Chapter 15: Tomb Guardian
The Tomb Guardian.
It was one of the game’s most infamous bosses.
Put simply, it was an upgraded corpse wheel.
Tougher blood.
On top of that, a massive body and agile movements.
‘Definitely tricky for an F-rank gate boss.’
―Hiiik! Run away!
Kim Minwoo’s pathetic attempt to flee, rejecting all combat outright, came to mind.
No idea how baffled I’d been back then.
‘I really made a person out of him.’
The Tomb Guardian was being overpowered in a way that belied its reputation.
Under Cedric’s command, the skeleton soldiers moved in perfect order.
Dozens of shields blocked its body slams, while spears and swords thrust deep in between.
From behind, flails and axes hammered into its carapace.
Of course, the thing was resisting fiercely.
A boss’s attacks weren’t something regular skeletons could easily withstand. Even with Cedric’s command, blocking them all was impossible.
The skeletons couldn’t keep up with the orders.
Every time it swept through with an attack, ten skeletons were reverse-summoned.
So whenever it made a big move, they stabbed it relentlessly.
Maybe because its stats were high, but its carapace sliced open like tofu. Cedric also unleashed fierce strikes here and there while commanding.
The guardian’s health started plummeting in an instant. Soon, one of its gruesome patterns emerged.
The Tomb Guardian’s mouth gaped wide.
Hundreds of tiny cockroaches poured out.
Touch them, and they’d explode, spreading poison.
‘Nasty.’
The key to clearing it was making them touch something. If that something was their own flesh, it meant total wipeout.
Usually, you needed a mage to handle it smoothly.
Use a shield to block the roaches and detonate them early to avoid annihilation.
Unfortunately, my baby skeletons had no such shield spells.
Pop-pop-pop!
The exploding roaches spewed poison everywhere.
The skeletons crumbled helplessly.
[Skeleton x122 reverse-summoned!]
The Tomb Guardian’s eyes gleamed, as if it had finally seized the advantage.
Grurrr!
The frenzied Tomb Guardian thrashed wildly.
Its body was in tatters, but in the end, all the skeletons lay broken.
Grurr…
It glared at me and Cedric with rage-filled eyes.
“Sorry, one more refill.”
I gestured while chugging a potion.
[Skeleton x506 summoned!]
Grurr…?
The Tomb Guardian’s jaw dropped at the sight.
* * *
[The gate’s boss, Tomb Guardian, has been defeated!]
[The Skeleton Unit’s combat experience has greatly increased!]
[Level up…]
As expected of a boss, the experience was substantial.
I jumped from level 22 to 25 in one go.
The skeletons’ average level had risen to 7 as well.
‘Took exactly ten minutes.’
[Gate cleared!]
[Will you exit?]
There’s a clear difference between leaving from the midpoint and leaving after clearing.
The gate’s color changes on exit.
White from the midpoint.
Green after clearing.
Time elapsed so far: about 2 hours and 10 minutes.
‘No need to leave right now.’
I declined the message.
―Master, not leaving?
“It’s a tomb.”
―You think there’s a hidden element.
“Not certain, but roughly.”
Plus, Isabella, who held the world’s number one record, had taken two days.
Anything faster than that was fine by me. I’d drawn aggro with the cameras on entry, sure.
‘Time to adjust the pace here.’
Being a hotshot is great.
But too hot, and it gets exhausting.
There was already an overwhelming gap between her—now level 49—and me.
And if the clear time was extreme on top of that?
Skills made from S-rank skillbooks varied even among the same class.
Still, there was a rough average.
A sense of what constituted S-rank skill level.
‘They’ll suspect.’
That my achievements weren’t just S-rank, but beyond.
No one had emerged with above S-rank yet, so that’s why it was deemed nonexistent.
If they started suspecting SS or SSS or whatever?
As Korea’s top chaebol heir.
Even America would drop recruitment efforts.
Why bother going anywhere?
Just live lavishly in Korea.
That’s when the weirdos would start scheming.
Can’t have it?
Then smash it?
That sort.
Activity becomes a huge hassle.
Of course, such a fate is inevitable someday.
But not now.
‘Around 40 hours should do.’
That’d make it believable enough.
Undead are immune to fear.
Resistant to poison to some degree.
That’s the edge I gained.
Plus, I’m a swordsmanship genius.
Found a hidden route in the gate for a clear advantage, blah blah…
With variable gimmicks, it’d sound plausible.
Especially Japan and China, Korea’s rivals, would prefer to believe it was luck, not skill.
‘Can’t erase suspicion completely anyway.’
But I could delay the real power struggles.
I picked up the junk loot.
“Cedric. Gather the junk, train the kids.”
―Got it.
The skeletons picked up drops like silent farmers.
No special rewards.
Well, slight correction.
[Acquired Tomb Guardian’s Carapace Armor!]
Decent gear for a normal awakener, but to me, just Cedric’s equipment slot 1.
“Wear the armor. Better than what you’ve got.”
―Will do.
