Chapter 82
Chapter 82
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 82
Chapter Title: Skeleton King
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[Skeleton King [Hidden condition achieved!]]
['Unique Ability: Cursed Necromancer' exclusive hidden condition!]
[Condition: The Law of 10,000 Command!]
- Raising the grade of your unique ability requires tremendous effort!
- Command a total of 10,000 skeletons, regardless of type!
'The Law of 10,000 Command?'
I'd heard that condition somewhere before.
'Was it the Law of 10,000 Uses?'
[Condition: The Law of 10,000 Uses!]
- Raising the grade of your unique ability requires tremendous effort!
- Use the skill, 'Ordinary Skeleton Summon' (E-Grade), 10,000 times!
Yeah, that's right.
It was the condition from back when I awakened as an E-Grade hunter after encountering that orc.
Ahh.
Does the system just love the number 10,000 or what?
'It sure knows how to justify itself.'
That settled it.
Awakenings didn't have just one condition.
If I could've reached A-Grade solely with that 'Law of 10,000 Command'?
That would've been way too unfair!
There wasn't even a skill or method to command 10,000 skeletons—how was I supposed to do it?
'It's just some unidentified entity giving the green light.'
Now it was saying I could go to A-Grade.
The plausibility was satisfied.
That grade suited my power.
'Anyway.'
I'd commanded them earlier, but now it seemed to have counted the 1,000 skeletons frozen in the blizzard.
Plus the additional 9,000, totaling 10,000.
I welcomed it.
[Congratulations!]
[Your grade has grown to A-Grade!]
A pure white, mystical energy enveloped my body.
Finally, I'd reached the A-Grade realm!
[Rewards for the grade change are arriving!]
Good.
Hand over that extra life first.
[Vitality is replenishing!]
[Vitality: 220/220]
"Yes!"
I shouted.
This was the biggest advantage of awakening mid-battle.
Not only did my vitality fill up, but my injuries and fatigue reset completely.
Of course, the effects of awakening weren't just that.
"My lord... I sense you've taken one step closer to your true power."
"At this level... you could take on a lich, right?"
Kwa-ga-gang! Shoo-shing!
Taeyang's spear strikes and Eldrin's volley erupted.
The liches began to fall back from the completely different momentum.
Thud!
Bone Four.
Whoosh! Slash!
Bone Two.
Rrrroar!
Bone Five.
They charged with even fiercer glares.
[The grade of the skill, 'Great Skeleton Summon' (B-Grade), has been upgraded!]
[The skill has changed to 'Skeleton Knight Summon' (A-Grade)!]
Skeleton Knight!
That's right.
They weren't just plain skeletons anymore.
They'd earned the rank of 'knight.'
And additionally.
[A main weapon has been set for the new skeleton!]
[Target skeleton: 'Bone7']
[From now on, this skeleton will respond to your commands!]
"Bone Seven too?"
Another seal had been released.
I'd still need to complete another catalyst quest to fully awaken it.
But expanding my forces was worth celebrating.
'I'll check on Bone Seven later.'
First things first.
It felt like too much control had flooded in at once.
Honestly, my head was spinning.
My own bones were one thing.
Goooo...!
But 9,000 skeletons were glaring with fiery eyes as they charged the liches.
[Your presence infuses power into all skeletons.]
They weren't ordinary skeletons one by one.
They were far stronger and more tenacious than when they'd been soldiers.
All because of me.
Because of the aura from my title.
- Kee-ee-ee!
The liches panicked and unleashed their magic.
But there was emotion in the skeletons' eyes.
- Because of you.
- Because of your undead legion.
- We died.
- So, you die too.
- We'll become immortal and tear you apart forever.
Their flesh was dead, for sure.
But deep in their bones, resentment lingered bitterly.
Hostility toward the 'liches.'
And gratitude toward me for giving them this chance.
The emotions they felt stabbed at my heart.
It came flooding in fully.
[A total of 10,000 skeletons now serve you with true loyalty.]
Creak! Grind!
Even if their bones melted under the liches' flashy magic.
Even if their skulls flew off and joints shattered.
They charged endlessly.
Charging to drive their weapons into the liches' bodies.
[Not only ruling over them, but receiving their loyalty.]
[You are the 'Skeleton King.']
Skeleton King?
"......!"
I widened my eyes and hurriedly opened my status window.
[Hunter: Ju Dong-hoon]
[Alias: Skeleton King]
[Vitality: 220/220]
[Unique Ability: Cursed Necromancer]
[Grade: A]
[Effects]
-You are the job that handles dead souls, a necromancer. You can subdue foes using terrifying evil spirits and deadly poisons. However, you are cursed.
-You can only summon skeletons.
[Possessed Skills]
-'Skeleton Knight Summon' (A-Grade)
-'Memory Recreation' (S-Grade)
-'Teachings of Ten Thousand Arts' (S-Grade)
-'Pain Resistance' (S-Grade)
-'Slash' (B-Grade)
-'Pierce' (B-Grade)
-'Shoot' (B-Grade)
-'Block' (B-Grade)
-'Pure Heart Technique' (S-Grade)
-'Resurrect Dead' (A-Grade)
-'Roar of the Dead' (A-Grade)
Ahh.
My alias had changed.
No longer 'Skeleton Lord,' but the next stage up, 'Skeleton King'?
'And moreover.'
Two new skills.
'Resurrect Dead' and 'Roar of the Dead.'
