The Skeleton Soldier Failed to Defend the Dungeon

I deliberately made the air tremble faintly as I pulled the items out in a theatrical manner.

[Plate Armor of Lust]

[Guardian Monolith]

[Spirit Ring]

[Frozen Fountain]

[Boots of Temptation]

[Blazing Arch]

[Crystal Rainbow]

[Innocent Sun]

Cursed relics and radiant treasures of every color spilled into view.

Wooooooo!

Each time I drew another item, gasps of awe filled the air.

”What is that?!”

”Dear gods...”

”Spatial magic?”

”I knew it! I knew you were hiding something! A whole stash of treasures!” Gilaut cried excitedly.

On the other hand, Gith-Za-Rai watched the cascade of artifacts with a composed, serious expression. Her thoughts seemed tangled. There was no way even she could fully grasp the authority of my inventory.

Even Isaac was shocked.

After the dazzling treasures, I moved on and took the risk of displaying my weapons, one by one. If Gith-Za-Rai broke her promise here and tried to seize them, I could lose nearly a third of my entire inventory’s worth of valuables.

Even if that happened... it wouldn’t be a waste.

Gith-Za-Rai had given me Essence Absorption. Truthfully, the only reason I’d made it this far was because of her. I wouldn’t regret giving her a few treasures.

I’ll just avoid taking this route again next time.

Sssk.

I had just pulled out a few more items when Gith-Za-Rai raised her hand to stop me.

”That’s enough.” Her crimson eyes calmly appraised the pile before her. ”Good. Everything you’ve shown me is genuine.”

In that case...

”I’ll acknowledge your claim that you looted the imperial archives,” Gith-Za-Rai concluded.

”Ahem.”

”Impressive.”

”I knew it! I told you he was something special!”

[Gith-Za-Rai’s Affection has increased by 7!]

[Hamelain’s Affection has increased by 1!]

[Andrei’s Affection has increased by 2!]

[Gilaut’s Affection has increased by 8!]

[Current Affection: 28]

Gilaut’s Affection had suddenly jumped past twenty.

Hmph... Dullahans really do have varied tastes.

A shadowy mist rose from his severed neck and swayed excitedly. Honestly, it was a little unnerving, but it was still better than hostility.

”Now tell me, how did you manage it?”

***

As I slipped the items back into my inventory one after another, I explained what happened. ”After finding the treasures, my companions and I checked the archives. Every Hero you’d ever desire was there. Hundreds, maybe thousands of Heroes stretched on endlessly. I couldn’t even begin to count them.”

That was a lie.

It wasn’t that much.

Nonetheless, exaggeration would make it easier for her to believe that the promised tombs of Heroes had been emptied.

It’s a bit dishonest, but necessary to stop the assassination.

I had to survive, and it wasn’t as if Gith-Za-Rai could personally verify the archives right now. Just like when Duke Lawrence had invited Marquis Leandro, the internal seals couldn’t be lifted without someone from within.

Forcing a breakthrough...

I couldn’t imagine how difficult, or even possible, that would be.

If Isaac himself couldn’t comprehend the barrier...

As obsessed as Isaac Bel’Homec was with barriers, even he admitted he couldn’t crack it with his current strength. In truth, no one could break into the archives by force.

I continued, ”I traveled with two allies, Naneow Tropin, who founded the T&T Guild, and Isaac Bel’Homec, the sorcerer imprisoned beneath Grassmere. The three of us moved together.”

Gith-Za-Rai’s eyes immediately widened in utter confusion. ”T&T... Guild? What’s that supposed to be?”

So it’s true.

The absence of Isaac and Naneow had rippled across the world itself. There was no mistaking it. Perhaps the imperial guards didn’t know Isaac either. Maybe all three had, by sheer coincidence, been utterly uninterested in history.

Though that’s quite a stretch.

However, Gith-Za-Rai was part of the assassin order known as Red Flake.

Someone from the underworld doesn’t even know the information guild T&T? Impossible.

”It’s an intelligence guild, active mainly around Ember. You really don’t know it?”

”My lord, could he mean the Tropin Brigade?” Gilaut interjected.

Gith-Za-Rai nodded in agreement. ”That must be it.”

”Tropin... Brigade?”

That was Naneow’s surname.

”Lazlo Tropin founded that guild. It’s a collective of troubleshooters and engineers, though they also handle a fair bit of information.”

”Is that man still alive?”

”What are you talking about? Of course not. He died three hundred years ago.”

For a moment, I thought maybe Naneow Tropin had simply taken on a different name, but the gender didn’t match. And unless that person was prolonging life with silver mana fluid, they were clearly not the same being.

”Besides, who are these people you keep mentioning? Naneow? Isaac? Do you know them?” Gith-Za-Rai asked.

The five Dullahans all shook their heads.

They’re really... gone.

A heavy silence pressed down on my chest. I couldn’t tell if it was grief or emptiness, only that it hollowed me out from the inside.

”Hmm...”

After a pause, I continued explaining. It took nearly two hours for me to stumble through my words. Still, the Dullahans struggled even more to follow along, asking me to repeat myself again and again.

When I reached the part about the orb that had absorbed Isaac and Naneow’s existence, something strange happened.

