Chapter 220

220th Episode

d*ath Knight

220 – d*ath Knight #4

When Paranoi, Luna, and I all attacked, the giant wyvern was dismantled in the blink of an eye.

Scales, bones, claws, muscles, fat, and flesh. Its entrails too.

Perhaps it had been hibernating for a long time, but mercifully, there was nothing inside its stomach or intestines, so the nauseating smell wasn’t as bad as it could have been.

Ordinarily, we would clean it while washing it off in water, but due to the sheer size of the creature and the inconvenient location, we decided to process it on the spot and carry the pieces away.

“With this oil, we can make candles and soap!”

“The scales might be useful for crafting armor…”

Luna and Paranoi grinned from ear to ear, their delight unhidden. Watching them reminded me of my younger sister when she got excited shopping online.

That sense of satisfaction from being able to examine everything they wanted—it wasn’t much different from the situation we were in right now.

It’s said among adventurers that there’s nothing to discard from a dragon’s corpse, everything having a use—from the scales and claws to the muscles, tendons, and miscellaneous parts.

Even though this was technically a wyvern, a sort of lesser dragon, the three of us—me, Luna, and Paranoi—would likely have enough materials to upgrade our gear and still have plenty left over.

We could process the materials for long-term storage or, if they’re not worth keeping, simply sell them. Either way, it’s a win-win situation.

With better equipment, we’d hunt even more formidable monsters, use their materials to craft even better gear, and continue improving as adventurers. Luna and Paranoi clearly know this, which is why they’re so thrilled.

Furthermore, if word gets out that we’ve slain a wyvern, it’ll boost our reputation, earning us considerable public contribution points. This would only help us advance to the Silver Tier.

These are feelings we can only appreciate because we survived the battle. Curse it—all too close to d*ath this time.

But tasting the sweetness of such rewards makes it hard to imagine giving up this dangerous profession anytime soon.

While I was musing about the sharpness of the wyvern’s claws, Paranoi, who had been stuffing scales into her pockets like there was no tomorrow, smiled and said,

“Really, there’s nothing wasteful here! They say dragons—big or small—are practically born to be harvested as resources… and end up dying tamely, just for us to pick them apart!”

And it was partly true.

Still, it was hilarious coming from Paranoi, a nymph who exploits nature’s bounty so ruthlessly. In a way, it made me realize how similar nymphs and dragons are.

Dragons aren’t easily hunted. If all nymphs were as avaricious as Paranoi, it’d be clear why their numbers have dwindled so dramatically.

Thinking about it made me feel a little sorry for the nymphs.

“But the wyvern’s too big. We can’t carry it all back to town. Even if we mark it, we’ll have to return and take care of the rest.”

“Miss Luna is right… Our bags are already overstuffed, and there’s no room left!”

The creature was as large as a big van, so it was only natural that its remains would be immense. Even with the three of us splitting the load, we were running out of space.

Based on Luna’s suggestion, it seemed like heading back to town first would be the wise choice.

In RPG games, there are often spells or portals for quick returns to towns. But here? I’ve never heard of such things, so they probably don’t exist.

“Alright, Luna and Paranoi, you both go back. I’ll stay here. If some beast comes along and drags this away, we’d be in trouble.”

I informed them I’d stay behind while they returned to town. Perhaps worried, Luna scanned the surrounding area with her keen eyes.

“Hassan, are you sure you’ll be fine here? We don’t know what might appear.”

“Yeah, but there’s no one else who can stay other than me.”

“That’s true…” she paused briefly. “Here, take this!”

With a swish, she handed me something she wore at her waist. It was a small glass vial sealed with a cork, and inside were not potions but small glowing insects.

They reminded me of fireflies, except they were thinner and tinier, almost like a cluster of mayflies.

“What is it?”

“Their name is Sky Lantern Beetles. If you ever get lost, just shake them vigorously and release them into the air! They’ll automatically find a route back to the surface.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Miss Luna, let’s go already! The freshness of the meat and fat is crucial! We need to move quickly!”

And with that, Luna and Paranoi, each carrying their heavy loads, scrambled back toward the cave entrance.

As their figures gradually faded and the sounds of their movements disappeared, a distant echo of Luna’s voice rang out:

“Hassan, wait for us! We’ll be back soon! Maybe within a day or so. Be careful!”

“Alright, got it!”

