A massive number of bones, their flesh long decayed with only a few strands of blood-red tissue still clinging to them, broke through the soil.
Under the influence of negative psionic energy, the scattered bones rolled around on the ground and began to tremble slightly.
Then, as if controlled by an invisible hand, the bones floated into the air and pieced themselves together, forming a rough humanoid shape.
As for why it was only a rough shape...
Lynn, for one, had never seen anyone wear their pelvis on their skull like a hat.
Nor had he ever seen a tailbone attached to a hand to be used as a whip-sword.
Actually, wait. He might have seen that last one before.
However, these assembly errors did not hinder the birth of the monsters.
As bursts of green psionic fire ignited within the hollow eye sockets of the bones, skeletons were born.
“In the year 442 of the New Star Calendar, the adventurer Lynn unlocked new entries in the monster encyclopedia—Skeleton, Skeleton Soldier. Current unlocked entries: 16.”
“4 more entries must be unlocked before the next Rune reward.”
He was only a few monsters away from his next Rune reward, but Lynn had no time to leisurely check the notifications from his monster encyclopedia.
At this moment, the entire Public Cemetery had begun to boil with activity.
Beneath the moonlight, all Lynn and his companions could see was a countless sea of green psionic flames.
The Monk frowned. “How can there be so many skeletons?!”
The corpses rising in the Public Cemetery was not a new phenomenon, so this commission was naturally not being posted for the first time.
According to previous commission records, it was already considered extraordinary if three to five monsters appeared in a single night.
But now...
Dozens of skeletons stood up in dense clusters before them, looking like a literal wave of white bones.
There were even several skeleton soldiers clad in gear mixed into the crowd.
Skeleton soldiers were monsters of the same tier as zombies.
Even Lynn felt his scalp go numb at the sight of the densely packed monsters.
This was a world that respected the power of numbers. Even a Level 1 Mage class-holder surrounded by dozens of Challenge Rating 1/4 and Challenge Rating 1/2 monsters would have no choice but to kneel and die once their mana was completely depleted.
“Prepare to retreat,” Lynn said, his tone remarkably calm.
Although he had no idea what was happening, since an unexpected situation beyond the scope of their quest had arisen, it was best to slip away first.
Neither skeletons nor skeleton soldiers were known for their speed. As long as Lynn's group wanted to leave, the monsters wouldn't be able to stop them.
Moreover, they still had the carriage driver waiting to receive them outside the Public Cemetery.
The Monk nodded, gripping his long staff tightly as he closely followed Lynn.
When it was time to run, one must never hesitate.
If an adventurer wanted to live a long life, they must never take unnecessary risks.
However, the situation on the field changed much faster than they had anticipated.
Before the three of them could even get close to the gate, the wave of skeletons had completely formed, blocking the path between them and the exit.
Their escape route was completely blocked by a massive number of skeletons.
Lynn did not hesitate. Raising his gun-staff, he unleashed an Eldritch Blast. It struck a skeleton squarely in the head, instantly shattering the fragile bone into fragments.
The soul fire in the skeleton's eye sockets instantly flickered out.
Yet the momentum of the Eldritch Blast was not fully spent even after obliterating the first skeleton.
The purple beam of light slammed directly into a second skeleton before finally detonating completely.
The exploding mana ripped open the second skeleton's ribcage, and the shockwave surged upward through its chest, tossing its skull high into the air.
“Two ordinary skeletons killed. Obtained Bloodline Points (Skeleton) x2.”
The path directly in front of them was instantly cleared of skeletons.
The Monk and Lupa followed closely behind Lynn, helping him withstand the pressure from the flanks.
“Get lost!”
The Monk spun his long staff, coating the weapon in a faint white light.
He struck a skeleton on the head with his iron staff. Though he failed to completely shatter the skull, he successfully severed the head from the body, rendering the creature temporarily incapacitated.
As for Lupa, her methods were even simpler and more brutal.
She suddenly sank her hips and bent her knees, leaping high into the air like a pouncing wolf, slamming her tower shield downward.
Shield Bash!
Weighing dozens of kilograms, the tower shield crashed down heavily onto the skeleton, driven by the force of her descent.
In the blink of an eye, the overburdened bones shattered and fell apart. With the soul fire in its eye sockets extinguished, the scattered bones could no longer piece themselves back together.
During the few seconds they were delayed by the skeletons, the several Challenge Rating 1/2 skeleton soldiers on the field also noticed their presence. They began pushing past their mindless kin, heading toward the direction where Lynn and his companions were trying to escape.
The few skeletons the trio had killed did not clear the way for long, as new skeletons immediately filled the gaps.
Lynn's heart sank slightly.
With the Rune 【Burst Step】, it wouldn't be difficult for him to escape on his own.
But the Monk and Lupa would be in grave danger.
Naturally, Lynn would not simply run away by himself.
He would make one last push to see if he could lead his teammates out together. If it really proved impossible, only then would he have to make other plans.
Lynn channeled the mana within his body, intending to use Magic Missile to clear an escape path.
But right at that moment, the situation on the field suddenly changed once more—
The white-boned skeletons, which had been reaching out to drag the living down to the grave with them, suddenly stopped their movements in unison.
Yet the soul fires in their eye sockets did not extinguish.
Instead, they burned even more fiercely.
The leaping flames trailed long wisps of fire, all pointing toward the exact same location.
Specks of green light separated from the skeletons' soul fires, beginning to surge toward the direction the flames pointed.
The ground in the very center of the Public Cemetery suddenly exploded, sending dust and debris flying into the air.
A corpse with intact, withered flesh floated up from beneath the earth.
The skin on the corpse's face twitched. Facing the psionic energy gathering toward it, the creature actually showed a human-like trace of greed.
“In the year 442 of the New Star Calendar, the adventurer Lynn unlocked a new entry in the monster encyclopedia—Psionic Corpse: Corpsefire. Current unlocked entries: 17.”
“3 more entries must be unlocked before the next Rune reward.”
Although another entry in the monster encyclopedia had been unlocked, there was not a single trace of joy on Lynn's face.
A Challenge Rating 2 monster!
...
【Skeleton】: Highly decayed bones with only a small amount of flesh remaining. Summoned by psionic energy, they actively piece themselves together to form vessels of various shapes. In reality, they can no longer be considered corpses, but rather undead monsters that use white bones as a vessel for psionic energy.
Their initial Challenge Rating is 1/4, but if a skeleton was highly skilled in martial arts in life and is equipped with burial gear, it can transform into a Challenge Rating 1/2 skeleton soldier.
Rate on N.U.
