Chapter 99. Questing some more

Seeing the seven people suddenly become enemies, one of which was even an Elite, Michael was puzzled.

Criminals or not, they were living people and not monsters or demons found in the Dungeon. To kill them was... absurd.

"Look here, guys. You don't want to do this. I'm a Wanderer and pretty high-leveled at that. Just hand over the gemstones, and we can all part ways safely."

[A Wanderer? Ha! Is that supposed to impress us? We've killed more than fifteen in the past couple of months alone.](Luskas)

Hearing the bold declaration, Michael was stunned once more. These people... they actually dared to kill Wanderers who risked their lives to protect common folk from demons and monsters?

But how?

"Please don't spew this kind of crap! Compared to normal people, Wanderers are much stronger. How could you..."

[So? Aren't they still people? If you kidnap their family, poison their food, ambush them in the night... wouldn't they still die?](Luskas)

"...I see."

Seeing the grotesque laughter of these seven, Michael finally realized why the Sanctuary recognized them as monsters. It was simply because they were no longer human beings.

Sighing at the fact that he might give more homework to Helen after he tells her about this, Michael waved his scythe and casted Reap at the Elite.

Followed by Corpse Tendrils, Decrepify, and finally, Corpse Explosion; the fight ended in less than a minute.

"It seems that my damage increased more than I initially expected. Legendary items, huh... seems like I need to gather more of them."

Gathering the gold coins and the Rare item box that dropped after killing Luskas, Michael continued exploring the camp. Surely enough, he found a chest hidden in the small cave which these bandits used as a shelter.

"Looks like I hit the jackpot! Over 10,000 gold coins and a pair of Rare boots."

[ Ramble Tormentor

Rare Boots

322 Item Power

-----------------

161 Armor

* Attacks Reduce Evade's Cooldown by 0.6 seconds

------------------

* +14 Dexterity

* +11.5% Lightning Resistance

* +1 Rank of Bone Spirit (Necromancer only)]

Overall, it was a better pair of Boots due to its superior Armor. However, Michael decided to keep his Stomp Rivals on for the moment. 

"I barely managed to equalize my Intelligence and Dexterity attributes somewhat. Suddenly losing 11 points... I really don't want to do that."

[ Class: High Necromancer

Attack Power: 565

 Armor: 1032

 Life: 620

--------------

Strength: 96

Intelligence: 121

Willpower: 108

Dexterity: 125 ]

Scratching his head and looking at the small box on the ground and seven bodies that didn't seem to vanish like the monsters' bodies would, Michael decided to store everything.

First, the tiny box was identified as 'Payment of Gemstones', which was the Quest's objective. Seeing that the system hadn't wrapped up the Quest yet, it meant that Michael had to bring it back to Meros first.

The addition of the seven coffins in his inventory was somewhat unnerving.

"Some Necromancer I am... Well... let's get to the next marker. Call of the Underworld, huh? Sounds lovely..."

The marker brought him to a location only five minutes from the bandit's camp. Not wanting to deal with the many monsters on the fringes of the road, Michael stealthily made his way to the objective.

It was a strange bone altar on a small hill filled with different demon skulls. It was easy to tell they were demon skulls, as they didn't match normal animals or monsters.

He could observe his surroundings from this location, making him aware of the high number of creatures around the hill.

"*Sigh* Some of those bones on the sides look strangely human... Let's hope I'm not gonna die here as well."

Walking closer to the strange altar, the Sanctuary identified it as the 'Shrine of Rathma' ringing some bells in Michael's head. That name... seemed oddly familiar.

[I've waited for you...](?)

Seeing a transparent blue ghost suddenly appearing from the shadows would usually scare the crap out of anyone. But in this case, Michael felt a strange connection to it.

It felt similar to a familial bond, something that you share with your closest siblings. 

"Greetings, sir. My name is Michael. May I know your honorable name?"

As for the sudden politeness, Michael couldn't explain it in words. It was similar to meeting an older relative, and you knew being rude was bad manners you could be scolded for.

This whole situation was very confusing.

[I am Maltorius. A teacher... one who's devoted his entire existence to preserving the lessons of Rathma, our first and greatest Necromancer. I've heard the spirits whispering of you. They say you're a true friend of death and the shadows. Worthy of his greatest teaching.](Maltorius)

"The spirits? It seems like I have much to learn... Please go ahead, sir."

[Rathma understood death was a transformation, not an end. He saw the potential for transformation in all things, from a pile of bones with merely a spark of lingering life to a cartload of raw iron born of dead earth. From Rathma's theories rose the Golems.](Maltorius)

"Rathma... I've heard this name before somewhere. Can you tell me more about him?"

[All in due time, child. And now it's not the time yet. What time is, though, is that I pass you this final secret and induct you into the ranks of Rathma's priesthood. You will need to collect unbroken bones to form the body of your Golem. Afterward, I will instruct you further.](Maltorius)

Seeing the spirit unwilling to talk further, Michael nodded in acquiescence and reviewed the updated Quest.

[ Quest update - Necromancer: Call of the Underworld

Quest objective: Collect Unbroken Bone (0/12) ]

At the same time, the mini-map's radar came alive with plenty of red dots, probably signifying his targets.

Before he could explore the situation, a flurry of werewolf-like creatures attacked him angrily, in their wake, slowly marching forward a group of Skeletons.

[ Storm Warg (Minion) - Level 29 ]

[ Bone Warrior (Minion) - Level 30 ]

Without a shield to cover himself and the Wargs pouncing at him like mad dogs, Michael activated his Blood Mist skill to avoid taking damage, after which he used his boot's skill, Evade, when the swords of the Bone Warriors almost hit him.

Then, using the three Corpses created by Blood Mist, he started his combo, quickly disposing of the creatures.

