"From this point forward, I will be commanding you all!"
I spun around.
"Jupiter, Damien!"
Jupiter was already conjuring magic within her palms, but Damien seemed rooted in shock.
Two hulking golems had suddenly appeared, driving our stalwart knights to the brink, inflicting chaos from every direction.
His stunned reaction was understandable given the circumstances, but he needed to snap back to reality! I grabbed Damien's face and gave him a quick shake.
"Ow, ow, ow! That stings, Your Highness!"
Tears welled in Damien's wide brown eyes. Good, he had shaken off his daze.
"Listen up! We'll target the golem engaging Lucas first."
Lucas and Evangeline were both resilient knights, but they each had a unique role.
Lucas was a hybrid - a balanced character skilled in both offense and defense.
He was adept at both roles but couldn't fully commit to either.
Evangeline, on the other hand, was a pure tank, a specialist built to endure onslaughts.
"Evangeline! Go full defense and stall that beast. Lucas! You're assisting now!"
As Evangeline single-handedly thwarted one golem, the rest of the party could concentrate on taking down the other - a tried-and-true strategy.
As expected, Evangeline skillfully blocked attacks with her sturdy shield.
"Jupiter, focus your attack on the golem's chest plate!"
"On it."
"Damien, are you ready?"
"Yes, yes!"
"When Jupiter shatters the plate, target the exposed magic core. Can you manage that?"
"I can handle it!"
Damien nodded, gripping his magic gun tight. I returned his nod.
Clang! Clash!
By now, Lucas had been driven back, dangerously close to my position.
Gwoar! Gwoooar!
The golem hammered its giant fists incessantly. Lucas parried with his sword, but the onslaught relentlessly forced him back.
Large foes like golems were few in number, but each packed a powerful punch.
Especially those boasting an elite title; a direct confrontation was a formidable challenge.
"That's why we're a team!"
I bellowed, extending my arm forward,
Flash-!
A bolt of lightning erupted.
Jupiter's electric shock targeted the upper body of the golem. Its armor blackened, showing signs of fracture.
But the armor was extraordinarily resilient, merely singed with a few cracks despite Jupiter's magical assault.
"Damn, it's not enough!"
Jupiter grumbled, but I quickly dismissed her concerns.
"No! It's sufficient!"
Creak!
Damien had already positioned his magic gun, taking aim.
A substantial gap wasn't required for Damien. Even a minuscule crack was enough.
"Shoot~!"
At my command, Damien squeezed the trigger, and
Bang-!
A magical projectile exploded from the gun, spewing yellow flames.
"Whoa?!"
Unable to handle the gun's recoil, Damien was jolted backwards.
Right before the flung Damien could collide with the wall, I darted forward and cushioned his impact with my body. Thud!
"Your Highness?!"
"Heh! Are you all right?"
"I-I'm okay. What about the golem?!"
To the still stunned Damien, I flashed a cheeky smirk.
"Take a look."
I guided his gaze with my pointing finger, a smile of relief washing over Damien's face.
Boom, thump...
The golem was collapsing slowly. Its knees were already folded on the floor, and its upper body was toppling over.
Jupiter's magic had carved a crevice between the golem's gloves, and Damien's magic had perfectly pierced through the magic core hidden within.
The colossal golem ceased all functions in a heartbeat.
"Phew."
Lucas, too, exhaled in relief, his long sword dipping downwards.
"That was no walk in the park."
"It was an elite monster, far more formidable than the typical ones. The sudden leap in difficulty from Zone 1 caught us off guard."
It appeared that taking down a small group of elite monsters would be the key to traversing Zone 2.
We'd be better off treating every enemy encounter as a boss battle.
Just then.
"Why does everyone think it's over?"
A shout echoed. Startled, we turned to see Evangeline, still resisting a golem.
"We still have one more?!"
"Oops, sorry. You were so adeptly holding it back in silence."
"What do you mean silence! My shield's taken quite a beating!"
