My Skeleton Soldier Is Strange - Chapter 82

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

Chapter 82
Kim Jae-beom swallowed hard as the Resurrected Warrior rose before him.
He couldn’t help but worry—what if the man attacked him again?
A deep, resonant sound echoed through the air.
But no such assault came.
The Resurrected Warrior dropped to one knee before Kim Jae-beom, planting the blade he’d wielded in life firmly into the ground.
It was the posture of a knight swearing fealty.
“What…?”
Kim Jae-beom’s breath caught at the sight unfolding before him.
Mere minutes ago, this man had sought to kill him. Now he knelt, pledging his loyalty.
The surreal reality set Kim Jae-beom’s heart pounding.
The kneeling man’s bearing radiated absolute sincerity.
One hand pressed to his chest, the other gripping his sword with unwavering firmness, his head bowed in reverence.
Long, lustrous white hair gleamed beneath the sunlight.
In his lowered face dwelt profound reverence.
“My liege, I swear my eternal loyalty to you.”
The moment the words left his lips, the man’s voice carried unshakeable resolve.
Every syllable rang with absolute truth, untainted by deception.
“I pledge this life in service to your will.”
The man’s expression, reflected in the blade, was sublime.
His resolute gaze burned with unwavering devotion.
Kim Jae-beom blinked, still struggling to comprehend what was happening.
Moments ago, this man had threatened his very existence. Now he swore servitude.
‘You really do see everything if you live long enough.’
Kim Jae-beom felt a renewed appreciation for Arulan’s power.
“Who… exactly is this person? Is he an NPC?”
Barcode’s gaze swept across the Resurrected Warrior with meticulous scrutiny.
His presence felt far too overwhelming to be that of an ordinary NPC.
“This aura… it’s extraordinary.”
His murmur carried an edge of tension.
Barcode’s instincts, honed through countless battles, were sending warnings.
The Resurrected Warrior possessed formidable power.
Beneath his weathered exterior lay magical reserves that defied imagination—something Barcode could unmistakably sense.
‘An absolutely overwhelming presence.’
Barcode himself ranked among the highest-tier players.
Yet even he felt his heart tighten in the man’s presence.
It spoke volumes about the Resurrected Warrior’s true strength.
Then it happened.
The Resurrected Warrior’s gaze shifted toward Barcode, his eyes glinting with subtle intensity.
Piercing blue eyes met Barcode’s directly.
His gaze carried an unmistakable hostility, a combative edge that seemed to shimmer in the air.
Perhaps his consciousness had not yet fully returned.
It was a look dripping with naked antagonism—a man who wouldn’t flinch even with a blade pressed to his throat, yet his eyes toward Barcode were utterly lethal.
“Hey. Who told you to glare at my disciple?”
That was when Kim Jae-beom reprimanded the man’s behavior.
“My apologies.”
The man immediately bowed deeply toward Kim Jae-beom. Since his resurrection by Arulan, he had entered a state of absolute obedience to Kim Jae-beom.
“Hmm….”
Barcode swallowed hard at the sight. The man’s unwavering deference to Kim Jae-beom was more than enough to inspire awe.
‘As expected….’
Barcode’s eyes slowly turned toward Kim Jae-beom.
His gaze was suffused with profound wonder.
Even Barcode, a top-tier ranker who had experienced everything, could not help but be astounded by Kim Jae-beom’s presence.
‘Truly remarkable….’
Without parting his lips, admiration flowed silently through Barcode’s mind.
His heart thundered in his chest.
Kim Jae-beom’s power transcended imagination.
To resurrect a formidable enemy in an instant and make him a subordinate—such a thing was beyond comprehension.
Barcode could only hold his breath at such astounding strength.
Even in those days when he was called a newbie, Kim Jae-beom had been formidable, but now he had clearly ascended to a realm entirely different from that time.
Memories of the past surfaced vividly in Barcode’s mind.
The teachings he had learned from the newbie, the respect he had felt toward him—all of it.
Now Kim Jae-beom had transcended the position of mentor, becoming a being akin to a god.
He felt like an insurmountable wall, utterly beyond reach.
‘Truly, he is someone I cannot hope to catch up with.’
Reverence deepened in Barcode’s eyes.
“By the way, are you busy?”
That was when Kim Jae-beom addressed Barcode.
“If you’re not, help me clear this place.”
“… You mean the Shadow Fortress?”
“Yeah. My companion died, and since he’s over level 20, it’ll take quite a while for him to reconnect.”
“Ah, I see.”
Barcode nodded at Kim Jae-beom’s words. The higher the level, the longer the resurrection cooldown after death. For this reason, high-level players had to avoid dying at all costs.
“The Shadow Fortress….”
Barcode’s gaze slowly swept across the surroundings.
The Second Floor of the Shadow Fortress presented a scene of devastation.
Debris scattered in all directions, the floor and walls gouged deeply.
The traces of a fierce battle remained intact.
Black bloodstains spread across the floor in crimson hues.
From the stone crevices where dark blood had seeped, one could even sense the aura of death itself, drained of all vitality.
Shattered weapons lay scattered haphazardly among the mangled corpses.
