CH 204

Is it not too late?

It’s been six days since we arrived at the twenty-eighth floor.

We’ve fought a few monsters, but for now at least, we aren’t having much trouble with them.

That goblin king was the only superior species we fought, but its big size coupled with the narrow passage meant that it couldn’t move very well and went down easily.

Why was it even there? I guess there’s no point in thinking about it.

The strongest monsters we’ve faced here so far were two we hadn’t seen before, the strongest being a salamander and the second strongest a death spider.

I dealt with the salamander by using magic to block its fire breath, but it cost quite a bit of MP. Magic is weakened, but I was still able to exploit its weakness using Ice Pierce, and it also helps that slashes worked normally against it.

I could jump at it and make full use of Swordmaster skills. It’s been a while since I used a skill I learned via Swordmaster… I guess I have too many skills, and tend to forget about them.

We were taken aback by the death spider’s movements. It even ran on the ceiling, but that ended when Sera cut it in half.

It used its strings to move around like a certain superhero, so we were lucky that there weren’t any obstacles or anything. It would’ve been worse if we fought it in a forest.

“There sure are a lot of monsters.”

Everyone’s starting to look tired, so we take a break.

Hikari is right, the monsters we find are weak, but there are so many that we can’t advance as fast as we want.

Even if I use Map to guide us, we can’t avoid monsters. And it’s frustrating how I don’t even know if our current path will lead us to Leila and the others.

But pushing ourselves too much here is just going to end up putting us in danger. Actually, what we’re doing now is already dangerous.

The deeper we go, the more monsters there are, and I feel like they’re getting stronger.

We’re headed to such a dangerous place, and no one’s blaming me or complaining. It makes me feel like I’m taking advantage of their kindness.

And it also makes me feel like I have to do absolutely everything I can to keep them safe and repay their kindness.

“Master, I want more.”

I pour more soup for Hikari, and she drinks it with a happy expression on her face. I feel like that heals my heart a little.

I can’t get discouraged after coming so far. I need to stay strong and keep moving.

“It was a nice mental refreshment, wasn’t it?”

Says Rurika. Am I really that transparent? I can’t say she’s wrong, but…

“Sorry, I’m fine now. We’ve come this far, so stick with me a little longer.”

“Yes. And we’ll rescue Leila and get a nice tasty treat from her.”

Hikari never changes, and everyone smiles at her.

Let’s keep going then. I’ve recovered MP and SP, and I’m the one who’s the least tired, so I have to work harder than the others. Physically speaking, I’m not tired at all.

We walk for half a day after that, and just as we’re thinking about looking for a place where we can rest, I finally see people on Map.

Four people to be exact, which is less than what I was told.

“I found them! We’ll rest later.”

It’s… far.

And I see monsters heading there too.

And to complicate things even further, there are monsters in the passage, like they’re there to block our way. They’re moving like they’re going after the others.

This is trouble, but an opportunity too.

There are a lot of them, but if we can get close without being spotted, we could catch them off guard.

I load my gun with explosive rounds, attach the silencer, and also use magic to silence it completely. It shouldn’t echo even in a closed space.

I use Presence Detection to see where the monsters are, and Magic Energy Detection to check for traps. We move quickly while not letting ourselves get impatient, and after a few curvy passages, I use Presence Concealment and get some distance from the other five.

And once I get close enough to their backs, I run at full speed and pull the trigger before I’m spotted.

The bullet pierces the back of the monster furthest back, but it explodes and scatters. It’s like a weak shotgun, but I keep firing.

It might have to do with the magic energy I’m infusing in the gun being weakened.

Once I’m out of bullets, I use Wind Magic against the flames caused by the explosions. The idea was to use wind to make it easier to see, but it actually just makes the flames stronger, and the black smoke engulfs the monsters.

They roar and wail so… I guess it turned out fine.

And then a few monsters jump out from the black smoke, but Presence Detection already told me they’re coming, so I stay calm and deal with them.

But they’re not just coming here, some are also moving forward.

They’re going to slow me down, and I won’t catch the others.

“Leave this to us.”

Says Sera, and immediately after, I feel strong magic energy in front of me.

Wind blows violently, taking with it the flames and the smoke. I turn to look, and see Chris breathing heavily, who notices me and gives me a big nod.

I see. She saw that my magic was too weak to put out the fire.

Now I can see well, and run the shortest distance possible. I’m focusing less on taking down monsters, and more on taking them out of the way.

Hikari and Sera’s support helps a lot. I look around and check the monsters, but I don’t think any of them can get the better of the five girls.

I can let them handle it and run forward.

The monsters I dodge turn around and chase me, but I hear them scream and see reactions disappear from Map one after the other.

Finally, there’s the group that was ahead of the others. Among them are seven wolves and two tigerwolves. Fast monsters.

I run towards a wall while trying not to get surrounded. I could start slashing to keep them back, but I don’t want to use too much SP on skills, so I’m just attacking normally.

And as their numbers go down, I go around in the front and block the bath.

One of the monsters already turned the corner in the passage and keeps running forward, so I can’t chase that one now. I have to focus on not letting any more through.

By using Intimidate, I make the injured wolves run towards Hikari and others, leaving just one tigerwolf. At first it looks like it’s coming at me, but it turns around.

Should I chase it? They’ve already taken down most of the monsters there, but it’s still a tigerwolf.

“Sora, keep going!”

Yells Rurika, who sees I stopped.

I turn that way and our eyes meet, before I turn around and run.

Map shows me a monster turning the last corner. It’s not slowing down. Does it not care what’s behind it or… I don’t know what’s up with that, but it’s good for me.

I run at full speed like it’s the end of a race.