Invincible
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#166
🕑 Added 2024-12-21 05:48:28 +0000 UTCBlue Marlin (1)
I turned my head at the sound of faltering footsteps. Aslay and Limberton were following properly, but Dorosian was rummaging through the corpse of a monkey with telekinesis. The boss monkey had already turned to ash, making the scene look more like searching for treasure in the sand. It was clear she was looking for the necklace the boss monkey had used earlier to find this place.
"Are you looking for that necklace it showed off earlier?" I asked. Dorosian blew away the ashes with a gust of wind.
"Yeah, but it's strange. I can't see it."
"That makes sense."
I had already checked. The necklace was a magical tool that, when asked, would show you where anything you wanted was. Naturally, it was an enticing object even to my eyes. So when Arkandric took down the creature, I discreetly searched through its robe with telekinesis, but found nothing. The only explanation left was that it might not have been a tangible item but something magical in nature, so I left it at that.
As I resumed walking, Dorosian gave up and followed along. Then, from outside, came the sound of cheers.
“Hey, something seems to be happening outside," Limberton said, and I nodded.
"Remember Rockefeller’s instructions earlier? It seems they’ve driven out everything inside the fortress. Soon, they’ll start tackling the three spirits that are holding the barrier open.”
There wasn't much I could do to help with this. Typically, Rockefeller, Bellen, and the professors would team up to take them down. However, we had Arkandric, who wasn't supposed to be here after graduation. Thanks to the additional support, there shouldn't be any major concerns… though, since the scenario was already off track from the start, some variables might need to be considered.
“We should pick up the pace,” I said, quickening my steps. Limberton asked, confused.
“What? You were taking it easy earlier, and now this?”
Well, that was because we’d been forced into the ridiculous task of killing the monkey that even the Professors couldn’t handle. If Arkandric hadn’t been here, I would have been planning our escape.
Now that the immediate crisis was over, we could afford to be more proactive in assessing the situation. “Let's go.”
Leading the way down the hallway, I began to see the exit leading out of the faculty wing. Suddenly, Aslay tapped my shoulder, pointing in a particular direction.
“Boss, there’s something there.”
He was pointing toward the Spirit Gate, which we needed to tackle once the defensive line was clear. As spirits poured out from the five-meter-high door, Limberton shuddered.
"So that’s where they’ve been coming from… was it because of that?"
"Don’t worry, Limberton. I’m sure Rockefeller is fully aware of it. Once the barrier is sorted, he’ll tell us the strategy to break it down."
Our allies had been fighting without a clear grasp of the situation due to the rapid escalation of events.
Everyone was utterly exhausted. Progress would only resume once they had replenished their energy through rest and received new equipment. If Phase 1 was "Barrier Repair," then Phase 2 could be called "Spirit Gate Destruction." Since it was scheduled to start tomorrow night, there was no need to worry for the time being. However, I never expected to witness a sudden twist right before my eyes.
“Uh, uh… the spirits suddenly stopped coming out?” Limberton said. As he observed, the area in front of the gate, once swarming with spirits, had abruptly quieted down. Then, something long and pointed started to appear, like the bow of a ship. Slowly, it emerged, only to get stuck on the door frame at some point. I found myself locking eyes with a lifeless fish eye, as if pulled straight from a fish market display. Judging by the long horn on its nose, it was a blue marlin—a massive spirit of a blue marlin, without a doubt.
Cold sweat trickled down my forehead. The creature had managed to squeeze its enormous body through the once-spacious doorway. Its girth was thick enough to stack four village buses, and its length was as long as a train. The spirits around it, each the size of a full-grown bear, now seemed as small as rabbits in comparison. It seemed that the colossal fish had been blocking other spirits from coming out.
What on earth is that thing?
***
Rockefeller used magic to change the attire of Bellen and Arkandric. They were now dressed in clothing similar to what students wore, far from anything formal or with rank, complete with robes to cover their faces.
‘This should let us blend into the background for a surprise attack,’ Rockefeller thought. He, too, donned a similar outfit and scanned the battlefield. The professors were leading the charge, driving out the spirits.
“We’ve secured the position! Unleash your magic!” With the lead professor swinging his sword to herd the spirits together, the magic department professors unleashed a wide-range magic barrage.
Boom!
Dust flew as a thunderous noise resounded. The smaller ones were all dead, but the monkeys had only suffered injuries.
