Chapter 110
Chapter 110
Chapter 110
Cult Apophis (5)
RIP! RIP!
The Apophis robe he was wearing tore as the Archbishop's body began to rapidly swell.
Rudian continued speaking while admiring the Archbishop's transformation.
"Gray, do you know what fanatics can't stand the most?"
"I don't think now is the time for small talk while watching that spectacle."
"They can endure insults to themselves, but they absolutely cannot tolerate insults to the god they serve."
The Archbishop's body was transforming beyond human form into that of a giant serpent.
A typical form shown by Apophis's apostles when receiving their god's power.
It couldn't be called a complete snake, but a massive snake beastman over ten meters tall revealed itself, blocking the entrance.
Blocking the light and casting a deep shadow, Gray's shoulders trembled slightly at the serpent's silhouette.
"The intimidation is no joke."
But what was truly threatening wasn't size alone.
"The fire can't purify the poison—it's actually being consumed by it."
The Inferno flames that had absorbed the poison were gradually turning purple.
"Fire containing poison—how is that even possible?"
"It makes sense. Divine power easily ignores the laws of the middle realm."
The Archbishop, having completed its transformation, roared toward them.
"Blasphemers who dare defile the god's name! I will surely take you before the god to cleanse your sins!"
As the situation clearly headed toward crisis, Elvin pouted toward Rudian.
"From what that bastard was saying earlier, it seemed like we could have avoided fighting... But since you provoked it, I assume you have a plan?"
"Of course."
Rudian casually sat on some nearby terrain and said to the party:
"Now, the three of you can handle that Archbishop."
"...What about you?"
The party's bewildered gazes fixed on Rudian.
Rudian gestured with his chin toward the two bishops glaring menacingly at them from near the Archbishop.
"I need to keep those two in check. And protect the survivors."
"...So you're saying you won't do anything."
Rudian ignored that comment and continued.
"That bastard's level is... Similar to the Baphomet we encountered in the previous catacombs. Just a bit more troublesome because of the poison."
Then Rudian pointed to Elvin's sword.
"If I may give one piece of advice, you'd better actively utilize that blade."
"This one?"
"I conceded it for fighting demons, but you haven't properly used it until now, have you?"
"......"
The sword Elvin held was loot obtained from annihilating Baphomet's head.
Though it looked quite crude and dull, as if carelessly made, it was actually a sword forged from materials that didn't exist in this world—a masterpiece of the highest quality, ranking between Epic and Legendary grade.
"Fine. If you say it's possible, then it must be."
Elvin smiled wryly and infused magic into his sword.
WHIRRING!
Immediately, the sword's size began to grow rapidly, becoming more than twice Elvin's height.
'It's light.'
Though it looked like it would weigh tons, the actual feeling was no different from before.
Yet Elvin had an intuition that it could generate physical force matching the blade's size.
"Speed is vital, but charging head-on won't work."
"Then Gray and I will have to create an opening."
"We need to cut that snake's neck before this place collapses. Damn, everyone above will notice."
"Even if we drag this out, we won't be safe because of this terrible poison. You two, please provide support."
The surroundings that had been engulfed in flames were now consumed by bluish poison mist, melting the walls.
If Adi hadn't strengthened Gray's survival spells, the party would already be writhing from poisoning.
KIYAAAK!
Unable to tolerate their chatter any longer, the Archbishop's massive snake head began charging toward them.
"Scatter!"
Combat began as Elvin kicked off from his position.
"Well then..."
No matter how strong the Archbishop was, they could somehow manage with three against one.
Rudian moved away from the battle toward the bishops blocking the entrance.
But perhaps misinterpreting this action, the bishops began emanating their aura in anger.
"Are you planning to abandon your comrades and flee?"
"That's exactly what heretics would do!"
"It feels strange hearing that from you guys."
Well, even cult members might have comradeship, so he let it slide.
Rudian stood before the bishops and brought up his business.
"I have something to ask."
"We have nothing to tell the likes of you!"
The bishops radiated killing intent and put up an iron wall, but Rudian ignored their words and continued.
"You guys seem to be in a tight spot lately, right?"
FLINCH!
The bishops' bodies immediately stiffened.
Though they wore hoods that hid their expressions, they weren't skilled enough in politics or rhetoric to prevent their bodies from reacting.
"What nonsense are you spouting?"
