It precisely aimed for Lee Shin Woo with its sharp sword strike! It truly was a perfect surprise attack, but Lee Shin Woo was faster, and avoided its attack. He bent his head back and kicked upwards, causing the sword in the skeletonâs grip to go flying!
[Keuhaaaaaaaahk!]
âThis isâŚâ
The skeletonâs sword flew directly up and lodged into the ceiling. However, the skeleton seemed unconcerned, fixed its gaze at Lee Shin Woo, and charged. It seemed as though its mana was focused into its palm, and it attacked Lee Shin Woo for a second time with its hands dyed in a dark green!
âItâs acid, a poison made from mana. Itâs at a similar level to the Great Slimeâs, and if thatâs the caseâŚ!â
It was at that moment. Through his skill in mana analysis, which had noticeably increased due to his Mana Bone, he was able to grasp the structure of his enemyâs skill, and at that very moment, the bone he had absorbed before⌠the Acid Ghoulâs Thumbnail awakened its potential!
[You have learned the active skill, Intermediate Acid Poison Spray Lv1. Strength, and Magic have increased by 15. Low Rank Acid Resistance has become Lv7.]
[You have achieved the feat of acquiring a intermediate skill. All stats increase by 5.]
âHuh!?â
Lee Shin Woo was so astonished that he almost lost control of his mana for a moment. Intermediate!? Though the Acid Ghoulâs ability was indeed frightening, when he normally learned a skill, he thought that theyâd always be at a reduced level, so he couldnât help but be astonished.
Could this also be due to Mana Bone? He was able to completely reproduce the special properties of the mana within the memories and experiences now, so if all the skills that he was going to learn in the future started at a high level⌠then him learning the Mana Bone skill would have been the best thing that happened to him ever since he was dropped into the Empire!
âHeut.â
[Ggeuaaaaahk!]
The deep green mist that rose from his fingertips softly wrapped around the skeletonâs palm. At that moment, it yelled in fright and retreated back, colliding with a desk. Lee Shin Woo saw a portion of the documents atop the desk melt away from the poison and freakily yelled out.
âHey, hey. Calm down!â
[Acid Poison!? Who⌠are youâŚ!]
Fortunately, the skeleton stopped when Lee Shin Woo spoke. No, perhaps it regained feeling after seeing him use Acid Poison. Honestly, it was good regardless. His top priority was to calm it down if he wanted to preserve these precious documents and prevent further damage.
âIâm one of Gerritâs people.â
Lee Shin Woo slowly stepped back and lead him away from the materials, so that they wouldnât be damaged, and answered him calmly.
He had already begun acting by the time he realized that he needed to proceed delicately. And he was able to say the lines most suitable for the situation!
[Gerrit�]
His hand paused its strike midair. He had hit the mark!
[Youâre⌠a subordinate of Doctor Gerrit Aterran? I⌠donât recall seeing you before. Are you part of the guardâŚ?]
âNo, Iâm not a guard. If I was, I wouldâve died with you. I came by his request.â
[Did Doctor Aterran die⌠T-Thatâs natural I supposeâŚ]
The skeleton despaired, and dropped its head. Seeing that, Lee Shin Woo was actually surprised. He had thought he needed to calm it down no matter what, but he didnât think that one line would calm it down.
The moment the skeleton got a hold of itself, a message appeared in front of Lee Shin Woo.
[The Acting skill has become Lv5. Those who listen to your words will instinctually have a good impression of you.]
[Your body is black, huhâŚ]
âItâs because of the poison.â
[Your poisonâs really strong. âŚYeah, our tests were like that. Now I remember a little bit.]
At around that time, the skeleton had completely lost its fighting spirit. It inspected Lee Shin Woo and when it subsequently turned to look at its own body, which was likewise composed of only bones, it muttered miserably.
[Our test ultimately failed. We couldnât stop ourselves from turning into undead⌠In the end, that foolish Emperor tried to prevent disaster by calling an even greater disaster!]
Those words felt as though Lee Shin Woo had just been hit by a straight punch. It had clearly recognized that it was an undead, and was also aware of the passage of time!
