Episode 333. The Hellish Scoundrel Centaur.

Dugeun─

My heart rate began to quicken.

A thumping I hadn’t felt in a long time.

Even though I’d grown incomparably stronger than before, I still felt this tension.

‘But… this feels manageable.’

The Centaur’s momentum was immense, but our lineup was just as incredible.

Isaac, the Emperor of the Night, who was top-tier in the world rankings.

Rebecca, possessing strength comparable to Isaac.

Irene, the first team leader of the Iris Guild.

And me.

Of course, even though it was morning and Isaac couldn’t unleash his full power, this much strength should be enough.

If such powerhouses gathered couldn’t even catch one monster, humanity would have perished long ago.

The problem was aiming for subjugation, not killing, in a fight where unknown variables could pop up.

It might be greedy… but I decided to give it my best shot.

“F-class…”

• Right. An F-class mercenary token! The mark of the Underworld!

I checked the F-class mercenary token hanging around its neck.

No matter how I thought about it, that wasn’t F-class.

I didn’t like that the Underworld folks spoke English, and they couldn’t even properly assign a rank.

“What’s wrong with F?”

“Are you talking about the necklace hanging around its neck? What could it mean?”

“Well, I don’t know either. Let’s capture it first and ask everything then.”

I gave Isaac and Irene a vague answer.

Honestly, I didn’t know either.

[Succubus… why aren’t you showing yourself?]

The Centaur kept talking to us, looking our way.

I really wish it wouldn’t say such important things.

If it starts suspecting us, things will get troublesome.

• Why does that guy keep acting like he knows me?

“…”

Yeah, seriously.

Hearing it ramble about a Succubus, it must definitely know about Liliana’s existence.

Of course, I couldn’t be sure yet whether it was focusing on the ‘Succubus’ species or the individual ‘Liliana’.

[The magical power I sense is weak… what is its objective? Is it trying to eliminate me now?]

“Irene-ssi. Are Centaurs normally this talkative?”

“…No. This is the first time we’ve encountered this situation either.”

I tried to ignore it at first, but it kept bothering me.

If it wasn’t normally so talkative, there had to be a reason it was speaking.

‘Could it be that even under mind control, its consciousness is still alive?’

If not, there’s no way it would speak with such clear intent.

“…Rebecca-ssi. What do you think? It doesn’t seem like pointless chatter.”

I asked Rebecca without mentioning mind control.

Rebecca tilted her head and replied.

“Hmm. Maybe it’s giving us a hint?”

“A hint…”

Couldn’t it just let us handle its body for a moment instead?

We could break the mind control right away.

“Um, so this Rebecca… -ssi?”

“She’s an acquaintance of mine.”

“We can trust her to fight, right?”

“Of course. Trust her as much as you trust me.”

“…In that case, I won’t trust her.”

Kuwoong─

[If I could, I’d want to resolve this peacefully… but it’s not easy.]

The Centaur continued speaking and stomped its front hoof.

The ground vibrated with the light step, and black magic burrowed into the earth.

Dugeun─

“Dodge!”

It wasn’t a simple shockwave, but ominous magic that felt like it would cause problems if hit.

Despite being conjured in an instant, the Centaur’s magic had a deep black hue.

• That level… is incredibly strong. The darker the color, the stronger the Underworld’s magic.

“What the hell is this crap.”

Pillars of darkness erupted from the ground, shooting up as if to wedge themselves between us.

Fortunately, no one was hit, but the speed and power were definitely threatening.

“Lee Hoyeon, can you really capture that?!”

“Yes. If we can create an opening for just a moment.”

If it were just me, maybe, but Rebecca is here.

Rebecca has higher proficiency than me, so she can disable it in an instant.

“Subjugation or capture… let’s beat it half to death first and then decide. Prepare yourselves.”

“Understood.”

Isaac stepped forward and spoke, with Irene standing beside him.

“Sounds good. Even if we fight like we intend to kill, I doubt it’ll die anyway.”

