Chapter 11

Become a Legendary Necromancer - Chapter 011

Cheon Sang-hoon, Head of the External Awakened Management Department.

Forgetting that he had been on his way out for a cigarette.

He returned to his department.

Hurriedly sitting down at his desk, he immediately accessed the Integrated Awakened Entry Network.

Clack, clack, clack—

He entered a name.

[Yoo Seong]

[Searching. Please wait a moment...]

He stared at the monitor.

Anxiously fidgeting with his hands.

But only for a moment.

“Yes! I knew it!”

Cheon Sang-hoon clenched his fist.

Just as expected, a search result appeared under Yoo Seong's name.

There were only two records of Yoo Seong entering Gates.

But both entries had taken place yesterday.

He had entered Gates twice in a single day? Someone who couldn't even use his Unique Skill or Mana Release?

And on top of that...

“Something happened inside one of the Gates?”

Gate Number 52226, classified as F-rank.

This was the first Gate Yoo Seong had entered.

And beneath the entry, there was a separate mark. An asterisk.

It was a mark used to indicate that some kind of incident had occurred inside a Gate.

Click—

Cheon Sang-hoon clicked it.

An incident report appeared.

To summarize.

A Gate Break (D) had occurred, all the party members who entered with Yoo Seong had died, and Yoo Seong alone had survived.

There didn't seem to be anything particularly unusual.

The boss had been a Red Orc, and one of the people who entered had possessed a D-grade Unique Skill.

That was probably why the raid team had let the matter pass.

It was entirely plausible.

However, what mattered was the next Gate.

“He entered this one?”

Gate Number 21431.

A place known as the Scorpion Gate.

This Gate was notoriously difficult.

At that moment, Cheon Sang-hoon became convinced.

“I knew it! It was this bastard!”

Looking at the entry times, no one else's entry overlapped with his.

That meant he had entered alone.

A Gate intended for a party of five.

“He must have become able to use his Unique Skill!”

If that was the case, everything fell perfectly into place.

“Huh?”

Just then, something caught his eye.

“Nine minutes and thirty seconds?”

The time at which Yoo Seong had exited the Gate.

Blink, blink.

He looked at it several times, checking and checking again.

But the information remained unchanged.

“This doesn't make any sense.”

The average clear time for the Scorpion Gate was two hours.

And that was with a full party of five.

Yet he had finished clearing the Gate in just nine minutes and thirty seconds?

For that to be possible, there couldn't have been any obstacles.

In other words, it was a time that could only be achieved by simply sweeping through the monsters.

“Even so, there's no way he could be that powerful...”

Even with a Talent Stat of 100, such a feat was impossible.

The amount of mana one possessed was limited.

And skills also had cooldowns.

No matter how powerful a skill someone possessed, there were clear limits.

Even if Yoo Seong's Unique Skill turned out to be an incredibly powerful area-of-effect skill...

“No. It's impossible.”

It didn't make sense. Besides, there was a boss to defeat, too.

“The Scorpion Gate, huh? His exit time was... let's see, nine minutes and thirty seconds?”

A voice reached Cheon Sang-hoon's ears.

When he turned his head.

One of his subordinates was looking at the monitor.

The man continued in a mocking tone.

“There are always idiots like this. They don't know their own limits, so they confidently charge in, kill a few Scorpions, and then run back outside. That's exactly what happened here.”

Tsk, tsk. It's a Gate where you can gain a ton of experience at F-rank, too. What an idiot.

Muttering those words, the subordinate walked away.

Cheon Sang-hoon couldn't argue with him.

Because cases like this really were common.

Cheon Sang-hoon's mind began racing.

Yoo Seong must have obtained rewards from the Gate Break.

And one of those rewards had probably contained a decent skill.

That was why he entered the Scorpion Gate.

But what was the result?

He killed a few monsters and then left.

It was a perfectly natural sequence of events.

And even if. Just if.

Yoo Seong had actually cleared the Gate in nine minutes and thirty seconds and obtained the Numbered Item...

“There's no way to verify it?”

Because the circumstances fit so perfectly?

Besides, nobody would believe it.

“He'd be lucky if people didn't think he was insane.”

