novelraw Chapter 40
Chapter 40
Ch.40 Surrender! Spare Us!
I head toward the place Pipi told me about.
It’s already quite late, so all I can see is darkness.
—Goo… Goo!
The moment I move toward Pipi’s cry—
—Whiiing!
A bone-chilling gust of wind slices across my face.
“Ugh… it’s way too cold.”
“Just hang in there a little longer.”
Pipi said it wasn’t far, so I’d assumed we’d arrive soon.
But an unexpected blizzard slowed us down in rescuing Hatchling.
Damn it… how much farther do we have to go?
I trudge endlessly through the snowfield blanketed in deep darkness.
After walking who knows how long, I spot a faint light and say to Leah:
“Leah, over there.”
I gesture with my chin toward the light, and Leah nods.
“Phew… finally made it. I just want to get rid of these scum quickly and rest.”
I silently agree and scan the enemy’s camp.
Two large central tents surrounded by dozens of smaller ones.
The natives must be inside those big tents—
It’d be too troublesome to manage so many slaves otherwise, so that’s probably right.
Part of me wants to blast them all away with Leah’s magic,
but I hesitate—Hatchling or the natives might get caught in the crossfire.
No overly powerful spells. Better to use something with moderate force.
Among the enemies, Vallien seems to be the key figure.
While planning my next move in my head, I gesture silently for Leah to stay quiet, gripping ‘Equality’ in one hand and Levi’s Dagger in the other.
Six sentries.
I aim ‘Equality’ at one of them and pull the trigger.
—Taang!
At the loud gunshot, the soldiers start panicking.
—Wha… what was that?!
—What’s that sound?!
As the sentry hit by ‘Equality’ collapses, I cast Corpse Explosion using Levi’s Dagger.
—Pung!
Instantly, the corpse swells up and bursts apart.
Bones and armor fragments scatter in every direction.
The other sentries, struck by the razor-sharp shrapnel, don’t even manage a final scream—just collapse, drenched in blood.
“Master?”
Leah calls out to me in a trembling voice, but I silently draw a short line in the air with my dagger.
Immediately, the blood-soaked sentries rise from the ground.
Good. Now I can finish this quickly.
—Didn’t you hear that loud noise just now?
—Sounded like a huge explosion!
—Hey! Jefferson! Is everything alright over there?
Soon, several men approach the undead sentries with confused expressions.
—We heard a massive bang… Huh?! Are you guys okay?! What the hell’s going on?!
I give the undead my order:
Kill everyone except Hatchling and the natives.
At my command—
—Krrrgh… Krrgh…
The undead, weapons in hand, begin attacking the soldiers.
—Aaah!
—Help me!
—What the hell’s wrong with you guys?!
But unarmed as they are, they stand no chance against armed sentries.
Each man who falls is promptly turned into another undead and sent back into battle.
“Master! Snap out of it! What on earth are you doing?!”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
Leah glares at me, eyes blazing with fury.
“Master, how can you turn the dead into undead?! That’s forbidden necromancy!”
I reassure her with a calm look and wave Levi’s Dagger.
“Oh, that’s just the power of this artifact.”
Levi’s Dagger—a concept item specifically designed for playing as a Necromancer.
“The power of an artifact?”
“Yeah.”
Leah stares blankly at the slaughter unfolding before her.
A soldier thrusts his spear at an undead, but the blow barely fazes the already-dead creature, which retaliates and kills him instantly.
—Aaagh! These guys are insane!
—Where are the mages?!
As chaos and confusion grow—
—Kwaang!
The ground shakes violently as if struck by an earthquake, and a massive fireball erupts into the dark sky.
So the mages are finally getting involved?
I haven’t killed enough of them yet.
Once the mages start casting, their firepower will surely obliterate my undead.
“Master. No matter how evil they are, it’s wrong to desecrate the dead.”
Leah glares at me, her anger making my voice tremble slightly.
“I… I guess?”
“Yes. So please cancel the spell. I’ll handle the rest.”
Seeing the look in her eyes—like she’ll burn me alive if I refuse—
I cancel the magic. Leah then slowly walks toward the enemy tents.
Will she be alright? Vallien’s still out there…
Even though Leah is strong, she’s unfamiliar with New Continent magic.
Plus, in the new DLC ‘Dragon War,’ the level cap has been lifted.
Leah may have defeated the Demon King, but since arriving here, she hasn’t gained much experience—something that worries me.
‘Dragon War’ is far harder than the main story, after all.
Should I let Leah fight Vallien?
Logically, someone who defeated the Demon King should easily beat Vallien,
but that would make the game too easy.
So the developers set the levels of ‘Dragon War’ villains and mobs much higher than those on the Old Continent.
If I estimate Leah’s current level in-game, it’s around 40.
Vallien in ‘Dragon War’ is around level 60—so if this were the game, she’d stand no chance.
If things look dangerous, I’ll just step in myself.
With that thought, I follow Leah calmly.
—Hwarrrk!
Leah begins setting the surrounding tents ablaze.
The soldiers react immediately.
“It’s a mage!”
Soldiers wielding long spears and clubs surround Leah—
—but she pulls a staff from midair and lightly waves it up and down as she chants:
“Fire Arrow.”
