Volume 6 Chapter 14 Rare Unique Variant
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Two Mantis Swordsmen appeared.
Generally, apparations found in dungeons are roughly equal in strength if they are of the same species. The larger mantis seemed more troublesome, if only because it had a face. I decided to take on the larger one, while Yurina and Mitsuki handled the smaller, headless one.
Asari monitored both situations, using Defensive Sorcery to provide support.
Chifumi and Risa provided long-range suppression. Chifumi focused primarily on supporting me, while Risa supported Yurina and the others.
At first, we succeeded in our plan to split them up.
I dodged a blow from the mantis that had come for me. The sharpness and speed of its blade were no different from the ones we’d exorcised before. At this rate, I wouldn’t be caught off guard.
If I had to force a criticism, I felt the battle would likely drag on. We weren’t all focus-firing, so our windows to strike at the mantis’s openings were limited. It was difficult to create frequent, large openings. Prioritizing safety, I attacked cautiously, refusing to rush.
I parried the sickle attack with the short spear I was equipped with today. Along with the spear, I had other defensive measures at my disposal—my own Defensive Sorcery and Rei’s attack detection. I was handling the apparation’s attacks perfectly. I wouldn’t lose. I even had enough leeway to spare some attention for the progress of the other battle.
Meanwhile, the members fighting the headless specimen seemed to be struggling.
Yurina and Mitsuki were trying to pin it down, but because it had no face, it was difficult to tell which of them the mantis was targeting. Yurina would be facing the front of its body, only for the mantis to suddenly rotate its entire torso and lash out at Mitsuki—things like that were happening.
Even though it wasn’t human, having a face usually gave you a vague idea of what a mantis was planning to do next. With the headless one, however, we had to judge its next motion solely by its body movements. At this rate, it would take them a little more time to get used to it.
In that case, it would be better for me to finish my opponent and move to support them as quickly as possible.
I parried a blow from its sickle with my spear and, using the momentum, spun my body to close in on the mantis’s feet. I thrust my spear into its abdomen.
’!? !’
It felt like stabbing a heavy sandbag with a stick. Using my grip strength and body weight, I drove the spear shaft deep into the apparation’s gut.
’――――!!!!’
If the opponent had been human, a blow like that—one that would have punched a massive hole in their belly and stopped them from breathing—would have ended the fight. But the mantis remained standing. Insects breathe through spiracles, after all. Not that I knew if apparation mantises actually used spiracles to breathe. The fact remained that the wound the mantis sustained was not enough to incapacitate it.
The mantis began swinging its sickles wildly, spraying drool everywhere.
It was too dangerous to get close.
Just as the mantis began approaching me while swinging its sickles haphazardly, the temperature inside the cave dropped rapidly.
The cave, already cool, became so cold that our breath turned white. A mist-like substance appeared in the surrounding area, then converged on the mantises all at once, freezing them solid.
”Now!” Chifumi shouted, her voice echoing through the cold chamber.
I launched an attack on the apparation, whose movements had been hindered by Chifumi’s area-of-effect freezing sorcery.
Just before I unleashed the shockwave, the mantis deployed a defensive ward. My damage was halved. I cranked up the output, forcefully piercing through the Defensive Sorcery. The ice and frost clinging to the mantis’s entire body shattered from the impact of the shockwave. It was effective enough to cause cracks across its exoskeleton and distort its surface.
Meanwhile, Yurina and the others were attacking the headless specimen. They had dealt even greater damage. Yurina’s slash targeted the joint of its right sickle, severing it, while Mitsuki’s Kanabo smashed into its abdomen at nearly the same time. Apparently, the enemy perceived the physical impact as more of a threat than the slash, as its Defensive Sorcery was deployed around its abdomen. Freezing sorcery, it seemed, made enemies with solid defenses relatively more vulnerable to blunt force. I assumed it was trying to minimize the damage as much as possible.
