Shepherd Wizard

Chapter 94

Translator: Pai_

When the explosion first occurred, no one on the battlefield understood what Turan had done.

They had seen him use the Spirit of Fire multiple times to make emergency evasions, so they only wondered, 'Why did he detonate it when he wasn't even being attacked?'

It was only when they sensed a change, when a rock, propelled by both centrifugal force and explosive power, flew at several times the speed of sound and precisely struck the Great Sea Serpent's vital spot, that they realized something had happened.

A wound, undoubtedly inflicted by some god in the past, a wound that must have once nearly taken the life of that massive beast.

The rock shot into that very spot, tearing through the storm's flesh, burrowing deep, and piercing through to the other side, breaking through the scales.

The impact was so severe that the Great Sea Serpent could only open its mouth wide, unable to even scream, twisting its entire body in agony.

"Get- away- !"

The merfolk king used the immense lung capacity unique to whales to shout, his voice booming through the storm.

Watching his children hurriedly retreat, the king recalled the terrifying attack from a moment ago.

‘What in the world was that just now…?’

Though he had only lived within the sea and around his kingdom, the merfolk king had lived a long life, inheriting the wisdom of his ancestors, making his knowledge far superior to that of ordinary merfolk.

From his perspective, the slingshot attack that Turan had just performed was not something that should have come from a wizard of his level.

It was the kind of power seen only in the strongest of human wizards, the wizard lords, those whom humans referred to as family heads of great noble houses.

Considering that Turan's power had not seemed that formidable just moments before, the sheer destructive force he had displayed now was far from normal.

‘As expected, he must be one of the undying ones…’

The king, who had harbored some doubts due to Turan's initially weaker strength, now solidified his belief.

Swallowing his thoughts, he focused on protecting his children from the thrashing of the Great Sea Serpent.

[□-------■-------!]

The sheer force generated by the over-100-meter-long monster’s convulsions was overwhelming.

Its massive body stirred the air and water violently, causing tsunamis with each movement. From the wound inflicted by Turan’s attack, an enormous gust of wind burst forth, creating a magical storm.

A giant octopus, its body alone over eight meters wide, was half-floating above the water when it was caught in the storm and flung hundreds of meters away.

“Ugh-!”

“Get in my mouth! Hurry!”

Turan saw Solif, who had been attacking from the shell of the sea turtle, quickly dive into the turtle’s mouth for safety. He then used Tracking Magic to locate Bije.

The surrounding tidal waves and storms had already reached the island, completely sweeping away the once pristine beach and even devastating the forest behind it. Fortunately, it seemed that the destruction had not reached the inner area where Bije was.

“Hah…”

Letting out a sigh of relief, Turan tossed aside his slingshot, now tattered from the explosion.

Normally, he would reinforce the slingshot with magic when throwing stones, but it seemed it had not been enough to withstand the explosion.

‘Now that I look at it, my hand’s injured too.’

His fingers burned and had developed blisters, it seemed he had sustained burns from the explosion.

Considering that he had not even activated his Guardian Magic Artifact to conserve magic power, it was fortunate that this was the extent of his injuries.

As he debated whether to take some healing medicine, Meisa approached and asked,

“What was that just now?”

“I used the Spirit of Fire… I’ll explain the details later.”

In truth, it had been a spur-of-the-moment idea that he immediately put into action, and he had thought there was a high chance of failure. However, for some reason, it had worked as if he had practiced it hundreds of times before.

He had felt something similar in the past when throwing stones.

A sensation that only came in critical moments, the absolute certainty that he could hit his target.

It might have been the result of Turan’s years of relentless training and honed intuition.

And just now, he had not even used magic to guide the rock to its target, as he had been focused on using Wind Path.

‘More than that… if I refine this technique, it could be incredibly useful…’

Even just in his immediate thoughts, several possible applications of the technique came to mind.

After filling a large pouch with hundreds of pebbles and the Spirit of Fire, he could throw it into the midst of enemies and detonate it. Or, he could use it as the dwarves once did, loading a long, slender tube with metal fragments, placing the Spirit of Fire at the back, and igniting it to launch a projectile.

As his imagination ran wild with possibilities, the Great Sea Serpent's thrashing began to subside.

