Chapter 19

Become a Legendary Necromancer - Chapter 019

The second Hidden Route, following the one in the Scorpion Gate.

However, this time was distinctly different from the last.

Because the method of distributing the hidden reward was different.

In the Scorpion Gate, I had to defeat a monster.

That was why I could only obtain the hidden reward after entering the Boss Room and defeating the boss.

But.

'There's no need for that this time.'

There were cases where you had to defeat something specific to obtain the hidden reward.

And cases where you could obtain the hidden reward simply by fulfilling the Hidden Route's conditions without doing anything else.

This Gate belonged to the latter category.

'I just have to clear the Gate.'

Immediately afterward, I turned around again and headed toward the destination.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Bonebug Number Ones smashed the Rat Knights' heads with their Bone Clubbies.

Twang! Thud!

Meanwhile, I fired my bow.

I didn't hold back on using skills, either.

[Activating Curse of Weakness (EX).]

[Deploying an area around the undead that reduces all stats by 30%.]

Whoooosh...

The area surrounding Bonebug Number Ones turned purple.

[The Skeleton Bruiser activates Blade Explosion (E).]

Boom!

An explosion erupted.

[Activating Triple Release (D).]

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The three arrows fired simultaneously struck three different Rat Knights between the eyes.

The Rat Knights blocking our path were swept away in an instant.

[Oh! We're almost there!]

Before long, the translucent blue barrier appeared in my field of vision.

We had finally reached the destination.

As soon as I passed through the blue barrier.

The settlement of the Gate's rewards began.

[You have completed the objective.]

[Republic of Korea Gate #83812 has been cleared.]

[Rewards will be distributed.]

[F-rank Magic Stone ×5]

[You have leveled up.]

And...

[An achievement exceeding the original objective has been confirmed.]

[You have successfully cleared the Hidden Route.]

[Hidden rewards will be distributed.]

[You have obtained Arc Release (S).]

At last, I had obtained the hidden reward.

Arc Release.

An S-grade skill, the highest grade of skill currently known to exist.

Of course, that was from everyone else's perspective.

After all, I already knew that a higher grade existed.

'My own skills are EX-grade, after all.'

I already possessed four EX-grade skills.

Soul Devouring, Necromancy, Necromancer's Authority, and Curse of Weakness.

Nevertheless...

The S-grade skill I'd obtained this time held a different kind of significance.

Because all my EX-grade skills were connected to the Necromancer class, whereas this skill wasn't.

It was a skill completely unrelated to my class.

Perhaps that was why.

I felt more nervous than ever before.

“Phew...”

I took a deep breath.

Of course, even that did little to calm me.

Arc Release wasn't a Class Skill. It was a general skill that anyone, regardless of class, could learn.

Furthermore, it had no level requirement.

[Hurry, Honored Master!]

“All right.”

Riiip!

The moment I tore the skill book in my hands.

Wooooong!

The book, now torn in half, began breaking apart into countless pure white particles.

For a moment, they scattered through the air like dandelion seeds.

Whoooosh!

Then they were drawn into me in an instant.

At the same time, something slowly began filling my mind.

The principles behind the Arc Release skill.

How the skill was supposed to be used...

The knowledge began engraving itself into my mind, one detail at a time.

____________

[Status Window]

-Name: Yoo Seong

-Level: 9

-Nationality: Republic of Korea

-Class: Necromancer

-Stats: Strength 19, Agility 18 (+2), Stamina 4, Mana 14, Magic Power 12

-Unique Skill: Soul Devouring (EX)

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

Arc Release had been newly added to my skill list.

I invested the two stat points gained from leveling up into Agility.

Before long, a System message rang out.

[You are being transported outside the Gate.]

Flash!

[You've worked hard, Honored Master.]

As soon as I emerged from the Gate, Yulias fluttered over to me.

“We got an S-grade skill, so let's eat something delicious. Is there anything you want?”

[Oh! I was just about to suggest we eat something delicious to celebrate, Honored Master! Great minds think alike, don't they?]

“Really?”

[Yes!]

Yulias nodded vigorously.

A smile was spread across his face.

I was probably smiling just as much.

I started walking in high spirits.

But then.

“Huh?”

