Chapter 85
Chapter 85
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 85
Chapter Title: Pancakes in the Rain and the Knight Hornet Assault
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1
Pitter-patter. Raindrops struck the eaves.
Sizzle. Hot oil on the pan cooked the seafood pancake.
"It sounds just like the rain...."
Noel muttered as he listened intently to the two eerily similar sounds from under the eaves beside the walkway.
The sizzling of the pancake did resemble the patter of rain.
No wonder people crave pancakes on rainy days.
The seafood pancake cooking on the pan was incredibly hearty.
Thanks to the leftover ingredients from the restaurant, squid made up half of it.
The quality was such that no one would dare buy it from outside.
"No potatoes...? This is a collapse of food culture...!"
"But not everything gets better just by adding potatoes, you know?"
"Potatoes go with everything though!?"
Ethan looked like he was about to faint.
This potato maniac—I'd wondered why he hadn't been obsessing over them lately.
"I'll make potato pancakes next time, so hang in there."
"Oh! Potato dish?"
"Oriental potato pancakes. Made purely with potatoes."
Ethan raised his clenched fist high.
He closed his eyes reverently and flashed a cheerful smile, looking every bit the victor.
Potato pancakes were a pain to grate, though.
No, since Ethan wants to eat them, I can make him do it.
"This is a new kind of food."
Kyriakos murmured softly as he gazed at the rain.
Leon, sitting in a pious posture, nodded.
Luis, resting his chin on his hand, waved dismissively at the two who were unusually quiet and serious.
"He's always known a bunch of weird stuff. Last time he made some spicy dish too. No idea where he picks up all this useless knowledge."
"Useless? That's too harsh, senior. Delicious food is justice."
The edges of the pancake crisped up nicely.
I moved the pan off the burner and gave it a light toss.
The pancake flipped once in the air and landed back in the pan.
"Show-off, when you have a spatula right there."
"It's elegant technique, isn't it?"
Guilty as charged.
For some reason, Kyriakos seemed more impressed by the flip than the pancake itself.
I still couldn't read his mind....
"Just eat it."
I plated the golden-brown pancake.
Eating it with a fork and knife instead of chopsticks felt a bit off culturally, but flavor mattered more, so whatever.
I poured batter for the second one into the pan.
As I picked up my fork, the others, who had already taken a bite, reacted in perfect unison.
"...It's delicious......"
"Potatoes are great, but, mm, this is good too!"
"So the flipping technique is the secret?"
"No, flavor and flipping have nothing to do with each other...."
Unanimous, right?
No one said it was bad, so yeah.
I stabbed my fork in and took a big bite from the edge of the seafood pancake.
The crispiness of the fried edges, the plump squid, and the onions harmonizing in between.
Drizzled with pre-made dipping sauce, it made me crave booze instantly.
All I could do was lament the absence of makgeolli in Broken World.
Pairing it with wine might work, but that felt off too.
Above all, with the rain pouring, going out to get wine was a hassle.
Pancakes it was.
Come to think of it, as a kid I preferred kimchi pancakes.
Did my tastes change as I got older...?
Maybe like my parents, I'd end up making seafood pancakes whenever it rained.
Well, my parents could never have imagined their kid making seafood pancakes in this world because of the rain.
"What're you thinking so deeply about? It's burning."
Luis stared at me while pointing his fork at the pan.
Who could've imagined this scene?
I was tired, but happier than before.
"...Why are you suddenly grinning at me?"
"Just wondering when you'd get a job, senior."
"But why the grin? Huh? You picking a fight? You are, aren't you?"
Instead of answering, I flipped the pancake.
Luis trembled and ground his teeth.
"You too... wait till you hit third year...... You won't be laughing then......"
"What if you fail to find employment by the time this student advances to third year?"
Without warning, Kyriakos dropped a bombshell while staring solely at the seafood pancake.
In the silence that drowned out even the rain, Luis let out a hollow laugh.
"Haha, hahaha... haha...... A world where no connections means no job! Just let it all go to hell!!"
