How to Raise Your Skeletons

Chapter 25: The Ancient Desert (5)

In a village located in a desert, a child holding a spear walked on the sand.

The weather was quite chilly. The sun had set, and the temperature had dropped rapidly.

—Whoosh!

Amidst the howling wind, humans trembled in fear.

“…”

The child walking with heavy steps suddenly stopped, because it sensed someone’s presence.

“M-Mom?”

It was a young human girl.

The girl stared at the child with a frightened expression.

You should be.

Over 80% of the people here had been cut down by the child’s spear.

“Mom, Mom!”

In the face of fear, the girl could do nothing but call for her guardian.

The child felt bitter. It remembered its own experience when humans forcibly gouged out its eyes.

And the name it kept calling out was…

Mom.

—Swing!

The child quietly raised its spear. The blade was smeared with crimson red blood.

She sobbed, “Mom, Mom!”

“…”

The child hesitated at the girl’s cries.

Usually, it would have immediately beheaded her, pierced her heart, and buried her in the sand. But now, it was hesitating.

“…”

It was a dilemma.

Who was its true ‘enemy’? Was it the adult humans who had some level of understanding? Or was it the entire human race, including young girls like her? Was it right to inflict the same wounds on others to heal its wounds?

The young Sun Spear pondered.

“My child!”

In the meantime, a woman, presumably the mother, ran up and embraced the girl.

It was a scene the child had desperately wished for when it was born.

“…”

In the end, the child turned away.

Humans were toys that it could kill whenever. It didn’t want to deepen its wounds by killing this mother and daughter.

That’s right. Forgiving someone was also the victim’s right, it thought.

The child nodded and walked away.

But then…

—Stab!

It felt a cold sensation in its back—a sharp, painful sting that set its nerves on edge.

“…?”

It could feel who had drawn a knife against it.

“D-Die, you monster!”

It was the girl it had shown mercy to.

“Just die! Disappear! You demon! You beast!”

The human it had tried to spare had chosen this action.

Ah. Humans truly were irredeemable animals.

The Sun Spear was sad. So it screamed in sorrow.

A storm of blood swept across the desert.

* * *

Reaper Scans

Translator – Dawn

Proofreader – BringTheRayn

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* * *

I walked toward the Sun Spear without my old staff or the skeletons that always protected me.

“…”

All I had was my transparent body.

Step by step, I finally arrived at the point where the Sun Spear’s energy and the old man’s energy intertwined.

Normally, I would have been torn apart. No, I wouldn’t have even gotten close to this point.

The only reason I could withstand this pressure was because I recognized that all of this was an illusion within my mind.

“Tsk, you strange fellow,” the old man grumbled as he stepped back. “Well, you were peculiar from the first time we met. That’s why I liked you.”

Beyond our master-disciple relationship, he respected my intention as a person.

I was grateful for that fact. It also made me feel secure.

Thank you, elder, I paid my respects inwardly.

Even though he always grumbled and I sometimes thought he was a senile old man, I knew all his actions were for my benefit. Whatever his goal may be, it would only be natural to be grateful for this.

“Filthy human! Treacherous and vile human!”

And now…

“How dare you! A mere human! You think you can understand me?”

The Sun Spear’s resentment and obsession were directed entirely at me.

“Don’t make me laugh! I loathe humans! I curse humans! Do you know what I realized after studying them and observing their ways for hundreds of years?”

“…”

“Humans are unnecessary in this world! They are worse than garbage! Worse than germs!”

Its cries were desperate, its voice tearing through, echoing around.

And simultaneously, strikes from the Sun Spear split my body in two. The spear pierced my heart and shattered my bones. It tore through my muscles and gouged out my eyes.

“Guh, ugh.”

My insides churned, and I bled profusely. Red liquid poured from every hole in my body.

[The skill ‘Pain Resistance’ (B-rank) is in effect.]

Argh, it hurt. The pain was excruciating.

If the old man hadn’t trained my resistance, I would have already lost consciousness.

But I’m fine.

I certainly felt the pain. But I still existed. I wasn’t dead yet since this was a world of my imagination—an illusion, not reality.

My body, split and torn, reformed. Here, I was like an undead.

“Alright.”

I opened my eyes wide. At the same time, I faced the furious Sun Spear.

“Go ahead.”

I grabbed a spear.

—Whoosh!

Because this place was imaginary, a splendid spear appeared in the air and dropped into my hand.

“Pour out all your resentment at me.”

Honestly, some might call it whining.

Others might say it was sophistry. They could argue that the Sun Spear hurt others just as much and that it used excessive violence for the harm it suffered.

But I didn’t mock it. I tried to fully understand. I had seen everything as I had felt it through the skill.

“My resentment?” the Sun Spear sneered.

Its weapon was filled with murderous intent—the very one that had pierced thousands of people.

“You say you’ll take on my resentment? Ridiculous. It’s impossible even if you fully understand me. How dare someone who hasn’t even tasted the bitterness of my misery say such a thing? What arrogant talk!”

The spear flew at me once again.

