Chapter 28 Nice Firepower, Huh?
The "Dragon Mountain floor," where all the monsters that appear are dragon-type, is a place where even those who haven't explored it can easily imagine how high the difficulty level is.
But when we actually explored it, the difficulty level was even higher than we imagined.
After all, there are 51 Expert Explorers here. No matter how strong the dragon-type monsters are, we thought we could easily sweep away the small fry along the way.
However, when we opened the lid, we were met with a completely unexpected result.
The dragon-type monsters that can destroy a small town just by appearing on the surface. Those guys were attacking us in groups. The difficulty level was clearly different from the 40th floor and below, and it was like a different dimension altogether.
"What the...?! This is insane! We can't keep up with this pace!"
[God's Remains Labyrinth] 42nd floor.
In this floor, where a massive rocky mountain range stretches out, we were fighting against a group of Wyverns that kept attacking us one after another.
Calum, who was desperately swinging his spear, was crying out with a tearful face. The party members of ≪Balmung≫ were firing arrows and casting Fire Magic.
"These small fries are tough!"
Fiona activated [Sword Dance] and unleashed [Flying Slash] one after another. Although her power had already been strengthened to the limit, she still couldn't take down one of them with a single blow. Even the weakest Wyvern on the 42nd floor was still a dragon-type monster, and its scales were hard and difficult to cut through.
"Don't try to take them down by force! Lure them to one spot!"
Just when I thought Ail had activated [Stealth] and disappeared, he reappeared on the back of a Wyvern a few seconds later and stabbed his dagger into its weak neck. His technique of taking down a Wyvern with a single blow was impressive, but as a Scout-type Job, his efficiency in hunting was not very good.
So, Ail focused on taking out the Wyverns that were approaching us, while the other members were taking care of the rest.
"――Everyone! Let's go!"
It's hard to say whether it's unexpected or reasonable, but the ones who are making a big impact in our party are the people who believe that "Fire is Everything."
The leader, Claire, gave the signal, and the entire party activated their magic simultaneously.
≪Flame of Dominance≫ has a strategy that combined fire magic and wind magic, amplifying the fire magic with wind magic.
Three people activated fire magic, while the remaining 3 enhanced the flames with wind magic and controlled them further.
Fire Magic――[Inferno Flame]
Wind Magic――[Wind Control]
[Inferno Flame] was a fire magic that could produce extremely high-temperature flames, but it had the drawback of being unable to move after activation, making it difficult to control.
However, [Wind Control] made up for that by being a single-target magic with no killing power.
A massive, ultra-high-temperature fireball appeared, capable of engulfing 3 Wyverns at once.
The gust of wind released at that spot wrapped around the flames, amplifying the firepower and advancing towards the Wyverns in multiple streams. The sight was like a multi-headed dragon made of flames.
The Wyverns engulfed in flames instantly carbonized their bodies and fell to the ground. The scene of multiple Wyverns being burned like insects was breathtaking.
However, even with the 6 of them combining their magic, they couldn't annihilate the incoming Wyvern horde.
The dozens of Wyverns were scattered across a wide area, making it impossible to attack them all with even large-scale magic.
Therefore,
Their goal from the start wasn't to annihilate the Wyverns, but to guide them.
The multi-headed dragon of flames, with its jaws open wide, was attacking from all directions. The Wyverns, trying to escape, were being guided and eventually gathered in one spot.
"――Aaron!"
Seeing the timing was right, Ail gave me the signal. At the same time, Fiona and Calum, who were attacking the Wyverns, moved to the sides to avoid my line of fire.
Meanwhile, I stood with my right foot forward, my left foot back, and my legs open, assuming a half-body stance.
With Black Radiance held at my left waist, I'm suppressing its tip with my left hand. The sound echoing around me is like the screeching of a strong bowstring being pulled taut, a discordant noise.
――Crea, creak, creak...!!
The power that's building up is the result of the clash between the aura wrapped around my sword and the aura wrapped around my left hand.
What I'm about to release isn't [Flying Flash Blade].
It's not my ultimate technique, but a sword skill that's difficult to control with aura, which I couldn't master until just the other day.
After confirming that Fiona and the others have scattered to the sides, I released Black Radiance from my left hand.
Shing! With that sound, I swiftly swung my sword in a large horizontal arc within an instant.
My unique sword technique, [Continuous Blade], [Flash Blade]――Combined technique, [Continuous Flash Blade].
The sword's trajectory, as if tracing a void, shot out a single aura blade at high speed.
The blade flying forward would have reached Wyvern, but it "diffused" far short of that.
If there was someone with the visual acuity to catch it, they would have seen the aura blade split into numerous thin blades like a razor, scattering in all directions.
One blade became countless blades, expanding the killing zone like a net.
