Actually, Dad Was a Hero

Chapter 49: Struggle

[A, A Sphinx? The one in front of the pyramid?]

Sandman asked through the communicator.

However, Jin Beom-Min did not answer. No, he couldn’t answer.

This was because the Sphinx, which had appeared suddenly, launched its next attack.

〈Kneel and worship!〉

Along with a low, resonating voice, the Sphinx’s two eyes glowed brightly.

Jin Beom-Min quickly tried to dodge, but it was no use. There was no way to avoid a magical attack within its range, unlike a physical attack.

“Ugh!”

Jin Beom-Min staggered, feeling his limbs go numb.

[Jin? What’s wrong, Jin!]

“Damn it……!”

Jin Beom-Min gritted his teeth and kicked off the ground. His attack was still fast, but much slower than usual.

And the Sphinx, with agility that didn’t match its massive body, easily dodged Jin Beom-Min’s attack.

“Hoo…… You can still move like that even after being hit with Slow magic?”

“How……? How did a Sphinx become a Ranger’s familiar……?”

Jin Beom-Min asked, enduring the pain throughout his body caused by the Sphinx’s Slow magic.

“Preposterous……! How could a mere Dark Elf enslave me?”

The Sphinx maintained its distance from Jin Beom-Min and slowly circled the square with elegant movements.

“We simply made a contract. Besides, visiting another world was quite appealing.”

“……I thought you would have a hidden card…… But I never thought you would bring a Sphinx.”

At Jin Beom-Min’s words, the Sphinx chuckled softly.

The human face on the beast’s body formed a smile, making it quite eerie.

“Hehehe…… Isn’t it perfect for catching a warrior like you?”

He was right. The Sphinx was the natural enemy of a melee-focused warrior like Jin Beom-Min.

Although it looked like a large beast on the outside, the Sphinx was actually a high-level monster with high intelligence and the ability to use various magic.

Moreover, Sphinxes usually preferred magic that strengthened themselves or weakened their opponents rather than offensive magic, which made them the worst opponents for warriors who fought in close combat.

[Jin? Are you okay? Let me know if you need backup!]

Sandman’s voice came through the communicator. But there was nothing they could do to support him.

At the Hero Academy, they were taught to always bring a mage when facing a Sphinx.

This was because a warrior could not defeat a Sphinx if the mage could not dispel its various magic.

Regardless of actual strength, the matchup itself was unfavorable.

‘If this is the case, I need to finish this quickly……!’

There was no other way. Although he was already affected by the Slow magic, his physical abilities were not significantly impaired, and he was confident that he could inflict fatal damage with Thunder Strike using Mana Conversion if he could land a hit.

For now, the best option was to eliminate it quickly before being hit with another weakening magic.

“Stand by for now!”

Jin Beom-Min shouted and leaped using Giant’s Footsteps.

Kiiiiiiiiiing!

His sword glowed bluish-white, sparking pale flames.

〈The eyes of the pathetic cannot see the truth……!〉

The Sphinx chanted a spell once more. And the next moment, the square was filled with seven Sphinxes.

[Wh, what is that!]

[Suddenly, so many……!]

The cries of the Ghost Squad members were heard through the communicator.

The Sphinx had used ‘Mirror Shadow,’ a type of illusion magic.

It was advanced illusion magic that created multiple illusions and mixed the real one among them.

Moreover, the fact that there were seven illusions was proof that its magical ability was quite outstanding.

Jin Beom-Min also realized this right before his attack, but there was nothing he could do. He had no choice but to continue his attack, hoping for luck.

Kwaaarrrng!

With a sound like thunder, one of the Sphinxes standing in the square disappeared like smoke.

“Tsk……!”

Jin Beom-Min clicked his tongue and landed on the ground. But there was no time to regret.

He gathered his Mana again and kicked off the ground.

If 1/7 was wrong, he would try 1/6.

If he repeated it fast enough, the illusions would eventually be exhausted.

But the Sphinx wasn’t foolish enough to just watch.

〈Frivolous one, be serious……!〉

Jin Beom-Min’s body felt heavy. As if swimming in a viscous liquid, the movement of his arms and legs became sluggish.

If the Slow magic he had been hit with earlier was magic that hindered movement through pain, the Slow magic he was hit with this time literally slowed down his physical movements.

“Ugh……!”

Jin Beom-Min tried his best, but his limbs wouldn’t move as he wanted, and he ended up stumbling and falling clumsily.

Confirming Jin Beom-Min’s state, the Sphinx quickly jumped in and swung its front paw.

The six Sphinxes that filled the square simultaneously, but with slightly different movements, aimed for Jin Beom-Min’s body.

“Guardian of the Dead……!”

Jin Beom-Min hurriedly summoned Kuen.

He had decided to keep Kuen out of sight for the time being, but he had no choice in this situation.

He had to survive first.

Clang!

Sparks flew from Kuen’s shield. Luckily, Kuen had blocked the attack of the Sphinx with the real body among the six.

“……What…… What the hell is…… going on……!”

Kuen, who had witnessed six giant Sphinxes as soon as he was summoned, asked in disbelief.

“No time to explain……! We need to prepare for the next attack……!”

“A warrior who commands the undead, how interesting. But it’s useless.”

The Sphinx muttered in an annoyingly arrogant tone and chanted a spell once more.

