Damn Necromancer - Chapter 32

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Wasteful Necromancer (32)
In the thick of battle.
A phantom knight blocked their path.
―……Human?
The knight regarded him and Cedric at his side with something like bewilderment.
That was when it happened.
―Shriek!
Two orc chieftains hurled themselves forward like living projectiles.
The second, Urkan, and the third, Decum.
The orc’s finest warriors.
Their axes collided with the knight’s blade.
Crash!
Even with an overwhelming Level disadvantage, the chieftains did not yield easily.
‘It’s the equipment doing the heavy lifting.’
The knight’s movements became frantic.
Openings appeared everywhere.
For Cedric and Kim Min-woo, exploiting those gaps was as easy as breathing.
Trivial, really.
Thrust!
―Choke!
Between the armor plates.
The silver-plated blade found the seam near the heart, and the phantom knight died blissfully.
Cedric’s spear, too, probed the knight’s body with surgical precision.
Under the assault of four, the thing’s form dissolved in less than a minute.
Then.
Ellum’s eyes blazed blue.
The moment he thrust his staff forward.
Boom!
Hundreds of undead rose from the earth.
More than two hundred ghouls.
Nearly a dozen durahan among them.
“Hrgh, break through!”
His complexion ashen from the mana expenditure of that single spell, Ellum cried out.
The ghouls and durahan surged forward, heedless of the arrows raining down, carving a path through sheer will.
Chimeras and phantom knights joined the effort. No matter the attacks from all sides, the intent was singular—punch through in one direction.
‘Well, I expected as much.’
They could have won even without the elves.
Nearly two thousand orcs. Half of them well-armed.
Even a straight fight would have favored Ellum’s side, let alone with a surprise attack. The advantage was already turning his way.
Trapped and desperate like this, how many options remained? A single breakthrough—that was all.
‘Which is precisely why all his soldiers will melt away.’
As they were now.
Bulldozing through in one direction?
That meant they were infinitely vulnerable to flanking. Every time the orcs swung their axes with a roar, Ellum’s minions crumbled.
‘Time to wrap this up.’
Unlike Ellum, his own mana reserves were untouched.
And when they’d sent word they were moving out, he’d canceled the Skeleton Summons stationed at the forge.
Summons could be called again whenever needed.
Now it was time to deploy those reserved skeletons.
Pale bony hands erupted from beneath their feet, seizing them as they fought desperately forward.
Ellum’s forces stumbled, losing momentum.
And ahead, another wave of skeletons materialized, rushing toward them.
“You—you’re a Necromancer?”
Ellum’s eyes flickered with shock at the unexpected sight.
The skeletal army charged toward his own troops as if intent on mutual destruction.
They were poorly equipped and low-level, but the problem was time itself—it was running out.
“Damn it! Why do they keep getting back up!”
Ones he thought dead crawled forward again, clinging like ticks.
There was no ignoring them. They simply dragged his troops down with their skeletal grip.
And as his minions slowed, the orc reinforcements closed in.
Ellum’s forces dwindled rapidly.
“Cough, cough—break through! Break through them!”
When he finally cleared away the mass of skeletons.
“We… we made it……”
A sight of despair unfolded before him.
Another thousand skulls blocked their path.
“Ah… ahhhh……”
Despair settled into Ellum’s eyes as he surveyed the surroundings. Dullahans, ghouls, grave robbers, phantom knights—
Fewer than twenty remained in total.
Exhausted from cutting through barriers.
Exhausted from arrows.
Exhausted from the dragging time.
All dead.
Behind them, orcs approached with drool dripping from their jaws.
‘I feel a little bad.’
The Top-grade Mana Potion effect was excellent. A single bottle could restore Mana to full in the lower level ranges. Unfortunately for Ellum, Kim Min-woo was wealthy in potions.
—Ork-shriek! Kill everything but that human!
The orcs faithfully carried out his orders.
Soon only Ellum and the swarming orcs remained on the snow-covered plains.
He moved toward him.
“Hah… hah……”
Ellum gasped for breath, his arrow-pierced chest heaving with pain. His bloodshot eyes fixed on Kim Min-woo.
“It was you… you who rallied the orcs…!”
“Yes.”
“Cough! Please, spare me. If you kill me… it will truly become irreversible!”
“And if I don’t kill you, then it can be reversed?”
“Yes, yes! The Apostle knows nothing of this yet. If I speak to him properly, he will surely forgive you.”
