Chapter 18
Chapter 18
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: Ancient Desert Scorpion King
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“Phew.”
I let out a deep breath.
A C-rank dungeon boss.
And its name was no joke.
The king of scorpions from the ancient desert?
Not a charge captain, duke, or general—KING. A king?
“......”
Back in the day, it would’ve been an opponent I couldn’t even dream of facing.
I used to struggle against a mere upper D-rank orc.
‘But now......’
It was definitely worth a shot.
I had taken down C-rank scorpions with ease.
「If five or more hunters of the corresponding rank cannot clear it, the rank will be adjusted upward!」
Even the World Hunter Association’s standards said as much!
That meant it was a dungeon even fewer than five C-ranks could clear.
Though they were C to D-rank, I had a record of beating hunters 1:5.
[The Ancient Desert Scorpion King appears!]
[‘Awakened Skeletons’ (D-rank) cower under the strong foe’s presence. All stats decrease by 20%!]
“Whoa.”
My body shivered.
The eerie aura leaking from within the door made my heart pound.
“This is tense......”
“Mr. Necromancer...... are you going to be okay?”
The younger sister of the porter siblings asked.
I smirked and replied.
“Who knows. But one thing’s for sure—it feels like a better situation than dealing with those Shadow Squad bastards earlier.”
“Y-yeah, I suppose so.”
Of course. No matter how impressive this scorpion king was,
could it be stronger than an A-rank hunter?
“Hoo, hoo.”
I took deep breaths to shake off the tension.
At the same time, I checked my mana.
[Hunter: Joo Dong-hoon]
[Mana: 50/120]
20 for summoning the Man-sul Old Man.
50 for summoning the skeletons.
I still had enough for five more.
‘However.’
The downside was that the skeletons weren’t in top condition.
And I myself was at the peak of fatigue from the previous battles.
But I had the old man’s reliable advice, more solid than anyone else’s!
“Heh heh, disciple. You don’t need my help for trash mobs worse than that junk, do you?”
‘......Pardon?’
I panicked.
“Of course. A disciple who can’t handle something like that would be better off dying outside than me wasting time raising you.”
‘W-wait a second.’
“What second? I’ll be off now. Don’t forget to call me tomorrow.”
‘Huh? Elder? Hey?’
[The duration of the skill ‘Man-sul’s Teachings’ (S-rank) has ended.]
[The summon ‘Man-sul Master’ is released.]
[The skill can be reused after 24 hours.]
Ah, damn it.
The time limit was up already?
Useless old geezer.
I grumbled inwardly.
Ha.
This might be a bit tough.
Gulp.
I swallowed dryly.
First, focus on the situation at hand.
I stared into the open door.
-Kieeeek!
Far away, a scorpion of enormous size came into view.
About the size of a 5-ton truck?
Its yellowish-brown pincers up front were as big as an adult’s body, menacing as hell.
The poison stinger on its tail looked incredibly dangerous too.
And the legs sprouting from its hunched waist were grotesque.
“Huh, and I have to take down something like that?”
Rumble!
That’s when the scorpion burrowed into the desert sand.
What? Attacking from underground?
“Bone5!”
I shouted instinctively.
Creak!
[‘Bone5’ uses the skill Air Shield (Lv.1).]
For now, I threw up a shield in a pinch.
From a glance, Bone5 only had 20 mana left.
“The rest of you, spread out and form up!”
Creak, creak!
They moved as trained.
Reliable Bone4 took the front line, slamming down his shield.
As if saying, ‘Come at me if you dare!’
But then.
“Huh?”
My eyes went wide.
Kwarung!
The scorpion king burst from underground, ignoring Bone4 and going straight for Bone3.
Clack?
Bone3, startled, released his drawn bowstring and hurriedly retreated.
‘Whoa, it’s got intelligence too?’
It was definitely on another level from the ones I’d fought before.
Forget the different combat style.
‘It’s too huge and tough.’
And fast to boot.
-Shooo!
After swinging its body to threaten Bone3, it charged at Bone2.
“Bone4!”
