Return To The Surface

Ekarraat and I backtrack through the dungeon headed for the surface.

Along the way, I retrieved the rucksack I had discarded when fleeing from the Minotaur.

Inside was a cloak for the Hero Sylvan, so I put it on.

It’s a perfect fit.

The clothes I’m wearing are tight and ragged, about to rip at any moment.

Even if I make it back to the surface safely, there’s the risk my clothes will shred and I’ll be exposed naked in the middle of town.

“Seriously, Ekarraat, you’re a Dungeon Boss—are you even allowed to go up to the surface?”

“I am already bound in servitude by【 Necromance 】. I have been freed from the restriction that prevented me from leaving the innermost chamber. As an ancestral vampire, sunlight will not obliterate me.”

“Does that apply to me too?”

“Don’t worry. Sid can be exposed to sunlight without any problem as well.”

“Guaooo!!”

“A monster…!”

As we move down the corridor, an orc appears.

“Shall we test the ability of the 【Shadow Necromancer】 right away—come forth, Minotaur.”

“Brulgaaaah!!!!”

From within the shadows, the Minotaur’s Shadow manifests.

“Kill it.”

The orc stands just under two meters tall.

The Minotaur measures just over three meters.

With the reach of its battle-axe, it cuts down the orc without mercy.

The panel that became visible after my class change to 【Shadow Necromancer】 notifies me that my level has increased.

Adventurers normally can’t check stat increases without a magic device to measure them, so this is convenient.

You can tell immediately when your Level goes up.

“Minotaur, collect the Magic Stone.”

“Grull.”

The Minotaur retrieves the Magic Stone from the orc’s corpse.

It’s a world of difference from the life-or-death game of tag we were playing earlier.

Well, it seems I’m no longer just pretending—I actually became something like a vampire.

“Shall I make this one a Shadow as well—【 Shadow Necromance 】.”

I touch the orc’s corpse.

The orc’s shadow is extracted and assumes the same silhouette it had in life.

Its greatsword is reproduced as well.

“Alright, the orc will carry the luggage. Minotaur, walk at the front.”

“Grrr!”

“Grull!”

I’m not a slave anymore.

I no longer have to walk the dangerous lead or carry heavy baggage.

“So, how does it feel to be the one in command?”

“It’s not a bad feeling.”

“Fuhaha. A new life. Enjoy it, enjoy it.”

“Even though you’re on the receiving end of orders now, you look quite pleased.”

“I was bored being bound by the dungeon’s restriction, unable to leave the innermost chamber, after all.”

Even though we’re on the lower levels of an S-rank Dungeon, we stroll along making idle conversation.

With Ekarraat, the Dungeon Boss, allied with us, there’s nothing left to fear.

“Gogyagyagya!!”

“Another monster!”

The next thing to appear is a beast-type monster clad in stone skin—the Gargoyle.

I recall how Heavy Knight Garen would focus on tanking while Mage Lilium would defeat them with magic, since they’re highly resistant to physical attacks.

That said, it’s just a mob monster that spawns in the corridor.

It shouldn’t stand a chance against the mid-Boss Minotaur.

“Minotaur, can you handle it?”

“Brulgaaaah!!”

The Minotaur swings its battle-axe high and charges.

The Gargoyle breathes fire from its mouth to intercept—but even struck by the flames, the Minotaur doesn’t stop.

The battle-axe crushes the Gargoyle’s stony body to pieces, and a Magic Stone flies free.

It smashed right through that physical resistance without caring at all…

If that hit had landed on me before I awakened, I would have been killed in one blow…

“Minotaur, are you alright? That was a direct hit from the flames.”

As I worry about the Minotaur, another panel appears showing the Minotaur’s HP.

“How thoughtful of you.”

This panel even provides a skill description.

“【 Shadow Necromance 】”

The orc retrieves the Magic Stone from the Gargoyle’s shattered corpse and extracts the Gargoyle’s Shadow as well.

That makes the third one.

【Necromance】 required me, the practitioner, to directly control them like puppets.

But 【Shadow Necromance】 seems to retain the intelligence from their living selves, so they’ll act on their own with just verbal instructions.

Even an unlearned guy like me can tell… this skill is outrageously powerful.

Could it be that the Holy Church, fearing the Shikai Tribe would awaken as 【Shadow Necromancers】, labeled them heretics and carried out persecution…?

“Well, I’ll think about the complicated stuff after we get to the surface. Gargoyles can use fire magic. Physical attacker Minotaur and magic attacker Gargoyle… our forces are shaping up nicely.”

We continue climbing the dungeon and return to the 20th floor.

From here on I know the way.

When I was the Hero party’s pack carrier, mapping the dungeon had also been my job.

From there we smoothly ascend to the fifteenth floor and use the warp device that appeared when we defeated that mid-Boss to return to the surface.

“We’re back!”

“It’s been a while since I’ve breathed outside air.”

The sun is already dipping and sunset is near.

“It’s an hour’s walk to the royal capital from here. We should be able to get back before the sun fully sets.”

“It might be best to stow the Shadows back into the shadows. I’m tired of walking too.”

“So it’s just one of us from here?”

“You can still hear my voice and converse even from within the shadows.”

“Could it be… that with you around, I no longer have any privacy?”