kscans

Chapter 200 - Like a Storm

"■■■■———!!"

Towards the Horophagus firing a barrage of heat rays, I closed in, carving sharp trajectories in the air with the Flügel and my feet.

As if to keep me at bay, the main body’s mouth fired a short breath, and the six necks on its chest bared their fangs at me.

"Shii...!"

I dodged upwards to avoid the first neck coming from the right like a hook, only for the second and third to try and crush me.

I left them behind with a forward acceleration, and the remaining necks came to meet me head-on.

I gripped my sword with both hands and twisted my waist with all my might. Facing the three gaping maws lined with knife-like teeth, I unleashed a full-power slash.

The blade, wreathed in wind and flame, blew away the heads in front of me. The main body’s chest was right before my eyes. From the follow-through of my swing, I forcibly executed a thrust into the base of the six necks.

A hard sound echoed as the blade plunged in halfway, but the monster still didn’t stop.

"■■■■...!"

Separate from the screaming main body, the remaining necks attacked from behind.

"Pierce them!"

However, they were shot down by spears of ice.

Without looking back, I twisted the blade and channeled mana into the Bracelet of the Flame Horse. Simultaneously, the Flügel automatically drew in mana.

"Ooooh!"

As I shot straight up, I also moved the blade upwards. It melted through the scales that could repel rifle bullets and carved through the thick flesh beneath as I swung.

From above, I watched the wind and flame remaining in the wound explode, and saw the Horophagus slowly kneel and turn to salt.

Just then, a warning came from Aira-san.

"Kyouta-kun, don’t fly too high."

"Ah, sorry."

At her words, I hastily descended to the ground.

In this dungeon, if you’re on a rooftop or somewhere high up, you get spotted by the Horophagus. I remembered the information from the Dungeon Store and offered a small apology.

"Nice work, Kyouta-chan!"

"Yeah. Any damage?"

"None here!"

"I’m fine as well."

"Good, then."

———About an hour and a half had passed since we started the exploration.

We had already finished marking the area near the exit, and our monster subjugation was going smoothly. That was our twentieth kill. Since each one is tough, this could be considered a fast pace.

Fafnir probably had greater durability when including its mana, but in purely physical terms, the Horophagus was tougher. It wasn’t a very good matchup for us.

"What should we do? Should we head back soon?"

"Hmm. I’m still good to go."

"I have no problem either, but if you’re tired, Kyouta-kun, we can go back."

"Ah, no. I can still go on. I’m not tired."

"You should be tired. If you’re human."

"My unique skill is what it is."

Physically, I was in perfect condition. The mana I had consumed in the last battle had already recovered.

As for mental fatigue, I still had some leeway there as well.

...No.

"Actually, it seems we should probably head back soon."

"‘I can still go on’ means ‘I can’t go on anymore,’ after all!"

That was something I heard so often during the adventurer training course that my ears were ringing.

"I think it was, ‘You’re more tired on the way back, and your guard inevitably drops. Your bag is also heavy with drop items, so consider the distance to the gate,’ right?"

"Yes. Thanks to Erina-san, we don’t have to worry about that, though."

"Ahem!"

"Still, this isn’t a situation where we should be reckless."

"True. That’s right."

And so, I turned my gaze to Erina-san.

She gave a small nod and reached her hand out into the empty air.

"Alright, I’m gonna use my ninjutsu now, so please keep watch."

"Roger."

"Understood."

Mia-san covered our rear, while Byakuren and I focused our attention forward.

We’re saving the drop items, so this time it’s just the subjugation reward. Even after ranking up to ‘B-Rank,’ the subjugation rewards are still pitiful, so I let out a small sigh, knowing I couldn’t expect to earn much.

Well, thanks to Professor Arisugawa, I still have plenty of savings, so there’s no need to rush.

I was leisurely thinking about such things while keeping watch, when it happened.

"Hm? ...Huh?"

The mana in the atmosphere writhed.

The mana flowing through the unnaturally controlled dungeon was suddenly thrown into disarray. It was a change like a gentle stream turning into a stormy sea. My vision blurred, and I instinctively stumbled.

"Kyouta-kun?"

"Stay alert! Something’s wrong!"

"Tch!"

I lowered my center of gravity and readied my sword.

The drastic change almost made me dizzy, but I somehow adapted. It felt like my Spirit Eye had snapped into focus.

This is wrong. What’s happening?

This had never happened before. The mana throughout the entire dungeon was in chaos. It felt like the very ground beneath my feet was being directly shaken.

Mia-san must have felt the change in mana too; I heard her sharp intake of breath.

But this... could it be.

Is something interfering with the dungeon’s wards?

The moment that possibility crossed my mind, a chill ran down my spine.

"Erina-san, can you teleport!"

"...Sorry, I can’t! It won’t connect!"

"Sis, can you tell what’s happening from your side?! And contact the store!"

"———, ———! ————...!!"

"Sis!?"

