The Sphinx's Trial

The massive stone door was so heavy it refused to yield. Only by combining the strength of all three of us did we manage to force it open. It scraped across the stone floor with a grinding roar, and beyond it we beheld a magnificent great hall.

It was a chamber far too lavish for any dead man to possess. The ceiling soared a good ten meters overhead, and the floor itself easily spanned thousands of square meters. Beautiful statues lined a vast space wide enough for dozens of retainers to stand in formation, and at the far end of the hall, a throne made its presence known — a seat built for a ruler.

The throne occupying the seat of honor was no ordinary chair. For one thing, it was far too large for a human to sit in. Five people could have sprawled across it with room to spare. At that size, it wasn't a throne so much as a sofa. The dead king who had claimed this seat must have been a giant.

There was a reason the throne was so enormous. What rested upon it was not a person, but a massive coffin wrought of gold — a magnificent sarcophagus encrusted with more jewels than any statue or artwork in the entire chamber.

"Whoa... this is a tomb? It doesn't look like one. Did the owner of this place want to live like a regular person even after he died?"

Sera said, looking around. She was right — the place brimmed with vitality. Not a speck of dust anywhere; you could have believed it had been in use until yesterday. A great hall of the dead that defied death itself.

"Welcome guests, I see. Or are you foolish grave robbers? It's been a long time since any human made it this far."

A gravelly male voice rolled down from the ceiling. Luna frowned and looked up.

A creature came soaring down on enormous wings. With a thunderous beat of those wings, it landed before the throne where the ruler's coffin rested. That was the dungeon's final boss — the last guardian of the dead sovereign. The Sphinx.

"Welcome to the resting place of the dead, heroes — or grave robbers. This place permits only those humans who possess both formidable strength and keen wisdom. Unfortunately, everyone who has come here until now lacked one or the other — or both — and never left. I wonder which you will prove to be?"

Luna drew her dual blades. Sera dropped into a combat stance. The Sphinx spread its eagle wings wide to greet us.

"Sleepless gravekeeper of the dead. I've come today to grant you rest."

"Heh heh. Rest, you say. A pleasant ring to it. But can you truly manage it? Granting eternal slumber to one summoned upon the grudges of thousands of humans as a sacrificial offering will prove exceedingly difficult."

"I imagine so. But it wouldn't be any fun if it were easy, would it?"

"Fair enough. An amusing human. Here I come."

The Sphinx's wings began to beat. A razor-sharp wind came slicing toward us, keen enough to cut flesh. Just keeping our balance against that was hard enough — then a blast of searing flame erupted from the Sphinx's maw.

The flames rode the cutting wind straight at us. Breath-type attacks almost always packed devastating power. Dodging was far wiser than trying to block.

"Use the statues to dodge, just like I told you!"

The statues scattered throughout the hall weren't mere decorations. Carved from a rare desert stone, they possessed exceptional heat resistance — making them excellent cover against the Sphinx's flames.

We each ducked behind a statue as the firestorm roared through the hall. The Sphinx's flames couldn't punch through the stone, but the scorching heat still washed over us — a prickling, furnace-hot blast, like standing too close to a smelter. A direct hit would have taken us out of the fight instantly.

"I'll close in!"

Luna, the most agile of us, moved like a ninja. Using the scattered statues as stepping stones, she closed the distance on the Sphinx in a flash.

"Remarkable speed. At that pace, my flames won't catch you!"

The Sphinx changed tactics. With a powerful leap, it soared into the air, then drew in a deep breath.

"Sonic Boom! Cover your ears, all of you!"

The Sphinx let out a monstrous howl. A massive shockwave exploded outward from that scream. Luna dove behind a statue and clapped her hands over her ears. Even with our ears covered and our heads pressed to the ground, the sonic vibration thrummed through our entire bodies. It was like a nightclub speaker cranked up a hundred times over — like a fighter jet screaming past just overhead. Fortunately, our quick reaction kept us from catching any of the Sonic Boom's debuffs.

"Oho. Excellent reflexes. You act as though you already know the future."