“He still doesn’t know?”
Nod.
Ellum nodded vigorously and spoke.
“That’s right. Your undead are special indeed. Resurrecting like that! I’m certain they’ll prove invaluable in the fortress. Then all manner of rewards……”
He severed the man’s neck.
[The Necromancer ‘Ellum’ has been defeated!]
[Level increases by 2!]
‘Hmm.’
Despite dealing only the finishing blow, the experience was remarkable. Certainly befitting a high-level Named Monster.
The rewards didn’t end there.
A single glowing book lay beside his corpse.
The moment Kim Min-woo saw it, his eyes grew intent.
‘A Bound Skill Book!’
Defeating monsters often yielded skill books.
Such dropped skill books had randomized classes. Their efficacy was mediocre at best.
‘Only basic skills ever drop.’
For a Necromancer, Skeleton Summon or Mage Summon.
For a swordsman or wizard, things like Elemental Mastery or Sword Mastery.
These were commonly called ‘Basic Skills.’
Because they dropped so frequently, trading was brisk, and even if someone couldn’t obtain one, synthesis would yield results in no time.
‘Skills that do exactly what the name suggests—no more.’
In other words, they only did the basics.
To perform at two or three times normal capacity, one had to learn special skills beyond such common techniques.
The most prominent method was the Awakening Achievement. High enough achievements granted skills that even level-one upper-tier awakened users couldn’t obtain.
‘Which is why people obsess over achievements.’
Kim Min-woo was no exception.
It was precisely why he’d learned the demonic skill Death Lord at level one.
Another method was obtaining a Bound Skill Book.
Bound.
In simple terms, an item that became untradeable the moment you acquired it.
For that very reason, it possessed formidable effects. Upon acquisition, it adapted to your class and usable level.
There would be no misfortune where you obtained a Bound Skill Book only to find yourself unable to learn it due to class mismatch or insufficient level.
‘And besides….’
The Bound Skill Book contained far better skills than the Basic Skills he’d seen before.
‘The ranking really does hinge on how many high-quality skills you have.’
The drop rate was correspondingly low. Ordinary monsters almost never yielded them at all.
‘Named Monsters, then.’
Worth every effort to land the killing blow.
He reached down and picked up the Bound Skill Book, satisfied.
[You have obtained a Bound Skill Book.]
[You have obtained Necromancer Skill Book: Bone Exchange (B)!]
‘……Wait?’
Bone Exchange?
He examined the details.
[Bone Exchange (B)]
[Level Requirement: Level 75 or higher]
[Replace the bones of a Summon by individual part. However, replacements exceeding capacity are impossible. Capacity is proportional to the average level of the Summon.]
[Applicable Summons]
[Skeleton (Capacity 0/25)]
[Skeleton Mage (Capacity 0/17)]
[Cedric (Capacity 0/75)]
‘Oh.’
He could grasp the gist of it. Swap out the bones for something else, gain some effect. That was the skill.
‘This feels like it’s going to suit me perfectly.’
Bones were just something you could buy, weren’t they?
[Would you like to learn this skill book?]
“Of course.”
At a glance, the skill’s potential was obvious.
There was no reason to refuse.
[You have learned Bone Exchange (B)!]
Then.
Urkan approached.
―Screee! Big brother! Those pointy-eared fellows over there wanted to see Big brother! So I didn’t kill them!
Sure enough, in the distance.
A cluster of robed figures was gathered together.
“Well done. You can’t just go swinging an axe at everyone. Except for the Witch’s faction and the Ice Dragon’s forces.”
―Screee! Urkan is smart! Urkan remembers everything Big brother says!
“Wait here. I’ll be right back.”
―Screee! Understood!
He made his way toward the elves.
One of them stepped forward as their representative.
“It is an honor to meet you. My name is Elise, and I am the Keeper of the Mother Tree Forest.”
“I am Kim Min-woo. Thank you for your aid. Your help made the battle end far more smoothly.”
He bowed respectfully in gratitude for the assistance received.
Elise nodded and spoke.
“I have heard rumors of you. That you are gathering a Resistance Force to stand against the Witch.”
“That’s correct.”
“Might we elves also join your Resistance Force?”
He tilted his head.
Elves were renowned for their pride and insularity.
Yet here they were, not only rushing to help unprompted, but now asking to join his ranks?
There had to be fire at their heels—nothing else would drive them to act this way.
