The moment he stepped inside, Simon realized that everything he had seen so far was nothing. This was a fish market exclusively for necromancers. The stalls were lined entirely with monster carcasses. Blood dripped from fresh harpoon wounds, and the ground was a sea of crimson. Some creatures were hung upside down, others had their mouths gagged with rope. It was a paradise of gore and cruelty.
There were no merchants hawking their wares. Only people in work clothes, silently going about their tasks. And every customer here was a necromancer. He saw an old woman sweeping monster organs into a bag she had brought, a look of deep satisfaction on her face as she left.
"The undead materials you see in necromancer shops have been processed to be presentable," Benya explained as she moved about energetically. "Here, it's all completely raw. I'll admit this place is polarizing even among necromancers, but you can find hidden treasures. Especially the aquatic undead you need, my boy. They're a 'special' category, so you'd have to pay a fortune for them in a shop. Here, you can get them for a tenth of the price."
Simon looked at her with admiration. "You really are an expert, senior."
"Even so, I'm still just a student. I'm just more interested in this field than most. Ah! Let's go over there."
With every step, the blood on the floor felt sticky. Though these were the remains of monsters that only harmed humanity, it was undeniably unsettling.
"When I become a professional necromancer, will I come to places like this often?"
"I doubt it," Benya said, shaking her head. "Plenty of people love eating meat but want to look away from the slaughterhouse, right? It's similar for necromancers. Most prefer things to be clean. We're only here because we're doing the legwork ourselves." She shrugged. "Still, I think visiting a place like this once in a while is a good lesson for world domination."
"I-I see."
Following her lead, Simon walked around as if he were studying a new culture. When he looked around with a learner's eye, he noticed many things he had missed before.
"Do you know how they classify the undead that come into the market?" Benya asked, acting like a tour guide.
"I'm not sure."
According to her, specimens that could become 'special undead' were immediately covered in preservation magic circles and transported by ship or wagon. Those destined to become 'zombies or ghouls' had to decompose, so they were moved to a dedicated warehouse. For 'skeletons', the flesh was stripped from the bone right here at the market. The remaining byproducts were used for research or sold as catalysts for black magic and artifact materials. While ordinary livestock could be turned into undead, they were weak. It was almost always monsters. Monsters were considered absolute evil, a plague on humanity that had yet to be conquered. This was one reason why local lords encouraged the training of necromancers. The more necromancers there were, the fewer monsters there would be.
'Just as you said, this is quite educational.' Of course, he thought, one needed a broad cultural tolerance to come here. He imagined Lethe and the people of the Holy Federation would foam at the mouth in disgust.
'Clang, clang, clang!'
Just then, he saw a merchant making a sharp sound by crossing two work knives. A crowd of wrinkled, old necromancers was gathered before him.
"It is now 1:00 PM! We will begin the dissection of the Cyclops!"
The merchant plunged a knife into the monster's abdomen and sliced straight down. The belly split open like paper, and hot steam billowed out.
"Ooooh!"
The necromancers watched with the innocent smiles of children opening Christmas presents. They scrambled forward, each taking what they needed. Their hands dripped with blood, but their eyes shone with curiosity as they busily swept the contents into their bags. After weighing their portions and paying, they left, satisfied with their frugal shopping.
"All of that becomes raw material for potions, chimeras, hemomancy supplies, poisons, and so on," Benya explained. "Usually, there's a specific process, but it seems those people prefer to do it themselves."
The history of necromancy was long, but necromancer shops and undead factories were a relatively recent development. There were old-timers who couldn't trust anyone else's work and had to make everything themselves.
Taking in the sights for the first time, Simon looked around restlessly.
"So, shall we start looking in earnest? I told you what you need to look for, my boy, right?"
"Yep."
Poloran. Ulpes. Rhodocetus. Gamban. Among the aquatic monsters, these were the ones that could be turned into skeletons. The two of them walked on, searching their surroundings meticulously.
"Ah, Benya! Look over there!"
A whale-like skeleton over 6 meters long was on display. Its teeth jutted out menacingly, and most strikingly, the long spinal column connecting its head to its fin, reminiscent of a train, maintained a beautiful balance.
"That's a Poloran. A danger level 5 monster."
"If you ran into that in the sea, you'd be finished."
They approached and examined the Poloran. This seemed to be a skeleton-only shop, as most of the items on display were bones. Just then, a man wearing a metal mask, presumably the owner, came and stood before them with a blank expression.
"The Poloran is in good condition today. Degreased, bleached, and dried. The skeletal structure is also excellent."
Benya knelt and meticulously examined the bones. "Hmm. You've really taken good care of it."
"I'm a professional. Of course."
As she slowly ran her fingers down the spine, she paused. "Vertebra number 174 is missing."
The man, who had been expressionless, flinched for the first time.
"It seems you made a mistake when removing the organs. More importantly, number 207 is also missing. Without it, if you connect 206 and 208 to use it as an undead, the movement of the crucial fin will be stiff and rigid." She winked at the man. "You picked the wrong customer."
"You're an expert. I'll give it to you for half price."
"I wouldn't buy it even for thirty percent," she said, waving her hand dismissively. "You can ignore this if you want, but the Poloran's bones and organs are stuck together, making it hard to remove only the organs with a knife. Damage to the bones is inevitable. In that case, dig a deep pit, bury the Poloran, and then use 'Decay' magic. If you let it sit for about two days, the muscle and organ tissues will break down, and you can cleanly retrieve just the bones."