I suddenly stopped at the sound of a voice.

Then I stared in one direction.

Four people were gathered together, talking.

It was a perfectly natural sight.

After all, there were plenty of other groups doing the same thing.

The Gate I had just exited.

They were preparing to enter it.

There was nothing strange about that.

Nevertheless, the reason I stopped walking was...

“Lee Hyun-seok...?”

Because I had clearly heard one of the men introduce himself by that name.

Had I misheard?

I wondered if that might be the case.

“Nice to meet you. I'm Lee Hyun-seok.”

But the same voice reached my ears once again.

The man was shaking hands with the other three as they introduced themselves.

Soon, the face of the man who had introduced himself as Lee Hyun-seok came fully into view.

Only then could I be certain.

He was exactly the person I knew.

“How is that man here...?”

A bald head gleaming in the sunlight.

Incredibly thick eyebrows that resembled caterpillars.

And above all...

The long scar extending beneath his right eye.

“There's no doubt about it. That's Lee Hyun-seok.”

Lee Hyun-seok.

Lee Hyun-do's younger brother.

In other words, the very person who was originally supposed to discover the Hidden Route here and obtain Arc Release.

Once I was certain it was Lee Hyun-seok, my thoughts became tangled.

And for good reason.

Lee Hyun-seok wasn't supposed to discover the Hidden Route here for another two months.

'Could this be a butterfly effect caused by my regression?'

I immediately shook my head.

That didn't seem likely, considering how little I'd actually done.

'All I've done is clear Floor 1 of the Tower of Trials and the Scorpion Gate... And that somehow affected this man?'

It was possible, but the likelihood was extremely low.

At that moment.

'Come to think of it, he was with the Criminal Investigation Unit, wasn't he?'

Before my regression, when it was revealed that Lee Hyun-do had murdered his younger brother, Lee Hyun-seok, and stolen his skill.

I remembered reading an article stating that Lee Hyun-seok belonged to the Awakened Association's Criminal Investigation Unit.

'Ah...!'

Only then did the whole situation begin to make sense.

What if Lee Hyun-seok had actually been searching for Ryu Jun-hwi's gang? What if he'd been keeping this Gate under surveillance all along?

If that was the case, everything made sense.

Why Lee Hyun-seok was here at this point in time, and why he was trying to enter this Gate.

Because that man had no business being in a place of this level in the first place.

If that was indeed the case...

'Then discovering the Hidden Route myself really was the right decision.'

Until now, I'd thought I had only saved Lee Hyun-seok's life.

But it seemed that by saving him, I had effectively saved countless other lives as well.

The Awakened Association's Criminal Investigation Unit.

As its name suggested, it was responsible for arresting villains.

Since Lee Hyun-seok hadn't died because of me... he would continue arresting villains in the future.

Naturally, that meant fewer innocent people would die at the hands of villains.

“I'm all ready.”

“Then let's head in.”

“Let's go.”

Before long, Lee Hyun-seok's party stood up and headed toward the Gate.

[Now that I think about it, perhaps this skill really was meant to belong to you all along, Honored Master. Don't you think? Everyone ends up happy now that it's in your hands!]

Yulias said that after hearing the whole story.

I couldn't help chuckling.

Of course, I knew he was only saying it to make me feel better.

Nevertheless.

I found myself thinking that perhaps he really was right.

_____________

[Hurry up and try some, Honored Master!]

Yulias spoke with an innocent smile as he sat at his personal dining table.

“All right. Let's eat.”

I picked up a piece of chicken from in front of me and brought it to my mouth.

Chew, chew.

It was fried chicken I'd picked up myself from a place near my apartment.

Yulias had chosen the menu.

“Hurry up and eat. It's good.”

[Yes!]

Slice, slice, slice, slice—

Only then did Yulias cut the chicken in front of him into appropriately sized pieces and put one in his mouth.

He really was a fascinating little guy.

To think he'd even consider cutting fried chicken before eating it.

Well, I suppose the chicken was rather large compared to him.

Afterward, we ate our fill of chicken.

Then we took a short break.

The Awakened Board had already erupted into another uproar over the newly discovered hidden reward.

Naturally, since an S-grade skill had been revealed to the world.

