Chapter 13

Become a Legendary Necromancer - Chapter 013

I reached toward my inventory.

Then.

Something appeared in my previously empty hand.

Rustle—

A sheet of paper the size of an A4 page, colored black.

However, it wasn't completely black.

Characters written in an unidentified, incomprehensible language were scrawled all over it.

I couldn't understand them. Nor did I need to.

Because they weren't important at all.

Before long, information appeared.

[Blessing Certificate (Floor 1)]

-Description:

1) Upon use, grants the 'Floor 1 Blessing.'

2) When an additional Blessing from another floor is obtained, it fuses with the existing Blessing to produce greater power.

-Effects:

1) Experience Gain +5%

2) All Stats +2

-Required Level to Equip: None

I had only ever heard about it. This was my first time actually seeing one.

First place.

And not merely first place in the Republic of Korea, but first place among everyone in the world.

Because that was the only way to obtain this Blessing.

'I really did take first place.'

Before my regression.

Ever since my Talent Stat had been measured at 100, I had constantly imagined it.

The day I would take first place and obtain a Blessing like this.

'Of course, that was only until I actually awakened.'

Because the moment I awakened, I was forced to face reality.

My Unique Skill... No, I couldn't even use the basic Mana Release skill, so naturally, there was no other outcome.

“...”

Remembering those days filled me with a strange sense of emotion.

After all, what I had once imagined had finally become reality, unfolding right before my eyes.

[This is only the beginning, Honored Master!]

With his head tilted slightly to one side.

Yulias looked up at me.

A broad smile filled his face.

That's right. This was only the beginning.

I let out a soft chuckle.

Immediately afterward, I tore the Blessing Certificate in my hand in half.

Riiip!

[Using Blessing Certificate.]

[You have obtained the Floor 1 Blessing.]

[The blessing of Floor 1 takes root within your body.]

Whoooosh!

At the same time, a feeling of fullness surged throughout my entire body.

I immediately checked my Status Window.

[Status Window]

-Name: Yoo Seong

-Level: 8

-Nationality: Republic of Korea

-Class: Necromancer

-Stats: Strength 14 (+2), Agility 14 (+2), Stamina 4 (+2), Mana 10 (+2), Magic Power 9 (+2)

-Unique Skill: Soul Devouring (EX)

-General Skills: Mana Release, Necromancy (EX), Necromancer's Authority (EX), Curse of Weakness (EX)

Every stat had increased by two.

The Floor 1 Blessing had taken effect.

The same applied to the 5% increase in experience gain.

'It's definitely a useful ability.'

Experience gain.

Only 5%.

Naturally, it might seem like a small amount.

But it was by no means insignificant.

Because there was no telling whether I would kill tens, hundreds, tens of thousands, or even more monsters in the future.

It was an effect that became increasingly beneficial the longer someone lived as an Awakened.

'That's why it's so valuable.'

To begin with, items that provided experience-related effects were so rare that they were almost impossible to find.

Besides.

'This isn't even the end of it.'

Blessings possessed a 'stacking' effect.

When another Blessing from a different floor was obtained.

Its effects would be applied separately.

And that wasn't all.

'In fact, the existing effects would become even stronger.'

As the number of Blessings increased.

Their effects would grow even greater.

That meant they would provide stronger effects than before.

It was a system where one plus one didn't equal two, but three.

[That's why we have to collect every single one!]

The flames in Yulias's eyes blazed fiercely.

Naturally, I intended to do exactly that.

“Of course.”

It was at that moment.

[An item listed on the Exchange has been sold.]

A holographic window appeared before my eyes.

______________

The Great Hall of the People, located in Tiananmen, Beijing.

A government work report was being held there today.

Key figures from the political and business worlds were in attendance.

And seated in the most prestigious position among them.

Was someone who looked quite young.

Even being generous, he appeared to be in his early thirties at most.

He was none other than 'Shi Chan,' China's number one ranked Awakened.

“Then, the next agenda item concerns the budget...”

It was in the middle of that discussion.

Crack, crack!

The air inside the Great Hall of the People froze in an instant.

A bitterly cold wind swept through the hall.

Everyone's gaze immediately turned toward Shi Chan.

They were watching his reaction.

One of Shi Chan's eyebrows was slightly furrowed.

The reason soon became clear.

