Chapter 265: Abyss Swarm

265 – Abyss Swarm

“D-damn it! Go away!”

The man hides the girl behind him as he braces his spear.

“Veee…”

“VeaAE”

“Veveve”

With strange cries, the three abysses draw closer while grinding their teeth. It doesn’t look like he’d be able to hold out long.

“GuoOOOOH!”

I [Roar] to try and threaten them away, but all three of them only spare me a glance before bending their legs and dashing towards the man.

Damn it, it had the opposite effect! Last time they ran away, but they chose to go after their prey this time!

Last time there were two abysses and three Lithovars, so even though the abysses could have won, it would have taken them time. I kick off the ground and spread my wings, entering low-altitude flight.

“Get back in the house, please!”

The man shouts, and the girl moves towards the house with teary eyes. Breaking through the wall, a fourth abyss appears.

“VeaAH!”

“Kyaaaaah!”

The girl screams, collapsing on the spot. I want to scream too. These guys really won’t give me a break.

Now that it’s come to this, I need to scare them off. I tilt my wings towards the ground, raising my forefoot into the air, before swooping down and punching the ground.

It’s a [Return to Ground], a skill I got through [Brave Hero]. The ground shakes and rumbles as fissures open in its surface. Aiming the moment of pause as the abysses are surprised, I flap my wings to fire four simultaneous [Wind Slashes]. It’s a bit far, but with their movements stopped, it should hit!

“EaAH!”

“Veh!”

Two of the abysses are struck in their bodies by the [Wind Slashes] and are blown away. Bits of them dance through the air, leaking body fluids. Their legs quiver slightly and stop moving.

【360 experience points have been acquired. 】

【Due to the Title Skill [Walking Egg: Lv -], an additional 360 experience points have been acquired. 】

【The level of [Ouroboros] has risen from 66 to 67. 】

The other two just barely manage to dodge the [Wind Slashes]. But it looks that that was enough of a threat, as they take their eyes off the Lithovars and run away.

I kick off the ground with my back legs and put my weight on my forelegs to crush the abysses of them underfoot. The sound of them being squished rings out, and I feel the sensation of their legs wriggling under my feet. I hurriedly pull my forelegs back and rub my them in the sand to wipe off their body fluids… It’s discomforting, but if I’m going to get used to them then the unpleasantness can’t be helped.

But there are over twenty of them in the village? I want to think that some of them have left with my arrival.

“Th-thank you, dragon-god-sama… Umm, that child, could you perhaps escort them to the meeting hall basement?”

Despite sitting down to recover his breath, the man manages to compose himself to call out to me. I don’t know where the abysses are, so I’ve got no reason to refuse. In the current situation, it’s doubtful whether a single adult would be enough to get to the shelter safely. I nod, accepting to guide them to the meeting hall basement.

With the two of them guiding the way, we head through the village. The aftermath of abysses’ violence are scattered here and there. The pillars of a storehouse have been gnawed away, collapsing the structure, and in a coop, all that remains of the chicken-like animals are their feathers and legs. My only relief is that I can’t see any human bodies. After all, the Lithovars must be used to dealing with abyss attacks.

I hear a sudden, strange crunching sound. It must be eating something. Thinking the worst, the blood drains from my face.

After signalling to the man with my eyes, I run towards the source of the sound. Right in the middle of the street, three abysses are eating something. Whatever is in between them probably isn’t alive.

“GuooOOOH!”

Roaring, I kick off the ground. As I land, I tear into the defenceless backs of the abysses. It’s over in an instant. My claws pierce them, ripping apart their bodies. One of them tries to flee, but it’s too slow to avoid me as I cut it in half. Broken abyss bits and body fluid scatter throughout the area.

【558 experience points have been acquired. 】

【Due to the Title Skill [Walking Egg: Lv -], an additional 558 experience points have been acquired. 】

【The level of [Ouroboros] has risen from 67 to 68. 】

【Title Skill [Pest Killer] has risen from level 4 to 5】

I get the experience points for all three of them together. But I don’t have time to be paying attention to that. Suppressing the urge to avert my eyes, I check what they were eating.

It’s an abyss. The abysses were eating another abyss. It’s confusing, but there’s no mistaking it. The abyss’ body has been bitten apart, with only a single leg remaining.

Th-they were eating it together, too… I feel sick to my stomach. That reminds me, when I saw the abyss’ species explanation, something along those lines was written.

About five arrows are sticking into the corpse. A violet liquid is smeared on the arrow tips.

Is this the morz poison that Nagrom used? From what I can see, it got pierced by the poison arrows and then stabbed to death with a spear. It looks like, if they can surround one of them, the Lithovars are able to take them down. That’s a relief.

Sorry, but I’ll leave the corpse disposal to the Lithovars. It would be easy for me to do, but wouldn’t be good for my mental health.

I wipe the body fluids off my claws onto the ground… I wish I had known they were only eating another abyss, I wouldn’t have hurried so much, damn it. I could have just defeated them with [Wind Slash] like normal.

“That’s the meeting hall! Thank you very much! Now that we’ve made it this far, I can handle the rest…”

Before the man can finish what he’s saying, two abysses rush into the meeting hall.

““VeeeeEEe!””

Biting through the door, they break in.

“It’s okay… It’s okay…”

The man repeatedly says quietly. The girl is anxiously hugging his leg.

…The basement is okay, right? I want to believe it’s got a sturdy door at the entrance. Either way, I’ve got to deal with them. If they stay there, anyone who comes to take shelter would get eaten.