Chapter 108: High-Tier Mage
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 108: High-Tier Mage
A garden scorched black by flames.
In the Garden Section, once lush with vegetation, nothing remained but gray ash and blackened charcoal.
With every step, the remnants of the fire billowed up from the ground, choking the air. As we ventured deeper, the scenery grew even more gruesome.
They’re all dead.
I saw heretics burned to a crisp, their bodies turned to soot. There were also trolls that had become writhing lumps of flesh, the result of repeating the cycle of burning and regenerating until they were nothing more than raw meat.
It was clear now why the dungeon trolls feared a fire in the Garden Section so intensely.
It was truly horrific—a miniature hell unfolding before our eyes.
"Are you kidding me?!"
As I was busy stashing the charred corpses of the heretics into my inventory, Raphael let out a scream.
Rocks.
Massive rocks were hurtling toward us.
K-Boom—!!!
Rocks the size of cars plummeted from the sky, striking the ground in every direction and sending out violent shockwaves.
They had to be stones thrown by the giant slumbering at the far end of the Garden Section.
Blocking them was out of the question; we had to dodge. But they were too fast. It was already too late to move.
Damn it.
A rock was flying straight at me. My feet felt like they were glued to the ground.
I could already see my own death playing out in my mind.
The Teleportation Scroll...
Should I pull out a scroll and tear it?
No, I hadn't expected such an impossible barrage of mass to come flying the moment we entered. I knew his detection range was wide, but this? He was monitoring the entire section from end to end?
What the hell is that thing?
"Sion!!!"
Just before I could tear the scroll, Rosier grabbed me and pulled with all her might.
I felt the strange illusion of time slowing down. My body was lifted and flung through the air. I was being dragged in the direction Rosier was pulling.
Rosier had thrown me clear.
However, she was still standing right at the rock's point of impact.
No.
At this rate, Rosier would be crushed.
To save me, Rosier had intended to sacrifice herself. I could have survived if I’d just torn the scroll!
This wasn't right. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. Fuck, not like this.
No. No. No...!!!
It was a simple fact: if a body is pulverized, resurrection is impossible. If the damage to the corpse is too severe, the Resurrection Spell cannot be used.
The rock hurtled toward Rosier.
"Reverse Lightning."
Cr-crack!
In a flash of lightning, the rock flying toward Rosier exploded in mid-air, shattering into pieces.
Charred stone fragments scattered in every direction, and Rosier survived.
"The enemy's perception range is wider than expected!"
Helena, who had detonated the incoming rock, shouted to the group.
Electricity flickered at her fingertips. Helena’s magic had saved Rosier.
"The giant's eyes are sharper than we thought! More rocks are coming! We have to run!"
The Saintess screamed.
The giant had detected us the moment we entered the Garden Section and immediately launched a long-range bombardment to keep us from approaching.
"Another one's coming!"
Raphael yelled.
A rock was flying in. No, multiple rocks.
A second bombardment.
Boom—!!!
"His aim is poor! Just dodge as best as you can and keep running!"
Rocks rained down all around us, shaking the earth. The heavy impacts sent ash and dust billowing into the air, blurring our vision.
"Paramel!!!"
"Yes! Yes, sir!!!"
At the Saintess's shout, Paramel activated his prepared Touch Sword Technique.
The Blessing of Purification was etched onto our bodies, and the dust swirling in the air naturally veered away from us. If we inhaled that dust, we’d suffocate.
"Don't light any fires! It'll cause an explosion!"
"Holy Light!"
We couldn't use torches because of the dust and charcoal powder floating in the air. One spark and the whole place would go up; I had no desire to die in a dust explosion.
Ultimately, the Inquisitors illuminated the surroundings with holy light.
In that light, we discovered a pack of trolls already lurking nearby.
"Shit!"
A crazed pack of trolls charged at us. Their eyes were wrong. They weren't in a normal state, looking as if they’d all been drugged.
Furthermore, they were intentionally trying to block the path between us and the giant. They were moving under someone's orders. It was undoubtedly the brainwashing work of those Yeti bastards who had conspired with the heretics.
Damn it.
Rocks were flying from all directions, and trolls—already turned into familiars by the Yetis—were blocking our path.
In the midst of this spiraling disaster, Sasaro activated his Ability.
