Necromancer Survival

Chapter 443

‘S-So cool…'

Before my very eyes stood the very embodiment of the necromancer fantasy I had once vaguely romanticized and imagined.

This stunning black arm; this absolutely cool black blade that burned; this chilling fog–like the mist that rises off of dry ice–spreading out with a blue glow…Furthermore, its rippling, ghostly body… I could hardly believe that this being before me was the same skeletal baby that was in my arms just a minute ago.

‘Of course, I love Lackey's baby form too! But…'

As I watched, weepy-eyed, the [Death Knight] Lackey kneeling before me, I couldn't control the overwhelming emotions rolling over my heart and pressed my hands to my chest.

‘So dope…!'

Dawon gripped my shoulders firmly, as if telling me to calm down, even as my breath quickened and excitement surged through me. However, nothing could stop my heart from leaping.

Lackey remained bowed before me for a moment before slowly rising to its feet.

[Shhhhhahhh….]

[I answer my Master's call.]

Even its usual rattling and clacking had transformed into an eerie, whispering breath of air that echoed from within its helmet. I felt a bit like a parent who had just witnessed the brilliant growth of their child; I wiped the tears that gathered at the corners of my eyes. "…You're the best. Totally cool."

"……" Dawon, after seeing that I was completely entranced, no longer tried to stop me.

Looking back, I almost felt guilty for hesitating when I first realized the core belonged to Moon Issak—because this had been exactly what Lackey needed.

‘What would have happened if I hadn't fed it to Lackey…'

Furthermore, I almost fainted when I saw Lackey's status window.

[Lackey — ‘Choi Lee-kyung-nim's' Servant.

Grade: Top-grade Skeleton

HP― 10,000,000/10,000,000

MP― 2,500,000/2,500,000

Loyalty: Very High

Attributes: Darkness, Evil, Loyalty, Obsession

Current Mood: ‘…Nothing can break the loyalty I have to my master.’

Durability: Infinite (If damage exceeds HP, the unit will not be destroyed but instead be forcibly unsummoned into user ‘Choi Lee-kyung’s' extradimensional space and suffer reverse summoning damage. Resummon cooldown: 24 hours 00 minutes.)

Stats:

Strength: +388,000

Magic: +57,000

Endurance: +446,222

Agility: +115,332

Physical Critical Damage: 773%

Physical Max Damage: 715%

Physical Min Damage: 321%

Physical Critical Rate: 40%

Curse Resistance: 31%

Monster Defense Penetration: 0.02%

Monster Magic Resistance Penetration: 1.22%

Curse-type Skill Additional Damage: +332%

Skills:

–Ghost Rider Summon: Summons a phantom steed, granting immense movement speed and enabling devastating spear techniques that decimate enemy formations.

–Undead Bite: Even a single graze will inflict a wound that even living opponents cannot heal.

–The Eye: Detects and locates enemies within a 1km radius.

–Death Blink: Attacks from non-holy enemies are ineffective, and creates a field where movement within a 3m radius within non-holy fields becomes erratic and unpredictable.

"D-Do you see this? Dawon-ah? It's my Lackey! Lackey!"

"…That's great."

"Right? Isn't it amazing? Absolutely incredible, right?"

Even when I saw Dawon's sour face, I still couldn't help but jump in joy and rejoice.

It felt like all the times I had sighed in secret while checking Lackey's status window had finally been rewarded. The overwhelming joy and exhilaration that filled my heart were just as intense as when I had first summoned Dawon.

Dawon seemed a bit disappointed, but he merely sighed after I, grinning widely, continued to read and pour over Lackey's status repeatedly. It wasn’t a sigh of disapproval, but more of an admittal of defeat—accepting the inevitable. "Haah… Lackey has quite the good specs for a Death Knight. I didn't expect it to form four skills."

"Yeah? I mean, Yeah! I knew that would be the case! Of course my Lackey wouldn't become a mediocre Death Knight!"

"…Yeah. Must be great."

[Shhaaaahhhh….]

[Thank you, Master.]

