21 Chapter 21: Apollo Familia
ROOOOARRR-!!!
I was instantly jolted awake.
"Revelares, Veritas." (Truth be Revealed)
My first reaction is to scan my surroundings while calling forth my blade.
The scanning range had hit several targets at once. Their biological processes are strong, which is indicated by how bright the dot of light is.
"Huge Level 2's… Orcs?"
Orcs are huge monsters that have tough skin. Their main characteristics are their pig head as well as them wielding the first weapons since the Upper Areas—tree trunks.
"Swift strikes to their connective tissues…"
The nearest orc can be found more than 8 meters away from my hideout. I got out of the transparent tent that I was in before dashing straight to them. The mist is thicker than usual and I could feel a boost in my abilities.
It's nighttime.
A gigantic monster greeted my sight. It has a height of more than two meters. The thickness of its body, however, is ridiculous. From my findings, it weighs more than 140 kilograms.
Hence, a single strike of it can incapacitate an unsuspecting Level two immediately.
Fortunately, I am wielding one of my best works.
"Exacuo." (Sharpen.)
A thin white film coated my blade. Just like Robustness, it gave an increased edge on the blade—a new metallic property was added to it.
Shiing-!
Bright white light enveloped the blade as I activated the magic in it.
Splat-!
It easily cut through the tendons in the feet, prompting its balance to be shifted. It fell backward; right where I was standing.
Cut-!
One clean strike severed its head out of its body. As it made a loud thud to the cold dungeon floor, I analyzed the minimap brought by my 'correspondence'.
"Nine orcs… How did they even come in this direction?"
That loud howl as well. My 'Correspondence' didn't detect anyone else aside from them.
….No.
"This."
Another lifeform entered the field of my detection. It has an even brighter light than the orcs. When its silhouette was sent into my mind, I could only narrow my eyes at the coincidence.
"An Infant Dragon."
Moreover, it should be a mutant. It is far stronger than what a Level two Infant Dragon should be. Most likely, it is a Level three.
"Velamen nox." (Veil of the Night.)
A small field was deployed in my surroundings. It hindered the normal operation of perception, giving off false signals to the stimuli that the monsters receive.
It is based on Plato's Idea Theory which states that everything we see is not necessarily true. There could be lapses in perception that messes up our "view".
"Can I handle a Level three..?"
My "Twice Robustness" allowed me to barely catch and predict Rethusa-san's movements.
"It's a good time to find out."
If it doesn't work, I still have a few trump cards in my pocket. A single moment is all it needs for death to come. With that said, I pre-casted my barrier magic in my head.
I run off into the distance. I stayed in the distance as I saw another large figure in the mist. It has a height of around 5 meters and is around 7~8 meters long. Unlike the normal ones, it is black, with scales decorating its body.
I observed it while preparing my other magic.
"Columna Ignis Seco Obscurum." (The Pillar of Light Shall Split the Darkness.)
While cloaked, I saw the orcs get bitten off one by one. A crunching noise was present in the Infant Dragon's mouth, possibly the Magic Stones inside the orcs.
"Fax Rendre." (Light that Gives.)
Two large magic circles appeared on its top and bottom. Instantly, it spewed out a tall pillar of crimson-orange flames. This attack is based on Hinduism. Specifically, the generous Karna who gave his earrings and armor away. This spell is one of the few that remained unaffected; Karna's myth is present in this world.
Fuzz-!
ROOOOARRR-!!!
A loud scream resounded in my ears. It rebound into the dungeon's walls, summoning forth whatever monster that it could.
"It's still alive?"
Even if the magic is still ongoing, I could feel its 'life' strongly. I could kill a mutant Level three goblin with Orion in one hit, yet a focused spell couldn't do so against an Infant Dragon?
Truly… Lady Artemis gave me that huge boost in strength.
Swiftly, I changed weapons. From the longsword, it is replaced by a sheathed katana. Nothing much is different from it as it gave off the air of traditional katanas.
It is none other than my greatest creation—the dir orichalcum sword "Sora no Hata | Edge of the Sky". It represented my resolve to see the farther ends that lay beyond what I could see.
Under the veil, I moved quietly into it. The smell of burnt meat assaulted my nose. Knowing that I could not eat that, it is nothing but an illusion.
When I am less than two meters away, I saw its current situation. Most of its scales fell into the floor. Scorched black skin is present all over its body. Its heartbeat slowed down as it tried to recover from my sudden attack.
