Snake hunting (2)
Exploration was very easy.
“There are five, no, six on the left wall. There seems to be a place to hide, so be careful.”
When Rize, who had found the location of the snakes through detection magic, warned them, Astell and I reacted accordingly and easily subdued them.
Surprise was only a problem, but their fighting power wasn’t that much of a threat, so that was enough.
That’s why Rize’s detection magic was very helpful.
Knowing the location and number in advance made Astel less nervous, and I was also able to slightly loosen the tension I had been holding tight.
Of course, I was constantly paying attention to see if I missed anything, but the burden was much less.
I was able to keep going without taking a break, but it was the number that was a problem.
“Ahh, why are there so many? Did you drive the snakes of the entire continent here?”
“Astel sister… … . There is a room in front with at least a hundred snakes.”
“I hate it! I hate it no more! I won’t take the lead! Irvine go forward!”
“Yes, what.”
Astel, who raised her voice as if she was about to lie down, stopped moving at my answer with a willing nod.
Then, wondering if he had heard it wrong, he slowly turned his head and looked back at me.
“Really?”
“If you want to enter a room like that anyway, you have to run amok to secure space. It’s more convenient for me to step in if this amount of people are going to take their place.”
Saying that, I passed Astel and stepped forward.
Because there were so many snakes, I couldn’t remember how many there were, but the structure of the ruins came to mind clearly.
In a structure that extends down to a total of three floors, the aisle extends without a fork in the road, and there are rooms in the middle.
I don’t know what it was made for, but now it was just a good place for snakes to gather.
Leaving the open room in front of me without a door, I turned my head for a while and looked at Rize and said.
“Wait a minute. My dad will call me after I get it sorted out soon.”
“You have to be careful, Dad.”
Responding to Rise’s worried words with a smile, she flew inside without hesitation.
As soon as I stepped on the floor, I could feel the eyes looking at me from all directions.
There were snakes wherever the magic lights shook as they entered.
From their point of view, they would think that they were prey that suddenly rolled in, but of course I had no intention of suffering even a little bit.
Transformed Aculium, the sword form.
The appearance of the aculium, which was stretched like a snake that was wrapped around it, changed into a whip.
As soon as the transformation was complete, I swung my arms as hard as I could.
Paaang!
With the sound of drums popping, some of the eyes disappeared.
Not stopping there, I used the returning power to slash the whip in the opposite direction this time.
There were snakes everywhere, no, up and down, and I deliberately left my party in the aisle, and I swung my whip mercilessly without any hesitation.
The snakes were not fools, so they took advantage of the opportunity and rushed at me all at once, but my whip was faster than they were.
There was no need to use a limit break.
The guys on the 1st floor were the weak who ran away after being pushed into a power struggle.
Fain! Paaang!
With the sound of something exploding and the sound of snakes breathing constantly coming and going, the survivors became a little more cautious.
However, no matter how cautious I was, that didn’t mean I could avoid my attacks.
The number of those remaining was still over fifty, so unlike them, I continued to attack without stopping.
As I was swinging the whip like that, at some point, I couldn’t feel any sign of it, and soon Lise and Astel were the first to come inside.
“dad!”
“Oh, no. It’s covered in blood now. Wait there, Rize.”
I restrained Rize, who was about to rush at me, and first, I returned the aculium to sword form and inserted it into the scabbard.
No matter how hard he killed him, he had no choice but to bleed all over his body as he cut off the snakes rushing at him from all sides.
After taking a large towel out of the bag and wiping it off, I was able to hug Rize tightly.
After entering the room, Grace was praying with her eyes closed as she saw the horrific sight.
Hudson was silently standing next to him, but Astell, another cleric, sighed and stuck next to me.
“Ugh, really, what the hell are you doing here? Why are there so many snakes? Did you collect all the snakes from all continents when you made the ruins?”
“It’s not like that, it’s just a monster.”
“This? tighten?”
“Hmm, how many monsters can there be in one dungeon?”
It was Douglas who took the word and asked the question.
Lizena Astell was still inexperienced, but Douglas felt strange about the abnormal ecology of this dungeon.
“In normal dungeons, this number would not be able to accumulate. There is a limit to the dark magic that a dungeon can contain.”
“But it’s not that the concentration is so high that it feels thick. Even if there is only one type, this amount is abnormal.”
“What if they weren’t created by dark magic?”
“… … !”
At my words, Douglas gave me a slightly startled look, while the others gave me puzzled looks and looked at me as if asking for an explanation.
“The parent entity that gave birth to these will be below. It’s a rare case, but if the first monster that settles down has the ability to give birth, the dungeon’s capacity will be filled with monsters like this.”
Usually monsters are born from dark magic, but there were also monsters that had the ability to reproduce on their own.
Those guys continue to fight for survival with other monsters, and in the end, only monsters of the same type survive and remain in the dungeon.
Among those dungeons, this ruin was the place that had reached its limits the most.
Realizing what I meant, Astell trembled and raised a voice full of fear.
“So, are you saying that there are more snakes the further down you go?”
“No, rather less.”
“yes? I heard that there are monsters that give birth indefinitely down there.”
“Monsters don’t fight just because they are among themselves. Rather, they eat each other and try to make themselves stronger. The guys here have been pushed out of the race between their brothers and fled upwards… … As you go down, there will be fewer snakes, but stronger snakes will appear.”
