Chapter 7. Express Loop Train Armand VII
Episode 7.
The Express Loop Train Armand VII
In <FoS>, cooperation with companion NPCs is essential, and naturally, managing their affection levels is also extremely important.
There are various methods.
Giving gifts.
Having regular conversations.
Completing the occasional <Bond Event>, and so on.
......Which method did I prefer the most?
Obviously, the easiest and most intuitive method in FoS.
Fighting together.
I mean fighting alongside them.
* * *
I dashed urgently toward the broken wall.
After tumbling head over heels dozens of times, the wolf got up in far better shape than I'd expected.
Lick.
This bastard was even calmly licking its disheveled fur while watching me.
Why was that?
It was nothing more than a Magical Beast, yet I could feel mockery in its eyes.
As if it were saying, 'You moron. Did you think this body would move however you wanted?'
[With outstanding intuition, you have accurately guessed the Magical Beast's inner thoughts.]
[Beast-Type hostility decreases.]
[Information on 'Silver-Maned Wolf' is added.]
Silver-Maned Wolf
It looks down on humans.
That son of a bitch.
I was almost too dumbfounded to be angry, but this was no time to keep having a leisurely staring contest.
"K-Kaindel!"
When I turned around at the urgent shout, a truly hellish sight was unfolding.
"Shit."
Blackish tentacles stretched out in all directions, devouring everything around them indiscriminately.
How the hell was I supposed to stop that?
It was the last car, so there was nowhere left to retreat.
But unlike that wolf bastard, I couldn't just trust my body and jump off either.......
I gritted my teeth once and shouted.
"Light!"
"Y-yes?"
"When I give the signal, use Light! Right in front of the beast's eyes!"
I didn't know if he understood my intent, but regrettably, there was no more time to explain.
I immediately picked up the key rolling on the floor, then jammed it into the nearest cage lock.
Clank.
The moment the lock opened and the iron cage swung open, I closed my eyes and shouted.
"Now!"
"L-Light......!"
Along with the mage bastard's voice, even with my eyes closed, I felt light burst right in front of my face.
"ROOOAR!"
At the same time, the Magical Beast let out a roar and escaped from the cage.
[Lv.21 'Blood Moon Bear']
Since light had burst right in front of its face, it would take time for its vision to recover.
In the meantime, the excited Magical Beast passed by me and instinctively ran toward the source of the loudest sound.
SCREEECH!
......Toward the shadow tentacles.
The Blood Moon Bear swung its massive front paw.
The sound of air tearing was unmistakable.
Even an adult male would probably be sent flying, upper body and all, if hit properly.
Rrr?
But its opponent was a shadow, and to make matters worse, the tentacles were slick with slime, making their surfaces slippery.
The front paw slid along the tentacle, and in that moment, the bear's entire body was bound.
Crunch.
Was this for real?
It was level 20, yet it hadn't even lasted 5 seconds before being wiped out.
Of course, since I had no confidence I could last even 1 second, I just kept opening locks indiscriminately.
"Light! Light! Light......!"
Each time a new Magical Beast was released, the mage bastard shouted Light in rapid succession.
As various Magical Beasts were freed, most ran toward the tentacles, but not all of them.
Magical Beasts that lost their sense of direction slammed their heads into walls, and some ran straight to the hole the wolf had made and fell right off.
Yelp!
Of course, it had been low-level and hadn't braced for the fall, so its end was gruesome.
'This is the best option for now......!'
Would this really be enough?
An inexplicable anxiety rose up.
Of course, as the number of freed Magical Beasts increased, the shadow's attacks were gradually slowing down.
SCREEEEEECH—!
At some point, a scream-like sound burst from the shadow as well.
A tentacle had been cut by the front leg swung by the mantis Magical Beast.
Black blood poured from the severed tentacle, but in exchange the mantis was smashed apart by a descending tentacle.
'Fuck.'
That mantis was the most valuable piece.
Was the shadow bastard capable of learning too?
It was prioritizing killing the Magical Beasts that posed a threat to it.
As it changed tactics, the battlefield balance that had been precariously maintained collapsed in an instant, and the Magical Beasts began dying rapidly.
'The remaining Magical Beasts are.......'
Five currently fighting.......
Three left in the cages.
Only eight total?
Even mobilizing all of them wouldn't buy much time, but there was no other option right now.
I was about to open the next cage.......
"K-Kaindel. J-just a moment......."
"What now?"
"M-my mana is depleted...... bleurgh!"
