chapter_0044
by adminMesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
44
Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
44
I struck the Witch’s Face,
which was lying on the ground making grotesque noises, once more with
my mace.
As I was shaking off the mess
on my mace, Joy and Jacob approached me from a distance.
“Are you okay?”
‘Of course.’
“Airhead Lady, do you
think I would be defeated by such a sloppy creature?”
“But you’re hurt.”
I couldn’t quite say there was
no damage.
While I had perfectly
memorised the witch’s patterns, there was a definite gap in specs
between us.
But it’s fine.
Injuries of this level don’t
even scratch me.
In fact, I’ve been more
seriously hurt during sparring with Possell.
I gave a smile to Joy, who was
looking at me with concern.
‘I’m fine.’
“I’m not so weak that I
need to be worried about by someone like you, Airhead Lady.”
“…Ha. Got it, Bratty
Lady*.” (*To clarify this shows change in thoughts of the
character saying it and when nicknames change it is the same for
future reference.)
I felt like her thoughts about
how it’s pointless to worry came across, but maybe it was just my
imagination.
I led the two further inside.
Within minutes, we saw a white
statue standing in the middle of the path, completely out of place in
this laboratory.
It was a sign indicating a
safe zone.
“This must be the safe
zone.”
“Then, do we just wait
here for rescue?”
‘Yes…’
“Yes. Let’s wait for the
sloppy academy rescue team.”
I placed my shield and mace on
the ground and leaned against the wall.
Since I was in charge of
leading this party, I thought showing a relaxed attitude first would
help the others feel at ease too.
At first, Joy and Jacob seemed
to hesitate about whether they should rest, but soon they must have
thought that recovering their stamina was more important than staying
tense, because they leaned against the wall like I did.
Ugh. It’s been quite a while
since we entered the dungeon, so why is the rescue taking so long?
I want to escape this gloomy
place as soon as possible.
‘What is it?’
I flinched at the voice
calling me.
Since falling into this
dungeon, whenever Grandpa called me, it was always bad news.
I know there’s no need to
worry since reaching the safe section means we’re guaranteed safety.
However, it’s hard to fully
relax after everything that’s happened today.
Watching us?
Following Grandpa’s words, I
turned my gaze to see an Argos standing just outside the boundary of
the safe section.
It was a strange sight.
Argos are guards. They don’t
stay in one place. They constantly patrol designated areas, detecting
intruders.
Why is one just standing
there, watching us?
As I was mulling this over,
another Argos appeared from a distance and took position next to the
first.
Seeing this, I hurriedly
grabbed my mace and shield and stood up.
This is an unexpected
situation.
An occurrence that never
happened in the game.
“Lady Allen!”
“Lady!”
‘Are you alright?!’
“What’s there to worry
about? You can see those fools can’t come in, right? We’re fine.”
I reassured Joy and Jacob, who
were trembling with anxiety.
Even though I knew this
situation was far from normal, I had to tell them we were okay.
If I didn’t, the fear gripping
their hearts would quickly grow and turn into panic.
As we kept our guard up, more
and more monsters began to surround the safe zone.
One became two, and two became
four. Before I knew it, the Argos had completely enclosed the
perimeter of the safe zone.
Escaping was impossible.
We were like rats trapped in a
cage.
Yet, we were still safe.
As long as we stayed inside
the safe zone.
They couldn’t breach it.
So why did I feel so uneasy?
Since I entered this world, my
ominous premonitions have never been wrong. Biting my lip, I scanned
our surroundings.
It wasn’t long before I saw a
massive figure pushing through the Argos horde in the distance.
Covered in old, tattered grey
cloth, with decaying skin peeking through the gaps.
Dragging its legs and
supporting its massive frame with a disgusting cane. Unsettling
energy scattered around him, and under the fabric covering his face,
red eyes gleamed.
The first thought that crossed
my mind when I saw him was disgust.
I felt nauseous.
All I did was look into his
eyes, but it was enough to make me feel sick to my stomach.
Something that shouldn’t exist
stood before me.
Something that might not even
be allowed to remain in this world was standing right in front of me.
We need to escape. But where?
Where can we go?
With Argos surrounding us,
where could we possibly escape to?
It’s impossible. So, if we
want to escape, we must—
Huh.
[Overcoming Fear] activated
and pulled me back to reality.
‘I’m managing.’
The passive skill from the
“Alchemist” class.
Was [Mental Contamination]
this dangerous?!
In the game, it could be
resisted with just a decent mental skill!
“Uweeeh.”
The sound of someone retching
made me turn my head.
I saw Jacob holding his neck
with both hands and Joy sitting on the ground, vomiting profusely.
Damn. This is bad.
Unlike me, Jacob and Joy
didn’t have mental skills to counter the alchemist’s [Mental
Contamination].
If I leave them like this,
they’ll end up killing themselves.
‘What?’
Grandpa was right.
As soon as I made my decision,
I struck Jacob on the head with my shield, knocking him out cold in
one hit.
Then I hit the back of Joy’s
head to render her unconscious and faced forward.
