The Necromancer Who Was Despised

We could also bind the undead to our base, but at our current level, it was still limited.

Our preparations were essentially complete.

Anneliese was trembling on the side, unable to check the external situation.

‘Soon… ‘

Our battle with the Basilisk would begin as soon as the last Orc warrior died.

“As soon as the last Orc warrior dies, we’ll ambush it. We can completely stop its movements, if only for a moment.”

It may be difficult to do for a long time, but it’s possible for a short while.

‘Even if my magic consumption is extreme…’

I had set up a temporary base and, with the seal providing an infinite supply of magic, my magic recovery speed had increased significantly compared to before.

With the temporary base’s assistance, not only did my magic’s power increase, but its efficiency also rose greatly. Even if I consumed a massive amount of magic, I could completely stop Basilisk’s movements for a moment.

‘Later, I’ll be freed.’

From then on, my role would decrease, but that was enough. I could send out the undead, provide reinforcements, and offer suitable advice according to the situation.

Especially with my current bird’s-eye view from the sky, I was of great help in the battle against the massive monster, Basilisk.

As a human, my field of vision was limited, and when fighting a massive monster, even Kayla’s vision was restricted. However, I was observing from the sky, so I didn’t have such limitations.

Furthermore, I was protecting Anelis and myself, so I was doing my part.

From the start, being able to protect myself without a rear guard was a significant advantage.

“…Alright, prepare.”

Kayla’s sword began to vibrate rapidly.

A massive amount of mana concentrated, and her aura began to shine brightly.

Before long, the last remaining Orc warrior was struggling, covered in blood.

If I considered the extravagant decorations or the largest physique, he might have been the strongest warrior. Or perhaps he was even the tribe’s leader.

However, that didn’t change anything.

He ultimately turned to stone due to the breath, and with a single swipe of Basilisk’s tail, he shattered and met his end.

And at that moment…

The black hands that had already been activated and were maintaining their form added new black hands, strongly binding Basilisk.

‘Kk…’

Basilisk then strongly resisted.

As expected, its magic resistance was high, and the backlash was no joke.

Especially since our goal this time was to completely bind it so it couldn’t do anything, the backlash was even greater than before.

When Basilisk finally stopped moving, Kayla charged towards it.

“Haah!”

Kayla, who had accelerated to an incredible speed, instantly arrived in front of Basilisk and thrust her sword.

Chaaang!

Basilisk’s massive scream echoed throughout the area.

‘Tsk. It was shallow.’

It couldn’t be helped.

It was a physical limitation. Kayla’s sword was short.

‘Even if she used her aura, her reach wouldn’t increase greatly.’

A master would be needed to overcome such physical limitations to some extent.

Of course, there were limits, but a monster like Basilisk would have been killed with a single slash.

That was the difference between a master and an expert.

Still, the wound was undoubtedly critical.

Kayla’s single strike was deeper than the wound left by the Orc warrior who had died.

However, it was clear that Basilisk had survived.

The victorious cry turned into a painful scream, and at the same time, my binding was released.

Kyla quickly moved her body to a safe location, dodging the basilisk’s attack, and in that moment, Dragu rushed towards the basilisk.

With full force, Dragu charged at the basilisk.

The basilisk rolled on the ground, and Dragu pounced on it, pinning it down.

“…It’s exhausted, too.”

The basilisk couldn’t properly respond to Dragu’s attack.

It tried to struggle, spewing out petrification breath, but Dragu didn’t care, pinning it down and sucking its blood.

As the basilisk grew more exhausted, our party took advantage of the opening and quickly dealt more damage.

“…The resistance is strong! Only act when you’re sure!”

Kyla shouted urgently.

Although we were on the receiving end, our size was an advantage, and if we made one mistake, it would be fatal.

At least Kyla, Artina, and Kero, with their elite living armor, were able to land a decent hit, but the rest of the undead and Balduer couldn’t deal significant damage.

And then, the main golem intervened.

The main golem’s single strike hit the basilisk’s head.

For a moment, the basilisk lost its consciousness, and our party took advantage of the opportunity to attack it again.

Overwhelming superiority.

The sacrifice of the orc warriors had greatly reduced the basilisk’s health, which was a huge help.

“…There’s no need for a monster battle like this.”

For a moment, a silly thought crossed my mind.

However, underestimating a high-ranking monster was not a good choice.

The basilisk, now conscious, let out a massive roar and unleashed a petrification breath that was incomparable to its previous attacks.

The power and speed were on a different level, like a gray light beam bursting out.

In one hit, part of Dragu’s body was petrified, and the basilisk crushed it with its teeth and stood up.

At the same time, the basilisk wrapped its body around Dragu and started to apply intense pressure.

“Aaah!”

Dragu screamed in agony, and the main golem tried to intervene but was pushed back by the basilisk’s force.

The basilisk suddenly turned its gaze towards me and shot a petrification breath like a beam of light.

“…Crazy.”

I was shocked.

Who would have thought it would recognize my value and attack me?

But it was a futile effort.

