Chapter 2
Chapter 2
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: I Raise Skeletons
-----------------------------------------------------------------
I'm trying my best to live my life, so why the hell are you picking on me, Rankers?
The aspiration and idol of all Hunters.
Those who grasp all the fame, wealth, and power in the world.
The way to become one is ridiculously simple.
「World Ranking Board」
You just need to engrave your name here.
About ten years ago, a mysterious giant board appeared in the eastern United States.
Exactly 1,000 Hunters can be listed here.
And it's a strict ranking system.
Some might wonder.
'That's kinda weird, right? Fine, I get that getting your name on the board makes you a Ranker. But who decides who gets listed?'
'Yeah, there's no clear criteria for Rankers anyway.'
'True... It's ambiguous. Strength varies day by day based on condition, and there are Hunters with lifestyle or support-type unique abilities, right?'
These kinds of questions.
Doubts many people had when the board first appeared.
But there was no need to worry.
Because the system that determines the rankings isn't 'human.'
[Rankings have been updated.]
[Please refer to the World Ranking Board.]
At the start of every month.
A status message notifies all Hunters worldwide of the update.
That alone ended all the controversy.
No way something like this could be done by a 'human.'
'Okay, if the system automatically assigns them, that's king.'
'Yeah, as long as it's not human, there won't be any corruption, right?'
Humanity accepted and understood the 'Ranker' system without much resistance.
Having already deeply internalized the 'Hunter' system.
Crunch, crunch.
I kept walking along the mountain path.
After some time passed.
I found an empty clearing.
"Time to get started?"
It wasn't a clearing someone else had made.
It was a space I'd naturally carved out with my tears and sweat.
I always headed here naturally after work.
Crunch, crackle.
As soon as I arrived, I rolled my neck and started stretching.
At the same time, I opened my skill window with one eye.
[Skill: Ordinary Skeleton Summon]
[Grade: E]
[Effect 1: Consume 10 Stamina to summon a low-grade skeleton. Up to 10 possible.]
[Effect 2: You can name each skeleton.]
"......"
The familiar text greeted my eyes.
Content that pissed me off and raised my blood pressure every time I saw it.
"Sigh."
Of course, it wasn't like this when I first got the skill.
'You can name the skeletons? This is a skill I've never heard of. Maybe it's something special, different from others?'
A thought anyone would have.
I heard regular Necromancers' undead were one-time use.
Once summoned, they never appeared again on the next cast.
But mine were different.
Every time I consumed Stamina to call them.
[Using Skill, 'Ordinary Skeleton Summon' (E-Grade).]
[Using 10 Stamina.]
['Bone1' appears.]
[Using Skill, 'Ordinary Skeleton Summon' (E-Grade).]
[Using 10 Stamina.]
['Bone2' appears.]
[Using Skill, 'Ordinary Skeleton Summon' (E-Grade).]
[Using 10 Stamina.]
['Bone3' appears.]
Creak, squeak!
With my half-assed names just numbering the bones, my welcome buddies appeared.
Not disposable skeletons, but always the same ones.
"Glad to see you punks today too. Loosen up. Gotta take care of those fragile joints."
Of course, even without names, distinguishing them was easy.
Their weapons were different.
"Alright, Number 1 has the big sword."
Clang!
It swung at the straw dummy I'd set up in the corner.
"Number 2 has the long spear."
Whoosh!
Bone2 charged at the dummy on the opposite side, unwilling to be outdone.
"Number 3 has the bow."
Squeee!
The last one pulled back the bowstring toward the target on the tree.
That's right.
This was my effort to become a Ranker.
Training.
For three years, I'd been relentlessly drilling these guys alone.
Under the assumption that their memories and skills persisted across summons, maybe training them would improve their abilities.
At first, there were some results.
Guys who struggled with a single E-Grade goblin could now handle three on their own.
'But.'
E-Grade is still E-Grade.
That was it.
No matter how intense the training got.
No matter how much time passed.
Their growth had limits.
'I even tried hiring a tutor.'
When I shelled out big money for a C-Grade Hunter, I felt like a deranged parent obsessed with education.
And the more miserable part.
'I gave up on 4 through 10 completely.'
Unlike Bone1 through 3.
The rest didn't even have weapons.
I experimented thinking maybe they were bare-handed fighters or support types.
Creak?
But seeing them move like glitched robots.
It made my chest tighten, like I was about to die of frustration.
I tried giving them hundreds of weapons.
Taught them martial arts I'd learned.
Read them books, showed them videos.
Even tried shock therapy by taking them as porters to high-grade dungeons.
"......"
But still, no response.
Just wasted Stamina.
A year passed, then two, now three years in.
They were still just ordinary E-Grade skeletons.
"Haa."
Even I get tired, being human and all.
Am I doomed to live like this forever?
"What a shitty life."
But there's no other way.
Didn't someone say it?
A person without dreams is more pitiful than one chasing impossible ones.
