Becoming the Dark Lord

Luke stood at the threshold of the resting chamber. Like the others, it was calm — a patch of grass, a fruit-bearing tree, a small waterfall trickling from the stone wall into a shallow pool. In the corner, he noticed several crates, some broken and scattered.

I can’t keep going.

His body was stiff. His thoughts were slowing. The constant mana channeling to power the elevator had worn down more than just his energy — it had drained him mentally. Luke could’ve forced himself to push on, but wandering the dungeon half-aware would be suicide. He needed to be sharp.

He shuffled to the crates and peeked inside. Nothing. Just an old cloth draped over the broken wood. Grabbing a fruit from the tree, he took a bite and crouched near the pool. The cold water helped. Even just stopping the mana flow to the crystal gave his brain a moment of rest. A kind of peace.

He turned to the skeleton.

“I’m going to sleep for a bit,” he said quietly.

Princess Charlie gave a small nod, stepping toward the narrow corridor that led deeper into the dungeon. She planted her sword firmly into the ground and stood guard.

At least she gets the basics.

Luke picked a spot on the far end of the room, away from the skeleton. He slid down into a seated position, kukris still in hand. His eyes closed, but only slightly. He was still alert.

He didn’t fully trust Charlie — not yet. If something powerful appeared, she wouldn’t be enough. And even though she was his “servant,” she was still a monster. So at first… he only pretended to sleep.

Minutes passed. Eventually, his exhaustion won.

And he drifted off.

***

A faint sound woke him.

Luke didn’t move — didn’t open his eyes fully. Just enough to see through a half-lid slit. His grip tightened around his kukris.

The skeleton was moving. Not standing guard. Not still. Doing… something else. She walked over to the crates in the corner. Pulled something from the top.

What are you doing…?

Luke held his breath, ready to react the moment anything looked suspicious.

Princess Charlie had taken the cloth from the broken crates. She shook it — dust flying off in small clouds — then gently beat it against the stone to clear the dirt.

She turned and walked toward him. Luke’s fingers twitched over his blade.

Then…

The skeleton knelt beside him and laid the cloth over his body like a blanket. She even tucked the corners gently underneath him—a slow, almost maternal movement. Then, with one bony hand, she gave his head two soft pats, like a silent goodnight.

She stood, walked back to the corridor, and resumed her position beside the sword.

Luke remained still, eyes closed. But he wasn’t asleep anymore.

She… covered me?

He wanted to laugh. Or sigh. Or maybe curse.

I appreciate the sentiment… but you left your sword out there, wide open. If someone came through the door, they’d have picked it up and killed us both…

But he didn’t say anything. He didn’t move. He let the warmth of the cloth and the silence settle in.

His thoughts drifted. And he remembered the Baumanns.

Damn it… this skeleton just hurt me more than that boss ever could.

***

[You have slain a Dead Wanderer: Lvl 6]

Luke moved through the dungeon alongside Princess Charlie. He was still doing most of the work, and the reason was simple: the princess was weak.

Another wanderer came sprinting toward him.

“Aaaargh!”

Luke hurled one of his kukris, the blade spinning before slamming into the creature’s skull. Without pause, he dashed forward. As the kukri zipped back into his hand, he dropped into a slide, ducking beneath the creature’s arm, and slashed at its leg with his second blade.

The monster collapsed.

Luke drove the kukri straight through the base of its skull.

*Your class [Assassin] has reached Level 6! (Class Bonus Points Acquired)*

*The [Warrior] class of Princess Charlie has reached Level 1!*

*[Warrior Class Bonus: +2 Strength, +1 Agility, +1 Endurance, +1 Vitality, +1 Free Point]*

Luke glanced toward the skeleton.

”Looks like you do get EXP for assisting,” he muttered, mildly surprised.

The princess did a little celebratory shake, clearly pleased.

He’d been running a test — trying to confirm whether Charlie could level up just by participating in battles, even if she wasn’t the one landing the final blow. It worked that way for party members under the system, but he wasn’t sure if that applied to undead servants.

Apparently… it did.

He quickly pulled up her system window.

Name: Princess Charlie

Level: 1

Rank: F

Class: [Warrior: Lvl 1]

Race: Skeleton

Title: [Servant of the Dark Lord]

HP: 56/60

MP: 10/10

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Stamina: 47/50

Stats:

Strength: 10

Agility: 5

Endurance: 6

Vitality: 6

Perception: 2

Intelligence: 1

Free Points: 1

The boost from her first class level-up helped a little. But not enough.

Luke had watched her get knocked down by a weak creature just two rooms ago. She wasn’t battle-ready. If she died, he’d be in serious trouble.

I need to make her stronger. Fast.

He tapped on her Free Stat Point and invested it into Vitality. The farther she stayed from hitting zero HP, the better.

