Lee Shin-Woo had no luck convincing the next two heroes, either, and he was forced to kill them. One of them was a level 6 undead hero with balanced stats, which he hadn't seen in a long time, but it didn't have any exceptional skill of any kind, and he merely got a few more stat points. Bummer.

The other undead hero was level 5. It didn't have a special skill, but it did have an artifact!

Then a level 6 Treasure Eater appeared, so he ended up killing it too. He considered himself fortunate that the Treasure Eater hadn’t eaten the artifact while the undead hero was just hanging around in the area. Perhaps Lee Shin-Woo had pheromones that attracted Treasure Eaters, but there was no way of knowing for sure.

[You have acquired the Lv6 Titan's Pride.]

[You have acquired the Lv5 Gambling King's Jewel. Through Bone Reinforcement, it has transformed into the Lv6 Critical Star Fossil!]

"Steve, you always come at the best of times."

"You know, you used to swear whenever one of them appeared out of nowhere."

Lee Shin-Woo ignored Jin's perfectly valid retort and checked the two level 6 items. Through Bone Reinforcement, the level 5 artifact had leveled up. Having one of such items would be enough to make someone a stupendous hero—Prince had grumbled enviously and explained as such when she saw Kratia's orb—but he now had two such artifacts in his possession!

[Titan's Pride]

[Lv6]

[Durability: 17,500/17,500]

[Defense: 2,100 - 2,400]

[Options: Endurance + 100, Defensive Effect + 70%]

[Passive skill: Titan's Fury - If you successfully block your opponent's attack, you can return a portion of that damage onto your opponent.]

The Titan's Pride was a thick, giant shield that was 10 meters tall and 4 meters wide. Because it was entirely made of bone right off the bat, it didn't transform at Lee Shin-Woo’s touch.

Its defense was amazing, but it was way too big. Lee Shin-Woo couldn't hold the shield properly. He had been shocked when the shield popped out after he killed Steve!

"Where did Steve even get this thing?"

"Seems like Titans also exist in the Empire..."

It made Lee Shin-Woo anxious wondering if he could absorb the shield. Pushing through the feeling, he reached out to grab the tip of the shield and slowly activated Bone Reinforcement. Black energy immediately enveloped the shield, and it was entirely sucked into Lee Shin-Woo!

[Absorbing the Lv6 Titan's Pride through Bone Reinforcement. Endurance has increased by 100.]

[Bone Armory has stored the information of the Lv6 Titan's Pride. The Titan's Pride will be scaled down to fit the user and can now be summoned. You can now gigantify and summon the equipment stored in the Bone Armory.]

[If Bone Armory levels up a little more, it will become possible to fuse the data of the Titan's Pride and the Bone Fortress, which will likely result in a new piece of equipment.]

"Ooooh...!"

Lee Shin-Woo had been concerned he wouldn’t get a chance to use the level 6 equipment at all, but thanks to Bone Armory's modification ability, it turned out not to be the case. Moreover, he was now able to gigantify his equipment, though he had absolutely no idea how he would apply the new ability!

"If I end up having to disguise myself as a Titan, I won't be in a pickle because I will have a weapon to use."

"You... Don't say stuff that's so clearly distressing."

Lee Shin-Woo summoned the scaled down Titan's Pride. Although its maximum defense had reduced by 600, its additional effects remained the same!

Of course, Lee Shin-Woo preferred dodging attacks and counter-attacking over simple defense because of his connection with Jin, which facilitated his dynamic visual acuity and his reflexes. However, there was nothing wrong with obtaining such a durable shield.

"I can never thank Steves enough!"

"You really are terrible."

Lee Shin-Woo pretended like he was listening to Jin and looked over at the Lv6 Critical Star Fossil next. This was the result of Bone Reinforcement leveling up the hero's level 5 artifact, the Gambling King's Jewel. When he took a closer look...

[Critical Star Fossil]

[Lv6]

[Durability: 320/320]

[Options: All stats + 10]

[Passive skill: Lucky Strike - There is an extremely high chance that the amount of Perium you pick up will increase.]

"Huh!?"

Lee Shin-Woo immediately flinched. It was a gently glowing fossil necklace in the shape of a star, and its info was truly extraordinary!

While the passive skill relied on chance, it would increase the amount of Perium he picked up when it worked. To the heroes, who depended on Goddess’s Secret Shop, it was an item worth risking their lives for!

"He must've been so bitter that he died with this item in his possession..."

