The Regressed Necromancer Prepares for the Apocalypse - Chapter 39

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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 — Chapter 39

“A theatrical distraction, I see.”

If the attack landed, he’d win. If the streaming succeeded, he’d complete his contract. Two birds with one stone.
But Do Jin had no intention of dancing to the Leader’s tune.
The runaway Leader wielded his spear in one hand, charging forward with the fury of mutual destruction.
Simultaneously, with traces of Mana in his other hand, he was attempting to breach the streaming system.
Do Jin recognized the move the instant it began.

“Pardon me!”

Do Jin threw himself directly in front of the spear—at the point where Mana had pooled and was seconds from detonation.

‘Has this man lost his mind?!’

The Leader’s eyes went wide. He’d mobilized every ounce of his Mana—half-genuine, half-feigned—to pin Do Jin’s attention with sheer mutual-destruction force. But actually killing him was dangerous.
If he destroyed the sole clue to System Hacking with his own hands, it would spell disaster.
Both he and his subordinates would face a fate worse than death at the hands of the client and rival factions.

“Hngh……!”

A runaway vehicle cannot simply slow down the moment its driver slams the brakes. Momentum has already built. The chassis hurtles forward regardless.
Such was the Leader’s state now.
The Leader abandoned the streaming breach entirely and poured all his remaining strength into changing direction—anything to keep the spear from striking Do Jin.

‘Damn it all. Protecting the target, and look at me now!’

When force reaches such extremes, even turning creates violent shockwaves. The Leader’s body bore the brunt of each one. He was on the verge of shattering.

‘If I keep this up, trying to redirect… my stamina will be completely spent…!’

He couldn’t spare even a word.
Any concentration on speaking might cause him to lose Mana control—and that would leave him only self-destruction.
Even now, his body screamed silently as it fought to suppress the very Mana he’d meant to unleash, damage accumulating throughout.

‘What do I…?’

The streaming breach was no longer the problem.
That was when Do Jin’s hand closed around the back of his neck.

* * *

“Don’t overdo it, will you?”

Do Jin felt a hollow resignation.
He didn’t know what the Leader’s past had been.
But a man who took contracts with no name to his own, who was used and discarded, who sometimes had to kill—such a man could never have known peace.
Watching him charge forward screaming mutual destruction, then pivot to place Do Jin’s life above his own survival…

‘Before the Regression, I never would’ve seen a Player commit such foolishness.’

As the Main Scenario progressed, humanity was driven deeper into crisis.
First nations fell. Then civilization collapsed. And finally, humanity’s very survival hung in question.
When extinction itself became the threat, the death penalty among survivors became all but extinct.
Every single life mattered—even one more day of existence. Survival of the species was everything.
To lay down one’s life for duty came to be seen as wasteful, senseless folly.
And now, for the first time in what felt like an age, that very same foolishness was about to unfold before Do Jin’s eyes.

‘I may have intended this outcome, but how could he do it without a moment’s hesitation…….’

A sigh escaped Do Jin unbidden. He knew the intruder hadn’t wanted to do this either.
He understood it was almost certainly a conditioned reflex from years of brutal training…….
But he couldn’t abide it—watching someone throw away their own life right before his eyes.

Do Jin moved.
While suppressing his own Mana Runaway and momentum, the Leader’s body was already beginning to convulse with violent mana collisions—and Do Jin planted himself directly in the path of the Leader’s assault.
Do Jin’s feet drove hard against the earth, launching him upward.
His body soared, arcing up and over the Leader’s head.
Do Jin’s right arm caught the Leader’s nape from behind, steadying the body that had begun to topple.

“……!”

Do Jin’s senses sharpened, and his mana began to sweep through the Leader’s body.

‘Three raging mana clusters. One, two, three.’

Do Jin’s eyes observed the Leader’s interior coldly, arriving at his judgment.
And then…….

“……Ack…… Gh…… Uuuagh……!”

A strangled cry leaked from the Leader’s mouth.
It was the sound of shock and disorientation that came when one Player’s mana was forcibly seized and controlled by another’s will.

“Now, now, uninvited guest—don’t be so frightened!”

Before, when he’d applied mana stimulation to Hae Won to induce her Attribute Awakening.
This time, he channeled mana from outside to suppress the Leader’s Mana Runaway.

‘Hmm.’

The Leader had suddenly released a massive volume of mana all at once, damaging the pathways through which it flowed.
And the Leader’s mana itself had become brutally turbulent.
One channel was wrung dry, starved of mana, while the other was packed so full it threatened to burst at any moment.

‘The mana pathways are a complete mess.’

