Damn Necromancer - Chapter 86

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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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Extravagant Necromancer (86)
Merhen
A familiar place.
He’d returned to his room without quite knowing when.
“Hayan.”
—Coo.
“Phew…….”
Kim Min-woo exhaled in relief. When Death Lord had seized him.
Despite his repeated instructions to stay hidden, Hayan had rushed in anyway, and ended up trapped inside a cage.
Likely Death Lord had recognized something valuable and locked it away.
A jet-black custom cage.
It looked impossible to break out of, so he’d just gritted his teeth and proceeded with the Raid. Fortunately, by the time it ended, Hayan had returned unharmed.
“Do you know how much your father worried? Why did you have to rush in like that?”
—Cooo.
Hayan rubbed its head affectionately against his cheek.
He ran his hand over the creature’s body, checking it over.
“No injuries though. You need to listen better to Father from now on, understood?”
—Coo!
Watching it nod, a father’s smile spread naturally across his face.
Truly, there was no resisting how adorable it was. How could he not buy it attribute items?
After giving it a gentle pet.
He checked what he’d obtained. The first thing he verified was the Spirit Sword.
[Spirit Sword]
[Rank: Legend+]
[A blade passed down through generations to the Lords of Sadoryeon. It has absorbed the blood of ancient masters, and its growth potential has expanded tremendously.]
[Restriction: Kim Min-woo]
[Effect 1. When hunting enemies worthy of the blade’s satisfaction, it drinks their blood. (0/10)]
[Effect 2. When wounding an enemy, it absorbs a portion of their health and mana.]
[Effect 3. ???]
“Huh?”
The description had changed quite a bit.
Not only had the rank grown to Legend+.
‘Its growth potential has expanded tremendously?’
What would the previous Spirit Sword have been like?
It probably wouldn’t have grown any further after absorbing ten thousand enemies.
But now was different.
‘Perhaps…….’
If the blade hunted ten enemies worthy of its satisfaction, it might actually reach Ancient rank.
He still couldn’t know that threshold.
‘Well, that…….’
He’d figure it out as time went on.
The equip restriction had also changed from the Lord of Sadoryeon or one who killed the Lord, to his own name.
And then.
‘……Effect 2 is absolutely broken, isn’t it?’
That it absorbed health and mana whenever he wounded an enemy.
Potions weren’t an unlimited resource.
Which was why people usually relied on natural recovery.
‘I’ve gained a healing mechanism.’
Even if the amount was minimal, that didn’t matter. Simply having such a function would be extraordinarily useful.
Especially for someone like him who spent his time slashing enemy throats with a blade. Next, he checked the Titles.
[New Title List]
[1. Fossil Scholar]
[You have become a student of the Ancient Academy.]
[Effect: Strength, Stamina +5]
[2. Master of the Banshee Queen.]
[You have become the master of Banshee Queen Merhen.]
[Effect 1. Learning ability of all spectral-type Undead increases significantly.]
[Effect 2. Spectral-type Undead can now reach their ultimate form.]
[Effect 3. Casting speed of all magic-class summons increases by 20%.]
[Effect 4. ???]
[Effect 5. ???]
The fossil rank seemed like a bonus title earned upon entering a special stage.
The real ones started from the second.
Master of the Banshee Queen.
The effect was every bit as powerful as Cedric’s title. If Cedric provided strong bonuses to skeletons, Merhen was granting formidable bonuses to spectral Undead.
Specters, banshees, reapers—the list went on.
Most spectral Undead were positioned in the later stages of the game. Each individual entity was correspondingly formidable.
‘And the increased spell-casting speed…….’
It was a generous effect. Better yet, it applied to all magic-type summons. The skeleton mages would benefit from it too.
‘Not bad.’
This was a title that would grow stronger as time passed.
[3. The One Who Claimed Vulcan’s Eyes.]
[You took the eyes of Vulcan, the mightiest Balrog in the Demon Realm and commander of the Death Lord’s legions.]
[Effect 1. All Ability Scores +30]
[Effect 2. Exerts overwhelming pressure on demon-type monsters.]
