Chapter 68: Master of the Labyrinth (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 68: Master of the Labyrinth (2)
The island of Crete, situated in the southern part of Greece across the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas, was a renowned travel destination, visited by millions of foreign tourists every year.
Endless, beautiful emerald beaches stretched out to the horizon beyond.
High mountain ranges ran from east to west, and the breathtaking Samaria Gorge was a dizzying sight to behold.
Beyond such beautiful nature, countless people were drawn to Crete, captivated by its picturesque cityscape.
At least, that was the case until just 50 years ago.
[The Calamity of Crete]
August 14, 19XX.
A report was filed with the EU Joint Hunter Association that a Gate had appeared in the province of Crete in southern Greece.
The Association immediately dispatched inspectors, and before long, the Gate's rank was determined.
A-rank.
The news of a sudden top-tier Gate's appearance shook the whole of Europe. Without an S-rank Hunter or a mage of the 7th Circle or higher, clearing it was a remote possibility.
On the day of that announcement, the airports and ports of Crete, the epicenter of the incident, descended into chaos as 600,000 residents and 40,000 foreign tourists surged like a furious tide.
Hundreds were crushed to death in the stampede.
Amidst the chaos, a summit of the European Union was held.
The topic: whether to dispatch an S-rank Hunter from the EU Joint Hunter Association to the island of Crete.
The minutes of the meeting were never released, so no one knows exactly what was discussed, but it was clear that the outcome of that meeting would later lead to Greece's withdrawal from the EU.
The S-rank hunters would not be coming.
Greece had to stop the Gate with its own hunters and a handful of mages.
The option of entering the Gate was never even up for discussion. With their own hunters and mages already deserting, it was obvious what would happen if such a thing were even suggested.
June 19, 19XX.
Along with a heatwave that arrived earlier than expected, the gate of Labyrinthos—the A-rank Gate that would later be called the Calamity of Crete—opened. From that day on, Greece lost dozens of its high-rank hunters and ten mages, and was forced to give up on Crete entirely.
At the center of that disaster was the boss of Labyrinthos, an A-rank magical beast.
“Minotaur...!”
—!!!!!
The Minotaur, the beast at the heart of the event known as the Calamity of Crete, roared.
“Aaaahhh!!”
“Kuhk?!”
An immense killing intent washed over us, a sensation as if my body were being sliced apart alive. It led to a loss of my will to fight, but that wasn't the only problem.
‘Fear...!’
The debuff said to be unleashed by high-rank magical beasts.
Before I could even process that my body had frozen in terror, the situation changed drastically.
A predator would never miss a chance at prey that was frozen and unable to flee.
Unleashing another mind-numbing roar, the Minotaur raised its giant axe.
At that sight, my body moved a step faster than my mind.
Mana surged violently through my still-recovering magic circuits.
A dizzying pain, sharp enough to make me lose consciousness, shot through me, but my body, frozen by the fear, began to move.
“Noel, move!!”
Confirming I could move, I immediately grabbed Noel and rolled to the side.
An instant later, the giant axe slammed down where we had just been.
KRAAAASH!!!!
A massive shockwave sent a cloud of dust billowing into the air.
Beyond the small crater, the Minotaur's crimson eyes, blinking eerily with a blood-red light, were fixed on us.
For a moment, the bloodcurdling sight nearly froze me again.
“...Master, behind me.”
Perhaps the roll had loosened her up, because Noel picked up the hammer that had fallen to the ground and stood in front of me.
Putting a mage behind her was an impeccable decision for a vanguard, but I heard it clearly.
Noel's voice was trembling faintly.
It was proof that she had already calculated that in her current state—hampered by power restrictions and physically exhausted—she couldn't face the Minotaur.
“Noel, listen carefully.”
I placed a hand on her shoulder.
I knew as well as she did that the Minotaur was a monster I couldn't hope to defeat, let alone face.
But was that really the same Minotaur from the Calamity of Crete?
Just as I had mistaken the Skeleton Mage, the boss of the 2nd Layer, for a Lich, if such an absurdly powerful monster appeared as the boss of the 3rd Layer, the World Tree would have surely given me some kind of warning.
“Just like when you drew the golem's attention, I need you to hold out for exactly one minute.”
I handed Noel a bottle of holy water.
I knew it was a tall order, but without that one-minute warm-up time, I couldn't wield lightning like before.
Of course, I wasn't just sending her out without any insurance.
If Noel was in danger, I could just reverse-summon her, and I could return to Earth. That would be the end of it.
In fact, I could retreat right now, regroup, and come back. There was no need to fight with my body in such a wreck.
But if I only fought on my own terms like that, could I really advance to the next realm?
‘...No.’
The mana that was not just filling my Circles but overflowing throughout my entire body was telling me otherwise.
