How to Raise Your Skeletons

Chapter 51: Skeleton Lord

A considerable amount of time had passed.

“Are you alright?”

As I opened my eyes, the bushy beard of a dwarf filled my vision.

“Ugh,” a groan escaped my lips.

My whole body felt cold as if I had caught the flu. My bones ached, and every muscle was filled with fatigue.

I was insane for doing that.

The old man’s intermediate level was incredible. It felt more painful than anything I had experienced before. Even the pain I felt now was probably just my body trying to recover.

“Are you okay? Do you know how shocked I was, thinking you were reacting to the chicken dish I made?”

Oh. Well, Dagnar probably couldn’t see the old man, so he must have thought I was suffering from some terminal illness on my own.

“It was nothing serious.”

“Nothing serious?! Your bones were twisting, and your skin was burning and healing repeatedly! Now that I think about it, you’ve been overdoing it lately. Working through the night with the hammer and training every day… If you were a dwarf, you’d be bedridden by now.”

“Haha, I’m okay, I assure you.”

“Really?”

“Yes, what just happened was like a shedding process unique to my kind.”

“Shedding?”

Shedding—a process like how snakes or insects shed their skin or shells to grow. I said it as a joke because it felt similar to my situation… but Dagnar seemed to take it seriously.

“Sh-Shedding? No way!”

“Huh…?”

“You’re a dragonborn! Now that I think about it, I’ve seen this before! Dragons have their Draconian Guards, don’t they? My goodness… To think that a benefactor from afar is a dragonborn? Are you a descendant of the sealed Giant Magic Dragon?”

“…”

“What purpose do you have infiltrating our dwarf village? W-Wait… Did you come here to…?”

I sighed and shook my head.

I didn’t know how else to explain it. And frankly, I didn’t feel like correcting his misunderstanding.

Besides.

[A reward for the rank change has arrived!]

There was still something I needed to check: the reward for finally reaching B-rank!

I slowly read the messages floating in the air.

[Skill: ‘Summon Balanced Skeleton’ (C-rank) has been upgraded!]

[Skill: ‘Summon Great Skeleton’ (B-rank) acquired!]

Great…!

It was a touching moment. My skeletons had the title ‘Ordinary’ at the E-rank, but they’ve now earned the title ‘Great.’

I felt a sense of pride swelling in my chest.

I examined the message more closely.

[Skill: Summon Great Skeletons]

[Rank: B]

[Effect 1: Consumes 10 energy to summon a great skeleton. A maximum of 10 can be summoned.]

[Effect 2: You can name each skeleton.]

[Effect 3: Each skeleton’s energy increases by 100.]

[Effect 4: Each skeleton can summon 10 skeletons one rank lower than itself.]

“What?” I blinked in surprise.

Effects 3 and 4 were added to the existing effects 1 and 2. Just having the base energy of the skeletons increased by 100 was huge.

Not only that, but my skeletons can summon more skeletons.

A skeleton one rank lower would be the ‘Balanced Skeleton’ at C-rank. So if all six summoned them, that would be 60 skeletons?

I got goosebumps, and a shiver ran from the tips of my toes to the top of my head.

This is absurdly good…!

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Overnight, I had become a hunter capable of commanding six B-rank and 60 C-rank skeletons. In theory, if I also counted Boney 7 to Boney 12, that was 110 in total, but still.

I was growing like a storm.

[Congratulations.]

[All impurities in your body have been burned away.]

[Energy increased by 100.]

[The performance of your Great Blue Heart Technique improves.]

“…!”

The benefits didn’t just go to my skeletons. My max energy also increased by 100. Indeed, it was worth trusting the old man’s massage techniques.

That was the end of the messages.

“Alright.”

I moved my body around to loosen my muscles. The stiffness seemed to fade as time passed. At the same time, I closed my eyes and calmly sensed the ki from below.

There are not many left.

I could sense the presence of the spiked drakes deep underground. There were only a few, probably because I had taken down so many before.

“No need to use fire this time.”

—Whoosh!

I swung my staff and summoned my skeletons.

“My lord.”

The first to greet me was Sunny.

“How’s the new body?” I asked.

“It’s not bad. It feels as if the barrier between what I know and what my body can do has been broken.”

“Really?”

“Though I’m still far from regaining my true strength.”

“Well, that’s to be expected.”

I checked Sunny’s status.

[Name: Sun Spear]

[Energy: 200/200]

[Unique Ability: Great Skeleton]

[Class: Spearman]

[Rank: B]

[Strength: 42] [Dexterity: 42] [Constitution: 40] [Magic Power: 38] [Technique: 41]

[Skills]

– Intermediate Thrust (Lv.4)

– Solar Strike (Lv.4)

– Raging Desert (Lv.4)

– Soulflare (Lv.4)

– Summon Skeleton (Lv. Max)

Its growth was unbelievable compared to just a few months ago. Its energy had increased to 200, and its rank was now B. Moreover…

“Hmm, want to try summoning your minions?”

“…I shall obey.”

Sunny accepted the new skill without resistance. 100 energy was drained from him, and ten skeletons wielding spears appeared behind him.

—Thud! Thud! Thud!

“Wow.”

Though they were weaker than Sunny, they were still C-rank skeletons. They didn’t seem capable of having their own will like Sunny, but still…

—Creak, creak.

“Let’s see the others as well,” I said, urging the remaining skeletons to use their skills.