No, it wasn’t just the spear; it was emotion—the feelings of a child threatened with life and death.

The fear of losing sight.

The fear of losing its parents.

The fear of being left alone in the world rushed through my heart.

It wasn’t physical pain, but mental agony.

“There was no one in this world on my side because I was a half-human, half-beast. Who would like a hybrid monster like me?!”

The Sun Spear’s weapon wept sorrowfully.

“I shouldn’t have been born. From the moment I was born, people pointed knives at me. They tried to take my eyes, my hands, my feet. Can you even fathom such horrible pain?”

“…I see.” I nodded, taking its attacks. “It must have been tough.”

“Hmph, yes. Some people pitied me.”

“…”

“But in the end, they were all the same. They feared me. They stabbed me in the back. Until my emotions gradually died off, humans were ‘lies’ and ‘betrayal’ itself.”

“Right.”

I just listened to it. I just wanted to.

From it, I could see a crying child screaming for someone to understand its pain.

“I wasn’t the only one! Thousands, tens of thousands suffered like me!”

“There must have been many half-human, half-beasts like you.”

“Yes, humans slaughtered many races for their safety or prosperity. There was no responsibility nor respect in the process.”

The emotional spear it sent was sharp. It kept piercing my body, causing me pain.

“Humans resented me. They feared me for tearing them apart. They said that halfbreeds should have been killed from birth. Ha, isn’t it funny? They didn’t realize they had created the monster they feared.”

However, I could endure because I had already felt its emotions through Memory Recreation.

The old man stood with his hands behind his back, watching me.

—Stab! Stab!

Boney 2, no, the Sun Spear tirelessly attacked me, pouring out its emotions.

…Is this the process of venting its resentment?

I could clearly feel its power weakening with each attack, its emotions softening.

After an hour had passed, its attacks noticeably slowed down.

And finally, I saw a slight opening.

“Sun Spear,” I called to it, “until when do you plan on being sad? How long do you plan on suffering?”

“…”

“Fate is like two sides of a coin. If there’s pain, there’s also happiness on the other side, don’t you think?”

My words of advice made it open its eyes wide. It seemed surprised by my sudden counterattack.

“Think about it. If you stay mired in pain, who’s really taking the loss? Is it the dead humans who tormented you? Or is it you?”

—Whoosh!

I thrust my spear as I spoke. It was the C-rank Pierce skill I learned from the old man.

I imbued it with my emotions.

“Haha,” The old man exclaimed at the sight, hands behind his back. “This boy. I thought he was a dullard, but he’s something. Already reaching the level of imbuing emotions into his thrust!”

The old man fully stepped back, watching the situation with interest.

—Whoosh!

I kept swinging my spear.

“Let’s be honest. I’m sure you already know the reason for your suffering.”

I knew its heart better than anyone because I had seen it directly through my skill.

It loves humans as much as it hates them.

Honestly, if it had no feelings for humans, there would be no reason for it to suffer and be upset. It could just see them as targets to kill, not expecting anything from them.

Yet, it never did such a thing. It wanted to try and feel the warmth of a human embrace. It longed to witness the scene of peers laughing and chatting. It wanted to experience a mother’s love risking her life to protect her child.

It had human blood flowing within it.

“Don’t you dare!”

—Clang!

The Sun Spear deflected my thrust.

“Try to define me as you please!”

The force was so immense that I regained my stance only after being pushed back several steps.

“Huff!” I exhaled sharply with pain.

“You said you know why I’m suffering? Fine. I admit it.”

The light was blinding.

“But it’s already over! I was abandoned, and my emotions have withered. They festered for hundreds of years and became permanent scars. What do you think you can change now?”

The sunlight imbued in the spear was scorching hot.

“Does apologizing for murder heal the victims’ families? Does apologizing for violence erase the pain? Nonsense! The past can’t be undone! Spilled water can’t be gathered back up!”

It pushed me back forcefully, but I didn’t retreat. Backing down here meant losing.

I had to persuade it. I had to heal it.

And from experience, speaking strongly was more effective for someone like this.

“You’re right, the past can’t be undone,” I admitted calmly. “I’m not asking for forgiveness. I’m telling you to be reborn. For your own good.”

“…What?” The Sun Spear frowned.

“You are a dead soul.” My spear’s movements became fluid. “Your life ended there. You already killed all the humans in your world. There’s no one left to be angry at. How long will you remain a loser when you have no one to vent to? Isn’t it time to live a new life? Time is a precious resource. Don’t you feel sorry for yourself?”

“…My life has already ended?” Its pupils dilated.

It seemed to just now realize it was dead. It looked shocked.

“Yes, come to think of it… This is a pyramid—the tomb where I buried myself after slaughtering all the humans.”

It was the place where it buried its intense resentment, unable to let go of its hatred even in death.

I nodded. “Yes, you’ve been suffering even after death. Those who tormented you are gone. You killed them all.”

“…”

It was silent for a long time.

The battle had subsided, and I waited patiently.

And finally, it spoke. Its murmur was much softer than before.

“…To live a new life, you said?”

____