For Sale. Fallen Lady. Never Used.

Chapter 229: Scenario Dungeon (5)

I hoisted Iris, who had short legs and was slow at running, onto my back and pushed off the ground.

“Let’s go!”

Thanks to the buffs from Helena and the barely usable Blood Force, along with basic enhancement magic and potions, my running speed was at a considerable level.

Carla was on Helena’s back, Elisha was on Iona’s, and they were following closely behind me.

Gilbert, being a high-ranking paladin and without anyone to carry, was, of course, keeping pace effortlessly.

We soon arrived at the scene of destruction created by Iris and Iona.

Blood crystals embedded here and there, scattered pieces of flesh, and lingering heat.

As requested, they had neatly cleared out only the monsters, so it wasn’t hard to find the side path in the corner.

“Over there!”

With the magic from Iris and Iona being stronger than expected, we didn’t need to worry about pursuit.

We veered off from the chimera-infested center to the side. Before long, a small cave appeared.

The inside of the cave was like a complex maze, but if we found the right path, we could reach the fortress with minimal combat.

Thanks to my excellent memory, I had memorized the map created by H&A players.

Confidently, I led the party through the cave. At each fork, I chose the path without hesitation.

The narrow, dark path suddenly widened, revealing a large cavity. And there, several pairs of eyes looked at us.

They were probably the ones who got trapped after entering recklessly and getting lost.

While this cave minimized combat, it couldn’t be entirely avoided.

Helena’s eyes narrowed slightly upon spotting the monsters.

“It’s uncomfortable to fight like this. Lord, bring your light here.”

Fwaaah.

Responding to Helena’s short prayer, her holy armor glowed brightly.

The light was so bright that it illuminated the entire cavity, yet it was not blinding.

Thanks to it, we could clearly see the chimeras glaring at us from the darkness.

“…Such disgusting creatures.”

“Indeed.”

Nodding to Helena’s comment, Iris, who had climbed down from my back, spoke.

“That’s how chimeras are. Not as bad as undead, but still, they are unnatural beings, so it’s natural to feel repulsed.”

“Can a magician who reaches for the impossible say that?”

“Turning the impossible into the possible and going against nature are similar but different. Mistake that, and you get consumed by magic. But let’s save that talk for later. They won’t wait for us.”

Iris stretched her short limbs, loosening her body after being roughly shaken while clinging to me.

A few chimeras drooled as they approached Iris.

They must be very hungry after being trapped here. Seeing Iris, who looked just right for a bite, it was no wonder they were driven crazy.

Though it wasn’t a good choice.

“Hmph.”

Snorting, Iris raised her staff. The sight was oddly reminiscent of Elisha.

The chimeras, seeming to agree on something, paired up and licked their lips at different people.

Of course, there was one targeting me.

With the head of a greenskin and the body of a patchwork bear, the chimera was a grotesque sight.

While the monsters used to create each chimera varied, the crucial parts were protected by carapaces and metallic tails, similar to other chimeras.

The dark purple fluid oozing from their bodies was the source of the stench.

These chimeras were created by combining critically wounded and dead monsters during wars.

Though most were crudely made as if recycled, some masterpieces were crafted with great care.

“Raaaah!!!”

This disgusting creature wasn’t one of them, though.

Even though it had a greenskin’s head, its intelligence seemed impaired by becoming a chimera, unable to speak properly.

Its scream triggered the other chimeras, making them charge at us simultaneously.

Trusting in their regenerative and defensive traits, the large monsters rushed towards us.

Despite the pressing presence of the giant walls of monsters, they had weaknesses.

“Thunderbolt!”

I sent a lightning bolt into the open mouth of the one charging at me.

Crack.

The pale lightning scorched its mouth from the inside.

“Grrr…”

Foaming at the mouth, the chimera collapsed.

Even if they could fight for a long time with their bodies split, frying their brains left them no choice.

Alchemists knew this, so they protected the head with layers of carapace-like helmets. But piercing it with electricity from inside was enough.

Turning away from the convulsing chimera, I swung a dagger at another chimera that had approached me.

