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[You cast Raise Skeleton (Level 1) once and obtained a Skeleton (Level 0). Raise Skeleton proficiency +1.]
As blood and fur burst outward, a skeleton rose from the flesh.
The moment it took shape, it charged at the Longhaired Rat at the front, following the aura of its kin. Its bony claws clamped directly onto the creature.
The spellcasting skeleton right behind it reacted swiftly. It swung its long wooden club once more, bringing it down hard on the Longhaired Rat pinned in place.
The rat let out a sharp squeal and died on the spot.
[Your Skeleton (summon) killed a Longhaired Rat (Level 1). You gained 1 experience point, and your summon gained 3 experience points.]
In barely any time at all, Gu Su had beaten nine Longhaired Rats to death.
Meanwhile, the skeleton squad behind him had quickly grown by six, thanks to Raise Skeleton.
After killing all the Longhaired Rats, Gu Su glanced at the blood and fur scattered across the floor, then pointed to two newly summoned skeletons and gave them orders.
"You two, gather up all this flesh and fur.
"Everyone else, push all these shopping carts outside to the plaza. Put them somewhere conspicuous. I'll have some skeletons come and clean them up later."
The skeletons immediately set to work. The two assigned to the task deftly gathered the flesh and fur.
The others worked together to pry the rusted-shut shopping carts loose, inching them toward the mall entrance. The battlefield was soon being cleared.
Gu Su leaned against the collapsed wall and looked over the newly added skeletons. He couldn't help but reflect.
Necromancers really did have the easiest time surviving in the ruins of this post-apocalyptic world.
As long as he stayed alive, his forces could grow after every battle, and their combat strength would steadily increase.
Just then, the spellcasting skeleton, which hadn't been sent to clean up the battlefield, hurried back. It rushed over to Gu Su, clacking out, "My lord, I found something good!"
Gu Su's eyes lit up. He immediately followed the spellcasting skeleton and hurried toward a spot nearby.
After only a few steps, they reached the lockers beside the supermarket entrance.
This area had once been where customers stored their belongings, but it had long since become a Longhaired Rat nest.
Most of the locker doors stood open, stuffed with gray-brown rat fur and dry leaves, as if the rats had made themselves nests inside.
Rotting black chunks of meat, tiny gnawed bones, and a few drops of dried, dark-red blood were scattered across the floor. The stench of rats and decay hit him all at once.
But the spellcasting skeleton wasn't pointing out the dilapidated nest. It had drawn his attention to three lockers that were still shut.
A faint green glow emanated from them, soft but edged with an eerie energy fluctuation.
Clearly, the deaths of all nine Longhaired Rats had stirred something, triggering whatever lay within.
Gu Su understood. These were the post-battle chests players often talked about—the exclusive rewards given for clearing the monsters from an area.
But then a strange intuition came over him.
He wouldn't be able to claim all three chests this time. He would probably have to choose one of the three lockers, and the other two would vanish as soon as he made his choice.
The realization made Gu Su stop in his tracks, hesitant.
Which one should he choose? All three lockers glowed green, suggesting they were of the same grade and would yield something of green quality at best.
But whatever they contained would surely differ greatly. Each choice might affect his future progress, so he had to pick the one that best suited his current needs.
His gaze darted between the three lockers as he rapidly weighed the possibilities.
The bottom locker was the largest. By the usual rules of games, a large-capacity chest like this would probably contain equipment or supplies he could use right away.
Perhaps a weapon suited to skeletons, or repair materials—something that could quickly fill a gap in his combat strength or resources.
The top locker was the smallest. Since there wasn't much room inside, it probably wouldn't contain a large physical item. It might instead hold a rare item such as a blueprint, building plan, or magic scroll.
A magic scroll in particular would be excellent. If he could find an introductory spell suited to the spellcasting skeleton, it would immediately unlock its magical abilities—a great return for the investment.
A building plan might unlock new functions for the Graveyard Demon, which could prove valuable in the long run.
As for the middle locker, it was neither large nor small, and sat right beside the edge of the Longhaired Rats' nest. Its green glow was slightly murkier than that of the other two.
Gu Su suspected it was probably related to the Longhaired Rat clan. It might contain an item for controlling rat-type undead, a rat-bloodline fragment, or a special object that could detect monster nests. It was hard to predict how useful any of those would be.
The sound of cleanup continued around him, but Gu Su grew more and more cautious.
Right now, he needed equipment to quickly increase his combat strength, ways to strengthen his Graveyard Demon, and special items that could help him explore more areas.
Each of the three choices had its advantages and disadvantages. He couldn't decide right away.
He crouched and tentatively reached his fingertips toward the green glow, trying to distinguish between the energy fluctuations. He couldn't make sense of them.
Unable to judge them precisely, Gu Su's thoughts raced.
Since he couldn't tell which was best from the outside, he might as well eliminate the worst option and narrow down his choices.
The first locker he ruled out was the middle one, right beside the rat nest and probably related to the Longhaired Rats.
It would be useless to him.
He was a necromancer. His core strength came from his undead forces.
Skeletons weren't exactly top-tier fighters to begin with, and rat-type undead or living rats were even weaker than skeletons.
Even if he got an item related to them, it wouldn't improve his overall combat strength. It would simply go to waste.
Next was the small locker at the top.
Scrolls and blueprints were unpredictable by nature. Choosing one would be a gamble.
Even if it contained a magic scroll, he would still have to see whether it suited the spellcasting skeleton and whether the spell was practical.
If it held a building blueprint or plan, his Graveyard Demon was in no state to use it anytime soon.
The Graveyard Demon still lacked materials, and many of its facilities hadn't even been repaired. How could he spare the energy and resources to unlock a new building?
By comparison, the large locker at the bottom was the only one that suited his current needs.
According to the usual rules of games, a large-capacity chest yielded physical items.
It would either hold a weapon or piece of armor he could equip right away, or materials he could use to repair or upgrade the Graveyard Demon. Either way, it would be a timely solution to his urgent needs.
Rather than gamble on an uncertain future, he might as well take a solid reward he could benefit from now.
Having made up his mind, Gu Su no longer hesitated. His gaze sharpened, and he quickly reached out to press his hand against the door of the largest locker.
The moment his fingertips touched the cold metal, the faint green glow around the other two lockers flowed toward it.
It streamed in along Gu Su's fingertips and into the locker. With a soft click, the door slowly sprang open a crack.
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