The raging mana around us was even interfering with the telepathy. We were barely connected, but we couldn’t have a conversation.

I instinctively clicked my tongue and took a few steps back. Moving closer to my companions, I repeatedly scanned my eyes from side to side.

To immediately detect any other anomalies. That action did, in a way, bear fruit.

The problem was.

"Wha..."

Even if I noticed it, there was nothing I could do.

The dome-shaped wall that enclosed the dungeon. The area directly above the hill where the boss monster was, was glowing red. It was shining like a blast furnace.

A moment later, a horizontal tremor occurred with a ‘THUD...!’ sound.

"Kyaa!?"

"Senpai!"

"Byakuren, protect them!"

Behind me, Erina-san must have supported Mia-san. Sensing this, I instinctively changed my position.

I moved several meters to stand in the direction of the hill, and had Byakuren guard Erina-san and the others from behind me.

As the shaking intensified, the red of the rock wall turned to gold.

After a few seconds, it bulged. The wall, exposed to an immense amount of heat, swelled up, and then.

DOOOOOOOOOMMM———...!!!

With a tremendous roar, the outer wall was shot through.

A beam of pure white light that pierced the dungeon’s outer wall passed over our heads. It flew over the medieval townscape, collided with the opposite outer wall, and gouged its surface.

A shockwave strong enough to make standing impossible followed. The ambient temperature skyrocketed, and the roofs of the houses lining the street were torn off.

I placed my left hand on the ground, trying to withstand the impact. But even that was not allowed.

With a lurch, the flow of mana around us changed again.

It was exactly like the moment you pass through a gate, that feeling just before the ground beneath your feet suddenly disappears.

"This is bad...!"

Sensing the danger with Spirit Eye, I immediately turned and reached for Erina-san and the others. Mia-san must have sensed it too, as her arm was also reaching for me.

But, in the worst possible turn of events—I was several meters away from them. Moving to a position where I could better protect them from an attack had backfired.

Normally, even during combat, it’s a negligible distance. But in this one moment, it was endlessly far.

Still, I can make it. I have to make it.

If I forcibly push my body with wind, I still have a chance...!

In that instant, the wide view of my Spirit Eye caught the debris hurtling towards us from directly above.

For me, being buried a little is no big deal. But for them—

"Damn youuuu!!"

I rapidly reversed my body’s direction. Becoming almost parallel to the ground, I slammed a hammer of wind into the falling debris.

An action of a few tenths of a second. The remaining grace period was consumed by it.

The sensation of being thrown into a space with no up or down, nothing at all. Yet there was no feeling of floating, almost an illusion that everything except myself had vanished.

But that too was for a mere moment. The scenery immediately switched, and my back was slammed onto the cobblestones.

The momentum from my earlier leap remained, and I scraped along the ground, but I used the motion of a backflip to right myself and land on my feet.

I scraped two lines into the cobblestones with the soles of my feet and my left hand, somehow coming to a stop.

I immediately looked around, but all that was there was a sooty ground and a pile of charred rubble. My companions, the golems, were all gone.

Amidst the lingering flames, I stood up, tightening my grip on my sword.

We probably haven’t been moved to a different dungeon. We’ve just been ‘displaced’ within this one.

It’s likely that the wards inscribed in the dungeon have rebooted... The flow of mana is starting to calm down.

With cold sweat trickling down my cheek, I turned my gaze in the direction the beam of light had come from. What in the world...

"What is that..."

A massive hole had been torn open.

I had been thrown to a spot about a hundred meters from the hill where the boss monster was. According to the store’s information, you weren’t supposed to be able to end up in this area.

But a sight that blew away even that question spread before me.

A huge hole, at least thirty meters in diameter, gaped open, dribbling molten lava. Because of the overly thick outer wall, I couldn’t see what was on the other side.

But, conversely, that meant there was ‘something’ that had punched through such a wall.

The upper half of the hill where the boss monster had been was completely gouged out, and the remaining lower half was glowing red. Even from this distance, I could see the air shimmering. The air clinging to me was also strangely hot.

From that collapsed lair, a deafening roar echoed.

"■゛■゛■゛■゛■゛■゛———!!"

Smok Wawelski.

Blowing away the crumbling hill, an evil dragon that looked exactly like a Horophagus appeared. A boulder the size of myself crashed down nearby, kicking up a huge cloud of dust.

The number of heads, the color, the overall silhouette were all the same. But it was undeniably larger than the others.

A massive body, roughly twenty meters long. The roar from its main neck would likely be powerful enough to blow a human body away with its shockwave alone if heard any closer.

The monster, which bore a name that could be considered the ‘official’ name for the Wawel Dragon, let flames spill from the corners of its mouth in a fit of rage.

The moment its gaze turned behind it, towards the massive hole that even the Smok Wawelski could easily pass through.

"■゛■゛■゛■゛———!?"

A ‘white foreleg’ slithered out from the still-glowing hole and seized the main body’s neck.