With that, our chat was over.

It took roughly a day for us to reach this place from Sodomora, so the return trip should take them about that long too. That gave me around a day alone in this dark, creepy underground cave beneath the cliffs.

Thinking about spending the time alone made me feel a bit spooked…

But on the flip side, I realized this might finally be my chance to have some peace and quiet.

I turned my attention to the leftovers from the wyvern that Luna and Paranoi hadn’t managed to collect in time. The high-value parts like the scales and claws had all been taken, leaving only heavy, rigid bones.

Looking at the carcass, it reminded me of a well-picked chicken. Slowly, I placed my hand on its skull and stroked it.

“Good bones.”

But interestingly, the inside was surprisingly hollow.

Bird bones are often hollow for this reason. Perhaps wyverns, as winged creatures, also needed their bodies to be lighter.

“Not yet dead, wyvern.”

Swish.

My hand, which had been stroking the wyvern’s forehead, froze in mid-motion.

Simultaneously.

Shhshsh.

From the cavernous, hollow skull of the wyvern, a faint, ghostly blue glow began emanating.

Grruuu…

Bone Dragon.

No, Bone Wyvern.

The creature that had once died and turned into a cold lifeless thing began radiating a pale blue light from every joint, slowly unfurling its skeletal wings.

Grah-ah-a-a…

Its deafening roar made my head spin. Even the howl of the skeleton soldiers, the Bone Goblins, had been eerie in their way, but the Bone Wyvern’s sheer presence on an entirely different level.

“…Alright. This is what I expected.”

A scene like this wasn’t one I could share with Luna. Now that she and Paranoi were gone, this was the perfect opportunity to test my necromancy.

Grruuu…

Despite its horrifying and grotesque appearance, with half-rotted flesh and tendons dangling from its bones—it felt quite impressive to think that this was now under my control.

When I touched the wyvern’s wings, words shimmered into my mind.

Name: Hassan’s Bone Wyvern lv. 22 + 1

Condition: Enhanced domination by grace > Fear dispersion

Level 22, huh? Not impossibly high as I’d expected. Thinking back, Paranoi had mentioned that this wyvern was still in its early stages of growth.

That, combined with the help of earthquakes and falling debris, explained why a team as unskilled as ours could take it down.

Grruuu…

But now the question was: what should I do with it?

If I took this creature outside, it would undoubtedly cause chaos in the city. Yet, just letting it dissolve here seemed like such a waste.

I never know when I might get another chance to handle a creature like this.

Now that it had been reanimated, I figured I might as well test its strength. Climbing onto its neck, I gave it a simple command:

“Let’s take a stroll. Check things out around here.”

Grruuu…

The wyvern, carrying me on its neck, began moving with a creak. Though it was just a skeleton, its sheer size meant every movement reverberated loudly against the ground with a thunderous Kunk-Kunk.

“Wow, this is insane fun.”

I vaguely recalled hearing somewhere that riding in a good car can change your entire perspective on the world. Riding this creature felt exactly the same way.

The sensation of overlooking everything…

Crack!

Beneath my feet, little mice and snakes scrambled away as fast as they could, terrified.

I felt like the king of the well.

As I basked in this feeling, I wondered about the creature’s combat prowess.

“Are there any other monsters nearby other than you?”

…

At my words, the Bone Wyvern stopped immediately. Its ghostly blue eyes turned toward the depth of a dark hole in the cave wall. It was clearly a passage leading deeper into the cliff.

When I listened closely, I could hear strange, unsettling laughter and cries, almost human in nature.

Creee-ee!

A chill ran down my spine.

“Hey, d*mn it, what’s going on?”

At first, I thought I must have misheard. But when I strained my ears, I could distinctly hear my name being called from deep within the darkness.

Hassan…

I thought I had mistakenly heard it at first, but it was unmistakably my name, called out in a faint, thin, unsettlingly familiar voice.

Hassan, wait for us! Hassan, wait! Hassan!

“d*mn it…”

Whatever it was, a sickly thrill and shiver ran down my spine as I cursed under my breath. It was Luna’s voice, coming from the darkness.

Of course, there was no way Luna had returned so quickly after heading toward the city.

This was something faking her voice—something lurking in the darkness, pretending to be her to lure me.

Elma, Gorgas, where are you? I, don’t leave me alone! Here, here, I’m here!