The smaller mantis’s frozen state was gradually being lifted by its resistance. Risa didn’t miss the opening created by its slowed movements and unleashed a sniper barrage. She fired her sniper rifle-type magic pistol until the large mana magazine was empty, piercing huge holes in its legs and chest.
The headless mantis’s movements became awkward. Losing parts of its body made it physically difficult to move. Yurina and the others didn’t stop their assault, as if thinking, To stop a zombie, you just have to keep attacking until it’s nothing but chunks of meat.
Perhaps sensing this, the mantis with a face turned its head toward the headless one and began to move.
I wasn’t going to let them merge. I took up a position to ensure they couldn’t reunite, careful not to get caught between the two.
’――――!!!’
Perhaps realizing that breaking through me would take too much time, the mantis facing me suddenly used its right sickle to cut off its own left one.
”What!?” I exclaimed, taken aback.
Ignoring my confusion, the mantis caught the severed left sickle in mid-air with its right one and threw it.
Asari, anticipating that it would be thrown at me, summoned a crystal barrier around me. But the sickle was thrown somewhere else.
The left sickle, thrown toward the headless mantis, pierced its chest but did not penetrate through. Receiving the kinetic energy, the mantis flapped its wings and glided forward.
Ahead of it lay a pool of water. I couldn’t help but cry out.
”Huh!?”
The headless mantis had thrown itself into the water.
It had fulfilled the conditions for a runaway state.
Silver strings stretched out from the wounds all over its body. Seven strings. Three of them suddenly elongated.
”Ugh!?” Asari grunted as she deflected an incoming thread.
One string, extending toward Asari, was successfully blocked by a newly deployed crystal barrier.
The remaining two strings stretched in different directions.
Where those strings landed were the discarded mantis head and the sickle that Yurina had cut off earlier. The strings pierced them, and the next instant, they contracted rapidly. With a sharp snap, the head reconnected to the torso, and the right foreleg reconnected to the right sickle.
Furthermore, the strings entangled the sickle that had been stuck in its chest, and the runaway mantis now possessed three blades.
”This is… bad,” I muttered under my breath.
The eyes of the mantis, now with its head reconnected, turned red, and it emitted a wave that eroded the mind.
The strings slackened, and the mantis looked like a rokurokubi. The string connected to the right sickle whipped around, and combined with the blade at the tip, it became something like a kusarigama. It was also controlling the sickle thrown by the face-bearing mantis, meaning it now had two kusarigama.
Its attack range and lethality had clearly increased by several notches. Strings erupted from the holes all over its body, acting as substitutes for its lost leg functions. There were seven strings in total.
”Full power!” I commanded, my voice firm.
I judged this to be an opponent I couldn’t afford to be careless with. I signaled my change in combat policy to everyone, and activated my Inherent Sorcery. With Tatemiya Sorcery, I rewrote the interior of this cave into a phantom mansion of apparations—a space where my subjugated apparations could move freely.
”Hinoki , I’ll leave this one to you. You ready?”
’It’s my turn. Leave it to me,’ they replied with a sharp, clicking tone.
A giant centipede crawled out. This time, it manifested as slightly larger than the mantis.
’――――!!!’
After a moment of staring each other down, the centipede and the non-runaway state mantis collided.
Hinoki caught one sickle with its mandibles, and while skillfully dodging the other—which had been cut short—it entwined itself around the mantis.
It squeezed the enemy’s entire body with its own, then used its countless legs to stab into the torso, tearing it to shreds. Against enemies with joints and bones, it seemed to specialize in twisting the body in directions it wasn’t meant to bend, snapping everything to pieces. That was apparently the centipede’s basic combat style.
It took hits from the sickle attacks its mandibles couldn’t catch, but the oil coating the centipede’s surface, the natural hardness of its outer shell, and the defensive boost from Auxiliary Sorcery kept the damage to a minimum.
It was fine. Hinoki would devour that mantis soon enough.
The problem was the zombie mantis. Could we really win against such a monster?
