CHAPTER 28: CHAPTER 28 : MUMMIFIED MAGE

It had been quite some time since Alexia had been separated from her companions. Although anxious, she walked between the walls of the labyrinth toward a destination unknown to her.

As she moved through those sinister corridors, where the only source of light came from the flames she had summoned, a sudden chill ran down her spine for some reason.

"Damn it, where are Amelia and the boys?" she sighed before continuing.

"If only Deon were with me..."

"Lord, what am I even thinking?"

Alexia had never been interested in anyone before. After all, she had a duty, and a heavy burden rested on her shoulders. She had to become stronger to reclaim what was hers and save her family. Like almost everyone in that strange village, she had a past—and a cross to bear.

But lately, she had begun to feel something for someone. It bothered her at first, but she eventually got used to it. She wasn’t a child; she knew what those feelings meant. Still, she wasn’t ready—and who knew, maybe it would pass.

As her thoughts wandered,

she heard footsteps approaching in a steady rhythm. If she were to trust her imagination, it sounded like someone walking with confidence—radiating assurance.

The moment she heard the first steps, she stopped immediately, wary and confused, waiting to see who was coming. After a few seconds, a feminine silhouette began to take shape in the darkness.

As the figure drew closer, Alexia could see bandages covering her entire body: an average-sized female figure wrapped completely in cloth. In her hand was a strange book with symbols written all over it.

Boom!

A massive explosion shook the area where Alexia stood. The execution was far too fast.

The feminine figure hadn’t waited a single second before launching her first attack. No summoning, no chant—just a small symbol appearing in the air, followed by an explosion.

"Pro... te... ct..."

The feminine silhouette mumbled after her first strike. Alexia had barely dodged it. Luckily, she came out unscathed. Being a summoner who fought using the fire element, her resistance to it was nothing to scoff at.

Nevertheless, she was intrigued. Never in her life had she heard of someone speaking inside a portal.

"Are you a monster or a human?" she asked.

Having never faced such a situation before, her first reflex was to question her unknown opponent to see if communication was possible—so she could decide what to do next. But...

"Pro... te... ct..."

The woman merely kept repeating the same words softly, paying no attention to what Alexia said.

Soon, new explosions erupted. But this time, Alexia wasn’t caught off guard. Anticipating the blasts, she had already summoned her "Gnome," an earth spirit, to erect walls for protection.

Despite the hostility of her opponent, Alexia didn’t seem willing to fight. She hesitated to kill her—because to her eyes, that being still looked human.

"But why is she acting like this? Has she lost her mind? Has she already turned into a monster?"

Alexia was lost in thought, borderline curious...

If Deon had been in her place, he would have immediately recognized the type of creature before her. Because even though there was no magic in his previous world, any history enthusiast from Earth would’ve recognized this creature.

Standing before Alexia was a mummified human.

"I have to finish this quickly. Should I trap her and run away?"

While she was still thinking, the mummified woman suddenly dashed toward her at an astonishing speed. In her left hand burned a runic symbol, while her right hand’s nails extended into long, razor-sharp claws. In barely two seconds, she was already before Alexia—ready to tear her head off or burn her alive.

Far from being caught off guard, Alexia drew her sword, which emanated a chilling aura. At first, she had been reluctant to kill the creature since it looked so human. But faced with such overwhelming hostility, she made up her mind.

"You must have someone or something to protect, huh? Well, so do I. Let’s fight for what we each hold dear."

Her cold steel blade clashed against the powerful, unnaturally hard claws of the mummy, producing a strange sound.

The mummy’s other hand, already glowing with a runic symbol, detonated shortly after. It looked like a suicide attack. But Alexia had anticipated it as well. Just before the explosion, her earth spirit wrapped her in several layers of dirt, forming an instant armor.

Boom!

The blast echoed through the labyrinth, hurling both fighters in opposite directions. Part of Alexia’s improvised armor had been destroyed.

As for the mummy, the explosion had burned away her bandages, revealing her body underneath.

"What is this? An undead?"

Alexia couldn’t find the right words for what she saw. She had already assumed it was an undead, but she had never heard of one with dry, hardened skin. Normally, undead creatures had flesh in constant decay. Moreover, she had never heard of one that could speak.

"What are you, really?"

"Pro... te... ct..."

Another assault began. They were both ranged fighters, yet now they were battling at close quarters with astonishing agility and mastery.

As the fight reached its peak, the corridor of the labyrinth began to glow. It was only then that Alexia noticed dozens of floating runes surrounding them.

"Impossible! How did she manage that in the middle of battle? Another suicide attack?"

Alexia already knew how destructive a single rune could be. Now that there were a dozen, she quickly imagined the scale of devastation.

"You pyromaniac! Protect? More like destroy everything!" she yelled, bracing herself mentally for the explosion as she continued trading violent blows with the mummy.

"Pro... te... ct..."

Boooom!

Those were the mummy’s last words before a torrent of explosions erupted. Unlike the earlier ones, these were far more devastating.

Ding!

[ You have slain a Mummified Mage ]

[ Strength +50 ]

[ Agility +60 ]

[ Endurance +50 ]

[ Gained 500 experience points ]

[ You ... ]

The system issued several notifications, and when the explosions finally ceased, the mummy’s body lay impaled on a stone stalactite.

A few meters away stood Alexia, her combat outfit badly damaged. She was crouching, her face showing a victorious smile.

Earlier, struggling to defeat the mummy, Alexia had decided to end it with a surprise attack. To make her plan work, she had to conserve as much mana as possible—that was why she had relied so heavily on close combat.

Curiously, the mummy seemed to have had a similar idea. Thinking about it now left Alexia speechless.

"Mummified Mage, huh? Is it some kind of human turned monster that still retains thought?" she murmured, perplexed, staring at her opponent’s corpse from afar.

As she caught her breath, Alexia noticed a faint glimmer near the mummy’s body.

"A book?" she muttered, approaching the object cautiously.

After a brief inspection, she decided to pick it up. After all, sometimes monsters dropped artifacts upon death. It was rare, but not impossible—and this was her first time witnessing it.

Ding!

[ You have obtained a Legendary Artifact: Runic Grimoire ]

Alexia was stunned by what the system displayed. Her mentor had often told her how rare artifacts were, so she had some idea of the value of what she now held in her hands.

Opening the first page of the book triggered another system notification.

Ding!

[ Rune Mastery: 0% ]

As she marveled at it, the sounds of battle echoed from nearby—someone else was fighting close by.

Without wasting a moment, Alexia stored the grimoire and ran toward the source of the noise.

Soon, she disappeared into the shadows that blanketed the labyrinth’s interior.