Chapter 33: The Undead City (1)
TL: Hanguk
'Level up at least 5 levels by the time I get back today. If you feel like you're going to die, run away.'
Fatty, who was left alone on Wolgwang Island, moved according to his master’s orders to hunt monsters.
His target? Orcs, the same species as him.
The reason was simple.
On Wolgwang Island, where there were no beginner monsters like Slimes, Goblins, or Kobolds, Orcs were the easiest prey to deal with.
Fatty hid near the Orc’s territory and checked his equipment.
In his right hand was the Wolf Sword (+1 Strength) that Seo Baek-ho once frequently used, and in his left hand, a round shield (no options) that he got from the gambling machine when trying to draw a magic potion.
“Kkuik (I can do this).”
Although both pieces of equipment had poor options, they were still great weapons compared to the stone axes the Orcs wielded.
After all, it was like comparing the Stone Age to the Iron Age.
Moreover, while regular Orcs were Level 7, Fatty had reached Level 10 just by following his master around.
Fatty was confident that he wouldn't easily lose to those dumb Orcs.
After all, he was different from them, who had no will of their own.
“Kueeeek (Here I go)!”
With that, Fatty charged fearlessly at the Orcs.
However, there were six Orcs in the area.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
Fatty managed to take down two, but the remaining four ganged up on him.
“Kwek! Kwek (H-help)!”
In this unexpected situation, his master’s words flashed through his mind like a montage.
“If you think you're going to die, run.”
So, Fatty bolted.
He ran with all his might, using his short legs to reach the safe zone, and sighed in relief when he saw the Orcs unable to follow him into the area.
[You have exceeded the 30-minute free daily usage time for the safe zone.]
[For every additional 10 minutes, 1 coin will be deducted.]
[Target confirmed as a tamed pet. Usage fees are discounted by 50%, and the cost will be deducted from the master.]
Fatty noticed the complicated text that appeared in front of him but ignored it, focusing instead on healing his injuries within the safe zone.
After about 30 minutes, he confirmed that all his injuries had naturally healed, and cautiously stepped out of the safe zone.
Through his first fight, Fatty had learned a lot.
Charging in without a plan was no different from those Orcs.
So, he had to come up with a way to effectively deal with the Orcs.
Naturally, the source of his ideas was his master, Seo Baek-ho.
'The only thing that matters in a fight is winning.'
Despite his natural talent for combat, Seo Baek-ho sometimes used his head, and wasn’t afraid to resort to dirty tricks. Fatty was well aware of this.
[Intelligence of the Orc 'Fatty' has increased.]
Following his master's example, Fatty collected a lot of discarded fishing nets from the beach.
He chose a place to fight and laid the old nets in front of it, preparing for battle.
Then, he threw a stone to lure the Orcs.
-Crash bang!
The Orcs stumbled into the nets, preventing them from easily surrounding Fatty.
Thanks to this, Fatty was able to deal with the Orcs much more easily than before.
[You have defeated an Orc.]
[You have defeated an Orc.]
[You have defeated an Orc.]
Fatty was working quite diligently, even when his master wasn't watching.
“Kkuieeeek (I am Fatty)!”
***
Hongseong, which had been taken over by the Undead, was an area I had to pass through to reach the Gyeryong base.
Hongseong was a very peculiar place.
Just getting close to it inflicted a debuff, lowering my stats, and staying there for too long would poison me. It was the worst kind of field.
To maintain my abilities and avoid getting poisoned in Hongseong, I had to rest periodically in safe zones or drink recovery potions.
The survival difficulty was several times higher than in other regions, making it a place most people avoided.
Despite this, I had a reason for coming here.
“Heal!”
[The healing skill neutralizes the aura of death, restoring your lowered abilities.]
It was because I had the ultimate trump card in my hands—a Priest.
“Thank you. Willia-nim, make sure to use Heal on yourself too.”
"I'm fine. I wasn't affected by the debuff at all."
“Oh? Really?”
“Yes!”
Hearing Willia’s words, I realized that besides what the Priest job revealed—it also came with various special hidden effects.
-Groooaaargh!
“Ah, it's a zombie. Perfect timing. Could you use Heal on that zombie?”
“Got it. Heal!”
[Willia has defeated a zombie and gained 200 experience points.]
- You have acquired 55 coins.
As expected, Willia, being a Priest, had Heal, a skill that was incredibly effective as an attack spell against Undead Monsters.
The zombie that had been charging at us with full force crumbled to the ground, shattering into pieces after being hit by Willia’s Heal.
It was dead in a single strike.
“One shot, huh?”
“Y-yeah, seems like it.”
A zombie that gives 200 experience points is on the same level as a Low-rank Succubus or a Lizardman.
Normally, when people think of zombies, they imagine slow-moving, easy targets. But the zombies in this place had running as their default ability.
Moreover, they wouldn’t dodge or block incoming attacks; instead, they would charge straight ahead while getting hit, which made them quite terrifying.
On top of that, if you got scratched or bitten by a zombie, you’d get infected with Corpse Poison, which causes excruciating pain and rots your body. So, they were definitely not monsters to be taken lightly.