‘Wow.’
Strong, indeed.
The title effects were no joke.
A flat thirty-point boost to all stats.
An increase he’d earned through grinding in the Orc Gate, now granted in one fell swoop.
‘He really was that powerful.’
If the battle had continued, he would have lost eventually.
The level gap was simply too vast.
‘The second effect is decent too.’
Exerting pressure on demon-type monsters.
‘There’s actually a Gate I’ve been thinking about…….’
There was a Gate of moderate difficulty where demons ran wild.
‘Perfect use for this.’
He nodded with satisfaction and turned his attention to the next title.
[4. The One Who Ended the Grudge.]
[Merhen, who endured endless despair. You released her from that sorrow.]
[Effect 1. Merhen’s affection grows considerably.]
[Effect 2. Her affection occasionally creates special events.]
‘……?’
The deepening affection made sense—he’d earned some points, after all.
But…….
‘What exactly are these special events?’
He couldn’t quite grasp it yet.
“……I’ll figure it out when it happens.”
He checked the Achievement List.
〈Achievement List 9/10〉
〈Heir to the Death Lord〉
〈The One Who Ended the Eternal Age〉
〈Warrior Remembered by Mutak-ta〉
〈Hero of the Northern Caesar Continent〉
〈Master of the Divine Beast〉
〈Champion of the Yongbong Gathering〉
〈Slayer of the Sadoryeon Lord〉
〈Monster of the Beginner Realm〉
〈Necromancer Who Took Vulcan’s Eyes〉
‘Just one left.’
Fill one more, and he could advance to the middle tier—and unlock something truly extraordinary.
His heart raced as though a gift-wrapped present lay before him.
‘So then…….’
It was time to summon Merhen, earned through all that grinding.
[Summon Merhen (SSS)]
[Type: Active]
[Mana Cost: 100]
[Summons Banshee Queen Merhen. Merhen’s Level matches the caster’s. As the Level increases, her abilities are unleashed.]
A sparse skill description.
It was almost identical to Cedric’s.
Since they were both legion commanders, there wouldn’t be much difference.
Then now…….
“Come.”
[Summon Merhen!]
[50 Mana consumed!]
A Banshee is a spectral Undead.
On top of that, its appearance was typically ghastly.
Rotting flesh in patches was to be expected, and ghostly maggots crawling across it were a grim bonus.
If forced to compare, it was at least slightly more presentable than a Specter.
Since I’d never seen a Banshee that didn’t look horrifying, I’d mentally braced myself.
What appeared instead was a face I knew well.
‘……Merhen?’
The Academy.
She seemed to possess the very appearance she’d had in life back then.
If her body hadn’t been slightly translucent, it would have been difficult to recognize her as a Banshee at all.
A Black Umbrella was unfurled in her hand. Merhen, adorned with the round umbrella, stared directly at me.
Soon after, her lips moved softly.
“I remember you.”
She spoke.
“Kern. The person who saved me.”
It seemed she was addressing me that way because her face during the Kern era was identical to now.
“It’s not Kern—it’s Kim Min-woo. In any case, I’m your master.”
“……Master?”
“Yes.”
“No. We’re friends. We made a promise.”
She spoke firmly, shaking her head.
Friends, she said.
Did she perhaps need some mental correction?
I checked her status window.
[Merhen]
[Class: Grand Mage]
[Level: 180]
[Skills: Grand Mage (SS), Scream of Terror (S)]
[Grand Mage (SS): An ability that grew as Merhen awakened her talent. She can wield not only death magic but also magic of the four elements.]
[Scream of Terror (S): A cry imbued with the Banshee’s resentment is unleashed. Enemies hit fall into a state of fear.]
[Loyalty: 100]
[Special Notes: Most skills and ability scores are sealed. She has already pledged her loyalty.]
[Strength: 180(+90)] [Agility: 180(+90)] [Stamina: 180(+90)] [Mana: 540(+270)]
‘Huh?’
