Chapter 228: Scenario Dungeon (4)
Chapter 228: Scenario Dungeon (4)
The moment we stepped into the dungeon, the very texture of the air against my face changed.
Instead of the scorching desert wind, a cool breeze brushed against my skin. However, the scent carried within it was quite foul.
"Ugh... what is that smell?"
I shrugged at Elisha, who was covering her mouth.
"What else? It’s the smell of chimeras. You heard it in class, didn't you? Chimera-type monsters always reek because they’re constantly cycling through necrosis and regeneration. The regenerative types are even more pungent."
"Oh? But there aren't any monsters nearby. Are you sure it isn't just coming from you?"
"Not nearby? They're right there."
I pressed my index finger against Elisha’s nose as she playfully sniffed at me, then pointed ahead.
A massive V-shaped valley lay before us. The path leading into it was choked with swarming black masses.
Elisha, who had been acting relaxed knowing the dungeon entrance was a safe zone, suddenly went stiff.
"...Are those all chimeras?"
"Yep."
"The ones we have to break through and annihilate?"
"Yeah. Why keep asking things you already know?"
"Because there are so many of them!"
Elisha stomped her feet, frantically patting my shoulder.
"Is this really possible? Maybe we should go back now and prepare more thoroughly..."
"Elisha."
"Yes?"
"You’re an Intermediate Magician now."
"...Ah."
Perhaps it was because she hadn't tested her new boundaries in actual combat yet, but she seemed to be worrying out of habit, still thinking like a Lower Magician.
"I’m telling you from experience, you can handle the ones in sight on your own. The problem is the rest of them stretched out deep inside."
"Is that so? Is that so? I’ve watched from the sidelines, and I don't think a 'normal' Intermediate Magician is quite that strong."
"Hey now. If we're going by that logic, Elisha isn't exactly 'normal' either."
"That’s true!"
Iona giggled, kneading Elisha’s shoulders.
As Elisha’s stiff shoulders relaxed under the touch, Iris flinched for a moment.
Then, she began to squeeze and massage Elisha’s arm with her small hands.
"Master...?"
"Ahem. Is it not a master's duty to ease her disciple's tension? Outsiders, step aside. Shoo, shoo."
"Oh? Oh? Isn't it also a professor's job to encourage her student?"
"She’s been expelled, so she’s not your student anymore!"
"Hmph? By that logic, since you became a slave and all your previous human relationships were nullified, isn't it the same for you? You might call yourselves master and disciple, but officially, you're just strangers."
"Ugh... that... the M-Master allowed it, so it’s fine! Hmph!"
Iris puffed out her cheeks and tried to push Iona away with her slight hips.
I wondered why she was acting up all of a sudden, but it seemed she felt like Iona was stealing Elisha away.
However, if I let them relax any further, Elisha would probably melt into a puddle from the cuteness of her master fussing over her arm. It was time to intervene.
Clap, clap.
"We’re about to move out, so stop playing with Iris, Professor Iona. Iris, get back in position. Look, Lady Helena is already itching for a fight; she’s even drawn her weapon."
"Ah... how embarrassing, Brother."
Helena, who had drawn her mace and was poised to charge at any moment, blushed slightly.
Despite saying she was embarrassed, she didn't put the mace away or break her stance.
Gilbert shook his head with a sigh, looking a bit exhausted by her enthusiasm.
Even so, the fact that his hand never left the hilt of his greatsword proved he was a true member of the Church of Light.
Regardless, once the time for play was over, Iona stepped forward as planned.
"Yes, yes. If Student Yandel says so."
"Master?! What do you mean, 'playing with me'?!"
Iris added a retort but took her place beside Iona and raised her staff.
The dungeon entrance is safe as long as you don't provoke anything, but it’s also far enough from the monsters that standard attacks won't reach.
Therefore, it’s usually impossible to land a preemptive strike. At most, one would cast buffs or detection magic.
But with High Magic, the story changes.
Since they are powerful, many such spells have considerable range and area of effect. It’s only natural, considering they’re practically siege-grade.
For that reason, I decided to leave the opening move to Iris and Iona.
First, we would throw the enemy into chaos with powerful, flashy High Magic, then use that opening to close the distance in one breath.
However, we wouldn't take the main road crawling with chimeras. Instead, we’d use a side path and a secret passage of unknown origin to skip several sections and rendezvous with Clara, who was holding out alone.
After that, we’d join forces and wipe out the swarming monsters.
It sounds simple when put into words, but I couldn't count how much trial and error it took to figure out this strategy...
I chose a method that was slightly less efficient than the "standard" walkthroughs found on strategy sites but far safer.
