Chapter 190
Chapter 190
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 190
Chapter Title: Hassan, Necromancer of the Black Star #1
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The festival lasted roughly four days.
Every night, fireworks exploded, accompanied by people's songs and the clamor of raucous instruments.
It was easy to see why Sodomora had earned its nickname as the city of debauchery, filled with sounds of laughter, shouting, drinking, brawling, and smashing.
The summer had plenty to celebrate: victory in the war against the cultists, the extermination of the thieves' guild Hydra, and more. That only fueled the frenzy.
But even a city overflowing with dazzling spectacles gradually returned to its usual state once the festival ended and time passed.
Of course, Sodomora was a metropolis teeming with tens of thousands of people.
It rivaled the royal capital, Jeruit, in grandeur, so it remained noisy and chaotic long after the festivities.
Still, the eerie quiet that followed the brief madness sent a chill down the spine.
I liked that silence, though.
I'd never been fond of noise, and besides, the hush was perfect for concealing my actions and whereabouts.
Early one morning, I slipped out of the city still murmuring in the festival's afterglow and headed alone, as usual, to the ruins of the abandoned Sun Temple near the west gate.
During the festival, wary of potential attacks from the temple knights, all I'd done was clean this place and practice combat.
"Die, you bastard!"
Kieruk!
A swing of my club to the goblin's skull produced a short scream and instant death for the green-skinned monster.
Already, five of them lay at my feet, vomiting blood. It hadn't been long since I'd been flailing around with three or four clinging to me.
Now, I brimmed with confidence that I could handle ten, twenty, whatever came at me alone.
Kaek, kaesaeki... Kaesaeki...
"Not dead yet?"
I'd aimed to shatter its skull in one blow. The last goblin lay sprawled on the ground, spewing curses or incantations—I couldn't tell which—as it thrashed.
Alive even with its head smashed. Horrific creature, but a bit pitiful too. I'd meant to kill it cleanly in one strike.
"You should've dodged."
Ppak.
I raised my club and crushed its head for good measure, confirming the kill. Then my club, Tterror Crusher, throbbed—thud, thud—
It trembled like a starving beast, so I brought the shaft close to the goblin corpses. By now, I knew what it craved.
Ssssh.
The club sucked up every drop of blood like a man lost in the desert for days, parched beyond endurance.
Tak.
It hardened, growing long and rigid like something excited—fucking hell. Not "fucking annoying," but actually like a man's cock.
Sucking blood to lengthen and stiffen.
In fact, my club felt a good fifteen centimeters longer now than when I'd first gotten it, after absorbing goblin and monster blood.
It was more like a baseball bat now than a mere baton or nightstick. Maybe a tad longer.
The extra reach improved the swing, and the added weight boosted its power. I was satisfied.
But would this bloody thing keep growing?
A bit tense about how far it might go, I harvested byproducts from the goblin corpses—fangs, ears, and such. Luna would like these.
Kaesaeki!
Kieeek!
Kisit, kisit!
Damn, they just kept coming.
Maybe it was my imagination, but goblins seemed to appear more frequently around the city since the festival ended.
I'd encountered them multiple times a day here in these temple ruins alone.
Honestly, now that I'd grown some, I could roam this place solo. Iron Tier adventurers tasked with cleaning it would struggle plenty.
Luna, me, Malco, old man Platan—we'd all suffered because of goblins.
Anyway, swinging the club was starting to tire me, so I addressed the scattered corpses.
"Minions, rise."
Grk, grkgrk—
The goblin corpses, cold and stiffening in death, twisted their joints and bones in unnatural ways as they stood.
Kwaaaaa—!!
Geiaaaaa—!!
Blue glows lit their eyes, and they unleashed horrific screams. Even to me, it was gruesomely revolting.
The other goblins, moments ago gnashing their teeth as if eager for revenge on their comrades, now hesitated and backed away.
But I wasn't about to let these fang-baring monsters escape unscathed.
Swish.
With a casual wave, like shooing flies—
Geruaaaaa!!
The blue-eyed goblin zombies—corpses, whatever—impaled and tore into the fleeing goblins.
Chwaaak—
Blood sprayed, staining the surroundings red. The five or so that had swarmed me moments ago became corpses in an instant.
『Settling minion combat.』
『Karma Value +5』
『Current Karma Value +190』
"Good. You're joining the squad now."
Shuk, swish—
With a few more gestures, like a seasoned commander, the freshly killed goblins assembled their mangled joints and bones, rising from the ground.
Krrrooo.
Clack, crack.
It was utterly surreal.
And knowing I was causing it made my head throb, as if my frontal or occipital lobe might snap.
Since the intruders attacked the yard, I'd been experimenting with my necromancy in remote spots like this.
When those thugs stormed the yard, I worried if my current skills could protect Luna and me. Plenty of anxiety there, so I had to do something.
