164 – Chimera. (3)
Not easy.
It had been over ten minutes since they had started fighting the chimera. The monster was more difficult to deal with than they had thought.
Although the others were starting to regain their wits, the battle was only becoming somewhat easier. Still, it wasn’t enough to deal the creature a fatal blow.
Therefore, the indecisive war of attrition continued.
Suddenly, the battle situation changed.
The chimera’s faces started fighting amongst themselves.
“What the…?”
Ruslan stared at their faces fighting each other with an uncharacteristic expression of bewilderment.
“Snap out of it and focus on what’s in front of you!”
I shouted at him.
Whatever the reason, we had to take advantage of this favorable turn of events.
Arms and arms intertwined, and the attacks directed at us clearly decreased.
“Just attack it! The wraiths are possessing its faces!”
Hearing Lina’s voice behind me, Ruslan and I moved even more actively. We now knew the reason for this advantageous turn of events.
Ruslan swung his sword and cut off a face. I swung my sword where Ruslan had cut off the face.
The creature’s outer skin fell off, revealing its insides as the hideously torn face healed. However, it wasn’t over just because its outer skin had fallen off.
The creature was incredibly large, and the parts we had cut off were only a small portion of it.
Furthermore, its regeneration ability couldn’t be suppressed by flames or divine power. Even though Diana and Aris tried ice or other elemental magic, it was still futile.
It had high basic resistance to evil and divine power. That meant all that was left was physical destruction.
In other words, the only ones who could deliver a fatal blow to the creature right now were me, Adrian, and Ruslan.
So how?
I gripped my sword. Even though they were fighting amongst themselves, the arms and legs protruding from the faces were still demonic limbs. Most of them were ridiculously large or strangely deformed.
In other words, most of them had a terrifying amount of mass. Even the path to the outer skin was extremely difficult.
We had to peel off the skin, cut the flesh inside, and sever the bones before it could regenerate in order to kill it.
… No matter how I thought about it, the difficulty was beyond imagination.
The party’s stamina was also gradually decreasing. Johan, who was casting divine blessings on us at the opportune moment, was on the verge of exhaustion, and so were the magicians Diana and Aris. Lina and Nea, who were resting for a while to figure out a way, were fine for now…
Nea was originally a demon, but Lina would be exhausted before long.
In short, time was running out. It would be futile if the party’s stamina ran out before the creature died. But I still didn’t want to draw Salus.
The purpose of the dungeon was to gain experience and improve their skills. It didn’t mean I had to cut it down myself.
A person can never do everything alone. Someone who can fill that person’s place is always needed. Especially in a situation like this, when the world is on the brink of destruction.
I am by no means arrogant. I have never once thought that I could do everything on my own since coming to this world.
That’s why I had to be a supporting role right now.
I won’t be a supporting role in the future, but at least for now.
I thrust my magic-imbued sword into the creature’s exposed flesh.
Clang!
I could feel the creature’s body shudder. I felt the vivid sensation of piercing through its flesh. However, the path the sword was cutting through was gradually becoming narrower.
It was regenerating even as the sword pierced it.
As I thought, I couldn’t finish it off this way. I had to completely cut off its neck.
“We’ll just keep repeating the same process if we continue like this!”
I shouted at Ruslan.
“…Then we need to cut off its neck.”
Ruslan made a quick judgment as he watched the creature regenerate as soon as I pulled out my sword.
“Can you do it?”
“Let’s do it.”
“Fine. Then I’ll clear the way.”
I spoke, my eyes on the intertwined arms on the monster’s back, Rina and Nea struggling.
The grotesque arms formed an impenetrable wall. The monster’s massive frame left us with little choice but to break through that wall and strike at its neck.
But the monster’s back was high. Scaling it without hindrance would be an exercise in endurance.
CLATTER!
Even now, the monster’s body parts protruding from its back rained blows upon us. It made approach difficult.
But Adrian, who knew what we were aiming for just by looking at us, charged forward and targeted the monster’s legs.
