How to Raise Your Skeletons

Chapter 109: Theme 2 (1)

The message marked the full-scale start of Theme 2.

First, the ground began to shake violently under each team, with the members remaining gathered together after being selected.

—Rumble!

Simultaneously, the distorted ground elevations began to sink back into place as if fitting into a puzzle.

“Ugh!”

“Keep your balance!”

Team members I hadn’t yet greeted shouted, and I lowered my stance, centering my weight.

Alright, it’s time to stay focused.

I placed first with overwhelming contribution points, so it would be embarrassing to fall flat on my face now.

[Delilah is reshaping the dungeon.]

[Participants who were not selected have been eliminated and will be sent outside the dungeon.]

At that moment, a scene reminiscent of an old, magical fantasy movie unfolded before my eyes.

—Rumble!

At the dungeon’s center, a tower rose so high it was impossible to tell how many floors it had.

—Crack!

The ground and sky undulated like waves.

“Wh-What is this…?!”

“Everyone, hold on! Grab each other tight!”

We instinctively grabbed each other’s hands.

The sun rose and set dozens of times as though the world had hit fast-forward. Light and darkness alternated so rapidly that they seemed to exist simultaneously. It was a sight impossible to witness on Earth.

Participants gazed at the spectacle in awe.

And after some time had passed…

[The transformation is complete.]

The vibrations ceased, and the world which had been distorted returned to normal.

“…”

I looked around.

Everything’s completely different now.

For starters, all participants except for my ten team members had disappeared.

“Wow, that was a mess.”

“Huh, it’s just us? Maybe we’ve been split up by teams.”

“It seems the others are at different starting points. Ugh, I feel dizzy. Is everyone alright?”

Hunters who had regained their composure began to speak one by one. Of course, they didn’t speak loudly but just murmured. Even if they wanted to say something or voice an opinion, they hesitated, unable to take the lead and steer the atmosphere.

The reason was obvious—because I was there.

“…”

Right. They all had their eyes on me, observing and waiting for my action.

Well, it’s only natural.

I was their team leader and the one who had to guide them. For all upcoming activities in Theme 2, I was the one expected to lead them to victory ahead of the other teams. Moreover, with my overwhelming performance in Theme 1, I had already earned their trust. Regardless of who I was, where I was from, or what my personality was, they were willing to believe in and rely on me.

Hmm.

Honestly, I felt a bit burdened by their gazes.

Can I handle this?

Being a leader required a completely different skill set, something I had never done before. Some might say, “Haven’t you led skeletons before?”

No.

That was a different issue. Skeletons were my absolutely loyal subordinates. But the people here were independent hunters with no close ties to me. Moreover, they were all ranker candidates who received recommendations from other rankers, carrying their expectations too.

“…Skeleton King, was it?”

At that moment, a young woman who appeared to be in her mid-20s stepped forward.

“First, let me express my gratitude.” She bowed her head respectfully toward me. “My name is Myoi Hana, a hunter from Hiroshima, Japan. Since the renowned, first-place Skeleton King personally chose me, I will do my utmost to assist you.”

Following her lead, others began stepping forward one by one.

“I’m Olena Zelenska from Ukraine, a water-attribute mage from the Oxford Magic Tower.”

“I’m James from the United States. My unique ability is martial arts, and I have a brief connection to Hoon, the first-place ranker.”

“I’m Capu from Brazil, a guide.”

I had chosen Olena’s group because there was no bad blood between us. Their skills weren’t lacking compared to other participants, and the Spear of Judgment had approved of them. They supposedly had no history of murder, according to him.

“I am Zhang Wei, a spearman.”

Perhaps because there was no one left to punish, the Spear of Judgment stepped forward without complaint to introduce himself.

—Clang!

It was then that a middle-aged man who hadn’t introduced himself yet drew his sword.

“You filthy wretch, die!” He swung his weapon at a man and woman standing nearby. “Did you think I’d just let it slide? You pathetic scum!”

There was no context—it was a sudden and unexpected act of violence.

“Hm?”

The first to react was Zhang Wei. Frowning, he reflexively pulled out his spear to deflect the middle-aged man’s sword.

—Clang!

The sword and spear collided fiercely. The middle-aged man’s sword strike was out of the ordinary as it carried a clear intent to kill.

“What is the meaning of this?” The Spear of Judgment’s gaze turned cold.

“…?”

I, too, looked at the middle-aged man with a puzzled expression.

What was that for?

When I selected team members, I made sure to avoid those with a history of murder.

“Step aside.” The middle-aged man glared at Zhang Wei and muttered coldly.

“I don’t care about trials or dungeons or any of that. I need to kill these two scumbags to feel at ease.”

“Two scumbags?” The Spear of Judgment glanced sideways.

Standing there were the two people in question, a man and a woman, wearing unreadable expressions. The woman crossed her arms and shook her head in disapproval.

Hm, what’s going on here?

I rubbed my temples as a headache began to form. Our teamwork looked to be creaky from the start, like a skeleton.

“How about calming down first, regardless of what’s going on?”

“Right. I assume something must’ve happened during the previous trial, but we’re in a new phase now. We need to think wisely.”

Other hunters stepped in to mediate. But despite their efforts, the atmosphere in the clearing remained tense because the middle-aged man continued to emit a murderous aura. And surprisingly, the man’s strength was almost on par with the Spear of Judgment.

