188 Chapter 188: Underground (2/2)
Not paying any attention to me exhaling, Anastasia continued to focus on the search. I glanced up, and using the high-end sensors and functions on my glasses, which displayed a tiny holographic map on the lenses, I located a door.
”You're probably right. I see an entrance to something over there.”
The infrared vision revealed what seemed like hundreds of throbbing life signs behind the door. Gulping, I briefly informed Anastasia.
She nodded, unsurprised. ”That should be what we're looking for.” Then she frowned. ”Does the Azpire City Council really expect the two of us to kill all hundreds of Goblins by ourselves?”
”I think they've heard about me and my Strategic-scale spell and got carried away…forgetting that I can't nuke them if they're underground.”
”Oh, right.” Anastasia giggled. ”The slayer of three thousand monsters. Of course they would think hundreds of Goblins are nothing to you. You are the man who achieved such an incredible feat, after all.”
”That doesn't change the fact that I can't nuke them when they're underground,” I repeated dryly, to emphasize the point. Anastasia sighed and nodded again.
”Yes, indeed. But we'll still have to go and do something.”
”Agreed.”
It didn't take us too long before we found ourselves standing in front of the nine-meter door my glasses had spotted earlier. Anastasia held out a hand to stop me.
”Don't do anything reckless like summoning a Soul Beast and smashing the door down, please. I know we're in a hurry, but they might have a different kind of booby trap. One that might be dangerous even to your Soul Beasts.”
”Then how do you suggest we go in?” I asked, trying not to sound sarcastic but failing. ”Should we go knock on the door politely?”
Anastasia gave me a withering stare. ”You've never been on a stealth mission before, have you?”
”Of course not.”
She sighed and shook her head. ”Just leave it to me, all right?”
I bowed exaggeratedly and gestured for her to take the lead. ”All yours, Ana.”
Rolling her eyes, Anastasia stepped forward cautiously. She was obviously looking out for traps, or for anything out of place.
Unfortunately, she seemed to be looking at the wrong places.
The moment she stepped on a particular block that made up the concrete floor, a gigantic magic circle materialized below her and suffused the entire chamber in an eerie green and crimson glow. Ana narrowed her eyes and immediately jumped back, but she was too late.
”I knew it,” she hissed under her breath. ”This whole place is booby-trapped!”
Unfortunately, it was too late. She had triggered the trap, and now something was emerging from the magic circle. I immediately recognized it as a summoning spell. I mean, I had to. I was a summoner, after all.
”Watch out!” I shouted, but Anastasia was already moving. A gigantic silhouette pulled itself out of the magic circle and swung a massive arm at the former Assassin, but she effortlessly dodged it, jumping high in the air and gracefully flipping herself over.
”A Golem, huh?” she remarked, as if it was nothing more than a nuisance. She was correct. The brown, rocky humanoid creature that was dragging itself out of the magic circle was a Golem. About five meters tall and half as wide, the bulky behemoth was a mass of solid rock. Despite its slow speed and clumsiness, its swinging arms struck with the force of a freight train, gouging chunks of concrete out from the underground walls.
If we didn't take it down soon, it would end up causing a cave-in and wipe us out along with itself.
Anastasia didn't seem too worried. Even as the Golem swatted at her again, she elegantly evaded it. While soaring in midair, she drew two poisoned daggers. Twisting herself around, she planted her feet on the stone ceiling before launching herself at the clumsily lumbering Golem and slashed with both of her deadly weapons.
Clang!
It was testament to her skill that she managed to chip off huge amounts of rock from her target. The Golem grunted and tried to turn to follow her, but she was already rolling away. Glancing up, she clicked her tongue in irritation.
”I should have known that poison would have no effect on a Golem.”
The Golem finally turned to face her and it swung its huge fist to pulverize her. Anastasia simply leaped up and landed on its rocky arm before running along the length of the limb. The Golem shuddered and tried to swipe her away with its other arm, but the moment she reached its shoulder, she did a cartwheel and launched herself away, narrowly avoiding getting struck by several tons of solid rock.
”Ana! Are you all right?” I asked as I hurried toward her. She rolled her eyes.
”Of course I'm all right. I'm a former Assassin, remember?” she then placed her hands on her hips. ”What, did you expect me to fall over in fear and become too afraid to move like some damsel in distress just so you can play the hero and rescue me?”
”No.” I was gaping at her. ”Where did you get the idea from?”
”From some badly written web novel that somehow got popular enough to get officially published as a light novel and have an anime adaptation.”
I didn't know Ana watched anime and read web novels too. She was definitely a keeper.
”Anyway, my poison doesn't work on the Golem,” she informed me as she retreated from the slowly turning summoned beast. ”Do you mind if I leave this blockhead to you?”
”Already on it,” I assured her, and at that instant I completed my summoning spell.