Was this perhaps an effect caused by them performing tests within the sewers? If thatâs true, then in the EmpireâŚ!? Lee Shin Woo did his best to conceal his astonishment no matter what, and replied to the skeleton.
âHowever, youâre better off than the guys outside. Since the guys outside have lost their reason and are going wild.â
[Is it a half successâŚ? Come in, comrade. If I think about it, you, who knows the code for the Anti-Skull, canât be my enemy. It seems as though I had also lost my reason until just a little while ago. Since all I did was despair alone from within hereâŚ]
âThanks.â
Anti-Skull, huh. It definitely had a connection with the skull pattern drawn on the door lock. There was a small chance that it was just a code name, but there was a high chance that it stood for the organization of their group as well. Lee Shin Woo decided to remember that word.
[Did you move around by yourself? If not, are you acting based on General Seagaldâs orders?]
âNo, Iâm acting based on Gerritâs request. I need to collect all the research materials so that it canât be misused.â
[Ah⌠I see. Those precious materials are spread about in this kind of place. Thatâs certainly an important task.]
It was really easy to handle the skeleton. Was it because it had just regained its reasoning, or was it due to its memories not being completely intact? If itâs not that either, then was it due to his Acting skill? If he could handle him as he pleases, then it didnât matter.
Lee Shin Woo collected all the materials that remained intact despite the passage of dozens of years. The skeleton even helped him with his task. In the end, he made this request.
[There may be some of our comrades still out there. Could you help search for them?]
âAlright. Since I need to collect all the materials anyway.â
He was patiently sitting in his seat, and though he really wanted to inspect the materials, the current situation wouldnât allow him to. However, the moment Lee Shin Woo nodded at the skeletonâs words, the mana in front of him slightly shook.
[A quest has occurred!]
[Those who uphold the spirit of a ruined nation.]
[You have found traces of those who still resist in the Empire, and came in contact with them. No one knows how this attempt will turn out in the future. But whatâs certain is that it will be an extremely difficult challenge.]
[Quest goal: Find and aid the Poison Skeletonâs comrades.]
âThis⌠does this mean that God is interested in this place too?â
It would be really unconventional as a hero to listen to their circumstances and act without killing them. However, on the contrary, God wouldnât punish him for it and instead encouraged him do so, which was really interesting.
Of course, regardless of whether God liked it or not, Lee Shin Woo would act as he pleased!
[How are you going to deal with all of those?]
âI probably have to store them. Thereâs something that Gerrit prepared before he died.â
[As expected of Doctor Aterran.]
Lee Shin Woo and the Poison Skeleton confirmed that there werenât any more materials inside the room and left the passageway. As he saw the Poison Skeleton, which had withdrawn its sword, crawl out of the door, he smacked his lips.
âShouldnât you move a bit quieter?â
[You donât need to be that careful. The only things in this sewer are just research material slimes.]
âYeah, they are just slimes, but⌠Well, whatever.â
Lee Shin Woo gave up on trying to convince it. When he thought about it, since he had invested so much time into familiarizing himself with Mana Bone, the Great Slime shouldâve been far away from him by now. It was probably hectically eating up all the other slimes in the dungeon about now.
[Now that I think about it, I havenât introduced myself yet. My name is⌠Ugh, I donât remember my name. It isnât just my name. I donât even remember who I was⌠I wonder why? I remember the tests and the curse, but thereâs nothing I remember about myself! Itâs as though the inside of my head is completely emptyâŚ!]
If he was a human instead of a skeleton, he wouldâve seemed like a main character, but the world wouldnât remember a mere extraâs amnesia! Surprisingly, Lee Shin Woo replied uninterestedly.
âThe fact that your headâs empty just means that thereâs a lot you can fill it with from now on.â
[ThatâsâŚ!]
Heâd only said a suitable line heâd seen from somewhere before, yet it seemed like the skeleton was deeply moved. While he was at it, Lee Shin Woo decided to give him some more service.
âFirst, letâs give you a name. Now your nameâs Paul.â
[Paul⌠Itâs an alright name! Whatâs your name?]
âIâm⌠Paul Zero.â
It was a name heâd thought up himself, but it was really an alias without a speck of creativity.
[Then⌠Paul Zero, this way. I donât remember anything regarding myself, but I definitely remember the way.]
