Stop, Friendly Fire!

<Chapter 30. Hero Hunter - 3>

Lee Shin Woo wasn't able to convince the next two heroes and was forced to kill them. One of them was a level 6 undead hero, who possessed balanced stats (which he hadn't seen in a long time), but it hadn't possessed an exceptional skill of any kind, so it merely raised his stats a little bit. What a bummer.

The other was just a level 5. It didn't have a special skill, but it did have an artifact!

Then, a level 6 Treasure Eater appeared, so he ended up killing it too. All this time, the Treasure Eater hadn't eaten the artifact, so he considered himself quite fortunate. Lee Shin Woo thought he might have pheromones that attracted Treasure Eaters, but there was no way of knowing.

[You have acquired the Lv6 Titan's Pride.]

[You have acquired the Lv5 Gambling King's Jewel. Through Bone Reinforcement, it is transformed into the Lv6 Critical Star Fossil!]

"Steve, you always come at the best of times."

"You know, you used to swear whenever it appeared out of nowhere."

Lee Shin Woo ignored Jin's valid retort and checked the two level 6 items. Through Bone Reinforcement, the level 5 artifact leveled up, and with even one of these items, one could be a stupendous hero (once she saw Kratia's orb, Prince had grumbled jealousy and explained), but he now had two such artifacts in his possession!

[Titan's Pride]

[Lv6]

[Durability: 17,500/17,500]

[Defense: 2,100 - 2,400]

[Options: Health + 100, Defensive Effect + 70%]

[Passive skill: Titan's Fury - If you successfully defend against your opponent's attack, then you can return a portion of that damage onto your opponent.]

The Titan's Pride was a thick and huge shield that was 10 meters tall and 4 meters wide. Because it was entirely made of bone right off the bat, it didn't change.

Its defense was amazing, but it was way too big, so Lee Shin Woo couldn't effectively hold the shield. He had been shocked when the shield had popped out after killing Steve!

"Where did Steve even get this thing?"

"Seems like Titans also exist in the Empire..."

Lee Shin Woo was anxious, as he wondered whether he could absorb the shield or not. Even so, he stretched out his hand, gripped the tip of the shield, and slowly activated Bone Reinforcement. Then, the shield immediately was enveloped in black energy, and was entirely sucked into Lee Shin Woo!

[Absorbing the Lv6 Titan's Pride through the Bone Reinforcement skill. Health has increased by 100.]

[Bone Armory has stored the information of the Lv6 Titan's Pride. The Titan's Pride will be scaled down to fit the user and can now be summoned. You can now gigantify and summon the equipment stored in the Bone Armory.]

[If Bone Armory levels up just a bit more, then it will become possible to fuse the information of the Titan's Pride and the Bone Fortress, which will likely result in a new piece of equipment.]

"Ooooh...!"

At first, Lee Shin Woo had been concerned that he'd never get the opportunity to use this piece of level 6 equipment, but that wasn't the case because of Bone Armory's modification ability. Moreover, he was now able to gigantify his equipment, though he had absolutely no idea how he would apply the new ability!

"If I end up having to disguise myself as a Titan, then I won't be in a pickle because I have a weapon I can use."

"You... Don't say stuff that's so clearly distressing."

Lee Shin Woo summoned the scaled down Titan's Pride. Although its maximum defense reduced by 600, its options remained the same!

Of course, Lee Shin Woo preferred dodging attacks and counter attacking over just defending because of his connection with Jin, which increased his dynamic visual acuity and his reflexes. But there was nothing wrong with obtaining such a durable shield.

"No matter how much I thank them (Steves), it's not enough."

"You really are terrible."

Lee Shin Woo pretended like he was listening to Jin and looked over the Lv6 Critical Star Fossil next. This was the result of Bone Reinforcement leveling up the hero's original level 5 artifact, the Gambling King's Jewel. When he took a closer look...

[Critical Star Fossil]

[Lv6]

[Durability: 320/320]

[Options: All stats + 10]

[Passive skill: Lucky Strike - There is an extremely high chance that the amount of Perium you pick up will increase.]

"Huh!?"

But Lee Shin Woo immediately flinched when he looked over the item's info. It was a fossil necklace in the shape of a star; it emitted a gentle light, and its info was truly extraordinary!

Of course, it was a skill that relied on chance, but when it worked, it would increase the amount of Perium he picked up. To the heroes, who relied on God's secret shop, it was an item worth staking their lives on!

"He must've been so bitter that he died while possessing this item..."

