Volume 13 Chapter 22 Kent’s Growth
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Enough jokes; let’s get serious. We’re heading closer to the chaos zone. Talia, keep your focus!”
I advanced further into the brawl to support Milly and the others in close combat.
The distance between us and Milly was less than ten meters now.
Switching my Explode Gunlance into firing mode, I deployed it onto the ground.
”Milly! Everyone! I’m covering you──let’s go all out!”
As I signaled for covering fire, they adjusted their positions, clearing a line for my shot.
The rhythm of battle among us had rapidly evolved during this expedition, allowing for tight coordination.
Confirming the line was clear, I activated my 3-part combat technique: [Hawk’s Eye], [Suppressive Fire], and [Concentration].
Vwoooom──Bam Bam Bam Bam Bam!
Bam Bam Bam!
Bam Bam Bam!
My barrage, enhanced by the 3 techniques, struck the monsters flawlessly, causing serious damage.
The Arachne, missing a leg thanks to my gunfire, tried to defend against Milly’s slashes by spinning its thread──asserting a shield as tough as silver.
But with its mobility gone, it couldn’t keep up with Milly’s speed.
One by one, its legs were severed, and finally, a dagger plunged into its head, freezing its limbs in a final, deadly grip.
”Kent! Help Aurelia out!”
”Got it!”
Meanwhile, Aurelia was locked in a losing struggle against a solo Phantom Knight, missing every strike and falling behind.
It looked like it was throwing off its vision, slashing at empty air instead of its actual target.
”Aurelia! Fall back! I’ll cover you!”
”Sorry, I’m on my way back!”
With a clear line, I opened fire on the Phantom Knight.
Vwoooom──Bam Bam Bam Bam Bam!
Bam Bam Bam!
Bam Bam Bam!
As the thunderous sound of gunfire rang out, dust clouds erupted around the Phantom Knight.
However, my shots seemed to be deflected by its shield.
Yet the Phantom Knight was also immobilized by the relentless barrage.
”Damn, it’s tough. Time to switch to bombardment mode. Lina, hold it down with your magic!”
”Sure, sure. I’ll hold it back with a Fire Arrow.”
Lina replied with a tired sigh.
She promptly launched multiple Fire Arrows, buying time to recharge her magic by slowing down the Phantom Knight.
”Recharge complete! Die, you bastard──aaaaaugh!!”
A black sphere emerged from the tip of the Explode Gunlance, then unleashed a blinding white light towards the Phantom Knight.
The Phantom Knight absorbed the blast with its shield, sizzling as it was forced to retreat, the shield now cracked.
Soon, the shield gave way under the bombardment, and the white light pierced through to the Phantom Knight’s core.
With a thunderous explosion, the Phantom Knight’s body shattered, scattering materials and its now lifeless armor to the ground.
”Brilliant work, Lord Kent.”
Just as I took down the Phantom Knight, the Maid Trio also finished off the Phantom Carriage that had ambushed me.
”That should do it for today’s hunt, Milly. Think we should call it a day?”
”I’d love to, but looks like trouble’s coming. Better send a distress signal, quick.”
In the direction Milly pointed, there was a pack of hundreds of wolves.
They must have been drawn here by the sounds of our combat.
”Just regular wolves?”
”No way. Those are Dust Wolves. Ferocious beasts that’ll devour anything that moves. They’re fast, their fangs can tear through metal armor, and they’re pros at hunting in groups. No way we can stand up to their wave attacks as we are.”
WOOOOOOOON.
A Dust Wolf, likely the leader, let out a commanding howl.
The pack’s gaze instantly locked onto us.
A shiver of tension ran down our spines.
”You’re right, Milly. Talia, send up that distress signal. Everyone else, get inside the earthen barrier I’m about to make.”
With a swift incantation, he unleashed the Grand Wall, turning the very barriers he had created to block the monsters’ escape into a stronghold for their defense.
Channeling the Creation of the Universe, he crafted small openings for gunfire and magic, allowing for attacks on the enemy horde.
Just as the makeshift fortress took shape, Talia fired off a distress signal.
Up above, as twilight descended, a brilliant red and white flare illuminated the sky, slowly descending like a comet.
Nearby, Black Bullet and Rootless Weed had been hunting; they were bound to see that signal and rush to the rescue instantly.
~New Monster~
Monster Name: Jaegergli Chestnut
Hunt Rank: B
Type: Terrestrial Creature
Features: A monstrous transformation of a chestnut.
When it drops from trees, it scatters to hide while searching for prey, launching spiky husks as it attacks.
The spikes aren’t lethal, but they contain a compound that causes excruciating pain; if you get hit and stagger, you could be finished off by a barrage of concentrated fire.
