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Episode 85
Inferiority complex (1)
Necromancer.
Contrary to the general belief that ‘Necromancer’ is a general term for all corpse-commanding necromancers, in this world, ‘Necromancer’ is a proper noun that refers to only one being.
A demon worshipper who manipulates corpses using forbidden black magic.
A representative evil person who betrayed the laws of heaven by destroying the chain of life and death.
This entity, which the Inquisitors had been tracking for hundreds of years since its founding, was an unparalleled powerhouse who could easily take on five or six high-ranking magicians on his own.
The common people of the empire are unaware of the existence of this necromancer.
All records of the necromancer are erased, and the massacre he committed is buried by the “Three Powers” under the pretext of “maintaining security.”
[… … .]
okay.
Now everything fits together.
The faint action of magical power detected from afar.
A sign of life that cannot be felt.
There is also superior intelligence, great strength, and even super senses that far surpass those of humans.
It was all a sign that the necromancer was behind this attack.
The ‘faint magic’ that Riley detected was likely a spell used by necromancers to control corpses.
The reason there is no sign of life is probably because everyone except us is already dead.
The reason why the already dead mercenary members have such great abilities is all thanks to the necromancer.
Because necromancers have the ability to maximize the physical abilities of the corpses they control while they are alive.
‘Then it must have been the necromancer himself who sent the signal through the communication crystal.’
[huh.]
I answered briefly and looked back.
“Geuuuuu, geuuuuu!”
“Kueeeeek!”
Dozens of corpses were rushing towards us as if they were trying to kill us.
The group was running like crazy, trying to avoid the necromancer’s followers.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck… … !”
A fat mercenary running right next to us started swearing wildly.
“… … What the heck is that, what the heck is that!”
Even though they had no information about the necromancer, the mercenaries were instinctively running away.
Of course, who could maintain their composure when dozens of corpses were madly rushing towards them?
Of course, there were undead monsters in this world, such as zombies, skeletons, and ghouls, but the corpses handled by necromancers had a fundamentally different feel from them.
Life and death.
A state located exactly in the middle.
These corpses had a strange appearance that aroused instinctive human rejection.
“Ugh, ugh, ugh… … !”
The fat man was breathing heavily.
The boy’s gait had slowed noticeably, to the point where it was immediately noticeable.
Chin─!
Right then.
The fat man’s foot got caught on a tree root and he fell.
“Ugh, ughhhhhhhhh!”
He rolled around on the dirt floor and only stopped moving after hitting a tree.
His body sagged limply.
The mercenaries who were running forward looked back one by one and kept calling out the fat man’s name.
“Benjamin!”
“Fuck, get up! Get up!”
But none of the mercenaries stopped to help the fat man up.
They knew it too.
The moment they stop here and try to protect the fat man, they too will face death.
“Ugh, ugh… … .”
The fat man also slowly got up from his seat, as if he had resigned himself to his own death.
Less, less.
Shaking legs.
Facing the horde of corpses running towards him, the fat man quickly drew his weapon.
Sreung─!
His sharp blade began to glow through the smoky fog.
“Hey, hey, you guys go first. I’ll just take out a few and catch up with you right away. I can protect myself.”
“… … .”
“You, you guys know that I am better than anyone else when it comes to swordsmanship… … .”
Crunch─!
A corpse bit the fat man’s nape.
The fat man, who couldn’t even scream once, was buried in a pile of corpses and died.
“… … .”
String.
The other mercenaries who saw that sight bit their lips in silence.
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Now there are 5 people left.
Riley, Ermin, Philip, and two unnamed mercenaries.
Among them, I looked closely at Ermin, who was running vigorously right in front of us.
“Ugh, gasp… … .”
“Kehek, hek, heek… … !”
“… … .”
Unlike the other mercenaries who were out of breath and panting, Ermin showed no sign of fatigue at all.
okay.
As expected of a “Paladin” of the Inquisitors, you’ve been training hard for your physical strength.
The only fortunate thing was that Ermin’s suspicious gaze toward Riley disappeared after the necromancer appeared.
Perhaps they think that the cause of the “magic abnormality” occurring in the Grotes territory is the necromancer’s fault.
Now, to Ermin, Riley will be nothing more than a unique wizard who enjoys playing hide-and-seek.
“Hey, hey… … !”
It was when I was thinking like that by myself.
One of the mercenaries running in front pointed straight ahead and shouted.
The group quickly turned their gazes in the direction he was pointing.
Woof, woof─!
“… …More, it’s the entrance to the dungeon!”
A gate in the shape of a typical portal. The vortex of magical power flowing out through it was shining brightly, piercing through the thick fog.
The entrance to the dungeon.
One of the mercenaries who saw this let out a scream of evil.
“What are you going to do!”
Ermin quickly answered that question.
“Let’s go in.”
“……what?”
The mercenary, who was out of breath, frowned after hearing Ermin’s answer.
“Fuck, how can 5 people clear a mid- to high-level dungeon?”
“Wouldn’t it be better than running away and dying? If we keep going like this, we’ll soon get tired and collapse.”
“… … Eeeeek!”
The mercenary let out a roar.
There was no other choice anyway.
The mercenaries and Philip’s stamina was already exhausted.
