Chapter 1
“The goblins are closing in!”
“What are you doing? Block them! Tanks, get up front! Hold the formation!”
“Ah, yes! Got it, party leader!”
“Hey! That’s not your position! Get your head in the game! Do you want to die by my hand before the monsters even get you?”
“Uh, no! That’s not it!”
Rough shouts and the monsters’ screeches rang in my ears.
Up ahead, hunters in obviously cheap gear were moving clumsily.
A shabby dungeon, and the textbook example of low-level hunters.
“Sigh.”
A faint sigh slipped from my lips as I watched.
I repeated it to myself several times.
It was boring—so boring I thought I might lose my mind.
What was I even doing here?
“Um, Necromancer?”
“Oh, yes?”
Someone called out to me.
When I turned, it was the same party leader who’d been yelling at everyone since earlier.
“As promised, you need to give us a hand. Can you do that?”
“Of course. I’m here as a mercenary.”
It wasn’t difficult.
This dungeon might have been terrifying for the rookies struggling up ahead.
But this was just an E-rank dungeon.
In front of the noble among nobles, King God General Necromancer, it was nothing but a firefly before a full moon, a flock of sheep before a lion.
‘Not that I’m a real Necromancer or anything…’
But that’s a story for later.
For now, I lifted my staff, which I’d been fiddling with.
‘I should at least do the work I’m paid for.’
A tingling sensation swept through me as my energy drained.
[Skill, ‘Ordinary Skeleton Summon’ (E-rank) is used.]
[10 Energy is consumed.]
[‘Bones1’ has appeared.]
[Skill, ‘Ordinary Skeleton Summon’ (E-rank) is used.]
[10 Energy is consumed.]
[‘Bones2’ has appeared.]
[Skill, ‘Ordinary Skeleton Summon’ (E-rank) is used.]
[10 Energy is consumed.]
[‘Bones3’ has appeared.]
Creak, clatter!
With a cloud of black mist, horrifying joint noises echoed out.
Three terrifying skeletons, armed with weapons, appeared in the dungeon.
Both the charging goblins and the trembling hunters froze in their tracks at their intimidating aura.
Their eyes went wide.
“O-oh?”
“Wow, it’s a Necromancer!”
“That’s the class considered the best power these days, right? If you awaken, you’re guaranteed to be a ranker, and all the top guilds will line up for you…”
“Ah, as expected of the party leader. No wonder you seemed so calm… You really had a reason? When did you recruit someone so valuable?”
The hunters, who’d just been on edge, now cheered.
This is the prestige of the unique power—「Necromancer」.
A diamond spoon profession that lets you live through these hellish times in style.
Less than 1,000 people out of 7.9 billion have this rare job.
‘But.’
I shook my head.
‘I’m just a defective Necromancer.’
Kerk, kerk!
Ahead, ten green-skinned monsters flinched.
Their main weapons: daggers.
Short, dwarf-like statures.
All right, let’s take care of those first.
“Kill them, my lovely skeletons.”
Clatter!
At my simple command, the sturdy skeleton trio charged forward.
Undead.
They don’t die, so they have no fear of death.
So when they ran in and swung their weapons, they didn’t hesitate.
[‘Green Goblin’ eliminated.]
[‘Green Goblin’ eliminated.]
[‘Green Goblin’ eliminated.]
…
Slash! Slice!
The goblins were slaughtered in an instant by the relentless skeletons.
Splat!
Blood and green skin mixed together and rolled across the floor.
The hunters were amazed.
“Man, I’m jealous.”
“That’s the skeleton, the most basic summon for Necromancers, right? But why only skeletons?”
“Why else? For an E-rank dungeon, skeletons alone are more than enough.”
“True, huh? Damn… I’m jealous. So jealous I could puke. Seriously, that guy just summons undead and lets them take care of everything.”
For reference.
There’s a simple reason they’re jealous.
Unique powers aren’t something you get through effort—they’re innate.
About ten years ago,
All humans started receiving unique powers at age twenty, when they became adults.
What kind of power? That’s random.
Some got Blacksmith or Tailor-related powers.
Others got support powers like Explorer, Healer, or Buffer.
And then,
Some people got trash abilities so bad you couldn’t help but cry for them.
What was the worst one I ever saw?
‘Shit Eater, maybe?’
Pretty sure it was a power that made you stronger every time you ate poop. (T/N: WTF. HHAHAHAHA.)
Ugh, I just got chills. That’s enough about that.
Anyway.
Having your abilities determined by luck, it’s only natural to feel deprived.
‘Whoever or whatever did this…’
Thanks to that transcendent being, humanity has managed to survive against monstrous invasions.
We’re still alive, at least.
Or maybe those monsters are just another of that being’s pranks.
Kirrk!
Before long, ten goblins were reduced to lumps of meat.
“Wow.”
“That was insane… You cleared them in less than two minutes?”
