Chapter 14
Chapter 14
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Ramju Thunder Says It's Good! Accept It as a Comrade!
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Golem.
A flawed giant first appearing in Jewish mythology, crafted from clay.
It's said to be a robot-like being that faithfully carries out the commands of the rabbi who created it.
In ancient Hebrew, it means "incomplete object," "imperfect being," or even "pupa."
Shaped from clay or mud and animated like a puppet through sorcery, it carries the harsh connotation of "fool" or "idiot."
—Or so the oddly satisfying wiki explained.
'Fool... idiot... spot on.'
Today, we entered the 6th floor.
The 6th floor field was a sand desert, blazing hot and bone-dry—the kind of place that'd dehydrate you to death if you lingered too long.
The reason for such a field? The monsters here were Sand Golems.
Crunch. Crunch.
"Let's see... one, two, three... eight of 'em."
They were called sand humans, but they didn't look human at all. Not even like dolls.
No eyes, nose, or mouth—just a round lump for a head atop a round body. Four long sand clumps stuck on as limbs.
Think sand snowman with shapeless arms and legs, no fingers or toes.
"Monster Guidebook."
Sand GolemLevel:12Ecology:A primitive lifeform shaped from sand by some sorcerer. Obeys magically inputted commands. Slow but sturdy.Potential:E-Drop Items:Soft Sand (90%), Low-Grade Magic Stone (10%)Potential Stats
The Monster Guidebook skill had leveled up recently, letting me see wild monsters' potential stats now.
And as expected, the Sand Golem's stats were trash.
Endurance was decent at C, but Strength was middling D, and Agility was abysmal F-.
No Magic Power or Stamina probably meant no magic at all, and no fatigue as a golem.
Crunch. Crunch.
The golems lumbered toward us.
Probably their hardcoded command: "Attack the hunters!"
But at that speed? Please.
It'd take them forever to reach us, so we went to them first.
"Chit-chit!"
Wham!
"Ah, one-shots 'em. Good enough."
Thunder's kick blew the Sand Golem's head clean off.
Sturdy or not, a level 15 Thunder one-shot them easy.
Potential gap was huge, and the level difference sealed it.
I bashed away with the Savage Club, taking two hits each.
Crunch. Crunch.
"...These things really don't feel alive."
The golems didn't panic over fallen comrades.
They just slowly turned their eyeless heads, located us, and lumbered back in.
No wonder they get called fools and idiots.
We smashed the eight Sand Golems without issue.
"Pet, pet-peep! Chit, chit-chit!"
"Haha, yeah, tell me about it."
As usual, we got EXP and magic stones from the fastest clear bonus.
Nine Soft Sands from the Sand Golems went into inventory—no clue what for yet.
And as usual, that message popped up.
"Am I crazy?"
No point in recruiting something this slow. It'd suck even as a meat shield.
For tanking, orcs or trolls would be better.
"Man, isn't there a lock for these companion recruit messages? No way I'm using a slot before floor 10 anyway."
Rejecting them one by one is a chore.
Floors 7, 8, and 9 went smoothly after that.
Higher floors had tougher golems, but Thunder one-shot them all.
Floor 7: Mud Golems made of mud. Sinking mud field.
Mud splashed everywhere when they burst—showered right after returning.
Washing a squirming Thunder who hates water was harder than climbing the tower.
Floor 8: Wood Golems of wood. Forest field, hard to spot amid trees.
But Thunder's nose made camouflage pointless.
Floor 9: Ice Golems.
Frozen solid ice golems, Antarctic-cold field.
"Chiiik~! Chit-chit!"
"That's why we wrap it up quick. Dude, you've got fur, and I hand-sewed you clothes—what's with the shivering?"
We'd come prepared with intel: thick parkas for me.
Even cut a blanket into clothes for Thunder's fur-covered self.
Yet the squirrel burrowed into my arms, trembling.
This guy's gone soft.
Lounging in a warm house munching coffee peanuts had killed his wild side.
Clang!
"Damn, this one's tough."
Took more than one hit from me to shatter.
Fitting for floor 9.
Even full swings with the Savage Club took four hits.
But that was my attacks.
"Chit-chit, chiiik!"
...
Thunder zipped around, eager for a quick finish and warm house.
Each kick shattered Ice Golems with a crash-crash, clearing the floor in seconds.
