Chapter 190
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 190
Chapter Title: Derman
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Third Prince Xavier.
Why was someone who should be at the checkpoint by now here of all places?
And with a mage affiliated with the Lanes Mage Tower, who had zero connection to any of this?
"Wh-why are the two of you...?"
"I-I'm sorry. I snuck out because I wanted to speak with you..."
"Speak with me?"
Come to think of it, when he'd reported the incident to Dexter, Jun had heard that Xavier had been looking for him.
But given the gravity of the situation, and with no further word afterward, he'd completely forgotten about it.
'Of all days, today...?'
Jun's impression of Xavier hadn't changed much from before.
A bomb that could go off at any moment.
For a man like that to show up in a place this dangerous...
Just imagine if he died here.
'That would be a nightmare...'
He'd never met her in person, but Xavier's mother, Veneres, was depicted as a truly vicious woman in the game.
Would someone like her ever forgive Jun for standing by while her son died?
'No way in hell... No, wait. Let's not jump to the worst conclusions.'
Regardless, hadn't Xavier's help just gotten them through that crisis unscathed?
With his body already in the worst shape imaginable, facing the sudden arrival of Derman head-on would have been far too much.
'But how the hell did he follow us all the way here?'
Beles was still peering outside in a daze, making a huge fuss.
Noticing her gaze, Xavier gave a wry smile.
"I asked him separately. I wanted to avoid prying eyes."
"Ah."
He didn't know the exact reason Xavier had sought him out, but he could guess why the prince had come in person.
'I've been busy lately. Frequent meetings with the first prince, and scouting the entire island during the day with detection spells.'
So he'd finally gotten fed up and come looking himself—and today of all days.
Still, they couldn't afford to chat idly forever.
"Your Highness Xavier. How long can this barrier hold?"
"Quite a while, I think. If we check the artifact's mana reserves... Huh?"
Derman's monstrous assaults continued without letup, and as Xavier examined the artifact's remaining mana, he blinked in surprise.
"It... it won't hold out much longer!"
"Yeah... It doesn't look good."
Even to Jun's eyes, the artifact was exquisitely crafted.
But Derman's attacks were just as ferocious, and upon closer inspection, it showed signs of prior use.
'Venom Serpent. The one they used when his spirit went berserk.'
Still, this was a solvable problem.
Jun spoke in a low voice.
"Could I see the artifact for a moment?"
"O-of course. Take a look."
"Pardon me."
Jun pulled a mana fluid from his dimensional bracelet and scrutinized the artifact Xavier handed over.
Thanks to his recent focus on enchantment magic, he quickly spotted the weak points.
"Here... connecting it here should do it."
As soon as he linked it to the mana fluid, allowing mana to flow freely, the barrier—which had looked precarious—regained its stability.
"Wh-what is that thing?"
Only then did Beles snap out of it, her eyes wide as saucers.
'Oh, right. She was here.'
She'd been so noisy he'd half-forgotten her presence.
'This can't go public yet.'
It was still far too early for that. Since it needed to stay top secret, Jun brushed it off vaguely.
"Something from Prince Dexter. No idea how it works."
What could she do? Call him out when he'd handled it with such expert finesse?
Beles eyed him suspiciously but held her tongue given the circumstances.
"Anyway... what exactly happened here?"
Her next question followed.
Xavier wore a similar expression as he turned to Jun.
Neither of them knew the full story.
'Dexter must've clamped down hard on the details.'
This wasn't like the Venom Serpent incident, where Xavier had been involved. No need to loop him in.
If he had, Xavier never would've come out here alone.
"Sigh... To cut to the chase, it's the work of the Celestial Church."
"Those bastards again?"
"Yes. Proof is that a fallen monk called the Slaughter Monk—the same one my comrades and I encountered in Jeoseong—showed up."
Time was short, but they had a breather now.
Worried the two might act rashly without grasping the stakes, Jun explained everything in detail.
"So... that monster turned my brother into this?"
But Xavier's reaction exceeded Jun's expectations.
The prince, who usually hid his fears, now burned with genuine fury over Aiden's injuries.
Beles seemed to have composed herself as well, accepting the situation calmly.
"So, can we three take him down?"
Realistically, Derman right now was like a level 6 or 7 raid boss.
'Our full-strength mercenary group could've handled it.'
But not in their current state.
Overheat couldn't be fixed with a recovery potion, and their wounds from earlier hadn't even healed yet.
