Awesome Shut-In Necromancer

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‘…Is this truly the power that a mere human can possess?’

The Hunter known as Xavier, one of the Seven Stars, gazed at the presence before him while kneeling on one knee, his strength sapped.

It had only been 10 minutes since the skirmish began.

Yet even in that brief encounter, Xavier sensed a profound defeat.

That being was, as someone had said, not something that could be confronted with human strength.

‘I never thought I would feel such emotions.’

Xavier was also renowned as a Hunter who transcended humanity.

He had reached heights unmatched by anyone else he had awakened with, and the surrounding hunters were always at Xavier’s back.

However, at this moment, he felt their emotions keenly.

The being before him was far too immense.

With Xavier’s power, he could not reach it.

“Is there one named Baek Eun Ha among you?”

“…No, my lord. It seems she is hiding elsewhere and planning her next move.”

“Then that’s fine. A foe of that caliber would hardly pique my interest.”

Gideon, unscathed, was accompanied by three Undead.

The Dragon Ascalon, the Knight of Heaven, Luspa, and the Blaze Beast Berkulachio.

Xavier could not penetrate any of them. His only limit was to stall for time in a one-on-one.

‘…If there’s any hope left.’

Henesia and Astrid. They were his only chance.

In fact, Astrid had been gaining an upper hand against Luspa, and even Gideon occasionally cast a glance at her sharp attacks.

Thus, he had to provide her with an opportunity to confront Gideon.

That was the last strategy Xavier could pursue.

“…Hey, can you hold Hel Heimbel in place?”

At Xavier’s mention of Helena’s alias, a calm voice replied.

“I can completely suppress him. It seems he’s now my subordinate. However…”

There was only one chance. Hence, careful choices must be made. Helena looked at Xavier with intent.

“Alright. Then I’ll ask you to do it in exactly 20 seconds.”

Currently, Xavier had just over 40% of his mana left, but that was sufficient to unleash maximum firepower for a brief moment.

He secretly signaled Yesiel, who was healing his wounds from the back.

It was a synchronizing signal to summon ‘Sanctuary.’

‘…Three, two, one. Now.’

Riding on Xavier’s command, everyone who still had strength moved to do their part.

The massive serpent and Banshee Queen summoned by Helena immobilized Heimbel’s Undead, and a tempest of vengeful spirits began swirling around the startled Heimbel.

Simultaneously, Beatrice gathered her remaining strength to unleash a powerful psychic energy.

“Psychic Rush!”

The targets were the three Undead guarding Gideon.

Fueled by Beatrice’s sacrifice, which caused blood to flow from her nose and ears, they were lifted into the air and sent crashing to one location.

Waiting there were none other than Xavier and Yesiel.

“From now on, I will proclaim the Sanctuary.”

Whoosh.

Swoosh─!

With the explosive light cast by Yesiel’s fervent prayer, the interior of the dungeon was filled with blinding radiance.

As the luminous space formed targeting the three Undead, Xavier raised his mana explosively and spoke.

“Five minutes. No more than that.”

At those words, Astrid nodded. She also knew well that she was the only one able to confront Gideon now.

Thus, it was time to use her final means.

“…Henesia, I’m going to use the power of the hero.”

“Understood. I’ll assist.”

A secretive power passed down only to a select few of the royal lineage from her native Selene.

Astrid had been able to manifest it since she was very young, but after reaching a certain level, she had hesitated to use it.

She realized the source of that power was inherently not good for someone of human status.

‘But, I have to use it.’

Otherwise, she couldn’t possibly handle the monstrosity before her. So without hesitation, Astrid drew the holy sword Ulferia.

“The light of radiance.”

Astrid’s mana began to envelop her in a brilliant light, soon leading to an explosive surge in power.

‘The duration won’t be long.’

Thus she would stake everything in this moment.

That was the last move chosen by everyone in the party.

Boom─!

Astrid slammed her foot into the ground, and shockwaves of unknown origin began to race from the dungeon walls.

Moving at such a rapid pace that it simply broke down the walls with just a landing.

Crack!

Boom!

Crack!

Feeling the gap that finally formed, Astrid unleashed a perfectly refined strike.

A technique that had first garnered awe from her teacher, Baek Eun Ha.

