Necromancer Academy and the Genius Summoner-Chapter 99: Episode

Communication with the island’s defenses—every outpost, every barracks—had been severed. Blue Harbor’s entire defensive capability was effectively gone. The situation would only get worse.

"We’ve also lost contact with Lord Finch," the head butler sighed. "He’s either engaged with the pirates or has run into trouble himself."

At this, the maids began to murmur fearfully. With even the Oldone family’s strongest necromancer out of reach, the situation felt hopeless.

"It seems the Kizen student was right. Something has happened to the bases," the commander said, finally giving up on the communication crystal. "Still, the forces on the ground will be fighting. I will gather what remains of our troops and establish a defensive line."

The commander drew his sword, and the other soldiers followed suit.

"Then we should find an escape route..." the head butler began.

"Taking a boat now would be even more dangerous," Simon interjected. "The pirates have undoubtedly blockaded the waterways. The outposts and the entire naval force have been neutralized. This was a thoroughly planned attack, long in the making."

"Ahem."

A heavy silence fell over the group.

"I agree with the Kizen student," the commander said. "If the sea outposts are gone, there is no escape. Our only option is to hold out on this island."

He turned to Simon.

"Kizen student, please, will you help us? Your strength would be a great..." 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"That’s not up to me."

Simon gave a bitter smile and looked down at Shun, who was still clinging to his leg. He was on a mission, and Shun’s protection was his top priority.

"Simon."

"Yes, my lord."

"I... I’m okay."

Shun pulled away from Simon and slapped his own cheeks, his eyes hardening with resolve.

"As the administrator of Blue Harbor, and as your client, I’m asking you. Don’t worry about my safety. Save the people."

Murmurs rippled through the crowd. Simon knelt to meet Shun’s gaze.

"Shun, I have a bad feeling about this. There might be people targeting you specifically."

"Saving the residents is more urgent right now. I’ll pay any additional fees you ask. Please."

Shun bowed his head, his body trembling, but his voice firm.

"Please, save Blue Harbor and its people."

He had made his decision. He was still small and young, but in that moment, he was every bit the Count he was meant to be. Simon bowed his head in return.

"I will follow your orders, my lord."

---

They split their forces into three. Shun, the head butler, and the guests would retreat to the mansion and fortify it. The naval commander and his soldiers would head for the barracks to regroup.

And Simon.

He walked alone toward the beach where the pirates had first landed. He judged that the captain would be on the largest, most ornate of the three ships. If he could take down the captain, the rest of the crew would fall into disarray. Then, with Blue Harbor’s remaining forces, they might just manage the situation.

’Pier! Can you hear me?’

Since the attack began, Pier’s clone had been silent. It seemed he had been caught up in the chaos as well.

’For now, I’ll do what I can.’

As he entered the city proper, a hellscape unfolded before him. The beautiful town was a sea of fire, the air thick with agonizing screams. Pushing through the smoke and flames, he found a group of residents huddled near a fountain. A few navy soldiers were fighting the pirates, but they were hopelessly outnumbered and quickly overwhelmed.

"Please! Not that! That was my father’s...!"

"So annoying."

A man clutching a keepsake was brutally kicked to the ground. It was a scene of unrestrained pillaging. Pirates ransacked buildings, grabbing anything valuable and cutting down anyone who resisted.

"Hey! Drop the sword!" a pirate snarled at a lone navy soldier.

To prove his point, another pirate held a blade to a citizen’s throat.

"Huh? You’re really not gonna drop it?"

With a sickening slice, a pirate behind the soldier swung his sword, and one of the hostages collapsed in a spray of blood.

"Aaaahhhhh!"

"Nooo!!"

"Still not dropping it?"

An old man fell next, then a young man. The remaining hostages wailed in terror. This wasn’t a hostage situation. The pirates were toying with them.

’These guys are insane.’

The soldier trembled. He didn’t know how many more would die if he tried to approach. He lowered his stance, making a show of putting down his sword.

"W-Wait! I’ll drop it! Just calm—!"

A pirate snuck up behind him and smashed the butt of his sword into the back of the soldier’s head. He collapsed instantly.

"Muahaha!"

"Too easy!"

The pirates swarmed the fallen soldier, stomping on him mercilessly.

