The Well-off Liches Association

Zaggaran and the Underground Alliance Goblins were locked in a heated argument. They bickered over what kind of life a true goblin should lead, whether a goblin must only dedicate themselves to Engineering, and how times had changed...

'Yeah, I'm staying out of this.'

'Where on earth did you learn a phrase like that?'

Just as Carbanog said, there was absolutely nothing to gain from getting involved in their spat. However, the bickering once again raised the expectations of the rankers.

"They're going to fight!"

"Yeah, they'll keep arguing like that until someone throws the first punch, and then the real battle begins...!"

"My family does this every holiday, and it always ends with someone getting grabbed by the collar! They're definitely going to throw down!"

"Hey..."

Please, just fight! The rankers all had different ulterior motives, but for once, their hearts were united. If a fight didn't break out now, they would have accomplished next to nothing in this dungeon. If they had done anything at all, it was bickering uglily amongst themselves while hunting golems.

"Whew. I should give you a harsher scolding, but I am busy, so I shall leave it at this."

-That is my line! Where did these old-fashioned fools crawl out from to cause such a ruckus? Hmph!

However, goblins were a race with far better relations than the ranker's family mentioned earlier. Even when they fought, they knew when to stop! Realizing their argument would lead nowhere, they reached a reasonable compromise and backed down.

"Ah... No...!!!"

"Nooooooo!"

The rankers wailed in despair. Seeing this, Lich Zaggaran stared at them and asked:

-What on earth is wrong with those adventurer bastards?

"They are grieving because you abandoned Engineering to walk the path of black magic!"

-Ah. Shut up already!

Zaggaran shook his head in disgust. Even before becoming a Lich, back when he lived in the goblin village, he had been sick to death of the goblin elders constantly lecturing him.

'What business does a goblin have with black magic? Have you gone mad? Aigoo, aigoo, this fellow disregards our traditions! Goblins of the village, come look at this rascal!'

They called it advice, but it was closer to relentless harassment. Why else would Zaggaran have left his village to study black magic? It was because he detested his own kind!

'He's just like Stau.'

The goblin Bizarre Chef, Stau! Goblins seemed to have an unusually high number of such eccentric outsiders who broke away from their tribe. Of course, in Stau's case, it was more because his cooking was so terrifying that he got kicked out...

Deciding that Tae-hyun was a much better conversational partner, Zaggaran spoke to him.

-Keep those fellows from coming any closer.

"Well, that's not hard."

-But how on earth did you steal the undead I summoned?

"I inherited Nebuchadnezzar's Blackmagic."

Though in truth, it was closer to pure Speech!

-N-Nebuchadnezzar's Blackmagic! That is truly incredible!

Zaggaran was astonished. Whether they liked him or not, any black mage was bound to react to the name of Nevuchadnezzar.

-Wait. Come to think of it, not long ago, a massive wave of death energy erupted... Was the descent of Nevuchadnezzar actually real?

Tae-hyun nodded. Zaggaran asked in a tense voice:

-Don't tell me... Nevuchadnezzar sent you?

Zaggaran gripped his staff tightly. Not all black mages were fond of Nevuchadnezzar. What black mage would look kindly upon someone who wanted to rule over everything by himself? Zaggaran was one of them. He had left his village just to escape the nagging of the goblin elders; there was no way he would tolerate serving as a lackey under Nevuchadnezzar's nagging now. Absolutely out of the question!

"No. Nevuchadnezzar has fallen. I defeated him and took over his legacy."

-You were an incredible black mage! Far greater than I!

'I didn't say anything.'

What was he supposed to do if the other guy misunderstood on his own? Regardless, Zaggaran seemed to have fully convinced himself. A black mage who inherited Nevuchadnezzar's legacy must have been the one to stop Nevuchadnezzar!

-Thank you so much! Many black mages owe you a debt of gratitude! Wait. But why did you come here?

"I needed a mine..."

Tae-hyun explained his situation—that he needed a massive amount of metal for repairs. Hearing this, Zaggaran nodded readily.

-If that is the case, I can help you. My undead...

Zaggaran looked back. Of course, all his undead had already vanished.

-...I shall summon them again to help!

"...Right!"

Both of them felt a wave of awkwardness!

'Oh.'

Resolving things through dialogue and gaining experience points while others fought—this was the true application of the Speech skill. In theory, it made him invincible!

'Let's just call that a dialogue of iron.'

Now that he had permission to use the mine and had even secured the support of the boss monster, this mine was as good as cleared.

"I was planning to head down to the eighth floor. Is there any particular reason you're blocking it?"

Tae-hyun wondered if the Lich's Phylactery, which contained his soul, was hidden below the eighth floor. If that was the case, there was no need to fight Lich Zaggaran; he could just raid another mine! While it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was a shame to miss out on the dungeon clear bonus, there was no reason to make an unnecessary enemy. Especially not here, near the territory of the Auston Kingdom.

-Ah... That.

Lich Zaggaran clattered his skeletal jaw, trying his best to make a troubled expression.

-It would be best if you did not go down there. There is a Spirit King.

"A... Spirit King?"

