Chapter 252
The ever-multiplying skeletons had soon grown numerous enough to fill the massive cavern. In contrast, Roman, comparing them by numbers alone, faced an overwhelmingly hopeless situation with no chance of winning.
However, if compared by power rather than numbers, Franz was the overwhelming one. It would be the same even if their numbers swelled to match the continent’s population.
A demigod Archmage was practically a walking disaster.
“Are there no particularly special individuals…?”
Watching them fiercely pour out their attacks, Franz lightly snapped his fingers. A crisp sound rang out softly amidst the roar, creating silence.
The skeletons that had filled the cavern all reverted to ordinary bones, not by any significant magic, but merely by a mana wave.
If those guys used mana stones as their power source, all he had to do was interfere with the mana stones to stop them from operating.
As Franz gestured in the air, mana stones popped out from among the piled-up bone fragments.
Although he had easily dispatched them using a sort of shortcut, the mana stones they possessed were not something to be taken lightly.
The round, thumb-sized mana stones contained an amount of mana similar to the highest-grade mana stone chunks that could be mined.
Being able to create the spatial teleportation device was all thanks to these round mana stones.
He hadn’t given them an exact name yet, but he figured calling them refined mana stones would do.
'Still, well, the haul is pretty lucrative, so that’s good.'
Even though he had only cleared two floors, the number of refined mana stones he had obtained was easily in the hundreds. If he put them on the market right now, he could earn about half a year’s budget for the Magic Tower.
Of course, he had no intention of putting them on the market.
Franz took a step forward with a faint smile.
The tightly shut door was now wide open, merely welcoming Franz as he headed to the 3rd Basement Floor.
The 3rd Basement Floor he soon arrived at was very similar in structure to the 1st Basement Floor. It had a maze-like structure surrounded by bricks on all sides.
If there was a difference, it was that the passages were significantly wider compared to the 1st Floor. It was wide enough that two fair-sized carriages could pass through side by side.
Also, the mana concentration was much thicker compared to the 1st and 2nd Floors. If the mana concentration of the normal atmosphere was 1, this place seemed to be easily around a 3.
Such a mana concentration was bound to affect everything, and naturally, the monsters residing here would also possess relatively strong mana.
As if to prove that hypothesis, the monsters Franz soon encountered were incomparably stronger than the ones he had faced earlier.
A knight wearing black armor, a guy wearing armor full of marks that spoke of the years it had endured, appeared.
A single red gleam shining through the helmet that covered the entire face created a dreary atmosphere.
“Are there no clerics or mages?”
Unlike the ones he had met earlier who formed parties, the guy in front of him now was alone. A great sense of confidence could be felt from his appearance, as if he were saying that he was enough on his own.
Whether that was a knight’s pride or simple arrogance remained to be seen.
Clank-.
Even though Franz was quite a distance away, the guy adjusted his stance. It seemed his perception range itself had widened.
“Is interfering with the mana stone out of the question?”
Looking at it with Mana Sight, he saw that the center of its chest was dyed black. That meant mana could not be detected, so unless he laid his hands on it directly, interfering was impossible.
Well, he had no choice but to fight in the end.
It was when he made that decision. In an instant, the guy’s figure disappeared from his sight.
Even if he couldn’t track it with his eyes, he wouldn’t lose track of its mana, so Franz deployed a shield and effortlessly blocked the attack that came from close range.
Did it realize its attack had failed? The guy retreated without hesitation.
It possessed sufficiently fast speed and strength, along with flawless judgment. With that level of skill, it made sense that it traveled alone rather than in a party, just like Franz usually traveled alone.
It was then. A magic circle began to be drawn beneath the guy’s feet. He simultaneously deployed two non-attribute magics - speed enhancement and power enhancement.
On top of that, the deployment speed was quite fast, so it was natural for Franz to be surprised.
A swordsman wielding power on par with the commander of the Imperial Family Knight Order possessed magic skills superior to most mages? It was truly a game-breaking character.
If it had been a living person, he would have wanted to bring that person into the Magic Tower by any means necessary. After all, the Magic Tower needed a lot of slaves, no, excellent workers.
