Chapter 771
Hongpeng, who had been embracing her disciples and calming her overwhelming emotions for a moment, raised her eyes.
Before long, the sorrow and hesitation had vanished from her gaze, leaving only determination.
“You must leave the grassland immediately. If that is difficult, then as far away as possible.”
“What?”
Kamibarez let out a startled voice, and Maelyn hurriedly spoke as well.
“Professor! We can……!”
“This is not a request, it is an order.”
Cutting off Maelyn’s words, Hongpeng forced her trembling legs to rise.
“I will not put my students in danger. The enemy is a powerful Undead that has existed since ancient times. I must go to capture it.”
“The most dangerous thing here right now is your body’s condition, professor.”
Dick suddenly interrupted, reminding her.
“You would have been in danger just now if it weren’t for us. If we help……”
“Dick, I told you, this is an order.”
Replying so, Hongpeng narrowed her eyes and stared into the distance.
She saw trees being uprooted and the ground quaking violently in the far distance.
“Leave this place at once. Hurry.”
After her final urging, she bent her knees and, with a loud thud!, leapt into the sky. Soon, stepping upon the clouds, she vanished swiftly.
Dick stared blankly at her figure that had vanished into the far-off distance in an instant.
“Even if we wanted to help, we could never catch up to her.”
The option of helping Hongpeng had disappeared. After a brief silence, Kamibarez lifted her head.
“It feels wrong to simply return like this. I’m worried about Simon.”
Maelyn and Dick both nodded in agreement.
It was while searching for Simon, who had been drawing the monsters’ attention alone, that they had stumbled upon Hongpeng and the Hydra in the first place.
“Let’s accept whatever punishment we get later for disobeying the professor’s orders.”
In the end, Maelyn, as vice-president, made the decision.
“For now, we stay here and find Simon.”
“Yes! Maelyn!”
“Of course we should!”
* * *
Meanwhile.
Simon, clad in Feer’s Bone Armor, was desperately running through the grassland. In the distance, yet another Hydra’s head was fleeing.
‘I’ve already taken down three heads.’
Simon had fulfilled the quota of three heads per person. The time left was less than half.
He was now chasing the fourth Hydra head.
“Hey there! Commander!”
Bursting through the dense grassland branches came Belya, with hair like splashes of neon paint.
Both of them were chasing the same target.
With every step she took, her hair whipped about, scattering toxic paint-like venom everywhere. Wherever she passed, flowers withered and trees shriveled.
‘A destroyer of nature, are you?’
Simon smirked bitterly, then spoke gravely in Feer’s voice.
[You’ve already cut off three heads, haven’t you.]
“Of course! And you, Commander?”
[I won’t bother stating the obvious.]
Dodging the poison that kept spraying in his direction, Simon kept his distance. Belya lifted her head.
“Then that one running off over there must be the last head.”
The Eildar Hydra had ten heads in total.
Simon and Belya had cut three each, Hongpeng’s results were unknown.
Roughly eight minutes remained.
Though he worried about Hongpeng’s condition, if she somehow managed a miracle and cut down her three, then this fleeing head would be the last.
“Let’s go, Commander!”
[Do not drag me down.]
The two simultaneously burst forth, cloaked in Darkness.
The fleeing Hydra turned its head, opening its mouth. Immediately, a magic circle flared.
Woooong!
Each head of the Eildar Hydra could wield a different type of magic.
And this one’s ability was—
—Krrrrrr!
—Kekrrrrrk!
It seemed to be the ability to control monsters.
Two-headed leopards, crocodiles walking on trees, even eagles wreathed in lightning. Suddenly, waves of mighty grassland monsters surged toward the two.
‘Hhup!’
There was no time to fight them one by one. Simon took a deep breath, then swung his greatsword. Blinding white swordlight filled the air, slicing the monsters clean in half.
“Kihahahaha!”
Belya darted across the grassland like a madwoman. Armed with venom like liquid paint flowing from her body, she simply bulldozed through the monster horde.
The monsters melted like ice cream the moment they brushed against her. Lowering her stance, she suddenly dropped onto all fours like a beast, sprinting in quadrupedal gait to increase speed.
Her body became a streak of chaotic multicolored brilliance, blazing forward. The monsters could not stop her, and the trail she left behind looked like a world wrecked by a child spilling a bucket of paint.
‘Seriously.’
Following behind, Simon broke into a cold sweat.
