You've got to be kidding me! It doesn't even look stronger than a Bulgasari!

  [ Warning: Talos’ Rondel has reached the level of low durability.]

  And so, I put away my primary weapon which has begun to show cracks on its blade. I never knew slashing this chimera ten times with a self-immolated rondel is enough to notify me of this kind of warning.

  Its skin is like a B-rank healer’s defensive barrier. It doesn't bear a scratch at all! Then, I have to electrocute this freak of nature!

  I'm able to dodge its arms despite its left side being much more dangerous since a kobold’s front claws are much longer than the ones on a harpy. I feel light scratches on my back and sleeved arms while I try to get on to the chimera’s back. Finally, I've got onto its back, but not without avoiding its poisonous tail swinging at me a few times.

  Without a second to waste, especially since wearing my current Invisible Cloak has twenty minutes left until it wears off, I consciously activate my Lightning Control skill. However, this chimera, even though it doesn't have a metallic skin like the Bulgasari, “reflects” my lightning attack. Bright yellow sparks flash across the Labyrinth - downwards, sideways and upwards.

  Darn it! Why is it an unlucky coincidence that my lightning attacks are being bounced back to me?! Not to mention, twice in a row! Does that psychotic bastard have clairvoyance or what?!

  I notice the three young Slayers, with Slayer Hong still aching in pain on the hard ground, had to avoid those reflective sparks, making themselves look like they were forced to dance as part of a cult’s ritual. That's until the elementalist seems to channel all of his mana output into his lantern and then, fire in the form of flowing waves create a transparent, flaring-like dome around them. The elementalist drops on his knees, panting breathlessly. He's experiencing mana fatigue.

  Having no choice, but to deactivate my lightning attack which eventually the sparks stop coming out of the chimera’s body, I jump backwards until I reach a huge stalagmite, taking shelter as I immediately hide behind it. Even though I still look invisible to the Slayers due to my Sigbin-made coat, somehow my invisibility isn't duping the chimera until I start to put two and two together.

  It's not only made up of a kobold and a harpy's body parts. Its lower body has grayish-green scales. Its gaze petrifies a Slayer, making their veins almost popping out. And that poisonous tail… It can't be…the third creature embedded inside this chimera is…a cockatrice?!

  Cockatrices are one of the stronger D-rank Beasts that need at least a raid team of six D-rank Slayers to slay one. The last time I heard there were three of them in a D-rank Labyrinth which was in the form of being inside an ice castle. Ten D-rank, especially of the healer class, and three E-rank Slayers were part of the raid team that was supposed to close that D-rank Labyrinth. Unfortunately, they never expected their Final Beast to be made of triplets instead of a lone monster.

  That led to using a surviving D-rank Slayer using an Aláram crystal, which is another special type of crystal that alerts any Slayer, mainly those who are of higher ranks, to agree to this kind of emergency quest. The higher-ranked Slayers get teleported from their current location to the surviving lower-ranked Slayers’ location. There was a guerilla reporter's streaming video of three S-rank Slayers being the summoned ones; each one taking down each cockatrice with one instant attack skill.

  As usual, Slayer Shin Chang-wook, Slayer Seo Jae-in, and the Prince Charming of S-rank Slayers, Chun Sun-woo were the ones who took down the cockatrices in a few seconds. It's understandable that it was a very desperate situation the surviving lower-ranked Slayers were in. I speculate seeing how this chimera the psychotic bastard created would've been able to take down a Bulgasari on its own, but probably for a minute or two.

  Back to the reality of me hiding from its incessant glares of trying to find me, I inwardly summoned an Explosive Potion. This time, I just need one unit because it's a mid-grade one. A total of eighteen body parts, which belonged to the three slayed Fire Golems, along with the same amount of mistletoe, rosemary and windblume ingredients the Guideline provided me when I became a lower C-rank after I killed the late Seo Tae-ho.

  [Weapon Item “Mid-grade Explosive Potion” has been summoned.]

  [Grade: C]

  [Attack Power: 95]

  I'm just glad that neither of its three Beasts have the body regeneration skill. This explosive potion is supposed to be twice as powerful as the low-grade one. I need to make that chimera swallow it for a faster kill. I don't have the time to spare since this cloak’s invisibility will wear off soon and those four will see my identity. I can't be found out. Not now. Right. Here I go.

