I Became The Academy Necromancer

In every horror story, be it horror movies or ghost stories, the effectiveness of the narrative relied on how overwhelmingly dominant the antagonist was.

The victim should have no chance of fighting back, fleeing but still being pursued with no hint of a solution in sight.

The horror entities depicted in movies and ghost stories needed to be like that.

If they could be swayed by a person with ease or resolved quickly, there would be no reason to be afraid.

So, the situation I was in currently was just like that.

It didn’t matter how much they flaunted their fearsome appearance and threatened to tear me apart, I didn’t feel the slightest tremor in my heart.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Come at meeee!”

Clatter! Clatter! Clatter!

A small protective magic formed around me, shielding me from the surrounding yokai. Even with them coming from all directions with overwhelming numbers, the protective magic did not break.

Crack!

“Graaah!”

Instead, the protective magic shattered the teeth of the yokai that had exerted too much force, causing their grotesque screams to get even louder.

The best offense is defense.

The situation was the exact definition of that saying.

I simply observed in silence as the yokai, repeatedly charging and colliding against me, began to tire.

[Don’t die.]

Suddenly, I felt as if I could hear the voice of the Dark Spiritualist.

This was the overwhelming protective magic she had created just for me, even though she was already dead. Something that didn’t fit the image of a typical Necromancer, a miracle that defied death.

“…”

Although the timing wasn’t right, I felt a swell of emotion.

A hot breath escaped my lips as longing pressed heavily against my chest.

I shouldn’t be like this.

If I had to put it in words, I had grown a bit as a person when compared to my previous self, who was stoic. However, I couldn’t let myself be buried in the past too often.

Holding onto those who had already departed would only make me look foolish.

“…”

As I mentioned earlier at the Lanlan Diner, I needed to be careful because I found myself getting lost in my memories too often recently.

Taking in my surroundings again, I noticed the yokai retreating.

Some of them were seemingly injured by the sturdy, protective magic.

The most prominent being the ‘Human Ghost,’ a yokai that devoured people in the alleys.

“Kheugh! Heugh!”

As she caught her breath, wet blood dripped from the corners of her mouth.

Her once massive teeth had shattered to an unsightly extent, with fragments falling along with the dripping blood.

It was undeniable that the magic the Dark Spiritualist had confidence in was especially effective against this type of enemy.

“Are you done?”

I asked lightly, and the yokai trembled with rage, but it didn’t seem like they had the courage to charge again.

To slam one’s head against a solid stone with all their might and to bite down on it required an extraordinary amount of courage. And that did not only apply to humans but also to yokai.

“I’m soooo hungry!”

However, there were always exceptions—someone who struggled to get a grip on reality.

Thumping the ground with her blood stained fist, the Human Ghost charged at me again.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

The yokai stretched out her long arms indiscriminately.

Although her posture was incredibly clumsy, her immense strength made even that look threatening.

No, it would have been threatening, right?

To ordinary people that is.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Kia! Kihah! Hwaah!”

The enraged Human Ghost screamed fiercely, blood splattering everywhere.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

While her flurry of punches might have temporarily raised the spirits of the other yokai…

The passionate and aggressive will did not lead to good results.

“Hii!”

The Human Ghost exhaled as she slowly glanced down at her limp hand.

It had become such a grotesque mangled mass of flesh, that it could hardly be called a hand anymore.

Even while groaning in pain, her desire and hunger to eat me seemed unsatiated.

In the end, as she opened her mouth wide and charged at me…

Chwaaaak!

A magic blade split her body apart.

While this method of use was new to me, it was one I had practiced as Kim Shinwoo, not as Deus.

Eventually, the bisected Human Ghost began to perish slowly as she lay sprawled on the ground.

The yokai watching this scene finally managed to get a clear grasp of the situation and immediately turned to flee out of the alley.

“R-runnnn!”

“He’s a monster! A damn monsterrr!”

“You bloody goblin, what the hell is this? You’re the reason for this!”

Their reprimanding voices pierced the night air. It must have felt quite miserable as they fled for their lives.

As I said last time, my ability to chase fleeing enemies was somewhat lacking.

“Huh?”

“I-it’s blockeddd!”

“Don’t push! You bastards! I said don’t push!”

“Climb up!”

“The top is blocked too! Damn it!”

Therefore, I had no intention of letting this fight turn into a chase.

If I had to point out the best aspect of the Dark Spiritualist’s magic, it would undoubtedly be its durability.

This allowed me to fully understand the intensity of how desperately she wanted to keep me alive.

Additionally, being familiar with the Dark Spiritualist’s magic made it easy for me to learn and adapt.

The moment I cast the protective magic for the first time, I had already set up two barriers.