Cedric swapped armor.
Boss rewards done.
‘Wonder what the clear reward is.’
Boss drops and gate clear rewards are separate.
A message popped up after a wait.
[Gate clear reward granted!]
[Special condition achieved!]
[You are an above-standard Necromancer!]
[Osiris’s Providence granted!]
“Oh, hidden piece?”
A small necklace appeared in my palm.
[Worn Necklace]
[Grade:??]
[A mysterious-looking necklace. The center socket is empty. Inserting the right gem might activate it.]
[Effect 1. Insert a matching gem to gain qualification.]
[Effect 2. Upon qualification, you can undertake ‘Osiris’s Providence.’]
“Linked quest item, huh?”
No actual quest, but the format was similar.
If there was a quest window, it’d probably look like:
[Find a matching gem for the socket, insert it into the necklace, and carry out the providence!]
Something like that.
I’d seen a few of these items before.
Linked quests could chain one or many.
‘The more complex the structure, the bigger the reward.’
Better than smashing gates for loot.
A proper ‘main chain’ linked quest?
‘You get something killer.’
Plenty came to mind.
Great titles.
Unique+ accessories with low level restrictions.
Special elixirs.
Or special summons, high-performance skillbooks, etc.
Stuff that makes the game a breeze.
‘Need to find the gem.’
The center socket was oddly shaped.
Like a dragon carved with intricate detail.
‘Not some store-bought gem.’
Even if I shaped a normal one to fit, it wouldn’t activate.
Too easy, right?
Two main ideas came to mind. Either from rewards off other bosses.
‘Or… inside this gate.’
Maybe not.
But when in doubt.
“Everyone, assemble. We’re combing every inch of this gate. Smash everything open. Tap floors and walls too! Report anything odd immediately! Execute!”
―…Execute!
Clack-clack!
Start close and sweep—that’s the way.
I began scouring the gate interior too.
‘Perfect.’
Felt great.
The scent of a jackpot wafted strongly.
Think about it.
This necklace is handed over after meeting conditions.
Necromancers around B-rank achievement have probably cleared here.
Yet it only activated now.
‘Means the requirement is pretty high. At least A, maybe S.’
I could feel it.
The difficulty would be brutal.
Brutal difficulty meant huge rewards.
Having found the key to hell, my mood soared.
* * *
“Kim, it’s already 40 hours. Why not head in?”
“Piss off. You go first.”
“Nah, can’t. Chief’ll chew me out.”
“You think I don’t have a chief? And what’s that about cameras cooling off? At this rate, they’ll freeze solid.”
Kim gripped his hot pack tight.
The warmth spreading made him feel half-alive.
Park smirked at the sight.
“Still hot ’cause you left it on, right? And anyway, half-expected this, didn’t you? You weren’t actually hoping?”
“Well, it’s been a while since Korea had a dragon. Figured someone might step up.”
Kim said sheepishly.
…Truth be told, he’d hoped a bit. The guy had talked so boldly.
“A true patriot arrives.”
“…Not just that. You know. Lots of stories brewing.”
Kim Minwoo was already under heavy scrutiny.
As a sort of villain.
‘Ilsung’s wastrel. Fallen out of the succession race.’
That was the public view.
Word was the second son was favored for group control.
But if that villain broke the world record here?
The board would flip.
Ilsung internals would erupt. Management skill and gate clearing weren’t directly linked, sure…
‘Who cares.’
If he set a record, success in one field would create expectations in others. With Ilsung’s immense influence, one thing was certain.
Korea was about to get fun.
“Yeah, but… honestly, think he’ll pull it? No way in hell. 40 hours and still no exit? Looks like we’ll thank the heavens if he comes out alive.”
“…Yeah.”
No clue if he was dead or alive.
Usually, if over a month past expected without exit, they processed as deceased.
Gate mortality was sky-high. Especially a 95-point hate gate.
Death wouldn’t shock.
‘If he’s gonna fail, at least come back alive…’
Kim thought wistfully.
The guy who shook Korea in days.
Super rookie? Maybe not.
But promising stock, definitely.
Korea suffered an awakener drought.
Japan, America, China—top nations scrambled with cash bags.
Kim Minwoo was among the rare few free of that controversy.
“Yawn. Sleepy. Crashing soon— you, Kim?”
“I’ll wait a bit more.”
“Easy does it. Easy. Uncle, you’ll wear your bones out…”
“…!”
Both reporters’ eyes bulged.
Same for every journalist around.
“Wake up! Hurry!”
Drowsy ones, tent sleepers—all rushed out.
The gate rippled.
Sign of the entering party exiting.
Only one had entered lately.
Solo party, Kim Minwoo.
Cold sweat beaded on every forehead.
Hearts pounded madly.
Two possibilities left.
White or green?
White meant promising stock’s valiant effort.
Green, clear…
“Son of a…”
“Green! It’s green!”
“World record?!”
“Post the article now! Title only, hurry!”
The gate-side camp turned into a marketplace frenzy.