Awesome Shut-In Necromancer

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When I first met Baek Eun Ha, I didn’t realize it, but Joseph actually knew who she was.

“Such a peculiar coincidence…”

A few months ago, Joseph had been tasked by the S Rank Hunter Helena from the United Kingdom to investigate Song Ha Yeon, a rising star from South Korea. It was during that time that he first learned of Baek Eun Ha’s existence.

However, he never imagined that she was actually an internet friend he often played games with during his downtime.

“Good things happen to those who deserve it; the heavens have aided me.”

In the end, Joseph found himself saved from the clutches of Hades thanks to a message accidentally sent. It had been quite a tumultuous journey, but ultimately, things didn’t turn out bad.

But there was a problem. After battling members of Hades, he was caught by the Italian authorities and became the subject of an investigation.

“Isn’t this enough? I feel like I’ve said everything I need to. There’s no point in digging further.”

“I’m sorry, but we can’t do that until we receive orders from higher-ups.”

When I first talked to the investigator, I didn’t have many questions. The scale of the incident was significant, and given the serious situation, I couldn’t complain about the slow processing on their end.

However, it soon became clear that a uninvited guest sent from above had arrived, and he began to exert unnecessary pressure with an aggressive demeanor, making Joseph realize that this was not going to be easily resolved.

“Looks like they’re not planning on letting us go.”

Amidst this, Baek Eun Ha, who was in another location, caused a ruckus, and Joseph followed a man leaving to figure out what was going on.

At the current point where Baek Eun Ha was in a standoff with Parbosa members, Joseph, who was lying in wait, began to activate his abilities quietly.

“Whatever’s going on, I can’t afford to be caught off guard.”

Coincidentally, this situation was almost his specialty.

As Joseph activated his skill to detect the surroundings, he soon picked up a signal from the communicator of the captain at the very back and connected his consciousness there.

“This guy has a separate means of contact. There must be something going on.”

As he infiltrated this consciousness and dug through various records, information related to the current situation began to emerge.

After busily collecting records for a few minutes, Joseph started to grasp how the current situation was unfolding.

“…It seems they’re planning to use this incident as a political tool.”

Currently, two factions were vying for power in Italy.

It seemed that one of these factions was influencing Parbosa’s actions.

“They have two objectives.”

First, to extract information using coercive measures if there is any new intelligence. Second, to keep us here for as long as possible.

There was something else that piqued his interest.

“Are they trying to provoke conflict with Korea?”

Without the ability to find other records, he couldn’t grasp their intent. However, it was clear that whatever happened, it wasn’t a good situation.

Just as Joseph was about to cut the connection, a piece of new information he hadn’t checked caught his eye. Upon confirming it, he ended his skill activation with a grim expression.

“S Rank is coming here?”

It was a shocking statement, but it couldn’t be a joke. In that case, it would be highly troublesome.

The moment the S Rank arrived, everything would inevitably go according to their design.

As Joseph plunged into deep thought, Michele, the head of the Special Operations Department, shouted.

“Calm down! Things are getting too heated. We all know fighting like this won’t benefit either side!”

“Hey, Michele.”

“No matter what orders come from above, I’m the one in charge here. I can’t allow this situation to spiral out of control.”

“Tch.”

Just as it seemed the situation was stabilizing somewhat, if an S Rank arrived, it would obviously revert to its original state.

Because of this, Joseph quickly rushed in between the two with Trione and spoke up.

“No, keep going. We need to get out of here.”

“What?”

“I can’t trust you any longer.”

Given Baek Eun Ha’s capabilities as observed in the fight against Eric, she could easily handle Parbosa and escape.

As Joseph rapidly approached close to Baek Eun Ha, he spoke again.

“Those guys are up to no good. Let’s just clear them out and leave.”

However, Baek Eun Ha, looking displeased with something, suddenly threw the guy she had been holding onto aside.

Boom!

“…You too, are quite insolent.”

“What?”

Seeing Baek Eun Ha’s sudden loss of motivation, Trione, having caught on to the situation, quickly provided support.

“We’ve been trapped here all day. Haven’t we endured enough by now?”

“…I don’t care, it’s annoying. I’m sleepy.”

With that, Baek Eun Ha flopped down on the ground, and Joseph and Trione exchanged flustered glances.

“What’s wrong with her?”

“Uh, it must be a side effect of the new artifact…”

As the Parbosa members, who had paused their actions, began to glance at each other nervously, Joseph quickly brainstormed what to do.

Recalling Baek Eun Ha’s habits, he spoke urgently.

“Hey, when we go back, I’ll play all the games you wanted last time.”

“…Games?”

“Yeah, the ones you always complained about. So let’s get out of here.”

“Even Bolt Action 4?”

“Damn it, why that awful game… Fine, I’ll play them all.”