‘Professor Keyzen’s power really is on another level.’
He could not afford to lose. Pouring more Darkness into his legs, Simon increased his speed and caught up to Belya.
Kugugugugugu!
Just then, the ground ahead of them began to heave upward. Belya stopped and frowned.
“What’s this all of a sudden?”
Before they knew it, the entire terrain warped, a massive mountain range blocking the path ahead. Simon caught up behind her.
‘This is?’
[Khuhuhu!]
Feer’s voice rang out in Simon’s head.
[Myurr is interfering! He’ll stop us by any means necessary, to rebirth the Hydra.]
“How annoying.”
Belya kicked off the ground, beginning to scale the mountain. While they were delayed by the terrain, the Hydra widened the distance.
“Hurry up, professor!”
There was no choice. Simon followed after Belya, climbing the mountain.
Even on the ridge, monsters awaited, ambushing them as soon as they approached. It was no easy task.
“Hhup!”
Jjeoeeoeeong!
Simon cut down the monsters in one sweep and finally climbed atop the ridge. Looking down below—
Thud! Thud! Thud!
At the base of the mountain, riding on monsters, stood ancient civilization’s residents, armed with swords and spears.
In the blink of an eye, Myurr’s “army” had formed, blocking their path. Beyond them, the Hydra was still fleeing.
“This bastard’s really being petty, huh?”
Belya licked her lips and laughed.
Simon turned his head, sensing something chilling. From her body, an immense Darkness was erupting.
“Commander, I’ll leave the serpent’s neck to you.”
[What are you planning?]
She grinned wickedly.
“See it for yourself, with your own eyes.”
* * *
Northern grassland sublevel.
Here too, a massive battle was underway.
—Shiiiiik!
Another Hydra head.
The colossal Hydra had coiled itself, crushing someone within its body. Inside, trapped and unable to move, was a red-haired boy.
“Gghhhk! I-I’m gonna dieee!”
It was none other than the Mercenary King, Arthur.
Each time the Hydra tightened its coils, he let out sounds like he was on the verge of suffocation.
“Stop spouting nonsense, think of a way to get out!”
And beside him, dripping with sweat as she cast black magic, was Special Admission No. 1, Sasha.
She was using both her abilities and black magic at the same time. All the trees around them were writhing to bind the Hydra and rescue Arthur.
“Arthur! J, just hold on a little longer!”
And a little distance away, doing something of her own, was Special Admission No. 10, Princess Molly.
She was interfering with the Hydra’s mind through a special necromancy. The Hydra’s pupils blurred and sharpened, over and over.
But against a powerful summoned beast, that was the limit. The Hydra’s mind clouded for a moment before returning, and once again it tightened its grip on Arthur.
“Urrghhhk!”
Arthur thrashed his head in agony.
Yet even the Hydra, crushing him, seemed confused. Arthur’s armor had long since shattered, only his torso remained.
It was constricting with pressure enough to crush an elephant, and yet he would not yield.
“Huuhhk! Grandpa! I’ll, I’ll be joining you soon……!”
But Arthur too was reaching his limit.
The strength in his pupils was fading when—
Sweeeaaak!
Like a comet, a flash struck the Hydra’s head.
<Hongpeng’s Original – Chwita>
With the fierce boom of a bursting drum, the Hydra’s head reeled.
The strength holding Arthur slackened, and he collapsed onto the ground.
“Hhhahh! I’m aliveee. Grandpa! I’ll be coming a little later!”
“……But who’s that?”
Fwoooosh!
In the center of the storming gale, Hongpeng appeared, her long hair billowing.
“My god! We’re saved now!”
Molly covered her mouth, eyes wet. One of the most renowned professors of Keyzen.
“It’s Professor Hongpeng, who teaches Magical Combat!”
At the mention of Hongpeng, Sasha and Arthur both turned. Though they were meeting her for the first time, they knew who she was.
“And you lot?”
Hongpeng asked. Sasha, still commanding the trees to restrain the Hydra, answered.
“We’re Keyzen first-years. Professor Belya brought us.”
“What did you say?”
Hongpeng shouted, her face twisting in anger.
“What was my sister thinking, bringing first-years to a place this dangerous!”
Sasha averted her gaze.
‘……Strictly speaking, we barged in on our own.’
Having heard news of Simon from Sasha’s group, Belya had ordered her underlings and stepped onto the teleportation circle leading to the grassland.
