The Wizard Has A Biochip

The blades spun at an absurd speed, throwing sparks as their steel teeth gleamed in the darkness.

The two creatures lunged at the same time.

They didn’t even have time to realize the mistake they had made.

—FUCK!!

I shouted, unleashing all the tension that had built up since the beginning of that chase.

The chainsaw traced a perfect horizontal arc.

"VRRRAAAAAAKKKKK!!"

The blade tore through the first Rotten Phantom at waist level.

It met no resistance.

The rotting flesh split apart like compacted mud.

Fragments of bone, blackened entrails, and sludge splattered against the cave walls.

Without losing momentum, the chain kept going.

"SCHRAAAKKK!!"

The second demon was cut in half before it could even raise its claws.

Both bodies collapsed into pieces.

The cave was engulfed by the nauseating stench of rotten flesh and dark blood.

My breathing remained heavy.

But the rage...

It was still burning.

I walked over to what remained of the first creature.

I raised my mechanical leg.

Then I brought it down with all my strength.

"CRAAAKK!!"

Its skull exploded beneath my steel boot.

Hardened bone fragments mixed with sludge scattered across the ground.

I looked at the second corpse.

It received exactly the same treatment.

"CRAAKK!!"

Its head was crushed like a rotten fruit.

I spat beside the remains.

—Filthy bitches...

Only then did I notice the silence.

The adrenaline was beginning to fade.

My chest rose and fell violently.

I braced one hand against the damp cave wall.

My vision wavered.

Tiny points of light began dancing before my eyes.

—Huh?

I frowned.

That wasn’t just exhaustion.

I knew my body’s limits well.

This was different.

A strange sensation crawled beneath my skin.

Like thousands of tiny ants marching across my arms.

I looked at the cuts scattered between the armor plates.

My heart sank.

Poison...

Their claws.

They were poisoned.

Without panicking.

My hand quickly searched through the compartments on my belt.

At last, my fingers found a small, ice-cold vial.

Antidote.

I smiled in relief.

I ripped out the cork with my teeth.

I swallowed the entire contents in a single gulp.

The liquid was bitter.

It burned like cheap alcohol.

For a few seconds, I felt an unpleasant warmth spread through my stomach.

Then...

The tingling began to fade.

The dizziness subsided.

I slowly flexed my fingers.

Everything was returning to normal.

I leaned against the wall once more.

Even down here, I could still feel vibrations traveling through the earth.

The battle was still raging.

Brimy and Magaly were still occupied.

If those two monstrous beings kept trying to kill each other...

I’d have a few minutes to work.

I looked around.

After all...

No thief worthy of the name leaves a hideout without checking the vault first.

—Biochip.

—Activate night vision.

["Beep."]

["Night vision activated."]

A greenish glow filled my vision.

The darkness vanished.

The cave revealed its true appearance.

And...

It was exactly what I had imagined.

A massive pile of junk.

Everything was stacked without any organization.

A genuine dump.

I was about to give up when a faint glimmer caught my attention.

Deep within a pile of bones.

Something was emitting a very faint light.

I knelt down.

I carefully brushed aside the scraps of leather and wood.

Then a few skulls.

Finally...

I found a small crystalline sphere.

Round.

Slightly translucent.

Its interior pulsed slowly like a sleeping heart.

The moment my fingers touched the crystal...

A chill ran down my spine.

My breath caught.

No...

It can’t be...

—Biochip.

—Analyze this item.

["Beep."]

A beam of light swept across the crystal’s entire surface.

A few seconds later...

The information appeared before my eyes.

["Object identified."]

["Mud Phantom Spirit Core."]

["Similarity: 99.37%."]

I froze completely.

Then...

A disbelieving laugh escaped my lips.

—Holy shit... I’m rich!

I held the Spirit Core even more carefully.

This was a genuine treasure.

Spirit Cores were used by virtually every major magical profession.

Everyone competed for materials like this.

Besides storing an enormous amount of magical energy, they possessed incredibly rare properties, making them invaluable components for crafting artifacts and conducting research.

Even if you offered more than five thousand magic crystals...

Finding someone willing to sell one was almost impossible.

Money alone wasn’t enough.

You needed luck.

And at that moment...

Luck had finally decided to smile on me.

I shook my head, laughing to myself.

When all was said and done...

Maybe I should even thank Magaly.

If she hadn’t chased me into this damned swamp...

I would never have found something this precious.

I carefully placed the Spirit Core into the inner compartment at the waist of my armor.

It would be safe there.

Now it was time to disappear.

Brimy wouldn’t have survived this long as a leader without preparing escape routes.

No intelligent lair had only one exit.

My old world had a curious saying.

A clever rabbit always has more than one doorway to his room, so when his wife arrives, his mistresses can slip away unnoticed.

I looked at the three paths.

The first led toward the main lake.

