108. If You’re Scared, You Can’t Fight, Isn’t It?

I’m hiding behind the roots of a tree, and some time passes.

Maybe the Hydra went in the wrong direction, I start to hope.

Suddenly, the sound of trees being toppled comes from beyond the horizon.

The mist thickens, making visibility poor.

I can’t see the Hydra, but I can hear and feel it coming closer.

The swamp trees disappear into the dense fog in no time.

Oddly enough, the mist is thinner around the divine sake.

(Is this mist caused by that eight-headed Hydra? Maybe the divine sake repels the magic.)

The area around the divine sake is clear of fog.

Suddenly, a huge snake’s head appears.

(…Huge! I thought so the first time, but seeing it calmly, it’s even bigger!)

At some point, the sound of the Hydra knocking down trees stops.

Instead, the Hydra slowly approaches the barrels without knocking over any trees.

Eight heads split into two groups of four, peering into the barrels.

Eight tongues wiggle just in front of the barrels.

(It’s so different from the sight of it guzzling cheap soldier’s liquor as seen through Raidock’s vision.)

The Hydra seems to know it’s a good sake, drooling profusely.

It has a lecherous look, gathering around the barrels as if licking them.

I can tell it wants to savor the drink.

(Is it a heavy drinker!?)

After a while, two of the heads slowly move toward the contents of the barrels.

The remaining heads begin to guard the area.

(Is it a heavy drinker!?)

Even though it has eight heads, do they fight over which head drinks?

I was a bit hopeful…

But it seems the Hydra has no problem with any head drinking. They have a proper division of roles.

Finally, the Hydra skillfully slurps the divine sake with its long tongue.

Its massive body stops moving.

Even the six heads that were on guard stopped.

After a moment of strange silence, the Hydra roars.

Mogyaaahhhhh!

(What kind of voice is that!?)

I almost say it out loud, surprised by the goofy sound.

All eight heads have a dazed, slack expression…

Oh yeah, it’s delicious, isn’t it…

As the divine sake decreases, my hostility toward the Hydra rises.

(That thing… is the enemy! Unforgivable! Where’s Raidock!?)

I want Raidock to slice it up, but considering how fast this greedy, drunken Hydra got here, Raidock isn’t catching up.

(But if it gets drunk, all I have to do is wait…)

I start to feel relieved, then inwardly shout, “I’ve set up my own flag!”

Gyaaoooowooo!

Sure enough! The Hydra noticed me!

I click my tongue and dash out from my hiding spot.

It seems pissed off that I interrupted its fun time. I can tell it’s furious!

“…Heh! Fine by me! I’ve fought plenty of out-of-my-league enemies during my adventurer days! No way I’m scared of a snake now!”

That’s a lie. I’m actually terrified.

It’s huge, black, and has eight heads!?

It could overrun me in an instant!

But the words that come out are the opposite.

“My magic power is almost empty! Offensive magic is impossible! I’m practically useless as a mage…”

I lift my head defiantly and smirk.

“I’ll show you how an alchemist fights!”

The Hydra stops moving, probably noticing my ruckus.

It seems to understand my hostility and one head comes straight at me.

“That head alone is as big as a house! But how much brain is in there!?”

I dive behind a pre-determined large tree.

(Come on! Smash your head into it!)

The Hydra’s head, full of momentum, crashes straight into the tree!

…

Or so I thought.

Despite its size, it smoothly avoids the trunk, without losing speed.

“What the… Gah!”

A shock runs through my body.

My vision spins. The world spins.

I realize I’ve been headbutted by the charging Hydra when I hit the ground, spitting blood.

My bones are shattered.

Probably punctured organs from broken bones.

My left leg is torn off, lying nearby.

(It hurts so bad!!)

When humans feel intense pain, all their muscles tense up.

Like when you stub your toe on a corner, your whole body freezes.

What I’m feeling now is that, multiplied by tens.

Blood is rising from my stomach, and I can’t breathe.

Normally, I’d die.

I’m on the brink of death.

Surviving is thanks to my daily training.

(Move… Move…)

The Hydra seems to know I can’t move, slowly turning its head toward me.

It doesn’t want to leave the barrel of divine sake, so its movements are slow.

(That’s your mistake!)

I touch a potion bottle with all my will.

Fortunately, things related to alchemy consume very little magic.

I infuse magic to shatter the bottle at zero distance.

The healing potion on my belt breaks, the contents spilling over me.

With a hissing sound, the pain in my body quickly fades.

“…Legendary-quality Healing Potion—”

One bottle wasn’t enough to fully heal, but it was enough to move.

I drink another one!

“Don’t underestimate me!!”

Sprinkling works, but drinking is the most effective!

My internal organs and bones are restored!

Except for my torn-off leg!

Unfortunately, even legendary healing potions can’t regenerate lost parts.

That requires a higher-grade potion.

Even so, my legendary healing potion has a unique feature.

If a body part is severed and still retains its shape, it can be reattached!

I grab my torn-off leg and press the wounds together.

“…Guh!”

Ignoring the intense pain!

Pouring a third healing potion on the wound, it reattaches with a hiss of smoke.

For good measure, I chug a stamina potion.

“Heh!”

Wiping my mouth, I stand up, seeing the Hydra looking at me in amazement.

Where I was thrown… that’s where Myrna is hiding.

I won’t let it go any further!

The Hydra is almost done drinking the divine sake but is busy licking the last bit at the bottom.

The Hydra’s head is nearly on the ground.

I pull a spool of thread from my pocket.

It’s the [Magic Transmission Thread] I made but had no use for.

It can only transmit a small amount of magic.

When I tested it, it couldn’t handle much magic and fell apart, so it was shelved.

But now, a small amount of magic is enough!

The thread leads to the bottom of the two barrels.

What’s buried there… of course, it’s the Magic Bomb we used to dig for Leafan and Mithril ore!!

The thread transmits just enough magic to trigger the bombs.

Because these are alchemical bombs, the magic needed is minimal.

The command to detonate is transmitted to all the bombs.

Big explosion!!

It’s like a volcano erupted around the barrels, with a huge blast and the earth shooting up.

I made sure the explosion energy would shoot straight up.

Thanks to Leafan for thinking of the drilling blast.

Gyogwaaahhhh!

Pinpoint.

The challenge was getting the Hydra close enough to the magic bombs.

I bet everything on the Hydra drinking the divine sake!

“I win!”

The explosion was massive.

For a moment, everything is covered in dust.

“Cough!”

Squinting, I glared at where the Hydra was.

The dust soon settles.

And.

“Well… of course.”

I give a fierce smile.

At the now six-headed Hydra.