Kiiiiiiiiing—!!!
The sword he drew let out a shriek as it tore through the trolls blocking our way.
"I can't keep this up for long! I'm clearing a path! Run!!!"
Sasaro charged forward, weaving through the chaos.
Cracks began to form on his blade. I didn't know the specifics of his Ability, but it seemed to be a type that induced high-frequency vibrations in the sword, turning it into an Ultrasonic Blade.
Slash!!!
Before the trolls could surround us, Sasaro carved a path through them. Everything in front of him was shredded.
"Sasaro!!!!"
All sorts of things were being driven into Sasaro's body.
Because he was at the very front clearing the way, the trolls' weapons were systematically breaking his body apart, one by one.
"O Goddess, look upon your servant."
Yet, no matter what attack he took, Sasaro did not die.
Blows that should have ended his life were being nullified by the Saintess's healing magic. Even with his neck half-severed and a spear piercing his heart, Sasaro didn't stop clearing the path.
The Saintess was pumping lethal amounts of healing into Sasaro, forcibly reconstructing his body. I couldn't understand that insane Holy Incantation of the Saintess, which healed fatal wounds in seconds, but I understood Sasaro even less for enduring it all.
How on earth is he standing that pain?
With an incomprehensible level of mental fortitude, Sasaro broke through.
Now, we were positioned between the giant and the trolls.
The real battle started now.
"Halcy! Now!"
"I know! Run, Saintess!"
The Saintess and Raphael charged toward the giant. Paramel followed close behind Raphael.
Those three would tie down the giant's feet.
"This wretched body."
Helena sat down on the ground, closed her eyes, and began her incantation.
She said she needed five minutes to cast a spell that could kill the giant in one hit while using an Apostle's body instead of her original one.
The rest of us had to protect the defenseless Helena and hold out for those five minutes.
I moved directly behind Helena and drew my weapon. Rosier and Roy began to engage the charging trolls as if shielding me.
I was the final line of defense. If I was breached, Helena would die, and the operation would end in failure.
When I heard the outline of the plan from the Saintess, I thought it was doable.
But now that we were actually in the field, it felt like madness. This was a completely insane operation.
"Cough... ugh..."
"Sasaro! Are you okay!?"
"In my old age... what am I doing... Porter... a sword... give me a sword..."
"Here!"
Sasaro tossed aside his shattered weapon and gripped the sword I handed him.
After spitting out a mouthful of blood, he wiped his mouth and stood up, using the sword as a crutch. His eyes were bloodshot with pain and exhaustion.
"Ha... damn it."
Dragging a body that looked ready to collapse and faint at any moment, Sasaro lunged back into the pack of dungeon trolls where Rosier and Roy were fighting.
Crazy man. He's lost his mind.
Sasaro began to perform a dance of death like someone who had let go of his sanity.
They say surviving a long time is proof of strength; Sasaro, who just yesterday acted like an old man who wanted to go home, was now a possessed executioner, shredding the trolls.
Meanwhile, Rosier used her signature monstrous strength to swing her mace, crushing the trolls' skulls, while Roy targeted their joints to rob them of their mobility.
With the addition of the rampaging Sasaro, the balance was perfect.
And the Saintess's side...
The Saintess was clinging to the giant's right leg, slamming her Bible into it like a madwoman.
The air vibrated from the shockwaves. The giant staggered under the weight of her unbelievable destructive power. The monster swatted the Saintess away like a fly, but after tumbling across the ground, she immediately stood back up and charged at the giant again. I mean, what the hell?
Shouldn't she be dead after that?
Insane...
It was a level of regeneration that defied logic.
No, it was insane divine power and healing. The Saintess's body was clearly being pulverized, yet she stood up again within ten seconds to rush the giant.
Crushed limbs became whole, and a snapped neck returned to normal. The Saintess's body was a bloody mess, yet she charged the giant as if it were nothing.
Raphael was the same.
Boom—!!!!
Raphael writhed in agony as he was trampled by the giant's foot. Paramel poured healing magic over him.
Revived by Paramel's heal, Raphael stood up and swung his axe at the giant's ankle.
The giant repeatedly stomped his feet, trying to shake the three of them off, but they wouldn't budge. Like leeches, the three of them clung on, steadily breaking down the giant's legs.
