112-102 Deep into the Forest

I've grown an [Enemy Search] skill, by the way...

It wasn't until a while after they started walking that Toya mentioned this.

"Oh, really?

"Yeah. I can see more now than ever.

He looked back at me and gave me a smug look.

...... No, no, no. If Toya becomes too powerful, I won't be able to do my job.

I'm sure it will come in handy when you're camping.

I'm sure you'll be able to figure out what's going on.

Yeah. I didn't know how to do it.

I didn't know how to do it. - Why don't you just copy it?　I'm sure you'll be able to figure it out.

Whoa, another threat to my position?

That's right. I've been able to recognize the enemy's presence for some time now.

Me too. I can still sense their presence, though.

Seriously?　I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to do this, but I'm sure I'll be able to.

A little bit of a cheat, [enemy spotting] was the point of my appeal.

I'm sure it will help raise the overall level of the game, but it's a bit complicated.

No, no, no, it's not like Nao can see enemies that are over 100 meters away.

Yes. I'm sure you'll find it very useful.

But in terms of skill structure, Natsuki is more suitable for scouting. Nao is a bit half-hearted, isn't he?

Yuki, you shouldn't have said that. ....... You can't tell me the truth, but it will hurt you.

I'm sure you'll be able to tell me what you think, but I'm not sure what you think.

Weapon combat, magic, scouting. All of them are above average in the party, but if things continue as they are, Yuki is right, we're going to end up with a half-baked lineup.

Hmmm, should I focus on one of them?

No, from my point of view, it's like, don't tell me Yuki.　You're below average in everything you do, aren't you?

"That's right. I'm basically just copying stuff, and most of it is level one.

No, that's exactly what I'm talking about.　Toya!

I put my hand gently on Yuki's shoulder and smiled.

"Na, Nao, .......

I said to Yuki, who had a worried look on her face.

"You're so half-hearted, Yuki.

"You're going after me!

I'm sure you'll agree that this is a great idea.

I've been wondering the same thing.

Well, if you don't want to be poor at dexterity, you have to narrow your focus or work harder than others, right?

"Work harder than others?" ...... We still spend a lot of time training, don't we?

That's right. In other words, no matter how hard you work, your position in the party will not change.

If I train spear and magic for the same amount of time as Toya trains only swords, the difference in level will naturally increase. On the other hand, I don't think it's right for me to focus only on spear or magic. It's kind of a waste of time when you can do it. .......

It's not very useful then.

"That's fine, even if you're not very good at it. It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're going to be doing and how you're going to do it.　You don't always have to work with five people, you know.

That's right. If you think about the possibility of splitting up and exploring, I'm sorry to say it, but I think Yuki is 'easy to use'. In fact, Toya could use a few more skills .......

"Oops, a boomerang just flew in. I'm not the only one who thinks this, but I made my character as a complete warrior type. ......

I recommend the beast-eared ninja-- oops, chatter's over. Enemy responding.

What, you're going to stop there?　What, you're going to stop there?

Toya, who was walking in the lead, turned around and stared at me with a surprised look on her face, but I quickly ignored her and continued speaking.

"There is one response. I'm not an orc, what do you want?

You're ignoring me?

Toya, shut up. If there's one thing you know, it's how to fight.

Haruka, you're a terrible ....... What direction?

That way, maybe 80 meters?　I think it's a Bind Viper.

I'm not sure what to make of this.

If Scalp Ape's information that they are basically swarming is correct, and there is no other reaction in the vicinity, this is probably a Bound Viper. There is also no possibility that it is an ogre, but the strength that I can sense from the [search enemy] is not overwhelmingly stronger than an orc.

I'm sure it's a good idea, but I'm not sure if it's worth it.

I think it's fine, but will you be okay?　Strikes don't work well, do they?

That's what I'm trying to make sure of.

Accepting Toya's suggestion that he should cover her if she was in danger, he set a course toward the Bind Viper.

As I approached the last ten meters or so, Toya seemed to be able to see it, looked back, and nodded.

It looks like they're up in the trees. I can't see him yet.

Be careful, okay?

Sure.

He stepped more cautiously, until he was about a meter away when suddenly a long, thin object grew out of the tree.

It was about 20 centimeters in diameter.

The dark green snake stretched out about two meters at once and tried to entangle itself around Toya's neck.

However, it was not difficult for the wary Toya to dodge it, and she quickly dodged to the side and swung her sword.

It's hard!　It's hard!

The snake's body bent as if it had been struck by a flexible cord, but it did not seem to take much damage.

The evidence of this is that the Bind Viper is trying to shrink its body and return to the tree.

"What do we do?

"Please!

The one who asked was Haruka. The one who answered was Toya.

At that moment, before you knew it, an arrow was shot from Haruka, who had her bow at the ready, and it pierced the Bind Viper's eye.

I'm not sure what to make of this. ...... No matter how short the distance and how big the snake's head is, its eyes are only about two centimeters long.　I'm not sure I'd be so shocked.

While I was astonished like that, the situation was moving.

Natsuki's spear pierced the mouth of the Bind Viper, which opened wide the moment the arrow struck it, and it was sewn to the tree.

I immediately joined the fray and tried to thrust the spear into its head, but...

It's so hard!

The skull of the Bind Viper is harder than I imagined.

Natsuki's spear pierced through the snake's oral cavity and into its lower jaw, but my attempt to pierce its skull was repelled by the tougher epidermis and bones than I had imagined.

