REAPER SCANS
How to Raise Your Skeletons
[Translator – Dawn]
[Proofreader – BringTheRayn]
Chapter 169: Let’s Hear It First
—Thud, thud, thud…!
Standing atop the high ground, I watched over the countless skeletons working below on the vast lands of Mulung Paradise.
—Thud! Squish! Thud!
The short skeletons were using various tools to flatten the ground.
—Rustle! Rustle, rustle!
Skeletons with finer bone structure were moving swiftly among the leaves, clearing the forest.
At Demir’s request, I summoned about 2,000 skeletons—to be more precise, 1,110 under Demir’s command and 1,110 under Eldrin’s command.
What a spectacle.
Even though they were just bones, the fact that so many were working for me felt surreal. Not to mention that summoning this many only cost me 20 stamina. Indeed, no matter how I thought about it, necromancers were ridiculously overpowered…
[Unique Ability: Cursed Necromancer]
Especially mine.
This…
Was it really a curse? Maybe it was a blessing?
Demir, overseeing the construction, spoke up, “Master.”
For reference, Demir stood to my left, and Kim Jinah to my right.
“Hm?”
“Are you watching? We’ve begun digging the foundation for the city. Before building anything beautiful, we need to level the land first.”
“Is that so?”
I wasn’t knowledgeable about construction. Demir, who had risen to an absolute position in his world through creation, would obviously know far more compared to me.
As I nodded in understanding, Demir chuckled, “Hehe, Master. Do you remember Titan?”
“Titan?” I lifted my head.
Of course, I did. It was the city I had seen in the past Forest and Stone medium dungeon—a city of rocks and minerals.
“I remember.”
The city was indeed incredible. It had a breathtaking, rocky landscape, like something out of a movie. And within it, mysteriously structured buildings were everywhere. There was no way I could forget such scenery. Back then, even Sunny, the absolute ruler of the Desert Empire, had called it a moving sight.
“In truth, I was the one who planned and built that city.”
“…Really?”
“But at the time, I had some regrets. Because of the tyranny of the Giant Magic Dragon, I couldn’t fully focus, and I was still young, unsure of my skills…” Demir looked down at the vast land with a gaze full of longing. “So now that you’ve given the order, Master, I want to build it properly. A forest for Eldrin, a workshop for my tribe, and a city for Master’s guild… There are plenty of materials here, and we have an abundance of summoned workers, so it will be finished faster than expected.” He clenched his fist.
“Well, I’d be grateful if you did.” I let out a wry smile.
“Oh, and Master.”
“Hm?”
“You don’t need to worry about mass production for Demir’s Workshop. We can keep that going while we build.”
Demir gained nothing from this construction. Was he doing it simply because he was my subordinate? Or was it because he genuinely appreciated me for sealing the Giant Magic Dragon?
“You can take your time and work at your own pace.”
Even though he was my subordinate, I didn’t want him to feel pressured.
“Wow, wow, this is great!”
—Clap, clap, clap!
Watching from the side, Kim Jinah clapped her hands.
“So for now… we’ll just keep selling standard weapons. We completely stopped VIP weapon production after the Berserker’s. We still have a massive backlog of orders, though.”
“Oh, you haven’t made any more S-rank weapons?”
Could Demir still not craft them alone?
“Demir said he could if he tried, but it would be a waste of time. We have already announced that VIP weapons will only be made with your approval. So what do you want to do? Should we make more?”
“S-rank weapons from Demir’s Workshop, huh…”
So far, only two had been made—one belonged to the Dark Empress, the other to the Berserker.
“Hm.”
I did want to produce more for sale. But right now, city construction seemed more important since Demir was completely focused on this project.
“No, let’s keep them on hold for now. And from now on, let’s have Demir oversee VIP production without my direct approval. Just whenever he has time.”
Demir was now a skeleton lord. If he had regained almost 50% of his original power, he should be able to handle it without my help.
“Yes, understood, shop master!”
—Rustle! Scribble!
Kim Jinah jotted down my words in her notebook, then looked up at me again.
“Oh, and, shop master.”
“Yes?”
“There’s another issue.”
“What is it?”
“The portal… is kind of… no, really problematic. Very problematic.”
“The portal?” I tilted my head. “Because of the 24-hour limit?”
“Exactly! You could just create it again every 24 hours, but… the real problem is… you always disappear without warning for long periods.”
Her words had weight—but she wasn’t wrong, either.
“Yeah, that’s true.”
However, this issue was a bit more complicated than it sounded. The 24-hour limitation was annoying but also necessary. If the portal remained open permanently, enemies could exploit its location and infiltrate it.
“Hm.” I closed my eyes and thought.
What should I do?
I had planned to settle this matter quickly and return to clearing dungeons. I needed to test Boney 8’s ability in battle and continue training the Art of All Techniques with the Elder. I also needed to prepare for the next medium dungeon.
Sensing my silence, Kim Jinah carefully suggested, “What if we let Demir handle it? Since only the artifact’s owner can use it…”
“Oh?”
Give the artifact to Demir, huh?
[Name: Demir]
[Energy: 700 / 700]
[Unique Ability: Skeleton Lord]
[Class: Blacksmith]
[Rank: S]
Thanks to his items and the effect of being a skeleton lord, his stamina was at 700—he could handle portal creation just fine.
“Master, how about this?” Demir tilted his head.
—Creak.
“First, we should check if a portal can be opened from within a dungeon. If it works, we can use Eldrin’s Summoning Ritual to call you when necessary or after 24 hours.”
“Ohhh.”
The Summoning Ritual. Right, that was an option.
“Not bad. That’s actually a good idea.”