One for my own protection.

The other was to surround the entire alley to prevent the yokai from escaping.

As the yokai frantically searched for an opening, they suddenly spotted Xiao Hu staring down at them from the rooftop.

Tears streamed uncontrollably from her eyes, and, choked with emotion, she let out small, hiccupping sobs.

“So-Xiao Hu! Help! Help us from outside!”

“All your uncles are dying! Xiao Hu! Xiao Hu!”

“Didn’t we help you the other day, sis? Damn it! Open this up! Please help us break this down!”

The yokai began crowding towards Xiao Hu, begging for their lives. However, just because she was outside didn’t mean she would be able to break through my magic.

The scene was reminiscent of a hellish landscape.

I heard that in that place, everyone begged for their lives in anguish, yet the suffering continued for eternity.

While they shouted at Xiao Hu, who was watching them from the rooftop as if she were their savior…

“Don’t close your eyes.”

Whoosh.

The body of the Human Ghost perishing at my feet caught on fire.

It was a blue flame that was all too familiar to me.

The Necromancer’s flame that burned souls, causing pain or even leading to their complete annihilation.

“Watch until the end.”

Even amidst the chaos, it seemed that my voice reached Xiao Hu, as her eyes remained wide open despite shedding tears.

She couldn’t even move her hands to wipe away the tears.

All she could do was watch.

The reality of the village she loved and the responsibilities they had to bear.

The flames began to spread gradually.

“Kua! Kuaaaaak!”

“Save me! No! I don’t want to! Noooo!” ”

“Open it! Open this! Damn itttttt!”

“Xiao Hu, you bitch! Help ussss!”

“Are you happy to be the only one surviving?! Happy? Happy? Happy? Happy? Happy?”

“It’s hottttt!”

Their screams and struggles from all around were not pleasant to hear.

But even so, the fire continued to spread.

Quickly and without hesitation.

Eventually, the blue flames inside the protective magic that surrounded the entire alley surged into the air.

Then, I leisurely stepped out from within the sphere of burning flames.

The moonlight peeked shyly into the now-normal alley.

Nothing remained as the flames began to gradually die after finishing their role.

Back to the beginning.

I remember talking about horror movies.

From a yokai’s perspective, it might have been easy to play the role of the perpetrator constantly. But today, the roles were reversed.

I had become their nightmare.

Their horror story.

Their personal yokai.

And just like that, the village of flesh-eating ghosts met its bitter end.

The cold wind cooled my heated body and calmed the seething mana.

Being in an artificial body, I couldn’t use a large amount of mana rashly, so it took me some time to deal with this many yokai.

“…”

As I was shaking off the heat clinging to my body, the girl who descended from the rooftop appeared.

She had cried so much that the region around her eyes was swollen, and her red eyes looked like they were filled with blood.

“I…”

Xiao Hu struggled to force the words out her trembling lips.

“Are you not going to annihilate me?”

A bold question, but from her perspective, it must have been the thing she was most curious about.

“Yeah.”

Xiao Hu said she only needed to eat food instead of consuming souls.

She was a somewhat different kind of existence than the yokai I had just annihilated.

Upon hearing my answer, Xiao Hu gritted her teeth and clenched her fist tightly. Her sharp nails dug into her flesh, drawing blood.

“I knew they were bad yokai.”

“…”

“They killed and ate humans, so I know they would have to carry that responsibility.”

But…

As she added that, Xiao Hu glared at me.

“I hate you.”

If I had to describe it, she would be like a family member of a murderer.

It was not easy to let go of her love for the yokai, who had been with her all her life and had provided her with a place to call home.

While she rationally understood that they needed to be punished, emotionally, she couldn’t accept it.

“Someday, I will kill you.”

A threatening murderous intent.

The air around her rippled, her hostility pouring out towards me.

“Sure.”

A girl who lost her home and village—It would be too much to label her as a perpetrator and too shameless to label her as a victim.

“Do as you like.”

I said as I began to walk away. The village of flesh-eating ghosts had come to an end, but a story still lingered.

“Where are you going?!”

In response to Xiao Hu’s urgent question, I replied calmly.

“To the Ancient Dragon.”

It seemed that it had tried to send the yokai to avoid me; however, I had no intention of letting it go that easily.

Realizing that I was going to take action against the Ancient Dragon, a stunned Xiao Hu followed me in.

So, in a somewhat awkward atmosphere, we headed towards the city’s underground sewers, where the Ancient Dragon lay asleep.

“I… can’t believe this.”

Xiao Hu’s voice echoed through the underground sewer.

“…”

What greeted us was the corpse of the Ancient Dragon, lying cold with its head /genesisforsaken