Chapter 37
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Bugs are a Great Source of Protein, Right? (2)
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The ground rumbled with a heavy thud once again.
A growing certainty took hold: something was definitely happening underground.
The intermittent chirps of insects and the faint calls of small birds had all fallen silent.
Grk-grk, grk-grk-grk.
Just as the ground's tremors seemed to pause, a chilling sound echoed from deeper within the cave.
It was like the screech of sharp metal skewers scraping against rock.
"Should I call this good timing... or bad? Hard to say."
Ian and the knights drew their swords in unison.
With even their breaths held low, the knights formed ranks facing the cave, their backs radiating an intensity beyond words.
The gruesome pile of corpses and the encroaching sounds from the dark cave merged into a nightmare.
"It's coming!"
No sooner had one knight shouted than—
Kwaduk, kwaduk!
A massive silhouette burst forth, brutally shoving aside the rotting corpses piled at the cave mouth.
It was a centipede.
A monstrous centipede with a head as thick as the base of a centuries-old tree. Even though only its head and a few body segments had emerged, the sheer shock of it was overwhelming.
Beneath its red, armor-hard head, sticky saliva dripped from beak-like jaws.
Chiiik—.
Its drool seemed laced with corrosive poison; wherever it splattered, the ground bubbled and hissed.
'A centipede that big, and you can actually see its expression.'
That was Dominic's first thought upon facing a bug far beyond imagination.
His mind refused to accept the scene as reality, so fear didn't even register. All that came were absurd thoughts like, 'Something that size must have cured the prison warden's herniated disc for good.'
Dak-dak-dak.
"Everyone, brace yourselves!"
Ian's shout rang out as the creature's crimson legs writhed in every direction.
The moment his warning ended, the centipede thrashed as if on cue, wriggling to pull its elongated body from the spider-infested cave.
Dagagagak!
Kuung! Sissik—. Sissik—.
As the centipede heaved itself free—lifting its front segments into the air, slamming thick legs into the ground, screeching wildly—the cave entrance crumbled bit by bit.
"Attack! Take it down before it fully emerges!"
"Uwaaah! Eat my sword!"
"Die, you monster!"
Were knights' mental fortitude truly a cut above? Unlike Dominic, still lost in denial, they charged at the centipede with swords raised.
Teng—!
"Ugh!"
"Its exoskeleton is too tough!"
The knights dodged the red, razor-sharp legs—which could prove fatal with a mere graze—and swung their blades with skill, only to falter in shock.
Even mana-infused strikes left no mark on the giant centipede's black shell.
"Magic bullet!"
Kwang—!
One knight, quick to accept his mana was useless, activated a magic tool loaded with attack spells.
The blue-glowing magic bullet streaked toward the centipede and detonated with a bomb-like roar.
"D-Did it work?"
Gadadak, gadadadadak!
Puk!
"Uwaaah!"
"Christopher!"
"Damn it, pull the wounded back!"
The magic bullet failed to pierce the armor too, only enraging it further.
The centipede screeched louder. The knight who'd used the tool took a massive hit from one of its bizarrely angled red legs sweeping through the air, collapsing combat-incapable.
Puk!
Kieeeek!
As despair gripped the knights, the deep thunk of a sword burying into flesh rang out alongside a piercing insectile scream.
"Aim for the joints between segments!"
It was Ian.
'How the hell did he climb up there?'
Dominic gaped at Ian, balancing atop the centipede's body like a surfer riding a wave.
He was no ordinary man, that much was clear.
"Watch out! It's rolling!"
His admiration was short-lived; Dominic bellowed as the centipede twisted its segments to shake off the rider on its back.
Kieeeek!
But Ian had anticipated it. He drove his blade deep into another joint, hanging from the hilt like a trapeze artist, refusing to be thrown.
Puk, puk!
Centipede blood sprayed everywhere.
Its agonized shrieks continued.
'This won't cut it.'
At a glance, the knights held the advantage—but Ian saw differently.
'It won't tire like this.'
Did its colossal size come with equally tenacious vitality?
The centipede seemed to abandon defense, focusing solely on extracting itself from the narrow cave.
'Speed unfit for its bulk, unpredictable turns from dozens of segments, a shell that deflects most attacks, venomous fangs, razor legs...'
One answer: kill it before it fully emerged.
It was a desperate clash—humans hell-bent on ending it inside the cave versus the behemoth straining to break free with all its might.
"Fire! Fire! Fire!"