"Buhiihit! That's because your attacks are too predictable. Now it's our turn!"

After displaying two attack patterns, the Sphinx would freeze up for a moment — probably from the exertion. A strangely realistic mechanic. But that stun was itself part of the attack pattern, because that was when the Sphinx posed its riddle.

"It's still my turn! I've seen your strength — now I shall test your wisdom. Fail this trial, and your souls will plunge into the underworld where my master waits."

I gave Luna and Sera the signal to attack with my eyes. I'd handle the riddle myself.

"Is there a monster like that?"

Sera, charging the Sphinx, tilted her head. For a modern person it was an easy quiz, but if you didn't know the answer, it would definitely be confusing.

"Buhiihit! Far too easy. The answer is a human!"

"And why is that?"

"A newborn human crawls on four legs, a grown human walks on ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠two, and a human nearing their rest walks on three with a cane. So it can only be a human!"

The Sphinx let out a strangled grunt. Answering correctly dropped its defense slightly and locked it in a full stun. Luna and Sera struck at the same instant.

Their attacks slammed into the Sphinx's flanks at the same instant. I aimed a Darkness Arrow at its head. All three of our attacks landed, but true to a boss monster, it didn't go down.

"Gyaaaah! Not bad! But I'm not finished yet!"

Freed from the stun, the Sphinx took to the air and flung Luna and Sera off. Then it landed and stamped the ground with its right forepaw.

"It's the mummy legion! Watch out!"

Black energy suddenly welled up from the floor, coalescing into mummy warriors and mummy shamans. Their stats were identical to the ones we'd already fought. Drawing on that experience, we made short work of the mummy legion — prioritizing the shamans, then mopping up ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the warriors.

The Sphinx prepared another breath attack. A simple pattern: summon the minions, then fire the finishing move. Simple, but devastating.

"Everyone behind the statues! Breath attack incoming!"

A brazen breath attack that didn't even spare its own summoned mummy legion. We barely managed to take cover. The Sphinx's breath wiped out most of the mummies, but a moment's hesitation and we'd have been roasted right along with them. Still, we'd weathered two attacks — which meant it was our turn again.

"Luna! Sera!"

"Yes!"

"Kh... formidable invaders! I shall test your wisdom once more!"

"Buhiihit! Day and night. Day gives birth to night, and night gives birth to day."

"You got that one too?!"

Luna and Sera's attacks were fast and razor-sharp. Both of them seemed to feel the danger of the Sphinx's threatening assaults. A prolonged fight would definitely put us at a disadvantage. A single exposure to its attacks could mean instant death.

Freed from the stun, the Sphinx let out a mournful wail. Not as loud as the Sonic Boom, but it was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠another dangerous sonic attack — a heart-piercing lament that inflicted a debuff, conjuring illusions of the dead.

"Cover your ears, all of you!"

"Yes!"

The Sphinx wailed as it hurled its massive body at Sera. She tried to dodge the charge, but the Sphinx was a step faster.

"Aah!"

"Sera!"

Luna moved to save her, but she was a step too slow. I activated Time Acceleration.

Using the skill left me exposed to its curse, but Mental Resistance kicked in.

Thanks to that, I was able to launch my attack.

"Hngh! Darkness Arrow!"

My darkness arrows punched into the Sphinx's two legs.

"Gyaaaaah!"

That silenced its wail. Sera, who'd nearly been hit, twisted her body and launched a counterattack instead. Luna joined her.

"Rapid Claw!"

At the same instant, Luna's dual blades slammed into the nape of its neck. Struck in its weak points with critical hits, the Sphinx shrieked and staggered back.

"Ghhh... not yet...! I'm not done! I shall pose a riddle!"

"A shadow! It's large in the morning, shrinks at noon, grows large again in the afternoon, and vanishes at night. Now begone to the underworld, warden of the dead!"

I wrung out every last drop of remaining power and loosed a Darkness Arrow. It struck true, burying itself in the nape of the neck where Sera had already wounded it.

The creature's death throes had begun.