Chapter 8. Awakening in Life (8)

I needed to hurry. I planned to select the second slot from the Death Memorial.

[System: Blunt Weapon Physical Resistance +40 applied!]

With Dagger Technique gone, the blunt weapon resistance perk seemed like a good choice.

Clatter!

I practically leaped out of the grave. Rubia hadn't spoken to me yet, but I rushed toward her.

"

Ah, eek!

"

She was about to call me dead one, but she fell over instead. I felt sorry, but there was no other way.

"Robe, dagger. Now."

"

Eek!

"

Rubia's body was frozen. It was understandable. Anyone would freeze in such a situation.

Rip!

I snatched the dagger and forcibly stripped the wet robe off of her. Her long, brown hair tumbled down to her waist.

"

Ah..

."

Her wet lips trembled. Fear and cold were mixed into her trembling. I took a good look at Rubia. Beneath her robe, she wore a silly semi-formal dress.

I questioned her dignity as a woman. It was hard to believe she came here wearing something like that, especially a dress that was already soaked. Her identity was suspicious. She even claimed to be some sort of successor, but there would be plenty of time to ask questions once the crisis was over.

I checked her status window again.

Ding!

[Name: Rubia Ray

Necromancer Lv. 1

Health: 6

Strength: 5

Agility: 6

Wisdom: 12]

Her strength was only a quarter of mine. It was no mystery why she couldn't resist when I snatched the dagger and robe.

I closed the status window. I wasn't sure if I could see the stats for other people or if specific conditions had to be met.

I ordered to Rubia, "Stay in the bushes. Don't follow me. Your life is at risk."

Whether she believed me or not, there was no time to explain. After quickly instructing her, I picked up the longest and sturdiest branch I could find. It was solid and usable.

The graveyard was shrouded in darkness, but I already knew where all the branches were. Finding one was easy.

Shiik, shiik.

This time, I had a new plan. I trimmed the end of the branch with the dagger to make it sharp enough to call it a stake. Then, I ran down the mountain path holding it.

They'll come up here.

I went further down the path. I buried my body covered by the robe among the leaves and mud. I got into a position where I could raise the stake at any time.

Clop, clop!

I heard the two hunters riding up the path in the darkness.

Why are they chasing that woman? Who hired them?

So far, it seems like they intended to rape her. Would they kill her afterward or sell her off? If they sold her, to whom and by what route?

I set my curiosity aside for now. The priority was dealing with them.

"

Neigh

!"

The horses drew closer.

I'll let the crossbowman pass.

I could deal with him later. I targeted the stronger one first.

Clop, clop!

The crossbowman passed by. The horse carrying the man with the hammer approached. I swiftly raised the sharpened stake and pierced the horse's belly.

Thud!

"

Neigh!

"

The horse convulsed violently, making its pain palpable.

Thud!

The horse shuddered and collapsed sideways. The hunter on the horse had no time to jump off. Unsurprisingly, the deep stab made the horse fall down the slope.

Good.

"

Gahh!

"

Thud!

The hammer-wielding hunter tumbled down too. The crashing sound was satisfying. Something must have broken solidly.

Thud!

The man continued rolling down the slope. At a glance, I could see that the slope was very steep. I heard his body crashing as he rolled down.

"Wh-what's going on?"

Thud.

The crossbowman ahead jumped off his horse immediately.

In my previous life, this was the guy who had killed me. After a hard fight, I managed to take down the hammerman, but the crossbowman's club shattered me afterward. I had died and fought again. A more fitting word than struggle would be hard to find. This was already my fourth encounter with them.

Flash!

Lightning flashed. I looked at the crossbowman. I remembered the creepy smile he had when Rubia approached. I gripped Rubia's dagger tightly, step by step. The man with the loaded crossbow approached cautiously.

Whoosh!

An arrow instantly flew toward me. He wasn't blind. He could see me during the lightning flash and aimed the crossbow at me. If something seemed suspicious, shooting first was not a bad strategy.

Thud!

The arrow struck the robe I was wearing. However, it passed between my bones. I was unaffected.

Flap!

I threw off the robe and sprang up from his spot.

I shouted to the crossbowman, "I am Prechter!"

It was a seemingly absurd act. I thought yelling would surprise him. Prechter was the name of the hammer wielder. Earlier, when the crossbowman was shattering my bones, he mentioned the name. I thought it might surprise him.

"H-hey! What?"

Fortunately, I guessed correctly. The crossbowman recoiled in fright. He looked scared. For a moment, his mind was overloaded. A skeleton was charging at him while shouting that it was his comrade.

Clatter.

It was a simple and childish trick, but such methods were often effective. It didn't need to last long. Just a brief moment of distraction would suffice. The guy's body froze for a moment. I didn't miss the opportunity. I thrust the dagger straight at his neck.

Swish!

Damn.

I missed. I was not as agile as before.

"Damn! Shit!"

It seemed cursing was second nature for the crossbowman. He reached for his waist. I took a step forward and swung the dagger again.

Swish!

However, my lack of dagger skills was evident. I thought about my previous life. I had smoothly stabbed the hammer wielder, killing him in one strike. But now, I couldn't even graze this lowly guy with the dagger.

Is it really the difference in skill?

