Chapter 59

The scene of Sieg, with his massive body, wielding the magic sword in front of him, soaring through the air with great momentum.

For a moment, I couldn't understand what was happening.

Sieg, who was about to deliver the final blow to the Phoenix, was not at all careless.

To begin with, even if he had been careless, it was inconceivable to me that Sieg would be blown away by the Phoenix.

After all, the Phoenix's strength is extremely low among the super-difficult magic beasts.

If it had been attacked with fireballs or something, it might have been a different story, but there was no way it could have knocked Sieg back with just brute force.

That's why for a few moments, I couldn't hide my shock.

If nothing had happened, I might have been stunned for even longer.

"RuiAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

"What!"

But the changing situation didn't give me enough time to be confused.

...With a muffled roar, the Phoenix's body began to swell, and we were forcibly brought back to our senses.

It was an incredibly bizarre scene.

The Phoenix, which had been listless until now, was now, if not more so, as vibrant as when we first stepped into the dungeon.

As if to demonstrate this, the Phoenix's body swelled even more intensely, and the wounds I had inflicted began to regenerate.

The abnormality of the Phoenix's transformation brought silence to the scene.

I could see from the corner of my eye that Armia's face was filled with an expression that seemed to say she didn't understand what was happening.

However, I instinctively realized what was happening to the Phoenix.

Because the Phoenix was emitting the same oppressive aura as the mutated Hydra, that worst of all beings.

...Yes, the Phoenix was now trying to mutate.

If we allowed the Phoenix to mutate, we would be in for a tough fight.

"Damn it!"

In the next moment, I made my decision, gripped my dagger tightly, and ran.

The Phoenix's body was healing at an abnormal speed.

As I watched this, I felt a sense of urgency.

Once its body was completely healed, the Phoenix would don its flame armor again.

If that happened, with only a dagger, I wouldn't have the reach to attack the Phoenix.

In other words, I had to somehow finish it off before that happened.

...But I had no confidence that I could defeat the Phoenix.

"I won't let you!"

I wasn't the only one who noticed the Phoenix's mutation.

Narseena, who had fought the mutated Hydra with me, also realized the Phoenix's mutation a beat after me and started running.

"HaAAAAA!"

Narseena, who was closer to the Phoenix, quickly got within range and punched it.

In the next moment, Narseena's fist sank into the Phoenix's body, which didn't seem to be moving at all.

"RuiaAAA!"

"Ugh!"

...But even after receiving Narseena's attack, the Phoenix only leaked a small amount of blood from its mouth.

The attack should have injured the Phoenix's internal organs, but for the Phoenix, it was a wound that could be healed immediately, unlike a human or a regular magic beast.

As a martial artist, Narseena's powerful attack only managed to buy a few seconds before the Phoenix could don its flame armor again.

This realization made me strongly feel that I couldn't defeat the Phoenix on my own.

If I had the time to attack the Phoenix, I could have rendered it combat-incapacitated with one blow.

Just like the Hydra back then.

But I understood that this was impossible.

The wounds I had inflicted were almost completely healed.

The wounds Narseena had inflicted were buying a little more time, but it would only be a matter of moments before the Phoenix donned its flame armor again.

Reaching the Phoenix and attacking it before that happened wouldn't be difficult, but using a desperate enhancement was impossible.

"Still, I won't give up!"

Even as I understood this, I tried to enhance my body.

Even while running, in a highly unstable situation, I tried to enhance my body, even though it was supposed to be impossible.

All to add a little more to my enhancement.

"...Huh?"

Then, at that moment, I realized a change in my body that was too significant to be just growth.

Originally, the enhancement using magic power and ki was something that couldn't really be called a technique.

After all, the enhancement was so forceful and distorted that it was more of a cheat than a technique.

That's why I understood that there were limits and dangers to this method of enhancement.

That's why I was surprised, even as I ran.

The enhancement of my body was growing at an abnormal rate.

Enhancing my body while running was something that, until now, would have required a lot of effort.

Even with the risk of injury from a failed enhancement, the best I could do was a slight improvement over my usual enhancement.

But now, I was combining magic power and ki with a smoothness that made my past efforts seem like a lie.

I felt a sense of lightness in my body, and the absence of pain was strange.

No, that wasn't the only thing that felt strange.

Why had such a sudden change occurred, and what had triggered it? Various questions floated through my mind.

"But this should work."

But I dismissed all these questions and smiled.

In my sight was the Phoenix, which still hadn't moved.

Now I could defeat it before it donned its flame armor.

With this certainty, I kicked off the ground and raised my dagger.

"RuiAAAAA!"

The Phoenix, realizing the threat, started to move just as the dagger was about to strike.

I couldn't see the Phoenix's expression.

But as the Phoenix, which had started moving in a desperate situation, seemed to be rebuking me.

Why do you always suddenly increase the power of your attacks, it seemed to be saying.

"Too slow to move."

With those words, I swung my dagger down.

In the next moment, the dagger deeply cut into the top of the Phoenix's head.