Chapter 18: The Young Fox That Bit the Minotaur King

The three of them left the caravan and returned to the entrance of the Sun Temple. There were still quite a few mercenaries lingering about, apparently dissatisfied with their previous reward and seeking new employment.

“I think the disappearances are related to them,” Vinigo said to Sophie, the tall girl with the greatsword beside him. His tone was intimate as if chatting with an old friend, yet without a hint of impropriety.

“Is that just a hunch?” Sophie replied coolly, her manner calm but never cold, her voice hovering at just the right distance.

“Where do we begin?” Honey asked, deep in thought.

“Sophie and Honey, you two form a group and draw their attention. I’ll sneak inside and take a look,” Vinigo suggested.

“You? Are you a Wanderer?” Sophie’s expression remained composed, but a glint of doubt flickered in her eyes.

“Me? I’m a Jack-of-all-trades,” Vinigo replied with a soft laugh. He changed into his dark green fitted garb, tied on his headband, and drew a short dagger.

This was not the cheap blade from earlier, but a pirate’s dagger he’d found in a shop, etched with magical runes that imbued it with toxic enchantment—each strike inflicting magical poison upon its target.

Character selected, analysis complete... Now beginning construction. Level 5 Ninja, construction complete!

The Royal Knight’s ninja template, aside from excellent water-walking and jumping abilities, didn’t offer any extraordinary advantages, so its rating wasn’t particularly high. But for infiltration, it was more than enough.

Sophie watched in surprise as Vinigo transformed in an instant, his very features shifting before her eyes.

To boost his ninja’s attack power, Vinigo could have constructed a Royal Knight with a special “badge,” such as the “Oni God,” which drastically lowers intelligence to raise strength. But such a build would greatly increase the rating and consume much more quicksilver.

Vinigo was frugal. Since battle wasn’t the main objective, there was no reason to waste resources.

“Ready when you are. Honey’s up next!” Honey’s laughter rang out as a strange ripple burst from her hand—her signature move: Mass Fear.

Chaos erupted among the mercenaries at the Sun Temple’s gates. Their attention was soon drawn to the little girl dancing and waving her arms not far away.

What was this—mockery? Fury ignited in their chests as most charged straight at Honey.

“Back off!” Sophie barked, stepping in front of Honey, her tone scolding the hulking mercenaries surging forward.

She was tall for a woman, but compared to the massive sword she wielded, her frame seemed almost slight. She planted the greatsword upright before her, tip to the ground, hilt at brow level; the blade was nearly as wide as her waist—a weapon of staggering weight.

It was not just heavy; given its length, it would take a man with four or five hundred kilos of arm strength to swing this twenty-kilo blade. Yet Sophie handled it with such ease one might wonder: Young lady, are you truly not a dragon in human form?

With a sweep of her sword, a resonant whoosh split the air, dousing the mercenaries’ rage like ice water. They froze in place. At that moment, the elven mage in the four-man party, who’d been standing quietly, suddenly made his move—a bolt of ice shot toward Sophie’s chest.

Sophie coolly raised her sword; the broad blade acted as a shield, absorbing the frosty missile. A chill spilled out, making her frown, but she only shook out her hand and strode forward.

A casual flick of her wrist sent the sword humming through the air, and the mercenaries scattered—no one wished to test their luck against Sophie’s overwhelming strength.

While all eyes were drawn to Sophie’s sword, Vinigo, moving with ninja-like speed, leapt over the courtyard wall from an inconspicuous corner and slipped inside, hugging the shadows along the walls.

The place was strangely deserted. Where had all the Sun priests and worshippers gone?

Vinigo’s curiosity grew, and he moved with even greater care. Suddenly, a deafening roar echoed out. Vinigo cautiously peeked ahead and saw a cluster of Sun priests and worshippers gathered together.

They chanted hymns to the sun, encircling a massive magic circle ten meters in diameter. Intricate lines intertwined without flaw, inscribing luminous runes across the surface.

“What are they up to?” Vinigo wondered, peering out to observe.

The runes grew ever brighter, binding the enormous circle into a column of light that engulfed everyone—priests and altar alike. The radiance grew blinding, forcing Vinigo to turn away.

