Chapter 41: Puppet of Destruction

Creak....

The grating noise of metals clashing against each other echoed in the hall, hurting my ears in the process. 

Clang.. Clang..

The only scarlet red Statue was moving, its metallic body creaking and clashing against its own different parts. Its eyes were glowing red, reminiscent of the silhouette from the paintings. A slight sense of pressure was also present in those eyes, as if trying to drown me in them for I had disturbed its peaceful slumber.

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Monster: Puppet of Destruction

Tier: Tier 2(Elite)

Skills: [Scarlet body] [Bloody combat] [Intimidation] [Amalgamic regeneration]

Created by Ogres in honor of their Deity which helped them win the battle against another species invading their world. Seems like they did a great job with this creation... Beware, for it carries the will of their deity.

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Every skill on this monster looked more powerful and fearsome than the previous ones. And they were, as the scarlet body was upgraded form of their brute strength that let them exert their strength without drawbacks. It felt like the 'Limitless mastery' I had, mine was far more better than the 'Scarlet body' it possessed.

Bloody combat had replaced the Club proficiency, but the damage it dealt had been increased by twofold, making it even more dangerous than the clubs held by other Ogres I had dealt with.

Intimidation was literal, granting the puppet in front of me with the ability to instill fear in weaker opponents, making them hesitate or falter in battle. The slight pressure I felt was the result of this skill.

As for Amalgamic regeneration, it was interesting to say the least, as it allowed the puppet in front of me to heal itself by fusing with the statues prostrated around it. It was very thoughtful of the creator of this puppet to have it surrounded by healing potions whenever it was injured during the battle.

Grrrrr….

Even its roar was irritating. It felt as though someone had shoved two metal graters into its vocal cords during the monster's sculpting, reminding me of the grating noise produced when two metals clash against each other.

I stood there, looking at it, trying to get insight into the monster in front of me. It felt cybernetic but had mana fluctuations that moved throughout the body, unlike the abomination that had certain areas with high concentration and some with low concentration as per the requirement of its controller, the blood mother.

It was like a living, breathing creature much to my surprise. This creature was a wonder of nature as the creator behind it was able to give life to a structure made up of inanimate metallic parts. Although the mana fluctuation was like that of a living creature, its movement was clanky, like a machine that hadn't been oiled and maintained for several years.

Clank… Clank…

Although it looked clunky and as if its parts might fall off at any moment, it was surprisingly fast. It moved more swiftly than the brown Ogres I had exterminated before entering the hall.

Swiss...

Its punch swooshed by my face, nearly missing it. 

I couldn't react properly to its punch in time because I was still admiring the wonder groaning in front of me, pondering about its creator who could breathe life into metal as if it were a living creature, rather than just a metal shaped like an Ogre.

Its red eyes locked onto mine, peering deeply into my gaze. It was trying to intimidate me but I had seen even more frightening eyes just previously while looking at the silhouette of that ogre. It might have been just a recollection or illusion, but the stare it was giving me was way more frightening than the one in front of me. 

Shining...

Clang…

It managed to slightly alter the trajectory of my sword but lost its metallic arm in the process. As it lost its hand, one of the many statues transformed into a metallic liquid, reconnecting the separated arm back into its shoulder.

It was amazing to look at the scene because I could actually see the presence of the rune, which worked to reattach its body using the statue as a medium. This was what it meant by 'Amalgamic regeneration'.

It intrigued me because it was a rare rune, yet I couldn't recognize it. The way this rune reformed the detached arm of the puppet was enigmatic; it treated the whole body of the puppet as a runic symbol imbued with meaning, with its detached arm seen as a part chipped away from the rune. The statue that melted before being absorbed was utilized as a medium by the puppet to reattach its arm.

I wasn't going to let such a rare opportunity to learn about rune utilization slip by. This dungeon would become my go-to place until I fully understood how this puppet functioned, especially its ability to reattach its arm effortlessly, as if the damage I dealt to it was nothing.

"Maybe I could get my fingers back with this technique." It was an exciting thought and I was going to learn this technique from the puppet here.

Swing....

I wasn't able to finish my thought because the monster was once again at me, swinging its same reattached arm that had now turned into a long blade just like the one I had in my grasp.

Crack...

My blade was able to once again destroy its transformed arm, but I was once again surprised because its ability to change its arms into weapons wasn't in its skill nor was it in the description when looking at the stats page I could see belonging to the monster.

"Well, It was what it was.''

So, I just decided to deal with it as I knew, swinging my blade till the monster had utilized all the statues within the hall to reattach the body parts I had sliced off from its body.

I destroyed its whole body once, in order to see whether obliterating the puppet with one attack would kill it but it didn't, instead, several statues within the hall amalgamated into a puppet that was stronger, bigger, and faster than the previous one.

I obliterated it for two more times before finally being able to kill the puppet as there were no more statues remaining. The only remaining statue wasn't even able to form a single part before getting destroyed by my fist. 

I wasn't relaxed even after killing the monster because I didn't know whether there were other puppets hidden from the plain sight that could get activated once all the sculptures were destroyed, amalgamating into even more powerful puppet.

But, nothing happened. I waited in the hall for a few more minutes. The monsters within the corridor were still roaring but they didn't dare to enter the Hall even after the puppet within the hall was killed.

"Finally.." I thought as I looked at the door in front of me.

This door was something I knew about as it was the one leading to the boss of the dungeon. The information gathered by listening to the veterans while they enjoyed the booze was finally coming in handy today.

"I could definitely obtain the information if I wanted. But it wasn't fun."

Looking at the door made up of some enchanted material that was glistening with mana, I wasn't as amazed as I would have been with ones adorned with intricate scenes etched into it. After all, it was just a door.

Simple, without any etchings on the whole surface. There wasn't any keyhole, nor were there hidden mechanics that could take time to unlock the door. 

It was just a simple door doing its job.

Looking at the three corridors with monsters roaring and grunting at me, I felt tempted to finish them off before entering the chamber. However, I refrained from doing so because I was somewhat tired after swinging my blade for about seven hours without stopping. I didn't want to expend any more energy fighting these brutes, especially since they weren't even entering the hall; it seemed like there was some invisible barrier blocking them from coming after me.

"Should I finish them before entering the chamber?"

I really wanted to deal with these monsters before entering the chamber in front of me because the monsters that were still glaring at me were giving the same vibe as the monsters that I had slain in the dungeon housed by Zorats.

It was a gut feeling I had; these ogres would come at me in a flock once I entered the chamber, especially while engaging in battle with the boss monster.

Creak...

I entered the room while suppressing this feeling that was nagging me. 

There was only one throne in the center of the chamber without anything in the whole chamber. There sat a monster that was looking at me with its bright green eyes. 

The Ogre was also in the shade of green, holding a wand in its hand, sporting a hat typical to the mages with its body hidden by loosely fitting green robes. It didn't have overgrown tusks like the ones I had encountered till now. It was reminiscent of the Ogres that I had seen in the paintings, healing their brethren while sacrificing their opponents to their deity.

"Haha... Welcome warrior, to the humble abode of this mage."