NOVEL NEXT Chapter 16
“Wh-what happened here?”
“…I don’t know either.”
It was a wicked trap.
A surprise trap targeting the rear, bypassing the front lines made up of melee and ranged fighters, aiming for those vulnerable in direct combat.
The trainees caught in the trap were scattered and isolated. We were no exception.
“Is everyone okay?”
“It seems no one is injured… but…”
Kim Seung Min’s expression was dark. This was undoubtedly a bad situation.
Some instructors who were on guard at the rear, along with other trainees, were nowhere to be found. What surrounded us was nothing but a labyrinthine cavern where the way out was completely unknown.
“This dungeon… isn’t small at all.”
As Kim Seung Min pointed out, the surrounding terrain had expanded to more than double what it was earlier.
The mana distribution was weak, likely because such a vast space had been concealed.
“…What should we do?”
“It’s probably best to avoid hasty movements. Let’s wait for rescue.”
While Han So Eun and Choi Eun Sol seemed to agree with that, I knew things wouldn’t unravel that easily.
The presence of this kind of trap naturally suggested subsequent measures were in place.
Rustle. Rustle.
Just as that thought settled in, strange sounds began echoing from various corners of the cavern.
It resembled the scratching of claws against walls or the scuttling of insects.
What appeared were monsters similar to soldier ants.
“U-Undead Antwerp!”
Even Kim Seung Min, who had been the calmest among us, showed signs of panic.
And rightfully so; the Antwerp was a D1 rank monster.
At least among D ranks, it was among the strongest.
And here stood three of those Antwerps. It was entirely possible more would show up.
‘I need to act quickly.’
Quick actions were essential.
Without hesitation, I activated the mental stabilization spell cast on my ring.
Whoosh.
Instantly, the fog in my mind lifted, leaving a refreshing clarity in my chest.
For the next ten minutes, I would become invincible.
“Fire at anything to delay their actions!”
Surprisingly fluent, my command startled Han So Eun, the ice mage.
“Where… should I aim?”
“The one at the front.”
Perhaps due to her aspirations to become a hunter, Han So Eun quickly gathered her wits and began casting a simple ice spell.
“Frost!”
Crash!
Though hasty and lacking in power, the cold seeped in, slowing the movement of the Antwerps somewhat.
“Kieek.”
Swish.
A glance thrown over my shoulder was enough of a signal.
True to his title as the best prospect of the 21st quarter sponsored by the state, Kim Seung Min swiftly charged at the leading Antwerp.
Crash!
Dashing with his shield, he exposed the Antwerp’s weak abdomen, slashing it with his sword.
Slit!
“Kieek!”
For a beginner, his movements were clean and decisive.
That dealt a critical wound; it wouldn’t survive for long, despite not being completely severed.
Ping!
Zing!
Amid the delay in actions, Choi Eun Sol contained the other two with arrows and then shouted,
“Can you handle them?”
“That depends on the remaining two!”
However, perhaps Kim Seung Min’s words invoked fate, as two more Antwerps crawled out from ahead in the corridor.
The faces of our team turned pale, and a chilling energy began spreading in the tunnel.
The cause was me withdrawing the death energy I had stored in the magic stone.
Whoosh.
I casually glanced back at the near-death Antwerp.
Its trembling body was growing still, the light of life clearly ebbing from its black eyes.
In short, death was near.
‘…It must be scared.’
Most living beings express their will to live when faced with death.
It’s incredibly intense and heartfelt.
Thus, this desperate urge for survival becomes a source of greater strength.
“Undead Call.”
As the Antwerp finally succumbed to death, the death energy flowed from the magic stone into it.
Then, the Antwerp stood upright, its bodily fluids dripping profusely.
It became a loyal servant of death.
“Attack.”
“…Kieek.”
Rustle. Rustle!
The movement of the Undead Antwerp was fast, a speed hard to believe for something that had just been dying moments ago.
“Kieek!”
“Kiek!”
Two of the four Antwerps charged at us, yet even in a favorable 2-to-1 situation, they struggled to gain ground.
“What the…?”