"Can’t you even tell the difference between war and a skirmish? You should’ve charged in, hostages be damned!"

"Peace-loving bastards!"

Watching from behind a building, Simon bit his lip hard. He could take down these pirates easily, but a reckless move would endanger the hostages. Worse, barrels of explosives had been placed among the kneeling captives in a nearby alley.

[Boy! Can you hear me!] Pier’s voice suddenly echoed in his mind.

’Pier! What took you so long?’

[A pirate ship came this way! I’m fighting it now!]

’Can you handle it alone?’

[Hehehe! This is nothing! More importantly, you succeeded in using Bone Armor with a summoning-type skeleton for the first time yesterday. Correct?]

’Yes! I did. What about it?’

Pier’s mental voice seemed to grin.

[Then I grant you permission! Use the Legionized undead for Bone Armor. Use them as you please!]

The message ended there. He had re-entered the fight.

’Alright.’ He didn’t know Pier’s exact intention, but he had to succeed. Simon summoned a number of Legionized skeletons from his Subspace and focused, conjuring a mental image to sharpen his concentration.

’It’s hard to focus.’ Embers drifted on the wind. ’Still too fast.’

He gritted his teeth, his spirit soaring. His senses refined, as if his consciousness had transcended his body.

’Slower. Slower. Slower.’

The embers began to fall in slow motion. Simon nodded and stepped out from behind the building.

A man was being kicked repeatedly by a pirate who had stolen his family heirloom. Enraged, Simon thrust his right arm forward.

’Bone Armor!’

Two skeletons disassembled with a clatter, their parts flying toward the beaten man.

"Wh-What the?" the pirate stammered, stumbling back.

The bones began to attach themselves to the man’s body—arms, legs, chest—aligning and connecting with tight precision. In that moment, Simon finally understood why Pier had forbidden him from practicing this.

’It’s so much easier!’

This required no practice at all. The Legion skeletons, each possessing a distinct consciousness, knew exactly where to go. All Simon had to do was provide the overall design. It was as if he drew the blueprint, and the skeletons assembled it themselves.

Mastering Bone Armor with standard skeletons naturally led to mastering it with the Legion.

’Click! Clack! Clank!’

The man staggered to his feet, now clad in a skeletal suit. More bones flew through the air, slotting into the gaps of the porous armor like perfectly fitted blocks. He looked down at himself, his eyes wide with disbelief.

His entire body was encased in bone.

"Wh-What did you do?!" the pirate yelled, kicking the man in the chest.

This time, the man didn’t feel a thing.

Then, the man’s body moved on its own. His fist shot out, slamming into the pirate’s face.

With an unbelievable crunch, the pirate’s nose exploded in a shower of blood. He spun three times in the air before crashing to the ground, his teeth scattering across the cobblestones.

"Hey! What’s going on?!" another pirate yelled, rushing over.

This time, the local fishmonger’s arm lashed out, striking the back of the pirate’s head and embedding it in a nearby wooden crate.

"I-I didn’t do that!" the fishmonger cried out in shock. "Why is my body moving on its own...?!"

The air filled with the sharp, clicking sound of more bones assembling.

The Bone Armor encasing the fishmonger sloughed off like snakeskin and shot toward its next target.

"Aaaahhh!" a tourist shrieked.

"Stay still!" a pirate snarled, harassing the woman. His mind consumed by primal urges, he flicked his tongue and reached for her clothes, but a cascade of bones clattered into place, assembling around her body.

"I told you to stop!" she sobbed, slapping the pirate across the face.

The man was launched several meters into the air before crashing back to the ground. Startled, she covered her mouth, staring at her own palm in disbelief.

"Just kill this bastard!" another pirate roared.

"Stomp him!"

Simon’s arms were a blur. Bones flew toward a navy sailor who had been knocked senseless and was now being stomped on by a mob of pirates, encasing him in a suit of Bone Armor.

"Wh-what? The bastard’s getting up!"

"He still has strength left?"

Even with five men kicking him, the sailor planted his hands on the ground and began to rise. No matter how hard the pirates struck, they only succeeded in bruising their own feet.

"Hrrngh!"

With a strained roar, the sailor threw the pirates off him. They scattered like bowling pins, tumbling across the cobblestones.

"You son of a bitch!" one of them spat, approaching with his sword drawn.