Yet, I definitely felt faster. Increasing my agility had an effect, as the change in speed was noticeable. I was slightly faster than the human before me.

The crossbowman, barely dodging, shouted in shock, "W-why are you so fast!"

The crossbowman swung the club violently.

Whoosh!

Was it just a moment ago? In my previous life, the crossbowman shattered my bones with his club. But this time, I took the club head-on instead of avoiding it. I jumped straight into his arms.

Thud!

The club swung violently. It was certainly reinforced with metal, as it made a dull sound as it struck my bones. However, the impact wasn't significant.

[Blunt Resistance +40 has been applied!]

Since I chose this perk, I took the hit and leaped up.

Squish!

I stabbed the dagger into his neck. The sound of Rubia's dagger sinking into his neck was refreshing. This was the second time I had plunged a dagger into a crossbowman's neck.

"

Gah, gah, gah!

"

Splurt!

Blood spewed out from the crossbowman's neck. I had charged in without considering my defenses, so I took a hit from the club with my arm. Perhaps he didn't expect this.

Well, my current appearance did not represent the typical, mindless Skeleton Soldier. I should've been rattling and clattering, making bone sounds, moving powerlessly as commanded. I should've been in a group, ready to act as fodder for adventurers.

The crossbowman didn't expect a skeleton to hunt humans so aggressively.

"Ugh...

What is this...

gah!

"

He clutched his bleeding neck with his hand. He had a tenacious life force, or maybe the dagger had barely missed the artery. I grabbed the club and swung it fiercely toward his head.

Crack!

With a satisfying crack, his body went limp. The blood loss and the impact killed him.

First, the weapon.

I picked up the crossbow. I secured the crossbow and grabbed the quiver at his waist.

Creak. Creak.

I loaded a bolt into the crossbow as I aimed forward.

"

Gah, gah!

"

Hmm? Still alive. Impressive.

Even if I left him, he would die. However, there was no need to leave any possibility.

Thud.

I placed the crossbow on his chest. I recalled the image of him laughing while violating Rubia. I wanted to cause him pain, but there was no time to waste. I released the drawn string.

Thunk!

The bolt pierced through the leather armor and embedded in his chest. But it wasn't an instant kill.

How stubborn.

He wheezed in the rain. It wasn't the heart. It must have been the lung. In any case, he would die. I left him and stood up.

Creak. Creak.

I reloaded the crossbow.

Shaaaaa...

I walked slowly toward the slope where the hammer-wielder had fallen.

Lightning flashed, and I spotted his figure.

Rumble! Boom!

He was clutching his hand, his face contorted in pain.

Maybe he broke a finger.

He had fallen from the stabbed horse and tumbled down the slope. It would be strange if nothing were strained or broken. It would have been better if he had died from the fall, but that seemed like too much to hope for. Nevertheless, I had found him, and luckily, he hadn't noticed me yet.

I aimed the crossbow and fired.

Thwack!

Thud!

"

Agh!

"

I heard a groan.

I hit him.

I didn't need to see it. It wasn't a graze. I had hit him properly.

Clatter.

The perfectly timed lightning struck in the pitch-black darkness where nothing was visible. I could see him, but he couldn't see me. The crossbow I had preloaded with a bolt. All these factors combined to create that perfect shot.

Creak, creak.

I reloaded another bolt. Thanks to the quiver I took from the corpse, I had plenty of bolts.

How many more shots can I land?

The distance was closing.

Splish, splash.

I could hear the sound of the enemy moving. He was walking towards me with the hammer. To some, it might've been nothing. Powerful people like the sword masters of the Empire or the Wizards of Azure might've been able to kill him with just a finger flick. However, I was just a skeleton soldier. If the distance closed, I was likely to be crushed and killed.

The rain continued to pour.

The hammer-wielder seemed to be walking based on the direction from which the bolts were fired. In this situation, hiding or running away would be the norm, but he was quite the hunter.

It seems like he's coming after me properly.

Rumble! Boom!

Mixed with the sound of thunder, his footsteps suddenly quickened. He seemed to be running. I raised the preloaded crossbow.

"

Uaaaah!

" he shouted.

Splish! Splash! Splash!

Right after the shout, the sound of his footsteps became more intense.

He's trying to mislead me.

The hammer-wielder shouted and then quickly moved in another direction.

If I fired, it would likely go into empty air. I held the loaded crossbow. I focused my attention.

Where is he?

I searched for the guy running toward me with the giant hammer.

There was a flash of lightning!

He’s moving to the left.

I fired immediately.

Thwack!

Thud!

He raised his hand, and the bolt pierced through his palm. I noticed fingers were bent in an odd direction.

A broken hand?

The hammer-wielder used the hand he already couldn't use for combat to block the crossbow bolt. His whole body was covered in mud, probably from rolling down the slope.

Rumble! Boom!

"

Khak!

"

He matched his shout with the thunder. He swung the hammer with one hand at the optimal distance for swinging a hammer.

Whoosh!

The hammer flew toward my skull. If I dodged, he would close in. If I moved forward, he would back off. He knew how to control the distance expertly.

I leaped toward the swinging hammer, trying to headbutt it.

Thud!

My skull collided with the hammer. It must have looked like a mad act. For a moment, I felt dizzy, and it felt like my skull was splitting open.