Facing the spectacle of a single opponent defying joint attacks, the other two holding back in confusion, Kim Seung Min voiced his doubts.
It was an illogical situation, yet one that made perfect sense to me.
‘Originally, it should be three times stronger than this…’
As I said, I was fundamentally different.
Even if you made the same stew, the results would be distinctly different between a top-tier chef and a home cook.
The mechanisms may vary in detail, but the principle was no different.
Slam!
The battle ended swiftly.
One arm of the Undead Antwerp was torn off, yet in exchange, one of the Antwerps lost its life.
That left me with a simple task.
Whoosh.
“Undead Call.”
Rustle.
Rustle.
It was time to show the true terror of a necromancer known as the harbinger of death, the fear of the battlefield.
#
The necromancer is, in fact, quite a tricky profession.
First of all, to wield true power, one must have the corpses of defeated enemies, and even the prime ability of creating Undead has a low success rate.
If it were against foes of clearly inferior ranks, that may be forgivable, but even against monsters of equal standing, one could expect a failure rate of roughly five out of ten.
However, because of this, Kim Seung Min found it difficult to comprehend the scene unfolding before him.
Whoosh.
“Keek…”
By this point, I had successfully raised seven Undead, without a single failure.
What was happening was nonsensical to the logic of Kim Seung Min.
‘…Is this even possible?’
Moreover, the numbers were astonishing.
Typically, beginner necromancers struggle to control just two or three Undead. Yet Baek Eun Ha moved the Antwerps with ease, showing no signs of effort.
At first, Han So Eun and Choi Eun Sol had excitedly praised Baek Eun Ha, but now, they wore expressions reflecting something was off.
“Kieek!”
Crash!
Crash!
Honestly, there was no need for Kim Seung Min or the others to participate in battle anymore. If we just stood still, the Undead Antwerps would clear the path for us by themselves.
The sight of them moving in perfect unison to crush their kin was almost frightening.
At that point, anyone present could clearly see that Baek Eun Ha’s skills as a necromancer were anything but ordinary.
‘As expected…’
In the face of this, even my lackluster swordsmanship felt insignificant. Remembering my earlier duel, Kim Seung Min’s mood darkened.
“Wow…”
“What on earth…”
The group couldn’t hide their astonishment, and finally, at the conclusion of the fourth battle, they gasped in awe, looking at Baek Eun Ha as if she were a savior.
It was no wonder; the results were nothing short of miraculous.
However, the true necromancer behind this overwhelming spectacle was…
“U-uhem. Sorry, can you keep a distance of at least ten meters…”
Stumbling and covering her mouth with one hand, she lagged behind, separated from the group.
“….”
The mismatch in her appearance left the group scratching their heads awkwardly.
#
Following Kim Seung Min’s suggestion, we navigated the winding paths of the caverns in search of an upward route.
In the process, we found some scattered trainees and joined forces.
“Ten, Antwerps?”
“Step back!”
“Yikes!”
Every time an Undead appeared, chaos ensued, but Kim Seung Min quickly stepped up to calm the situation.
“…So, it’s Team 3, huh.”
“I thought my heart was going to drop. Phew.”
While some had managed to avoid danger and move safely, most were in poor condition.
“Ugh.”
“Chul Min! Get a grip!”
Perhaps it was only natural.
These were trainees who hadn’t even earned their hunter qualifications yet. For them, this place crawling with D1 rank monsters was akin to a jungle.
“There’s someone over there!”
“It looks like it might be Team 5.”
‘…Fifteen meters.’
As more people began to gather, my necessary safety distance also naturally increased. The sight of dozens of Debuff Totems was starting to resemble a repulsive swarm of ants.
Dizzying. Exhausting.
‘It doesn’t seem like hunting monsters affects my awakening at all…’
Honestly, I just wanted to go home, forget about being a hunter.
“Whoa!”
Just as I had drifted about twenty meters away from the group, we finally encountered some instructors who had been searching for the trainees.
“What on earth…?”
In front of the hidden Boss Room, concealed deep within the dungeon’s caverns.