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Chapter 410

‘The fact that there was no defeat message means the Chimera is still alive…’

Thinking about how the monster let out a horrific scream, it must have taken significant damage, so if the Paladins finish it off…

As I looked down, the scene unfolding was nothing like what I had expected.

‘Huh? What the hell are those idiots doing?!’

The Paladins were on their knees, palms facing the sky, chanting an unknown prayer.

Seeing the people sobbing profusely, screaming to the heavens, I could totally understand why the hunters were staying away from the Paladins.

‘Those lunatic bastards…’

My head was already spinning from the side effects, and seeing that scene made a piercing pain shoot through the back of my head, like someone had shoved a dagger in it.

The wide clearing, the size of three soccer fields where the Chimera had been, was a complete mess from the meteor explosion, but with the gaps between the meteorites, I couldn’t be sure about the Chimera’s condition.

‘Damn it…! Even I have to finish this—’

Creak—

But my body wouldn’t listen to me.

– Mental strength has reached its limit. Magic power consumption for skill use has greatly increased.

‘Limit? It’s not even covered by [Composure]?’

Even casting a simple [Fireball] now required over 50 mana—this was absurd.

I’d heard of top-tier magicians going through something like this, but experiencing it for the first time was a bit surprising.

While I was stuck in mid-air, a being began to rise slowly from the spot where the meteor had bombarded.

I wondered if the skill was ineffective against a single target, and with a tense heart, I looked down.

Then.

‘Hah? Hahaha, what the hell is that.’

The Chimera I thought had gotten back up was missing its lower half and left shoulder, and from the explosion, several strands of rope-like biological tissue twitched and flailed from the torn body.

The squirming biological tissue seemed to struggle to regenerate.

Looks like it wasn’t able to do whatever it wanted because it was affected by ‘[Severe Burn].’ I need to hit it hard and finish this… what are those fools doing?!

Maybe my urgent shout reached them?

Fortunately, the Paladins, after completing their useless prayers, were rushing towards the struggling Chimera.

‘Good, they’re moving faster than when they fought me.’

The Paladins, now even stronger with divine buffs, were rushing with drool dripping from their mouths.

‘What a bunch of crazed dogs.’

But it looked like a bit too much buffing from my perspective.

The backlash from using the meteor earlier should also hit them hard, without a doubt.

But those idiots showed no concern for that.

“God’s blessing is upon us-!!”

“Kya-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”

With a burst of Light Madness, the Paladins threw a magic net over the Chimera’s head.

As soon as the net flew up, it expanded on its own and soon covered the Chimera’s torso.

‘Looks to be reliable. Where can I get one like that? Is it American-made?’

“In the name of Justice-!!”

“Come forth, Light!! Divine Surge!”

“Oh, hahahaha!! I never thought I’d reach this level! My body feels as light as a feather!”

“The Goddess Areina commands us to slay all the filthy beings in this area!!”

“I will follow the God’s will even if my body shatters!!”

‘Good grief, they sure are going nuts. Just finish it off already.’

I shook my head and slowly moved towards the Chimera, feeling my mental strength quickly recovering thanks to [Composure].

– Kieeek!!

The Chimera, now covered by the magic net and with its movement restricted, finally attempted to retaliate as the deranged warriors charged in.

The Chimera stretched its right arm and unleashed a powerful attack towards the Paladins.

Swish—

‘Wow, it still has that much power.’

The Chimera’s extending arm became thicker, and taking it head-on didn’t seem like a good idea. The five claws on its fingers radiated a sharpness I wouldn’t want to face.

Bang──!

“Ugh! What?! Its arm is like rubber?!”

“Form up!!”

“It’s not impossible to dodge! Keep pushing!”

“It’s regenerating a bit! We can’t give it time!”

The Chimera’s claw, made up of razor-sharp claws, easily shattered the formation of the fifteen Paladins charging confidently.

Some of them, attempting to deflect the attack, had their shields shredded and ruined, but anyone with half a brain wouldn’t retreat now.

“Attack!!”

The sight of Paladins charging with their golden shields reminded me of hyenas attacking a wounded beast.

“Kieeeek!!”

Even so, the Chimera’s strength was formidable, leading to a fierce battle that lasted over twenty minutes.

But the end of the tedious fight was approaching.

With every hit the Paladins landed, the Chimera screamed in agony as its body melted away.

‘Yeah, it just doesn’t have a good match-up against them. I’d end up like that too if I took a hit…’

The chilling scene of merciless group violence drew closer and closer.

Boom!

Bang!

Thud, thud, thud!

As time passed, the excitement of the Paladins gradually calmed down, and they remembered to firmly hold their shields.

Thud, thud, thud!!

The Chimera extended several biological tissues like needles, striking the shields, but its attacks were already too weak to breach ‘Areina’s Golden Shield.’

“We’re almost there!!”

“Hee-hee-hee-”

“Just a bit more effort!!”

“Yes!!”

Watching from above as they helped each other out, I could sense the Chimera’s last breath approaching, so I opened up the space.

