Necromancer Survival

Chapter 57

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     [My] bones ached and rattled from the first ambush.
[I] did’t know what kind of ripped-up state [my] back was in, but I could feel [my] body slowing down–unable to catch up to [my] racing mind.
[I] had lost so much blood that [my] clothes were starting to stick to [me].

     Furthermore, while Bae Jaemin may be passive at this moment…If he were to properly attack in tandem with the spear-wielder, [I] would be pushed back without fail.

     It was obvious that the more time dragged on, Bae Jaemin would have the upper hand…So, [I] looked at my surroundings to see if [I] could take advantage of the scenery.

     “You’re amazing.
You’re the first, Jung Garam-nim, to withstand for so long after being struck by my spear.” The Warrior recovered his weapon and held it instead of immediately flinging it as he did before.

     Then, he bragged, “This weapon’s name is [Gáe Bulg].
It’s a spear used by Cú Chulainn, a hero of Irish mythology.” He looked at me meaningfully, as if he expected [me] to be surprised at its illustrious name.
1

     Of course, as a ranker, [I] was familiar with the special weapons that inherited the spirits of earthly myths.
Users pridefully live by clenching at supposed ‘rare’ items, but a ‘mythical’ spear used by heroes of legends…No wonder he’s so proud of himself.

     At his superiority complex, [I] spat the blood in [my] mouth at the ground.
“So…What you’re saying is that you’re still floundering with that kind of spear.” [I] didn’t necessarily mean to provoke him, but those were [my] honest thoughts as soon as [I] heard the item’s prolific name.

     If [I] had the [Gáe Bulg], these two would already have burst heads.
Honestly, even Odin’s [Gungnir], in the hands of incompetents, would be no better than feces.

     [I] pointed out that even with a legendary item [I] was successfully stalling for time.
The spear-wielder pretended to laugh, forcing calm into his voice, but [my] words pierced his core.

     He bent his knees, entering a ready stance.
“I apologize, then.
Then try avoiding this!” He muttered “[Listrad]” under his breath.

     Was that a skill? Waiting for a spear to fly over, [I] crouched down and observed him.

      However, contrary to my expectations, nothing particularly great happened.
Instead…the spearman’s forearm doubled.
Like pulling a bowstring, he pulled back and wound his right hand tightly behind his back.

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     As the arm swung, I heard what sounded like the roar of a bullet ripping past.
The spear shot at a terrifying pace, but, because of its straight path, it was easy to dodge.

     …Or at least I thought it was easy…

     “Knnngh!” When [I] returned to my senses, [my] body had already been skewered.
[I] clearly identified the optimal dodge path and moved so that the spear would barely miss…

     Unable to overcome the shock, [I] collapsed onto [my] knees.
The footsteps of the spearman trudged closer.

     “This spear is nicknamed ‘the spear of mortal death.’Once it penetrates the body, the spear point splits, damaging all the organs and tearing them to pieces.” The man gloated.

     “…….”

At the same time, [I] felt a terrible pain, as if [my] stomach lining was being torn layer by layer.
[I] opened my mouth, but no sound came out: [I] had no energy left to scream.
Regardless of [my] will, [my] body convulsed on the ground.

     A rough touch grabbed at [my] head.
“I’ve been missing on purpose.
It’s much easier to hunt if my prey arrogantly assumes that they can avoid my attacks.”

     [I] recalled the strange movements of the spear during [our] bout.
The seemingly straightforward trajectory was slowly recreated within [my] memories.

     [I] gazed over at Bae Jaemin, who seemingly hadn’t moved and opted to monitor the current situation.
Then, [I] realized how despite dodging the spear embedded itself in my stomach.

     Damn it…

” ”

     From the very beginning–as the man fired his spear–Bae Jaemin hid the true trajectory by creating a ‘hallucination’ or an illusory double.
[I] was deceived by that illusion, dodging only the fakes.

     [I] angrily tried to turn [my] head and glare at Bae Jaemin, but [my] body–let alone [my] neck–refused to move.
Too much blood had probably spilled from the wound–red liquid gushing out after the spearman took back his weapon.

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     [My] intuition was not wrong.

     Bae Jaemin had simply exploited that sensitivity.

     “I’ll use Beatrice well.” Bae Jaemin approached and nauseatingly smiled as if he hadn’t noticed my chagrin and gritted teeth.
[My] cooling arms couldn’t resist as he pulled [my] wrist towards him.