Mom, save me! Mom, I’m scared!

Soon, a single voice multiplied into many, each speaking different words. The pitches varied, and the content was chaotic like a broken radio, but all of them resonated deeply, playing on human emotions.

Grrrrr…

The Bone Wyvern, carrying me, suddenly stiffened. Its blue eyes flashed angrily as it roared and snapped its jaws at the air like a fierce predator.

Grah-a-a-a…

With instinct, I could feel something was about to go terribly wrong.

Shhhh.

From the darkness emerged a ghostly pale face, so smooth it was impossible to tell if it was male or female. But below it were jagged sharklike teeth, completely inhuman.

That’s when it hit me.

This ravine’s name—it made perfect sense now.

The Valley of the Manticore.

Why was this ravine named after the Manticore?

Why did people avoid coming here? Of course, it was because Manticores lived in this valley.

The monster, combining a human face with lion-sized fangs and a long mane, fed on human flesh.

The figure in the darkness grinned widely, revealing three rows of shark-like teeth in a chilling smile.

Hassan, don’t leave me. Mom!

“d*mn it, this is terrifying! Attack!”

Descending from the wyvern, I gave the command immediately.

Roaarrrrr!

With no fear, the ghostly blue Bone Wyvern roared and charged into the darkness toward the lurking beast.

Hassan…

From the shadows now emerged the Manticore, rushing at the Bone Wyvern.

At last, the figure revealed its grotesque form—a long neck, the body of a quadrupedal beast, and a scorpion’s tail. Though smaller than the Bone Wyvern, it was no less hideous.

“d*mn, attack!”

Grah-a-a!

The Bone Wyvern lunged at the creature, pinning its neck with its wing-like forearms and biting into its long neck with its massive jaws.

Screeeeeech!

The Manticore, seemingly in pain from the attack, let out a bl**d-curdling scream, like nails on a chalkboard.

Apparently, the Bone Wyvern’s attack had worked.

The Wyvern is insanely powerful!

“d*mn b*stard! You’re no one to be scaring me off!”

Even as I shouted a rather amateur curse to shake off my momentary freeze of fear, it seemed to help ease my tense mind.

Of course, I wasn’t the one fighting; it was the Bone Wyvern.

Grah-a-a-a!

The Bone Wyvern twisted the Manticore’s neck with such ferocity that it snapped with a sickening crunch. The Manticore, writhing beneath it, went limp.

The battle involving the minion has ended.

Mission points: +10

Current mission points: +65

My Bone Wyvern had just defeated the terrifying Manticore. Taking down a large monster like that yielded a solid +10 mission points.

Impressive.

“d*mn, Agumon! You’re an incredible guy!”

In celebration of this victory, I decided to name the Bone Wyvern “Agumon.”

Whether it was due to the newly given nickname or the fact that we had just overcome a challenge together, this terrifying skeleton wyvern began to feel somewhat endearing.

But the moment of peace didn’t last long.

Hasssssan!

Hassaan!

Sa-a-an, heh-heh-heh, hahaha!

As more Manticores emerged from the darkness, all hope for lightheartedness vanished.

This place really is screwed.

It felt like being a rookie adventurer who had innocently ventured into the labyrinth of Rudebrim without knowing any better—trapped and unable to escape.

d*mn, are we screwed?

But I couldn’t let myself fall here, so I grabbed hold of my staff at my waist once more.

And then…

Something changed.

The Manticores that had been ready to pounce and devour me just moments before suddenly scuttled away into the shadows as if their tails were on fire.

What is going on?

Confused, I noticed the presence of something else approaching from the corner. It walked with a clattering rhythm, its blue twin gleams reflecting in the darkness.

Bone Wyvern… necromancer, but you’re still but a boy… to fear Manticores so…

In the shadows, two glowing blue eyes stared at me.

[Author’s Thoughts]

As we pass 200 episodes, I’ve noticed some reviews mentioning that the story might be getting a bit scattered…

I tried to move things forward quickly and with parallel plots, but it seems the story hasn’t been as smooth as intended, breaking here and there… Wow… What a mess…

There’s still so much to learn about crafting a story… So, I’ll try to slow down the pace just a little…

And about Paranoi’s illustration, I mentioned it might feel a bit special… but it’s not radically different, so you might not want to expect too much… 😭

It’s still quite similar to the original… Ah!

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