—Creak!

Each nodded and used their energy.

[‘Bonehead 1’ used the skill ‘Summon Skeleton’ (Lv. Max).]

[‘Bonehead 2’ used the skill ‘Summon Skeleton’ (Lv. Max).]

[‘Bonehead 3’ used the skill ‘Summon Skeleton’ (Lv. Max).]

[‘Bonehead 4’ used the skill ‘Summon Skeleton’ (Lv. Max).]

[‘Bonehead 5’ used the skill ‘Summon Skeleton’ (Lv. Max).]

—Thud! Thud! Thud!

The sight of numerous skeletons rising from the dark, worn stairs was eerie. Anyone else seeing this might think I was some kind of lord of darkness.

To be fair, this is what a necromancer should look like. I finally felt like I was living up to my profession.

There were a total of 66 skeletons summoned at once.

Dagnar was shivering behind me, just watching.

“My lord.”

—Thud!

Sunny raised its spear and struck the ground.

—Thud! Clank!

The other skeletons followed suit, raising their weapons in unison. It was a sight to behold—Sunny’s will had synchronized with all the other skeletons. It was touching.

And apparently, someone else was also moved by this sight.

—Ring!

[Congratulations!]

[You have earned an alias.]

A message congratulating me appeared.

An alias… It was another name for hunters that all rankers possessed. It was a name given based on how one utilized their unique abilities.

And it seems I had finally gained one, too.

[You command all skeletons.]

[You reign over all skeletons.]

[Not a single skeleton would dare to attack you.]

[You are the ‘Skeleton Lord.’]

The Skeleton Lord.

It wasn’t as grand as my rival’s title, ‘Dark Lord,’ but it perfectly described me—the one who stood above all skeletons.

Good, not bad at all.

Just judging by Sunny, my skeletons weren’t ordinary beings.

“My lord.”

—Thud!

Sunny struck the ground again.

“We are ready. Shall we deal with the remaining monsters? Our chance of victory is 100%.”

Sunny held a grudge for not easily defeating them when it was C-rank. Its eyes were fierce. It seemed as if it would spring forward at my command and soak itself in the blood of the drakes.

Alright.

My energy was full, anyway.

The most overpowered thing about my unique ability was that no matter how much my summons were broken or torn apart, as long as I preserved my energy, I could revive them.

I nodded. “Wipe them out.”

It was my first command after receiving my alias of Skeleton Lord.

* * *

Reaper Scans

Translator – Dawn

Proofreader – BringTheRayn

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* * *

—Rumble!

The ground shook. The sound of footsteps echoed. It was the skeletons following my command, marching in formation.

“All units, take your positions.”

At Sunny’s command, each took their places. The skeletons summoned by Boney 4 took the front line while those summoned by Boney 3 and 5 stood at the rear. The rest covered our flanks—it was a basic formation.

“Kieeek!”

Sensing us, the drakes charged with a roar. They lowered their horns and attempted body slams. However…

—Boom!

Boney 4 raised its shield to block the charge. The other tank skeletons also raised their shields to resist them. They were slightly pushed back but held firm.

Dust rose from the fierce contest of strength.

To think they can block that.

Indeed, they were worthy of a B-rank skeletons.

—Ting! Ting! Ting!

Next, Boney 3’s unit fired their arrows.

Because the drakes had high physical resistance, they aimed for the weak points, such as the eyes, vulnerable parts under the belly, and other vital spots.

“Kiek! Kyeeek!”

The drakes shrieked in fury.

[‘Bonehead 5’ used the skill ‘Fire Field’ (Lv.2).]

—Fwoosh!

Next came the fire-type party. Ten skeletons centered around Boney 5 cast fire magic, creating a spectacular scene.

—Boom! Boom! Boom!

Fireballs rained down like a storm. In an instant, the ground became a sea of flames.

“Gueergh!”

The drakes now seemed pitiful. Any drakes that tried to escape were pushed back by Boney 1’s greatsword, with Sunny’s unit assisting in the effort.

“You…” Dagnar couldn’t believe his eyes. “You keep getting… stronger.”

“Do I still look like a dragonborn to you?”

“A-Ahem. Well, you didn’t deny it!”

“What does it matter who I am? The important thing is that we’re uncovering the ruins of this dungeon together, right?”

“Yes, that’s true, but…”

I turned my gaze downward again.

I was stronger now that I was B-rank. The dungeon’s supposedly ‘Immeasurable’ difficulty seemed meaningless as we quickly dealt with the enemies.

[‘Spiked Drake’ has been defeated.]

[‘Spiked Drake’ has been defeated.]

[‘Spiked Drake’ has been defeated.]

…

However.

I didn’t let my guard down. There was no way mere drakes would be the reason for the dungeon to be determined such a high rank.

“…”

After some time had passed, the flames died down.

—Fwoosh!

And every drake was charred black, burnt to a crisp.

“Hm?”

At the very bottom of the stairs, something was glowing.

—Buzz!

“L-Look there!” Dagnar shouted, looking at it. His eyes were filled with excitement.

“Yes?”

“Do you see it? The glowing bow and hammer!”

“Yes, I see them.”

I could see the two items lying next to each other clearly.

“Those are the relics of Demir and Eldrin!”

“Oh?”

Those were the relics of the two that were said to have sacrificed their lives sealing the ancient dragon 500 years ago.

And they had finally appeared before my eyes.