The modified dungeon—the Hidden Sanctuary had multiple entrances.
On top of the ones the original dungeon already possessed, several new entrances had been "built."
...In principle, a dungeon's walls and floors possessed extreme hardness and magic power density, making them exceedingly difficult to modify. If that weren't the case, the most efficient approach would simply be to "destroy the entire dungeon," so naturally, that was how things stood.
Rose had once used her third Bloodline Magic to destroy a dungeon, and this information should make it clear just how absurd of a feat that was.
Either way.
The fact that they had gone to such lengths to tamper with a dungeon boasting this level of structural integrity made it obvious that extraordinary effort had been poured into this so-called Hidden Sanctuary.
It stood to reason, then, that something important lay sleeping within the dungeon.
Naturally, the retrofitted door to the Hidden Sanctuary—currently sealed shut tight—was built to withstand far more than a casual impact or spell.
And so.
"Formula Replay—'
Ashen World Tree
'"
Going all out from the very start.
.
In this dungeon conquest operation, at the very least, that was the self-evidently optimal solution.
With that thought in mind, Ermes generated his maximum firepower right from the start.
He aimed at the door of the Hidden Sanctuary—a flash.
A thunderous roar rang out.
The impact was so tremendous it seemed as though the dungeon itself was shaking. Superheated energy surged upward, incinerating everything in its path... and then, as if it had all been a lie, it vanished.
What should have naturally dispersed—the very concept of "heat"—was concentrated into a single point by Ermes's extraordinary magic power and control. At the point of direct impact,
"............" "Wow."
where half had
melted away,
stood the heavy, thick door of the Hidden Sanctuary.
Laila's face contorted, and even Chrono could only manage a wry smile as he looked at the entrance that had been forced open.
For Ermes, it was a novel sight in a way—though for those witnessing his "magic" for the first time, such a reaction was only natural. But right now, there was no room to dwell on that.
"Then, let's head in. It'll be trouble if the soldiers outside start gathering, so let's slip inside quickly."
He made that declaration with practiced ease, then led the five companions around him into the Dungeon. Having forced their way past the outer soldiers to reach this point, lingering was not an option—the soldiers who'd heard that thunderous roar would be on their way. The best move was to get inside the Dungeon quickly and escape any pursuit.
...Well.
It probably wouldn't go that smoothly, he thought—but Ermes stepped into the Hidden Sanctuary, leading the way.
The instant he did—
"—Lady Sara!"
"! Y-Yes—'Spirit
Veil'
...!"
The moment they reached the Dungeon entrance, countless surges of magic power swelled up all around them.
Ermes, who had sensed it instantly with his extraordinary magic perception, called out to Sara, who stood ready. She responded by wrapping their surroundings in a barrier—and right after—
The walls of the Dungeon blazed white in every direction, and from them, concentrated masses of magic power surged toward Ermes and his group all at once.
A trap, most likely powered by Magical tools, designed to quickly eliminate intruders.
The power of each individual shot wasn't all that high, but the sheer volume was off the charts. Laden with pure killing intent, they rained down without cease, and what's more, there was no sign of them letting up. The place must have been pre-loaded with a considerable amount of magic power.
...As expected of the Church's hidden stronghold, he thought. Of everything he'd faced so far, this was by far the most relentless barrage from the very start—absolutely no mercy.
Just weathering this wasn't going to get him anywhere. With that thought, Ermes immediately entrusted the defense of everyone but himself to Sara and dropped the barrier that had been protecting him. Naturally, the magic bullets swarmed toward the now-defenseless Ermes in an instant—
"—Hmph."
He—
dodged every last one.
.
Every attack within his field of vision, he read perfectly. For those outside his line of sight, his extraordinary magic perception allowed him to pinpoint exactly where they came from and how many. From there, he identified gaps in the barrage in less than an instant, threaded his body through them with unerring precision, and evaded every last attack by a hair's breadth.
Having bought himself those few seconds, he struck back—
"Formula Replay—'Magic Bullet Archer' "
As if returning the favor, he deployed a spell of the same type.
The same kind of attack—masses of magic power—but while theirs came from mere Magical tools, his was Ermes's Bloodline Magic. The difference in power wasn't even comparable.
He fired at every last one of the seventy-three locations where the enemy's Magical tools were positioned—spots he had catalogued perfectly through the exchange thus far—with pinpoint accuracy.
A second thunderous roar boomed out.
His magic bullets struck every Magical tool on the walls simultaneously, and that was that. The mechanism installed to exterminate intruders was silenced forever.
