Chapter 3
【Ha. I am not mocking you.】
Sir Isra awkwardly twisted his cheek. With half-melted skin wriggling, it looked even more grotesque.
【There were necromancers on the Enras Continent as well. However, with mana at your level, none could repair undead so precisely. 】
“There were,” huh.
Past tense.
【I exterminated them.】
“Ah.”
I see.
So I just made a subordinate out of someone who wiped necromancers off the face of another world.
A chill ran down my neck.
【Hahaha. Do not worry. 】
“You are staring at my neck pretty intensely.”
【It was by His Majesty’s command. There was no personal grudge. You may rest easy.】
Sir Isra raised the bone he was holding high.
The tip seemed to point at me.
Probably my imagination.
Whoosh!
The bone sliced through the air and stopped right above my head.
A beat later—
“Eek!”
A scream slipped out.
【As you can see, by my own will I cannot harm you.】
“Why not just explain that instead of doing this?!”
【I believed a demonstration would be clearer. 】
Seriously.
I almost died from shock.
This kind of action scene is too harsh for someone as uncoordinated as me.
【It seems the inheritance has not been passed down yet.】
“Inheritance?”
[Sir Isra’s talent has been applied to the user.]
[The skill ‘Heavenly Martial Body’ has been registered.]
The system message rang in my ears.
Just as I tried to check it—
“Gaaaaah!”
An overwhelming pain surged through my entire body.
My vision turned white.
Strength left my legs.
“Mr. Park! Hey, Mr. Pa—!”
I cannot really hear you.
The voices of the day labor hunters faded.
And I lost consciousness.
***
The thing that dragged my submerged consciousness back up—
“Ugh!”
—was pain.
If I had been ground into minced meat, it would probably feel like this.
I opened my eyes.
【You are awake at last.】
The first thing I saw was the half-melted orc face.
That nearly stopped my heart.
From a distance, the day labor hunters called out.
“Hey, Mr. Park. You alright?”
“More or less. Why are you all standing so far away?”
“It is because of your zombie.”
“Him? I mean—Sir Isra?”
“Whenever we try to help you up, he growls.”
He does not bite, though.
I glanced at Sir Isra.
【Protecting one’s lord is a knight’s duty.】
“Lord?”
【Do not misunderstand. I have not acknowledged you as my lord.】
“Then why protect me?”
【Like it or not, I am bound to you. Fulfilling my duty is the knight’s way. 】
So in the end, you admit you are my subordinate.
You just say it in a roundabout way.
“That thing earlier. Me fainting. That was because of you, right?”
【Sir Isra】
“Fine. Sir Isra. What did you do? My whole body still hurts.”
【Your constitution has changed. 】
“Oh, right. The status window said something.”
【Check it.】
[Heavenly Martial Body]
Category: Martial Arts
Rank: SSS
Type: Passive
A vessel for martial arts granted by the heavens. You can learn all warrior-type and body-related skills.
- Martial-type skill proficiency gain increased by 300%.
- Upon leveling up, bonus stats are additionally applied to close-combat-related attributes.
“Whoa.”
My words stopped.
I blinked several times.
It was the same.
Bonus stats are applied to related attributes?
In simple terms—
Level-up stats are effectively doubled.
My heart pounded.
You might ask, what does a mage need melee stats for?
That is thinking too narrowly.
Even mages invest in agility for reaction speed.
And in strength to meet equipment requirements.
You cannot dump every bonus point into mana.
On top of that—
My class is Necromancer plus Blacksmith.
Processing corpses requires physical strength.
This is pure profit!
【The true value of the Heavenly Martial Body lies elsewhere. 】
“Something better than stat boosts?”
【Haha. I will show you.】
Sir Isra swung the bone.
Whoosh!
“Huh?”
Something felt different.
A strange discomfort caught my eye.
What is this feeling?
Like seeing someone wearing a padded winter jacket with shorts.
【Do you understand now?】
“The swordsmanship is unbalanced.”
【Now that you share my talent, you can see it.】
That is why he complained about balance earlier.
Orc Zombie Mk. 42 was overloaded with defense and muscle to compensate for my poor control.
I modified it without considering the center of gravity.
Strong at grabbing.
Poor at precision.
“So this is Heavenly Martial Body.”
Sharing Sir Isra’s talent changed my perception.
When I took a step.
When I moved my arm.
I could clearly feel each strand of muscle.
After just a few steps, my eyes watered.
【Do not overdo it. Adaptation takes time.】
Sir Isra grabbed my shoulder.
