Chapter 118: How to Catch a Monster (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 118: How to Catch a Monster (2)
Let's rewind time a little.
This was back when we were returning to the Sohen Public Security Headquarters after arresting Maria.
The Consul had given an order.
“Magistrate, seal the stairs.”
He allocated his forces this way because he’d realized the Labyrinth's eruption wasn't as severe as it could be. We had to lay down magic in front of the stairs now and seal the gate to prevent any more monsters from coming through.
And as for me…
“Excuse me, but would it be possible for the Deep Layer members to handle that?”
I made the suggestion to the Consul, but it didn't land at all.
“Deploying that much power to the stairs would be a waste, Caleb.”
“…”
“Is there something you’re worried about?” Isilof asked.
“Yes. But I’m not certain.”
In truth, it was less of a worry and more of a tactical insurance policy.
If I could move these people myself, that’s how I would have distributed our positions.
But honestly, Meldini and Isilof probably wouldn't go, since they had to save Dalstream.
The Consul wasn't about to stand guard at the stairs while the Public Security Headquarters was under direct attack.
And Krom was seeing red, on his way to beat the crap out of the White Lion…
“Would you two be willing to take on the task?”
I asked Nimue, the Frostian Deep Layer mage, and Rococo, the former cardinal of the Sanfriel Temple.
Rococo’s expression hardened, looking dumbfounded, while Nimue burst out laughing.
“Puhahaha!”
She slapped Krom’s shoulder repeatedly and shouted.
“You let this kid walk all over you, and now he's looking down on Deep Layer adventurers! What are we gonna do? You take responsibility for this!”
“Shit… You little brat. You think you're in any position to be giving orders here?” Krom growled instantly.
Dammit.
I knew this would happen.
“However.”
Huh?
“It might not be a bad idea.”
Krom looked at his party members.
“You two, go to the stairs.”
“Have you finally lost your mind, Krom?”
The former cardinal’s face was stern, but then his expression shifted as if he’d remembered something.
“You know why.”
Krom glanced at me again.
“I can assume you came from ‘there,’ right? I’ll trust you on this.”
So, Krom still thought I was a member of the Assembly.
It seemed he thought some internal conflict had occurred within the Assembly, leading to the White Lion casting me out.
That’s why he was guessing I knew something about this incident.
“A scheming little punk like him must have a reason for wanting to place Deep Layer members at the stairs. Let’s hear him out.”
“…”
“Heeey. Looks like our Krom might have a thing for Caleb.”
“Shut the hell up!”
“You’re mid-layer now, so I’ll permit the relationship. Have a nice life together.”
“Rococo! You too?!”
“…”
Their party is a bit of a mess, too.
Still, I was grateful.
“In that case, there’s one thing I need you to prepare after you take the stairs.”
[Stair Scroll]
The moment the White Lion pulled a scroll from his palm, I took one out as well.
It was something Back Attack had brought from the Public Security Headquarters’ supply depot. Of course, a poor organization like the Public Security Headquarters is strict about managing its supplies, so not just anyone can access them.
Even if a party member of a decorated Civil Constable came and requested it for an emergency, they’d still be wary at first.
But it wasn't anything major, just a Stair Scroll.
It might be a bit pricey, but I figured they’d hand it over since there was little chance of it being used for anything dangerous.
But, Back Attack. I told you to bring two, why’d you only bring one?
“Move.”
I’m reminded once again: psychokinesis teleporters are gods.
If the White Lion was determined to escape, stopping him from teleporting to his designated location would be nearly impossible.
Unless you trapped him in something like an Ethereal Lake.
They’re a Deep Layer mage and a cardinal-level priest, so they must have everything ready.
Back when I, Dalstream, and the White Lion were all trapped together in Dalstream’s spherical Ethereal Lake prison.
If things had gone south, I was planning to use a turn-based command to have Yernil fire a magic-infused projectile from the Stair Scroll.
To send the White Lion straight to the stairs.
And if that wasn't feasible, to let myself or Dalstream escape to the stairs.
I’d told him to bring two just in case, but was there only one in stock?
It didn't matter.
As it happened, I had another spare scroll.
[Resurrection Scroll]
This was the scroll that came as a set with the soul preservation cast on me by the Order of Nathaniel during the so-called 'Operation Caleb Bait'.
Besides, all scrolls look more or less the same from the outside.
I just needed to make the White Lion mistake it for a moment.
“Move.”
It was a long and winding road, but we finally made it here.
The White Lion’s legs had given out due to the superconductivity, but he was forcefully extending his left hand forward.
In front of it was the Designated Coordinate Transfer Scroll he had just dropped.
I bring that one over.
While placing the Stair Scroll in its place.
The order is: the White Lion’s left hand, the Stair Scroll, the Resurrection Scroll, and then Professor Dalstream, all in a straight line.
So that when time flows again, the White Lion’s left hand will grab the scrolls and touch Dalstream.
“Move.”
Now that he’s been hit with superconductivity, how about Professor Dalstream finishes the White Lion off right here?
Not a bad idea.
But let’s play it safer.
If this were a monster I’d faced in the game, I could at least calculate its DPS and health, but that’s difficult right now.
He looks like he’s about to die, but there are too many unknowns.
Using my most powerful spell with 2 Action Points probably wouldn't do much, and Back Attack and Aimus wouldn't be much help either.
Rather than having a retired old professor fight alone while protecting three mid-layer adventurers, two Deep Layer members in their prime would be better. Besides, they would have already finished their preparations.
“Move.”
If Krom, the Consul, or the professors had arrived earlier, I wouldn't have had to resort to this. But since they still haven't shown up, they must have their own circumstances to deal with, right?