Afterward, Cheon Sang-hoon moved his mouse.

Click—

Yoo Seong's records disappeared completely from the monitor.

____________

Clearing the Scorpion Gate that quickly?

Who would believe it?

Even I, the person who had actually done it, could hardly believe it myself.

'If we hadn't defeated the boss so easily, it would've been absolutely impossible.'

Anyway.

Eventually, records like these would accumulate one by one, and my existence would inevitably come to light.

But there was no need to worry about that.

'Because it's bound to become known sooner or later.'

From now on, I would have to keep entering Gates to obtain the items I needed.

And during that process, the fact that I could use my Unique Skill would somehow remain hidden?

That would be difficult.

So all I wanted was for that fact to become known as late as possible.

Besides, there wasn't any real reason to hide it in the first place.

Anyway.

'If the record for Floor 1 of the Tower of Trials gets broken, it might arouse some suspicion...'

But I had a perfect excuse, so it shouldn't be a problem. As long as I didn't reveal the truth myself, that is.

'Well, that's that.'

After leaving the Association building, I checked my smartphone screen.

Twenty-four F-rank Magic Stones, 50,000 won each.

Ten D-rank Magic Stones, 500,000 won each.

And the amount deposited after deducting the 30% commission.

[Deposit: 4,340,000 won]

My bank balance, which had been around 100,000 won, had grown enormously in an instant.

Before my regression, I wouldn't have felt as though this money actually belonged to me.

'Because every last bit of it would've gone toward replenishing consumables.'

But that wasn't the case anymore.

Just looking at the balance was enough to make me feel satisfied.

I quickly started walking.

The place I arrived at was an express bus terminal.

As I boarded the bus, Yulias asked with a puzzled expression.

[Um, Honored Master? Didn't you say earlier that we were going to enter the Tower of Trials?]

In other words.

If we're not going there, where are we heading now? That was what he was asking.

“There's somewhere I need to stop by first.”

[Somewhere you need to stop by?]

“We can enter the Tower of Trials anytime, anywhere, anyway. So before that, I'm going to visit my parents.”

[Whaaat?! Your parents? You have parents?!]

What? Was that really so surprising?

Yulias's reaction was dramatic enough to make me wonder.

Immediately afterward, Yulias spoke cautiously.

[But why didn't you visit them right away yesterday...?]

I chuckled at that.

“It's hard for everyone to get together on weekdays. Besides, they get tired and need to go to bed early.”

[And today happens to be the weekend!]

“Exactly. Besides, I can't exactly visit them empty-handed, can I?”

[Ah! So that's why you sold the Magic Stones earlier...!]

Clatter! Clatter!

Yulias nodded vigorously.

I shifted my gaze away from him and looked out the window.

“It's been so long since I've seen them. I should at least bring plenty of gifts.”

A smile formed on my lips as I spoke.

Before long, the bus departed.

_____________

I stopped by a department store near my family home.

Carrying beef in one hand and a fruit basket in the other, I headed home.

This much should be enough.

For the time being, I intended to keep my abilities somewhat secret.

'There's no real need to hide them from my parents. But that doesn't mean I have to tell them everything, either. It might only make them worry unnecessarily.'

And so, I arrived at my family home.

I naturally entered the front door's passcode and went inside.

Apparently, my parents had been watching television in the living room.

“Son?”

My mother was the first to come out to the entrance.

“What brings you here without calling? And what's all that?”

“I bought these on the way. You haven't eaten yet, have you?”

“We haven't had dinner yet. Hurry up and come in.”

Afterward, my father came out.

“Welcome home.”

Then my older brother emerged from his room.

“You're here?”

“Yeah.”

Only then was I able to enter the living room.

However, during that process, I had to endure my older brother's displeased gaze.

Because of you, the whole family is trying to save every penny we can, and you go and buy things like that? Have you still not grasped your situation?

He didn't say anything, but his expression conveyed exactly that.

Of course, I simply ignored it.

Still, I should clear up the misunderstanding.

After all, my parents might be thinking the same thing.

“I've become able to use my Unique Skill.”

Even though I casually dropped the news as though it were nothing.

“Really? Oh, thank goodness! That's wonderful, absolutely wonderful!”

