Chapter 54

Suicide Before Defeating the Final Boss – 54

EP.54 Golem

‘L’rusié family.’

Jeong-hyeon didn’t know exactly how much influence the L’rusié family held, but being considered one of the noble houses, he was certain that they could hinder the kingdom’s efforts at a crucial moment. He smirked at the thought.

‘Maybe I should pay Regina a visit after this dungeon is over.’

Thinking about meeting his loyal collaborator and discussing various matters, he wondered if there might be more to gain. Jeong-hyeon placed Erie’s body and the two corpses of the second-year students into his subspace.

‘Well, I guess it’s time to head back.’

Though it was disappointing that there wasn’t a boss monster or any substantial reward typical of dungeons, he had managed to obtain something useful, so it wasn’t all bad. As he brushed off the blood covering his body and turned to leave, he spotted a single red flower in the distance.

‘A flower?’

The sight of a single flower blooming in a room of corpses was a stark contrast, evoking a profound sense of discomfort. The presence of something so ordinary in such an extraordinary setting felt even more out of place. Jeong-hyeon moved closer, sensing a massive amount of mana radiating from the flower.

‘Ah, so this is why.’

The reason the corpses hadn’t decomposed was due to the mana radiating from this flower. As he reached out to pluck it, the corpses began to stir. Sensing danger, he quickly activated his divine power and stepped back to observe.

A massive rumbling followed. The corpses shook violently, as if an earthquake had struck, then began to gather toward the spot where the flower was. Watching this, Jeong-hyeon realized something and infused his sword with divine power.

‘There’s no way a dungeon wouldn’t have a final boss or a reward.’

A somewhat satisfied smile spread across his face as he watched the corpses take the shape of a massive golem. He rolled his shoulders, preparing for battle.

‘Now then, what’s the best way to deal with this?’

There were many options, but his preferred approach was always a head-on confrontation. Among various reasons, the most important was that it provided a clear measure of his own strength.  With this in mind, Jeong-hyeon muttered “Domain Declaration,” as he spread his divine power throughout the area.

[The final boss of ‘The Altar of Sacrifice,’ the Corpse Golem, has appeared!]

A message appeared along with the golem and he charged towards it.

***

The skill “Domain Declaration” involved spreading a vast amount of divine power to seize control of the surrounding space. For those who were ordinary or weak, just being caught in that powerful skill would be enough to make them collapse. Those with great power would have to suffer significant debuffs while engaging in battle with Jeong-hyeon.

‘Theoretically, it’s an overwhelmingly advantageous skill.’

As can be seen from the fact that Bishop Lea only used the Domain Declaration at the very last moment.

Maintaining or repeatedly using the Domain Declaration for extended periods required a vast amount of divine power. For most priests, it was a skill that was practically unattainable, merely a dream. However, for Jeong-hyeon, things were different.

‘My divine power regenerates instantly, no matter how much I use it.’

The massive consumption of divine power was the only drawback, but he could easily manage it, making it an ideal area-of-effect skill with no downsides for him.

[The Blessings of Amplification, Sharpness, Fire, Divinity, Strength, and Agility have been activated!]

With those messages, the blessings stored in his rosary activated. As flames erupted around him, Jeong-hyeon used his sword energy to slice into the corpse golem.

Slash!

As the golem’s body was made entirely of corpses, each swing of his sword produced the sickening sound of flesh being cut. Though he was used to such sounds, there was something strangely unsettling about it. Nevertheless, he continued his attack, striking down the creature.

“RAAAARGH!”

The golem let out a thunderous roar, echoing like rolling thunder. Jeong-hyeon swung his sword again, scattering the sword energy, but soon realized that his attacks weren’t as effective as he had hoped. He paused for a moment, considering his next move.

‘It seems like external attacks aren’t doing much damage.’

He concluded that instead of cutting through the outer layers of corpses, he needed to target the ‘core’ hidden within. He gathered the divine power that had been spread across the area into his right hand.

‘This should work.’

He had practiced this technique before using Domain Declaration—a method of causing internal explosions. Using this approach, he could likely inflict significant damage on the golem. Jeong-hyeon channeled an even greater amount of divine power into his right hand and leapt high into the air.

“RAAAH!”

Sensing the impending danger, the golem seemed to realize that Jeong-hyeon was about to deliver a fatal strike. In response, it dropped the corpses from its body to the ground, reanimating them like a necromancer to launch an assault against him.

Countless reanimated corpses fell towards Jeong-hyeon. Dodging them deftly, he maneuvered closer to the golem. As he reached its torso, he thrust his right hand directly into the center, releasing a surge of divine power deep into the golem’s core.

KABOOM!

A massive explosion erupted. Flames erupted from within the golem, turning its body into a blazing white inferno. Jeong-hyeon quickly retreated to observe the golem’s reaction.

‘Is it feeling pain?’