I’d check whether portals could be opened in dungeons later. For now, I continued discussing the construction plans with Demir.
“Alright, Master. Let’s go over the details.”
He showed me blueprints and construction plans for the upcoming city. As I reviewed the materials and designs, I found myself deeply engrossed.
“Huh. This is quite incredible.” Even the training-obsessed Elder clicked his tongue in admiration. “Architecture is an art just like combat techniques. Its depth is extraordinary. I feel ashamed for only ever focusing on battle.”
We continued even after Kim Jinah left to handle business and the Elder disappeared when his summoning time expired.
“Master, how should we design the guild hall and meeting rooms?”
“A training ground for the skeletons? You want ten separate areas?”
“We might end up summoning 10,000 or more in the future, so it should be massive. But don’t worry, Master. This place is vast and boundless.”
There was no way I couldn’t be excited. Space was limitless here, and we could shape it however I pleased. Unlike the expensive land and real estate in Seoul, I could build whatever I wanted here.
Just as I was completely immersed in planning…
“Shop master! Shop master!” Kim Jinah rushed back inside.
“Yes?”
“It seems you need to step outside for a moment.”
“What’s the matter?”
What now? I was really enjoying this.
“There’s a guest here to see you.”
“A guest?” I tilted my head.
* * *
Reaper Scans
Translator - Dawn
Proofreader - BringTheRayn
Join our discord for updates on releases! https://discord.gg/reapercomics
* * *
As I stepped outside, I was met with the presence of an elderly man exuding gravitas. He stood with a composed posture, accompanied by a woman who seemed to be his secretary.
“This person is…?” My eyes widened in surprise.
There was no way I wouldn’t recognize him. He had led the Korean Hunter Association for ten years as a veteran S-rank hunter. And while he wasn’t a world ranker, his influence was said to surpass even that of rankers. This man was the Association President.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, ranker Joo Donghoon.”
“…You must be the Association President.”
I never expected the famous President Choi Taeseung to come all the way here to see me in person.
“As one of Korea’s VIPs, I thought it was only right to greet you directly,” he bowed politely.
Still feeling somewhat dazed, I bowed back. It felt surreal to see the man I had only ever seen on TV standing before me. When I was just an E-rank hunter, I wouldn’t have even dared to speak to him, but now, he was bowing to me—the way people treated me had changed.
“Ahaha, let’s not just stand around here! I’ll make some coffee, so let’s move to the conference room!” Kim Jinah clapped her hands in an attempt to break the stiff atmosphere.
“Coffee? Sounds good.” The Association President smiled warmly.
Once we took our seats in the conference room, the Association’s secretary placed a luxurious box on the table.
—Thud.
“What is this?”
The sleek design gave off the impression that something very expensive was inside.
“It’s an S-rank identification badge and an S-rank hunter exclusive card.”
—Click.
Choi Taeseung opened the box.
“By hunter law, those who reach the world rankings are automatically updated. Also, Mr. Joo Donghoon, you are now eligible for direct support from the Association.”
“Oh.”
Basically, they were offering me all sorts of benefits now that I was a ranker. The Association President continued explaining the various privileges, tax exemptions, financial support through government funding, and so on.
Wait, but…
Something about these benefits felt excessive.
“From now on, you’ll have free business and first-class access on all flights within Korea. Wherever you travel in allied countries, you’ll receive VIP treatment from their respective hunter associations. Naturally, five-star hotels will provide you with their best suites, and this card allows you to spend up to ten billion won annually, anytime, anywhere. Additionally, all high-end restaurants partnered with the Association will be covered as well…”
The list of benefits continued, filled with things I had never even heard of. It was honestly overwhelming.
Wow.
This was truly a different world. It felt like just yesterday that I was grinding dungeons, unable to even afford a part-time job. Now, money would never be a concern again.
But suddenly, a thought worried me.
“…Is it really okay to provide all this using taxpayers’ money?”
“Of course. These privileges are exclusively for rankers, who deserve them.”
“…Rankers.”
“It’s a bit of a joke, but if we didn’t offer this, what’s stopping you from emigrating to another country? Haha,” Choi Taeseung chuckled as the conversation loosened up.
“Come on, emigrating? That’s a bit much,” I smiled back.
Honestly, while I laughed it off, he wasn’t wrong. People had different priorities. There was no guarantee that a ranker wouldn’t leave for a country that treated them better.
“From the government’s point of view, it’s a trade-off—providing a great deal in return for keeping our national power intact. As you know, Korea’s elite hunters are very skilled, so tax revenue from them more than makes up for it. Plus, if government officials skim a little less off the top, this cost can be easily covered.”
“Is that so? That’s pretty straightforward.”
Of course, I had no reason to complain. They were offering it, after all. There was no reason for me to refuse free stuff.
“…However,” Choi Taeseung hesitated slightly.
“However?” I tilted my head.
“Well, technically speaking, by hunter law, an S-rank Hunter must have a record of clearing an S-rank dungeon at least once.”
Clearing an S-rank dungeon? Had I not done that already?
“Of course, as a world ranker, I could authorize it at my discretion, but the process is rather complicated… And since you already announced you’d be focusing on dungeons moving forward…”
“Ah.” I nodded in understanding.
So that was what this was about. They could approve it, but since I was going to clear an S-rank dungeon anyway, they’d rather I just do it myself.
“Sounds like there’s a tricky issue at play.”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Hm.”
Lay out the enticing rewards first—then present the inconvenient condition.
Well, I had planned on dungeon diving anyway, and maintaining good relations with the Association wouldn’t hurt.
I smirked. “I don’t know exactly what this is about…”
But one thing was clear—the choice was mine. And in this negotiation, I held the upper hand.
“…Let’s hear it first.”
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