Bone Transformation

Bone transformation. In other words… the same posture meant that while the most critical areas stayed hidden, she was exposing a substantial portion of the soft flesh below her waist to me.

No Hayun’s fully revealed thighs looked white and impossibly soft, as if they had never once been touched by sunlight. The surrounding skin glistened with moisture, and an unidentifiable pale-yellow fluid splattered across it, tracing lazy paths downward with gravity.

“Haa— ahhh—”

No Hayun gazed up at me with desperate eyes before resuming the motion of her hand that had briefly paused. A hunter who had stepped into the superhuman realm could move with terrifying speed when she chose to. To an ordinary person, the motion would have been invisible. Using that kind of power for something like this was, admittedly, a grotesque sight.

Even so, No Hayun never openly moaned. Yet the longer I stared, the faster her hand moved. One might assume that since I was merely a summon there was no issue showing me such a sight… but honestly, I had no idea what she was thinking. Wouldn’t this actually kill her excitement? Did she have zero fear that I might suddenly pull a blade and charge? Really? Had she already forgotten the memory of being beaten senseless?

The situation was so frustrating it was starting to make me angry.

“Ahhng…!”

Pssht-pssht-pssht— Pssht—

Eventually something began spraying in every direction over the hand still hidden inside her pants. There was no need to spell out what it was. But why was I still watching? Maybe the sheer novelty of the scene had me rooted in place.

I tried to turn my head, but No Hayun suddenly called out to stop me.

“U-um…”

What the hell was I supposed to do with this girl? If her mother ever found out she’d faint on the spot. Still, curiosity got the better of me, so I turned my head slightly. That was when she arched her waist high into the air one final time and finished.

……

I was completely at a loss for words. She should thank her lucky stars that a skeleton couldn’t wear an expression of utter contempt. Leaving the climaxing No Hayun behind, I stepped out of the tent where our party was resting.

It felt like I had fallen out of one surreal space only to step into another. Though barely any time had passed, the scene I had just witnessed felt brand-new, as if I were seeing it for the first time. And then a message I had long forgotten suddenly rose in my mind.

Whoa! I’d completely forgotten about this and it just drops ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in out of nowhere?

It might be the single best achievement I possessed, yet it had taken forever to trigger. I had received it after locating the artifact Necklace of the Forgotten Ancient Sorcerer Gusfowel and handing it over to Yeon-hee. The necklace was still concealed by my stealth ability so no one else could see it, but it had resized itself perfectly for her neck and now gave off a gentle glow from its green gem. The bonuses to magic power and magic recovery remained fully active.

But what exactly did I help Yeon-hee with?

Did helping her relieve her desires count as the same kind of meaningful assistance as giving her a priceless artifact for free? That logic felt more than a little dubious…

With a puzzled mind I focused the waves of my senses toward Yeon-hee. I immediately detected her still in the middle of cleaning herself—along with the strikingly large surge in her mana reserves.

…?

Was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠she distributing the stats she had gained from her recent level-up? The sheer volume of mana swelling inside her didn’t feel normal for simple stat allocation.

Whether it came from some hidden achievement or a second awakening triggered by mental shock, it didn’t matter. Any growth in Yeon-hee’s mana was something to celebrate.

Hmm. Is this a divine revelation telling me to make Yeon-hee happy more often?!

My simple brain could only interpret the situation that way.

Anyway, after receiving a reward for the first time in a while, it was time for a pleasant decision. Options one and two let me choose exactly which ability to raise, while option three granted a random increase plus bonus stats.

Last time I had chosen to raise Thievery, and that decision had brought me numerous benefits—including shortening the time needed to hunt monsters. This time, however, I needed to think more carefully. There were simply too many attractive candidates.

I was most curious whether I could raise the level of my self-destruct skill, Madness Exploding Bullet. If not, investing in Flame Explosion—which would clearly become my main skill—would also be excellent. Raising Thievery again to increase the odds of stealing traits from rare monsters remained a solid choice, and Penetration, which seemed capable of ignoring a portion of an enemy’s defense, was tempting as well.

Ugh… this is actually hard to decide…

For now… I’d better hold off. Since I hadn’t properly tested Flame Explosion or Madness Exploding Bullet yet, I couldn’t invest with full confidence. Decision postponed.

Still… their numbers really have dropped a lot.

When I looked up, the bat swarm that had blackened the ceiling had visibly thinned. I had killed nearly half of them, so it was only natural. This time their numbers had multiplied several times over and they had grown stronger, so I had expected it to take much longer. My calculations had been off.

Our party’s combat strength was far greater than I had anticipated.

Ah—spending time with Yeon-hee has completely restored my mental energy… that’s fascinating.