  I throw a pebble at high velocity on one of its ankles. It yelps given the slight pain it felt from my thrown pebble. I use the chance to sneak attack from behind its tail when it steps its feet up and down and flapping its arms to maintain its center of gravity. When I'm right behind it, I lift up my left arm, focusing all my mana output while I once again activate my Lightning Control skill. Once it turns around to face me, a slight burst of lightning flows straight out of my left palm.

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Actually, chin-length sparks disperse across this cave-like space. I feel a bit worried when some of them hit on the Slayers’ sheltered dome, but I can see that it's not hazardous to Slayer Hong and his trainees as the sparks go up in smoke when they settle upon the elementalist’s fire-made barrier. The chimera gives off its loudest roar which has its mouth opening at its widest and heavily implying it's feeling the bare minimum of pain from my Lightning Control skill.

  This can work! Take this, chimera!

  With all my strength in my right arm holding the mid-grade explosive potion, I throw it towards its opened mouth. Just when it lands on its slithery tongue, the chimera instinctively closes its mouth, swallowing it like it's porridge. A huge explosion, probably equivalent to igniting half a kilo of ammonium nitrate, bursts into a large cloud of dusty smoke that covers the chimera's entire upper body.

  Alright! Even its insides wouldn't be that… dura…ble…

  My eyes widen to hear the chimera growling effortlessly behind the engulfing smoke. When the smoke finally disperses, the chimera looks unharmed as if it never swallowed anything dangerous to begin with. Then, I recall a cockatrice’s one particular offensive skill which I stupidly forgot probably due to my bad habit of subconsciously thinking I'm a noncombatant.

  Cockatrice breathes fire…Don't tell me…Its fire breathing skill was activated when it swallowed that potion…

  My unpleasant deduction comes true when I notice its throat lighting up a bright golden color. I quickly activate my defensive barrier which is finally enabled to be channeled via my mana output after I ‘leveled up’ to lower C-rank now. Once the chimera opens its mouth, strong blazes of fire come out of the mouth's opening, filling the room with intense heat.

  The fire touches my defensive barrier, but I run back to the same stalagmite when it starts to crack after a few seconds. My defensive barrier literally breaks down into tiny dispersed glass-like particles when the fire breaks through it. I've already escaped on time, but not for the four Slayers who had to stay inside the elementalist's self-made dome. What's worse is that the dome’s barrier was made out of fire to begin with, the chimera's expelled fire breath has made the dome become a heated oven.

  I see the trainee Slayers sweating unnaturally from the upgraded blazing dome. I can understand why the elementalist used fire instead of water to make up the dome. All of them would've been electrocuted to death if his water usage were to be used. He can't risk his comrades’ lives getting accidentally killed by an unknown Slayer like me. Because of my stupid mistake of not remembering the cockatrice’s ability to breathe fire…

  No! Now's not the time to be stunned and just staying still!

  Alas, I can't move my legs as if they're telling me not to run over there even if that's not the right thing to do. Immense guilt overwhelms my mind that makes me lose focus on the present as I suddenly think about the bad memory of witnessing my mom getting swallowed by the very first Labyrinths. As that traumatic moment felt longer than ever, my subconscious mind is being filled with self-loathing words.

  Ah…In the end, I can't save anyone at all… I'm still weak that I can't even mentally break off that bastard's control over the Guideline I have right now. Those Slayers…are gonna die because of…

  Suddenly, a skean shoots out of nowhere like it's an arrow from Robin Hood himself. It lands on the right side of the chimera's neck, making the Frankenstein-like monster stop its fiery breath. It's screaming in pain as its neck is really cut by that long, slender dagger. Then, a tall figure, who might be as tall as Chun, in a dark evergreen hooded cloak appears so fast even though my eyes have caught his figure coming from one of the Labyrinth’s tunnels on my left.

  I've to face the fact that after completing my latest ‘leveling up’ mission, I start to notice, feeling any Slayer’s aura. This unknown person is no exception and it makes me feel more frozen than ever when I think his aura is possibly equivalent to an A-rank Slayer. The chimera angrily breathes fire upon the hooded person again, but miraculously, a defensive barrier is formed around the mysterious figure.

