Chapter 316

〈Chapter 316〉 Part 1, Chapter 14, Section 6

There are some monsters that look adorable on the outside and are awkward to deal with.

And those monsters boast fearsome performance and difficulty in strategy despite their cute appearances. Among the pinnacle of fire attributes is Garura.

The Yasha with its intestines dripping.

The horse-headed, quadrupedal giant, Kinna-ra.

It’s only natural that after seeing them, encountering the chick-sized Garura brings a sense of peace and rest. But as always, behind the cute exterior lies formidable power.

And Garura is a ‘monster that can be recruited as an ally,’ maintaining the appearance of an ordinary chick until it grows to SS-Rank, whereupon it transforms into its true form.

‘Thus, the expedition’s battle ended with the fight against Kinna-ra.’

If Garura were an enemy that had to be fought like Yasha or Kinna-ra, I would have introduced everyone gathered at Taj Mahal and cleared the battlefield. However, I planned to tame Garura as a <Beast Tamer> and approached it as soon as the time came.

But I was swallowed.

I lay within Garura’s body—amidst flowing flames—and briefly agonized.

‘Why did it eat me?’

Garura is not a pre-emptive attacking mob. There’s no reason for it to eat me. It must have sensed my magic power; if it had submitted, it should have done so instead of swallowing me and keeping me inside its body.

Woooom, woooom.

“Are you okay?! Should I rip this thing apart and pull you out?!”

“Please let us know when the time comes. We’ll evacuate the people and then launch a full assault.”

The magical gears roared with vigor. The messages from Cheon Gaeul and Baek Hee-a conveyed both worry about me and terrifyingly fierce words. I informed them of my safety first and instructed them not to attack separately.

‘By the way, it seems the Indian guys might attack again.’

Looking at Garura’s appearance and deciding to attack instead of finding it cute—it’s definitely either a killer technique or a spy planted by Salpuk. Otherwise, how could anyone attack this adorable little bird with its bright eyes?

‘It’s somewhere between a chick and a baby bird.’

Aside from its fur being flame-red and its size rivaling Kinna-ra, it’s a monster that could easily be considered a pet. In fact, depending on the situation, it could be used as an ally monster or even a mascot animal.

‘So why did it eat me…?’

I swam through its insides toward Garura’s core. Around the engine-like hot core, immense magic power surged, and I placed my hand on it to read Garura’s thoughts.

This guy just ate me because it’s stupid—

“Woah.”

How commendable. I was moved to tears.

[…I never imagined we’d meet like this, Master.]

I had arrived right in front of Garura’s core. Garura had invited me to its core.

Who would’ve thought it maintained its self-awareness?

* * *

Pee-yaaak!

Garura flapped its wings violently, threatening all around. Its wide-open eyes and pecking at the ground with its beak seemed to indicate anger at having its territory invaded.

“…Kuh!”

The heroes who had retreated a distance clutched their chests. Sitting cross-legged, shaking slightly while threatening the surroundings looked like a baby bird panicking.

“Is this a monster…?”

“It’s definitely a monster reaction.”

The heroes were astonished by what the radar showed. Clearly a monster, and an S-Rank one at that—almost top-tier among S-Ranks, comparable to Yasha.

Yet its appearance was as cute as something you’d find in a zoo souvenir shop. Although its size prevented calling it small, the heroes didn’t want to attack if they could avoid it.

Pee-yaaak! Pee-yaaak!

Garura flapped its wings vigorously, creating strong winds that the heroes enjoyed as a gentle breeze while waiting for instructions.

“We’re going to exterminate it!”

“No, you can’t!”

The conflicting orders from Mahatma and the Executioner left the heroes stuck in limbo, waiting for the disagreement between the two commanders to resolve.

“We must absolutely attack! This is all a trick! It’s a deceptive appearance meant to deceive humans!”

“Wait! Miss Cheongnyeon went inside herself! News will come soon!”

“How can you be so sure?! Miss Cheongnyeon has been eaten! She could be burning painfully inside the monster right now! We need to rescue her immediately!”

