First of all, Aiden and Maya had sustained quite a few minor injuries.
They had successfully blocked or dodged all the major attacks, but the clever giant hyenas, realizing their direct assaults weren’t effective, resorted to kicking up dirt with their massive paws as a form of attack.
Most of the debris bounced off their armor, but occasionally, it struck more vulnerable spots like between joints where the defense was weaker.
“Each time that happened, my stance would break, and the follow-up attacks aimed at those gaps were really unsettling.”
“Right. And those things were crazy fast. Plus, they were smart, too.”
In Maya’s case, she was able to deflect the smaller attacks using [Spirit Dash].
She blended in with her surroundings and struck off-beat to confuse the giant hyena and land a hit.
“But after it got hit once, it never gave us another opening.”
Despite their huge size, the giant hyenas used surprisingly clever tactics in battle.
And because of their bulk, even the slightest lapse in concentration could lead to a critical mistake.
If your response was even slightly delayed, you risked being crushed by their sheer mass.
“This time was actually one of the easier fights. The giant hyenas aren’t all that strong.”
Of course, given their size, they had tremendous destructive power, but it wasn’t anything that the two of them who were enhanced by mana couldn’t handle.
“But what if they were tougher and had high regenerative powers?”
“You mean something like trolls?”
“Exactly.”
Trolls. Monsters that rarely appear on the fourth level and are more commonly seen on the fifth.
With their massive bodies and long limbs, what made them truly terrifying was their incredible regenerative ability.
“If it turned into a war of attrition like this, we’d be at a disadvantage. And unlike those giant hyenas, they wouldn’t have retreated.”
When Aiden was healed by holy magic, the giant hyena tried to charge at Jun and Eleanor, but Aiden and Maya successfully intercepted it.
However, if they’d been up against something like a troll, the monster would’ve likely taken the hits from Aiden and Maya just to get at Jun and Eleanor.
“But, well… honestly, there’s no helping that part. It’s just a limitation of our team composition. I only pointed it out to highlight the weakness in our fighting style, something to keep in mind.”
“Hmm…”
“Understood.”
After giving Aiden and Maya his assessment of the battle, Jun turned to Eleanor.
“So? How was it, channeling mana into my spell yourself?”
“Felt like my head was going to explode.”
“Right?”
Since Eleanor had previously transformed Jun’s mana into divine power several times using [Transformation], she thought she’d be able to mimic his mana and interfere with his spells without much trouble.
However, magic turned out to be far more delicate than she had imagined. Without thoroughly understanding each component, even a small misstep could lead to mana overload and damage the spell pattern itself.
“Don’t tell me… I have to study magic too?”
“Not everything, but it’s worth learning the structure of spell patterns. There are quite a few similarities with divine magic.”
“Ugh… I thought stuff like this was for bishops.”
Surprisingly, Eleanor didn’t seem too repulsed by the idea.
In fact, many divine spells had their origins in modern magic, developed through various borrowings and adaptations.
“So starting today, we’re studying magic.”
“I already feel like throwing up…”
After that, Eleanor began taking lessons on the spell patterns Jun used most frequently, while Aiden and Maya reflected on their battle with the giant hyenas and discussed what they lacked.
***
“White Whale Mercenary Corps, huh…”
Hertex, the leader of the Hertex Adventurer Party, repeated the name of the White Whale Mercenary Corps who had shown up in the Ervantos Contamination Zone. The territory he considered his own.
Recently, the group had been rapidly gaining recognition for various reasons, but even before that, Hertex had heard their name mentioned by someone else.
“That’s the mercenary group Lady Ron spoke of.”
Ron Kyler.
The leader of the Altas Adventurer Party, operated by a level 7 warrior, and the person who had participated in the “Bavern’s Praise” event alongside Jun.
After recently discovering the Temple of Deidas, she had become incredibly famous and in the past, she’d had ties with Hertex.
“They’re supposed to be quite capable. Is there another reason they’ve come to accept our request?”
“Then how about selling the information to the information guild?”
When his adjutant made this suggestion, Hertex paused to consider.
After all, the Fairy Queen raid in the Black Forest on the first level had already drawn plenty of attention to them.
Even just selling that information could earn a sizable profit.
Unexpectedly, selling information like this often provided a steady stream of income.
“Forget it. No need to make enemies out of people who are connected to the Altas Adventurer Party.”
“But shouldn’t we at least notify the noble sponsoring us?”
“Let it go. Sir Molten isn’t really part of the noble faction anyway.”
“Hmm… That’s true.”
The noble factions were currently pouring considerable effort into establishing their own territory within Blackout.
Because of that, they had shown great interest in the White Whale Mercenary Corps, who were expected to play a key role in the Fairy Queen raid. However, this had little to do with the Hertex Adventurer Party.
“Well, there’s no need to be greedy and stir up trouble. As I always say, life is best lived long and steady.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Good. Now, onto the next topic—”
“C-Captain!”
At that moment, accompanied by a commotion in the hallway, an adventurer burst through the door.
“What is it?”
“H-He’s appeared!”
Though it wasn’t a specific name, Hertex immediately understood and his expression hardened.
“He’s earlier than usual this year… What’s his location?”