Too bad, I won't let it do so.
"Dividus Projectus." (Dispersed Projectiles)
This time, seven rays of light came out of the magic circle on my back. All of them waltzed straight into the Dragon's face.
The sound of air cracking was caught by my ears. Without being disturbed by the explosions and its growls, I came under its neck.
Grasping the hilt of my blade, I went into a charging stance.
"Goodbye."
Shiing-!
Wave Blast-!
A black blur curved straight to its neck while I was sent flying. Its afterimages are so fast that I couldn't follow it properly. The mirage produced by my blade went through the neck before losing the force that propelled it—the momentum given by the Wave Blast.
Bam-!
I used the ceiling as a foothold before letting gravity take hold of me. Just as I was about to swing the blade downwards, it already became a huge corpse lying down on the ground. I didn't even need to use my barrier magic as I could take it down with one blow.
Tap-!
"I did it."
A slight sense of accomplishment appeared in my heart. My average strength is at Level two, but I could handle Level three's with the element of surprise. If the circumstances match, I might be able to kill a level four.
This is all considering that I am currently a Level one.
With these, I could already see my rate of improvement. There's hope that I could execute my retribution in less than 10 years.
"No, no."
A chilling feeling swept through my body as I remembered my near deaths. Besides the dragon who killed me 3 times in the future, the Special Grade Curse is on another level. I have seen a Level five from far away, but even they could not invoke the same feeling as it.
In short, both of my nemesis is at least Level seven, the absolute peak of this world.
Complacency would kill me, just like what it almost did. It's fine to celebrate on these occasions, but I shouldn't delude myself easily.
Upon ending this battle, I was met with a deep reflection. It continued this way until I fixed my tent and stashed it in the storage space.
"I need to synchronize with my memories."
One thing that I have noticed is that I am lagging compared to my future self. It doesn't mean that I am weaker in terms of pure power—I am even stronger than him—but the way he handled each fight is reminiscent of a veteran. I know how to do it, but I didn't have many chances to try it out in the past.
…Just like my first murder in reality.
Seeing this development path, I became slightly more eager to improve.
*****
"Huff… The Middle Floors are on another level."
Relentless.
That's how I could describe the dungeon best. Starting on the 13th floor, monsters spawn more than twice or thrice faster than the Upper Floors. I encountered a small group every few minutes, causing my monstrous stamina to be worn down.
I got away easily with my veil, but this slowed down my progress in capturing this dungeon.
If going to the lower floors is my objective, I could've done so within a day or two. However, I'm here for the fights.
The constant pressure of monsters required me to open my 'Correspondence' every few minutes. Me being high-strung is also another thing. If I didn't have a storage tool, I am sure that I couldn't have gotten down here easily. Hiring a supporter that can keep up with my speed is a pipe dream.
These are things that I would never experience back on Earth. Concurrently, it is something that would push me further.
ROOOARRR-!!!
"Another one, it seems."
The common "boss monster" in the Middle Floors is a Wyvern. It is a sub-species of a dragon that could fly—might as well forget about it due to the damnable terrain this dungeon has.
Unlike dragons, it could not use a dragon's breath nor draconic eyes. At best, their howls could destabilize you, which is followed by a swift bite. Their tails are also another weapon.
Interestingly, I started to come across more adventurers on this floor. Just two days ago, I saved five parties. They happened to come across me, which is some sort of luck.
"This is the 16th…"
Currently, I am on the 16th floor. Only two floors to go before I could take a peek into the safe zone located on the 18th floor.
Tap-!
Hustle-!
Donning my veil, I came across the said boss monster. It is more than 6.5 meters high and 5 meters long. Looking at my place, most people would find it intimidating. Well, the party of adventurers currently fighting it did.
The air around it is different as a result of an imitated "dragon fear" around its radius. Without a party of Level two adventurers, it could not be easily taken down.
…except for me who has an arsenal of spells.
Bam-!
Its tail slammed into the floor, creating cracks. It sent the two tankers of this team off-balance. It removed their advantage of redistributing the force taken into the ground.
With them like that—
ROOOOAR-!!!
—they are now immobilized, albeit briefly.
The shockwaves sent them flying a short distance. The two immediately reacted by standing up, but this brief moment is what the Wyvern needs to kill the two melee damage dealers.
If done, the scales would be tipped at its side.