“Damn, those monkeys are a nuisance.”
“The intermediate spirits have a certain resistance to magic.”
Spirits are beings made of mana, and since magic is also mana-based, its effectiveness is about half compared to physical attacks. Feeling the weight on his shoulders, Rockefeller hid himself among the students and observed the high-level spirits maintaining the barrier.
‘Fortunately, they don’t seem to be particularly aware of the three of us.’
Bellen and Arkandric were still hidden in the crowd, stealthily approaching the spirits with their weapons ready. Since they had to finish this quickly with a surprise attack, any slip-up would be disastrous. Rockefeller focused on the high-level spirit he had been assigned. Arkandric’s target was a liquid-based spirit, Bellen’s was a female spirit clothed in leaves, and Rockefeller’s own was an ice-armored knight.
‘Carefully, without drawing attention.’
Pretending to fight like the other students, he moved in for the kill. But then, a voice caught his ear, making Rockefeller furrow his brow.
“Why rush? We don’t have much time left until graduation. Let the professors handle this stuff.”
“Yeah, Athera’s right. We’re about to leave, so why risk our lives now?”
They were third-year students from Schlaphe Hall. Shameless as they were, they began to influence the younger students.
“Learn from us, juniors. If you want to graduate alive, don’t throw yourself recklessly into this.”
“Exactly. Just go along with the vibe and pass the time. If you want to live long, listen to your senior’s advice.”
Rockefeller finally lost patience and glared sharply at Athera, Schlaphe Hall’s representative. Startled, she broke into a sweat and instructed her group.
“Eek! Guys, Rockefeller’s looking! Pretend you’re trying!”
“Damn, that guy. Always on our case. It’s not like we’re strong, and we only have one life, so why can’t he understand we’re just being cautious?”
Rockefeller sighed deeply.
Even in their third year, these students had shown no real progress. There was a reason they were so disliked.
‘That's why you're always stuck in Schlaphe Hall,’
Rockefeller thought, turning his attention away from those who only raised his blood pressure and focusing instead on the Adele Hall students. As expected, they were coordinating well, each acting according to their abilities to help the professors advance quickly toward the high-level spirits.
“My sword's flame went out!”
“Hold on.”
“Wait, that area looks a bit vulnerable! Get a shield and block it!”
Though still students and unable to finish off the intermediate spirits, they were at least holding their ground and inflicting some effective wounds.
“Ouch! I got bit on the shoulder.”
“A professor's hurt! I'll cover here for a moment, so take care of that side!”
Among them, the members of the Ten Elites were notably proactive and showed clear results.
“Losing to mere monkeys… don’t even think about bragging about being my peer.”
“Seriously, what have they done in these three years? They should be able to at least catch up to the professors by now.”
“Actually, aren’t the professors fighting worse than we expected? Or have we just gotten too strong?”
Despite their individual quirks, the students were advancing steadily, and the target was close. It was a critical distance where the high-level spirits might be contemplating whether to abandon the barrier and retreat. Rockefeller spotted Bellen from across the battlefield, observing the spirit she was targeting.
Bellen, who was similarly close to her target, nodded in acknowledgment. On the far right, Arkandric also signaled his readiness. Gripping his staff tightly, Rockefeller heightened his senses.
‘This is nerve-wracking.’
The task was complex—they had to break through the monkey hordes and strike down the spirits simultaneously. If even one sensed danger and managed to escape, it would complicate things moving forward.
‘I must take them down, every single one that maintains the barrier, without leaving any alive.’
Rockefeller used magic to lighten his body and summoned a gust of wind. Boosting his telekinesis to maximum output, he propelled himself toward his target.
Ee-kee-kee-kee!
He moved so fast that the monkeys barely had time to react, reaching the high-level spirit in ice armor almost instantly. Just as it jerked its shoulder, preparing to withdraw its arms from the barrier, Rockefeller quickly slipped his staff between the gaps in its armor and thrust it into its chest.
A strange sound emanated from inside.
Crack!
Its body began to crumple from within, crushed by the most lethal of Rockefeller's spells: gravity magic. He poured every ounce of mana he had into it and shouted,
“Crush and die!”
Finally, even the armor compressed, and the creature's body was reduced to a metallic sphere the size of an adult's head. Breathing heavily, Rockefeller glared at the approaching monkeys.
‘Damn, I don’t even have strength in my arms.’
