Chapter 205

RMSBS – Episode 205 . Under their Noses (4)

Pram tried to push away the chimera with pure force by pouring more aura into his rapier .

“Keeyyaaaaak!”

However, the muscles in the lower half of the chimera’s body, which appeared to be the legs of a minotaurus, inflated and easily endured Pram’s force .

Pram read the chimera’s attack through its muscle movements .

‘High kick… !’

Pram dodged the attack by lowering his head . He was going to counterattack subsequently, but found himself unable .

He thought he had dodged the chimera’s attack, but its leg twisted in an unnatural manner and was now on a trajectory with his head .

“… … !”

The chimeras that he had encountered in the Shadow World did not have this kind of ability . It was clearly several levels more sophisticated than those crude chimeras .

Pram hastily raised his sword .

Sparks flew out as the chimera’s hard skin and Pram’s sword raked against each other . The chimera’s body, boasting its extraordinary durability, easily endured the force of the Blankšum blade .

*Swishh*

The chimera rotated its body halfway and flung its fist towards Pram . Unlike a normal fist though, this one appeared to be the head of a wyvern . As it approached Pram, it opened its mouth wide with the intention of swallowing him whole .

*Claaaang*

*C-Clang*

As the sharp, saw-like teeth and the sword interlocked, a shrill sound echoed .

The chimera was extremely aggressive . It lashed out incessantly in order to eliminate those who had trespassed in its territory .

*Whizzzzz*

Every time the chimera swung its limbs, it left behind the sound of strong gusts of wind .

Pram’s body was not as weak as it seemed . Despite his small size, he was still well-built, better than any ordinary Rook Class swordsmen .

However, the chimera’s attacks were destructive beyond comparison . If a single one of its blows connected properly, Pram would be torn asunder .

Pram dodged and shielded himself from the chimera’s onslaught, using all of the techniques he had mastered through his training and experiences .

“Haaaaap . ”

After several exchanges, a dazzling aura rose up from Pram’s sword .

A single beam of light shone in the dark forest .

“Keeyyaak!”

The chimera, now down a hand, shrieked in agony . Despite its screams, Pram was unrelenting . He let out slash after slash, refusing to let his counter-attack go to waste .

It seemed like the chimera’s hard skin was unable to withstand an attack filled with aura . The number of injuries it sustained gradually increased .

‘If I just continue to pressure it and slowly whittle it down… !”

While Pram was caught up in his own thoughts, the chimera’s mouth opened . A horrid stench filled the air immediately .

‘Acid!’

Pram attempted to retrieve his sword, buried in the chimera’s shoulder, and beat a hasty retreat .

*Cracckkk*

However, before he could do so, the chimera’s muscle flexed strangely and locked Pram’s sword in place . It then used its other hand to grab the sword .

It only took a single lapse in judgement for Pram to find himself on death’s doorstep .

“Urggh!”

While Pram panicked, a silver marble, no bigger than a fist, struck the chimera’s neck .

It was Runel .

Not being able to withstand the sudden shock, the chimera’s neck snapped . At the same time, the acid flew out in a different trajectory than intended and melted the ground off to one side .

[Giga Lightning]

A thunderbolt burst towards the chimera and burned its entire body pitch black .

“Kyaaaaakk!”

Pram seized the opportunity by boosting his power and gathering his aura . A bright light twirled around his sword .

He stepped back, before lunging forward and using his sword to strike with every ounce of his being .

A high-speed stab, repeated tens of thousands of times .

The chimera raised its remaining arm to block the strike .

At that moment, Pram invoked the ability of his Cloud Striders once again .

He let loose his attack, after instantly moving to the back of the chimera . The chimera was not able to block the attack .

*Crack*

The chimera’s head burst like a watermelon in the blink of an eye . Its body squirmed for some time even after its head was gone, but soon after, lost its vitality and collapsed helplessly .

“Pheww… ”

Pram shook off the blood from his rapier .

Looking at the chimera’s corpse, Desir was lost in thought .

“Pureus Niftion… ”

Pureus Niftion, the alchemist who spent his entire life in the pursuit of eternal life .

Desir encountered him in a Shadow World based one-hundred and twenty years ago .

Pureus created chimeras and completed the homunculus with the assistance of Skull Mask, who had been controlling the Magical Kingdom .

Desir, who had cleared too many Shadow Worlds to count, and who had personally experienced many centuries of history, didn’t feel it was too boastful to claim that he held a fair amount of knowledge over the history of humanity . However, the production of chimeras had been prohibited when all of the countries on the continent agreed to ban such research .

Desir was not aware of any country foolish enough to turn all other countries against them . This made him certain that the chimera that they just fought with now was a legacy left behind by Pureus . Asking who was behind the chimera was useless; it was a self-evident fact .

