Volume 2 Chapter 33 Reconnaissance
Krrrrr... I'm starting to hear a strange sound I've never heard before.
"Sandra, what is this sound?"
"The Wyvern's breathing. It might still sound distant to you, but be careful. This breathing is meant to distort the sense of distance with the Wyvern."
I heard that the Wyvern's breathing doesn't seem to decrease in volume much, whether you're close by or hundreds of meters away. And at a certain point, it just stops being audible.
So, the more accustomed you are, not just humans but animals too, can misjudge the distance, encounter the Wyvern, and end up being preyed upon.
"Be cautious from the moment you hear it. Move as if you don't know when you'll encounter it. For a bow adventurer, facing enemies head-on is a disgrace."
Upon hearing those words, Toxy nodded silently. A bow adventurer is different from a torch adventurer. They use their wits, gain the upper hand, and hunt down enemies they wouldn't normally defeat using traps and tools.
From there, our actions were silent. Without speaking, we relied on Sandra's hand signals to guide us. We hid in the bushes, climbed trees, and at times used a bit of my magic to levitate a few people together.
In this way, we moved for several hours, bypassing all the monsters that were not our target this time.
Sandra's footsteps came to a halt.
"..."
Sandra turned back to us. Then, with her hands, she gestured for us to crouch down and peek in that direction.
There, a wyvern was devouring other monsters.
"Krrrrr..."
A dragon covered in green scales, several meters long. Even when crouched, its full length was towering. It folded its membranous wings, pinned the monsters with its claws, and thrust its sharp mouth into their heads.
What was terrifying was that the monster was once a formidable foe I encountered, a manticore. And it was silently chewing on it, with only the sound of its breathing remaining.
We swallowed nervously.
"Eating. Then it's safe."
And to our surprise, Sandra started talking.
"Huh!? S-Sandra...?"
"You don't have to speak loudly to talk. It's like when we're eating, we don't care if there are pigeons around. Wyverns are not monsters that fear humans. It would be bad if they were hungry, but right now they are eating a more worthwhile monster than all of us."
We opened our mouths in confusion.
"I-I see... Or rather, it's a strange feeling that the monsters remain as carcass without turning into particles."
"Dungeons and forests are different. Monsters inside dungeons are essentially part of the dungeon. Once they die, they are immediately absorbed into the dungeon. In the forest, they are eaten by other monsters and absorbed into the ecosystem."
"Is that so... Come to think of it, they mentioned something like that in the theoretical classes at the training school. I had forgotten."
"That's also charming. So, when you hunt Wyverns, you need to properly skin them, preserve the meat, and do various things. Do you have any experience?"
All of us, including me, nodded in agreement. The practical training around there was also done at the training facility.
I remember back then when quite a few trainees were down. It was like a piece of cake for me, I was used to it.
"Clay was really pale during the practical training. On the other hand, Ice was surprisingly good at it."
"I've forgotten about those old times."
"Well, when my father's business wasn't doing well, I had to slaughter livestock on my own, things like that..."
When I teased them, Clay shrugged his shoulders in a deliberate manner. Meanwhile, Ice was bashful.
"Ah, it's nice to have classmates from the same year. You have lots of memories."
"Don't sulk. Toxy and Sandra, let's create new memories from now on. ―――For now, let's go hunt Wyvern."
As I chuckled, Toxy smiled, "That's right," and Sandra blinked her eyes.
"Wade."
"Hmm? What's up, Sandra?"
"How much do you intend to make me fall for you?"
"Aren't you a bit too easy?"
As we had that conversation, we started to feel the tension easing up nicely.
"Alright, let's switch gears."
I called out to everyone. Everyone fell silent.
"Let's confirm again. This time, we're here to observe as a preliminary investigation for Wyvern hunting. The goal this time is to gather the information we need for the hunt."
Everyone nodded. I looked at Clay.
"Well, as Wade-kun said. As part of the preparation for the investigation, the information we want includes 'feeding behaviours,' 'defense power,' 'poison resistance,' 'vigilance,' and 'shock resistance,' right?"
"We already know about 'feeding behaviours' and 'vigilance.' The rest are 'defense power,' 'poison resistance,' and 'shock resistance.'"
In other words, we were all ready to take action.
"...If I stay quiet, everyone's fighting spirit will be inversely proportional."
"Eh, when Wade-kun fights as the main, it's no good if I'm useless, so..."
Ice pleaded with a flushed face.
By the way, Clay didn't mention 'attack power' while emphasizing 'defense power,' showing a mindset like 'not considering things assuming we'll get attacked,' huh?
Next is about poison resistance and shock resistance, but it's not even worth thinking about who brought it up.
"Well then, shall we get started?"
Saying that, Toxy took out a stick-like object. And put it in her mouth. Is that a blowgun? Not just a bow and arrow, huh, Toxy?
With a smooth flow, Toxy mixed a poisoned arrow into the meat the Wyvern was in the middle of eating.
"It ate it. Since it's tasteless and odorless, you can confirm the effect without noticing. It works immediately, so usually within 1 or 2 minutes."
After being told that, we waited. Then, the Wyvern showed a slight stagger in its body.
"Just a slight stagger. I see... Alright, I understand how much poison is needed to defeat it."
To figure it out so quickly. Truly, Toxy's knowledge about poison is outrageous.
"Well then, it's my turn at last."
Sandra stood up. Just in case, she was behind a tree so she wouldn't be found out.
"When I've pushed myself to the limit and can't move, I'll call for help. Then, Ice-chan and Earth-kun will beat them up, which one of those scales is it―――"
Suddenly, Sandra stopped speaking. We tilted our heads in confusion.
"Sorry, everyone,"
Sandra said, sweating nervously.
"I never expected this. I let my guard down."
"What's wrong? What do you mean?"
Feeling a sudden sense of danger, we looked up at the sky.
There, a different wyvern from the one we were watching was flying.
"There's a possibility of another wyvern sneaking up on us."
"RRRRAAAWWWR!"
"Thunderbolt!"
Around Sandra, the sound of intense electricity crackled. As she raised her hand, small sparks of electricity rose from it, creating a localized dark cloud above our heads.
"I'll be the decoy. Everyone else, run!"
A gleam and a roar. Almost simultaneously, it struck through the flying wyvern.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)