How often do you get to witness a person exploding up close?
The moment Luis unleashed his resentment-filled wail.
Rumble......!
The ground began to shake violently.
The neatly paved walkway buckled, sank, and twisted.
Part of the dormitory collapsed, shedding debris as if it might crumble any second.
The sudden earthquake stopped quickly.
But its aftermath left clear scars.
My eyes darted around to assess the situation.
Was this the raid Elrigor warned about?
Then what was Pollus?
All sorts of possibilities swirled.
I gripped the hilt of my magic sword instead of the pan as Luis asked, his green eyes shaking like the quake.
"No way... it wasn't because of me, right......?"
"As if. You're not a grand magus or anything."
"Exactly! If Senior Luis had that kind of power, he'd be employed already!"
"You're not comforting me, you bastards...!"
Looks like he had energy to get mad.
Meanwhile, Leon, who had drawn X-Wise, muttered calmly in a subdued voice.
"Damage assessment and rescue come first."
"Noel, can you scout the surroundings?"
Before I could speak, Noel, who had been craning his neck like a meerkat to survey, flinched.
"Something... is coming?"
"Yeah, something's coming."
Even now, Kyriakos casually pointed at the sky while munching on the freshly made seafood pancake.
Buzzz—the sound of wings cutting through the rain—and a massive hornet flew up.
Smaller than the one from the Peludium match, but its glossy carapace looked far tougher.
The sharp stinger on its carapace gleamed like a knight's sword.
"Knight Hornet...!"
Among hornet-type monsters, this was one of the trickiest.
But they didn't inhabit this area.
Was the previous raid a decoy?
If they scattered Knight Hornet eggs somewhere in the academy amid the chaos....
"Damn...!"
Entirely possible.
If the goal was attacking the academy itself, the eggs would suffice—no need for insect tamers after planting them.
The hatched Knight Hornets would slaughter the surroundings for food on their own.
"Catch the Knight Hornets before the damage spreads!"
"They're coming in droves...!"
As Noel drew his pistol, dozens of Knight Hornets emerged through the rain.
Leon gripped X-Wise in both hands, his red eyes blazing with battle intent as they scanned rapidly.
As Kyriakos set down his fork, Ethan let out a creepy chuckle.
"Perfect timing! I brought it to show off anyway!"
Chest puffed out, Ethan unwrapped the cloth around his shield.
It was a massive shield big enough to cover his entire upper body and torso.
The white shield, etched with Memphis-style pearlescent patterns, had matte gold edging and wing-shaped decorations.
But the standout feature was the circuits engraved on its surface.
A circle radiated from the center, straight lines circulating mana.
True to Memphis, it was no ordinary shield at first glance.
Thud!
Ethan slammed the shield into the ground.
Simultaneously, the circuits on its surface furiously circulated mana.
As if seams were splitting, the pure white shield activated.
A translucent dome about 10 meters in diameter expanded around Ethan and the shield.
Any Knight Hornets entering the area crashed helplessly to the ground, writhing.
"In the name of the Shield of Restraint! How's that!? Even bugs are no big deal now!!"
"Impressive. Very impressive."
I clapped sincerely.
Memphis had enchanted the restraint effect onto the shield, but wielding it masterfully in combat was Ethan's skill.
Though his legs were still shaking....
"With something this amazing, catching the queen should be easy, right?"
"What...? Queen......?"
Ethan paled, but what could we do?
The situation didn't allow teasing him right now.
2
What's the first thing to do when you spot a hornet's nest?
Run to safety and call 119.
If you don't value your life, spray insecticide or burn the nest.
Or if you're a beekeeper protecting honeybees, you might swat the hornets.
The point is to eliminate the nest.
But that's just common sense.
In Broken World, where common sense doesn't apply, it fits poorly.
Knight Hornets don't make nests.
Human-sized creatures building nests is odd to begin with.
They'd need at least a skyscraper-sized one.
Thus, Knight Hornets live without nests.
They roam, preying on living animals.