”Hahhhh!!!” Mitsuki shouted, slamming her staff against the ground.
A vibration that seemed to surge from the ground passed through my body, and I felt my negative feelings dissipate. Mitsuki had performed an exorcism, resetting my accumulated fear status.
What was I being so weak for? If I fought normally, I could win. I had exorcised a mantis in a Runaway State before. The situation was the same as that time. It was pathetic for a Majin to lose to a debuff.
I had to think of the steps to victory calmly and give instructions to everyone. Mitsuki was out of commission as an offensive force while she focused on status recovery. Everyone else just needed to keep landing powerful attacks and shatter the mantis—along with the horsehair worm—to pieces.
First, I ordered Chifumi to use the area-of-effect freezing sorcery again.
”Here goes!” Chifumi announced.
Just as the mist began to swirl, two of the strings growing from the mantis extended, growing large and thick.
The moment the mist converged on the zombie mantis, the strings wrapped around its entire body, covering it. It looked like a mummy.
A few seconds later, the frozen strings shattered with a crack.
Only a bit of frost remained on the mantis itself. The damage was minimal.
”!!” Risa signaled, her rifle already leveled.
Targeting the moment it broke free, Risa unleashed a sniper shot. She accurately hit the string connecting the head and torso, and the strings connecting the sickles to the arms. The strings sagged heavily, but they didn’t snap. They were as strong as they were flexible.
Two of the strings lunged at us in retaliation. The crystal barrier took the blow.
Blocked from moving, the strings whipped against the wall repeatedly, and cracks began to form in the crystal.
I didn’t intend to sit by and watch the wall be destroyed. I fired a Shock Magic spell at maximum power.
I succeeded in severing the two strings that had been attacking the Crystal Wall. If I could have pulverized the mantis itself at the same time, it would have been over quickly, but the mantis avoided my shockwave with a freakish movement, using its tattered wings in a way an insect shouldn’t be able to.
It dodged that? Is my attack really not going to work?
”More!” Mitsuki cheered, pulsing her spiritual power.
The vibration from the ground cleared my thoughts once more.
Damn. The effects of the fear status again. This is troublesome.
Everyone regained their sanity and began the sequence of attacks once more.
Chifumi’s total Attack Sorcery followed by Risa’s sniping and my Shock Magic. The difference this time was that Kaname used her ability to pin the mantis’s legs to the ground, preventing it from dodging the shockwave.
The blow, which I thought would finally land, was dodged again as the mantis tore off its own pinned legs.
However, the damage to the mantis was significant. Risa had changed her ammo from sniper rounds to incendiary grenades, so the mantis, engulfed in flames, had parts of its body blackened and carbonized.
The horsehair worm seemed to have a resistance to flame; it extinguished the fire by lashing its silver, rope-like body against every inch of the mantis.
It had become impossible to tell if the worm was erupting from the mantis, or if a mass of worms was wearing the mantis like a cheap suit.
The zombie mantis had begun using the ropes as limbs. Four of them, having burst from the creature’s chest, braced its body, allowing for movements far freer—and in a sense, far more unreasonable—than the insect’s natural legs. I could tear the ropes apart with Shock Magic, but the zombie’s vitality was immense; new worms grew to replace the severed ones almost instantly.
It was clearly tougher than the mantis we had rampaged against last time. Even if the outer shell looked the same, the contents were entirely different.
While we struggled to find an opening, Yurina stood alone against the swinging scythes, fully realizing her role as an evasion-tank.
Fine, jagged cuts manifested along with the wind pressure generated by the high-speed movement of the ropes. Yurina’s arms and legs were covered in small, growing lacerations from the invisible blades she couldn’t fully avoid, yet she refused to back down, blood seeping through her skin.
I adjusted my position to sandwich the mantis between Yurina and myself, keeping up the assault. Everyone’s Mana was slowly being whittled away, but the zombie mantis was nearing its own limit as well.
