The undead were never weak pets. They had the fundamental limit of low intelligence, but they would perform any command unconditionally. Another advantage was that they had no emotions or common sense. What about how their agility and durability which were relatively lower than those of other species? This was a problem that could be overcome be evolving into a higher undead.

In fact, the speed of the skeleton warrior was just a bit slow. Its durability was also considerably strengthened. Skeleton warriors were great pets to fight one-on-one with players of the same level. Considering the fact that a second advancement necromancer could summon skeleton warriors and a number of skeletons, a necromancer was a very favorable combat class.

Still, this was just referring to general hunting or PK. A necromancer was a vulnerable class when it came to boss raids. It was virtually impossible for the undead’s attack and durability to defeat a boss monster’s extremely high defense and attack power.

“...Should we just surrender?”

The elite necromancers of Immortal lost their fighting spirit as the new Grid was a boss monster itself. They were convinced that they would never be able to beat Grid with their abilities.

“He is a X monster!” The level 245 necromancer Kakron trembled. He had been playing hard like everyone else, but he just couldn’t knock down Grid who was facing thousands of people alone. Kakron felt a great sense of deprivation, and curse words had popped out unknowingly. Despite this, there wasn’t a single person who agreed with him.

The 7th ranked necromancer Drew reproached him, “What bullshit are you saying? Do you deserve to complain? You have a lower level than everyone here and your equipment isn’t great. It means you will lose a lot less. Didn’t you put in less time, less money, and less effort? Do you have any sense?”

“...”

“Shut up if you have a brain. Don’t claim more things than necessary.” Drew’s strong anger and spite were also directed toward himself. Drew had been watching Grid, Kraugel, and Agnus for a while. He knew what Satisfy players had to do to become a top player.

Was it having the patience to hunt for a few days in one place? Was it having the power to purchase the best items? Was it having the good luck to cope with financial difficulties? No. Those alone weren’t enough. It was the ability to continuously generate and link hidden quests. Those who could use Satisfy’s infinite degree of freedom to pass through episodes made them qualified to be a top player.

Yet Drew had never achieved it. He didn’t know the details of when, where, and whom to meet. What choices did he have to make to experience a hidden episode or quest? Drew didn’t know because there was a clear limit to his thinking ability.

“...This damn monster.” There was no hatred in Drew’s eyes as he watched Grid single-handedly kill Veradin, followed by the annihilation of the soldiers and the undead army. There was only awe.

“How smart is he?”

Was Grid a game genius? Did he keep experiencing new episodes and make rapid progress while performing hidden quests? It was a talent that Drew wanted to take away.

“Hah...” Drew was unable to overcome his frustration and was sighing deeply when he received Veradin’s whisper.

-Veradin: I’m sorry I was killed without doing anything. I am now at the resurrection point. I will be sure to join you again, so use Kir’s soldiers as a shield. Let’s catch Grid today.

“Hat!” Drew laughed. He smiled wryly as he replied.

-Drew: You are going to rejoin us? You?

-Veradin: What is the meaning of your words?

-Drew: You hate dying. Don’t you think I know that you are doing a quest where you can’t die?

-Veradin: Your guess doesn’t make sense. What player likes to die? I’m just trying to protect myself from dying? What type of quest are you talking about?

-Drew: The difference before and after you came back from the continent is too big.

-Veradin: ...Are you sure?

-Drew: Jerk! I already got the information about your separate exit! Do you think we are idiots?

-Veradin: ...

-Drew: Based on your reaction, you must’ve already arrived there?

There was the entrance to a waterway which existed underneath Kir’s castle. Veradin had been planning to leave the city through the waterway while Immortal bought time. He stiffened once he arrived at the entrance. It was because the 2nd ranked Bullet was waiting for him there.

The usually gentle Bullet was enraged. “I followed you because I recognized your skills and believed in the accomplishments you showed me. In the end, are we just tools to be discarded by you?”

“...So what? Do you want me to give you something special? Me? To an ordinary person like you?” Veradin spoke in a proud manner. Then he drove the nail in, “I gathered you together because I wanted to be recognized by Agnus. I wanted him to treat me as a useful person and become qualified to stay by his side in order to observe his madness.”

[Hwan Kingdom’s Resident (1)]

[★ Hidden Quest ★

You have to meet the minimal qualifications to challenge the Chiyou's test.

First, go beyond the level of an ordinary person.

Quest Clear Condition (1): Don’t die until you reach level 400.

* Every time you gain 20 levels without dying while the quest is ongoing, you will gain a large number of additional stats.

* If you die, you will lose all the additional stats you have acquired. The lost stats can’t be restored.

* If you die, the quest clear conditions will change to number two.

Quest Clear Condition (2): The number of deaths must be less than five until you achieve level 400 (Number of Deaths: 4/5).

* This is the last chance. If you fail to complete the second clear conditions, you will completely lose your qualification to challenge the Chiyou's test.]

There was no more turning back for Veradin. He was half-abandoned by Agnus who wasn’t actually crazy, and Immortal was pulling him down rather than helping him. Veradin had only one life left, so he had to defend himself. He had to get out of here quickly.

Tsk! He clicked his tongue as he pulled up the list of guild members. Veradin intended to expel Bullet and Drew using his authority over the guild. He planned to stop them from inciting the other guild members and give them the expulsion penalty. However, unlike Veradin, Bullet and Drew had been acting for the guild with true sincerity. So, the members’ sentiment was with them.

