Night settled over Base 101.
The excitement of welcoming new recruits had finally begun to fade.
Torches flickered along the fortress walls as patrols marched through the streets, while the newly built Training Grounds stood empty beneath the moonlight.
Sam stood alone in the central courtyard.
His eyes rested on several heavy wagons covered with thick canvas.
Inside them were the remains of the Corruption Beasts recovered after clearing the Elf Kingdom dungeon.
Rex stepped beside him.
"You've spent the day strengthening your living army."
Sam nodded.
"They'll need every advantage they can get."
Rex folded his arms.
"But you've neglected the army that only you can command."
Sam looked toward the wagons.
"...My necromancy."
Rex gave a slow nod.
"A commander leads soldiers."
"A necromancer commands death itself."
"Never forget which path the System chose for you."
Sam took a deep breath.
"I won't."
---
The wagons were pulled into an open field just beyond the fortress walls.
Only Rex and Sam remained.
The moon hung high overhead.
A cold wind swept across the grass.
Sam walked to the center of the field.
Black mist slowly gathered around his feet.
He stretched out one hand.
Dark mana surged through his body.
The familiar sensation returned.
It felt ancient.
Hungry.
Powerful.
His voice echoed across the empty field.
"Rise."
Nothing happened.
For a brief moment...
Silence.
Then—
The ground trembled.
One skeletal hand burst through the soil.
Then another.
Then another.
Bones clawed their way upward from the earth, glowing with eerie blue flames inside empty eye sockets.
One after another, the undead rose.
Twenty Skeleton Warriors emerged first, each carrying rusted swords and battered shields formed by the System.
Behind them came ten Skeleton Archers, bows already clutched in bony hands.
Finally...
Five skeletal beasts climbed from the earth.
They resembled wolves, but their bodies were nothing more than polished bone wrapped in dark mana.
Their hollow eyes locked onto Sam.
Then every undead creature knelt.
At once.
DING!
Necromancy Skill Activated
Raise Dead
Undead Created
Skeleton Warriors ×20
Skeleton Archers ×10
Skeleton Hounds ×5
Mana Cost: Complete
Control Stable
Rex smiled.
"Excellent."
Sam looked over the silent legion.
"They obey without hesitation."
"They don't question orders."
"They don't fear death."
Rex's expression remained calm.
"Because they've already experienced it."
He looked toward the undead army.
"Remember this, Sam."
"An undead soldier never grows tired."
"It never panics."
"It never abandons its comrades."
"But..."
"It also cannot inspire hope."
Sam understood immediately.
"My living soldiers protect the people."
"My undead protect my soldiers."
Rex smiled.
"Exactly."
"The greatest commanders know how to use every weapon at their disposal."
Sam looked over both the fortress and the undead standing silently beyond its walls.
For the first time...
He truly felt like a Necromancer Commander.
---
The following morning...
The newly constructed Training Grounds came alive.
Ben stood before the Human Infantry and Goblin Warriors.
His voice boomed across the arena.
"If you think the monsters are going to go easy on you..."
"They won't!"
"Again!"
Shields slammed together.
Spears thrust forward in perfect rhythm.
The soldiers repeated the formations until their muscles burned.
Nearby, Kael drilled the newest recruits.
"Keep your spear level!"
"The second rank attacks over the first!"
"A broken formation is a dead formation!"
The recruits quickly adjusted, their movements becoming sharper with every repetition.
---
On the archery range...
Runa calmly watched thirty archers prepare to fire.
"Don't look at the target."
"Feel the wind."
She released her arrow.
It struck the center of the target over two hundred meters away.
The recruits stared in amazement.
Runa smiled.
"Now try again."
---
Near the mana circles...
Zora stood beside Mira.
The Apprentice Mages formed one line.
The Healers formed another.
"Magic isn't only about power," Zora explained.
"It's about control."
Mira nodded.
"And a healer who wastes mana saves no one."
Golden and blue mana filled the air as both groups trained together.
---
Meanwhile...
George and Doran filled the forge with deafening hammer strikes.
Sparks flew in every direction.
George held up a newly forged sword.
"What do you think?"
Doran inspected it for a long moment.
"It's terrible."
George blinked.
"...Seriously?"
"The balance is wrong."
"The edge is uneven."
"The metal can be better."
Doran handed it back.
"Now make it again."
George laughed.
"I've got a lot to learn."
---
Across the Training Grounds...
Leon stood before twenty scouts.
"You won't win every fight."
"So don't fight every battle."
He disappeared.
The recruits looked around in confusion.
A voice suddenly came from behind them.
"If you can see me..."
"I've already failed."
The scouts jumped in surprise.
Leon had somehow appeared behind the entire group without making a sound.
For the first time...
They understood why he was the Recon Captain.
---
Finally...
Sam stepped onto the largest training field.
Before him stood every soldier.
Humans.
Goblins.
Archers.
Mages.
Healers.
Scouts.
Engineers.
Even his undead legion waited silently at the edge of the grounds.
Living and dead.
Standing together.
Sam drew his sword.
"This World Mission..."
"It won't care who we are."
"It won't care where we came from."
"It will only care whether we're strong enough to survive."
He looked across every face before him.
"So we become stronger."
"We fight together."
"We protect each other."
"And when those dungeon gates open..."
"We'll show the System exactly what Base 101 is capable of."
The soldiers erupted with determination.
"YES, COMMANDER!"
Even the Skeleton Warriors raised their weapons toward the sky.
---
Hours passed.
The entire fortress trained without rest.
Every soldier improved.
Every formation became tighter.
Every weapon became sharper.
By sunset...
The base had transformed into a military camp preparing for war.
Then—
DING!
WORLD MISSION COUNTDOWN
5 Days Remaining
The blue screen vanished as quickly as it appeared.
No one spoke.
The countdown had become real.
---
Just as Sam prepared to dismiss the troops, hurried footsteps echoed across the courtyard.
A gate guard burst through the command hall doors, breathing heavily.
"Commander!"
Everyone turned.
"What is it?" Sam asked.
The guard struggled to catch his breath.
"A refugee caravan..."
"It's approaching from the eastern road."
"They're civilians."
"Wagons... women... children..."
His face turned pale.
"And they're being chased by hundreds of Corruption Beasts!"
The room fell silent.
Sam didn't hesitate.
He stood.
"Ben!"
The Vanguard Captain stepped forward.
"Gather the infantry and Goblin Warriors."
"Yes, Commander!"
"Leon!"
"I'm already moving."
"Scout the caravan and report enemy numbers."
Leon vanished before the sentence was finished.
"Zora! Mira!"
"Prepare the Mage Corps and Medical Corps."
"Understood."
"George! Doran!"
"Arm every available soldier."
George grinned.
"About time."
Sam turned toward the fortress gates.
Then...
He slowly raised one hand.
Dark mana rippled through the air.
Beyond the walls...
Forty-five pairs of blue flames ignited in the darkness.
Twenty Skeleton Warriors.
Ten Skeleton Archers.
Five Skeleton Hounds.
They marched forward without a sound.
The newest army of Base 101 had answered its commander.
Sam drew his sword.
"Open the gates."
The massive gates of Base 101 began to swing outward.
The first rescue mission...
Had begun.