Chapter 138

“First is intelligence. Second is wealth. Magic is only third.”

This was one of the sayings passed down among alchemists.

Half of it was a joke, but the other half was serious contemplation.

This stemmed from the characteristics of alchemists.

The two main skills of an alchemist are material reconstruction and homunculus creation.

To master the former, a broad knowledge of engineering and physics was essential.

If you wanted to avoid mishaps like crafting a boat out of heavy rocks or a sword out of rubbery goo, you needed to accurately understand the properties of materials. The same went for engineering knowledge to create devices that could perform efficiently and precisely.

The latter was no small feat either. Crafting a homunculus required substantial knowledge and understanding of biology. The higher the level of the homunculus, the more challenging it became.

The matter of wealth was relatively straightforward. Creating and maintaining a homunculus consumed a significant amount of funds.

Preparing a laboratory, collecting relevant books, and gathering materials all cost money.

Feeding a homunculus with high physical abilities and a hearty appetite was also not something just any financial means could handle.

In comparison, magical power fell a bit lower on the priority list.

Once a homunculus was created, it became an independent creature in its own right—requiring money to maintain, but not magic.

Material reconstruction usually consumed magic, so having plenty of magic as an alchemist was certainly beneficial, but compared to other schools that suffered from functional inadequacies without magic, it was much more manageable.

This was why Elphaba could remain calm despite the growing number of undead during the furious battle on the rooftop.

‘Do they think they can outnumber me? Foolish!’

It was truly annoying and also funny.

Indeed, the enemy’s forces were increasing, and Elphaba’s own were gradually dwindling.

If this continued, they could eventually be outmatched.

However, that would be quite impossible.

Elphaba didn’t need to expend any magic to make the homunculus fight, while Dorothea had to constantly spend magic.

Every act of resurrecting a fallen homunculus, moving their bodies, and healing their wounds required pouring out magic, and the more powerful the basic abilities of the homunculus, the more intense the magic consumption.

‘A regular wizard might manage maybe three at most; even skilled Franka would only handle about thirty in such a scenario.’

That was only if they focused solely on resurrecting and maintaining the undead without caring about anything else.

Yet Dorothea was currently maintaining a defensive spell with her staff and even supplying magic to the Tin Knight all at once.

On her way here, she had to have been consuming magic all along, so it wouldn’t be surprising if she ran out right now.

No, it was quite strange she hadn’t run out of magic yet.

‘If by some miracle, she really did manage that… By then, reinforcements would surely have arrived.’

In that moment, when they thought that their desperate efforts had grasped hope, Elphaba resolved that she would simply crush them under a tidal wave of force far exceeding anything they had previously displayed.

Sure, the guards outside might lessen a bit, but that seemed like a fair trade-off to soothe a bruised ego.

The Western Witch’s eyes gleamed with a sinister and cruel light.

***

-■■■■!

With a beastly roar, the swung right arm was blocked by a shield, causing the Tin Knight to slide backward.

He wanted to counterattack immediately, but first, he had to deal with the mercilessly swung golden weapon aimed at Dorothea.

He parried spears, blocked axes, and changed the trajectory of arrows that would smash into another homunculus.

All this occurred in a single breath. Truly a sight to behold.

The homunculi, seeing the opening created by Elphaba’s defense, lunged in, but even then managed to twist their bodies to minimize damage.

If he had utilized his initial technique, he might not have sustained any injuries, but he was running low on magic to afford that now.

To fight easily, he wanted to receive a magic supply from Dorothea at least once, but sadly, he couldn’t retreat from the current situation.

Behind the Tin Knight, within the barrier Dorothea had established, Adel was receiving treatment from Sophia.

Proof of the fierce battle was evident as all her armor and clothes lay tattered, and both of her swords were missing edges in several places.

While Dorothea grimaced, blocking the attacks of homunculi with the barrier, she asked,

“Adel. You okay?”

“I’m fine.”

It was an immediate response without hesitation. But that only made it evident how little strength she had left.

Adel’s complexion was extremely pale.

Though her body was being healed by Sophia as wounds appeared, the blood flowing out of her was another issue.

If it weren’t for Adel’s uniquely tough constitution, it would have been bizarre if she hadn’t collapsed long ago.

“You need to switch places with the knight. That’s how it has to be.”

“If a switch is needed, that guy will signal me when it’s time, so until then, just rest. There’s no way that beast of a fighter can’t see better than you.”

When Dorothea answered rather brusquely, Adel looked momentarily stunned before nodding obediently.

Under normal circumstances, she would have protested that she was okay and needed to help, but her half-dazed eyes made it seem like she simply had no energy left for complex thoughts.

Dorothea inwardly sighed.

‘This is too close for comfort.’

The strategy itself wasn’t flawed.

The small attacks of the homunculi didn’t breach Dorothea’s wall, and the only attack capable of doing so from the Western Witch was intercepted by the Tin Knight, which meant none made it through.

The battle for homunculus dominance that started with a 5 to 195 ratio had now narrowed to 50 for us to 150 for them, and as more allies joined, the speed of reclaiming dominance increased as well.

