Chapter 6:
The Greedy Alchemist
Jet led us to a giant building.
The Adventurers’ Guild looked small in comparison, and its facade had the dignified look of a fortress. It could easily hold a thousand people. This was the Alchemists’ Guild.
“There are a lot of adventurers here,” Fran said as she surveyed the free-for-all in front of the guild hall.
I recognized the adventurers from their gear…but who were they fighting? They looked like Fiends, although the lack of life in their eyes made me think they were Undead. And yet, I could sense their hearts beating.
I Identified them as we approached. The adventurers were fighting creatures called Hellions. I’d never seen them before, and Fran was just as clueless. They were under the status ailment Damaged. I knew Poison, Paralyze, and Possessed, but what was Damaged?
Let’s get an adventurer to tell us what’s going on.
“Hm.”
“Woof!”
I noticed a familiar face as we got closer. Eugene the Alchemist was with the adventurers, shooting spells at the shambling Hellions.
“Eugene?”
“Fran!”
“What happened here?”
“Before that, I must apologize.”
Eugene rushed to our side, looking sullen. His laboratory was raided not an hour ago. The attackers had turned into Fiends that went berserk in the guild and charged into his lab. They stole only one thing.
“They took the Soul Essence you gave me…”
Did the YTA want their Soul Essence back…? No, Zelyse had his eyes on the Soul Essence from the beginning. It was probably his doing.
“I recognized an alchemist among the Fiends rampaging through the guild hall.”
Eugene had gathered a team of adventurers for his excursion to the Alchemists’ Guild. When they got here, a swarm of shambling Hellions came to greet them.
“We managed to rescue some of the alchemists. When I asked them what happened, they said that it was an illegal alchemical experiment gone awry, courtesy of the high masters. They’ve also been sheltering my foolish pupil.”
The High Alchemists intended to use Zelyse to further their own ends. Instead, he poisoned them and took control of the entire guild. To make matters worse, he had run out of slaves to experiment on and had taken to using the apprentice alchemists instead.
His illegal research was called Human Hellion Studies—the same twisted experiments that Eugene had taken the fall for. Zelyse was grafting crystals into people to see if they could gain their power. Although he was supposed to have been exiled and had his research destroyed, some of the high alchemists thought it a shame to waste such promising research. They sheltered Zelyse and carried on his experiments. The research would prove valuable if they succeeded—they could’ve sold it to the country or the army for a dear price.
“So these used to be alchemists?”
“Yes… I asked the adventurers to see if removing the crystal would save them…”
Eugene had tried everything from Cleansing Magic, Healing Magic, surgery, and good old-fashioned Skill barrages to remove the crystal. None of it worked. Destroying, or even removing, a crystal would kill the person it was attached to. They were no different from monsters.
“They can’t talk?”
“They’ve lost their minds. All they can do now is rage.”
Theraclede had retained his speech. Were Fiends capable of receiving a crystal implant?
“Half of them were already crawling out of the guild hall… All we can do is surround the guild to contain the rest.”
Subduing the rampaging Hellions proved difficult. As weak as they were, the former alchemists had retained their ability to use magic. Telling the adventurers to “incapacitate” these creatures was no better than a death sentence. Removing the crystal implant was only worth trying if they happened to accidentally knock a Hellion out.
“So we have to kill them?”
“Yes.”
We had no choice. It was unfortunate, but we were running out of time. We had to work fast.
Teacher, go for the crystal.
You’re right.
Fran brandished me and charged through the horde of hellions. I felt the familiar sensation of crystal absorption. However, I didn’t gain the creature’s skills. The stone had been artificially attached, so that could be the reason. To make things worse, I only gained one point of crystal for my trouble.
Let’s get this over with.
“Hm.”
Fran charged through the horde again, but every hellion I cut down only yielded a single crystal. Unfortunate. Suddenly, a new creature with a slightly different look appeared.
“It’s strong.”
Its stats are up there, too. And it’s not in a Damaged state.
This thing was much faster and stronger than the others. It also had a single point in Sword Mastery. Fran took it down in an instant, but it was still tougher than all the rest. I got three crystal pieces out of it. Was that what Damaged was supposed to indicate? Perhaps Damaged meant that the creature was weak and didn’t yield much crystal. It could also refer to the state of the crystal itself.
That took care of most of the hellions outside. I was about to barge through the Alchemists’ Guild door, but I didn’t detect any signs of life coming from inside. If there was anything alive in there, they weren’t that strong. So why was I getting a bad feeling about it…?
Jet felt it, too.
“Grrr…”
He crouched in front of the guild doors and growled.
What is it, Jet?
“Bark, bark!”
“Something’s coming.”
I can’t feel a thing…
I deferred to Fran and Jet’s judgment, despite not detecting anything. Their senses were much sharper than mine.
“We’ll be ready when it comes out.”
Right!
We waited for a minute before I finally felt the encroaching presence. Its aura was faint, and its mana output felt weak. Strangely, I knew that the creature was strong. My Danger Sense triggered with each step it took. What interested me most was how unnatural the creature was. It did not feel like a living thing but like a crawling mass of mana. My questions were answered when the creature showed itself.
Is that a Golem? Looks like it has Identity Protection, too.
Even with Heavensight, I only managed to scan the creature’s name: Crystal Golem.
“Grr.”
Here it comes! Get ready!
“Hm!”
The Crystal Golem looked intimidating as it ran down the steps of the Alchemists’ Guild. Its hulking body was formed from crimson crystal, and it looked like an armored gorilla with its long arms and short legs.
