Chapter 40
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Witch's Forest (2)
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"Huff... huff! Senior! H-how much further do we have to carry this stuff?"
"Hmm..."
Jun pondered for a moment on how to respond to Aiden, who was sweating buckets like it was pouring rain.
"Until I say we're good?"
"Y-yes, sir!"
For a brief instant, memories of his military days flashed through his mind.
He wondered why the face of that brutal senior who had worked him to the bone suddenly popped up.
Jun quickly turned his thoughts away from the reason.
Aiden's working his ass off, poor guy.
Boom! Boom boom!
Thanks to that, countless magic cannons spat fire, visibly thinning out the number of holy knights pushing into the city.
But even that had its limits.
"Alright. Preparations are complete."
Of course, Jun hadn't just stood by watching Aiden toil away.
"There's a saying among mages: time is the mage's greatest enemy... and greatest ally."
Jun smiled as he gazed at the intricate magic circle etched into the floor.
"Top-grade mana stones. When else am I gonna get to burn through these like crazy?"
The magical preparations to counter the impending crisis were now finished.
Meanwhile, Weylin and his comrades had split into pairs, combing through the city like they owned the place, but they hadn't found a single lead.
"Where the hell are those bastards hiding?! There weren't even that many places to duck into during all that chaos!"
One of the hunters shouted in frustration.
And understandably so—this was a matter of their honor.
They'd boasted to the villagers, only to nearly get overrun by the enemy and end up needing help from the mercenaries they looked down on.
Yet here they were, unable to track down even the two who'd slipped away.
"Say something, will ya!"
Even as Bernard the hunter pressed him, Weylin seemed lost in deep thought, offering no real response.
"Ah, sorry. Got lost in my head for a sec."
"Hoo! Wasn't this all your idea? You said we'd give those damn politicians a smackdown!"
"Mm. True. But those guys were stronger than expected. Never thought a single spell would wipe them out like that."
"Our honor as Black Guards is in the dirt!"
"What can you do? We've gotta focus on the task at hand. Giving up just 'cause it's not going smooth is the dumbest move there is."
"Urgh..."
Knightly honor was his lifeblood, and he was stubborn as hell about it—but he was also quick to accept sound advice.
Still, there was no progress whatsoever.
Bernard wiped his face, staring at the empty ground.
"This is damn weird. They couldn't have slipped outside."
Judging by the traces in the cabin and the time of death of the corpses, they hadn't been gone long.
Entry marks were there, but no clear signs of them leaving.
"Wait. No exit traces...?"
Bernard snapped his fingers as an idea hit him.
"Weylin! That's it! They're still in the cabin!"
"What? There's no hiding spots in there. And didn't the mage keep scanning the whole time?"
"Secret passage!"
"Huh?"
"Your instincts are off too! There was a hidden tunnel leading underground in that cabin!"
It might sound crazy, but during his Black Guard days, that kind of thing was common.
"No traces after all this searching proves it! They knew this place somewhat from the start. The clue's gotta be in the cabin!"
The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
Maybe it was Bernard's confident vibe, but Weylin frowned in thought before nodding.
"Yeah, beats wandering around aimlessly like this."
"Good, let's move!"
The two bolted toward the cabin.
A level 2 adventurer who starts reinforcing their body with mana is considered beyond ordinary human limits.
They could cleave boulders with a sword or sprint faster than a carriage.
But it still wasn't superhuman.
"Goddamn, this is heavy!"
"Who the hell scatters mana stones all over like this?!"
"Quit bitching and run! Or those cultist freaks outside will swarm us!"
Colton and his mercenaries were pushing themselves to the brink, sweat pouring without a moment to wipe it.
They'd been hauling mana stones the size of three human heads—dozens of them now.
"Huff... huff! B-but that girl's hiding okay, right?"
"She better be! We can't be the only ones busting our asses!"
The girl they meant was Maya.
She'd been exempted from this grunt work. As the one who'd have to lead the charge against the Cheoncheon Church remnants, she needed to conserve her strength.
To lower the enemies' guard, Maya hadn't shown herself from the start.
Yet even as they scoured the city's buildings for mana stones...
She hadn't appeared once.
Colton broke into a cold sweat from needless worry.
"She's... hiding good... right?"
She had to be.
Damn Cheoncheon Church bastards. When you show up, Maya's gonna carve you up—get ready.
Reassuring himself, Colton shouldered the crushing mana stone and dashed through the city.
Contrary to Colton's prayers, Maya was nowhere near them.
"That makes five."
Muttering in her tribe's familiar tongue, she eyed the materials in her hand.