The mage bastard said that, then vomited again with a pale face.
'This useless piece of shit.'
How small was his mana pool, seriously?
Light was the spell with the lowest mana consumption among all magic in <FoS>.
Even a freshly class-changed player character could use it dozens of times with ease.
'What do I do?'
Even while I hesitated, the Magical Beasts were dying one by one.
It felt as though the coins keeping me alive were disappearing one by one.
"Hoo......."
I forced myself to cool my head.
Throwing myself into the fight out of impatience would only get me killed sooner.
No matter the situation, I had to establish at least a basic plan before I moved.
I looked beyond the broken wall.
'We'd already left the lake.'
What we were running through now was an unnamed grassland.
......How much farther until <Eternal Forest>?
If I knew that much, a rough plan would probably come together.
"The smell of the forest......."
The Spiritist opened her mouth.
"What?"
When I looked at her, the Spiritist flinched and brushed her bangs aside as she spoke.
"W-we'll arrive at the forest in 10 minutes."
"How do you know that?"
"Sylphy......."
A spirit's whisper?
If so, it was trustworthy.
Moreover, once we entered the forest, the train would overturn before long.
'......Damn.'
No matter how I looked at it, that was the only way to turn the situation around.
"You said your name was Kria?"
"Yeah."
"Could I ask you for rear support?"
"......."
I didn't say it with any great expectations.
At best, a single low-grade spirit helping wouldn't create any meaningful change.
It was at that moment that I felt a faint breeze.
[A whisper of the wind settles upon you.]
[Your body becomes slightly lighter.]
This effect was <Haste>.
I was slightly surprised.
Low-grade spirits rarely awakened a skill like that.
Could I expect support worthy of the name at this level?
'As if.'
I denied the thought that surfaced with a hollow laugh.
It was an unexpected boon, but nowhere near enough to get excited or let my guard down.
I gripped my spear, watched for an opening, and joined the battlefield at an appropriate moment.
'There must be a weak point.'
It wasn't clearly visible, but there was definitely a main body beyond the writhing tentacles.
Since the name included octopus, it might look like an octopus head.
Attacking that was probably the key to the strategy.......
WHOOSH!
'Shit.'
There were too many tentacles, so I couldn't find an angle to approach at all.
Even when I kept my distance and stabbed with my spear, it usually just slid off.
'Damn it!'
Was it because my physical abilities were lacking?
That was part of it, but the weapon itself was hastily made, so both its edge and durability were terrible.
I didn't want to blame my equipment, but if I'd had even a slightly better weapon, the situation would have been different.
In the end, I gave up on attacking and responded defensively.
'What if I fight by covering the Magical Beasts?'
Their attack power was far higher than mine, so it might not be a bad strategy.
"......!"
Then I whipped my head toward the chill I felt on my left.
It wasn't the direction where the tentacles were coiled, so I almost reacted too late.
I realized the crocodile Magical Beast that had been fighting the tentacles moments ago had swung its tail at me.
'This shithead.'
While my temper flared, a chill also ran down my spine.
That attack just now. If not for the Haste the Spiritist had cast on me, I wouldn't have dodged it.
I wanted to stab this crocodile bastard with my spear right away, but this wasn't the time to act on emotion.
'In the end.......'
In the end, was fighting alongside the Magical Beasts impossible?
'No.'
I gritted my teeth and denied it.
This was no longer a game, but reality.
And in reality, nothing was impossible.
Since my life had been put up as the stakes, my options had also expanded to near infinity.
'I just have to force myself to match this crocodile's movements.'
While fighting an enemy threatening my life, I endlessly kept glancing at another enemy.
My movements were frantic and my head felt like it would burst, but if I couldn't pull this off, I was dead anyway.
[With outstanding perceptiveness, you have accurately predicted the Magical Beast's movements.]
[Cold-blooded-type hostility decreases.]
[Information on 'Black-Scaled Crocodile' is added.]
Black-Scaled Crocodile
It doesn't like anyone standing on its right side.
Right side?
Inspired by that information, I put a little distance between us.
Then the crocodile's wariness toward me visibly faded.
Was this an individual quirk rather than a racial trait?
Maybe it had experienced some kind of incident in the past.
'Like being betrayed by a comrade standing on its right.'
That wasn't something to think about now.
Anyway, hope returned.
If I maintained this distance, I could fight alongside the Magical Beast.......
Boom!
A tentacle struck the crocodile.
The crocodile flipped over completely, belly exposed, and flew through the wall.
'Fuck.'
