Chapter 66
Chapter 66
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 66
Chapter Title: Auto-Clear and Silent Shadows
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A week had already passed since they left the Forest of the World.
Leyzon's party pressed on along the ridge of the western mountain range.
Their new destination was the far eastern edge.
There lay the 'Moving Black Castle'.
"In just a few more days, we'll reach Sahā Village."
Sahā Village had become a familiar, welcoming place.
Leyzon gazed down below.
Mountains, fields, and clouds stretched out beneath his feet.
Right now, Leyzon was traveling through Iden's darkness, not Syria's shadow wolf.
The western mountain ridge was incredibly treacherous.
Unlike Syria's shadow, Iden's darkness had no spatial limitations.
That made navigating the ridge far easier this way.
"This is convenient."
"It does require rest periods, though, unlike mine."
Syria grumbled lightly.
She was right—Iden's darkness indeed needed downtime.
Even accounting for that, it was still faster overall.
Seeing Syria a bit sulky, Leyzon soothed her with care.
She'd whine a little at first but always brighten up quickly.
"Gulp, gulp."
Meanwhile, beside Leyzon, Hanok chugged his honey tea.
Like Leyzon, Hanok was grinding away at his growth.
"Iden, where are we roughly now?"
Flying through the skies made it hard for even Leyzon to track the geography.
So he asked Iden, who checked the map Leyzon had given him.
"We're passing near Sundar Lake."
Near Sundar Lake, huh.
"Perfect timing."
It was about time for his appointment with the poison spider.
Plus, there was some prep work to do beforehand.
'Might as well fill up one more skill slot while I'm at it.'
Near Sundar Lake was a skill tied to the Poison Necromancer.
On top of that, with his ascension quest half-complete, he planned to finish ascending before reaching the east.
'And in the east...'
There was a dungeon that required 10 ascensions, accessible only to high-rank adventurers.
He'd need those 10 ascensions for that, no question.
Above all, Leyzon had something specific in mind.
'Gotta use my time as efficiently as possible.'
Leyzon flashed a suspicious grin.
"Lord Leyzon, you seem awfully pleased about something."
"You always smile a lot, Lord Leyzon. It's so nice to see!"
Iden and Syria whispered while glancing at Leyzon.
Hanok was the only one eyeing him with unease.
Whenever Leyzon grinned like that, something was bound to happen.
'What mischief is he plotting this time?'
He hoped it was nothing serious.
Hanok prayed silently for that.
A mid-tier dungeon nestled near Sundar Lake.
It housed an Aquatic Realm Dungeon.
The phantasmal beasts here were merfolk.
With fishfolk scurrying about on two legs everywhere, the place reeked with a distinctive fishy stench.
That kept most pioneers away.
"Smells delicious."
But for Hanok, his feline heritage made the odor light up his eyes instead.
He didn't find it unpleasant at all.
Syria and Iden had no issues either.
They were undead, after all.
Such smells didn't faze them.
'I'm the only one dying here.'
Leyzon pinched his nose against the overpowering stink.
But it was fine.
He wouldn't have to endure it for long.
Leyzon led the trio into the Aquatic Realm Dungeon.
Sticky, damp moisture dripped from everywhere.
The perfect environment for merfolk.
Even Leyzon, who loved sightseeing in dungeons, found the place creepy.
"Syria."
"Yes!"
"I'm heading into the Resonance World now."
"Should I stand guard?"
Leyzon shook his head.
"Put me in your shadow and carry me along. When you encounter the boss phantasmal beast, use Undead Fusion."
Undead Fusion wasn't exclusive to Leyzon's control.
The undead could fight through his body too.
If Syria used Undead Fusion to take down the boss phantasmal beast...
It would count as Leyzon clearing it himself.
'The dungeon clear condition is just defeating the boss phantasmal beast and exiting.'
In other words, Undead Fusion satisfied that perfectly.
Which meant...
'Auto-dungeon clears are possible.'
The true era of auto-hunting had arrived.
Dungeon Replay was an auto-hunting game at its core.
This got closer to its essence than anything.
Sure, there'd be some initial EXP loss from it.
But he could recover that later.
'This world hides more secrets than I thought. Uncovering them demands time investment.'
So he'd use his time even more efficiently.
"I'll head to the Resonance World during that time."
With his meeting with the poison spider looming...
Their talk about the manuscript would likely drag on.
And he planned to dig for more intel on the Bluebird Knights too.
'This is eating the duck and the egg both.'
Auto-hunting while gathering info.
