Chapter 139
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 139
Chapter Title: Field Boss Defense Battle (2)
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"Senior... are you alright?"
"Aside from the fishy smell, I'm fine."
Jun grumbled that he should've learned [Clean] if he'd known this would happen.
"Why'd you have to trip over a dying monster of all things?"
"Still, it's a relief that everyone's safe."
Thanks to that, Captain Hertix of the Hertix Adventure Group seemed to be tearing up with some weird misunderstanding.
After days of tussling with the Giant Hyena and then throwing down in a massive battle on top of that, the exhausted Jun didn't bother explaining himself and just headed to the [Checkpoint].
"There really are more survivors than I expected."
There were plenty of people plunged into chaos, but the number who'd made it safely to the [Checkpoint] was far from small.
"At this rate, it shouldn't be too hard... Mmgh?!"
"Leader, just shut up and sharpen your sword."
"Yeah. Captain, don't you dare say anything about it being easy."
"Euni... Eee her netashi aija."
"...Ugh."
Maya, who'd clamped her hand over Jun's mouth, grimaced and pulled it away.
"Ahem... Anyway, with numbers like this, we've got more than enough to fend off a monster wave."
"What other variables could there be?"
"If you're gonna nitpick... Mmgh!"
"Hey, Aiden. You clueless idiot. Why ask that? You're jinxing us."
"B-but we still need to prepare, right?"
"No one's gonna listen to that here."
Eleanor spoke firmly, but moments later, Hertix's words flipped the situation on its head.
"Do you think there's anything else we need to prepare for?"
Hertix himself—the man at the center of this crisis—was asking Jun for his input first.
In truth, even Eleanor couldn't have predicted this.
She had no idea just how legendary the White Whale Mercenary Corps' reputation had become out there.
And Hertix was a man whose life goal was to survive long and slim.
So it wasn't hard for him to call Jun over and pick his brain.
'This guy's sure to give us some advice that'll actually help!'
Of course, Hertix wasn't just going off rumors.
He'd witnessed the White Whale Mercenary Corps' true potential firsthand during their retreat here. More than that, a mage and a warrior had held off the enemy alone to evacuate total strangers without getting drenched in blood!
'That's how they earned such fame.'
In reality, it was just a few spells from afar followed by tripping and falling, but Hertix had no clue about that.
"The worst-case scenario has to be the Corruptors that might spawn when it dies."
"Corruptors, huh..."
"B-but Captain, considering the odds of a Corruptor appearing, isn't that extremely rare?"
Corruptors popped up a few times a year, sure, but for a field boss... an irregular one at that? The chances were slim.
It was the kind of thing that might happen once a decade, if ever.
'True enough.'
Jun nodded inwardly at the words. It made sense on reflection.
Players in the game saw plenty of Corruptors in the late game thanks to the Heavenly Demon Cult, but early on? Not so common.
"With that in mind, preparing for Corruptors on top of everything else might be overkill... if I may say so cautiously."
Hertix shook his head at his deputy and mage, Mulder.
"Why can't you see farther, Mulder? This monster wave alone is anything but normal. They showed up way earlier than usual—and as an irregular Twin-Headed Troll, no less."
"Hmm... Are you worried about outside factors?"
"Couldn't say, but there might be something we don't know about yet."
A devout follower of Hermetes, he sensed it instinctively.
Some dire situation was coming, and the gods had sent the White Whale Mercenary Corps to watch over him!
"......"
Jun, watching the exchange, figured no amount of logic would sway them.
"Ahh! To think it'd end like this."
The man sighed deeply, shaking his head.
The Twin-Headed Troll he'd so carefully crafted was in ruins.
"Such a shame. I put so much work into making you. Was I expecting too much performance?"
His voice uneven like a drunken clown's, the man tilted his head this way and that as he approached the troll, now charred black like coal.
The troll, famed for its regenerative powers, had taken a massive lightning bolt and still hadn't recovered.
"I thought you'd provide me with some real entertainment."
Kuugaah...
The Twin-Headed Troll wasn't fully dead.
