SWNOVELXO Chapter 23
Chapter 23
The two remaining goblins trembled in fear.
Conveniently, I still had two skills left to test.
Having already decided on the next one, I began channeling mana.
Dark smoke began to rise from my fingertips, coiling like a serpent.
It quickly formed the visage of a sinister wraith, exuding pure malice.
Saaaah…
The wraith-like smoke let out an eerie wail as it shot toward the goblins.
One of them couldn’t even attempt to resist.
The smoke seeped into its body, engulfing it.
[Goblin B has succumbed to 『Curse of Sensory Deprivation.』]
[It will suffer intense pain for 10 seconds.]
“Keck! Kekek! Krrk!”
The goblin, now cursed, writhed in agony, clawing at its own neck.
It thrashed about on the ground, as if trying to crawl away from the pain, but found no relief.
The sight of it, consumed by suffering, was enough to make the remaining goblin’s eyes tremble violently.
Should it run? Fight? Could it even survive?
Paralyzed by indecision, the goblin froze, only reacting when it noticed me moving again.
Thwack! Thudthudthud!
I closed the distance too quickly for it to escape.
Realizing there was no chance to run, the goblin chose to charge, gripping its crude dagger with trembling hands.
“Kerurrk!”
It was a display of bravery—or desperation—worthy of applause from its kin, had they been watching.
Seeing its determination, I felt a small sense of relief.
At least it wasn’t going to run away.
Now, it was time for the last skill.
Activating the buff skill, I channeled mana once more.
Above my head, a violet liquid materialized, exuding a menacing aura.
It dripped down, coating me in an ominous glow.
Drip. Saaaah…
The violet liquid seeped into my body, releasing an unsettling sound as it did so.
[You have used 『Poison: Sensory Paralysis.』]
[For 1 minute, you will feel no pain.]
[Your concentration will be enhanced during this time.]
Despite its name, the paralysis didn’t hinder my movements.
If anything, the absence of pain made my senses sharper.
‘Using poison as a buff… now that’s interesting.’
Lost in thought, I momentarily stopped moving.
Seeing this as an opportunity, the goblin lunged, aiming its crude dagger at the unarmored part of my knee.
Ssshhk!
The poorly made weapon didn’t cut so much as tear, producing an unpleasant sound.
Yet, I felt nothing.
‘Oh?’
Though this was my first time taking direct damage, the lack of pain genuinely surprised me.
Completely free of external stimuli, I could focus entirely on my surroundings.
Unaware of this, the goblin continued to swing its dagger in a frenzy.
However, thanks to my high defense, the attacks barely registered as minor damage.
“Kerrek! Kekek!”
It was almost pitiful.
Despite its desperate efforts, I remained unmoved, watching it with mild curiosity.
Finally, the goblin hesitated, tilting its head as if to say, Why isn’t this working?
Seizing the moment, I drew my Steel Sword and ended its struggle.
Shk.
“Kerrek!”
[Critical Hit!]
[『One Strike!』 effect activated!]
[You have gained experience points.]
With the second goblin dispatched, I turned my attention to the third, which had recovered from its curse and was shakily regaining its bearings.
It wasn’t far, so I didn’t bother rushing.
As I approached, the goblin seemed to sense something was amiss.
The eerie silence of its surroundings unsettled it.
Turning its head to investigate, it noticed me—just in time to feel a sharp pain in its neck.
Shk!
[Critical Hit!]
[『One Strike!』 effect activated!]
[You have gained experience points.]
With all three goblins down, their bodies remained intact, unlike the undead I had fought before.
Though I could harvest the corpses, my attention was drawn to the teal smoke rising from their remains.
[『Legion of the Dead』 is now available.]
[Would you like to activate 『Legion of the Dead』?]
‘The numbers are small, but… why not?’
Though calling it a “legion” felt excessive with just three, the skill had no cooldown.
I could use it as often as corpses became available.
Such was the power of an Almighty-grade skill.
Without hesitation, I activated Legion of the Dead.
A teal heart formed in my hand, pulsing as if alive.
Thud—— Thudthud——
Its rhythm echoed, as if bestowing new life.
The teal smoke that had risen from the goblins’ corpses now returned, binding their escaping souls and merging them back into their bodies.
As the transformation completed, the goblins rose, their forms drastically altered.
Their once green flesh was now cloaked in shadow, their glowing teal eyes shining with an unnatural brilliance.
‘As expected.’
This was different from when I had stolen Vegron’s undead with Aura of Death or accepted skeletons into my legion.
These goblins retained a vitality closer to living creatures.
It reminded me of the rabbits I had raised in the beginner’s village—freshly deceased, their souls still intact.
‘There’s a definite difference.’
Though I had learned about this through Helena’s memories, seeing it firsthand made it all the more striking.
Moreover, Legion of the Dead now consumed less mana, likely due to my acquisition of Proliferating Undead.
‘It’s far more efficient than other undead summoning spells.’
Even at level 1, Legion of the Dead outperformed level 10 Low-Grade Undead Creation.
There was truth to the saying: “Grade is king.”
‘Now, let’s see how they perform in battle.’
As Seonghyeon entertained the idea of testing his undead in battle:
“Kerk-kerrek! Kekek! (Master, I have important information to report!)”
One of the goblins under Legion of the Dead spoke up.
At first, I expected to understand nothing.
But I did.
‘Why can I understand this?’
The goblin’s speech, though guttural and strange, was perfectly comprehensible—almost like a ghostly whisper.
