Surviving the Apocalypse as an All-Time Best Overpowered Necromancer - Chapter 71

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

Episode 71
71. A New Weapon (1)
“Do you think they left the Mutated Zombie’s corpse behind?”
Seo Hwa-rin asked as they made their way toward Banghak Station.
She seemed worried the Jungnang-gu Alliance might have left the bodies there.
Lee Gang-hyuk nodded, glancing at the Short Dagger held by the Bone Assassin.
“They probably did. They wouldn’t know about the Core in a Mutated Zombie.”
He’d checked the community forums recently too.
But among countless people, not a single one had mentioned anything about a Mutated Zombie’s Core.
Even if someone knew and deliberately hid it, there would still be far more who remained ignorant.
Lee Gang-hyuk was confident in this assessment when Seo A-rin spoke up.
“Are you going to craft a weapon this time too?”
“I’m not sure yet. We’ll have to check the scene first.”
If he’d heard details about the Mutated Zombie that had been at Banghak Station, there’d be no need to deliberate over what item to craft.
But Park Mu-jin hadn’t mentioned that much.
So Lee Gang-hyuk decided to examine the traces of combat first and then determine what to craft.
After hearing his answer, Seo A-rin murmured something about hoping it would be a weapon as she walked along the railway.
And so…….
The three who entered Dobong Station found corpses scattered across the platform.
“Those people cleared out Dobong Station too, didn’t they?”
“It looks like they did it at the same time they came to rescue survivors.”
“Ah! That’s why it took so long!”
“Certainly…… To get to the Kyung Hee University Shelter, you’d have to pass through here anyway.”
While Seo Hwa-rin and Lee Gang-hyuk were exchanging these words, Seo A-rin, examining the interior of the platform, tilted her head in confusion upon discovering a corpse with a hole through its head.
“That mark…… Could it be a bullet? Or an arrow?”
At her words, the gazes of Seo Hwa-rin and Lee Gang-hyuk naturally shifted toward the platform.
Upon confirming the hole in the corpse’s head, Lee Gang-hyuk recalled the woman wielding a bow and answered her question.
“It would be an arrow. Captain Park Mu-jin has a subordinate under his command who uses a bow.”
“Oh! I think I know who you mean. The woman we saw at the decoy hideout, right?”
“Yes, that’s her.”
Seo A-rin continued, matching his response as if she’d remembered, sounding impressed.
“That woman must be incredibly skilled! Looking at them, she’s hit every single one right between the eyebrows.”
“……I see.”
Upon closer inspection of the corpses at Seo A-rin’s words, the arrows had indeed pierced straight through the brow.
Moreover, the bodies of those with holes in their heads were unusually clean.
That meant the Zombies had died instantly from a single arrow.
‘So that’s why she was so confident.’
Realizing that Jeong A-ram’s overflowing confidence stemmed from genuine skill, Lee Gang-hyuk was reassessing his evaluation of the Jungnang-gu Alliance members when——
Seo A-rin pointed at something again.
“……That Zombie has been completely split in half.”
“Hmm?”
Lee Gang-hyuk, upon examining the corpse she was pointing at, seemed to grasp whose handiwork it was immediately and exhaled a small sigh.
“That’s probably Captain Park Mu-jin’s doing.”
“How did you know that?”
Seeing that Lee Gang-hyuk had identified the attacker just from the traces, Seo Hwa-rin asked, her eyes wide with astonishment.
To her question, he shrugged as if it was nothing and explained promptly.
“Do you remember the weapon Captain Park Mu-jin was carrying?”
“Yes. It was a spear, wasn’t it?”
“More precisely, it’s called a Crescent Moon Blade, but anyway, judging by the clean edge of the cut, it seems to be Captain Park Mu-jin’s handiwork. Last time I saw him, he was the only one carrying that kind of weapon. Though I could be wrong, of course.”
“I see…….”
“Well…….”
Right after hearing the explanation, Seo Hwa-rin and Seo A-rin examined the corpse again with expressions of wonder, but soon shook their heads in shock.
“Their skills are truly incredible.”
“Indeed…….”