It was only the first wave, though, and Michael found himself on the defending end soon enough, as over an hour later, he was still using his Corpse Explosion skill while skittering from one place to another through Evade or Blood Mist.

Finally, with the last Unbroken Bone dropping, Michael was able to get some respite. Turning around with the Quest items in hand and wanting to hand them over to Maltorius, the latter shook his head and smiled.

[I can now understand why the spirits spoke so highly of you. You are talented and can use the skills of death with ease. Very good, these will do. You'll need the essence of life, a spirit, to transform your Golem.](Maltorius)

"Thank you for the praise, sir Maltorius. Where can I find my next objective?"

[A vile artifact is buried in a hillside not far from here. Its purpose is to trap lost souls, leeching magic from them. Free those souls, and perhaps they'll help you in return.](Maltorius)

[ Quest updated - Necromancer: Call of the Underworld

Quest Objective: Find the cave containing the vile artifact. ]

Looking at the MAP and seeing that the marker's location was South of Menestad, Michael paused slightly.

Pondering, he turned again to Maltorius, whom the system identified as a Master Necromancer. It made him wonder how many more Class Awakenings he should go through until he reached the same rank.

"Sir Maltorius, is there a need for me to go directly to this cave and find the artifact?"

[The Jar of Souls. And no, there's no rush. Those souls have been trapped for a long time. A day or a week more won't make a difference for the dead.](Maltorius)

"There's no need for such a long time. Merely a couple of hours or so. I need to clear a Dungeon first."

[A Dungeon, you say? Hmm... I see... Mercy's Reach. *Sigh* Fate's machinations are unstoppable, it seems. In the end, even the dead must die eventually... Go, child! I will wait for your return.](Maltorius)

Hearing the purposely cliffhanger words, Michael nodded calmly and departed after saluting the spirit.

'I'd be stupid to ask you questions, old man. People like you would simply answer with, 'It's not time for you to find out yet,' and then brush me off. I'm not dumb enough to repeat the same mistake twice. Still, this Quest seems important for my Class, especially since this world doesn't have a Faction system and all Wanderers fight together in parties. In the end, I still lack information.'

Setting the course for the Mercy's Reach Dungeon, Michael fought the Ice Clan goatmen again after failing to impress them with his stealth. 

Looking at the two Magic item boxes gained after killing ten, the young Necromancer shook his head at the wasted time and approached the dilapidated Church.

Seeing that there was a small graveyard at the entrance into the Dungeon creeped out Michael quite a bit.

"Always this sort of crap, isn't it... *Sigh* Here we go again!"

Stepping through the film, he found himself in the halls of what seemed to have been a building far more impressive than the Cathedral of Light in the past.

Yet, time and unfortunate events took their toll on it. 

"Still... the fact that it's this clean is slightly creepy... Do demons experience OCD as well?"

After more than ten minutes of walking through the empty halls, Michael saw lit candles and well-maintained bookshelves.

It wasn't until he reached the end of the hallways that he found the first enemy.

[ Quillrat (Minion) - Level 29 ]

Seeing the strange creatures similar to an overgrown hedgehog but also a boar, Michael was at a loss for what to do.

Until they started spraying him with quills from a distance, and he got stung three times.

Then, he went to town on them and finished them quickly.

Soon after, Wargs joined in the fun, making this Dungeon very different from what he was used to.

Seeing the monsters drop Rawhides, Michael continued killing everything in his path until he reached a room where some Wargs and Quillboars protected a shrine of Inarius.

After getting rid of the monsters and touching the shrine, an Event popped up.

[ Dungeon Event joined - Cursed Shrine

Event Objective: Slay as many enemy waves as possible before time runs out.

Mastery: Defeat 5 waves (0/5) ]

Caught off guard once more, Michael was able to deal with only four waves of demons before time ran out.

"It seems I am fighting more passively now that I lack a shield. It will take a while until I get used to it. On the plus side, I was correct, and my damage is much higher now. I dealt over 300 damage points to that huge demon before, so it seems I'm slowly growing stronger."

Happy with his improvement, Michael sauntered toward the Radiant Chest he gained once the Event was completed.

[ Dungeon Event complete - Cursed Shrine

Reward 1: 3,317 experience points

Reward 2: 1,040 gold coins ]

"And the chest will give the physical items since I gained nothing from killing the demons, it seems. Let's see... 4 Angelbreaths and a Rare Amulet. Huh... directly an item instead of an item box?"

[ Majesty Symbol

Rare Amulet

292 Item Power

-----------------

* +5.0% Resistance to All Elements

------------------

* +3.5% Movement Speed

* +1.9% Damage Reduction

* +2.5% Essence Reduction

Empty Socket ]

After hesitating for a minute, Michael replaced his Blood Necklace with the new drop.

First, it gave more Element Resistance, Movement Speed, Damage Reduction, and an Empty Socket.

Adding the Crude Skull to the accessory would give him an extra 75 Armor. But he once again held off on doing that and activated the shrine.

After all, in the next room, two Elites were waiting for him.

[ Dungeon Quest - Slay the Knight Hunters (0/3) ]

This meant that there were at least two of these Knight Hunters in the next room.

Activating the Artillery Shrine, Michael walked calmly into the next room.

[ Pakreg Knight Hunter (Elite) - Level 30 

*Multishot: All ranged attacks are mirrored by two more attacks dealing 100% of the initial damage. ]

[ Takral Knight Hunter (Elite) - Level 30

*Fiery: Throws three fireball attacks at the enemy's current location. ]

[ Rogkral Knight Hunter (Elite) - Level 30

*Earth Manipulator: Creates three walls of earth that trap the enemy. ]

"Well... fuck! I knew this Dungeon was trying to fuck with me. Luckily, this time around, I have Inarius's blessing, you fuckers!"