As expected…

This dungeon was truly filled with the elite of the elites. Each individual was no joke. But of course, I was the top among them.

“Are you going to keep blocking me?” the middle-aged man asked the Spear of Judgment. “I don’t want to clash with you. But if you want me to introduce myself and move on, I must resolve the grudge I have with those two.”

“…”

Zhang Wei lowered his spear at that moment. “Fine. I blocked you out of reflex, that’s all. As far as I’m concerned, you’re not a murderer who kills for petty reasons yet, so I have no grounds to punish you.”

Honestly, this guy sometimes felt like a robot—a machine programmed to act only in specific ways.

Then one of the two—the woman—snickered and lowered her head. “Pfft. Wow, what a show you’re putting on, old man, with your voice all flat like, ‘I must resolve my grudge with those two~’ Ugh, give me a break.” She sneered as if she couldn’t hold back her laughter. “If you don’t even understand how the game works, why are you here causing trouble?”

“What?”

“Right? Back in Theme 1 where murder was allowed, you were the dumbass who got played. So why are you lashing out at others? Don’t you think that’s kind of stupid?” She turned to the man next to her, still snickering.

“Mhm. Yeah, Olivia’s always right.” The man nodded in agreement.

Haah, I sighed inwardly.

What was with these two? What’s the relationship between them, and what happened?

“…”

Here, I had to make a choice. Should I step in as the team leader and settle this? Or should I observe a bit longer?

For now, I decided to watch their conversation. Not because I found it entertaining but because staying neutral was my usual approach in situations like this. Of course, listening to the conversation didn’t mean I’d let them fight.

“Unfortunately, fighting is prohibited from now on.”

—Thunk!

I stepped forward and slammed my staff on the ground.

“We still don’t fully understand Theme 2. In a situation where we don’t know what tasks might come, we can’t afford to waste our strength. Please understand.”

Olivia smirked at my words. “See?” She turned to the middle-aged man and sneered. “This is how things should be. The first-place ranker is first for a reason, huh? This is how you play the game—smart and clean, without emotions. Got it, you dumb old man?”

“You… you little…!”

—Grind!

The middle-aged man clenched his teeth so hard it was audible, his neck trembling with suppressed rage. He clearly wanted to swing his sword but couldn’t act against my warning. For now, I was his team leader.

“Wow~ You sure are lucky, huh? Can’t play the game for crap but got into the first-place team by sheer luck? Riding along for free? If it were me, I’d be too ashamed to even say anything. But here you are, making a fuss. Haven’t you heard the saying ‘the nail that sticks out gets the hammer’?”

Wow. That woman was a master provocateur. Even I would’ve been a bit shaken by her taunts.

And then…

“You wretched brat! Die!”

The middle-aged man finally snapped.

—Whoosh!

With a step forward, he moved at incredible speed, slicing through the air.

“Whoa, whoa. Didn’t the team leader just say no fighting?”

At that moment, another figure, who had been silent, extended a hand.

—Vwoom!

The space in front of the charging man distorted.

“Hmph?”

Startled, the middle-aged man slowed down.

—Thud!

With a light shock, he was pushed back. It all happened in an instant.

“I’m a spatial mage, Vladimir Lodygin, a hunter from Russia. It’s a bit disappointing, really. Why did you have to start fighting at my turn to introduce myself?” The man, whose face looked as rough as a mafia boss, spoke with his hands in his pockets. “Looks like there’s some misunderstanding between you three. But stop fighting and explain the situation first. Honestly, it’s disappointing. When the team leader chose me, I thought we’d breeze through Theme 2. But looking at you guys, my faith is wavering a bit.”

“That bitch betrayed me!” the middle-aged man exclaimed indignantly.

“Betrayed?”

“Yes! I originally formed a team with those two scumbags!”

“And then?”

“It seems like they decided to hook up in those two weeks, so they took all the food we gathered and ran off! Those shameless thieves!”

“Ugh, ‘betrayal.’ If you wanted a proper team, you shouldn’t have crossed the line. Weren’t you the one trying to flirt with me, old man?”

The middle-aged man bristled at Olivia’s mocking tone. “What nonsense are you spouting? When did I—?”

“And why are you so worked up over a little thievery in a game where murder was allowed? And why draw your sword? Did I try to kill you? Or insult your family? You’re being so uptight right now.”

“See? See? She admitted it!” The middle-aged man pointed his finger indignantly. “She’s exactly that kind of person! She’s useless as a teammate!”

“Haah,” I sighed deeply.

Man, what was this? This didn’t sound like a conversation between ranker candidates. I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between them and kindergarteners.

“…”

What was I, their kindergarten teacher? What should I even do with this?

I understood the middle-aged man’s plight. However, Olivia’s argument wasn’t entirely wrong either.

Honestly, I’d like to ditch all three of them.

—Ring!

[The mission has arrived.]

[Stage: Treasure Hunt!]

[The selected 10 team members must cooperate to find the ‘National Treasure’ hidden in the central tower.]

But looking at the new incoming message, it seemed like I couldn’t do that.

Cooperation, huh?

Delilah was clearly emphasizing “cooperation.” Who knew what penalties could occur if you discarded or betrayed a teammate?

I felt a lump in my throat. My chest felt tight as if I had swallowed ten sweet potatoes in a row.

Fine, maybe this was just another trial I had to overcome.

“For now,” I etched the word patience in my mind and said, “Let’s talk about the mission we just received.”