Going back that way would practically be handing myself over on a silver platter.

The second descended even deeper.

Dark.

Damp.

And probably crawling with creatures.

I ruled that one out as well.

That left the third.

A narrow passage, almost hidden among the roots.

Judging by the airflow, it seemed to lead out of the swamp.

Exactly the kind of route a part-time thief like me loved.

Without wasting another second, I partially powered down the chainsaw and started making my way through the narrow tunnel.

.

.

.

.

.

The thick mud slowly parted around my head.

"Blup..."

I emerged just enough to breathe.

My metal helmet was completely covered in sludge, moss, and tiny rotting roots.

In that state, I looked more like a forgotten rock in the swamp than a human.

I remained perfectly still.

I breathed slowly.

I listened.

Silence.

Or at least, the kind of silence only a swamp could offer.

In the distance, muffled sounds traveled through the mud.

Monstrous roars.

Heavy impacts.

Shockwaves sent faint vibrations rippling through the water.

From time to time, enormous bubbles burst across the lake’s surface.

I discreetly looked around.

The lake where I had surfaced seemed relatively calm.

There were probably still a few Rotten Phantoms hiding beneath the mud.

But Brimy’s desperate call had undoubtedly drawn most of them toward the battlefield.

This was my chance.

I began walking slowly.

No sudden movements.

No splashing.

The less attention I attracted...

The better.

I never wanted to see that scary, chocolate-skinned MILF again.

But... I can’t deny that I wished I had enough power to do the same thing to that MILF that I did to Crystina.

It would be wonderful to rape her and fill Magaly’s chocolate-colored womb with my white sperm.

["Warning! Dodge to the side immediately!"]

The Biochip’s voice exploded inside my mind.

My body reacted before I could even think.

I shoved the water aside with all my strength.

"BOOOOOOM!!"

The surface of the lake exploded exactly where I had been.

Mud, water, and rocks were blasted in every direction.

My heart skipped a beat.

In the middle of the explosion, a massive shadow tore through the water.

A Poisonous Land Shark.

Its grotesque mouth hung wide open.

Rows of black, serrated teeth gleamed beneath a coating of viscous saliva.

The creature grazed my armor as it shot past.

If I had hesitated for even a single instant, I would have been completely screwed.

My escape plan had just gone straight to hell.

The shark dove beneath the surface again.

I barely had time to catch my breath.

The water behind me stirred once more.

It was coming back for another attack.

Its jaws opened again.

But before charging...

It spat out a massive spray of acid.

The greenish liquid sliced through the air.

The moment it touched the water...

"STIFFFFFF~~~~"

A thick cloud of corrosive vapor engulfed the surface.

The acidic stench burned my nostrils.

I immediately activated the armor.

The magic core responded to my command.

"VROOOOOOMM~~"

Energy surged through every gear.

The springs compressed.

The pistons roared.

There was no longer any room to conserve fuel.

It was all...

Or nothing.

The shark charged again.

This time it was even faster.

I waited.

Closer.

Closer...

Closer...

The instant its jaws were about to reach my chest...

I dove to the left.

Its enormous head skimmed past my shoulder.

Now...

"VRRRRRRRR-CLANK!!"

The chainsaw roared.

The spinning blade met the monster’s body.

"SCHRAAAAAAAAKK!!"

The impact sliced through hide, muscle, and bone as though they were butter.

The shark was split cleanly in half.

Both halves continued forward for several more meters before slowly sinking.

Dark blood spread through the water.

Entrails floated around me.

For one brief moment...

I thought I had won.

Then the surface began to bubble.

One.

Two.

Five.

Ten different areas of the lake erupted into motion.

My smile vanished.

Large fins broke through the mud.

Then another.

And another.

The scent of fresh blood had attracted the rest of the pack.

Excellent, George...

Kill one shark...

And invite the entire family over for dinner.

I clenched my teeth.

My mind raced.

There was no time to complain.

The first one lunged from the left.

I dodged.

The second burst up almost beneath my feet.

I leaped using the armor’s springs.

The third tried to bite me out of the air.

I twisted my body.

The chainsaw roared.

"VRRRAAAAKK!!"

Another body split in two.

Another came immediately behind it.

I ducked.

Its jaws passed over my helmet.

I answered with an upward slash.

"SCHRAAAKK!!"

Another shark fell apart into pieces.

But they wouldn’t stop.

The water seemed alive.

For every corpse...

Two more appeared.

The Biochip’s warnings became constant.

["Dodge to the right."]

["Forward jump."]

["Acid detected. Duck immediately."]

My body obeyed without thinking.

Every movement was decided in fractions of a second.

It was a true massacre.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Finally, I managed to carve a path through.

My feet touched solid ground.

I looked back.

The Land Sharks remained near the edge of the deep water.

They growled.

They bared their teeth.

But they did not advance.

...

1708 Words