Giant Skeleton (1)

After 30 minutes of defeating various skeleton-type mobs like Skeleton Swordsmen, Skeleton Archers, and Skeleton Fighters while moving forward with Ethan.

Though I could feel mental fatigue gradually building up, Ethan and I somehow managed to keep moving toward our destination.

“Huu, huu, huu….”

“Are you okay, Lillith? If you’re tired, I think it’d be fine to turn back around here.”

“Ah, no… I-I can still go further, Young Master Ethan….”

“…Alright. But don’t push yourself too hard.”

Even though my mind was somewhat worn out after encountering over a dozen skeleton mobs on the way, strictly speaking, it was just my spirit that was exhausted-my body wasn’t particularly tired.

If I could just steel my resolve, my combat ability itself wouldn’t be a major issue. Of course, that was assuming I could actually muster that resolve.

‘Still, I’ve gotten somewhat used to skeletons after seeing so many on the way here.’

It was natural-the more you see something grotesque, the more your tolerance for it increases. Sewage workers feel less disgusted by waste than the average person, and pest exterminators barely flinch when cockroaches or spiders appear.

Having faced too many corpses-bandits, demons, and the like-I had already grown numb to them, and now that numbness was extending to living skeletons. In that sense, this trial was somewhat fulfilling its original purpose of overcoming my weaknesses.

‘According to my past-life memories, it should have appeared by now….’

Even though I had only taken this class once, I was quite familiar with the hunting grounds’ geography and characteristics.

Since I was the type to get easily startled by sudden in-game encounters, I had meticulously researched overseas guides to avoid unnecessary detours and complete objectives efficiently.

Of course, no amount of preparation could prevent me from being startled by the randomly appearing undead monsters, so I ended up taking a few steps in, screaming, and then quitting-ruining my course evaluation in the process.

-Whoosh!

“Hyeup… Haaak!”

-Squelch!

Suppressing the rising panic and swinging my sword as I advanced, I spotted an unusually pristine white gravestone ahead.

Seeing that gravestone-our target-meant Ethan and I had reached our destination. I let out a small sigh of relief and explained the next steps to Ethan.

“I believe this area is the center of the ancient battlefield, Young Master Ethan.”

“Yeah, seems like it. There’s an oddly eerie aura around here too.”

“I think collecting the strongest monster that appears in this area would be best. What do you think, Young Master Ethan?”

“I agree with you, Lillith. For the skeleton-type monsters, let’s go with the strongest one around here.”

“Understood.”

With Ethan’s confirmation, it was time to search for the monster.

Just like the monsters we’d encountered so far, the named enemies in this Necromancy Exploration class also had to be found through random encounters.

Walking around the white gravestone, I soon felt something stirring beneath my feet.

-Crack!

‘Here it comes!’

Would it be a Skeleton General? Or a Skeleton Knight?

Either would be a decent target for Ethan and me, so I prepared for battle-only to freeze in shock along with Ethan at the unexpected pattern that followed.

-Crack!

“…Huh?”

-Crack! Snap! Crack-crack!!

“Li-Lillith! Look out!”

From the first skeletal hand that burst forth, dozens of white bones erupted from the ground in rapid succession.

As I stood bewildered by the grotesque spectacle, Ethan’s urgent voice snapped me back to reality. I quickly moved in the direction of his voice, just as hundreds of skeletons emerged from the barren plains.

“……………!!!!!”

Fuck.

What the hell is this?

My brain refused to process the absurd sight before me as I stared dumbfounded at the resurrecting skeletons.

Had I somehow triggered a hidden stage in Luminor Academy? As I pondered this, the skeletons suddenly began piling up on each other, forming a tower.

-Clatter.

-Clatter, clatter, clatter.

‘…Wait, is this really-?’

Praying it wasn’t the pattern I feared, I gripped my daggers and prepared for battle-but it was already too late to stop the summoned monster.

The bone fragments of dozens, maybe hundreds, of skeletons coalesced into the form of a massive golem, leaving Ethan and me utterly overwhelmed.

“Lillith, is that…?”

“…It seems we’ve awakened this region’s most dangerous monster, Young Master Ethan.”

The boss monster of the Necromancy Exploration class-the ‘Giant Skeleton.’

The one creature I had desperately hoped to avoid now stood before us, and my mind went blank.

‘…Why the hell is it appearing now?’

Normally, it should have appeared on the third night of the Necromancy Exploration class.

But today was just the first night-and after an exhausting day of carriage driving, no less. The absurdity of it all left me speechless.

-Whooosh!

“Lillith, watch out!”

“GYAAAAAAAH!!”

-CRASH!!

With Sei’s help, I leaped high to dodge the Giant Skeleton’s attack, watching as dozens of bone fragments scattered from the impact.

If we could whittle it down bit by bit like this, defeating it might not be impossible-but its next move only deepened my frustration.

-Crackle, crackle, crackle.

The skeletal fragments reassembled as if they had never been broken, reforming around a central core.

Faced with its terrifying regenerative ability, my mind forcefully suppressed fear and disgust, replacing them with grim determination.

‘…I shouldn’t expect this fight to end easily.’

The only option was to give it everything we had, defeat this monster, seal it in an undead-sealing magic stone, and proudly submit it as our assignment.

Ethan seemed to share my thoughts-he nodded quietly when our eyes met.

-Whoooom!

“Young Master Ethan! Below you!”

“Got it!”

A massive body, roughly 10 meters tall, swung a 5-meter bone sword at us, its skeletal frame pieced together from countless white fragments.

While Ethan leaped into the air to evade, I quickly chanted an offensive spell against the Giant Skeleton.

“Explode! Bomb of Magic! Pierce! Arcane Arrow!”

-Crack, creak.

“……”

In desperation, I cast Energy Bolt and Arcane Arrow simultaneously, but the monster regenerated the damaged parts almost instantly, as if unfazed.

This was exactly why I never wanted to fight this thing.

Among my spells, only Mana Blast could deal meaningful damage to it-and even that was now off the table.

‘Not to mention, I can’t even use it properly in this situation.’

The absurdly long casting time and complete mana drain made it a risky move in any battle.

Especially here, where we’d still have to fight skeleton mobs on the way back-I couldn’t afford to exhaust all my energy in this boss fight.

If at least Ethan’s stamina remained intact, I might have risked it, but with the battle already underway, that wasn’t an option.

‘If only I’d known it would appear, I could’ve prepared.’

I had planned to avoid fighting the Giant Skeleton if possible, but if forced, I knew the strategy-preparing multiple shockwave spells to focus on one bone or pre-chanting Mana Blast for an instant takedown.

But right now, neither was feasible. Attempting them would only endanger Ethan, who was buying time for me.

‘Is this another case of that “boss monster event without contradictions” I thought about before?’

That seemed the most plausible explanation-but it only raised more questions.

Gyeotmwa Josyegigot, the player, should be in another exploration class right now. So why was this event happening to Ethan and me?

The game world’s systems grew more baffling by the day, but I had no time to complain.

“Young Master Ethan! Switching to Plan B-no, Plan C!”

“Understood, Lillith!”

The most pressing issue now was figuring out how to take down this colossal bone golem.