The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - Chapter 60

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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 60. Homunculus
Homunculus.
An artificially synthesized life form created through alchemy and magic.
Its origins trace back to Arcanis Rilsein, known as the first mage.
It was rooted in one of the twenty-three grand problems he posed while contemplating the direction of magical advancement.
—Are life and soul identical, or are they separate entities?
In their quest to solve this problem, mages ultimately dragged the divine domain of life creation into the realm of human reason.
As a result, golems and homunculi were born.
However, by this day and age, homunculus synthesis alone has been forbidden.
The reason could be explained in a single statement from The Grand Mage, hero of the Allied Forces.
—Biomorphic homunculus synthesis requires human genetic material.
Golems, synthesized from ‘inanimate’ matter such as earth, stone, metal, and wood.
Homunculi, synthesized from ‘living’ organisms like humans.
Both golems and homunculi were artificially created life forms.
However, golems move simply according to predetermined commands.
They possess neither self nor emotion. This is because they were synthesized from inanimate matter.
But homunculi are capable of executing complex commands.
They possess self and emotion as well.
This is because they were synthesized by grinding up living organisms—humans—wholesale.
And now, the information materializing before my eyes.
==【Entity Information】==
Entity: Alteron de Beneron
Classification: Synthetic Life Form—Synthesis Beast Phylum—Mimicry Class—Homunculus
Gender: Male
Age: 1 year
Characteristics: Simulacrum-type Homunculus
Alteron, striding away with determination, was not human.
What surfaced then was not Character Information, but Entity Information.
And homunculi vary in classification depending on their intended purpose.
◆Simulacrum-type Homunculus (Homunculus Simulatus)
: This entity was created to mimic human appearance and physiology. The replicated appearance is extremely difficult to identify. This entity has 30% of its memories preserved through memory transfer techniques.
‘That thing’ was a homunculus artificially created to replace Alteron.
In other words, it was a homunculus synthesized by grinding up Alteron wholesale.
The reason it didn’t recognize me was because only 30% of its memories were preserved.
From the information that its age was one year, I could deduce that the real Alteron had died more than a year ago.
This is precisely why homunculus synthesis is forbidden across the entire Continent.
Therefore, to my knowledge.
There is only one entity across the entire Continent mad enough to commit such atrocity.
The Dark Merchant Company.
More precisely, one of the leaders of the Dark Merchant Company and a member of the Devotees of the Fallen Souls.
“Avarus.”
The Architect of Greed, Avarus.
At my utterance of Avarus’s name, Alteron’s eyes trembled violently.
No—this wasn’t Alteron.
Merely a homunculus wearing Alteron’s visage.
“How do you know of him…?”
Yet it resembled a human so disturbingly well.
It wasn’t merely similar—it could be called Alteron itself.
Had I not possessed the predator’s instinct [S], I would have been utterly deceived.
I would have believed it to be that insufferable Alteron.
Which meant, perhaps.
‘They’ve been replacing people this way all along.’
Thus the Dark Merchant Company could place political patrons and noble collaborators in each kingdom.
And moreover, manipulate the armies of kingdoms themselves.
Behind such machinations lay the considerable influence of hominculuses.
I lunged at Alteron without a moment’s hesitation.
The weaknesses of a homunculus differ from those of humans.
But this replica-type homunculus had perfectly mimicked Alteron.
Its vulnerabilities were therefore identical to a human’s.
Crunch—!
Dragon claws [A] tore through Alteron’s chest in an instant.
The heart clasped in my grip.
Alteron’s eyes pleaded for mercy, but I tore the heart free without hesitation.
◆Replica-type homunculus defeated!
◆Obtained 10 combat experience!
A translucent message appeared, confirming the homunculus’s certain death.
The homunculus’s heart in my hand.
Though still retaining vitality, devouring [S+] a homunculus’s heart held no meaning.
“What are you doing!!”
Kai cried out in shock.
Bernard too seemed paralyzed, his eyes wide as saucers.
Naturally.
To their eyes, I had just murdered the eldest son of the Beneron Barony House.
Killing a noble was a grave crime, even for one of noble birth.
Above all, the Beneron Barony House would never let this pass.
Though I was aware of this, there was no time to explain matters one by one.
Clang—! Clang-clang—!
The sound of metal echoed from the corridor’s end.
Soldiers clashed there in tangled combat.
Whitewolf Territory soldiers and Beneron Barony soldiers.