Nobody would be left to replace them as only the ranged attackers' output is left in hopes of killing the wyvern.
From what I could see, they could not kill it.
"Exacuo." (Sharpen.)
Another layer of sharpness is added to the dir orichalcum blade.
"Bis Firmus." (Twice Robustness.)
Heat sprang into my body as I sprinted. My sensory organs began to capture greater amounts of information. The humidity of the air, the sound of small rocks breaking, and my sweat that dropped to the floor.
In the middle of it, my target stood.
…this is no time to hold back.
Each Wyvern has the strength of a Level three. Though, it varied depending on each wyvern. Some are average, but some are at their peak.
In this case, it is the latter.
"A strong Level three… my spells would not affect him much."
Clearly, it is stronger than the mutant Infant Dragon from a few days ago.
What I sought is an incapacitating blow. On these floors, I learned that not being able to deliver one when you're only solo is a huge mistake. More monsters could spring up while fighting another.
That's why…
"Fidelis Canis Major." (The Loyal Greater Dog.)
A large magic circle sprang from the ground. It enveloped my entire radius as it glowed.
It is time to test out this spell.
*****
Apollo Familia.
An exploration familia who stays at the low-middle ranks of Orario. In their ranks are two Level three's and several Level two's. Their captain, Kaye, is a veteran adventurer who had been to Orario since before the Great Feud.
She efficiently commander her familia in every fight. Though, what made her stand out is her role as a shielder. It even earned her the epithet "Unmoved Steel". After all, each of her deadly encounters was survived by not only her but her familia members as well. That, and the fact that she was not completely won over by Apollo's undying affection.
Even so, she does not seem to mind it.
"Damn it!"
"Step back!"
Their captain—the one serving as the main tank—ordered. She had been in these situations that she knew what not to do.
Following her orders, the other melee attackers began to kite the Wyvern.
"Dodge!"
Hearing her shout, they promptly moved to their sides.
Moments later, their former position was met with a barrage of shockwaves from the Wyvern's roar.
Tap-!
Tap-!
Rustle-!
Soon, she regained her previous position. However, things didn't become easy with that.
Bam-!
Clang-!
The wyvern's tail whipped at her towering shield continuously. Wind crackled as it sped through her one after another.
"Kuhk..!"
It was then that she realized.
'This monster… It's an Enhanced species!'
Enhanced species are what adventurers call the monsters who consumed the magic stones of their kin. Similar to level up, monsters gain a huge increase in strength whenever they devour magic stones. Sometimes, five magic stones are enough to level one up. Though there are times that it takes more than a dozen before it does.
What was consistent, however, is the fact that they are a cut above the rest.
Wyverns don't have a sturdy defense, only a swift tail and an augmented shockwave attack. If an experienced party is present, they would've dealt with it easily.
Bam-!
Kaye was swept sideways—to the direction of the other tank. Both of them were brought away by the impact, leaving everyone else defenseless.
Just as it was about to launch its attacks—
"Aro Zephyros!"
A ring of flames appeared on the Wyvern's hind leg. Moments later, it compressed itself, initiating an explosion.
Boom-!
The wyvern staggered due to the attack. Burnt skin permeated the air of the dungeon.
ROOARRR-!
A cry of anger disrupted the silence. Its bloodshot eyes gazed through the adventurer before a black whip broke through his position.
'No!'
The adventurer, Hyakinthos, thought that he was going to die. High amounts of adrenaline made his mind spin faster.
Unfortunately, this didn't slow down the inevitable. That is, when his vision tilted.
'Wha-'
He could only process his captain pushing him farther. The shield she carried is long gone. She discarded her shield to reach his place. If she didn't do so, it'll be too late.
Hyakinthos met her gaze under the fully plated armor.
Just then—
Zoom-!
Something sped through them. It was fast enough to leave a star-like mirage in its wake.
Flop.
A bushy white tail wagged itself subconsciously. The origin of it was a boy who threw the piece of the Wyvern's tail in his hand not far away from here.
SCREEEECH-!!!
For the first time, it let out a painful wail.
Clink-!
The boy sheathed the eastern blade before he went into a low-charging stance.
"Kaminari no Kouka: Raiju."
Wave Blast.
Two consecutive spells were activated by him. Before everyone knew it, his silhouette disappeared.
He reappeared on top of the wyvern's head as he wordlessly swung the blade to the wyvern's neck.
