Chapter 284: Thousand Years Battle Experience

"Have you ever heard of the legendary Homunculus?" asked Benjamin.

"Homunculus? Don't tell me the one behind this door is the Homunculus?" said Angus.

"Yes, it is." replied Benjamin shortly.

Homunculus is the greatest product of magical engineering. Not only is it powerful, but it also could think like any other race. The myth said Homunculus is an artificial perfect living being. 

It is capable of wielding mana and learning spells like any other living being. It could be said as the perfect artificial intelligence that could learn on its own.

"Interesting. Is it behind the door? Can I see it?" asked Angus excitedly.

"Err… Although it is my greatest creation, it has a.. slight problem." said Benjamin.

"Problem??" replied Angus.

"It's quite a long story. Actually, I am a… criminal." said Benjamin.

While Angus meets Benjamin, the others are still fighting against the fourth-grade Satyr.

"Millie, can you seal the satyr's movement?" asked Ian as he fought the incoming monster from behind them with Marko.

After being left behind by Angus, Anna, and Jayna, many monsters start to come from behind them.

"I could. But, It will leave me exhausted." said Millie while controlling [Soul Ball].

"Then, do it. We need to get away from here as soon as possible." said Ian.

"Alright." Said Millie while beginning to chant.

After a few moments, Millie cast [Soul Chain] and bound the unprepared Satyr. The chain is completely restraining Satyr despite its muscular body. Using this chance, Raul and the teachers decide to use potent attacks to hit it.

[Greatsword Art - Buster Stream] [Spear Art - Piercing Blow] [3rd Circle - Fire Blast]. The attack instantly killed the immobile Satyr. Satyr may be strong in combat, but its defense is just average compared to other monsters.

Its true power lies in defecting and dodging the attack rather than fighting head-on. After killing Satyr, everyone once again escapes from the place. The loud sound may gather more creatures nearby.

In the meantime, Angus and Jayna hear Benjamin's explanation while Anna is sleeping on Jayna's lap. 

"Hm… I see, you are actually sealed below the Altez Prison that was destroyed not too long ago, and you are actually not from the Heart Kingdom but an ancient kingdom in the past." said Angus.

"Ping Pong.. You got it right." replied Benjamin.

"Then, after thousands of years, you come back here to check your creation and find that it is malfunctioning because of lack of maintenance after a long time?" said Angus.

"Ping Pong… Another right answer." said Benjamin.

"I see. So, why are you saying you are a criminal? Although you are sealed below the Altez Prison, it is because of the previous kingdom. It has nothing to do with the current Heart Kingdom. Officially, you are a free man in this kingdom." said Angus.

"It's.. It's because of my unforgivable sin. No matter what I did, I could never atone for my sin. Therefore, I am a criminal. If it is not because I want to know my creation's condition, I probably will never be here and will try to seal myself." said Benjamin.

"Hmm… I am not sure what you did in the past. What matters to me is your present and future. Besides, it was already a long time ago, and I believe you are not a bad person, Mr. Benjamin." said Angus.

"Hohoho… I am quite honored to hear such a thing. Anyway, I think you should try to look the other way since right now I can't control Lily." said Benjamin.

"Lily?" asked Angus.

"It's the name of the homunculus. I named her after my deceased daughter." said Benjamin.

"I see.. Then, can you tell me more about Lily's problem?" said Angus.

"It's Lily. The homunculus is called Lily. According to my observation, it seems to be damaged by the adventurer or people that managed to reach this part. Before I am captured and sealed, I tasked Lily to guard my treasure."

"However, it seems its database and memory got damaged during these thousand years and somehow couldn't recognize me anymore." explained Benjamin.

"Is it because of your appearance?" asked Angus.

"No, I make Lily recognize me by my mana signature." said Benjamin.

"Couldn't you subdue or capture her again?" asked Angus.

"That's… I can't. I am no longer a match for her." said Benjamin.

"No longer match??" said Angus.

"Yeah, after thousands of years of continuing to fight strong adventurers, it regained monstrous combat experience and could somehow predict all my movements. It also moves very fast despite some of her parts being broken." explained Benjamin.

'Combat experience? Interesting…' thought Angus inwardly.

"How fast is she?" said Angus.

"As fast as a sixth-grade warrior combatant." said Benjamin.

