The Bandaged Dead
The bandaged dead, the mummy.
An existence that defies logic, moving by drawing upon holy power despite being undead.
It is the blessing of Osiris, the constellation that governs death.
The mummies thrust forward their four-meter-long spears glowing with golden light.
“Death is a law that cannot be avoided.”
“Obey the law of the dead.”
“Join the final destination of all things, mortal.”
Hundreds of mummies advancing in formation looked like a trained army.
So he’s Osiris’s contractor.
Even before my regression, there was a high ranker who had Osiris as his patron constellation, but he wasn’t from Egypt?
I don’t know who it is, but he’s unlucky.
To run into me in a promotion match.
Quite the self-absorbed, greasy expression you’ve got there.
“What’s with that phrasing again?”
Clang!
I lengthened my nails and leapt into the battlefield.
“Death to the living!”
One mummy thrust its spear straight at me.
A faint light clung to the blade.
Despite being undead, it had wrapped holy power around it like an aura.
Its power couldn’t compare to a real aura.
Still, it was strong for a mere summon.
Hoh, quite an interesting existence. Shall I lend a hand?
“Lend a hand, my ass. Just rest, Goddess.”
I wove together the essences of Iron Ardamillo and Iron Slug.
Silver armor enveloped my entire body.
Over it, I draped the dark fighting spirit extracted from the Death Knight’s essence.
A technique that manifested dark mana like an aura.
The mummy’s spear couldn’t pierce the black current and was deflected to the side.
“The sacred power bestowed by the Lord of Death!”
“The half-dead corpse sure talks a lot.”
I drove my fist, infused with internal energy, into the mummy’s head.
With a crunching sound, the mummy’s skull turned to dust.
Whoosh!
Several spear blades flew at me in succession, but I ignored them.
The impact my sixth sense warned me of was negligible.
Instead of dodging, I grabbed the blades that struck my body and yanked them forward.
“Uh, uh-oh.”
“Go back to your master.”
A finger wind pierced the crown of the mummy holding the spear.
The internal energy condensed at my fingertips erupted, carving a large hole.
“Hey, it’s not fair if only Master gets to have fun!”
The guild members following behind.
The number of mummies had visibly decreased.
“Master, at this rate we can wipe them out quickly.”
I don’t think so.
If my memory is correct, things won’t go that smoothly.
“Rise.”
Poof!
The mummies that had turned to dust regenerated.
Undead revived by Osiris’s blessing.
The newly appeared mummies filled the gaps in their formation.
“That’s cheating!”
“As expected of the faction leader. Never deviates from expectations.”
“Tch.”
Jiyoung clicked her tongue.
She really needs to watch her mouth.
Her words are the type that invite disaster.
The hundreds of mummies formed a formation and converged into a single point.
With their spears thrust forward in a clump, they looked like a porcupine.
The mummy army advanced slowly.
A faint light swirled around them.
“Weaklings gathering together are nothing but a rabble!”
Ping Lei created clones and charged from all directions.
Blue energy shimmered along his staff.
Wrapped in materialized qi and enhanced by Seon magic, he thrust sharply.
The moment it touched the barrier surrounding the mummy army—
BOOM!
Nine clones exploded.
“Gah!”
Ping Lei’s main body also screamed and rolled across the ground.
A defensive formation barrier made of holy power.
Spells recorded in holy script upon weapons forged from melted gold, optimized for both offense and defense.
“Master, there doesn’t seem to be any openings.”
“As expected, formations are your specialty, so you spotted it right away.”
“Cough, cough. If you knew, why didn’t you tell me!”
Resentment filled Ping Lei’s eyes.
“You charged in without giving me a chance to speak, you idiot!”
“Did you just call me an idiot!”
The two growled at each other like sworn enemies.
Hard to tell if they’d gotten closer or further apart.
Osiris’s formation.
An attack that gathered the holy power granted to each individual mummy and converted it into a barrier.
Either pour out attacks simultaneously,
or overwhelm them with superior total power and crush them.
“As expected, the second option is more appealing.”
I approached the mummy army with leisurely steps.
A tense standoff.
“Wait a second!”
A shrill voice from the center of the mummy army shattered the tension.
I felt like I’d heard it somewhere before.
“Wait?”
“C-can’t we resolve this through dialogue?”
The mummy army halted its advance.
Clatter!
The spear blades that had stood sharp like porcupine quills lowered.
The hostility faded.
Meeting a rival in a Gold promotion match, only to disarm?
“What are you plotting?”
I furrowed my brow.
The mummy army split to both sides.
A gaunt man emerged from between them.
Wait.
No wonder the voice sounded familiar.
That guy—wasn’t he Marco, Germany’s high ranker?
I searched my pre-regression memories, and my first thought was correct.
The moment the gaunt man met my eyes—
“O-O-O-O-O!!!”
He let out a bizarre cry.
I frowned.
An unexpected action with no discernible reason.
When I raised my killing intent, the man hurriedly spoke.
“It’s an honor! To be able to exchange names with Player Yu Jinho!”