That said, it wasn't impossible.
Especially since Jun still had his trump card for restoring his battered body.
He would've used it by force in the fight with the Slaughter Monk if Aiden hadn't arrived in time.
'Mutantization.'
If he unleashed that immense power, they might find an opening.
The problem was what he'd recently learned from Marshar about its downsides.
'Using it too often puts strain on the heart.'
It was more surprising that there'd been no side effects until now.
His heart temporarily gained dragon heart-level durability.
'It might not withstand the overload.'
And that wasn't the end of it.
'A Sea Serpent's probably appeared in the city by now. Killing the Sea Serpent there is bad, and killing Derman here is bad.'
As he'd seen in the game, killing one funnels power to the other.
'It could spawn an 8th-level raid boss.'
That's why in the game, you had to whittle both down to similar HP levels and finish them simultaneously with an AoE.
It was a notoriously brutal raid, drawing tons of player complaints.
'But it's not like we have zero way out of this.'
With that, Jun turned to Beles.
"I have a plan."
"Lay it out."
Beles ignored the shift in Jun's tone, listening intently.
"We need to pin that thing down for a bit."
"Against that monster...?"
"Got a way?"
"To some extent... but I'm not confident. Time's one issue, but above all, I'm low on mana."
"Mana stones?"
"I came straight to the coastal island after wrapping up my mission. Supplies are limited."
Most people imagined high-circle magic popping out once you drew the circle—like real magic from fairy tales—but it wasn't that convenient.
Higher circles required tons of prep, and ideally, support mages too.
Beles admitting only mana was the issue was proof of her exceptional skill.
"So if you had mana, you could do it?"
"Yes."
"Use this."
Another mana fluid from the dimensional bracelet.
Beles stared at Jun with a strange look as she took it. He'd denied knowing anything earlier, but now he was handing it over openly. He didn't seem clueless at all.
'Am I seeing this right? Liquid mana?'
And its stability far outstripped regular mana stones.
But Beles wasn't oblivious; sensing Jun wanted to drop the topic, she nodded silently.
"I have a spell that can hold it briefly."
"Perfect. I'll signal you—get ready."
"Got it."
"And..."
Jun looked at Xavier.
Was it an exaggeration to say Xavier was key to this plan?
'There is one surefire way.'
And it wouldn't even put Xavier in harm's way.
He just needed to draw out a specific type of mana from the prince.
The catch...
'Xavier hasn't awakened that power yet.'
He looked like any ordinary prince now, but in the game, he was a major villain.
Of course he had matching abilities—he just hadn't realized them yet.
'Funny that I'd be the one using it, and who knows how he'll react once he knows...'
Jun shook his head at the thought.
'No. His villain route is basically erased by now.'
They'd timely cut off the Celestial Church's influence, and surveillance was on his mother, Veneres.
Things wouldn't spiral that far.
'The issue is explaining how I know about the third prince's power.'
After a brief deliberation, Jun decided.
'It's not impossible.'
It had been a while since he'd connected with Xavier.
He'd looked into relevant details long ago.
"Your Highness Xavier. If it's not too much trouble, may I draw some of your mana and use it?"
"My... mana?"
Beles, who'd been fixated on the mana fluid, reacted first.
'Has he lost his mind?'
Drawing mana from ordinary people was viewed extremely negatively.
Jun knew that full well, but had no choice.
"Your mana could be a huge help in resolving this."
"In that case... very well. Take it."
Perhaps swayed by Jun's serious expression, Xavier set aside his doubts and extended his hand.
Following Marshar's method, Jun carefully siphoned Xavier's mana into a cylinder.
With all preparations complete—and Aiden and Tairdin's wounds tended to—
the monstrous Derman began deploying new tactics.
Crack... cra cra ck...
Right after the siege failed, storm clouds had gathered. Now the sky revealed its true fury.
A downpour so thick visibility dropped to zero.
But to the mages' eyes, it was no mere rain.
"It's starting..."
Jun noticed first.
The rain falling across the entire island carried potent water-affinity mana—a phenomenon born of Derman and the Sea Serpent combining forces.
'In the game, it manifested as a field effect.'
Fighting inside it would amplify Derman and the Sea Serpent's power.
Sure enough, Xavier's artifact—which had been holding steady—began creaking again.
The attacks had grown even fiercer.
Judging they could delay no longer, Jun activated Mutantization without hesitation.