The basilisk’s attack succeeded in penetrating the first outer wall made of orc souls, but it lost most of its power and couldn’t pass through the second outer wall, the Red Wall.

“…Focus on one point…”

If it were a normal petrification breath, it wouldn’t have even penetrated the first outer wall.

But the basilisk had concentrated its power, increasing its penetration, and managed to break through the first outer wall.

Soon, the first outer wall was restored, and I spoke calmly, as if nothing had happened.

“I’m fine, so focus on the basilisk.”

I was surprised that it would target me, but I didn’t suffer any significant damage.

But Kyla’s thoughts seemed different.

She glared at the basilisk, which had targeted me directly, and whenever it showed an opening, she dealt deep wounds all over its body.

‘…The leather is just going to get torn apart anyway.’

The armor wasn’t even able to maintain its own shape.

But the beast’s struggle had meaning.

The Draugr I had raised was being slowly destroyed, still attached to it.

Assuming I would lose it anyway, it wasn’t a pity.

‘…Kreios?’

Elite Living Armor, Kreios.

It had succeeded in leaving a large wound on Basilisk’s body.

‘…Hah.’

Through the thread connecting us, I confirmed that when I, the owner, was threatened, it reflexively displayed strong aggression.

Its ego seemed to desperately try to suppress its aggression, but it was of no use.

‘It’s amusing.’

I even laughed.

The one that had once pushed me into despair was now my soldier, struggling to protect me.

After briefly laughing, I focused on strengthening it based on my recovered magic.

‘I’ll give you a boost, but you have to help.’

Thanks to Kaila and Kreios’ efforts, Athena could slowly participate in the battle as well, and even Night 2 joined in, completely draining the beast’s stamina.

The area was in complete chaos, with Orc warriors and the beast’s fatigue.

By that time, the beast’s movements had become completely non-threatening.

——.

The dying cry of the Basilisk.

When the three Elite Living Armors joined the battle, the beast had already become like a sandbag.

After confirming the beast’s death, I released the temporary stronghold.

Annelise had a shocked expression, but after checking the external situation, she shut her mouth.

I led Annelise and joined the group.

“The Orcs…”

“It’s okay.”

Some of them tried to flee, but without a leader, they were in disarray.

In reality, the situation inside the tribe was becoming increasingly chaotic.

They were even fighting each other.

I completely stopped moving.

If the connection with me was severed, it seemed difficult to recover.

I ordered Kaila and the others to rest, and commanded the Undead to destroy the tribe.

Since the Undead had no physical limitations, it wasn’t a big problem.

Although Kreios, who had lost its excessive aggression due to Basilisk’s death, let out a pitiful cry, it obeyed my new command and did not resist.

Following my instructions, the elite Undead were destroying the tribe.

When they left…

“Just in case, I’ll ask.”

Kaila said cautiously.

“Maybe I’ve become an elite living armor, just like the legend says.”

“Has Kereos’ soul been possessed?”

Her words made Anelis’ gaze turn towards me.

“How is that possible?”

“The swordsmanship and movements are similar, don’t you think? Could it be real?”

“That’s right. It seems like Kereos’ memories are still lingering. The other two are just empty shells, but…”

My response made Anelis’ expression crumble.

Junior Member

I knew there was a possibility of understanding.

Artina praised Kayla as a genius, but to be honest, I couldn’t tell the difference between Kayla’s talent and Artina’s talent – both were exceptional.

So, I had expected that it wasn’t just about appearances.

Kayla already knew that I had recovered their souls.

She asked to confirm whether her own eyes were correct.

“Well, it wasn’t entirely Kereos’ technique, I suppose.”

Just like how 1st and 2nd had inherited some of my experiences, Kereos was the same, and since the body itself was different, the combat skills used during their lifetime were subtly different.

However, Anelis didn’t properly confirm their battles, and she didn’t know that I had turned their souls into soul shadows, which seemed to have shocked her greatly.

“It seems she realized that her old comrades didn’t rest in peace even after death.”

Or maybe she was shocked to learn that even if she died, it wouldn’t be the end.

Death, the final choice, couldn’t escape from me.

Meanwhile, my undead minions, led by the original golem, completely annihilated the orc village.

There were no survivors.

After a brief rest, we headed into the village.

Confirmation of the kill was unnecessary. The undead could sense the presence of the living, and pretending to be dead didn’t work from the start.

“Unless you could completely hide your presence, that is.”

There was no way an orc with such skills would be in a place like this.

I confirmed the interior and stumbled upon a dungeon, pretending to be coincidence. Artina, Kayla, and Valdur smiled mysteriously and easily let it slide.

It seemed they thought I already knew about it.

In reality, it was true, and I knew they wouldn’t say anything since they knew I wouldn’t tell them.

The dungeon was created by a magician a long time ago.

Although it was hundreds of years old, the interior still had many traps that remained active, as if the person who built it had been successful.

I turned the surrounding orc corpses into zombies and sent them inside to trigger the traps, removing them with brute force.

The research journal was partially damaged by time, and there didn’t seem to be much useful content, so I thought it was worthless.

“Still, magicians would go crazy for this.”