Chapter 66
Minotaur (5)
The method for finding the crack’s boss was simple.
This place was a labyrinthine rift designed to lure in the Minotaur’s prey.
When disoriented, no matter which direction one went, it would lead straight to him.
Under Sehyun’s guidance, immune to the disorientation, Seongcheol took the lead as their guide.
Before long, they spotted the boss.
“There it is… calmly ignoring its surroundings, as usual.”
In the middle of an eight-lane intersection, the boss—Minotaur—sat cross-legged, motionless.
Ugh—
Suddenly, Seongcheol’s team members, the twin sisters, retched.
Given the scene before them, it was understandable.
Unlike the serene boss, the area around him was gruesome.
Corpses, likely from the vanguard, were scattered everywhere, some partially eaten, the corners of the Minotaur’s mouth stained with blood.
Some had bite marks left on them, torn into pieces and lying on the nearby ground.
It seemed the creature had merely sated its hunger, leaving the rest in reserve, as if leisurely.
This was far different from other boss monsters driven purely by animalistic instinct.
“Let’s leave this to Sehyun and the priests,” Seongcheol said.
“…Yes. Uuugh…”
He led the retching twins away from the area.
“Get ready.”
At Sehyun’s command, the four priests swallowed hard and raised their hands together.
“Lance of Radiance.”
Piiiing—
With a barely audible incantation, light gathered in their hands, forming long, spear-like shapes.
“Throw—!!”
Shush-shush-shush—!!
The lances pierced the Minotaur’s flesh. Startled, it roared in pain.
Krrwaaah—!!
Sehyun, observing the scene, smirked knowingly.
‘Just as I thought, the lances hit.’
The Minotaur had exceptionally strong stellar-based physicality.
Any attack would normally be nullified by its stellar advantage.
Its divine defenses would also normally be ineffective.
‘If that weren’t the case, Atlan would have defeated it. They would have been helpless.’
But the current situation was entirely different.
The Minotaur writhed in pain from just four lances.
The reason was clear.
‘Even the mythical Minotaur, described as invincible, had a natural weakness.’
The Minotaur was born cursed by Poseidon.
A creature born because the queen coveted a sacrifice meant for the gods.
It was easy to imagine that a being born from divine wrath would have a weakness to divinity.
‘Still, I didn’t expect it to actually work on this one.’
Thanks to Inha’s ability, [Narrative Realization].
Her mythic imagination made the boss monster perceive itself as the “true Minotaur,” even creating its weakness.
Perhaps it began the moment the Explosive Sword became [Ariadne’s Thread].
That explained why divine attacks, which previously failed, were now effective.
Krrwaaahhh—!!
The Minotaur roared, readying for action.
It pulled its hind legs back and thrust its shoulders forward.
It was poised to charge.
“Get ready to retreat—!!”
Crack—
Thud-thud-thud-thud—
A rough tremor of the ground followed.
The Minotaur scratched the earth and began charging at an unbelievable speed.
“W-wait…!!”
The priests scrambled to follow Sehyun, who was already sprinting ahead.
“Ahhh!!”
“How are we supposed to dodge that!!!”
One priest, desperate to survive, shouted, gasping for breath:
“H-huh… s-so… how long do we have to keep running?”
“Huh? I don’t know.”
“…?”
Sehyun answered as if it were the most obvious thing: why ask me?
“But how can you not know!!”
“Do you think running is enough if you already know the safe path? That’s baiting him.”
“Huh? So we’re… baiting him right now?!”
“If you think that lightly, he’ll never chase you.”
“What do you mean…?”
The reason the boss accepted the lances earlier was because it identified itself fully with the mythical Minotaur.
“Think about it. Would he want prey that runs half-heartedly? If we’re running, we have to show him we mean it.”
The priests’ faces drained of color at the absurdity.
Sehyun grinned and raised a thumb.
“That’s the expression! The face that looks like it’s about to die!”
…Damn. This guy is serious.
They had tried to help, but seeing them desperately running for their lives, Sehyun’s thumbs-up felt downright demonic.
‘…We’re really gonna die!’
They had no choice but to run with sweat-soaked feet.
Krrwaahhhh—!!!
The Minotaur, roaring even more furiously, closed in, nearly catching up.
Sehyun’s intent had reached it perfectly: genuine fear of death.
Krrrwaahhhhh—!!!
The Minotaur swung its massive fists behind them.
“We’re really gonna die!!!”
“Help!! You crazy bastard!!!”
“Do something—!!!”
Swish—
Then, suddenly, a pole flew through the air and struck the ground.
At the same time,
Zjeong—!!
The Minotaur’s shoulder collided with a barrier, producing a shock.
The priests looked on, dumbfounded.
“A barrier…? Who deployed it?”
“Not me.”
“Not me either. Then…”
After a moment, they realized divine stellar energy was emanating from the flag at the end of the pole.