"No, watching you guys restrain the Archbishop, it seemed less about not causing trouble underground and more about conserving power."
Even now was the same.
Despite openly insulting the god they served, the two bishops only exuded killing intent without showing signs of easily attacking Rudian.
Normally, they should have charged like madmen.
"You can't afford to waste power carelessly, right?"
"......"
"You guys are tasked with restraining that fanatic from losing his temper and causing chaos, aren't you?"
The bishops had no answer.
But Rudian had seen the bishops infusing strange power through their hands when calming the Archbishop.
Though all the Archbishop's composure had cracked at Gray's single comment, the bishops' role felt more like assisting the Archbishop rather than fighting.
Eventually, the bishops acknowledged Rudian's speculation.
"So what are you getting at?"
"Are you saying we should fight, or not?"
Rudian raised one finger and said:
"What I want is information."
"...Information?"
"If you tell me information about the organization you're opposing, I'll quietly withdraw from this place."
The bishops' expressions turned incredulous at those words.
"Do you think we'd tell you that?"
"Why is it impossible? It's not information about your cult, but about enemies opposing you."
For a moment, the emotion 'That's actually true?' passed through the bishops' eyes.
"We might even be able to deal with them for you."
"Ridiculous! Do you think the likes of you could handle those Magician bastards?"
"Ah, they were Magicians?"
At the unexpected correct answer, the bishop who had spat out his anger hurriedly covered his mouth.
But such naive reactions only added to Rudian's certainty.
"I think I roughly know what kind of bastards they are. Indeed, among the underground Magician forces, there aren't many who could mess with you guys."
"How dare you mock us!"
The two bishops spat out their anger and emitted poison.
But Rudian calmly drew Diablo.
-Hehe, I can't miss the chance to cut off that viper's limbs.
'You don't get along well with them?'
-Why do you think evil gods are called evil gods? Evil gods are beings so greedy that even Demon Kings get fed up with them.
From the nuance, it seemed like Diablo had been burned by them before...
Anyway, if Diablo was saying such things, Rudian could guess Apophis's status.
'Then shall I roughly wrap things up here and go spy on those bastards' headquarters?'
Gray might not like it, but if they allied with those 'Magicians,' they could easily deal with something like Apophis's cult.
BOOM! THUD!
Nearby, the Archbishop and Elvin's group were rampaging.
Though massive energy spheres appeared near the Archbishop and bombarded the surroundings, he couldn't keep up with Elvin and Luciella's mobility.
Since the power the Archbishop shot out was 'acid-type' that melted objects rather than explosions, the surroundings hadn't collapsed yet and were holding up.
'They're doing well.'
Though neither side had landed effective hits yet, if they continued, they would eventually grasp some strategy for dealing with giant opponents.
Ideally, Rudian would have liked to develop their adaptability in more extreme environments, but if the bishops also went wild here, this place would definitely collapse.
"Can't be helped."
Rudian took out an artifact he had been carefully keeping in his pocket.
A golden hourglass.
At the gentle yet intense aura emanating from the Legendary grade artifact, all eyes immediately turned toward it, even amid the ongoing battle.
Especially Elvin's expression was filled with deep distrust.
"W-wait! Why do you have that?"
Rudian tilted his head innocently and answered.
"Because I borrowed it."
"That's not something you can just borrow...!"
"They lent it to me just fine. Now let's fight in earnest."
"Maria, this bastard! No matter what, a family treasure...!"
"The culprit is Elder Matheus, so if you want to complain, complain to him."
"Faaather!"
Elvin's words didn't continue to the end.
Light flowed from the Sands of Time, swallowing the sound.
"Wh-what is this?"
The Archbishop and bishops looked around bewildered at the suddenly changed scenery.
Conversely, the rest of the party, familiar with this scene, calmly drew their weapons and surrounded them.
For some reason, Elvin, who looked tired, gritted his teeth and muttered quietly.
"I'm going to have a serious talk when we get back. When I asked to borrow it, you just snorted at me."
"Don't get beaten up while complaining."
"Damn, I'm sad because that's probably what'll happen."
"Stop chatting and focus on the enemy in front of you!"
Luciella showed slight irritation toward them.
At her complaint, the two men shrugged their shoulders and turned their heads back to the front.
"Such tricks in front of me! How far will you deceive us before you're satisfied!"
WHIRRING!