Ziiiing.

The air grew thick and crackled. Above the Dullahans’ heads, where glowing messages of Affection had appeared moments ago, pale white letters now flickered ominously.

[Access denied.]

[Error detected.]

[Minimum data required for comprehension not met.]

”I can’t... hear... I can’t hear anything...”

”Uaaah... ah... aahh...”

Thud.

The Dullahans collapsed onto the ground like broken machines.

”Get a hold of yourselves.”

Pow!

Gith-Za-Rai swept her hand through the air. Black energy flowed into them, and the fallen knights slowly straightened again.

”My lord... Forgive our disgrace.”

Then she turned her crimson eyes toward me. ”It seems we shouldn’t speak of that black orb or those two humans, anywhere.”

I hadn’t planned to, not with anyone but her or Isaac.

However, I curiously asked, ”Why not?”

”Their existence, no, the knowledge of them, is bound by a powerful seal. For mere hearsay to cause that reaction... even I’m taken aback,” Gith-Za-Rai said with a grave expression.

Crackle... Sssk...

[Warning: Unauthorized communication detected.]

[This operation is not permitted.]

The words hovering over her head glowed in a sickly light. She looked unharmed, yet I wondered if she had been struck somewhere unseen.

”Anyway,” she said at last, ”what you’re telling me means this world’s timeline has lost both its past and its future concerning two crucial beings.”

I nodded. ”That’s right.”

”Hm...”

Forming a cocoon of bone beneath her, Gith-Za-Rai sat in thought for a while before giving instructions. ”Let’s take this step by step.”

She lifted a finger. ”First, about the Essence Absorption. You’re saying I implanted that authority in you myself?”

”That’s right.”

”How curious. That power shouldn’t allow infinite absorption like the way you described it.”

”You mean... there’s a limit?”

”Of course. Everyone has a vessel. I’ve already filled mine completely, so I can’t absorb anything more.”

”I see...”

Then, Isaac’s voice echoed in my memory.

Absorption skills are absurd. Their biggest flaw is that the vessel fills too fast when used without control... But you... What are you, exactly?

A vessel. I hadn’t thought much of it at the time, but hearing it again now from Gith-Za-Rai herself, I couldn’t help but wonder.

Is my vessel really that large?

If my growth limit was high, then that was good, but the fact that even the creator of the skill and Isaac were astonished by it...

That’s unsettling.

Gith-Za-Rai’s eyes gleamed red as she muttered, ”Let’s make a few adjustments...”

Crack! Crackk!

In an instant, white bone tendrils wrapped around me. Her ivory tentacles merged with my own bones, spreading through me like living roots. Curiously, wherever they touched me, they split. They didn’t disappear completely, but coiled over my frame as if taking root.

[Perk acquired: Transplanted Bone (EX)

— Owner: Gith-Za-Rai

— The bone may be reclaimed at any time by its original owner.

— Until reclamation, your stats are temporarily increased.

— Until reclamation, you have temporary access to certain skills.]

[Vision expanded by 200%.]

[Strength has increased by 20.]

[Health has increased by 20.]

[Agility has increased by 20.]

[Wisdom has increased by 20.]

It felt as though something alive had been layered over my skeleton.

[New Skill Acquired.]

[Bone Tendril Control Lv. 3

— Element: Bone

— Manipulate surrounding bones to move or grasp objects.

— Can be used for both offense and defense. Try incorporating tendrils into your combat style!]

Bone Tendril Control...

Could Gith-Za-Rai really implant skills this easily?

She noticed my astonishment, smiled, and pulled me closer. ”Good. You’re sturdy enough now. Now, time for surgery.”

Tap.

Her touch was surprisingly delicate.

Snap... Slice... Creak...

That was the last thing I remembered.

***

”You’re awake?”

Gith-Za-Rai was watching me. I met her gaze and immediately called up my status window. I already knew what her look meant.

Did it work?

[Health: 44]

[Strength: 44]

[Agility: 44]

[Wisdom: 24]

[Feign Death Lv. 1]

[Bone Tendril Control Lv. 3 (New!)]

[Essence Absorption Lv. 1 (New!)]

It worked!

Just as expected, Essence Absorption had been granted. Everything had gone smoothly, almost too smoothly.

I’d been slain a few times by patrolling guards near the graveyard, but once I made it past that area, things had improved rapidly. Gith-Za-Rai’s trust in me now seemed higher than ever.

Is it because I showed her the items?

Maybe mentioning Lindbrum helped, too. Even though it was only Level 1, the thrill of reclaiming a lost Epic skill made my fists tighten with excitement.

I’ll gain more skills soon.

I’d devour the stats and skills of every corpse I encountered. With my Class Change perk, I’d grow faster than ever before. This was only the beginning.

As I reveled in that thought, Gith-Za-Rai studied me in silence.

Her gaze made me a little self-conscious, and I quickly blurted, ”I can feel the power you granted me.”

”Good. Then try absorbing everything like before. I’m curious to see if your absorption truly has no end.”

”Thank you.”

”Don’t thank me, it’s for research.” Then she added, ”Now, the second matter. You’ll want to confirm whether this world has really changed, and you must be wondering about your companions.”

I nodded firmly. ”Of course!”