CH 10.1

「Kuuuuuuooooooooaaaaaa!」

The Ogre swung around its stout arms and released a bestial roar, Alan lithely tilts his body to the side to avoid the blow. At the same time, he brandished his sword and lets loose a sword flash. In the twinkle of an eye, the skin of the Ogre which was supposedly as tough as steel was ridden with a countless number of cuts.

「Guuu………Gaaaaaa!」

Although it’s whole body was filled with cuts, it did not get daunted in the slightest by Alan, instead the Ogre raises its arms high into the air in order to smash Alan like a log. At this point, the flame bullet that Wikia shot out exploded.

Having its whole body wrapped in flames, even as an Ogre, it started to stagger and stumble to its knees. Following up on the attack, Nadja promptly cuts the body of the Ogre with a sideway swing, splitting its upper body and lower body into two parts.

「Fuuuh……」

After wiping the blood of his sword and putting it back in its sheath, Sharl comes running to Alan and touches his arm. After chanting out a short incantation, warm light warps around Alan’s wounds, and within moments his arm had already recovered beautifully.

「Umu, it’s might is splendid. Cutting up the target into two equal parts, shall I name this sword: “Sword Slashing”?」

The Warrior Nadja was speaking joyfully, she was the one who was able to completely split the Ogre into two just now. She had gentle wavy hair, it was long and was red copper in color. She was a tall and beautiful woman. She was from the southern country Grandeira, she had a frank and simple temperament.

「……. Wouldn’t it be better to call it Long Sword +1 or something?」

The person who retorted Nadja with a murmuring voice was the Magician Wikia. Wikia was a beautiful girl that had silky smooth hair that was bluish silver in color that went straight down. She didn’t really have a very expressive face and she was quite shy, but the fact is, she was probably the most companionate and kindhearted out of the bunch.

「Ah, I-I think that it is a wonderful name」

The Priestess Sharl butted in and spoke in a fluster. She had emerald green hair that was styled in a bob cut, she was a petite young lady. She looked considerably young but contrary to her looks, she was a white elf and was actually the oldest amongst them. Whenever the party enters into a quarrel, she would smile brightly and calm every one down with her smile.

「Then my sword would probably be called “Sword Slicing” the sword that shreds」

And the person who tapped his sword against his waist whilst replying to the girls was the only man in the party, he was their leader, the swordsman Alan. He had blonde hair and blue eyes, he was a good-looking man. Not only was he skilled with the use of his sword, but he was also capable in cancelling magical traps, he was quite the all-rounder. His bravery knows no bounds, capable of making calm decisions in the midst of battle, he was a resourceful adventurer.

With just the four of them, they planned on challenging the rumored fiendish and brutal Dungeon of the Evil Magician Aur. They have already set foot on the fourth floor of the underground dungeon. Goblins, orcs, ogres, skeletons, dragon flies, giant slugs…… All kinds of creatures have been sent to stop their advances but none of these monsters were their match.

Instead, sometimes the defeated monsters would drop treasure chests and inside of these chests, they would be able to obtain powerful magical items and or gold coin, this only served to boost their current war potential. The sword that Alan and Nadja had been able to obtain is just a few of the things they have managed to obtain.

「Leaving that aside, Alan….. Over there」

Pulling on to Alan’s sleeve, Wikia pointed her finger at the corner of the corridor. When Alan turned to look at where she pointed, there seemed to be some kind of big door. It was different from all the ones they had seen so far; it was a double door that seemed to be quite solidly made.

It was as if it was proclaiming to the world that there was something of value beyond it, Alan gulped down his saliva.

「What should we do?」

「I still have enough mana remaining」

「I’m also fine」

「I’m not even tired! I also have no problems」

Just from hearing that single phrase from him, his party members understood his intentions accurately, and promptly reported their physical conditions.

「Alright, then let’s go!」

with a nod Allan gently examines the door. There is no keyhole and there doesn’t seem to be a lock either. Looking over his party members again, he forgoes using words and instead gave them a countdown using hand signals.

3, 2, 1………

At the same time the countdown reaches 0, Alan kicked the door open. Nadja passes through the door first, Alan goes next and jumps past the door, Sharl and Wikia quickly follow suit and close the door behind them. Their actions were executed almost instantaneously.

While Sharl and Wikia are closing the door, Alan and Nadja pull out their swords and runs forward. On the other side of the door was a big hall and a huge monster was sitting down at the center.  The body was muscular standing at about 3 meters tall, the monster had the head of a cow. ……….It is the so called: Minotaur.

