Necromancer Academy’s Genius Summoner - Chapter 80
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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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The Summoning Prodigy of the Necromancer Academy — Episode 80
After summoning Pier from his Subspace Bracelet, Simon opened his own pocket dimension.
“Now’s the time. Please step through to my side while no one’s watching, Pier.”
Pier clicked his tongue in irritation.
[This is suffocating! Do I have to go back in the moment I come out?]
“There’s no way around it. Quickly, before anyone sees.”
There was a reason for this cumbersome method of transporting the Legion.
Before they teleported to the island, Kizen had announced a full Subspace Inspection for all first-year students.
But from Simon’s perspective, he had to get Pier there somehow in order to convince the new commander, Bigcrum, so he’d resorted to a bit of trickery.
“Legion Commander~”
At the suddenly booming voice, Simon spun around in surprise.
Instructor Bread came jogging toward him.
The sight of that muscular, thickset bald man bouncing along with his arms swinging cutely at his sides created a surreal, breathtaking dissonance.
“I missed you so much!”
Bread clung to Simon’s arm, cooing affectedly.
Simon grimaced at the dizzying sense of wrongness and spoke. “What are you doing here? And Erzsebet, your instructor is right there.”
“I just told her I was running an errand.”
“Ugh—get back before we’re caught.”
Here’s how things had unfolded.
Last weekend, Simon had won a wagered duel that Bread proposed first, and as a result could command him to do anything.
So Simon had gone to the dormitory where Bread was staying.
At the time, Bread was packing his things like a man who’d given up on everything.
-Why are you being so pathetic? I have no intention of asking the instructor to let me retire.
Bread looked up and met Simon’s eyes.
-Instead, from now on, you’re going to be my chess piece.
Simon had Bread’s weakness firmly in his grip.
Bread immediately resisted.
-How dare you think of using me like a slave, you freshman!
-If you’d prefer not to, there’s nothing I can do. I’ll go straight to Professor Hong Peng and tell him everything.
Bread’s face hardened instantly at those words.
-In your position as an educator, you beat a Kizen student under the pretense of a practice duel. And the most outrageous part is what the condition was when you won……
Simon’s lips curved upward.
-That I would become Professor Hong Peng’s direct disciple, wasn’t it?
-……
-Let me be clear. That isn’t doing the professor a favor—it’s an insult to the professor’s judgment.
Hong Peng had already accepted Simon’s refusal to become his direct disciple. But then Bread suddenly intervened and, claiming that if he won Simon would become Hong Peng’s direct student, beat Simon to a pulp.
This was a direct affront to Hong Peng’s wishes.
-The professor thinks what happened between us was just a squabble. But if he learned the truth, imagine how disappointed he’d be in you……
Simon’s lips curved upward.
-I’m sure he would be.
-Kuh……!
In essence, by forcing such a wager on Simon in the first place, Bread had driven himself into a corner from which there was no escape.
That was how Simon had obtained Bread—an excellent chess piece. As it happened, Bread had been selected as one of the instructors joining them on the island.
Simon borrowed Bread’s pocket dimension and ordered him to stay hidden, never to be seen by anyone’s eyes throughout the island survival period.
-……You’re planning to impersonate me.
-How did you know?
-The schemes of Kizen students know no bounds. In this brutal world, having a body double is common enough.
Bread scratched his head vigorously.
-Do as you like. But if you get exposed there, don’t blame me.
-Of course not.
So Bread vanished, and Erzsebet took his place by transforming into him and came to this island.
Pier had entered Bread’s bracelet’s pocket dimension and was safely transported to the island. The instructors’ pocket dimensions weren’t subject to inspection, after all.
“Everyone was completely fooled by the girl’s acting~”
Erzsebet spoke in Bread’s thick voice.
“……Please stop before I lose my mind.”
“Anyway! We’re going to meet Bigcrum now, right? I’d like to come along.”
“Absolutely not.”
Simon refused flatly.
“If Bread suddenly vanishes from his position, the school will grow suspicious. This job is something Pier and I can handle alone.”
[Kehehehe! The boy speaks truth! Now, be off with you!]
“Even you, Pier! You’re all being far too cruel to me.”
Erzsebet’s shoulders sagged, her spirit visibly deflating.
“……I shall take my leave, then.”
“…….”
Watching her downcast figure, Simon felt a pang of conscience stir within him.
In truth, this entire operation—from recruiting Bread to the impersonation itself—had been largely Erzsebet’s doing. Yet he’d dismissed her rather coldly just now.
[What’s wrong, boy?]
Pier’s voice echoed in Simon’s mind.
[If you’re feeling so bothered by it, offer her a reward. Acknowledging a subordinate’s achievements is part of a Legion Commander’s duty!]
‘A reward? W-what sort of reward?’
[You already know what she wants, even without being told.]
Of course he knew.
Simon exhaled quietly and lifted his gaze. The rough-hewn figure of a man stood with his head bowed, wearing an expression of utter dejection.
“……Erzse. Would you mind reverting to your true form for a moment?”
“Pardon?”
Confusion flickered across her face, but she obeyed, transforming back to her original shape. Simon approached her with stiff, mechanical steps.
[Legion Commander?]
Then he stretched out his arms awkwardly and pulled her shoulders into an embrace.
[……!!!]
