NOVEL NEXT Chapter 16
The news and videos of students from the Heros Academy being attacked by villains spread like wildfire.
It’s no surprise in an era where battles between heroes and villains are consumed as mere entertainment, but the major culprit was a video shot by a citizen.
Shivers were sent down spines at the sight of a massive wall of flame, rare even in fights between heroes and villains.
And there they saw villains throwing themselves into that wall of fire without a second thought, bouncing out with the pavement beneath them, which was a joy to behold.
But by the end of the video, the sight of those students and the gate that swallowed them whole left everyone aghast.
In a time where everything has a price tag, those who watched the video were busy casting their evaluations.
That red-haired girl is surely going to be a ranked hero someday, they said.
Some argued she would end up as an S-rank hunter instead.
Someone chimed in, questioning if they were blind as the uniform was clearly from the Hero Department.
Then another jumped in, telling them to shut up if they didn’t know, insisting it was from the Hunter Department.
Some voiced concern, wondering what Heros Company was doing with a gate appearing in the city—or if the real estate prices near there were going to plummet.
Worries for the students drowned out in an instant.
Well, they were students of Heros Academy. Heroes were around, and Heros Company would step in.
Even if they got swept into a gate, they’d manage somehow.
That’s what most people thought.
However, those who recognized the gravity of the situation were already gathered at the scene.
“This is the situation as it stands.”
Justitia communicated the current circumstances to those gathered.
“So… my granddaughter is caught in the gate, and the one who opened it happened to be killed before she got swept in. So, there’s no way to intervene from the outside?”
“I’m sorry, but… that’s correct. It’s the first time a gate was opened by an individual… If someone interferes with an active channel, we don’t know how the situation inside the gate may change. If things go wrong, the students could be in danger…”
“Tch. So, in the end, you can’t do anything.”
A dimension technician from Heros Company sweat nervously, trying to ease her mood somehow.
“Well… that is true, but according to the video, it seems there’s only one boss monster inside the gate since villains were emerging. The minions don’t care about heroes or villains.”
But that was hardly enough to lighten the mood of a guardian who couldn’t confirm the survival of their granddaughter.
“So in the end, we have to defeat the boss, right? Who knows what level it is.”
“I’m sorry, Altera…”
The woman referred to as Altera seemed rather annoyed, striking the ground with her tail hard enough to crack the surface and twisting the earth to create a chair.
“If anything happens to our cute little rock, you better have a plan for after.”
With visions of failure flitting through his mind, the dimension technician replied, “I understand.”
“Don’t worry too much. The students and your granddaughter will be fine. They’re strong.”
Altera snapped a response out of irritation but slowly calmed down when she realized it was their homeroom teacher speaking.
“Well… I hope so.”
—
“B-Blanca. That way is blocked, over here, this way!”
The inside of the dungeon was like a maze.
But thanks to Lapiz, we could head straight to the boss room.
She could sense vibrations, tapping on walls to map out in her head.
Knowing she had a unique physique due to being a descendant of a returner was one thing, but seeing it firsthand was impressive.
“You’re doing great, Lapiz. Let’s keep going.”
“Uh, okay!”
“A boss monster, huh… I wonder what it looks like…”
“I don’t know either. I just hope it’s not strong. Yeonhwa, is the lighter working fine?”
“Yep.”
“Good… Jinhyeon. Make sure to keep us from getting caught up in it.”
“Got it.”
Honestly, having just me, Lapiz, and Yeonhwa here felt a bit shaky.
But now with that guy stepping up too, I honestly didn’t feel like we’d lose.
The boss monster might be strong, but it couldn’t possibly counter someone summoning fire and lightning from thin air.
Honestly, I thought I wouldn’t have to step in at all.
Even knowing that wasn’t a good thing, I foolishly entertained the thought of things going that smoothly.
Just then, Lapiz warned me about something massive up ahead.
“There’s a big door, um… behind it, something… really scary is there…”
“It’s the boss monster. Good job finding it. Is everyone ready? From here on out, it’s the real deal. You could die if you let your guard down. So, unleash everything without hesitation.”
Yeonhwa turned a bit pale, as if that memory had resurfaced, but quickly accepted it with a nod knowing there was no other choice.
Everyone else also steeled their resolve.
