My Skeleton Soldier Is Strange - Chapter 54
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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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Chapter 54
‘My power level isn’t enough!’
For a strategy to work, we needed comparable strength. Right now, my level fell far short of what was needed to face an Ogre.
“Fall back for now! I need time to cast!”
“Buffs, don’t we have buffs? Now isn’t the time to heal!”
“What nonsense are you spouting? If all the wounded die, we’re finished!”
There were a few attempts to close the power gap, but without proper command structure, it was impossible.
‘We should have chosen a representative guild.’
Kim Jae-beom clicked his tongue inwardly as he watched. With both the Black Guild and White Guild pretending to be the representative guild, there was no way to coordinate effectively in a situation like this.
But then.
“Hyaaaaaaah!”
A brilliant white light surged forward from the center of the White Guild.
“Make way!”
A knight clad in radiant white light, wielding a longsword that gleamed with azure brilliance.
It was Aran.
“Why so late…”
A nearby player who had taken heavy damage and retreated muttered, but Kim Jae-beom thought differently.
“He’s received all the buffs, hasn’t he?”
Ye-jin seemed to share the same thought. Kim Jae-beom nodded.
If Aran, one of our maximum combat forces, charged in and the situation still didn’t improve, it would be dangerous. Receiving every possible buff and then dealing with it would be the only way to resolve this crisis quickly.
“My… White…, ah! Uuuaaaaaaah!”
Aran, who had been trying to say something grandiose, found his thoughts scattered and instead let out a thunderous roar as he raised his blade high.
His eyes closed gently, as if offering a sacred prayer.
He took a deep breath with his lips firmly pressed together, then the moment his eyes snapped open, he brought his sword down with lightning speed.
“Holy Strike!”
Kim Jae-beom marveled at the sight.
‘Warrior-class skills don’t require you to call out the skill name when activating them. So there really are people who actually do that!’
―Slash!
A flash-fast strike aimed for the Ogre’s neck.
The blade cut through the air, leaving afterimages in its wake.
“Kuuuaaaagh!”
The Ogre roared back and raised its club. It intended to smash it to pieces like the others. But.
―Crack.
The blade instantly shattered the Ogre’s club.
―Thwack!
And then, it cleanly pierced straight through the Ogre’s neck.
“Kuu, gah.”
The Ogre could no longer roar and froze in place.
―Thud…
The Ogre’s massive body slowly toppled backward. The light gradually faded from its sunken eyes.
―Thud!
As the ogre collapsed, the earth trembled beneath its weight.
The decapitated monster lay motionless.
A single strike had severed its life.
The knight exhaled heavily and sheathed his sword. In the ensuing silence, the players found themselves speechless.
They awaited Aran’s words after his victory over the ogre, but—
―Whoosh!
Aran immediately dashed toward another location.
“Form ranks. The battle is not yet over.”
At that moment, another knight from the White Guild spoke up.
The Female Knight’s voice carried an undeniable charm.
Hearing her words, the players nodded in unison, their resolve hardening.
‘Weaker than Aran, certainly, but still formidable.’
Meanwhile, Kim Jae-beom focused intently on the Female Knight’s power. She could easily be mistaken for just another guild member, yet his instincts screamed otherwise—she was skilled enough that he might have stepped forward himself had Aran not been present.
‘I’ll have to face monsters like her eventually.’
As time passed, one thought crystallized in Kim Jae-beom’s mind. Friction with other players was inevitable on the path to becoming a ranker, but—
‘The Overlord class is excessive.’
Its evil-aligned nature was unmistakably apparent, incomparable to a standard Necromancer.
“The road ahead is long.”
Realizing that even this guild member’s level surpassed his current standing—not just Aran’s—a bittersweet feeling washed over him, and simultaneously—
‘Still, in a PvP scenario, I might be able to take them.’
He swallowed the thought he dared not voice in the presence of White Guild members.
“Why are you smiling like that?”
“Oh, it’s nothing. Just thinking their level is impressive.”
“…Wow.”
Kim Jae-beom deflected, but Ye-jin’s expression grew slightly exasperated.
“Exercise restraint.”
Ye-jin seemed to have seen right through his intentions.
“I’m not sure what you mean.”
Kim Jae-beom quickly cut off the conversation—not out of deception, but because he had no desire to prolong it.
Ye-jin, having no wish to make things more awkward, changed the subject.
“The White Guild’s level is truly extraordinary. Well, they didn’t become one of the top guilds for nothing.”
Kim Jae-beom lowered his voice in response.
“I don’t know about Aran, but I can certainly create guild members of that caliber.”
“…Dercan? Arulan?”
“There’s no point in saying that when you already know who they are.”
“…Wow, I really don’t understand you at all.”
With that, Ye-jin turned away. It seemed Kim Jae-beom was preparing something beyond a mere ‘sparring match’ from before.
“I—”
Just as Kim Jae-beom opened his mouth to say something,
A tremendous roar shook the earth itself.
―Craaaaaash!
The ground convulsed violently, as if the very axis of the world had been struck.
Fissures tore across the land as though an earthquake had erupted.
Crimson light flickered through the jagged cracks.
―Boom! Boom! Boom!
