Chapter 359
Chapter 359
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 359
Chapter Title: Dreadsong's Territory
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Sulfuric acid rain pouring down from above, a landscape blanketed in lava, and massive bolts of lightning relentlessly crashing through the black clouds. If hell really existed, it would feel just like this.
'What's amazing is that monsters are still alive and moving around in a place like this.'
Off in the distance, a bull-like creature rolled across the hardened lava. It was a Vulcarox, the first monster I'd encountered upon arriving on Aska 44.
They repeatedly coat themselves in lava and acid rain, letting it cool to temper their metallic shells even harder. That's how they survive the terrifying beasts that inhabit this hellish planet.
The red-hot metallic bull spotted me and bolted away in a panic. I had other prey in mind, so I didn't bother chasing it.
"We're approaching Dreadsong territory soon."
Hearing that, I focused my senses on the auxiliary organs beneath my chin. My flanking heads lowered their necks, bringing the organs close to the lava surface.
The Mother of the Sky, transformed into her gryphon form, gripped her spear in her beak and stared sharply ahead.
Dreadsong has an incredibly strong sense of territory. No matter how powerful the intruder, it never lets anyone who steps into its domain go unscathed.
'It must have already sensed us by now.'
As faint thunder rumbled in the distance, I entered a space thick with poisonous gas. Deathly fog blanketed everything, so dense I couldn't see more than a foot ahead.
｢...Just now, something moved 150 meters out at 2 o'clock.｣
[Understood.]
The Mother of the Sky, with her far superior eyesight, warned me. I concentrated my auxiliary organs' senses in the direction she indicated.
My long, slender auxiliary organs writhed, sucking in every scrap of information from the surroundings. Sure enough, there was movement just as she said.
At a glance, it felt like gas leaking from cracks in the hardened lava. Similar natural phenomena were happening right under my feet.
But I couldn't take that at face value. Dreadsong disguises itself that way when ambushing prey.
'I'll strike first...'
As I prepared to attack, it beat me to the punch. A long, spear-like thing burst from the lava and shot toward us.
｢!｣
The high-speed projectile aimed to impale the gryphon on my back. The Mother of the Sky belatedly tried to dodge.
But Dreadsong's strike was a fraction faster. If I let it land, she'd be injured for sure.
In a pinch, I raised my wing-arms to block in front of her. The spear pierced my wing-arm, but it bought enough time to blunt the attack. While I held it off, she swiftly leaped down to the hard black ground.
｢Aimorph!｣
[Everyone, be careful.]
My right head bent down to bite the spear that had punctured my arm. But the elongated thing whipped sideways, evading my jaws. What had felt like a rigid lance when it pierced my arm now bent flexibly and retreated back to its origin.
The black ground split open, and the creature that had attacked me slowly poked its head out.
Its wide, flattened toad-like head glowed red from the magma. It opened its mouth to retrieve the long spear from moments ago—its tongue.
I unleashed my hidden erosion tendrils from my back to assault its head. The six appendages churned through the lava, trying to rip apart the monster's grotesque visage, but it was already gone.
Dozens of meters away, it peeked its head out again. Four eyes glared at me through the roaring flames.
As I moved to attack, it vanished from sight once more.
'Fast as ever.'
Dreadsong: a carnivorous toad thriving in environments filled with magma and sulfuric gases.
If Glacier Fiends haunt ice planets, then Dreadsong rules volcanic ones—it's that infamous. Its cunning personality that toys with prey before killing, its fierce territorial instincts... they're remarkably similar.
'But...'
I'm known as an exceptional hunter myself.
In the game, I'd hunted that sly predator dozens of times.
No different in this world. Just variations in the hunt's timing and method.
One thing never changes: it becomes my prey.
｢The bad guy's hiding in the squishy insides.｣
｢Black ground｣ ｢Danger｣
"Vibrations are hard to detect due to constant gas emissions."
"Sis, be careful. Dreadsong is a master of deception."
Uncertain when it might ambush again, everyone dismounted from my back.
No. 26 entered combat mode, ballooning in size before levitating into the air. Adhai and Isabelle flew up beyond the range of the toxic acid fog.
The PS-111 units raised their hook-claw and blade arms, ready to shred it on sight. Their Demolishers, scorpion-tail mounted, were primed for instant fire.
As everyone assumed battle positions, the Mother of the Sky approached me. She apologized upon seeing the head-sized hole in my wing-arm.
｢Sorry.｣
[It's fine.]
The tongue Dreadsong had flung at me was just a basic attack. A saliva-coated stab.
The problem? Its tongue had immense muscle power and was incredibly tough. Even a simple thrust packed devastating force. And it was coated in ultra-corrosive saliva on top of that—corpse-melting levels.
No wonder it punched a hole in my carapace, which withstands FTL speeds.
'Still, this isn't a serious injury.'
Given my size, a head-sized hole was nothing—like a pinprick drawing blood. It hurt, sure, but I could endure it.
I ignored the wound and scanned the surroundings.
'It's probing us.'
Dreadsong resembles a prehistoric giant frog. Multiple eyes, rock-shelled body—it oozes monstrous vibes.
The key point: its body isn't suited for close-quarters brawls. This colossal toad's melee prowess falls short of a White Galleron. Its cunning stems from compensating for that physical weakness.
'And it has a weapon scarier than its tongue.'
[Anything visible from above?]
｢No.｣
"Too much gas to confirm."