It was clear that bringing happiness to Yeon-hee was directly linked to the recovery of my own spirit. The black storm clouds that had seemed permanent inside my head had vanished without a trace. I stretched refreshingly.

At this rate… I can go wild again.

Even if I left this area and entered the maze, those wretched bats would keep popping out everywhere. However, there were no more gatherings on the same massive scale. Instead, squads of roughly five hundred would launch guerrilla-style attacks. How many could I kill then? With only a few people helping, forty or fifty at most. Therefore I needed to complete as much of the quest as possible right here, where more than twenty thousand of the creatures still swarmed.

Good work. Let’s switch shifts.

Haaaaam… I feel like I’m going to die. Seriously…

Aside from the summons, the hunters were taking turns standing guard like night watchmen. We had decided during the meeting to maintain this rotation until the bats began moving again.

Let’s give them a little more time.

They needed proper rest if they were going to pull their weight through the long maze and the final battle. It wouldn’t do to disturb them noisily right now.

Rustle— Inside the tent, Yeon-hee finished cleaning herself, pulled out a fresh sleeping bag, and slipped inside. Astonishingly, she fell asleep the instant her head touched the ground. Her flushed cheeks and the corners of her mouth lifted in a gentle smile were the happiest expression I had seen on her face in a long time.

Maybe I should loosen her up more often…

Of course it wasn’t purely for ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Yeon-hee’s sake. Her previously awkward speech had improved, and our sexual exchanges were causing changes within my own skeletal body as well.

But I’m not entirely sure that’s a good thing…

Regardless, the primary goal running through my life as a skeleton was to become strong enough that no one could ever control me again. Even if it lasted only thirty minutes, moving closer to humanity felt like moving further from true strength. Because I possessed this awkward human consciousness, the latter half of today had been especially difficult.

While I was lost in thought, No Hayun slowly emerged from our party’s tent and stood beside me. She cleaned up quickly, I’d give her that. I instinctively widened the distance, but she stared at me for a moment, cheeks flushing, before speaking.

“By any chance… does your master also do… that kind of thing?”

“……Exactly that?”

“No… I mean, having that sort of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠interest in the undead… I was just asking, just in case.”

What the hell are you talking about…

“Ahem— So that kind of service… you only provide it to your master, right? If, by any chance, it’s possible for me too…”

……

It seemed No Hayun believed Yeon-hee was using me to obtain sexual satisfaction. In outcome it was similar, but since I was the one in complete control, the reality was entirely different.

“It… won’t be possible? Ahem— Well, if not, there’s nothing I can do. Though if you help me a little, I could offer a reward…”

“……”

No Hayun glanced at me sideways while dangling an ambiguous condition. The word “reward” momentarily caught my interest, but she hadn’t specified what she would give, and when I thought of Yeon-hee, the idea still felt wrong. Even if the item matched the grade of the ring she currently wore, the answer was still no.

When I showed no particular reaction, No Hayun nodded and continued.

“Understood. But you absolutely cannot tell your master about this. Got it?”

I gave a small nod.

“Right. A man should protect a woman’s secrets.”

“Clack……”

“I know it’s a strange preference… I don’t even know when it started, but… that’s how it is.”

What is?

“But me! I prefer ones that actually move rather than ones that stay completely still!”

“……?”

I had no idea what she was saying, but I gave a reluctant little nod anyway. No Hayun’s face brightened with unexpected satisfaction and she turned back toward the tent. Somehow she looked… refreshed. As she walked she suddenly spun around, pressed her index finger to her lips, and gave me a wink. Was that supposed to be cute aegyo asking me to keep her secret?

Stunned, I could only think, ……Just what the hell did I experience?

It was without doubt a conversation with the woman who possessed the most peculiar tastes in the entire country. My head was spinning. Maybe I should take a walk.

I moved a moderate distance from the tent and began training, refining the greatsword that had sprouted from my left hand into a more precise form.

The width could stand to be a little broader.

I adjusted the blade’s shape without damaging its integrity and practiced drawing it from any part of my body. If a greatsword suddenly erupted from the crown of my head or from behind my back, nothing would confuse an enemy more.

I’m evolving into a true monster. Hehehehe…

I immersed myself in training while muttering chuunibyou lines to myself. Thanks to my greatly increased proficiency with bone manipulation, making the greatsword sprout from places other than my left hand was progressing rapidly.

Rise!

Swooooosh——!

When I concentrated magic power at the tip of my foot, a sharp blade resembling a fencing épée stretched out long and thin.

Good! It’s still a little crude, but it should be useful for stabbing the eyes of humanoid monsters.

Against massive monsters it might not mean much, but against orc-type creatures there could be no better way to create an opening.