“Trust me, there’s a way to confirm!”

Mahatma and the Executioner’s opinions ran parallel. Mahatma, trying to salvage face after repeated mistakes by hunting Garura, insisted stubbornly, while the Executioner refused cooperation, wary of Mahatma.

“What if provoking the monster makes it go berserk?! If it transforms into an appearance like Yasha and burns not just Taj Mahal but all of India, what will you do?!”

“In that case, we’ll seek help from the Round Table!”

“This person is insane!”

The Executioner couldn’t understand why Mahatma obsessively craved battle. Rescuing Cheongnyeon should have been more urgent for the expedition team than for Mahatma.

“…Tch!”

After communicating via smartwatch with someone elsewhere, Mahatma issued an ultimatum to the Executioner.

“Ten minutes! I’ll wait ten minutes! If Miss Cheong doesn’t emerge or any changes occur after that, we will consider this monster an enemy that burned Taj Mahal and exterminate it!”

“What…did you say?!”

He’s lost his mind.

The Executioner felt madness in Mahatma’s face, distorted by abnormal command decisions.

Ten minutes.

If Qinghua doesn’t take action within ten minutes, concentrated firepower from the ability users gathered at Taj Mahal will rain down upon Garura.

* * *

I awakened Garura’s self-awareness within its core.

Drip, drip. The purple chains surrounding the core disappeared, burned away by my Blazing Phoenix flames, and Garura regained its freedom. Sensing my magic power, Garura finally withdrew its consciousness from the core, materializing before me in human form and bowing.

“Master?”

“…”

A beautiful girl resembling Blazing Phoenix appeared before me. Yet her hair color, eye color, and overall appearance mixed red and gold hues. Blonde hair, brown skin, red eyes. And yet, she resembled me—Blazing Phoenix—in every detail. Unable to anticipate this form, I had no choice but to ask first.

“Why does it look human?”

“Ah… Since Master appears in human form. Should I change?”

“No, stay this way.”

A red-eyed girl identical to Blazing Phoenix standing at eye level with me. Her eyes were slightly slanted, making her appear gentler than Blazing Phoenix, and her bust was smaller but still slightly prominent.

“Let’s get you some clothes first?”

“Clothes?”

“…”

I channeled magic power to dress Garura. Perhaps because she lacked the concept of clothing altogether, she marveled at the garments placed on her, touching them curiously.

“Is this a new protective gear given by Master…?”

“Yes.”

It would protect her from bugs and abrasions. Dressed in nun-like attire, Garura knelt before me again.

“It’s an honor to meet you again, Master.”

“Likewise. So, for now…”

I reached toward Garura’s chest. Without hesitation, Garura accepted my gesture, and I discovered the trace of Blazing Phoenix—the Blue Flame—within her heart and rejoiced.

‘Part of Blazing Phoenix’s power remains in her subordinates.’

Blazing Phoenix could have endured the battle with Seongju indefinitely. But that was only possible for a spirit like Blazing Phoenix. By the end, her subordinates were mentally exhausted.

The final mission lasted nine hours—”time over.” Watching her subordinates die one by one and go mad, Blazing Phoenix shared her power with them, allowing Garura to maintain sanity.

Like Whanryong, though outwardly immersed in madness during battles in Tera, once I hastened her summoning to this world, she regained her senses. Despite her monstrous size due to residual monster energy, resembling Kinna-ra…

Had I summoned her five years later, she might have truly gone mad and become the monster that incinerated everything as in the original story.

“You’ve worked hard. Pretending to be crazy all this time.”

“…Hic!”

Garura covered her face with her hands and burst into tears. This delicate and sensitive child must have endured severe trials in Tera, leaving her mentally exhausted.

“Take a moment to compose yourself. You’ve just arrived on Earth, so I’ll explain the situation.”

I briefly recounted the current state of Earth. Blazing Phoenix managed to self-remove Seongju’s brainwashing but much time had passed. While freeing other spirits from brainwashing, four remain.