Erzsebet froze in shock, as if time itself had stopped. Simon whispered to her, his voice barely audible even to her ears.
“You… you worked hard. Erzse.”
Erzsebet’s pupils dilated.
Her heart—
Her heart melted like ice cream, spilling down in rivulets.
“Ahem.”
Simon’s face flushed crimson as he hastily stumbled backward.
“Now transform back into Bread and return to your position. There’s no benefit in raising suspicion.”
Simon vanished in a flurry, his departure almost frantic as beads of perspiration dotted his brow.
Pier’s avatar cackled with unrestrained amusement.
[…….]
For a moment Erzsebet stood in a daze, watching Simon’s retreating form. Then she brushed her shoulders and drew her hands across her face, her cheeks flushed deep crimson.
[……How truly precious he is.]
A hundred vows of loyalty, a thousand, would scarcely be enough.
* * *
Night was drawing in.
The Kizen students had begun to acclimate themselves to the alien terrain and its monsters, and were now advancing toward the center.
But as darkness fell, they encountered a new crisis.
As was typical of tropical regions, Kera Island’s temperature swing between day and night was dramatic.
The humid heat of the afternoon had suddenly given way to a chilling cold, and the well-known fact that monsters became far more active after nightfall only compounded their troubles.
“If we’re going to make it through the night, we’ll need to build shelter.”
“Let’s at least get a fire going first!”
To maintain body heat and secure proper rest, the students needed to build fires and construct dwellings.
But they struggled even to find a suitable location. In the heart of the jungle, the threat of monster attacks was ever-present, and open areas near rivers or clearings risked surprise assaults from other students.
Some tried to conserve energy by building in the trees, but lacked the skill to do so properly.
“Ugh, my back. I’m absolutely spent.”
“We’re only here for one night anyway, right? Maybe skipping all this effort is the best way to preserve our strength?”
A few of the students hauling timber declared they’d simply camp without shelter, their faith in the enterprise worn thin.
But as the night deepened, the temperature plummeted further, and blocking even the wind began to seem like wisdom.
Meanwhile, as the other students stumbled through trial and error—
Whack! Whack! Whack!
Swish. Swish-swish.
Simon’s dwelling was advancing inexorably toward completion.
Wooden beams of uniform size were laid down and lashed together with sturdy vines, wound round and round until everything was firmly secured.
Posts were raised, a framework erected atop pre-cut grooves, and wide leaves retrieved from his Subspace were arranged as a roof.
“You tie the fence over there. Stack the extra timber on the right side.”
Tap. Tap.
One man and four Undead working in concert had raised an entire dwelling in no time at all.
The shelter was small enough for Simon alone to squeeze into, but its quality was surprisingly satisfactory for a night’s stay.
Simon had built it near the beach, in the opposite direction from where the Kizen students were headed.
Its proximity to the shore placed it just outside the primary hunting grounds of the carnivorous monsters—a perfect location in every respect.
“It’s nice not having to mind what anyone else thinks.”
He lit a campfire without hesitation, crushed medicinal herbs to ward off insects and snakes, mixed them lightly into water, and spread the solution all around the shelter.
Once all the work was done, Simon ducked into the completed wooden house and found it remarkably cozy, despite being his own creation.
“Well then.”
Simon stretched out flat and pulled a blanket of leaves over himself.
“Time to sleep.”
[What? You’re going to bed already?]
Pier’s voice rang out in surprise.
[It’s not even that late in the evening!]
“I want to sleep early and start moving at dawn tomorrow. Oh, that’s right!”
Simon rose from his makeshift bed, removed Pier’s avatar from where it hung on his school uniform, and suspended it outside the shelter like a decoration.
[What! What is the meaning of this, boy!]
“Could you stand watch for me, Pier? The Undead don’t need sleep anyway.”
[Tch! Impossible! I am the Legion’s administrator! How dare you use me in such a manner!]
“Please? And I’ll leave this here—could you wake me at four in the morning?”
Simon lowered the watch on his wrist so that Pier’s avatar could see it, then disappeared back into the shelter.
[Using me as an alarm clock!!]
Simon had already severed all mental connection with the Undead, pulled the leaves over himself, and prepared to sleep.
After shifting his body for a moment, he slipped into deep slumber, breathing softly and steadily.
* * *
[Wake up, boy! It’s the time you specified!]
At Pier’s avatar’s shout, Simon jolted upright. He shivered and rubbed his shoulders, sniffling against the cold.
“Brrr. The night’s certainly cold. Thanks, Pier.”
[I shall certainly remember this humiliation!]
“Once the money comes in, I’ll replenish your Legion’s forces right away.”
[Ah, now you know how to offer compensation.]
Simon stepped outside, stifling a yawn.
The dawn sky was painted in a beautiful teal hue. From the distant sea beyond, a cool rushing sound—shhhh—drifted across. It was a remarkably picturesque scene.
“Shall we get moving then?”
Simon opened the Subspace and withdrew four Skeletons.
“Alright, lift on the count of three. One, two, three!”
Simon had the Skeletons lift the entire shelter off the ground.
Since it had been built small and light from the start, they hoisted it without difficulty.
[What’s your plan now?]
“Didn’t I tell you?”
Simon smirked.
“We’re going straight down to the center in one go.”
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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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