—But it still wasn't over. Because—
"Intruders breaching the northwest outer wall! The enemy is—that silver-haired demon! All units, converge!"
Just as the Magical tools had been destroyed, soldiers of the Church began pouring out one after another from deep within the Dungeon.
Of course.
They had to have anticipated the possibility that someone would infiltrate the Cathedral once this battle was underway. Stationing personnel not merely in the "outside" of the Dungeon, but in its depths as well — that was simply a given.
And so, from deep within the Dungeon, soldiers of the Church who had sensed the disturbance began converging one after another. Furthermore,
"Don't give him any time to chant! Everyone, maintain a ceaseless assault — he wields multiple spells through Forbidden Arts, so don't give him a single moment to switch and crush him!!"
Their countermeasures against Ermes were equally airtight.
Having thoroughly grasped the characteristics that had by now become widely known, the refined soldiers of the Church came charging in with weapons and magic at the ready, intent on crushing him with overwhelming numbers.
A surprise magic trap as the opening move, and even if that was broken through, a seamless follow-up assault from the soldiers — a two-layered strategy. These must have been countermeasures pre-installed, based on a thorough understanding of Ermes's magical capabilities.
In truth. If subjected to this, Ermes would have no recourse, and moreover, if he hesitated even briefly, he would soon be caught in a pincer attack as soldiers converged from outside the Dungeon, leaving them no future other than annihilation. It would mean being plunged into a mortal crisis the very instant they broke in ——
——That was not going to happen.
In that instant, Ermes murmured a reflexive, barely-a-thought word in his heart. Namely,
——
How leisurely.
——
This was not a remark about the enemy's actions in this very moment. It was an observation from a much broader perspective.
Crush him before he can switch spells? Ah, how terribly leisurely. Because that ——
——as a countermeasure against him,
was a full month too late.
.
' [
Scorch
]"
They had also fully accounted for the possibility that the enemy's assault wouldn't end with just the magical tools' attacks.
Thus Ermes—
—Magic Bullet Archer—
—having just fired it off, turned toward the soldiers who foolishly charged in, believing him to be completely exposed in that moment.
Held
in reserve was the highest-class spell among his arsenal. He released it, unleashing upon them a single strike of utterly despairing flame as the price of their rashness.
——!!
Everyone nearby was incapacitated in an instant. Those further from the blast were still battered by the shockwave, many suffering serious burns, and the sheer intensity of the flames made the rest hesitate to press forward.
—Naïve.
It was clear they had no idea how much that brief moment of hesitation was worth in precious time to him.
"Nina."
"Yep, time to charge."
The girl appeared at his side with perfect timing, as if summoned by the call. A beautiful face wearing a smile utterly unfit for it, she quietly drew her sword. Ermes raised his fists, and the two stepped forward simultaneously.
In just a few seconds, they had sent nearly half of the remaining soldiers crashing to the ground.
Emerald and gold. The pair of beautiful, piercing gazes froze the last of the soldiers in their tracks.
"You— you demon...!"
"Perhaps you could expand your repertoire of insults a bit?"
"Wow, harsh. El, are you the type who gets mean in serious combat mode?"
Their desperate insults went unheeded—the two continued their rampage without pause, trading quips as they went.
Eventually, the soldiers who had begun to retreat slightly under their pressure were left behind as Ermes, catching his breath, turned to address the remaining four behind him.
"Right now, we're going to break through before the soldiers behind us catch up. Sara—and Laila, please capture the soldiers I miss using '
Spirit Veil
' and follow along."
"I—I understand!"
"W-Wait, how did you know ab—"
Sara nodded, while Laila was flustered.
It seemed she didn't know that Ermes had already heard about Laila's Bloodline Magic from Liliana... but that was probably not the only reason.
After all, this was her first time witnessing it.
Even though she had heard of it secondhand, seeing it firsthand was something else entirely. Everything was swift, precise, and overwhelming. Backed by vast experience conquering Dungeons and profound knowledge of magical research.
—The sheer terror of Ermes in combat.
"Ready?"
"Y-Yes, I said I got it...!"
Rough as her tone was, she was ashamed at having been so overwhelmed by his demeanor.
With a resentful... yet somehow restrained expression, she glared at him. Then, just as told, she dashed off in pursuit of the two.
Before long.
In the end, Ermes and Nina cut down every last soldier without letting a single one slip past them, perfectly overcoming what was perhaps the most dangerous phase—the moments immediately after breaching in.
It was a full-on rampage from the very start! We'll keep pushing forward next time too, so stay tuned!
Volume 2 of the "Creation Magic" book is finally out as of yesterday!
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