[‘Bone4’ uses the skill ‘Low-rank Taunt’ (Lv.1).]
I used an aggro skill for now.
-Krueee?
The thing’s gaze turned to Bone4.
Oh, no way.
It works on a boss too?
Rumble!
This time, instead of digging, it charged straight ahead with full force.
[‘Bone4’ uses the skill ‘Low-rank Block’ (Lv.1).]
As expected, Bone4 had no fear.
Even I wouldn’t be confident blocking that charge, no matter how sturdy.
Kwaaaaang!
An explosion like a grenade rattled my eardrums.
The ground shook, and sand dust billowed up.
“Ugh!”
My stomach churned a bit, but it was bearable.
When visibility cleared.
“Oh, he blocked it?”
I shouted.
I was amazed.
Bone4’s shield was definitely holding back the pincers.
There were a few cracks and he’d been pushed back about ten steps, but it didn’t matter.
“Everyone, hit it!”
I ordered a full assault.
Whoosh!
Bone5 used all his remaining mana for a Fireball.
Swish swish! Shoo! Pabat!
Bone1~3 rushed in using their skills.
Matching them, veins popped in my eyes.
Like my head was on fire, I madly pummeled the thing.
Weak points? Vital spots?
Didn’t know them.
I just ordered full power into every blow.
I hammered its whole body.
For 10 seconds.
-Kieeeek!
With a deafening roar, it spun around.
A splash attack hitting everything around.
“Damn.”
Pababat!
All melee units except shield-bearing Bone4 were flung back.
Creak!
Bone1 and Bone2, forced to retreat, clacked irritably.
‘Still, it’s working.’
The corner of my mouth curled up.
Greenish liquid smeared all over its body.
Definitely its blood.
‘As expected of Awakened Skeletons?’
Just the fact that attacks worked through was positive for top D-rank.
“Good, even if you die! Keep charging!”
Creak!
Bone1 and Bone2 nodded vigorously.
Truth is, as long as attacks land, it’s fine.
No need to spare their bodies.
Why?
[Hunter: Joo Dong-hoon]
[Mana: 50/120]
I still had mana left.
As long as mana remained, my bones were practically invincible.
This was why the Necromancer unique ability was cheat-tier.
Crack, snap!
[‘Bone1’s summon is released.]
[‘Bone2’s summon is released.]
Even if melee units’ HP hit zero.
[Using the skill ‘Awakened Skeleton Summon’ (D-rank).]
[Uses 10 mana.]
[‘Bone1’ appears.]
>
[Using the skill ‘Awakened Skeleton Summon’ (D-rank).]
[Uses 10 mana.]
[‘Bone2’ appears.]
Just resummon them.
-Kieeeek?
The scorpion, fighting hard, looked at the bones with baffled eyes.
I could even feel its bewilderment.
‘Yeah, I get how you feel.’
But what can you do?
Sorry, but victory’s mine in the end.
I kept issuing charge orders.
Bone1 and Bone2 were resummoned twice each.
And finally.
Snap!
Bone1’s greatsword snapped the scorpion’s neck.
“Phew.”
I sighed in relief.
Honestly, it was by a hair.
Mana left: 10.
If it had held out a bit longer,
I might’ve been the one dying.
[Ding!]
[Processing ‘Ancient Desert Scorpion King.’]
The sound signaling the dungeon’s end rang out.
At the same time.
[‘Bone1’s status is adjusted.]
[All stats increase by 1!]
[The skill ‘Low-rank Slash’ (Lv.4) rises by 2 levels.]
>
[‘Bone2’s status is adjusted.]
[All stats increase by 1!]
[The skill ‘Low-rank Pierce’ (Lv.2) rises by 2 levels.]
>
[‘Bone3’s status is adjusted.]
[All stats increase by 1!]
[The skill ‘Low-rank Rapid Fire’ (Lv.2) rises by 2 levels.]
[The skill ‘Vision Secure’ (Lv.2) rises by 2 levels.]
[‘Bone4’s status is adjusted.]
[All stats increase by 2!]