Zaggaran began to explain the situation surrounding the local mines. Originally, they were just ordinary mines, but everything changed when a powerful Spirit King was summoned into the deep cavern beneath them. Due to the Spirit King's immense mana, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the structure of the mines itself was altered, attracting all sorts of creatures like bugs to honey.

And the ultimate victors of that struggle were the Liches! The Liches had succeeded in meeting and contracting directly with the Spirit King. In exchange for receiving mana from the Spirit King, they made the mines their home and agreed to block any pests trying to reach him. Although they were essentially acting as gatekeepers, the Spirit King was valuable enough for even the proud Liches to accept such a role.

"...'es?"

"Liches?"

-Liches. All the mines in this vicinity that connect to the deep cavern are blocked by Liches.

"...!"

So that's why they were uncleared dungeons! Tae-hyun finally realized why there were so many uncleared dungeons in this area. The mines leading to the deep cavern where the Spirit King resided were all being guarded by Liches.

-We call ourselves the Well-off Liches Association. Fufu. It is a bit embarrassing to say, but I am the president.

"..."

"..."

Tae-hyun was momentarily lost for words before quickly replying.

"T-That's amazing!"

"Wow! Amazing!"

Although it was hard to read Zaggaran's expression, he somehow looked like he desperately wanted to be praised!

"Wait. I was planning to clear the other mines as well. Do I have to fight those other Liches too?"

-Is there any need for that? I shall send word to them, so you do not have to fight. The ores in the mines will regenerate over time anyway, so letting you have some is no trouble at all.

Zaggaran granted permission coolly! The rankers, who had been listening blankly from behind, gasped in shock. This absolutely could not happen!

"Ah... No!!!"

"We have to kill him! We have to kill him! What if the others don't listen to him?!"

-What do you take the Liches of the Well-off Liches Association for? We are not so cold-hearted as to ignore each other's requests.

"Why are you guys so tight-knit when you're supposed to be Liches?!"

The rankers wailed. What kind of Liches were this friendly with each other?! They were supposed to be jealous, envious, and antagonistic! Tae-hyun ignored the rankers and continued.

"That's great. The repair time will be several times faster now."

He had wrapped everything up in one go without needing to engage in a war of attrition in the mines! Things were turning out much easier than expected.

-If you wish to meet the Spirit King, shall I go down and ask?

"No. No need."

Tae-hyun flatly refused.

'...'

Carbanog's brutal truth bomb!

'It's not necessarily because of that...'

Actually, it was exactly because of that. He had already made too many enemies as it was; there was no need to sour relations with a boss monster on the level of a Spirit King. Besides, his priority was mining! Even if they were to fight, they had to mine everything they could first.

"Alright! Goblins! Everything is settled, so we resume mining from now on!"

"Wow! Wonderful, Your Majesty!"

-Take those things and get out of here quickly!

Zaggaran treated the Underground Alliance Goblins as if he couldn't stand the sight of them. Insolent wretches who annoy me every time they open their mouths!

Tae-hyun looked at the rankers weeping on the ground and asked, "You guys aren't crying, right?"

"We're... we're not crying..."

-Spirit King. There was an intruder, but he was not a bad person. I have handled it on my end.

While Tae-hyun and the goblins were working above, Lich Zaggaran had gone down to report what had happened. His contract with the Spirit King! The condition was that he would receive mana from the Spirit King in exchange for handling chores.

-I know. I can feel everyone who enters the mine.

A deep, booming voice echoed from the pitch-black cavern. It was a voice so powerful that any player facing it would freeze solid from the sheer pressure of its mana!

-I know why you have come down, Zaggaran. The Avatar of Archisus wished to seek an audience with me, and you came to ask for my permission, correct? I shall grant it.

-Huh? No, that is not it.

-...What?

The Earth Spirit King was flustered. Had they not come to meet him? He had assumed that the Avatar of Archisus entering such a mine meant he had heard about him from the spirits and came to seek an audience...

-He said he just wanted to mine some ore and leave.

-...And he did not say he wished for an audience afterward?

-He did not mention wanting to meet you at all.

-......

-...???

The Well-off Liches Association was surprisingly a functional organization. Contrary to the rankers' wishes, the other Liches readily agreed to Zaggaran's request! Furthermore, it helped immensely that Tae-hyun was surprisingly well-liked by the Liches. After all, he was the great black mage who had stopped Nevuchadnezzar!

-What? Ore? Ore?! Take as much as you want.

-Ore is nothing... Mine to your ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠heart's content!

As a result, the Underground Alliance Goblins and the Chimeras of Archisus happily mined ore from the neighboring mines.

-Drop by if you are ever in the area, human.

"Take care, Zaggaran. I'll visit again if I have a reason to pass by."

After completing the repairs and reinforcement of the Sky Castle with the mined ore, Tae-hyun shared a heartwarming farewell with Zaggaran. To think such beings existed in the border mountain range of the Salz Kingdom!

'...Come to think of it, if there were just a few more players in the Salz Kingdom, this information would have spread.'

Just how deserted was this place...!

"Whew. At least we barely made it in time."

"What time?"

"The Arena League. Now I need to launch the Sky Castle and get ready for the matches."

"..."

"..."

Hearing those words, the rankers' faces turned deathly pale.