〈The unholy shall return to where they belong……!〉

Flash!

A bright light emanated from the Sphinx. Kuen quickly raised his shield to cover himself and Jin Beom-Min, but it was no use.

“What…… is…… this……!”

Kuen crumbled and melted back into the ground.

“……Undead Banishment……! Is it using Divine magic too……!”

Jin Beom-Min gritted his teeth and muttered.

He couldn’t think of any other way. Even if he improvised, he would only be able to buy some time.

‘……Is that the only way……!’

But he soon shook his head.

‘Not yet…… Not yet……!’

***

“Jom! Think of something!”

Reaper shouted accusingly. But everyone felt the same. They had to do something, but they had no idea what they could do.

From their perspective, Jin Beom-Min suddenly slowed down, seemed to be in pain, and now was helplessly being attacked by the Sphinx.

Every time the multiplied Sphinxes swung their front paws, Jin Beom-Min’s entire body became covered in blood.

However, thanks to the Iron Troll armor, he was still holding on, and in fact, he swung his sword, charged with powerful electricity, every time he was attacked.

Thanks to his struggle, the number of Sphinx illusions had been reduced to four.

However, as if he had reached his physical limit, his movements were getting slower, and now even swinging his sword seemed difficult.

“……If that’s a type of illusion……”

Sandman muttered as if talking to himself.

“We need to figure out which one is the real body. Then Jin can counterattack.”

“But how do we know that! No matter how much I look, I can’t tell which one is real!”

Reaper also looked through the scope attached to her sniper rifle until her eyes hurt, but she couldn’t find any clues.

To her, all four Sphinxes looked real. The shine of their fur, the movement of their muscles, even the shape of their shadows.

Just by looking, she couldn’t tell which one was real…… No, she couldn’t even tell if they were illusions.

“Ah, maybe……!”

Wraith, as if he had thought of something, clapped his head and quickly launched a drone from his bag.

“……Can we tell the difference with the camera?”

Imp asked, but Wraith shook his head.

“No, we can’t even tell with the CCTV. But with this guy……!”

After launching the drone, Wraith held up his tablet and tapped the screen.

“If we look at it through thermal imaging, there might be a difference……!”

But there was no difference. All four Sphinxes were emitting heat like living creatures.

Perhaps it was natural. If the illusions didn’t have body heat, they wouldn’t be able to fool a warrior with sharp senses like Jin Beom-Min.

“……There’s no difference. I was hoping……”

“Uh…… But……”

Imp, who was watching the screen from the side, continued in a dazed tone.

“Are those…… footprints?”

“Huh……?”

The thermal imaging screen displayed the temperature of objects by converting them into colors.

And this applied to all objects, including the ground.

The Opera House Square was paved with smooth stone, and this stone floor was generally cold.

Therefore, when a warm-blooded animal like the Sphinx walked barefoot on the ground, the area it stepped on would warm up, and the shape of the footprints would faintly appear on the thermal imaging.

And on the thermal imaging screen, only one Sphinx was leaving pale green footprints on the blue stone floor.

“Uh…… This……!”

“We need to tell Jin!”

“How……?”

Imp, who was about to move hurriedly, stopped dead in his tracks.

They couldn’t tell him verbally. The Sphinxes were constantly moving and attacking Jin Beom-Min, frequently changing positions with each other.

If the timing was right, it might work, but if the timing of the notification was off, he might attack an illusion again.

They needed a clear sign.

“I have an idea. First, tell Jin to prepare for a counterattack.”

Imp said and ran to the ammunition box. Then he started loading the ammunition canister marked with fluorescent tape into the light machine gun.

***

[Jin! We’ve identified the location of the real body. Prepare for a counterattack!]

Just when he was thinking about giving up and using the last resort, the welcome news came.

Jin Beom-Min dodged the Sphinx’s claws by a hair’s breadth and answered, breathing heavily.

“Huff, huff! I can’t attack multiple times. Once! Just once!”

[Understood. Get ready!]

“Give me a signal when I’m struck by lightning!”

[What? What do you……?]

Jin Beom-Min took a deep breath and channeled his Mana throughout his body, not externally, but directly inside.

***

To achieve a specific effect using Mana, one had to create a kind of pattern with Mana.

The process of creating this pattern, theorized and schematized, was the magic of mages, and its intuitive and instinctive implementation was the technique of warriors, such as Mana Conversion.

The basic principle was the same for both. Controlling the flow of Mana to create a pattern.

Right now, within Jin Beom-Min’s body, a foreign Mana pattern was mixed within the flow of his original Mana.

The two patterns of Slow magic created by the Sphinx with its Mana.

A properly trained mage would be able to read and interpret the patterns of this Slow magic and create a pattern to nullify it. However, Jin Beom-Min, who was weak in theoretical magic, could not use this method.

But there was a way, even if he was weak in theory.

A rather brute-force method, but still.

***

Jin Beom-Min clenched his teeth. It was bound to be very painful.

And he converted all the Mana he had channeled throughout his body, all at once.

Crackle!

“Kuaaagh!”

Bluish-white sparks erupted from his entire body. His skin cracked, his muscles contracted, and his hair caught fire.

“Wh, what……!”

The Sphinx, which was about to swing its claws, took a step back in surprise at the sudden change.