“If we fight with the intent to kill, an opening will appear.”

I raised my hand, channeling magic alongside Rebecca standing next to me.

*

‘My body feels light.’

• Keu-uh-uhk….

Alice felt a sensation she had never experienced before.

To utilize her talent of being able to use both sword and magic, a large amount of mana was essential, so it was natural she hadn’t felt this thrill until now.

Now that her mana circuits were almost normalized thanks to Lee Hoyeon’s massage, her talent finally bloomed.

“Hup!”

Alice held her sword in one hand and drew a magic circle with the other.

She swung her sword down at the shoulder of a approaching demon on the right, while fending off the demon behind with magic.

One. Two.

Her elbow rotated, slicing down a new demon, and simultaneously channeling the mana she grasped into her sword to extend its energy blade, piercing the heart of the demon behind.

Three. Four.

Gradually, the number of demons falling to Alice increased.

A combat style like acrobatics, which she could never have performed before.

“Hoo….”

Alice felt exhilarated.

Feeling exhilarated from a fight, it had been a long time since she felt this way.

• Th-this is unbelievable. To not even hold out until the Apostle arrives…

“Scarlet. Fight with me.”

“Yes. I will assist.”

Before Alice stood a Pandemonic executive, looking at the Centaur with what seemed like panic.

Most of the demons, excluding the executive, had either fled or been dealt with.

This was thanks to the efforts of the 2nd Team Leader, Scarlet, Sebastian, and Alice.

Kaang─

Alice blocked the charging demon’s attack and signaled Scarlet.

Scarlet’s speed and stealth were unparalleled within the guild.

She seized the demon’s back in the blink of an eye.

Jjijijik─!

Sharp electricity pierced the demon’s abdomen, and though the demon hastily swung its arm back, Scarlet had already moved away.

• Keu-eu-euk…!

Alice, seizing the opening created by Scarlet’s attack, parried the blade and then waved her hand, creating a binding spell.

• Stop, why are we…!

“Shut up.”

Alice, having subdued the executive with her specialty, barrier magic, surveyed her surroundings.

The executive-level demons had all been subdued, and the remaining demon stragglers had mostly fled.

The injured were receiving treatment.

Thanks to Alice’s efforts, the damage was less than expected, making it a fairly satisfying battle.

And the pursuit team members with minor injuries naturally turned their gaze to one spot.

“Wow….”

“That’s the Centaur’s power… Definitely, guys like us couldn’t even get involved.”

“Just the aura feels different. Even from this far away, I feel my body trembling. How strong do you need to be to face that?”

“…I find the kid stuck between those monsters the most terrifying.”

“Calling him a kid when he’s taller than you.”

“Shut it.”

“By the way, who’s that red-haired woman?”

“No idea. She’s pretty, though. Is she reinforcements? Seeing as the Guild Master isn’t acting, she must be on our side.”

Kwaang─! Paaang─!

Alice couldn’t close her mouth at the battle unfolding before her eyes.

As if her achievements moments ago meant nothing, the four surrounding the Centaur were engaged in a battle on a completely different level.

“…Scarlet. Is that the strength a 20-year-old can achieve?”

“Lee Hoyeon student is just an anomaly.”

Scarlet, who was regaining her composure beside Alice, also shook her head.

The Centaur was threatening, living up to its name.

Just one stomp of its hoof made the ground tremble, and dozens of spikes shot out from the earth.

That wasn’t all. It closed distances of hundreds of meters in a single stride and swung a massive blunt weapon.

If she had been standing there, she probably would have lost her life on the first attack.

It wasn’t that she was weak; this monster was unbelievably strong.

Monsters like this rampaging across all of France was the reason pursuit teams like this had to be formed.

Yet, in the battle against such a Centaur, Lee Hoyeon was holding his ground.

No, he was definitely pulling his weight.

Strangely, most of the Centaur’s attacks were directed at Lee Hoyeon, and while he blocked them, the others were chipping away at the Centaur’s stamina.