Of course, he didn't know what ability the Star Fossil possessed prior to its transformation, but he was certain that it would bring good fortune to the equipper. Lee Shin Woo expressed his condolences to the dead hero again, but his condolences and him hitting jackpot were two different things, so he mercilessly absorbed the Star Fossil.

[Absorbing the Lv6 Critical Star Fossil through the Bone Reinforcement skill. All stats have increased by 10. You have acquired the special passive skill, Lucky Strike Lv1.]

Lee Shin Woo flinched once more. He thought the Star Fossil would be stored in the Bone Armory, but he had learned the necklace's ability as a skill instead.

And now that he thought about it, Lee Shin Woo didn't have any accessories stored in the Bone Armory, despite him absorbing accessory type artifacts (or bones that 'used to look like' accessories). Perhaps Bone Armory was supposed to be used that way. He'd gained a skill that had the potential for growth, so it was an even better result.

"This is tough. I have to keep the rest of my undead seniors alive..."

"You say that, but you're smiling so evilly..."

Lee Shin Woo felt so much wealthier and ran through the Empire with Jin. There were only two undead heroes left in the danger level 3 zone. Ethan Cruz's undead group was also in the level 3 danger zone, so he wanted to deal with the rest of them as quickly as possible and move onto the level 4 danger zone.

However, a quarter of a day had passed.

"Shin Woo, I see him."

"Nice, then... You have forgotten who you are, hero. What are you doing hereeeeeeeeeeee!"

Lee Shin Woo found the next senior halfway through a level 5 dungeon, and spoke the third line of his 'senior wake up alarm compilation'.

But to be honest, Lee Shin Woo had become tired of repeatedly attempting to convince them and repeatedly failing as a result, as he was still only human. Once he'd thrown out a few lines of his compilation, he got ready to go into hunting mode...

"I-I am... I am...!]

"Huh!?"

[What... have I...!]

But when the undead hero replied with a bit of his intellect, he was so flustered (as it had been such a long time since this had last worked), even though he had elicited the desired response!

However, Lee Shin Woo quickly got a hold of himself, hurriedly withdrew his weapon and yelled once again. He shouted out line one of the 'senior wake up alarm compilation', which was also his most effective!

"Aren't you a hero who sought to purify the Empire!? Your body may be soiled, but do you plan to dirty your soul as well!?"

[Soul, my soul...! Is my soul still here...?]

"Who killed you? Who do you need to kill!?"

"Shin Woo, you look really excited..."

Lee Shin Woo kept stimulating his mind by throwing out these lines, and then, the undead hero began to squirm, which was quite the laughable sight.

But it seemed like his body and mind still weren't completely in sync, as he aimed both his arms' bronze fingernails at Lee Shin Woo and shot them at him. They were so fast that Lee Shin Woo couldn't hope to dodge them!

'No way, this is...!'

Despite Lee Shin Woo being in a level 3 danger zone, he thought that perhaps this opponent was a level 7, and was able to dodge the attack through his connection with Jin.

They would probably be able to fight against him for a short period of time, but the longer they were unable to mount a proper offensive, the worse the situation would get for them. He would persuade him before then!

"Open your eyes. Remember your name!"

[I'm a hero... A hero who once followed God's command...]

"Who should you be pointing those fingernails at!?"

[They made me into an undead...!]

"And who is it that made you into an undead?"

[The Empire... and the heroes!]

"What?"

Huh? What did the heroes have to do with this? Lee Shin Woo was momentarily unable to speak but was somehow able to push on. The undead hero's fingernails had cut through the air and grazed the edge of Lee Shin Woo's armor.

"The pure heroes might get caught up in those heroes' plot!"

[What... did you say...?]

His movement momentarily froze. Yeah, this was it! He did it!

[The other heroes... will be caught up in that man's plot...?]

"The other heroes don't know about his sinister plot as of yet. Are you just going to sit there and let them be sacrificed like you were!?"

[Other pure heroes...]

He agreed with him. Lee Shin Woo was sure that his words were super effective on him. What remarkable wit.

If that's the case, then he needed to strike a decisive blow, but was the man that ambushed him and the one who was trying to kill Lee Shin Woo one and the same? Lee Shin Woo slightly pondered the subject, but... he decided to go with his winning move.

"Ethan Cruz."

[Gureureureuk.]

The moment Lee Shin Woo uttered his name, the undead hero bared his teeth and screamed like a wild beast. From the outside, he almost looked entirely human, but his nails were unusually sharp and he could attack with them as well, signaling that he probably wasn't human, like the hero Lee Shin Woo had fought before.

[Ethan... Cruz...!]

