Summoning the Cavalry
Standing in front of Valsian's house.
"Master!"
The door burst open.
Valsian's face poked out.
"Ahem, back again?"
"Yes, you're still looking healthy as ever."
"Of course! Get in here!"
"Yes, sir."
Mu-hyuk stepped inside and sat down. Valsian picked up his staff from the floor and promptly whacked Mu-hyuk on the head.
-100 HP
Mu-hyuk frowned, rubbing his head.
"What was that for?"
"You little punk! I didn't tell you to sit!"
Mu-hyuk stood back up.
Only then did Valsian nod in approval.
"Ahem, now sit."
"Yes, sir."
"So, what do you want this time?"
"Well, just came to say hi..."
"Say hi? When have you ever come just to say hi?!"
"Haha, sorry about that."
"Whatever! Spit it out already."
"You told me before."
"Told you what?!"
"To come back when I got stronger."
Interest flickered in Valsian's eyes.
Mu-hyuk, always right in front of him, had grown far faster than even he expected.
Was it the same this time?
To resolve his curiosity, Valsian extended his hand. A burst of light enveloped Mu-hyuk.
"Hmmm."
He nodded shortly after.
"You've definitely grown."
"Right?"
"Incredibly fast pace. How do you even...?"
"I gave it my all."
"Hmph, bland as ever."
He rummaged through a box behind him, flipping through books for quite a while before pulling one out and eyeing Mu-hyuk.
"Here. Take it."
He tossed the book over casually, with a touch of flair.
"Thank you."
Mu-hyuk stowed the skill book in his inventory and chatted idly with Valsian.
It had been a while, so he figured he'd keep the old man company.
"Is that so?"
"Yes, I even took a request to hunt cursed monsters before..."
"Oh ho, the drake?"
"You know about it?"
"Ahem, of course! Back in my day..."
The old man really seemed lonely.
"Feeling bored, huh?"
"W-what nonsense is that?!"
"You look like you are..."
"Ahem, enough!"
Mu-hyuk grinned.
"Stick around a bit longer, and you'll be sick of the hassle."
"Hm? What do you mean?"
"You'll see."
Soon enough, info on Gangster Necromancers would leak out.
Should I be the one to drop it?
"Hmph, enough chit-chat. Time to go. It's getting late."
"Ah..."
He realized a good chunk of time had passed.
Mu-hyuk stood, bowed, and said,
"See you next time."
"Ahem."
He watched the old man cough in lieu of a farewell, then turned and left.
Heading toward the warp gate, he reached into his inventory. Pulling out the skill book and opening it unleashed a light that swallowed him whole.
Mounted Trainee Summon
Skeleton Warhorse Summon linked.
Cavalry Summon
He had acquired Cavalry Summon.
Cavalry Summon Lv.1 (0%)
A skill created by linking Mounted Trainee Summon and Skeleton Warhorse Summon. Summons 1 fully trained cavalry unit in the true sense. Higher levels increase summon count and MP cost per 10 seconds.
Current MP cost per 10 sec: 1 per unit
Very satisfying.
Even if just one for now.
Numbers would come with time.
Clop.
He summoned a warhorse to pick up speed. Using the warp gate, he headed to the Weibra Empire and approached Sung Min-woo, who was blankly staring at users in the plaza.
"What're you doing?"
"Oh? You're here?"
"Yeah. Let's grab the request and go."
"Sure, but you hear the news?"
"What?"
"I was killing time on the homepage since you were late."
"And?"
"Info's leaked."
Mu-hyuk tilted his head.
Info? What info?
"Summon info. The part where they inherit your character's stats."
"Ah...!"
It hit him anew that it was about time for that to spread.
So, a year’s already passed.
"Kuh, existing users must be despairing."
"It's not too late yet."
What about 10 years from now? Even 5 years.
Users who seemed amazing at level 100 now would be called noobs then.
That’s why it wasn’t empty words. From Mu-hyuk’s perspective, anyway. Current users were in pure chaos.
