The Regressed Necromancer Prepares for the Apocalypse - Chapter 26

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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 Necromancer Who Returned Prepares for the End — Episode 26

“It’s fine, Hae Won. Just keep a firm grip on the reins!”

With that, Do Jin turned his head. And then, suddenly, he planted his foot on the chariot’s handhold—
and vaulted straight up onto the racing chariots ahead.

“What the—?”
“Madman!”

The players in the other chariots were left stunned. Hae Won was no exception.
But from the Commentary Booth and the Spectator Stands, a roar of excitement and cheering erupted.

— Look, look! An unprecedented strategy!
— I’ve never seen such a bold move in the Kingdom of Gambling!

“Hey, isn’t this a surprise upset brewing?”
“Whatever it is, I like it! The matches have been dull lately!”

To hide the fact that gambling was taking place, they’d forbidden broadcasting and logged in directly to the Spectator Stands to watch the race. Countless people filled the seats.
They had all awakened as Players, yet refused to actually play. They were those who already possessed everything.
Unable to bear the boredom of it all, they chased even illegal thrills.

“Hey, how long do you think this green rookie pair lasts? I say five minutes!”
“Nah… they’ll make it ten, at least?”
“That so? I’m in?”
“I’m in!”

Another wager had just formed. And there were far more spectators placing bets like this.
Naturally, Do Jin had no interest in such trivialities. He couldn’t even stream, so what good would the attention of gamblers do him?
Do Jin, having leapt nearly a meter into the air from his chariot—
slammed down hard.

“Gasp!”

He unleashed a Kick Attack directly at the Bandit Team’s chariot.

“Ha! You think that’ll—?!”

Of course the Bandit Team had a Tanker. So when Do Jin’s strike came crashing down from above, they defended calmly enough.
But then—?
With his attack blocked against the Tanker’s Shield, Do Jin simply rotated his body mid-air—

and whipped around hard.
He struck the wheel of the duo’s chariot that was running beside the Bandit Team’s with tremendous force.

“Ah!”
“You, you bastard!”

It was the chariot of Park Dong Il and Park Dong Hoon — the two who had launched the first attack against Do Jin and Hae Won’s chariot.

— Oh! A counterattack from the rookie team! And they’ve moved chariot to chariot, striking as they went!
— Seems quite skilled, but we know their faces — definitely first-timers!
— Park Dong Il and Park Dong Hoon! Did they drop their guard? The damage is severe!

The commentator’s words rang true. The wildly careening chariot’s wheel, struck directly by Do Jin’s Kick Attack on its central axle, could no longer hold.

A grinding crash—
and the wheel began to screech and slide.
The central axle suddenly cracked, and as the chariot wheel came loose,
the vehicle—still at high speed—lost its balance and veered off the Racing Course.

“Ugh!”
“Ah!”

Park Dong Il and Park Dong Hoon didn’t fall from the chariot, but it collided head-on with the Arena wall, carrying them with it!

– An upset! The favorites have been eliminated!
– Listen to the crowd roar! How many spectators had wagered on the Park Dong Il and Park Dong Hoon combination? 1,350 people?
– They must be taking heavy losses……

The commentator’s words were accurate. Nearly half the Spectator Stands erupted in chaos.

“This can’t be real!”
“You swindlers!”
“Give me my money back, give me my money back, give me my money back……”

Some spectators, though, took it relatively calmly.

“Well, I lost ten million won.”
“I figured they’d be knocked out by the Bandit Team anyway.”

Whether the crowd raged or not, Do Jin was already scanning for his next target.

‘The Bandit Team is still some distance back, and there’s just one more chariot left!’

In that moment, standing atop the wildly racing chariot, Do Jin caught sight of something unexpected.
It was only a flash,
but Do Jin’s eyes didn’t miss it.

‘That’s a surprise. But first things first!’

Do Jin had already alighted lightly beside Hae Won, and he opened his mouth again.
A touch of smugness in his tone.

“How about it? Not too bad, right?”
“…… No, it’s awful!”

How many times had she nearly bitten her tongue as the chariot jolted beneath her?
Cursing herself dozens of times over for having agreed to participate in this chariot race on the invitation of this untrustworthy hoodlum—all because they’d had some passing acquaintance—
Hae Won barely managed to keep her balance as the horses dragged the chariot along as they pleased, and she let out a sharp cry.

“When is this going to end?!”
“Finally, a proper voice from you.”

