The Necromancer Who Was Despised - The Necromancer Who Was Despised chapter 190
“Then, are we okay? With our skills…”
“No need to cause a commotion and catch the empire’s eye. The tension has been rising lately, and giving them an excuse would be troublesome.”
Especially if they knew about me… there was a high possibility they would try to kill me, no matter what.
Currently, the empire was more wary of the 6-kingdom union than the interspecies union, and especially since Spethra Kingdom, which had played a huge role in the revival of the great earth temple, was a close ally, they would try to kill me at all costs.
Of course, it was unlikely they knew about our current strength, so we wouldn’t be in immediate danger…
“If we get caught, it could be really dangerous.”
Athena and Kyle nodded in agreement, and we slowly explored the neutral zone.
“Yeriya, right?”
“Yeriya Rieieiya. She’s someone the dark elves are looking for.”
“You managed to find her first.”
“Actually, I knew her location from before. I just didn’t want to tell you.”
“It seems possible…”
I felt puzzled by Athena’s words and asked.
“Why did you think I might have known?”
“Well, you knew about the dark mage’s dungeon, so I thought it was possible.”
It seemed she had based her thoughts on the dark mage’s dungeon I had cleared before.
It was just a suspicion, but it hit the mark.
Even on our way to Yeriya’s dungeon, we encountered monsters and criminal groups, but we couldn’t avoid Kyle’s hands this time either.
However, there was one time we managed to escape, and that was when we encountered the empire’s scouting party.
We hid our sacred power, but we couldn’t evade the detection of Kyle and me, so we quietly moved away.
We didn’t encounter the interspecies union’s scouting party.
It seemed the empire’s scouting party was more active in this area, and we managed to avoid them.
It had been some time since the neutral zone was established, so I thought there must be some unspoken rules by now.
As soon as I arrived at the entrance of the dungeon, I pulled out an artifact.
“That thing…”
Once a relic of the Earth Mother Church, the Embrace of the Mother.
Now, it was completely corrupted, stained black.
Golden magical circles I had inscribed shone here and there, making it look like just an exquisite robe at a glance.
I donned the robe I had taken out.
“I had completely forgotten about it. That thing, that’s it, right? The relic.”
“Yes.”
“You used the Grail of Plenty just fine, but why not this?”
“It hasn’t been long since I completed it.”
I could tell that the Embrace of the Mother, like the Grail of Plenty when I first corrupted it, had its function completely perverted.
Originally, it was meant to block external attacks and keep the wearer in optimal condition, but somehow it had been altered to cast strange curses on those attacked by the wearer.
Among the interpreted curses was one particularly odd one that prevented it from being removed once worn…
At the time, it was too difficult to lift the curse, so I just left it be.
After reaching class 7, I modified this troublesome artifact.
I lifted the altered curse and partially restored its original function.
In truth, I had no need for a curse that retaliated when attacked.
If I were directly attacked, it essentially meant defeat.
As a piece of armor, it was a function I didn’t care for, though it might be different for revenge.
Unfortunately, it was difficult to completely reverse it, and so the defensive function was almost lost.
Fortunately, I was able to preserve the function that kept the wearer in optimal condition and the self-repair feature, and I added one more spell to it.
The identity of these golden magical circles was precisely the result of the modification.
The added spell was concealment.
Specifically, the ability to hide my energy as much as possible.
Seeing how those who recognized my realm or especially dragons immediately recognized my worth, I felt the need to prepare.
I had been considering it for quite some time, so there was no hesitation in my decision.
Since it was once a relic, the material was excellent, and thanks to my high realm, the effect was tremendous. Now, if I’m determined, even dragons can’t see through me.
Of course, I have to consider the current state of dragons, but still, the excellence of the artifact cannot be denied.
‘I’m going to meet the Devil’s contractor.’
I didn’t want to show myself without any preparation.
“It seems not only the color but also the shape has changed a bit? It’s better than I thought.”
I had to adjust it to fit my body, but it turned out not bad.
“How is it, Kaila?”
“It suits you well.”
“No, not that. My energy.”
“Hmm…”
After examining me for a moment, Kaila spoke as if slightly surprised.
“Indeed, I can tell you’re a dark mage, but that’s all. The mana flowing from the robe itself seems to veil your energy like a curtain.”
Indeed, since mana is the basis and it uses my own mana, it was impossible to hide the fact that I was a dark mage.
“What’s this kind of thing?”
“I don’t really know. It seems strong, but it also looks incredibly weak… It’s just that I can’t grasp it, so I can’t say it’s weak… Ah, I think it’s an artifact’s function…”
I asked Artina the same thing, and she gave me a similar response.
I felt a considerable sense of satisfaction from their uncertain expressions.
I even tested it on Dragon, but that too disappeared cleanly.
“It’s enough if the Demon King doesn’t see it directly.”
This was sufficient.
“Then… let’s go.”
I took out the undead knight squad led by Entein and ordered them to open the entrance.
“I’ll follow.”
He immediately touched the place I told him to, and a purple smoke began to spread around us.
I reacted as if I had been waiting, sealing the smoke.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a curse. If you touch it, you’ll faint.”
It was the same curse I had experienced last time.
If I touched this, Yeria would know that there was an intruder.
But it didn’t matter.
With our level of power, even if Yeria knew, she couldn’t stop us.