[You have been impeached from your position as guild leader due to the vote of the guild members!]

[Guild leader Bullet has expelled you from the guild!]

“You—!”

The system interpreted that a ‘serious sin that can’t be forgiven’ had been committed as the reason why a guild member was expelled from a guild. Due to this, a penalty was incurred.

[You have been expelled from the guild and have become a fugitive!]

[There is a punishment for your sin. If you are arrested by a former guild member, the imprisonment sentence will increase. If killed, the death penalty will increase by 20%. This penalty is limited to one time.]

“This is... This is like being bitten by a dog I raised.”

Immortal was his force! These guys did nothing, even Agnus! Veradin’s voice shook angrily as he raised his head and shouted, “Summon! Death Knight!”

Veradin was in an extreme state of anxiety. He had to keep in mind that the necromancers who betrayed him might surrender to Grid and lead him to this place.

‘I have to leave here quickly!’

Veradin commanded his death knight to kill Bullet.

“Summon, Death Knight.” In response, Bullet also summoned a death knight. The unexpected battle between the first and second-ranked necromancers began.

***

“Dammit! How do I fix this?”

Unlike what was known in the past, had Grid been a magician before he changed to Pagma's Successor? As Grid suddenly started using magic to kill the soldiers, Kir felt a sense of discomfort. This was because the undead army that rose again had started to retreat from Grid.

‘Is there a separate operation?’

Veradin might’ve died in vain, but Immortal had many necromancer rankers besides Veradin. Kir relied on Immortal sincerely. He thought that when they cooperated with his troops, there would be a chance to win against Grid who was becoming tired. Yet a strange phenomenon occurred. The undead army gained a bit of distance from Grid before suddenly collapsing and returning to the earth.

“What is the problem?”

“...”

Kir shouted toward Immortal, but there was no response. No one answered Kir’s call. Bit by bit, little by little, the Immortal members stepped back while trying not to catch Grid’s attention. Kir cried out, “You dared come here only to one-sidedly destroy the alliance?”

His eyes blazed with anger.

“The person who made the alliance with you just left the guild,” Drew explained as he came up to Kir. “That jerk Veradin abandoned the guild and moved alone. We no longer have a reason to fight.”

“...I don’t know the details but aren’t you being too relaxed? You have already attacked Grid. Do you think Grid will take care of you because you aren’t fighting? In the end, you have to fight in order to survive. Stop talking nonsense and summon the undead again. Stop the monster called Grid along with the soldiers.”

Drew shrugged at Kir, who barely contained the curse words that wanted to emerge because of his frustration. “Of course, I don’t believe it will be easy. However, I am already prepared.”

“...?”

“In the future, we will die until Grid’s anger is released. I just hope that Grid can release it quickly.”

“You will go that far?”

Drew replied to Kir’s question, “Isn’t that the only answer? Haven’t you noticed yet? Is Grid an enemy we can go against at our level?”

“...”

The last spell finally exploded. Grid destroyed dozens of soldiers with just one Fireball, put away his staff, and pulled out his sword. His period of raised intelligence caused by Soul Ingestion was over, and his mana was completely exhausted. He could no longer act as a magician. Despite this, to Immortal and Kir, it seemed like Grid was just ‘playing’ around.

“He isn’t satisfied slaughtering with magic, so he is using a sword again...”

Kir listened to Drew’s analysis and gulped. He was on the verge of losing his fighting spirit. Then Arisa rushed to Kir’s side. “Grid is quite tired and his stamina will be low. I am sure that he can be cornered right now. Isn’t Tarot coming?”

The half-demonkin Tarot was the most expensive person hired by Kir’s Company. He had been killed by a surprise attack right after Grid appeared, but Arisa didn’t doubt that his fighting spirit would be high after he resurrected. Kir met Arisa’s hopeful eyes and shook his head with a bitter expression. “He hasn’t replied to my whispers.”

“...” Arisa fell silent.

The reason why she hadn’t lost hope was that she believed in Tarot’s power. Why would Tarot suddenly not reply? The hope that filled her scattered in vain. Grid was approaching. Whenever he took one step, dozens of soldiers were turned to gray. The power of the intermittent black flame explosions was amazing. It was an infinitely activated skill.

They didn’t know what the structure of Grid’s skill tree was like. So, in the end, Kir was forced to put down everything. He ordered Arisa to stop the troops and approached Grid. “This is a one-sided invasion, a cruel massacre. If today’s disaster is revealed, public opinion toward you will worsen. There will be all types of accusations.”

It was a threat that was meant to end this situation. No matter how mighty the forces were, ‘standing alone’ would cause fear. As such, Kir wanted to negotiate, but unfortunately, his intimidation didn’t work.

Grid scoffed and tilted his chin toward a distant place. “Do you think I just came here to play? Some crazy guy used Blackening and rushed at me. Then the soldiers attacked? I was just defending myself when Immortal popped up? All those things are now being streamed live.”

“...!” The surprised Kir turned his gaze in the direction that Grid indicated. The world’s most famous game BJ, Bunny Bunny, waved to him. Grid’s eyes became cold. “The cost of challenging me is very great.”

“Ick...! Eeek!” Kir just wanted to protect his minimum rights. Now his eyes turned yellow as he heard Grid’s words.