Sasha had clung to her pants, begging to be taken along, and in the end, Belya muttered that since Hongpeng had brought kids along, why couldn’t she, and dragged the three of them along.
But the village was empty, and Belya told them to wait here before heading into the grassland sublevel.
—Something must have happened to Simon!
Of course, the troublemaking first-year trio wasn’t going to sit quietly.
They too entered the sublevel, only to run headlong into that massive Hydra.
Arthur charged in bravely, saying that if such a powerful monster escaped, countless lives would be lost.
And so Arthur was caught by the Hydra, while Sasha and Molly tried to manage the disaster.
Arthur had nearly been eaten, but in the end, it meant the three of them had stalled one of the Hydra’s heads from leaving the grassland. If anything, it was a great achievement.
“Leave this to me, and run, first-years.”
“Professor, I’m sorry, but—”
Molly’s voice trembled.
“N, no way that thing’s going to just let us go!”
—Shishishishishii!
The Hydra raised its head. Around it, ten magic circles appeared, unleashing torrents of water. This Hydra seemed capable of water magic.
“Dodge it!”
Hongpeng and the first-years leapt from the ground.
Puuuuung!
Puung!
Water cannons erupted everywhere. The Hydra spread magic circles over its own body and crawled swiftly along the ground. The earth collapsed into a sticky swamp.
“Uwah!”
“Don’t move carelessly!”
Hongpeng spread her arms, ordering them to halt. Before they knew it, Hongpeng and the first-years were stranded on an island in the swamp.
The Hydra plunged its massive body into the mire. Its serpent body, plated in scales, curved in an arch, slithering beneath the swamp. The sight was dreadful.
Kkurururuk!
The swamp quaked. They could feel the immense Hydra writhing beneath the surface.
As everyone scanned nervously—
Pwaaaaah!
The Hydra’s first target was, as expected, Hongpeng, the strongest yet most vulnerable in her current state.
Mouth gaping, it lifted the island beneath her whole.
“Khugh!”
Fixing her legs, Hongpeng braced her arms against its palate to stop from being swallowed, shouting—
“R, run away quickly……!”
“There you are! Hwaaaahhh!”
Arthur swung his sword of light. With a flash, a brilliant slash struck the Hydra’s waist.
Kwakwaakwaaang!
The Hydra screamed in pain, its body shuddering.
“My turn.”
Seeds lodged between its scales had finished germinating. Sasha spun her arms like a windmill, unleashing black magic.
<Flower Shower>
Saaaaaaaa—
From the Hydra’s scales, flowers burst forth at terrifying speed. In moments, its whole body was covered, transformed into a dazzling flower field.
‘The biting strength has weakened.’
Hongpeng immediately sensed the change. Now she could hold it off with one arm. With her right fist, she slammed down on its snout.
Kkuuuuung!
—Kkiiiiiii!
The Hydra shrieked, thrashing, and in that moment, Hongpeng escaped.
The Hydra, howling in pain, snapped its eyes open and jaws wide. Nearly twenty magic circles appeared in the air.
“Professor Hongpeng! Look ou—!”
Before she could react, torrents of water poured down.
Kugugugugu!
Kwakwaakwaak!
After the deluge, white steam covered the area.
“Professor!”
“Khugh!”
Then the wind blew, dispersing the steam.
“……”
She opened her eyes, standing firm in a defensive stance.
Her body was unharmed.
At the same time, she noticed her body was draped in a robe of Darkness.
‘This is Dark Robe? In my condition, I shouldn’t be able to……’
“Professor.”
She turned.
A boy, gasping as though dying, had laid a hand on her shoulder.
<Dark Robe Linked Art – Clothing Transfer>
“H, have to ask you one thing.”
On the verge of collapse, Kinter rasped out.
“Did I, arrive before Simon and the others?”
Hongpeng gave a faint smile and answered.
“Simon’s group was faster.”
“Damn it.”
Step, step, step.
Hongpeng turned her head. Students of the second-year Magical Combat Department were approaching, loosening their shoulders.
“……Looks like this is no time for stubbornness.”
Hongpeng rose.
Roughly two minutes remained.
Now they had to fight, clutching at straws.
“I’ll take all the responsibility. Everyone, help me.”
“Yes!”
Sasha, Arthur, Molly, and even four second-year Magical Combat students, all kicked off the ground and charged at the Hydra.
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