Bang! Crash!
Evangeline's shield, under the onslaught, began to glow a radiant white.
Evangeline's first skill, Damage Save, was at work. All of the golem's attacks were fully absorbed by it.
"Damn it, have at you!"
The glow from Evangeline's shield transferred to her spear. With all her might, Evangeline thrust the luminous spear forward.
Evangeline's second skill, Damage Payback!
Launch-!
The absorbed damage was unleashed all at once.
The power was so tremendous that the tip of Evangeline's spear penetrated the sturdy golem's gauntlet as if it were soft tofu,
Boom!
triggering an internal explosion.
The right half of the golem resembled a bomb site, torn asunder.
"Wow!"
I couldn't help but marvel.
This was the perfect combination of Evangeline Cross, the supreme tank, seamlessly blending offense and defense!
Groan, moan...
The wavering golem staggered onto one knee.
"Great job! Now finish him off!"
Energized, Evangeline was about to charge at the golem.
But then.
Slip!
"Huh?"
Evangeline, having stepped on the fuel leaking from the golem, twirled in mid-air and landed in a stunningly comedic fashion. Thud thud!
"..."
"..."
Silence befell us for a moment.
Neither the party members nor the golem moved an inch.
Evangeline lay flat on the ground, unmoving.
We wondered if she had passed out, but her crimson-flushed ears suggested she was simply too mortified to move...
Suppressing a bubble of laughter, I waved Jupiter over.
"Jup, Jupiter! We have a situation here! Quick, wrap it up."
"Got it~!"
Jupiter, unable to contain her giggles, flicked her finger.
Ka-BAM!
A bolt of lightning descended, singeing the remaining half of the golem to a crisp. It was firmly planted into the ground.
"Whew~"
A gentle breeze flowed from Jupiter's fingertips as she snickered.
"Thanks for giving me the final shot, boss!"
Wait, don't start celebrating just yet!
"..."
Evangeline lay frozen on the ground. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I sighed softly.
Evangeline's trait [Error-prone] had certainly kicked in full force this time.
'Thinking back, Evangeline has always had a knack for goofiness.'
She was totally oblivious when I threw punches at our first encounter.
Travel sickness, and now, a slip on an oil slick.
'I can laugh it off for now, but it could lead to serious problems in a crucial situation...'
Just then, Evangeline, who had been quaking like a leaf, swiveled her gaze towards me.
Her eyes were aflame. She had the look of someone who wouldn't hesitate to kill if I dared laugh at her blunder.
"Ahem! Ahem!"
We all coughed awkwardly, carefully avoiding Evangeline's burning gaze.
Best to pretend it never happened and move on.
"Miss Evangeline, are you okay? If you're hurt, I can heal you..."
Hold on, this innocent, clueless healer?!
Damien rushed to Evangeline's aid, hurriedly casting a healing spell.
Evangeline's forehead, which had taken a nasty hit in the fall, was swollen and red. As Damien's healing magic made contact, the swelling subsided rapidly.
"..."
Unfortunately, the damage to her pride seemed beyond repair.
Evangeline trembled, her face flushed crimson, ready to burst at any second.
"Oh? Did you bump your face too?"
I quickly ushered away the bewildered Damien. Our child is truly kind-hearted but oh so naïve!
"Ahem! Let's quickly collect the loot from the golem. They were tough, so they must've dropped something worthwhile."
"Yes, sir."
"This part is my favorite~"
Lucas and Jupiter nodded in agreement, promptly dashing towards the golem.
I pulled away Damien, who was fussing about needing to do more healing.
Evangeline, rooted to the spot, muttered under her breath.
"No, being so considerate just makes it worse..."
But we were already making a beeline towards the golem.
Evangeline, standing dazed as she watched our retreating backs, finally exploded.
"Just mock me! Just laugh at me! Hey! Where are you all going! Ughhhh!"
***
We managed to collect a large magic stone from each of the two steam golems.
