Skeleton Master Chapter 026
After coating the protruding edge of the skull staff with a slowing poison, Moo-hyeok approached the Lizardman Knight directly in front of him.
He stabbed the thighs of three Lizardman Knights in succession, then approached the bone archer.
He coated the ribs they use with slowing poison. For bone archer 3, he applied hallucinogenic poison.
Bone archer, attack.
He plucked a rib with a snap and nocked it to the bowstring.
Twang!
The flying bone arrow struck the chest of the giant Lizardman Knight.
Affected by the slowing effect, its movements became visibly slower.
This should be enough.
Then he took out the hallucinogenic poison from his inventory. After coating the blade, he attacked the remaining three in succession.
While they were floundering in hallucinations, he applied the slowing poison again and focused on attacking the one that was still unaffected.
Now only two remained: one that had lost its eyes and another that had taken minor damage.
Remaining MP was about 500.
The time he could hold out was at most about 8 minutes.
On the other hand, his remaining HP was about 800.
He decided not to care about his body.
*
He approached and extended the staff.
The sharp blade lodged into the Lizardman Knight's forearm. At that moment, he saw a greatsword falling from above.
It won't die in one attack.
Moo-hyeok ignored the incoming greatsword and stabbed the same area.
How many times did he stab in succession?
Kwaaaaargh!
As critical hits landed one after another, the creature screamed. Thanks to that, he was able to deal with it quickly, but his HP also dropped considerably.
"Phew......"
Remaining HP was about 500.
Moo-hyeok turned his head.
The giant Lizardman Knight that could be called the boss had already unsummoned most of the skeletons.
Only one bone warrior and one bone archer remained.
He looked straight ahead again. There was a Lizardman Knight that had lost both eyes.
Then he turned his back and charged towards the giant Lizardman Knight that could be called the boss.
Bone warrior, fall back.
He stabbed the back of the creature chasing the retreating bone warrior. It stopped moving, seemingly affected by the hallucination.
In that time, Moo-hyeok stood in front of the creature.
He stabbed its abdomen just like that.
He pulled it out and stabbed again.
[A critical hit occurs.]
[You deal 236 damage.]
He continued the attacks quickly.
Bone archer, standby.
Bone warrior, forward.
While giving orders, about 10 percent of its health seemed to have been chipped away as the giant Lizardman Knight regained its senses.
Aiming for that moment, he ordered the bone warrior to thrust its sword.
Bone archer, attack.
A bone arrow flew and lodged into the Lizardman Knight's chest.
Kwaaaaargh!
The greatsword swung by the giant Lizardman Knight touched Moo-hyeok's shoulder.
It's fast!
That's why he couldn't dodge.
His knees buckled.
It was a tremendous impact, but his shoulder wasn't cut off. Thanks to the armor.
But his HP had decreased considerably. Moo-hyeok got up and stabbed the same area again.
[A critical hit occurs.]
[You deal 228 damage.]
[Consecutive critical hit!]
[You deal additional damage (30).]
While the greatsword was being withdrawn.
Moo-hyeok stabbed again.
[A critical hit occurs.]
[You deal 231 damage.]
[2 consecutive critical hits!]
[You deal additional damage (60).]
He stabbed, stabbed, and stabbed again.
The creature's greatsword pounded his body, but Moo-hyeok ignored it and continued to attack the same area.
Remaining HP was about 280.
The creature's greatsword struck his shoulder again.
[HP is reduced by 156.]
Remaining HP was now 124.
One more attack and he would die.
On the other hand, the creature's HP was not visible.
It seemed death was not far off, but not being able to tell for sure was anxiety-inducing.
Damn it...
But there was no other option.
Steeling himself, he stabbed the creature.
Squelch.
It was still moving.
The difficulty of this level 30 normal dungeon was set too high.
The difficulty changes according to the number of people entering and their levels, but this was strange no matter how you looked at it.
However, he couldn't waste time thinking about that. With no other choice, he swung the staff again.
[A critical hit occurs.]
[You deal 235 damage.]
That was the moment.
Grr, grrrk...
The giant Lizardman Knight stopped moving. Then it turned gray.
He won...!
"Corpse Disassembly."
He hurriedly used the skill.
The system that was turning gray was forcibly stopped, and the dagger in Moo-hyeok's hand dismembered the creature.
[Performing Corpse Disassembly.]
[Progress 5%. 7%. 11%...]
[Corpse Disassembly complete.]
[You have obtained Tendon of Variant Lizardman Knight (x1), Skull (x1).]
The name was strange.
Variant?
But even that word disappeared from his mind the moment he saw the skull positioned behind it.
A skull...!
His clenched fist was on the verge of trembling. It was an emotion that surpassed surprise.
It was a kind of elation, but deeper and broader than that.
He hurriedly checked his inventory.
There really was a skull.
"To get this here..."
This is hidden information that applies to all necromancers. It was the most valuable information of all.
It was because he knew this information that Moo-hyeok chose to be a necromancer.
If not for this, he would never have chosen to be a necromancer.
"Whew..."
The heart was beating wildly.
This state continued for quite some time.
He finally regained his composure.
Let's get out of here for now.
He took a step forward with a smile.
A door was visible in the distance.
The moment he reached out his hand.
[You have cleared a normal dungeon.]
[This is related to a quest.]
