Episode 44
Chapter 18. An Unexpected Variable (2)
“Damn it, what the hell…?!”
He spun around sharply, aiming his dagger.
The fallen mercenaries were getting back on their feet.
“Did their eyes just turn red?”
On top of that, the two mercenaries were making strange, guttural growls—more like the breathing of orcs or trolls than humans.
There was no time to figure out what was happening.
The thin iron plates of their armor, which had been worn by humans just moments ago, were swelling. From the inside, their muscles were rapidly bulging, tearing through the armor.
Snap!
The moment the armor ripped open, Jin instinctively cast a spell.
“Wind of Silence!”
A wind made of magical energy instantly enveloped the interior of the warehouse, forming a semi-circular barrier.
It was a 4th-rank spell that reduced noise within about 15 meters. Earlier, Jin had avoided using it for fear that the mages outside might detect his magic, but the situation had changed.
There was no avoiding a fight with these monsters. They were already reaching out toward Jin, their fingers tipped with long, sharp claws like those of the Redfang tribe.
“Let’s just hope the mages outside don’t notice.”
Graaah!
Both creatures lunged at once.
Jin didn’t even have time to draw his sword, Bradamante. The monsters closed in, swinging their wide-open palms in a cross pattern.
Swish!
The sound of claws slicing through the air was sharp and threatening. Jin barely ducked to avoid the attack, stabbing his dagger into the ribs of the first creature.
He aimed for the heart, but the monster dodged. Still, Jin felt the unmistakable sensation of flesh being cut and bone breaking through his wrist.
“Gah!”
The creature howled in pain.
It wasn’t a fatal wound. The monster didn’t pull out the dagger and swung its claws again.
Thanks to that, Jin created some distance and drew Bradamante. As soon as he layered it with aura, the dim warehouse brightened slightly.
The monsters clearly recognized aura as a dangerous power. As Jin took his stance and adjusted the distance with the tip of his sword, the black fur covering the creatures bristled.
“Grrr…!”
“Gah!”
The wounded monster finally pulled out the dagger embedded in its body.
What Jin saw next shocked him.
“Regenerating too?”
The creature’s split ribcage was rapidly knitting itself back together. The dark red blood that had been pouring out stopped flowing in an instant.
This was rapid regeneration, a trait seen only in some high-tier monsters.
But these weren’t monsters. Just a minute ago, they had been unmistakably human.
Countless thoughts raced through Jin’s mind with every passing second. He had no knowledge to fully understand this bizarre situation.
In his 43 years of life, this was the first time he’d ever encountered anything like it.
Fortunately, even if he couldn’t fully comprehend it, he could at least make some educated guesses—thanks to his past life as a mage.
“These are probably bio-golems. Created through forbidden magic. Those Zipl bastards… Could the Colon Ruins really be a forbidden magic lab?”
Swish!
The monsters attacked again.
Earlier, Jin had barely dodged in panic, but now that he was focused, their movements were clumsy. Their strength and speed were on par with a low-level 4th-rank warrior.
But a trained 4th-rank knight and a monster with 4th-rank physical abilities were not the same. Jin easily dodged the claws of both creatures, continuing the fight.
“This won’t be too difficult.”
Whenever Jin moved even slightly unpredictably, the monsters struggled to keep up. He often caught them stumbling, losing their balance.
“The core is in one of three places: the heart, the head, or the dantian.”
Magical golems don’t stop moving even when badly damaged. Jin had already slashed one’s wrist and shoulder, yet their attacks remained relentless.
But if the core is destroyed, the golem is finished. That was true even for these bio-golems made with forbidden magic.
Thud!
Jin took a light backward step and, offbeat, stabbed at the creature’s head. The aura spun with the blade, punching a fist-sized hole through the monster’s skull.
“Not the head, then.”
If he’d fought like he would against a human, Jin would have been in trouble. After landing a critical hit, he would have shifted focus to the remaining monster.
But the golem with the hole in its head kept swinging its arms, its strength and speed undiminished. If anything, it seemed even more violent.
Jin spun lightly, plunging his sword again into the creature’s dantian, then sliding the blade up to its heart. When delivering such a powerful strike, he was grateful for the blessed body Rune Kandel had given him.
Crack!
The sickening sound of flesh tearing and ribs breaking echoed. When Jin withdrew his blade, he was certain the core was in the heart.
Where the heart should be, a blue orb of magical energy writhed.
But this was nothing like the magical energy Jin knew. It wasn’t just magic—it looked like a blue liquid sealed inside a glass sphere.
It was also far harder than a human heart. Even a 5th-rank knight’s aura-imbued sword had only just pierced it.
Pop!
The solid magical orb burst, spraying blue droplets. A terrible stench filled the air, and the dying monster slowly began to revert to human form.
Back to human form… it was changing again. Not perfectly, like before it transformed into a monster—the swollen, torn skin and muscles couldn’t be restored.
But the shriveled corpse definitely looked like human skin.
