Chapter 61: Golden Hour
The light that had filled the clearing faded, and darkness crept in.
Panting heavily, I collapsed to the ground, struggling to catch my breath. My mind swirled with fatigue, my body pushed beyond its limits. Even the ancient glyph on my body bore faint scorch marks from the overuse of power.
"Ah, seriously, nothing ever comes easy, does it?"
The sound of a dying scream.
It was the signal I had been waiting for.
But what I hadn’t anticipated was the energy contained within that scream.
It was similar to the Mimic’s aura, but thicker, stickier—oppressive.
Like a mouse frozen in terror before a snake, the scream carried the energy of a predator.
The people, overwhelmed by that aura, were thrown into panic.
‘Thankfully, it’s working.’
I moved without hesitation, confident that the aura resembled the Mimic’s. Just as I expected, the power of the ancient glyph extinguished the aura.
One by one, the people shook their heads and began to stand, regaining their senses.
I could feel their gazes fix on me.
The resentful looks they had been directing at me moments ago were gone, replaced by something else.
They seemed to be waiting—for my next move, my next words. It felt as if the ability I had just displayed had earned their unwavering trust.
“Are you alright?”
“…Do you have a potion by any chance?”
“A potion?”
“Yes. I really need one. This isn’t the kind of power meant for repeated use.”
When Dorneth approached me, the first thing that came to mind was a potion.
To contain thousands of people within the light, I had pushed the glyph’s power to its very limit, leaving my body under immense strain.
The glyph’s power would be indispensable to cut through the Chimera legion. Recovering my condition was my top priority.
At my request, Dorneth hesitated for a moment before reluctantly handing me a small vial. The liquid inside was clear, with a faint orange hue.
“I brought it just in case something went wrong with Sharbadin. Use it.”
“What is it?”
“The Tears of the Fey.”
“…!”
The moment I heard its name, my eyes widened, and I quickly got to my feet.
As I grabbed the vial, Dorneth hesitated, his hand still gripping it tightly. When I gave it a firm tug, he let go with a sigh of regret, his expression filled with reluctance.
I didn’t drink the potion right away. Instead, I tucked it into my inner pocket. Dorneth, startled, looked at me in disbelief.
“…What are you doing?”
“If I use this now, I’ll be cursed for wasting it.”
“Then when—?”
“I’ll use it properly when the time comes. Thank you.”
Judging from the fact that Dorneth had even prepared the Tears of the Fey, it seemed his feelings for Sharbadin were genuine.
He kept calling her his fiancée, which gave me goosebumps, but I had to admit his sincerity now.
‘One more life-saving card in my hand.’
The Tears of the Fey were a rare treasure, more effective than even the highest-grade potions.
Someone like Dorneth, a lord of his kind, could only acquire one or two vials a year at most. It was too precious to waste on minor physical strain. Even if I waited until my body was completely drained, it wouldn’t be too late to use it.
Dorneth, wearing a face that screamed betrayal, looked at me as if he’d been swindled.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
But his expression hardened as he turned toward the deeper part of the cave.
The screaming had stopped, replaced by the sound of the ground violently trembling.
Something was coming.
“What’s appearing now?”
“That.”
“That? Don’t tell me…”
There was no need to elaborate. The intervals between the thundering sounds shortened, growing louder and closer.
Something massive and heavy was rushing toward us—or rather, preparing to emerge.
I exhaled a long breath, clenching and unclenching my fists repeatedly. My palms were damp with sweat. I must have been more nervous than I realized.
A crimson lump—no, Retonicalus’s trial—was beginning.
This trial had nothing to do with me. But staying here meant I would inevitably get caught up in it.
“It’s the golden hour.”
We had to escape now.
“Damn it, couldn’t you have said that sooner?”
“There’s no time. Move now!”
“It’s moving!!!”
Dorneth’s shout echoed behind me as I bolted toward the cave’s entrance. When the scream erupted earlier, the Chimeras’ movements had momentarily halted. What was happening now?
When I emerged outside and asked Fenry, she clicked her tongue and shook her head.
“As I suspected, they’re moving again.”
Scanning the forest’s perimeter, I let out a low groan.
The number of Chimeras that had filled the area earlier had drastically increased. Shadows swarmed the entire forest, surrounding the cliffs in an instant.
Encircling us completely, they tightened their formation, closing in rapidly.
“Fuck, this is just ridiculous.”
“Is it hopeless? Hurry up and tell me.”
“Why? Planning to run off by yourself?”
“I wouldn’t go alone, but I could manage three or four of us.”
He was clearly referring to himself, me, and Sharbadin.
Since I had the mark of life, he was probably at least considering my survival.
“What are you going to do?”
“We move. It’s the golden hour.”
“What? Where’s the space to run?”
The swarm of Chimeras surged toward us like a violent wave.
I focused on the faint purple mist emanating from the Chimeras.
Dominic was on the move.
“I told you, we’re going straight through.”
“You’re insane. Even after seeing that?”
“That direction.”
I pointed to the left side of the Chimera swarm. The mist emanating from that area was the thinnest.
This meant Dominic was positioned on the right, where the mist was thickest. If we cut through the left, we could avoid encountering Dominic and escape.
“Don’t look at me like that. I won’t ask you to take the lead.”
“You plan to break through with that power of yours?”
“Did you ask knowing the answer?”
“There are too many. You’ll collapse from exhaustion before you make it.”
“That was my concern, too, but it just got resolved.”
As I patted my chest confidently, Fenry furrowed her brow.
She must have remembered the ability I used earlier to neutralize hundreds of Chimeras inside the cave.