  Then, the mysterious figure takes out a crystal-made bottle filled with a luminous blue liquid. He flings it towards the fiery dome where the newbie Slayers and Slayer Hong are still being trapped underneath it. Once it breaks, a smoky cold air extinguishes the dome's flames and they freeze into icy stones. Despite their safety being quickly guaranteed, my thoughts are only filled with cautiousness and confusion as I keep on watching the way the unknown person evades the chimera's attacks as if it's a human baby the hooded one is dealing with.

  This person can create… a defensive barrier? But…if that's the case, then how is this person having great combat skills? Unless…

  “It's time to release you from Harmon’s control.”

  This person…This man…Who is Harmon?

  The next thing I know is that the chimera swings its poisonous tail, which is lighting up darker than when it did upon Slayer Hong, towards that hooded man. I was about to run towards the hooded man so that I could tackle him to avoid that lethal attack, but to my astonishment, he chants a foreign language which kind of makes me realise he's not a Korean Slayer.

  Go maolóidh na Slabhraí Breithiúnais seo do phian.

  Then, bright rays in the form of glowing yellow chains appear out of thin air. They coil the chimera around; its roar sounds more like shrieks of pain than squawks of rage it did upon me, Slayer Hong and his protégés who look in awe of the unknown Beast that plausibly has yet to be known in the Alliance's records of every past raid.

  Then, I see this Robin Hood-like man take out a pouch with his left hand; his right hand takes out a pile of silvery powder, tossing to scatter around the chained chimera. In fact, it looks like he handsprays the powder on the Labyrinth's cavey wall behind the chained chimera. When the blackish-golden eyes lightens up, its petrifying cooldown must have been renewed after its usage upon Jimin the sorceress Slayer five minutes ago.

  Le cumhacht na tíre dúchais inar bhuail na Deannáin leat tráth, luífidh siad ar an taobh eile áit a bhfuil do rialóirí ag fanacht le breithiúnas a thabhairt ar do mhí-iompar. Go léireofar trócaire duit.

  Then, the silvery powder turns the cavey wall into a long landscape-positioned mirror like the one seen in a house of mirrors. When the chained chimera's glowing eyes see the magically-made mirror, it petrifies itself. I can hear its mouth gasping for air as if this unknown Slayer is strangling it with an invisible rope even though he's acting the opposite as the famous American superheroine, Wonder Woman. That's because I'm getting unpleasant vibes while watching him fight this chimera.

  It's also because I feel a spike of cold temperature when the unknown Slayer thrusts his skean, without having any signs of immolation usage, right into the chimera’s chest so easily, possibly stabbing its heart. The next few seconds have me watching the chimera's life visibly drain out from its eyes. Once they stop glowing, the unknown hooded man's magically-made chains vanish like pixie dust. He swiftly takes out his skean, letting the chimera's corpse heavily fall down onto its right side. I stare in shock, trying to take in what just happened in front of me.

  The sound of shattered ice psychologically breaks me away from the constant replays of the unknown Slayer’s combat skills against that chimera. I turn around to see him telling the three youngster Slayers to stay still if they want their mentor to get detox immediately, which my healing powers of slowing it down has met its time limit. Slayer Hong coughs some more blood out of his mouth, but the green glowing light surrounds him via the unknown Slayer's mana channeling upon him.

  Slayer Hong’s pale white skin gains back his skin’s original color; his opened wound is closed and sealed up like a professional surgeon performing colon surgery. As soon as he finishes healing Slayer Hong, he gets up to turn around while the three protégés are cheering and crying in relief around their mentor for still being alive in front of them. I should expect the plausible capabilities of an A-rank Slayer, but I still have a more shocked look on my face when he stops right next to my right shoulder. He bends down to whisper these chilling words to my right ear.

  “How many more people are gonna die because of you, Kang Jooyeon? Because if you ask me, it's best if you're gone for good. For everyone's sake…including your family.”

  Before I can turn my head to ask a question about the Painting Labyrinth's mastermind, the unknown hooded man has disappeared as if he likes making ‘The Dark Knight’ exit. Despite my mind being filled with overwhelming feelings, I too am about to leave this Labyrinth. That is until I hear a woman's voice behind my back.

  “You're not going anywhere, Hidden Ranker.”