I'd once vaguely thought that since Luna was the daughter of some massive entity called Nox, Nox-sama would handle it.
No such luck.
The final clash with Antiope taught me, body and soul, that we had to defend our yard ourselves.
Gods don't intervene in mortal affairs, even for their own children.
No idea why. Probably why Mars's daughter, Antiope, got no help from him either.
Maybe tied to the Silent Age thirty years ago, when the gods stopped answering prayers.
So I decided to build enough power to protect myself, whatever it took.
Frankly, as a warrior, I'm third-rate at best, second-rate if generous.
But as Paranoya said, I seem to have talent in necromancy. Dangerous as it was, that's why these secret sessions.
Wearing a mask, draped in a robe.
Acting just like the cultists.
From these past few days, my minions seem pretty strong.
A bone golem goblin outclassed wild ones handily.
Goblin bones beating goblins—textbook case of the apprentice surpassing the master.
Perfect upgrade.
Krrrooo...
Sure, their savagery and ferocity worried me a bit.
But they were imprinted as my minions, obeying orders strictly. No risk of losing control. Good.
So, how far would they obey? Curiosity sparked about their command limits.
How subordinate were they really?
Back when I was Elfriede's slave, I'd followed all sorts of orders.
But even slaves have egos. They'd resist utterly absurd ones, even at risk of the whip.
Like "massage yourself all day without sleeping." They'd protest.
You little shit! Taste the whip!
I'd get beaten, naturally.
So, would these resist too? Time to test.
"Alright, now—"
Nothing better for probing limits.
"—kill each other. Until one remains."
At my command, the bone-and-corpse minions slashed at each other with sharp claws.
Ppak, uduk.
A brutal melee erupted, more violent than expected.
Krrrooo...
The survivor: a bone goblin with its right arm grotesquely bulked by bone shards, like a makeshift prosthesis.
"Righty. You win."
Krrrooo...
Each had unique performance and form, so variables existed.
I touched its massive right arm. Hard bone texture, then text popped up.
『Name: Hassan's Bone Goblin - Righty lv. 12 +1
Status: Grace-enhanced Domination Strength》 Terror Emanation》』
I could see my minions' statuses too. Damn, the Sun God's grace was potent.
It had a name. Domination Strength and Terror Emanation.
Every corpse I raised showed the same stats and level.
Grace-enhanced Domination Strength probably from my necklace's power.
Terror Emanation: radiating malevolent aura to freeze small creatures.
But that '+1' on the level? No clue. Wish I could ask someone. Stuck figuring it solo.
Anyway, these minions were highly usable.
"Enough. Rise again."
Sshuk, uduk.
I reanimated the combat-dead corpses.
"Ugh—"
Dizziness hit, but like standing too long then rising—tolerable.
Anemia creeps in after five-plus a day, worsening with more.
Tested limits: around a hundred, and I was gasping, vision spinning, puking.
Revival has caps. How many can I control at once? Wanted to test.
Lack of corpses limited me to about ten so far.
Still, ten near-lv.12 monsters? That's Iron Tier squad level solo.
Damn, maybe switch professions to Necromancer?
Become a cultist?
Identity crisis brewing.
But necromancy is strictly forbidden by kingdom law. Exposure could strip my adventurer status.
To hit Gold Tier, Bronze adventurer and barbarian warrior Hassan had to grow stronger.
Uduk, uduk.
I loosened my shoulder, neck, and waist joints. About to move hard—better warm up to avoid strains.
Whirl, whirl.
Wrists, elbows, fingers cracked as I finished warming up. Then to my ten raised minions:
"Come at me, you bastards. No holding back."
Kroaaaa—!!
Kwaaaaaak—!!
With that, the ten bone goblins charged.
Not like the green-skinned freaks I'd massacred—these blue-eyed horrors lunged with killing intent.
Kieeek!
"Damn, fucking terrifying—"
My new training method.
Dodging irregular attacks and murderous auras, subduing them.
Tough, but after dodging Hippolyte's brutal fists repeatedly—or maybe growing from the Antiope fight—it was doable.
Chwaak—!
Then a goblin claw grazed my side.
"Argh! Shit—!"
Thought it was manageable seconds ago. Complacency bites. I clutched my torn robe and bleeding flank with my gauntlet, yelling.
"You fucking mutts, I said no holding back—and you really didn't!"
Halt.
My summoned bone goblins froze. Smart bastards.
Krrrooo...
"Nah, it's fine. Don't hold back. Shit, all rush me! That's how I improve!"
Krrro...
But my scolding yell seemed to rattle them. They hesitated, unwilling to charge.
Their blank blue eyes seemed to glance at each other.
Pew—. Kwak!
Something fast flew from afar, striking a bone goblin's forehead.
Krrrooo—
It staggered but recovered. A sturdy arrow embedded in its head.
"Skadi, good shot! Hey, you there! We'll help you out!"