“The flag… is forming a barrier?”
Fwaaaah—
A hemispherical barrier enveloped the priests, emanating from the flag.
“Phew, looks like it arrived just in time.”
Sehyun waved at Seongcheol atop a building.
The flag had been thrown by Seongcheol at the perfect timing.
“I borrowed some of your skills for the ‘Holy War Flag.’”
“…”
The priests stared blankly, dumbfounded.
Skills aren’t things you can just borrow, especially when the person isn’t a divine user.
“Do you have time to stand there? Looks like he’s pissed.”
“Huh… yes?”
Bang—!! Bang—!! Bang—!!
The Minotaur began pounding the barrier with both fists.
The priests quickly reinforced it with layered barriers.
The Minotaur’s eyes turned red with rage.
‘With them gathered like this, he won’t see anything.’
These were not ordinary people—except Sehyun, all were divine users.
They were brought as bait because the Minotaur, related to a divine curse, most despised gods and their followers.
Ignoring mythic hierarchies, the choice was tactical—and effective.
With the setup complete, Sehyun shouted:
“Brother!!”
Seongcheol leapt from the building.
He wrapped his arms in flame and shot it toward the ground.
“Formation M—deploy!!”
“Deploy!!”
A massive ring of flame formed around the Minotaur.
Formation M had been improvised to trap the creature.
Seongcheol’s team was underground, out of sight, transmitting his lava ability to create the formation.
The asphalt heated, releasing waves of scorching heat.
The smell of burning flesh filled the air; even the Minotaur’s skin began to burn.
“I-it’s…”
“It’s not over yet.”
Crack—
The ground began to split.
With the heat intense enough to melt the surface, the ground could not hold.
Kugugugugugu—
The intersection collapsed into a massive sinkhole.
Beneath it was a lake of lava—an actual magma swamp.
Krrwaahhhhhhh!!!!
The creature flailed helplessly in the lava.
“Even he can’t handle it,” a priest cheered.
Sehyun shook her head.
“It’s not just the lava. It’s underground.”
The Minotaur’s advantage was nullified simply by being in the underground environment.
“Underground…?”
“Yes. His strengths vanish there.”
The key to the plan was removing the Minotaur from the labyrinth’s stellar energy.
“How…?”
“I blocked the stellar energy so I wasn’t disoriented; I wondered if it would affect the boss the same way.”
The Minotaur and labyrinth formed a fortuitous coincidence.
A disaster that would have been hopeless any other time.
‘Not a mere coincidence.’
Half the time, it might have failed—but Sehyun trusted her judgment.
She had even put herself in danger to do so.
And as we see…
“Jackpot.”
The Minotaur’s legendary invincible physicality was greatly weakened underground.
Now, only one thing remained.
“Inha!”
Bang—!
At the signal, Inha flew in, deploying the sword thread.
The [Ariadne’s Thread], which had previously struck, was now ready to finish it.
Whoooosh—
Flames encircled the Minotaur. Inha slashed horizontally, wrapping the creature tightly.
Just as it seemed they would finish it…
Crack—!
“…!!!!”
The weakened Minotaur’s flesh was pierced by the metallic thread—but only that far.
The boss gritted its teeth and endured.
“If this doesn’t work… then what….”
Inha despaired, unsure what to do.
Thunk—!
The flag, spinning in midair, caught her eye.
“It’s not over yet, Inha.”
“…Huh?”
“Remember what I asked you earlier?”
Before facing the Minotaur, Sehyun had asked her quietly.
How did the mythical Minotaur fight Theseus? Why?
It’s necessary.
Although Inha knew the myth, she didn’t recall how Theseus fought.
But the truth was absurdly simple:
Battle? Probably didn’t.
…Didn’t?
In the myth, Theseus merely beheaded it while it slept, escaping the labyrinth.
Inha had hypothesized:
It was night. The Minotaur was asleep. Theseus snuck in and cut its head. No time for a proper fight.
…So the hero was all show, but really just assassinated it.
Sehyun snorted.
Yet this was the key strategy.
“The best attack ends it in a single strike. No prolonging.”
What was needed now:
“A single strike strong enough to sever the monster’s neck.”
Fwaaaaah—
Divine energy from the airborne flag created a protective barrier, neutralizing all stellar energy.
Sehyun drew her sword from her waist.
A crude, jet-black blade: Black Dwarf.
A replica, far weaker than the original or the one used in Tenchi Combat, yet still formidable.
I smashed the golden head of the idol; iron, clay, brass, silver, and gold all shattered.
An inscription describing a Ranger’s strike to sever the head of the unworthy.
Not as powerful as the original, but enough for the task.
“Now it’s truly over.”
Sehyun swung her sword straight at the Minotaur.
Swoosh—
A vivid red line appeared across the neck connecting the bull’s head and human body.
A clean, decisive strike.
A conclusion perfectly aligned with myth.