The undead knight squad marched in through the open entrance.
***
Clang, clank.
The broken skeleton knight recovered, receiving my magic.
“…and it’s disgusting, really.”
It was already the tenth time it had regenerated.
I knew most of the internal traps.
Still, it wasn’t safe.
My old mentor’s specialty was curses, and they had taught me about various systems, including their own expertise and other systems they were familiar with.
Besides the purple smoke that had triggered the sleep curse, there were countless other curses set up everywhere, including weakness, blindness, silence, slow, hallucinations, and illusions. And there were also traps connected to the necro-toxin that would be released, as well as the sudden appearance of a chimera with a different pattern that would pierce the intruder’s weaknesses, all designed to stop and kill intruders.
“If I had come alone, I would have run away.”
“Then you would have tried to capture me.”
“How did you know about these many traps in advance?”
“I investigated, and I saw some things. I’m a mage, after all.”
It wasn’t a complete lie.
As a mage, I had an advantage over warriors when it came to understanding dungeons and a mage’s psychology.
However, there was a limit to that.
Traps were naturally hidden, and physical traps were more in the realm of thieves than mages.
If I hadn’t remembered the previous experience, I would have also run away.
“Or I would have consumed the undead to advance.”
In reality, the skeleton knights had recovered over ten times because there were cases where I couldn’t handle the traps or pierce the weaknesses.
It might be better to destroy the dungeon from the outside. There was a preparation for that, but it was a problem.
“You’re a mage. That’s right.”
Just then, someone’s voice rang out.
“That’s impressive, too. How did you manage to get here in one piece?”
At the sudden voice, Kayla and Ateena drew their swords, while the undead knights, including Entin, formed a protective circle around me.
It was a defensive formation centered around me, indicating their intent to protect me at all costs.
“You’re a bit late. I expected you to arrive much sooner.”
The woman’s voice echoed, but she still didn’t reveal her appearance, so I looked in the direction of the sound and spoke.
“Hmm? Were you planning to call me out?”
“Yes.”
“You know me. This is the first time we’ve met, but… did you send someone from the Riieyia family? No, that can’t be. Even if a lot of time has passed, the family wouldn’t send a human as a messenger.”
Even if I wore a robe, it wasn’t like they couldn’t tell I was human. It was just a matter of hiding my energy and confusing the information, not changing my appearance or hiding it.
“We’re looking for Lady Yeriya from the Riieyia family.”
“Hmm. Do you have a connection to the family?”
“There were various incidents. Especially, Lady Untinia wants to meet you.”
“Untinia…”
As soon as Untinia’s name was mentioned, Yeriya finally revealed herself.
She had a tall stature, long ears, and long black hair that reached her waist.
Maybe it was because my height had increased slightly since the last cycle. In the past, we were almost the same height, but now she was shorter than me.
However, that was because I had changed, and Yeriya remained unchanged from the past.
After all, she was a dark elf.
It would have been even stranger if she had changed, given that we met much earlier than expected.
“It’s nice to meet you for the ‘first’ time, Lady Yeriya. My name is Do-inha.”
After briefly introducing myself, I continued.
“I’ve come to recruit you.”
At my words, Yeriya let out a dry laugh, as if she found it ridiculous.
◈ Old Master
“You want to recruit me?”
“Yes.”
“That’s absurd. I won’t say you or your companions aren’t qualified, but at the same time, it’s hard to believe you’re thinking this.”
Yeriya raised one corner of her mouth and spoke.
“Why am I in this dangerous place? I have my own goals, too.”
“I have a rough idea.”
“You know?”
“The revival of the dark elves, isn’t it?”
“Hmm. It seems you’ve heard a lot of stories since meeting Untinia.”
“I also suspect you’re trying to reclaim the dark magic that the dark elves abandoned.”
“…….”
“However, making a contract with the demon race isn’t a good choice.”
“It seems you know a lot, but please refrain from speaking carelessly. I’m not a fool, either.”
“Rebuilding the Catacombs is more difficult than making a contract with the demon race in terms of magic supply, but there are other ways to obtain magic.”
The existing Catacomb was naturally formed over a long period of time, so it had considerable power. Originally, it was difficult to exert such power.
“There is. But it’s not the best.”
“The contract with the demon race is too risky.”
“That’s up to the demon race, isn’t it?”
“Is it not a normal demon contract, then? Is it with the Demon King?”
My confident gaze didn’t waver.
“It’s amazing. You know so much about me, even though we just met today. It’s strange, even considering you met Untinia. Hmm… Are you also a contractor with the Demon King?”
“A human who belittles the contract with the demon race wouldn’t make a contract with the Demon King.”
From noble mtl dot com
“I wouldn’t know. The black magician, who’s also a human, is notorious for being half-crazy. Your hidden aura is suspicious, and it’s a perfect condition to doubt.”
It seemed like Rob was getting annoyed.
But I didn’t think of backing down.
“It’s still amazing, though. You seem quite young, but how did you reach this level without a contract with the demon race?”
I didn’t answer. Instead, I made another proposal.
“I’ll make sure to revive the Dark Elves and help them reclaim their black magic. Cancel your contract with the Demon King and join our side.”
“This is ridiculous, but it sounds about right.”
Yeriyah asked, looking genuinely curious.