"Even floor 9 monsters one-shot... tomorrow's boss fight should be fine."
Back home, I dove into floor 10 research.
Knew the boss was a Stone Golem, but strategy details mattered.
Visited streamer Red Mage's channel for the first time in ages.
– Yoo-ha~ Welcome, viewers... !@@%^!!@
Skipped greetings, ads, and bragging—straight to the strategy.
– Alright, this is the floor 10 field? Hey, familiar, right? Yep. All Challenge Tower boss fights happen in this arena. That big guy's the floor 10 boss, Stone Golem.
Like floor 5: teleport, iron bars, vast coliseum.
Center: massive Stone Golem, bigger than the Ice Golem. Oddly, four human-sized Stone Golems beside it.
Minions?
Smash the small ones first, I figured.
Red Mage did exactly that.
– They're sturdy, but smash the mini Stone Golems first. Then the real boss fight... Boss Stone Golem's way tougher. Low-damage hunters'll struggle. Do this instead!
Boss charged like a bull.
Red Mage dodged at the last second; unstoppable boss slammed headfirst into the iron wall.
Crack!
– See? Crack in the boss Stone Golem's head? Repeat about 15 times. Clear floor 10 even with weak attacks!
"Chit. Chit-chit-chit."
Thunder shook its head, spouting that nonsense.
True, but that smug look earned a flick on the forehead.
"Chit! Chit-chit!"
Ignored the chittering and kept watching.
Pointless, though.
No learning curve: boss kept headbutting the wall on cue, even after multiple times.
Head half-smashed already.
"...How's even the boss this dumb?"
Golems are hopeless.
Boss form, faster moves... still idiots.
Had hopes it'd be different. Nope.
No companion value.
"Right, Thunder? This one's a pass, yeah?"
"..."
"Thunder?"
What the—?
Why's it glued to the screen?
Usually zonks out in three minutes.
"Anyway, nothing more to see. Time for ramen."
Left Thunder mesmerized by the floor 10 vid.
Didn't notice then.
"Chit, chit-chit...."
Thunder had been hooked on his sister's robot anime lately.
Second boss fight.
Iron bars ahead, huge boulders beyond.
Thinking about it... aren't boss fights perfect for level grinding?
Fixed comfy arena field.
After floor 7's mud pit and 9's Antarctica, yeah, every-5th-floor grinding was genius.
Thud. Thud.
Lost in thought, a massive stone humanoid approached.
"...Up close, it's got some presence."
Twice my height, huge bulk.
Guide said endurance way above Ice Golem.
But still...
"Thunder, plan as discussed."
"Chit!"
BOOM!
Boss locked on and swung a boulder arm down at me.
"Eh, tankable enough."
Way better than first Hob Goblin.
Strong, sure, but real strength is that sturdy body.
With stacked stats from record clears, no way it'd overpower me.
"Chit! Chit-chit-chit!"
While I wrestled the boss, Thunder cleared minions in a flash.
Boss fight trash mobs, so not one-shots—took a bit.
But just 20 seconds.
Now 2v1 boss only. Game over.
"Hyaah!"
"Chit-chiiik!"
Crack!
Crack...
Dodge, hit. Dodge, hit.
Repeat, and the boss's sturdy frame shattered.
Took longer today.
Boss fight, alright. Tanky bastard.
Motionless stone pile faded, familiar messages appeared.
Familiar record messages.
Five Star Fragments now.
Room for two more companions beyond Thunder...
"Sweet, decided. Next: fairy. Then wyvern..."
Daydreaming when...
Clunk.
"...Huh? What?"
Something appeared beside me.
The Stone Golem we'd been fighting.
Not the boss—one of the human-sized small ones.
Wait, didn't Thunder get them all?
Eyeless face stared blankly, no attack intent.
"Weird. Why mission complete if this one's left?"
System answered instantly.
"Whaaat~?"
Rare message.
One of two companion conditions: submission.
First non-Thunder submission—second time seeing it...
Stunned, next message.
"Stop."
5...
Phew, close.
Right, that's how submission works.
"That so?"
Stone lump alternated stares between me and Thunder, eyeless as it was.
Unusual for a monster.
Unusual, but...
'Can't waste a precious slot on that reason.'
Happy it wants in, but regrettable.
"Sorry, but no..."
"Chit-chiiik!!"
...What?
What the fuck?!