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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: 100 Years of Auto-Hunting
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Auto-hunting had been running non-stop for a hundred years.
Without missing a single day.
And the job class was a mob-pulling specialist: Poison Necromancer.
'Plus, the Earthhold Layer dungeon where I set up auto-hunting is a spot that drops a ton of expensive gear.'
That was why Leyzon had chosen the Earthhold Layer for his auto-hunting ground.
Farming in the most efficient location.
It was only natural.
Auto-hunting in the Earthhold Layer dungeon for a hundred years.
All those accumulated resources had filled this place to the brim.
'And it feels like the money barely got touched.'
Leyzon's gear was exactly as it had been when he first started auto-hunting.
At most, recovery potions and the mask over his face.
Nothing had changed.
In other words, hardly any money had been spent.
Leyzon let out a hollow chuckle.
'No wonder no one found out I was a Necromancer all this time.'
Auto-hunting ran solo.
Aside from the Earthhold Layer, there was no need to use Necromancer spells.
Just changing his appearance would have been enough to hide his identity.
'The other Pioneers probably just saw him as the weirdo who hit the Earthhold Layer dungeon every day.'
Pioneer IDs were personal info.
Even at the Pioneer Exchange, you could only check Ascension levels, not skills or class.
Not even Imperial folk could see more.
'It was the original game system, so I don't know the details.'
Anyway, that's how it was.
'Auto-hunting for a hundred years without anyone discovering I was a Necromancer.'
Leyzon's mouth curved into a wide grin.
"Long live auto-hunting."
This changed everything for dealing with the Empire's downfall.
'Priority one is set.'
Use the resources to buy gear, materials—everything needed.
Then explosive growth.
Dungeon Replay was a world where power mattered most.
Game endings, the Empire's collapse.
It all came down to growth.
Leyzon clenched his fists tight.
'See? I'm not unlucky.'
Leyzon thought positively.
He was the type to plant a tree even if the world ended tomorrow.
'Resources checked.'
Next up: Ascension EXP.
'Wonder how much it went up.'
Unfortunately,
there was one limitation on Ascension EXP.
This was a restriction added because players might just idle on auto-hunt forever.
The restriction was this:
Phantasmal Beasts give reduced EXP on repeat hunts after the first kill.
So players had to keep hunting new Phantasmal Beasts.
That was the reason to aim for higher dungeons.
Growth meant heading to top-tier dungeons fastest.
'Auto-hunting couldn't be set on un-cleared dungeons anyway.'
You had to clear it first to unlock auto-hunt, so it probably gave relatively little Ascension EXP.
'Still, it went up some.'
A full hundred years.
Worth getting excited over.
His heart was suddenly racing.
Must be from seeing all those resources.
That was when Leyzon approached the door.
Creeeak—
Suddenly, the door started opening without a touch.
Leyzon stared at the opening door, eyes slowly widening.
Pioneer Exchange lockers were personal property.
Only the Pioneer themselves could enter.
But right now.
A door that should never open had swung wide.
Before Leyzon could react.
Someone stepped inside.
It was a girl with long white hair cascading down.
Her red eyes and beauty were striking at first glance.
But her outfit was incredibly simple.
Just a long white nightdress.
She held a book in her hand.
Without taking her eyes off it once, she walked past Leyzon with steady steps.
She picked up a single gold coin, flicked it into her palm, and turned.
Then tried to walk right out.
But Leyzon grabbed her wrist tight.
"Eek!"
The girl dangled from Leyzon's grip, flailing.
"W-what!"
Only then did she look up from her book.
Seeing Leyzon right in her face, she blinked.
"L-L-Leyzon... sir?"
Even with the mask, she recognized him.
Leyzon eyed her for a moment before asking.
"Who are you?"
"Huh?"
The girl blinked at his question.
As if wondering what she'd just heard.
"W-who, you say?"
She looked shocked he didn't know.
"M-more importantly, why so late to the locker today?"
She slyly slipped the gold coin into her pocket.
Leyzon stared at her intently.
Something about her screamed total freeloader.
As he stared, she shrank back.
Then furtively pulled the gold coin back out.
"Leyzon sir? I-I only took a tiny bit!"
Clearly, she'd been dipping into the locker funds regularly.
With this much piled up, a little spending didn't matter.
But Leyzon wondered how she could enter freely.
Then it hit him.
'No way.'
Leyzon's one EX-rank skill.
Auto-Growing Undead Creation (EX).
The thought connected, and he asked.
"You're... an undead, aren't you?"
In the past, Leyzon had created five growing undead.
After a hundred years,
he figured they'd all been destroyed.
But this girl couldn't be explained otherwise.
"Huh? L-Leyzon sir, you really don't recognize me?"
"Even if it's been ages since you saw my face, to not know me?!"
The girl wailed, looking heartbroken.
She didn't look undead at all.
She could pass for a noble princess.
But her reaction confirmed it: one of Leyzon's undead.
"I'm Syria Nosferatu! The Vampire Queen!"
At those words, Leyzon froze stiff.