We felt no life flow through it. It really was a Golem.
As we watched its movements, the Golem raised its right arm. Without warning, it blasted a beam of red light. It had Flame Magic. Flare Blast, to be exact. The ray of fire blazed across the battleground.
There was no time to prepare! As we puzzled over its existence, the creature seized its chance and blasted us with magic. With that much power, the Crystal Golem might raze the neighborhood.
Damn it!
“Hang in there!”
We frantically cast Healing Magic all around us. We were just in time, and no one lost their life. Thankfully, no one had taken a direct hit.
“Raaagh!”
“Take that thing down!”
The adventurers charged towards the Crystal Golem and started hacking away at it. However, their attacks barely fazed it, despite its lack of magical barriers or defensive spells.
“What is this thing made of?!”
“It’s worse than cutting rocks!”
The Crystal Golem was rock hard. The swords of low-rank adventurers barely grazed the creature’s crystalline skin. All they did was make it easier for the thing to blast them with another beam of flame. Several people caught fire and rolled on the ground desperately. We managed to heal them, but if we didn’t take this thing down soon, there would be casualties.
“Hey, there. How do you like my Crystal Golem?”
“Hm?”
What is that? A hologram? Is he using Illusion Magic?
A man appeared between us and the golem just as we were closing in on it. I thought he’d warped here, but it was a mirage. The figure was see-through, and bits of mana static interrupted his broadcast.
The man was irritatingly handsome. He was in his mid-twenties, by my count. His blonde hair and blue eyes gave him a princely appearance, despite his short stature.
“Who are you?”
“Zelyse!” Eugene’s shocked cry revealed the newcomer’s identity.
“It’s been a long time, Master.”
So this was Zelyse? He was younger than I thought and didn’t look anything like I imagined. I thought he would be a seedy-looking researcher type in his mid-forties.
“You haven’t changed a bit.”
“Being a Magus has its perks.”
So his youth was a product of his race.
“What happened to the alchemists? Was that your doing?”
“Yes. All failed experiments of crystal grafting. It appears that even if you manage to graft a crystal onto a human, they need to be strong enough to take it, both physically and mentally. My weaker subjects died immediately. The luckier ones merely went brain dead. I’ve seen necromancers raise livelier zombies. Well, at least they’re easy to control.”
Zelyse boasted about his crimes as if they were medals. He was getting on my nerves. At least he was giving us free information.
“I must dedicate more time to hellion research. That Crystal Golem, though? That’s almost done. What do you think? This is just another one of my great achievements. I don’t mean to brag, of course. Where would I be without my collaborator?”
“Are you talking about Linford?”
“Correct. And you must be the adventurer, Fran. I’ve heard about you.”
“Who is this Linford?”
Right, Eugene didn’t know about the old wizard.
“Fiendmancer. One of the people behind this monster transformation mess.”
“Hey, I helped, too. He taught me how to use Malice and Fiendmancy. I taught him alchemy and all there is to know about crystals.”
I knew he was in on it!
“So you are part of tonight’s unrest?”
“That’s right, Master. In fact, I dare say I planned most of it. We needed a lot of souls, you know. Two to three thousand, at least.”
Zelyse smiled innocently. He didn’t have a shred of conscience left in him. Eugene turned pale.
“Wh-why…”
“Let’s see. I guess I wanted proof that I was alive.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Fran tilted her head. I didn’t understand what he was talking about either.
“Let me simplify it for you. I want to leave a mark on history. I want to be so renowned that they’ll talk about me a thousand years from now.”
“And you plan on sacrificing the lives of thousands just for that?! Zelyse, what are you thinking…?!” Eugene glared at him. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Where did you go wrong…?”
“Nowhere. I was polite, yes, but this is how I’ve always been. I am thankful to you, Master. Thanks to you, my dreams will come true.”
Eugene was a good person at heart. He couldn’t understand Zelyse’s malice—though malice was too kind of a word for Zelyse. He saw the rest of the world as mere material to further his means.
Even now, I think Eugene believed there might be a chance for him to turn over a new leaf. But as far as I was concerned, Zelyse was past redemption. We were dealing with no mere rotten apple, but a mutant who actively infected and poisoned other apples. Apples like him needed to be disposed of, lest someone eat it and die.
Unfortunately, he was good at hiding himself. It was hard to detect him until it was too late.
“Besides, is it so strange to want to be famous? To leave behind a legacy? Everyone must have that desire.”
“There is a limit to it! Are you satisfied with notoriety for committing a great massacre?”
“Actually, yes.”
His response was so immediate and guileless that it made me sick.
“I don’t mind being notorious. In fact, being notorious might be better.”
His wicked eyes and conviction-filled gaze made him look like a fanatic up on his soapbox.
“Why?”
“Fran,” said Zelyse. “Are you familiar with the Fortress King Yuvel or the Wolf Killer Elmera? Even the Dragon Killer Siegmund would do, really.”
“Never heard of them.”
“Really? And our civilization owes them so much. They’re all quite important, you see. The hero king who stopped a million goblins with his noble knights, the great Godsmith who fought the Direwolf Fenrir to a draw. The adventurer who died after killing the dragon king threatening the land of Chrome. Don’t you think they’re all fantastic?”
“Sure, I guess.”
These were the legendary heroes of this world, and Zelyse talked about their ballads. I was interested, especially in Elmera the Godsmith. Fenrir was an S-Threat monster and the namesake of the Demon Wolf’s Garden. Did he face it with a Godsword? I would’ve asked Zelyse, if I didn’t want to smash his face in.
