Execution
Puppetry already leveled?!
Something was off. It had no business climbing this fast unless I was running solo. Was it just because I'd put down a Stage 2 zombie? I checked the options first.
◈ Grants will to a target that possesses a human form.
◈ A target granted will moves on its own and carries out the caster's commands.
◈ Currently operable entities: 1
◈ Currently operating entities: 5
◈ Dolls can use the general skills the caster possesses.
◈ Damaged or missing parts of a doll can be restored. (Restore cooldown per entity: 24 hours)
◈ Dolls can acquire skills on their own.
"Wha—?!"
Dolls could acquire skills on their own? Like hunters?
Then just how much stronger could they get?
The grade was EX. The level was climbing. And now they picked up skills by themselves.
Don't tell me they could end up stronger than me.
For now they were mannequins, so they lost on weight class — but if I got my hands on better dolls?
"This is straight-up broken! Kehehehe!"
A laugh slipped out of me. It really felt like I'd hit the jackpot.
But what's this Executioner skill?
The name alone looked vicious.
◈ Reveals, in red light, the vital point of a target reduced to a dying state.
◈ Attacking that vital point instantly executes the target.
"Instant execution?!"
The description alone wasn't enough to pin down its power. Still, I could tell this was an insane skill.
Against Stage 1 zombies, of course, it didn't mean much. They died in a hit or two anyway.
But.
If the target is a Stage 2, that's different.
Even a hand axe I'd honed on a whetstone couldn't drop a Stage 2 zombie in a single blow — and that was with the thing already incapacitated. If I'd had Executioner, though?
I could have finished it in one stroke.
And I wouldn't even have needed to walk up to it myself.
The mannequins can use my skills!
Remote instant execution. That was what it amounted to.
Truth was, walking up to a security zombie was extremely dangerous even after you'd incapacitated it. What if the thing, quiet a moment ago, suddenly swung an arm? The mannequin shattering in its grip — that image laid itself over my own body. Just imagining it was sickening.
My bones might turn to powder.
Unlike a mannequin, I couldn't be restored. There was no reason to swallow a risk like that.
So how did I even get this skill?
I ran the fight back in my head. The countless ropes strung across the road. The horde pouring out. Zombies lying on the asphalt with their necks stretched out, waiting. And the guillotine-like axe blades dropping down on them. Even the security zombie had met the same end.
Is that why it's called Executioner?
Of course, clearing Stage 1 zombies alone wouldn't have been enough to obtain it.
I'd have had to kill a Stage 2 myself. This skill really is insane.
Acquisition path, difficulty, and power — all of it. A genuinely insane skill.
I turned my gaze to the security zombie.
Next time, I should be able to handle one even more easily.
That was when I caught a glint from my pocket.
"An item?!"
I dug through the pocket in a hurry.
"A key!!"
Even at a glance, it was nothing like an ordinary key. It looked expensive.
Scan it first!
◈ Insert into a door and use it to open a backroute leading to a designated 1st-floor region.
◈ Can only be used on the 1st floor.
◈ Can only be used once per entry.
"Holy shit, what is this?!"
An insane, massive jackpot!!! An A-grade item actually dropped?!?
Maybe my head had gone light, because I read the options and still couldn't parse what they meant.
Focus. Focus!
I pulled myself together and read them again.
...Does this mean I can move to other regions?
The region I'd been matched to was the area around Hongje Station. With this key, though, it seemed I could travel somewhere else.
But if I want to enter another region, I could just enter from that region in the first place.
Thought of that way, the option felt painfully underwhelming.
Is there some other effect?
There had to be a reason it was A-grade.
No way.
There's no distance limit?!
What if it wasn't limited to Korea? What if this was a key that could fling me to America, Japan, or Europe in a single step?!
"Holy shit! This is a massive jackpot!"
It would mean leaping across distance in an instant. And if things turned dangerous, I could use it like a key that opened an escape route.
I could farm more than once, too!
And if I could use a shop the way I did when climbing to the second floor? I could cash out through the shop, and my subspace backpack would have that much more room.
I could hit banks more than once.
Cleaning one out only once per entry had always felt like a waste of opportunity.
I can't rob a second-floor bank, after all.
Not only did waves break out up there, the zombies' overall specs climbed too. What was I supposed to do about that? These really were options worthy of A-grade.
And the thing that crowned all of it: it wasn't a one-time key!
Going by the options, I can use it every entry.
