Chapter 132
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 132
The Dwarf Mechanical Guardians had arrived.
I immediately began barking orders to the party.
“Ciel, take the vanguard. But don't push more than ten paces ahead. They’ll try to lure you into a trap.”
“Understood!”
“Beatrice, cast Haste on Ciel. Yuliana, Bell, provide covering fire from the rear.”
“On it!”
Empowered by body-enhancement magic, Ciel charged forward to engage the Dwarf Mechanical Guardians.
I tore a Haste Scroll for myself and, trusting in the defensive enchantments of my magic suit, joined Ciel on the front line.
Skree—!
A mechanical spider scurried along the wall, its eight grotesque legs moving in a frantic blur as it lunged. I tightened my grip, recalling the creature's specs.
Its weak point is the mana core near the rear.
However, that core wasn't a modern piece of tech; it was ancient. The remote I’d used to disable Meyer’s magic armor wouldn’t work on this thing, which meant I had to destroy it the old-fashioned way.
Clang!
I caught the creature’s serrated, gear-like mandibles on my Aegis Shield, then drove a heavy fist straight into its underbelly.
Crunch!
A sharp sting shot through my hand as the mechanical spider’s abdomen caved in. Simultaneously, the absorption effect of my mana gauntlets kicked in, siphoning the creature’s energy.
Shwaaa—!
Even while stunned by the gauntlet’s effect, the spider managed to fire a razor-sharp thread from its rear in a desperate counterattack.
Kririk!
It was a final, spiteful strike—like a bee stinging right before it dies.
But...
“Fire Bolt.”
Before the mana I’d siphoned through Millia’s gauntlets could even settle in my body, I channeled it into a point-blank spell aimed directly at the creature’s ruptured belly.
Booooom!
The mechanical spider exploded from the inside out, scattering shrapnel in every direction. The sharp thread it had spat out was incinerated in the blast, rendered useless. Its external plating boasted high magic resistance, but it was a different story when the fire started from the inside.
“Hoo.”
Having neutralized the threat, I dusted off my hands and glanced to my side. In the time it had taken me to defeat one, Ciel had already left three or four mechanical spiders shattered in her wake.
“……”
In that brief moment I’d looked away, one mechanical spider managed to slip past me, rushing toward the mages in the rear.
Just then—
“Don’t worry about the back!”
CRACK!
Melga swung his massive hammer, splitting the creature’s head clean in two.
Fizzle—
With a crackle of electricity, the mechanical spider collapsed into a heap of junk. I shrugged as I looked at the mangled remains.
Melga’s Strength stat is well over 50.
Those solid muscles weren’t just for show. Combine that with the unique racial bonus dwarves received with blunt weapons, and it was no surprise the machine had been reduced to scrap.
After clearing the swarm, we took a brief breather. Even while resting, Melga was busy analyzing the parts he’d scavenged.
“Hoh, these gears on the mandibles move organically and have mana-dismantling properties. Is this designed to neutralize an opponent’s magic shield?”
“Good catch. This aether dungeon is a particularly harsh environment for mages.”
The recent skirmish was proof enough. Even Beatrice, a 5th-Tier mage with an affinity for all five elements, had nearly fallen into a trap during a moment of carelessness.
And it wasn’t just the traps. The mechanical guardians protecting the dungeon were specialized mage-killers. From the mechanical spiders that chewed through shields to the Steel Armadillos with their massive magic resistance and the bats that generated magic-sealing barriers—every single one was a headache.
It was likely a setup designed with the knowledge that an Elemental Mage was required to defeat the Dungeon Keeper. This was also why I was bothering to fight on the front lines alongside Ciel. Right now, physical attacks were simply more efficient.
“Let’s move out.”
After our short rest, we pressed forward, smoothly dispatching any Dwarf Mechanical Guardians that dared block our path. After the spiders came the Steel Armadillos, encased in hardened plating.
Rumble—
They were shaped like armadillos, but they looked more like miniature tanks forged from solid steel. I swallowed hard, eyeing the legion of armadillos filling the corridor.
Those things are monsters with high physical defense and magic resistance.
But even they had a weakness.
Gulp.
I downed a Fierabras' Blessing and crushed a Strength Enhancement Stone.
Fshhh—
As power surged through my veins, system notifications flared in my vision.
[Strength increases by 5 for 300 seconds.]
[The special effect of Trait: Alchemy is activated.]
[Ignores a portion of the enemy's defense bonuses from traits, skills, and items.]
The [Defense Penetration] effect.
“Yuliana, Beatrice, buff me.”
Woooong—
A brilliant magical light enveloped me. I felt an explosive surge of power. Bolstered by potent buffs and potions, I kicked off the ground and lunged forward. I struck the lead Steel Armadillo with everything I had.
CRACK!
Kwa-gak!
The armadillo’s shell split under the impact. Feeling the vibration in my knuckles, I grinned.
It’s working!
My [Defense Penetration] had shattered the shell of a creature that boasted near-impenetrable defense. More importantly, this opened a window for the others. In a game, defense penetration is just a numerical calculation. In reality, it meant I had created a physical opening.
“Bell!”
“On it! Flame Blaster!”
BOOM!
Bell poured her fire magic directly into the cracks I’d made in the shell.
