“Just a few questions.”
Halloween Pumpkin said.
“Fine.”
Beauty Art readily agreed.
“But only after I smash all your undead.”
‘She caught on.’
Beauty Art had seen right through his plan to buy time by gathering the skeletons that still hadn’t assembled.
The Death Knight charged in.
Unlike Halloween Pumpkin, who prioritized quantity over quality, or the White Skull, who balanced both, Beauty Art had poured every resource into that single Death Knight before her eyes.
A necromancer at the complete opposite end of the spectrum from Halloween Pumpkin.
That was why her Death Knight was insanely powerful. His skeletons didn’t stand a chance.
Of course, if he’d been at full strength, he wouldn’t have lost. He hadn’t hounded her for days in Moros Gorge for nothing.
But as he’d said many times, his skeletons had been greatly reduced in number.
Even all together, they could barely handle Beauty Art’s Death Knight. And he only had a fraction of them?
The outcome was obvious.
Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!
The eerie sound of bones shattering rang out. Black bone fragments unique to Halloween Pumpkin’s skeletons scattered everywhere. He watched the scene with a pang in his chest.
The main undead force he’d so carefully nurtured was being smashed to pieces.
Sure, they’d be easier to replace than Beauty Art’s Death Knight or the White Skull’s dullahan, but that was only relative. It was never an easy task.
But right now, he had no way to turn things around.
Crunch!
The Death Knight’s sword plunged into the skull of the last skeleton. The red ribbon prettily tied to the base of the Death Knight’s blade was incredibly annoying.
‘As expected, no good.’
He’d even tried a tactic of targeting the summoner Beauty Art with his sorcerer while the Death Knight was busy with the other skeletons to leverage his numbers, but Beauty Art wasn’t about to fall for such a shallow trick.
Halloween Pumpkin had only attempted it as a desperate last-ditch effort anyway. He didn’t feel regret over the failure.
“Done!”
Beauty Art shouted triumphantly.
How much grief had those damn black skeletons caused her? Smashing the very last one felt incredibly satisfying.
All that remained was the summoner, Halloween Pumpkin.
“What were your questions?”
She had no intention of sparing him, but she’d at least hear him out. A summoner who’d lost all his minions posed no threat.
Her attitude might have seemed like mockery, but Halloween Pumpkin calmly spoke.
“The biggest one is still the Necronomicon replica. Have you mastered it?”
“Huh, hahaha.”
Beauty Art burst into laughter at Halloween Pumpkin’s question. The answer was obvious. Halloween Pumpkin nodded.
His chest ached terribly.
“How’d you meet up in the wasteland? Must’ve been tough.”
The vast Blandel Wasteland, littered only with sand, gravel, and rocks everywhere, made navigation difficult, let alone encountering other people.
There were hardly any notable landmarks.
“That’s only for people wandering lost. I just ran straight from Moros Gorge. What was hard about it?”
“Hook Rock?”
“Yeah.”
If you drew a straight line from Moros Gorge to Shillaremit, there were two landmarks in between.
The mountain where the meteor tricked Method in battle, and the distinctive hook-shaped rock. Those were the two objects travelers through Blandel Wasteland typically used as signposts.
“If you came straight from Moros Gorge, that means you knew what was going on right after I left that place.”
“Of course. Yuseong-nim kindly sent a note.”
“And then you did that broadcast.”
Halloween Pumpkin let out a hollow laugh.
“So the ‘wandering the wasteland’ bit was a lie too. You were pretending while heading straight for Hook Rock.”
“That’s right.”
“So that broadcast was just to bait us?”
They’d fallen for it hook, line, and sinker after hearing about his broadcast.
“Maybe you’d check the Necronomicon replica, so you played up being tricked to delay us catching on.”
“Hmm, I did ask about that.”
She looked at Halloween Pumpkin with a hint of sympathy. In a way, it was a shared sense of victimhood.
“I thought there had to be some hidden intent behind that broadcast too, so I racked my brain over it. When the guy who spectacularly fooled you all claims he got tricked and immediately goes live, you naturally assume something’s up, right?”
“…It wasn’t?”
“I knew he’d get some minor benefits from it, but that wasn’t the main reason.”
“Then what?”
“He just thought, ‘This’ll make for great content,’ and turned it on.”
“…What?”
“He said he did it because getting tricked would be solid footage.”
And she even relayed how Yuseong had been thrilled that viewer numbers hit a new high since she’d started streaming.
“…What an attention whore.”
“…Yeah, I thought so too.”
It would definitely draw massive viewers, but at the same time, invite tons of criticism and ridicule. He must have known that full well and streamed anyway.
He knew there’d been a big clash between his guild and the Wayward Guild over scouting Yuseong. It had even sparked some talk within her guild.