“Lady Elise. Before we go further, I have a question. Are the elves also under attack by the Witch?”
“……Yes.”
“Your situation seems dire.”
“……That is also true.”
“I apologize. While it is true that we have benefited from your aid, that alone does not seem sufficient grounds for us to accept your membership.”
“……Are you refusing us?”
“No, it is not a refusal. Rather, I believe we need to discuss this further.”
“Please, speak freely.”
“The dwarves supply weapons to the orcs in exchange for security. I suspect the elves are seeking something similar?”
“You are correct.”
“Then what can the elves offer our Resistance Force in return for the security we provide?”
“We can provide troops and furnish you with maps showing the surrounding terrain.”
“How many soldiers are we talking about?”
“Well, roughly what we have here…….”
“That’s not enough. Nowhere near.”
I shook my head.
The elves had helped, true enough, but sending thirty at most and losing a handful to archery was the full extent of their contribution.
But if we helped the elves?
Given how dire the situation looked, hundreds of orcs would fall.
And we’d trade all that for a single map and thirty elvish soldiers?
Both things had their uses, certainly.
‘Still doesn’t add up.’
It was a terrible bargain — one of the worst.
The help we’d received so far was something we could repay with a bit of Dwarf-made Equipment and call it even, nothing close to the kind of debt that would justify us bleeding ourselves dry across the board.
“……Perhaps we could also supply fruits and medicinal herbs and such…….”
“Elise. Do you truly think our Resistance Force’s lives are worth so little? Enough that you’d ask us to die by the hundreds of orcs for aid of this magnitude?”
The words died in her throat.
“We received your help, and we’ll repay it. You’ll have Dwarf-made Equipment. Now, I suggest you return.”
What was this, a free ride?
Without hesitation, I turned to leave.
That was when it happened.
“……Wait, please!”
Elise rushed up and grabbed my shoulder.
“Tell me what you want, then.”
“The Divine Fruit from the Mother Tree Forest. And a steady supply of potions. I need those, at minimum.”
The Divine Fruit was a rare, potent berry that grew on the Mother Tree only occasionally.
As for the elves, they were renowned for Alchemy — potions were something they crafted well.
Both were exactly the sort of things you’d expect to extract from them.
‘Not exactly highway robbery.’
Honestly, I’d already decided this much was the bare minimum needed to justify risking our lives to defend them.
Otherwise the dwarves would have every right to feel cheated.
“……!”
Her ears quivered slightly.
The elves behind her were equally shaken.
“The Divine Fruit? That won’t do, Elise!”
“And potions — we barely have enough for ourselves! Much less a steady supply!”
The elves protested in alarm.
I studied Elise’s face.
“If you don’t like it, refuse.”
“……The Divine Fruit is a precious treasure.”
“Our lives are equally precious.”
“……But weren’t you fighting the Witch?”
I laughed quietly.
This elf was misunderstanding something fundamental.
“True. We are a force that fights the Witch. But we’re not the elves’ nursemaids.”
“But if we fall, then the Resistance Force will also——”
Fall, she said.
The way such words tumbled out suggested the elves’ situation was far more desperate than they’d let on.
Yet they still offered us such a measly proposal?
So much for their vaunted racial pride.
They certainly looked the part of the haughty folk, anyway.
“Is that so? I’ll buy you time until the very brink of collapse. Use that time wisely.”
The elves murmured among themselves.
Was he really not going to help?
That’s what their tone suggested.
What would become of them, then?
Their thoughts were transparent as glass.
Desperation has a way of showing.
They were clearly trying to cling to us like their only lifeline.
‘This isn’t some hostage negotiation.’
Elves?
Of course, it would be ideal if we had one.
But we won’t die without it.
Now that the orcs had gathered and their collective value had risen considerably, this was even more true.
Elise, apparently grasping the gravity of the situation, spoke with a tense expression.
“…Wait, please. Give us time to think. We need time to decide as well.”
“Five minutes. After that, I’ll reject any proposal. Then take your equipment and go.”
Elise nodded, and she and the elves moved away to confer among themselves.
Heated voices carried back to us—an intense debate was clearly underway.
Exactly four minutes and fifty-five seconds passed.
Elise approached.
“…We accept. However… large-scale potion supply is simply not realistic. We lack enough alchemists to produce them.”
“Then make more.”
“…What do you mean?”
“Alchemists. We have plenty of promising recruits.”
And the number exceeded a thousand.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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