How to Raise Your Skeletons

“Hmm.”

She was feeling quite uneasy.

…Joo Donghoon

It wasn’t that he particularly bothered her. But for some reason, she felt unsettled. There was no apparent reason. Or rather, saying she didn’t know might be more accurate.

How could there be no contact at all?

When the man thanked her for protecting him and said he wanted to stand on his own from now on, she nodded in understanding.

He took the reward from the dungeon the Parang Guild found, and she accepted it without refuting it. She only asked to observe his training and claimed no other rights.

And that wasn’t all. She even expressed concern over his reckless behavior and told him to contact Parang for help if he ever found himself in danger.

And with that, he had left for the medium dungeon.

That was fine.

But after he returned, there was no word, no news. She only found out he had returned safely through a newspaper article about Demir’s Workshop.

“A unique workshop furnished with strange skeletons! Who is the owner?”

“Demir’s Workshop, the creator of ‘Demir’s Standard Set’ which caused a stir at the recent auction! When will the next item be released?”

“No news from Demir’s Workshop, only the sound of hammering for over two weeks. Netizens’ expectations are growing!”

A man who could use skeletons like that.

As far as she knew, Joo Donghoon was the only one in Korea since no other necromancer primarily used skeletons.

“Tsk.”

And so, she felt upset. She had been worried, after all. It would’ve been fine if he had at least let her know he arrived safely.

“Hahh.”

She was about to get annoyed at her feelings for being so unsettled when…

“Hey, Dark Empress,” someone murmured, sitting beside her. It was a member of the Five Stars of Seoul, ranked 829th, the White Swine.

“What are you doing sitting here so gloomily? That’s not like you.”

“Yoo Sangdon? How did you know I was here…?”

“This is the Gotomall. The world’s most discreet assassin shows up on my turf, of course I have to take care of it. My subordinates were nervous.” Yoo Sangdon smirked. “So you came here because of that guy, right?”

“What guy?”

“I’m talking about the owner of the Demir’s Workshop.”

“…”

“Well, it’s obvious. I was surprised too. I didn’t expect the young man you introduced to be the hot, new workshop owner. Normally, my people would’ve moved to keep an eye on him, but…”

“Did you stop because of me?”

“That’s right, haha. As much as I love money, life is more important.” Yoo Sangdon jokingly ran his hand over his throat.

“Nice joke…” Gi Soyul chuckled.

Despite his words, someone like White Swine always had a bodyguard with him. With his wealth, hiring someone ranked within the world’s top 100 was nothing.

Moreover, the Five Stars of Seoul maintained a close relationship, choosing not to point swords at each other. They were fellow rankers, promoted through Delilah the Dungeon Maker, and they were in an alliance for their recommendation rights.

It was also Gi Soyul’s most trusted relationship at the moment.

“Come on, friend. You came all this way, so why waste time sitting here? You’re not debating whether to go because of your pride, hm?”

“…”

“Oh? That face tells me I’m right! It’s one hundred percent true, isn’t it?”

“…Haah, that’s enough.” Avoiding the question, Gi Soyul sighed and looked away.

In truth, Yoo Sangdon’s words were completely right.

Seeing her reaction, Yoo Sangdon clicked his tongue, “Tsk, just go see him. Honestly, I understand the guy.”

“You understand him?”

“Look. We’re rankers and peers, so we’re comfortable with each other. But do you know how intimidating you are to ordinary people?”

“Am I?”

“Oh, come on. You really had no idea?”

“…”

“First off, nobody wants to be your enemy due to your unique assassination authority. Plus, your brother is Giparang the Fine Bow, ranked 58th! And your personality? Cold as ice. You don’t show up in the media, you speak little, and your demeanor is always so sharp it looks like you’d slice someone’s head off if they got on your nerves…” Yoo Sangdon trailed off and backed away slightly as Gi Soyul’s eyes narrowed.

“Mr. Yoo Sangdon?”

“Y-Yes?”

“Is that how you’ve always viewed me?”

“Ahaha, not at all…! I’m just giving advice. Anyway, enjoy your time in Gotomall! I’ve got things to do.”

And with that, he quickly disappeared into the crowd.

“…”

Gi Soyul let out a faint sigh as Yoo Sangdon’s words echoed in her mind.

Could it be true?

It was possible. Even she herself admitted that her personality wasn’t the gentlest.

Moreover.

There weren’t many people who could even approach her. She had blocked off any such situations from the start.

Alright, I’ll visit it. I’ll just say I came to get a new weapon. That should work, right?

She suddenly stood up. There was no point in overthinking things here. Meeting him directly and having a conversation might be the only way to ease her troubled mind.

—Whoosh!

In an instant, she disappeared. All that was left on the bench was the faint scent of peony.

* * *

Reaper Scans

Translator – Dawn

Proofreader – BringTheRayn

Join our discord for updates on releases! https://discord.gg/reapercomics

* * *

—Clang! Clang!

When Gi Soyul arrived at Demir’s Workshop, she heard the clean sound of hammering.

“…”

Normally, she would hide her presence, but she didn’t bother this time. She simply walked around, wearing a hood. After all, with the White Swine knowing she was here, no hunter in Gotomall would dare mess with her.