“After that pain, I still need time?”
【Your coordination is catastrophically bad. 】
…Please stop hitting me with facts.
“Let us run an experiment.”
【On what?】
“Undead control.”
Inside the carrier was another undead.
About one-third of Sir Isra’s size.
Smaller than a kobold.
A goblin-based zombie.
【Its combat ability seems lacking. 】
“It is an emergency unit.”
A mini zombie enchanted with a ten-million-won Fireball scroll.
Built as a suicide bomber if things went wrong.
Though I froze when the time came.
[Corpse Creation]
“Uuuugh.”
The goblin zombie stood up.
Swallowing my tension, I gave a command.
“Dance.”
“Uuuugh.”
It danced.
The exact dance I pictured.
Despite rigor mortis, it moved smoothly.
Like a student performing at a talent show.
“My god.”
I cannot believe it.
My undead is moving smoothly.
Heavenly Martial Body is incredible!
【Hard to watch.】
Do not ruin my moment.
“Sir Isra. Can I ask you something?”
【As long as it does not violate knightly honor. 】
“Teach me your swordsmanship.”
【You are magic-type. Why learn swordsmanship? 】
“To strengthen my undead.”
Undead created through Corpse Creation sync with my combat sense.
A mage training in swordsmanship sounds strange.
But it is worth it.
【It will benefit you as well.】
“Why me?”
【Training with the sword deepens understanding. Your frail body will grow stronger. 】
Right.
Understanding an undead with an otherworldly soul increases stats.
【With Heavenly Martial Body, you will learn quickly. 】
“If I put in the effort?”
【Indeed. You understand well.】
He does not sugarcoat anything.
Then I wondered.
I forced him into servitude without consent.
Technically, undead cannot defy me.
Still—
There is a difference between willing loyalty and forced obedience.
Why does he proactively help?
When I stared at him, he twisted his cheek.
【You enslaved me without consent. Why expect devotion? 】
“That is not what I meant.”
After I explained, he was silent briefly.
“If you do not want to say, it is fine.”
【It is not that. I needed time to sort my emotions.】
He spoke slowly.
【I failed in my knightly duty.】
“Duty?”
【I could not protect the lord to whom I pledged loyalty.】
“Did you not say you were the strongest knight?”
【Haha. I thought you did not believe me. Surprising.】
I did not.
But after seeing that SSS skill.
If he holds an SSS skill.
The strongest knight does not seem impossible.
【My wish is to fulfill the duty I failed in life.】
“So when you mentioned lord earlier—”
【Though not by choice, I now serve you. I will fulfill my duty.】
So he does not like it.
But he will treat me as a substitute.
That explains his attitude.
Well.
He gave me an SSS skill.
He can be a little prickly.
“Mr. Park! Come settle payment!”
“Coming!”
【We are returning?】
“Once I get paid, yes.”
【Good. We can correct the imbalance.】
“Oh. Before that.”
I placed my hand on his chest.
【W-What are you doing?!】
“Just a moment.”
【Touching a knight’s body without warning. Shameless!】
[Corpse Creation]
Slash!
Arms and legs separated.
His torso dropped with a thud.
【What are you doing?!】
“I cannot use public transportation like that.”
【So you dismantle me?!】
“Rest for a bit.”
I placed the limbs neatly into the carrier.
Then the body.
【I will not forget this—】
“Yeah, yeah. We will talk later.”
With his limbs detached, his voice faded.
Otherworldly soul. Inherited skill.
A lot happened.
But first, get paid.
Upgrades cost money.
“Mr. Park! Hurry!”
“Coming!”
I swear.
This is not to humble him because his neck was stiff.
No personal feelings at all.
***
[6,000,000 won has been deposited.]
[MW Bank – Balance: 7,210,470 won]
“That is too much.”
“Well, Hunter Park saved the students.”
The academy staff rubbed his hands nervously.
In short, hazard pay.
An E-rank gate usually pays about 300,000 won.
This was nearly a month’s income at once.
“Hunter Park. Please remember our Military Academy.”
He handed me a business card.
Unbelievable.
Someone gave me a business card.
After meeting an otherworldly soul.
After unlocking Corpse Creation’s true value.
The treatment changed immediately.
Calm down.
You have not achieved anything yet.
“Yes. I will remember.”
I accepted it.
Whether they call again is another matter.
Dragging two carriers.
I boarded the subway.
After two transfers, I finally arrived at my small rented room in Amsa-dong.
