Necromancer Survival

my conflicting thoughts.

* * *

     After returning home, I washed up and ate a quick dinner.

     While I was eating, Seo Dawon searched “Ahn Joosung ” on my cell phone.
He must have found something important because he sent a text to some unknown number.

     Afterwards, he turned towards me–a bystander to his research–and asked a random question.
“How was today?”

     “Huh?”

     “This much is doable, right?”

     Looking back on all the events, I pondered on Seo Dawon’s query.

     Was it doable…..

     Honestly, regardless of whether or not something was feasible, I contributed nothing to the raid in the dungeon today–I only moved as Seo Dawon had commanded.

     “If you’re asking me if I’m tired, I’m not…But I really didn’t do much today…”

     Actually, it wasn’t just today…Ever since we met, I felt like every moment I was simply dragged into his pace.

     However, Seo Dawon laughed, “When you get a honeycomb, you should suck all the honey out of it.” 1 He then sobered slightly, “Tomorrow, I won’t intervene too much.”

     “You’re saying I just have to follow along the footsteps you laid today?”

     “Yeah.
What I did earlier was the fastest method to neutralize the goose.”

     When I asked what he meant, Seo Dawon explained that a Dungeon may contain countless scenarios.
By identifying certain behaviors or patterns, we can manipulate the conditions to call forth scenarios that would be in our favor.

     For example, in the case of [Owl’s Ghost Ship], if a party moved without removing the sparrow from the watchtower, the [clumsy invader] condition would be triggered.
That will lead to a more ferocious boss battle than in other scenarios.

     That’s why if a party can find the most efficient scenarios that match their member composition, the time taken to successfully raid the Dungeon can be reduced, and dangerous situations can be controlled.

     “Why don’t I know anything about this?” I felt like a fool while listening to Seo Dawon’s explanation.
Like an idiot, I grinded hard at various early Dungeons without knowing the deeper mechanics.

     In fact, when I visited the [Owl’s Ghost Ship] with the other party, I followed the orders of the party leader to the dot, but I had no idea why I was told to act a certain way.

     Of course, I made a lot of mistakes because I simply moved around according to my memorizations instead of a deeper understanding of the party’s plan of action….No, I think I didn’t even wonder about the ‘why’s and ‘how’s behind the intricate strategy…

     “I guess you couldn’t care less because you were in a hurry to survive? I’m not being sarcastic…exploration is only possible to those that can afford it.
I haven’t done much research into various ‘scenario calling’ methods either.” Seo Dawon said kindly, as if to not discourage me.

     Then, he explained an organized itinerary of his movements–why he gave such instructions–and described today’s battles, one by one.

     Listening to his explanation made me feel like he was the creator of this Dungeon and its scenarios.
“Rankers sure are different,” I said, admiringly.
“So to reiterate, you threw all those ropes on the ground to slow down the goose?”

     “Yeah.
And there’s a probability that the goose will trip as well.
If you don’t untie the ropes, they might also support the perches when they’re supposed to fall down.
At that point, it’s a bit of a hassle to cut away at them with a knife.”

     “Ahhh….” I listened quietly before asking, “Can I write this down?”

     Seo Dawon was willing to wait.
However, though he never once disdained me while explaining the Dungeon mechanics, when I went around looking for a pen and notepad, he teased, “What are you doing with your cell phone then?” I felt embarrassed and sat down with the phone, transcribing what he had said previously.

     Then, he said, “Now that I’ve explained it to you like this…I’ll curse you if you make a mistake, got it?” He didn’t laugh, but he added, generously, “Although, how could you possibly do well in your first try.” His actions softened the bluntness of his words.

     So, I felt emboldened by his kindness and asked about the things I didn’t quite understand with his first explanation.
Seo Dawon indulged me in my curiosity for two or so hours

TL: Sorry for the fiasco yesterday~

Additionally: If people are interested in being a backup proofreader (PROs – You get to read my large stockpile of chapters and hear me squeal about the novel.
CON – you have to hear me squeal about the novel) Give me a DM or @ me in the foxaholic discord!

Footnotes

This is essentially, “don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.” Basically, when you receive something good, you should milk it for all its worth.
I wanted to keep the original imagery of the words used, so this is a literal translation of an idiom.