"Me!

Toya slammed the sword down on my behalf.

Toya's sword was less effective on the body, but a blunt instrument works well on hard things.

With a dull crunch, she crushed the bind viper's head, skull and all, and stained the tree trunk with a spray of blood.

The force of the blow was quite impressive, but the fact that Natsuki had quickly pulled out his spear a moment earlier was nothing short of brilliant.

If he hadn't, the spear might have been broken. As you can see, Haruka's arrow was shattered along with it.

Did you do it?　It's not the ...... flag, is it?

No, you're not going to come back from this, no matter what.

The body of the Bind Viper hangs limply from the tree, its head completely smashed.

You'll be able to find a lot more information on the web.

...... It's so long.

"Yeah. Toya, can you hold that for me?

Yeah.

When the two of us stretched it by its tail and head, it was at least four meters long. Compared to this length, its body looks thin, but it's still as long as my thighs.

"Toya, what kind of material can you get from a Bind Viper?

"Oh, I don't remember. Skin and meat. ...... Is the meat edible?　It was really hard.

Toya looks at the Bind Viper as if she's a little confused.

I also tried to hit the body with the handle of the spear, but it came back with a bang, bang, bang, as if I was hitting a rubber tire. At least it doesn't look tasty.

The skin looks tough, but ...... Yuki, can you cut it?

I'm not sure.　Wait a minute.

I'm not sure what to make of this. I tried to stab it with my spear, but it seemed to be tougher than orc skin.

My sword had no effect on the body. Do I need a sword that can cut?

"It's a snake, so Toya's weapon that can crush its head is important. Unless you can cut off the head in one fell swoop,......, can Natsuki do it?

I'm not sure what to make of this. I'm sure it's because of the skills he had originally acquired.

I'm sure you'll agree.　I'm sure you'll be able to find something that works for you. ...... Haruka, can I borrow your little sword?

I'm not sure what to say.

I'm not sure what to make of that.

It was a brilliant move, but it only resulted in cutting off about half of the body.

The result was only half of his torso, but it was still a bigger cut than Yuki's.

"Huh. At least it's impossible with this little sword. This is the result in this state, so in battle, ....... It's going to be difficult to cut off the backbone.

It's true, this spine looks hard.

A cleaver might be able to push through it with centrifugal force and weight, but ......

Tommy might be able to make one for you if you ask him, but I doubt you'll need it.

In a forest, wielding weapons seem to be a bit incompatible.

If you're talking about the Bind Viper, you don't need it, do you?

Yes. It's basically just one, and the spear sticks. And Toya is there to stop it.

And we have magic.

"Well, we'll try magic next time, but for now let's dismantle it. The advantage is that it seems to be easier than the others.

With Haruka's words, we split up and began to dismantle it.

After collecting the magic stone from the head, we split open the belly to remove the organs and bones.

I feel like I'm handling an eel. I've never done it before.

I've never done it before, but the average person doesn't have the opportunity to do it. ...... It's good to separate the bones.

When Natsuki made a slit from head to tail and pulled the bone, it connected and slipped out.

It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're doing. .......

The color of the flesh is quite ...... subtle.

I thought it was white. I thought it would be white. It doesn't look very tasty.

The meat of the Bind Viper was red. Tuna is also red, so I guess it's not abnormal, but ...... I don't think I want to eat it.

I'm not sure I'd want to eat it. The oak seems to be better in terms of pure taste.　It seems to sell for about the same price, though, because there are fewer of them in stock. The skins, on the other hand, sell for a lot more.

The skin is quite beautiful, isn't it? ...... Speaking of which, is there anyone who doesn't like snakes?

I'm not sure if you're a fan of snakes or spiders, but I don't see anyone showing any signs of dislike for them in this battle.

Incidentally, I am not good with caterpillars.

If they appear as demons, I will burn them with magic from a distance.

I'm not very good at them, but when they're this big, it's more of a problem than anything else. ......

That's true. Spiders are a different story.

It's a matter of judgment to a certain extent. At first, I thought I was going to throw up when I took it apart. --All right, it's done.

Haruka, with Toya as his assistant, rolled up the skin and put it in the magic bag, then cut the remaining meat into appropriate sizes and put it in the bag.

The rest of the meat was cut to the appropriate size and placed in the bag. "Well, let's explore some more and go home. If possible, I'd like to kill the Bind Viper again, this time with magic.

Okay. Let's find it.

Perhaps it was because we were deep in the forest, but the second Bind Viper was easy to find.

The search for the second Bind Viper also revealed a Scalp Ape, but we avoided it and fought the Bind Viper with magic. It was easily defeated.

The ordinary Fire Arrow had little effect, but the Fire Arrow, which was capable of blowing off the head of an Orc, easily penetrated the head of the Bind Viper.

The only problem was that the Bind Viper was basically on a tree branch, so using the "Fire Arrow" would blow off the branch along with its head, causing a bit of damage to the surroundings.

It's not a big problem because it won't spread the fire, but it would be smarter for Toya to crush the head if she can afford it. But if there is room, it would be smarter for Toya to crush the head.

However, it's great to know that if we don't mind the damage, me, Haruka, and Yuki can finish off the Bind Viper in addition to Toya.

--But on the other hand, Natsuki, who is the only one who doesn't have an effective attack, looks a little frustrated and is showing a strange motivation.

I'm sure you'll be fine. ......?