The snake's mouth gaped wide as a purple sphere began forming within.
It was compressed power incomparable to the previous energy storm.
Recognizing the sphere's identity, Rudian shouted to his party.
"It's a breath attack! Dodge!"
WHOOSH!
The Archbishop's breath, made of poison, swept over where the party had been.
Unlike typical dragon breath, there was no explosion sound—it smoothly swept the ground, but the result was even more horrific.
"Insane..."
Where the breath had passed, an incredibly deep pit like a moat had been carved.
Gray, who had barely avoided the breath's aftermath, looked at the pit with poison mist rising from it while rubbing his goose-bumped arms.
"The earth melted—if we had taken that underground just now...!"
It would have been total annihilation.
Moreover, that wasn't the end, as a second sphere was forming in the snake's maw!
"Bro! This is really dangerous! My shield can't block that!"
There was a limit to dodging.
They had to somehow defend once and aim for a counterattack, but seeing that the power gathered in the sphere showed no signs of weakening, a third breath seemed entirely possible.
Instead of answering, Rudian shouted to Elvin again.
"Senior, what are you doing? You need to fulfill the tank's role!"
"Y-you want me to block that alone?"
"That sword is a weapon, but it's also not a weapon. Don't just use it by simply making it bigger and smaller!"
'A weapon but not a weapon?'
At Rudian's cryptic words, Elvin frowned briefly.
But having handled the weapon multiple times and learned its usage, Elvin immediately understood what that meant.
However, understanding and practice were different matters.
"Damn! If I die, it's entirely your responsibility!"
Elvin returned the sword, which had grown over 3 meters, back to its original size.
Then, deeply wishing in his heart, he poured out not only magic but all his psychic powers as well.
'It definitely responded more to psychic power than magic back then.'
When he had tried to break through Karen's rampaging magic in the past.
Drawing on that experience, Elvin envisioned a form that could block that breath.
WHOOSH!
The blade then split into what seemed like hundreds or thousands of large and small plates, clinging to Elvin's body.
RUSTLE!
Those plates transformed into breastplates, gauntlets, greaves, and other pieces, encasing his entire body like armor.
'...Cool.'
He looked like a superhero from a movie.
With a cape billowing and holding a massive greatsword, a Dark Knight from had revealed itself.
'As expected...!'
Rudian clenched his fist slightly as his prediction proved correct.
He had been a bit anxious about what would happen if his guess was wrong and Elvin died, but indeed, the pitch-black sword that the head had possessed was the symbol of the Dark Knight representing the Demon King's military might.
WHOOSH!
"Damn it!"
Without time to realize he had transformed, Elvin swung his sword toward the poison breath that had reached right before his eyes.
"Wh-what!"
Not only the Archbishop but also the bishops who had been lending their strength were greatly flustered to see Elvin approach while cutting through the breath.
Though there had been those who dodged or blocked until now, this was the first case of someone meeting force with force so directly.
"Aaaaah!"
Elvin screamed at the massive pressure rushing from ahead.
His hands gripping the sword hilt trembled violently.
He realized that if he loosened his tension even slightly, he would be sent flying miserably.
And that the moment that happened, he would die without even leaving a corpse behind.
"Rudian, you bastaaaard!"
Cursing the perpetrator who had assigned him such arduous work, Elvin gained strength.
Fortunately, the feared poison was blocked by the aura of death emanating from the underworld equipment and couldn't invade his body.
Like a salmon swimming upstream, Elvin ignored the breath and approached its source.
Then he slashed its source with all his might.
SLASH!
"Kyaaaah!"
"A-Archbishop!"
The bishops screamed.
At Elvin's strike, the Archbishop's snake-headed form was split vertically in two, with brain matter scattering through the air.
"Gak! Gak!"
Even with its head split in two, the Archbishop's vitality was tenacious.
Rudian shouted toward Gray, who had been preparing a spell since Elvin's charge.
"Now!"
"Don't blame me if that old man gets caught up in it!"
A supreme fire magic surpassing even the Inferno that had once been shot at Maria was manifested in Gray's hands.
"Hellfire!"
Unlike the Inferno that had been consumed by poison, Hellfire steadily eliminated the poison and struck the Archbishop's massive head.
BOOM!
Thus, the flames of destruction that Gray launched swallowed the Archbishop, the bishops, and even Elvin all together, creating a massive explosion.