ALL NOVEL Chapter 20 - Leveling (4)
Chapter 20: Leveling (4)
Over the past week, I studied and went through numerous trials and errors.
First, I learned that proper “White Spirit Transmutation” surprisingly doesn’t require any special alchemical tools.
This meant that if one had enough skill, it was possible to instantly resurrect a slain enemy on the spot!
Of course, at my current level, such a feat was beyond my reach.
It took me over a week just to transmute a single wolf-type monster.
However, creating even one white spirit required an enormous amount of materials and mana stones.
In short, it was a profession that consumed a lot of money.
Currently, I was broke.
There were many ways to make money since I had ideas for business ventures that would succeed in the future.
Once my reputation rose to a certain level, I could even take out loans from a bank, but most businesses took time.
Time was more important than money.
I didn’t have the time to sit around running a business.
I personally hunted and scavenged the corpses of Mad Wolves, using the rest of my fortune to procure mana stones.
To cut to the chase, I squandered most of the materials I purchased with my entire fortune.
Simply having bones and scraps of flesh wasn’t enough, unlike a Necromancer resurrecting skeletons.
My class wasn’t “Necromancer” but “Necromaster.”
Rather than merely reviving the dead, I reconstructed them by transmuting new materials into their bodies!
Although the process was hundreds of times more complex than that of a Necromancer, it wasn’t impossible to transmute bones into metal or create toughened skin, like an immortal from the X-Men movies.
Of course, my level was still too low for such feats.
Moreover, unlike the skeletons revived by Necromancers, the white spirits I transmuted as a Necromaster were entirely different.
I could layer flesh and leather onto the bones, and the offensive and defensive power varied depending on the material used for the skin.
It wasn’t a process where I could haphazardly throw together a few bone fragments and call it a day.
“This is more challenging than any transmutation I’ve ever done.”
Reconstructing the body of the dead, especially a monster, with new materials—
This task was far more difficult than I had ever imagined.
If someone else had taken this class, they might have begged for their character to be deleted while crying in frustration.
What kind of game required professional knowledge just to play it!
Ordinarily, such expertise would be covered by the “Skill Support System,” but this class barely had any such assistance.
Throughout the week, I attempted numerous challenges and failed repeatedly.
Each time I failed, I analyzed the cause and started assembling everything from scratch.
I discovered there was an order to assembling bones, that misaligned joints could hinder movement, and that improperly transmuted muscles were worse than useless.
Despite the hardships…
“This is unbelievably fun.”
Assembling a body to make it move—
Reviving the corpse of the dead through my own transmutation—
This moment thrilled me.
One fortunate aspect was that the white spirits stored in the [Memory of Death] skill retained their “frames.”
Their skeletal structure and muscle shapes provided a guide, making the process of reconstructing the body not entirely impossible.
[Transmutation Successful!]
[Reconstructed the original body with 86% completion and transmuted a white spirit.]
[Increased Spirit 1, Wisdom 2, and Dexterity 1!]
Finally, I succeeded in transmuting a Freed Mad Wolf.
Although it wasn’t a spectacular success like before, the results were still satisfying.
[White Spirit’s Mirror: Freed Mad Wolf]
Crackle!
A human-sized full-length mirror appeared midair, gleaming silver.
Its surface rippled as a massive wolf slowly emerged from within.
The wolf exuded a silvery aura, with its gray fur fluttering elegantly, giving off a noble impression.
Its handsome appearance made it a summon that was utterly to my liking.
The Mad Wolf’s level was slightly lower than before, at 64.
This was because its skill proficiency was low, and I had used only basic materials for the reconstruction.
Even so, it was far stronger than anything a typical Necromancer could summon.
Given that Necromancers could only summon skeletons, their Mad Wolves would likely be around level 30 or 40.
Moreover, a Necromancer’s summons lacked skin and muscles, making them weaker in both offense and defense.
[The white spirit ‘Freed Mad Wolf’ declares complete obedience.]
[The white spirit ‘Freed Mad Wolf’ will not rebel against its master.]
Unlike with the Steel-Plated Knight, Freed Mad Wolf didn’t require two rounds of suppression.
Since it had been a one-on-one fight, there was no need for a suppression process; it acknowledged my dominance outright.
[White spirits are unsummoned when their HP is fully depleted.
Reconstructing a fully depleted white spirit takes time, but the summoner can quickly resummon it through transmutation.]
[White spirits can be repaired in real-time using alchemy, even when injured.]
This was one of the advantages of being a Necromaster.
Other summoners had significant restrictions on recovery skills for their summons, and resummoning could take anywhere from a day to several weeks if a summon was unsummoned.
Additionally, Necromancers continuously consumed MP to maintain skeleton summons.
As a result, they had to prepare Force Vessels in various locations worldwide to sustain their armies, which was a hassle.
Even worse, Necromancers only gained a fraction of the experience points earned by their skeletons, while 80% of the experience gained by my white spirits hunting independently was transferred to me.
Conversely, the experience I earned while hunting wasn’t shared with my white spirits.
