I Became a Veteran Who Has to Stir Up Trouble to Survive - Chapter 72

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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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[072] Undead Meets Water
There had always been a clear reason why I’d never demonstrated my transformation abilities before others.
If my possession of the Evil God’s power came to light, I could be branded a heretic—or worse, my status as a transmigrator could be exposed.
But….
‘This pirate hideout is far removed from Verastin!’
No one knew who I truly was, and I’d been disguised as Barbo the entire time.
My allies had even taken to calling me by my codename, and with the makeup and mask concealing my face, there was little risk of recognition.
There could be no more perfect stage for transforming into an undead.
｢Your synchronization rate with the undead form is exceptionally high! You have already slaughtered countless enemies and devoured their souls across multiple battlefields in this very shape!｣
｢The Evil God’s power contained within the [Orb of the Blessed Dead] transforms you into an [Enhanced Skeleton]! Your bones thicken, and you wield far greater strength!｣
｢Your resistance to holy power has increased further!｣
─Block the door, Deer!!
With a metallic clang, Malton smiled behind his mask as he barred the exit with a bolt, and in that same instant, I caught the blade Snake thrust toward me effortlessly in my palm.
Enhanced by [Chaos], my grip crushed the steel sword with a sickening crack—it shattered like glass.
“W-what is this…! How can an undead be disguised as human… gahhk!”
I drove a kick into Snake’s abdomen, slamming him against the wall.
A pirate swung a club at me, but I deftly arched my spine to evade, then seized his collar and hurled him onto a table.
Wooden splinters and betting chips scattered as blades came pouring in, but I absorbed the strikes with my body and counterattacked.
Pathetic, desperate slashes born of terror.
I grasped a spear lodged between my ribs, snapped it, and laughed with malicious glee.
─Kahahaha!! Absurd! Such feeble attacks are utterly ineffective!
I advanced with a booming declaration, and the terrified pirates stumbled backward.
My allies, already accustomed to my combat style, were quietly weaving through the pirates’ ranks, executing sabotage.
Hisssss─!
“Agh, it’s scalding!!”
As Radi yanked open the hot spring’s steam valve, searing vapor erupted, shrouding the chamber in a hazy veil.
Malton destroyed the locks entirely, preventing anyone’s escape, then methodically shattered the wall-mounted lights one by one.
I prowled through the darkness and steam, seizing pirates by the head and hurling them, smashing wooden furniture as I wreaked havoc.
Blades came from all directions, but I paid them no mind—I swept my leg at the pirates’ groins, and they shrieked as they collapsed helplessly.
‘Still not enough.’
I needed to inspire even more overwhelming terror.
─Yo ho… yo ho… raise the sails, all hands!
“Ah, it’s the undead’s song!!”
“C-could it be… summoning the Ghost Ship Fleet…?!”
─Kahahaha!! What a pitiful spectacle! Boggles!
“Y-yes, yes…?”
From the shadow of the terrified Boggles, Radi emerged.
She swiftly drove a sedative-laced needle into the back of his neck.
Thump─!
｢Bogglehead Boggles has lost consciousness!｣
“Just by calling out a name, you can strike someone down! You’re planning to turn us all into undead!!”
“Wait, turn us into undead?! No, anything but that!”
Karen’s perfectly timed provocation sent pirates scattering in panic, abandoning their weapons and fleeing.
For pirates who lived in constant dread of the Ghost Ship, undeath was far more than mere terror—it was existential horror.
｢The chaos absorbed from the surroundings has exceeded a critical threshold!｣
｢The potential of the [Antagon Rune] has been unlocked, revealing a portion of its true power temporarily!｣
｢While in undead form, you can now layer and manifest one additional unique ability from another monster!｣
‘An additional ability manifestation? Is this what happened when I fought Andras?’
At that moment, several robed figures burst forth, shouting urgently.
“Everyone, stay calm!! No matter how undead it is, it cannot withstand a direct hit from our magic!”
“Finally, the moment to use this has come!”
The staffs they raised aloft shimmered with arcane energy.
Then there was only one choice I could make.
─Ancient resolve, awaken beneath the azure starlight….
｢The power of the Selurian Golem dwells within your flesh!｣
｢Your racial traits grant you exceptionally high magical resistance! Your mana sensitivity increases!｣
｢You can consume magic to grow stronger!｣
As a soft blue luminescence pulsed across my body, a brilliant bolt of lightning engulfed the chamber.
Once the lightning dissipated, the mages withdrew their staffs with smug satisfaction.
Surely no undead, however powerful, could survive a direct hit from such devastating electrical magic.
But as the smoke cleared, they could only stare in horror.
─Kahahaha!! How pathetic. It’s laughable enough to dislocate my jaw!
｢The Selurian Golem’s body has absorbed the magic!｣
｢You can now release the absorbed mana!｣
My entire form gleamed with crystalline brilliance—a pristine skeleton unmarred by the assault.
Beyond the charred tatters of my robes, the absorbed lightning flickered and danced like a golden aura.
“Ah, ahhh… it’s over. We have no chance….”
｢The pirates, overwhelmed by the vast disparity in power, sink into despair!｣
｢Boggles, witnessing your form before his eyes, loses consciousness once more!｣
As I crackled a pale yellow sphere of lightning in my palm, the remaining pirates who had mustered any resolve collapsed in defeat.
They begged only that I kill them mercifully rather than turn them into undead.
‘By now, they must surely understand the gap in our strength.’
But my purpose was to gain their cooperation, not to slaughter them.
I calmly returned to my seat at the table.