About an hour passed.

“Shall we get going?”

[Yes!]

We immediately headed for the Tower of Trials.

The reason was simple.

I'd obtained an S-grade skill, so naturally, I had to try using it.

[Your ticket to Floor 2 of the Tower of Trials has been confirmed.]

[The currently accessible floors of the Tower of Trials are Floors 0–2.]

[Would you like to enter Floor 2 of the Tower of Trials?]

Flash!

___________

The place I arrived at was a rectangular space enclosed by walls on all sides.

It was about the size of a high school auditorium.

That was how spacious it was.

And in the middle of the room stood a yellow barrier.

Before long, a System message appeared before my eyes.

[You have entered Floor 2 of the Tower of Trials.]

[Defeat the Lizardman Knight.]

[Objective: Annihilation]

[Reward: F-rank Magic Stone ×5]

Wooooong!

At that moment, light began gathering beyond the yellow barrier.

It rapidly took shape.

Grrrrr!

A Lizardman Knight appeared.

A half-human, half-beast monster resembling a lizard, with a protruding snout.

It stood roughly three meters tall, with long limbs and a lean, agile build.

Its weapon was the sword it held in one hand.

I drew my bowstring toward the creature.

Creeeeak!

[Activating Triple Release (D).]

Immediately afterward, three arrows made of mana appeared.

However, their appearance was noticeably different from before.

And for good reason.

Whirrrrr...!

The arrowheads were spinning rapidly.

It was a phenomenon caused by the Arc Release skill I'd just obtained.

Arc Release wasn't an active skill.

It was a passive skill.

In other words, it was applied automatically rather than requiring deliberate activation.

And among the effects of this passive skill...

Was something called 'Penetration.'

'And a staggering 50% increase at that.'

However, that wasn't Arc Release's true strength.

The truly important part was something else.

At that moment.

Crash!

The yellow barrier separating me from the Lizardman Knight shattered like glass and scattered across the floor.

Twang!

That was the moment I released my bowstring.

Whoooosh!

The three arrows flew toward the Lizardman Knight from different directions.

One approached from the front, while the other two headed toward either side of it.

The Lizardman Knight raised the sword in its hand.

To block the arrow coming directly toward it.

Clang!

It successfully blocked the arrow approaching from the front.

But that was meaningless.

'Because this is where Arc Release's truly overpowered ability comes into play.'

At that moment, the other two arrows curved in an unnatural manner.

Thud! Thud!

Each arrow pierced one of the creature's temples.

[Arc Release (S)]

-Level: 1

-Description: Allows arrows to be fired along curved trajectories.

-Effects:

1) Increases Penetration by 50%.

Arc Release's true strength.

Was the ability to fire arrows along curved paths rather than straight lines.

Thump!

The Lizardman Knight's enormous body collapsed onto the floor.

Immediately afterward, countless System messages rang out in my ears.

[You have completed the objective of Floor 2 of the Tower of Trials.]

[Rewards for Floor 2 of the Tower of Trials will be distributed.]

[F-rank Magic Stone ×5]

[An achievement exceeding the original objective has been confirmed.]

[You have achieved the feat of defeating the Lizardman Knight within 1 minute.]

[Calculating your record...]

['Ashen' has been ranked first.]

...

[You have received a 'Blessing' Certificate.]

Following Floor 1, I had now obtained the Blessing Certificate for Floor 2 as well.

Afterward, I took the Blessing Certificate out of my Inventory.

[Blessing Certificate (Floor 2)]

-Description:

1) Upon use, grants the 'Floor 2 Blessing.'

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

-Effects:

1) Elemental Resistance +10%

2) All Stats +3

-Required Level to Equip: None

Then.

Riiip!

I tore the Floor 2 Blessing Certificate in half.

[Using Blessing Certificate.]

[You have obtained the Floor 2 Blessing.]

[The blessing of Floor 2 takes root within your body.]

Up to this point, everything was the same as when I'd obtained the Floor 1 Blessing.

I waited for the System message that would follow.

And before long.

[An additional Floor 1 Blessing has been detected.]

[The Blessings of Floors 1 and 2 are being fused.]

At last, the System message I'd been waiting for rang out.