The problem lay with the Tin Knight and Adel’s side.

Under normal circumstances, the Tin Knight would obliterate most foes with just one supply of magic, but this time, he was facing someone exceptionally strong, prompting multiple requests for magic within a single battle.

While the Tin Knight replenished his magic, Adel had to fill in that gap, but each time she had to endure near death just to hold on for a few seconds.

Adel’s injuries and fatigue were piling up, and the Tin Knight, too, had to fight outside the barrier before fully restoring his magic, resulting in increasingly shorter intervals between his requests for supply.

‘If only we had Amaryllis’s belt here, things would be much easier.’

Since earlier, the Tin Knight had tried to retrieve the belt, but defending the barrier from Elphaba’s attacks left him little room to maneuver. Even if he managed to injure a homunculus wearing the belt, another homunculus would quickly claim it, resulting in an endless loop.

Which would reach their limit first, our two warriors or reclaiming dominance from the homunculi? It was indeed a precarious gamble.

Dorothea’s gaze fell upon the green liquid covering the rooftop ground.

There was still a trump card left.

But it was a one-time opportunity.

A strategic move against the surplus forces that Elphaba possessed.

If she failed to seize it or allowed Elphaba to escape, the aftermath would be everyone meeting a tragic end under overwhelming numbers.

It wasn’t about having courage or not.

Whether to believe in winning this tightrope battle and saving the next move or to disregard the enemy’s reinforcements and aim for Elphaba’s neck was a gamble, either way.

The hesitation didn’t last long.

With determination igniting her eyes, Dorothea shouted just as the Tin Knight deflected an attack from Elphaba:

“Both of you, follow me!”

“Huh?”

“Understood.”

Both a confused question and a calm answer rang out together.

Dorothea took action instead of explaining.

Now, right at this moment, was the only time she had to do so.

As she released the barrier, she dashed forward.

The homunculi’s attacks grazed her skin, but Dorothea didn’t stop.

“Tin can!!”

The Tin Knight’s blue eyes turned toward Dorothea.

Due to battling at the extreme limit of magic conservation, despite his initially overwhelming strength, his body was in disrepair.

Nevertheless, even in such a state, he was formidable.

With a mighty swing of his sword, he momentarily halted the advancing enemies before suddenly leaping beside Dorothea.

The moment the three gathered in one place, Dorothea activated her staff’s barrier again.

This time, even smaller and sturdier than before. To hold out even for one more second.

As they faced concentrated fire without anyone to cover for them like the Tin Knight or Adel, the barrier screamed.

Dorothea ignored it and poured magic into the Tin Knight.

He needed to have some energy left for the final blow.

10% magic remaining. Cracks began to appear in the barrier, and the undead homunculi, now losing their main power, started to falter.

20%. The golden weapons of the witch were raised high, and Adel let out a scream.

30%. The barrier pierced by a spear shattered, and the axe’s lethal strike almost cleaved Dorothea in two when the Tin Knight redirected its course with his sword.

Having shielded her team from the ensuing arrow assault at the cost of Sophia becoming a pile of mush, Dorothea triggered her trump card.

As the homunculi, who had been pushed back, suddenly began to push against their enemies, the natural environment of the “garden” that Dorothea revived with multiple catalysts exploded in power, making the plant-infested mediums grow explosively strong off her magic. This was possible because the corpses hadn’t been dead long.

Since she used it without securing enough dominance first, the army reinforced by the “garden” was unable to wipe out the enemies in one fell swoop.

However, it could at least hold the homunculi’s legs for a fleeting moment.

That brief moment was not wasted by the two priests.

The Tin Knight’s sword cleaved through the body of a homunculus equipped with “Amaryllis’s belt.”

Adel’s toes kicked the belt into the air.

Even though she only haphazardly donned the belt around her neck and shoulders without even enough time for a proper fitting, that alone ignited an entirely different power within her.

As if trying to intercept the charge of the Tin Knight, the fourth mechanical arm’s shield obstructed their path.

Adel leaped.

With a full rotation in the air, the tip of her sword erupted with purple spirals.

The momentum of her spin, combined with her full weight and overwhelming brute force, sent the shield flying.

Woosh!

The Tin Knight’s sword once again shimmered with magic.

Two swift slices through the air severed the roots and neck of the golden pillar.

10% magic remaining.

The top part of the pillar where the Western Witch stood fell to the ground.

The witch’s face was one of disbelief.

She seemed to reject that such a thing could happen.

As the Tin Knight aimed to strike the Western Witch down, the top part of the pillar itself distorted like a golden bead, protecting the witch inside.

Moreover, the fallen segment of the pillar seemed to attempt to reunite with itself.

The spear, axe, and crossbow’s arms all tried to block the Tin Knight’s assault.

With a surge of might from the Tin Knight’s sword, he cut through them as well.

1% magic remaining.

With his sword aimed at the fallen sphere, the Tin Knight swung down.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ shouts that the struggle phase has ended!]

The golden sphere was cleaved in half.