Fragments of blades, spears, and maces were strewn about, drenched in blood.
Torn pieces of armor seemed to lament the fate of their former owners.
Gazing upon the metal shards caked with flesh, I could almost visualize the ferocity of the battle that had unfolded. Most striking was the enormous cavity that had been torn through one of the walls.
“Hmm.”
Truthfully, I found myself drawn to this place.
To simply turn back from such an extraordinary Dungeon would be to forcibly suppress my curiosity.
“Very well.”
Thus, I decided to conquer the Shadow Fortress alongside Kim Jae-beom.
―A resonant hum echoed forth.
My hand reached behind my back, grasping the hilt of an enormous greatsword.
As the blade slowly withdrew from its scabbard, it emitted a soft, radiant luminescence.
Once fully unsheathed, the greatsword’s length far exceeded that of an adult man’s height.
Including the hilt, it stretched to an astounding length of over two men tall.
The broad, thick blade bore intricate and exquisite patterns carved into its surface.
Mysterious runes reminiscent of ancient script were densely etched across the entire blade.
Along the blade’s edge, azure runes emanated a gentle radiance.
That subtle cerulean glow seemed to suggest the presence of some sacred power. A crimson gemstone was embedded at the blade’s center.
“This is a perfect opportunity to test my new weapon as well. I shall accompany you.”
There was no reason for me to decline such an excellent chance to experiment with this formidable armament.
* * *
We ascended from the Second Floor, where the battle had occurred, all the way to the 5th Floor. Though minor skirmishes erupted along the way, I dispatched them all with sweeps of my greatsword.
―Shriek… agonized wail…
The ghoul’s body, cleaved by my greatsword, was bisected with gruesome finality.
From the cleanly severed cross-section, crimson ichor gushed forth in torrents.
The upper half convulsed, its limbs flailing in spasmodic death throes.
From the severed surface extending to the neck, viscera writhed grotesquely as they spilled outward.
The lower body, severed below the neck, collapsed to the ground and sprayed blood in all directions.
Its legs twitched in convulsive spasms, drenching the floor with gore.
As the torso split asunder, torrents of crimson fluid cascaded down the blade of my greatsword.
Within the pooling blood, the bisected corpse trembled with a horrifying finality.
From the deep grooves carved into the blade, scarlet blood flowed like a crimson torrent.
“Exhale…”
The monsters on the other floors met similar fates. They were utterly obliterated by my greatsword. From ghouls to elongated, multi-limbed abominations of unknown origin—every creature that roamed between the floors fell to my blade.
“Are you unharmed?”
My white armor was now completely drenched in blood, transformed into a vivid crimson as though it had been that color from the start.
The stains were particularly deep upon my chest and limbs.
Having taken the monsters’ blood head-on, those sections had turned completely scarlet.
Droplets of blood clung to every curve of the armor from shoulder to waist.
With each movement, the blood-stained metal gleamed with an eerie, unsettling radiance.
The front of the helmet was likewise stained with vivid crimson.
Blood seeping through the gaps in the protective gear had spread near the eye sockets, making Barcode appear even more menacing.
The greatsword strapped across his back was drenched in scarlet as well.
Streaks of blood traced down the blade’s edge, dripping steadily from the scabbard’s tip.
With each step, his footprints left unmistakable crimson marks upon the ground.
The iron-soled boots seemed to ooze with the viscous fluids of slaughtered monsters.
He was the very embodiment of a warrior who had brought a tempest of blood in his wake.
Only his cold, piercing blue eyes retained their original hue, gleaming brilliantly even amid the scarlet gore.
“That’s a question I should be asking you.”
Kim Jae-beom scratched his head at Barcode’s remark. Though I had been working him hard, a twinge of conscience pricked at me. At my expression, Barcode let out a low chuckle.
“It’s fine. You’ll help me out later, won’t you?”
Barcode gripped the greatsword with both hands.
He swung his arms in broad arcs, moving the blade back and forth.
Whoosh!
With the sound of the blade cleaving through air, the crimson blood caked upon the steel scattered in all directions. It resembled a shower of blood-red petals dancing through the chamber.
Thwip.
Barcode’s gaze lifted upward.
His eyes, fixed upon the apex of the Shadow Fortress, burned with unwavering resolve.
The interior of the fortress remained deep and shrouded in darkness.
The path leading to its summit appeared distant and treacherous.
Narrow, precipitous stairs stretched endlessly upward.
The end of the Staircase, disappearing into pitch-black shadow, remained utterly obscured.
“Still a long way to go.”
Barcode’s murmur carried an undercurrent of tension.
A wariness toward the unknown realm awaiting us ahead was palpable.
Yet simultaneously, a fierce determination to reach the summit resonated within him.
“Let’s see if we can make it all the way to the top.”
Kim Jae-beom shared that same resolve.

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