My Skeleton Soldier Is Strange - Chapter 83

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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 83
Remarkably, the Shadow Fortress possessed an elevator. It was an ornate contraption adorned with countless magical arrays. I discovered this golden marvel when I defeated the golem on the 10th Floor.
“Wow… quite elaborate.”
Kim Jae-beom began examining the elevator’s interior with curious eyes.
The lavishly decorated interior was dazzling to behold.
The elevator’s walls gleamed with a golden radiance, as if crafted from pure gold.
When light struck them, the gilded walls shimmered brilliantly, as though they held the sun itself within them.
Intricate patterns carved throughout the space showcased exquisite craftsmanship.
Dragons, lions, eagles—creatures of legend were rendered vividly across the surfaces.
Between these patterns, mystical magical arrays were densely inscribed.
Incantations written in ancient script appeared complex and inscrutable.
Gemstones in crimson, azure, and emerald hues were brilliantly embedded across the magical arrays.
The jewels radiated prismatic light as if breathing life into the magical formations themselves.
When Kim Jae-beom traced his fingers across the carved patterns on the wall, the ancient magical arrays detected the touch and began to glow.
Golden patterns illuminated the vast space with majestic splendor.
“This is extraordinary…”
Wonder filled Kim Jae-beom’s eyes as he murmured to himself.
I could instinctively sense that the elevator itself was a crystallization of formidable magic.
The floor too was densely embedded with ornate gemstones.
“Let’s take this up.”
―Whoooosh…
Kim Jae-beom decided to ascend to the Top Floor with Barcode aboard the elevator. As we boarded the golden contraption, the magical arrays inscribed upon it activated.
Thump!
The elevator began rising smoothly upward.
Beyond the translucent glass walls, the external landscape of the Shadow Fortress gradually unfolded.
The dark mist surrounding the fortress drifted past the glass.
The pitch-black, dense fog writhed as if attempting to consume the fortress itself.
A crimson moon gleamed with blood-red light between the mist.
That blood-stained moon radiated an ominous aura, shining through the darkness.
Around the fortress, desolate wastelands and barren plains stretched endlessly.
“Doesn’t it feel ominous?”
“Yes… certainly it does.”
Not a trace of life’s essence could be felt in this dark expanse of earth.
Scattered skulls dotted the ground. Shattered bones and remnants of flesh adorned the darkness with an ominous presence.
Some distance from the fortress, a pool-like formation became visible.
From the pool, which appeared filled with pitch-black blood, a crimson aura rose.
“I defeated Hydra there.”
“Hydra?”
“I thought I was done for.”
“Unbelievable.”
At times, something seemed to writhe within the puddles.
It was a ghastly sight reeking of death and decay.
Beside it, crimson grass grew in wild profusion.
The bloodstained scarlet grassland evoked the very image of hell itself.
Beyond the grass, a towering Castle Wall stood resolute.
Constructed from black brick, the fortification resembled a colossal prison.
Above the wall, swayed by the wind, tattered and dark flags fluttered.
Those banners, adorned with grotesque patterns, emanated an ominous aura.
Lightning flickered across the lofty spires that rose above.
The cerulean light that blazed through the darkness only deepened the eerie atmosphere.
The clouds enveloping the fortress swirled with unnatural intensity.
Thick black clouds heavy with thunder drifted slowly in their vortex.
Ding!
After ascending for what felt like an eternity, I finally reached the elevator’s terminus.
[You have arrived at the Top Floor of the Shadow Fortress.]
The system announced that I had reached the summit of the Shadow Fortress. Upon seeing this, Kim Jae-beom and Barcode both swallowed hard.
Click… click. Click.
The moment I stepped beyond the elevator into the space beyond.
Whoosh!
Black light consumed both of us.
[You have entered Casardin’s Dark Spirit Domain.]
[Upon defeating this specter, you will obtain Count Heltema’s Legacy.]
The raid had begun.
* * *
While Kim Jae-beom was thus engaged within the Shadow Fortress.
“….”
Ye-jin sat in the living room, staring blankly at the clock. She was in a dead state after being killed while dealing with the specter in the Shadow Fortress. She would have to wait more than three hours before she could log back in.
“This is terrible.”
Ye-jin gazed at the clock with a gloomy expression. She never imagined that a fireball would incinerate her at that very moment.
“Ugh….”
There was nothing to do while time dragged on. Moreover, she had postponed all her schedules today to help Kim Jae-beom.
Plop.
Ye-jin slumped listlessly into the chair and gazed blankly at the iced americano placed before her.
Logged out due to death within the game, she had returned to reality and stopped by a nearby Cafe to purchase coffee to settle her nerves.
Ye-jin exhaled a sigh and slowly lifted the cup.
With the clink of cold ice, the refreshing americano brushed her lips and flowed down her throat.