”Au-!”
Was it the last flicker of the flame before it died? A strike from the ropes shattered my Crystal Wall. Asari reflexively manifested a small, hard shield in front of her, using her gauntlet as a catalyst. She avoided a direct hit to her body, but the weight difference sent her flying.
”Asari-chan!”
Mitsuki dove in, catching Asari before she could slam into the wall.
Risa’s Magic Bullet and Chifumi’s stone projectiles deflected the follow-up strike from the ropes. We were low on ammo; I pulverized the ropes that had broken through our barrage with a blast of Shock Magic. Safe.
I glanced sideways at Hinoki . They seemed close to finishing their own fight, but I couldn’t call them over yet. What’s the next move…?!
When I shifted my gaze back, I saw Yurina standing directly in front of the mantis, blade raised, avoiding the scythe attacks with minimal movement. She was responding perfectly, not just to the linear downward swings, but to the whip-like lashings as well.
Something was different. She was cloaking her entire body in the Mana she normally concentrated only in her arms and legs.
(I will cut it.)
Yurina hadn’t actually said anything. Not a sound left her lips.
Yet, I felt I had heard those words coming from her gaze. I fired a shockwave at the creature’s neck to draw its attention.
A split-second opening in the mantis’s defense. In that instant, the Mana enveloping Yurina’s body converged into her blade, forming a long, invisible edge. With a high-speed downward slash that left the mantis no time to dodge, she cut the apparation in two vertically.
”Eh…?”
I don’t know whose voice that was—so dull and drained of spirit.
The ropes, which had been moving so wildly just moments ago, stopped as if someone had hit a stop button.
With a sickening slither, the two halves of the mantis collapsed to the ground.
The hairworms that hadn’t been killed outright writhed for a moment, then went still, and the zombie mantis dissolved into smoke.
”…Yurina.”
I called out to Yurina, who remained frozen in the stance of her final slash.
No response.
”Yurina.”
”…! Ah, yes. What is it, Minoru-sama?”
Yurina rebooted, scurrying over to my side in a panic.
I hugged her and stroked her hair.
”Great job! You’re the MVP today!”
”Yes! Thank you very much!”
Yurina hugged me back tightly. Chifumi and the others gathered around us.
”You did it~ That final blow, that was a great attack~”
”That’s amazing, being able to pull that off on command.”
”Yurina. When did you learn to do something like that?”
”It was incredible…”
’Aye, look here, we ain’t finished yet. Don’t go gettin’ soft on me, come over here and back me up.’
Hinoki was calling.
Right. Though, it was practically over anyway.
We all launched a focused attack on the mantis, which was now riddled with holes and falling apart. With a finishing blast of Shock Magic, it was shattered to pieces and vanished into smoke.
With that, I dispelled my Inherent sorcery.
We returned to the normal dungeon space.
’Aah. Hey, brother, you alright?’
”I’m fine. Managed to pull it off. Thanks.”
’Don’t push yourself too hard, now~’
I had burned through a lot of my own Mana. I returned Hinoki to the shadows.
”Still, though~ that was a tough enemy~”
”Tell me about it. A Rare Unique Variant… honestly, I underestimated it. My bad.”
”It was leagues stronger than a normal Unique Variant!”
Mitsuki was right. If we hadn’t been careful, we could have easily taken a fall. That mantis was strong.
”I used quite a bit of Mana.”
”I’m… running on empty…”
Asari looked pale. It was understandable; she had been pulling double duty, manifesting and dispelling Crystal Wall to protect everyone during the second half. It had been a Mana-draining fight.
For now, I used Majo’s Tears to restore Asari’s Mana.
”We did get a drop item, though~ It’s a string I’ve never seen before~ I’m looking forward to getting it appraised at the counter~”
”Minoru, what now?”
We still had over an hour before the time I’d promised Komoda.
Everyone was exhausted; I didn’t want to push them.
I checked on Yurina.
”? ? Did I do something?”
