A Novel Concept - A death a day, MC will live anyway!-Chapter 352: The True Meaning of the Necro Plague

If Priam hadn’t been so absorbed in the moment, he might have smiled. Much like when he tapped into his Potential, he felt right, like he was exactly where he needed to be.

His perfect stance was the missing piece in a reality where defeat didn’t exist. Feet planted firmly for optimal stability, torso slightly twisted to gather energy like a coiled spring, hands gripping the shaft of his spear, and Promesse’s tip pointed at Kazuki—Priam felt ready to shock the world with a memorable strike. For the first time since wielding a spear, Priam didn’t just use the skill—he embodied it.

Nothing could stop what he was about to unleash.

When the concentration of Heroic Aura in his veins and meridians reached saturation, the excess bled into reality, conjuring the spectral form of Heracles behind him. Instructed by the demigod, Priam’s Aura resonated with his soul… and the dozens of resistances embedded within. When the connection between his skill runes and his Aura came online, the attack gained the ability to weaken all known defenses.

The Juggernaut struck with a perfect thrust.

Lvl Up: [Suffocating Thrust] lvl 2, 3

STR +12

AGI +6

Promesse’s tip tore through the air before reaching Kazuki. The metallic skin—blessed by the Titan bloodline to be indestructible—took the blow head-on. The impact was so forceful, the shockwave ripped trees from the ground and cratered the terrain. Neither the Warrior nor the Juggernaut budged.

“Looks like the titan wins this round,” Kazuki commented.

“In the end, the hero always wins,” Priam smiled. “That’s literally what they do.”

The Merit had naturally synced his Aura with the soul runes of his resistances to form an attack based on Priam’s defenses. The effect was impressive, but his draconic instinct whispered that it could be better. Titan skin resists penetration. I need to tailor my strike.

Heeding his bloodline, the Juggernaut severed all links between his soul and his Aura—except for [Shear Resistance]. That way, he would pit his own resistance to penetration against that of the Titan. A duel he would have lost, had his Heroic Merit not multiplied his defense tenfold.

Both ideal and epic, the soul rune of [Shear Resistance] lit up, resonating perfectly with his Heroic Aura and his weapon. The nature of the attack changed, now optimized to pierce through any material.

With a sound like tearing metal, the Titan’s skin gave way to the hero’s spear. Promesse’s tip pushed forward, finding flesh, blood, and bone behind the hoplite’s defenses.

Nestled between Oasis’s outer wall and the river that sliced through the settlement stood a lone cabin. The green timber and the scent of fresh sap betrayed its newness. No larger than a quarter of a tennis court, it had been built by Prometheus’ subordinates. After leaving the internal world of humanity’s Champion, they had quickly found their footing in Oasis. One of them was currently working on a project as macabre as it was necessary.

“Subject decomposition shows all signs of complete stagnation. Cell degradation through autolysis has been interrupted by necro-corruption. Lysosomal enzymes are in stasis, unable to digest the corrupted tissues. Despite the absence of visible putrefaction, a strong stench of rot remains,” Lena noted, stepping back from the boar corpse she was studying. The creature trembled, unsuccessfully trying to free itself as the scientist deployed a flurry of skills to continue her analysis. “It appears the bacteria on the corpse are feeding on the subject’s aether—or the Necro Concept animating it. A diet that seems to corrupt them.” She shivered at the thought of all the bacteria that lived symbiotically with humans. “It’s possible the greatest threat of the Necro Event isn’t the undead, but rather the microorganisms affected by the Necromoon. The next study will focus on airborne transmission of this plague, and the defenses [Necro Resistance] provides against necro-bacteriological hazards.”

The conclusion left a bitter taste in the former forensic doctor’s mouth as she closed her notebook. Her enhanced memory rendered note-taking obsolete, but some habits died hard—and reviewing her notes helped her think. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

“Can I burn the corpse?”

The voice startled her. Lena turned to the warrior who had brought her the specimen an hour earlier. For a man—a hoplite, she corrected herself—of such stature, he was surprisingly discreet.