I headed toward another Magical Beast.
[Lv.22 'Yellow-Nosed Monkey']
[Lv.19 'Blade Weasel']
[Lv.15 'Giant-Clawed Rat']
The Magical Beasts I had used as shields died one by one.
Beaten by tentacles, crushed, and flattened.
"Huff, huff......."
By the time I was gasping for breath, I realized even the last Magical Beast had died.
Goddamn. No wonder it was so fucking hard.
But I wasn't the only one exhausted.
SQUEEEEAL.......
The shadow bastard was also in a fairly bloodied state.
It had probably lost more than half of its tentacles, which had numbered over several dozen.......
I had also found what seemed to be a weak point.
A spot where the tentacles were especially densely clustered.
Every few dozen seconds, that spot opened and something like breath came out.
That was probably a breathing hole...... damn. If only I had noticed it sooner.
How much time had passed now?
"5 minutes......!"
Only half left now.
It was enough to make me laugh hollowly.
It felt like 30 minutes had passed.
'5 minutes.'
The future looked pitch black.
......How was I supposed to hold out for 5 more minutes here?
The Magical Beasts were all dead now.
If I had known this would happen, I should have released all the Magical Beasts whether they attacked us or not.
SCREECH!
At that moment, a fox monster appeared from the right.
This one had definitely been locked in a cage?
"Kaindel!"
I heard the mage bastard's voice.
He was holding a key in his hand, and blood was streaming from his shoulder.
It seemed he had put the thought I'd just had into action, and had gotten injured in the process.
"Use this!"
But the mage bastard's contribution didn't end there.
I looked over, wondering what it was, and what do you know?
He was holding a scythe that looked fairly sharp.
'This is......?'
Looking closely, it wasn't a scythe.
That was the front leg of the mantis Magical Beast that had been crushed to death by the shadow bastard.
Had he attached it to the end of a farming tool that was rolling around?
In that split second?
"Use it! The binding strength is weak, but......."
"It's enough!"
Whatever it was, it was better than this worn-out spear.
Still, it would be a waste to just throw this away.
I inhaled, then threw the spear the moment the octopus's breathing hole opened.
[Critical!]
SCREEEEEECH—!
A tearing scream burst out.
No wonder it had felt so satisfying—had I landed a crit?
It would have been even better if it had died from that one hit, but of course, such a convenient development didn't happen.
'Still, its HP must have dropped considerably.'
In the meantime, I quickly checked the condition of the new weapon.
'This is good.'
It looked like the mantis's front leg had been attached to the end of a pitchfork, and despite the mage's warning, the binding strength didn't seem particularly weak.
It was incomparable to the spear I had clumsily made.
How he'd made something like this in such a short time was a mystery.
Whoosh!
It felt good in my hands too.
Even swinging it roughly cut through tentacles like tofu and drew blood—this mantis bastard really had been the key to the strategy.
"Kria! Time?"
"3 minutes......!"
3 minutes now.
Three Magical Beasts remaining.
[With outstanding intuition, you have quickly grasped the Magical Beast's movements.]
[Beast-Type hostility decreases.]
[Information on 'Blue-Eyed Fox' is added.]
Blue-Eyed Fox
It dislikes dirty things.
I was gradually getting used to fighting alongside the Magical Beasts.
The thought bloomed that maybe, just maybe, I could defeat this shadow before entering the forest.
'......And after that?'
Defeating the shadow wouldn't be the end.
I had to think about what came after too.
For example, my relationship with these Magical Beasts I was currently using.
For safety, I'd have to kill them.
But had I gotten too far ahead of myself?
PFFT!
Something shot out from the suckers on a tentacle.
"Shit......!"
The moment I reflexively closed my eyes, I felt something sticky and foul cover my face.
Was it ink?
I stumbled backward and rubbed at my face, but the viscous muck wouldn't wipe off easily, and my eyes stung so badly it felt like they were being gouged out.
SCREEECH!
Wet splattering sounds were followed by the Magical Beasts' cries. The moment I dropped out, the front line rapidly collapsed.
In that instant, my thoughts went to the glass bottle of water I had grabbed from the corpse pile.
I fumbled in my chest, took it out, and immediately poured it over my face.
Only then did the ink that had been clinging stubbornly mix with the water and run down.
'What's the situation?'
When I looked ahead through narrowed eyes, I saw a small tentacle piercing through the fox's body.
Even while shrieking, the fox clawed at the tentacle with its front paws, and then the octopus bastard, as if irritated, swung its tentacles recklessly.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
With its body pierced, the fox was slammed head-first into the ceiling and then smashed into the floor.