Both seemed to have only now grasped the strength of the Jungnang-gu Alliance.
‘Hmm.’
Meanwhile, Lee Gang-hyuk inspected the Zombies that had died almost instantly, and after contemplating for a moment, seemed to reach a decision and opened his mouth.
“I should craft weapons this time. Weapons for the two of you.”
“For us?”
“Really?”
Startled by Lee Gang-hyuk’s sudden statement, the two asked back, and he smiled.
“Yes. Looking at these traces, it seems you each need a weapon of your own.”
“Well, we’re grateful, but…… wouldn’t it be better to make a weapon for you instead? Or perhaps an accessory…….”
As Seo Hwa-rin countered, Lee Gang-hyuk smiled and shook his head.
“I can always make one whenever I need. Besides, I realized something while fighting earlier—the rear isn’t always safe. Using a skill each time takes too long, so I think it would be better for you both to have weapons.”
This was something he’d learned from his fight with the Grasshopper.
The front lines with the Bone Dancer and Zombies wouldn’t be easily breached.
But if something like the Grasshopper infiltrated from behind to launch a surprise attack, the only way to stop it was with Aqua Barrier.
And after blocking an attack, by the time the two of them used a skill to counterattack, their opponent would likely have already fled.
They needed weapons to strike immediately.
And looking at the state of the Zombies lying dead in Dobong Station, having personal weapons didn’t seem like a bad idea.
So Lee Gang-hyuk decided to craft weapons for the two of them, regardless of what ability the Mutated Zombie possessed.
Upon hearing this, the two seemed touched by how Lee Gang-hyuk cared for them and bowed their heads in gratitude.
“……Thank you for thinking of us.”
“Don’t mention it.”
The moment Lee Gang-hyuk saw their expressions, he scratched his cheek awkwardly.
It was evident from their faces that both of them had wished they had weapons, but had stayed silent because they thought Lee Gang-hyuk would feel burdened.
‘I should have been more observant…….’
Perhaps it was because both of them had higher Levels than him.
It seemed he’d been focusing entirely on raising his own abilities.
In truth, compared to others, the two weren’t particularly strong…….
“Then let’s hurry before it gets too late.”
Feeling somewhat guilty, Lee Gang-hyuk smiled at the two and quickened his pace.
A moment later…….
“Oh.”
“This is…….”
Upon arriving at Banghak Station, the three were greatly taken aback by the signs of combat, which were far more intense than what they’d witnessed at Dobong Station.
“The resistance must have been fiercer than expected.”
“……Will everyone be all right?”
Seo Hwa-rin examined the traces of combat as if trying to infer the situation, while Seo A-rin let out a small sigh, seemingly worried about the members of the Jungnang-gu Alliance.
“The Jungnang-gu Alliance has healing-type Awakeners, so as long as the injuries aren’t severe, they should be fine…… but I never expected it to be this fierce.”
As Lee Gang-hyuk surveyed the surroundings to ease Seo A-rin’s worries, his gaze stopped on one spot.
He had discovered what appeared to be a Mutated Zombie’s corpse among the bodies.
“Claws……?”
Puzzled by the appearance, which somewhat resembled a wolf, Lee Gang-hyuk noticed the enormous claws at the ends of the Mutated Zombie’s hands and stroked his chin.
Now that he thought about it, it resembled a dog.
The creatures he’d faced so far had all retained a human form, but…
Seeing this dog-like appearance, he couldn’t help but find it strange.
‘Did an actual dog mutate into this? How is that even possible?’
Brief as the confusion was, Lee Gang-hyuk’s gaze naturally shifted toward the wall.
‘Claw marks……. It must be a melee-type.’
Examining the marks on the wall afterward, Lee Gang-hyuk could tell that the mysterious Mutated Zombie was a melee-type.
“Hmm.”
In that case, wouldn’t it suit a weapon even more?
At that thought, Seo Hwa-rin approached.
“The Mutated Zombie that was here…… seems to have a different appearance, doesn’t it?”
“Yes. It seems like an animal that mutated. Based on its appearance, it looks like it was a dog.”
“An animal? Can animals become Zombies?”