Surrounded by 3 layers of protective husks, it’s weak to fire and extreme heat, bursting forth when roasted or scorched.
The raw chestnut is a treasured delicacy in the forest, while the husks are in high demand as materials for armor crafting.
Monster Name: Meteor Hornet
Hunt Rank: C
Type: Aerial Insect
Features: This monster descends from great heights, piercing down like a meteor with its stingers.
Its exoskeleton is as hard as iron; when it crashes to the ground, it creates a crater with a 15-meter radius.
A single misstep could lead to instant death──it’s been certified as a dangerous monster.
Monster Name: Lava Hippo
Hunt Rank: C
Type: Animal
A relatively mild-mannered monster, but when angered, it becomes ferociously aggressive.
It’ll crush anything in its path with its massive body, unleash a Sudden Rush with its fangs, and rampage until the area is clear of movement (though it’s a blessing that its vision isn’t great, limiting its range).
Normally dwelling in water, it can also thrive in magma without a hitch.
When its skin dries out or it feels cold, it sweats lava instead.
Monster name: Phantom Carriage
Hunt Rank: A
Type: Insect
Characteristic: A large box carriage drawn by beast-like monsters that appears in deep fog.
Its true form is a structure made up of a swarm of parasitic insect monsters and their secretions, clinging to the beasts.
The fog disorients its prey, and when they’ve weakened, it strikes──enticing them into the carriage, where they’re soon overwhelmed and devoured by countless insects, leaving no bones behind.
The driver is merely a mass of insects mimicking the last victim’s appearance, and as the swarm grows, they shift hosts to an even stronger beast when the original one nears its limit.
During this process, the weak monster becomes a feast for the original host, while the stronger monster can dominate and make the host its own using special pheromones.
The carriage’s base, axle, and wheels are constructed from that same secretion; if you defeat it and find remnants, you could potentially craft carriages or buildings from them (walls and roofs mimic the insects).
However, since fire──the most effective means of extermination──burns these structures as well, recovering any material is a daunting challenge.
The drops include a “hardening agent” that, when crushed and mixed with water, can be used to coat armor, and a rare drop called “Mimicry Shell” that can take on whatever shape you infuse with magical power.
Unfortunately, each shell from a single creature is small, making it incredibly difficult to gather enough.
Monster name: Edge Shell Armadillo
Hunt Rank: B
Type: Animal
Characteristic: About 2 meters long.
It rolls into a ball, sharp enough to cut as it rolls by, shredding anything in its path.
Its tough skin deflects thrusting weapons, while its blades can slice through iron.
Monster name: Phantom Knight
Hunt Rank: A
Type: Terrestrial Creature
In the heart of the deep forest lies a Monster Hunter’s armor, transformed into a monster by the accumulation of magic elements after being felled by a monster.
Only witnessed about 3 times in 6 months, the armor’s helmet hides a glowing red eye that creates an illusion of being watched, distracting its prey long enough to strike.
Monster Name: Arachne
Hunt Rank: A
Type: Insect
Features: A monster with the head of a spider and the body of a woman sprouting from where the spider’s head should be.
The woman’s eyes are like that of a spider──multiple and eerie.
Without reason or speech, it expresses human-like emotions.
Initially thought to lure men as prey in its female form, it was later realized that only women become its “sacrifices.”
Using her spider silk, she tortures and kills other women.
This is because she harbors a hatred for her own kind.
Rarely seen and swift of foot, no successful hunts have been recorded, leading some to believe there might be only one of its kind.
Men are not attacked; rather, they flee at the very sight of her.
Her tricky combat style, utilizing her webs strategically, can ensnare any woman she encounters in the blink of an eye.
Monster Name: Dust Wolf
Hunt Rank: S
Type: Terrestrial Beast
Features: Appears as an ordinary wolf.
Carnivorous and ferocious, it devours anything that moves.
Always hunting in packs, whereas a normal wolf pack numbers around 15 to 20, the Dust Wolf is known for forming packs of 200 to 1000, making swift hunting essential to prevent the pack from growing too large.
Records tell of a Dust Wolf leading a pack of 1050 that ravaged food production areas in the north, wiping out 2 walled towns.
~New Magic~
Combination Magic
[Gigantic Fireball]
A fireball that’s ten times the size of a normal fireball, which, upon impact, great deals and burn damage in a radius of 20 meters around the point of impact.
[Grand Wall]
Behold the colossal ‘Grand Wall’──a towering fortress of earth, rising to a height of ten meters and spanning a width of 20.
Its strength depends entirely on the mage’s magical prowess.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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