He remembered.
Syria Nosferatu.
One of the five undead he'd made with the skill.
He'd named her Syria himself.
"...Vampire Queen?"
But his memory didn't match this Syria at all.
For good reason.
'She was just a little white bat.'
Syria had definitely been the lowest-rank vampire type.
Still, her frantic flapping was so cute,
he'd fed her all sorts of high-end growth materials.
After logging back in, she was nowhere, so he'd assumed she'd died.
'...And she became the Vampire Queen?'
Vampire Queen was the pinnacle of vampires.
Leyzon was stunned that tiny Syria had reached queen status.
'Thanks to the hundred years, I guess.'
Whatever happened, she'd grown on her own.
But one question lingered.
'A Vampire Queen shouldn't look this weak.'
Like her low-rank days,
Syria dangled limply from his hand, arms flopping.
A Vampire Queen had innate traits: 'Overwhelm' and 'Enchantment'.
Yet right now, she just looked like a shut-in bum.
"To think Leyzon sir, who doted on me so much, doesn't recognize me. This girl is so sad tears are falling."
Syria clutched her stomach dramatically, face in shock.
"Did I maybe gain weight?"
She looked skinny enough to need more meals daily.
"...Syria."
Leyzon decided he needed to clear this misunderstanding.
More importantly, if she was his undead, she'd be invaluable ahead.
'With the Empire's downfall looming.'
Even a cat's paw would help.
So Leyzon opted for a white lie.
A useful one for the future.
"I ran into trouble in the Earthhold Layer dungeon recently."
"...Huh?"
Syria's eyes went wide.
"Got found out as a Necromancer and chased by Imperial soldiers."
Syria listened blankly.
"Had an accident, lost about a hundred years of memory."
Not really a lie.
Leyzon truly had no memory of those hundred years.
Question was whether she'd buy this convenient tale.
If not, he'd have to embellish.
"I see. While I looked away for a moment..."
Luckily, Syria accepted it.
She didn't doubt a word from Leyzon.
"Then we should destroy the Empire."
She smiled sweetly as she said it.
Incredibly innocently.
Leyzon blinked.
As if unsure what he'd heard.
Then he noticed Syria's shadow stretching long.
She was smiling, yes.
But not just any smile.
Rage.
Deep rage rising from her core.
Crunch-crunch-crunch—
"To dare harm Leyzon sir. I left them alone because you wanted to roam solo. And these trash grow bold."
Syria's shadow stained red.
Chill!
Leyzon felt goosebumps.
In that instant.
The whole space warped around Syria.
Cold sweat beaded on Leyzon's forehead.
Danger poured off her.
Her bared fangs gleamed between parted lips.
Leyzon realized.
Vampire Queen.
The sheer power she wielded.
"We can't let an Empire like that survive, right?"
She'd dropped her book.
It fell into the red shadow on the floor, swallowed.
Countless eyes appeared atop the red shadow.
Leyzon didn't want to imagine what lurked inside.
"Don't worry, Leyzon sir! I won't leave a single life in the Empire!"
Madness glinted in her innocent eyes.
She was a vampire.
Vampires fell under undead.
Undead hated the living.
To Syria, lives were mere trash.
"Syria."
Leyzon gripped her shoulder through the tension.
He had to stop her.
Couldn't let her fight the Empire.
She was strong, sure.
But even by hundred-year-old standards,
Leyzon knew the Empire's might.
"Don't fight the Empire."
His words dropped.
The shadows around Syria sucked inward instantly.
The area fell silent, as if nothing happened.
"Okay!"
Syria replied casually.
As if she'd never planned to fight.
'...Was that an act?'
No.
That was real.
She'd have fought till Niflheim Empire crumbled.
A few cities would've vanished if she'd willed it.
Leyzon had nearly detonated a time bomb.
'For a second, I thought Syria caused the Empire's fall.'
Shivers down his spine.
And one fact crystalized.
'Gotta watch my mouth.'
Syria obeyed Leyzon's every word as her creator's faithful servant.
Leyzon caught his breath.
Thoughts cleared.
Vampire Queen as a comrade.
Perfect scenario.
And another curiosity arose.
"Syria, one question. Are the other undead I made still alive?"
Odd phrasing for undead, but
he had to ask.
After a hundred years,
no telling how they'd grown.
Syria nodded as if obvious.
"Yeah, right?"
All five, Syria included, lived.
"Are the other four as strong as you?"
"Pfft, I'm the strongest—your favorite!"
Syria puffed her chest, hands on hips.
She harrumphed proudly.
"Though maybe not quite up to your expectations."
Syria explained the undeads' rough power levels.
"About ten years ago, one killed a Lord. They're all around that now!"
Leyzon's face twitched.
"...A Lord?"
"Yep, a Lord!"
Syria beamed innocently.
In Dungeon Replay,
the Empire bestowed titles on its famed powerhouses.
Lord.
An undead had slain one.
And all five such undead belonged to Leyzon.
The world a hundred years after starting auto-hunt.
Truly absurd.