CH 227

Episode 227 – Onslaught of Monsters

“We somehow managed to pull off the impossible and reach the staircase without encountering a single monster.” (Lewin)

“This is my first time experiencing something like this. Detecting enemies in the canyon area is usually difficult.” (Rosalie)

“Mhm, all thanks to me. But… the problem is from here.” (Aruna)

We had managed to safely arrive at the stairs that brought us down to the next layer, but just as Aruna had said, this is where it got difficult. It was common knowledge that the canyon area was structured somewhat like an atrium, but being able to move from the upper layer to the lower layer wasn’t something that only adventurers had the privilege of.

Monsters could obviously move up and down between the upper and lower layers as well, which meant that attacks could come from above or below. This was why the 17th layer, which was sandwiched between the upper and lower levels, was where it really started to get difficult.

“That’s right! Unlike before, this is where the monsters’ attacks really start to come at you from all directions, so we need to be careful!” (Rosalie)

“I’m a little worried about whether the three of us will be able to handle it, but… for now, we’ll aim to return once we’ve cleared the 17th layer, so let’s put all our effort into it.” (Lewin)

“Mhm. I’ll take care of the long range stuff.” (Aruna)

Feeling more nervous than at the time before the Demon Arachnid fight, Rosalie and I made our way down the stairs to the 17th layer. Just like the 16th layer, the howling of the wind was the only sound amidst the stillness. But as soon as we descended from the staircase, I saw several Angry Wolves.

It was a monster that I was intimately familiar with, but I could still feel my body break into an unpleasant sweat from the trauma that had been instilled in me.

Calm down. As long as I don’t panic, I can deal with them. After convincing myself, I began to analyze the situation. It seemed that there was a big difference between the Angry Wolves in the Dungeon and the ones in the wild.

The bodies of the Angry Wolves in the Dungeon were a size smaller than the Angry Wolves found on Mount Cornello. Also, I didn’t feel any of that characteristic tenacity or spite, nor was there any of that sense of intimidation that made me feel like my heart was being squeezed.

“They’re coming! I’ll deal with the Angry Wolves in the center and on the right. Jade-san, please deal with the one on the left, and provide support if anything happens!” (Rosalie)

“Got it. If I defeat mine first, I’ll provide cover for you immediately.” (Lewin)

There was none of the sizing up that the Angry Wolves from before normally did when observing their prey. The three Angry Wolves simply charged in without hesitation.

―Hmm. Their movements are way slower.

Taking a few steps closer to the Angry Wolves who were charging towards me without regard, I matched my timing to their movements and swung my sword downwards from an overhead position. Just like that one time before where I happened to defeat that Angry Wolf in one blow using my entire body, my sword cleaved downwards and easily ripped through the Angry Wolf’s skull.

“One down. I’m coming to cover you.” (Lewin)

After I called out, I immediately went over to Rosalie’s position to provide cover. She had already dealt a fatal wound to one of them. Just like during the fight against the Demon Arachnid earlier, it seemed that she was putting the minimal motion thrusting technique to good use.

I was only able to learn this technique after receiving the relentless instruction of Edward from [The Egg Club], but since a while ago, Rosalie was already able to use it quite well. I was happy that she was imitating me, but I did feel a bit jealous about the difference in talent.

When I joined her side to provide cover, Rosalie finished off the fatally wounded Angry Wolf with a thrust. Rosalie and I then teamed up on the last remaining Angry Wolf, and we defeated all three Angry Wolves just like that.

“Thanks for the quick cover! You’re really on it, Jade-san!” (Rosalie)

“You were in charge of two of them, so for me it was an easy fi―” (Lewin)

“Focus, you two. There’s more, and also those Goblin Archers from before are aiming at us from above.” (Aruna)

I was breathing a sigh of relief after having defeated those traumatic Angry Wolves, when Aruna interrupted us with terse instructions. Looking up ahead, I could see a Thrust Buffalo heading towards us, followed by several Blue Ogres. And peering down at us from the cliff above was the pack of Goblin Archers who were aiming at us. These monsters were a step above, and their teamwork was tough to deal with.

“Please be careful of the Thrust Buffalo at the front! It’s the second most dangerous monster in this canyon area after the Canyon Monkeys!” (Rosalie)

The special characteristic of this monster was its two sharp horns and the swollen balloon-like portion of its head that stuck out between the two horns. What was troublesome about these monsters were the two types of attack patterns it had.

The first pattern was the orthodox charging attack with its horns, and the other was the charging attack with that swollen balloon-like part of its head.

It went without saying that the charging attack with its horns boasted of a high lethality, and it possessed enough power to pierce straight through one’s entire body if taken head on. But in this canyon area, the latter attack pattern was more dangerous. The reason for that was simple. The head attack was a knockback attack that couldn’t be guarded against.

Since there were all kinds of cliffs in this canyon area, there was a good chance you would get knocked off if you took that knockback attack. The number one cause of falling off the cliffs was the Thrust Buffalo’s attacks, and I saw adventurers on the Dungeon monitors getting rammed into from the side and getting knocked off the cliffs.

“Should I use arrows to keep it in check?” Aruna suggested.

“It’s fine. We’re in a safe position here, and I want to test a way of stopping its movements.” (Lewin)

The plants landed exactly in the place I had been aiming for, where they stuck tightly to the ground. The Thrust Buffalo continued to charge, completely ignoring them, and the moment it stepped on the plants I had thrown… its movements weakened as its legs got entangled, and it tumbled to the ground head first.

….Alright, I was a bit unsure, but it worked out well. The plants that I had thrown just now were Adhesive Herbs, which I also used in making the Medical Herb Pills.

This was a plant that possessed an extremely powerful stickiness on the stem and the surface of its leaves, but it became an even stickier liquid when mashed or ground. Just now, because the Thrust Buffalo stepped on and crushed it, it became sticky enough to completely block the movement of its charge.

“Ehh?! It fell over?!” (Rosalie)

“That did the trick. Now we don’t have to be scared of Thrust Buffalos anymore!” (Lewin)

I approached the fallen Thrust Buffalo that was struggling to tear off the Adhesive Herb and finished it off with a diagonal slash. I still needed to be careful about the amount of magic power needed to synthesize it and avoid using it when necessary, but it was safe to say that the Thrust Buffalos were now much less of a threat.

But then again, back when I had first discovered the Adhesive Herb, I didn’t think it would have any use, and yet now I was using it for all kinds of purposes. I was once again amazed and grateful for the diversity of plants.