'Shin-Woo!?'

'I have a lot on my mind right now, so don't talk to me.'

Shino Rendu’s superhuman arm and super regeneration… It was obvious Lee Shin-Woo would’ve become much stronger if he were to obtain both of those.

[Can you even...call that living...?]

"Fine then. If you want to die..."

[No...!]

However, Lee Shin-Woo could not raise his lance again after noticing Shino Rendu regaining his reasoning.

Call it a whim. He didn’t feel like finishing Shino off.

[Let me live... Even if I have to live as an undead...]

"Alright. I'll let you live."

[Ah, ahh...!]

Lee Shin-Woo chuckled as he suddenly looked back at the thoughts he'd had the day he rescued Ye Jin-Jin.

It would be more advantageous to save her? How absurd.

Humans couldn’t always calculate all possible outcomes before acting. Life was no game. He didn't know if he would regret making this decision, but...perhaps it would end up being the greatest decision he'd ever made.

He couldn’t predict the future. That made sparing Shino the attractive choice. It was a choice that followed his heart, and those were the only kind of choices he could make as a Joker.

"My name's Paul Zero. What's yours?"

[Shino... Rendu...]

Although he was undead, Shino Rendu was different from the other Pauls and remembered his name; it probably had something to do with him dying at a high level.

"Do you hate humans?" Lee Shin-Woo nodded and asked.

[No way! I was...human...]

"But you're not now."

[...]

Shino was silent for a moment before he looked down to examine his own body. At the sight of the rotten flesh on his right arm being regenerated, as well as the splattering black blood, he accepted that he was an undead.

[A dead body...]

"How about it? I can kill you if you've changed your mind."

[I want to live... Let me live...]

"What do you want to do if you live?"

[Revenge...!]

Lee Shin-Woo had expected as much. In a firm voice, he demanded, "Who do you want revenge on?"

[Metafel...! The undead!]

"Good. That's good enough."

There was no alternative now that things had gotten to this point. Shino’s memories of being human were intact, and was acting in accordance with his goals as a human... The hero was undergoing the same phenomenon as the other Pauls. Lee Shin-Woo didn't know why that was. The other heroes had fared differently after becoming undead.

Is it because he met me? No, no way that’s the case.

Lee Shin-Woo laughed at the absurd thought. These people were simply predisposed to regain their reasons. Their great tenacity came together with their deep-seated grudges to make possible their awakening!

"Follow me. I'll help you get revenge on him one day."

[I'm...!]

"Or I'll kill you. This isn't an offer, nor is it a request. It's an order."

[Keuk...]

Lee Shin-Woo stopped Shino from voicing his opinion with an uncharacteristically forceful tone. There were two reasons he wanted to make Shino Rendu his subordinate.

Firstly, he couldn't let someone so dangerous free without putting some restraints on him. Secondly, if he couldn’t have his abilities, he would only be satisfied becoming the master of the possessor of those abilities.

"Will you follow me?"

[...I will.]

Sparks crackled along the Drake Horn Lance as Lee Shin-Woo raised it high before thrusting it into the ground, sending blue sparks everywhere and making Shino Rendu tremble.

Quietly, Lee Shin-Woo said, "Again."

[I will follow you, sir.]

"Good, Shino. Henceforth, you're my subordinate."

Once Shino Rendu understood him and obediently accepted Lee Shin-Woo as his master, an unbreakable master-servant relationship was established between them, and black light surged from Shino Rendu’s entire body.

Lee Shin-Woo knew exactly what that signified. It was the same light that always emerged when a Paul was reborn as an elite!

[You have succeeded in making a higher leveled individual your subordinate. It is difficult to tame him, but so long as you succeed in doing so, he will become your greatest helper. Intermediate Command is now Lv3. All stats have increased by 1.]

[The Lv6 Zombie Elite has transformed into the Lv6 Undead Avenger - Shino Rendu.]

Lee Shin-Woo thought that was the end of it, but he was wrong. They were only getting to the good part.

[You have successfully inspired a ruined hero who had forgotten his past with a new purpose! Revenge is the most simple and most powerful emotion. That will allow him to remain an undead that is not truly an undead. Proficiency in all corresponding skills has greatly increased.]

[Acting is now Lv14. You can induce the desired response from an individual with even the simplest of words.]

[Instigate is now Lv2. Magic has increased by 10. The emotions of those who hear your voice can be more easily manipulated.]

[Rebellion is now Lv2. All stats have increased by 3. Whenever you satisfy a condition for Rebellion, stats increase even further. Currently, stats are increased by 12%.]

Lee Shin-Woo wasn’t given the quest reward since he hadn’t killed Shino Rendu, but as he had expected, a variety of his skills had grown. Leveling up Instigate and Rebellion was especially huge even though he didn't really know why those two skills had leveled up!

[Hooooo...]

The light began to wane when Lee Shin-Woo was finished reading all the messages, and Shino Rendu emerged as a never before seen class, the Undead Avenger.

Not only was his once injured head and arm completely healed, but his entire body was now covered in a set of bleakly glowing armor created by pitch black mana, likely in exchange for the equipment he'd lost from fighting Metafel's undead army.

'They always got such cool armor when they turn into elites. What about me?'

'Then why don't you stop being a hero and become an undead?'

'My bad.'

After Lee Shin-Woo’s sincere apology to Jin, they approached Shino Rendu. The Undead Hero briefly examined his body before nodding like he was satisfied.

