“…Hungry.”
Luke mumbled groggily as he woke up.
It was always inconvenient being in a human body—no matter how much you ate the night before, you were hungry again by morning.
“Got any more jerky?”
“You ate it all yesterday.”
“Damn it… Then you should’ve said that was all we had!”
“I did.”
Actually, he hadn’t.
Herace still had plenty of preserved rations in his subspace.
But Luke, still flustered from the chaos of yesterday, couldn’t remember and just tilted his head doubtfully.
“If you’re that hungry, why not venture deeper into the cave? I saw signs of animals living in there.”
“Animals? If it’s living in a cave, it’s probably a bear, right?”
Luke’s eyes sparkled for a moment before narrowing with suspicion.
“You’re not talking about a snowstorm bear, are you?”
“Then why don’t you go outside and forage for something? Surely you didn’t expect me to feed you three meals a day.”
“Who said that?!”
Luke huffed and puffed but didn’t step outside.
Although the entrance was clear, he still felt uneasy, suspecting monsters might be lurking nearby.
If it was just a regular bear and not a monster, at least he could get some meat out of it.
“Let’s hope it’s not a monster,” Luke muttered.
Monster meat was poisonous and completely inedible.
Feeling rejuvenated after a good sleep, Luke happily made his way deeper into the cave.
‘Well, enjoy your brief moment of happiness,’ Herace thought.
Further inside, Luke would encounter his first major foe—a chimera, woken by the roars of rage from the dragon’s lieutenant yesterday.
Luke had gone in hoping to find a bear but instead discovered a massive snake.
It wasn’t ideal, but at least it was something edible.
He raised his sword to strike, but a lion’s roar echoed through the cave.
“Argh! What the—?!”
Luke screamed, followed quickly by another, more human yell.
“You knew this would happen, didn’t you? You sent me in here to die, didn’t you?!”
Facing the chimera while starving, Luke’s cries were pitiful.
And while it was technically true, Herace felt slightly wronged.
This wasn’t his doing; it was the author’s.
This was how it was always meant to unfold.
Feigning surprise, Herace acted startled.
He had plenty of practice at deception, having tricked countless enemies before.
“What? What’s in there? Isn’t it just a bear?”
“Come and see for yourself! Help me!”
Herace had no intention of helping but decided to go and take a look.
This was the protagonist’s stage, after all—a moment meant to highlight their strength.
Inside, the chimera was massive and intimidating, its lion’s mane whipping through the air as it growled, flames spewing from the goat’s head.
Its snake-like tail gleamed with a metallic sheen as it coiled menacingly.
Even Herace turned pale at the sight.
Luke, rolling on the ground to dodge the chimera’s flames, noticed Herace’s expression and sprang to his feet.
“What the hell? Why do you look so worried?!”
“It’s just…”
No matter how powerful he was as a grand mage in another world, to a groggy chimera, he was just another intruder to be dealt with.
The chimera lashed out with its tail, aiming for Herace.
Though he quickly conjured a barrier, it shattered the moment it was struck.
The chimera hesitated briefly, startled by its own strength.
‘Now’s the time to attack,’ Herace thought, releasing a burst of magic—a weak, diluted flame that disappeared as soon as it touched the chimera’s hide.
Luke’s eyes widened at the sight.
“You’re messing with me, aren’t you? Pretending to be weak so I’ll deal with it!”
A surprisingly accurate observation.
But it was the first time Luke had seen the always-composed Herace hesitate, and it left him uncertain.
“I swear I’m not pretending! I can’t attack—it’s against the rules!”
“What?!”
“That thing used to serve a greater being—a superior who’s now in deep slumber. It’s waiting for their return. Attacking it is forbidden unless it’s a formal challenge for rank—”
“Aaagh!”
Luke roared like an animal.
“Screw this! You’re useless!”
Charging at the chimera, Luke leaped into the air, his jewel-encrusted sword flashing.
At least Herace had fed and rested him well; his movements were sharp and stable.
Kicking off the cave wall, Luke lunged at the chimera.
“Buy me some time! Cast something!”
“My magic won’t work!”
“Not to attack—just do something!”
A sharp blade slashed through the chimera’s hide, leaving a long gash.
However, it was nothing more than a scratch—a minor wound that barely fazed the creature.
Though it was sluggish from slumber, it was still the first boss, and it was tough.
Luke ground his teeth in frustration.
“Hey, remember that thing you brought to the north? Spatial teleportation!”
Herace had, of course, already prepared an excuse.
“Do you think I can just snap my fingers and—poof!—make it happen?”
“You… did it before!”
Realizing that straightforward attacks wouldn’t work, Luke clung to the lion’s mane, dangling precariously.
The lion head shook its head furiously to dislodge the unwelcome guest.
Luke’s voice echoed throughout the cavern.
In the end, Luke was thrown to the ground, landing with a frustrated huff and running a hand through his now-disheveled hair.
“I just did it!”
The goat head breathed fire at Herace, who hastily deflected the flames with a defensive spell.
“Is that all you saw me do? I’m not ready right now, and it’s not feasible!”
“You’re absolutely useless!”
Yet he didn’t give up.
Luke grabbed the lion’s mane again, determinedly climbing atop the lion head.
Realizing that shaking alone wouldn’t suffice, the lion head charged toward the wall, intending to crush the persistent human against the stone.
Such tactics were possible only because of the chimera’s rock-solid skull.
As a human whose head would shatter on impact, Luke had no choice but to curl his body and brace himself.
Watching the rocky wall crack from the repeated collisions, Herace decided it was the perfect moment to say what needed to be said.
“Why don’t you just get down?”
“What?”
“Get down! I can’t teleport you, but I can at least fly us out of here if—”
Crunch!
A chilling sound echoed.
Boom! Crash!
The cavern wall collapsed in an instant, sealing off the exit.
Escaping by flight was now impossible. Luke, who had been sliding down beneath the chimera, scowled at the new obstacle.
“Break that!”
His voice dripped with irritation.
“Sure, that I can do!”
“I’m casting!”
Herace turned his back on the chimera, focusing his magic on the sealed exit.
Exposing his back to the enemy in a fight was foolish, and the chimera seized the opportunity to retaliate.
The goat’s sturdy hoof slammed into Herace, sending him flying.
“Argh…!”
Even though he instinctively cast a defensive spell, the impact sent him crashing into the cavern wall, leaving his entire body wracked with pain as if his bones had been misaligned.
It was the first time since graduating as a protagonist that he’d taken such a direct physical hit.
“Ugh… Ahh… Ow…”
Ironically, it allowed him to deliver a more convincing performance.
Clutching his uninjured stomach, Herace trembled and coughed up fake blood.
While the uninvited guest was reeling, the chimera aimed to finish the job, raising a massive paw to crush him.
This time, Herace saw the attack coming and narrowly dodged, but his ankle twisted in the process.
From Luke’s perspective, a mage wasn’t supposed to be capable of casting under such dire circumstances.
“Damn it.”
He realized he would have to handle this himself.
He couldn’t rely on the supposedly powerful companion who was now utterly useless.
“Nothing’s going my way!”
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