At my words, Astell stopped moving, and before Astell came to his senses, I said something more shocking.
“And the first floor isn’t over yet? I will push you into the next room first.”
“Wowaaang, that’s too much, Irvin!”
I wasn’t just trying to bully him, I came to find the holy relic, but I meant it in a good way to get some real combat experience.
I kindly pushed Astel, who was crying, into the lead.
* * *
After cutting so many snakes that I didn’t even know how many snakes I had cut, I found the stairs leading down to the second floor.
After going down like that, what greeted us shortly after was a snake as thick as a human torso.
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When the guy, who looked well over 5 meters in length, raised his head, it felt like the aisle was full.
“Shaak!”
It opened its mouth wide and made a creepy noise, and I spoke to Astel, who was holding the shield.
“Be careful, you might spit poison.”
“yes? Poison?”
“Don’t worry because the priest is behind you anyway.”
“No, that’s it, wow!”
As I said, he actually spewed venom.
The venom blocked by Astell’s shield flowed down and made a scorching sound.
Still, it must be said that it is a shield that received the protection of Digena.
It was stronger than the snakes upstairs, but it was not difficult to catch it because there was nothing to pay attention to other than the venom and size.
Sometimes there were people hiding through a hole in the ceiling, but Rize informed them in advance through detection magic, so there was no damage.
Looking at it that way, letting Rize learn magic was truly a move from God.
According to Rize, it was a magic that sensed the concentration of energy such as mana or dark magic, but it was definitely effective in catching creatures and monsters.
Thanks to that, we were able to advance without any fear of surprise… … I entered the room where those guys were gathered.
“Rize is in the middle! Astel! Be sure to protect the front!”
“Brother Hudson, please.”
Since their number reached fifty, I had no choice but to take charge of the front, including Astel and Hudson.
In the rear, Douglas and Irina took care of those who managed to get out.
Since the snakes were so big, there were times when they bumped into each other, but they came only to eat us.
I was afraid that even a single drop of venom would splash on Rize, so I quickly overpowered them, and eventually cut at the center of the group of snakes.
The fight was bound to intensify, and after the battle was over, we got out of the messy room and had a maintenance time.
“By the way, what kind of holy object is it that Lady Di Zena is here for?”
When asked a question that no matter how many times he thought about it, Astell answered with a shrug.
“I don’t know either. Dee Jena told me to go blindly. If I had known that this place would be full of snakes, I would not have come.”
It didn’t look like a priest to receive an oracle at all.
Previously, it seemed like they were moving according to the oracle, but after entrusting themselves to the Lu Nera Church, it seemed like they were comfortable living.
Grace, who was looking to see if anyone was injured with her divine power, spoke out like a priest unlike Astel.
“Thanks to Irvin’s fellowship, the work has become much easier. How hard would it have been if we had come inside by ourselves. I wonder if this is the guidance of Lu Nera and Di Gena.”
“you’re welcome. Thanks to you, I can fight comfortably.”
It wasn’t empty talk.
Nana, Douglas, and Irina were attackers, so just having a paladin to protect them and a priest in charge of healing made it possible to use a wider range of tactics.
If we had come alone, we would have suffered a little more, but we would not have been able to go comfortably.
Especially when you think about the things on the third floor.
After one round of maintenance, we got up from our seats and headed back inside.
Even though it was obviously covered with sand, it was not so uncomfortable to breathe because there was a place where air could pass through.
Or maybe it’s some kind of magical device.
Wasn’t the appearance also a temple?
The last time I looked inside, I couldn’t find any sign of it.
Well, I guessed the reason.
It must be because of the monsters on the third floor.
“It’s the stairs again… … .”
As we went down one more time, Astell let his shoulders droop.
It was the same as meaning that stronger guys than this were waiting below.
Because of that, Irina, Grace, and Hudson also hardened their expressions, and Rize also showed enthusiasm by clenching her fists.
I patted Astel on the shoulder and gave her encouragement.
“This floor is probably the last. Let’s talk about whether or not to go back if there’s a lower one.”
“I want to go back already, Irvin.”
“It looks like you’re still full of energy, so let’s go quickly.”
“Wowaaang.”
I urged Astell, who was crying, to go down the stairs, and Astell, who stepped on the last step, tilted his head at the scenery ahead.
“Is something strange?”
But in the end, Astel, who didn’t notice it, was puzzled and nervous, and pulled her shield tight in preparation for an unexpected surprise attack.
That’s how the whole party came down the stairs, and as they moved forward, Rize raised her voice as if she had suddenly realized.
“here… … The aisle is much wider than in other places, isn’t it?”
People looked around at Rize’s words, and they were able to confirm that it was true.
Also the marks on the wall, as if someone had scratched them hard.
I spoke with a confident tone to those who were standing there with a look of doubt.
“It wasn’t like this from the beginning, and it should be said that the snakes here have spread like this as they roam, right?”
The thickness of the snake I saw on the first floor was the forearm.
The thickness of the snake I saw on the second floor is the body.
How thick is the snake living on the third floor?
“Come over there first!”
“Shhh.”
Along with Rize’s warning, a creepy sound came from the other side of the aisle.