Awesome Shut-In Necromancer

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“Hey, are you okay, oppa?”

“Ugh…”

Thanks to the considerate arrangements from the U.S., the flight itself was pleasant, but not wearing the ring made even moving through the airport exhausting.

But it couldn’t be helped. If I accumulated the side effects early on, it would be difficult to move around once I got to America.

‘…Besides, I’m feeling really off.’

I had only recently found out that the condition of the ring wasn’t so great.

Sometimes it would activate, but I’d experience a temporary aversion, and for some reason, my mood would swing from good to bad.

Was this after my fight with Lee Ji Cheol? Probably because I triggered the seal directly then, the ring couldn’t handle the enormous power and overloaded.

‘That doesn’t mean I can just take it off and fight.’

In the end, I had to conserve the use of the ring and only activate its effects when absolutely necessary.

“I’ve heard the story, but it’s quite something. You, a power like yours, can’t handle such a curse?”

“It’s not a curse or anything, okay? Just stay over there and don’t stick to me.”

Waving my hand to shoo Lee Ji Cheol away, I leaned against Seo Ha to calm my churning stomach as much as I could.

However, when we landed in America and had to leave the airport again, I seriously couldn’t help but consider using the ring.

“…Ugh. Th-there’s too many people.”

“You’re really in bad shape. Is this what happens when you can’t wear the ring?”

After spending a while relying on the power of the ring in my comfortable days, I felt like my resilience had weakened, making the discomfort way worse than usual.

“Welcome! We’ve been waiting for you.”

After barely escaping the airport, we boarded the prepared vehicle and arrived at the hotel that the U.S. had booked for us.

I nearly hit my limit during the process, but the spaciousness of the car helped me endure.

“…My stomach hurts. I feel awful.”

“Lie down on the bed. You won’t have much to do for a while anyway.”

While I was being taken care of by Seo Ha in the hotel, Lee Ji Cheol had gone outside for a brief chat with some members of the association.

“We’ll enter the dungeon in five days. Before that, it seems they’re having a welcome party and will hand over detailed plans two days prior.”

“A welcome party? Is there really time for such a luxury?”

“It’s a bit of a show-off. It’s meant to reassure the citizens and to impress the other countries, after all.”

That made sense. Intrigued, I poked my head out from the bed and asked Lee Ji Cheol.

“Are there, like, a lot of delicious dishes?”

“…I heard the food is supposed to be top-notch.”

Since the attack starts in five days anyway, it wouldn’t hurt to enjoy some pleasures using the ring for a day.

‘I’m kind of curious about what kinds of folks will be there.’

As I was lost in thought on the bed, Seo Ha, with a sour expression, chimed in.

“Oppa, do you have clothes? Surely you’re not planning to walk around in that outfit among the high-ranking hunters of the world, right?”

“…What’s it to you? As long as a hunter can fight well, that’s all that matters.”

“I’ll be embarrassed. There’s no way I’ll let you go out looking like that.”

I shot a resigned glance towards Seo Ha, but her attitude was unwavering.

Finally, with a heavy sigh, Lee Ji Cheol called someone over, and they quickly brought various clothes.

“See, oppa? This looks good, and that does too.”

“…Did she really choose all this?”

Honestly, it annoyed me a bit that they had better taste than I expected. I shot a disapproving look at Lee Ji Cheol.

“Don’t look at me like that. Didn’t I say I have a younger sister?”

“Seriously, do brothers choose clothes for each other like that?”

I certainly didn’t have that kind of memory. Seo Ha, seeing my incredulous face, nodded in understanding.

“I guess it’s true. You’ve always had bad taste.”

“…I can dress up nicely if I want to, you know?”

Anyway, since I did have some decent options available, I picked out something that looked comfortable and got ready.

With that, we headed to the banquet hall where the welcome party was being held, along with our dinner.

#

“Oppa, are you going to be okay?”

“I can just wear the ring.”

The banquet hall was filled with more people than I expected. There seemed to be not only the hunters participating in the mission but also related officials.

And as I anticipated, most of them exuded a considerable amount of power.

‘Almost all of them are A Rank or higher. And over there, an S Rank…’

Even among those nearby, there were plenty who matched Lee Ji Cheol’s strength.

And among them, a few stood out as exceptional, even in comparison to the other S Ranks.

‘So this is the level of top-notch hunters.’

