The Book Eating Magician (193+)

Chapter 193

Around the dessert #3

After the crow flew through the desert sky for an hour, Theodore was forced to fix his perception. He couldn’t use Mitra’s power, so he called Hugin as a substitute. However, it was far superior to what he had expected.

‘Indeed, it is bigger when the eye level is higher.’

Theodore shared the desert scenery with Hugin and soon discovered the reason.

Mitra’s ability was moving through the ground, while Hugin could look down at the ground from the height of the clouds. The sandy winds of the desert couldn’t reach that height. Unlike the party that could barely see 50 meters ahead, he could see a wide scenery.

Then something soon entered Theodore’s eyes. It was four hours after the carriage stopped, just as the sun started to fall below the horizon. Something glowing in the opposite direction of the sun entered Hugin’s eyes.

“Uh?!”

“Kid, what happened?”

At the front of the party, Theodore suddenly grabbed his eyes and Veronica hurriedly helped him. It might be due to the crow’s habit, which liked sparkling things. The silver which entered Hugin’s eyes was difficult for Theodore to endure.

However, Theodore restored his balance and looked at the landscape again. There was a building which maintained its shape in the desert caused by the sand dragon, Desertio. Additionally, the radiant silver which hurt his eyes matched Paragranum’s previous description.

The hemisphere shape, which was 300 meters in radius, protruded from the ground, and it was made of a metal that was hard to scratch with master level auras.

“I’ve found the ruin.”

The faces of the investigation team became tense at Theodore’s words. They were glad to reach their destination, but they knew that people were occupying it. So, from then on, the party’s gait became more cautious.

They narrowed the distance toward the scenery which Theodore had seen.

‘…There.’

There was a massive explosion accompanied by a huge roar. The party wasn’t prepared and quickly covered their eardrums, while the sky darkened with smoke.

Kukukukung, the earth also trembled.

The ground shook like an earthquake was occurring. A great shock wave burst out, and the sandy field shook. Theodore barely recovered from the shock and instantly realized. ‘…No, isn’t the shaking lasting too long to just be the aftermath of the explosion?’

The impact of the explosion should’ve ceased already. So, why hadn’t the shaking stopped yet? This meant the shock wasn’t caused by the explosion but from something under the ground. Was it a coincidence or inevitable? Theodore looked at Paragranum for clarification.

The six people hiding at the sand dune quickly thought about what to do next. There were still a few of Andras’ Shadows remaining, while Mercurius was already moving its body for the next attack. If they didn’t move quickly, they would be late.

“Yellow Tower Kid, why did you stop me?”

Didn’t it seem like she was aware of Mercurius’ existence? Five pairs of eyes stared at Para with reasonable doubt.

She explained in a matter of fact manner, “That is Mercurius, a guardian of the laboratory that Paracelsus created. Its entire body is made of mercury. If Tower Master had used your breath, this entire area would have become filled with poison gas.”

“Poison gas?”

“Even a sword master can’t escape from the poisonous influence of the mercury. Additionally, if it evaporates, it will just return to liquid again.”

It couldn’t be defeated. That was the common thought in the minds of those who heard the explanation. Veronica’s breath would only threaten the body. Even if it evaporated from powerful magic, it would just return to its original state. This wasn’t an opponent they could face.

They wondered why Para had omitted the mention of such a dangerous existence.

“But Mercurius is a defender who will only use force if people don’t enter through the door in a legitimate way. It is safer for us to stay back until all of the Andras group are dead.”

“…That would be reasonable.” Veronica nodded at Para’s explanation but then pointed toward something. “Though, isn’t it hard to leave this situation alone?”

The investigation team looked at where Veronica was pointing. On the battlefield, the Shadow Knights were being trampled on like ants. Behind Mercurius, a man was trying to enter the laboratory through a drainage tunnel that had been exposed.

“Lloyd Pollan?!”

“Well, this is what happened. We can’t retreat now. That bastard is going in alone,” Veronica said and then looked at Mercurius, which was like a mountain.

Despite being a sword master, Lloyd didn’t hesitate to run away from such a monster. It might be different if his Aura Ability was focused on destruction… but Mujak’s ‘Illusion’ ability was just like an ant before Mercurius.

So, a magician was needed to deal with that mercury serpent. However, the person needed to be of the master level and able to cooperate with Veronica.

“Come, Kid. It is our turn.”