"Yeah. Right now he's trying to kill the pure-hearted heroes who follow God's command."

[Ethan... and Mentes...! Those bastards! They killed me and tried to control me! I was able to escape their control because of my darkness energy, but in the end, I became like this!]

Mm, something he'd only suspected had been disclosed! To be honest, when Ethan had first suggested that they hunt one of the 12 generals and Mentes had reacted negatively to it, he thought that perhaps Mentes was in on his plan. And it turns out that they were indeed connected.

'They probably convinced themselves that this was the only way to purify the Empire.'

"Follow me if you want revenge. I'll give you new power and a new chance."

[You will...?]

The undead hero instinctively withdrew his fingernails (that were pointed at Lee Shin Woo), and asked. It seemed like much of his reasoning had been restored. He did it! He's almost there! Lee Shin Woo felt like cheering.

"Yeah. You're incomplete, and I can make you whole."

[Are you like Ethan Cruz? If that's the case, then...]

"What you should be asking me isn't so trivial."

Lee Shin Woo purposefully cut him off with a strong tone.

"Can we kill Ethan Cruz and Mentes Orun. Isn't that what you should be asking me?"

[...]

The eyes of a ferocious beast stared at Lee Shin Woo from behind his rotten human flesh.

He had realized that he wouldn't be able to win against Lee Shin Woo at full strength. But he decided that if Lee Shin Woo were to try convincing him by force, then he would take an arm with him and leave behind this curse ridden life. However...

[Who are you?]

"I'm Paul Zero. I'm an undead like you. Ah, that's right. I'm a bit unique, as I work together with the heroes."

[Paul Zero, what do you want?]

"Life. At the same time, I want freedom... I also want to destroy everything connected to this disgusting curse."

[Can you promise me that you'll release me when everything is over?]

"I'll release you if that time comes."

Lee Shin Woo wasn't interested in world domination. He killed the undead heroes not to increase his fighting strength, but to give them another chance to fight... No, never mind.

[...Fine. I agree. I, Bisher Moon of the Moon Clan will follow you, Paul Zero.]

Did he figure out that Lee Shin Woo was telling the truth? A beast in the form of a human... Bisher Moon took a step back and respectfully bowed his head. At that moment, he completely discarded his human skin!

'As I thought, he wasn't human... He was a Lycanthrope!'

At the same time, Lee Shin Woo's darkness mana enclosed the Lycanthrope's body, and as if responding to it, dark energy poured out of the Lycanthrope as well. It wasn't the curse's energy that had covered his body, but his darkness mana!

'He said he was able to escape their control because of his darkness energy. So this is what he meant.'

Perhaps Ethan had been gunning for him because of his darkness energy. While he nodded his head, Lee Shin Woo's mana completely covered the Lycanthrope, strengthening him. He was familiar with this now.

[The Lv7 Elite Ghoul has become the Lv7 Wolf Avenger - Bisher Moon. You have restored a high rank undead's intellect, and have made him your subordinate. All stats have increased by 1.]

[The Intermediate Command skill has become Lv10 and has evolved into the high rank level! All stats have increased by 10! The number of subordinates you can command at once has increased significantly, and you can effectively command specified subordinates with complicated tactics, even from afar!]

[High Rank Darkness has become Lv2 and Magic has increased by 20!]

[Proficiency in the Acting, Instigate, and Disguise skills have increased by 16%. The Acting skill has become Lv17.]

Once all the black mana had been completely absorbed, Bisher Moon's true appearance was revealed. Befitting a Lycanthrope, he looked like a cross between a wolf and man. He possessed a bronze, robust and muscular body, which made it nigh unbelievable that he was undead, and a face and mane that resembled a wolf. Also, his body was fully covered by a black metallic armor!

There was only one thing that proved he was undead: a blue goblin fire blazed within the whites of his eyes. He looked similar to Shino Rendu and the Chi Pauls.

[I understand now. Your use of darkness energy is incomparable to mine. I've met an undead who isn't truly an undead.]

"Yeah. I'll be counting on you, Bisher Moon. With that in mind, let's..."

Lee Shin Woo wondered why all the high level undead he formed a master-servant contract with gained such cool bodies and armor. Even though he was jealous of them, he still remained outwardly calm and said.

"Shall we talk about Ethan Cruz and Mentes Orun?"

[Of course.]

Bisher Moon nodded his head as if he were waiting for this. There was no way Ethan Cruz and Mentes Orun could know that their victim had become his subordinate and was telling him everything about them.

But Lee Shin Woo's preparations for his hunt had just begun. He was prepared to fight Ethan 'fair and square'!