The man looked genuinely surprised as he scanned Benya's appearance. Realizing how young she was, he said, "Kizen."
"That's right."
"As expected of the elites. Thanks for the advice. I'll keep it in mind."
"Of course. Take care."
Benya led Simon away.
When she turned her head, Simon was staring at her with sparkling eyes full of respect.
"Ahaha! What's with that? You're making me uncomfortable."
He felt that Benya was on a completely different level from Andre. He had never felt the gap between a first and second-year so acutely.
"If I study Summoning more, can I become like you, Benya?"
"There's no need to become like me," she said, shaking her head. "The amount of knowledge required for undead creation is so vast that it's nearly impossible to master. I've been around this my whole life, and I do it because I love it, but you don't need to memorize all these trivial details, my boy. You should focus on how to fight and win against enemies with your undead. And..." She grinned and pointed to herself with her thumb. "Leave the annoying stuff to 'us'."
Simon was impressed. This was the kind of connection one absolutely had to make to succeed as a necromancer. He felt fortunate to have met her at school rather than out in the world.
"So, shall we continue conquering the fish market?"
"Yep!"
At the same time, a commotion was breaking out at Ballot Harbor, which was crowded with countless ships.
"Alright, on three!"
"Yes!"
"One, two, three!"
Twenty strong men were mobilized, using magical unloading equipment to get something off a ship. 'Thud!' As the object, laid on a log platform, finally came off the vessel, a crowd swarmed around it.
"Good heavens, what is it?"
"It's a baby Nether Whale."
"A Nether Whale?"
What came down with the log platform was a dead baby whale. Its proper name was Deimos, the only monster that could be used to create the special undead, the 'Nether Whale'. An adult Deimos was a danger level 8 monster, even earning the moniker 'Ruler of the Sea'.
"The ship's damaged. It must have been attacked by other monsters."
"It's a shame it's still a baby."
"Of course! If it were an adult, do you think it would have died?"
A small baby Deimos, 5 meters long. Its size was minuscule compared to an adult, but it was a rare monster, caught perhaps once in a decade. An adult had only been captured by humanity a handful of times.
"Alright, alright, step back. No touching." A man who appeared to be the captain who caught the whale jumped down from the ship and pushed the people back. "We'll be starting the auction at the fish market in two hours, so you can get a proper look then!"
The captain was about to gesture for his crew to move it quickly when a voice interrupted.
"Excuse me." A mysterious man in a robe strode forward. "Are you in charge?" he asked the captain.
"That I am."
"I would like to purchase that item."
The captain frowned. "Didn't you hear me? I said it's going to auction."
"I would like to purchase it right now."
"Well, you're a stubborn one."
"I will pay more than your desired price."
"No, I said—" The captain stopped short. The moment he saw two ominous lights glowing from within the darkness of the robe, a chill ran down his spine. 'Wearing a robe that suspiciously, he's no ordinary person.'
There was no need to cause a scene. The captain held up his fingers. "Ahem, this much." He named a price twice what he had been planning. "Now that you know the price, please step aside..."
"I will give you twice that. And I will pay right now." The man took a box of gold coins from his Subspace and placed it in front of the captain.
'This is insane...! How rich is he?' The captain's hands trembled as he counted the coins. It was four times the amount he had been thinking of—a fortune he could never get even if the auction was a massive success.
"F-Fine! Let's do it! No backing out later!"
The deal was struck. The successful buyer approached the Deimos carcass.
"Even with a large Subspace, that won't fit. How are you going to move it?"
"I will only take the necessary parts. You can have what's left."
The man, a magic circle glowing on his palm, placed his hand on the Deimos's body.
'Hmm, it's hard to find a summon I like.'
Simon and Benya were still wandering the market, but they kept running into problems. The Poloran, Ulpes, Rhodocetus, and Gamban they were looking for—all aquatic monsters that could become skeletons—had bones that were valuable black magic ingredients. To make a skeleton, the bones had to be intact, but in most cases, other necromancers had already bought the important parts. The ones that remained were often poorly prepared, like the one they'd seen earlier.
'It's hard to find one that fits the conditions perfectly.'
Just as he was thinking he should look for another method, a crowd began to gather. Simon and Benya naturally drifted over to see what was happening.
"It's a Deimos!" Benya exclaimed, her eyes wide as she examined the monster carcass on the log platform. "This is incredible! It's my first time seeing one of these at the market!"
"What is it?"
"It's the only creature that can be used to make the highest-grade undead, the 'Nether Whale'! It's a danger level 8 monster, also called the Ruler of the Sea."
"A N-Nether Whale?" Simon blinked, looking at the 5-meter-long dead whale. "It's a bit small for a Nether Whale, isn't it?" He was, of course, thinking of the colossal Nether Whale he had ridden to Kizen.
"That's because it's just a baby. But..." There was a gaping hole near its heart. It seemed another necromancer had already purchased and taken the most valuable organs. "As it is, you won't even be able to make a small Nether Whale."
"Hmm." The other customers, after a cursory glance, moved on. Without its key components, its value had plummeted.
"Alright, the auction will begin in ten minutes," the auctioneer announced, trying to drum up some excitement.
Simon looked at Benya. "Hey."
"What is it?"
"Instead of buying that empty shell of a Deimos to make a Nether Whale..." he began, his expression serious. "How about we make it into a skeleton and use it?"

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