Gravity magic consumed nearly all of his mana in a single use, leaving him close to total mana depletion. With his vision blurring, he realized he had reached mana exhaustion from the spells he had used to get this far.
Ee-kee-kee!
The monkey spirits charged forward with their mouths wide open. Yet Rockefeller couldn’t move a muscle. Just as he closed his eyes, sensing his end was near, a metallic clang echoed through the air.
Bang!
Opening his eyes slightly, he saw a massive man standing tall with a shield raised. It was Aslay.
“Almost lost you there, professor.”
“…If you’re here, that means Hersel Ben Tenest must be as well.”
Aslay slammed his shield into the ground, throwing the charging monkeys aside. He grabbed them by their tails, slamming them against the ground or swinging them through the air. However, since his attacks didn’t reach their cores with aura, the monkeys kept getting back up. Fortunately, with the barrier blocked, their numbers weren’t increasing.
“It’s a success! The barrier is sealed!”
“The three of them did it! Let’s push a little harder, take down what’s left, and catch our breath!”
“Yes, professor!”
With the spirits being cut down, their numbers visibly dwindled. Rockefeller sank to the ground, catching his breath.
‘Is the first stage finally over…?’
Now the remaining tasks were to destroy the Spirit Gate and then conduct a punitive expedition to capture Ekok, the mastermind behind this incident. But first, there was treatment for the wounded, equipment checks, and the immediate need for rest to regain strength.
Within a few minutes, the spirits inside the barrier had been completely wiped out. Gripping his shaky legs, Rockefeller stood up. But the sky began to darken as if a storm was approaching. Shadows started spreading over the area.
‘No, this isn’t a storm cloud.’
The edge of the shadow was long and sharp. Turning his head, Rockefeller gasped. A massive blue marlin was floating, gliding through the air.
‘What would happen if that thing crashed into the barrier?’
A chill crept over him as he saw the marlin staring down with its lifeless eyes, aiming its long horn directly at the barrier as if ready to break through. As Rockefeller swallowed, the creature moved its mouth.
“To think the barrier hasn’t been breached yet… Morojo, that monkey, seems to have failed spectacularly.”
The creature could speak—a clear sign of a high-level spirit. Unsure how to respond, Rockefeller hesitated as Aslay pointed to the marlin.
“oss told me to ask: is there a way to hunt that thing?”
“…What a foolish question.”
There was no way. Hunting it was one thing, but they might have to abandon the barrier. Rockefeller felt a sense of dread, suspecting this battle would end in defeat.
***
With the appearance of the giant blue marlin, the previously triumphant expressions of the team were now overshadowed with fear. This enormous spirit—what was it, exactly? And more troubling, it looked like it would be perfect for tearing a gaping hole in the barrier…
The giant marlin opened its mouth and commanded its minions.
“Enter my mouth, all of you.”
Spirits began filing into its maw. It seemed that the marlin intended to carry them through the barrier and release them here.
“Quite a clever mind it’s got.”
Acknowledging the enemy’s strategy, I pushed through the crowd, igniting my “Noble Ember of Blood” to its maximum and shouted.
"Pretty bold for a flying fish," I said, my voice cutting through the stillness with dignified weight. I wasn’t sure if my words carried all the way to it through the barrier, but it seemed that the "Noble Ember of Blood" made my presence clear enough to catch its attention.
"A mere speck like you dares call me, the great one, a mere fish?" it responded, its tone displeased. I raised my hand, palm open.
“Pick one of these five fingers.”
“What?” it asked, clearly taken aback. I smirked and taunted further.
“Whichever finger you choose, I’ll use it to face you.”
The real concern was that long horn of its, which seemed perfect for breaking through the barrier. But I’d only need “One Second of Invincibility” to shatter it.
The marlin stared at me for a moment, then spoke with an incredulous tone.
“Unbelievable. You think you can face me with just a finger?”
“Then the pinky it is. Come on. I’ll prove this finger is stronger than that precious horn of yours.”
The marlin burst into laughter, sounding almost mad.
“Hahahaha!”
Then, the laughter abruptly stopped, and it glared at me, its eyes bulging.
“You’re too foolish to even make a decent slave.”
It began to swim upwards, as though gliding through water. When it reached a certain height, the tip of its horn gleamed like the sun. Calmly, I raised my pinky, waiting for it to dive.
