Chapter 64: Malicious Movements
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 64: Malicious Movements
I was ambushed while looting the corpses of three Gardeners I had just killed.
“They’re pushing in from the front!”
“Rika! You have to pull back!”
“Dammit!!!”
The upper levels of the Labyrinth.
The most basic monsters of the Botanical Garden are the Gardeners.
Their official name is Leprechaun—monsters that run around on two legs and use their hard teeth to bite off human limbs. You could think of them as the Goblins of the Botanical Garden.
On my own, I could handle anywhere from one to four of them without any trouble. However, once their numbers swell, they become difficult to manage.
Over thirty of them…!
The Gardeners came charging in.
There were far more of them than I had anticipated. The space was too large to deal with all of them at once without risking being surrounded. Most importantly, those thirty weren't the end of it. More were pouring in through the other entrances of the room.
It seemed we had pulled some serious aggro. They would likely keep swarming this location.
For now, the best course of action was to get out of here. Stamina is finite, and if you keep cutting down enemies without rest, there will inevitably come a moment when your blade slips.
Since a single mistake leads to death, we had to run.
“How many are there?!”
“I don’t know! There’s more than ten, so just run for now!!!”
A sudden monster wave caused by a spike in the creature population.
Rika swung her sword at the swarming Gardeners, cleaving through three of them. However, those behind them immediately filled the gap. They just kept coming.
There was no end to this. Staying here to face them was the worst possible move. We either had to move to a narrow passage to fight or shake them off and escape entirely.
“Rika!! It’s too many! Fall back!”
“Ugh…!! Dammit! They’ve got me!!!”
I called out to Rika, but she wasn't in a position to retreat. Rika, who had been buying us time to escape from the rear, was eventually caught by the lunging Gardeners.
Their weapons were their large mouths, their teeth, and an immunity to fear. They did not fear death. This was a trait far more terrifying than one might think.
Even as their kin were sliced in half before their eyes, the Leprechauns did not stop. Instead, they clung on even more fanatically. From their perspective, we were a meal—a precious source of protein. To avoid cannibalizing their own kind, they had no choice but to consume adventurers.
It’s no good. Rika is completely pinned.
The damage didn't look severe yet. However, it would be over the moment her armor was torn away. Once the chainmail was ripped apart, those things would chew and swallow Rika’s raw flesh. The scent of human blood would only drive the monsters into a greater frenzy, and there would be no way to save her from an excited pack.
“Young Lady! Take the other two and get back!”
“Uh—!! Wait! There are more in front!!!”
“There aren't many, so handle them yourselves!”
There were Gardeners in our escape path as well, but their numbers were few. The Young Lady and Rien should be able to handle that many. No, they had to handle them.
Rika is in danger.
There is a limit to how long one can hold out. I had to rescue our party’s tanker before the situation worsened.
“Rika! You still alive?!”
“Hwaaaargh!!!”
Rika let out a battle cry as she hacked through the Gardeners. Gardeners caught in her relentless sword strikes were swept away, bursting with green sap.
Her bladework was like a brush cutter ruthlessly mowing down weeds. It looked like she was swinging wildly because there were so many enemies, but I could see her strength beginning to wane. I had to open a path before she ran out of steam.
“Hup…!!!!!”
I charged toward Rika, who was struggling desperately amidst the Gardeners. My goal was to pull her out while the Young Lady led the two backliners to safety.
“Dammit!! I’m surrounded! I’m sorry!”
“Forget that! Just keep swinging your sword!!!”
Now was not the time for apologies. Why apologize when you should be swinging your weapon for dear life? In the first place, this was just the Labyrinth’s way of screwing us over—it wasn't Rika’s fault. Who could have known they’d suddenly pop out in such a massive swarm?
If we had someone with a detection-type ability like Hachi, it might have been different. This was a situation that was purely impossible to prepare for, so it wasn't anyone's fault.
“Hyaaaaah!!!”
Gathering every ounce of strength I had, I lunged at the Gardeners clinging to Rika.
Thump!
Gardeners were sent flying as they collided with my shield. Since our goal was to escape, I didn't have time to kill them one by one. I had to push them back recklessly and get Rika out.
“Get lost!!!”
It wasn't systematic swordsmanship, but a frantic hacking. I cleaved the head of a lunging Gardener and immediately swung again, splitting the body of one that was biting down on Rika’s leg. As soon as one died, two more took its place.
I swung my sword mindlessly until it got stuck in one of their backs. With no time to pull it out, I immediately withdrew an axe from my inventory and swung it horizontally, slashing the faces of the lunging Gardeners.
Green sap sprayed.
A bitter taste spread in my mouth. Some of the sap from the dying Gardeners must have splashed in. It tasted like spoiled broccoli.
“Rika! Fall back! Get behind me!”
“Right. Right!!”
The shrieks of the Gardeners echoed from all sides. I smashed through the gathered horde until my ears felt muffled, pulling back as I went. I carved a path, swinging my blade like a madman at the Gardeners in front of me.
Heads and arms of Gardeners rolled on the floor, and my body was covered in green sap. Perhaps because it wasn't blood, their fluids smelled of cabbage and broccoli. In the midst of this carnage that would have made a vegan weep, we narrowly escaped and entered a narrow corridor.
“Rika!!”
“Yeah! Let’s bolt!”
“I’m going to block the path before we run! You go first!”
“What?!”
“I said I’m blocking the path, so go!”
