Chapter 124
Chapter 124
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 124
Chapter Title: The Hydra's Lair
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The inside of the cave was far from the typical dungeon one might imagine.
Light Stones embedded densely into the ceiling drove away the darkness within, shining brightly, and the well-maintained path made it seem like it was built specifically to welcome visitors.
'Can this really be called a dungeon?'
There wasn't a single monster, not even a common trap to be found.
How much further did they press on?
Suddenly, an impossibly vast plaza opened up—one that belied the narrow entrance to the cave.
"Where's this?"
"Beats me... but can we just head back for now?"
Saladin whispered in a low voice, his tone brimming with desperate reluctance to face whatever trouble lay ahead.
And it was no wonder.
The vast plaza wasn't empty.
Far from it—it was packed full.
The host must have been deadly serious about entertaining guests, because a massive Hydra species with nine heads filled the entire space with its bulk.
No surprise, then, that this slacker wanted to bolt.
But I crushed Saladin's hopes without mercy.
"Too late for that, I think."
Because eighteen eyes attached to that monster's massive heads were staring right down at us.
"...Ah, fuck."
The moment Saladin spat out his curse,
KRAAAAAARRGH!!!
The Hydra's nine heads began roaring in unison.
Boom!
One of the Hydra's heads whipped its serpentine neck like a lash.
"Hmph!"
Slash!
Just like against the drake, Beskin cleanly severed the head.
Whoosh!
Being an artificial lifeform created by magic, the severed head turned to dust and vanished in an instant.
"Eight left now... Hm?"
Seeing the head disappear, Beskin turned to slice another—but his eyes went wide.
Bubble bubble!
The stump where the head had been severed bubbled furiously, and soon a new head sprouted.
"Then we'll just burn the others."
Roar!
"Flames! Burn my foes without mercy! Inferno!!"
⟨ Inferno ⟩
Seth and Aria's flames shot toward the Hydra's other heads.
Boom boom!
The two struck heads burned, releasing a foul stench—but only for a moment.
The charred heads crumbled to ash like the one Beskin had sliced, then bubbled as they began regenerating new ones.
Fwoooosh!
Golden aura rippled from my body.
Vajra Body.
"Saladin! Mimi, Nene—with him, cut off the heads!"
I shouted to Saladin and kicked off the cavern wall, launching toward the Hydra's heads.
KRAAAAARGH!
A grotesque head lunged at me with a bellow, swallowing me whole.
Boom!
In that instant, I exploded its head from within and leaped to another.
My legs, swollen thick with bulging muscles, slammed full force into the Hydra's head.
Crack!
KYAAAARGH!
As the head crumpled in agony, Beskin sliced it off.
I slid down its body, riding the stump of the severed neck.
"Saladin! 'Thread'!"
"You sure ask for a lot!"
Halt!
As Saladin's hands moved busily, the Hydra's body froze for a split second.
"Flame!!"
⟨ Blazing Fire / Flame ⟩
Aria and Seth's flames scorched the Hydra's heads once more.
That left five heads, including the three that had just regenerated.
Mimi's dagger shredded one of the remaining heads, while Nene's poison melted another.
Three left.
But the Hydra wasn't stupid—it desperately guarded its remaining heads.
While it stalled, the severed heads began regrowing bit by bit.
"...!!"
"Now I get why there are no other monsters here."
Saladin muttered in dismay.
He was right. The Hydra was a pain not just because of its size—its regeneration made it a nightmare to fight.
Unless all nine heads were severed at once, it wouldn't die. No wonder most wouldn't even try.
'Of course, that's for ordinary folk.'
KYAAAARGH!
Realizing the party's strength was no joke, the beast changed tactics.
All nine mouths gathered breaths of different attributes.
Fire, water, lightning, poison... every element under the sun.
"Everyone, fall back."
They were all powerhouses, but injuries weren't an option.
If it had to be done in one go, I was better off alone.
"Young master! Alone is too danger—!"
"C'mon, miss. Pull back."
Aria looked worried, but Saladin waved it off casually as he retreated.
"Trust him. That pretty boy's tougher than he looks."
Rumble rumble rumble!
Steel boiled up from deep within my body.
My pale skin was gradually covered in steel rising through it, turning black.
But that was just the start.
Invisible to others, even my internal organs were hardening into steel, freeing me from all poisons.
Stage 3: Iron Organ.
The absolute defense I'd achieved in my past life.
The Hydra's breath was strong, but nothing compared to Aria von Wendinel's spells from back then.
The golden aura cloaking my body deepened.
Deeper still, until it looked almost black in its density.
Creak.
Unprecedented power for propulsion surged into my coiled legs.
Whoosh!
As the Hydra unleashed its breaths at me, I sprang forward.
Blackened, I pierced its volley like a cannonball and began ripping the heads off one by one.
Clawing.
Tearing.
Smashing.
Slicing.
Biting.
Exploding.
Slapping.
Kicking.
Crushing.
A technique built purely for offense on the foundation of Vajra Body.
Boom boom boom!
With all nine heads gone, the Hydra's body dissolved into smoke like the severed ones.
Land!
I floated down gracefully to the ground and cracked my neck side to side.
'Mm, Vajra Yaksha really does strain the body.'