"Chef! Are you insane? Stay put! We can't protect you too!"
"Fire! Fire! Fire!"
That's when Dominic started something utterly bizarre.
'What the hell is he doing?'
Had fear driven him mad?
Dominic raised a ring loaded with Fire spells high overhead, chanting activation words at random.
"Ah, damn humidity! Fire! Fire! Please, just—Fire!"
It was the ring Perot had given him after he made her five bags of macaron shells: thirty uses of Fire magic.
Her skill limited it to 1st-class spells, but since it was meant as a fire starter for cooking—in place of flint—it suited perfectly.
Plus, optimized for culinary aid over combat, it prioritized uses over power.
"Dominic, what are you doing?!"
"Don't talk to me! Fire! Fire! Fire!"
Hwaruk!
"Yes! It worked!"
Finally, flames caught on the tall branches overhead.
Whether due to the damp wood, weak spell, or both—unclear—but after nearly twenty chants, he succeeded.
Dominic inwardly patted himself for conserving the magic until now.
Kieeeek!
"Damn! It's agitated!"
"Ugh—. If we escape this, I will hold you accountable for your actions!"
The flames on damp leaves spread modestly, but thick, acrid smoke began billowing skyward.
The giant centipede thrashed in fury at the sudden haze, as a bonus.
The knights gritted their teeth, barely holding off its legs.
But Dominic ignored them, embarking on yet another absurdity.
"Wind! Wind! Wind!"
This time, a brooch.
A kitchen fire starter always had a partner: the bellows.
For fanning flames, boosting heat—Dominic usually used a crank-operated one.
[Wind magic could replace that gadget. What do you say? Give me a month's free dessert pass at the new bakery in town, and I'll make you another magic tool.]
In the capital, enchanting twenty Wind uses cost one gold coin.
A month's free pass at a noble-targeted dessert shop? A clear loss.
Wind was 1st-class: for drying hair or cooling sweat.
[Deal. You've earned it; I'll eat the loss this time.]
[Eek! Thanks, Village Chief!]
Dominic had been hooked on magic tools then, plus:
'Cost's negligible anyway. Rumors of Perot's dessert obsession are spreading at the resort—good promo.'
Overlapping reasons led to his okay.
He hadn't expected it'd pay off so soon. Thrilled, Perot rushed the brooch, dropping everything lest the deal sour.
"Grow stronger, damn it! Wind! Wind!"
And now, that brooch strained to blow smoke outward.
"Wind! Ah, Wind! Come on! What kind of magic is this weak breeze?! Wind! Wind! Wind!"
Dominic chanted desperately, but the brooch's Wind fell short.
Well, 1st-class; no great expectations were fair.
Flames aside, you needed real gusts to feel wind's effect.
"Wind!"
Whoooosh—!
Hwaruruk!
Suddenly, a gale burst from the brooch, supercharging the flames.
Magic tools reflected their maker: one of Perot's Winds had extra mana, likely from dessert-fueled excitement.
Using it unaware on a kitchen fire? Pot—and stove—blown away.
"Got it!"
Sring—.
Dominic froze as an unfamiliar blade pressed against his throat.
"A spy after all?"
One knight, witnessing Dominic's antics—or atrocities—had moved to subdue him.
"You planned to lure us in from the start!"
Fury burned in the growling knight's voice.
Who could blame him?
The centipede still rampaged. Comrades struck glancing blows at best, defense their limit. The brought-along chef spam-cast magic. Nearby trees blazed, smoke pouring.
In vulgar terms: total chaos.
Kieeeek!
"...Wyvern...!"
At last, the capstone to this mad battlefield arrived.
A predator among predators: massive body dwarfed by even huger wings. A wyvern.
Drawn by fire and smoke, no doubt.
Kukwakwang!
"Everyone, dodge!"
Then the centipede's tail emerged.
Fully free at last.
Over ten meters of writhing fury, thirty pairs of legs fully bared—enough to freeze any human.
"...My only regret is not seeing this through."
Centipede unbound on ground, wyvern ruling skies.
Knights regripped swords, steeling for final stand.
"Ah, what nonsense! Hide, quick!"
"Better to die honorably than live cowardly!"
"Why are you guys jumping in?! Chicken's here!"
"What...?"
"Spiders love centipedes, chickens love centipedes! Common sense, right? Get back! Don't let the shrimp's back burst in a whale fight!"
Why'd I burn all my magic tools to summon that? Grumbling inwardly, Dominic was first to duck behind a distant boulder.