Awesome Shut-In Necromancer

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“What’s going on?”

“Well, I just put him to sleep for now.”

Song Ha Yeon walked over, dragging her feet and plopped down on the sofa with a weary expression.

At this rate, it seemed we would have to spend the night right here.

As she sighed, Trione, who had been silent until now, approached and directed her gaze toward Helena.

“What on earth are you thinking?”

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t play dumb. It must all be your doing anyway.”

So, Baek Eun Ha, who killed Jackson and established a rivalry with Hades, turns out to be close with Helena? Logically, that couldn’t just be a coincidence.

Trione continued, her expression grim.

“It was all planned from the start. You intend to initiate a full-on war with Hades, starting with Jackson.”

Helena gently smiled as she replied.

“That’s not entirely correct. It was my Master who clashed with Jackson first, not me.”

“Are you asking me to believe that? If you weren’t involved, what reason would that woman have to risk her life against Jackson?”

Surprisingly, it was Song Ha Yeon who answered that question, not Helena.

“Well, her game account got taken down…”

“What do you mean?”

“That guy Jackson deleted my Master’s game account.”

With a look of utter confusion, Trione turned to Song Ha Yeon, who continued.

“After that, she was so furious she said she was going to kill him…”

“…Are you kidding me right now?”

Trione looked bewildered, but what could she do? Song Ha Yeon awkwardly smiled and said.

“You’ve spent some time with us, so you get it, right? You know what kind of person my Master is.”

“…”

Upon hearing that, Trione seemed to ponder for a moment before nodding her head, as if finding it reasonable.

“…That kid is definitely not in her right mind.”

Since she usually sat in front of the computer whenever she had free time, if she was feeling down, she might very well do anything.

“But does she really kill people over a game?”

“That’s hard to argue against, I suppose…”

While they were having this conversation, Helena, sipping her wine, finally spoke up.

Chime.

“That’s the life she’s been living all along.”

“…”

“And it was probably the only way for her over there.”

To put it simply, Baek Eun Ha was a Lord and a Predator. In her mind, acting according to her desires was just the natural order of things.

“Is there really a need to fuss about it now? You’re already an enemy of Hades anyway.”

“…Damn, can’t argue with that.”

With a troubled expression, Trione poured herself another drink as Helena asked.

“By the way, you mentioned there’s a Necromancer from the Returner faction over there. I’d like to hear more about that.”

“…”

“I’m interested in that person.”

And so, the night in London deepened.

#

“Master, do you really not remember anything?”

“Ah, I’ve said it a hundred times, I don’t.”

“It’s fascinating… Is this what they mean by a blackout?”

Having wrapped up all necessary matters, we were prepared to part ways with Helena and return to Korea once more.

Next to me, Song Ha Yeon kept chattering about yesterday’s events, but then she seemed to think of something and spoke with a worried expression.

“Master, I’m just saying this out of caution, but you absolutely mustn’t release the effect anywhere, got it?”

“…I know that.”

As long as I used it wisely, it shouldn’t pose any issues. I waved her off.

In the meantime, I suddenly had a thought and took off the ring I had on and handed it to Song Ha Yeon.

“Hey, you try it too.”

“What? No way.”

“Come on. Just for a second.”

Reluctantly, Song Ha Yeon made a reluctant face and used the ring for about a minute before quickly deactivating it.

“…How was it?”

“Didn’t feel like much? Oh, I think my waist is a little sore…”

As expected.

According to Aila, the demerits appear proportional to the time the ring is used and the benefits gained from it.

In other words, for me, who was already suffering from various mental side effects, those demerits would likely be even greater.

‘Well, it’s all about how you use it.’

The fact that it could send me into a forced state of drunkenness was painful, but there was no helping that. It seemed I would have to use it cautiously.

“We’re almost at the airport.”

As we moved again on the private jet prepared by Helena, a man passed by me at a distance of about two meters.

Then.

Whoosh.

“…”

“Master? What’s wrong?”

In that instant, a faint wave emanated from the Book of Death linked to my soul.