But with a sharp clang, the blade was effortlessly blocked by the Bone Armor. It was as if the suit were alive, moving on its own.

"What the hell is that thing?!" a pirate yelled in frustration.

As the pirates’ attacks proved useless, the sailor felt a surge of courage. He grabbed one of their heads and slammed it into the ground.

The paving stones shattered as the pirate’s skull was driven into them.

"Haha... Hahaha!" the sailor laughed, looking down at his own body with newfound, unbelievable strength.

"Get out of the way!" a young woman screamed, leaping three meters into the air and sending another pirate flying with a kick. His body smashed through a nearby wooden house. "You trashy perverts! You’re all dead!"

The flower shop owner hoisted his heavy cart with his bare hands and began swinging it wildly at the pirates. "My youthful strength has finally awakened! Back in my day, I tell you!"

Suddenly, the townspeople launched a full-scale counterattack. The ordinary citizens, who had been brutally beaten just moments before, were now overwhelming the pirates, each one wielding incredible power the moment they were clad in skeletal armor.

"Th-These bastards!"

A pirate ran toward a powder keg where hostages were tied, raising a lit torch. "Everyone on your knees, you crazy bastards! Or I’ll blow them all to—!"

The pirate’s eyes went vacant as he collapsed. The one who had smashed the back of his head was an old man who had been one of the hostages. Dusting off his palms, the man smiled as he looked at the Bone Armor covering his scrawny frame.

"Sir!" Simon shouted, having just appeared on the street. "Please get rid of that!"

The old man saw Simon and quickly assessed the situation. "So you’re the one who gave me this suit! I understand!" He immediately heaved the powder keg, tossing it into a pile of trash in an empty part of the square.

The keg exploded in a shower of fire and splinters.

"Hmph!"

His concentration at its peak, Simon swept his arm to the side. The old man’s Bone Armor disassembled and reassembled around a man fighting another pirate.

"I was waiting for this!" the man roared, sending the pirate flying with a single uppercut.

’To the right,’ Simon thought.

The man’s Bone Armor peeled off and soared into the air. A woman holding a child was falling from a four-story building, trying to escape the flames. The armor instantly clad her body, absorbing the full impact of the fall. She stood up, completely unharmed.

’Back to the left.’

’Retrieve two sets and send them to the square.’

’Need to reinforce the fountain area.’

Completely immersed, Simon’s control over the Bone Armor was nothing short of artistry. His arms were a blur as he repeatedly equipped and unequipped residents, shielding them from the pirates’ attacks.

’No more casualties. I’ll save every single one of them!’

A fierce determination lit Simon’s eyes. Ten suits of Bone Armor darted frantically around the city, aiding anyone in need. By now, the people had realized who was controlling the mysterious armor.

"That kid’s from Kizen, right?"

"That’s right! He’s the one who was interviewed at the exhibition!"

"Kizen is helping us!"

"Wooahhh!"

The citizens, who had been utterly at the pirates’ mercy, were now thrilled. Some even began volunteering, calling out for the armor to be put on them. Simon put their courage to good use.

"Sir! Put this on and take care of the pirates in that alley!"

"Okay!" a man yelled back.

"Ma’am! Two pirates ahead!"

"Leave it to me, kiddo!" a woman shouted.

The tide of battle turned in an instant. The pirates were being pushed back, overwhelmed by the very residents they had been terrorizing.

"Look over there! It’s that brat’s doing!"

"Get him first!"

A few pirates spotted Simon and rushed him all at once. He was so focused on equipping people in the distance that he was completely unaware of the danger closing in.

"Hey, get back!"

"Be careful!" the people around him cried out.

Just as the pirates curled their lips into a smirk and raised their swords to strike, there was a series of sharp impacts.

The flower shop owner, the navy sailor, and the young female tourist—all clad in Bone Armor—appeared as if from nowhere, sending the pirates hurtling through the air with flying kicks before landing gracefully. The pirates’ bodies flew dozens of meters, crashing into walls and houses before collapsing into broken heaps.

"Oooooooh!" the crowd roared.

"Nice!"

Wiping the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, Simon grinned. "Alright, let’s keep up the counterattack."

A single person could change the tide of war. It was in that moment that the residents of Blue Harbor truly understood the power of a necromancer.