”No, it’s nothing.”
I just thought she might say, Let’s do one more fight while the feeling is still fresh! But, judging by her current state, she seemed to accept the decision to withdraw.
”Alright, it’s a bit early, but let’s call it a day. No point in pushing our luck.”
”Understood.”
”Alright everyone, use your Return slips.”
Just as I said that, a powerful light erupted.
The source was the spare magazine in Risa’s hand. Why?
Before our bewildered eyes, the light began to take shape.
[PHASE_3_COMPLETE_SOURCE][END_PHASE_3_OUTPUT]
—
Summary:
The protagonist and their party face off against two powerful Mantis Swordsman apparations in a dungeon, struggling with the erratic behavior of a headless variant. After a failed attempt to keep the enemies separated, the headless mantis enters a horrific Runaway State, reassembling itself with severed limbs and parasitic strings. The party must recalibrate their combat strategy, using status-clearing rituals and coordinated magical barrages to weaken the escalating, regenerating threat.
Minoru and his party defeat a high-level Zombie Mantis Rare Unique Variant through coordinated effort and Yurina’s breakthrough combat strike. Post-battle, the team recovers as their Mana supplies are severely depleted. Just as they prepare to exit the dungeon, an inexplicable light erupts from Risa’s equipment, signaling a new, unforeseen event.
—
Trivia:
1 The mantises are identified as “apparations,” a specific classification of dungeon-dwelling hostile entities.
2 Spirits or creatures within the protagonist’s control, like Hinoki, are manifestations rather than literal creatures present at all times.
3 Fear status is a recurring mental debuff caused by the mantises, requiring specific exorcism-based skills from party members like Mitsuki to neutralize.
4 The environment is being actively transformed by the protagonist’s Inherent Sorcery into a “phantom mansion,” altering the battlefield conditions to favor his summons.
1 The mantis is explicitly identified as a Rare Unique Variant, which is noted as being significantly stronger than a standard Unique Variant.
2 Yurina’s breakthrough involves cloaking her entire body in Mana, a departure from her usual practice of focusing it only on her limbs.
3 Asari’s exhaustion is attributed to her continuous usage of Crystal Wall, demonstrating the high Mana cost of the team’s defensive measures.
4 The sudden light phenomenon is triggered by a spare magazine in Risa’s possession, providing a cliffhanger for the next encounter.
—
Translation Notes:
Notes:
• M – A first-year student at District 13 High School and the childhood friend of Anonymous Student 0006, described as an atavistic strong-female who looks plain but possesses significant power.
• S – A first-year student at District 13 High School who has taken B from North Middle into his squad.
• T – A first-year student at District 13 High School who has recruited K and N from East Middle into his group.
• Mitsuki – A tall, short-haired, dark-skinned OniMai clan girl with a massive, muscular build, this haughty, shy transfer student is a wealthy Sumo and assassin candidate. Koki’s sister and Minoru’s clingy friend, she aids his, Ryota, and Shoji’s teams. Wielding a chained Kanabo/Hama Kongou, this observant explorer uses Oni-fication, physical support, and status-cleansing recovery magic.
• Yurina – A stoic, black-haired Plain-folk student and samurai girl residing in Risa’s house. During a festive play, she wears an apron, cat ears, a collar, and a tail. As a confident evasion-tank vanguard in Lord Minoru/Shoji’s party, she fights alongside Mitsuki and acts as Chifumi’s protector. Trained by Anri, she uses a katana, iaijutsu, Mana, and Severing Sorcery to unleash invisible, slashing edges.
• Yuri – A cheerful and energetic first-year student at Higashi High who is a classmate of Shibuya and an acquaintance of Kibe Yurina from their middle school days. A girl known for being aggressive toward Hayato and displaying overt favoritism.