Hundreds of fire arrows fly toward the soldiers.
“Aaagh!”
“It’s burning!”
The soldiers frantically roll in the snow to extinguish their flaming bodies.
“You witch!”
Leah smiles faintly at the soldiers now desperately raising their weapons against her.
“What’s that, you maggots?”
With a few swift swings of her staff, three fireballs fly toward the soldiers—
—but are instantly blocked by a faint blue barrier.
—Kwaang!
A massive explosion sends a spray of water outward, and the residual heat from the unextinguished fireballs slaps my face.
Vallien?
As the smoke slowly clears, a man wearing a monocle stands there, holding a long staff in both hands.
Vallien frowns and speaks.
“Who are you?”
Leah looks amused that he blocked her spell.
“Oh? You blocked that? Fire Storm!”
While the two exchange attacks—the soldiers begin eyeing me warily, leveling their spears.
“D… don’t move!”
At that moment—
Using Levi’s Dagger to create undead would be convenient, but Leah would scold me later if she found out.
Better not use the dagger if I can help it.
I coat my body in holy magic, then aim ‘Equality’ at the nearest soldier.
“I’d prefer an easy death—how about surrendering?”
I try to sound as friendly as possible, but their eyes only sharpen further—so I pull the trigger.
—Bang!
As if the gunshot were a signal, a soldier thrusts his spear at me.
I slash his spear shaft with Levi’s Dagger and shoot him in the head with ‘Equality.’
In that split second, surrounding soldiers swing their weapons.
I duck, roll forward, and fire ‘Equality’ at the nearby enemies.
—Bang! Bang!
Taking them down one by one, I break through their encirclement and unleash a barrage of shots toward new targets.
“Ugh!”
“Khk!”
In the midst of it, I block a soldier’s sword strike with my dagger, press ‘Equality’ under his chin, and pull the trigger.
—Bang!
—Bang!
Just as I start to relax after clearing the enemies—
—Clank! Clank!
Dozens of armored soldiers and mounted cavalry slowly surround me, their armor clattering loudly.
“Our opponent is strong! Stay sharp, everyone!”
Faced with an endless stream of soldiers, I’m at a loss.
Even though it only takes a flick of my finger, this relentless wave will eventually wear me down.
“Haha…”
With a troubled expression, I glance at the soldiers, then crouch down and stab my dagger into the ground.
“Dark Fog!”
Instantly, black mist swirls rapidly from the dagger, enveloping the area.
“What the hell is this?!”
“I can’t see a thing!”
Dark Fog is a spell that blinds and disorients enemies, robbing them of their sense of direction.
It’s stronger than regular fog—but shunned as necromancer magic.
Its greatest advantage? The caster remains unaffected by the mist.
Meaning I can see the enemies perfectly.
Thus, I begin sniping the confused foes from a distance.
—Bang! Bang! Bang!
Gunfire and screams echo without pause.
“Where are you?! Where are you hiding?!”
“Damn it! Hold formation and raise your shields!”
Terrified, the enemies desperately huddle together—but their flimsy shields can’t stop ‘Equality.’
—Wind!
Someone uses magic to blow away the Dark Fog.
Revealed within are dozens of corpses and soldiers trembling in fear.
“Our enemy’s a necromancer! Everyone, stay alert!”
Seeing the robed men, I can’t help but look incredulous.
“If I were a necromancer, wouldn’t I have attacked you with those corpses?”
But my words only enrage the soldiers further.
“You vile fiend!”
“Burn in hell, you monster!”
They speak as if I’m a demon risen from hell—which is so absurd I can’t help but laugh.
“What are you even talking about? Slave traders?”
These are the very people who sell fellow humans into slavery—
destroying hardworking families just to profit in slave markets.
And yet they call me a demon?
That’s just laughable.
“Seriously, you’ve got to be kidding me.”
I quickly aim ‘Equality’ at the mages and fire.
—Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Ugh!”
“Hah!”
“Khak!”
As the mages collapse, ‘Equality’ begins trembling in my hand.
Ah? Could it be…?
Concept artifacts unlock new abilities once certain achievements are met.
For ‘Equality,’ completing the achievement ‘Equality to 100!’ grants…
Eager to check, I open the cylinder.
Of the six chambers that should hold bullets, three now glow faintly.
White and black were there from the start—so the newly unlocked ability must be the orange glow.
“Perfect timing—just what I needed right now.”
I carefully rotate the cylinder so the orange bullet aligns with the barrel and reload.
“Ev… everyone! Raise your shields high!”
Only about ten soldiers remain alive.
At this point, one shot—no, maybe two—should finish them off.
I pull the trigger.
—Bang!
“Ugh!”
“Khk!”
With a thunderous report, most of the enemies behind their shields collapse limply.
“Whoa… this is seriously broken!”
Shotgun rounds.
The projectile spreads like a shotgun blast.
‘Equality’ had a poor rate of fire against groups, making close combat awkward—but switching to shotgun rounds lets me take down multiple foes at once.
The trade-off is shorter range, but still—
Concept items really are overpowered.
While I’m marveling at it, the few soldiers untouched by the blast drop their weapons and shout:
“We surrender! Spare us! We surrender!”
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