Strike the head, and the body falls.
Once I captured the three who looked like leaders, the undead they had been controlling stopped moving like clockwork dolls. Deprived of its command, the monster army scattered and collapsed, with some dying and others fleeing.
“Arch Lich?”
At my question, the three kneeling creatures nodded.
I wasn’t sure whether I could call things that were already dead and reduced to bones “creatures,” but whatever.
I stroked each of the three skulls in turn and continued.
“When someone speaks to you, you’re supposed to answer. Are you throwing your weight around just because you’re dead?”
The answer came flying out before I had even finished speaking.
-
Yes. Yes. It is indeed the Arch Lich.
-
What the great human heard is correct.
-
That is so.
“Hmm. An Arch Lich. Never heard of that monster before… But which one of you just answered me informally?”
-
That one!
-
How dare he address the great human that way!
Swish! Swish!
The skeletal fingers pointed at one of them.
His comrades’ lightning-fast betrayal made the accused skull tremble.
- No! This is vile slander!
“…Doesn’t sound like slander to me.”
If you’re going to lie, at least put on a respectful tone.
I casually checked my surroundings, then pulled it out of my inventory.
“Boney. Snack time.”
A skull with a strange black sheen. Flames flickered inside its empty eye sockets.
- …Boney? You might as well go back to calling me Warlordmon.
“Why? You’re a skeleton, so Boney. Perfect fit.”
- To think you would insult this commander like this!
“What? If you don’t like it, forget it.”
I was about to put him back in my inventory when the Skeleton Warlord shouted furiously.
- I will gladly eat it!
“What an honest little thing.”
An honest little thing deserved a reward. A bad liar deserved punishment.
“Here. Have a taste.”
- Thank you, slightly less wicked human. But how much should I eat…?
“Just a little, like before.”
- Hmm. I want to eat more. But I understand.
Too many snacks would be overdoing it. With a hint of disappointment, the Skeleton Warlord opened his mouth wide toward the trembling creature.
-
Come here.
-
E-Eek! No!
-
Yes!
The change began with the Skeleton Warlord’s firm declaration.
Whoooooosh!
It was fascinating no matter how many times I saw it.
Like it was being sucked up by a vacuum cleaner, black mist began flowing out of the kneeling creature’s body and being absorbed by the Skeleton Warlord.
- Gaaaaaah!
The change didn’t end there.
As more of the black mist—the substance the Skeleton Warlord called death energy—flowed out, the creature’s complexion, or rather its bones, gradually turned whiter and whiter.
Meanwhile, the Skeleton Warlord’s black sheen grew deeper and darker.
-
S-Stop!
-
Hehehe. Such delicious death energy.
-
Noooo!
-
This commander shall take it all. Death energyyyy!
Crack!
- Hk!
“Enough with the ‘death energyyyy.’ Where did you learn that weird crap?”
- …Are you really one to talk?
“Anyway, stop eating now.”
- Why?!
“You’ll get fat.”
The Skeleton Warlord was struck speechless. I tucked him against my chest and looked at the creature.
Its bones had been dark and grimy when I first saw it. Now they were halfway bleached white. Perhaps because so much death energy had been drained from it, the green light in its eye sockets wavered dangerously.
- Sob… sob…
The other two creatures anxiously clacked their teeth at the sight of their weakened comrade, sucked dry to the bone.
-
Ask us anything, great ruler of flame.
-
I humbly beseech you. Please accept the loyalty of this lowly being, Orpheus von Maximus Valencia Bayern.
“…Are you undead, or are you bidets?”
They really didn’t want to lose their strength. I appreciated their cooperation, though.
“All right. If there’s anything you haven’t told me, scrape the bottom clean and spill every last detail. But if you start spewing lies…”
-
We will tell you everything!
-
I humbly beseech you! Please permit this false and lowly being to speak the truth!
-
I-I will tell you.
Apparently, none of the three wanted to end up as bone broth. They threw themselves into the interrogation with enthusiasm.
After hearing every detail of what had happened over the past week, from the Arch Lich’s first appearance until now, I deliberately furrowed my brow.
