CH 237

Episode 237 – Canyon Monkey

“We’ve arrived at the unlucky 17th layer. Rosalie-san, Aruna-san, are you guys doing okay?” (Lewin)

“Yes! Since we took a break in the middle, I’m doing well on stamina. We also left our bags on the 10th layer, so I think we can make it to the 20th layer.” (Rosalie)

“Easy. I’m doing well.” (Aruna)

Having slept at the Safe Area on the 10th layer, we arrived at the canyon area with stamina to spare, just as Rosalie had said. The problem was the series of battle after battle from here on out. But we had plenty of time and stamina, so we should be able to make it to the 20th layer.

“That’s good. Let’s give it our all― oh, looks like they’re already onto us.” (Lewin)

“Blue Ogres. Behind us is a pack of Angry Wolves.” (Aruna)

“Above us, there’s Goblin Archers and Blood Bats, too! We’re suddenly surrounded.” (Rosalie)

“Aruna, take the monsters above. Rosalie will be the main attacker, I’ll be the sub-attacker.” (Lewin)

“Thrust Buffalo to the side! The Blue Ogre behind it is the last one!” (Lewin)

After reporting the information of the enemy location to Rosalie, who had just cut down a Soilbug, I stepped forward to take her place. These were the last two enemies of the 18th layer.

With the end of a long battle in sight, it’s easy to get careless. Against a Thrust Buffalo, it was always possible to lose your life if you weren’t careful. I reminded myself to remain focused, then stomped off the ground and launched myself into an overhead slash.

In the meantime, it tried to attack me with the balloon-like bulge on its forehead. But perhaps due to the results of my plant ingestion session the day before yesterday, I cut through it easily. The balloon on its forehead was ripped open with the echoing sound of an explosion, and fresh blood spurted out as the wound penetrated all the way through its skull.

It was a gory spectacle that made me instinctively want to avert my eyes, but there was still a Blue Ogre coming from behind it, so I didn’t have time for something like that. Since my sword was already in a downward position, I moved my foot forward and was about to follow through and cut towards the Blue Ogre in the rear, but…

“[Power Arrow].”

“Phew…. You stole the best part, Aruna-san.” (Lewin)

“If you were able to move, I wouldn’t have wanted to waste an arrow either.” (Aruna)

“Aruna judged that you were unable to move immediately, so she shot an arrow preemptively. Anyway… we cleared the 18th layer!” (Rosalie)

“Right. All that’s left is the 19th layer. How are you guys doing on stamina?” (Lewin)

“I’m fine. There are no attacks from above on the 19th layer, so it’ll be easy peasy.” (Aruna)

“I’m also doing alright. It’s good that there will be no monsters attacking from above, it’ll make it a lot easier to fight.” (Rosalie)

Just in case, I used a Recovery Potion to make sure we were in good condition before moving on. We had been forced into a tougher fight than we had expected, but since we stayed overnight in the Dungeon, it seemed like we could still make it to the 20th layer.

After a short break, we made our way to the 19th layer. I looked warily to my left and right, but it was just a stretch of land with absolutely nothing in it. I expected monsters to come at us unceasingly like they had done in the 17th and 18th layers, but it was a complete let-down.

“It’s really quiet. It’s a lot like the 16th layer, isn’t it?” (Lewin)

“It would be pretty anticlimactic if that were the case… But based on my past clears, monsters should be rampant on the 19th layer as well.” (Rosalie)

“Mm. That’s what I saw on the projections too.” (Aruna)

Just like Aruna, I had also seen the 19th layer being flooded with monsters several times in the past. I wanted to think optimistically and say that there just happened to not be monsters around this time, but I could see traces of battle remaining in the surrounding area, hinting at the signs of a recent fight.

“There are traces of a fight all over the ground, so it seems that there was a fight going on here until just recently. Do you think that maybe they were left by adventurers that are staying on the 20th layer?” (Lewin)

“It would be nice if that were the case, but… probably not.” (Aruna)

As if confirming Aruna’s words, a strange scraping sound could suddenly be heard from a slanting cliff in front of us. The sound seemed to be coming up the cliff, becoming louder and louder until finally, a hand could be seen on the edge of the cliff.

“A Canyon Monkey! They’re coming this way!” (Rosalie)

As soon as Rosalie had become aware of the identity of the monsters, she had immediately shouted out a warning, and we swiftly prepared for battle. One by one, multiple Canyon Monkeys, covered in black fur, began to climb up the cliff. Very soon, we were surrounded by the armed Canyon Monkeys.

“These Canyon Monkeys are the most troublesome. I didn’t think that we would run into an entire pack when we’re only 1 layer away from the 20th layer.” (Lewin)

“No… well, Canyon Monkeys are indeed the most troublesome monster in the canyon area, but that’s only if you take the cliff route. As you can see, the Canyon Monkeys are not all that big or strong. They have some intelligence to be able to use adventurers’ equipment, but on flat ground, they’re only a bit stronger than a Goblin, so there’s nothing to be afraid of. I mean, they aren’t the type of monster that would normally attack us on flat ground, even if they were in a pack.” (Rosalie)

When Rosalie spoke up to that point, a sound even louder than the sound of Canyon Monkeys climbing the cliffs could be heard, similar to the rumbling of the earth. The sound was giving me the image of a monster with an even larger physique, which gave me a really bad feeling.

But taking into account the fact that the Canyon Monkeys might attack us in the back here, we had no option of retreat. We stood there in our stances, weapons at the ready, as the rumbling sound of something scaling the cliff at a remarkable speed started growing louder. Before long, a figure appeared, leaping its way onto the 19th layer.

It had black fur resembling the Canyon Monkeys’ fur, but it was tinged with gold. It also possessed an overwhelmingly large build that made the Blue Ogres look small in comparison. It beat on its chest threateningly and unleashed an ear-splittingly loud roar in our direction, as its long, thick tail curled about its body.

This monster… was a rare species of the canyon area that I had never even seen on the projections before. It was the Peak Gorilla.