A Necromancer. A magician who raises the dead and controls their bodies. And because the Empire was teeming with the undead, one could say that an individual who could control them was a necromancer as well.
Lee Shin Woo had his suspicions early on, but it wouldnât be an exaggeration to say that he himself was also a necromancer. But the way in which he controlled them differed. Rather than using magic, he used a variety of innate skills to control them.
âBut it⊠doesnât feel like he found those undead heroes through luck.â
ââŠAre you saying that he deliberately killed heroes so that he could make them his subordinates?â
âMaybe.â
If not, then he couldnât explain why Ethan Cruz had directed him to a special area. He wanted to help him level up quickly? Probably. Since he didnât want weak undead.
âThen can you really call him a hero?â
âI wonder. At the very least, God considers him a hero. For now.â
ââŠDisgusting. So much so that it makes what youâve done thus far look cute.â
âWhy are you getting me involved?â
They remained on guard and maintained the barrier until they could hide thoroughly from Ethan Cruz and his group of undead heroes. When they were about an hour away with Jinâs running speed, they let go of the barrier.
They had noticed their opponentâs advance beforehand, and had completely avoided them, but⊠even so, Lee Shin Woo couldnât hide his bitterness.
âAs I thought, Iâm still too weak.â
No matter how many skeletons had become his subordinates, or the fact that he could now manufacture golems, he still had to put in this much effort just to avoid one person. Even if he took into account that Ethan Cruz was special, it was still quite frustrating.
ââŠBut thisâll be the last time. It wonât be long before I come for you.â
Lee Shin Woo had discovered Ethan, while Ethan still knew nothing about Lee Shin Woo. This would become a deciding factor in their fight later. Lee Shin Woo was sure of it.
In the close future, Ethan Cruz would stand upon his stage. If that happened, he would pay him back for treating him like a chess piece!
âIt seems like their goal is⊠Ah, itâs where you died.â
[âŠMe?]
They had been so busy maintaining the barrier until now, and Shino Rendu, who was on standby beside them, replied in a truly bitter voice. Until his death, he had respected and followed Ethan Cruz, so Lee Shin Woo could understand how he felt.
âYeah. It seems like he just figured out where you died and came here. âŠHmm, then that means that thereâs someone whoâs following his orders and scouting around for him.â
If he got the chance, he would catch and extract some information from the scout. Lee Shin Woo nodded his head and Shino Rendu was still unable to accept reality, wrapping his large fists around his head.
[Why would a hero not care about following Godâs commandâŠ?]
âIt must be more entertaining that way for him. Heâs strange. He looks like heâd be able to easily defeat one or two generals.â
The undead he brought along with him were at least level 6. There were a few level 7s mixed in as well, and Ethan Cruzâs own magic was quite extraordinary. If thatâs the case, then he should be able to defeat generals like Hansen⊠Then why wasnât he doing that?
âMoreover, why does he only use undead heroes? âŠAh, does his necromancy only work on other heroes?â
âItâs likely. Though darkness mana is the power to link the living and the dead together, Iâve heard that if the previous relation is of enemies, then the link wonât work well. However, just by them previously being heroes, their karma is quite similar. It makes sense that the darkness element would work then.â
Kratia, who would talk at length whenever the subject was on magic, explained and Lee Shin Woo acknowledged her. If thatâs the case, then it made sense why Ethan Cruz wasnât actively hunting the 12 generals.
He would continuously wander the Empire, waiting for the heroes to die so that he could make them his subordinates. There was no need for him to hurry and attempt to kill the 12 generals. Rather, they were a precious fighting force that would kill heroes for him.
[âŠAre you saying that theyâre the reason that I died and became an undead?]
âYeah. In any case, heâs still a hero, no matter what anyone says, and heâs fighting against the Emperor, so when he thinks that his army is ready, heâll fight against the Emperor. If you look at it that way⊠you could say that heâs definitely an outstanding hero.â
[Everything else about him disgusts me, so I canât help but laugh.]
The goblin fire within Shino Renduâs eye sockets blazed intensely. He was a special species of undead that fed off feelings of vengeance. With just their conversation about Ethan Cruz, Lee Shin Woo was sure that the next time they met, Shino Rendu would be stronger than before.
However, if Lee Shin Woo were in Ethan Cruzâ shoes, he mightâve done the same thing as him, so he couldnât say anything more. If there was a more effective way to get stronger, then it was obvious that one would take that approach. But then, Shino Rendu added something surprising.
[Itâs such a relief that I became your subordinate, rather than his.]
âWhat?â
[Paul Zero, you accept us as we are. You didnât lead us; you gave us the will to go where we want to go ourselves.]
ââŠHuh?â
What the hell is he talking about? Heâd only said that to them so he could better control them⊠While Lee Shin Woo was taken aback, Kratia chipped in from beside him.
âYou can tell by just looking at the quality of Shin⊠Paul Zeroâs mana.â
âMm?â
She was talking about Lee Shin Wooâs darkness element. Indeed, Lee Shin Woo was capable of forming contracts with regular undead, undead heroes, golems⊠or even humans like Kratia through the darkness element, which was definitely different from Ethan Cruzâ application.
Just by looking at another darkness element user like Ethan Cruz, one would be able to tell that that wasnât normal.
âI feel like your karmaâs affecting it too. Since the way in which magic of a similar element is used depends on the individual.â
ââŠYeah, you could be right.â
It seemed like the Joker karma was outside the norm in many ways. But it was ultimately because of his Joker karma, not his consideration for others, that caused people to follow him.