*
The homepage was ablaze.
I'm leveling a Necromancer. Friend told me to check the homepage, and it's total chaos. I skimmed it but still can't believe it. Anyone confirm? Do summons really inherit your character's stats? Like, if I pump strength, do they get stronger too? Is that the system for sure?
Similar posts kept popping up endlessly.
Chat rooms were even wilder.
Even users who never bothered with chat logged in out of curiosity.
Summon classes lamented.
Others showed curiosity.
The hype only grew, showing no signs of dying down anytime soon. This would be the hot topic for a while.
*
They arrived at the blue plains.
"Here?"
"Yeah."
Mu-hyuk summoned first.
26 Skeleton Warriors, 13 Skeleton Archers, 11 Skeleton Mages, and finally 1 Cavalry unit.
A total of 51 skeletons materialized around him.
"Every time I see it, it's insane."
"What is?"
"That sheer number."
"Yeah, it's a lot."
"No wonder Necromancer's called broken."
Mu-hyuk chuckled flatly. Leveling like this took massive info.
No genius could do it without knowledge—he was sure.
"Well, not easy, of course."
Mu-hyuk looked surprised at Sung Min-woo's follow-up.
"What's that face?"
"Nothing."
"Think I'm dumb? Dunno where you get your info, but normal users can't."
"True."
"So impossible to level like you."
Then the target appeared.
"Anyway, thanks."
"Hm?"
"Owing to you, my spirits are leveling great."
"Ah."
Mu-hyuk awkwardly brushed it off. Sung Min-woo burst out laughing.
"Anyway, time to hunt?"
"Sounds good."
They advanced.
Clop.
As distance closed, the monster came into clear view. It looked like a normal fox.
The level 102 monster, Imiho, had a disarming charm.
As the name suggested, two tails, pure white fur like clouds.
Destructive magic from those tails didn't match its beauty, but otherwise, nothing special to watch.
A straightforward monster.
Storm. Powerful Arrow Shot.
But cocky—taunt it, and it'd bite easy.
Bang!
Arrow hit.
Kieeeek!
Fox cry as it nimbly closed in.
Simultaneously, 8 Enhanced Bone, 12 Bone Sword, 1 Burtan, and the Cavalry charged forward.
Fastest Cavalry thrust its lance in a bold charge.
Clang! Long claws met, sparks flying. Cavalry wheeled around, and Skeleton Warriors had already surrounded the Imiho, blocking escape.
Behind, Armor Archers and Bone Bows loosed bone arrows; 11 Mages prepped spells.
Magic unleashed.
Kaboom!
Post-explosion, Cavalry charged again.
Lance struck Imiho's back.
Bam!
Hard impact launched it airborne.
Then Burtan's Ki Wave hit—no dodge room. It crashed down.
Dazed, it staggered up, only to collapse repeatedly.
"Whew, my turn to play!"
Sung Min-woo and spirits piled on the downed Imiho.
Kieeeek!
Regaining senses, it shook tails. Flames flickered, spreading explosively.
Skeletons shoved back. Rampage started, but short-lived.
Burtan's Ki Wave hit again, tumbling it.
"Whoa, that skill's straight broken..."
"Agreed."
Repeat a few times, and it fell easy.
Experience gained.
MP low, so they rested.
"Three minutes."
"Got it."
Then a group approached from behind.
"Hey, what the hell. Yo, you guys."
"Our guild claimed this spot."
Rude tone, looking down on Mu-hyuk and Sung Min-woo.
Swish.
Mu-hyuk looked up.
"What'd you say?"
"Our guild claimed it, so hunt somewhere else."
"On a request."
"Not our problem."
"..."
How strong was Mu-hyuk now?
Level 100, rank 97.
Plus, strength making even that rank meaningless.
He'd held back, hidden his power before.
Now strong enough, no dodging fights coming to him.
"Not leaving?"
"Yeah, hurry up!"
Mu-hyuk stood.
"What if I don't wanna?"
He eyed the group.