“You’re sure?”
-
Yes, we are!
-
We swear upon the River of Death!
-
Th-There is not a single lie.
As the three creatures vigorously nodded their skulls, the Skeleton Warlord suddenly interrupted.
- It is true.
“Did they pay you off? How can you guarantee that?”
- Because they swore upon the River of Death. It is an absolute promise to beings like us. One that can never be broken.
“Hmm.”
The Skeleton Warlord normally treated everything with all the gravity of a speck of dust. If even he was being this solemn, they probably weren’t lying.
Besides, there was no reason for them to scheme in a situation like this.
“Okay. I’ll believe you.”
-
Thank you! Thank you so much!
-
Sob, sob! I shall serve you with all my heart, my king!
-
I-I will serve the human, too. I swear upon the River of Death that I will never again commit an act like today’s—
Crack!
The last creature faltered before he could finish.
The trembling green light in its eyes shifted between the fist buried in its chest and me.
- Wh-Why?
“Why do you think?”
- I-I swear my loyalty. Upon the River of Death, I swear—
“Too late.”
A voice so cold it seemed to belong to someone else slipped through my lips.
“Too late to undo what you’ve done.”
A great many people had died here today.
Even regular troops armed with firearms and Hunters had been unable to stop them. There was no telling how many civilians had died at the monster army’s hands over the past week.
“I don’t need your loyalty. Especially not from pieces of shit like you.”
The moment I released the Scorching Yang Qi I had drawn up from my dantian—
Fwoosh!
Extreme Yang qi surged from the fist embedded in the creature’s shattered ribs. Blue-white aura, carrying ultra-high heat, coiled around its entire body.
Roooooar!
I saw it.
The green light in its eyes, wavering like a candle in the wind, went out.
I also saw the other two creatures spring to their feet and begin chanting spells.
-
Jajeuchawa Eumbado…!
-
Bareugan Mahra…!
Whoooong.
A wind of mana swirled around them. Just as the evil spell was about to be completed, I casually tossed out a command.
“Devour them. All of them.”
As though he had been waiting for those exact words, the Skeleton Warlord leaped from inside my clothes and opened his mouth wide.
-
Gladly.
-
Barsaba… Eeeek!
-
N-No!
The monsters’ final cries were filled with the desire to live—or rather, the desire to remain undead.
But contrary to their wishes, the Skeleton Warlord’s suction was stronger and faster than ever.
Whoooooosh! Gulp!
After swallowing an enormous amount of death energy in one bite, the Skeleton Warlord’s skull trembled.
The next moment, the two skeletons, drained of every last trace of energy, collapsed into piles of bone.
Ding. Ding. Ding.
System
The unexpected Quest, Unexpected Assault, has been successfully completed!
You have routed the monster army! This is truly an outstanding achievement!
As a Quest Reward, you have acquired the Title Undead Hunter!
You have acquired a considerable amount of EXP and Fame!
Level Up!
Only once?
In the past, I would easily have leveled up several times. But now that I had reached Level 120, it seemed the EXP requirement had increased.
It’s not like I did this for the EXP.
I had only done what needed to be done, but I couldn’t help feeling a little disappointed.
The stronger I became, the more useful I would be in the battles ahead.
The same goes for him.
I looked at the Skeleton Warlord.
Perhaps because he had absorbed such a massive amount of death energy, the power I felt from him was incomparable to what I had sensed when we first met.
- Hmm. Hoooooo…
Black mist billowed from the holes in his skull—his nose, ears, eyes, and more.
Purple light blazed in his eyes like torches, and the surface of his skull gleamed with a smooth, inky luster. Then his booming, maniacal laughter rang through my head.
- Krah, hahahahaha!
“Turn down the volume. You’re loud.”
- You vile human. This time, this commander shall express his great gratitude to you.
“You should. Who fed you?”
At my indifferent reply, the Skeleton Warlord flared up.
- Food?! Are you saying this body has become a pet?!
“Something like that. Isn’t it?”