Updated Stats (Princess Charlie):

Vitality: 6 -> 7

Free Points: 1 -> 0

HP: 56/60 -> 66/70

Luke still had a few unspent stat points of his own, but kept them in reserve — an emergency stash for when things got unpredictable. For now, just hitting level 6 in his class was enough to feel a real difference. His movements were sharper, his breathing more controlled, and the weight of the kukris in his hands felt lighter.

***

Luke moved cautiously down the dim corridor, with Charlie trailing slightly behind to stay protected. As they turned a corner, four skeletons stood ahead. They locked eyes—and charged.

“Aaaargh!”

Luke hurled his kukri, but then saw it: a sudden orange flash screamed toward them. His eyes widened.

“Fireball!”

He dove to the side, shoving Charlie out of the way—

BAM!

A fiery explosion lit up the hallway.

Luke scrambled to his feet, coughing from the smoke. Then he saw it: a skeleton in the back, wearing a tattered robe and wielding a crooked staff. A mage.

“Shit,” he muttered, gripping his kukris.

Two of the skeletons rushed him with heavy axes.

“Aaaargh!”

Luke sidestepped, barely avoiding a cleaving blow—

Thwick!

An arrow grazed his arm. His eyes snapped toward the source: another skeleton with a bow, already nocking a second arrow. And behind them, the mage lifted its staff again, flames gathering at the tip.

Luke tried to retreat, but the axe-wielders boxed him in. Then Charlie appeared from behind, intercepting one of the skeletons and locking blades.

The fireball was coming.

Luke leapt to the side—

FOOM!

The flames scorched the wall behind him, charring a mounted frame into ashes.

Another arrow flew. This time, it struck.

“Dammit!” he hissed, yanking it out through gritted teeth.

What do I do?

This was his first time facing a true mage in combat. He glanced toward Charlie—she was holding her ground but struggling.

He made a choice.

I take out the mage.

Luke bolted forward.

“Aaaargh!” the mage roared, casting again. Another fireball. The archer aimed.

Luke deflected the arrow mid-run with his kukri, then hurled it at the mage. The undead spellcaster ducked into a side room, only its staff poking out.

BOOM!

Another blast erupted from the tip.

Luke panicked. He grabbed two throwing knives from his holster, flung them, and split each one mid-air. Four blades collided with the fireball—

KA-BOOM!

The hallway shook with heat and pressure.

Luke hit the ground hard but rolled back to his feet.

He’d survived.

Without wasting time, he rushed the archer with one quick strike.

[You have slain a Cursed Skeleton: Lvl 6]

The mage stepped back out, staff glowing again.

Luke turned to check on Charlie—she was still locked in combat with the axe duo.

“Shit!”

The mage launched another fireball, but it wasn’t aimed at him—it was flying toward Charlie.

“No!”

Luke threw a knife, striking the fireball mid-flight—

BOOM!

The explosion tore through the corridor again, but missed her. Smoke filled the hallway.

He sprinted toward the axe skeletons, hurling both kukris. They hit. The undead fell apart—but began reconstructing immediately.

One of them lunged, leaping through the air. The other spun violently, activating some kind of combat skill.

Luke clashed with both at once, blocking their blows with his blades, but he felt pressure building behind him. Another fireball. He spun, grabbed one skeleton by the ribs, and hurled it toward the blast—

BOOM!

The fireball detonated against its body, disintegrating it completely.

The second skeleton kicked Luke back and raised its axe—

Charlie intercepted.

Her blade met the monster’s in a loud CLANG, and she pushed forward, striking with all her might.

“Aaaargh!”

The mage began casting again, fire swirling at the tip of its staff. Luke charged, kukri already spinning in his hand.

The mage noticed him—and darted back into the side room again.

[Princess Charlie has slain a Cursed Skeleton: Lvl 6]

He read the notification mid-sprint.

The moment the skeleton mage poked its staff out of the room, Luke’s kukri nailed it. The staff clattered to the floor, still clutched by the now-detached arm.

Luke didn’t slow down. He leapt onto the skeleton, crashing it backward. The severed arm twitched, trying to return to its master—but Luke didn’t give it the chance. He drove the kukri into its skull.

[You have slain a Cursed Skeleton: Lvl 7]

There was no time to celebrate.

His eyes adjusted to the room ahead—cavernous walls, dim lighting. And then he saw them. Massive, pale-white balls stuck to the ceiling and floor.

Not cloth.

Webs.

His voice cracked. “Shit—spiders.”

From above, a black shape dropped. Eight legs. A body the size of a large dog.

It screeched and launched a glob of web at him—

Whack!

Luke was knocked back, crashing onto the ground. He struggled—the web was sticky, tight, clinging to his limbs.