[It's not bad... sir.]

"How much do you remember from before your death?"

[Not...much.]

He was talking more naturally after becoming an Undead Avenger. Lee Shin-Woo’s envy for his undead senior intensified. Shino Rendu was only an undead in name; he still had flesh on his bones.

As expected, the higher their level was when they died, the more lively they were after resurrection. Someone starting as a skeleton would only ever be a skeleton! Shit!

[But... I do remember I was originally a hero that was dispatched here. And that I had to kill all undead. That's all I remember. Ah, and lastly... I knew Metafel killed me!]

"Very good. That's plenty."

[...]

That was how an Undead Avenger should be, driven by hatred and vengeance. Pleased, Lee Shin-Woo nodded as Shino Rendu glanced at him in befuddlement.

[Who exactly...are you?]

He sure was quick to ask the question. Of course, they had attacked each other the moment they crossed paths, so Shino Rendu didn't really have the chance to ask.

[An undead that goes around hunting other undead... Moreover, that intellect, as well as that peculiar ability. Are you also an undead who was once a hero?]

Isn’t he smarter now than when he was alive? Lee Shin-Woo couldn’t give him an honest answer, though. He quickly concocted an appropriate story.

"I wonder. Perhaps I was once a hero. It's been a long time. Right now, I just cut through any undead I encounter."

[I see... How peculiar. I wonder why I've just been killing all of the undead I've encountered thus far. Why didn't I have any doubts about that?]

"...What about now?"

[Unlike before... It feels like I can see things more clearly now.]

Lee Shin-Woo could see the pitch black goblin fire behind Shino's helmet; That was proof that he wasn't human, but undead.

[I see this world differently.]

"That's a relief… More importantly, since you fought Metafel, you should know his special characteristics. Tell me about him in detail. We'll face him someday."

[Alright. I'll tell you everything I know.]

Lee Shin-Woo listened as Shino Rendu told him everything he knew. The tens of thousands of troops that the Mercenary King Metafel led, as well as the fearsome strength of the level 7 Metafel...

"Level 7?"

[That's right. He has a few level 7 undead troops as well, but Metafel's strength is on another level...]

As expected, Metafel was weaker than the other twelve generals! Lee Shin-Woo had speculated as much ever since his fight with the level 6 Corps Commander, Vitas, but now he was proven right. Lee Shin-Woo inwardly noted Metafel as the weakest of the twelve generals.

[Moreover, Metafel...often eats his subordinates to increase his strength. I feel like he’s...a ghoul. He’s likely a high rank ghoul at that...]

"Mmm, that'll definitely be troublesome."

A ghoul normally eats corpses to restore its vitality and mana. If there were plenty of prey, there was no enemy harder to face than a ghoul; and that was the leader of a corps! Metafel would be Popeye if Popeye carried spinach with him everywhere!

"Hmm? If he's a ghoul, how did you manage to keep your body?"

[I was buried in debris during our fight... He ordered his troops to look for me, but because all of those troops were low rank...]

"They're all idiots, so they couldn't find you. You remained hidden until the very end."

[He was just too strong for me, so I stayed under the debris. That's all. I was...lucky.]

Lee Shin-Woo remembered the superhuman strength that Shino Rendu exhibited. If Metafel was even stronger… It seemed that even the weakest of the twelve generals was still in a league of their own. Lee Shin-Woo was pissed that he wasn't at that level yet, but he had no choice but to accept it.

[I became level 6 in the middle of the fight... Yet I still died.]

"Tch."

Shino Rendu had said something about it before. That he had been trying to grow too quickly, and would die as a result. He had died after achieving his goal; there were no words to describe the bitterness he must feel. Perhaps that bitterness had allowed him to maintain his reasoning even after becoming an undead, Lee Shin-Woo thought. Something’s bothering me though…

"Why did you go that far?"

[I had a junior who was so talented... Everyone liked him. Especially Seira...]

"...Huh?"

[Heroes...welcome exceptional heroes. I...just wanted to become someone like that as well.]

"..."

Lee Shin-Woo felt dirty hearing that. After all, Shino Rendu was talking about him! The man should've been careful with what he wished for, as he had now become an undead just like Lee Shin-Woo.

How could something so stupid happen... Lee Shin-Woo sighed without actually sighing and rubbed at his forehead.

"Fine. Forget about the past. You've decided to live on as an undead. You don't have to concern yourself with heroes any longer. You're not a hero, you're an Undead Avenger."

[...Of course.]

He sounded remorseful, but Lee Shin-Woo ignored that. Didn't Shino Rendu say it himself? Heroes would kill all undead no matter what. If they forgot about that, they might be faced with a horrific end.

[Then what...should I do now?]

Lee Shin-Woo would like to ask the question himself. He had come to pay his final respects to his senior and gain some abilities, but he hadn't even done the first part of his plan; instead, he had resurrected his senior...

"I’ve taken in other subordinates."

However, Lee Shin-Woo had reached the pinnacle of acting as a Joker, and the words came out of his mouth seemingly on their own to form the most appropriate answer.

"Join them as their leader and destroy the undead."

[I understand.]

He didn’t expect to be given subordinates already. His new master was truly an extraordinary individual! Shino Rendu nodded after sorting through his thoughts, certain of his observation.

While Lee Shin-Woo caused trouble here and there without a concrete plan, the beginnings of an undead force that destroyed other undead was gradually coming into existence.