I hefted the magic stone, gauging its weight. It had a satisfying heft~ Perhaps it might fetch a good price.
"Hmm... They all seem valuable, indeed."
Lucas gripped the engine section of a golem, its magical core shimmering from within, and he scratched his head in bewilderment.
"I'm utterly clueless about alchemy... I haven't the faintest idea what the essential parts might be."
"Do you suppose I do? Just collect what looks to be in reasonable condition."
Meanwhile, Jupiter, on the opposite side, was briskly gathering the twinkling fragments, secreting them into her pockets with practiced ease.
Like a seasoned gold prospector, she seemed to have an almost supernatural knack for unearthing valuable items.
"Ugh... damn it... why on earth is there oil in that spot..."
Evangeline muttered under her breath, listlessly rummaging through the debris of the fallen golem. She looked as though she could use a mental pick-me-up.
"Ahem!"
Approaching with a fabricated cough, I took the opportunity to gently chastise her from behind.
"Young lady, there's no need to be so mortified by such a trifling incident. Everyone stumbles upon bigger blunders in life. Slipping on oil, pirouetting in mid-air, and tumbling to the ground is inconsequential... it's merely a story to chuckle over before sleep."
"..."
Evangeline's keen eyes glinted threateningly. Her bared teeth seemed poised to sink into my skin at any moment.
Hmm, it would appear that my attempt at consoling her isn't doing much good. Better to remain silent.
Finally, my attention was drawn towards what Damien was up to.
"Hmm."
He was intently scrutinizing the wall that had been battered by the golem. I decided to join him.
"What's going on, Damien?"
"Over here. This section."
He indicated a spot within the wall.
"There's something hidden here, sire."
"Something?"
Upon closer inspection, my eyes widened in astonishment.
Nestled amidst the rubble of the collapsed stone wall was... undeniably, a treasure chest! What a stroke of good fortune!
"Well done, Damien!"
I had been intending to scour this area regardless, but I hadn't anticipated unearthing the treasure so swiftly.
If Jupiter got wind of the treasure chest, her 'Gold Fever' instincts would undoubtedly kick in, and she would rush to unlock it first. I needed to act promptly.
With a thrill of anticipation, I made my way towards the chest,
"...?"
The chest... it was subtly shifting.
Moreover, that glint nestled between the lid and the chest... those were unmistakably teeth.
'It's a Mimic...'
A Mimic is a monstrous creature that cunningly masquerades as a chest.
While it does yield actual treasures upon defeat, if you try to open it unprepared, you could be courting disaster.
I was on the verge of hastily summoning the rest of the party to handle it when another idea surfaced.
"..."
Casting a surreptitious glance behind me, I spotted Evangeline, her shoulders drooping in defeat.
She had been having a difficult time since we set foot in Crossroad.
The brunt of my 777-punch had knocked her unconscious, her armor lay shattered, she had learned of her father's demise, and then she had blindly trailed us into the dungeon only to be made a laughingstock.
Her recent blunder seemed to have particularly dented her pride. Well, that's not entirely surprising.
Fresh from her victorious graduation as the valedictorian from the academy, her pride was understandably at its peak. To stumble so early in her first actual combat situation.
'Maybe it's time I gave her spirits a lift.'
With that notion in mind, I gestured for Damien.
"Damien, come here."
"Yes, my prince."
Damien quickly approached my side.
"Listen carefully, Damien."
I casually put my arm around Damien's shoulder and pointed towards the chest.
"From now on, I'm going to deliberately provoke that Mimic disguised as a treasure chest."
"Huh? Ah, yes..."
Damien, who didn't quite understand, listened as I continued to explain.
"And then, on purpose, I'll let it capture me, and let it swallow me."
"...?"
"Okay? Do you understand?"
Damien, who clearly didn't understand, looked up at me with a puzzled expression and then,
"There, there~"
With the hand he uses for healing magic, he affectionately patted my forehead.
No, I didn't hit my head! I'm sane, I'm telling you!