...
Upon hearing his words.
The three maidens felt a chill run down their spines.
This was especially true for the Priest, Avril. She was already injured, and after being glanced at by those malevolent eyes, she felt a cold dread shoot from her tailbone to the crown of her head, her legs growing weak and limp.
'Could it be...'
'Have we escaped the wolf's den only to fall into the tiger's maw?'
What was more hopeless: falling into the hands of an evil Necromancer, or falling into the hands of goblins?
Trembling with fear,
The Warrior Maiden, Ophelia, was the oldest and had the strongest nerves. Suppressing the terror in her heart, she forced a fawning smile. "S-Senior... You're just joking with us, right?"
In her eyes, anyone who could command a skeleton army of this size had to be a high-level senior from the Undead System on the verge of graduation, or perhaps even a graduate who had returned to the academy for advanced studies or a mission.
Against a being of this caliber, a direct confrontation was hopeless. Their only option was to try and communicate, even if it meant paying a price to buy their freedom.
Beneath his hood, Lynch's brows twitched as he shot her an annoyed glance.
'Back at the academy, when Undead apprentices were getting beaten black and blue by the Holy Light System, I don't recall any of you from the Warrior Series or Elemental System yelling "Classmate, stop!"'
'Weren't you all just happily watching the show, or pretending not to see anything at all?'
Of the three major divisions at the academy—Warrior, Priest, and Mage—the Holy Light System held the deepest animosity toward the Undead System, but the Warrior Series and Elemental System were always on the same side.
They wouldn't proactively bully the Undead System, but they were by no means friendly.
'But... seeing these three girls who look like they're about to piss their pants, especially that little Priest from the Holy Light System... she looks so pathetic, like she's going to faint any second now.'
Lynch suddenly found the whole thing rather boring.
'As for them being my juniors? Heh, of course not.'
'The academy only recruits a new class every three years. The three of them are most likely in the same class as me.'
'But if they want to call me Senior, I'll let them.'
And so,
Lynch waved his hand dismissively, his interest having waned. "Alright, alright, I'm just messing with you. I don't plan on getting a bounty on my head from the Empire just yet..."
Hearing this, the three maidens breathed a collective sigh of relief.
"Phew..."
"Y-You scared me to death..."
Their legs went weak, and they nearly collapsed to the ground, their foreheads and backs slick with cold sweat.
The Warrior Maiden put away her sword and shield, wiping her grimy forehead with the back of her hand. The fawning smile she squeezed out was even wider than before. "S-Senior, you really know how to tell a joke."
"Hehe..." Lynch glanced at the three of them, his brow furrowing slightly. "What are the three of you doing on a quest in a godforsaken hellhole like this? The goblin extermination quest posted in Stone Crow Town is not a low-danger mission."
The Warrior Maiden, Ophelia, composed herself and quickly stood up straight to explain. "Reporting, Senior! We didn't accept the goblin extermination quest."
"We accepted a targeted quest issued to the academy by the [Archeology and Exploration Society] to investigate a nearby ancient nobleman's tomb. It was said to have some unusual activity."
"Who would have thought the entrance to the tomb had already been taken over by a large horde of goblins and turned into their camp."
The Magical Maiden, Lilith, who was standing to the side, had also recovered by now. She quickly added, "That's right, that's right! We were originally planning to retreat quietly and report back first, but before we could get far, we were spotted by a goblin patrol. Then we were chased by a huge mob of them... and then, we ran into you, Senior."
With the crisis averted, the Magical Maiden had regained some of her liveliness.
Her gaze toward Lynch was filled with gratitude and admiration, but she couldn't help but sneak curious glances at his skeletons, especially Bone Jade, the bone mage, and the Bear Goblin skeleton.
"Hah," Lynch chuckled lightly at the sight. "What's this? Is this little junior interested in our Undead System's Magic? Why don't you just transfer over? I can be your guide."
These were the exact same words an old Mage from the Elemental System had said to him in the training hall a few days ago, which he was now using, verbatim, to tease the girl from the Elemental System.
When the Magical Maiden heard this, her eyes darted back and forth, and she actually looked a little tempted.
The Warrior Maiden and the Priest hurriedly pulled her behind them, one on each side.
The Warrior Maiden plastered an awkward yet clearly sycophantic smile on her face. "S-Senior, you're joking again. Lilith is young and doesn't know any better. Please don't take what she says seriously."
She quickly changed the subject. "By the way, Senior, we haven't formally introduced ourselves yet. I'm Ophelia Lier from the Warrior Series." She pointed to her companions. "This is Avril Grant from the Holy Light System, and this is Lilith Malthus from the Elemental System. Thank you so much for saving our lives."
As she spoke, she gave a slight bow.
Avril and Lilith also hurriedly bowed in thanks, their attitudes extremely respectful.
Lynch's face remained impassive under his hood. After a few seconds of silence, he asked with a hint of confusion, "As extraordinary beautiful maidens introducing yourselves to a powerful senior, aren't you supposed to proactively report key information like your height, measurements, hobbies, and relationship status?"
The three maidens: "..."
The air seemed to freeze in an instant.
"Hah, you really don't have a sense of humor." Seeing their stunned expressions, Lynch waved his hand impatiently. "Alright, alright, go wait over on the side. Don't get in the way."
As if granted a pardon, the three maidens quickly helped each other retreat to the side and sit down in the woods. They couldn't help but complain inwardly, 'This senior from the Undead System... he's so temperamental~'
And at this moment.
The Skeletons moved quickly, dragging the corpses and weapons into a pile in the forest. They even thoughtfully reassembled the goblin wolf-rider.
Then, under the dumbfounded gazes of the three maidens, their temperamental senior began to cast the Skeleton Resurrection Skill.
An obscure, gloomy incantation, like a devil's Curse, was chanted as a pale, deathly light enveloped the pile of goblin corpses.
"BANG! BANG! BANG! CRACKLE! CRUNCH..."
A series of scalp-numbing sounds of bursting flesh and bone echoed incessantly.
One by one, short, pale Skeletons staggered to their feet from the pile of corpses. Driven by a command, they picked up the weapons they had used in life and silently formed ranks to the side.
The scene was as horrifying as it could possibly be, nearly making the three girls vomit.
Soon,
dozens of goblin Skeleton Servants had been added to the forest.
Lynch naturally paid special attention to the wolf-rider skeleton.
A short goblin Skeleton was mounted on a Skeleton Wolf, a scimitar still clutched in its hand.
This was the first cavalry unit he had ever obtained.
"Not bad at all," Lynch praised.
Although it was a bit weak, the concept of cavalry itself held significant tactical value. Whether for scouting, pursuit, or harassing the flanks—or even just for show—it was better than an infantryman on two legs.
Unfortunately, the wolf's skeleton was too small.
Otherwise, Lynch would have definitely mounted it to get a taste for himself.
...