Its scales were as white as fresh snow. The foreleg, which rivaled the entire length of the Smok, violently slammed the evil dragon into the ground.

That alone created a shock like an earthquake. I had been watching the scene, dumbfounded, but I hastily turned on my heel and started running.

The situation was unknown. My current location was unknown. Where I should go was unknown. But one thing was clear: that thing was incredibly dangerous.

I glanced back, turning only my neck while running at full speed.

"■゛■゛■゛■゛■゛■゛...!"

Groaning, the Smok fired heat rays from the six necks on its chest. They certainly made a direct hit on the being pinning it down.

But its opponent didn’t even flinch, taking the hits on its scales.

It was a ‘dragon,’ so beautiful and so terrifying...

Its scales, each one exuding the presence of a chalk-white castle wall, covered a massive body in the shape that everyone imagines a dragon to have.

A head reminiscent of a reptile, a thick, long neck, a supple torso, and powerful limbs. It had a tail as long as its head and torso combined, and huge, bat-like wings.

The dragon, its intelligent red eyes gleaming, looked to be nearly fifty meters tall at its head. The massive hole was so small that it would have to shrink itself to pass through.

The white dragon lightly lifted the Smok it held with its right foreleg, opened its jaws, and—

"GYYY...!"

—casually tore off the main body’s head.

A monster attacked another monster? Why? When multiple types of monsters encounter each other, they shouldn’t fight.

And my Spirit Eye definitely caught it. Even now, as the Smok was being ‘devoured,’ I saw something flowing from its body into that dragon.

Is that experience points? No, for an Awakened Person to level up, they steal the soul of the one they killed... high-purity mana, to expand their own vessel.

That was probably ‘refueling.’ But somehow, I didn’t think that was all.

I had questions, but it seemed I didn’t have time for speculation. I desperately moved my legs, using the acceleration of wind to escape the collapsing city.

I had to get away from that thing. As I ran with that thought, I heard a familiar voice in my ear.

"———kun! Kyouta-kun! Yagawa Kyouta!!"

"Aira-san!"

"Good, it connected! Where are you now?! Erina-kun and the others, and the golems, are several dozen meters from where you all first entered the dungeon!"

"I’m near the hill where the boss monster is, or rather, was! I’m currently putting as much distance as I can from there!"

"Got it! Fortunately, you weren’t all sent to different dungeons, and Erina-kun’s markings are still there. She says teleportation is possible. Rendezvous somehow! I’ll navigate. What’s your exact location?!"

"Unknown! It’s all rubble as far as I can see!"

I could try to advance by kicking away the rubble, but I don’t want to attract the white dragon’s attention by making a scene. That’s also why I’m not flying.

I know it instinctively. That thing is...!

"It goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway. Do not, under any circumstances, fight that dragon."

I can hear a slight tremble in the voice coming through the earring.

"‘A-Rank or higher.’ It’s stronger than any monster you’ve ever fought."

Erina-san must have pointed a mirror at it for Aira-san to use Appraisal.

Hearing the words spoken with conviction, I twisted my face and thought, I figured as much.

"I’ll avoid combat as much as possible and head for Erina-san’s location. Did you request assistance from the Self-Defense Force?"

"I already have. But don’t expect much. Again, or rather, in the worst possible way, something seems to have happened in Tokyo as well."

"What do you mean, something?"

"Something is something! I don’t know either!"

From her almost-screaming shout, I could feel her panic whether I wanted to or not.

But right now, I certainly don’t have time to ask about that. Or rather.

"I’m sorry."

"Tch, no. I’m sorry. I’m the one who lost my composure."

"No, that’s not it."

I stopped my feet that were kicking off the cobblestone ground and used a blast of wind to slow my momentum-carried body.

I stopped, drawing two lines on the ground with the soles of my feet, and slightly lowered my center of gravity.

"It seems avoiding combat is impossible."

"■■■■■■...!!"

Stomping on, kicking away the collapsed city, Horophagus after Horophagus appeared.

Their murderous gazes were directed at me, and at what was ‘above.’

"GYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAA!!"

A being letting out a strange roar was flying near the gray ceiling.

Soaring through the false sky that mimicked a cloudy day was another flock of dragons.

Their bodies, covered in vibrant, fresh green scales, were about two meters long at the torso alone. From head to tail, they would likely exceed six meters.

They had rather short but thick and sturdy hind legs, wings fused with their forelegs, and a long, slender head that could be either a lizard’s or a snake’s.

Wyvern.

In a way, these too could be called ‘dragon-like dragons.’ And there were dozens of them flying.

I glanced behind me for a moment; they were entering one after another from the large hole the white dragon had opened.

"■■■■———!!"

"GYYYYYYAAAA!!"

The evil dragons and the flying dragons glared at each other head-on and roared.

The situation, full of impossible events, was so desperate it was almost laughable.

And yet.

"I can’t die yet...!"

I gripped my sword with both hands and let my Flügel flutter.

"I will survive this, no matter what...!"

I would not give up.