Of course, he didn't know what ability the Star Fossil granted prior to its transformation, but he was certain that it would bring good fortune to the user. Lee Shin-Woo expressed his condolences to the dead hero again, but condolences or not, he had hit the jackpot. He mercilessly absorbed the Star Fossil.

[Absorbing the Lv6 Critical Star Fossil through Bone Reinforcement. All stats have increased by 10. You have acquired the special passive skill, Lucky Strike Lv1.]

Lee Shin-Woo flinched once more. He had thought the Star Fossil would be stored in his Bone Armory, but he had learned the necklace's ability as a skill instead.

Now that he thought about it, Lee Shin-Woo didn't have any accessories stored in the Bone Armory, despite him absorbing accessory type artifacts—or bones that used to look like accessories. Perhaps that was how Bone Armory was supposed to work. It was better this way; he’d gained a skill that had the potential of growth.

"This is tough. I have to keep the rest of my undead seniors alive..."

"You say that, but you're smiling so wickedly..."

Lee Shin-Woo felt so much wealthier as he ran through the Empire with Jin. There were only two undead heroes left in the danger level 3 zone. Ethan Cruz's undead group was also in the level 3 danger zone, so he wanted to deal with the rest of them as quickly as possible and move on to the level 4 danger zone.

A quarter of the day passed.

"Shin-Woo, I see him."

"Nice... You have forgotten who you are, hero. What are you doing hereeeeeeeeeeee!"

Lee Shin-Woo found the next senior halfway through a level 5 dungeon and spoke the third line of his collection of 'senior wake up calls’.

But to be honest, Lee Shin-Woo had grown tired of trying and failing to convince the undead heroes repeatedly; he was only human after all. Once he used a few of his list of lines, he got ready to go into hunting mode...

[I-I am...I am...!]

"Huh!?"

[What...have I...!]

Lee Shin-Woo couldn’t help but get flustered when the undead hero replied with signs of intellect. It had been such a long time since talking last worked. Finally, he had elicited the desired response!

Lee Shin-Woo quickly got a hold of himself and withdrew his weapon, shouting another line from his list of 'senior wake up calls’, which was also his most effective!

"Aren't you a hero who sought to purify the Empire!? Your body may be soiled, but do you plan to dirty your soul as well!?"

[Soul, my soul...! Do I still have a soul...?]

"Who killed you? Who do you need to kill!?"

"Shin-Woo, you look really excited..."

Lee Shin-Woo kept stimulating the undead hero’s mind by throwing out the rote lines, and then the undead hero began to squirm; it was quite funny to behold.

It seemed like his body and mind still weren't completely in sync, as he aimed the bronze fingernails of both his hands at Lee Shin-Woo before launching them. They were so fast that Lee Shin-Woo had no chance of dodging!

No way, this is...

Despite being in a level 3 danger zone, the undead hero seemed to be level 7! Lee Shin-Woo had to tap into his connection with Jin to dodge the attack.

They would probably be able to fight the hero for a short period of time, but since they were unable to launch a proper offensive, the situation would only get worse and worse for them. Lee Shin-Woo would persuade his senior before then!

"Open your eyes. Remember your name!"

[I'm a hero... A hero who once followed the goddess’s command...]

"Who should you be pointing those fingernails at!?"

[They made me into an undead...!]

"Who made you into an undead?"

[The Empire...and the heroes!]

"What?"

What did the heroes have to do with this? Lee Shin-Woo was momentarily rendered speechless, but somehow managed to push through. The undead hero's fingernails had cut through the air and grazed the edge of Lee Shin-Woo's armor.

"The pure heroes might get caught up in the plot of those who are corrupted!"

[What...did you say...?]

The undead hero momentarily froze. That’s it! I’m on the right track!

[The other heroes...are caught up in that man's plot...?]

"The other heroes don't know about his sinister plot as of yet. Are you just going to sit there and let them be sacrificed like you were!?"

[Other pure heroes...]

The undead hero agreed. Lee Shin-Woo became certain that his words were super effective. What remarkable wit he had!

In that case, he needed to strike the decisive blow. Could the man who ambushed the undead hero and the one trying to kill Lee Shin-Woo be one and the same? Lee Shin-Woo gave it some thought…and decided to go with his winning move.

"Ethan Cruz."

[Gureureureuk.]

The moment Lee Shin-Woo uttered the name, the undead hero bared his teeth and screamed like a wild beast. From the outside, he almost looked entirely human, but his nails were unusually sharp and could be used as weapons, signaling his inhuman nature like the hero Lee Shin-Woo had fought before.

[Ethan...Cruz...!]

"Yeah. Right now he's trying to kill the pure-hearted heroes who follow the goddess’s command."