“I’ve never heard of animals becoming Zombies, but…… based on the appearance alone, there’s no other way to explain it.”
“Is that so…….”
Seeing that Seo Hwa-rin didn’t quite believe him, Lee Gang-hyuk continued his explanation.
“If you think about it, there used to be so many animals around, but now you don’t see them. The reason is mostly that they were eaten by Zombies……”
While explaining, a certain hypothesis suddenly occurred to him.
“Or perhaps an animal that barely escaped being eaten by a Zombie became one itself. Or it could have eaten a Zombie.”
“Like the crows in those zombie movies?”
At Seo A-rin’s follow-up question, Lee Gang-hyuk nodded silently.
Before the Calamity occurred, zombie movies released in theaters featured many animals that had become Zombies, so his current hypothesis wasn’t entirely unreasonable.
Perhaps that was why——
Seo Hwa-rin, who had been standing quietly with her words caught, spoke while furrowing her brow.
“Now I can’t even trust animals anymore.”
“Of course, it could be wrong. It might simply resemble an animal. In any case, it’s best to keep the possibility open.”
The only animal the three had seen during all this time was a pigeon perched on a window frame.
They had assumed most were eaten by Zombies, but now that they’d encountered what appeared to be an animal specimen that had fed on Zombies and mutated, the expressions of all three hardened.
‘Would that man know something about this?’
At the same time…….
Lee Gang-hyuk recalled the man who had gone to lure away the Zombies at Yangju City Hall.
If he knew, that would be fortunate, but what if he didn’t realize and something happened to him because of the animals?
The Zombie horde might come pouring down this way.
For everyone to be safe, that man had to be safe too.
With that in mind, Lee Gang-hyuk sighed and turned to Seo A-rin.
“Can you contact that man, A-rin?”
“That man? We haven’t really contacted him, but I can send him a message…….”
“Then relay this to him. It’s better to know than to remain ignorant. Add that these are just guesses since there haven’t been other cases yet. He’ll understand.”
“Oh! Understood! Let me send a message right now.”
Startled by his words, Seo A-rin hurriedly logged into the community.
“Then since there’s nothing more to see here, let’s craft the weapon quickly and return before it gets any later.”
“Sure. In the meantime, we’ll keep watch.”
“I’m counting on you.”
Seo Hwa-rin said so and headed for the stairs with Seo A-rin, while Lee Gang-hyuk, contemplating which weapon to craft for whom, activated his skill.
“Bone Weapon Crafting! Using Core. Bone Sword!”
After using the skill, the notification that appeared before his eyes was the same as with the Grasshopper, but….
One thing alone.
No notification appeared about a portion of the ability embedded in the Core being damaged.
Satisfied that the Core’s ability matched the weapon perfectly as expected, Lee Gang-hyuk nodded and continued crafting.
[Crafting Successful!]
[You have crafted a Bone Sword.]
Once the Bone Sword was complete, Lee Gang-hyuk examined its properties with a satisfied smile.
He hadn’t yet decided which of the two to give the weapon to.
He decided to check the properties first and then give the sword to whichever of the two it suited better.
[Bone Sword]
– A sword crafted using the Core of a mutated Zombie.
– Agility + 2
– Upon successful hit, the target receives Hunter’s Mark.
– Attacking the marked target again within 2 seconds increases damage slightly (upon activation, Hunter’s Mark disappears and grants Hunter’s Emblem instead).
– Upon 8 consecutive attacks on the same target, the Emblem detonates, dealing damage equal to a portion of the wielder’s Attack Power (15%) to the target and reapplying Hunter’s Mark (if attacks are interrupted, Hunter’s Emblem disappears).
‘This…… suits Hwa-rin well.’
Having confirmed the properties, Lee Gang-hyuk naturally pictured Seo Hwa-rin using Burst Burn.
Dozens of large and small flames striking the enemy.
According to the options listed, when the flames she summoned hit the target, the power would be immense.
Of course, he’d need to confirm how it performed in actual combat, but now certain that it suited her, Lee Gang-hyuk approached Seo Hwa-rin, who was keeping watch.

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