Ch.96Operation to Subjugate the Minotaur

“Flame Lance!”

“What extends is a dazzling lightning… Revolving Spark Striker!”

A spear of flame and five orbs of electricity flew toward the body of the Rumbling Centipede filling the corridor.

As if chasing after that brilliant display of magic, Seti leaped forward and deeply thrust her spear into the center of the writhing centipede’s head. The massive black body collapsed to the floor, convulsed briefly, then dispersed like smoke.

“Well, I’m standing on the front line with you, but I’m not being of any help at all.”

“Peter, you’ll shine when we fight the Minotaur. Right now, it’s my turn to act.”

Seti replied to Peter, who was sticking out his tongue in admiration, as she retrieved the magic stone from the Rumbling Centipede.

Day 2 of the quest.

Having formed a temporary alliance with Hector’s party to subjugate the Minotaur, we were steadily advancing toward the location where the Throne of Madness had been discovered.

After several battles, I assessed Hector’s party’s combat capability as quite impressive.

Peter’s cutlass could create a shield of magical power, an excellent defensive measure capable of withstanding monster attacks head-on, while Rick was skilled at maintaining the optimal distance for maximizing his double-barrel shotgun’s firepower.

Hector could freely switch between elemental attributes with his 5-shot attack spell “Revolving Striker,” and was capable of casting a diverse range of spells including barriers, healing, detoxification, and debuffs.

Jessica seemed somewhat conflicted as she observed the staff wizard’s performance up close…

‘What is this? That Hector isn’t utilizing the advantages of a staff wizard at all.’

That was my honest impression after watching Hector’s combat style.

He doesn’t use defensive magic in response to enemy attacks, and applies debuff spells belatedly to enemies already critically wounded by preemptive strikes.

He only uses healing or detoxification when combat has ended and the party is regrouping.

Rather than adapting his tactics and spellcasting to rapidly changing situations, he fought like a mage in a turn-based RPG game.

Like a mage who wastes an area attack spell because it was decided at the beginning of the turn, even though the warriors have already defeated all but one enemy.

‘When fighting the Minotaur, I should think of Hector as a fixed artillery position and not expect anything beyond the pre-arranged tactical plan.’

Not quite useless, but honestly below expectations.

I had no choice but to abandon my plan to utilize him as the core defensive force responsible for the party’s protection during the Minotaur battle.

I couldn’t expect him to effectively command Rick and Peter either; I’d be grateful if he just moved as instructed.

“…!! Everyone stop.”

Seti, who was walking at the front, whispered and raised one hand to halt the six people following behind.

Everyone could easily guess what this gesture meant.

‘Thud… thud…’

It was different from the sound of dozens of footsteps made by a Rumbling Centipede.

Different from the squelching sound of a Black Slime dropping down.

Unless there was some unknown monster we hadn’t yet encountered in this dungeon, there was only one thing that could make such heavy footsteps.

‘The Minotaur is wandering around nearby.’

Everyone reacted swiftly upon realizing this fact through the footsteps.

They lowered the lantern covers to block the spreading light, and Jessica and Hector cast their spells relying on the faint light seeping through the cracks.

“Stone Bullet, Break Enchant.”

“What covers those feet are shoes of silence… Step of Silence.”

Jessica’s enchantment settled into my revolver and Rick’s shotgun, while Hector’s support magic enveloped Phyllis and Mina.

Phyllis, the only one whose vision wasn’t limited in darkness, was peeking around the corner to observe the corridor beyond.

‘Thud… thud…’

‘Tap tap’

As the Minotaur’s footsteps gradually drew closer, Phyllis tapped the dungeon wall twice.

A signal that the Minotaur had entered her field of vision.

‘Gulp…’

It was a precarious situation—if they had been just a little later, the sound of spellcasting might have been heard by the Minotaur.

Hector swallowed hard, readjusted his grip on his staff, and moved closer to where Phyllis was standing.