[Ethan...and Mentes...! Those bastards! They killed me and tried to control me! I was able to escape their control because of my darkness mana, but this is how I ended up!]

Mm, something he'd only suspected had been disclosed! When Ethan first suggested that they go after one of the twelve generals, and Mentes reacted negatively to it, Lee Shin-Woo had wondered if Mentes was in on his plan. It turned out they were indeed connected.

They’ve probably convinced themselves that this is the only way to purify the Empire.

"Follow me if you want revenge. I'll give you new power and opportunity."

[You will...?]

The undead hero instinctively withdrew the fingernails that were pointed at Lee Shin-Woo. It seemed like much of his reasoning had been restored. I did it! Almost there! Lee Shin-Woo felt like cheering.

"Yeah. You're incomplete, and I can make you whole."

[Are you like Ethan Cruz? If that's the case...]

"You shouldn’t be asking me something so trivial," Lee Shin-Woo interjected with a purposefully assertive tone.

"Can we kill Ethan Cruz and Mentes Orun. Isn't that what you should be asking me?"

[...]

The eyes of a ferocious beast stared at Lee Shin-Woo from behind rotten human flesh.

The undead hero knew he wouldn’t be able to defeat Lee Shin-Woo at full strength, but if Lee Shin-Woo was to convince him by force, he had planned to take an arm with him and abandon this curse-ridden life. However...

[Who are you?]

"I'm Paul Zero. I'm an undead like you. Ah, that's right. I'm a bit unique, as I work together with the heroes."

[Paul Zero, what do you want?]

"Life. At the same time, I want freedom... I also want to destroy everything connected to this disgusting curse."

[Can you promise me that you'll release me when everything is over?]

"I will release you if that time comes."

Lee Shin-Woo wasn't interested in world domination. He killed the undead heroes not to increase his fighting strength, but to give them another chance to fight... No, never mind.

[...Fine. I agree. I, Bisher Moon of the Moon Clan, will follow you, Paul Zero.]

Did he figure out that Lee Shin-Woo was telling the truth? A beast in the form of a human... Bisher Moon took a step back and respectfully bowed to Lee Shin-Woo. At that moment, he completely discarded his human skin!

As I thought, he wasn't human... He was a Lycanthrope!

At the same time, Lee Shin-Woo's darkness mana enclosed the Lycanthrope's body, and as if in response, dark energy poured out of the Lycanthrope as well. It wasn't the curse that had overtaken his body, but his darkness mana!

He did say he was able to escape their control because of his darkness mana.

Perhaps Ethan had been gunning for him because of his darkness mana. Nodding to himself, Lee Shin-Woo covered the Lycanthrope completely with his mana and strengthened him. He was used to this process now.

[The Lv7 Elite Ghoul has become the Lv7 Wolf Avenger - Bisher Moon. You have restored a high rank undead's intellect and made him your subordinate. All stats have increased by 1.]

[Intermediate Command has reached Lv10 and evolved into a high rank skill! All stats have increased by 10! The number of subordinates you can command at once has increased significantly, and you can effectively command specified subordinates with complicated tactics, even from afar!]

[High Rank Darkness is now Lv2. Magic has increased by 20!]

[Proficiency in the Acting, Instigate, and Disguise have increased by 16%. Acting is now Lv17.]

Once all the black mana had been completely absorbed, Bisher Moon's true appearance was revealed. Befitting a Lycanthrope, he looked like a cross between a wolf and man. His bronze, muscular body was hale and robust, which made it nigh unbelievable that he was undead. His face and mane resembled those of a wolf, and his body was fully covered in a set of black metallic armor!

His undead nature was only betrayed by one thing: a pair of blue goblin fire blazed within the whites of his eyes. He looked similar to Shino Rendu and the Chi Pauls.

[I understand now. Your use of darkness mana is incomparable to mine. I've met an undead who isn't truly an undead.]

"Yeah. I'll be counting on you, Bisher Moon. With that in mind..."

Lee Shin-Woo wondered why all the high-level undead he formed a master-servant contract with gained such cool bodies and armor. Despite the spike of jealousy, he remained outwardly calm and said, "Shall we talk about Ethan Cruz and Mentes Orun?"

[Of course.]

Bisher Moon nodded as if he had been waiting for this. There was no way Ethan Cruz and Mentes Orun could anticipate that their victims would become Lee Shin-Woo’s subordinate and tell him everything about them.

Lee Shin-Woo's preparations for his hunt had just begun. He was going to fight Ethan 'fair and square'!