Chapter 32
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 32
Chapter Title: Disciple of Radiance (2)
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-Shwick!
Chris's sword sliced off Erzsebet's arm once more. But the instant he severed it, Chris urgently twisted his body to dodge the follow-up attack.
-Splurt!
A small blade made of blood grazed past Chris's face. It avoided his body, protected by the holy relic 'Arkam,' and aimed precisely for his eye. As a single drop of blood trickled from the wound, Erzsebet flicked her finger.
-Splatter!
"Guh?!"
Blood then gushed violently from Chris's wound. A massive volume erupted from within, forcibly tearing the injury open, and the spurting blood fell under Erzsebet's control, morphing into a sharp blade that turned to stab its master.
"Light... grant your healing grace!"
Luna, witnessing the scene, hurriedly channeled holy power. The writhing blood lost its strength and plummeted, while Chris's wound slowly began to knit closed.
"Fire Storm!"
Seizing the opening as Chris desperately put distance between him and Erzsebet, Sera raised her staff to unleash her magic—not once, but a whopping five times in rapid succession.
The holy relic 'Echo.' A staff that allowed her to repeat cast spells anywhere from two to five times. Borrowing its power, Sera incinerated the spot where Erzsebet had stood in an instant, then watched the fiery pit with tense eyes.
-Splatter...
"Monster...!"
But from within the blaze, the incinerated and vaporized blood turned into a red mist, and soon an unscathed demon emerged from the fog.
"This is intriguing. It's not even clothes made from my blood, so why are these shoes sticking to me..."
Watching her show no reaction to their attacks—indeed, focusing only on the pristine white shoes she wore—ignited a raging fire in their chests.
"What kind of freak is that? Are dungeon monsters normally like this?"
"My arrows aren't working either."
Lily had fired arrows intermittently, but each was blocked by a red barrier. The only attacks that landed were Chris's aura strikes and Sera's magic via Echo. No—even those were regenerating constantly, making it feel like nothing was getting through.
"Chris. We might... have to use this."
"...Yeah, looks like it."
Finally weary of the drawn-out stalemate, the heroes resolved to use their trump card. Chris signaled Luna with his eyes, and she nodded in understanding, pulling a small bracelet from her bosom.
"Let's see if it regenerates even if I cut off its head!"
With deliberate exaggeration, Chris drew Durandal and charged at Erzsebet. Having learned from experience that ranged attacks didn't work, she raised her blood-forged sword.
"What a tiresome foe. I have to hold a weapon in my hand myself just to deal damage..."
Tsking in annoyance, Erzsebet didn't dodge Chris's attack and swung her sword instead. Chris evaded the blade as before and thrust Durandal toward her neck, but...
"Predictable."
"Kuh?!"
-Shwick!!
The sword in Erzsebet's hand writhed, rapidly shifting form into a massive scythe. Chris barely twisted away, taking the blow on his body clad in the holy relic 'Arkam,' but the enormous impact shattered bones with a resounding crack.
"Krgh?!"
Blood nearly surged up his throat, but Chris barely held it back. Given the demon's abilities he'd seen so far, exposing blood externally was a bad move.
"Chris! Damn it!"
Sera urgently tried to cast a follow-up spell to block, but Erzsebet vaporized her body into blood mist and effortlessly evaded the magic.
"Your abilities are decent enough, but you're sorely lacking in real combat experience. Falling for the sword's visible form like that."
Lightly stepping on the fallen Chris's neck, Erzsebet raised her blood-forged great scythe to finish him.
-Flash!
"?!?!"
The moment Erzsebet swung down the great scythe, an ominous light burst from Luna's bracelet. Her expression hardening, she instantly extended the scythe's reach toward Luna, but it was too late.
The bracelet-form holy relic 'Largo.' Its power was...
'Target Seal.'
-Flash!!
The light from the bracelet enveloped Erzsebet, and in an instant, her form vanished. The great scythe that had reached Luna's neck disappeared with it.
"...Phew..."
"Who'd have thought we'd use Largo on a mere minion instead of the Dungeon Master..."
"No choice. We didn't expect a monster with such freakish regeneration."
With Erzsebet gone, the heroes let out sighs of relief. Largo, capable of sealing any foe no matter how mighty, was their ace in the hole. Of course, the seal's duration varied by the target's 'rank,' but even the quickest demon to break free had taken a full day—meaning they wouldn't see this one for a while.
They'd meant to save it for the Dungeon Master... but no helping it. They'd planned to use Largo against any foe they couldn't face head-on anyway.
"...So how strong is the Dungeon Master, then?"
For a mere minion to be this strong... just what kind of being was the Dungeon Master commanding such subordinates...?
-Rustle.
"Where the hell did it go... Hm?"