They were far enough away that I couldn't see their expressions clearly, but it looked like the Saintess and Raphael were smiling.
How could they smile in that situation?
I don't know. These people are out of their minds.
Wait. Here they come...!
I wanted to observe my companions more, but I had guests of my own.
Those damn heretics. As expected, they were waiting for their moment.
Taking advantage of the moment everyone was distracted by the trolls and the giant, heretic assassins with their faces concealed by black hoods approached me.
Their target wasn't me. It was Helena, who was in the middle of her incantation.
I had to protect Helena from them. The moment she died, the mission was over.
Clang—!!
"You cowardly bastards...!"
I deflected a flying dagger with my shield.
The heretics already knew that if they killed Helena, our firepower would drop drastically.
They must have grasped the general situation over the past day. That they had lost an Apostle, and that the corpses had vanished, making resurrection impossible.
They likely suspected we had someone with a Subspace Pocket and that the Apostle had been taken by some means.
So, they were trying to kill the traitorous Apostle who was attempting to use a technique against the giant.
Not a chance.
Two heretic assassins rushed toward me.
Their speed was incredible, as expected.
However, their movements and patterns were identical to the ones who had targeted me in that warehouse alley before.
It made sense, since they were trained by the Green Apostle, the so-called instructor of the heretics. These were movements I already knew. It was a speed I was familiar with.
I could react.
I've imagined this so many times.
Memories of being beaten by Gon during training at the Martial Arts Hall flashed through my mind.
While getting pummeled by Gon, I had imagined how I would kill these damn heretics dozens, hundreds of times.
I wouldn't be taken down as easily as I was that day.
Swish—!
As the distance closed, a rapid thrust came in. I already knew their move.
Thud—!!!
I blocked it with my shield. More accurately, I parried it. I didn't just block; I deflected it at an angle so the assassin would overextend and lose his balance, distorting his sense of distance.
I saw an opening. Just as I thought I should stab him, my hand was already driving the blade into the heretic's side.
It was a situation where my thoughts couldn't keep up with my hand's movements.
Before I could even perceive and react, my body moved on its own, piercing the heretic's flank.
I could feel the Shaka's Remnant activating at full power. No, this was becoming my own movement now.
My training with Gon was starting to pay off.
The heretics lunged. My blood began to boil, and the thought that I could kill them made my hands move even faster.
The Bracelet of Growth was enhancing my physical abilities. This was only possible because the blood of the monsters I had fed the bracelet until now had boosted my stats.
I can do this.
I parried the next attack as well and quickly stepped in, burying my sword in another one's stomach.
I didn't pull it out. I let go of it, pulled another sword from my inventory, and swung.
I slashed across his eyes to blind him with blood, then swung my axe at his neck.
Cr-crack!!!
The axe bit through skin, tore through neck muscles, and finally severed the vertebrae before emerging from the other side.
The decapitated head of the heretic was sent flying backward.
The headless body flailed for a moment, losing its balance, before collapsing.
"Ha. Hahaha..."
It was easy. The heretic assassins no longer seemed like a match for me.
Boom!!!!!
Just as my confidence was starting to swell, a heretic assassin's body was blown apart.
Rosier, drenched in troll blood, panted as she glared at the heretics.
"Huff... huff... huff... Be careful. Always be careful."
She gave me a warning.
Without realizing it, I had drifted quite far from Helena.
In my excitement, I had delved too deep into the enemy ranks, leaving my charge behind.
I quickly snapped out of it and returned to Helena's side. My role was to protect Helena, not to kill heretics.
"It is finished..."
As I caught my breath and fended off the heretics' attacks, Helena finished her incantation at the perfect moment.
Finally, the spell was ready. Five minutes had felt longer than I imagined. Now, Helena just had to give that giant a taste of her power.
Helena stood up and extended her right hand toward the giant's head.
She took precise aim at the monster's head and unleashed the spell she had finished chanting.
"Red Meteor."
Helena's crimson magic shot forth.
"KRAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!"
The giant's roar was loud enough to shake the entire Labyrinth.
Helena's magic pierced through all of the Cyclops's magical defenses and struck him right in the eye.
"This is as far as I go..."
As the giant's head half-exploded, Helena, her mana completely depleted, collapsed.