He skirted the empty hall and crept toward the side chambers of the Sun Temple. On each side stood small rooms, each with three beds and several wooden cabinets—Vinigo’s true target, as these often hid interesting finds.

He was happily scavenging when a furious roar burst from the main hall. Vinigo darted out and raced for the main doors, glancing back out of the corner of his eye.

As expected—the Minotaur King!

Vinigo remembered well: in the Sun Temple’s secret chamber lurked a Minotaur King, a monstrous sovereign of immense strength and endurance, wielding a double-bladed greataxe that could split solid rock and a special technique that could cleave both body and soul.

Such a creature was a terrifying opponent.

And now, the Sun Temple seemed to be using a special ritual to bestow the Minotaur King with even greater power, seeking to control an even mightier beast. Should they succeed, they would wield a force surpassed only by dragons—an undisputed power in the Butgrey Bay region.

Without hesitation, Vinigo bolted from the Sun Temple. A hapless mercenary blocked his way and, startled, instinctively swung a sword at him. Vinigo dodged in a blur, slicing open the man’s side as he passed, spraying blood into the air.

The man’s scream drew everyone’s attention—the strange figure in the dark green costume was now impossible to miss.

“Fall back,” Vinigo called to Sophie.

“What’s the situation?” Sophie asked.

“I’ve figured it out. The Sun Temple hired these people to ambush passersby at night—as feed,” Vinigo said with a cold laugh. “The Minotaur King craves living flesh. The Sun Temple is fattening him up.”

“The Sun Temple is raising a Minotaur King?” Sophie was clearly shocked.

“It’s coming out,” Vinigo warned, dismissing his ninja template and resetting his character.

“Hold them off for a while,” he said.

“Leave it to me.” Sophie nodded and moved to step forward.

Vinigo caught her arm and handed her a small pouch. Sophie glanced at him, then tied it at her waist.

“The red orbs are healing potions, blue for mana, orange boosts defense, and amber-yellow raises all attributes,” Vinigo explained. “Use them sparingly—I didn’t make many.”

The orbs were, in truth, crystallized potions: Vinigo had bought various elixirs from the shop and combined them with ingredients he’d gathered, refining them into crystals through alchemy. He’d tested them; the red orbs were at least twice as potent as a regular healing potion.

Their greatest advantage was portability.

Sophie nodded. She took the pouch, selected one orange and one amber-yellow orb, and swallowed them, pressing them under her tongue.

Vinigo nodded silently to himself. Sophie was clearly rational—she didn’t hoard the valuable pills out of greed, nor did she waste them.

At that moment, the Minotaur King smashed through the wall. The instant he appeared, he swung his massive greataxe, clearing a wide space around him.

With a single blow, several people were cut in half and hurled aside—the ground was cleared in a heartbeat.

“I’ll show them…” Honey was about to act, but Vinigo stopped her with a gesture.

“Don’t waste your magic. It won’t work on that thing,” Vinigo said.

“Why not?” Honey blinked her large, beautiful eyes.

“It’s immune,” Vinigo replied with a bitter smile. “That’s the Minotaur King—now granted special powers by the Sun Temple, he’s even more resistant.”

Honey pouted, spreading her hands. “So Honey is useless now?”

“Cast Berserk—target the mercenaries and Sun priests near the Minotaur King,” Vinigo advised.

It was a cold decision. The berserk mercenaries and Sun worshippers would attack the nearest enemies. As a naturally frenzied beast, the Minotaur King would retaliate, slaughtering anyone nearby—sowing chaos for Sophie to exploit.

To buy Sophie a chance, Vinigo felt no guilt sacrificing these cold and selfish people. Some might argue there were good men among the mercenaries—perhaps. But Vinigo was no judge and didn’t care.

Sophie gave a sharp cry and charged ahead. Wherever her sword pointed, the mercenaries parted to let her pass.

“Longsword mercenary on the flank—berserk,” Vinigo prompted.

Honey’s slender fingers traced a sign in the air, and the longsword-wielding mercenary circling toward Sophie’s side suddenly saw his eyes turn blood-red. As Vinigo hoped, he stabbed at the Minotaur King’s waist in a blur of lightning-fast motion.