Yet, when the zombies faced Willia, they crumbled as easily as a candle in the wind.
Poof.
I swept the remains of the zombie, which had turned to a pile of ash, with my foot. The ash soon transformed into a blue light and disappeared.
‘This is amazing.’
A grin involuntarily spread across my face.
Like most fantasy settings, Heal, imbued with the power of life, is the ultimate counter to the Undead. However, the effect is even more dramatic than I had imagined.
“We really came to the right place.”
“You look like a villain with that smile.”
“Oh, come on, I’m just that excited. I wonder how much experience and rewards we can rake in from this place.”
Perhaps due to the harsh environment, the monsters here offer more generous rewards relative to their strength.
Just by looking at the coins we’ve obtained, we’re getting about 20% more than from Lizardmen or Low-rank Succubi, which give the same 200 experience points.
To put it simply:
‘This place is a honey hunting ground.’
Moreover, Hongseong was a field that had a system similar to that of a Dungeon...
“Let’s move further inside.”
"Okay!"
As we approached the heart of Hongju Fortress (Hongseong County Office), where the dark clouds hung the thickest, the level of the monsters steadily increased.
It was just like in a dungeon where the difficulty rises as you climb the floors.
“Woof-woof, make sure you protect Willia-nim’s rear, okay?"
-Awoo!
And so, we continued toward the core of the Undead City.
***
Everyone has a plan.
But having a plan doesn’t guarantee it will lead to the outcome you want.
To guide a plan to success, you need the right amount of ability and luck.
“Haha... well, this is... something.”
But sometimes, you get results that surpass your expectations.
Just like now.
[You have defeated a Skeleton and gained 500 experience points.]
[You have defeated a Skeleton and gained 500 experience points.]
[You have defeated a Skeleton and gained 500 experience points.]
- You have acquired 160 coins.
- You have acquired 154 coins.
- You have acquired 159 coins.
- You have acquired Bone Dust imbued with Magic.
- You have acquired Bone Dust imbued with Magic.
- You have acquired 1 Intermediate Healing Potion.
- You have acquired a Dagger of Decaying Bone.
[Dagger of Decaying Bone / Throwing Weapon / Premium Grade]
- A dagger coated in Decay Poison.
- When thrown, it has improved accuracy and high penetration power.
I was overwhelmed by the experience points, coins, and items that kept pouring in.
Whenever Willia used Heal, a intermediate healing skill with the Light attribute, the Skeletons developed cracks all over their bodies and their movements slowed down. This allowed me to easily approach them and crush their skulls with ease.
Thanks to that, our hunting speed was unrivaled, and the Level 25 Skeletons, which were on par with the Black-toothed Tiger, felt as weak as Orcs.
‘Priests are definitely a cheat code against the Undead.’
I had already fought the Skeletons alone before to test their base combat strength.
I wanted to know how strong they were.
As a result, even though I was able to defeat them without much difficulty in a 1:1 fight, the hunting speed wasn't what you'd call a massacre.
The Skeletons could recover from most damage almost instantly like Trolls, moved unpredictably, and possessed fast swordsmanship, making them dangerous foes you couldn't afford to underestimate.
When two of them gathered, the fight became intense. If there were three, I had to use skills like Sword Aura, Mighty Slash, Stepping Stone, and Leap.
However, when Willia cast Heal, it didn’t matter if there were five Skeletons or ten—none of them stood a chance.
Thanks to that, it didn’t take long for me to reach Level 35 after entering the Skeleton zone, and the experience kept increasing at a rapid pace.
At this rate, it seemed likely I would level up at least three more times today.
“I haven’t experienced leveling up this fast since I passed Level 20…”
"Even though I'm taking half of the experience?"
“Haha, yes.”
By the way, the leveling system for pets and NPC companions is quite different.
While pets grow according to battle experience without touching my experience points and rewards, like a 'skill', NPC companions like Willia need to earn experience points to level up, just like ordinary people.
However, there’s something unique about this system.
Since she’s bound to me, I have to directly allocate experience points to her.
Like this:
[Companion: Willia]
- Allocate Experience (Enter the amount in increments of at least 100.)
It feels like a strict master-servant relationship.
Even though Willia is contributing more than I am, if I don’t allocate her any experience, she won’t be able to grow at all.
Of course, I’m not the type of scumbag who would hog all the experience and neglect my companions, so I always distribute it fairly.
[Would you like to give 10,000 experience points to your companion Willia?]
‘Yes.’
Thanks to that, while I reached Level 35, she also achieved Level 35.
But at the same time, I couldn’t shake off an odd feeling.
It was as if this peculiar system existed to test me for some reason.
‘Come to think of it, ever since I became companions with Willia, the favorability indicator above her head disappeared.’
It’s just a theory, but I don’t think the favorability indicator itself is completely gone just because I can’t see it anymore.
Otherwise, there would’ve been no point in creating the concept of "100% favorability" in the first place.
Maybe things like experience distribution are part of a system meant to influence the favorability level later on?
If I selfishly hoard all the experience, will the companion bond I’ve worked so hard to establish break?
“What are you thinking about?”
"Ah, nothing."