“I appreciate you recognizing me, but what’s your name?”
“I am Marco, Marco Hofman.”
Just as I suspected.
A high ranker from Germany and one of the six Monarchs, the player who had stood against René Davis.
Though he had knelt before Fusion Qigong, by pre-regression standards he was among Europe’s strongest.
But why was Marco affiliated with Egypt, and why had he disarmed the moment he saw me?
The flow of the world had changed because of my regression, but this was far too drastic a leap.
Don’t tell me he also regressed like me?
“Let me ask one thing.”
“Yes! Please ask!”
“Why did you suddenly disarm?”
“That’s because I’m a fan of Player Yu Jinho!”
“……Huh?”
A fan?
The sudden declaration left me flustered.
* * *
Marco Hofman.
A high ranker who had Osiris as his patron constellation.
Before my regression, he was a powerful player classified just below the six Monarchs.
Yet that same man……
“Please, just one autograph!”
I never expected him to bow at a ninety-degree angle and offer a business card.
The mummies lined up on either side went even further, prostrating with their foreheads to the ground.
“Are you serious?”
“Why would I ever lie to Yu Jinho-nim!”
My head throbbed.
A German doing his promotion match in Egypt.
Calling himself a fan and bowing first.
Don’t tell me—
“Is this an attempt to make me lower my guard?”
It doesn’t seem so. From what I see, he is sincere.
“You can tell that much?”
Hehe, I cannot read every emotion, but at least he harbors no treacherous intent.
I wore a dubious expression.
Pre-regression Marco had possessed a personality befitting his skill.
In other words, he was arrogant.
He had even regarded the six Monarchs as rivals, so our relationship hadn’t been good.
Seeing him this obedient was strange.
“Guildmaster, Egypt’s Marco Hofman is a player powerful enough to be called an exception-grade.”
Youngsoo added.
“How do you know that?”
“Analyst Thomas showed me the footage several times.”
“Ah.”
They were already treating promising foreign players as competitors and training accordingly.
Quite fast.
That aside, this situation was problematic.
I needed to devour the War Golem’s essence, but he showed zero will to fight.
“Marco Hofman.”
“Y-yes!”
“If you want an autograph, I can give you one.”
“Thank you!”
“On one condition. You fight with everything you’ve got.”
“Why such a condition……?”
“I have no interest in victories handed to me for free.”
A strange longing flickered in Marco’s eyes.
“Ah, so that was the deep meaning!”
No.
I love free wins more than anything.
But since he showed no will to fight, I had no choice but to give him motivation.
Snicker.
“Why are you laughing?”
You’re not acting like your usual self. Your flustered expression is obvious.
Tch. I clicked my tongue and stepped back.
The mummy army rose to their feet.
Marco spoke.
“If it means receiving Jinho-nim’s autograph, I’ll go all out.”
Gathering Form
Whooooosh!
Manifested holy power swirled around the mummy army.
A form capable of handling both offense and defense.
Hehe, now this feels like a real fight.
“Not for me.”
A new variable.
Clearly a positive change, yet my head still throbbed.
Sssssssst!
I concentrated Polar Night into a single point.
Manifested it as a dark blade and infused it with internal energy.
Internal energy poured down like a waterfall.
A black haze rose from the blade.
The internal energy blackened by the influence of Asura Demon Spirit Heart Method gleamed sharply.
Hmm. If my realm rose just a little more, I could probably manifest sword aura, too.
Though my martial arts attainment was low, by harmonizing it with the property of darkness, I could imitate a higher realm.
“Ooooooh, so this is the legendary Blade of Darkness!!”
A voice mixed with ecstasy burst from among the mummy army.
Lucky bastard.
When I swung the blade over the formation, the defensive barrier surrounding the mummy army was torn apart.
“Death is something no one can refuse.”
“Kneel before the great order.”
The mummies shouted in unison.
“No, I’m not the one saying that, Jinho-nim!”
Marco’s voice was tinged with tears.
Could you do me a favor and only do one of those two things?
When the mummy army chanted together, their holy power amplified and pushed back the Dark Shadow Soul-Chasing Sword.
You seem to be lacking power.
“This is enough.”
The power was spread wide.
Each mummy gathered its holy power into the formation, but because the focus was poor, losses were great.
If the total power was 100, about 50 of it scattered.
Concentrating it further into a single point would only reduce efficiency more.
I poured additional internal energy into the dark blade and put strength into my arm.
CRACK!
The barrier created by the combined power of the mummy army was sliced cleanly in half.
The mummies tumbled to the ground from the impact.
Marco, left completely defenseless, clapped his hands.
“As expected, you’re amazing!”
“Come back in an hour.”
Slash.
When I struck Marco down, the mummies also turned to dust and vanished.
“A-as expected of Master. Even swinging your blade mercilessly at your own fan!”
“That cold-hearted mindset. I want to learn from you, Master.”
Ping Lei and Jiyoung snickered.
You two are getting double training after the promotion match ends.