- Do not spout nonsense!
“Really? Boney, come back.”
I held out my hand.
The skull leaped up as though spring-loaded and landed neatly on my palm.
As a reward, I gently scratched the spot between his eyes.
“Good job, Boney. Who’s a pretty boy?”
- …!
The skull trembled violently.
- H-How can this be?! How can this commander possibly… to a mere human?!
“Your mouth says no, but your body is honest.”
- I am the master of the Black Forest and commander of the great undead legion. Do not humiliate this body!
“A commander who’s only a head?”
- What?! This paltry body is nothing! If I expend death energy, I can restore it as many times as I wish!
“Really? Then why haven’t you restored it yet?”
- …Because some crazy human would just smash it again anyway.
“Oh, correct.”
Grind.
The Skeleton Warlord had no teeth, so he ground his bone joints instead. The light in his eye sockets narrowed.
- Why, vile human?
“What?”
- You must have an ulterior motive for giving me food—or rather, granting me such great power. You clearly have some sinister intention. Tell me the truth!
I thought for a moment before answering.
“Hmm. Because you’re a fucking weakling.”
- Huh?
“You can’t beat me anyway. If I’m going to drag you around, it’s easier to make use of a stronger, more useful fucking weakling, isn’t it?”
- …!
“Now get back inside. People are coming.”
I put the creature, frozen with shock, back into my inventory and stood up.
The airport duty-free corridor would normally have been packed with employees and passengers. Now it was empty and dark, and three people were walking toward me through the gloom.
Two of them were familiar faces.
“Mr. Jin Taekyung.”
“Teacher Jin.”
They were Team Leader Choi, who looked relatively presentable, and Shao Shen, the A-rank Hunter from China’s Public Security Armed Forces.
A considerable amount of time had passed since the battle ended, but Shao Shen’s face was still covered in blood and dust, and exhaustion had sunk deep into his features.
“So you were here.”
I greeted Team Leader Choi with a glance and made an excuse.
“Yes. I had something to take care of.”
“Please, speak casually to me. Sibeol—no, Teacher Jin, you are a hero who saved me and my comrades. More than that, you saved the people of Zhonghua.”
“……”
Was it my imagination, or had he just been about to call me Sibeol-jwa?
Whether he knew what I was thinking or not, Shao Shen continued in an extremely polite tone.
“Fortunately, with the help of the two gentlemen from Peace Guild, we were able to repel the monsters. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you once again.”
“Ah, yes. It was nothing. It was simply what needed to be done.”
I waved my hands modestly, then glanced at Team Leader Choi.
I had been worried that the Integrated Language Pack might malfunction and he would notice something strange. But since Shao Shen was the person I was speaking with, it seemed that even my words sounded like Chinese to Team Leader Choi.
“But who is the gentleman beside you…?”
The only unfamiliar person among them was a middle-aged man with half-gray hair.
He had been listening silently to our conversation. Now he extended a hand for a handshake.
“I am Wei Penghu, Minister of Defense at the Central Military Commission. It is a pleasure to meet you, Teacher Jin.”
“The Minister of Defense…?”
“My rank is Senior General.”
“Oh.”
I could tell he was an important man, but I had no idea what a Senior General was.
Perhaps he read my thoughts, because Team Leader Choi whispered from beside me in a voice as tiny as an ant.
“Four-star. Four-star.”
“Oh, ohhh! So you’re a four-star general! Nice to meet you!”
I had been a four-star once, too. The game I played as a kid had been a lot of fun. The sequel had flopped so hard it was practically in a league of its own.
Wei Penghu smiled faintly at my reaction and clasped my hand.
“Perhaps because you are young, you are full of vigor. I have much to ask Teacher Jin, but… shall we talk on the way?”
“Sure, why not?”
I started following Wei Penghu, then stopped.
“But where are we going?”
“To the operations headquarters. I have a jet standing by.”
“What? Headquarters? A jet?”
“That is correct. Everyone is waiting for Teacher Jin there.”
Everyone?
Who?
Comments
Comments need a network connection.