The Necromancer Who Was Despised

Since Tinairo couldn’t possess a trade route adjacent to the Monster’s Forest, they had to cooperate with other families, and we were the fastest and could provide what they needed, so it seemed like a great opportunity.

“It’s welcome from our side as well, since the other party is a ducal family.”

The Tinairo ducal family was a rather unusual family among the noble families.

Most noble families indirectly operated their trade routes.

Traditionally, the lord’s foundation was land, and therefore, they prioritized agriculture and looked down on merchants.

To be exact, nobles looked down on operating trade routes themselves. From the noble’s perspective, commoners were all the same, except for a few exceptional craftsmen.

Nobles were warriors who protected the land and its people.

In return for protecting the territory’s people, they collected taxes and commanded people.

It was considered shameful for them to focus on buying and selling goods, as if they were abandoning their duties.

Nobles didn’t regard merchants as equals and thought it was humiliating to meet with them directly and negotiate.

However, the situation changed when the Tinairo ducal family appeared.

During a severe famine, the Tinairo duke used his enormous wealth, built on a foundation of gemstone mines, to establish a trade route and import a large amount of food from foreign countries.

The Tinairo family wasn’t the only one that was saved, so their trade route was special.

After that, nobles stopped looking down on merchants. The owners of large trade routes treated craftsmen with respect, and some nobles even formed close relationships with trade routes or indirectly operated them.

Although there were already nobles secretly operating trade routes, it was as if they had become more prominent.

Still, many nobles were reluctant to attach their family name to a trade route.

Some mediocre nobles even scorned the Tinairo family, calling them merchants who didn’t know their place.

In that sense, Prina’s frequent transactions with the Tinairo trade route had the effect of preventing some minor obstacles from arising beforehand.

Moreover, with the support of the royal family and the indirect influence of the Tinairo family, which had a significant impact on the upper echelons, we could receive a steady supply of goods even in times of war.

Thanks to that, the development and construction of the trade route could proceed quickly, and in the process, Tia could accumulate a lot of experience and connections.

The fact that I was behind Tia was known, so no one could easily underestimate her, and Prina, the Tinairo duke, and even the rapidly growing Daheim Guild treated her well.

While we focused on our work, the continental situation was rapidly changing.

The interspecies alliance and the Sacred Empire had almost occupied the neutral zone, and the remnants of the Goddess Church, who had received support from the Schwertan Kingdom, had chosen to flee instead of resisting.

As a result, the Sacred Empire sent support troops and envoys to rescue them, and we heard that the 6 Kingdoms Alliance was responding to their proposal.

However, it was unclear how the 6 Kingdoms Alliance would react.

One thing was certain, though – the 6 Kingdoms Alliance wouldn’t easily back down.

Those who fled were initially pushed back by the Schwertan Kingdom’s support troops, and there were still remnants of the Goddess Church in other kingdoms, as well as many prisoners, including priests, knights, and believers, so the 6 Kingdoms Alliance had the upper hand.

Originally, the justification was on our side, too.

Even if the 2 Kingdoms weren’t weak, they would be no match for the 6 Kingdoms Alliance.

The empire behind the 2 Kingdoms was in a precarious position, so there was no reason for the 6 Kingdoms Alliance to be pushed back by the empire’s 2 Kingdoms.

Normally, stories related to my participation would have started around this time, but currently, I couldn’t move.

The development of the trade route was considered highly important by the 6 Kingdoms Alliance as well.

Thanks to that, I could focus on developing the trade route without any hindrance, and we could reach the heart of the Monster’s Forest.

And there…

“Hmm…”

We discovered a troll village that treated giant orcs as slaves.

◈ Development

Orcs.

They’re a bunch that even holds a spot in the Monster’s Forest, notorious for their strength.

In reality, when I lived near the Monster’s Forest, the orcs were the strongest force I’d ever seen.

However, they’re currently being treated as slaves.

“The tribe is quite large.”

“Yes, it’s a troll village.”

A medium-sized monster, not even a family unit, but a whole village…

“It’s not like they don’t exist.”

There’s even the Minotaur tribe, so it’s not like the troll tribe doesn’t exist.

It’s just that their numbers are vast, and what’s more…

“Are they sorcerers?”

“The chief is a Twin Head.”

The tribe has a Twin Head Troll, and they even have a sorcerer.

They’re definitely not your average bunch.

“This is ridiculous.”

Who would’ve thought that these guys would be occupying the middle of the road?

“Well, it’s a good thing. Thanks to their living space, our job has become much easier.”

Indeed, with a number like theirs, this area has already been developed to the point where it’s not necessary to pioneer.

If you looked from above, you could see that this area is wide open.

“There’s no one who’d dare do something so dangerous.”

Just the troll sorcerer alone has long-range attack capabilities.

“And it’s possible with the Twin Head Troll too.”

The rocks they throw can fly quite high.

Don’t underestimate them. With their large build, their strength is far from ordinary…

If you carelessly fly through the Monster’s Forest, you’ll become a target.

And with flying monsters around, if you make a mistake, you’ll just waste your precious strength.

“I see, so that’s why the monster population has been decreasing – it’s their territory, after all.”

Even if there are trees left, it’s still better than other places.

Since it’s their territory, the monsters won’t approach.

“It might be okay to use this as a midpoint.”

Of course, you can’t just use it as is.

You need to clean it up and renovate it.

But compared to starting from scratch, this is definitely more convenient.

“Yes, that’s right. It’s definitely not a bad idea. The location is almost perfect, too.”

The location, size, and environment all meet my expectations.

I couldn’t ask for a better place.

The only thing is, I need to get rid of all those monsters.