[Skeleton Bomb]

Whoosh—

Dozens of round objects dropped from the space, and the moment the Paladins, still picturing special rewards and smiling, looked up into the sky.

Boom-boom-boom-boom-boom-boom-boom—aah!!

“Uwaaaaah!!”

“W-what!!”

‘Why couldn’t they imagine I’d backstab them?’

From the start, believing that [Meteor] was thanks to ‘Areina’ was just hilarious.

Even if they had seen meteorites suddenly appearing, did they truly think the world revolved around them?

‘Aheh, let’s drop a few more.’

I dropped another 50 bombs.

With additional blasts echoing and screams ringing out, the battlefield buzzed with chaos.

The bombs made from Ogre bones were not used, and since the bombs made from C-rank dungeon monsters wouldn’t cause fatal damage to the Paladins, they were in for a wild ride.

I found it amusing watching the Paladins scramble in all directions, so I lay down and watched for a while.

By now, somewhere, ‘Areina’ was probably tearing her hair out, scolding her foolish devotees.

– You have defeated ‘Rough Tooth’ for the first time!

– An entity without traits or skills.

‘How strange. Even this guy doesn’t trigger [Thief]? Isn’t every Chimera like this?’

Though a bit disappointed, I couldn’t help but smile at the next messages that popped up.

– You have obtained Ancient Rare Crystals!

– You have obtained Ancient Rare Crystals!

– You have obtained Ancient Rare Crystals!

‘Wow! Three rare crystals?!’

=====

Ancient Rare Crystal

– It has the power to strongly吸引 and store mana from the surrounding environment.

– When fused with a Dwarf’s work, it boosts magic power by +200.

=====

The ‘Ancient Rare Crystal,’ known for absorbing and storing energy with even stronger capabilities than the self-generating ‘Ancient Crystal.’

Just selling it would fetch at least 1 billion.

Primarily used by big corporations that consume massive energy, and now it turns out that fusing it with Dwarven-made equipment boosts mana significantly?

‘I’ve never seen a crystal with such options attached. Is it a special monster?’

Whatever it was, gaining three of such an amazing item was somewhat reasonable compensation for the [Thief] not triggering.

Moreover, I didn’t even take it down alone, so it was a reward beyond my expectations.

Thud—

Landing lightly beside the Chimera, I first shoved the grotesquely twisted and torn corpse into the space.

I didn’t forget to carelessly toss one of the small pieces of the Chimera scattered on the floor into my mouth.

Seeing the Paladins who had fled far away retch at the sight of me eating a piece of flesh was rather entertaining. What did they expect?

– Analysis of ‘Rough Tooth’ is postponed.

Fortunately, the Chimera 2 also triggered [Essence Gluttony], and once the one I was making was complete, the analysis would begin.

“Cough, damn it… they are waiting for a chance when we hunt!”

“Orcs value honor, but that doesn’t seem to be the case!”

The Paladins were venting their frustration at missing the final blow.

‘I’m not an Orc, you know.’

Shrugging to the Paladins, I gazed at them, who had sustained some serious injuries, and briefly pondered.

‘Should I give them a lesson?’

If I were to do that, now would be the time.

The light emitted from their bodies was gradually fading, and as expected, due to the excessive power they received, the flow of mana also appeared unstable.

However, the truth was, I was genuinely fearful of how ‘Areina’ might react.

But if I just left, they would probably keep pestering me again.

I had no idea how long I’d be stuck with this mark.

Then, a message popped up.

– The Goddess of Light ‘Areina’s’ intervention is mediated by the Balance Manager.

‘What on earth is she trying to pull that the manager has to mediate?’

It was already bizarre enough for a divine being to intervene at this level.

The Paladins hadn’t shown such intense reactions every time facing monsters; could it be that one of the gods connected to me has a bitter relationship with ‘Areina’?

Furthermore, speaking of balance and whatnot, I wished the manager had taken care of things before ‘Areina’ started messing around. If they can’t even manage their own dungeon properly, how could they do anything right…

– Defeat ‘Areina’s’ devotees and gain rewards!

– Victory: Remove ‘Areina’s’ Light Mark, gain the location of ‘Areina’s’ Hidden Temple

– Defeat: Two lives

– Will you accept ‘Areina’s’ mediated proposal?

······

Well, I guess I’m in for a long haul.

To receive a direct proposal from such a secretive and mystical divine being was unparalleled.

‘Oh boy… what a seriously mediated proposal. Here’s a crazy goddess proposing a fight against many!’

I reached out to the gods linked to me, but of course, they didn’t respond.

‘No idea why she’s targeting my life, but let’s think it through…’

Winning means removing the mark and getting the location of a hidden temple.

If I lose, I lose two lives?

‘Well, I could find hidden spaces myself… but is it different for temples? After all, I haven’t found such a space yet. Maybe you can’t find them just based on senses.’

In fact, I wasn’t sure if I could even enter the Light Temple, and it could also be a cunning trap laid by the goddess.

Thinking about that didn’t evoke wildly attractive conditions, but if I thought calmly, just getting rid of a mark that might follow me for life was a good opportunity.


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