The chase with the corpses couldn’t go on forever.
“Fuck! F**k! Zenjaaaaang… … !”
Eventually, the group had no choice but to start running towards the dungeon.
Once you get in there, you’ll be able to breathe a sigh of relief for a moment.
“Philip! Open the dungeon gate quickly!”
“Uh, uh… … !”
Philip, who had arrived right in front of the gate, quickly extended his hand.
In order to activate the teleportation magic leading into the dungeon, the portal had to be “activated”.
Philip closed both his eyes for the “activation” task.
Then he began to destroy the spell that was sealing the portal.
Woof, woof─.
Dismissed─!
“… … Huh, huh?”
“What are you doing! I told you to open it quickly!”
But no matter how much time passed, the gate did not open.
Philip continued to try to break the seal, but his attempts frequently ended in failure.
Woof, woof─.
Dismissed─!
Woof, woof─.
Dismissed─!
Woof, woof─.
Dismissed─!
… .
… … .
Time was running out.
The corpses are getting closer and closer.
The mercenaries looked behind them with anxious faces and shouted.
“Fuck, Philip! There’s no time for fooling around! Activate the portal quickly! The enemies are coming!”
“Ugh, ugh… … .”
Philip’s hands were shaking.
Could it be because of the pressure of having the lives of the remaining party in his hands?
Or is it simply because my skills are lacking?
Philip continued to fail to break the spell.
Jeokbuk─.
at that time.
Ermin, who had been silently observing the situation, slowly started walking.
Towards the hordes of corpses running towards us.
“I will stop the enemies.”
“What, what… … ?”
“We need to buy time. If we just sit here and wait for the portal to open, we’ll be buried in corpses and die.”
“Okay, wait a minute!”
One of the mercenaries grabbed Ermin’s shoulder as he tried to run forward, stopping him.
“Don’t waste your time! Didn’t you see Benjamin just now? You’ll die just like him before you can last another second! This is just plain suicide!”
“it’s okay.”
Ermin shook off the mercenary’s hand.
Sreung─!
A cool, black sound echoed.
Ermin’s greatsword, taken out of its scabbard, was glowing faintly.
A forest covered in thick fog.
The back of a young man wearing priest’s attire was visible.
He stood resolutely, holding a greatsword in both hands, without a trace of fear.
“Keeeeeek!”
Dozens and hundreds of corpses were rushing towards him.
“You guys go first. I can take care of myself.”
“… … .”
“I can proudly say that my swordsmanship skills are superior to anyone else’s.”
Ermin, who had said the same words that the fat man had said just before he died, slowly walked towards the group of corpses.
That fleeting moment.
Ermin turned his head towards Riley.
He whispered very quietly, using only his lips.
Secretly, so that no one else can hear.
-Raoul, sir.
-… … .
-Please help them now.
Riley nodded, understanding what he said.
Ermine smiled after hearing her answer.
He turned his gaze back to the pile of corpses.
“… … Damn it, Ermin!”
While the mercenaries were distracted by Ermin’s back, Riley quickly approached Philip.
“Master.”
“Ma, don’t tell me to talk! I need to concentrate!”
Riley ignored him and ran her hand over the surface of the gate.
“I will try.”
“… … What, what?”
“I’ll try to destroy the ritual once.”
Philip grimaced when he heard that.
He whined with a trembling, sobbing voice, his face clouded with tears.
“Hey, talk sense! This isn’t a spell that a novice like you, an “Apprentice”, can destroy! What on earth is a kid who just learned magic today planning to do!”
“… … .”
“Oh, I’m already losing focus right now and I’m going crazy, but if Raul is like this too… … .”
Woof─.
Crispy──!
“……uh?”
But at that very moment.
As soon as Riley touched the gate, the spell that was sealing the portal was destroyed in an instant.
Philip looked at Riley with a blank expression after seeing that.
“You, you, you, how… … .”
“It’s all thanks to the teacher’s teachings.”
“Ah, no. Ah, no matter what… … .”
Riley cut him off.
“Master, are you going to stay like that? The corpses are getting closer. Please let us enter the dungeon quickly.”
“Ugh, ugh… … .”
Philip suddenly came to his senses and shouted.
“D-didn’t you! Hancock! Marco! Take my hand! Ra, Raoul, you too!”
The mercenaries and Riley quickly grabbed Philip’s hand. Together, they jumped into the portal where magical power swirled.
“Keeeeeek… …!”
At that very moment, the corpses reach out.
The gate engulfed our bodies.
Wooooowoong──!
The feeling of floating that has become so familiar now.
At the same time, the world was turned upside down.
Beyond the darkened field of vision, a strange current of air began to flow.
* * *
Beyond the gate.
The entrance to the dungeon.
The mercenaries sat on the floor of the cave, breathing heavily.
“Haa, haa, haa… … .”
“Whew, heck, heck!”
How much time has passed like that?
One of the mercenaries, who had managed to catch his breath, muttered a curse.
“Fuck… … .”
Silence fell.
Everyone felt the same way as the mercenary, although they just didn’t show it.
“… … .”
[… … .]
Marco.
Hancock.
Philip Borohedor.
And Riley too.
Of the 50 or so members of the Blood Wolf Mercenary Corps, only four survived.