Was it truly on the verge of death now?

Turan was not the only one who thought so. The massive octopus that had been blown away earlier by the wind approached and lifted one of its tentacles toward the Great Sea Serpent.

At that moment, something changed within the half-dead monster.

"Get away!"

Turan shouted urgently, but the two were already too close.

The Great Sea Serpent, which had been wheezing as if it were about to take its last breath, suddenly opened its eyes wide and burst into a green radiance.

The storm spirit that had been inside its body just moments ago escaped somewhere, fully transforming into an undead spirit.

Though it was still on the brink of death, its battered body now seemed to have gained a final surge of power. It opened its maw toward the octopus, gathering magic energy inside.

What erupted from its mouth was,

"Kraaaaaaagh!"

With a golden flash, the massive octopus's body melted away as if it had been sliced by a red-hot blade through butter.

Light of Judgment.

Seeing the secret magic of the Sun Bloodline, one that the Varaha took pride in, pouring from the Great Sea Serpent’s mouth, Turan momentarily lost his words.

How in the world was that thing able to use it?

As if mocking his confusion, the Great Sea Serpent soon unleashed a massive surge of lightning from its entire body, targeting not only the mermaid royal family nearby but also Turan and Meisa, who were flying in the sky.

It was not difficult to deduce that it was returning the lightning attacks that Meisa had been relentlessly striking it with earlier.

Turan narrowly avoided the lightning by detonating a handful of the Spirit of Fire to propel himself away, but Meisa was struck. With a scream, she fell straight into the sea.

Turan initially moved to save her but stopped upon realizing that the Great Sea Serpent had locked onto him.

Unlike him, Meisa had fully awakened her Storm Bloodline, granting her high resistance to electricity. He could only trust that she would survive.

Mimic…

The first word that came to Turan’s mind as he dodged the relentless bolts of lightning was exactly that.

Nowhere in the ancient records he had obtained from the library did it mention that the Great Sea Serpent had such an ability.

Unlike his own Mimic Relic, which allowed him to steal and wield the powers of those he killed, this creature seemed to be replicating any ability it had been struck with.

Had it been in contact with the Mimic God, causing its undead spirit to become intertwined with his?

Judging by the fact that it had used Solif's power once but did not use it again, there seemed to be some limitation. However, even with such restrictions, the situation was far from optimistic.

Meisa had been unleashing an immense lightning storm since the start of the battle, the kind only the Family Head of House Aravion would normally be capable of.

If the Great Sea Serpent were to return all that power at once, it could kill everyone here twice over.

As Turan evaded the lightning while contemplating their next move, he suddenly realized that the storm that had been raging around them was fading.

It seemed that with the storm spirit gone, the Great Sea Serpent had lost its ability to control the weather.

Moreover, the merfolk royals who had been forced to retreat earlier due to the lightning storm, as well as Meisa and Solif, who had fallen into the sea, were now approaching from underwater, drawing its attention with their attacks.

Since lightning spreads rapidly in water and loses its concentrated power, they were likely trying to exploit that weakness. However, considering the sheer strength of the Great Sea Serpent's physical body, a single direct hit from it could instantly kill them. It was a reckless gamble.

In that case…

There was no way Turan could waste the precious opportunity his allies had created.

Unfortunately, his large slingshot had been torn apart by the explosion, making it impossible to use the same technique as before. However, now that the storm had cleared, he could employ the previously abandoned strategy.

Turan, who had been soaring through the sky, suddenly vanished as if erased.

*

'Damn it...'

Breathing through a water controlled air tube, Solif cursed at the sheer majesty of the mythical beast before him.

Just moments ago, the creature had swatted him away as if shaking off a bothersome fly, sending him tumbling back dozens of meters due to the waves it created.

If the Great Sea Serpent had deliberately targeted him, he would not have lasted long.

His mastery of fluid manipulation magic was still lacking, making him far from agile underwater.

But swallowing his fear, Solif conjured a spear of light within the water and hurled it toward the Great Sea Serpent’s belly and chest.

Having been trained in spear-throwing for decades as the heir of Varaha, his skill remained effective even underwater.

"Ugh."

