kscans

Chapter 266 - So Much Easier When It's Bright

We proceeded through the now-bright cave. The ample light made it look completely different from yesterday.

"It’s so much easier to walk when it’s bright."

"It is. Yesterday I was a little scared of tripping, but today I’m fine."

It must be especially true for Nanapon, since she has to use her Clairvoyance to see ahead.

"At this rate, even if a Laughing Skull shows up… there it is…"

In the distance, something was floating.

"Eleanor-san, it’s a Laughing Skull," Nanapon, with her good eyesight, informed me.

"Wait here."

I drew my sword and sprinted forward. Then, in an instant, I cut down the Laughing Skull, which was laughing with its blue eyes aglow. Naturally, it dropped a bone, which I kicked off to the side.

The three of them caught up to where I was waiting.

"You’re too fast."

"You ran off at an incredible speed."

"You’re a fast runner too, Master."

I’m confident in my running. Or rather, I like and am good at physical activity in general. My brain… well, you know?

"Let’s go… Huh?"

"Eleanor-san, there’s another one over there."

"Die!"

I took off again and sliced through the Laughing Skull, which seemed to be laughing mockingly. We continued on, defeating several more Laughing Skulls, until we arrived in front of the large chamber. The time it took was significantly shorter than yesterday. As expected, it’s easier to proceed when it’s bright, and our pace increased.

"The chamber is bright, too," Claire murmured, looking around.

"That must be how the magic works. Nanaka-san, which one is the Sand Dragon?"

The chamber was large, with suspicious-looking giant stones scattered all over.

"…All of them."

Huh?

"Say that again."

"All the giant stones you can see are Sand Dragons."

Umm…

"There are at least ten of them."

That many?

"To be precise, there are eleven. I counted."

Seriously…

"Can we take them on one by one?"

"If we fight one, won’t the others wake up?"

True… If it were just me and Claire, maybe, but with Nanapon and Lydia-chan here, I want to avoid a melee.

"What should we do… Should we try to sneak past them and hope for the best?"

"I saw it in a manga once, but in situations like this, they all wake up at once right when you get to the middle of the room."

Hmm, I can’t remember which manga, but I feel like I’ve seen a scene like that before, too.

"Eleanor, we don’t have to fight in the chamber. We can just lure them here. The passage is narrow, so they can only come one at a time, and it’s a straight path, so we won’t get surrounded."

I see. Claire is smart.

"Alright, Lydia-chan, shoot at that rock."

"Um, like this?"

Lydia-chan aimed her machine gun.

"I don’t know. Just shoot anywhere."

"Um, can you use an Airsoft Gun? Guns aren’t supposed to work, right?"

As I answered immediately, Nanapon tilted her head. Frontier has a problem with Heavy Weaponry thanks to some idiot alchemist. But is an Airsoft Gun considered Heavy Weaponry? Isn’t it a toy?

"Well, just give it a try."

"Umm… like this?"

Lydia-chan aimed her machine gun at a Giant Stone.

"Wait a second."

Claire approached Lydia-chan.

"…Like this. And keep your elbows in… Yes, just like that."

With guidance from the former soldier Claire, Lydia-chan in her camouflage gear started to look the part.

"Is this good?"

"Yes. You can shoot."

Claire nodded, and Lydia-chan pulled the trigger. A dry, continuous sound echoed as BB pellets flew out. Several of the bullets Lydia-chan fired hit the Giant Stone and bounced off.

"I hit it!" Lydia-chan exclaimed, pointing at the stone. Just then, the Giant Stone moved slightly.

"Good job. Now get back."

Lydia-chan retreated behind me, and at the same time, the slightly moving Giant Stone opened up wide, transforming into a lizard. It seemed the lizard had been curled up like an armadillo or a pill bug.

"It really is big. I wonder if Komodo Dragons are like that."

I don’t dislike lizards, but this one isn’t cute at all.

"Eleanor, it’s slow, but its bite is powerful, so be careful," Claire advised.

"Anything else? Does it use magic or have any special techniques?"

"No. Besides its camouflage, it’s just a sluggish lizard."

Then there’s no problem. It won’t be a match for me.

"Eleanor-san, I have some bad news…"

This time, it was Nanapon who spoke up.

"What is it?"

"The other camouflaged lizards have opened their eyes too."

So the sleeping ones woke up…

"Claire, I’m counting on you to protect these two."

"What are you going to do?"

"I’m taking care of all of them."

I said, drawing my sword from my hood.

"Alone?"

"I want to get some exercise in for the first time in a while. It’s been too hot to go outside lately."

"You don’t go out anyway, do you."

Okita-kun can go out, though. Of course, I wouldn’t say that.

"Ah, Master, the other rocks are starting to move," Lydia-chan said. Just as she said, the rocks were stirring. They had completely noticed us and were preparing to attack.

"Waiting is a pain. Let’s just get this over with."

I left the three of them to Claire and dashed forward.