“Man, if only I’d gotten a ranged power like Mage or Summoner, I wouldn’t be struggling like this now.”
“Right? Do you think those guys even know what it’s like to look a monster in the eyes, breathing the same air?”
I let out a hollow laugh.
‘Relax. Don’t be so jealous.’
It might sound ungrateful to them now,
But if they knew my situation, they’d probably look at me with pity.
Why am I like this, you ask?
‘Status window.’
Flash!
When I called for it in my head, a holographic display appeared before my eyes.
Visible only to me—a readout of my stats.
[Hunter: Joo Donghoon]
[Title: X]
[Energy: 70/100]
[Unique Power: Cursed Necromancer]
[Rank: E]
[Effects]
* You are a Necromancer, a class that controls dead souls. You can use deadly spirits and poisons to overwhelm your foes. However, you are cursed.
* You can only summon skeletons.
[Skills Owned]
* ‘Ordinary Skeleton Summon’ (E-rank)
‘What a load of crap.’
No matter how many times I looked at it, all I could do was curse.
When you think of a Necromancer,
You imagine things like Liches, Dullahans, Death Knights—big, intimidating summons.
But,
* You can only summon skeletons.
That’s all I get—skeletons.
They’re decent in E-rank dungeons.
But in D-rank and above, skeletons aren’t even worth picking up off the ground.
“……”
In some ways, my life was even worse than those rookies over there.
At least they have room to grow.
It’s already been three years since I got my power.
And I still haven’t moved up from E-rank dungeons.
My peers, who awakened at the same time, have climbed to D and C ranks.
“……”
So.
If I had to sum up this mess in a single sentence—
This life really is doomed.
—
“Team leader. I’m done for today. Heading out now.”
I was part of a small mercenary guild.
I said goodbye to Kim Junsu, the head of the dungeon request team.
Whoosh!
A cold breeze brushed my face.
“Haa…”
A sigh escaped my lips, as bitter as cigarette smoke.
The day’s pay, after fees and taxes, would be deposited at the end of the month.
With my strictly limited power, E-rank dungeon requests were all I could take.
Still, I had to eat.
“Damn it… This world.”
No matter how I thought about it, I just felt empty.
What did I do to deserve this?
Did some transcendent being curse me on purpose?
“Buddha, Jesus, God… or whatever you are, unknown being. If you’re going to give me a power, just give me a hopelessly trash one so I don’t even get my hopes up. What is this? What the hell is this?”
Damn it, giving me false hope like this.
“Yeah, it would’ve been better if I’d gotten a production skill or something.”
A weird combat power like this is the worst. Support or production jobs would be better.
At least then, I could save up some money by supporting hunters.
For the record, today’s dungeon job netted me…
After all the deductions, just forty thousand won.
Even so, I couldn’t give up this hunter life.
‘There’s nothing else I want to do.’
Hunter.
A person who proves their strength in dungeons.
No matter how tough it got, no matter how hard reality hit me,
I didn’t want to give up this job.
You only live once—shouldn’t you live doing what you want?
-Today, we have good news!
-What’s the news?
-Last time, Dark Lord who cleared the ‘Valley of the Moon’ has officially become a ranker after just three years! That makes thirty-seven official rankers from Korea, the second most in the world after the United States! Isn’t that amazing?
As I walked home,
A screen on a building was broadcasting a hunter channel.
-So, a ranker is…? Those are the hunters listed in the global ranking board, right? The top 1,000, updated every month?
-Yes, that’s right. Dark Lord just made it to 950th place this month. But! This is special—he’s the only hunter in history, excluding the very first awakeners, to make ranker in just three years!
-Wow! That’s the fastest ever?
-Yes, that shows how absurdly powerful the Necromancer class is!
-Amazing! It’s a blessing to have a Necromancer in our country!
Yeah.
That’s it.
That’s what makes this so much more frustrating.
Dark Lord.
He’s a Necromancer just like me!
He even awakened on the same day as I did!
One of us is already a ranker.
One of us is still E-rank.
He’s got a cool title—‘Dark Lord.’
My status window just says my name, Joo Donghoon.
Just because I’m cursed.
Someone might ask,
How would you know?
How can you complain when you don’t even know how hard the Dark Lord worked?
Instead of whining, why don’t you do something constructive?
You’re right.
To be honest, my heart is full of jealousy and envy.
It’s resentment toward the transcendent who added ‘luck’ to the equation.
‘But.’
That doesn’t mean I’m not working hard.
If anything, I’d say I’m trying harder than anyone.
All for just one goal—‘Ranker.’
If you saw what I’m doing to reach that position, you’d be shocked.
“……”
I left the noisy billboard behind and headed up a deserted forest path at the top of the shantytown.
[Hunter: Joo Donghoon]
[Energy: 100/100]
“All right.”
The energy I’d used during the day was fully recovered.
Now,
It’s time to show
Just how much effort I’ve been putting in.