The attack had enough magic power imbued in it to cause a sting, as the Great Sea Serpent opened its now fully green-tinted eyes wide and glared at him.

In other words, that was all it amounted to.

From earlier, he knew that his specialty, Light of Judgment, was strong enough to tear through its scales and flesh. But if he tried to get close enough to land a decisive hit, he would undoubtedly lose his life.

Moreover, for some reason, the creature had mimicked his technique earlier, making him even more hesitant to attempt it again.

The moment he hurriedly dodged in anticipation of a counterattack, a massive tail swept through the spot where he had just been, creating a powerful whirlpool.

"Grrrk-!"

His air passage above the water vanished, and within seconds, seawater flooded into his mouth.

Gasping and choking on the briny water instead of air, Solif desperately swam toward the surface, using both his magic and physical strength.

Luckily, Rowena, passing by, grabbed him with her pincers and pulled him up, allowing him to surface much faster.

“Khah… Hah… T-Thanks…”

“Where’s your leader? He was just here, but now he’s gone.”

Still gasping for breath as he emerged from the water, Solif turned his gaze to the sky at Rowena’s words.

Indeed, Turan, who had been flying around moments ago, drawing the enemy’s attention, was nowhere to be seen.

Had he finally been struck down by the lightning magic?

Or had he found it impossible to dodge and escaped into the water, like they had?

Perhaps he was with Meisa? Solif checked, but that was not the case either, Meisa was still submerged near the Great Sea Serpent, continuously shooting arrows of light.

She seemed to be moving far more skillfully than him, but she was getting dangerously close to the target.

'Should I tell her to back off? Not that she’d be able to see my hand signals from here…'

Just as he was thinking that, an explosion erupted from the top of the Great Sea Serpent’s head, making his eyes widen in shock.

*

[■■■■■■■■■■■■■■--------!]

'This is definitely its weak point.'

Turan, having absorbed the magic power of the Sun Bloodline he had obtained from Varaha nobles in the past, particularly the power of the strongest one, used Concealment Magic to approach the very same vital point that his rock had pierced earlier.

Normally, even with Zahar’s Concealment Magic, it would have been difficult to attempt such a feat, as the constantly moving head posed a significant risk of accidental contact.

However, the creature had slowed down from exhaustion and was also distracted by the attackers in the water, allowing him to get close.

With that opening, Turan poured a large amount of Spirit of Fire into the wound where the drowned god’s arm had once been embedded, now widened further by his earlier rock attack, before pulling back and igniting it.

The resulting hole was now large enough for a person to pass through.

Jumping inside and activating the Light of Judgement, he wildly swung the whip of light to erase the essence of the undead spirit, causing the Great Sea Serpent to scream as if it were about to die and twist its body violently.

It was a natural reaction, considering this was the equivalent of gouging its brain if it were a living being.

'Yes, that hurts, doesn't it?'

Bracing himself within the relatively narrow cavity inside its skull, Turan wedged his foot into a groove to keep from being thrown around as he relentlessly lashed with the light whip.

With every crack of the whip, the undead’s green glow burned away, causing the Great Sea Serpent’s screams and convulsions to intensify.

-No!

At that moment, a voice came from somewhere.

Turan instinctively knew that the voice belonged to the entity that had fused with the Great Sea Serpent, the Mimic God.

-Die.

Who was supposed to die? Turan, the one threatening its existence?

The answer came immediately.

-Monster, die. For the sake of people, serpent, die...

That was the will carried by the undead spirit of the Mimic God, the remnants of a desperate longing it must have held onto until the moment of its death.

How tragic it was that the spirit of a god who had once fought against the Great Sea Serpent for humanity had now merged with its old enemy.

Determined to put an end to this misguided devotion, Turan squeezed out the last of his remaining magic power, relentlessly erasing the green glow that filled the cavity where the brain should have been with Light of Judgment.

The acrid stench of burning undead essence filled his nostrils, and his body was repeatedly slammed against the shaking walls of the skull.

After several minutes passed.

At last, the tremors inside the skull ceased, and the massive body began to plummet freely.

Turan could sense it, the fusion between the Great Sea Serpent and the god’s undead spirit had been completely shattered. The magic that had been controlling the enormous serpent’s body was now condensing into a single point.