The soldiers of Beneron Barony House, sensing the disturbance, began to move into action.
The moment I activated Predator’s Instinct [S], information about Beneron’s soldiers materialized vividly before my eyes.
◆Combat Homunculus (Homunculus Bellator)
: This specimen is a homunculus designed for combat and security operations. It possesses enhanced musculature and rapid regenerative capabilities, along with inherent magical resistance.
They too were not human, but homunculi.
And the Alteron I had just killed was a ‘replicant-type’ homunculus.
A homunculus created to perfectly mimic Alteron.
In other words, its combat prowess was considerably inferior.
But these were different.
Killing machines specialized for combat, with self-awareness and emotion completely excised.
Each of them possessed combat strength rivaling that of aura-wielding knights.
Yet the soldiers of Whitewolf Territory were holding their ground.
They were no ordinary soldiers of the frozen peaks, but they couldn’t last much longer.
I retrieved the oil I’d stored in my inventory and immediately consumed it.
In that very instant.
A golden flash shot across my vision.
Blonde hair scattering in the frost-laden wind.
A blue blade embroidering the empty air.
The sound of the sword cleaving through air rang out sharply, and the blade severed the homunculus’s neck in one fluid motion.
Somehow, it possessed even more mechanical precision than the combat-type homunculus.
It was Kai, who had grown exponentially since the final battle with Lycanthrope.
But there was one thing.
Unlike the replicant-type, the weakness of combat-type homunculi differed from humans.
The homunculi whose necks were severed did not fall.
They continued fighting unscathed, even without their heads.
“A… a Dullahan!?!”
“Eek!”
The soldiers of Whitewolf Territory recoiled in horror.
Kai too bore unmistakable signs of panic.
Only I maintained my composure.
I called up my Player Information and invested all three stat points from the recent level-up into Agility.
Once that process was complete.
The oil I had consumed had already been digested, accumulating as calories within my body.
◆Activating Combination Skill ‘Metabolic Overdrive [U]’!
◆Calorie Cost – 50,000 Kcal
◆All player stats increase by [+50%] for [500 seconds]!
My endocrine system surged into overdrive.
My nerves heightened to extreme sensitivity.
With my Agility amplified by Metabolic Overdrive [U], it had reached an astounding 103.35.
◆Activating Derived Skill, ‘Find Weakness [U]’!
Identifying the homunculus’s weakness at a glance, I propelled my body forward.
* * *
Soldiers of the Beneron Barony House moving despite their severed necks.
“…!!”
It was precisely when distinct bewilderment etched itself across Kai’s blue eyes.
Whoosh—!
A massive gust of wind swept past Kai’s side.
Movement nearly comparable to the Lycanthrope’s own.
Even with a Master’s perception, it was difficult to discern easily.
The source of that movement was not the Lycanthrope, but a single black wolf.
Crack—!
It was Adrian.
Adrian tore through the preceding soldier’s armor with raw, instinctive force and drove deep.
Blood erupting from the soldier’s torn armor.
Yet even in that moment, Adrian was already calculating the next move.
Without giving Beneron’s soldiers time to regroup, Adrian shifted and descended upon another target.
Lethal agility and unwavering killing intent.
Each time Adrian’s crimson eyes flashed, another of Beneron’s soldiers fell without exception.
The Beneron soldiers, regaining their senses, swiftly formed a formation.
Like soldiers trained solely for slaughter, they began encircling Adrian in an instant.
Clang! Clang!
The blades of the Beneron soldiers traced different trajectories as they swung.
It seemed as though they would tear Adrian asunder at any moment.
Kai moved in panic.
Adrian did not evade.
As if perceiving each of the countless descending sword strikes, Adrian’s crimson eyes moved swiftly.
Adrian stepped forward instead, advancing one pace.
As he drove into the sword winds converging from all directions—
Boom!
A deafening roar that made the head spin—
The formation shattered in an instant.
Within the shattered formation.
Kai hurled himself forward, creating fresh fractures in the broken ranks—
Adrian deliberately took non-lethal strikes, offsetting the trajectory of their combined assault—
Kai leaped through the offset gaps—
“Target above the navel.”
Slash—!
The Beneron soldier’s breath was severed.
A partner as if we had shared the battlefield for decades.
Two wolves slaughtering a flock of sheep.
“What on earth…?”
“Good heavens…!”