It was a strike of absolute severance, aligning the pure trajectory of her sword and mana perfectly, cleaving everything in her path.

Swish!

Creak──!

Gideon, perhaps sensing the urgency, swiftly summoned another Undead, but it was shredded as soon as it manifested, caught in the strike.

And the strike did not stop, hitting Gideon beyond.

‘…I got him.’

She could distinctly feel the taste of the hit.

This was the most perfect strike she had ever executed.

Astrid quickly created distance, keeping her guard up as she stared at Gideon’s severed body.

At that moment, Heimbel, tightly bound by Helena’s giant snake, shouted in shock.

“My lord!”

Even Heimbel, who was well aware of Gideon’s strength, could not believe that the warrior had met such a critical blow.

In the midst of everyone’s focused gaze, Xavier hurriedly warned.

Though Gideon appeared as if he were lifeless, his Undead continued attacking unharmed.

“Deliver the final blow! He’s still alive!”

At that, Astrid slammed the ground again, and Henesia likewise supported her with various spells.

However, that was where they stopped.

“…I must apologize for my mistake.”

Whoosh.

Crackle!

Astrid’s strike was nullified by hands of darkness surging from the ground a moment sooner.

Seeing that sight, Astrid and Henesia stiffened.

It was none other than Baek Eun Ha’s technique.

Ignoring their shock, Gideon shifted his gaze calmly to everyone present and began to speak.

“You truly are warriors. Though you have only just awakened, it is indeed embarrassing to have made this poor judgment.”

In an oddly mismatched tone, Gideon praised them before he suddenly unleashed a chilling aura from his body, softly declaring.

“From now on, would it be acceptable to receive you with proper respect?”

“……”

“After witnessing the end once, it will be time for you to accept your fate without reservation.”

To put it bluntly, he meant to kill them all and turn them into his Undead.

Yet even hearing such an audacious declaration at such close range, no one dared to voice a rebuttal.

Because everyone could feel with their entire beings that it was no mere jest.

“…It’s truly frightening. Are such beings about to emerge into the world?”

The one who spoke was Xavier, but everyone present nodded in agreement in their hearts.

Hades’ ambition was not for naught.

Before them stood Gideon, who might truly consume the world single-handedly.

Still, the party did not give up. For they still had their last hope sleeping beyond the dungeon.

Yet shortly after, as if to shatter that hope entirely, Gideon’s indifferent voice echoed.

“Rise, Colossus Kubarna.”

As those words left his lips, the endlessly lofty ceiling of the dungeon was veiled, and darkness fell around them.

#

“…Ugh, damn, it’s noisy for real.”

Within the inner world, where I was precariously balancing the boundaries between body and soul, I raised my weary body and gazed at Seo Min Ah’s corpse lying beside me.

‘Well, that makes sense.’

While struggling to keep my corporeal form, I felt someone outside attempting to help me through high-level necromancy.

Most likely, the one conducting the consciousness would be Helena, and Seo Min Ah served as the offering.

“Even if you do that, nobody will recognize it. Your lot always does it that way.”

There were a few oracles possessing powers similar to Seo Min Ah’s in Thebes.

But their fates were mostly similar.

As the appointed time came, they simply conformed to their destiny, passing their wishes to some future individual.

“But I don’t really like that.”

Whoosh.

Swoosh.

As my outstretched hand gave rise to a certain amount of Death Energy, it flowed directly into Seo Min Ah’s corpse.

The power I currently felt within me was only about a quarter of my prime.

Yet, I understood. All the restraints that had been holding me down were gone, and my power was currently increasing exponentially at this very moment.

“Was it roughly like this.”

Enjoying the refreshing sensation after a long time, I waved my hand a few times, and as if an invisible hand existed, Seo Min Ah’s corpse levitated into the air.

Finally waking, she looked around in surprise, gazing at her own body.

“What is this, how…?”

“I just returned what was received. I didn’t turn you into an Undead, so don’t get any absurd ideas.”

I realized then that I no longer felt the effects of the frustrating dimensional travel incident.

Leaving Seo Min Ah, who could hardly gather her wits, behind, I began walking toward the origin of the intense vibrations, muttering lightly.

“What the hell. This is more manageable than I thought.”

Recalling the necromancy Gideon had displayed just moments ago and the structure behind it.