Pshhhh—
Once Bell’s Extreme Flame reached the internal components, the Steel Armadillo began spewing black smoke and ground to a halt. No matter how high its magic resistance was, it couldn't survive its guts being turned into a furnace.
“Alright, prepare the next spell!”
Confirming the strategy worked, I moved down the line, punching every armadillo in the corridor to compromise their armor.
Rumble—
The mechanical armadillos fought back, attempting to ram us with their massive weight. But thanks to the defensive power of Altair’s suit and my Aegis Shield, I waded through them unharmed. Besides, these things had put all their points into defense; their attacks weren't that threatening to begin with.
The pattern held. When physical force was needed, Ciel and I took the lead. Chloe and Melga handled the traps and mechanical locks. Bell and Yuliana provided fire support exactly where I directed it.
“Keep advancing!”
As we pushed through the swarms and delved deeper, the foes grew more formidable. We encountered Steel Rhinoceroses plated with sharp alloys and mechanical anacondas that struck with terrifying speed.
Of course, even they were no match for our perfectly balanced party.
“Whew.”
After the last wave, the team wiped the sweat from their brows. I personally handed out rations, offering a word of encouragement.
“Everyone’s doing great. We might actually clear this place today.”
Our progress was staggering. The teamwork was better than I’d anticipated, and everyone was fighting with such intensity that we were tearing through the dungeon at record speed. At this rate, we really would reach the Dungeon Keeper before the sun went down.
While we rested in a safe room, Yuliana looked at me curiously.
“By the way... were you always that fast?”
Having watched me smash through mechanical guardians on the front line, she was finally questioning my physical specs. I kept my voice calm.
“I’ve been putting in the work.”
“Training, huh? Come to think of it, you were skin and bones at the start of the semester, but you’ve put on some decent muscle now.”
She poked my bicep with her finger. I didn't even bother to flex.
“It’s not that hard.”
“That’s just how muscles work.”
Feeling a prickle on the back of my neck, I glanced over to find Ciel staring at me, her expression sour.
“……”
I did my best to ignore her piercing gaze until Beatrice finally spoke up.
“I heard you defeated Meyer in the competitive match, Roen.”
“Yes, he was a tough opponent.”
“I don’t know what trick you used, but you managed to disable his magic armor, didn’t you?”
It seemed the details of the match had reached the Princess's ears. I had nothing to hide.
“I used a method to block the signal of his mana core. Once his armor became a lump of scrap metal, he was easy to handle.”
“I heard you dodged his attacks with movements nearly on par with a knight even before that. Seeing you today, I can see why.”
“It was mostly items and potions. My natural strength is nowhere near that level.”
“In any case, it means you can perform at that level when it counts. Yuliana, you should be careful too, shouldn't you? It would be dangerous to face Roen in a match.”
Yuliana chuckled. “Oh, please, Your Highness. I won’t lose to Roen.”
“Meyer probably thought the same thing. I advise you not to be careless.”
Since Beatrice was warning Yuliana about me, I decided to turn the question on her.
“And you, Beatrice? Do you think you can beat me?”
Beatrice didn't hesitate. “Of course. I don’t lose.”
“…Right.”
She’d just told Yuliana not to be careless, yet she was radiating absolute confidence in her own victory. It was good to have pride, but that was a quick turnaround.
Regardless, after our idle chatter, we resumed the crawl. Before long, we reached the final threshold. Looking at the massive, firmly shut doors of the boss room, I addressed the party.
“Is everyone ready?”
“Yeah!”
The team’s faces brightened at the prospect of the end. No matter how smoothly things had gone, a dungeon was still a high-stress environment. They were likely exhausted from being on constant alert for traps and monsters.
“Good. Let’s go in.”
Creeeak—
I pushed with all my strength, and the massive doors groaned open. A single ray of light pierced the darkness of the boss room, casting our long shadows across the floor.
“……”
The room was deathly silent. Everyone tensed.
Suddenly—
Flash!
Five eyes blinked open in the darkness, glowing with intense light. The single eyes of the Dungeon Keepers shone with the symbolic colors of the five elements.
Rumble…
The massive, statue-like Dungeon Keepers slowly rose from their pedestals. I swallowed hard as I looked up at the steel knights towering in the dark.
Dungeon Keepers forged from Dwarven Anti-Magic Alloy.
These things possessed the absurd ability to reduce all damage by 99 percent unless the attack was of a superior element. They also had an auto-repair system that allowed them to recover almost instantly, meaning the trick of cracking their shells wouldn't work here.
I turned to Beatrice.
“Beatrice, I’m counting on you.”
“Hoo. Very well.”
Beatrice had been conserving her mana for this very moment. She let out a slow breath and drew her staff from her subspace pouch. At the tip of an elegantly crafted branch from the World Tree sat a massive red jewel.
Beatrice’s signature weapon: the [Eye of the Red Dragon].
It was a [Legendary] grade artifact, a masterpiece of Imperial Magic Engineering with an immeasurable price tag. Its unique ability increased the final damage of all magic by 50 percent when wielded by a direct descendant of the Cassandra bloodline.
It was a truly broken ability.
Thump.
Beatrice lightly tapped the base of her staff against the floor. Her eyes, sharp as a hawk’s, gleamed with cold intensity.
“Leave it to me.”