I wanted to hug it tightly because I was so satisfied with its answer, but its waist was now so thick that it would seem as if I'm clinging to the skeleton rather than hugging it—which wouldn’t be very dignified for a Master. So, I held back.

But, I couldn't close my wide open mouth. Dawon closed my mouth for me and sighed as if to say ‘you just can't be helped.’

Then, he asked, "Why don't we have a mock battle to test it out."

"A mock battle?"

"At this level, Lackey should be able to match Kim Sangyoon, who’s now capable of wielding a portion of his Succession Weapon’s power.”

"Ah…!" As I thought over those words, I turned to look at Lackey. It bowed its head gracefully, as if it would follow my every command. Even its disciplined posture was so impressive that I couldn't help but grin again, completely disregarding my composure.

However, I remembered what Sangyoon-ssi said to me, so I replied to Dawon, "But, will Sangyoon-ssi be okay? He said that there are side-effects to using that power."

I remembered how he lied–how he said the only consequence was his graying hair. I worried that asking him for a battle would become a burden.

But, Dawon answered indifferently, "That only happens when he overexerts himself beyond his limits. If he uses it moderately, he'll be fine. Back then, his opponent was Bae Jaemin.”

"I see…"

It was only after hearing this that I informed Sangyoon-ssi that Lackey had evolved into a [Death Knight]; I messaged him to ask if we could try and measure the [Death Knight]’s current strength.

Sangyoon-ssi replied that he was more than willing to help. Thus, that evening, Lackey and Sangyoon-ssi faced each other in an empty backyard near the hospital.

Snap–!

Of course, even though the place was empty, they didn’t immediately draw their weapons and start fighting. Dawon snapped his fingers, creating a barrier, and, for a moment, my ears felt like they were plugged. The space around us had been separated from the outside world by the Mage's barrier.

"Kim Sangyoon, I have high expectations for you."

"…I-I'll do my best!"

Afterwards, Dawon said something incomprehensible and tapped Sangyoon on the shoulder. But, Sangyoon-ssi became stiff and paled considerably.

I was a little worried about Lackey, who was still in its baby skeleton form, because Dawon and Sangyoon-ssi were sure to have undergone some special training. After all, it's only been a few hours since Lackey has become a [Death Knight].

‘Will Lackey do well…?'

Of course, I had grown fond of Sangyoon-ssi since he'd become a member of our team, but, as Lackey's master, my desire to cheer for Lackey was stronger. I clenched my fists tightly as I gave my commands to the skeleton the moment Sangyoon-ssi drew his [Berserker].

"Lackey, switch to [Death Knight] mode!"

[Clack Clack!]

Boom–!

And, just like that, Lackey’s marvelous [Death Knight] form appeared.

The peanut gallery, who had occupied seats around this vacant lot, all changed their expressions upon seeing Lackey's new form.

"Oho…"

"This… How rare."

"…Very cool."

"This might actually be worth watching?"

Their reactions made me puff up my chest in pride as I looked at Lackey with a triumphant grin. It almost felt like… I had become a Pokémon trainer.

‘Show them all, Lackey!'

“Haaah!”

However, despite the charged atmosphere, Sangyoon-ssi rushed in first. His eyes had already turned crimson, and he moved so fast that my naked eye couldn’t even track his incoming movements properly.

The only way I could tell where he was going was by the footprints he left in the damp soil—the ground was still soft from yesterday’s rain. But the distance between each footstep was absurd. There was no way a human could leap that far just with raw strength.

Boom–!

Even though its new body was now massive, Lackey was pushed back by Sangyoon's raw power. When Lackey had before seemed like a towering, armored figure, the skeleton now looked almost slender in comparison…especially since Sangyoon had grown even larger in his [Berserker] mode.

When I saw that Lackey found it difficult to hold its ground, I clenched my fists even tighter in frustration and pity.

‘No…!'

—-

TL: Lackey would be a Ghost/Dark type pokemon. And I guess Lee-kyung would have to be a Ghost-Type Trainer.

Eunji's a Fairy-type–meta, strong, and fabulous af.

Also, Dawon's so so jealous these days and it's hilarious.