—Clang! Clang!

She listened to the hammering that had been going on for a while from outside.

They say he’s been hammering for almost two weeks without stepping out.

What could have happened? What could have caused him to skip his usual training and hole up in there?

Just as she was thinking this, someone came out of the shop next door. It was a middle-aged woman.

“Tsk, young lady, you must’ve come to see that young man too, right?”

“Pardon?”

“I’d advise you to go back. That man hasn’t budged from inside. He’s just in there hammering away. Even when reporters knock, he doesn’t respond.”

“Haha, is that so?” Gi Soyul smiled and nodded. “But I think it’ll be fine now.”

“Huh?” The woman tilted her head in confusion.

Gi Soyul smiled under her hood. Even without looking inside, she could feel his energy. The man who had been using the Great Blue Heart Technique had just finished his session.

“See? The hammering has stopped now.”

“Oh? You’re right!”

“Well then, I’ll head in.”

Gi Soyul moved toward the door.

—Sniff, sniff.

As she stepped inside, she caught a scent similar to her own—cold and sharp.

—Knock, knock!

She knocked on the door. At the same time, she said, “So this is the hot workshop I’ve been hearing about. Do you take commissions?”

It was a question hiding her true intent.

“Oh, Dark Empress?” The man greeted her with a very happy expression.

“…”

She pouted because that happy expression didn’t move her at all.

If he’s greeting me like this, he could’ve contacted me earlier.

Well, it didn’t matter. She hadn’t expected much anyway. She was only here to commission a new weapon.

“Yes. It’s been a while, Mr. Joo Donghoon.”

“Wow, you came at the perfect time. It’s amazing. I was just about to go see you. How did you know?”

Just about to see her?

As if.

Her lips twisted even more.

But…

“Here, take this.”

“Huh?” Gi Soyul’s eyes widened as he handed her something.

“It’s the dagger I just finished making. You’ve helped me a lot, so I wanted to show my gratitude. You know my principle, right? I always repay kindness or vengeance at least twice over.”

“…Huh?” She was stunned.

Wait… Could it be?

The weapon he had been hammering away at for two weeks… The weapon he had crafted without sleeping, like a madman…

Was it… for me?

Gi Soyul accepted the dagger in a daze.

The dark sheen across the blade indicated it was an incredibly sophisticated weapon. The engravings and design were of a beauty not found on Earth. It felt like something not of this world. Though the dagger emanated cold energy, she could feel the warmth contained within it.

What…

Her palms grew clammy with sweat. It had been a long time since she had felt this kind of emotion. Although she had received many gifts before, none had ever made her feel this way.

“Oh, of course, I’m not just giving it to you. I put my all into making this, so you’ll have to promote it for me, okay?”

“…S-Sure.”

She was so flustered, she stuttered.

But the surprise was just beginning.

—Ring!

Item information appeared in her vision.

[Item: A Dagger for an Assassin]

[Rank: S]

[Type: Dagger]

[Description: A weapon crafted by the legendary blacksmith Demir and his master, inspired by a certain assassin! With incredible focus and passion, its performance has surpassed its blueprint.]

[Effect 1: Dexterity increases by 50.]

[Effect 2: Attack speed increases by 200%.]

[Effect 3: After entering stealth, the first attack deals 500% additional damage.]

[Effect 4: Ice magic resistance increases by 30%.]

“Wh-What the hell?!” A curse slipped out of Gi Soyul’s mouth. “How did you craft an S-rank item?”

S-rank items—things that couldn’t be obtained, even if you wanted them. They were so rare that their value had no ceiling. The best ones were quite literally priceless.

And even the performance is insane!

Without a doubt, it was far superior to the dagger she had been using.

The man said with a satisfied smile, “Not bad, right?”

“This is beyond ‘not bad’!”

What could have happened in the medium dungeon that he could now create an S-rank item in less than a month? It was unbelievable.

But more than that…

[Description: A weapon crafted by the legendary blacksmith Demir and his master, inspired by a certain assassin!]

What bothered her most was the description, as she knew the ‘assassin’ referred to her. The dagger was imbued with her own scent. The man had truly made this weapon as a gesture of gratitude to her.

“…”

Overwhelmed by emotion, Gi Soyul couldn’t bring herself to say anything. She was grateful, but she had never expressed such gratitude to anyone before.

“I’ll treasure it.”

That was all she could say. At the same time, she suddenly realized that her unsettled heart had completely calmed.

“Yes, make good use of it. It’s our first limited edition weapon from Demir’s Workshop.”

“…The first, you say?”

She was flabbergasted. This meant he could make more weapons of this caliber, but she didn’t have the energy to be more surprised.

Of course.

From the moment he had teamed up with the elder, no, even before that, she had known that this man’s potential was limitless. She had merely helped him recognize it.

As Gi Soyul smiled faintly, fiddling with the dagger, there was a knock at the workshop door.

—Knock knock!

“Excuse me, is anyone here?”

“Yes, who is it?”

Joo Donghoon answered, and a voice continued from outside.

“I’m from the Ohsung Workshop. My name is Ryu Jinho from the secretary team. Could we discuss a matter regarding building occupancy?”

The Ohsung Workshop?

Gi Soyul furrowed her brow.