The golem, as if it could feel pain, flailed its arms wildly in a desperate attempt to extinguish the flames engulfing its body. Watching this, Jeong-hyeon’s lips curled into a satisfied smile, recognizing the effectiveness of his attack.

‘Alright, I’ll just keep attacking it like this.’

When he slashed with his sword, it seemed to have no effect. However, as soon as he infused it with divine power and ignited it, a swift reaction occurred. Seeing the golem’s response, Jeong-hyeon thought that a few more of these attacks would bring the creature down. He began gathering divine power once again.

***

[Congratulations! You have successfully defeated the Corpse Golem!]

After a fierce battle… Well, to be honest, it was hardly a fierce battle at all. The fight ended easily after only a few bursts of divine power, making it much less challenging than anticipated.

‘Is the Corpse Golem weak, or am I just too strong?’

Unable to answer his own question, Jeong-hyeon brushed off the blood splattered across his body and slowly approached the flower he had noticed earlier.

[Flower of Life]

– A flower that has grown by consuming the talents of many lives at the academy. It contains immense mana and life force.

He found it ironic that a flower blooming amidst a pile of corpses was called the “Flower of Life.” Considering names like “Flower of Corpses” or “Flower of Death” might be more appropriate, he cautiously picked the flower. As he did, a message appeared before him.

*-*

[You have cleared the dungeon and earned achievement points!]

[Congratulations! You have gained all the points needed to level up.]

*To level up, you must pass the promotion test.

[You have obtained the Key of Growth!]

– A key to the Trial Chamber.

*-*

‘Finally, I’ve leveled up.’

Feeling tears of joy almost welling up, Jeong-hyeon thought he could finally grow stronger. Placing the Flower of Life and the key into his subspace, he decided it was time to head back.

***

As soon as he exited the dungeon, he was greeted by Miria’s panicked scream.

“What on earth did you do in there?!”

Taking a moment to think, Jeong-hyeon decided to recount everything that had happened without leaving anything out. After listening, Miria spoke with a tone of disbelief.

“A c-corpse golem? Erie? The End of the Trap?”

Hearing all this, Miria stared at him with a blank expression, seemingly stunned by what she had heard. Jeong-hyeon simply shrugged, signaling that everything he said was true.

“Well… it’s shocking to hear about the corpse golem and all the academy’s traps being connected, but it’s not the most important thing.”

Nodding, Miria continued.

“The crucial point is that you found Erie’s body…”

She pinpointed the most important detail, her face showing clear signs of frustration as she covered her face with her hands.

“Finding it isn’t a problem in itself… but when I think about what you might do with this, I feel like I can’t see a way forward.”

Jeong-hyeon wondered why she was reacting this way when he hadn’t even done anything yet. Though he felt a little unfair, he had no desire to argue with someone who was already feeling frustrated. So, he stayed silent, and Miria let out a long sigh before speaking to him.

“Ha… Anyway, I think it’s best to hear what you plan to do with Erie’s body. That way, I can prepare myself mentally or practically.”

Hearing this, Jeong-hyeon gave a short reply.

“I’m going to blackmail Regina and manipulate Esich.”

Miria looked like she was about to cry, then resigned herself to the situation.

“Yeah… I should’ve expected that.”

Finding this hard to understand, Jeong-hyeon shook his head. Then he suddenly remembered the Flower of Life he had found earlier and pulled it out.

“Oh, by the way, do you know what this is?”

Miria blinked at the flower and asked.

“…What is it?”

Jeong-hyeon explained that he had obtained it as a reward from the dungeon and that it had functioned as the core of the golem. Miria’s eyes sparkled at his words as she responded.

“It worked as the golem’s core? If that’s the case, doesn’t that mean you could use this to create a golem too?”

Her words brought about a realization in Jeong-hyeon.

“Oh.”

“Since you’ve got plenty of money and can probably get an endless supply of materials, it might be a good idea to make a golem. It’s not easy to control, but it could be useful in a dangerous situation…”

As Miria started going on and on about golems, Jeong-hyeon cut her off with a simple statement.

“A corpse golem wouldn’t be so bad, either.”

“…Huh?”

Miria stiffened and looked at him, her expression frozen. Jeong-hyeon watched her reaction and gave a silent smile, his mind racing with thoughts.

‘A giant corpse golem created from nobles or priests could be a valuable asset in overthrowing the Church or the Kingdom.’

Even without considering the golem’s power, its mere presence would likely have a massive impact. The bigger it was, the more it would become a symbol of fear, exerting formidable influence in any battle.

‘Not a bad idea.’

Having witnessed firsthand how terror could utterly devastate opponents in combat, Jeong-hyeon instinctively felt that a corpse golem could have a similar effect. He took Miria’s hand and shook it.

“That was a great idea.”

“W-wait a minute! I was talking about a normal golem, not a corpse one…!”

“Does it matter what the types are?”

Cutting her off, Jeong-hyeon made up his mind. It was time to get stronger. He decided to enter the Trial Chamber and take the next step forward.