As everyone stared blankly, I picked up the scattered dice from the floor and gestured toward Snake.
─What are you doing? Come, sit down. The game isn’t over yet.
｢The pirate gang falls into confusion!｣
Malton quickly chimed in.
“This undead lord has no intention of fighting. Rather, he’s a savior who came to liberate us from oppression.”
“An undead with no desire to harm humans? Who would believe such nonsense…!”
The pirate who had kicked me in the groin and screamed in fury was beaten down by the other pirates and dragged away.
Snake and his subordinates approached, knelt down, and rubbed their hands together in flattery.
“W-what do you need, Undead Lord…?”
I spoke softly.
─You said you had the Holy Spear. Hand it over, and I’ll leave without touching anyone.
Snake answered with an uncomfortable expression.
“That is… we had it until recently, but we don’t anymore.”
─Where is it?
“We sold it to the Mermaids.”
I clicked my jaw bone slightly, displeased.
“B-but we know the location of the Mermaid Temple! The storm surge is at its peak right now, so we should be able to go in two or three days! I’ll guide you there personally!”
─Is that so? Then I’ll be in your care for a while. …Do you have wine and cheese?
“P-prepare all the finest wines and appetizers! Bring out the VIP suite immediately!!”
The Balearic Archipelago became bustling in yet another way.
* * *
The Balearic Archipelago, a pirate’s paradise. Within it, the finest suite at the very top of the tallest Sailing Ship.
I lay buried in a bed so spacious and plush I could wrestle on it, gazing out the window.
After two days at the Balearic Archipelago, the thick sea fog lifted, and I felt the raging storm surge beginning to subside.
‘At this rate, I should be able to depart tomorrow.’
While leisurely admiring the scenery with wine in hand, I heard a knock at the door.
“…It’s me, Mouse.”
When I opened the door, Radi, struggling under a pile of thick books, shuffled into the room and collapsed face-first onto the bed.
“Ugh, my arms are numb… Why do both land bandits and sea pirates insist on making their hideouts so unnecessarily complicated?”
“You worked hard. What are the other two up to?”
“The last time I saw Malton, he was making a drinking bet with the bartender, and Karen was holed up in the Archive. She said she found some fascinating materials on primitive magic… I don’t think she’s slept in two days.”
“Mages are always like that.”
Still, I should remind her about managing her condition later.
“…So what are those books?”
“Oh, these?”
Radi brushed the dust off the stack of books with her palm, then opened them for me to see.
“You said Doran mentioned that Leviathan will soon appear and reduce Liberta to ruins. So I gathered some reference materials from the archive here. I summarized them roughly—would you like to look through them together?”
“Sure.”
I lit the mana lamp and lay beside her, flipping through the books she had brought.
Throughout the pages, Radi’s neat handwriting on sticky notes caught my eye, organized with precision.
“…Leviathan last appeared in history five centuries ago. It seems multiple civilizations were destroyed at that time too. Ah, and Leviathan is supposedly such a massive serpent that it could circle an island several times over…”
“Technically, it’s not a dragon but just an absurdly huge serpent. I heard it lament that it couldn’t ascend to heaven because it didn’t have a orb of the right size. There’s also a theory that Leviathan’s variants are the Serpent in the Garden of Eden or Satan.”
“Hmm… You know quite a lot? It’s a mythical monster that only appears in literature.”
“I heard it directly from Jang Su-jong before…”
“Yes, I suppose you would have.”
Radi let out a light scoff and continued.
Leviathan’s myths and legends, accounts from ancient witnesses. And records of other deep-sea monsters besides.
But after Radi had been laying out her findings for a while, her hand paused as she turned the pages.
“But… I’ve been thinking about something on my own.”
“What is it?”
“The Snake Gang… they said they handed over half of the Holy Spear to the Mermaids, right? And received a massive sum in return.”
“That’s right.”
“Then… could the reason the Mermaids are attacking Liberta now be to reclaim the sacred relic? I mean….”
“Because their attack location happened to be Neptune’s Temple where the sacred relic was stored?”
Radi nodded.
“Well… that probability would be high.”
It was a hypothesis I’d already considered long ago.
But what bothers me is that I don’t know the Mermaids’ exact motives.
Just from the fact that they purchased half of the Holy Spear from the Snake Gang, it’s certain the Mermaids have an interest in the Holy Spear.
But if their intention was to prevent humans from completing the sacred relic before Leviathan’s appearance, simply hiding the remaining half would have been sufficient.
Why would they need to shed blood and raid Neptune’s Temple?
‘Or perhaps… do the Mermaids also have a reason they must complete the Holy Spear?’
Maybe what they want isn’t confrontation with humans, but….
Just as I was pondering this unanswerable question, I heard footsteps ascending the staircase from outside the door.
“An unfamiliar scent.”
“Right, wait a moment.”
｢You’ve transformed into an Enhanced Skeleton!｣
Knock, knock.
─Ahem… Come in!
As I declared with dignity in my undead form, one of Snake’s subordinates respectfully opened the door and entered.
“Pardon the intrusion, Undead Lord! The waves have calmed down, so it looks like we can set sail at dawn tomorrow!”
─I see. Is that all the news you have to report?
“Just in case, we’ve also prepared a water-attribute Mage and an interpreter so you can breathe underwater! Then I’ll take my leave!”
As the Pirate bowed respectfully and departed, I released my transformation.
‘The Mermaid Temple, then….’
It’s been a while.
I gazed beyond the clear horizon toward the faintly protruding Coral Tower and let my lips curve upward.

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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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