      Humiliating.

     [I] wanted to spit in his face, but my mouth was blocked by the fragments of [my] organs bubbling up through the esophagus.
The Warrior bastard also roughly released my head, knowing that [I] had suffered an irreversibly lethal blow.

     With the loss of the Warrior’s support, [my] body fully collapsed.
Only [my] arm remained in the air as Bae Jaemin tugged his prize off [my] wrist.
Beatrice would become de-possessed after its owner died…and [I] had become a corpse just waiting for death.

     “I think they’ve succeeded over there as well…Let’s wrap things up and leave,” the Warrior said.

     “Go ahead.”

     “……Of course.” After the two finished their conversation above [my] slumped head, the spearman left first.

     After the unknown man’s footsteps disappeared into the distance, Bae Jaemin began talking to himself in a low voice.
“Ah, but it’s a little heartbreaking that Olim noona has to die.
If only she was someone that could be persuaded or placated.” His mutters felt a touch bitter.

     Sure, everything was a charade, but is he implying that his affection for Olim noona was genuine?

     Volcanic anger rose up as [I] listened to his abominable whining; [I] had the sudden desire to forget all of the pain and kill him somehow.
Strategies flashed through [my] mind, like a murderous kaleidoscope–it’s true what they say, your mind becomes crystal clear just before death.

     If [I] die and donate my bracelet to this son of a bitch, how would [I] be different from any of the monsters we’ve been defeating so far?

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      However, [I] couldn’t do much to screw him over in this state.
Considering my wounds, [I] probably only had 5 minutes remaining…[I] needed to find a way to take Bae Jaemin down with me in that period of time…

     Luckily as [I] stared at the blue floor–face stuck against the cold tiles–[I] quickly crafted a plan.
In order to execute this plan, [I]  struggled to summon [my] inventory.
The opaque system window, which usually appeared easily at a single call, refused to manifest with strange error noises.

 

          ╔═════ ∘◦ ✾ ◦∘ ══════╗

‘Jung Garam’s’ status is currently ‘in extreme danger.’ Inventory materialization will be difficult.

First aid will not be possible with potions less than ‘elixir’ rank.

Would you like to request permission to use the ‘Emergency Escape Kit?’

Unread messages from ‘Seo Dawon’……

          ╚═════ ∘◦ ❈ ◦∘ ══════╝

 

     The system was probably warning [me] to take care of [my] health first instead of bringing up the inventory……[I] swallowed the ‘shut up’ that threatened to spill out of [my] mouth and focused [my] mind once more.

     Fortunately, when [I] closed [my] eyes and concentrated on the inventory, I called forth [my] desired item in the hand that wasn’t clasped in Bae Jaemin’s grasp.

 

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          ╔═════ ∘◦ ✾ ◦∘ ══════╗

Would you like to use the trap bomb crafted by ‘creator – Choi Kyung-sik–pension priority number 1’? 2

If used close by, you may be caught up in the explosion.
After installing the bomb, please detonate after retreating to a safe distance.

          ╚═════ ∘◦ ❈ ◦∘ ══════╝

 

     Of course, [I] didn’t expect this bomb to kill Bae Jaemin.
He’s a Priest, so he can restore himself if he were to be caught in an explosion.

     However, what would happen if this block were to mess with the blue block–the safe zone?

    [I] attached the bomb to the floor without delay and immediately pressed the [Detonate Immediately] option.
Bae Jaemin’s belated shout alongside the ticking sound entered [my] ears–but soon afterward, all noise disappeared.

 

End playback of the deceased, ‘Jung Garam’s’ memory.

 

 

TN: RIP Jung Garam, you hedgehog.

Thank you to Lewe for the Kofi! I wanted to get out this bonus chapter before I got on the plane and died from motion sickness lmao.
I’m going on a trip back to the childhood home, but, since I have stockpiled chapters, uploads will go out as usual~ Thank you for reading!

Footnotes

Cu Chulainn was born Setanta, but gained the name after his coming under Culann’s service after killing his hound.
Hence the name: Cu chulainn is “Culann’s hound.” The hero was known to be brutal, vicious, and beautiful.
Gae Bolg, his spear, was known as the spear of mortal pain/death or the ‘belly spear.’ I wasn’t sure how best to translate this, but Choi Kyung-sik essentially left a signature on the bomb in a bit of a chuunibyou/eighth grader syndrome way.
It’s a plea for more money, aka retirement funds.