[The skill ‘Low-rank Block’ (Lv.1) rises by 3 levels.]
[The skill ‘Low-rank Taunt’ (Lv.1) rises by 3 levels.]
>
[‘Bone5’s status is adjusted.]
[All stats increase by 2!]
[The skill ‘Fireball’ (Lv.1) rises by 3 levels.]
[The skill ‘Air Shield’ (Lv.1) rises by 3 levels.]
“Crazy.”
My jaw dropped.
As expected of a C-rank boss?
The growth was on another level from training.
First time seeing all stats increase.
And skill levels shot up nicely.
A storm of growth!
‘Maybe I should skip training and just dungeon crawl?’
Rising pride blew away the piled-up fatigue in an instant.
I blinked, staring at the boosted skill levels.
For reference, skill levels max at 10.
According to senior hunters,
When a skill hits max, it upgrades to the next tier.
‘Not long now.’
The day to shed those ‘low-rank’ prefixes wasn’t far.
Rewards didn’t end there.
[Discovered ‘Ancient Desert Scorpion King’s Poison Gland’ (C-rank).]
[Acquire it?]
“Oh, loot?”
Of course!
I nodded, and white light flashed.
At the same time, a black orb appeared above my right hand.
[Item: Ancient Desert Scorpion King’s Poison Gland]
[Rank: C]
[Type: Material]
[Description: The essence of poison hidden in the Ancient Desert Scorpion King’s tail. Contains about 20 kinds of deadly poisons.]
[Effect 1: Can be used as weapon material.]
[Effect 2: Can be used as skill material.]
“What, just a material item?”
A bit disappointing it wasn’t an elixir, but not bad.
Someone would surely buy a C-rank material.
‘Plenty of hunters out there. Someone needs it.’
D-rank and below are common; C-rank prices jump.
A kind of hazard pay.
I smiled contentedly, pocketing the item.
Creak.
Bone3 approached, eyes gleaming.
Its greedy gaze was fixed on my pocket.
“What? What’s up?”
[‘Bone3’ reacts to ‘Ancient Desert Scorpion King’s Poison Gland.’]
“Huh?”
[Hidden condition fulfilled!]
[Condition: Poison Arrow crafting!]
- To acquire the new skill ‘Poison Arrow’ (Lv.1), a certain opportunity is needed!
- Acquire a ‘poison attribute skill material’ D-rank or higher!
“What?”
I was flabbergasted.
Skills could unlock like this?
Whoa.
Now I got why Dark Lord always sang ‘dungeon, dungeon~’.
One boss down, and rewards pour in.
[Acquire the skill ‘Poison Arrow’ (Lv.1)?]
“Okay.”
I nodded.
Better this way.
I could sell the material for cash,
but for an aspiring ranker, strengthening my bones came first.
[‘Bone3’s status is adjusted.]
[Acquires the skill ‘Poison Arrow’ (Lv.1).]
‘Ecstasy.’
A supremely satisfying moment.
[Congratulations!]
[Clearing ‘Stage: Ancient Desert Scorpion King’!]
[Clear rewards arrive!]
Sss.
At that moment, my vision blurred.
Having cleared the dungeon, I was returning to the original gate entrance.
“W-we survived!”
“Sob, we really survived. Thank you, Mr. Necromancer...... I’ll never forget this grace.”
The porter siblings wept in emotion.
Having died and come back, relief was natural.
I grinned.
“Think of it as good experience. From now on, don’t follow anyone just for the money.”
They were young, after all.
This experience would fuel their growth.
I hurriedly sent the porter siblings back.
Because.
[Clear rewards arrive!]
I needed to check this quick.
Boss loot and dungeon clear rewards are handled separately.
[Rewards arrive!]
[Congratulations!]
[Acquired item ‘Traces of the Ancient Desert’ (B-rank).]
Shoosh!
Just like with the poison gland.
An item appeared in my right hand.
‘But.’
The item’s shape felt unfamiliar.
“This is......?”
I tilted my head.
“A key?”
A key-shaped item?
As an E-rank merc, I’d never heard of such a thing.