However, it would look bad if he were to correct Shino Renduâs misunderstanding by explaining his wickedness, so he just kept his mouth shut. âŠThis seemed like something he had thought about just a little while ago.
âThen, get back to work. Weâll return to our base once weâve completely cleared out the mine.â
[I understand.]
The golems immediately returned to mining. At longest, it should take about another day for them to completely empty the mine. With so many raw materials, he should be able to create golems with the cores he had and still have a lot of materials left over.
âThen I have to go to Pleine to sell my wine.â
âThough I wonder how many cores you can make with the money you get from selling the wine.â
âI should be able to make a lot.â
Kratia spoke, not knowing just how much the Kerr Century Wineryâs wine had increased in value, and Lee Shin Woo replied with a grin. Then, he took his party to the dungeon that they had found two days ago and cleared it.
[Level 6 dungeon â You have acquired a permit to enter the Eagleâs Cliff. All stats are increased by 20 within the dungeon. The dungeonâs information will be added to your minimap. All actions will be buffed within the dungeon.]
Surprisingly, it was a level 6 dungeon with large, flying monsters. However, by keeping in step with Jin, who turned his hooves into springs, and fiercely swinging his whip around, they were able to safely clear the dungeon.
They couldnât forget about Kratia, who cast a large scale debuff on their enemies, which slowed down all of their movements.
[Executing Bone Reinforcement on Jin Taylor by consuming the Lv6 Shadow Cliff Eagleâs wing bone. A considerable amount of the effect is shared. Agility has increased by 2, and Magic by 1.]
[Kyuruuuuuuuuuuuu! Kihiooooooh! â King of Eagleâs Cliff]
âHow is it? Does it feel like youâll grow wings?â
âNope.â
âTch. As I thought, it had to be a level 7 elite for thatâŠâ
âNope!â
Anything between 3,200 and 6,400 stats constituted level 6. In a level 6 dungeon, the dungeon boss would possess stats much greater than the ordinary monsters, yet they would often not reach level 7 and would still be level 6. So it made sense that Bone Reinforcementâs effects were getting weaker!
But contrary to Lee Shin Woo, who was disappointed that Jin didnât sprout wings, Jin looked at him with frigid eyes. It seemed only Kratia was allocated a reward that she actually wanted.
âThen letâs go back. It seems like the golems are finished mining.â
âHow much did your stats go up, Shin Woo?â
âIf I include the stat gains from my ice element and my intermediate elements, my stats increased by 50.â
ââŠYou really are a cheater.â
Lee Shin Woo thought that they might encounter troops under a generalâs command, or another hero on the way back to their hideout, but fortunately, that didnât happen. Instead, on the way back there was one topic of interest in the chatting channel.
[Lloyd H.K.: It feels like the high rank undead are on the move more.]
[Prince Altania: Tch, why now? Lloyd, do we need to group up?]
[Lloyd H.K.: Iâm fine, since Iâm with Erian right now. Iâm actually worried about you.]
[Mentes Orun: Those bastards periodically make a huge fuss, so donât be so worried. The Emperor probably ordered the 12 generals to go on a large-scale patrol.]
[Ye Jin Jin: Ugh, danger level 2 zones should be fine, right� Mr. Shin Woo, are you ok?]
[Lee Shin Woo: No problem as of yet.]
Lee Shin Woo replied as he sweated profusely. It seemed like they hadnât noticed his unease and went on with their conversation.
[Ethan Cruz: Even so, their movements are a bit excessive⊠Would I be overreacting if I were to say I feel like theyâre going to war?]
[Mentes Orun: WarâŠ? Whoâs fighting who?]
[Ethan Cruz: I wonder. I donât know that much. However, you know that thereâre several groups that move independently aside from us.]
[Lloyd H.K.: The 12 generalsâ agents are already too much for us, but youâre saying that thereâre other groups out thereâŠ?]
[Prince Altania: Heng! Lloyd, wait a bit. Iâll come over after I get to level 7.]
[Lloyd H.K.: Yeah, yeah. Youâre really reliable. I trust you.]
[Seira Von Retadane: âŠEveryone, please keep yourselves hidden and do not make any large movements. It isnât the right time yet.]
[Prince Altania: You be careful too, Seira. Though I have no idea where you are!]
[Seira Von Retadane: Please call me Retadane.]
Lee Shin Woo couldnât take it anymore and exited the chatting channel. Including the questions he wanted to ask Seira, which made his mouth itch, there were many things on his mind right now.
It was too clear that Lee Shin Woo was the cause of this âwarâ that Ethan Cruz was talking about. Was his misinformation making the Emperor uneasy right now!?
âFor the time being, we shouldnât go to the golem main base.â
âI really like your way of causing trouble for others and then getting out of the situation by yourself.â
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It seemed like his misinformation regarding the secret facility that both the Emperor and the golems wanted was in full swing, and causing chaos within the Empire. The reason Lee Shin Woo hadnât known about any of it was because he had been concentrating on making wine and golems!
âIn any case, letâs think positively. They canât just ignore Anti-Skull anymore!â
âHow can you be so evilâŠâ
Lee Shin Woo led his party (including his recently acquired Silver Golems) and safely returned to his base without anyone knowing.
Regardless of whether or not the Empireâs undead found the golems or Anti-Skull and caused chaos, Lee Shin Woo wouldnât get himself involved.