The Book Eating Magician Chapter 341:

Chapter 341 - Unknown Land (2)

‘Tch, it is too late to avoid it . ’ Theodore reflexively stepped forward and reached out his hand .  

A wall of shadow rose from the ground, blocking the trajectory of the light ray . Ray type attacks were threatening because of their speed, but they also had disadvantages due to being a pure form of energy .  For example, Jerem’s wall of imaginary space had a property that sucked all the energy and turned it to zero, making shadow and darkness the nemesis of this light ray . However . . .

Jjejeok .

The shadow wall couldn’t handle the power of the ray and got a few cracks .

Theodore’s low proficiency was one of the reasons, but the power of the Cyclops’ ray was also stronger than he had thought it would be . It was a little below the level of great magic . Although it might be limited to this swamp, its level could be designated as a grade 3 disaster .

“Randolph! Titania!” Theodore didn’t need to look back at both of them . “As soon as this wall disappears, split to the left and right! I’ll scatter the ray attack somehow!”

“Then I will completely stop its breathing!”

“I understand . ”

There was no need to separately specify the timing . Randolph’s two swords were drawn, and Titania’s bowstring was pulled taut .  The shadow wall reached its limit and shattered .  Kakang!

‘Now!’ Theodore triggered the magic he had prepared a few seconds earlier .  The second weakness of a ray-based attack was deflecting using the nature of light .  Theodore used the double attribute magic of wind and water, and a prism in the shape of an octahedron appeared, absorbing the red light .

Wiiiiing!

The refracted ray started to bend in eight directions . The moment the three people were exposed, Titania’s bow cried out like it had been waiting . The arrow tore through the wind .

“Grrrruk?” The cyclops received an instinctive type of warning and noticed the arrow’s presence .

Nevertheless, it didn’t move its arms or step backward .  Instead, it turned its gaze from Theodore to the flying arrow . The hot beam from the ray could burn even the arrows shot by Titania . The cyclops had a clever judgment .

“Heh, you have a good head . ”

However, Titania’s archery skill was better than how cunning the cyclops was .

Chiik .  The wind and arrow were burned by the ray .  However, this was followed up with another arrow . It wasn’t just one or two . Titania fired three arrows in the same orbit without any error .  The first one couldn’t reach, and the second was a bit lacking . So, she shot three arrows . The last arrow pierced the cyclops’ one eye .

“Kuwaaah!?” The ray and blood scattered from the cyclops’ crushed eyeball . The magic eye was ultimately dependent on the eye . It couldn’t be used properly with damaged eyes .

Furthermore, the cyclops who lost an eye had forgotten something .  The sword master of the twin swords, Randolph, approached it and swung his two swords . The cyclops’ shin bones and femur were split apart in an instant . Randolph’s blades broke the cyclops’ spine and moved upward, cutting its carotid artery .

It felt like cutting a rock . The cyclops’ skin was tough and full of swamp mana . A good aura user would find it hard to cut a single line .  However, it was no match for a sword master’s aura .

“Gruk . . . ! Grr . . . ru . . . ruok . ” Just two seconds after the shadow wall disappeared, the body of the cyclops was bleeding and torn to rags .  Its opponents were too terrible . However, Theodore sighed bitterly . “Geez, I made a mistake . ”

“What?” 

Before Titania received an answer, they heard it .

Kwaaaang!

A pillar of fire rose in several places simultaneously, and black smoke appeared . There was a reason Theodore had been wary of using magic after entering the swamp . It was hard to guess how many flammable gases and liquids were present in a swamp area that was thousands of years old . The rays of light that Theodore had refracted caused the environment to burn up .

‘Fortunately, it isn’t all of the swamp . . . ’ 

Theodore looked around at the flames and spoke to his group, “Be prepared while maintaining your breathing . ”

“What?”

“The disturbance will reach quite far . ”

The cyclops was powerful, but the group was still quite a distance away from the center of the swamp . It was just a little ‘strong’ here .

――――――――――――――!!!