In the next instant, the blade flew off towards Wyvern's rear.
The silence was brief.
All the Wyverns that were fluttering about stopped moving, and then fresh blood began to spill out.
The group of Wyverns, around 40 or so, that had been guided to one spot, were all torn to shreds, their bodies transformed into countless blocks of flesh like dice, falling to the ground.
――The battle is over.
But there's no sound of relief coming from anywhere.
"Give up on the drop! We're moving out immediately!"
Logan gave the order to the entire group, ignoring the magic stones and Wyvern materials scattered on the ground, and we began to move out right away.
* * *
"I didn't hear that the monster encounter rate would be this high..."
[God's Remains Labyrinth], 43rd floor.
We, the "Labyrinth Conquest Team", were camping inside a cave at the bottom of the 42nd floor's staircase.
Sitting on the rough ground, we were having dinner with pre-cooked food and soup from our Storage Rings. The magic lanterns placed here and there lit up the inside of the cave, but the atmosphere among our clan members, including Eva, was gloomy... or rather, we were all too exhausted to talk much.
Despite having a clear exploration route, we couldn't progress more than 2 floors a day, which was unexpected. As Calum explained with a sigh, the reason was that the number of monsters we encountered increased drastically due to the increased number of explorers.
It's not simply that the number of monsters increased because of the increased number of people.
Rather, it seems that our large group made it easier for monsters to detect us.
Especially on the 42nd floor, which had many dragon-type monsters, the monster attacks were even more intense compared to the 41st floor.
The worst of them was the Wyvern.
The Wyvern is a lower-ranked monster among dragon-types, but it has high reproductive capabilities and appears in large groups. It's not like they're hatching from eggs, but the monsters in the labyrinth seem to reflect such characteristics, and the number of Wyverns was staggering.
As a result, we didn't even have time to leisurely collect drops after the battle, and we had to move out quickly.
To be honest, compared to the Wyvern's group, the floor boss, "Flying Dragon Amphisbaena", was just a small fry.
A normal Adventurer Party usually consists of 4-6 people, and fighting with that number would be a proper challenge... but with a 51-person raid, it becomes a cakewalk. Everyone unleashes their skills and magic, and they all hit. The floor boss dies. It's just that simple.
The way the named floor boss was defeated was almost pitiful.
"Still, our group is doing relatively well."
Ail said, trying to encourage Calum, who was sighing.
In reality, the initial disadvantage of lacking tanks turned out to be relatively advantageous due to our focus on firepower, and our speed in taking down monsters is currently the fastest among all groups. As a result, our burden has decreased.
"Yeah, that's definitely true. Missy Claire and the others were amazing, weren't they..."
"Hehe, if it's just a matter of numbers, leave it to us."
"No, there were some pretty tough ones among them, right? You took them down along with the smaller fries, so it was... not excessive, but rather, your firepower was amazing..."
The members of Ail's group nodded in agreement with Calum's words.
Indeed, it was literally amazing firepower.
"Ah, thank you. But, as for me..."
And then, Claire, who had been sitting next to me since we started eating, suddenly clung to me like a koala.
"As expected of Fiona's master, right? Mr. Aaron, your firepower was really nice, wasn't it?"
Nice firepower, huh?
I didn't really get it, but since I was being praised, I just nodded.
"Yeah, thanks."
"Yeah! As expected of Master Aaron! What's with that skill? It's amazing!"
"Really. I never knew Swordsman Jobs had a skill like that."
Well, it's not a skill, anyway.
I wouldn't be believed even if I said it, so I didn't.
In any case, that's not the point.
I calmly told Claire, who was standing too close to me.
"Miss, your chest is touching me, you know?"
Then Claire looked surprised for a moment before suddenly bursting into laughter.
"It's fine, desuwa!"
Huh?!
Then, that's fine!
But, it's not fine at all!
I didn't show it on my face, but I increased my guard against Claire.
Unfortunately, I couldn't believe that a woman was showing me genuine goodwill without any ulterior motives, given my life experiences.
I shot Claire a sharp glance and asked her directly.
"What's your goal?"
For example, I met a beautiful woman at a tavern who shared my interests. I was invited to her home that same day. I was thrilled and followed her. As I entered her home, I was greeted by a group of muscular men waiting inside.
I was deceived by her innocent act and cried, but instead of giving them money, I gave them a good punch. I left her house, leaving behind the beautiful con artist who was cowering in the corner. It was a sad night...
This is quite an extreme experience, I must say.
But after I became known as the "Wood Sword Meister" and started earning a lot of money, people who claimed to be acquaintances started showing up one after another.
Fake relatives!
Friends I'd never met!
Girlfriends I'd never even seen!
And wives and kids that didn't exist!