My mother grabbed my hand and was practically jumping for joy.

In fact, she really was.

She was actually bouncing up and down.

“Congratulations.”

My father nodded calmly.

“...Well, that's a relief.”

That was all my older brother said.

Anyway, with that, the misunderstanding had been cleared up...

“Everyone, say hello. This is my summoned creature.”

Immediately afterward, my parents and older brother looked utterly astonished.

Probably because a small skull had suddenly appeared.

Yulias had activated Manifestation.

However, I was just as surprised as they were.

And for good reason.

Clatter— Clatter—

From Yulias, who had descended to the floor...

[Mother, Father, Elder Brother, hello. It's a pleasure to meet you for the first time. Please feel free to call me Yulias.]

Came an incredibly polite voice.

And the surprises didn't end there.

[Please accept my bow.]

Clatter— Clatter—

Yulias suddenly bowed deeply before my parents.

Was this guy really such a polite character?

It was absolutely astonishing.

[Hehe.]

Yulias smiled brightly at my parents.

______________

Dinner was an incredibly pleasant affair.

It couldn't have been otherwise.

Slice, slice, slice—

Sitting at his personal(?) dining table, Yulias cut the piece of beef in front of him in half.

Then.

He placed one half on top of my mother's rice bowl and the other half on top of my father's.

[Mother, Father, please try some. It's very delicious!]

Yulias scurried around on his short legs, tirelessly carrying pieces of beef to them.

My parents looked as though they found him unbearably adorable.

The same went for my older brother.

[Elder Brother, please try some too. Hehe!]

A bright smile spread across my brother's face.

Had my brother ever been capable of smiling like that?

It was an expression I'd never seen before in my life.

[If you're my Honored Master's parents, then you're practically my parents as well!]

[I may look like this, but I'm actually very strong, you know?]

[So there's no need for you to worry! I'll protect my Honored Master even if it costs me my life!!]

[Yes, sir! Of course! From now on, nothing but happiness awaits all of us! Hehe!]

Yulias chatted with my parents and older brother without stopping.

Thanks to him, the conversation never died down.

In truth, this was another sight I'd never seen before.

Neither my brother nor I was particularly talkative.

My father was also a man of few words.

Fortunately, we at least had my mother.

On days when my mother wasn't around, there had even been times when we went through an entire meal without exchanging a single word.

That was how quiet the men in our family tended to be.

'This isn't bad.'

A smile naturally appeared on my face as well.

How should I put it?

With Yulias here, it almost felt as though our family had gained a much younger daughter.

Or perhaps like having a grandson or granddaughter showing off their adorable antics?

Anyway, the atmosphere was warm and cheerful.

And that continued even after dinner.

We all gathered in the living room, eating fruit and spending time together.

How much time had passed like that?

“Anyway, son. You must always be careful.”

“That's right. Your health comes first. Nothing else matters.”

My parents were about to start lecturing me.

“Well, I'm going to head in and rest now. I'm tired.”

I quickly said that and stood up.

My parents' gazes turned toward Yulias.

“Of course. Our Yulias must be tired, too. Hurry along and get some rest.”

“Sleep well.”

[Yes! Mother, Father, I hope you both have a peaceful night!]

“Of course, of course.”

Yulias bowed his head politely toward my parents.

Was it just my imagination that I felt a little left out?

Somehow, it seemed like they were only wishing Yulias a good night...

Click—

Afterward, I entered my room.

The bedding had already been laid out.

Yulias ended his Manifestation.

[They're all such wonderful people, aren't they?]

“Of course they are. They all seem completely smitten with you.”

[Hehe!]

Afterward, Yulias and I chatted about various trivial things.

It was Yulias who spoke first.

[My mana is fully restored, Honored Master!]

“Really? Then shall we get going?”

[Yes, sir!!]

It was at that moment that a System message appeared.

[Your ticket to Floor 1 of the Tower of Trials has been confirmed.]

[The currently accessible floors of the Tower of Trials are Floors 0–1.]

[Would you like to enter Floor 1 of the Tower of Trials?]

'Yes.'

At the same time, brilliant white light engulfed my vision.

Flash!