• Asari – A tall, long-haired, curvy Kasakura honor student with glasses, this analytical strategist is Minoru’s devoted partner and Risa’s future host. Close to Mari and Nagase, her home is the party’s next stop. Utilizing gauntlets to manifest crystal barriers and Silicic Armor, she is a defensive specialist knowledgeable in Aberration mechanics, currently suffering from mana exhaustion.
• A – A student from South Middle School described as an idol who has been recruited into R’s high school squad.
• Chifumi – Minoru’s beautiful, kimono-clad childhood friend, partner, and lead household witch. A supportive, inquisitive older sister figure who loves cooking, she fiercely protects Minoru and manages team admin. In combat, she wields immense Mana for recovery and long-range AOE freezing sorcery, using stone projectiles and ice to bind enemies. She recently received a Majo’s Tears accessory.
• Risa – A tall, slender, buxom Naruse guild student with twin-tails, this bold, wealthy lady stays at the Tatemiya estate (Yurina’s house). Sister to Momono and Anri, and Minoru’s primary partner, she manages family drama, cooks for the protagonist’s party, guides Yurina, and distrusts Komoda. In combat, she provides long-range support using a sniper-type magic pistol, Magic Bullets, and Snow flies.
• R – A first-year student at District 13 High School who has successfully built a squad and added multiple girls, including M and A, into his group.
• Rei – A subjugated electric ray Aberration residing in Minoru’s shadow and a dedicated group member. It acts as a combat radar, detecting atmospheric shifts and sorcery for tactical warnings. Loyal to allies but hostile and fearful toward new members, its ability provides defensive support to both Tatemiya and Shoji.
• B – A student originally from North Middle School who was added to S’s group.
• N – A student from East Middle with an eccentric personality who entered National High School due to complex family circumstances and used herself as leverage to negotiate a protective agreement for K.
• K – A student from East Middle who followed N to National High School out of care, successfully remaining pure through N’s protection until a misunderstanding involving Anonymous Student 0008 led to her capitulation.
• Tatemiya – Minoru, bearer of the prestigious Tatemiya family name, is a sorcerer protagonist and head of a traditional lineage house. Specializing in electrical defensive sorcery, he guides a powerful group of women and witches (including Kotoha) to search for powers. He utilizes the Tatemiya household as a central hub to live and bond, conversing with Megumi and Minoru about regional gathering spots.
• Hinoki – Sharing Minoru’s consciousness, this sharp-tongued, non-binary Oni-fied centipede Aberration is a 30cm metallic-shelled field leader summoned via Inherent Sorcery. Acting as an independent shadow support, scout, and flanker for the squad, they crush enemies or shift into a massive reptilian form. They guide insects, track boss spawns, and craft Crystal of Power accessories for allies.
• Kaname – Residing in Minoru’s shadow as a member of the protagonist’s party, this high-and-mighty, catfish-like Aberration is an earth-connected, anti-lightning countermeasure. Demanding high-grade feed, it can manipulate the consistency of materials like rock and strategically pins enemy limbs to the ground during battle.
• Minoru – Minoru Tatemiya is a lean, plain, black-haired student, hidden Demon Lord, and reincarnated mob protagonist. This analytical narrator and Master tactician rules the 5th District using inherent, defensive, and shockwave sorcery. From his estate, he manages dungeon logistics, hosts Hinoki, and guides Majo allies (Mai, Mitsuki), while maintaining a complex, training-based relationship with Risa.
• Majo – A member of Minoru’s group whose presence is noted to be vital for success.
• Komoda – An eccentric, polite male classmate and leader of the influential Michinori family’s Komoda house who commands a Sword-Hammer Cave squad. While hiding mechanics for prestige, he coordinates travel, exchanges intel, interacts with Ryota’s group, and seeks an alliance with Minoru. Outperforming Shoji’s group in speed-runs, he shares the dungeon space and serves as a party meeting benchmark.
• Mantis Swordsman – A mantis-type Unique Variant and lower-ranked species of the Head-Hunting Mantis, standing over 3 meters tall and wielding two giant scythes.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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