Every entry would come with another chance to farm. To pull this much profit off a single bank job — the Stage 2 security zombie deserved most of the credit.
"Thanks!"
I almost wanted to pray for its peaceful rest.
Wait. Hold on....
Staring at the security zombie, a thought surfaced.
You. Don't tell me. Would it work? Is that it?!
If you thought about it, a zombie had a human shape too, didn't it?!
Check. Immediately.
Grant Will!
Conditions have not been met.
"Huh? Conditions?"
So there were conditions? It didn't just work on everything? But if the message was that the conditions hadn't been met yet...
That means someday they will?!
If I could only grant will to a Stage 2 zombie... wouldn't I be able to sweep Stage 1s aside without a second thought?! Just imagining it swelled my chest until my insides went hollow—
The condition's probably my Puppetry level.
I had a reason to raise Puppetry, and fast.
Stage 2s aside.
A Stage 1, though — maybe that worked even now? I set my hand on the chest of a relatively intact zombie.
Grant Will.
A ripple of blue light burst from where my hand met the body. Wiiiiing— It lit the pitch-black dead skin, driving out the dark that had eaten into the flesh, and spread through the whole body until—
Flash!—
It planted a hand on the floor and stood.
"This actually works...?"
For a second I'd wondered if its appearance might change, the way a person's would.
It didn't.
It was still the same twisted zombie face. Might as well run a test.
Restore.
The moment the skill fired, the wound in its neck restored itself cleanly.
"Try running."
"Grrrrk."
The way it moved was zombie through and through. But it made noise? The mannequins couldn't.
It can't run?
Maybe after three minutes. I waited them out.
Nope.
Granting will to one that had been a runner might be different.
Hmm. What do I do with this one.
I could just sever the link, but since I'd already granted it... While I was turning it over—
Would this work too?
An idea came to me.
"Go. Attack."
"Guuuuuh."
The zombie walked off in the direction my finger pointed. I handed the mannequins the large bags I'd farmed from the sportswear shop.
"You lot collect the ropes and clean all the way to Hongje Station."
A nod.
A nod.
A nod.
A nod.
The mannequins melted soundlessly into the dark.
Nearby shops first.
The interiors needed no further clearing. I'd already dealt with the adds that spawned during the raid. From the stationery shop, toys and other junk. From the clothing store, jeans I could use for reinforcement. From the beauty salon, something I hadn't even considered.
A wig? This is pretty good.
Slap a wig on a mannequin and pull a hat and hood down over it, and it'd be even harder to spot. They already moved like people. Wouldn't other hunters fall for it too?
Next, the gold and silver exchange.
It had been shut last time. This time, though—
It's open!
I switched on my flashlight and went over every corner.
◈ Gold Earrings
◈ Gold Bracelet
◈ Gold Tooth
Worse than I expected. Because it isn't a proper gold shop?
They didn't look like luxury brands. Still, I could probably sell them for a decent price. I needed to recoup anyway. Preparing for entry had cost me a lot.
Why is stuff like rope so expensive.
Then again, maybe that was a good thing. It meant the things I carried out could sell for just as much.
Last, I stopped by a bedding store.
This'll do.
A thin mattress, packed rolled up.
Still a shame it eats subspace backpack space.
Even the smallest mattress was a burden. My subspace backpack's efficiency was top-tier, but its base capacity was tiny. Well. I could just stuff it in a bag a mannequin was carrying.
About time I headed for Hongje Station.
Silent FootstepsLv.3
Stealth StrikeLv.2
"What?!"
A sudden skill level-up alert.
What? I didn't do anything.
There was no reason for Stealth Strike to rise — not even Silent Footsteps. The area around the bank was already perfectly cleared. I'd had no cause to walk carefully.
Don't tell me... it went up because of the mannequins?!
The mannequins were in the middle of clearing zombies. If their actions could earn me skill experience...
Then the Puppetry level-up earlier, too?!
But during party play, skill experience climbed slowly. Leveling at this speed meant—
Is it being judged as solo?
It seemed possible. The mannequins were only entities influenced by my unique skill. They weren't hunters.
Then this is a jackpot.
I was running six dolls in total right now. There would be more. If my assumption held, every bit of experience those dolls earned would be mine!
Play it right, and I can power-level my skills!
And skills power-leveled that way would, in turn, massively raise the dolls' combat power.
"This synergy is completely insane. Kehehehe."
At this point, even I couldn't say how strong I might become.