...
In addition, he found several bundles of Glowing Water Grass.
This aquatic plant grew deep within the swamp, emitting a faint luminescence in the dark. It contained trace amounts of Water Element spirituality, making it a supplementary material in Alchemy for brewing the Basic Awakening Potion.
Lynch made a rough estimate. The haul could fetch around twenty to thirty Gold Coins. It wasn't a massive fortune, but it would at least cover the cost of acquiring the corpses.
"Finally, it's time to check the boss rooms," Lynch thought. Naturally, the best loot had to be saved for last.
He hesitated between the Fishman leader's hut and the Fishman Priest's hut before stepping into the latter. Compared to the others, this shelter was noticeably cleaner. At the very least, it lacked the nauseating filth scattered elsewhere. A crude stone altar stood in the center, adorned with beast skulls and brightly colored feathers.
After rummaging through the place, Lynch found a few more Black Pearls of excellent quality and larger size. Digging deeper into a pile of water weeds, his hand brushed against something hard. He pulled it out, revealing an irregularly shaped gold nugget the size of a baby's fist.
"Oh ho, my luck isn't bad," Lynch said, weighing the nugget in his hand. It was heavy and appeared to be of high purity. This piece alone was likely worth no less than fifty Gold Coins.
Stepping out of the Fishman Priest's hut, Lynch entered the Fishman leader's dwelling in high spirits.
This structure was even larger than the priest's, though its style was far more barbaric. Torn animal skins blanketed the floor, and the bones of large aquatic creatures hung on the walls as decorations. He searched inside and out, but aside from a few Black Pearls, he found nothing special.
But how could Lynch give up? If the boss room yielded no decent loot, what was the point? He simply called Bone Jade over, and together they dismantled the entire hut, scouring the ruins.
Finally, beneath a roughly tanned crocodile skin, he unearthed a battered box. Opening it, he found a pendant resting quietly inside. Teardrop-shaped and about the size of a fingernail, the pendant was made of neither gold nor jade. It was a deep, pure blue, emitting a soft, faint luster in the dim light.
"Paydirt!" Lynch rejoiced inwardly.
He picked up the pendant. It was cold to the touch, and a refreshing chill traveled up his arm, flowing straight into his mind. His slightly exhausted mental state was instantly invigorated. His brain felt as though it had been washed by a clear spring, becoming noticeably sharper.
"Is this... Magic Equipment!?" Lynch examined it carefully with pleasant surprise.
Its deep blue hue and the refreshing sensation that soothed the mind allowed him to make a rough deduction using his shallow appraisal knowledge. This pendant likely possessed the dual effects of Weak Flame Resistance and a slight Spiritual Power boost. Although the enhancement was minor, any piece of Magic Equipment that boosted attributes was a precious treasure.
Especially for a Necromancer, who relied heavily on Spiritual Power, the value of this pendant far exceeded everything else he had found so far. Aside from his Magic Staff, which slightly increased the effectiveness of his Undead Magic, this was his second piece of Magic Equipment.
"Good stuff. This is really good stuff," he murmured.
He secured the pendant around his neck. A continuous, cool sensation radiated from his chest, ensuring his mind maintained a steady level of clarity and focus. Whether for daily Meditation or maintaining the mental link with his Summoned Creatures during battle, this item would be of great assistance.
Still unsatisfied, he double-checked the ruins of the two boss rooms. Only after confirming that every corner had been turned upside down did he finally call it quits.
"Pack up. We're heading back to the village," Lynch commanded.
At his order, the massive Skeleton Army turned around, embarking on the journey back to Reed Village.
Upon arriving outside the village, he had Bone Jade lead the thirty Fishman Skeleton cannon fodder away, ordering them to lie in wait among the nearby reeds. Meanwhile, he casually strolled back into the village with his ten direct Skeleton Guards, naturally causing quite a stir once more.
The highly respected old village chief had no choice but to come out and deal with the Necromancer again. Too lazy to waste words, Lynch bluntly informed him that the Fishman camp had been eradicated and demanded the quest completion voucher.
Not daring to refuse, the old village chief hurriedly wrote out the receipt. After pressing his thumbprint onto the parchment, he respectfully handed it to Lynch. Lynch took the receipt and scanned it to confirm there were no errors. Giving a curt nod, he turned without another word and left the village with his Skeleton Guards.
Only after Lynch was far away did the old village chief breathe a slight sigh of relief. He quickly instructed a sturdy young man beside him, "Tiger, take a few men and check out the situation at the Fishman camp. Remember, be careful! Just take a look from a distance and come right back. Whatever you do, do not get close!"
Tiger acknowledged the order. He immediately picked three bold yet cautious companions, and armed with harpoons and machetes, they sprinted toward the Black Swamp.
The entire village waited in anxious apprehension. Over an hour later, Tiger and the others came stumbling and scrambling back, gasping for breath. Their faces were completely drained of color, and their eyes were wide with extreme shock and terror.
"V-Village Chief! They're gone! The Fishmen... they're all gone!" Tiger shouted, rushing up to the old man, completely out of breath. "The huts have been entirely dismantled, and the ground is covered in blood. We gathered our courage and got a little closer... We didn't see a single living Fishman. They're all... they're all dead!"
With the news confirmed, the entire village instantly erupted in an uproar. The Fishman menace that had plagued them for so long had actually been completely eradicated by a single Necromancer.
The old village chief was equally thrilled, muttering to himself, "He actually wiped them all out... How terrifying. How incredible..."
The rest of the villagers felt a mix of excitement and fear. Was this what a Necromancer was capable of? He was too powerful! Moreover, from start to finish, he hadn't harassed the villagers at all. This was vastly different from what the Holy Light Church preached.
***
After leaving Reed Village, Lynch didn't head straight back to the academy.
Along the way, he completed the other two minor gathering quests he had accepted. One required collecting a type of Fluorescent Bacteria that only grew on specific swamp moss, while the other involved harvesting several bundles of highly resilient Iron Wire Reed. These were all materials used in Alchemy.
Throughout the process, he maintained a high state of vigilance. Under his command, Bone Jade led the main force of thirty Fishman Skeletons, hiding in ambush among the reeds a mile away on his flank. As for Lynch himself, he was accompanied by merely his ten Skeleton Guards, keeping busy and focusing solely on gathering.
Before long, the materials required for the final quest were collected and stuffed into a prepared cloth sack. By now, the sky was gradually growing dark. The afterglow of the setting sun painted the edge of the swamp in a layer of tangerine red.
Lynch directed a Skeleton Servant to shoulder the harvested materials, but his brows furrowed slightly.
"Strange..." he murmured, feeling a bit puzzled.
All along the way, he had deliberately displayed a "lone wolf" state. It could be said he had laid out a very tempting bait. Combined with the fact that he had obviously chummed the waters back in the academy's quest hall, Barry Aiken's group should have lost their patience and leaped out like hyenas smelling blood long ago. This was basic fishing logic.
So why wasn't there any sign of movement at all?
"This shouldn't be happening," Lynch thought, unable to figure it out. Just which part of his plan had gone wrong?
...