Before the operation kicked off, Jun had given her a separate order.
Gather "certain materials" scattered around the city.
"Three left now..."
The last one was in the cabin, so really just two more.
But she hit a snag immediately.
Clank. Clank.
The metallic clatter of iron boots echoed from the alley beside her.
Maya melted into the nearby shadows, mimicking the ambient energy.
She'd taken enemies from behind like this since layer 5.
Clank.
The figure emerging from the alley was a knight radiating holiness just by standing there.
His presence alone marked him as leagues above the hunters.
Maya watched silently from the shadows.
Dangerous.
Strong.
They hadn't even crossed blades, but she instinctively knew a powerhouse when she saw one.
To think she'd run into someone she couldn't guarantee victory over in layer 2.
But if she stayed hidden, there shouldn't be any—
"...!"
Whoosh—! Boom!!
Her instincts kicked in; she dropped camouflage and dodged. The knight's mace crashed where she'd been.
The shockwave alone crumbled the building behind it.
"How...?"
Her camouflage shattered instantly. She wondered at it briefly, then shook her head.
This was Blackout.
Variables popped up anywhere, anytime.
Having lived here her whole life, Maya quickly regained her cool.
"You dare interfere with our sacred ritual."
She didn't know the language, but she understood him perfectly.
Common in Blackout, so she ignored it.
"..."
She eyed the knight briefly, let a faint killing intent slip, then turned and fled.
No point fighting someone she couldn't beat—and even if she could, he wasn't her target.
People might think the ever-bloodthirsty Maya couldn't stay cold, but she always was.
That was how you survived here.
Once more, the knight's mace hurtled toward her back.
Despite the distance, the chain extended unnaturally, aiming dead center.
Kaboom—!!
Jun and Aiden spotted the rising dust cloud from afar.
"S-Senior? What was that sound just now?"
"Damn, trackers showed up after all."
"Trackers...?"
"Think of 'em like enemies tunneling in. Not our problem to handle, so focus on what we're doing."
"...Got it!"
If Jun said so, there had to be a reason.
Aiden resumed loading mana stones into the magic cannons.
But despite his efforts, changes stirred at the entrance too.
The holy knights were finally forcing their way in.
"Hm..."
Trackers inside the city, holy warriors at the gate.
Proof that phase 2 of the dungeon had begun.
"Faster than I thought. Well, the numbers are different from the normal clear, so can't be helped."
Normally, the hunters would be providing ranged support there, but prideful as they were, no way they'd accept that.
Leaving them free was part of Jun's plan anyway.
"Good. Nothing out of the ordinary yet."
He couldn't be sure yet how the Cheoncheon Church goons would factor in as variables, but for now, the priority was here.
Holy knights pressed on steadfastly through the barrage at the entrance.
Behind them, shield-bearing holy warriors followed, shields overhead.
Normally, magic cannons, ballistas, and archer arrows should've stopped them cold—but holy power wrapped around them, nullifying most attacks.
Cheat-level ability, for sure.
But.
Even that holy power had limits, no matter how invincible it seemed.
And the Erbonak Church's version had plenty of restrictions.
Buying time? I could handle that solo.
He channeled activation mana into the floor's magic circle.
The top-grade mana stone array responded, unleashing the stored spell.
"Time to feel that mage high again."
First up: lightning magic.
"[Lightning Call: Modified Form - Thundercloud]"
⟨ Lightning Magic ⟩
Black thunderclouds gathered in the sky, energy coalescing within.
Sensing the shift, perhaps—the holy knights under divine protection looked up.
Heaven's wrath struck down.
Rumble—!!
The same bolt that annihilated the Cheoncheon Church crew.
This one was nearly twice as big.
"Normally, overheat would've made this risky..."
But mana stones covered the load.
Jun only supplied a pittance of activation mana.
That was a mage's terror.
With time and resources, their bullshit power scaled insanely.
"Whew. Performs like a champ."
The result was devastation.
Only charred husks of Erbonak troops remained amid the crackling sparks.
Dozens of holy knights and warriors wiped in one spell.
That's the Erbonak Church's weakness.
Their divine defense was near-invincible under the right conditions.
But those conditions were finicky.
It took time for the holy power to adapt to incoming attacks.
That's why the initial magic cannons and arrows worked at first, then got blocked.
"Magic's different."
Dozens of circles scribbled across the floor.
Jun had predicted this, prepping ten per spell type.
"I could fight all day."
He flashed a chilling smile at the fearless new wave charging in.
"Goddamn, they just keep coming!"
An hour later.
As phase 3 kicked off, Jun ordered the retreat.