“Alright. Let’s go. I’ll distract it from the front, so you all hit hard but make sure I don’t get dragged in.”
“Are you sure, Blanca? Even though you grew up on the outskirts…”
Hmm. I meant it casually, but it seemed to resonate way too well.
But it wasn’t completely inaccurate. The lab did exist on the outskirts, after all.
“Don’t worry about me; worry about yourselves instead.”
I shouldn’t have to worry, but I trusted I’d survive even if you all dropped dead.
I thumped my chest with my fist and smirked.
But the atmosphere turned heavier. It became solemn, shall I say.
That was meant to be a joke, but it backfired, it seems.
“Alright, let’s do our best…!”
At least they were fired up, so that’s something.
As I placed my hand on the massive door, the strange symbols engraved on it began to glow eerily and the door started to open.
And beyond the heavy iron door emerged a gigantic Minotaur, chained and sitting still.
About the size of a three-story building?
“…Grrr…”
The Minotaur surged with muscle to rise and break its chains, only to immediately be engulfed in a storm of fire that assaulted it.
“Kwoooor!”
“Now’s our chance, Jinhyeon! Lapiz! Before Blanca has a hard time, let’s take it down!!!”
The kids unleashed powerful attacks that felt questionable in terms of how much mana would be left at this rate before I could even approach.
Lapiz literally swung around the ceiling, walls, and floor with her ability and struck the Minotaur hard, while Jinhyeon, despite the hits, froze the creature’s limbs as it crept closer.
Yeonhwa created a literal whirlwind of flames, scorching the Minotaur’s body.
“Kwoooor, Kraaak!!! Kweeeek!!!”
No matter how much I wanted to help, I couldn’t do anything.
With the flame and wind pressure, I’d just end up blowing gas back this way if I released anything.
In times like this, my inability to do ranged attacks felt pretty pathetic.
If only I could control something I emitted or at least had some ability to project from afar.
But that wasn’t possible, so I could only watch with my fingers in my mouth.
“Hah, hah…! I can’t let everyone suffer any longer…! Kugh…!”
But their power seemed to be dwindling more and more.
It wasn’t just a hunch; it was really happening.
The Minotaur, who initially was being literally rolled over, was now putting up some resistance and crawling towards us.
Yeonhwa’s flames were holding, but Jinhyeon was the issue.
Having little experience using his ability, he looked drained, panting as if he was almost out of mana.
“Just die already, you stupid…! Brat!!”
Lapiz was also looking quite tired, but compared to Jinhyeon, she seemed a lot better off.
But I have to ask, what would I do if those two dropped?
Those kids weren’t obeying me at all.
If only they were just a bit stronger, or if Jinhyeon had even the slightest skill with his ability.
Then it really would’ve worked out with this fight.
But as it stood, the three of them definitely weren’t enough.
Guess I have to step in. Sighing, I asked the kids.
“Lapiz. Open that thick-headed idiot’s mouth. And Jinhyeon, bind it. Yeonhwa, can you douse the fire?”
“B-Blanca? No, we can do this!”
“You can’t do this. I’ll handle it. Still, thanks for your efforts. You’ve lightened my load a bit. From now on, I’ll take over.”
Yeonhwa bit her lip in frustration for not being strong enough, but she eventually complied.
Sorry. I’ll treat you later.
Feeling apologetic, I flashed a smile and dashed towards the Minotaur.
From behind, I heard cries as massive hands burst from the walls to clamp down on the beast’s upper and lower jaws.
Of course, the Minotaur resisted, but with Jinhyeon pouring everything into one last ice chunk, it froze the creature in that very pose.
Channeling my mana, I produced something profoundly horrible from within me.
It had a ridiculously simple molecular structure, but it displayed an unbelievably terrifying power.
If it were an ordinary body, the moment it tried to contain something like this, it would melt away.
But I wasn’t ordinary.
…That was the reason my ability was classified as special.
I could enhance my body with drugs and hormones, so it’s strengthening.
I could rearrange substances in my body to create different substances, which is transformation.
And, I could expel those combined substances outside my body, making it expulsion.
Plus, I was immune to most poisons and acids, and could even decompose toxins, classified as shape-shift ability.
I extended my hand toward the Minotaur’s gaping maw.
And I sprayed high-purity hydrochloric acid gas.