Guiding them is a single queen.
So, take out the Knight Hornet Queen, and the horde is done.
When the queen dies, the entire swarm self-destructs—like some apocalyptic monster trait.
At least it was fortunate.
Catching the queen would end this raid.
As we approached the main building, the Knight Hornets' assault intensified.
With numbers swelling, Noel couldn't hold them off alone.
Luis could cast spells, but lightning in a downpour would just make him blow himself up spectacularly.
We minimized damage and locked the main entrance door immediately upon entry.
"Whew... Everyone okay?"
"Y-Yeah... Thought I was gonna die......!"
"Aside from my stomach......"
Ethan wore a deathly pallor beside Noel, who shook as he reloaded.
Leon and Kyriakos, silently readying themselves, were unscathed.
Luis finally opened his grimoire.
"You good?"
"Fine."
I fiddled with the ring on my left index finger at Leon's question.
Thanks to the superior defense rune on the Sovereign's Ring, I was truly unscratched.
"The queen's on the roof, right?"
Noel nodded.
He spotted it despite the blurry vision from the rain.
That's why I brought him early.
After calmly gearing up, we headed to the roof.
Luckily, Knight Hornets didn't enter buildings.
We rushed up and kicked open the roof door. Amid the rain, the Knight Hornet Queen stood proudly.
Like a hornet scaled to human skeleton.
It stood on elongated hind legs, a pair of wings draped like a dress train.
The Knight Hornet Queen extended its remaining four legs like arms, turning its antennae toward us.
"Prey walks right into my lair."
The voice glitched like noisy static, but it was clearly speech.
Social higher insects could speak, even as monsters.
Later, there were even singing bats.
"Just follow the plan."
At this point, the Knight Hornet Queen was a formidable monster.
Leon alone would struggle, but our party was solid now.
Stick to the strategy, and subjugation was feasible.
Buzzz—Knight Hornets swarmed to guard their queen.
They evoked loyal knight escorts, but were just obstacles.
Thud—Ethan slammed the Shield of Restraint into the ground again.
Mana circulated, erecting the translucent dome.
Knight Hornets plummeted powerlessly inside the rain-proof dome.
"I shall devour you all as nourishment!"
The Knight Hornet Queen swung its four elongated legs.
Its razor-sharp claws sliced like swift blades.
Ethan, first exposed to the attack, raised his lion-head shield.
Clang, thud—the shield vibrated repeatedly.
Handling two shields at once was tough for Ethan alone.
Kyriakos covered the gaps.
"Pest extermination, is it? Not amusing."
Kyriakos parried the Knight Hornet Queen's attacks with precise movements.
Each block applied minor debuffs, binding the queen.
Click—crossbow mechanisms whirred, followed by gunfire.
Thanks to the brief lull in rain, Luis unleashed lightning freely.
Magic bullets and spells synergized, massively boosting firepower.
"Insolent fools...!"
Amid exploding green currents, the Knight Hornet Queen trusted only its carapace to block.
Magic bullets and spells couldn't land a finishing blow.
That's why I prepared a separate finisher.
"...Here I go."
Leon murmured quietly and accelerated.
Holding X-Wise horizontally high, he surged forward at supersonic speed.
Trailing golden light from the holy sword, he looked like a streak of lightning.
Crunch!
The sword tip pierced right below the Knight Hornet Queen's neck.
A precise vital strike, but not instantly fatal.
"Gahk!!"
Spewing azure blood, the queen tried wrapping its arms around Leon.
Seeking mutual destruction, but too late.
Thwack! Leon struck the fixed hilt of X-Wise with acceleration and body weight.
Like firing a pile bunker, the holy sword brutally impaled the vital spot.
Blue blood gushed.
The Knight Hornet Queen toppled backward.
We swiftly retreated with Leon as Ethan called from behind the shield.
"We got it...!"
"Don't jinx it!"
I yelled on instinct, but it was too late to stop him.
Clack-clack—the sound of joints turning—and the Knight Hornet Queen, hole in its neck, rose again.