But this time, the number was far greater, and there were those we needed to protect.
Could I hold out and break through?
“Are you sure?”
“Have I ever made empty promises?”
Fenry, recalling my track record of never disappointing, put away her pipe and summoned her twin claws.
“Anything you need me to do?”
“What’s gotten into you? Helping without asking for payment?”
“If that dwarf bastard doesn’t make it out, I won’t get my commission. And I’m charging for hazard pay, so don’t worry about it.”
“Thanks. Really.”
I needed to concentrate on maintaining the glyph, so I tasked Fenry with guarding us.
Looking back toward the entrance, I saw Dorneth carrying Sharbadin on his back, running toward us. Behind them came the frantic shouts of the others.
“Carry the women and children!”
“From now on, look forward and run!”
“Move quickly!”
Led by Dorneth, the dwarves carried the women and children on their backs, moving fast. The sturdy ones took up the rear.
Now, everyone was looking to me as their guide.
Nodding, I turned toward the left flank of the Chimera swarm.
The army of Chimeras clumped together like a massive wall.
Setting my direction, I took a deep breath and began to run. As I led the way, a long line of people followed behind me.
Stopping meant death; hesitation meant death.
“Don’t let me down.”
Dorneth’s words carried weight.
The outcome of this escape would determine my relationship with Beneta.
To be honest, I wanted to save the Tears of the Fey until the very end. But if I failed to use it now and the plan collapsed, I would lose my chance to align with Beneta forever.
“Let me be clear. Anyone who falls behind will be left behind.”
“I’ve already told them.”
A precarious situation, like riding on the back of a tiger.
If we stopped, we’d die.
After hammering this warning into the group, I gradually picked up speed.
The people who hadn’t seen the situation outside gasped in horror as the scene unfolded before them.
The Chimera army, packed together like a fortress.
When I charged toward that gaping maw without hesitation, panicked screams erupted behind me.
“W-what the hell!?”
“Aaaaah! A monster!”
“Just focus on the person in front of you! Stop and you’ll be left behind!”
Dorneth’s sharp yell pierced the chaos.
Despite his earlier warnings, the sight of the Chimera army drove the group into a frenzy of fear.
Fear spreads quickly.
Before they could scatter, I had to act.
I uncorked the vial with my teeth.
The Tears of the Fey.
I needed to ration it, but I wasn’t sure if any would be left.
“Damn it! Let’s do this!”
Flash―!
As dusk fell and darkness enveloped the forest, a blinding light burst forth among the Chimera swarm.
A golden wave of light.
The moment the light touched them, the Chimera bodies began to char black. The tightly packed swarm screamed and thrashed wildly, retreating in chaos.
The left flank crumbled in an instant.
“Follow the light!”
As I raised my right hand high after taking a sip of the Tears of the Fey, the people’s eyes locked onto the light.
Monsters’ screams and the sound of ragged breaths echoed from all directions.
Even though their hearts sank in fear, the people, as if enchanted, ran madly toward the light.
Flash―!
Another burst of light, brighter than the last, illuminated the area.
The repeated flashes were like fireworks, splitting the encirclement as swiftly as the Red Sea parting.
Sharbadin, still on Dorneth’s back, stared blankly at the sight.
She watched the golden light carve through the darkness and thought:
It was like a miracle.
“……”
Dominic stood with a hardened expression, staring at the scene.
Golden waves of light driving back the darkness.
Through the light, Chimeras were being flung away, helpless.
He had ordered them to attack, but it was as if an invisible wall kept the Chimeras from approaching the light.
“What is happening here?”
Hundreds, thousands of samples, endless research.
Dominic had prided himself on knowing everything about Chimeras.
Yet, the behavior they exhibited now was entirely new to him.
Refusing the light?
No—fearing it.
Even from a distance, the light evoked a powerful sense of dread. That golden light was undoubtedly a threat to him as well.
As he was about to order Arena to investigate, a deafening roar erupted.
Thud―!!!!!!!!
Something massive began to emerge from the crevice in the cliff.
Nearly twice the size of the largest Chimera under his command, a towering, grotesque figure stepped into view.
Its flesh writhed and squirmed, and though it was humanoid in shape, its face bore a bulging red mass.
‘A Blood Golem?’
Its form resembled liquid golems developed in ancient times.
However,
Roooaaaarrr!!!
The creature’s wide chest split open, and a ferocious roar erupted from the gaping maw.
Inside the open chest was something unmistakable—a massive, pulsating heart.
A blazing red heart.
The moment Dominic saw the burning heart, he clenched his fists.
“The source of divine power!”
Dominic opened his book and issued commands.
Immediately, the Chimeras spread across the left and right began to converge around him.
Though the humans fled deeper into the forest as the formation crumbled, Dominic’s focus remained on the real prize before him.
The smaller Chimeras merged, forming an enormous mass far larger than the crimson beast.
“Arena.”
At Dominic’s curt command, the petite figure halted mid-step and returned to his side.
The crimson beast let out an enraged howl, clearly agitated by Arena’s presence.
The creature recognized the familiar, appetizing aura radiating from Arena.
It wasn’t just the beast.
Arena licked her lips as she slowly backed away, her eyes gleaming with hunger.
The devourer of the other would become the "true one."
This was the battle Dominic had been waiting for.
“Devour it.”
At his command, the massive swarm of Chimeras lunged forward, salivating with hunger.
Roooooaaaaarrrr!!!
Kieeek!
Kraaang!
The crimson beast roared savagely, baring its teeth.
The eyes of both the crimson beast and the Chimeras locked, their intentions identical.
Prey.
It was feasting time.