The disturbance would agitate creatures with a far bigger presence than the cyclops .  That wasn’t all . The ground shook due to all the approaching creatures . Monsters were coming from all three directions except for the rear where the party had come from . If he had to count roughly, there were over 100 monsters . Theodore looked carefully at them with Hugin whom he had called in advance .

‘Let’s see the left side . ’

It felt like the side had the most enemies . His vision greatly expanded, and he could see multiple creatures with green skin .

Orcs—they could be found everywhere on the continent, but Theodore hadn’t expected to see them in the swamp . The experienced orc warriors could fight one knight alone, but most orcs could be defeated by a group of soldiers . He never thought it would be a species that could stay in this swamp .

‘They are all mutated . They might be stronger than an ogre?’

Looking closer, there were scales on their skin, and they had some aspects of a crocodile . The orc was tall and oversized, being at least over 3 meters in height . It was appropriate to call this the hybrid of an orc and lizardman . Furthermore, there were other creatures approaching from the front .

There were twin head ogres with two horns and a pair of wings, reminiscent of chimeras . Their skin was hard like iron, and the flames coming from their mouths were alarming . The swamp trolls looked quite dangerous too .

Finally, Theodore looked to the right, and his eyes shook .

‘Heok!’

Shortly afterward, the connection to Hugin was cut off . However, the scene he saw at that moment was truly shocking . There was a six-headed snake with a body length of over 100 meters long!

“Hydra . . . ?”

The number of heads was lacking, but Theodore guessed this was a hydra .  A hydra was a snake with nine heads and an immortal body, and it had a poison that was hard to decipher . Similar to Jörmungandr and Azi Dahaka, it was something that couldn’t be opposed by mortals if it was in a perfect condition . In the myth, it was defeated by a demigod, but it couldn’t be completely killed . It was buried alive . . . ? The standard of a hero was needed to defeat it .

‘ . . . No, I can do it now . ’

In the legends, the hydra’s immortality came from its one head, out of its nine heads, that had golden scales .  However, this hydra didn’t have any golden head . It didn’t have nine heads either, so it might still be incomplete or was a variant hydra . In that case, its force wouldn’t be as big, which meant Theodore could defeat it .

“How can I give up now?”

The odds weren’t impossible . Theodore looked back at the two others who were smiling as they held their weapons .

“I knew it would be hard when I accompanied you . ”

“Well, it can’t be helped . Let’s do it!”

As it happened, the combination of the three people was the best . The combination of a sword master, archer, and magician could display the best combat power regardless of distance . If they could complement each other’s weaknesses and maximize their strengths, it wouldn’t be difficult to wipe out the monsters .

Theodore laughed at Randolph and Titania’s answers . “Okay, shall I take care of the weak bastards?”

His eyes shone as he looked at the mutant orcs coming from the left .

 

*     *     *

 

If there were two words to describe the southern swamp, it must be ‘fearful’ and ‘unknown . ’ They were afraid because they couldn’t know, or they didn’t know because they were afraid .

The sequence of the relationship wasn’t important . All those who tried to conquer or explore the swamp were killed, making it a prohibited area . Transcendents didn’t step into the area for an unknown reason, and over the years, humanity had lost the power to attack the swamp .

. . . At least, until today .

Kwarururung!

A few lightning bolts fell in the shape of a spear, causing the ground to turn over and fry two trolls . The trolls, notorious for their sturdy skin and natural regenerative power, were fried by the lightning .  Theodore set up a lightning spear and threw it at another swamp troll .  

“Get lost!” 

The power was so fierce that the swamp troll’s head vaporized, leading the headless body to fall down . In retrospect, it was surprising that it didn’t die in one 7th circle blow . There was time to sum things up, so Theodore looked at the twinhead ogre fighting the other two .

■■■■■■■■―――!!

‘Strong’ would be the only word he could say . The ogre had pure power and speed, and it used its power efficiently to handle two masters by itself . It used its two pairs of eyes to block attacks, the flying ability of its wings to accelerate, and the durability of its skin to withstand the aura blow . Additionally, he had an earth-shaking fist that contained all its power . It was almost like Superbia .