“Move.”
From the White Lion’s perspective, I turn the scroll over so its back is facing him.
So he can’t tell if it’s a Stair Scroll or a Designated Coordinate Transfer Scroll.
Of course, the White Lion is also pushed to his limit, so he probably doesn't have the energy to distinguish between scrolls anyway.
[Your Turn. Time Remaining: 23 seconds]
[Action Points: ■□]
And there was one more thing I wanted to find out with this method.
Where this bastard’s hideout is.
“Move.”
If I take the Designated Coordinate Transfer Scroll and read it, I’ll know.
Where in the university he was hiding…
[Designated Coordinate Transfer Scroll]
▶ Magic University Dean’s Office
Hmm.
I had a feeling, but confirming it is even more chilling.
Just what kind of monster's den have I been living in?
“Move.”
After this is all over, the atmosphere at the university, and in Sohen, is going to change a lot.
[All Action Points have been consumed.]
[Ending Turn.]
Zzzzzap!
The demon’s left hand, which had collapsed from the electric shock, flew forward.
Like swatting a gnat in mid-air and slamming it against a wall.
Slap!
His palm pressed against the two scrolls and continued forward, sticking to Dalstream’s forearm. For this type of magic scroll, when casting it with another person, one must hold two scrolls and make contact with the target’s skin.
It worked!
For a moment, elation spread across the monster’s face.
He had struggled through a hellish battle, but in the end, victory was his.
Once he took matters into his own hands, he would never fail.
He was the first son, reborn in the Labyrinth.
“It’s over…”
The White Lion’s body began to teleport, shimmering like a heat haze.
But Dalstream’s was not.
“…What…?”
By the time he realized something was wrong, it was already too late.
He couldn't fathom what kind of mysterious magic had caused this situation.
Even for a demon who had experienced tens of thousands of spells, this was a first. He felt a sense of cognitive dissonance, just like when the Corpse Explosion scrolls had suddenly swarmed the knife fragments.
When he instinctively turned his head, he saw the two Designated Coordinate Transfer Scrolls in the genius wizard’s grasp.
“You son of a…”
The White Lion teleported.
To the stairs.
In his place, only the unactivated Resurrection Scroll fell, dropping limply to the ground.
“Gasp!”
Yernil shot up from her sickbed in the Nathaniel Temple.
“You’re awake?”
Priest Mikhail, who happened to be checking on the patients, greeted her.
“The… the lion monster stabbed me in the stomach… I collapsed…?”
“That’s right. But thankfully, some Deep Layer adventurers arrived at the right time and rescued you.”
“What about my party members?”
“Probably…”
Mikhail stroked his chin.
“I believe they’re with the Deep Layer adventurers, hunting that monster.”
“What…”
Yernil screamed.
“What did you sayyyy!”
As Yernil tried to get up, a startled Priest Mikhail held her down.
“You need to stay in bed.”
“What about Caleb!?”
“Please don’t worry too much. The Deep Layer adventurers are with him, so he won’t be in danger. There are three university professors, the Consul, and even Krom.”
But those words made Yernil’s heart sink.
“With… people like that around, why… why is Caleb fighting?”
She couldn't understand.
Caleb wouldn't have made that kind of decision.
Sure, he had jumped into the Ethereal Lake to save Professor Dalstream, but that was because there was no one else around to help.
No way.
Maybe Caleb…
“Is… is he dead…?”
All the strength drained from Yernil’s body.
It was possible.
He was the kind of person who always fought in the most dangerous places, the kind who seemed like he could just vanish one day.
He must have failed to escape the Ethereal Lake and died.
That’s why Aimus and Back Attack were filled with rage and joined the Deep Layer battle!
“Caleb is safe.”
She was wrong.
“He’s safe?”
The tears that had been welling up in Yernil’s eyes receded.
“Yes. And he was the first one to step up to catch that monster.”
“Why… Why would he…”
“Well.”
Mikhail chuckled and shrugged.
“Because you got hurt?”
“…?”
“He himself claimed to be calm and rational, but… well. Both Neko and I thought he seemed extremely… agitated.”
“He… he did?”
Mikhail placed a bottle of healing potion to Yernil’s lips.
“Yes. You have a wonderful team,” he said.
“I saw some wonderful camaraderie. And don’t worry too much. As I said, there are plenty of Deep Layer adventurers there.”
“I have to go.”
Yernil chugged the potion and tried to get up, but Mikhail gently pushed her back down.
“Just lie still. It’s probably all over by now.”
In the Labyrinth Union’s underground stair room, two Deep Layer adventurers were sitting and waiting.
The beautiful woman with blue skin and long, flowing, light-blue hair was a Frostian from the northern frigid regions.
The Deep Layer mage, Nimue.
Seeing the monster suddenly summoned before the stair room, she clapped her hands together.
“He really came.”
It was the White Lion.
The monster, with one arm blown off and on the verge of death, had been teleported here.
Just as Caleb had predicted might happen.
“Hah…”
The moment he arrived, the White Lion shivered from the immense cold that assaulted him.
The entire stair room was covered in ice.
A Tier 8 binding spell, ‘Prison of Permafrost.’
It was a spell with a long casting time, but Nimue had finished setting it up a long time ago.
“Freeze.”
The spell, which activated with a single, simple incantation, instantly froze its target.
This was a Tier 8 severe cold status effect, on a completely different level from a mere ice magic freeze; it trapped the target in a mystical layer of permafrost, sealing them for eternity.
That glacier could not be destroyed by ordinary means, and it would never melt.