Chapter 102: Harpies Nests

After being attacked by the eight harpies, we managed to make our way to the vicinity of the underground city’s exit without facing another assault. This place was right in the heart of the densely populated harpy nest, but even so, the fact that we weren’t being attacked felt eerie.

“If their plan was to lure us out until the last moment, they must have nerves of steel,” Genjuro said.

“Don’t say such terrifying things,” Ruby responded.

If that were indeed their plan, it would be incredibly troublesome. However, I found it unnatural that they would expose their nest to such danger just to launch a surprise attack. Maybe they were pushed to the brink, which led them to take such drastic measures.

“Ah…I can’t see the condition of the nest from down here.”

“We’ll probably have to go up to the rooftop to get a better view.”

Jigoro and Genjuro said such things while stealing glances at me. Their actions resembled furtive spying, but their movements were needlessly exaggerated. You’re clearly trying to make me do it, aren’t you?

The entrances of the buildings were often blocked or collapsed, and it seemed like they preferred having me, who could fly freely, take care of the vertical movement instead of bothering with the stairs. Well, I didn’t mind doing it to that extent, but it was a bit of a hassle.

“Well, there’s no other way. Karl, let’s go check it out,” I said.

“Gru!”

I hopped onto Karl’s back, and together we soared into the sky. I could fly on my own, but Karl seemed to enjoy carrying someone while flying, and it was not just me. So, unless it was an emergency, I made it a habit to ride on his back.

Karl took off effortlessly, making it seem like he didn’t even notice my added weight. While I might appear light with just bones, I actually exceeded the average weight of an adult male due to the various bone additions. Considering that, it was clear how formidable the strength of the dragon race was.

“Well then, I don’t see any harpy around. It looks like they’ve been completely wiped out,” I remarked.

“Gururu?”

In the blink of an eye, we flew higher than the rooftop of the building, and from there, I observed the state of the harpy nest from above. There wasn’t a single shadow resembling a harpy to be seen. It seemed that this flock of harpies had indeed met its end today. Namu Amitabha.

“Let’s confirm it just to be sure. Karl, land on that building,” I said.

“Gru!”

We touched down on the building directly below, and I decided to examine one of the nests there.

The nests of the harpies had an orthodox circular bowl-like shape. However, since the harpies themselves were quite large, the nests were also big. I would estimate each one to be about the size of a small room.

“I didn’t notice until we got closer, but… how should I put it? it looks like some kind of crazy avant-garde art.”

As No. 18 had mentioned, it seemed the harpies had gathered anything they could find in the city to build their nests. Large iron pipes resembling tree branches and road signs scattered throughout the city were normal enough. However, there were also human and monster bones, the remains of golems and even things that appeared to be androids.

If someone were to ask why I couldn’t make a definitive assertion, it’s because the outer layers were peeled away, revealing the inner skeleton and artificial muscles. In the best-preserved cases, it was just the upper or lower half, while in some instances, there were even creepy sights where the upper jaw from the head might be missing, leaving only the lower jaw.

To put it simply, the nests were a horrible sight. If my sleeping quarters looked anything like this, it would likely haunt my dreams.

“Oh, look, this seems like a weapon. And over here, is it glass and gems?”

While inspecting the nest materials, I came across a few items that resembled firearms and blades. They were all in poor condition and covered in harpy feathers, but with some repairs, they might be usable again. I didn’t have much knowledge in this area, so I decided to leave it to Iris and No. 18. For now, I have collected them.

Among the materials embedded in the nests were also glass, precious metals, and gem-like shiny objects. Were they meant for decoration? I’ve heard that crows collect shiny objects, so it might be something similar. I decided to collect these as well.

“Hmm? Are these eggs?”

Finally, as I gazed into the center of the nest, I noticed several eggs scattered around. The eggshells were white with black speckles, resembling quail eggs, and were about the size of basketballs. As expected, those are monster eggs.

Hmm, eggs? I couldn’t store living creatures in my inventory, but I could certainly store Karl’s egg back then. Could I also take these as items? First, I decided to use my [Appraisal] skill.

――――――――――

• Harpy Eggs – Quality: Good, Rarity: S (Special)

Harpy eggs that can be considered as high-quality ingredient. They are infertile and won’t hatch.

Harpies are known for their fierceness and tendency to form flocks, making it extremely difficult to steal their eggs. They are rarely seen on the market.

These eggs possess remarkable nourishing and invigorating properties, making them a valuable ingredient for remedies.

――――――――――

Oh, wow! This is quite a rare item, isn’t it? I can’t eat it, though, and using it as a healing potion would only harm me.

However, selling this should provide a good source of income. Starting tomorrow, I’ll be participating in that event, while the three women of the party will be heading to Flower Country with a Birdian merchant. If they have these items they can convert into money, they might come in handy when needed.

“Guruu…”

As I was looking at one of the eggs in my palm, Karl stared at it with a strong desire in his eyes. When I tried to move the hand holding the egg to the right, Karsl followed it with his head. The same happened when I moved it to the left.

“Do you want to eat it?”

“Grrl!”

Ugh! Stop it! If those eyes shine like that at me, I can’t refuse, can I? I-I can’t spoil Karl anymore…! B-besides, this could be an item for Iris and the others to earn some money! Wasting it for no reason…

“I’ll give you… just one.”

“Gururu!”