‘But it is still lacking to deal with both of them . ’

It was obviously the ogre’s defeat . There was only one head left . Its wings were torn, and one area had been cut so many times that the bones were revealed .  Randolph’s blue blades once again shone brightly . “Ha! Your bottom will be exposed, you monster!”

Black blood splattered, serving as proof that Randolph was getting close to the bone marrow .  Nevertheless, the response of the mutant ogre was fearsome . It ignored the pain and bleeding as it tried to kill the humans .  The strike was too fast for Randolph, who had just finished his attack, to avoid .

Chaaeng!

However, its fist bounced off . The fist that contained the force of a thick wall was pushed back by a single arrow .  It was Titania’s arrow which had flown in with perfect timing! The ogre had been subjected to this technique a few times and roared angrily . However, Titania’s footwork exceeded its speed . Above all, Randolph’s blades kept coming while the ogre was chasing Titania . Either way, the ogre was one-sidedly pushed and beaten . The monster that had never been pushed by force before reached its limit .

“This is the end!”

An arrow pierced the ogre’s mouth, causing it to step back .  Then it raised its left hand to its face to pull out the arrow . One hand was in view, and a sword master would never sit by idly when a gap was revealed .

Clovis Two Swords Style .

Hidden Technique .

Triple Lightning Strokes .

The two blades were charged with blue lightning as they moved .  One blade accurately pieced the ogre’s throat, and blood gushed up like a fountain . It lacked the power to completely behead the ogre, but the amount of bleeding couldn’t be ignored . The ogre realized it had made a mistake and lowered its left hand .

“Too late you idiot!” Randolph shouted as a flash of lightning shot from his right hand .

The second strike was a diagonal split . From the left temple to the right jaw joint, the surface of the ogre split open . Its relatively thin skin was cracked into two .

■■■■■――!?!

This was a fatal blow . Randolph’s blade gouged deeply into the ogre’s skull and almost cut its brain .  Before the ogre could back away, lightning struck it . Randolph’s other blade once again struck the ogre’s head in the same spot .  It was the end of the mutant twinhead ogre .  Half of its severed head slipped down, and the ogre’s body collapsed to the ground . The creature that would’ve caused a disaster outside the swamp had died .

“Sigh, the appetizer is done . ” Randolph shook off the blood on his swords and took out a bottle of potion . He hadn’t received any direct injuries, but his skin had been scraped by the ogre’s fist . Theodore wasn’t the only one to think about Superbia when facing that absurd power . Randolph would’ve struggled if he had to deal with it alone .

“It is the first match, but there are more powerful monsters left . ” Titania couldn’t hide her tiredness as she sighed .

Compared to Randolph, her role was easy . However, it was difficult to maintain a distance of hundreds of meters while shooting, and there was a corresponding consumption of mental power .  Despite that, Theodore couldn’t allow both of them to take a break . “It has come a lot closer . It will soon be in sight . ”

Although it might be imperfect, the hydra—the disaster which had been recorded in the old myths—was making its appearance . There was a chance of victory . Theodore had saved his magic when fighting the twinhead ogre, and he had also refrained from using scrolls and artifacts in order to save it for the hydra .

The three people were alert as they stared at the swamp and waited for the hydra to come .

Then they saw it .

“ . . . Wow, it is huge . ”

It was much smaller than Hraesvelgr, who covered the sky with his wings, but this realistic size made it feel more real . The hydra’s body length was over 100 meters, and it had six heads . It was like a small hill wriggling around . The hydra looked down at Theodore, and one of its six heads opened its mouth .

[Two humans, one elf . . . What a strange combination,] a cunning voice tickled the ears of the three people .

This dubious voice belonged to the hydra .

“Six-headed snake, are you the master of this swamp?”

The hydra answered the question with yellow eyes, [You don’t need to know . ]

“ . . . ”

[By the way, in your body . . . I feel an unpleasant power . The strength and smell are that of the corrupted **** who repulsed my ancestors long ago . . . ]

The hydra’s killing intent grew stronger . In this breathless atmosphere, Theodore gave a hand signal to the two people .  It was to prepare to fight . Simultaneously, the six hydra heads opened their mouths, and their poisonous fangs aimed at the three people .

[Die . ]