It was safe to say this was the ultimate merit of a summoner class!
In other words, I had none of the disadvantages of a summoner or a Necromancer and only retained their strengths.
I went through a lot of hardship for this advantage, but it was such a tremendous merit that it didn’t feel like suffering.
Kiing, king.
Freed Mad Wolf lowered its head, showing loyalty to Yeonwol.
Its tail wagging adorably was quite endearing.
Of course, with a height of 2 meters, petting its head was no easy task.
“Even though it has no special abilities, four-legged beast-type monsters are very useful.”
Yeonwol patted the creature’s bowed head and gave it a name.
“Your name will be Mad, short for Mad Wolf.”
Mad shook its head.
Since it couldn’t talk, there was no way to know whether it liked the name or not.
While summoning humanoid white spirits made communication easier, beast forms generally had better overall abilities.
“It feels like I’ve really resurrected the dead.”
But this wasn’t true resurrection.
Since the soul of the deceased didn’t properly settle, there were no memories of their past life.
Mistaking this for an omnipotent resurrection power would lead to a disaster.
“This is nothing more than a strong and agile zombie. True resurrection is still a distant challenge for me.”
Yeonwol unsummoned Mad and began packing his equipment.
Having created two white spirits, it was time to target the dungeon he had been aiming for.
* * *
[Song Yeon-Ju: Velkiri, can we talk for a moment?]
Velkiri, a high-ranker from the Calisodia Guild, was hunting as usual when she received a direct message via private messenger.
Seeing Song Yeon-Ju initiate a chat was almost a first.
She replied with a delighted expression.
[Velkiri: What’s up?]
[Song Yeon-Ju: About the post you made last time comparing me to Yeonwol.]
[Velkiri: Oh, I got your permission back then, didn’t I? Should I delete it if it bothers you?]
[Song Yeon-Ju: No… it’s not that. His swordsmanship feels familiar. It’s similar to mine.]
[Velkiri: That’s true, now that you mention it.]
Song Yeon-Ju was a genius obsessed with swordsmanship, reportedly playing the game because she had no one left to spar with in real life.
She debuted in world championships as a middle schooler and remained undefeated.
By age 17, her trophies and awards filled an entire room, and as a high schooler, she once subdued three armed terrorists with just a stick, making headlines.
Even in real life, she was a monstrous figure with superhuman stats.
Her extraordinary beauty further enhanced her icy aura, making her a super celebrity with millions of social media followers.
Despite not revealing she played the game, her fanbase followed her to Elthera World, giving her over a million followers on its official SNS, Elstagram.
Finding swinging a sword in the game enjoyable, she abruptly retired from real-life competitions and tournaments.
She then immersed herself in virtual reality, becoming a gaming addict who spent all day wielding a sword.
Although her level was only in the mid-to-high 100s since she hadn’t been playing long, her exceptional skills earned her full support from her guild.
“That kid who spent all day researching ways to beat monsters with a sword is suddenly interested in another player.”
Velkiri quickly typed.
[Velkiri: Should we find a way to contact Yeonwol? The guild is already trying to approach him.]
[Song Yeon-Ju: What?! No! That’s fine. I just asked because his swordsmanship feels a lot like mine.]
[Velkiri: Well, modern swordsmanship does tend to look similar. The most efficient way to kill is pretty much set.]
[Song Yeon-Ju: That’s true, but the way he prepares his strikes and some of his habits feel oddly familiar… like quirks only I used to have.]
[Velkiri: Hmm, our little one seems to be developing an interest in boys.]
[Song Yeon-Ju: No, I’m not!]
[The other party has left the chatroom.]
When Velkiri teased her, Song Yeon-Ju abruptly exited the chat, leaving Velkiri chuckling as she closed the messenger window.
It was the first time Song Yeon-Ju, who rarely showed emotion after a childhood accident, had shown interest in someone else.
Even Masato, the genius kendo youth from Japan often touted as her rival, failed to catch her attention despite persistently challenging her.
“To think the emotionless machine that hunted monsters nonstop still had this side to her.”
It was somewhat of a relief.
Believing immersion in something could help her forget sadness, they had taught her kendo and introduced her to Elthera Online.
That Song Yeon-Ju, who had shut herself off emotionally, was now showing curiosity toward another person was a significant breakthrough.
“Indeed… Yeonwol. That player’s swordsmanship is impressive.”
Though she teased Song Yeon-Ju about boys, Velkiri knew better than anyone that wasn’t the case.
Song Yeon-Ju was likely intrigued by another “swordsmanship prodigy” who had reached a level similar to hers.
Masato?
He was a fabricated rival created by the media, and in truth, he was no match for Song Yeon-Ju.
“She probably can’t believe it—finding someone who can wield such swordsmanship other than herself.”
Yeonwol was estimated to be in his twenties at most.
As a level 10 novice, to demonstrate such skill without relying on any system assistance…
Even Velkiri couldn’t help but be intrigued.
“I wonder how Song Yeon-Ju will react if they ever meet.”