Alan and Nadja approach the Minotaur before it was able to stand up and slashed down their swords from the left and right at the same time. The Minotaur was still sitting down as it raised its huge axe and blocked their attacks like it was nothing special.

Clicking its tongue in disdain, the Minotaur stood up in front of the two people, and they quickly jumped backwards to create some distance in fear of a counterattack.

This ax was something that seemed like it needed two full sized men to even carry properly. Yet the Minotaur was swinging around this large broad-axe with one hand like it weighed nothing.

Launching its attacks towards the two, combining the length of this huge axe with how big his body was, the reach of the Minotaur’s attacks was no laughing matter. Alan just barely managed to avoid the blow by taking a back step, however Nadja was unable to avoid it and was blown away.

「Are you alright?」

However, despite the fact that the impact of the blow was enough to split a person’s body into two, she didn’t have a particularly serious wound. Sharl recited a spell which covered all of her party members in a dim light, applying a damage reduction buff.

「Yeah, I’m saved thanks to you. But, I don’t think that we can approach it carelessly」

The Minotaur was wielding its broad-axe in this spacious area. Although Alan is barely able to avoid its blows, when the Minotaur uses its ax to strike the ground, the violent impact causes parts of the floor to fly as debris towards Alan, and this causes him to sustain innumerable minor injuries. In addition, because parts of the floor were being destroyed, Alan was unable to efficiently use his quick step movements, and it was consistently becoming harder for him to avoid the attacks.

「……I will try to stop its movements. Because I don’t think that we can hold out for much longer」

Saying this, Wikia begins to recite a long incantation. Nadja nods and rushes towards the Minotaur.

Seeing her approach, the Minotaur wields its ax and performs a side sweep.

「Uohhhhhh!」 (Light Novel Illustration: Nadja, Wikia and Sharl)

Roaring, Nadja firmly stabbed her sword into the floor. Immediately after, although a tremendous amount of impact rushes through her body, she was able to block the blow of the large-axe with her sword, it stopped just right in front of her. A terrible crash attacks Nadja and although the blade digs into her left arm which was holding the sword in place, it was by no means an injury that would put her out of commission.

Thereupon a wall of stone rose up on both sides of the Minotaur. It was Wikia’s magical spell. Normally this stone wall was used as a defensive spell, however, a half-hearted curse spell would be unable to stop the Minotaur’s movements so this method was used instead.

「Nadja, follow up!」

Seeing a good opportunity, Alan thrusts himself towards the Minotaur. The Minotaur reacts quickly and pulls the large axe back towards itself and then swung it down towards Alan with all its might.

However, Alan nimbly dodges. Thanks to the stone wall trapping it on both sides, the Minotaur couldn’t wield its axe freely and was limited to downward swing type movements. Just by this fact alone, it became much easier to avoid the attack. And then, using the fact that the Minotaur was aiming Alan, Nadja jumped up kicking the wrist of the Minotaur using that as a foothold.

Running up its fat arms like a set of stairs, she swung the sword with both her hands in a sweeping motion. Her aim was to do a finishing blow, right towards the Minotaur’s neck.

However, even though her sword was sharp enough to bisect an Ogre’s body into two, it was not enough to cut the muscular neck of a Minotaur. After digging into its skin for about 30 cm, the sword stopped in place.

「Kuu, damn it!」

Panicking she tried to pull the sword out, but that was not possible either.

「It’s dangerous, watch out!」

An impact attacked Nadja. However that was not an attack from the Minotaur. It was actually Alan’s soft arm that pushed her away. And, Alan who took the blow in her stead was flung away really hard by the Minotaur’s stout arms, he was dancing around in midair like a rag doll and it was a shocking sight to behold.

「Alannn!!」

The usually composed Wikia let loose a scream.

「I’m…..F-fine, don’t worry about me!」

Blood flows out of his mouth, as Alan manages to answer in a muffled voice.

「Do… it! Finish it off…. Sharl, Wikia, Nadja!」

Alan gave them his orders. The three girls immediately understood his intentions.

The Minotaur used its hands to swing and it strikes the stone wall. The wall was only a temporary construct created out of magic, and it was no match for the physical strength of the Minotaur. Roaring loudly, it caused the stone wall to crumble.

「Buuuuuuooooooooo!」

Being wounded it was enraged and the Minotaur charges forwards. Its aim was Nadja.