Do Jin carefully injected his own mana into the Leader.
Where he had knocked on Hae Won’s mana like tapping stone with a chisel—a steady, rhythmic stimulus from without.
With the Leader, he breathed in mana as delicate and soft as silk thread, gently soothing the enraged mana.
Slowly coaxing and calming the overloaded mana back to equilibrium.

“……Cough!”

The moment it was done.
The Leader, who had been rigid as a statue, pitched forward and vomited blood from his mouth.
A clot of it, blackened and viscous as rotting matter.

‘Good fortune.’

It was proof that the Leader’s life had been saved. Vomiting corrupted blood was a sign the Mana Runaway was purging the damage.

“……Glk-glk……”

Soon after, the Leader lost consciousness entirely.
The sudden Mana Runaway followed by external mana control was more than any single Player could bear.
And so the abduction attempt of the Necromancer came to nothing.

* * *

When Ra Hui arrived after receiving Do Jin’s call, her face went ashen.

“These people infiltrated Hangang Group Private Land……!”

She ground her teeth.
The Hangang Group and Test Guild had nearly lost their star Player without even knowing it was happening.
Do Jin had overcome that crisis entirely on his own.

“I’m truly sorry, Do Jin. As a guild, we failed to protect our Player properly, and I apologize sincerely for that.”

The nine intruders were dragged out of the Arena by the Hangang Group’s awakened operatives.
Having logged out, their physical wounds had all healed, but they lay unconscious with their Mana completely depleted.

“We’ll conduct a thorough investigation into who ordered them and how they gained access. The Hangang Group will take appropriate measures.”

Since signing with the Test Guild, Do Jin’s performance had been nothing short of miraculous.
The Under Arena streaming, the Shop System’s utilization, the unwavering support of Hae Won—another Test Guild member—and an overwhelming leveling speed that defied all expectations.
Do Jin’s journey through the Under Arena captivated and mesmerized every viewer.
Unlike the general Arena with its 100% safety guarantee, the Under Arena was brimming with elements that thrilled audiences—penalties, viscerally alive enemies, everything designed to grip the imagination.
Moreover, regardless of the intermediary role played by the Hangang Group and Test Guild, the revenue from selling Shop items through membership alone had already accumulated to a staggering sum.
Though whispered only in certain circles, the consensus was that Do Jin had already earned enough to live comfortably for the rest of his life without lifting a finger.
Hae Won’s demeanor too warranted attention. Ever since she’d safely logged out from the Whirlpool of Desire Arena, she followed Do Jin’s every word like a duckling trailing its mother.

‘If Do Jin breaks his contract with the Test Guild, Hae Won will likely follow him.’

Having logged into various Arenas and leveled up repeatedly, Hae Won had transformed completely since Ra Hui first saw her.
Her brilliant progress was truly remarkable—a quantum leap forward.
In short, Hae Won had also become a capable Player that Ra Hui couldn’t afford to lose.
Most importantly, there was Do Jin himself.
A few days before last night’s attack, Do Jin had dropped a single statement before Ra Hui, almost like a notification.
Yet the content of that remark struck her like a thunderbolt.

– I’ve met the conditions for entering the Hunter Cup.

The conditions for entering the Hunter Cup.
That meant becoming a B-rank Player.

‘I knew the experience points from Under Arena quests were substantial, but…….’

Ra Hui was in genuine shock. As a Player and as a prominent figure in Player society, Do Jin’s growth transcended all common sense.

“Of course, Do Jin maintains a perfectly symbiotic relationship with both the Hangang Group and the Test Guild. Thanks to that, we’ve seen substantial profits ourselves. That much is clear—he’s trustworthy. But…….”

What was his intention?
Or rather……what was his true identity?
How could a B-rank Player log into an Arena officially classified as E-rank?

“……Could it be.”

A rumor that had been quietly spreading among the upper echelons for some time now.

– The System has finally been hacked.

If Ra Hui were being honest, she dismissed that rumor as mere gossip.
If System Hacking—something no one had ever succeeded in doing—had actually become reality, why would it remain silent?
Why would the person or group who achieved such a tremendous feat stay hidden?
If they simply announced it, they’d gain immense profit and glory.
Even if competition or conflict had arisen over it, something of that magnitude would have been stolen and announced to the world long ago by someone.
For rumors to spread so widely without any public announcement—isn’t that suspicious?
What if, for instance, Do Jin were the subject of those rumors?

“If it were him, he’d have told us ages ago and secured the patent, made enormous sums of money…… Who in the world would hide such a monumental achievement?”

That was Ra Hui’s firm conclusion.
But at some point, a strange thought began to take root.
What if Do Jin truly was the subject of the System Hacking rumors?
What if he’d hacked the system and gained the ability to log into lower-rank Arenas freely, regardless of level?

—Then why would Do Jin keep System Hacking secret?

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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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