And from those crevasses, colossal forms began to claw their way upward.
One, two… dozens of ogres writhed into view, their massive bodies emerging from the depths.
“This is… insane.”
The ogres shrieked as they hauled themselves onto the surface.
Dark energy coiled from their bodies like smoke.
Their bloodshot eyes burned with murderous intent.
These creatures appeared to be of comparable strength to the ogre I’d fought moments before.
“Roooaaarrr!”
“Buffs! Maximum buffs, now!”
“Mages, prepare your spells!”
Unlike the ambush from before, the players had time to organize themselves.
―Boom! Boom! Boom!
A massive form thundered forward, shaking the earth with each stride.
“All prepared spells—release!”
The Female Knight’s voice rang out across the Battlefield with commanding authority. At her words, the others roared in unison.
―Craaaaaash!
―Crackling thunder!
This time was different. The spells, already prepared, descended upon the ogres’ position in a devastating wave.
―Mass Weakness! Mass Weakness!
―Slow!
Curses from the curse casters swept across the ogre ranks, followed by a volley of arrows from the archers that pelted the creatures relentlessly.
The ogres, eyes blazing with fury, still attempted to charge forward.
“Hold the line!”
At the Female Knight’s command, everyone stood firm.
Now came the turn of the melee fighters.
“Hyaaaaaah!”
Players roared as they surged forward.
They hurled themselves at the ogre horde, wielding swords, spears, and axes.
Battle cries that set the blood aflame echoed across the Battlefield.
―Crash! Bang! Boom!
The sound of weapons colliding, spells detonating.
Armor crumpling, flesh tearing.
Anguished screams and bestial roars intertwined in a symphony of carnage.
“Aaaaaaahhhhh!”
The warrior brought his blade down with all his might.
The ogre’s leg was severed, and blood erupted in a crimson spray.
The mage’s lightning pierced through the monster’s chest.
―Squelch! Splurt!
An axe cleaved through the air, decapitating the beast.
A spear impaled its heart, gushing arterial blood.
The nightmarish ogres fell one after another.
Players surged forward like an unstoppable tide.
Valiant warriors charged with their backs pressed together.
Incantations from mages rained down, filling the sky.
“Got another one!”
“Everyone, attack together!”
On the blood-soaked battlefield, the players fought with desperate determination.
“Ye-jin.”
“I’m ready. Leave the rear to me.”
“Understood. I’m going in.”
―Boom!
And so Kim Jae-beom and Ye-jin joined the chaos of battle.
* * *
With Kim Jae-beom and Ye-jin’s arrival, the combat intensified. Steel staff and arrows brought down ogres as they charged forward.
Though neither possessed command authority nor exceptionally high levels, the surrounding players subtly noticed that ogres fell faster around Kim Jae-beom and Ye-jin.
“One more!”
Had they known Kim Jae-beom hadn’t used a single Overlord skill, they would have been astounded.
It wasn’t that Kim Jae-beom and Ye-jin were merely hunting for kills. Within just a few exchanges, they’d identified the ogres’ weak points and were now striking with surgical precision.
―Crack! Squelch!
Of course, with the sheer number of players present, Kim Jae-beom and Ye-jin remained merely “slightly exceptional players” among the masses.
Countless ogres fell, severed by blades, pierced by lightning, consumed by flame and reduced to ash. Mountains of blood-soaked corpses accumulated across the battlefield.
Yet as time wore on, the tide began to turn in the ogres’ favor. Even the most valiant players had limits to their endurance. Exhausted limbs could no longer deliver the same devastating force as before.
“Haa… haa….”
“Damn it, how many did he summon….”
Warriors gasping for breath, barely gripping their swords. Mages drained of mana, struggling to even lift their staves. Archers and rogues slowly backing away.
To make matters worse, fallen players began appearing one by one. A warrior, strength sapped by reckless charges, became prey for the ogres. A mage, faltering in her incantation, took a blade through the abdomen.
“No!”
“Damn it…!”
Despair washed across the faces of those who’d lost comrades.
In that moment, a gap opened among the demoralized warriors. The ogres, seizing the opportunity, poured through the breach.
Numerical disadvantage. Dwindling strength. The increasingly dire situation brought overwhelming defeat. Hope for victory was withering away. The light drained from the eyes of those watching their fallen allies.
‘Where is Aran?’
‘If only Aran would come….’
Ironically, Aran’s earlier display of prowess had become a double-edged sword. With things so dire now, if Aran just solved it all, everything would be fine—why make them suffer like this? Such thoughts flickered through the minds of several players.
I need to bring that out.
Kim Jae-beom, observing the scene unfold, made his decision. He’d wanted to keep it hidden—the aggro was already drawing far too much attention—but circumstances left him no choice.
They don’t know the Overlord class itself. They’ll just think I’m a somewhat unusual necromancer.
Kim Jae-beom raised his steel staff high, closed his eyes, and drew a deep breath before beginning to chant.
His lips moved with rapid precision as ancient incantations resonated through the air.
Shiiiiing―
Space trembled with a low, resonant vibration. Darkness coalesced around Kim Jae-beom, swirling in violent eddies. Drawn by the chant’s power, rifts in spacetime began to tear open.
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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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