“It’s not that difficult.”

Even if they have a large army, it’s nothing compared to ours.

A surprise attack is impossible.

We were a large-scale organization, and the other side was aware of our approach, so they also formed a battle line to block our path as we approached.

It seemed they wanted us to retreat after seeing their forces, but that was impossible.

-I’ll take the lead!

Entin shouted with confidence.

It wasn’t hard to understand. This was a plain with few trees, an ideal environment for the Undead Knights to shine.

Valdur’s eyes were also shining brightly.

As we gazed at the monsters, we saw that the Orc slaves were at the front, followed by Orcs wielding crude weapons.

It seemed there was a hierarchy among the slaves as well.

Behind them stood the Trolls, and at the very back were two Troll shamans and a Twin-Headed Troll.

It was clear that if Entin charged, we could easily take care of the Orcs.

Their equipment was subpar, after all.

“We can handle the Trolls too.”

Launching a simple charge against a large monster and colliding head-on wasn’t a good strategy.

However, the Undead Knights’ power was strong enough to secure victory, even if it meant significant sacrifices.

“I think we can handle it.”

“Entin.”

-Yes!

“Wipe out the Orcs.”

-Yes!

I gave Valdur permission to move freely, but also cautioned him to avoid interfering with each other.

While competition between them was good, it had to be a benevolent competition.

Both of them understood that and responded accordingly.

Next, I instructed Yeriya and Tinus to slowly advance their Undead troops.

Although I respected them, it was a fact that I was leading them. Therefore, they followed my instructions and slowly moved their troops forward.

Rich and Volledi provided backup from behind.

Volledi, who led the Mira priests, had often assisted Entin, but in reality, they demonstrated greater power in large-scale battles.

“Kayla.”

“Yes.”

“Lucese is yours to command.”

Death Knight Lucese, who was once a Master but was now a Death Knight under my command.

“Do as you please.”

“I understand.”

Kayla responded with a calm expression.

I placed the Death Knight under Kayla’s command.

She usually served as my guard, but sometimes she would take the front line when needed.

Since Entin and Valdur started to take action, there were fewer instances of her taking the front line, but whenever she did, she would unleash tremendous destructive power.

I was handing over a subordinate who could assist her.

The Death Knight’s combat power was clearly weaker than before.

It was a well-known fact that three Death Knights had to gather to take on a single Master.

The Master’s corpse was created, and it was known as a Master-grade, capable of using the Ore Blade, which surpassed the Ore’s power. However, compared to the Master, its might was clearly inferior.

The reason was unknown, but it became clear when creating the Death Knights.

‘It’s because of the lack of Mana Heart.’

Mana Heart.

Kyle had possessed it since his expert days.

The Mana Heart, which greatly increased the efficiency of Mana usage, disappeared when becoming a Death Knight.

The importance of Mana Heart was re-recognized.

Still, the Death Knights were powerful undead.

To take them down, one had to bring a Master or sacrifice numerous experts.

Regrettably, it was a fact that they were formidable undead.

Entin, who received the order, led the knight squadron and charged forward.

As our battle began, the trolls let out a furious roar.

They whipped the Orc slaves, and the Orcs, driven by their masters’ demands and the scent of the battlefield, charged recklessly.

The outcome was predictable.

No matter how numerous and tough the Orcs were, they would become the knight squadron’s prey if they didn’t have proper equipment and just charged forward.

As expected, Entin’s knight squadron clashed with the Orcs, and the sound of crushing filled the air as the Orcs were trampled.

It was meaningless to counterattack.

The undead knight squadron moved as one, trampling the Orcs, and swiftly broke through before their speed decreased.

If they were humans, they could form a defensive line and crush the enemy’s formation, but the Orcs didn’t have that; they just charged recklessly, so they chose to retreat.

It wasn’t difficult to break through, as there was no organized resistance.

Entin and Volduring acted differently.

While Entin focused on the center of the formation, Volduring targeted the Orcs’ rear, taking advantage of the gap in their attention.

As a result, although the Orcs outnumbered them, the number of immediate opponents was in their favor, and Volduring gradually decreased the Orcs’ numbers.

Most Orcs didn’t focus on these two.

Their main enemy was the approaching skeleton horde.

The Skeleton Warriors, who received various buffs and used the Death Aura, along with the mid-sized undead, including the Bone Golem and Draug, and the Skeleton Mages and Mirapriests supporting from behind.

It was impossible not to be drawn to them.

The two groups clashed, and Entin’s undead knight squadron counterattacked, throwing the Orc horde into confusion.

Volduring, on the other hand, actively utilized the allied undead, showcasing remarkable prowess, and the Skeleton Mages’ Dark Bolts inflicted significant damage.

Gagar and Yeriya focused on supporting the undead’s regeneration and maintaining the frontline instead of using additional attack magic.

Perhaps due to their concentration, the undead, despite being endlessly destroyed and broken, continued to cling to the Orcs until the end, showcasing the might of an immortal army, and the Orcs’ frenzy gradually subsided.

‘It’s unavoidable.’

They were not free beings but slave-born; it was unavoidable that their wild nature was somewhat tamed.

They briefly showed their wild side with a long-awaited explosion, but it didn’t last long.

It seemed they realized it wouldn’t work, as the trolls stepped forward.

They targeted Entin first.

Kuung!

As the troll shamans struck the ground with their staffs, enormous tree roots burst out from the earth.

Entin hesitated for a moment before making a decision to retreat.

It seemed he didn’t want to waste his energy here unnecessarily.

There were plenty of other targets besides them.

Although he wanted to charge forward, he prioritized maintaining his energy even more.