It definitely felt like a Chae Hwa In. But afterward, there was no particular reaction.

‘What was that?’

Pausing for a moment, I dismissed it as my imagination and followed the staff onto the private jet.

Thus, our time in London came to an end.

And.

“Hey, why have you been making that face since earlier?”

“…Onii-chan, has your condition improved a little too much, huh?”

“No, it’s not like that…”

“You went off to have fun with Song Ha Yeon again without me last time. Now you’re even traveling abroad. Do you really like her that much?”

“…”

Somehow feeling the sharp gaze of Seo Ha, who seemed a bit upset, I had to expend every effort to alleviate her mood throughout the day.

#

In any case, with the acquisition of the ring, I was once again able to engage in various activities.

I focused on gaining experience by hunting dungeons with my party members, who had all wrapped up their rest.

Ding.

【Level has increased!】

Now at level 37. The 40s were no longer far away.

“Great job, everyone. Let’s call it a day. Ah, Gwok Min Ji, could you help me organize some materials for a bit? Of course, you’ll be compensated extra.”

“Sure.”

After finishing today’s dungeon expedition, I went home and flopped onto my bed with a sigh.

Thud.

As the spring of the bed creaked, the familiar comfort began to envelop my whole body.

‘…This truly is a long journey.’

Someone might say it sounds like complaining if they heard me. My growth rate so far has been sufficiently fast compared to others, and nothing had really hindered me.

Yet it felt insufficient.

For me, who had already reached much higher levels, this merely felt like trivial progress.

After lying on the bed for a while, I approached Seo Ha, who was in the living room, and casually asked.

“What level are you now?”

“Level? I rose to 61 during the last expedition.”

That was definitely quite substantial.

Before, I would have just thought of it as a high figure, but now, I felt a twinge of respect.

I brushed my flowing hair back and asked Seo Ha.

“With that level, you still can’t get an S Rank?”

“From there, it’s not only determined by level…”

Indeed, unlike the A Rank and below levels assessed by local agencies, I had heard that S Rank could only be recognized after passing evaluations from international organizations.

“Are you thinking of applying for an evaluation?”

“Not yet. I’m perfectly satisfied with my current life.”

I had a hunch, but it seemed Seo Ha wasn’t someone who overly cared about ranks.

Lost in thought, Seo Ha eyed me suspiciously as she asked.

“Onii-chan, you haven’t forgotten our promise, right?”

“…I know, I know.”

That was about the trip we had decided to take together while I was trying to lift her spirits last time.

I lay back on the sofa and recalled the news that had stirred quite a buzz lately.

During Gwok Min Ji’s kidnapping incident, my promotion news was reported simultaneously.

The target of interest was the new Returner who had appeared in Korea.

‘…That is rather intriguing.’

So far, I had personally met two Returners: the lowest-ranking Ha Min from Korea and Brooks, the elderly guard for Aila.

I regretted not having had an actual conversation with Brooks since the circumstances weren’t favorable. That was indeed a missed opportunity.

I decided to ask Seo Ha, who had somewhat established herself in Korea’s Hunter community.

“Have you heard anything about the new Returner?”

“…I do get snippets of news from time to time.”

The recently appeared Returner was rated as an A type, specifically a human who had returned empowered from another realm.

And according to Seo Ha, it was estimated they were around A Rank.

“Well, that’s nothing special, then.”

“Who knows? It’s still uncertain. They might have something different, like you.”

Saying that only made it more fascinating.

“Is there any way to meet them?”

“Well, if they become a Hunter, they might join a guild soon, and maybe then we could have a chance to connect.”

In the end, it was just a matter of waiting to see.

While I buried my face into the sofa and lay there blankly, Seo Ha temporarily stepped away to answer a call from the guild.

When she returned after finishing the call, she had a look of pure coincidence as she spoke to me, who was sprawled out.

“They’re interested in our guild. They’re having a meeting tomorrow, so do you want to come along?”

Without a moment’s hesitation, I nodded my head immediately.