Chapter 55
Chapter 55
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: Demon Turtles and Rising Tensions
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Morning arrived in the blink of an eye.
We hastily scarfed down breakfast with the provisions we'd packed ahead of time, then immediately began gearing up.
"Heh heh... finally time to hunt, eh?"
Thompson muttered with eager anticipation.
He hadn't gotten a proper hunt in since we'd arrived here, so it was understandable.
'...We've been running around chased by one thing or another until now. Good, now it's time for real growth!'
I was just as excited.
Now I could finally focus on leveling up.
Above all, I was looking forward to feeling the effects of the experience artifact firsthand.
Of course, a few issues remained.
"...Hey, kid. I'm coming along too, right?"
First, the survivor auntie.
'Hmm, even with all the stationary spells I've set up... leaving her alone still feels iffy.'
Today marked the start of serious hunting, so I planned to venture pretty far out.
Which meant leaving one of our group behind at the makeshift camp was out of the question.
And we couldn't just abandon Auntie here by herself either, so there was only one option.
'Have to bring her along.'
It would split my attention guarding her and lower our hunting efficiency a bit... but no choice.
There was no other way.
We'd take turns watching over her, staggering our shifts.
And the other issue...
'I still don't know what those guys are up to. There are probably more survivors out there somewhere.'
Along with hunting, we had to search for survivors and find a shelter.
And if we ran into any demons we could communicate with, interrogate them too.
If that passerby hadn't gone and died, we wouldn't be in this mess... what a shame.
"...Looking at it now, it's not much different from the day before yesterday."
At least we were all on the same side here, so my mind was more at ease.
No need to hide my abilities either.
Thinking that was a small mercy, I unrolled the map.
Rustle-!
Unlike the crude sketch the passerby had shown us, this one was far more detailed and precise.
I'd found it rummaging through the first floor on a whim while eating—probably something the passerby had drawn himself while scouting dungeon locations.
"Shall we start with this one?"
I pointed to one of the three circled spots on the map.
Those circles marked dungeon locations, it seemed.
The reason I thought so? One of them was the place we'd gone to yesterday.
'Hope it's not too dangerous.'
Of course, whether to enter a newly found dungeon would be a decision for after we got there.
"Ah, this place."
"You know it?"
Kayla peered closely at the spot I'd indicated and nodded.
"Yeah... more or less. We'll know for sure once we head out."
Thanks to her being a local from District 7, we didn't have to worry about getting lost.
"Alright! Number one champ! Let's get going!"
A good start, at least.
***
Several hours into non-stop hunting.
Hiding behind the outer wall of a ruined building, Thompson watched a group of demons pass by in the distance and spoke up.
"Oh, those guys!"
He excitedly pulled a document from a rolled-up stack.
"This is it, right?"
It was one of the demon extermination requests from the Athis Request Office...
"Two horns on either side of the head... pointy ears, huge carapace... yeah, looks like a match, Uncle?"
The demon pack shuffling by matched the description on the request exactly.
"Heh heh heh, so those are demon turtles, huh? Wonder how they'll fight."
"Just watch out for the bites. Their jaw strength is insane."
"Oh, thanks, dwarf! Nothing gets past you, huh?"
As the two whispered, I observed the front more carefully.
'Judging by the horn size... mid-grade demons. One, two, three, four... seven of them?'
Demon turtles weren't known for large packs, so they didn't usually group up like this.
Typically two or three at most?
The exception? When they had a nearby nest or territory to guard.
That's when you'd see bigger groups like this.
In other words, their habitat was somewhere close by.
'If we're lucky, we could knock out this request in one go.'
The request called for 30 in total.
Finding the nest shouldn't make extermination too hard.
The issue was it required some patience.
How much time passed?
"...Number one champ. How long we gotta wait? Can't we just charge in?"
Thompson grumbled beside me, face twisted in frustration.
"Even if it's frustrating, hang in there a bit longer. Killing them now would make things way more annoying later."
"...Hoo. You're painfully slow, you know that?"
Thompson thumped his chest like something was stuck in it.
Well, being turtle-based demons, they were definitely slow.
Shamble-shamble, plod. Shuffle-shuffle, plod...
Each step took a solid ten seconds at least.
Watching them was enough to make your insides burn with impatience.
'...Not for Korean sensibilities. Gotta exterminate the bastards.'
With that in mind, we tailed them for a good while.
"Th-there! Over there!"
Their habitat finally came into view.
"I'll go first!"
Thompson, who'd complained the most about the wait, leaped into the air first.
Boom-!
Like a cannonball launching.
Rumble rumble rumble!
Thompson, cloaked in rock magic, plummeted vertically right on target.
"Ham-bur-ger!"
KABOOM-!
Turtle shell versus boulder.
The rock won.
"Kweeeek!"
"Heh heh heh, good. You're all dead now!"
Only then did the rest of us waiting join the fray.
"Hup!"
Roarrr!
"..."
Swoosh, slash! Swoosh, slash!