Was this because their souls were merged with mine?
It reminded me of how I could understand foreign ghosts back in reality.
Perhaps it wasn’t so surprising after all.
Still, it was strange to be able to understand the speech of undead goblins.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Kerk! (Thank you, Master!)”
“Kerrek-kehk! Kerek! Kekekek! Kehegek! (If we go that way, there is a goblin village!)”
“Kehek! Kekek! Kerek kehhek! Kekehk! (We can raid the village and bring them into the legion!)”
“Kererhk! Kehhehk! Kero! (Your prestige will rise, Master!)”
A goblin village?
Wasn’t that where they lived?
They joined the Legion of the Dead and immediately sold out their own settlement.
“Let’s go.”
Loyal soldiers indeed.
“Kererhk! (For the Legion of the Dead!)”
“Kererhuhk! (For our Master!)”
“Karrk! Kererhuhk! (For all!)”
The three undead goblins, their teal eyes glimmering with death and madness, sprinted ahead to lead the way.
Despite being the one who killed them, their loyalty was unwavering—a mystery, but a convenient one.
Following my undead soldiers, I headed toward the plains.
Time to see what this goblin village had to offer.
2.
In the beginner’s village, many game functions were restricted for tutorial purposes.
However, those restrictions were lifted upon reaching the first proper town.
One of these was inter-town travel, allowing players to move to the second village or other starting towns.
Scouts often used this feature to chase rumors of exceptional players.
Among them was Sick Brothers scout, Lee Seongyeong.
He had hurried to Persville but found himself delayed.
‘I’m later than I expected…’
He glanced at the time.
It had been well over 30 minutes—possibly closer to 50.
If the target player had already left the training center, it would be a huge loss.
‘It would be such a waste if I missed them.’
There was no way to predict when they’d attend another lesson, and due to session time limits, waiting here for 24 hours wasn’t an option.
He considered asking other players for information but dismissed the idea.
Most likely, any player who had seen the target would be another scout and wouldn’t share anything useful.
Still, patience had its rewards.
As he stood near the entrance of the elite training center, the door opened.
“Ah! Oh!”
Lee Seongyeong’s eyes widened.
Had waiting here paid off?
But his hope quickly faded when a woman emerged, wiping away tears and sniffling.
Her sorrowful state was hard to ignore.
“Sniff… sniff. How could someone learn all the skills at once?”
“…?!?!?”
Her tearful muttering sent shivers down Seongyeong’s spine.
All the skills? At once?
Was that even possible?
If the player she spoke of was the one he was seeking…
Swallowing nervously, Seongyeong bit his lip in frustration.
If only he had arrived sooner.
Still, it wasn’t too late.
‘They shouldn’t have left Persville yet.’
Attending the training center meant the player was still level 10.
With luck, he could find them in one of the nearby hunting grounds.
Eyes gleaming with determination, he approached the woman.
Pulling a pre-prepared business card from his inventory, he offered it to her.
“Hello, I’m Lee Seongyeong, a scout for Sick Brothers. Seeing you emerge from the elite training center, I thought you might be a remarkable talent.”
“Sniff, huh?”
The woman, still sniffling, hesitantly accepted the card.
There was no need to explain the guild’s ranking.
Everyone knew Sick Brothers.
“As you know, we welcome talented players of any gender.”
“Huh???”
“Well then, I hope you’ll consider contacting us.”
Without waiting for a response, Seongyeong dashed off, intent on scouring every hunting ground in Persville to find his target.
On his way, he overheard a pair of players chatting.
“Hey, did you hear? Some weird undead popped up on Persville Plains.”
“Weird undead?”
“Yeah, about ten minutes ago. They were raiding a goblin village.”
“Oh, must be a dark mage.”
“Man, I should’ve picked dark mage too.”
The mention of “weird undead” made Seongyeong’s eyes gleam.
‘That’s it!’
He immediately headed toward Persville Plains.
Meanwhile, the woman, still holding the card, glanced at it.
Upon seeing the name Sick Brothers, her sniffling stopped, and her lips curled into a slight smile.
‘Guild Ranking 12, Sick Brothers?!’
Her mood visibly improved.
3.
It had been less than a day.
Not even a full day since Seonghyeon started playing.
Yet somehow, Lee Wonsang, the administrator responsible for overseeing him, looked far more exhausted than one might expect.
“…Sigh.”
“Cheer up, senior,” said his coworker, Oh Jinhyuk, offering a weak smile.
“Cheer up? Yeah, sure. I’ll try.”
Lee Wonsang nodded, though his voice dripped with sarcasm.
At least he hadn’t been chewed out too harshly by their team leader, Ji Hyejung, who had just returned from leave.
Her scolding could’ve been much worse, so he was grateful for small mercies.
Still, was this really a situation to feel optimistic about?
Pointing at the screen, Lee Wonsang spoke with a bitter smile.
“Yeah, watching a player gain mastery over all basic skills in just over 20 minutes sure gives me motivation.”
“Ah, uh…”
Jinhyuk couldn’t argue with the obvious sarcasm.
“And now they’re out on the plains, testing their skills.”
“Yeah, seems like it.”
“Do you think they know what they’re walking into?”
At that, Jinhyuk hesitated before replying, “I’m not sure… but it seems like they’re just hunting for now. Is there something out there?”
“Oh, there’s something alright.”
Wonsang continued to watch the screen intently.
“Out there, you’ve got a golden goblin.”
“Oh!?”