The record for Floor 1 of the Tower of Trials had changed.

That meant...

The Floor 1 Blessing Shi Chan had possessed had passed to someone else.

It was at that moment that Shi Chan's furrowed brow relaxed.

“It seems the Floor 1 Blessing has passed to someone else.”

His voice was calm, as though he were discussing someone else's affairs.

At the same time, the freezing air inside the hall vanished completely.

Only then did the atmosphere ease slightly.

“Please don't concern yourself too much. It seems that person was simply extraordinarily lucky.”

“That's right. Besides, Lord Shi Chan, don't you already possess several Blessings?”

“It's only a Floor 1 Blessing, after all.”

Several people offered words of consolation to Shi Chan.

Shi Chan smiled at them.

However, his true thoughts were entirely different.

'Fucking idiots. They should've just kept their mouths shut.'

This was why he shouldn't bother talking to fools who weren't Awakened. Tsk, tsk.

Shi Chan clicked his tongue inwardly.

Every person who had just tried to console him was a non-Awakened.

They were ordinary people.

That was why they had completely missed the point.

The Awakened present, however, were different.

Unlike the others, they wore grave expressions.

Because they understood the seriousness of the situation.

The Floor 1 Blessing?

That was utterly irrelevant.

Because that wasn't what mattered.

What mattered was the record itself.

The fact that someone had cleared Floor 1 in fifteen minutes!

Even if Shi Chan were to return to the past and challenge Floor 1 again.

A fifteen-minute clear would still be absolutely impossible for him.

That was what concerned him.

Because there was no telling how many more records this person might break in the future.

'Ashen, huh.'

Of course, it was still too early to worry.

He needed to observe the situation a little longer.

He didn't know what kind of Unique Skill.

Or what kind of item the person had obtained...

But the path of an Awakened was not so easily conquered.

'Still, what kind of Unique Skill could possibly make a record like this achievable?'

Alongside his concern, he also felt curiosity.

Flick—

Shi Chan gestured with his hand.

A man immediately approached from behind him.

Shi Chan leaned toward the man's ear and whispered.

“There's a high possibility he's the same person who obtained the Numbered Item. Have our people investigate.”

The man bowed his head.

Then quietly slipped outside.

______________

The Exchange.

The Exchange was one of the System's functions, much like the Inventory.

Any Awakened could use it.

Any item other than Magic Stones could be listed on the Exchange.

Weapons, armor, skill books, consumables, and everything else.

However, that didn't mean the Exchange was all-powerful.

It had one critical drawback.

'You can only make one transaction per day.'

Whether buying or selling an item.

You could make exactly one transaction every twenty-four hours.

That was why the vast majority of trades were conducted in the real world.

In any case, I had listed one item on the Exchange yesterday.

'Lightning Spear.'

The skill book I had obtained from opening a D-rank Skill Box.

Since it was a Mage-exclusive skill, I had no use for it, so I'd listed it for sale.

“Still, it sold earlier than I expected.”

[Oh! It sold?]

I checked my Inventory.

There were sixty C-rank Magic Stones inside.

Since each C-rank Magic Stone was worth five million won.

The total value in cash was 300 million won.

'Well, after deducting the commission, it'd be a little less than that...'

Anyway.

As this demonstrated, the currency used on the Exchange was Magic Stones.

Items could only be bought and sold using Magic Stones.

'And you can configure this individually, too.'

You could choose which grade of Magic Stones you wanted to receive in exchange for an item listed on the Exchange.

I had deliberately set the payment to C-rank Magic Stones only.

Considering my future growth rate, dealing with Magic Stones of any higher rank would undoubtedly cause complications.

Besides, Magic Stones could be exchanged for other grades on the Exchange at any time.

Afterward, I accessed the Exchange.

“It wasn't even listed yesterday, so there's no way it'll suddenly be available...”

Still, you never knew, right? That was why I decided to check.

But then.

“Huh?!”

The item I wanted appeared in the search results.

And at a price much lower than I had expected.

[Triple Release]

-Selling Price: 12 B-rank Magic Stones

Twelve B-rank Magic Stones.

Since each B-rank Magic Stone was worth twenty million won.

That came to 240 million won in cash.

I had originally expected it to cost around 300 million.

“This is no time to stand around.”

[Would you like to exchange 48 C-rank Magic Stones for 12 B-rank Magic Stones?]