“Wow. Our Guild Master really is strong.”

“Right? But that red-haired woman is strong too?”

The other guild members watched the battle as if it were an amusing spectacle.

Their assigned mission was over, so their tension had eased, and they trusted Isaac too much.

“…Scarlet. Is it always like this?”

Alice whispered to Scarlet, observing the pursuit team’s atmosphere.

“It’s because the Guild Master is here. People from the shadows practically worship the Guild Master like a god. Many joined the guild just seeing his face.”

“…That’s not good.”

“Indeed. It’s not a good atmosphere.”

Given Iris Guild’s characteristics, even though many guild members blindly trusted Isaac, their Guild Master, this was still a real combat situation.

‘I have to keep my wits about me.’

With a commendable thought, Alice held her breath and watched Lee Hoyeon’s fight.

The Centaur, visibly slowed with scratches all over its body and depleted stamina, seemed to be making a final desperate struggle, spewing an immense amount of mana to obscure the surroundings while firing magic at Lee Hoyeon.

“…Huh?”

Alice doubted her eyes.

Lee Hoyeon had let slip an attack he had been blocking well until now.

Seeing his slightly staggering body, the surprised Alice quickly drew a magic circle, but before she could, the mana beside her erupted.

*

‘…My condition isn’t great.’

I realized it after a few exchanges.

Thanks to my combat sense and clear mind, I could fight, but I wasn’t at full condition.

It was because I hadn’t slept a wink.

‘It’s fortunate Rebecca is here, at least.’

Well, what could I do? I just had to concentrate.

If I didn’t concentrate, I’d die, so I had to endure with grit.

The fight with the Centaur itself was overwhelming.

The Centaur was stronger than I imagined, but Rebecca, skilled enough to coordinate the fight, was there.

What was annoying was that the Centaur was only attacking me.

After rambling about Succubi this and that, it was blatantly targeting me.

Of course, that made the fight itself easier.

The strategy was for me to cover the Centaur’s attacks while the others wore down its stamina.

We had agreed to kill it instantly if the other pursuit teams were in too much danger or if the Centaur proved more threatening than expected, but it seemed all the surrounding battles were wrapped up.

Kuwaaaang─!!!

I quickly created a rune barrier, evading the Centaur’s attack.

Black shockwaves erupted along the ground, and its attack burrowing towards my vital points would be a critical hit the moment I allowed even one.

[Human. Why are you going this far? It would be easier if you just killed me.]

“If you’re going to cooperate, just get caught, you bastard…! I told you I’d break the mind control!”

[You know? Of course, I am trying too.]

Kwadeudeuk─

The Centaur, speaking in a worried tone, rotated its arm, shattering the rune barrier.

• Isn’t that bastard completely insane?! Why is he only talking nicely!

“That’s just how people from the Underworld are…!”

• Hey, what does that mean?

Still, the intensity of the attack had weakened considerably compared to before.

It felt like the Centaur’s final desperate act, covered in wounds all over its body, so I felt I could capture it smoothly if I just blocked a few more times.

I raised my mana to block the approaching magic…

“…Huh?”

I felt dizzy.

I didn’t even have time to panic at the sudden dizziness.

The magic was already approaching me.

• Dodge! What are you doing? Are you crazy?!

Liliana’s voice echoed in my ears, and I thought with a cold head.

‘I think I’m screwed.’

I wanted to dodge too, but what could I do when my body wouldn’t move?

My combat sense was still sharp, making the short time until the Centaur’s attack hit feel long, but my body wouldn’t react.

• Th-this requires me to step out…

Liliana’s urgent voice could be heard, and I flailed my arms somehow, trying to dodge the magic.

…If I get hit by that, I think I’ll really die.

Liliana’s transformation release also took time, so there wasn’t enough time to block that magic for me.

In the end, bracing for the impact of the magic that had reached my eyes, I shut them tightly.

“Hoyeon-nim, you’re weak even when you’re tired.”

Simultaneously, something warm enveloped me.