âGreat. Letâs go, Paul!â
Lee Shin Woo and Paul moved quickly. He definitely moved a lot more efficiently because he had a guide. No matter how excellent his mana senses had gotten from learning Mana Bone, it took a certain amount of manual labor to find the secret passagewaysâŚ!
He was suddenly in awe of his foresight, as he hadnât killed the skeleton and dealt with the issue by just talking. Lee Shin Woo honestly hadnât thought that this was how it would turn out.
[Weâve arrived. You see it too, right?]
âYeah, Iâm opening it right away.â
Lee Shin Woo released the lock more skillfully than before and opened the door. There were three skeletons within, but they were just like Paul had been, and had lost their reason.
[Kyaaaaaahk!]
[Kiaaaaaaah!]
âYeah, yeah. I thought youâd be this way.â
Lee Shin Woo sighed and softly spewed his Acid Poison at them. It wasnât acid magic, nor was it a curse, and the skeletons that basked in the poison went âhmmâ in surprise, and stopped moving. It was honestly really funny.
[The taste of this poison is⌠Itâs the taste of an allyâŚ!]
[Y-Youâre⌠Are you a soldier from another test by any chance?]
[To think that Iâm a skeleton⌠A skeleton!]
âNow, I understand your complicated feelings, but I received Gerrit Aterranâs request and you guys are undead that have their reason. Weâre all friends here, so just calm down for now.â
Lee Shin Woo perfectly utilized his Acting skill and calmed them down. Paul, who saw Lee Shin Woo instantly clean up inside, just carelessly clapped with his bare bone hands.
[The power in your voice is unusual. As expected, it seems you werenât a normal person after all. What do you think our relationship was in the past? Ugh, I donât remember!]
âYou already said that before, so be quiet and stand over here in order. Youâre Paul 2, youâre Paul 3, and youâre Paul 4âŚâ
The four Pauls had a touching reunion, even though five minutes hadnât even passed yet. Since they were all composed of bones now, it was difficult to recover their previous form, but they definitely remembered that they followed and trusted the same general, and cooperated with the tests.
Moreover, since they were all level 3, they were highly likely to all have had the same post in their past life.
[To think that youâre carrying out Doctor Aterranâs will even after becoming an undead⌠Youâre amazing.]
[Wonât you come with us to meet General Seagald? General Seagald definitely wouldnât have given up on the magic research.]
âIâll probably go and see you guys someday. Iâll remember you guys.â
Lee Shin Woo instantly refused the offer of the Pauls who had reached a mutual understanding, and quickly collected the materials.
And in the process, he took a sideways glance at the characters that they used, and the materials definitely werenât written in Korean, but he could naturally read them. It was probably the same reason he could communicate with others, despite never learning the Empireâs language.
âNow, shall we go and check the remaining materials?â
[Hey, but wait⌠donât you hear something strange from somewhere?]
[Now that you mention it, yeah.]
Paul affirmed Paul 3âs statement. Then, Paul 4, who had gone out of the door before the rest of them, spoke with a slightly stiff voice.
[I hear the crawling sound of⌠something huge.]
â Kwang!
Immediately after, a portion of the passageway burst. Beyond it, a huge slime dyed in a dark green revealed itself and faced them. Its truly dreary aura was so heavy that its body sagged, and that heavy acid mist spread through its surroundings.
[Lv4 King Slime]
[You have found the target of your revenge. When you fight it, all stats increase by 30%. Flames of Revenge receive a 30% additional bonus.]
[Geureureureuoooooooooooooooh!]
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The King Slime, which discovered Lee Shin Woo, forcefully howled and the tough passageway walls began to quickly crack. However, the Poison Skeletons were terrified and instinctually stepped back; on the contrary, Lee Shin Woo looked pleased and stepped forward. He was slightly disappointed that it wasnât an Emperor Slime, but still, this was great!
âLetâs play, Pudding!â
[Gureureureureureureu!]
The King Slime responded vigorously to Lee Shin Wooâs offer. It seemed like it really missed Lee Shin Woo too.
The Pauls looked like they were going to cry when they saw the walls quickly crack as a result of the King Slimeâs full speed charge, but unfortunately for them, there was no place to run.