The spider’s steps clicked against the stone as it crawled toward him. He slashed the web with his kukri, freeing one arm just in time.

The spider lunged.

“GRRR!”

Its mandibles snapped, barely missing his throat. Luke tried stabbing up, but its legs slammed into him, pinning him down. More silk wrapped around his legs and arms.

He panicked.

Assassin’s Dash

A burst of speed shot him forward. He tumbled, rolled free, gasping—then turned. The spider clung to the wall now, launching globs of web like a turret.

Luke threw six knives at once, but it dodged all of them. It scaled the ceiling, moving erratically like a predator on caffeine. He felt trapped, nowhere to go. What if there were more?

“GRRR!”

It landed in front of him again, firing another sticky ball. He dodged—barely. Another. And another. It was relentless.

Then—

WHACK! The spider shrieked.

Princess Charlie had arrived. Her blade had landed a clean blow.

The spider turned, enraged, and struck her hard. She hit the wall with a loud crash.

Luke hurled a duplicated kukri—

Slice!

It cut deep into the spider’s thorax. She screamed. He ran in—planning to finish it.

But suddenly, a line of silk shot past him. Before he could react, the spider launched toward him, pulled by its own web like a slingshot—

CRASH!

Luke was slammed backward, rolling across the floor. The spider attached another line to the ceiling and swung around like a maniac trapeze artist, spitting web after web mid-air.

Smack. Smack. Smack. Three sticky globs hit Luke square in the chest, legs, and arm. He hit the ground again, bound tight. Desperate, he slashed wildly.

Charlie charged in, only to be caught mid-run by a silken thread. It yanked her violently, flinging her across the room. Before she could get up, the spider pounced. Its jaws sank into her shoulder, ripping off her sword arm. The limb flew across the floor. Charlie collapsed.

The spider latched onto her again. Its fangs sank into her leg, then tore it clean off.

Luke panicked.

He hurled his kukri while still trying to cut through the sticky web. The blade spun through the air and sliced into the spider’s leg. It stumbled, screeching. The kukri snapped back to his hand and he slashed again, cutting through the rest of the silk.

A strand slapped into the wall near him. He turned. The spider launched itself like a cannonball, tethered by silk. But this time, Luke knew the trick. He rolled sideways and held his kukri out like a blade on a wire—

SLASH!

“AAARGH!” the spider shrieked as it flew past, caught by the steel edge. It slammed into the wall—

And immediately—

THUNK THUNK THUNK THUNK! Four kukris slammed into its legs, pinning it down.

Luke didn’t stop. He unloaded a full volley of throwing knives, and as his twin kukris came spinning back toward him—he caught them mid-run.

The spider tried to scramble up the wall—

But its body collapsed under the damage.

Luke sprinted. He feinted a throw—then pulled the kukri back mid-flight and used Assassin’s Dash.

He became a blur of momentum and fury.

The blade pierced the spider’s head—again and again. He carved across its face, its fangs, its eyes. Blood and ichor sprayed as it thrashed.

He rolled backward, then hurled both kukris at its front legs. They pierced deep. The beast toppled forward, legs buckling.

Luke jumped, drove a blade into its remaining eye, and felt the skull give way.

Silence.

Then—a soft dragging sound.

Charlie.

She was crawling toward him. One leg gone, the other shattered. Her sword clutched in her remaining hand and between her teeth. She was dragging herself, inch by inch, to help.

Luke turned, slicing off the spider’s last twitching limbs. Then stepped aside.

”Finish it,” he said quietly.

Charlie pulled herself close, raised the sword with what little strength she had—

And drove it down.

SCREEEEEEECH!

The spider shrieked once more.

[Princess Charlie has slain a Cunning Spider: Lvl 9]

[Princess Charlie has reached Level 1! Skeleton (Rank F)]

*Your Race Level grants the following stat bonuses: +1 Strength, +1 Agility, +1 Endurance, +1 Vitality, +1 Perception, +1 Intelligence, +1 Free Point*

Light shimmered around her body. Bones reformed. The arm returned. The shattered leg rebuilt itself.

She stood—fully restored.

Luke’s eyes widened in disbelief.

”Her race level healed her…?”

[Princess Charlie has acquired a Race Skill]

Before he could even process what that meant—

Another notification chimed.

*The Room Reward has been made available*

A low rumble echoed behind him.

Luke turned.

A chest had materialized in the corner of the room—massive, old, glowing faintly with dungeon magic.

His heart thudded.

A real treasure chest.

”Looks like we made it,” he said, exhaling.

Princess Charlie raised one hand for a high-five.

Luke smirked. ”Fine. Just this once.”

Clack. Bony palm met calloused hand.

With a breath of anticipation, Luke walked to the chest and opened the lid.

What he saw inside left him speechless.