When the chariot race had begun, Hae Won had been paralyzed in the driver’s seat, but now she gripped the reins with surprising competence—enough that it seemed safe to move forward with the next phase of the plan.

“Just hold on a little longer! When all the competitors are eliminated, the Quest automatically ends.”
“When will they all be eliminated?!”
“Well, about that……”

Do Jin suddenly bent low and whispered something directly into Hae Won’s ear.
As she listened, Hae Won’s expression shifted moment by moment.
She looked dazed, then her face went pale, then she gritted her teeth.

“Alright. I’ll hold on no matter what—just do it!”
“Hae Won, thank you!”

Perhaps humans are social creatures because their attitudes change depending on whom they’re with.
Something about being around Hae Won as she’d been in childhood made Do Jin feel younger himself, and he chuckled at the sensation.

“All right, let’s begin!”

The moment he saw Hae Won nod her head in acknowledgment,
Do Jin’s eyes sharpened.
His honed animal instinct caught the flow of magical power within the Arena with precision, and……
he found it at last.

‘Bingo.’

The concentration of mana that had subtly tugged at all five of Do Jin’s senses since he’d entered the Arena.
It was none other than……
Crash! Thud-thud-thud-thud!

“Ahhh!”

A Chariot that had been leading overturned. While Do Jin had been speaking with Hae Won, the last remaining solo Player’s Chariot had somehow surged to the front of the Racing Course……
only to fall victim to a Booby Trap.

“……!”
“……Gasp!”

– It’s appeared! Finally here! The pride of the Kingdom of Gambling! The Booby Trap of the Arena!
– It’s different with every Quest, isn’t it? This one really is like ‘a pirate’s plank’!
– Except it sends them flying into the air instead of into the depths!

As the Commentary Booth erupted in a frenzy, the Spectator Stands roared back in kind.
No matter how torturous the Quest clearance was for the Players competing on the Course, the spectators found nothing but delight in it.
When Do Jin and Hae Won’s Chariot passed by,
the image of the eliminated Player and the Booby Trap ahead suddenly filled Do Jin’s vision.

“Uh, over there…… senior.”

Hae Won’s voice sounded slightly strained.
It was the first time Hae Won had called Do Jin “senior,” but he had no moment to savor that small victory—

“The Arena floor just moved, didn’t it? Like a seesaw…… it sent the Chariot flying into the air?”

Hae Won’s words were exactly right. In less than a minute, the Racing Course floor beneath the Chariots had tilted like a wooden plank, and the trap had caught the Chariot leading the race.

“Right. That Chariot was probably a decoy—someone the favorites had already made a deal with beforehand.”

This was precisely what Do Jin had witnessed right after the Bandit Team eliminated Park Dong Il and Park Dong Hoon.
A Bandit Team Player exchanging a glance with the remaining Chariot’s Player.
After that, the Chariot that had been dead last suddenly accelerated, taking the lead.

“The Bandit Team clearly has a lot of experience with Quests like this. Recruiting other Players beforehand and using them as bait—”
“……!”

Hearing Do Jin’s explanation, Hae Won’s expression turned grim.
If she hadn’t been hastily summoned as a substitute just before the Quest began?
She might have suffered the same fate herself.

“……?”

But then a small question flickered through Hae Won’s mind.

“Did you already know about the trap when you told me to loosen the Reins?”

In the Chariot Race Quest of the Vortex of Desire, the chariot is designed to charge automatically along a predetermined track.
Because of this, even a player who doesn’t know how to drive a chariot can clear the quest simply by grasping the reins.
Yet that alone cannot truly be called a quest.
There were aspects of the chariot and horses that players could control — specifically, by adjusting the tension on the reins, one could modulate the speed within certain limits.
Additionally, within the course itself, one could subtly adjust the trajectory along which the chariot wheels ran.
This was precisely why competitors could unleash attacks on Do Jin and Hae Won’s chariot the moment the quest began.
But how could Hae Won, logging into the Vortex of Desire for the first time, possibly know such things?
Of course, she had no idea there were even booby traps inside the Arena.
Then why was Do Jin so composed at the sight of them? Was it simply because he was more experienced?

‘Just how much experience does he have?’

But Hae Won could neither hear Do Jin’s answer nor continue that thread of thought.

“Watch out!”
“……!”

The moment Do Jin’s warning burst forth.
A torrent of Magic Skill attacks erupted from the final competitor’s Bandit Team chariot.
And at the same instant.
Another booby trap detonated within the Arena.

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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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