My dream is clear: become a Ranker.
So I just keep pushing forward steadfastly.
That's when it happened, during the ongoing training.
Rustle!
I sensed movement from the dark woods opposite.
"Hm?"
I furrowed my brow.
Even if it's an ownerless back mountain.
This place had been my private sanctuary for nearly three years—no one else had set foot here.
Instinctive wariness kicked in.
Grrr! Chwiik!
'What the hell?'
My eyes widened.
What was that, a pig getting slaughtered?
One thing was certain: definitely not human.
Best case, a wild boar or bird. Worst case...
'Monster?'
Creak, squeak!
Bone1, 2, and 3 read my mind and instinctively stopped training.
They moved right beside me into combat stance.
"Chwiik!"
With a foul roar from right in front, a monster appeared.
Green skin, huge tusks, bulging muscles—it was none other than.
"An orc?"
A tricky monster registered as D-Grade.
"Crazy, why's an orc here?"
I stumbled back in panic.
A D-Grade orc might be nothing to a Ranker.
But to me, it was pure terror.
My available forces were just three E-Grade skeletons.
Plus, the clear hunger in its blood-red eyes.
Drooling like it was starving.
['Bone1' (E-Grade) is suppressed by the strong one's presence. All stats reduced by 20%!]
['Bone2' (E-Grade) is suppressed by the strong one's presence. All stats reduced by 20%!]
['Bone3' (E-Grade) is suppressed by the strong one's presence. All stats reduced by 20%!]
"You goddamn bastards?"
Adding insult to injury.
Our lovably pathetic Bones, whose three years of training meant nothing, cowed by mere presence.
"Feels like the heavens are begging me to just die already."
An orc here meant a Dungeon Break.
'Dungeon Breaks aren't rare.'
But the odds of it happening here, with me alone in this remote spot?
Hmm, probably about the same as getting struck by lightning on a walk.
"Haa."
I let out a deep sigh.
How much would it hurt getting crushed by those teeth?
Would it eat from the top or bottom first?
Or kill me before eating?
"Ugh."
Of course, I had no intention of going down without a fight.
I didn't want to die.
"Chwiik! Chwiiik!"
The orc, after a brief standoff, swung its axe in the air and charged.
"Block it!"
I immediately controlled the skeletons into position.
Suppressed by presence or not, emotionless bones responded instantly.
Clang!
Bone1—Bone-il for short—swung its sword to block the axe.
Bone-i with the spear leaped like lightning to assist Bone-il.
But.
"Chwiiik!"
The orc's brutal muscles twitched.
Crack! Snap!
The skeletons' bodies shattered easily.
My mind went blank.
['Bone1''s summon is released.]
['Bone2''s summon is released.]
"You fucking shits!"
At least Bone3 with the bow was at range. That was a relief.
Twang!
The skeleton released the string, firing an arrow.
Yes, Bone3! You're my only hope.
Please, do your best! Even if life's a piece of shit, I wanna keep living.
[Hunter: Joo Dong-hoon]
[Stamina: 70/100]
I checked my Stamina while retreating.
70 left.
Meaning I could summon seven more Bones.
[Using Skill, 'Ordinary Skeleton Summon' (E-Grade).]
[Using 10 Stamina.]
['Bone1' appears.]
[Using Skill, 'Ordinary Skeleton Summon' (E-Grade).]
[Using 10 Stamina.]
['Bone2' appears.]
"You're the tanks!"
I fled swiftly, resummoning the melee dealers.
With my life on the line, I skipped the useless 4 through 10.
"Charge! Buy as much time as you can!"
Creak!
Bone-il and Bone-i nodded and charged again.
The skeletons' advantage: infinite revival as long as I had Stamina.
Yeah.
Sorry I'm such a shitty master, but buy me a little time.
"Chwiiiik!"
Interrupted mid-feast, the excited orc bellowed, shaking the forest.
It relentlessly hacked at the persistent duo with its axe.
Ting! Ting!
Bone3's arrows bounced off its tough skin.
It wasn't no damage, but it was just pissing it off more.
'Goddamn it.'
My head felt like it was on fire.
I was running, but couldn't stray too far from the skeletons.
Its target was my soft flesh and tasty blood.
If it ignored them and came straight for me, no way I could outrun it on human legs.
['Bone1''s summon is released.]
['Bone2''s summon is released.]
"Damn it!"
There wasn't much I could do.
Run with everything I had.
Resummon and reinforce when they despawned.
It was a top-tier D-Grade orc—attacks barely worked—but now wasn't the time to nitpick.
Like a desperate bug fighting for survival, I gave it my all.
After a few minutes.
[Stamina fully depleted.]
[Tip: Want to recover Stamina? Try resting.]
"Rest my ass!"
Stamina at 0 now.
I looked up at the sky, cursing whoever was up there.
I'm trying my best to live, so why the hell are you doing this to me?