“Yes.”

I hurriedly exchanged the Magic Stones and immediately confirmed my intention to purchase the item.

[You have purchased Triple Release.]

[12 B-rank Magic Stones have been consumed.]

Wooooong!

A skill book appeared before my eyes.

“Phew.”

I let out a deep breath.

In truth, this skill book was one of the skills I had desperately wanted before my regression.

“If I'd had this, my options would've been much broader. Besides, the level requirement is low, and there aren't any class restrictions.”

But naturally, I hadn't been able to obtain it.

Because it had cost a staggering 300 million won.

For someone like me, who had struggled just to replenish consumables, that was an unimaginable sum of money.

[Triple Release (D)]

-Description: Allows you to fire up to three arrows simultaneously.

-Effect: Attack Power +10%, Penetration +10%, Strength +5, Agility +2

-Required Level to Learn: 5

Riiip!

The moment I tore the skill book, the profound principles of the skill flowed directly into my mind.

How I was supposed to use it.

Whoooosh...

The torn skill book broke into fragments and dispersed like smoke.

Swoosh—

At the same time, I took the Divine Bow out of my Inventory.

I drew the bowstring and activated Triple Release.

Creeeeak—

Then, wooooong! Three arrows formed along the bowstring.

Wasn't this perhaps the D-rank skill most suited to me?

That was how perfectly compatible this skill seemed with my fighting style.

[Hehe! Congratulations, Honored Master!]

When I turned my head.

Clatter— Clatter—

There was Yulias, celebrating as though it were his own achievement.

_____________

The next day.

I began browsing the Awakened Board early in the morning.

To be precise, I was examining the party recruitment section of the board.

[Recruiting one frontliner for Gate #26243.]

[Recruiting a Mage-class Awakened with area-of-effect skills for Gate #69324.]

...

Countless posts continued appearing in real time.

The party recruitment section was a board for those who hadn't joined guilds.

In other words, it was where freelance Awakened recruited party members.

I had come down to my family home partly to visit my parents.

But in truth, I had also come here to enter a Gate.

'The so-called Ant Hell Gate.'

It was a Gate located in Daejeon.

About an hour away from here.

And naturally, this place also contained a Hidden Route.

'This is the last one among the F-rank Gates.'

Lee Hyun-do, who had been called the 'Divine Archer' before my regression.

The skill obtained here had played a major role in earning him that title.

'He said Lee Hyun-do's younger brother obtained the skill here.'

Since it was related to archery, I remembered the details even more clearly.

'Because I'd been incredibly jealous.'

I searched for the Gate I intended to enter.

This was a Gate that couldn't be entered alone.

Four people had to enter together.

Otherwise, entry itself was impossible.

There were several posts recruiting parties for that Gate.

'I remember his surname was Ryu...'

Unfortunately, I couldn't recall his full name.

That was when it happened.

'Found it!'

One particular post caught my attention.

A post listing Ryu Jun-hwi as the party leader.

Seeing the full name finally brought back my memory.

Ryu Jun-hwi.

He was a villain.

More precisely, they were villains.

Ryu Jun-hwi's gang consisted of three members, and every time they entered a Gate, they recruited one new party member.

'Then they'd kill that person inside the Gate and steal their items.'

More than fifty people had died at their hands.

And if it hadn't been for Lee Hyun-do's younger brother, the number of victims would have been far greater.

From Ryu Jun-hwi's gang's perspective, they'd simply been unlucky.

Because the new party member they happened to recruit was Lee Hyun-do's younger brother.

The secretly related younger brother of Lee Hyun-do, an S-rank Awakened ranked among the top ten in Korea.

Afterward, Ryu Jun-hwi's gang attempted to rob Lee Hyun-do's younger brother, only to be killed themselves.

And thus, Lee Hyun-do's younger brother obtained that skill here.

And this time...

I intended to do the same.

'It'll be better for both of us that way.'

Lee Hyun-do's younger brother ends up dying because he obtains the skill here.

And at the hands of his own older brother, Lee Hyun-do.

If that's the case, it would be a hundred times better for me to take it instead.

I called the number listed in Ryu Jun-hwi's post.

Ring... Ring...

The phone rang for a moment.

Click!

-Hello?

At last, Ryu Jun-hwi answered the phone.