Upon hearing that, Baek Eun Ha finally got up and started moving.

In the meantime, it seemed she had remembered the head of this place; as she locked eyes with Michele, she delivered an unilateral notice.

“Since I’m leaving, don’t try to stop me.”

The one who reacted to that was not Michele but Pietro, the leader of Parbosa.

“If you try to leave freely, I will execute orders to eliminate you.”

“…Eliminate?”

With a blank expression, Baek Eun Ha repeated the words and then scoffed at Pietro dismissively.

“All those who used such words towards me are dead. Hmph.”

At that moment, a black mist composed of death energy erupted, and from it, someone began to emerge.

Whoosh!

Step.

Step.

Boom.

“Foolish humans do not know their limits.”

With a body made of pure white bones, mostly covered in a black robe, and a staff filled with ominous energy stood Gordon, the Lich.

“…A, Lich?”

With the appearance of another formidable undead, even the Parbosa members found themselves at a loss for words.

Despite being recorded as B Rank in the database, dealing with this was no different than facing an Undead Army.

Even if it were an A Rank Necromancer, it would be impossible.

In the end, emboldened by the overwhelming aura, Baek Eun Ha began to make her way out with Joseph and Trione in tow.

Just then, a door blocking the way upward opened, and someone revealed themselves.

A young man with neatly trimmed blonde hair and a distinctive hood approached.

Seeing him, Pietro, the leader of Parbosa, sneered and spoke.

“Ha, looks like the childish antics are finally over.”

Pietro raised a hand as if to give an order, while Joseph, aware of the situation, remained silent and fixed his expression.

That man was none other than Fabio, the S Rank Hunter from Italy, known as the Butcher.

However, for some reason, Fabio’s face was anything but cheerful.

The reason for this was something anyone could realize without having to wait.

“As expected, it’s a complete mess.”

Accompanying Fabio was none other than Helena, another S Rank Hunter and an influential figure from the large UK guild Calliope.

At that revelation, everyone’s expressions turned to shock, and Helena, approaching gracefully, looked at Pietro and continued speaking.

“It’s been a while. Is this the first time we’ve seen each other since the S Rank dungeon in Piemonte?”

“You, why are you here…?”

“I received a communication. I suppose I’m quite late.”

Her mere presence caused all of Parbosa’s plans to go up in smoke.

Pietro discreetly cast a glance at Fabio, but he too could only read the room, unable to make any decisive moves.

“Uh, sis? We have our reasons for being here…”

“Should I really have to say another word?”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

Though both were S Rank Hunters, there was a clear difference in level between Fabio and Helena. Seeing Fabio being so sidelined, Pietro bit his lip and shouted.

“Even if it’s your orders, this is crossing the line. Can you handle the consequences?”

To that, Helena responded with a full smile.

“When have I ever cared about such things?”

Ultimately, unable to stop those departing, Pietro could only helplessly watch the door close behind them.

Bang!

Pietro struck the wall with his fist, his voice cold as he turned to Fabio.

“…What are we going to do about this?”

“Hey, don’t get so worked up. How was I supposed to know she was going to follow? If you’re so dissatisfied, why don’t you engage that monster yourself?”

Yet even after their planned actions had fallen apart, there was a subtle smile lingering on Fabio’s lips as he turned away.

And ominously, a strange mark on the inside of his wrist glowed with a sinister light.

#

When I regained consciousness, I found my body lying somewhere.

‘……’

Though most of my memories were hazy, I quickly grasped the situation.

For some reason, the effect of the ring had worn off, presumably causing me to succumb to the accumulated side effects and lose consciousness.

‘Wasn’t there supposed to be no time limit…?’

I mean, considering my already special case with how long I had been using the ring, it wasn’t too surprising that unexpected issues arose.

I slowly moved my body and opened my eyes.

To my surprise, Seo Ha was sitting in a chair, watching me.

“Why, why am I here…?”

“……”

Seo Ha said nothing. With her arms crossed, her expression contained a hint of relief and a significant amount of irritation.

“…Are you okay?”

“Uh, yeah. I’m fine.”

“Then explain this.”

She showed me her smartphone screen, which was filled with numerous articles featuring my name.

“[B Rank Hunter Baek Eun Ha of South Korea, sudden actions during incident investigation injure three anonymous Hunters.]”

“[Is there any connection to the Brenner Terror? The Italian Hunter Association continuously demands an explanation.]”

“[Were traces of Baek Eun Ha’s magic detected at the fire site near the Brenner mountains? What’s the truth?]”

I was in disbelief, but upon pressing into the articles, the photos clearly showed me and my undead.

Realizing that something had happened while I was unconscious, I had no choice but to give my last defense cautiously.

“Uh, I don’t remember well because I was drunk…”

It was the miraculous excuse often afforded to criminals.