“He’s near the entrance of the mountain range!”
“Send word to the ones who have entered our territory. Tell them he’s coming!”
“Understood!”
“Adjutant! Gather all our members out in the field. We’re going to hunt him down.”
“Yes!”
***
“Phew… These guys are pretty persistent.”
As yet another giant hyena disintegrated into particles and vanished, Aiden shook his head in exasperation, watching the remaining ones begin to retreat once again.
“Still, thanks to them, we’re handling the request quite nicely. As long as we’re careful with these guys, we don’t have to worry about the attention of other monsters.”
Two days had passed since they began their training.
During that time, Jun and the others had to deal with the giant hyenas lurking stealthily in the mist.
Whenever Jun and his party moved, the hyenas would rally other nearby packs and attack, leaving the group no chance to relax….even during breaks.
It had been a mentally exhausting journey.
“We must’ve underestimated them just because we survived the fifth level.”
At Aiden’s complaint, Jun nodded in agreement.
“Let’s stay here for another two weeks, then head to the tower.”
“Got it. By the way, what’s for dinner tonight?”
“Venison stew. From the deer we hunted earlier.”
“Ooh.”
It was just after they had finished dinner—
“Are they on the move again?”
“They sure know how to give us a proper post-meal workout.”
Maya spat her toothpick on the ground, full and satisfied.
“How many are there this time?”
“Uh…”
Jun’s answer was vague.
“What’s that?”
“Guys.”
“Yes?”
Aiden who had been helping with cleanup turned to look at Jun, and Eleanor glanced around as if she had a bad feeling.
“There’s… quite a few of them.”
Red eyes began to emerge from all directions, glowing through the thick white mist.
“Run.”
Sensing something abnormal in the field, Jun didn’t hesitate to order a retreat.
***
“Why the hell are they moving like this?!”
Aiden gasped for air as he ran with Eleanor on his back.
“I don’t know! But what I do know is staying here won’t end well!”
According to the [Scan] Jun had just used, the number of monsters detected was over a dozen.
Large monsters that typically never travel in groups were now clustered together, chasing after Jun and his party.
[Grease]
As the ground beneath a charging Giant War Boar lost all friction, the beast slipped and crashed down instantly.
Its massive body toppled several of the pursuing monsters behind it like falling boulders.
Even so, agile, four-legged beasts leaped over the fallen boar and continued the chase.
[Iron Rampart]
Jun quickly used “Illusia” to cast a spell and finally shake them off. Only after that did he stop running.
Once the lingering trail from the [Burning Step] spell had fully faded and the monsters no longer seemed to be pursuing, Jun finally let out a sigh of relief.
“Hurry. We need to get rid of our scent.”
“Understood.”
Just as they had done in the Black Forest, the party used surrounding grass, dirt, and anything they could find to mask their scent, then listened carefully to the distant uproar echoing from all around.
“What the hell is going on?”
“Sounds like a field boss has shown up.”
“A field boss?”
“Yeah. If it’s a field boss in the Ervantos contamination zone …”
Groaaaaaaaaaaaaagh—!!
Right on cue, a ferocious roar echoed from the distance, and Jun clicked his tongue.
“Damn it. A troll.”
“A… A troll?!”
“It’s a solo-type monster that usually appears on the fifth level. I mentioned it not too long ago.”
“That thing’s shown up here?”
Even Aiden had heard of trolls. They were that infamous.
They were occasionally sighted on the fourth level as well, though they were generally weaker than the ones found on the fifth level.
At that, Eleanor responded with a noticeably grim expression.
“I heard from the old man that they show up in this field every now and then, though it’s rare. But why didn’t the Hertex Expedition warn anyone in advance?”
“They probably didn’t see it coming.”
“And they still have the nerve to call themselves rulers of this territory?”
Eleanor asked in disbelief, but in truth, incidents like this weren’t all that uncommon.
No matter how meticulous a place like Blackout tried to be, there were always limits.
Take trolls, for example. Even if one appeared as a field boss, it’s not like they could stay on constant alert for an entire year.
And keeping top-tier adventurers ready to face a troll at any moment was a costly endeavor.
“Ugh… Still, they must’ve had at least some idea about the timing.”
“There’s probably been some kind of disruption. Rare as it is, there are cases where a field boss appears earlier than expected.”
“Right. That’s what happened in the Black Forest last year too.”
But Jun was analyzing the situation from a different angle than Eleanor.
“If there really was a problem, I’m sure the Hertex Adventurers would’ve moved quickly to respond. So why is that thing rampaging like this without any restraint?”
It might make sense if Jun and his group had gone so deep into the field that news couldn’t reach them, but that couldn’t be the case for other people in the nearby area.
If the monster had appeared, they should’ve been the first to hear about it and pulled out, so why were there still sounds of fighting nearby…?
“Damn it, the Hertex Expedition has fallen!”
“Get back! The monster bastards are closing in!”
“Argh! Help me!”
As screams rang out from all directions, Jun instinctively glanced at his companions.
Thankfully, unlike before, no one was giving him a hard time…
“……”
“……”
At that moment, his eyes met Maya’s, and Jun awkwardly turned his head away.
“Let’s head toward the direction those sounds came from first.”
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