Surviving the Apocalypse as an All-Time Best Overpowered Necromancer - Chapter 23

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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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Episode 23
23. Surviving Winter (4)
“……Thanks to you, I’m alive. I’m grateful.”
After the door closed, Seo Hwarin confirmed that the zombie struck by the Poisoned Stinger had turned pitch black from the poison before melting away entirely, and she expressed her gratitude to Lee Ganghyeok for having the zombies shut the door.
When Seo Arin, belatedly grasping the situation, bowed her head as well, Lee Ganghyeok seemed relieved, exhaling and shaking his head.
“The guide I saw on the Community didn’t mention using Poisoned Stingers, but it seems that even among the same Mutant Zombies, there are slight differences between individuals. We’ll need to be more careful going forward.”
“Yes. Certainly……. To be honest, this is the first time I’ve seen a zombie that plays dead.”
“Me too. Will we encounter more of these things going forward?”
A zombie that feigns death to lull people into a false sense of security and lure them in?
As the two of them asked, bewildered by this unprecedented tactic, Lee Ganghyeok shook his head while watching the iron door reverberating.
“Let’s just hope it isn’t.”
Perhaps that creature was simply an anomalous case.
The moment that thought crossed his mind——
“…….”
“Hmm.”
Suddenly, silence fell.
The agonized shrieks ceased, the sound of pounding on the iron door vanished, and quiet descended upon the Underground Parking Lot.
Was it dead?
He couldn’t be sure.
The spider’s defense was lower than the Grolar Bear’s, but given that it had played dead to lure them in, he couldn’t afford to let his guard down.
For that reason, before opening the door, Lee Ganghyeok glanced at Seo Arin to deliver a finishing blow.
“Aqua Field!”
Before Lee Ganghyeok could even speak, Seo Arin, understanding his intent, immediately deployed the Aqua Field.
Moments later, when Electric triggered the Lightning Bolt, a shriek erupted.
So it had indeed been playing dead.
“I thought it would die from this much given that its defense is weaker than the Grolar Bear’s……. It’s more resilient than expected. Electric, don’t stop—keep attacking.”
“Gguuaahhh!”
Crackle-crackle-crackle!
At the command, Electric rumbled and triggered the Lightning Bolt again.
The Aqua Field and Lightning Bolt.
There was nothing better for attacking the creature inside without opening the door.
He reasoned that even if the power was weak, if they kept attacking without pause, eventually the creature would stop playing dead and truly perish—but the moment that thought took hold, Electric, having used the Lightning Bolt, collapsed heavily to the ground.
The Core’s power appeared to have run out already.
“Are you alright?”
Startled by the sudden turn of events, Seo Arin quickly asked, looking at Electric.
‘From the Aqua Barrier before to now, my partner really takes good care of things.’
Satisfied by how well Seo Arin had been looking after Electric, Lee Ganghyeok responded to her concern with reassurance and explanation.
“Yes, the Core’s power has been exhausted. I recharged the battery earlier, so it seems to be depleting faster than usual because of that.”
“Ah.”
So the Core’s power had already been used once.
As Seo Arin nodded in understanding, the iron door suddenly shook violently.
Bang—!
“It seems the paralysis has worn off. Arin, is there any way you could fill the interior of the Valve Room with water?”
“Fill the Valve Room’s interior? I’ve never tried it, but……. Let me give it a shot!”
Though momentarily taken aback by the sudden request,
Seo Arin, sensing there must be a reason, immediately opened her Core’s power.
At the same time…….
Manifested mana erupted from her body and seeped through the iron door.
Once all the preparations were complete, Seo Arin’s eyes gleamed as she forced her lips open with effort.
“……Aqua Field!”
The moment she activated the skill, an enormous volume of water surged forth and flowed into the Valve Room, causing the creature to thrash violently—the sound of it pounding against the iron door grew even louder.
Bang! Bang!
“Kyieeeeurgh, kkeeak!!”
As the water rose to chin level, anguished shrieks mingled with the sound of water being swallowed.
“It seems to be working, doesn’t it?”
Upon hearing the sounds from beyond the door, Lee Ganghyeok turned to Seo Arin and asked, and she, having been concentrating, nodded and drew deeper upon her Core’s power.
“Yes! After all, it was once human too.”
Shhwoooosh—!
As more water seeped beneath the door, it eventually filled the interior so completely that it could no longer seep in, instead flowing back out.