I’m hopeless… I’m a hopeless man… I can’t refuse when he looks at me with those sparkling, innocent eyes… I’m probably going to become one of those fathers who spoil their daughters…

Upon receiving the egg, Karl astonishingly stuffed the whole thing into his mouth, shell and all. Then he chewed it up loudly with his teeth. Quite the wild eater, isn’t he?

“Grrrroooon!”

“Is it that delicious?”

Karl let out a cheerful roar, looking thoroughly pleased. Until now, I thought he liked meat, as he would casually scavenge enemies during battles. However, he seems to enjoy eggs this much. Could I somehow ensure a stable supply of eggs for him?

“Heyyy, brother! How is it?”

Oh, Jigoro was calling me impatiently. He probably wanted the two of us to come down and report on the situation. Well, then, let’s get down there.

◆◇◆◇◆◇

After confirming the nests were safe, Karl and I took everyone up to the rooftop one by one, and then we split up to begin our search. Afterward, it took us about two hours to collect usable items from all the nests.

Along the way, we got into battle three times with the harpies. They appeared to have left their nests for food, as they were seen grabbing fruits, small birds, or insects with their feet. Since they weren’t in large groups, we easily dispatched them.

The items we collected consisted of roughly fifty percent monster bones, about thirty percent parts and debris from golems and androids, and about twenty percent shiny objects like gemstones. The rest were weapons and eggs. While there were a decent number of weapons, most were in poor condition, so we carefully selected the best ones.

“Iris, No. 18. What do you think? Are they usable?”

“Well, I don’t know much about the details of how the guns work, but the parts seem to be of the same standard. So, with some tinkering, we should be able to make usable guns.” Iris said.

“I believe Lady Iris is correct. If we base our work on the items in the best condition, we should be able to regenerate one handgun and one sniper rifle each.”

“Well, that’s good news. The number of cards that No. 18 can use has increased.”

As I said that, No. 18’s expression became strange, and she shook her head.

“As I mentioned earlier, my visual system is malfunctioning. So, I can’t perform precision shooting. Therefore, the handgun will serve as a secondary weapon, but I won’t be able to handle the sniper rifle.”

“I see… that’s unfortunate.”

It seemed that No. 18 had been looking for machine gun option parts. Perhaps due to her inability to perform precision shooting, she relied on the strategy of using a machine gun to spray bullets. It must be tough for her.

“In that case, can I take this long gun as a souvenir for Shi-chan? She’ll probably be happy!” Ruby said.

“That’s not a problem. After all, my request involved providing you with an access key as compensation. In essence, I’ve granted you the right to freely take relics from this city, so consider the sniper rifle as an advance payment.”

Certainly, for someone like Shio, who plays VRS games, such a weapon might be the best souvenir. However, we came to a fantasy game with swords and magic, so isn’t it strange that our activities revolve around guns and military firearms?

“Also, can the parts from the androids be used to repair No. 18?”

In terms of numbers, I had managed to gather quite a few parts of golems and androids. I wondered whether these could be used to repair No. 18, who was clearly in a state of disrepair.

“I’m sorry, I don’t know.”

However, Iris continued with a disappointed tone.

“The assistance system for figuring out what to do isn’t working for me. It’s possible that my skill level isn’t high enough, or I lack the necessary skills, or maybe even both.”

Even Iris, who had been acquiring production-related skill levels indiscriminately and leveling them up smoothly, seemed to find it impossible. If that were the case, it was safe to say that it would be equally impossible for any other player in the current situation.

“My apologies, No. 18. It seems like we couldn’t find anything to enhance your combat capabilities.”

“No, actually, just finding even a single handgun is a considerable boost. I didn’t have high hopes of coming across any decent weapons.”

“Originally, the plan was to test our coordination.”

As Jigoro said, our main objective was to assess No. 18’s combat abilities and confirm if our teamwork improved with her inclusion. While the results regarding our teamwork were somewhat mixed, there were a minimum of positive evaluations concerning combat capabilities.

The guns had a decent amount of firepower, and the bullets moved too quickly to easily evade, which would result in significant damage. However, due to No. 18’s imperfect visual system, her accuracy suffered. She compensated for it with rapid fire.

In the current environment where friendly fire was a real concern, this was quite a deadly situation. The risk of getting hit by stray bullets was high. Therefore, it was decided that our primary target would be that huge opponent that could not be missed, Harpy Chief.

“There’s nothing more we can do here. Let’s head back to the building, take a break, and then have a strategy meeting before challenging the field boss.”

“Understood!”

With this, we could confidently prepare to face the boss. Oh, wait. There was one thing I needed to confirm.

“No. 18, what should we do about this nest? Should we set it on fire?”

The harpy nest had lost its owner, but there was no guarantee that another creature wouldn’t take it over. Moreover, there was a possibility that another group of harpies could arrive from somewhere and make it their new home. I couldn’t say for sure, as I wasn’t well-versed in the ecology of these creatures.

“…Please burn it. And do so in a grand manner if you will.”

“Hmm? Got it.”

I wasn’t sure why the term “grand” was added, but I decided to follow the client’s instructions.

“Star Magic Circle Activation, Magic Bomb.”

I soared into the sky and began to unleash [Explosion Magic] repeatedly, systematically blasting the nest of harpies that had taken over the rooftop of the building. Deafening explosions echoed, sending fragments flying and igniting the wooden materials used in the nest.

“…”

In the blink of an eye, thick smoke started billowing from the nest. No. 18 stared at the scene with an emotionless expression that gave away no hint of her feelings. In the glow of the flames, her beauty took on a more pronounced and shadowy aspect, and I couldn’t help but feel a sense of dread from that face.