After repeating that process three or four times, the fox became a bloody pulp and died.
"2-2 minutes......!"
At last, the Magical Beasts were annihilated.
I couldn't expect help from the mage or the Spiritist either.
'Alone.'
I had to fight that monster alone.
"......."
There was no choice.
I looked at the shadow with the scythe in my hand.
The longer the standoff lasted, the better it was for me, but—
SCREEEEEECH—!
The creature, which looked extremely enraged, immediately extended all its tentacles toward me.
'Seven, eight, nine!'
Tentacles surging in.
Each tentacle had a different shape. Thick tentacles, thin tentacles, pointed tentacles, blunt tentacles.......
I tracked the incoming tentacles with my eyes, deflecting some and dodging others.
My eyes darted around as I thought.
There was no answer in this state anyway. From the front, I couldn't break through that bastard's tentacles and reach the main body no matter what.
If so, then rather.......
Crunch!
I took a direct hit from a tentacle.
"Cough!"
It felt like being hit by a truck.
As my body flew backward, system messages flashed past.
[<Loose Leather Armor> has been destroyed.]
[<Shabby Wrist Guards> have been destroyed.]
If I had taken that hit bare-bodied, I might have died from that single blow.
The surrounding scenery seemed to rush past, and then suddenly the ground beneath my feet vanished.
It was because the direction the tentacle had pushed me was toward the wall the wolf bastard had broken through.
I was flung out into the 80-kilometer-per-hour hell.
"Kaindel!"
—Just as I had intended.
The moment the wind rushed in with a chill, I extended the scythe toward the sky and then brought it down like an axe.
Thunk!
The scythe lodged into the upper part of the freight car.......
My body, pushed continuously by the tentacle's force, swung in a counterclockwise circle around the scythe.
As a result, I spun half a turn in the air and managed to land on top of the freight car—on the train roof.
'Shit.'
My body was trembling.
If my physical abilities had been just one grade higher, it would have been much easier.
'If the timing had been off by just a little.......'
I would have fallen under the train and died.
I swallowed my curses and ran across the train roof.
Whoooosh—
The wind was so strong, and my body was gradually reaching its limit, so it wasn't easy, but this was no time to dawdle.
Tap.
Finally, I landed in the train passageway.
I immediately opened the door and entered car 16 again, and saw the back of the shadow bastard's head.
As expected, it was full of openings.
"......You're dead."
I gritted my teeth and swung the scythe wildly.
Crrrrack!
It was an all-out attack with no thought for the opponent's response, but there was nothing this thing could do anyway.
Its body was so massive that it couldn't even turn around.
SCREEEEEECH—!
A tearing scream burst out.
The octopus bastard, as if frustrated, shook its body.
Grrrrrrrk......!
Fuck, how strong was this thing?
As it twisted its body, the entire train car began to heave. I could even feel the roof rattling.
I, who had thought I held an absolute advantage, began to consider the possibility that this thing might destroy the train entirely.
'Now.'
I had to finish this now, no matter what.
I swung the scythe with all my might.
Crrrrrrrrack!
Tentacles, flesh, and blood scattered in all directions.
Pieces of the filthy shadow's body stuck to my body, splattered on my face, and even got into my mouth, but I didn't care.
I swung the scythe with the single-minded determination to kill my opponent.
[Scythe proficiency has reached a certain level.]
[You have learned the skill <Scythe Mastery>.]
I couldn't even properly register the messages appearing before my eyes.
Finally, the moment the octopus bastard's movements began to slow.
"Forest......!"
The moment I heard the Spiritist's voice, I instinctively shouted.
"Grab onto anything!"
I too braced for impact with the scythe still lodged in the octopus's body.
And then.
KRAAAASH—!
With a massive explosion, the world flipped over.
[You have defeated the shadow, 'Binding and Crushing Black Octopus'.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Level up.......]
⁝
[You have achieved an achievement impossible at the tutorial stage.]
[10,000 achievement points are awarded.]
[You have achieved the achievement 「Octopus Hunt」.]
⁝
[You have successfully fought alongside Magical Beasts—<Beast-Type>.]
[Hostility of all Beast-Types greatly decreases.]
[There is no more hostility to decrease.]
[Most Beast-Types will now feel a sense of affinity toward you.]
⁝
[A certain beast god takes an interest in you.]
[Specific conditions are satisfied.]
[A hidden class is unlocked.]