The soldiers of Whitewolf Territory stood transfixed, their minds emptied as they watched the two battle.
Having fought them directly, they knew how formidable Beneron’s soldiers were.
Every last one of them wielded aura as deftly as any knight.
And yet, they posed no resistance whatsoever.
Beneron’s soldiers fell to the ground one by one beneath Adrian and Kai’s combined assault.
Before long.
The battlefield descended into a crimson silence.
All of Beneron’s soldiers lay sprawled upon the ground.
Only Adrian and Kai remained standing, their backs pressed against each other.
Both breathed in ragged, labored gasps.
Adrian slowly lowered his blood-stained nails.
But Kai did not lower his blood-soaked blade.
“What exactly are you thinking?”
Kai asked Adrian quietly.
* * *
Kai suddenly posed the question to me.
But it caught me off guard.
I had expected him to press the issue immediately, yet Kai proved otherwise.
‘Perhaps his favorability has risen to a friendly state?’
That was possible, but the true reason lay with Beneron’s soldiers.
Having witnessed with my own eyes a Beneron soldier fighting even with his throat severed, there could be no doubt.
One could not help but recognize that they were anything but normal.
In that sense, Kai’s question was straightforward.
“If word of this reaches the Royal Court, they won’t simply let it pass.”
So what now?
If I could prove that Alteron was a homunculus, the matter would be resolved.
But unlike Beneron’s soldiers, Alteron was a ‘replication-type’ homunculus.
An artificial being perfectly identical to Alteron.
Unfortunately, I possessed no method to prove that Alteron was a homunculus.
But.
“The plan is simple.”
There was a way.
More precisely, I had not acted without thought. I had considered this carefully.
“Alteron, who wandered the Snowy Mountain trying to reach Whitewolf Territory and lost his way, was killed by monsters there…that is the plan.”
In other words.
“We never met Alteron.”
We destroy the evidence and deny everything.
Without evidence, what can the Royal Court do?
“….”
“….”
The soldiers’ mouths snapped shut as if their souls had fled their bodies.
They clearly had much to say, yet lacked any solid ground to stand on—so they remained silent, their expressions betraying their inner turmoil.
“Still, Baron Beneron won’t be fooled so easily.”
Only Kai responded with cold logic.
“True enough.”
I acknowledged that much myself.
And from what I could tell, Baron Beneron was likely a homunculus as well.
Which meant.
“Before Baron Beneron grasps the situation, we strike first.”
The soldiers’ jaws dropped in real time.
“…Yes, yes?”
“We strike first?”
“Are you saying we should wage war?”
The soldiers began to doubt their own ears.
Without speaking, they radiated silent bewilderment—’Did he just say what I think he said?’
“I shall prepare all the soldiers at once.”
Only Kai questioned nothing about my command.
His expression and face appeared utterly composed on the surface.
Which made him seem capable of cold, rational thought—but perhaps not.
From where I stood, he was ablaze with fury and hatred toward the Beneron Barony House for what they’d done to Seraphia.
Let me say it again.
Kai is a ‘madman’ prepared to make an enemy of anyone if it means protecting Seraphia.
“No. Bringing soldiers will slow us down. The essence of this operation lies in speed and secrecy.”
I had to move swiftly before Avarus caught wind of it.
And to maintain plausible deniability with the Royal Court, I had to conceal my identity.
‘It would be easier if I moved alone….’
But if I encountered Avarus, I couldn’t handle him by myself.
So.
“This operation will be carried out by you and me, Kai. Just the two of us. The soldiers will defend the Whitewolf Territory in case of unforeseen circumstances. Bernard.”
“…You called for me.”
Bernard, who had momentarily lost his composure at my summons, snapped back to attention.
For some reason, his complexion looked pallid and troubled.
“While Kai and I are away, you command the Whitewolf Territory.”
“…Ah, understood.”
Bernard nodded quickly and took control of the soldiers.
Though he appeared briefly dazed, he was a capable steward nonetheless.
My father hadn’t appointed him as head butler at such a young age for nothing—
“Hup—!”
—will be.
Probably.
In any case.
“Kai, we strike the Beneron Barony immediately.”
“Right now, sir?”
“What else?”
“But such sudden action—”
“Didn’t you know?”
Unlike my past life, it seemed he hadn’t experienced war yet, which was why he hesitated so.
◆Sudden Quest [A true ambush strikes without warning!] has begun.
“A true ambush always strikes without warning.”

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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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