Jiwon reached home just before sunset.
The apartment felt the same as always—small, warm, ordinary. The sound of the TV came from the living room, and the smell of dinner drifted from the kitchen.
"You're back early," his mother said without turning around. "How was the test?"
Jiwon paused at the doorway. "I awakened."
She turned immediately, surprise flashing across her face. "You did?"
Minjun appeared from his room almost instantly. "Really?! Hyung, what class?!"
Jiwon took off his shoes slowly. His mind raced. Necromancer wasn't a class people accepted easily. Not in this city. Not anywhere.
"It's… not a combat class," he said carefully.
Minjun's shoulders dropped a little. "Oh."
His mother studied Jiwon's face. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," Jiwon replied. "I'll explain later."
She nodded, choosing not to press further. That was how she was—she trusted him.
Dinner passed quietly. Minjun talked about school, about a teacher he didn't like. Jiwon listened, answered when needed, but his thoughts were elsewhere.
*Power grows through death.*
The words lingered in his mind.
That night, after everyone had gone to sleep, Jiwon stood alone in his room. The lights were off. Moonlight spilled through the window, casting pale shadows on the floor.
He swallowed.
"If this is real…" he whispered, "then show me."
Nothing happened.
For a moment, he felt foolish.
Then the air shifted.
It was subtle, like a change in pressure. The temperature dropped slightly. Jiwon's breath fogged in front of him.
A faint sensation rose from the floor—cold, heavy, unfamiliar.
Bones.
They didn't burst out dramatically. They didn't glow.
They simply moved.
A hand formed first, pale and cracked. Then an arm. Rib bones pulled together with soft clicking sounds. A skull rose last, empty eye sockets facing him.
A skeleton stood in front of Jiwon.
Silent. Motionless.
Waiting.
Jiwon's heart pounded so loudly he was sure it would wake the entire apartment.
"…So it's true," he whispered.
The skeleton didn't move.
Jiwon took a cautious step closer. "Can you… hear me?"
The skeleton tilted its head slightly.
That was all.
But it was enough.
A quiet message appeared in his vision.
[Basic Skeleton has answered your call.]
Jiwon exhaled slowly. "Don't move," he said instinctively.
The skeleton stayed still.
He swallowed hard. Fear and excitement tangled in his chest.
"Sit."
The skeleton bent its knees and lowered itself awkwardly to the floor.
Jiwon covered his mouth, stifling a shaky laugh. "You actually listen…"
He looked at the skeleton again, more carefully this time. It wasn't threatening. It wasn't alive. It was… neutral. Empty.
And yet, it stood there because of him.
Another thought struck him suddenly.
"If Mom or Minjun see this…"
His expression hardened.
"No one can know," he muttered. "Not yet."
He dismissed it without fully understanding how—just a quiet thought, a push of will. The skeleton crumbled into loose bones and faded into shadow, leaving the room empty once more.
Jiwon sat down heavily on his bed.
His hands were shaking.
*Dad died in a gate.*
*Minjun is still young.*
*Mom worries enough already.*
He looked at his clenched fist.
"This power…" he whispered, "I'll use it carefully."
Outside, the city slept peacefully.
But in a small apartment room, a necromancer had taken his first step.
And death had answered.