Hector’s role from now on was to draw the Minotaur’s aggro with a preemptive attack and hinder its movement with debuff spells.

After that, he needed to conserve his magical power and focus entirely on healing and maintaining the front line until the Throne of Madness was destroyed.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Hector concentrated and gathered his magical power, then fully exposed himself from around the corner and began his incantation.

“Ten meters ahead.”

“What burns is the raging karmic fire… Revolving Fire Striker!”

“What!? You fucking idiot!”

As Phyllis, who had been timing the moment, informed them of the Minotaur’s position, five fireballs shot from Hector’s staff.

It didn’t matter if they all hit; he just needed to draw the Minotaur’s aggro and then retreat behind the corner.

That’s exactly what I had instructed, but… why did he have to use a fire spell of all things!?

‘Pop-pop-bang!’

“Mooooarr-!!”

The sound of Hector’s fireballs causing a series of small explosions.

Recalling our encounter with the Black Slime, the fire-attribute Revolving Striker was not only a fire attack spell but also created patches of flame on the ground where it landed.

It was a highly efficient spell useful for both direct attacks and area control, but this was precisely the wrong timing to use it.

Hoping that all five fireballs had at least hit the Minotaur, I watched the flow of the operation transition to the next phase.

Rick’s earth-enchanted double-barrel shotgun unleashed its fury at the body of the Minotaur as it charged around the corner with a mighty roar.

‘Bang-bang!!’

“Gwaaack!”

A double-barrel shotgun fired at point-blank range, with both barrels simultaneously enhanced with a weight-increasing effect.

Even the massive Minotaur couldn’t withstand the heavy impact delivered in the direction of its momentum as it came around the curve.

As the Minotaur was pushed against the outer corner of the bent corridor, Jessica’s and my consecutive attacks flew toward it.

“Diamond Dust!”

‘Bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang!!’

Jessica’s Diamond Dust encased the Minotaur’s lower body in ice, while six fanning shots peppered its head.

The sequence from Hector’s preemptive attack to my fanning shots proceeded according to the planned operation.

A series of high-powered consecutive attacks suddenly unleashed when it pursued Hector who had launched a surprise attack.

With Jessica’s freezing magic added to the mix, the Minotaur would think these hunters were trying to bind its feet and escape, just like yesterday.

While the six headshots pounded the Minotaur’s head, Phyllis and Mina, who had been waiting at the corner, quickly went around the corridor and fled into the darkness.

Of course, the Minotaur, being a monster that dwells in the dark dungeon, could see through darkness to some extent.

But what would enter the Minotaur’s field of vision once it recovered from the shock of the consecutive attacks?

In front of it were enemies with revolvers, shotguns, two spellcasters, and warriors with swords and spears, all aiming their weapons and lanterns at it.

Meanwhile, the side corridor was where it had just charged from, and the two people who had fled that way made neither light nor sound.

Unless there was something to draw attention in the direction Mina and Phyllis had gone, the Minotaur’s gaze would naturally be fixed forward.

Once the Minotaur broke free from the ice and took two steps forward, the possibility of Mina and Phyllis being detected would completely disappear. The two, unnoticed, would take the shortest route to find and destroy the Throne of Madness—that was the core of this operation, but…

“What!?”

Hector’s initial trolling disrupted the perfectly meshing gears of our operation.

The Minotaur, recovering from the impact of the headshots, was looking not at us but toward the corner where Phyllis and Mina had run.

The faint flames illuminating the bull’s face were evidence of fire flickering beyond that corridor.

Phyllis and Mina, who should have quietly disappeared into the darkness amid the chaos, had been spotted by the Minotaur because of the flames Hector had left in the corridor.

“MOOOOOARRR—-!!”

Beyond that corridor, following the path Rick had indicated, lay the room with the Throne of Madness.

The Minotaur, well aware of what this meant, broke free from its icy prison with a rage-filled roar.

The maddened bull, having regained its freedom, didn’t even glance at us as it began to pursue Mina and Phyllis who had fled down the burning corridor.