Nothing more efficient.
"Hanok, you know EXP farming is your top priority."
"Yes, especially since I need to raise Haron too."
Hanak and Haron were growing together rapidly.
After this ascension, Leyzon planned to evolve Haron.
That made EXP essential.
"Right. So take good care of things, all three of you."
It was just a mid-8th ascension dungeon.
No Leyzon? No problem.
"Safe travels!"
Leyzon slipped into the shadow amid Syria's send-off.
His consciousness faded into the Resonance World.
Once Leyzon was gone...
Three were left standing awkwardly.
But there was one thing Leyzon didn't realize.
He was the center of this group.
Even their usual chats revolved around him.
They hardly ever talked directly to each other.
As a result...
"……."
"……."
"……."
With Leyzon gone, silence enveloped them.
An awkward air wrapped around the trio.
Syria showed no interest in anyone but Leyzon.
She was endlessly bright around him, but stone-faced and smile-free with others.
Even with fellow undead.
Iden moved on curiosity alone, his face perpetually languid.
He wasn't mute, but after losing Radis, he'd spent decades alone in Nosis.
That severed his social ties, slashing his wordiness.
For Hanok, Syria and Iden still terrified him.
He was timid to a fault.
Fine with Leyzon mediating, but starting a convo with those ticking undead bombs? No way.
His breath caught in his throat instantly.
'I never knew it got this bad without Lord Leyzon.'
Normally, when Leyzon entered the Resonance World, Hanok trained.
But now, the three were stuck in a dungeon together.
Until Leyzon returned, they'd have to stick it out.
Hanok paled.
But he lacked the guts to break the ice.
Thus, the worst silence settled in.
Leyzon's absence hit harder than imagined.
They exchanged glances.
Unable to bear the quiet, Hanok tentatively raised a hand.
Syria and Iden's eyes snapped to him.
Hanak flinched hard.
Instead of speaking, he trembled and pointed inside shakily.
Meaning: let's go in.
Better to fight phantasmal beasts than endure this silence.
Syria and Iden nodded.
Truly, zero chit-chat among the three.
"Whine……."
Only Haron, still unable to speak, whimpered softly at the scene.
Back in the Resonance World once more.
He'd been entering amid major events lately, but the intel gained here was too valuable to skip.
'Just this once, I say—then it turns into addiction.'
Leyzon stepped into the meeting hall.
"Wonder what incident dragged me here today."
Whistling lightly, Leyzon looked up.
And faced an unexpected sight.
"……No one's here?"
The hall stood utterly empty.
Just vacant sofas, no signs of life.
Leyzon blinked at the unforeseen scene.
The usual regulars were missing too.
"Something happen?"
He smacked his lips.
He'd hoped for Bluebird Knights intel, but...
Not a single one showed.
'These negligent bastards.'
Typical necromancers.
Leyzon clicked his tongue and leaned back in a chair.
Still, rare alone time.
He decided to enjoy it positively.
'Good for some reflection.'
Like how he'd instilled solo contemplation in his undead Estelle, Leyzon had his own habit here.
His life had been full of twists.
To move forward, he always needed to organize.
Leyzon sorted his priorities.
And split tasks for the road ahead.
Mountains of them.
New issues popped up everywhere he went—solving one just birthed more.
"Busy man."
Muttering to himself, Leyzon sank into the sofa.
'Come to think of it, when's the last time I relaxed like this?'
Since Dungeon Replay became reality...
He hadn't stopped pushing forward for a second.
Partly his restless nature.
Partly the world wouldn't let him rest.
'Well, can't slack if I want the empire's downfall ending.'
Every ending demanded tricky conditions.
Resting wouldn't solve them.
Thud—
Then, footsteps approached.
About time for the poison spider.
Knowing him, he'd have something from the manuscript.
Leyzon tilted his head back and called out.
"You're here?"
The figure froze at Leyzon's voice.
And Leyzon faced not the poison spider—but someone unexpected.
A man with flamboyantly blazing hair atop his head.
The blue-flame-haired man.
The impostor from Leyzon's first day in the Resonance World.
Mistaking him, Leyzon smacked his lips.
Shouldn't have assumed.
"……You knew I was coming?"
The flame-head replied warily.
Leyzon had unintentionally stirred a misunderstanding.
Staring at him, Leyzon slowly curled his lips into a grin.
Intuition hit hard.
This guy had intel to squeeze out.
"Yeah, you've got questions for me too, right?"
Leyzon grinned brazenly.
Time to play it like he knew everything.