Fresh flesh was even now budding beneath its burned hide.
A truly wondrous vitality.
But the powerful lightning had slowed its irregular regeneration to a crawl—unbelievable for a troll.
"Or maybe the enemy was just too strong...?"
The man glanced around.
Now that he looked closely, traces of mana lingered thick in the air.
"A 7th Circle mage? No, you wouldn't have survived that."
After scanning the area, he turned from the troll and shook his head helplessly.
"No helping it. What's done is done. Besides, you're still useful."
Kuu...?
"You can be proud. You're like the legacy of the late Enverman. It'd be a waste for something like you to die so pointlessly, right?"
So he'd squeeze every last bit of use out of it.
With that, the man plunged a syringe from his pocket into the troll's heart.
"It's unfinished, so control might be tricky, but I hope I can find ways to improve through you. Please satisfy me this time..."
By the time the troll shed most of its sword-slashed skin and rose again...
The clownish man was nowhere to be seen.
Once Jun and his companions left, Hertix spoke to his deputy, Mulder, alone.
"At this point, we need to ask for help from everyone here and post a call for reinforcements outside."
"Isn't that a bit much...?"
"Better to overprepare and brace for the next threat than skip it and lose everything."
"Understood. If that's your will, Captain."
Mulder worried a bit about the budget, but he knew the captain was right.
The people gathered at the [Checkpoint] stepped up to aid the Hertix Adventure Group.
The rewards were generous, but this experience would boost their resumes—no reason to pass.
And above all...
"The White Whale Mercenary Corps?"
"Nah, the official notice said they're a mercenary company now. Recently promoted."
"Point is, they're here?"
"Yep."
"Talk about luck! They took down an Orc Lord—can't they handle one troll?"
"The turnaround mercs who blocked Dimension Reverse twice. This fight's as good as won."
"Irregular or not, we can't let our guard down, but it'll be great experience."
Meanwhile, the Hertix Adventure Group sent scouts to survey around the [Checkpoint].
The news wasn't good.
"Monsters everywhere."
"No idea where they came from, but the horde's tightly packed."
"No sign of the Twin-Headed Troll yet, but we hear its roars now and then. North of the [Checkpoint]."
Info flooded in, and the group moved fast.
They planned to punch through the encirclement and send messengers to lower levels or other fields on the same floor for backup.
"Break through!"
"Stay sharp! Watch for ambushes from the fog!"
"Damn, one slipped to the side!"
"I got it! Keep pushing!"
They acted quick before the noose tightened, successfully dispatching messengers outward.
"Good. Regroup for two days, then counterattack!"
No matter how safe the [Checkpoint] was, food and water had limits.
As adventure group territory, they hadn't stockpiled much normally.
Two days passed like that.
"Whew..."
Jun rubbed his bleary eyes and stared at the crimson orb floating before him.
The essence left by Chimera-fied Sergey—the insights of a 7th Circle mage—had lately been messing with his head.
"It might unlock 6th Circle for me. Problem is, it's way too arcane."
He could make out the outer runes, but the intricate inner engravings? Each one was a struggle to grasp.
No quick fix after a few days' study.
'Maybe if I level up [Intermediate Magic Talent] another notch.'
But relying too much on skills wasn't wise.
He needed to comprehend it himself to reorganize his concepts even after acquiring [Advanced Magic Talent].
'Skills aren't everything. Still, it's not for nothing.'
Sergey's heart was destruction and rebirth.
'Like the universe exploding from nothingness, Sergey believed intense flame energy formed the basis of creation.'
But while he'd decoded the flames, he hadn't fully grasped the 'rebirth' concept.
That complicated things for Jun.
From there, it felt less like insight and more like abstract theory without logic.
"If I crack this fully, I could implant the orb into my fire affinity..."
Then maybe wield Sergey's secret spells.
Like Imaginary Domain: Active Volcano.
Pwooooh—!
At the horn blast amid the violet dawn, Jun stood.
"Guess that's it for today."
Today was the day.
The decisive battle with the field boss.