Chapter 74
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Chapter 74: Even If Forsaking Humanity, Skeletons Remain Undesirable (Third Update)
The castle’s immense size and numerous powerful wandering Dead Spirits required Miyoshi Mitsui over ten days to fully survey.
Beyond these roaming Dead Spirits, no other lifeforms inhabited the fortress.
During this period, Mitsui utilized his Unique Skill to convert several skeletons into Dead Spirits. To his relief, these converted entities matched the levels of the castle’s native Dead Spirits.
He also experimented by destroying a low-level Dead Spirit Puppet under his control. While easily eliminated through his command, it yielded no experience points.
…
The castle’s strongest entity was a golden-armored Dead Spirit in the main hall, wielding a massive greatsword with both hands. This Class B being could obliterate ordinary Dead Spirits with single strikes.
How to determine an opponent’s class? Simple – the Identification skill provided clear data without consuming Magic Value. An overpowered yet convenient ability.
Regarding Identification’s acquisition:
When leveling up from LV.1 to LV.2, the Voice of Heaven reappeared with three Gift Options. The first two enhanced attributes while the third granted Identification. The choice was obvious even to fools.
With Identification, combatting these Dead Spirits became more manageable. Truthfully, constant fighting contradicts my goals – escaping corporate drudgery for isekai rebirth shouldn’t mean endless battles. Yet peaceful living requires sufficient self-preservation strength, given my non-immortal status. Securing this castle becomes essential.
Skeletons do not need to eat, drink, or even sleep, so I can live carefree in this fog-shrouded castle…
Sigh…
No way to eat, no way to drink, no way to enjoy most human pleasures…
Damn it! Even if not human, being a tiny ant would be better than becoming a skeleton!
…
But Miyoshi Mitsui never expected the ants in this world to be anything but small.
Over the next month, he finally managed to wear down the powerful Class B Dead Spirit through numerical advantage and converted it into his Dead Spirit Puppet.
From that point, the castle’s interior fell under his control.
After spending more time eliminating the remaining Dead Spirits wandering outside the castle and converting them into Dead Spirit Puppets, he gradually expanded their reach outward. Every monster they encountered and killed would also become his puppet.
The Dead Spirits proved far stronger than anticipated – most monsters in the Fog Zone stood no chance against them.
To live peacefully in this world, information was paramount.
And obtaining information required outward exploration.
This exploration continued until a group of Archer Dead Spirits eliminated eight Military Ants.
The ants’ size shocked him, and their coordinated movements revealed them as social monsters.
Though they’d eliminated the eight Military Ants through surprise, Mitsui felt lingering unease.
Subsequent events deepened his anxiety.
First came the destruction of over a hundred Monster Puppets in the Fog Zone. These had been deliberately deployed to hunt other monsters – since their kills would also convert to puppets, he’d believed the entire Fog Zone’s monsters would soon become his forces.
Losing over a hundred Monster Puppets at once was unprecedented.
Though he could sense puppet deaths and their quantity, Mitsui remained ignorant of locations or causes.
He immediately recalled all external Dead Spirit Puppets while contracting the Monster Puppets’ search radius.
He planned to investigate after the powerful Class B Dead Spirit awakened. Until then, Dead Spirit activities would be restricted to the castle’s vicinity.
Yet shortly after issuing the recall order, more puppets died – true deaths this time!
Over a hundred Dead Spirit Puppets perished, nearly one-sixth of his total forces.
No ordinary monster could achieve this.
With Dead Spirit Puppets already recalled near the castle, this meant a formidable enemy capable of annihilating entire squads had invaded the Fog Zone… No – their target might be breaching the castle itself, or even… himself?
Miyoshi Mitsui had suspicions about the enemy’s identity.
Likely the ant swarm provoked by those earlier kills. But… could this world’s ants really be this powerful? And retaliate so fiercely over mere eight kills?
Moreover, was it coincidence they chose night for their assault…
As Mitsui pondered, noises erupted outside the castle.
Rushing to a second-floor window, he peered through the fog.
Enemy silhouettes became visible.
Ants indeed!
Wait… those are… ants??
The previous Military Ants seemed large enough… but these were absurdly gigantic!
Initiate appraisal.
Iron Armored Ants… absurdly strong. Double-digit Strength and Physical Resistance Ability. Terrifying Health Value. What kind of stats are these?!
The lead Iron Armored Ant dwarfed others in both size and attributes, clearly possessing potent skills.
Other ant species besides Military Ants seemed present too, but fog obscured proper appraisal.
Damn – they’re attacking!
Their numbers!!
No good. With such stats and quantity, the Dead Spirits can’t possibly win…
Must escape… at least get away from the battlefield first.
But Mitsui soon realized ants surrounded every direction – the entire castle was encircled.
Breaking through required overwhelming force.
Wait – that Class B Dead Spirit!
He sprinted to the first-floor hall where the converted Class B Dead Spirit lay upon the throne.
If timing held, it should awaken momentarily.
BOOM! The castle gates exploded inward, forcing Mitsui to duck for cover.
The colossal Iron Armored Ant leader – why did it have to be that one?!
While Queen Ants should be largest, they rarely leave nests. This Iron Armored Ant must be the swarm’s strongest combatant.
A Class B Dead Spirit could handle it… but said Dead Spirit remained dormant!
If the Class B Dead Spirit is killed during its awakening period… I will be finished.
I can only have the over fifty Dead Spirits in the hall hold them back with all their might.