Though I didn’t get a guaranteed additional strike, the glowing lion dagger was a fine weapon in itself.

It was enough to cut through the flesh between the carapaces.

“Screeee!”

In pain, the chimera grew more furious. It raised a giant fist from some unknown monster.

“Gale Tornado.”

The energy channeled through the dagger created a gale inside the wound.

Whooosh!

Though its hide remained intact, its insides were mush, and it spewed dark purple fluid from its nose, mouth, and eyes, collapsing.

Boom.

In an instant, I had killed two of the charging chimeras.

Though I had become a mid-level magician, casting mid-level spells took time, so I used low-level magic, which proved enough when hitting the weak spots.

Thanks to my enhanced physical specs and buffs, I could move ahead even in close combat.

Having dealt with all the chimeras targeting me, I turned to check on the others.

Carla was handling the chimeras in a textbook manner.

First, she distanced herself from the others, immobilizing them with earth magic and then finishing them off one by one with fire magic.

She seemed less effective than usual, likely because her combat style wasn’t suited for such close-quarters fighting.

Meanwhile, Elisha was soaring through the battlefield.

It seemed she had decided to prioritize speed over power, casting lower-level spells in rapid succession.

No, this was almost like multi-casting, with hardly any delay between spells.

No matter how tough or regenerative they were, if they kept getting hit, they would eventually die.

The barrage of spells was enough to render the chimeras helpless, their bodies breaking and burning until they could no longer move.

Both of them were fighting well, following my advice to use poison or fire.

Iris was using a combination of fire and earth elements to simultaneously restrain and attack.

Chimeras trapped in stone prisons emerging from the ground were either burned alive or shattered by explosive fragments.

She looked relaxed, not moving a single step from her spot, which was quite impressive.

In contrast, Iona was wielding a weapon created from blood magic, slicing through chimeras one by one. Interestingly, her weapon easily cut through thick muscles and carapace.

Additionally, some form of magic caused a thin blood film to adhere to the cut surfaces, preventing regeneration and ensuring a swift death.

Gilbert, like Iona, was leading the charge.

Well… what could I say about the combat power of a high-ranking paladin of the Church of Righteous Radiance?

Gilbert swung his greatsword effortlessly, slicing chimeras with a single stroke, as if it were nothing.

Since these chimeras were mass-produced based on the power of the Evil God of Tainted Unity, the holy power in Gilbert’s greatsword acted like poison.

Every swing of his greatsword added another chimera corpse to the pile, which was quite a sight.

Lastly, Helena. She had awakened as a saint and had recently been learning combat techniques from Gilbert, not just for self-defense but for defeating enemies.

Her greatly improved skills were reassuring, but her lack of experience was a bit concerning…

“Monsters born in cold labs without mothers! Hurry up and die!”

Helena cursed calmly as she smashed a chimera’s skull with her mace.

Smash! Smash Smash!

The carapace was so hard that it seemed to withstand at first, but repeated blows and the holy power embedded in them softened the carapace until it broke.

Naturally, the chimera’s head also broke.

After sending one back to the ground, she grabbed another chimera’s wrist that was struggling against the holy shield.

“How dare you?! Where do you think you’re putting your hand?”

The chimera struggled to break free, but it couldn’t overcome Helena’s strength, which was reinforced to an absurd degree by holy power.

“Kieeek…”

It let out a weak cry of helplessness, but Helena didn’t relent and slammed her mace down.

Boom!

“You blasphemous creature!”

Perhaps having gained some insight from smashing the previous head, this time the chimera’s skull shattered in a single blow.

Even with the extra damage from holy power, this was unbelievable. Those chimeras were supposed to be tank types…

Helena, who was suspiciously adept with the mace, began to look around.

But the chimera she had just smashed was the last one in the cavity.

Helena, having lost her target, sighed in slight disappointment and looked at us.

Then, with a face covered in chimera blood, she gave a somewhat shy smile.

“Hmm-hmm. Just as the Righteous Radiance said, the mace has a nice feel to it.”

“Yes… it seems so.”

It’s good that Helena has become stronger. However.

Ugh… Is this really right?

I don’t know…!!