“Soon, Gaechonkwang will come here.”

“Ugh.”

Garura frowned. She seemed worried, guessing the orders I might give.

“Should I…fight?”

Garura hesitated. Though she accomplished great deeds under Blazing Phoenix, cumulative battle fatigue made her reluctant to fight, causing her form to remain chick-like despite regaining S-Rank strength.

“I don’t want to fight.”

“If it’s an order, I’ll fight.”

Garura wavered. Seeing traces of Gaechonkwang on her face, which resembled Blazing Phoenix, I tapped her shoulder to calm her.

“Don’t worry. I won’t make you fight your old master.”

“But…my current master is you. If I must fight, snif…”

Garura wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, and I felt an odd déjà vu, making me feel uneasy.

‘She turns into a wild dog when transformed.’

I still remember the scene from the last mission where she took down the brainwashed Fenril in a 1-on-1 fight. Thanks to attribute advantages and near-infinite experience farming, her power as SS-Rank Garura exceeded imagination.

“It’s okay. If you don’t want to fight, you don’t have to. However…”

The vast Taj Mahal square where Garura resides will become a battlefield. And on that battlefield, Garura will fight alongside me as an ally.

Of course, forcing Garura to fight wouldn’t bring out her full potential, so I needed to offer a carrot she couldn’t resist.

“If there’s a way to free Gaechonkwang Karna from brainwashing, what would you do?”

Flash.

* * *

Nine minutes had passed.

One minute remained, and Mahatma prayed fervently as he prepared his forces, hoping time would fly.

[Executioner, are you really sure this is okay?]

Heroes stationed throughout the walls expressed concern. Fifty-one seconds. Time mercilessly flowed on, and still, no word from Qinghua.

‘Could it be…’

The Executioner hadn’t received guidance on how to approach Garura. Though reassured by Phoenix’s casual attitude and assurance that fighting wasn’t necessary, doubts lingered.

‘Has she changed her mind and decided to fight?’

It was likely. Forty-two seconds. When Phantom sighed and drew Calipella, the Executioner nearly fainted.

‘They seem fine, so maybe there’s no problem.’

Phantom and Gongsung, affiliated with Phoenix, appeared unremarkable. Thirty-seven seconds, seemingly ready only for potential contingencies.

Thirty seconds. With no other choice, the Executioner issued orders to the heroes.

“All units, prepare for battle. We’ll observe the situation for now.”

Though Phantom reported hearing that Garura was not a preemptive attacker, even a counterattack could be fatal, similar to Yasha. Following the Executioner’s orders, the heroes straightened up. Particularly Usa, taking a deep breath, ignited her fighting spirit.

[Now it’s my turn to shine.]

“…Yes. Attribute-wise.”

Twenty-one seconds. Usa hadn’t contributed much during the Kinna-ra raid. Though she fired support shots from atop the Flame Giant, no one paid attention.

Fifteen seconds. There’s no turning back now. The Executioner adjusted his beret.

At that moment, a message arrived on the heroes’ watches. The text from Phoenix contained only four words.

[Battle preparation].

[I knew this would happen.]

Phantom smirked as if expecting this. Other heroes also braced themselves, gathering magic power with troubled expressions.

‘Could something have happened to Phoenix…?’

[Executioner, usually in such cases, it’s not because something happened to the individual.]

Ten seconds. Phantom consoled the anxious Executioner.

[They’re just acting up because they want to cause trouble. Just fight appropriately. Consider it training.]

“……”

Is that so? The Executioner nodded as if realizing some profound truth.

Three seconds.

Two seconds.

One second.

Ding.

The agreed-upon ten minutes elapsed. Mahatma raised his hand high.

“All heroes, commence bombardment on the S-Rank monster <Garura> now! Attack!”

Toward the monster Garura occupying the center of Taj Mahal, the heroes unleashed indiscriminate attacks.

Whiiing—

Clack. Clack. Woooom.

Amidst the smoky explosions, something began to reveal itself.