There was a time limit, but it wasn't so tight that we needed to take unnecessary risks.
Standing at a suitable distance, Iris and Iona extended their staff and arm, respectively. They began to draw up their mana.
Rumble—
A wave of mana surged outward instantly. The concentration was so dense that even the mere aftershocks were visible to the naked eye.
Blue and red mana intertwined in a bizarre display, weaving their respective spells without mixing.
Yet, the chanting that rang out was the opposite. Though they were clearly casting different spells, their voices blended together in an uncanny harmony.
It felt like listening to a choir.
I lost track of time as I focused on their chanting and mana.
The incantations finally reached their end, leaving only the activation words, and the mana shifted into forms dictated by their owners' wills.
Iris, having activated her Shadow of Elements engraved with all five attributes, hovered a massive, incandescent sphere above her.
Iona held a giant blood spear, manifested from the crimson mist of mana leaking from her body.
I recognized Iona’s spell as the one I’d seen before, Tepes. But what about Iris?
Given that it was a spell I didn't know and that Iris was the one who taught me element combination, it was likely some kind of combined magic.
Well, I was about to find out.
The two glanced back at me. When I nodded for them to proceed, Iona spoke first.
"Tepes!"
Swooooosh!
The spear of blood, letting out a fierce roar as it tore through the air, slammed into the dead center of the chimera horde.
Thuck.
One chimera was skewered and collapsed. It thrashed about, trying to pull the spear out, while the others began to look around in confusion at the sudden anomaly.
But it was already too late. It was time for Tepes to release its true form.
Splaaaaash!!
A torrent of blood erupted from within the spear like a burst dam.
However, it wasn't just liquid. It began to devour the area in the form of skewers of various sizes, from daggers to long pikes.
A massive forest of blood thorns bloomed.
—Kieeeeeeeek!!!
—Kyack! Kyaaaaak!!
Even from this distance, the collective shrieks reached our ears.
The chimeras were instantly swallowed by the rising thicket of thorns. By now, they were likely being shredded and turned into fertilizer for Tepes.
Normally, all that power would be concentrated on a single target, but by detonating it like this, it could be used as an area-of-effect spell.
With a single spell, Iona had torn a rift through the black mass of chimeras.
But it wasn't over. Iris was still waiting.
While Iona offered her neck to me to recover from the heavy consumption of using Teleport and Tepes in succession, Iris finally opened her mouth.
"Elemental Burst."
Her voice was low. At that signal, the incandescent sphere she had created shot forward with incredible speed.
Its target was the very center of Iona’s forest of blood thorns.
Defying inertia, the sphere came to a dead stop and then dripped downward as if it were a mere droplet of water.
Plip.
the moment that white flame touched the crimson thorns—
BOOOOOOM!!!
It transformed into a massive storm that swept everything away. A cataclysm accompanied by white flames and blood-red stakes.
"Ah."
I knew the moment I saw it why that spell was called Elemental Burst.
Fire, wind, and... water?
I’ve learned element combination myself, but I couldn't even begin to grasp how she did that.
She didn't clearly separate essence and form; she simply mixed them. Three of them, no less. She even combined attributes that were naturally compatible or diametrically opposed.
No. Is that why it was possible?
Was she using fire as the base, wind to increase power and range, and water for fine control?
Regardless of its complexity, its raw power alone would have been less than Iona’s Tepes.
That’s why she used Iona’s thorns.
Blood magic, after all, uses actual blood, so it leaves behind a distinct physical substance, much like earth magic.
The increase in physical destructive power was impressive enough, but Iona was also controlling her own thicket of thorns.
As she bit into my neck, Iona’s fingers twitched. Every time they did, thorns shot out to skewer chimeras, absorbing their life force to grow even larger.
No matter how specialized they were in regeneration, anyone would die if their life force was drained while being burned by flames that clung to them with eerie persistence.
So this is what happens when two High Magicians combine their strength...
The power was far beyond what I had anticipated. The chanting time was too long to use it repeatedly, but the objective had been more than achieved.
The man-made disaster pushed far past the side path we intended to clear, carving a path deep into the valley.
I stared blankly at the scene for a moment, even after the magic's duration had ended.
Helena was the first to snap out of it, raising her mace high.
"T-This is no time to gawk! Everyone, we must run before the path is blocked again!"
"Well, the path is longer than I expected, so I don't think it'll close immediately, but we can't afford to dawdle."
I gently pulled Iona’s head away and downed a potion.
Then, I scooped up Iris—whose short legs made her a slow runner—onto my back and kicked off the ground.
"Let's go!"
Next was my turn.