“Ah, got it!”
I sent Rika ahead first. As Rika, who had been running behind me, passed me to take the lead, the Gardeners immediately shifted their target to me and charged with bared teeth.
Clang—!
Forcing back the lunging creatures with my shield, I began frantically pulling stones and wooden crates out of my inventory in the middle of the corridor.
It was the so-called "blocking the path with trash" tactic.
I had prepared these items after noticing the spike in monster numbers during the last rescue mission. I had stuffed my inventory with bulky, heavy objects specifically to pull them out and block the way in emergencies like this.
The junk I’d picked up from the scrap yard was actually coming in handy. I was glad I’d brought along the discarded furniture.
In an instant, the trash piled up to form a barricade. The Gardeners were cut off by the wall of junk, unable to reach us.
Thud! Bam!
“Whew.”
Once the path was blocked, the Gardeners began frantically bashing at the obstacles to break through. This was only possible because it was a narrow corridor. In a wide-open space, I would have had to block the entrance, but blocking the middle of a hallway was a much easier way to stop their advance.
“Sion! Are you okay?!”
“How’s Rika?”
“She got a slight bite on her calf, so Erika is treating her now.”
“Haaa. That’s a relief. Are you hurt anywhere, Young Lady?”
“Yeah. I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”
“What about Rien?”
“Rien is fine too. We’re okay. What about you? You’re not hurt, right?”
“I’m fine. I’m in perfectly good health.”
“Phew. Thank goodness.”
The Gardeners had appeared so suddenly that we were pushed back without being able to respond properly, but everyone had survived without major injury. This didn't even count as being truly screwed over. Considering we were hit by a surprise wave, this was a pretty good outcome.
“It’s very strange that the Gardeners are acting in a group like that.”
Before the Great Cataclysm, they used to roam in groups of about five.
“There were definitely more than ten just now.”
“Ten…? It looked like at least thirty to me…”
“If you count the ones gathered at the opposite entrance, there might have been even more than thirty.”
“Heh. There were that many?”
“Rika, didn't it feel like the Gardeners were being constantly replenished no matter how many you killed?”
“Ah… so they were stepping over the corpses to get in. I was so frantic I didn't notice. To think they just kept coming… wow.”
Rika’s face turned pale as she realized she had nearly died again.
“Even if the population has increased, it shouldn't be to this extent, right? Right, Sion?”
“Right. This is definitely strange.”
There were cases where they clustered in nests, but they didn't usually roam in massive swarms as if they were hunting adventurers. The monsters' behavior had definitely become more systematic and hostile. It wasn't just their numbers that had increased. Their behavioral patterns had changed.
It was as if their AI had been upgraded.
Considering Olivia is a possessor…
From a gaming perspective, I had to assume the monsters' behavioral patterns had also been upgraded.
“Still, I’m glad everyone survived.”
“That was terrifying.”
“My hands… are still shaking…”
Erika and Rien seemed to be in a bit of a panic. It was understandable to be startled when a swarm suddenly pours out without warning. The only silver lining was that Gardeners were relatively weak. As long as you didn't let your guard down, you could fight your way out. If you were wearing proper armor, you didn't even have to worry about their bites causing fatal wounds.
“For now, let’s put some distance between us and that pack.”
We began moving again.
*
14 hours since entering the Labyrinth.
It was about time to wrap up today’s schedule. We entered a suitable room. I roughly blocked the entrance with the wooden planks I had brought along. The Gardeners would likely think the wall was blocked and just pass by.
“Let’s sleep here for today.”
“Ugh… I’m so tired…”
“My legs hurt so much…”
Rien and Erika, who lacked physical stamina, sat down with groans of exhaustion. Even though we had taken an hour-long break every four hours, the two of them looked incredibly fatigued.
“Phew. Trying to conquer this for real is definitely tough.”
“Porter, give me some water.”
Rika was drenched in sweat, and the Young Lady was frowning as if her legs were aching. Neither of them complained, but they both looked exhausted.
“Here’s the water.”
“Thanks. Ah, that’s refreshing.”
After quenching her thirst, Rika slumped over. Compared to when we first entered the Labyrinth, she had definitely become less talkative. The Young Lady hadn't spoken much from the start, likely due to tension, but Rika had been quite lively early on. Now, she was just silently gulping down water as if her energy had been completely drained.
“Everyone, sit down and rest. I’ll hand out some dry rations, so eat them with your water.”
I distributed food to the group. The women accepted the bone-dry rations without a word. Even though it couldn't have tasted good, they forced it down. They all seemed to realize that they would collapse if they didn't eat properly.
“Haa. I’m sleepy.”
“Let’s set a watch and get some shut-eye.”
“Oh, I can cast a barrier. I’ll know immediately if something approaches.”
Erika said she could set up an alarm barrier. If something approached from the outside, Erika would wake up instantly.
Hum—
As she offered a short prayer, a faint light briefly spread out from her. With this, an alarm barrier was set in the room. With this active, we could sleep without a physical watch.
“Then let’s all get some sleep.”
The air in the Labyrinth was a bit chilly, but it was bearable. I wrapped myself in a blanket and closed my eyes. Since we’d already dealt with a monster wave today, nothing else should happen.
—Um, is there anyone… ‘human’ in there?
Just before I fell asleep, a voice drifted in from beyond the wooden planks blocking the entrance.
It seemed the Labyrinth still had more malicious events in store for us.