‘Because that’s the boss of
this dungeon.’
The Alchemist.
A man who embraced taboo to
indulge his own obsessions.
Sealed away for his sins, but
chosen by Agra to be the master of this dungeon.
Why has this madman left his
lair where he should be enjoying his research?
Among the three of us, none of
us seem like worthy test subjects to him.
The alchemist, who had
approached right in front of the safe section, looked at my face and
then lazily spoke.
“You’re not going mad even
after seeing me.”
With every word he spoke, a
foul stench that disturbed the mind leaked out.
Damn it. I want to shove a
mace into that mouth.
“Interesting. You don’t
seem to have reached that level yet. Could it be because you’re an
Apostle of Armadi?”
Armadi!
That useless god who gives
nothing yet attracts all this trouble has done it again today!
Damn it. No wonder Argos kept
showing up each time I used [Armadi’s Mercy].
The Alchemist chuckled,
seemingly amused by my scowl.
His laugh was as unpleasant as
worms crawling on my skin.
“Test Subject.”
The Alchemist pointed at me
with his wrinkled, aged finger.
“If you come out quietly, I
won’t harm the two behind you.”
“Are you rotten in the head?
The words coming out of your mouth are as foul as your stench.”
Eat a knuckle sandwich, you
crazy bastard.
I might be influenced by the
[Mesugaki] skill, but my mind is still clear!
Do you think I would trust a
lunatic who’d turn honesty into gold with alchemy?!
As I openly provoked him, a
fierce glint appeared in the Alchemist’s eyes.
Crazy. That’s seriously
terrifying.
But what are you going to do
if you get mad?
You can’t enter the safe
zone anyway!
“Looks like you have faith
in Armadi’s power, but there’s something you don’t know. This
laboratory may be a dungeon, but it’s also an extension of my own
body.”
As the Alchemist raised his
arm and clenched his fist, the narrow corridor transformed into a
vast wilderness.
Dungeon Manipulation.
One of the patterns this
monster used when emerging as a boss.
What on earth is he trying to
do?
Doing this doesn’t change
the fact that we’re in the safe zone.
As if answering my question,
the Alchemist opened his clenched fist, and the corridor returned to
its original size, throwing me—no, us—into the middle of Argos’s
horde.
…What?
“If you refuse to come
out, then I’ll just pull you out.”
Hearing [Iron Wall]’s scream,
I tried to move, but it was already too late.
I felt a weight press down on
my shoulder.
“Don’t think your powers
will solve everything.”
Then something seeped into me
through my shoulder.
There was no time to think, no
chance to resist.
My vision turned white, and my
body tilted forward.
My face hit the stone floor,
but I felt no pain.
My entire body was paralyzed;
I couldn’t even move a finger.
“I originally intended to
take only you and leave the other two as food for the beasts, but
I’ve changed my mind. Those who love to resist should be shown
their future.”
I heard the Alchemist dragging
his feet. As soon as I heard him, I used [Armadi’s Mercy] on myself.
I had done my best to increase
my proficiency until today.
And of course, that included
the proficiency of [Armadi’s Mercy].
I still hadn’t reached the
stage where I could exorcise Agra’s Curse.
In other words, unless
[Armadi’s Mercy] was almost max level, exorcism wasn’t something I
could do.
As soon as the paralysis wore
off, I grabbed my mace and charged at the alchemist.
I knew it wasn’t a winnable
fight.
I knew there was no way I
could handle the alchemist as I was now.
But still, I ran at him.
To buy time.
Hoping for a miracle.
Hoping for a saving hand to
reach me.
But instead of a miracle, the
alchemist’s tentacles shot out from beneath his ragged robes at a
speed I couldn’t react to, striking my abdomen and sending me
crashing into the Argos forming the wall, tumbling down to the floor.
As I choked on the pain
piercing through my armour, something slimy clamped around my wrists
and ankles.
I struggled to break free, but
escape was impossible.
The alchemist’s tentacles were
far too strong.
“You sure are a stubborn
child.”
The alchemist’s wrinkled hand
grasped my neck.
Despite his decaying arm, the
slight pressure he applied was enough to make me feel like I was
suffocating.
“I like a persistent one.
Playing with someone like you is more enjoyable than with an average
person.”
I felt the oxygen slowly
fading.
My mind went blank.
There was no time to even feel
the fear of death.
“How should I break your
spirit?”
Damn it… Fucking worthless
Armadi.
You said you were watching
over me, you perverted bastard.
Then help me out.
Save me before the human you
blessed dies.
This happened because of you.
Take responsibility!
Is it because this dungeon is
Agra’s territory and you can’t interfere?
If that’s the case, just go
die.
Apologize to the followers who
died because of your incompetence and then kill yourself, you
worthless piece of trash!
Ding.
[Do you need help?]
Seeing the message appear
before my eyes as my consciousness faded, I couldn’t help but let out
a hollow laugh.
What now?
Why are you only showing up
now?
Armadi, were you some
masochistic freak who enjoyed getting abused by a Mesugaki?
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