A few more minutes passed.
Seo Arin too was reaching her limit, her brow furrowed as she began to withdraw her power.
Soon, the water that had filled the Valve Room began flowing out through the gaps in the door.
Yet still, Experience Points had not risen.
This meant the creature was still clinging to life.
To sever the spider’s last thread of breath, Lee Ganghyeok looked at Electric, who had recovered her Core’s power somewhat, and issued a command.
“Attack.”
“……Guuuuurgh!”
Crackle—!
At the command, Electric, expending what little strength remained, let out a strained rumble and used the Spark.
The moment she did.
Experience Points rose.
It must have been just before the creature breathed its last.
Assured that his strategy had succeeded, Lee Ganghyeok turned to the two women with a satisfied smile and nodded.
“It’s dead. You all did well.”
Without the two of them, he wouldn’t have been able to secure the Underground Parking Lot, nor could he have hunted the Grolar Bear and the spider.
As Lee Ganghyeok offered his thanks, the two women sank to the floor with relieved smiles and waved their hands in protest.
“Please, don’t mention it……. You worked hard yourself.”
“Mutant Zombies are really……. exhausting. Oh! I’ll drain the water that’s left inside.”
As Seo Arin rose to her feet to drain the water from the Valve Room, Lee Ganghyeok stopped her and glanced at the zombies.
“That won’t be necessary. Once I open the door, it’ll drain on its own. Rest.”
“Thank you so much.”
At his words, Seo Arin expressed her gratitude and, finding even standing difficult, collapsed back to the floor.
Simultaneously, the zombies, reading Lee Ganghyeok’s intent, naturally opened the iron door, and immediately an enormous volume of water gushed out, sweeping the zombies backward.
Regardless,
Lee Ganghyeok inspected the interior as the water drained, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
“This creature……. It had been protecting itself with Spider Silk. That’s why it survived.”
As Lee Ganghyeok’s brow furrowed at the sight of the creature wrapped tightly in Spider Silk, Seo Hwarin asked with concern.
“Spider Silk……. Surely other Mutant Zombies don’t have intelligence like this?”
“I’m not certain. It’s possible it was acting on pure instinct……. But we’ll need to be even more cautious going forward.”
So far, the only Mutant Zombies he’d encountered were the Grolar Bear and the spider.
And the two of them exhibited completely different natures.
Moreover, the guide from the Community made no mention of creatures playing dead.
Concluding that abilities likely vary by individual, Lee Ganghyeok exhaled a quiet sigh, then his eyes suddenly widened as he gazed at the Spider Silk.
“Speaking of which…….”
“Yes?”
“Is there something else we need to do?”
“No, actually. This Spider Silk—if it was strong enough to withstand Hwarin’s attacks, I thought we might craft armor from it.”
“Armor? From this?”
“Absolutely!”
The two women’s faces brightened at his words.
They clearly judged that wearing armor made from Spider Silk would be far preferable to the bone armor made from zombie remains.
“Then, just a moment.”
Perhaps it was their positive reaction.
Lee Ganghyeok invested the Points he hadn’t yet allocated into Craftsmanship.
He recalled that when he’d crafted the Bone Necklace from the Grolar Bear, his low Craftsmanship had diminished its abilities.
Craftsmanship: 10.
This should be an improvement over level 5.
‘Honestly, I’d prefer to save up a bit more before crafting……. But I can’t waste materials by being too cautious.’
Crafting after raising Craftsmanship further would produce superior items,
but that was only if he survived.
In any case, he needed to create a means of protection before planning for the future.
Having decided to craft armor, Lee Ganghyeok, worried about potentially lacking materials,
brought an unprocessed zombie corpse and placed it beside the spider, then activated the skill.
“Bone Armor Crafting!”
[Here are the available recipes.]
– Bone Silk Armor × 1
‘Silk?’
Because he was using the Spider Silk the spider had produced as material, the word “silk” had been added before “armor.”
‘Either way, it should be better than regular bone armor.’
With more materials going into it, the Bone Silk Armor should outperform standard bone armor.
Hoping for superior performance, Lee Ganghyeok proceeded with the crafting.
[Crafting Bone Silk Armor.]
[Your Craftsmanship influences the crafting.]
[Crafting successful!]
[You have crafted Bone Silk Armor.]
