Collecting Experience Points

When Serena’s punch landed, a thunderous crash erupted from the body of the man presumed to be a necromancer.

How is it?

The attack of our cleric (the physical kind).

As her fist struck, the man began to stagger. It was too dark to see his expression.

“Chiit!”

But Serena’s face twisted in frustration. The skeleton narrowly blocked the decisive blow.

A certain ‘skeleton summoning’.

With this, it became clear he was a necromancer.

Meanwhile, the necromancer tried to escape by hurling himself toward the barrier.

There’s a cliff back there. If a person falls, death isn’t the only problem—even if the body is torn to pieces, you’d have to go collect Dragon Balls to put it back together; that’s how high it is.

For that reason, it’s an area with no security posted since there’s no reason to break in.

The fact that he is throwing himself over must mean he has some means of surviving.

Crack—!

But his opponent was Serena, the human butcher.

Using sheer grip strength, she crushed the skeleton’s shoulder, then kicked the falling skeleton at its waist.

“Ah!?”

But contrary to expectations, Serena’s body faltered.

The necromancer unsummoned the skeleton she meant to use as a stepping stone, causing her to lose her balance.

Luckily, I had already closed the distance, and I grabbed Serena’s hand, stopping her from falling off the cliff.

“Something—he’s preparing something!”

At Serena’s urgent shout, I looked over to the necromancer. He was reaching out, preparing something.

Seeing this, I quickly slipped my hand inside my coat, pulled out the ‘Blood-Colored Awl’, and swung it, spraying blood droplets.

It was too dark to see well, but the droplets clearly flew toward the necromancer.

Even as he fell below the cliff, the guy didn’t seem to even consider defending against the blood droplets that hit his body.

* [Using Hardened Blood.]

That’s not just regular blood; it’s blood, but it’s hard as well.

“Kr, kraaaagh!”

A shrill scream burst from the necromancer’s mouth. Because of that, the faint light gathering at his fingertips began to fade.

If I chased him down now, I could surely kill him, but if I jumped off this cliff, I’d probably end up like tomato ketchup.

“It’s really high. It’s enough to make my knees shake.”

Listening to Serena, I pulled her up.

“Do you think he’s dead?”

To her question, I shook my head.

“Even if you fall off a cliff like this, you won’t die.”

“At this height?”

No matter the actual height, someone who falls off a cliff won’t die. That’s just how it works.

In fact, there’s even a slight chance you’ll get an SSR-tier stroke of luck out of it.

Basically, it’s a ‘free gacha draw for fateful encounters.’

* * *

Of course.

With torches, we looked down the cliff, but there was no sign of the necromancer’s corpse.

I figured as much. Isn’t he going to get some chance encounter and come back even stronger?

“Brother!”

While scanning for any traces of ‘necromancy’, Barkal’s voice called out from behind.

Barkal was approaching. Jeez, that startled me. A skull helmet floating in the air at night—it’s enough to scare anyone.

“I heard there was a necromancer!”

Maybe Serena told him as she followed behind, because Barkal immediately asked about the necromancer.

“He ran away.”

“Damn! It’s because I let my guard down!”

Hmm.

I can’t say the feeling isn’t there.

But who would have thought a necromancer would sneak into the banquet hall?

Even Thrag didn’t know.

“None of us could’ve known he would be there. It’s not your fault.”

I soothed Barkal a bit and got my thoughts in order.

The reason the necromancer infiltrated the banquet.

It’s definitely because of the ‘Right Eye of the Ascendant Maiden’ I’m carrying.

The necromancers of Mortis have been searching all over Iushil for it.

Given that the ‘Right Eye’ reacted, he must have activated some sort of tracking magic similar to a ritual mark.

“Tsk.”

Clicking my tongue, I pulled the ‘Right Eye’ from my coat. The gem, which had been faintly glowing, was now completely dark, as though it had never shone at all.

“The necromancer came for that stone, didn’t he?”

I nodded.

How much does the necromancer know? That’s important.

“Then, he definitely saw us with the gem, didn’t he?”

You could say that.

Even if the ‘tracking’ magic isn’t precise enough to pinpoint the owner, he chased after us like a mad dog.

And Serena even got in a good hit against that necromancer presumed to be an Apostle.

“Did you see his face?”

“His face?”

“He must have been one of the guests invited to the banquet.”

Meaning he’s someone of not insignificant fame.

“No… It was too dark.”

Sorry.

Serena apologized, and I said it was okay.

“So that means the necromancer will come looking for the gem now?”

In response to Serena’s worried tone, I nodded.