"If I buy you time, could you somehow restrain her?" asked Angus.

"I could. But, you need at least around thirty seconds. You may not know this, but during thirty seconds, she could launch dozens of blows without stopping." explained Benjamin.

"Thirty seconds?? It sure is hard. But, it's better than walking around aimlessly inside this dungeon." said Angus.

"Wait.. Wait a second. Are you seriously going to fight her? The reason I managed to survive her last time is that I am Immortal. Forget it, young man. Don't waste your life easily." said Benjamin trying to persuade Angus.

"Don't worry, old man. I am quite strong. Besides, I am not alone. In the worst case, I could still run away. What do you say, Jayna?" said Angus.

"I believe in you." replied Jayna shortly.

"Alright, old man. Let's go. We don't want to waste any more time." said Angus while stretching a little bit.

"Hold on.. this is madness. You will kill yourself." said Benjamin.

"Chill down, old man. You said that it has thousands of years of fighting experience, right? When it comes to fighting experience, I never lose to anyone else." said Angus resolutely.

Looking at Angus's determination, "Fine, but if it gets dangerous, I will pull you out." said Benjamin.

"Thanks, old man. I know you are a good person." said Angus.

Hearing this, Benjamin stopped for a moment before facing the giant door and ignoring Angus's compliment.

"Are you ready? I will open the door now." said Benjamin.

"Wait.. Anna, wake up." said Angus.

"Huamm… good morning, Angus." replied Anna innocently.

"Just to make sure, she is behind this door, right?" asked Angus towards Benjamin, ignoring the sleepy Anna.

"Yeah, last time, I managed to get away by faking my death and immediately seal the door before she could pursue me." said Benjamin.

"Good, Anna, use your transformation and release your all-out miasma blast after the door opens. Jayna, you too. Release [Fiery Wave] the moment the door opens." said Angus while he took out his twin-blade artifact.

Then, Anna immediately transforms while Jayna is covered with [Sacred Fire]. 

Seeing this, 'This is a monster-minded person, and that's not ordinary flame. Just who is this kid?' thought Benjamin.

"Alright, old man. I am ready now. Please open the door." said Angus.

"Let's hope everything is alright." said Benjamin before touching the door.

Suddenly, many swirl patterns appeared on the door surface before moving into a giant magic diagram. Angus is surprised looking at the familiar swirl pattern, but he ignores it as the door starts to open on its own.

"Jayna, Anna, Now!!" yelled Angus.

[Sword Art - Fiery Wave] [Miasma Blast] the two energy attacks combine with each other and become a more potent attack enveloped the whole room. *BOOOM* After a while, Angus feels something approaching them from the blaze.

Angus immediately ran towards the fire and brandished the twin sword in his hand [Domain - Yin Yang Stance]. *Clang* *Clang* *Clang* He finds a silver-haired woman attacking him with a dagger rapidly.

Soon, the homunculus finds her dagger melting and broken apart after confronting Angus's twin sword artifact. It immediately threw her weapon and launched an attack barehanded. 

*Bam* *Bam* *Bam* Just a few seconds later, Angus already clashed with the Silver-haired homunculus a dozen times without getting any upper hand.

'Damn, at this rate. My chi will be exhausted first.' thought Angus before changing his stance.

[Domain - Starry Night] Suddenly, Angus launched hundreds of attacks rapidly towards Lily. *Whosh* *Whosh* *Whosh* However, to Angus's surprise, Lily managed to avoid every single attack like it was nothing.

After the end of his attack, Lily began her counterattack towards the exhausted Angus. Angus couldn't help getting hit by her flurry of attacks. Fortunately, she is only using her arm and foot rather than using the dagger before.

Otherwise, Angus will be dead by now. At this moment, Angus tries to fight back, but the homunculus already predicts his attack. His hand gets caught and breaks from Lily's knee attack.

Angus could only grit his teeth to withstand the pain. But, this lack of concentration makes Lily try to grab Angus' other hand. Before she could hold his other hand, Angus released a flurry of kicking [Dynamic Torrent].

Lily managed to dodge Angus's attack by a hairbreadth but stopped her momentum from breaking his other hand. At this moment, Lily grabs Angus's foot and tries to break it. At this split second, Angus summons Sky Thorn while sacrificing his captured leg. *Crack* *Bam*