[You have cleared a corrupted dungeon.]
[You obtain an item box as a reward.]
[You obtain a title as a special reward.]
Light burst forth along with the messages.
When he opened his eyes again, he was outside the dungeon where Dark Tiger appears.
He surveyed his surroundings. There were no signs of monsters, but this time he didn't light a fire.
After all, he had only lit a fire then to find the dungeon entrance.
He hurriedly left the Dark Tiger's Forest.
Only then could he properly check the messages.
A corrupted dungeon, huh...
And it's related to a quest?
Moo-hyeok checked the quest window.
[Encroaching Darkness]
[From ancient times, necromancers have operated in the shadows, enduring the contempt and mockery of white mages. The founder of the gangster necromancers, unable to tolerate such treatment, accidentally discovered darkness lurking among the white mages. Believing that if he could only uncover this darkness, he could drive out white magic and step into the light, he immediately began to delve into the darkness, but even now has not been able to accurately grasp its true nature. Those who become disciples of the gangster necromancer have a duty to seek out this darkness and strive to bring necromancers into the light.]
- Corrupted dungeon.
Confirmed that the variant Lizardman Knight there is tainted by darkness.
[If successful: ?]
[If failed: Revocation of profession]
[Success or failure to be determined later]
A single line of message had been added.
So that creature was tainted by darkness...
It means that darkness is lurking among the white mages. He thought about it for a moment, but realized there was still nothing he could deduce from just this.
Another hint will probably come someday.
Having reached this conclusion, he closed the quest window.
He checked his titles.
[Titles]
1. Beginning of Adventure
- All stats +1
2. Disciple of the Gangster Necromancer
- HP, MP increase (200)
- Recovery rate increase (5)
3. Untainted by Darkness
- Additional damage to darkness-related monsters (+5%)
- Additional defense against darkness-related monsters (+5%)
The title "Untainted by Darkness" that he had just acquired.
It was quite good.
Oh, demons were also darkness-related monsters, right?
It would be a great help when clearing major episode quests in the future.
Finally, he took out the item box from his inventory and opened it right there.
[A random item will appear.]
[You obtain a Ring of Wisdom.]
It was an accessory.
[Ring of Wisdom]
Wisdom increase (2)
MP recovery rate increase (10)
Wisdom 2, MP recovery rate 10 per minute.
For Moo-hyeok, who mainly focused on increasing strength, agility, and vitality, this was truly the best item.
He put the ring on his finger right there.
Let's use the skull after growing a bit more.
After organizing his thoughts, he returned to the kingdom at a leisurely pace.
After quite a long journey, Moo-hyeok used the warp gate to head to the northern hunting grounds of the Mulan Kingdom.
The second goal at level 30.
Towards the special dungeon.
*
It was a low-level hunting ground.
There were so many users that it was crowded to the point of tripping over each other.
So, many interesting things happened.
"This is our spot."
"Where exactly is there a 'spot' in a hunting ground?"
"We've been continuously killing the monsters that respawn in this area since earlier. Can't you see? All the other users have their own spots for hunting too."
"Ah, we don't care about that. Do as you please."
A situation where they couldn't understand each other.
What should be done?
In reality, one would first shout. The truth that the one with the loudest voice wins is universally applicable.
But what if it's not reality, but a game?
What if it's an illusion without any restrictions?
The violent tendencies latent within people become much more apparent.
"Damn it."
"What?"
"You're so fucking dense. I said this is our hunting ground!"
"W-what is this...?"
"If you've got a problem, bring it on!"
Just like now.
Clang.
The two groups that had drawn their swords watched each other. Soon, they charged at each other.
In reality, it would have been a trivial dispute, but in the game, it was more important than anything.
The hunting ground. It's an essential condition for growth. If you lose it, you'll fall behind others. That's why they were willing to risk conflict.
But even these users wouldn't dare to speak up against the tyranny of guilds.
Moo-hyeok, who had been watching the fight for a while, turned his back.
After walking forward for a few minutes.
He saw a small pavilion set up in a secluded area.
There were users resting there, but Moo-hyeok ignored them and sat down in a corner.
"Shall we go now?"
"Yeah, we've rested enough."
But another group remained.
Moreover, as soon as they disappeared, other users would come to rest.
Finally, after more than 2 hours had passed, the last remaining team left.
He slowly scanned the surroundings.
No one was around.
After moving to the opposite corner, he examined the floor.
Thud, tap tap.
It wasn't easy to find.
But being certain it was here, he didn't give up.
Then, he sensed the presence of users again. Moo-hyeok frowned and stopped moving. After they disappeared, he resumed his search.
That's when it happened.
Creak.
He found the only part that made a different sound.
He pressed that part firmly.
[Confirmed that your level is 30.]
Then, the center floor of the pavilion disappeared, revealing stairs leading underground.
The moment he went down through there.
[You have discovered a level 30 special dungeon.]
[Experience gain (50%) and item drop rate (20%) are increased inside the dungeon.]
Messages appeared.
Swish.
After Moo-hyeok disappeared below, the center floor of the pavilion rose back up.
Other users came to rest there, but they couldn't press the button-like floor because their level didn't meet the requirement.
Of course, no messages appeared for them either.
It was a place that would never be discovered until a level 30 user accidentally pressed that small button-like floor with their palm in the future.