-Thank you…

At the faintly heard voice, Turan slightly bowed his head.

"Rest in peace, I owe you a lot."

The god likely could not hear him, but this was the best show of respect Turan could offer.

A moment later, the sound of water splashing filled the skull as it began to flood. Without hesitation, Turan submerged himself and swam out.

As soon as he was free, the Mimic Relic's previously blocked perception reactivated, revealing the presence of the nearby life forms.

The merfolk king and his royal kin, Solif, and Meisa…

Spotting two figures atop the shell of a sea turtle, Turan urgently cast Flight Magic and soared toward them.

“Turan! Healing potion, quickly!”

Solif shouted with a frantic expression.

Below him, Meisa lay pale-faced, her lower body nowhere to be seen.

A missing lower half, an injury so severe that, had she not been a high-ranking noble, she would have already died.

Without hesitation, Turan pulled out a Healing Potion Magic Artifact and handed it to Solif before turning away.

“Where are you going?!”

“To get her body!”

Fortunately, the severed half of Meisa’s body had not drifted out of range of the Mimic Relic's detection.

Turan dove swiftly, retrieving the lower half before resurfacing. At the same time, he scanned the condition of the merfolk royals.

'They're all severely injured and some have died, but... it would be dangerous to use all my magic power here.'

No matter how weakened they were, it would not be difficult for a merfolk noble to kill a magic-depleted human if they could transform into their true sea creature forms.

In practical terms, only one of them could afford to use magic for healing, while the other had to conserve what little strength remained.

The problem was that if they chose to hold back, there was a high chance Meisa would die.

The Healing Potion Magic Artifact was not particularly effective for mages of their caliber, and even if they both poured all their remaining magic into healing her, there was no guarantee of survival.

After a brief moment of deliberation, Turan quickly approached Solif, who was administering the potion, and spoke.

“Lift her upper body. I’ll align the halves.”

“Can it be reattached?”

“At least it’s not burned or melted like your arm was. What exactly happened?”

“I think she got caught on something when the thing made its last desperate attack. I thought she was too close…”

Solif’s severed arm had been burned away by Light of Judgment, making it impossible to restore. But Meisa’s body had been torn apart relatively cleanly, giving them a chance.

Should he be shocked by the sheer physical combat ability of that monster, which was powerful enough to shatter multiple high-tier Magic Artifacts protecting her body? Or should he be grateful for Meisa’s resilience, which had allowed her to survive such an impact without being completely crushed?

After asking the sea turtle to take them to land, Turan and Solif took turns preparing healing potions to treat Meisa.

He even hurriedly called Bije, who had been further inland, and poured all their remaining magic power into the effort. Only after nearly twenty minutes did they finally manage to stabilize her condition.

“It’s done. She’ll recover naturally over time now.”

“She’s alive…”

Solif, already half-exhausted, collapsed onto the ground the moment he heard those words.

Turan briefly checked Bije’s wings to make sure they had reattached correctly before examining Meisa’s condition.

Though she was still unconscious with a pale complexion, warm blood was now circulating through her reattached lower half.

From what Turan could perceive through the Mimic Relic, it was clear that if he and Bije hadn’t both poured in their magic, her body wouldn’t have properly fused, and she would have died.

“Phew…”

Just as he let out a sigh of relief, several shadows loomed over him and Solif.

It was the merfolk king and a few of his royal kin.

Their numbers had decreased compared to when the battle first began, and they looked at Turan’s group with unreadable expressions.

The merfolk king observed them closely before speaking.

“You’ve been badly injured.”

“Unfortunately. But we managed to get through it.”

Turan replied in a calm, almost indifferent tone, while discreetly observing the merfolks’ expressions.

If they decided to turn hostile here, there was no way Turan’s group would survive.

The magic power left in his body was so depleted that even if Armania were to attack in his shark form, dealing with him would be difficult.

After a few tense seconds of silence, the merfolk king spoke in a low voice.

"Let me know if you need any help. We want to recover the corpse quickly, so absorb the power as soon as that woman wakes up. For now, we'll bring it to the beach."

As the merfolk left, Turan, just like Solif moments ago, let himself collapse onto the sand.