“Yet, you know nothing of them. Not that you’re the only one. All right, what about Trismegistus the Traitor?”
“I know him.”
“Of course you do. Who doesn’t? And that is my point.”
Trismegistus? Who’s that?
Fran, who’s this Trismegistus guy?
Notorious alchemist. Plunged the continent of Goldicia into ruin. Bad guy, she explained succinctly.
Once upon a time, there was an alchemist called Trismegistus. He was also a king of the continent of Goldicia. As an alchemist, he experimented on monsters to achieve his ambition of world conquest. He broke the seal of the Evil One’s heart and used its power. However, his experiment failed when the monster broke loose. The beast rampaged all over the continent, destroying Goldicia and taking many lives. It consumed everything in its path, growing bigger and bigger until it eventually covered the entire continent. It was only a matter of time before it consumed the whole world.
As men everywhere despaired, the gods extended a helping hand and cast a barrier over Goldicia, sealing the abomination away. The Abyss Eater lives on to this day. The gods cursed Trismegistus with immortality, and the alchemist king was still being digested within the Abyss Eater, even now.
Where truth ended and myth began, no one could know. But it did make a good bedtime story to scare children into behaving. Anger the gods, and they’ll curse you like Trismegistus. The story had a lot more impact in a world where gods were provably real.
“Oh, Trismegistus! He’s my favorite. He left his mark on history.”
“Such foolishness! Do you…really intend to break a seal of the Evil One?”
“Of course! But not to worry. I’m not going for something as important as the heart. Only a small lump of flesh.”
“And you think you can control it?!”
“Well, yes. Remember, it’s me we’re talking about. Just sit back and watch as I carve my name in history. I’ll be seeing you!”
“Wait!”
Zelyse’s body faded into thin air. Fran swung at him, but he was only an illusion.
He got away.
“I’m going after him!”
Fran looked pissed. The conversation had made her hate Zelyse even more.
Hold on! We have to deal with this Crystal Golem first.
“Right…”
I was all for chasing down that psycho, but that didn’t mean we could leave. We didn’t know where he was, and even Jet would be hard-pressed to track him.
Come on!
We attacked the golem to see how tough it was. Then, we would be able to start chipping awa—huh?
“What?”
The Crystal Golem disappeared. I felt the familiar sensation of absorbed crystal. These things were made of it. That meant I could absorb them. Well, this suddenly got a whole lot easier. I was the natural predator of these golems.
“What the hell was that, little lady?!”
“She disintegrated it with one hit?”
Oh, this was bad. I had publicly displayed my crystal absorption. What should we say?
“Come now, you know it’s bad manners to ask others about their Skills.”
“W-well, sure, but…”
“I guess you’re right…”
Eugene covered for us. Thank God he was around.
“Wow, you really are good!”
A voice came from behind us without warning. We turned around to once again see the psychotic pretty boy, Zelyse. Another illusion. We cut him just in case, but my blade went straight through. He had faked running away to get closer.
“Really, though. What are you? You keep getting in the way of my plans, and here you are destroying Crystal Golems with one swing. Honestly, I feel quite annoyed.”
“Just a Black Cat, D-Rank Adventurer.”
“Aha ha ha. You’re not good at making jokes, at least. You see, when you destroy a Crystal Golem, it should explode and release the Malice in its core. You expect me to believe that an ordinary D-Rank can destroy both the Golem and the Malice bomb?”
“You saw me do it.”
“I originally planned to use the golems as a distraction, so I could wait to test my latest exploding magivice. So much for that idea. Well, I guess you did show me something interesting, so I’m willing to write it off. Besides, I have this now.”
Zelyse’s mirage took out the stolen Soul Essence. It had returned to its rightful owner.
“What is that Soul Essence?” Eugene asked, breaking his silence.
He couldn’t ignore the mystery.
“You couldn’t figure it out, Master? He he he, you better be sitting down for this. This is the Soul Essence of a Chimera!”
“A what?! No…that’s impossible…”
“That rare?”
“Rare is an understatement! Chimera production is banned. It’s too dangerous. There are only five in the entire world!”
“Aha ha! What do you think? Aren’t I great? The nice people at the Raydoss Alchemical Labs gave it to me for a billion gold. All I had to do was claim the Bulbolan Alchemists’ Guild needed it. I didn’t even have to use my own money. I mean, Fran did steal it en route to Bulbola, but all’s well that ends well.”
“What are you going to do with it?”
“Create the strongest of monsters, of course! One so strong it can destroy the world! With the Evil One’s Lump of Flesh, it should become even stronger than the Abyss Eater.”
That sounded beyond dangerous. To think we’d been walking around with that bottle of mass destruction.
“You’ve destroyed my Crystal Golem, so I guess this is farewell. Goodbye!”
“Zelyse…” Eugene shouted after his crazed pupil, but he was already gone.
“What’s a Chimera?”
“The Chimera is the most dangerous kind of artificial monster.”
The Chimera Soul Essence was created in an effort to synthesize a hybrid of different monsters. What they created instead was a beast far more powerful than any mage, wizard, or researcher could’ve anticipated. A monster beyond any A-Threat. To make matters worse, no one could control it. It went on a rampage through the countryside, destroying several cities in the process.
Research continued, but the Chimera refused to be subjugated. When it eventually destroyed an entire kingdom, the nations of the world agreed to ban the manufacture of its Soul Essence. Research was destroyed, and the researchers were disposed of.
Creating the Soul Essence of a Chimera required extremely rare materials, some of which came from extinct species. Not that they were impossible to get a hold of…
“Raydoss is in a state of chaos,” said Eugene. “Zelyse might have received the Soul Essence from someone who didn’t know how dangerous it was.”
“Raydoss is a mess right now?”
We couldn’t ignore the latest news about our least favorite kingdom.
“The ruling monarch died ten years ago, and there’s been a power vacuum ever since. The four great houses are still fighting for control. The situation has only gotten worse, and half the Country is a pitiful mess. Oddly enough, there has been news of a great war between the houses.”
That shed some light on things. Was Salut working for one of the houses when he spied on Fult and Satya? The Lich might have been involved, too. Maybe it was all a ploy to lower our defenses. I wanted to dig further, but that was all Eugene knew.
“I shall inform the Count and the Adventurers’ Guild about Zelyse. They must know that he is in possession of a Chimera’s Soul Essence.”
Then it was time to go after him!
Jet, track down the scum closest to us!
If Zelyse was still nearby, we’d beat him up and retrieve the Soul Essence. If Linford was closer, we’d go and kick his ass. He was the Fiendmancer in charge, so Zelyse would need him to summon the Evil One. If we couldn’t find Zelyse, then we might as well ruin his plans!
“Let’s go, Jet!”
“Woof!”
Ten minutes later.
This the place?
“Woof!”
Zelyse or Linford?
“Arf.”
Jet had tracked down Linford.
Are you sure this is the place?
“Woof.”
We were standing in the temple square. The same place where Charlotte had danced for the Moons Festival ceremony. Jet pointed his muzzle towards the majestic stone temple.
Faint magical energy seeped out of the building. I couldn’t sense anyone in the vicinity, but I trusted Jet’s nose. Still dumbstruck, I asked him again, just to make sure.
I mean, this is a temple.
This world’s religion was not divided into different sects. All ten of the major gods were worshipped at temples all over the land. Some held patronage over certain Classes and Races, but even adherents revered all the gods.
There were no cultists or preachers, either. Even the temples held no political power. Using the names of the gods to further your own gain was forbidden, punishable by death. The citizens of this world believed that they would be struck down by the gods for such an act, even though it was only rumor and legend. Back on Earth, this law would have wiped out a good ninety percent of the clergy.
The temple employed priests and priestesses, but only because they had the Oracle Skill. In truth, they were more like administrators. They worked at the temple and arranged the pomp and ceremonies of the city festivals.
Classes were considered the domain where the gods bestowed their graces, and praying to them allowed you to change your Class. This was the most important feature of the temples. One had to donate three thousand gold, but the gods only required it for temple maintenance and to cover the cost of living for their priests and priestesses.
You could change your Class at the Adventurers’ Guild only because they had a magivice which served the same purpose. I thought this would offend the gods, but when we brought it up with a guild administrator, we were met with the irresponsible yet reasonable answer. Since the guild was still in business, the gods obviously didn’t mind.
Still, the facts of the temple remained. A place where impurities were washed away and people received the full blessing of the gods.
So what was Linford doing in such a holy place?
What is going on?
“We’ll find out soon enough.”
“Woof!”
You’re right.
We concealed our presence and approached the temple.
The windows were, in fact, small skylights. Fran was the only one who could fit through. We peeked inside but saw no one. The magical energy, while faint, was undeniable.
I definitely feel malice… But at a temple?
We had never visited the temple, but we’d passed by it countless times. The energy I felt then was clean and pure. It was never this dark and heavy.
We would have to venture inside…
Let’s go…
Making up our minds, we used Silence to maintain our stealth and opened the door.
There’s someone here, Fran observed.
We peered through the crack and saw a figure deep inside. It was too dark to make out, but it was small and human.
That’s Linford.
“Woof, woof!”
He hadn’t noticed us. This was our chance, but I didn’t want to risk damaging the temple. I wondered if the gods would let me off since I was defending their sanctuary from evil. Still, we couldn’t afford to sit here and do nothing. Who knew what Linford might pull?
Those crystals are definitely up to something, I told Fran.
Yeah. Must be a vital part of his plan.
Three giant crystals surrounded Linford. Malice emanated from the black Fiendstones, and they glowed a bluish-purple. They must be the cause of the twisted energy.
I’ll take Linford, I said. You two focus on destroying those Fiendstones.
Got it.
“Woof!”
Fran let go of me and readied her Death Gaze.
Teacher.
Yeah?
No holding back. We kill him now.
Are you sure? We might lose our only chance to learn about your evolution.
Fran was certain. I am. You promised you’d help me evolve. I don’t need that old wizard’s help.
I said that on the day we first met. I was amazed Fran remembered.
She trusted me with all her heart… I-I wasn’t crying, all right! I was just really fired up!
Don’t you worry, Fran…I’ll help you evolve!
Hm.
“Woof, woof!”
Jet barked excitedly to gain our attention.
Jet says he’ll help, too, I told her.
Thanks.
“Arf!”
Let’s do this! Short Jump!
I transported myself right above Linford’s head and then plunged down with Telekinetic Catapult.
“What is this?!”
Damn it, it’s so hard!
His barrier activated as soon as it sensed danger, deflecting my perfect ambush. Linford wouldn’t have panicked if his Aura Sense warned him of my presence. I’d attacked from his blind spot, and he only noticed because I was trying to break through his barrier.
“Beastgirl! What are you doing here?!” Linford shouted angrily.
She ignored him and rushed the Fiendstone.
“What is this sword?! I can’t move!”
Oh, I see, now. He couldn’t move as long as he was under the barrier’s protection. I increased my telekinetic output. He couldn’t go after Fran with me drilling through his barrier. His mana was depleting, too.
“Corruption Smash!” Linford shot a spell at Fran.
He can use spells from inside the barrier?!
That was incredibly useful. Linford’s barrier automatically activated to stop my Telekinetic Catapult, and yet he was able to fire spells from inside. Its only weakness was that he couldn’t move while it was on.
Around thirty Malice bullets sped towards Fran and Jet. However, they were too agile. They dodged and continued their assault.
“Stop that!” Linford screamed as an explosion engulfed the Fiendstone.
Although it withstood an onslaught of flame magic, cracks began to form on its surface. It would break eventually.
“I said, stop it! Gah! I have to do something about this blasted sword!”
Of course you do. I had no intention of letting him go. Burst Flame.
Linford tried to reposition himself, and I blocked his way with a fire spell. The spell was weak, but it enveloped its target in fire for a good minute or so.
Burst Flame.
Burst Flame.
I flew about, surrounding Linford in fire as his barrier continued to protect him. The curtains of flame blocked his sight, and he didn’t know where I would attack from. Linford was firing blind now, letting Fran and Jet focus on the Fiendstone.
“Haa!”
“Grrr!”
Spell and sword, fang and claws. Their relentless attack on the Fiendstone continued until it finally broke. The Malice which infected the temple disappeared in an instant! The crystals were its source all along.
“How…dare you!”
“Nailed it.”
“Awoo!”
Linford realized what had happened, even behind the wall of flames. I grinned at the frustration in his voice. Our plan had worked.
“The conduit will close if the Fiendstones are destroyed! I must take this into my own hands…!”
Linford’s barrier disappeared. He was desperate now. He turned off his protection and chose to risk the flames around him. He might take damage, but at least he would be able to protect the remaining Fiendstones.
Linford rushed towards Fran, his robes smoldering.
“I won’t let you meddle with my plans, Beastgirl!”
I anticipated this outburst. He was bound to get desperate enough to sacrifice his own life.
Eat this!
I Short Jumped on top of Linford’s head and drove down with all the telekinetic energy I could muster.
“Gaaaaah!”
I pierced his torso. The old wizard gargled a blood-curdling scream.
I cut Linford in half, clean through his waist. The cut was so clean that he looked like a bust in a museum.
I activated Telekinetic Catapult as soon as I’d done enough. I threw an extra wind spell in there, just in case. My telekinetic brakes stopped me just short of the temple floor and left it almost pristine. The only scratch came from the tip of my blade.
It was a silly move, considering I had engulfed the inner sanctum with fire. I was careful to control its spread, though. The stone floors were only slightly burned. I prayed that the gods would forgive me. I was trying to stop this Servant of the Evil One!
I turned fearfully towards one of the stone images. No reaction. I was probably all right. Linford went out of his way to desecrate this sacred ground and wasn’t struck by lightning on his way here, so surely I was in the clear. I really was sorry though, and I made a note to clean up the mess the first chance I got.
“You bastards! You won’t get away with this!”
As I apologized to the gods of this world, Linford’s screams echoed about the temple. He sure was loud for a torso. How was he still moving?!
“I will break that sword upon the altar and serve it to the Evil One!”
He was already regenerating. There really was no humanity left in him. We fired spells to kill him off for good, but his barrier activated again.
“Theraclede! I summon you!”
Knowing he was outmatched, Linford resorted to summoning his minions. A magic circle appeared inside the barrier, stopping us from using our saturation attack.
To make matters worse, he was summoning Theraclede. We’d never encountered the Mad Warrior, but we knew he was bad news. He was as strong as a B-Rank and could maim Colbert with an ambush. How strong was he in his Corrupted form…?
We should retreat. It was too dangerous for us to fight him.
Or so I thought…
“What? Why is this happening! Theraclede, I summon you!”
The magic circle reappeared, but again nothing came out.
“Theraclede! You dare refuse my call! Traitor!”
It looked like Linford had been backstabbed by his own kind.
“You wretch! What of the girl?! Damn it, how dare he ignore my call!”
Now’s our chance.
“This ends here.”
“Grrr!”
While Linford was distracted with his rebellious minion, I launched into my third catapult attack.
I clanged against his barrier but had already taken it into account. Now came our real attack.
“Burst Flame.”
Burst Flame.
“Awooo!”
The general strategy was the same: deplete his mana and pin him in place by chipping away at his barrier. Once he ran out of mana, the barrier would vanish.
“Urrgh! Again with this foolishness!”
Linford looked distraught. Were we close to breaking through?
“Damn it…! I do not have enough conduits…but no matter! Oh, Lord of Evil! Grant your servant strength!”
The wizard refused to die. Enraged, he uttered an incantation. It seemed to concentrate the Malice in the temple on him.
What the hell is this…?
It was as if the temple was bestowing power on Linford… Was this the Fiendstone’s doing?
My Danger Sense was going crazy, chiming even louder than the time we ran into the Midgardsormr.
“Nuaaaarrgghhh!”
Jet-black mana erupted from the wizard’s body with an ear-splitting scream, crashing into us with the force of a tsunami. I broke through his barrier, only to be blasted away.
Fran, Jet, get out of here!
We had to get away!
Jet retreated to the shadows while Fran took me so we could blink out of the temple. We could see the concentration of Malice even from the outside. Pitch-black light shone through the temple skylights, swaying the great structure.
A great beam of Malice blew the roof off and shot towards the heavens. The temple shook as something exploded inside of it. A rain of pebbles and a great cloud of dust settled on the square. The temple was reduced to rubble.
An abomination stood at the center of it all.
“GRAAAAARK!”
The creature’s howl pierced the night.
The vibration shook the air and resonated my blade.
“That thing’s huge,” Fran said, looking at the thing that used to be Linford.
But that was Linford all right. Blessed by the powers of the Evil One, he was gigantic now, but he was definitely still Linford.
The monster stood in the rubble, staring at us with hateful eyes.
It’s huge!
“Woof.”
The Fiend was over fifteen meters tall. It was vaguely humanoid, with bulging muscles and inky black skin. Similar to Corrupted Humans but much too big.
Still, the creature’s face was Linford’s without a doubt.
“You won’t get away this time, Beastgirl!” the giant roared.
Name: Linford Laurentia
Race: Vilefiend
Class: Fiendmancer
Status: Vile
Level: 99/99
HP: 5620; Magic: 4458; Strength: 2027; Agility: 598
Skills: Speedcast 7; Identify 7; Fast Regeneration 9; Malice Sense 9; Abnormal Status Resistance 6; Incite 6; Venomology 7; Mana Manipulation
Class Skill: Fiendmancy 10; Vilemancy 5; Evil One’s Blessing; Cage of the Evil One
Titles: Blessed of the Evil One
Holy crap!
Linford had become the strongest enemy we had faced so far. He was even stronger than the Demon in the dungeon. He was easily a B-Threat, if not an A-Threat—an excellent match for that Lich we fought so desperately in the Sky Dungeon. And he had a couple of skills I’d never seen before, to boot.
Fighting him alone was suicide.
We’re getting out of here! Come on, Jet!
“Hm!”
“Woof!”
Fran and Jet sensed Linford’s terrifying power. They agreed without complaint. They turned around and ran as fast as their legs would allow. I started casting, and once we were a good fifty meters away, I finished my spell.
Short Jump!
Fran and I cast the same spell in unison. We would gain as much distance as we could through continuous blinking. Jet would figure something out with his Shadow Walk. However, our plan was cut short.
Gah!
“Ow!”
“Aarf!”
Our path was blocked by an invisible barrier. Jet rammed into the same substance, despite being in the shadows.
“None shall escape the Cage of the Evil One!”
So that’s what that skill was for! I didn’t think it would have such an effect. I looked around and noticed a clear dome, fifty meters in diameter, centered around Linford. This was the Cage of the Evil One.
Inferno Burst!
“Fire Javelin!”
Come on!
With all my spells lined up, now was the time for Telekinetic Catapult!
That didn’t work, either?!
But the dome wasn’t even scratched, and I took damage to my durability for the attempt. The dome was as strong as Linford’s last barrier.
Dimension Jump!
I used a mid-distance teleportation spell this time. Controlling where I would appear was difficult, and I often wound up in the wrong place. Still, it was a stronger spell than Short Jump.
How about this?!
“Hurk!”
“Ugh!”
Damn it! Did the dome block all teleportation skills?
“Corruption Flare.”
Malice and mana swelled behind us. If I were human, I would’ve gotten goosebumps. I could sense the danger and feared what was coming. I frantically cast another spell.
Short Jump!
A pitch-black ball of fire descended on us, burning everything in its path. If we hadn’t jumped, we would’ve been ash.
This is bad!
I put up a mana barrier at the last second, but it only soaked up some of the damage. Where we had been standing, there was now a gigantic crater. The flames were so hot that they turned the ash to glass. A direct hit would’ve burned us to cinders, while our mana barrier left us half-dead.
“You’ve done well to dodge that! How about this then… Corrupted Familiars!”
Wha—?!
“Let’s see how well you can dodge this.”
Countless malicious auras swelled all around him. I counted fifty at the very least. They were cannonballs of Malice, the size of volleyballs, which launched at Linford’s command.
To make matters worse, each shot came at a different speed and along a different path. Some came straight at us, while others made homing loops.
“Urk!”
Fire Shield!
“Huff!”
Wind Gale!
We dodged, cut, and blocked the shots that came our way.
Fortunately, each individual shot wasn’t too strong. But getting hit slowed our movements, opening us to the next volley.
What now? I had to find a way to get out of here. We could either find a way to bypass the dome or break through it. But Time Magic Teleportation and Shadow Walk couldn’t pass through. Should I spend my EP in the hopes of unlocking a new skill? I had no guarantee that it would work.
Should I brute-force it, then? Throw all my Flame Magic and Sword Arts at it? Alternatively, I could level up Cleansing Magic in the hopes that it could purify Malice. But what if those were all false hopes?
If I wanted sheer force, that left me only one choice.
Teacher, let me use Unleash Potential.
No!
Unleash Potential. As mysterious as it was, I still remembered the damage it did to the Lich. With it, we could not only escape, but also defeat this monster. However, the skill was a double-edged sword. Even if we won, it would be a pyrrhic victory. I would not let Fran use it.
Ever.
Let me try something.
I decided our best bet was Space-Time Magic. I used six points of EP to max it out. I had twelve points left now.
Space-Time Magic is now at Level 10.
You have unlocked Unique Skill:
Dimension Magic 1
A Unique Skill? Maybe this will work!
Or so I thought. With Dimension Magic at Level 1, I only had Chronos Clock, Quick, and Slow at my disposal. They were of no use at the moment. I’d learned a new teleport spell for maxing out Space-Time Magic though. That allowed me to link long distances.
Long Jump!
The spell didn’t grant us escape. Our movement was halted once again by the Cage of the Evil One. I knew now that it wasn’t a matter of distance.
The Malice bullets caught us again, and we were surrounded.
Fran steeled herself. We have to use Unleash Potential.
Then I’ll use it, I told her.
No, I’ll use it.
Absolutely not. That skill takes from you more than you know. You might die.
But—
You are not using that skill!
Hmph.
As we carried out our argument…
“Guh!”
Fran!
Fran took a direct hit from a Malice orb. Damn it, we only lost focus for a second! The other orbs soon followed, crashing into her one after another.
“Gah!”
Fran was knocked to the ground, making her an easy target.
Crap!
I frantically put up a mana barrier and blinked a short distance away. Fran had taken respectable damage, and her mana was running low, but at least we escaped the Malice orbs. But that was exactly what Linford wanted.
“Corruption Flare.”
“Aaaah!”
Since our Short Jumps were too fast for Linford to keep up with, he anticipated where we would go. Great flames engulfed us, boiling away the blood Fran had shed.
I focused all my energy on the mana barrier. Fran did the same.
“Gaaaaah!”
Goddamn it!
The flames burned away two layers of barrier and engulfed us. It blew us away, and Fran’s body rag-dolled across the ground.
“Aaah…”
“Ho ho ho! I finally have you, yapping little Beastgirl!”
We’d managed to escape death, but Fran and I were broken and bloody.
Half of Fran’s left arm and leg were burned to ash and her body was covered in blisters.
Fran!
“Uhh…”
She was struggling to stay conscious. The next attack would finish her.
I healed Fran as much as I could with Greater Heal. But another Malice orb flew right at us and blasted us in different directions.
Fran!
She was far away from me now. I couldn’t see past the dust from the explosion, but I felt she was around fifty meters away. As I frantically tried to get back to her side, I noticed something.
Damn it! What did Linford summon this time?
I felt an inhuman presence coming from above. It had to be one of Linford’s familiars. As the mysterious being approached, I took the initiative and attacked. I usually would’ve surveyed the situation first, but current conditions left me impatient.
I flew into a telekinetic swing, but the creature dodged easily.
Now I came face-to-face with our mysterious visitor. It was small with black skin, bull horns, and wings sprouting from its back. An Identify revealed that it was a Demon. Yet it also revealed no hostility towards me.
It wasn’t hostile? Was this one of the Phyllians’ demons? I had no time to make sure. Linford could be preparing for another attack, so I took my chances.
Are you a friend?
“What? Who’s talking?”
Fult’s voice came out of the demon. I didn’t know the details, but at least it wasn’t out to kill us.
I’m Teacher. The sword lying down in front of you.
“Wh-what? How is a sword talking?”
That doesn’t matter right now! We have to get to Fran.
“R-right.”
I ignored the demon and resumed my flight to Fran. When I got to her, another demon was propping her up and helping her dodge Linford’s attacks.
Then one of Linford’s beam attacks swallowed them both.
FRAN!
I screamed instinctively. When the beam faded, Fran was still there, encased in a red barrier.
“It’s all right. Satya’s taking care of her.”
O-oh…
Thank God! I flew over to Fran and resumed healing her. Still, my Greater Heal wasn’t enough to put her back to full strength.
“Teacher… Satya was…”
“Don’t worry, Fran. These are only copies. Our real bodies remain unharmed.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Good to know…”
How did you two get here? Did you pass through that barrier?
We had no time to waste on pleasantries. We needed a way out, and we needed it now. The Phyllians had attached the demons to Fran to protect her when she was in danger. I thought they were a little out of line, but since they had saved her, I didn’t complain. The prince and princess only did it out of concern for their friend.
These demons hadn’t bypassed the dome, then—they were already with Fran when we were trapped inside. However, Fult and Satya maintained a psychic link to these demons, so the dome couldn’t block out telepathy and other such powers. Unfortunately, teleportation was still impossible.
I see… Thank you. At least we have some sort of backup now.
Even a single demon was a great help, but their next words weren’t as encouraging.
“I’m sorry, but we’re at our limit…”
How come?
“The Malice under this dome is so great that our demons are threatening to go berserk. Fran looks like she’s doing all right. I don’t think we can control these creatures for much longer.”
“But are you okay, Fult?”
“Like my sister said, these bodies are only copies. They have no bearing on our real selves.”
“I see.”
“I’ll use all of their power to heal you! I have to spend its power before I lose control!” Fult said in a hurry.
He sounded like his control was already slipping. When he healed her, it was much more powerful than Greater Heal. By the time he was done, Fran’s body was unscathed. The demon’s body started cracking and dissipated into fine sand. Having used up all its energy, it faded away.
“Stay alive, Fran!”
With Fult’s final cry, the demon disappeared. Meanwhile, Satya’s demon faded with the barrier protecting Fran.
“Aaah, there you are!!!” Linford spotted us immediately. The barrier must have hidden us from him.
He let out another volley of flaming Malice.
I won’t let you hurt Fran any more!
I flicked through my status screen, frantically casting Short Jump over and over.
Speedcast is at Level 10. You have unlocked Unique Skill: Instant Cast
Instant Cast: Activates a spell immediately by saying its name. Increases amount of mana consumed.
Good enough for me! I planned on using the reduced casting time to dodge with Short Jump, but now I could expedite that process. That said, I was worried about how much more mana I would spend…
But I had to do it.
With Fran fully recovered, I took her and ran.
Short Jump!
Short Jump!
SHORT JUMP!
I kept blinking to dodge Linford’s attacks.
I had to protect Fran.
“Gaaaah! How is this possible?! How are you able to use such advanced magic?! How do you already have Instant Cast?! Die! Die!!!”
Seeing us blink away like that frustrated the giant wizard. We had learned a new trick to survive his onslaught, and he was panicking.
That’s it, panic! You’re making it a lot easier for us to dodge! We’ll keep on running, and the next thing you know, we’ll move in for the kill!
And if that didn’t work…I might have to use Unleash Potential.
“Teacher…?”
I’ll take care of it, Fran.
“Hm…”
How long had our game of cat and mouse gone on?
Fran and Jet scored a hit from time to time, but Linford immediately regenerated. I had launched several Telekinetic Catapults at the monster, but none of my blows could finish it. If anything, it opened me to his counterattacks. I was knocked away mercilessly.
The battle was an endless nightmare. The only reason I hadn’t fallen into despair was because Fran was with me. I would protect her, no matter what. That didn’t mean I remained calm, however. I did my best to maintain my composure, so as not to worry her, but I was panicking on the inside.
The situation looked hopeless.
As my mana reserves ran dry and I reconsidered using Unleash Potential, a ray of hope shone through the dome. The heavens—or gods—had not abandoned us yet.
A chime like a bell echoed through the Cage of the Evil One.
And then the dome disappeared.
“What magic is this?!” Linford bellowed in shock.
What’s going on?
No, this wasn’t the time for speculation! This was our ticket out!
Let’s get out of here, Jet!
“Arf!”
Dimension Jump!
Our escape proved successful this time. I leapt a hundred meters away and hid Fran in the shadows of a nearby building.
You all right?
“Yeah… More or less.”
Fran nodded despite the pain and exhaustion.
Good!
“Woof!”
“You okay, Jet?”
“Arf!”
We had escaped by a hair’s breadth. If feline beastmen had nine lives, I think Fran was down to her last. We got really lucky!
“Nggaaaar!”
As we were still trying to process the situation, Linford let out a pained howl.
Something was hurting him.
What?
I stole a look at the giant Vilefiend.
What the hell is that?!
“That’s a lot of swords.”
Countless swords plunged through Linford’s body. There were several figures around him.
The one crushed his right leg with its fists. Another pierced his left leg with its spear. One danced through the sky, and one sprinted on the ground. They joined forces to subdue Linford.
“They’re so strong.”
Yeah… Who are they?
We looked on, captivated, when a new challenger approached.
She came from behind us, attacking Linford with something lean and snakelike.
“Graaargh!”
A whip. Welts covered Linford’s gigantic body, and he reeled in pain.
Although the whip was too fast to see, it showed no sign of striking the other figures. It snaked about, as graceful as it was deadly. Only a master could pull off such complex maneuvers.
As the whip lashed, Linford let out a pathetic cry. The sound of his screams woke us from the hopeless nightmare we’d fallen into.
We turned around and saw the beauty holding the whip. Her emerald green cloak flapped in the wind as she calmly surveyed the battleground.
Fran’s eyes widened as she looked at the woman.
“Amanda…?”
Amanda, the A-Rank adventurer of Alessa, had reached Bulbola.
“You’ll be okay now, Frannie. I’m here to help!”
Forlund
An hour had passed since people started turning into monsters.
I had taken down thirty of them, but how many more were left? I didn’t know whether this infection would spread to the rest of the city. I needed to destroy the source.
I headed towards the greatest concentration of Malice, cutting down the monstrosities in my path.
“Th-thank you for saving me!”
“…”
“Um…?”
“Oh…”
I motioned for the man to come to my side so I could escort him. It wasn’t safe here, and he shouldn’t waste time on pleasantries.
But he just turned pale, shouted an apology, and left. Why? I was willing to walk him to the nearest Knight Guard station. Perhaps he mistook my gesture as a sign to go away.
“Oh…”
This scenario had played out countless times. I was quiet, expressionless, and blessed with a mean face. I made no special effort to be intimidating…and I didn’t like the idea that I threatened people with a mere glance. I wasn’t good with words, so I could at least work on my body language and hand gestures. Still, the man was terrified regardless. What was I supposed do?
“Nothing I can do but slay more monsters.”
I looked around for a suitable vantage point and spotted a tall, four-story building—the tallest one in the neighborhood, probably the main office of a trade association. I should be able to survey most of the city from here.
“Hmm…”
Found it. I felt a malicious presence, apparent even under cover of night. At least the creature was attacking livestock, not people. I could deal with it from here. My target was close enough at three hundred meters. I wouldn’t miss.
“Pierce.”
A blade appeared out of thin air and launched itself at my command. It flew faster than an arrow and was sharper than a spear. The blade stabbed the beast, and it went quiet. Having finished its duty, the blade faded and returned to the aether.
My Extra Skill, Blade God’s Favor.
It recorded all the enchanted swords I ever touched and allowed me to reproduce them. The only exceptions were swords that were too strong for me.
The skill could only reproduce weapons which suited the situation, but after years of training I was could manipulate them at will. Manifesting these blades for a shorter time reduced the mana consumption, and I could summon a hundred of them if I had to.
“Found you…”
This time, the creature was attacking a person. I jumped off the rooftop and rushed to the scene.
What was causing all this? I doubted it was natural. Malice emanated from all the monsters I had slain tonight, concrete proof that it was something not of this world. The energy reminded me of a great Fiend I killed once.
Something…or someone…was behind this. Perhaps a magivice malfunction or a wicked wizard’s design. Whatever it was, I had to destroy the root cause.
Bulbola welcomed me when I lost my hometown. I would do everything to protect it.
“Forlund Harnoncourt shall strike you down.”
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