Chapter 109: Temporary Party Formed!

“First of all, let’s start with detection. Magic Echo.”

I began by probing the surrounding magic powers. While I was told that the players were nearby, I hadn’t been given their exact location. So, in order to join up with them, I needed to pinpoint their whereabouts.

“Hmm… I’m sensing about twenty reactions in the vicinity. Since there’s a possibility of mob monsters, I’ll cautiously approach for now.”

With my [Assassination] skill, I concealed my presence and moved closer to the nearest reaction, preparing for combat at any moment.

“Ah, are they in a battle? It seems like a two-on-one situation.”

After a minute’s walk, I could hear the roaring of a beast and the clinking of dull metal. Recognizing this as the sounds of battle, I quickened my pace. As expected, a battle was unfolding before me.

“One of them is a praying mantis, and the other is a gray-skinned human woman… no, she has fangs. The last one appears to be an orc, is that what they call it?”

The battle unfolded between a human-sized, giant mantis, an armed humanoid woman, and a hulking creature with a pig-like head. The former wielded a pair of large curved swords, while the latter held a rectangular shield covering its body and a massive axe.

The mantis lunged forward with its scythe-like forelimbs at considerable speed, but the orc at the vanguard skillfully intercepted the strikes. Seizing the opportunity created by the orc’s defense, the humanoid woman targeted the joints and delivered precise slashing attacks. It was a simple but solid way of fighting.

The two individuals armed with weapons were almost certainly players. Their metallic weapons provided one clue, but the most telling evidence of their player status was their cooperation, despite belonging to different races. However, the identity of the mantis remained uncertain. For now, I figured I could use my [Appraisal] skill to learn more.

――――――――――

Name: Eiji

Race: Orc Lv18

Job: Heavy Warrior Lv8

Name: Usaji

Race: Ghoul Lv17

Job: Dual Swordsman Lv7

Race: Large Murderous Mantis Lv22

Job: Assassin Lv2

Skills:

• [Scythe Mastery]
• [Strength Enhancement]
• [Defense Enhancement]
• [Agility Enhancement]
• [Dexterity Enhancement]
• [Stealth]
• [Sneak]
• [Ambush]
• [Assassination]
• [Flight]
• [Slash Resistance]

――――――――――

Oh! Does this confirm it? I remember hearing on the bulletin board that you couldn’t appraise the skill of players. The fact that they have names and their skills aren’t visible strongly suggests that those two are indeed players.

But a Ghoul (corpse-eating demon) huh? Just like the Orc (pig-headed demon), judging by the word “demon” in their race, it’s likely they evolved from Lesser Goblins. I’ve always wanted to hear about what kind of adventures might lead to that race.

(TN: in Japanese, they have the word Oni, which means demon, in their race name.)

On the other hand, that praying mantis… the Large Murderous Mantis seemed like a regular monster. It didn’t have a unique name, and its skills were clearly visible. It was just like any other monster you’d encounter.

“Gigii!”

The two of them were defending themselves efficiently while steadily dealing damage. At this rate, it seemed that the Large Murderous Mantis would be at a disadvantage, and that’s probably why it was about to unleash an all-out attack, raising both of its forelimbs as if it were attempting a desperate strike.

“Bugaa!”

Eiji, the Orc seemed to have been waiting for the right moment to strike as the murderous Large Murderous Mantis revealed an opening. He had been defending himself with a massive shield all this time, but now he swung his axe at the Large Murderous Mantis.

“Buooooo!”

Defending constantly was a nerve-wracking task. With a roar that shook the air, as if venting his frustration, Eiji unleashed a powerful blow with his axe, shattering the head of the Large Murderous Mantis, which had its balance disrupted by the attack but was still trying to defend itself.

The Large Murderous Mantis didn’t even have a chance to utter a final cry; it succumbed to the axe’s overwhelming force. You could call it a complete victory for them. While not as flashy as Jigoro or Genjuro, their battle was faithful to the fundamentals and exuded a sense of stability.

“Wonderful. That was an excellent display of battle.”

Well, it was about time to put an end to my hiding and spying from the shadows. I emerged from my hiding spot while clapping my hands, catching the two by surprise. They had just finished their battle and were taking a breather, but they quickly assumed defensive stances, clearly wary of my sudden appearance.

“Who are you?”

“Let’s begin with introductions. I’m Isam. My race is a high litch.”

Here, I gave out a smooth lie. One might think that once they subjected me to an [Appraisal], the jig would be up, but it wasn’t. The mask I wore had the [Disguise] effect. To see through it, one would need a specific skill, and it was unlikely they possessed such a skill.

“A high litch… I’ve never heard of such a race before.”

“No, wait a minute! That name and the silver skull mask… Ummm! Isam-san, could you be the ‘Silver Mask’ who caused a ruckus during the ‘Nightmare of the Northern Mountains’ incident?”

“Hmm? How do you know about me?”

“Th-this is the real deal…!”

In stark contrast to Usaji, who eyed me skeptically, Eiji seemed to know about me. Not only did he recognize my identity, but he also knew that I was the “Silver Mask” involved in that mischievous incident with Jigoro.

How had this information leaked? I hardly had any contact with players outside of my guild members.

“It was a hot topic on the ex-monster thread!”

“Ex-monster…? You mean, the monster exclusive thread?” I asked.

That’s right! Come to think of it, my first contact with Iris was on that monster exclusive thread. The conversation between Iris and me should be saved there. Given the content and timing, it would be abundantly clear that I was the “Silver Mask”.

“Yes, that’s right!”

Usaji, still puzzled, asked, “I don’t get it, but is that person famous among monster players?”

“In the world of monster players, famous doesn’t even begin to describe it!”