“He’s properly joined the guild. A real fit for the Wayward crew.”
“That doesn’t sound like praise.”
“Would it be?”
“Of course not. All your questions answered?”
“One more. When you hit Method with Death Wail, what was his goal? Did he know Method was disguised as the Western Flower from the start and plan to fool him? Or was it to sow chaos on the battlefield? Did he hope the White Skull would steal it and then play along?”
He rapidly spat out the hypotheses he’d considered.
“He knew.”
“Knew what?”
“That Method was the Western Flower.”
“So he knew his identity and was playing him from the beginning.”
No wonder he’d fallen for it. Method took great pride in his Mimic skill, so he let his guard down.
“How’d he know? Did he exchange notes with the real Western Flower?”
He voiced what he considered the most likely theory.
“No. From what I know, those two aren’t close enough to message privately.”
“Then how?”
“No idea.”
Beauty Art shrugged.
“He wouldn’t tell me.”
“Must be some special method.”
Even fellow guildmates wouldn’t get told. They couldn’t know it was because he couldn’t explain the strategy guide’s existence, so he’d brushed it off.
“He didn’t just spot the fake instantly because he’s a fan of the real Western Flower or something, right?”
“Nice, very romantic. But even if he’s the benefactor who gave me the Necronomicon replica, if he wants to date our Seohwa, he’ll need my permission first. As her friend, I can’t let a bad guy swoop in.”
“Quite the protective mom. But with that money grubber, husband material means loaded only, right?”
“Not just husbands. Even casual boyfriends have to have money first.”
“You’re friends with that kind of girl?”
“She loves money a ton, but it’s not like she’s obsessed with it. She’s not stingy either. She spends when she should. Plus, she’s got a kind heart.”
“Money-mad, though.”
Beauty Art didn’t deny that point.
“Questions done?”
“Wait, still…”
“No, that’s it. Honestly, I don’t need to answer all your questions, right? I’m done wasting more time. Thanks to you, I’ve burned through a ton of precious time already.”
The Death Knight raised its greatsword and approached Halloween Pumpkin. He showed no agitation. Had he accepted his fate?
“Still, congrats. On breaking your limits. Looks like you’ve fallen behind as a necromancer.”
“Oh my, even congratulations? Thanks. I hope you find a Necronomicon replica soon too.”
“Thanks. So…”
Thwack!
Suddenly, white hand bones burst from the ground beneath Beauty Art.
“Here’s a parting gift!”
It was a skeleton made from Blandel Plains monsters. Even as basic undead, one crafted with a ranker’s skill was quite powerful.
A mage with low HP could easily die if caught off guard.
It was his final desperate trap.
Crunch!
But that arm was severed effortlessly by the sword the Death Knight hurled.
“Nice try.”
“You were prepared.”
“I’d have done the same. We’re both necromancers, right?”
Halloween Pumpkin smirked.
“The White Skull wouldn’t have.”
“Is he the type who gets too attached to his precious undead? Reminds me of my old self. But that shallow mindset makes it hard to climb to ranker status.”
“He’ll figure it out.”
He’d never cared much about him anyway.
“Last resistance over? Bye.”
The Death Knight drew its sword and aimed at Halloween Pumpkin.
“Oh, right after this, I swore I’d buy a ton of pumpkins and smash them all. I’ll let that slide.”
“That has nothing to do with me…”
Stab!
He couldn’t finish his words.
And so, Halloween Pumpkin met his end.
* * *
As the White Skull died, the massive shield stuck in the ground vanished with him. A bundle appeared where he’d fallen.
Yuseong picked it up. Money and items came in.
‘No more interferers?’
The Blandel Wasteland was quiet again.
‘Time to move on.’
He leisurely headed toward Shillaremit.
Bang! Bang!
He handled the occasional wasteland monsters that charged. Yuseong felt deeply satisfied every time he fired.
‘Pistols are the way to go.’
After using a revolver that only held six shots and had annoying reloads even with moon clips, switching to a pistol felt amazing.
But it seemed his gunfire had attracted an unwelcome guest.
A black shadow appeared behind him, closing in rapidly.
“Found you!”
It was Method.
She’d dashed straight to the area where Yuseong had been sighted and finally tracked him down using the faint gunshots.
“Die!”
No need for words. She attacked Yuseong immediately.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Yuseong resisted. Stronger now thanks to his upgraded gear, but still, holding off a ranker was tough.
Yuseong was quickly pushed into a defensive position. Death seemed imminent. A cruel smile crept across Method’s lips.
Boom!
A sudden incoming skill forced Method to retreat hastily.
‘What the?’
Not just interference—the skill’s power was no joke, putting Method on alert.
‘This skill…!’
Unmistakable. It was the one she’d frequently used with her Mimic skill until recently.
‘The Western Flower!’