It was telling me to break through my limits and move on to the next stage.
What I needed right now was a catalyst.
“One minute? I can go for ten.”
Noel flashed her usual bright smile, chugged the holy water, and charged toward the Minotaur.
Her speed increased, as if she were pushing past her limits.
Thud!
The ground caved in with every step she took.
She was moving her body to the very edge of what her power restrictions allowed.
BOOM! The moment Noel launched herself off the ground, leaping high above the Minotaur's head, the hammer she was swinging grew to twice its size.
“Hyaaaaaa!!!”
A tremendous vortex of mana swirled around the hammer before it smashed directly into the Minotaur's head.
[Moon Breaker]
With an incredible blast of wind, the Minotaur staggered and fell to one knee.
I was stunned for a moment, but I couldn't waste the precious time Noel had bought me.
The holy water I had quickly drunk seeped into my body, and my hands, which had been trembling from the pain, calmed down slightly.
But that, too, was brief.
As a massive amount of mana and the element of lightning once again coursed through my magic circuits, a mind-numbing pain washed over me.
My head felt like it was about to split open, but this was no time to complain.
My body felt like a worn-out rag, but I had cast this spell before.
The first time is always the hardest.
A raging storm of lightning gathered above my palm.
“Noel!”
The moment the spell was complete, I shouted at the top of my lungs. Hearing me, Noel immediately reacted and tried to disengage, but the Minotaur, unwilling to let her escape its attacks, continued its swift and heavy onslaught.
CRASH! CRASH!
Faced with attacks that could easily cause serious injury, Noel was too busy just dodging to even think about escaping.
But if I waited any longer, Noel might get caught in the spell.
I couldn't wait anymore.
“Reverse Sum—”
“Master!”
As Noel dodged and parried the Minotaur's fierce attacks, a powerful surge of mana once again began to boil at her fingertips.
Seeing this, I focused all my strength on controlling the spell.
I had to buy time until Noel could get back to my side.
“I!!”
Her hammer didn't grow larger like before, but the aura she gave off was on a completely different level.
[The restriction placed upon Noel Ronnidella at her request has been weakened.]
[Cost: ???]
“I hate cows!!!”
[Sun Breaker]
An intense wave of light enveloped the hammer, and Noel shot into the Minotaur's guard at a speed the eye couldn't follow.
Its unguarded abdomen was exposed, and the moment Noel's hammer struck, the sun seemed to rise in the dark dungeon.
BOOM! BOOM—KRAAANG!
With a massive shockwave, the Minotaur was sent flying backward, crashing into the dungeon wall.
The sight of its massive body skipping across the air like a stone on water was hard to believe even seeing it with my own eyes.
Having squeezed out every last bit of her strength, Noel staggered back to me and half-collapsed into my arms.
With not an ounce of stamina or mana left, she fell asleep as if she'd fainted. I gently stroked her head.
“...You did well.”
I held Noel tightly and cast a barrier around us.
It would have been great if that last blow had ended the fight, but unfortunately, the Minotaur was already getting up from within the rubble of the wall.
But seeing it battered and bleeding was undeniable proof that Noel's attack had damaged it.
This was the chance Noel had created for me, even at a great cost.
[Ball Lightning]
Once again, a thundercloud, pregnant with immense mana and destructive lightning, took shape.
The moment I gave up control of the spell, a searing pain shot through my magic circuits, and the unstable, fluctuating thundercloud began to expand rapidly.
‘?!’
The spell's instability far exceeded my expectations. I instinctively poured most of my remaining mana into the barrier.
────
Then, a blinding flash that whitened my vision erupted from the thundercloud, filling the corridor.
The devastating thunderbolt destroyed everything around us, stripping it of its form.
The tent I hadn't managed to pack, and even the dungeon walls themselves, were crumbling.
Seeing this, I was certain.
No matter how strong the Minotaur was, as long as it wasn't a boss individual, there was no way it could withstand this.
As the instantaneous lightning storm began to subside, the surrounding scenery came into view.
The terrain had changed so drastically that a small clearing had formed in the labyrinthine dungeon. I was amazed that I could wield magic of such power myself.
However.
“...Fuck.”
I hadn't expected to kill the Minotaur with a single spell in the first place.
Still, I thought that with Noel's all-out final blow and the unintentionally amplified power of my magic, I could at least leave it on the brink of death.
But did I underestimate my opponent too much?
If I had the ability to see a magical beast's status window, it would surely have a trait like this.
[Rapid Regeneration]
In the distance, the flesh of the Minotaur, which stood there like a half-corpse, was rapidly filling in. Even the wounds that had been seared and burned by the lightning were slowly healing. I was at a loss for words.
Looking at me, it raised the corners of its mouth as if to mock me.