‘What is Skull Mask’s goal?’

According to the story told by the old man in the blacksmith, the chimera has been dwelling here for the last few years .

Therefore, this meant that the Skull Mask had been planning something here since at least then .

Skull Mask was not only able to successfully complete his plan in the Magical Kingdom, but also made massive advancements in the manufacturing of chimeras .

This chimera, produced with a far more advanced and refined technique, was incomparably more powerful than the version they previously encountered in that Shadow World . Even Pram, a Rook Class swordsman, was only able to suppress the chimera after receiving support from Desir .

Placing a chimera here this powerful probably meant that whatever plan was unfolding here had significant priority . It must be something extremely important to Skull Mask .

‘What in the world was it guarding?’

Desir speculated that its role was to protect something .

The chimera dwelled only in this place and never left its designated area . Whether it was a monster or human, the chimera would kill all trespassers .

‘Does Count Nordin know about the chimera?”

A very powerful monster dwelled under his territory .

It was understandable that he was not suppressing the monster, since it gave such an advantage to his territory . However, he should have tried to figure out its identity at least . It would be foolish to neglect a monster without first identifying it .

‘There’s also a chance that he tried to find out its identity but failed . But if he already knew its identity… ’

A chimera is a living weapon, of which the research itself is taboo . If he knew about its existence and didn’t report it to the Emperor, it would be a huge problem .

‘A trade between the merchant group of Divide and Count Nordin . And the chimera beneath the Nordin Territory . ’

Desir speculated that these two events, which both just happened to occur within a single territory, were likely connected to each other .

However, it was just baseless speculation, for now .

The task they had to carry out had been decided .

“Pram, the chimera must’ve been guarding something . We need to find out what that is . ”

Whatever was so valuable that it required a chimera as a guard had to be important .

It was the only lead they had that could solve the question burning in Desir’s mind right now .

If they identified what the chimera was guarding, they could possibly find a vital clue to these mysteries .

*R-Ring*

The moment Desir and Pram were about to make a move, a notification sound rang from the communication pad . It was from Adjest .

[-Took care of the basilisk . What’s our next move?]

They seemed to have successfully handled the other monster . The request for monster suppression had now been fulfilled .

“Desir . ”

Pram clung on to Desir, gripping his rapier . He had a tense look on his face . There was a trace of fear in his voice as well .

“I know . ”

Desir contacted the rest of the party members through the communication pad .

[-Hurry and come to where we are . ]

Since the chimera appeared, there was no way to know what kind of dangers lurked ahead . They had to commit themselves entirely by getting plenty of rest, after just engaging in both a large scale battle against the basilisks and their hunt for the stragglers .

But they were not able to do so .

The communication pad rang again, but Desir barely noticed . His attention was focused somewhere far more demanding .

“… Twenty . No, there’s far more than that . ”

Chimeras flooded into the area .

There was no need to arrange a detection spell to notice them . The chimeras were approaching Desir and Pram, not even bothering to conceal their overwhelming bloodlust and murderous temper .

There were roughly forty of them .

Just one of them had been an even match with a Rook Class swordsman, Pram, whose strength stood equivalent to a few knights .

Desir broke out in a cold sweat .

‘This… could be extremely troublesome . ’

The Starling Party had experience facing hundreds of chimeras in that Shadow World .

The number present was far less compared to back then .

The only problem was the fact that only Desir and Pram, just those two, were present this time . The rest of the Starling Party could not assist in this battle .

* * *

The sun descended over the horizon and the mountain was plunged into complete darkness .

In this darkness, there was a place where sparks flew out ceaselessly .

*Chingg*

Piercing, metallic sounds echoed throughout the mountain .

Runel circled around Desir, protecting him from the chimera’s attacks while Pram kept his guard up against the endless wave of chimeras while using his aura .

Amidst all of this chaos, Desir arranged a spell .

[Fire Storm]

*Crrraaashh*

A huge wave of fire swept out in all directions . All of the chimeras that were encompassed by the heat were exterminated without a trace .

These chimeras had become far stronger in the last one-hundred and twenty years, but Desir and Pram had grown even faster . Desir had reached the Fourth-Circle and Pram was on the brink of becoming Bishop Class .

Desir, the strongest magician in the Empire, was recognized by the Emperor . With Desir taking an active role in this fight, the situation was stable to some extent .

However, that was all .

‘The situation is bad . ’

The chimeras had already surrounded Desir and Pram from all directions . It would be infeasible for just the two of them to keep their guards up in all directions .

Desir’s spells were steadily reducing the number of chimeras, but it was beyond his power to suppress all of them .

They were coping well, but it was only a matter of time before they fell .

—-

Chapter brought to you by The Patrons .

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ED: Purplemen101

TLC: N/A

QC: Dr Lock