Many people, especially women, would approach me with a smile, pretending to be kind, but almost 100% of the time, they were after my wealth.
As a result of these experiences, I became wary of women who were overly friendly, smiling, and showed excessive interest in me from the very first meeting.
"Oh, it's nice to talk to you so quickly!"
And my wariness seemed to be right on target. Miss Claire gave a sly smile.
I asked her,
"How much do you want?"
These gold diggers... just name the price, I thought.
But she was even more greedy than I imagined.
"Hehe, I don't need money."
"!!"
This reaction... no mistake.
Money doesn't matter to me. That's why we should get married. But if we get married, your wealth will also be mine, right? That's what you're thinking, isn't it?
Sorry, Miss Claire.
I've met many women like you before, and I can count them on one hand.
But Miss Claire's words went beyond my expectations.
"I want Mr. Aaron to join our party. As a swordsman who can take down a group of wyverns with your firepower... I've fallen deeply in love with you!!"
Miss Claire said, and the members of "Flame of Dominance" nodded in agreement.
"That was really amazing."
"Our magic can't compare to your destructive power, it's quite a difference."
"If Mr. Aaron were to go solo, he could be the vanguard."
"If we could get him to join our party, it would be incredibly reassuring."
"A reliable guy like that is really attractive."
A chill ran down my spine.
These guys... no mistake. They're planning to throw me into the labyrinth and squeeze me dry until I die...
I pushed Miss Claire, who was leaning on me, away and stood up silently.
"What's wrong? ...You suddenly..."
"I'm sorry, I need to talk to Lady Eva, I'll be right back."
I walked away without listening to her response.
And I went to where Eva was sitting a short distance away, and sat down next to her.
"Haah..."
"What's wrong, Mr. Aaron?"
Eva asked, looking at me as I let out a deep sigh.
"No, I think it's reassuring to have a woman who isn't too friendly, or rather, one who doesn't get too close..."
"......Do you have that kind of hobby, Mr. Aaron?"
When I looked up, Eva was staring at me with a disgusted expression.
Her gaze was like looking at something unpleasant... hmm.
"By the way, you're exchanging magic stones, aren't you? That's quite a waste, isn't it?"
"I'd like to ask you a question, but... ah, no, you don't have to answer."
I pointed to Eva's hand and asked.
What she was holding was a wrist-type magical tool.
It wasn't a Storage Ring, though. The Storage Ring was still equipped on Eva's arm. What she was holding and using to replace the magical energy-depleted magic stone with a new one was a "Barrier Ring".
Barrier or obstacle magic is a type of spatial magic, and needless to say, the "Barrier Ring" is an extremely rare magical tool.
Its effect is to deploy a powerful barrier around oneself when attacked, but the problem is how it determines when it's being attacked.
To resolve this issue, the Barrier Ring is always deploying a weak barrier, and when that barrier is destroyed, it deploys a powerful barrier ―― that's how it works.
Even though it's a weak barrier, it's not fragile enough to break from just a slight push. However, since it constantly consumes magical energy, it has the drawback of being a high-maintenance magical tool.
The Storage Ring, being a magic tool as well, uses magic stones as its power source and also consumes a considerable amount of energy. But compared to the Barrier Ring, it's much more efficient.
"Yes, even if it doesn't activate, a special third-grade magic stone will be depleted in just one day. But... safety can't be compromised, after all."
Magic stones have a classification system based on the amount of magical energy they contain, divided into "Beginner", "Intermediate", "Advanced", and "Special" grades, with each grade further divided into 3 levels. By the way, the highest-quality magic stone is classified as "Special Grade 1".
Eva's voice was slightly muffled as she replied, her words laced with a hint of unease. The reason was that the Barrier Ring wasn't just for defending against monster attacks.
This time, all 4 members of the [Four Great Families of the Seals] were equipped with Barrier Rings.
That's how cautious we were.
Even though there were many monsters attacking, wewere still divided into 3 groups to fight, considering the vastness of the battlefield and efficiency. But that was just an excuse. In reality, we were preparing for potential attacks from other sources at any time.
"What a pain..."
I, too, was already exhausted on the first day of exploration.
It wasn't about physical strength or magical energy. The dragons that appear in the "Dragon Mountain floor" were indeed a pain, but to be honest, I didn't feel like I was struggling. This was just mental fatigue.
Not knowing when or who would attack next, we had to stay vigilant while exploring, which was mentally exhausting.
I even thought, "If they would just attack already, it would be easier..."
However, contrary to my wishes, the next day I spent the whole day breaking through the 43rd floor, and the day after that, the 44th floor. It wasn't until the 4th day of exploration that I finally reached the summit of the 45th floor... and not a single creature other than monsters attacked us during that time...
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