I snapped out of my thoughts when Willia suddenly jabbed me playfully in the side.
She already seemed human to begin with, but ever since becoming my companion, she’s seemed even more human.
She jokes around more now too.
I figure that as long as I treat her well and don’t discriminate against her just because she’s an NPC, there won’t be any problems.
“Do you think we can head further inside?”
Willia nodded at my question.
We’d stayed in the Skeleton zone for a while because the rewards were so good, but now it seemed like we were strong enough to handle the center of Hongju Fortress.
***
Hongseong had become a city of death, overrun by the Undead.
However, that didn’t mean there were no survivors.
To the south of Hongju Fortress, where the dark clouds were thickest, were three universities. These universities had become the refuge for the survivors of Hongseong.
This area was one of the few places in Hongseong where no debuffs or poison effects occurred, making it one of the few normal zones in the region.
“As you know, that dungeon has attack mechanic. It means you can't come out of the dungeon unless you subjugate the boss within a set time or until time runs out. Do you still think it's good to challenge it?"
In this survivor camp, there was a specialized hunting team, made up mostly of university students.
This wasn’t a team forced into hunting by someone’s coercion to earn coins, but a group of people who were trying to adapt to the changes in the world on their own terms.
“We should try it. Young-hee's team came back safely, didn’t they? According to her, the dungeon is in a mine-like area, filled with collectible rare metals and treasure chests. If we all go together, we can explore it safely.”
“Exactly, and the terrain inside suits our combat style perfectly. Even though it’s a mine, the ceilings are pretty high, so we can block the path with shields and just stab away with spears.”
Currently, specialized hunting teams like this one were appearing all over the country, and some of these teams boasted higher levels than the elite units trained by the government and military.
The hunting team formed by the students from the three universities in Hongseong was also at a high level.
All 20 members of the team were over Level 10, and they had purchased weapons from the safe zone shops, meaning their equipment was of excellent quality.
“Are you sure the only monsters in there are zombies?”
“Yeah, that’s what they say. And even if we run into something dangerous deeper inside, we can just retreat. We’ve got 20 people, so what’s there to worry about?”
Their hunting strategy was modeled after the Phalanx.
They used large shields to block in the front while attacking with spears from behind.
Additionally, to prevent the sides and rear from being exposed, some members carried one-handed swords for extra protection.
This team had trained meticulously to fight as one cohesive unit, and in recent battles, they had almost no injuries.
Naturally, they were confident about challenging the dungeon as well.
“Kyung-soo, let’s go for it. This is a critical opportunity for us to advance to the next level.”
Eventually, after persistent persuasion from his teammates, the leader of the hunting team nodded.
“Alright, let’s do it.”
Even though he acted like he was reluctantly agreeing, the leader had already made up his mind.
The only reason he had hesitated was to avoid appearing too eager as the leader.
And so, the three-university alliance hunting team of Hongseong began their dungeon exploration.
***
"Heal!"
The Level 35 Dullahan flinched as Willia's Heal hit it.
Not missing the chance, I brought down my sword, deflecting Dullahan’s incoming sword while inwardly shouting.
‘Mighty Slash!’
At the same time, my Zerka’s Sword struck the Dullahan’s sword.
-Kwang!
With a loud explosion, the sword, which was imbued with blood-red sword aura, flew out of the Dullahan’s hand and slammed into the ground.
"What's a swordsman without a sword? That’s just a punching bag! You bastard!”
With a fierce grin, I imbued my sword with sword aura and mercilessly slashed at the Dullahan.
[3 against 1, how cowardly...]
“Cowardly? There’s no such thing as cowardice in a fight for your life. If you die, it's all over."
Before long, the Dullahan, clad in pitch-black armor, fell to the ground.
[You have defeated the named monster Dullahan Kite and gained 18,000 experience points.]
[You have leveled up.]
[As you leveled up, all 'injuries' and 'abnormal statuses' have been recovered.]
[You have received rewards for defeating the named monster Dullahan Kite.]
- You have acquired 6,552 coins.
- You have acquired 2 Advanced Healing Potions.
- You have acquired the Skill Book: Swift Thrust.
[Swift Thrust / Advanced Skill Book / Active]
- A thrusting attack that condenses sword aura into a piercing strike.
- Effective range: 3 meters.
- Mana consumption: 3
“Ooooh!”
At the heart of Hongju Fortress, the named monster Dullahan Kite stood guard.
Unlike other undead monsters, this one didn’t crumble immediately after getting hit by Willia’s Heal, though it clearly wasn’t unaffected. It allowed several openings in its defense.
Despite the fierce battle, Willia and I emerged victorious, and I couldn’t help but admire the rewards the named monster Dullahan Kite dropped.
“It would’ve been nice if it dropped its sword too.”
I was hoping for an extra line in the reward message, but having a new attack skill was satisfying enough.
[You have learned the skill Swift Thrust.]
I immediately learned the skill.
Then, my gaze shifted toward something in the distance.
[Your Exploration skill has discovered a dungeon.]
In a secluded corner where the walls of Hongju Fortress intersected, I spotted the entrance to a dungeon.
*****
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