Having finished his physical enhancement, the guy began to pour out attacks at an incredible speed. The swordsmanship he had built up right until his death was sharp and keen, more than enough to take someone’s life.
Of course, that was if its opponent hadn’t been Franz.
“Bottom left, top right, a thrust to the center…”
As if testing the guy’s skills, Franz was blocking the attacks by deploying only palm-sized shields.
Wasn’t it a speed that an ordinary person would find overwhelming just to follow with their eyes? It was a skill that could truly be called an art.
It was a skill honed while supporting Yuna’s movements, so it was only natural, though.
Not long after that, Franz was able to completely analyze the guy’s behavioral patterns.
It wasn’t swinging its sword haphazardly. It was moving fluidly according to foundational swordsmanship.
He would ask what that was once he got outside, but for now, it would be best to finish off the guy in front of him.
Snap-.
As Franz snapped his fingers, a magic circle was drawn in the air. The time it took for the 6th Circle to deploy was merely an instant.
Soon, a streak of flame shot from the magic circle and headed toward the guy.
BOOM-!
With a tremendous roar, the air in the area was pushed out explosively. At the same time, thick smoke billowed up.
Eventually, the moment his fluttering hair settled, the smoke obscuring his vision scattered to the surroundings. More accurately, it should be said that it was pushed away by something.
The knight wearing black armor stood firmly in that spot. The red energy wavering around his body was definitely close to the aura used by swordsmen.
“Could it use protection magic too?”
Right after the streak of flame was fired, he felt a mana barrier form around the guy’s body. It was a protection magic not much different from what modern mages use.
Could it use it originally, or did it learn it during the course of the battle?
He couldn’t tell which it was, but he hoped it was closer to the former if possible. If it had the ability to learn, it would be too great an obstacle for humanity.
THUD-!
The guy, clad in aura, rushed forward at an incredible speed. It was still lacking compared to Yuna’s, but it was enough to make him wonder if it could at least hold a candle to her.
Soon, having arrived at close range, the guy swung his sword widely.
Franz blocked the guy’s attack with a shield as if it were only natural. It had definitely gotten stronger than before, but not to the point where he felt particularly threatened.
In the meantime, a magic circle had already been deployed in the air. The structure of the magic circle had a more complex shape, indicating that he was intending to use 7th Circle Magic.
Soon, ice popped out from the blue magic circle. The ice, sharpened keenly like a spear, headed straight for the guy.
The guy hurriedly retreated and swung his sword, managing to bisect the massive ice. Considering his unstable posture, it was a truly marvelous display of skill.
However, there wasn’t just one Ice Spear.
CRASH-! CRASH-!
The guy’s arm was torn off, and his leg was torn off.
And finally.
CRASH-!
A massive piece of ice pierced straight through the guy’s chest and slammed him into the wall.
As if he were unable to accept defeat, the guy’s head creaked and turned toward Franz. But that was only for a moment. The red gleam gradually blurred until it completely disappeared.
Following that, the armor that had been held together by the power of the mana stone collapsed, as if to announce the guy’s death.
Franz just calmly collected the guy’s armor, sword, and mana stone before taking a step forward. He was an excellent swordsman, but in the end, he was just one of the passing monsters.
The guys he encountered on the 3rd Basement Floor after that were mostly of a similar level.
An archer who hid by refracting light, a mage who wielded 7th Circle Magic, and even a cleric who had fallen and used black magic - each and every one of them was strong enough to be believed as a labyrinth boss.
Wouldn’t it have been quite dangerous if he had met them right after subjugating the Demon Lord? His skills had been lacking back then compared to now.
Time passed since then, and it was around the time the number of monsters he had defeated slightly exceeded twenty.
The entrance leading down to the 4th Basement Floor came into view.
The 4th Basement Floor had a unique structure unlike the paths he had passed through earlier; the sight of long chairs and a platform made it look like a chapel.
What kind of guy would be waiting this time?
Franz took a step forward with that thought.
A faint smile spread across his lips.