Seeing that, Jin felt a complex mix of emotions—and suddenly, a surge of anger boiled up inside him.
“You did this to people just like me… really.”
His anger was directed at Zipl.
As if answering his fury, the remaining monster charged at Jin. He hadn’t yet fully regained his stance.
Clang!
The creature’s claws clashed against Bradamante’s blade, producing a harsh grinding sound. Jin planted his right foot firmly behind him to steady his balance.
The monster’s claws weren’t as hard as Bradamante’s blade. They seemed better than ordinary steel, but nothing compared to ancient eternal iron.
Crack!
All five claws snapped at once, breaking the creature’s grip. Jin stomped on the fallen monster’s head and drove his sword from its back into its heart.
He felt the solid magical orb shatter through the blade.
The crushed monster trembled, then, like the first one, rapidly took on human form.
“Phew.”
Only then did Jin let out a delayed sigh. Looking around, he saw the floor soaked in dark red blood, and the Wind of Silence spell was about to wear off.
Fortunately, the mages hadn’t noticed.
“J-just… kill me…”
Suddenly, a voice came from the creature—or rather, the human—who had just collapsed.
Jin hurriedly crouched down to check. The man was still breathing faintly, though his appearance was no longer human.
His entire body was swollen and torn, showing clear signs of the transformation. There was no hope of survival.
Jin had so many questions for him. Why had he become a bio-golem? Who had done this? How had he ended up as a test subject for Zipl?
But the man had no strength left to answer. All Jin could do was free him from his suffering.
Thud.
He stabbed the man’s grotesquely thinned neck. The man’s eyes closed.
Jin closed his own eyes briefly, then lifted his head.
Whatever their circumstances, no one in this world would willingly become a bio-golem.
Especially if, once transformed, there was no tomorrow—just a disposable tool.
His jaw clenched so hard it ached.
But this wasn’t the time to lose control.
An unexpected situation had arisen. He’d witnessed Zipl’s horrific deeds firsthand, and now he doubted whether the sisters really knew nothing.
Still, the mission hadn’t disappeared.
If he went back and said, “Sorry, a monster suddenly attacked, so we couldn’t help it,” he’d only earn the ridicule of his brothers.
Even if Rune Kandel swallowed his pride and revealed the mission details to Zipl, or formally requested an investigation from the Biment Empire, nothing would change.
Zipl would never admit to using forbidden magic so easily.
Bio-golems were a top-tier crime. Even the slightest sign would bring pressure from the empire’s investigative agencies. But Zipl was a family powerful enough to deny everything, even with evidence.
“First, I’ll collect the broken magical orbs, then continue the mission.”
After regaining his composure, Jin gathered a few shards of the magical orbs into glass bottles and moved toward the entrance to assess the situation.
“…The mages still haven’t made any moves. This proves most of them think this is just an ordinary warehouse.”
If the mages here knew bio-golems were stationed inside, they wouldn’t guard the place so carelessly. At least twenty 7th-rank mages would be on constant watch.
In other words, the entire Colon Ruins weren’t involved in forbidden magic after all.
“As planned, I’ll steal the relics and make my escape.”
After that, Jin carefully dispelled the warding magic and began searching the warehouse.
Getting his hands on the three stone tablets was a piece of cake.
They were all stored on the first floor of the warehouse, and the bronze vessel was easy enough to find as well.
However, unlike the stone tablets, the bronze vessel was protected by a rather tricky warding spell—one that triggered the moment the vessel was lifted from its display.
That was exactly why this mission was so difficult.
‘The proper way would be to spend hours carefully unraveling the ward, like undoing a knot…’
Vrrrrm.
Jin sheathed his sword and started gathering magical energy in both hands.
‘But I’m going to take a more explosive approach. Two people have already died turning into living golems, so no matter what kind of mess I cause here today… Ziple won’t care.’
Fwoosh!
The magic began to flare with a fiery attribute.
Then the spiritual energy wrapped around it. Dark flames cast a shadow across the center of the warehouse.
‘I have to bury this quietly.’
Three small stone tablets designated as ancient relics, and a bronze vessel—these were insignificant enough that Ziple wouldn’t even bother over their theft.
Still, under normal circumstances, Ziple would be furious and hunt down the thief to protect the family’s honor.
But if evidence of forbidden magic being used to create living golems were to surface, the situation would be entirely different. First and foremost, they’d want to minimize and cover up the incident.
‘Flame explosion.’
So, causing a ruckus actually helped with the escape. Jin planned to set fire to the outside of the warehouse and vanish within the flames.
Fwoooosh!
The red magic in Jin’s grasp rose into the air, glowing ominously as spiritual energy intensified it.
As the incantation ended, two spheres of magic simultaneously detonated. The warehouse was engulfed in flames in an instant, and the ceiling collapsed entirely from the blast.
Kiiing! Kiiing! The warehouse’s warding spells triggered all at once in response to the shockwave. Jin ignored them completely, grabbed the bronze vessel, and slipped out through the front gate.
Ziple would probably announce this as a fire accident.