Whether because armor required lower stat thresholds than accessories,
or because he’d just raised Craftsmanship,
the Bone Silk Armor was created successfully, unlike when he’d crafted the Bone Necklace.
“…….”
Upon seeing the completed armor, the two women looked at Lee Ganghyeok with startled expressions—bewildered by the appearance of white cloth layered over bone armor.
“……Isn’t it just white cloth added on top?”
“Even so, I think it feels less off-putting than pure bone armor!”
“Definitely.”
Though the two women still seemed reluctant, Lee Ganghyeok shrugged and pointed to the Bone Silk Armor.
“Once you see the stats, that feeling will disappear.”
“The stats?”
“I was curious too! Let me check them.”
At his words, the two women examined the Bone Silk Armor’s information.
[Bone Silk Armor]
– Silk armor crafted from the ribs of a Mutant Zombie and a special Spider Silk.
– Defense +4
– When fire-attributed attacks strike the armor, defense increases by 2 for 10 seconds.
“Wow!”
Sure enough, upon confirming the stats, the gleam in the two women’s eyes changed.
“The defense is higher than our previous armor?”
“When fire-attributed attacks connect……. So that’s why your attacks weren’t getting through.”
“Yes. Should we encounter another spider in the future, it’s good to keep that in mind. Now, let me finish crafting the accessories.”
Satisfied by their reaction and in high spirits, Lee Ganghyeok activated the skill to craft accessories using the spider’s Core.
“Bone Accessory Crafting! Bone Bracelet!”
[Crafting Bone Bracelet.]
[Your Craftsmanship influences the crafting.]
[Your Craftsmanship is too low; some of the power imbued in the materials is damaged.]
[Abilities are adjusted to match your Craftsmanship level.]
‘Even at 10, it’s still not enough?’
Was the Mutant Zombie’s Core quality particularly high?
Despite raising Craftsmanship, he still couldn’t draw out all its potential—part of its power was lost in the process.
‘I’ll think of it as an investment for the future.’
Consoling himself that something was better than nothing, he checked the notifications that appeared.
[Crafting successful!]
[You have crafted a Bone Bracelet.]
[Bone Bracelet]
– A bracelet crafted from the Core of a Mutant Zombie.
– When the wearer’s mana or Core power is consumed, there is a 10% chance that consumption is reduced by 20%.
– When health falls to 50% or below, the bracelet stimulates the wearer’s nerves, increasing physical reaction speed for 20 seconds.
(Cooldown: 10 hours.)
The moment Lee Ganghyeok checked the bracelet’s options, the regret he’d felt moments before vanished entirely.
And no wonder—
despite being conditional, it would reduce consumption of mana and Core power.
Combined with the previously crafted Bone Necklace, he’d likely never want for mana or Core power again.
And that wasn’t all.
The option to stimulate the wearer’s nerves and increase physical reaction speed when health is depleted could, depending on how it’s used, turn the tide of battle.
Of course…….
Health being depleted that severely also meant they were facing an opponent they could barely manage.
But using the zombies as shields to escape, or sharpening their senses to counterattack and seize the opportunity for a reversal—
judging it to be an excellent option for creating variables, Lee Ganghyeok smiled contentedly and handed the crafted bracelet to Seo Hwarin.
“Like with the Bone Necklace, you’ll wear it during combat, and Arin will wear it during normal times.”
“What? But if that’s the case, then you…….”
Upon receiving the bracelet, Seo Hwarin shook her head.
She understood why he was giving them the necklace and bracelet, but the thought that Lee Ganghyeok was sacrificing so much weighed on her.
At this, Lee Ganghyeok smiled and waved his hand dismissively.
“Unless we have many accessories, it’s more efficient now to concentrate them on whoever benefits most. That way, survival is more certain—and besides, sharing items like this makes us feel like a true team.”
Having accepted the two of them, it was crucial to make them incapable of even considering betrayal.
Though…….
judging by the two women Lee Ganghyeok had observed so far, they likely wouldn’t even dream of betrayal, but people are unpredictable.
Thinking it better to express such sentiment than not, Lee Ganghyeok smiled brightly, and both Seo Hwarin and Seo Arin’s eyes widened before they voiced their gratitude.
“……Thank you for trusting us.”
“Just trust us from now on! Farming, combat—everything! We’re a team now!”
Pleased that his intent had landed perfectly, Lee Ganghyeok smiled and nodded, then, to recover his depleted stamina, concluded the day’s work and returned home.

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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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