Damn, what should we do?

Now, to get the ‘Right Eye’, the necromancer is going to target us.

Which means that, after being the hunters, we could now become the hunted.

That… honestly…

I’m grateful?

“The trash that needs killing is going to come of its own accord!”

Kahahahat!

Barkal laughed under the moonlight, as if there were no madmen but him.

But he was right.

Equipment and magic exclusive to necromancers can only be obtained by defeating ‘necromancers’.

And now, both equipment and experience points are coming to us.

Please—come and get us!

If they attack us in a city or town like Iushil, they’ll just get beaten up by other adventurers or security.

If we meet them outside…

Frankly, with two human butchers, it’s not scary.

Of course, at first I was afraid of having ‘necromancer’ as my enemy. But now that I’ve faced one, it doesn’t seem so bad.

“I can’t wait! Not having to hunt down that disgusting trash myself!”

Barkal’s crude thoughts were a bit much, but I was also looking forward to it.

Please hurry.

Experience points, everyone.

* * *

“Why aren’t they coming?!”

Inside the adventurers’ guild. Barkal slammed the table, venting his frustration.

“Why aren’t the necromancers coming! My Erindal is waiting!”

He pointed at the axe standing beside him, gritting his teeth.

He’d polished it so much that the blade was shining brilliantly.

“Maybe something’s happened?”

I glanced at Serena.

Why are you asking as if you’re checking on a friend? They’re coming to kill us, you know.

That said, there’s really been no reaction at all, as the two pointed out.

Right Eye of the Ascendant Maiden.

If this is a ‘divine item’ of Mortis, they should definitely want it back.

Again, Barkal slammed the table and shouted.

“It’s because they lack desperation!”

Why are you looking for desperation from the necromancers?

“That stone! We have to let them know it could disappear! That will awaken their desperation!”

“Haha…”

Serena gave a sheepish smile at Barkal’s pseudo-sermon.

But, come to think of it, he has a point.

“Barkal, you’re right.”

“So you understand, brother!”

Barkal nodded, giving a hearty laugh.

“These days, necromancers have no desperation!”

Don’t just repeat yourself.

As you say, the ‘divine item’ of Mortis.

If they see a chance it might be lost, the necromancers will desperately try to get it.

“I’ll look for the Pantheon.”

“The Pantheon?”

“Yes.”

“Why? Right now, of all times… Ah.”

It seemed Serena realized something, and she sighed.

The Pantheon—a channel through which gods and believers can interact in the real world.

From a god’s perspective, it’s a kind of ‘complaints desk.’

“I’ll offer the gem to the Pantheon as a sacrifice.”

Even if it’s an indestructible item, if you stuff it directly into a god’s mouth via the Pantheon, it would probably count as a ‘sacrifice’.

Truth be told, I’ve never offered a ‘divine item’ before, so I don’t know for sure. But so what?

The important thing is ‘possibility’.

A treasure granted by the gods.

There’s a chance that treasure could end up in the mouth of some barbarian god who loves blood.

“If they think what they’re looking for could disappear, the necromancers of Mortis will have no choice but to hurry.”

“There’s one problem.”

What is it?

“We know the necromancers want the gem. If they know it’s about to be sacrificed, there’s no way they’d stay quiet like this!”

Serena understood well.

“How do we let the necromancers of Mortis know?”

“I have a way.”

At my answer, Serena tilted her head in confusion. Barkal just kept fiddling with his skull helmet, looking at a loss.

Bringing the two with me, I approached the adventurers’ guild receptionist.

“I’ll use the forum.”

Anonymously.

A place where you can tell unspecified masses what you want.

[Did you see the barbarian at yesterday’s party? Looks like he’s got a beggar living in his belly.]

[Bit into a stone in the meal at the Bearded Cat Inn.]

[Aren’t these mages standing too far in the back?]

[So you want them out in front waving their staff and getting killed, huh?]

It’d been a while since I checked the ‘forum’, and it was still full of absurd, laughable posts.

“If I use the forum, the necromancer will definitely see it.”

“… Necromancers check the forum?”

Serena asked doubtfully. It’s only natural she’d be suspicious.

A necromancer coming to the adventurers’ guild to browse the ‘forum’? It sounds impossible.

It’s like a criminal going to the police station to check his own wanted poster.

But the thing is, the necromancer clearly had the status to go in and out of the adventurers’ guild. He even attended the banquet.

“An ordinary person wouldn’t have dared attend the banquet.”

For that reason, I was sure the necromancer would check the forum.

This guy is an attention seeker. 100%.

—

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep