A man who once reigned supreme with his fire magic.
But now, Sergey was just drifting inside a giant cylinder.
“I was lucky. Who would’ve thought I’d get my hands on the corpse of a seventh-circle mage?”
Corpses of seventh-circle mages weren’t something one came across easily.
And finding one in an intact state was even rarer.
“How did you get this?”
“Oh? Judging by your reaction, you must recognize his face. To put it simply, I got lucky.”
Sergey, the master of the Volcatornic Mage Tower, had once transferred his consciousness into a chimera in order to deal with Jun when he infiltrated the tower.
However, during that process, he was caught off guard by Jun’s surprise attack, and as a result, his body and mind were separated, putting him into a vegetative state.
Afterward, he was handed over to the Count. The Volcatornic Tower was then thoroughly investigated under the authority of the Imperial Family, and it was revealed that they were the ones responsible for destroying Shylock’s Mage Tower.
I heard he was executed afterward.
Normally, an execution wouldn’t have proceeded so quickly.
Even the Imperial Family had to tread carefully around the mage towers.
But since Sergey had become a vegetable and the Mage Association played dumb, the execution happened relatively quickly… and his body ended up in Enverman’s hands.
“In many ways, I was fortunate. Sergey and I had ties, after all. He used to purchase quite a few chimeras from me.”
So that’s why there were chimeras in the magic tower.
It was an unexpected revelation, but Jun felt no joy in learning it.
“The only issue is… his body was so resilient that too many of his memories from life remain intact.”
With that, Enverman looked at Jun and smiled, as if he were admiring his own work.
“I’ve implanted cells from a seventh-rank monster that dwells in volcanoes called Balrog into this man’s body. It’s not complete yet, but if I use his intelligence as the foundation and graft Balrog flesh onto it… I should be able to complete a chimera that thinks and moves on its own.”
“Is this what you mean by immortality? The idea of carrying on memories?”
At Jun’s question, Enverman’s eyes widened.
“You caught on right away! Impressive!”
“……”
It was a philosophy Jun had no desire to understand.
But of course, he couldn’t show that outwardly.
Good thing this bastard can’t keep his mouth shut.
Truth be told, chimeras weren’t all that rare.
Even some past emperors had tried to use them to bolster the Empire’s military strength.
And there were plenty who crafted them in secret, like here in the Black Market.
That must be why Enverman’s being so careless with what he says.
Still, Jun hadn’t expected anyone to use the corpse of a seventh-circle mage for a chimera!
If I can just get out of here and report this…
Jun was about to wrap up the conversation and set a fake date for the procedure, but—
Enverman spoke first.
“I can’t just let someone who recognizes the value of this specimen walk away. Wait right there.”
“No, really, we can just—”
Enverman operated the cylinder’s control panel.
The liquid inside the cylinder turned red, and the chimera inside suddenly opened its eyes.
――And then.
――――――――――!!!!!
“Wh-What?! Why is it reacting like this?!”
The moment the chimera, holding Sergey’s intelligence, made eye contact with Jun, it became violently agitated and began thrashing around.
Enverman quickly rushed to adjust the controls.
As the liquid inside the cylinder turned green again, the creature gradually closed its eyes.
“What… the hell? Why did it react like that?”
Wiping the cold sweat from his brow in the tense situation, Enverman didn’t understand why the chimera had suddenly gone berserk, but Jun did.
It recognized me.
He had hidden his identity from even Enverman using a mask and illusion magic, but Sergey’s chimera had seen through it with just his magical power.
That was almost a disaster—
Craash!
Roaaaaaaaaaaaaaar―――!!!
The chimera suddenly opened its eyes, shattered the cylinder, and let out a beast-like roar.
***
At that moment.
Maya sensed something ominous.
It wasn’t an instinctual feeling. Suddenly, the spirits of her ancestors had grown restless.
“……?”
“What’s wrong?”
When Eleanor who could see the spirits in fragments asked, Maya scowled deeply.
“The leader lied to us again damn it.”
“Where do you even learn to talk like that…?”
“Get ready. Fast.”
“Haah…”
Maya’s gut feelings were rarely ever wrong.
Even Eleanor, who was sensitive to spirits, could tell that the ancestors were in a frenzy.
And before long—
Booooooooom―――!!!
A massive explosion erupted from the underground chamber where Jun and Aiden had gone in, flames shooting into the air. From within them, Jun leapt out, shielding Aiden with a red barrier.
“Battle positions!!!”
A desperate cry.
Maya and Eleanor let out a sigh that rose from deep within their chests.
“If he says it’s an easy mission next time, I’m sewing his mouth shut.”
“Agreed on that.”
***
As soon as the chimera Sergey saw Jun, it let out a feral scream, as if it had lost all reason, and instinctively unleashed the most powerful magic it could muster.
Had Jun not immediately deployed a fire-attribute shield in that split second, he would’ve been blown to pieces on the spot.
What kind of crazy world is this…
He had said Balrog cells were used.
Most of the human appearance was gone, replaced by grotesquely swollen muscles and thick fur growing all over the body.
With every breath, black flames surged and flared from its mouth, making it look like a demon straight out of hell.
“It’s a chimera!”
Just as the Blackguard knights were about to charge in with swords and shields—
Jun spotted Enverman crawling out of the explosion, completely unharmed.
“There! That’s the one who created the chimera! Stop him first!”
“You’re no guest. You’re a dog of the imperial family!”
Realizing the situation he was in, Enverman abandoned any thought of fleeing and took up a battle stance.
Enverman himself was a powerful mage nearing the seventh circle.
Which meant that Tairdin, also a seventh-circle mage, had to face him.
“What about that monster?!”
“I’m its target! I’ll take responsibility and stop it!”
“…Understood!”
How the situation had turned out this way was a problem for later. Tairdin decided to focus on the immediate threat.
Letting that monster loose could cause countless casualties, but capturing the one who created it was even more urgent.
Especially since there was a chance that more of these monsters could be produced.
So, while the Blackguard knights turned to confront Enverman, Aiden with his sword now drawn asked Jun,
“Senior.”
“You already know this, but Sergey is a master of fire-attribute magic.”
He was a powerful mage who had reached the seventh circle using only the fire element.
The real issue was his attribute.
Among all the elements, fire was especially destructive. So Jun quickly explained Sergey’s traits.
“He’s lost his mind, so he can’t use perfect spells. That much, I can handle. But the real danger is Balrog’s technique.”
“What is it?”
“Fire Breath. You know what I’m talking about, right?”
The monster from the other day. The one Jun had handed over to Aiden with the leather greaves. A creature that lived on the seventh level.
“That’s the one the Violet Mercenaries killed, isn’t it…?”
“It’s not complete, of course. It’s a chimera.”
Its momentary destructive power might reach level 7, but its average strength would fall short of that.
The explosion that just occurred underground proved it.
“Eleanor! I’ll leave the Blackguard Knights to you!”
“Damn it, you’re asking the impossible!”
“Maya, how many times do you have to cut that thing to kill it?”
“…It’s tough. That thing’s beyond what my magic can handle.”
It might be incomplete, but it was still a combination of a seventh-circle mage and a seventh-rank monster.
Jun had calculated that Maya’s [Spirit Rampage] wasn’t enough to kill it.
He gave up on a short-term battle through Maya.
“Cover Eleanor! Aiden, get ready!”
“Understood!”
[Enchantment: Elemental Armory]
[Attribute Enchantment: Ice]
[Enchantment: Elemental Armory]
[Attribute Enchantment: Wind]
As soon as Jun’s support magic was complete, Aiden surged forward like a typhoon, whipping up winds as he closed the distance to the chimera.
Apparently not expecting such speed, the chimera reacted a bit too slowly.
Aiden’s blazing aura slashed clean through the monster’s chest.
Kraaaaaaah――!!
With a shriek of agony, the creature swung its claws, wreathed in flames.
Aiden quickly blocked the attack with his sword, but at that moment, a surge of fire burst from the creature’s hand.
“Gah…!”
Thankfully, Jun’s enchantment blocked the flames once, but only once.
As the overwhelming firepower intensified, Aiden was forced to retreat quickly.
“I can’t block that again…”
He bit his lip as he looked at his blade, now glowing orange from the heat.
Meanwhile, Jun was preparing an ice-attribute spell. The element most effective against the creature.
The image I need to hold is…
A land of eternal permafrost, allowing no warmth.
A frozen wasteland where no life could survive.
[Ice Break]
Craaaack!!
At the same time, through “Illusia”, Jun began preparing [Ice Spear].
Perhaps it was because the creature’s body was imbued with fire-attribute energy.
As its lower half sank into the frozen ground, it let out a groan of pain.
Then—
“Sorry I’m late!”
Eleanor called out in apology, but none of her companions blamed her.
That was how intense the battle had been on the Blackguard’s side as well.
“Damn it, he’s using witchcraft!”
“Spread out while keeping him surrounded!”
“He’s coming! Formation up!”
Enverman, his body enhanced by various drugs, was driving the Blackguard back like a storm.
Had it not been for Eleanor’s support, they might have failed to maintain the encirclement.
[Life of Light]
[Final of Light]
[Life Shield of Light]
[Pierce of Light]
After finishing her support for the Blackguard knights, Eleanor turned to Jun and the others, casting support magic on them as well.
Aiden’s burns were healed, his physical abilities enhanced, and protective magic cast to guard against surprise attacks.
Finally, a divine arrow flew straight toward the chimera.
Just like Jun’s ice-attribute attacks, the chimera, which was an “evil” that had defiled the purity of life, was vulnerable to divine power.
Kyaaaaaaa――!!
It instinctively tried to guard its vitals with both arms, but for a split second, its defense dropped.
[Detecting Target]
[Ice Spear]
Jun’s ice spears shot through the opening in its guard.
Three spears pierced into the chest that Aiden had already split open earlier.
In the blink of an eye, the creature’s body began to freeze.
Just as the unexpected joint attack was about to bring it down—
Boom―!
After taking a blow from the Blackguard and being flung in the direction of the chimera, Enverman coughed up blood.
“Ugh! Ruthless, aren’t you… even to an old man…”
Muttering to himself, Enverman wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
In this life-or-death crisis—
Though the Blackguard knights and the White Whale mercenaries had completely cut off every escape route, his expression still held a trace of composure.
“Tsk, my suit got all wrinkled.”
He merely brushed the dust off his disheveled suit in annoyance.
“You’re awfully calm in the face of death.”
At Tairdinn’s remark, Enverman gave a faint smirk and bit down on a cigarette.
“Death? That’s a word far removed from me. Allow me to show you. The path of immortality I’ve walked.”
At the same time, he pulled a cylinder from his coat. Before anyone could react, he plunged it into both the chimera and himself.
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