“I’d prefer to wait a few hours, maybe even a few days. See how the corruption evolves,” she said calmly. “You mentioned these monsters grow stronger over time, correct?”

“They go from simple corpses ruled by base instincts to beings with… if not intelligence, then cunning. Their physical growth follows an alarming curve as well.”

“I want to understand how.”

“You think it’s linked to the slow corruption that’s dooming us?”

For the second time in under a minute, Lena chastised herself for underestimating him. In addition to being an elite soldier, the hoplite before her was an educated scientist. The kind of polymath who could become an astronaut… and wield a blade with deadly precision.

“That’s exactly what I think,” Lena confirmed. “Does it align with your own research?”

The hoplite opened his mouth to respond, but was interrupted by the eruption of a shadowy silhouette. A young woman appeared between them and grabbed the doctor’s wrist.

“Shut your mouth and try not to puke,” was her only warning before the doctor plunged into her own shadow.

The next instant, Lena entered what felt like the fever dream of a depressed man with untreated ADHD. An infinite array of black shades and the presence of a light source—somehow both existing and elusive—greeted her eyes. Her whole mind rebelled against the two-dimensional shapes she saw and the nature of the place.

The world of shadows was not meant for the living.

After a moment, reality reasserted itself, and Lena’s stomach churned like she’d just ridden ten roller coasters in a row. A timely application of [Quick Therapy] fixed the issue, and the woman in her forties stood up, furious.

“Who dares—”

The rest caught in her throat when she saw the man standing before her. It was the second time she had been in the presence of humanity’s Champion—and the first time he was actually looking at her. It took her breath away.

Lena may have grown used to the royal presence of Prometheus, but there was something about Priam that demanded her respect. Clothes of flame, piercing stormcloud eyes, heroic aura, and powerful physique: everything about the young man reminded her that his legend was very real.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“Help him,” he ordered. “Please.”

The forensic doctor turned toward a giant and widened her eyes at the sight of the Champion of the Hoplites… and the tree behind him that she could see through a hole bigger than a melon in his abdomen. Her medical instincts kicked in. Lena knelt and assessed the horrifying wound.

By chance—or thanks to terrifying reflexes—the perforation was diagonal, as if he had twisted to dodge a cannonball. The attack had narrowly missed his spine, but that was the only good news. The skin around the wound was marked with severe burns, and most of it had been ripped away. He was missing the majority of his intestines.

The diagnosis was clear: he was going to die.

Lena met the patient’s gaze and was surprised by the stoicism she found there. No fear. No resigned wisdom. Just a soul etched with patience and dignity. Her training and innate empathy let her feel the undertow of something deeper—something stronger. Duty?

Kazuki Arashi would not surrender to death while his people still needed him.

“Can you help me?” he asked in a calm voice.

For a moment, Lena wondered if she should. Was it in her King’s best interest to save such a formidable opponent? One day, humanity would cross swords with the Hoplites, and then, this warrior would leave rivers of blood in his wake.

The moment passed, and the doctor remembered the Hippocratic oath she had sworn so long ago. I will abstain from all intentional wrong-doing and harm. Unless countermanded by her King, she would follow her calling.

“My Vitality Concept is still in its infancy, but I’ll try. I take it the Hydra pill didn’t work?”

“A trace of my Aura lingers in the wound,” said Priam, as if that explained everything. Seeing the doctor’s puzzled look, he clarified, “Something’s blocking his regeneration.”

“Well, try removing it,” she replied before turning back to her patient. “How much time can your Concept buy us?”

Kazuki considered it. “The less severe the injury, the longer my Duty can ignore it. Right now, I should be able to give us an hour.”

“Better than nothing,” Lena grimaced. “Let’s start by cleaning the wound to prevent infection. Bring me water, cloth, and—”

Upon hearing the crunch beneath him, Dishnu lifted a blackened foot. He wasn’t injured, only dirtied by a kind of powder. Volcanic rock, pulverized by a cataclysm, blanketed the ground in a dust finer than desert sand. With each step, it clung to him like soot from a dying star. Still, the sound he had just heard stood out from the monotony of his march.