I checked her loyalty first—it was already at 100. This was essentially no different from having already sworn a loyalty oath.
Once loyalty reached 100, it would be locked in place and wouldn’t decrease.
‘Correction won’t be necessary, then.’
Friend or subordinate.
Really, such formalities weren’t what mattered. What mattered was whether she’d execute orders without hesitation.
Merhen was already in that state. With loyalty at 100, she’d throw herself into a pit of fire if I commanded it.
It seemed the hard work from back on the stage was paying dividends here.
Come to think of it.
I did rack up a few points back then.
‘No need for instruction.’
Kim Min-woo smiled warmly and spoke.
“That’s right. We made a promise. We really are friends. I was mistaken.”
“Yeah. Min-woo. My precious friend.”
Merhen approached softly and spoke while holding my hand.
Kim Min-woo gazed at her.
‘Her personality seems to have changed somewhat.’
Merhen in her human form.
And Merhen as a Banshee.
Their personalities seemed quite different.
If human Merhen had shown a lively side, Banshee Merhen seemed rather quiet by comparison.
‘Well, that makes sense. Living as Undead for so long.’
Having spent at least decades—likely far longer—as an Undead with dulled emotion and sensation, it wasn’t surprising in the least.
Even her shift toward a quieter temperament seemed natural enough.
I studied Merhen as I posed the question.
“But you remember all of it? You weren’t directly involved in any of it, were you?”
―The memories just flooded into my head.
“That so?”
―Yeah. I definitely hated the Death Lord… but you’re different. So I want to keep being with you.
There it was.
My effort to ease her resentment had borne fruit.
Despite wielding the same Death Lord power, she’d deemed me acceptable—a distinction the Death Lord himself never received.
‘And then there’s the Grand Mage title…’
Banshees typically specialize in death-related magic. Their lower-tier spells cover a broader range, but as they progress to higher tiers, their talents sharpen toward magic tied to their own species.
It seemed Merhen had followed the same pattern.
[She can now cast a much wider variety of magic in addition to death magic!]
‘The message made sense, then.’
She’d likely relied primarily on death magic before.
But that had changed.
Now she wielded the Four Elemental Attributes as well.
The Four Elements typically meant water, fire, earth, and wind.
I didn’t need to labor the point about how formidable that really was.
‘If she’s SS-grade…’
Her range and damage output would be devastating.
That’s when—
The door flew open.
Na-ye poked her head through the gap, eyes bright.
“Big brother! You’re back!”
She bolted toward me, practically glowing with delight.
Once she’d wrapped herself around my leg, she puffed out her cheeks and spoke.
“Where did you go? I waited for you every single day.”
“Sorry. Things got busy.”
Before setting out for the Hidden Gate, I’d already told the family I’d be making the trip.
They’d all accepted it.
Everyone except this one.
‘Looks like she waited a lot.’
Well.
From Na-ye’s perspective, once winter break ended, she’d have to return to the United States—so maybe she thought our time together was limited to right now.
Then—
The child’s gaze shifted to Merhen at my side.
“…Who’s this noona?”
“Oh, she’s my friend.”
“Your friend?”
“Yeah. Merhen, say hello. This is my little sister, Na-ye.”
―…Hello.
Merhen gave an awkward little wave, her movements stiff and unfamiliar.
“Wow. You’re really pretty, noona.”
―…Thank you.
“So, noona… will you play with me?”
―Huh?
“I’m bored. Big brother broke his promise. He said he’d play with me, but…”
I scooped Na-ye up into my arms.
“I’m sorry. Were you sad about it?”
“…A little.”
“Tell you what—today I’ll play with you all you want. Want to see something cool?”
“Something cool?”
“Yeah. Something flashy and dazzling.”
Magic was usually like that.
And SS-grade magic especially would be far more breathtaking than any fireworks show—the way Cedric’s had been.
I still needed to test how well Merhen could handle it.
And by testing her that way, I could fulfill the promise I’d made to Na-ye all at once.
“I want to watch!”
“Then let’s go.”
It was time to test the Legion Commander’s abilities.

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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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