Splatter!
Every fireball Kayla launched filled the air with appetizing scents, and every axe swing from Barundel sprayed purple blood.
"Grgh..."
I itched to jump in too, but unfortunately, it wasn't possible.
It was my shift on duty.
"...Auntie, you okay? Nothing hurt?"
"Yeah... thanks to you, kid. Really grateful."
Damn, I'd tried to force some sense of fulfillment out of it, but knowing the EXP loss was huge ruined it.
My mood didn't improve at all.
'Just one more kill and I'd level up...'
Then a good idea hit me.
'...Wait, as long as I don't stray far from Auntie, it's fine, right?'
Attacking from afar.
In other words, poking!
"Hup!"
Thwuck!
"Kweeeeeek!"
A spear thrust launched in an instant made one demon turtle screech.
But its shell was only pierced—it hadn't died in one hit.
The impact must've dispersed across that tough carapace.
No problem, though.
Just throw another.
"Die!"
"Kwe...!"
The second light spear landed, and it finally spewed blood, flipping belly-up.
At that moment.
Whoosh!
Even after all these times, the unfamiliar fullness washed over me, my body lightening.
'...Already level 7 with this?'
Including the level-up in Aldeon, that tracked.
The experience artifact and mid-grade demons were making growth feel fast.
At this rate, hitting level 10 by the end of the expedition seemed easy.
...Though it'd still be pathetically low compared to my main character.
'Still, compared to the zombie swordsman in the same bracket, I'm stronger.'
Taking comfort in that, I hurled another spear.
"Kweeeek-!"
This one crit, dropping instantly.
'Mages are the best. This range and power already...'
Why'd I ever pick swordsman for my first serious main?
What was so romantic about it?
"Romance can go screw itself... efficiency is king!"
Screeeee-thwuck!
Screeeee-thwuck!
After nabbing two or three more like that?
The party returned, faces flushed with relief after turning the demon turtle den to rubble and collecting their horns.
Thompson especially seemed hyped, probably thanks to their sluggish movements.
"Whew... who knew hunting could be this fun? Dwarf, how'd you keep something like this to yourself?"
And that's when.
Barundel's expression darkened sharply.
"...Fun, you say?"
Barundel spoke in a razor-edged voice.
Thompson tilted his head, puzzled.
"What's up, dwarf? Still mad about yesterday? Not over it yet?"
"That's not it!"
"...!!"
Everyone's eyes widened at Barundel's suddenly raised voice.
But he pressed on, veins bulging on his forehead.
"You think this is a game? Demons—demons! No matter how ridiculous or weak they look, you never underestimate demonkind! Get what I'm saying?"
"...Dwarf."
The atmosphere had flipped 180 from the cheerful vibe moments ago.
"If you can't understand, oh well. I'm not forcing you. Some things you gotta experience yourself to get."
A chill weighed down our shoulders.
"Last piece of advice. Keep slacking off like that, and next time it's not these guys dying—it's you, the weakling. I guarantee it!"
"...What?"
Something felt off now.
'...What's going on?'
This was way too hypersensitive for the usual Barundel.
I pondered the reason...
'Ah.'
Fortunately, I had a hunch.
I'd heard something like this from Barundel before.
-I used to have a spouse. All that's left now is a photo.
And he'd quit hunting because of some backstory.
Putting that together, my thoughts naturally went there.
If that backstory involved demons.
If demons had taken his family...
'...That must be it.'
His outburst made total sense.
Thompson's flippant attitude must've grated on him hard.
Of course, I could infer this far only because I knew the rough situation.
Before it blew up bigger, I needed to step in.
"Hold on—."
That's when I judged it was time to intervene.
"Fuck... dwarf. You done talking?"
Rumble rumble rumble!
Out of nowhere, Thompson spat a curse and cloaked himself in rock magic.
"Say it again. Who's dying? Who's the weakling?"
That sparked it.
"Who else? You, that's who!"
Clang.
"You want me to prove it?"
Barundel grabbed his axe too, and the fight escalated out of control.
A powder keg ready to blow at any second...
But something was wrong.
Is this really worth fighting over?
'...Why's that guy suddenly like this?'
Barundel losing his family in an accident? Fine.
But why was Thompson acting up?
This was nothing like his usual boisterous self, who'd laugh off anything.
Normally he'd say, 'Haha! If I upset you, dwarf, my bad!' and smooth it over...
"Keep pushing it and..."
Now he looked ready to throw punches, no joviality in sight.
"Forget the hunt! You guys handle it yourselves! I'm out!"
Unable to contain his rage, Thompson turned and stormed off.
Like he was quitting the party altogether.
"Hold on—."
No choice, I reached to grab him.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Kayla beat me to it, blocking Thompson.
Her face ice-cold.
"We agreed to do this, so see it through. You ditching us now? The hell, Uncle? You joking?"
The indescribable fury in her eyes bordered on madness.
'...Why? How...?'
And that's when.
I realized something was wrong.