“I’ll break its balance if you’re going to climb on its back!”
She shouted and swung Deus’ Judgment, which had grown even larger, now twice my size.
The giant hammer swung down with a mighty…
BANG!
…sound, cleanly severing one of the monster’s legs. Naturally, the chimera’s quadrupedal form lost its balance.
…I couldn’t help but wonder if it would have been simpler to just stab it in the torso, but it seemed Adrian had put all her strength into that one blow, and even as it fell, the monster’s body was regenerating at an alarming rate.
What kind of regenerative power was this?
Well. That’s why I intended to cut off its neck.
But here’s a question that just occurred to me.
What if its neck regenerates too? What would happen then?
…I decided not to think about it. If the chimera survived that, I planned to draw my Salus.
It was obvious that even just cutting this chimera’s neck would be an invaluable experience for Ruslan. The same went for the rest of the party.
Once that happened, it would be my turn.
My thoughts were brief. Now was the time to act, not think.
* * *
Ruslan stepped forward. Countless body parts targeted him, but he didn’t even think of deflecting them, simply running on.
He had to conserve his strength. To sever that thick neck in one blow, he would have to give it everything he had.
So, he just ran. He ignored the wave of arms and legs, the curtain of body parts swarming towards him.
He trusted.
SWISH.
That Prah Rancel would tear through that curtain in an instant.
He watched as the wall of body parts blocking his path split in two. With the path clear, his course of action was clear.
Ruslan watched Prah’s back as he cut down any obstacle that dared to block his path, staying one step ahead.
He felt nothing. He simply watched, confirming his own duty.
To cut its neck. Ruslan’s thoughts began and ended there.
Soon, even Prah’s form disappeared from his vision, leaving only the chimera’s neck. Normally, ignoring the attacks around him would be suicidal, but in this case, he couldn’t spare the attention.
He simply trusted Prah and moved forward.
He drew his blade. Not his candlestick, but a proper longsword, the fruit of Ruslan’s enlightenment after returning from the Holy Kingdom.
His sword flashed across the chimera’s neck.
SCREECH!
Flesh tore, but not deeply enough. This wouldn’t do.
He tightened his grip on the sword in his hand.
Tighter and tighter.
Tight enough to cut through the outer skin, through the flesh within, and all the way to the bones beneath in one fell swoop.
A full-powered, all-out blow!
There was no sound, and it felt as if everything around him had slowed down. However, the sensation in his hand was more vivid than ever.
The sensation of severing a life.
A sensation that he had thought he had become completely accustomed to after facing the demons, but it suddenly felt unfamiliar as it washed over Ruslan.
Following that, the chimera’s body began to slowly disintegrate, starting from its legs.
* * *
Fortunately, its completely severed neck did not regenerate.
It seemed like he had hit its weak point exactly.
To be honest, considering the monster’s form, it wouldn’t have been strange if it had several brains, or if something had sprouted from its severed neck… Fortunately, none of that happened.
Despite its abnormal body and strength, it seemed to have one normal aspect: like any normal creature, it died when its neck was severed.
The party was completely exhausted. It didn’t seem like they had the energy to do anything else.
Still, it had been a satisfactory expedition. I was particularly impressed by Ruslan’s final blow. A single sword strike that had instantly decapitated the enormous chimera.
Perhaps he had completely internalized the sudden enlightenment he had gained before our duel. That was a sword strike that could not have been performed otherwise.
Now then… It’s time to do what remains.
“Prach? Where are you going?”
Aris called out to me, but I answered lightly.
“I’m just going to scout the surroundings.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to rest for a bit?”
“I still have some stamina left, so I need to check for any potential threats.”
“I’ll come too. I’m not really that tired either.”
“Asti as well?”
“Yes. You guys rest. I’ll come back and tell you if I find anything.”
The party didn’t have the energy to respond to Asti’s words and simply nodded before lying down on the large communal bed.