[Skill: Resurrect Dead]
[Grade: A]
[Effect 1: Summons up to 10,000 skeletons. However, corpses of the dead must be nearby.]
[Effect 2: Consumes 50 vitality.]
[Skill: Roar of the Dead]
[Grade: A]
[Effect 1: Doubles the stats of all nearby skeletons.]
[Effect 2: Consumes 50 vitality.]
"Crazy...!"
A shiver ran through my entire body.
A skill to summon 10,000 skeletons.
And an AoE buff on top?
Yes.
This was a true necromancer!
If you're ruling the dead, shouldn't you summon at least this many?
It was moving.
Tears genuinely welled up in my eyes.
Woo-woong!
I raised my staff.
[Using skill, 'Resurrect Dead' (A-Grade).]
[Consuming 50 vitality.]
You gotta use a new skill right away to really savor it, right?
"Rise, my bones!"
The corpses were plentiful.
Over 30,000 dead soldiers, by rough count.
But only 10,000 had been used so far.
Crack-crackle!
The world was blanketed in a snowy field.
Already overwhelming numbers, and now double that in skeletons rose in unison.
"...This is the Lord's potential?"
The spectacle was beyond grand.
Even the ranker Lee Seon-ah gaped beside me.
"Black Sword, he's not a Lord anymore—it's King now?"
"King..."
Yeah, I was the king.
The king of white bones, the White Bone King himself!
Kugu-gu-gu!
The ground shook.
Like tens of thousands of ants devouring a cicada.
The white soldiers' horde engulfed the liches.
'This is...'
I was in awe.
Even a ranker would struggle to hold this back.
Didn't that make me ranker-level too?
Of course.
There was still one more step.
[Using skill, 'Roar of the Dead' (A-Grade).]
[Consuming 50 vitality.]
Roooaaar...!
A roar like an evil spirit's wail burst from my body in waves.
It spread wide like ripples on water.
A cheat skill that doubled all skeletons' stats and speed without penalties.
"I've underestimated you, Lord... no, Skeleton King."
Lee Seon-ah lowered her sword and joined the front lines.
With the swarming skeletons, she could deal damage relatively freely.
"Your potential... it might even surpass the Leader's."
"Leader?"
"Yes, Heavenly Demon Ha Sera. The one who taught me Black Sword Flying Technique."
"......?"
Someone at a level that could pass down martial arts?
Did that even make sense?
'Well.'
Including the elder of Ten Thousand Arts.
My own skills were already ridiculous beyond belief—I couldn't judge the world by my standards.
The world was vast, full of eccentrics.
Plus, Ha Sera was the world rank 3 hunter.
"Anyway, you've kept your promise."
Lee Seon-ah smiled faintly.
The first smile I'd seen since the dungeon turned upside down.
"You upheld the pact of Seoul's Five Stars."
Kwa-ga-gang!
Her sword strikes poured onto a lich.
Sure.
Her movements were slower than at first, but a ranker was still a ranker.
Incredible destructive power.
"You overcame the trial this dungeon imposed on you. Just like you told me."
Kwa-ga-ga!
Another wave of countless skeletons overwhelmed the liches.
White waves so thick the liches vanished from sight.
"Honestly, at first, it was just because I was friends with Amje and went along with her recommendation."
Fwoosh!
Another blizzard howled in.
One lich had burned all its vitality to unleash a blizzard.
"But this time is different. I've seen and confirmed it myself."
But it was too late.
The liches were already in tatters, on the verge of annihilation.
Shing!
Lee Seon-ah's sword pointed to the sky once more.
Black Sword Flying Technique.
Wide-Area Technique.
Third Form.
True Thunderclap.
Kwa-ga-ga-gang!
The swung strike became lightning, bombing the liches indiscriminately.
"......"
Her final technique, pouring in all her vitality.
Lee Seon-ah wiped blood from her mouth and began mopping up.
- Kee-ee-ee!
- Kyaa-aa-ah!
The liches cried out one by one, turning to black smoke.
Killing one made the next even easier.
And with the blizzard-casting lich dead.
The snowstorm stopped.
Her movements were cautious yet sharp.
"My lord! Using Sun Chain Strike!"
My bones moved gracefully too.
"I'll support with Moonlight Fall too!"
Eldrin's arrows covered for Taeyang.
As Lee Seon-ah moved, they swept the battlefield together, toying with the liches.
At last.
Plop!
After finishing all the liches, she landed before me.
"You... huff, huff...!"
Ragged breaths escaped her lips.
"You're a hunter who stays calmer than anyone in a crisis. Excellent judgment and decisiveness. So..."
Lee Seon-ah looked at me.
"......"
I met her eyes directly.
"Black Sword hereby sincerely recommends you for 'Dungeon Maker' and will continue to support you steadily. Like Amje."
She laughed brightly.
At the same time.
[Congratulations!]
[You've cleared 'Stage: Undead Legion'!]
[Clear rewards are arriving!]
A thrilling message appeared.
A dramatic congratulations announcing we'd survived.
Were all dungeons like this?
This dramatic?
Or was it just me?
'But this time.'
I'd taken the lead and pulled it off.
I hadn't been outdone by a ranker.
I'd awakened to A-Grade, made a huge contribution, and helped kill the liches.
'Of course.'
Without Lee Seon-ah, I never could've cleared it alone.
Still, I'd grown this time too.
Evolved.
From today onward.
I was the Skeleton King.