It was tougher than I thought. Most of them would be opponents I couldn’t defeat in this state.

Of course, even if I unleashed only about 40% of my original strength through necromancy, they still would have been considerably weaker than I was before.

As I wrapped up my brief observation, my eyes met with a platinum-haired beauty in one corner of the hall who was tilting her wine glass.

She flashed me a bright smile, but the moment I noticed her gaze, I realized she was not someone to take lightly.

I deliberately ignored her, sticking close to Seo Ha and moving to the food area, which had originally been my goal.

“Oppa, try this too.”

“…I don’t like it; it tastes bad.”

“If you’re so picky, you won’t grow taller.”

Anyway, my body right now wasn’t in a state where what I ate would contribute to growing, so I left Seo Ha, who was pushing colorful salads my way, and headed toward the alcohol corner.

As I was about to grab something I liked, I somehow got interrupted.

“Ha ha ha, hey, kid. You shouldn’t drink, you know.”

Excuse me, who were you to say such things?

“How old are you then?”

“Thirty-three. Did you learn to give such nasty looks to adults in the East?”

“Amateur. I’m over a hundred; so don’t worry about it and step aside.”

I stated my age without a hint of falsehood, yet this idiotic debuff totem failed to comprehend me.

“Wow, what a nasty little brat. You shouldn’t tell such insincere lies.”

Slam.

With my clothes grabbed by the man, I found myself half dangling in the air.

Suppressing my rising anger, I delivered my final warning to the man.

“Let go. Before you die.”

“Tsk. You actually think you can talk to me like that? Do you know who I am?”

“…If you’re still holding me when I count to three, I’ll turn you into mush.”

I’ve said it multiple times, but right now, I’m not half-hearted—I’m reborn as the true Lord of Death.

There was absolutely no reason to bow down or back off to such a pathetic person.

“Cough. You’re quite the bold little brat. Are you participating in the mission as well?”

“…Three.”

Just as my patience was about to snap, Seo Ha, who had approached at some point, slapped the man’s hand away. At the same time, Lee Ji Cheol faced him head-on.

“Stop being a busybody. You might not be over a hundred, but you’re still an adult.”

“Oh, is that so? My apologies, then. I didn’t realize you were with the infamous tyrant from Korea.”

Even though Lee Ji Cheol appeared displeased, the man casually chuckled.

Then suddenly, he started to introduce himself.

“I’m Ivan. I joined this mission upon request from the U.S.”

“The blue lion of Russia, huh.”

“Oh, so you know about me. Do make sure your party stays alert. I don’t particularly care, but there are some vicious ones among the S ranks. If you bump into someone without knowing who they are, it could end very badly for you.”

Hearing that made my annoyance bubble up again and I nearly kicked Ivan’s shin, but Seo Ha stopped that from happening.

After they finished chatting and Ivan turned to leave, Lee Ji Cheol responded with a smirk.

“Well, maybe you should be the one to watch out. This kid here is one of those vicious ones. If he gets riled up, he’ll go straight for the head, no matter who you are.”

At that, Seo Ha, who had been hugging me tight, nodded in agreement.

No, I had actually been quite restrained in my demeanor, hadn’t I?

If it were the old me, with Ivan grabbing the back of my neck, it would already be a funeral affair.

“Interesting. I’ll keep that in mind.”

With a curious glint, Ivan cast me a glance before downing his vodka and smoothly leaving.

Only then could I finally grab the wine I had been targeting and pour it into my glass.

Slosh.

Splash.

“…But, oppa, you haven’t drunk since your body changed, right?”

“Hmm? That’s true.”

In fact, after reaching a certain level over there, I hadn’t been able to get tipsy at all, so I never felt particularly interested in alcohol.

But since it was expensive, shouldn’t I at least try it once?

“That’s labeled over 20 degrees. Are you sure it’s okay?”

“What do you take me for? I could down something that’s 60 degrees and still be fine.”

Honestly, back in my previous life on Earth, I was quite the heavy drinker.

No way this little bit would cause any big trouble for me.

“Still, since your body has changed, it’s better to be a little careful….”

“I’m wearing the ring too. It nullifies all kinds of abnormal states.”

Gulp.

Gulp, gulp.

I ignored Seo Ha’s words and gulped down the wine in my glass.

And exactly ten seconds later.

“See? I told you, there’s no problem….”

With the opulent ceiling that should have been above me fading away from my senses, I completely blacked out.