The Forest Guardian crouched, brushed aside the dust, and soon closed his fingers around a spherical orb—a Tier 3 magma elemental core. The thousandth he had found.

Forewarned by the Shadow about the circumstances of his impending Tribulation, Dishnu had asked the Author for the location of a wild rift leading to a fire world. A basic ritual had stabilized the entrance, allowing the drya to discover a volcanic moon orbiting a frozen gas giant in a distant planetary system.

Ignoring the alien constellations above, Dishnu had set himself a daunting task: exterminate the native fire and magma elementals infesting the satellite. The challenge was compounded by the many lava rivers and frequent fire geysers that regenerated the monsters almost instantly.

So, Dishnu did what he couldn’t do anywhere else—he inscribed apocalyptic rituals. The absence of plant life on the volcanic world severely weakened his Concepts and skillset, but only slightly impacted his mastery of aether.

For three days, Dishnu labored to inscribe two runic sites, one on each pole. Once completed, he activated them, creating two portals to the icy giant looming in the sky.

Blizzards raged for two more days, sweeping the desolate surface, sealing volcanoes, and trapping the elementals within massive glaciers. Deprived of their element, unable to adapt to the cold, they all perished.

With the pests eradicated, Dishnu closed the portals and redirected the gravitational shields. Instead of protecting the satellite’s structure, they now blocked meteorites.

He then began gathering the cores of his fallen enemies. Once placed in key locations, these heat generators would turn the planet into a heated greenhouse. Within a year, the mild temperatures would melt the new glaciers into lakes and streams. Gravity, heat, light, atmosphere, fertile soil, and water: the satellite would be ready to host life.

Dishnu pocketed the last core and replaced it with a genetically-altered seed. Planted here, it would quickly grow into a magnificent tree. After all, volcanic soils were known to be nutrient-rich and fertile.

The Guardian poured some of his sap onto the seed and smiled as it sprouted. Plucking a few worms and insects from his mossy hair, he gently placed them nearby. One earthworm immediately tunneled into the blackened dirt, aerating the soil and weaving in oxygen. Its role in maintaining healthy ground was essential. Despite what the young dryas believed, a healthy forest consisted of more than just plants: a complex ecosystem required insects, animals, and bacteria to thrive.

When the sapling reached his ankle, Dishnu moved a few hundred meters away to dig another hole. A gardener’s work was often repetitive.

Two revolutions of the satellite later, Dishnu planted his ten-thousandth tree. The temperature was warm, gravity and light artificially enhanced, water plentiful. When the flora began releasing enough oxygen to support fauna, the System finally acknowledged his work.

New Title!

[Terraformer - Mythic] - You have transformed the natural environment of a celestial body, recreating the conditions necessary for plant and animal life. Evolution is now underway, and even without further action on your part, this world will likely flourish…

Dishnu didn’t bother reading the rest. His role here was complete, and he made his way toward the rift. Now ready to face his Tribulations, he hoped to be worthy of Log-a-rhythm.

Behind him, a few bees were already pollinating flowers. The Forest had grown once more.

Status:

PHYSICAL:

Strength 955 (+17)

Constitution 1 744

Agility 1 389 (+9)

Vitality 1 791

Perception 922

MENTAL:

Vivacity (D) 642

Dexterity 816

Memory 1 033

Willpower 1 250

Charisma 912

META:

Meta-affinity (O) 1 169

Meta-focus 722

Meta-endurance 1 216

Meta-perception 681

Meta-chance 1 020

Meta-authority 627

Potential: 34 310 (+6)

Sun points: 699 931 (+512)

[Tribulation]: Two Tribulations pending.

Future Tribulations delayed until:

Time: 21 days 8 hours 50 minutes 17 seconds.

Next thresholds: 12 attributes > 900 / 6 attributes > 1 200 / 3 attributes > 1 500 / 1 attribute > 1 800

Next arc already complete on Patreon if you want to find out what happens next!

/ANovelConcept