The frigid liquid traced her throat, passed through her esophagus, and seeped into her body.
The heat that had burned within her gradually began to cool.
Simultaneously, the caffeine seemed to slowly awaken her weary mind.
The bitterness rising to her tongue restored her sense of reality.
“Hah….”
Ye-jin swallowed and exhaled a deep sigh.
The frustration from within the game still lingered in her mind.
The moment of helpless death flashed before her like a lantern show of one’s life.
A bitterness that even the cold americano couldn’t wash away pressed down upon her.
“Death, huh….”
Ye-jin murmured softly, then brought the cup to her lips once more.
With the crisp sound of ice clinking, the cool liquid wetted her tongue.
The chilled liquid spread throughout her body with its sharp bitterness.
The cold sensation seemed to cool her burning mind.
One sip, two sips….
As Ye-jin drank the cold americano, reason gradually returned to her eyes.
“Come to think of it, didn’t he say something about YouTube?”
Suddenly, one of Kim Jae-beom’s remarks surfaced in her memory—that he would upload videos to YouTube.
‘I should be able to find it if I search.’
She sprang up!
She arrived at a modest and cozy bedroom.
Though not spacious, the well-organized furniture created a neat and tidy atmosphere.
A simple white desk sat against one wall of the room.
A state-of-the-art computer occupied the desk’s surface.
The slim black monitor boasted a wide screen.
A wireless keyboard and mouse rested beside the monitor, adding to the clean aesthetic.
Click.
After powering on the computer, Ye-jin accessed the YouTube site and began searching through videos about Evern Online.
“Huh?”
Then one video caught her eye—a famous player reviewing another YouTuber’s footage.
Click.
When she clicked on that video, Ye-jin was certain: she had found Kim Jae-beom’s video, the one they had shared together.
* * *
Casardin was a specter draped in darkness itself.
A pitch-black robe enveloped his form.
The hem of the robe flowed like endless darkness, coiling across the ground.
Only bone was visible between the folds of the robe.
The gaunt skeleton emanated the frigid chill of death.
The bleached bone fragments gleamed with an eerie presence even in the darkness.
His eyes overflowed with crimson radiance.
The pupils burning blood-red evoked the hellfire of the abyss.
Wherever his gaze lingered, despair’s cold settled in.
Darkness continuously emanated from Casardin’s presence.
The shadows rising from beneath his feet swirled around him as their center.
The darkness devoured the surrounding air, expanding its domain relentlessly.
A deep, resonant humming emanated from within the gloom.
An eerie, bone-chilling sound—whether voice or inhuman shriek—echoed from all directions.
That terrifying sound was fear itself incarnate.
The moment I extended my hand, the tendrils of darkness writhed and obeyed my will.
The power of darkness that consumed even light was the weapon I commanded.
“Can we actually defeat this thing?”
“Well… to be honest, it seems like it’s going to be pretty tough.”
“If we die here, we’ll have to come all the way back again.”
At Barcode’s words, Kim Jae-beom’s brow furrowed. If he died here, he’d have to return to the Shadow Fortress. That meant there was a high probability they’d need to restart the entire conquest from the beginning.
After all, the game had a rule: monsters respawned after a certain amount of time.
“We’ll take it down no matter what.”
Crack!
The steel staff in Kim Jae-beom’s grip gleamed brilliantly.
His hand, gripping the solid metal, was infused with tremendous power.
The will transmitted through the staff was unbreakable.
I could feel an intense, unwavering determination to bring down Casardin at any cost.
But before recklessly charging in, Kim Jae-beom exercised cold, calculated judgment.
I decided to send my subordinates first to gauge the enemy’s true strength.
“Go!”
The moment the command left my lips, Dercan and Arulan moved with lightning speed.
The two skeletal soldiers charged toward Casardin, their heavy armor billowing behind them.
Dercan, wielding dual blades, approached the enemy with breathtaking velocity.
Sharp steel sang through the air, unleashing brilliant flashes of light.
Arulan likewise swung the staff in his grasp, unfurling a magical circle.
Dark energy erupted from the staff’s tip, cleaving through the air itself.
―Kuuuaaah!
As if answering Casardin’s cry, space itself began to warp.
Reality twisted grotesquely, transforming into a nightmarish tableau.
Formless shadows writhed within the darkness.
They gradually took on substance, materializing as colossal iron mauls.
The mauls hovering in mid-air appeared as instruments of death itself.
From their pitch-black surfaces emanated an ominous, sinister aura.
As if possessed by life, the mauls writhed and targeted Dercan and Arulan.
With lightning-fast speed, they tore through the air toward the two skeletal soldiers.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The mauls struck the skeletons mercilessly, the sound of air being cleaved accompanying each blow.
With astonishing precision, the mauls identified and targeted vital points.
The true battle was only now beginning.

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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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