Adhai and Isabelle descended after a quick aerial recon. I stared into the opaque poison gas that obscured everything.
'It targeted the Mother of the Sky for a reason.'
It knew who spotted it first and prioritized accordingly.
With the ambush failed, next would be one of two things: another shot at her, or...
'Go for the weakest-looking target.'
At that instant, its tongue erupted from the lava. Bullet-fast, aimed at the golden-furred gryphon.
'No, that's a feint.'
Dreadsong never repeats attacks—except to deceive.
I swung my wing-arm to smack the incoming tongue, but it anticipated, curving smoothly. Its new target: the pink colossal jellyfish, No. 26.
No. 26 was second only to me in size, but its outer membrane wasn't as tough as my carapace. It had pierced that weakness and adjusted.
'Idiot.'
Sea Demons and Dreadsong never cross paths in the wild. But no player ranks them equally—Sea Demons are far deadlier.
'Let alone No. 26, which isn't a standard Sea Demon.'
Just as the blunt tongue neared No. 26's surface, purple tendrils sprouted from its pink exterior. In a blink, they formed a geometric pattern powered by unknown forces.
Small due to the rush, but enough to block. The tongue shattered against the barrier like an egg on rock.
Blood sprayed into the air as the tongue convulsed in agony. Dreadsong flinched from the pain, and PS-111 pounced.
"Defending the Main Controller."
Its hook-claw flashed. The gas parted, and the tongue severed, thudding to the ground.
"Kek-eek!"
A pained groan echoed from afar. The tongue vanished into the acid fog.
PS-111 locked its Demolisher on the sound and fired instantly. Scorpion-tailed, but firing indigo energy bolts instead of venom.
An explosion rang out, but no cry followed—it had missed.
｢I'll punish the bad guy!｣
Furious, No. 26 dropped its shield and unleashed psychic power.
The abyssal demon's psychic chains burrowed into the gas-spewing black earth. The ground cracked, spewing red lava like a blood fountain. It planned to flip the entire area upside down with psychic force.
The enemy hadn't anticipated this; something massive stirred frantically underground. Adhai, watching from above, caught the tremor and fired a psychic breath.
Unlike standard Gallerons, its breath formed compact orbs. It struck where Dreadsong hid. The earth cratered, oozing lava-tinted fluid, but it didn't stop.
Its presence vanished. Fleeing to regroup for another ambush. Just like in the game—annoyingly persistent.
'In the game, I lured it with bait or dove into the lava to chase it down.'
I'd gone with the latter, pursuing relentlessly in the lava. After about a real-world day nonstop, its stamina depleted, and it couldn't escape.
'Looking back, that was insane.'
No plans to repeat that here. Why bother when I had help?
I gazed at Dreadsong's territory, now hellish from No. 26's upheaval. The upturned ground relentlessly belched acid gas and lava, as if seizing the chance.
'Wait.'
Watching that sparked an idea. I called to the Mother of the Sky first.
[Can you use the pressure-manipulating particles now?]
｢Of course. Why?｣
[Can you send them underground?]
She nodded slightly, eyeing me curiously.
｢Catching it with pressure particles would be tough. It'll notice and dodge.｣
She sounded apologetic, but it didn't matter. I just needed to check if she could manipulate underground pressure.
'Good enough.'
Next up: No. 26.
At my question, its body flickered pink.
｢Big baby asked, so I'll try!｣
[Good.]
I gently stroked No. 26 as it raised two tentacles in a fighting pose. Then I explained the plan to the Mother of the Sky and No. 26.
｢...Not a bad idea. Scale might be an issue, though.｣
｢Squish-squish and press?｣
[Yes.]
They sprang into action immediately.
The Mother of the Sky first spread her radiant agate wings wide. Amid the foul fog, gem-like particles mingled in. Some infiltrated the shattered ground below.
While she prepped, I gripped PS-111 with my combat arms.
[Don't touch the ground.]
"Understood?"
The Mother of the Sky continued scattering particles over the black earth.
Perhaps burned once already, the nearby Dreadsong held back its attacks.
'It's about time.'
The moment I thought that, a sudden whistle pierced the air. My auxiliary organs and tendrils shivered. Not from detection—intense airflow rocked us.
"Aimorph!"
The acid fog gathered in one spot, swept by wind. Isabelle urgently warned.
There, in the converging air and gas, was the enemy. Dreadsong had emerged with its massive flattened head and stubby forelimbs, inhaling fiercely. Gills behind its four eyes quivered, producing the whistle-like sound.
Finally, Dreadsong unleashed its trump card. A terrifying technique befitting its name, the Song of Terror.
[Adhai, Isabelle—get high!]
I warned those airborne and spread my wings to shield the ground team.
Almost simultaneously, it expelled what it inhaled. Compressed acid gas, volcanic ash, lava, and magma erupted in a cataclysm rivaling orbital weapons. Deadlier than multiple Thunder Gods striking at once—even an Adult Aimorph would suffer heavily.
Dreadsong's song of devastation crashed over me. My carapace, unscathed through ash descent, cracked and splintered. The membranes on my wing-arms tore or holed in spots.
｢Pain reduction activated!｣
The full-body inferno was familiar agony, but no less excruciating. At least the toad's song was short.
Having unleashed its blaze, Dreadsong burrowed back underground.
[Now!]
Confirming it hidden, I signaled No. 26. Sheltered in my wings, it broadcast psychic waves.