Sure, compared to my fragile days unleashing Vortex, it wasn't much.
Still, its extreme offense left defense feeling lacking.
'Plenty of room for improvement.'
"Whew. That your ace?"
Saladin whistled in admiration.
Who'd have thought he'd burst all nine heads at once?
It looked easy, but those heads regenerated fast—even five of them couldn't finish it in a moment.
To dispatch such a monster so casually...
'He's turning into a monster himself.'
Looks like I'd have to step up my game too.
As Saladin reflected, Aria approached slowly.
"...Young Master Jerome. I think I know whose dungeon this is."
Even after slaying the Hydra, her expression remained grim.
'The owner must be that dangerous.'
Aria gazed at the spot where the Hydra had vanished.
"That Hydra you just took down... I have an idea what it was."
"Dunno. Never seen a special breed with multiple heads like that."
Aria sighed at my response.
"Nine heads that regenerate when severed... That's a hydra, a monster from legend. In short, an artificially created beast."
Artificial monster.
My face hardened.
Like the Empire's elite monster legions.
"...A chimera, you mean?"
"Yes. And in continental history, there's only one mage who crafted chimeras that precisely."
No need to ask who.
Who wouldn't know that name?
The monster legions born from his chimera methods had plagued the alliance nations endlessly.
"...Zenos."
The greatest mage in human history—and the maddest.
Clap clap clap!
A sparse applause echoed from the opposite side of the plaza.
"Heh heh heh! Toppling a hydra, no less. Impressive. And figuring out my identity from that alone? For intruders, you're remarkably sharp kids."
"!"
Everyone turned to see an old man lounging idly in a rocking chair, an intrigued look on his face.
Marquis Schopf was renowned in the Holy Empire for his near-obsessive neatness.
Pomade that allowed not a single hair out of place.
Swordplay so restrained no enemy blood ever touched him.
A flawless uniform without a single wrinkle.
The model noble.
All symbols of the marquis who guarded Vatican City's outer walls.
But right now...
None of those symbols remained intact.
"Huff... huff..."
His pomaded hair was a wild mess.
His wrinkle-free uniform was caked in dirt, torn beyond recognition.
His body was soaked not in enemy blood, but his own from countless small wounds.
No trace of the exemplary noble's dignity.
And he wasn't the only one disheveled.
Transmission Hall's Gott and Twin Fish Hall's Boer had long lost their high priestly grace.
"Damn it all! What the hell is this?!"
Boer, bloodied and clutching his iron rod, raged.
"......"
Gott glared at the old man while adjusting the claws on his hands.
One of the Four Marquises and two of the Twelve Archbishops.
Power even a Grand Duke couldn't ignore lightly.
So they hadn't worried much about the Dragon Mountains, dubbed the continent's forbidden zone.
They'd long surpassed the level where mere monsters posed a threat.
But this was different.
The old man who appeared out of nowhere wasn't some monster.
Nor could he really be called human.
"Heh heh heh. You sure know how to throw a tantrum."
The old man grinned creepily.
"Fitting for lackeys of that cursed Holy Empire. Makes sense—you need this much grit to steal my work."
'Work?'
Schopf caught the hint in the old man's words.
"Work? What do you mean?"
"Hm?"
The old man looked puzzled at Schopf's reaction.
"You didn't come to steal my Gu Poison?"
"...Gu Poison?"
"Ah, maybe not. Then you must be after the wyverns?"
From the old man's words, Schopf pieced together his identity.
Unlike Archbishops like Livia, Schopf was a key lord of the Empire's core houses.
Imperial history was basic knowledge.
He knew what Gu Poison meant.
If the old man was who Schopf suspected, Ibarella never would have spouted nonsense about wyvern knights from the start.
Schopf felt a crick in his neck.
"...Seems there's a misunderstanding. We're only here for wyvern eggs."
Schopf stated their goal briefly and clearly.
"Hm! I see. So you're after the byproducts of my creations."
Seeing the old man's reaction, Schopf thought it could be resolved easily.
'All for His Highness the First Prince.'
No gain in fighting this old man to the bitter end.
Schopf told himself it was to avoid hassle, not fear.
"Exactly. We have no interest in wyverns. Just a minor misunderstanding—why spill more blood? Shall we call it here?"
The old man nodded vigorously, as if agreeing wholeheartedly.
But then.
"Sorry, can't do that."
Things didn't go Schopf's way.
"What...!"
"You're right, of course. No need to kill you if you don't touch my work. But."
The old man bared his teeth in a white grin.
"Powerhouses like you must hold important roles even in that repulsive Holy Empire. So why would I pass up this golden chance to stick it to them?"
"...!!"
"Don't feel too hard done by. I planned to wipe the Empire off the map once my vow is fulfilled anyway."
"...Hoo."
Schopf lowered his sword and caught his breath.
No avoiding the fight now.
But first, one thing to confirm.
"...Just one question. Has anyone else besides us entered these mountains?"
The old man drew mana as he answered.
"Eh, last wish before death? Fine. No one from Holy Empire territory has crossed over. The cyclopes' lands or orc territories, sure, but—"
His words cut short unfinished.
"...IBARELLLAAAAA!! You fucking bitch!!!!!!"
Because Marquis Schopf screamed with bloodshot eyes.