And then, someone emerged from between the bushes.
'People...?'
Erzsebet had said the kin connection was severed and she'd be back shortly, but she never returned no matter how long I waited. So I'd slowly teleported to her position on the [Quick Movement] map. Just in case she was busy, I held off on moving her.
Arriving at her location... I spotted some humans.
"Half-breed...? Don't tell me?!"
The four men and women, seemingly taking a breather, spotted me emerging from the bushes—precisely, my hair—and their faces instantly hardened as they raised their weapons.
'Ah, fuck. Again?'
Having dealt with similar situations multiple times in this short period, I wasn't even that fazed anymore and immediately drew my [High-Pressure Cleaner]. From my experience so far, not a single bastard who'd entered these ruins had been friendly. These guys looked the same.
-Pshoo!!
I could figure out the situation later. First, I had to save my own skin. For any contingency, I always carried the [High-Pressure Cleaner] in hand now, aiming its grip at the lead man and firing.
Seeing Eugene raise what looked like a staff(?), Chris charged in swiftly.
'Black-haired half-breed demon. Unusually pristine attire. Just like the reports from heroes who survived this dungeon!'
To think a demon would appear right after sealing one. Had it been watching the fight? The timing was too perfect for coincidence.
'It probed our abilities and wore us down by throwing in a subordinate...!'
Recalling what his master had taught him about demons' tactics in dungeons, Chris shuddered at their viciousness but moved without hesitation.
According to intel, this dungeon's boss was a mage. A demon specializing in incredibly fast water magic.
From the hunting party that first discovered it and subsequent heroes who'd challenged it, the demon's main offense was magic. In that case...
'Arkam makes ranged attacks no threat to me!'
The holy relic Arkam, which warped the trajectory of all incoming 'attacks' from afar. With it, he could stroll through arrow barrages and magic storms. And as per reports, the suddenly appearing half-breed demon drew a staff and began casting immediately.
If it'd watched the prior battle, it should know ranged attacks wouldn't work. Yet it attacked anyway—overconfidence? No matter. Before his holy relic...
-Thwack!!
"Gahk!?!?"
Chris, having charged while thinking that far, was struck by something and sent tumbling backward. Clutching his body in agony as he rose, he realized what had hit him.
And from his armor, a stream of dripping water poured down.
"Magic...? How in the world!"
The holy relic's invincible protection against ranged 'attacks' had been pierced. Chris bellowed in shock.
'What kind of magic is that.'
Not grasping why Chris was freaking out, Eugene clicked his tongue at the man who'd weathered his attack unscathed. Was it that armor? The [High-Pressure Cleaner] that shredded other humans like paper only managed to shove this guy back.
No, managing to push him was lucky. Considering the speed at which that man lunged the moment he spotted him... he'd nearly been neatly sliced in an instant.
-Thwack!
'Kuh?!'
As he started to exhale in slight relief, excruciating pain surged from his shoulder. Barely stifling a groan, he looked down to see an unnoticed arrow had slipped past his [Janitor's Outfit] and was sliding off.
As tested before, the outfit itself wouldn't tear at all, so it had blocked the arrow... but fuck, it hurt!
"Kuh. What kind of body...!"
Lily, who had fired the arrow from behind, tsked at the sight of it glancing harmlessly off the man's skin (no, his clothes). The earlier woman had at least blocked with a barrier, but this monster took it straight on?
Even with the strength of a 2-star hero like her!
-Pshoo!
"Light, protect us!"
As the demon raised his staff again, Luna hurriedly erected a barrier this time. An invisible high-speed water jet slammed into it, cracking the pristine white shield with fissures.
"Kuh. Incredible power...!"
"Get back! I'll block it!"
With the barrier on the verge of shattering, Sera from the rear raised the ring on her finger. The ring-form holy relic 'Tam,' which erased all magic it touched. Just as it had nullified the dungeon's barrier on entry, she'd wipe out this man's magic too.
'The trajectory's obvious!'
The water jets fired twice had shot in straight lines from the tip of the staff he raised. Focusing on that staff would let her predict the magic's path.
-Pshoo!!
'Now!'
The moment the half-breed demon's hand moved, Sera, having predicted the spell's trajectory, raised her ring. Whether magi or mana, if it produced a 'magical effect,' the relic instantly nullified it. No matter how strong or fast the opponent's magic, the moment it touched the ring, its power vanished.
Yes. If it was 'magic.'
-Thwack!
".....Huh?"
A sound like raw meat exploding echoed. And instead of the shot transparent water jet, red liquid pooled on the ground.
"Wha... uh... ahh...!"
Sera uttered incomplete words as she looked down at the arm where her ring had 'been' moments ago.
There was nothing. No ring, no fingers, not even her hand.