Eiji was recounting to Usaji the antics that Jigoro and I had been up to. It was a bit embarrassing to have one’s own actions discussed with others, and there were parts of the story that seemed exaggerated. While it was a relief that highly accurate information wasn’t circulating, it was still disconcerting.

“Oh, Isam-san, are you on your own? Where are Iris-san and Nightmare-san?”

“Hmm? Oh, they’re not participating in this event. They had plans for a different quest,” I replied.

I conveyed the truth as it was. However, I didn’t disclose that both of them had headed to a new region for us, which could be considered the third continent…. or rather it was a set of islands. There was no need to share that information since it was unrelated to the event, and information was meant to be kept confidential.

“I see. Well, how about teaming up with us? You look like a mage, and I’ve heard having a rear guard makes the event easier,” Eiji suggested.

“That’s more than welcome. Count me in.”

I had been contemplating when to bring this up, but I hadn’t expected them to propose it first. Well, it seemed like the first step had gone well.

“I-I can’t believe I was able to form a party with Isam-san… I’ll boast about it on the thread once the event is over!” Eiji exclaimed.

“You know, I’ve been thinking this for a while… but you can be quite childish at times,” Usaji said.

“What did you say!?”

Hahaha, these two sure made a unique pair. I didn’t know for sure yet, but if they didn’t have any issues as individuals, it might be a good idea to invite them to the guild once the event was over.

While the two of them were bickering, I decided to use the Magic Echo to detect the presence of magic power once again. It had been a little while since I first used it, and I thought the players’ positions might have changed.

“Hmm? It’s close.”

I realized that the Magic Echo had picked up a reaction very close to my location, specifically to my left rear. Reflexively, I turned to the back and directed my gaze in the direction of the detected response.

“Hee, that Skeleton big brother! Have you spotted me by any chance?”

“”!””

Upon hearing a woman’s voice from behind, Eiji and Usaji ceased their quarrel and readied their weapons. It was the same reaction as when I had appeared. From the shadows of the trees, a small figure emerged; yet, for something of that kind, it was significantly bigger.

“It seems like those two didn’t notice, huh? Oh dear, did I come too early?”

“No, I had detected you, so I was going to inform them sooner or later.”

“Oh well, it looks like the cat’s out of the bag. I guess I’ll come out now.”

In a rather casual manner, what appeared was a mushroom creature about the size of my knee. Its cap featured prominent red and purple spots, and short limbs sprouted from the stem. The way it moved them was comical. I immediately used the skill [Appraisal] on her.

――――――――――

Name: Shiitake

Race: Poisonous Mushroom Lv10

Job: Alchemist Lv0

――――――――――

“I’m Shiitake, my race is a Poisonous Mushroom. Things were getting noisy, so I came to check it out.”

“A Shiitake mushroom… and a poisonous one…”

Eiji muttered under his breath, but I decided to ignore his words for now. Both her self-introduction and the details from the [Appraisal] were identical. But, what was her purpose?

“This is sudden, but how about letting me join your party? I’ve been soloing for quite a while, but it’s a special event, right? Teaming up seems like it could be more fun.”

Unexpectedly, she was proposing to join us. I had been requested by Lady Yifa to form a party with the players in this area, so I had no objections. However, I couldn’t make this decision unilaterally.

“I’m fine with it, but what do you two think?”

“Yeah, sure. I’ve played with stray parties in other games, so it’s fine.” Eiji said.

“I’m okay with it too. Actually, I’m happy that another girl is joining us. I’m not into being surrounded by guys, you know.” Usaji added.

“Yay! That’s great!”

It seemed that Eiji and Usaji readily agreed to her joining. With that, we were able to form a temporary party…

“Wait a moment!”

“Can we also join that party?”

Whoa! Another set of players? I heard a voice from above, so I looked up and saw a crow and a bat perched on the branches of a coniferous tree. I assumed that it was those two who had spoken.

“I am ‘Seventh Armor’ a Magic Crow, and this is ‘I Got Guts” a Blood Bat. We overheard your conversation and thought you’d let us in.”

“We usually team up as a duo, but this event only allows for a single death, right? So, to increase our chances of survival, we thought of forming a stray party. It looks like you have exactly four members, and we’d like to fill the remaining two slots.”

Oh, no. Joining the party is fine with me. As the bat guy mentioned, we have extra slots, and them joining would increase our strength. But there was something that bothered me more.

“Um, could you please tell me the name of the bat guy again?”

Eiji asked timidly. If I didn’t mishear, it seemed to be a rather amusing name.

“Are you asking for my name? It’s ‘I got guts’ (Motsu aru yo).”

“I’ve modified the name from a composer I like. Pretty amusing, don’t you think? Others usually call me Moth-san.”

Ah, I see. I didn’t mishear it. Despite the very polite tone, it was a decidedly peculiar name compared to anyone else here. The fact that he could introduce himself with such a unique name indicated a unique sensibility.

In the end, Eiji and Usaji decided to accept the two newcomers. It didn’t take long, just ten minutes after the event began, to form this stray party, and it had quite the diverse lineup. By the way, these were the status of “Seventh Armor” and “I Got Guts”.

――――――――――

Name: Seventh Armor

Race: Magic Crow Lv14

Job: Summoner Lv4

Name: I Got Guts

Race: Blood Bat Lv11

Job: Fighter Lv1

――――――――――

From an orc to a ghoul, to a mushroom, and now a crow and a bat, not to forget a skeleton like me. Our races and jobs were all over the place, but we managed to form a fairly stable party with three in the vanguard and three in the rearguard. What would the event be like with them? There was some unease, but above all, I felt excitement!