「God, grant me light!」

In that moment, Sharl shoots out a magical light. A light which destroys creatures of darkness and demons, it was God’s light. This spell was not able to damage the thick fur of the Minotaur but it was enough to blind its eyes.

Losing its eye sight momentarily due to the strong glare, the Minotaur staggers. The Minotaur was charging at her aimlessly pointing its horns towards her, Nadja once again jumped and maneuvered herself towards its neck. Since she didn’t have anything in her hand, Alan threw a sword towards her. Almost at the same time, Wikia’s magic coiled around the sword making it shine.

「Uooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!」

Using all the might within her body, Nadja swings her sword straight down Nadja’s sword was still stuck on the left side of its neck and this time around her sword strike cleanly cut the Minotaur’s neck into two. Its large body shook, and vigorously crashed into the ground.

「Are you alright, Alan?!」

「I’ll heal your wounds right now, okay?」

「Please don’t be so reckless next time」

Before long, they were absorbed in deep emotion from the victory, and the girls all rushed up towards Alan. Placing her hand against Alan’s stomach, Sharl speaks quickly and chants out her recovery magic.

「You’re a real lifesaver, Sharl」

Soon after, his wounds disappear and Alan was patting Sharl’s head. Sharl looked really happy as she closes her eyes and smiles joyfully, the two other girls Wikia and Nadja however were grumbling out a complaint.

「What about me? I’m the one who dealt the finishing blow, you know?」

「I think that I played an active part in various ways as well」

「I understand, Nadja and also Wikia, thank you both for your hard work」

When he patted both of their heads, Nadja smiles pleasantly and Wikia pouts her lips cutely muttering out “both of us at the same time?” as she blushes. Alan realizes that the three girls liked him. However, for the longest time now, he was unable to choose the one he liked the most.

「I was wondering who would be able to make it this far, it turns out that it’s a lady-killer like you」

Suddenly a deep voice that seemed to come from the deepest parts of hell itself echoed. Panicking they turned towards the sounds of the voice, and there was a man with amber colored hair, however, he was sitting right on top of the Minotaur’s corpse and as if he was evaluating them, he was staring at Alan’s party members.

Wearing this strange mask, they were unable to discern his looks underneath the mask, he did not bring any weapons nor was he wearing any protective gear, he looked like an ordinary man. However, before he called out to them, they didn’t even notice his presence, and this abnormality was enough to make Alan and his party to raise their weapons.

「Don’t tell me….. You are? The Evil Magician, Aur? 」

「Precisely」

Aur nodded at Wikia’s question. With the unexpected appearance of the master of the dungeon, Alan’s party started to feel the tension rise.

「Hmph, to think that the Magician who caused chaos in the whole country was such a young man. Moreover, he doesn’t even bring any guards with him and he is just nonchalantly showing himself to us, how lucky can we be?」

Nadja brandishes her sword. the sword is part of the swordsman’s lifeline. Before she ran towards Alan, she had already collected it If she didn’t do this, she would be in a dangerous pinch right now.

Without needing to give the signal, both Nadja and Alan ran out at the same time. Considering that they were facing a Magician, the best course of action was to attack swiftly, at least this was the theory. No matter how powerful a magician is at manipulating magical energy, their bodies are usually weak and slow. It is very efficient if you are able to kill them before they have a chance to chant out any magical spells.

Alan aims for the neck and Nadja aims for the torso. The blow did not reach him, for some reason Aur’s body could not be harmed.

「The man with the lithe body acts as a distraction, whilst the woman deals the finishing blow. The priestess is adept at recovery magic and prepares for any contingencies, whereas the magician stays at the back and covers the group with her magic. To think that you could coordinate so well and move instantaneously as a group」

Speaking heartily, Aur was observing the two people that was stopped in front of him.  It wasn’t just the two people. Even the two girls at the back were unable to let any sounds out, flapping their mouth open and close, they were unable to utter a single magical incantation.

「However, even a party of this caliber was caught in such a simple trap. Don’t you think that it was a little strange?」

Hearing his words, Wikia was startled and she was going to take off the ring on her finger, but naturally it does not come off.

They were being cursed. Wikia’s ring, Sharl’s cane, both Alan and Nadja’s swords, all of these things they obtained from the dungeon were cursed.

While the weapons boasted a magnificent amount of power, they were unable to oppose the master of this dungeon. That was the kind of curse it was.

「Well then, the swordsman’s cannot move and the magicians cannot cast their magic. In this kind of a situation, how about I have this fellow keep you company?」

The body of the Minotaur which had lost his neck slowly rose up from the ground.