Chapter 47
Chapter 47
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Floor 5 (2)
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The Whispering Shellbugs spread their wings and began clustering into dozens of swarms in a chaotic frenzy.
With millions gathered in one place, they moved as if they were a single massive organism.
The scraping sounds, like they were trying to devour each other, echoed in my ears.
Over a dozen black forms had coalesced like that, and now they started inching toward me, as if gearing up for a serious assault.
They filled the entire room, leaving no escape route—like I was completely surrounded.
I tried a light probe, conjuring a 2nd Circle Frozen Spear and firing it at the approaching mass.
Whoosh—
The massive Whispering Shellbug swarm scattered swiftly, only to reform into one again.
That seemed to provoke them.
Scraaape-scraaape-scraaape—
The agitated bugs scratched at each other wildly.
Hearing that noise made my scalp crawl, but thanks to my high mental fortitude, I didn't fall into any abnormal status.
Bwoooom—
Then, the frontmost Whispering Shellbug swarm charged at me.
I unleashed Impact magic to shove them back.
[Rank: Legendary]
Creates a powerful shockwave and detonates it. Greatly repels the target.
The air exploded violently, sending the Whispering Shellbug swarm reeling back for a moment.
At the same time, I cast Black Hole on the ones closing in from behind, securing some retreat space by constricting the area around them.
Tap. Tap-tap.
As the bugs got sucked into the Black Hole, the swarms reaching the center began bursting apart.
But they weren't pushovers either.
Whoosh—
Several swarms being pulled into the Black Hole started merging with each other, forming a single cluster that began resisting the Black Hole's pull.
Since my circle was still at 3rd, the 4th Circle Black Hole's power was limited, so it wasn't strong enough.
A thought flashed through my mind: this fight wouldn't be easy.
Still, the ones in the back had merged into one, loosening the encirclement.
I quickly slipped through the gap, then conjured a Frozen Spear.
[Rank: Legendary+]
Fires a frozen spear at the target. The struck area rapidly freezes.
Hitting an already frozen area applies critical damage.
Frozen Spear was only 2nd Circle, so its raw power wasn't overwhelming... but it had one handy gimmick.
The attacked area froze solid.
I planned to use that to ice the floor and restrict their movement.
If they clustered and flew, their speed would drop drastically.
If they scattered, they'd just get sucked into the Black Hole.
Like dribbling a ball, I slowly froze the floor while herding them into a single spot.
There were close calls while corralling them, but...
[Rank: Legendary]
Accelerates the caster's subjective thought process.
I used Thought Acceleration to swiftly widen the distance.
That bought me time to herd them all toward the clustered mass in the Black Hole.
Then.
Bwoooom—
The cast Black Hole dissipated, and the clustered Whispering Shellbugs scattered.
Compared to when they first resisted the Black Hole, their size had shrunk to about a third.
Without hesitation, I conjured a fresh Black Hole and dropped it in their path.
They clustered together again, eventually forming a swarm of tens of millions that fully resisted the Black Hole.
"Not good enough."
Hummm—
I aimed my staff forward.
Light particles gathered at the staff's tip, swelling at tremendous speed.
I fired the Destruction Ray straight at the massive swarm.
Ziiing—!
All my mana drained away in an instant, like it was being sucked out.
At the same time, the ray—decomposing everything it touched—shot toward the Whispering Shellbugs.
Pang—
When the Destruction Ray hit the swarm, their exoskeletons deflected it.
Whispering Shellbugs grew stronger, more resistant, and tougher the more they clustered, but...
"...This is ridiculous."
The absurd sight drew a hollow laugh from me before I knew it.
It wasn't completely ineffective, though.
Where the Destruction Ray had struck the swarm, a massive cylindrical void had been gouged out.
Some bugs had decomposed on contact, while others had bounced the light away.
Clack-clack-clack!
The sudden gap caused part of the Whispering Shellbug mass to break off.
The detached chunk plummeted into the Black Hole's center without chance to resist.
A chain of explosions followed soon after.
Scraaape-scraaape—
By the time they resisted the Black Hole and escaped, about a quarter had broken away.
Destruction Ray consumed all my mana when cast, but...
Thanks to Dragon Heart, my depleted mana refilled rapidly.
"Hoo."
To buy time for mana recovery, I put distance between me and the bugs.
I'd probably need to repeat the process two or three more times.
Every time my mana filled, I chipped away at the Whispering Shellbugs with Black Hole and Destruction Ray. Before long, their numbers had dwindled to a quarter.
After recovering mana, I cast the final Black Hole.
Bwoom—
The swarm resisted desperately, but the reduced cluster couldn't hold out any longer.
Crack-crackle—
The black mass slowly got sucked into the Black Hole's center and exploded.
With the last Whispering Shellbugs gone...
Pop—!
In the room's corner, a nest burst, spilling mana stones everywhere.
At the same time.
[Whispering Shellbugs defeated.]
[Experience gained.]
[!] Artifact: Verka's First Ring
[Experience gain +50%.]
[Level up!]
[Current Level: 54 → 55]
[Veteran Explorer]
[Mental Fortitude +20]
Experience tallied up, and my level rose by one.
Mental Fortitude went up by an extra 20 too.
Dungeons had various achievements unlockable through clears.
Veteran Explorer was a basic one, usually cleared around floors 2-3.
My fast pace through the dungeon meant it unlocked only after reaching floor 5.
"Nice."
Hunting nothing but Whispering Shellbugs for a while seemed viable.
It took time, but it wasn't too tough.
Flick—
I swung my staff, and the scattered mana stones flew into my arms.
I stowed them all in my inventory, then left the room.
I ventured deeper to find the next batch.
How long had I walked?
Step.
I halted at the presence I sensed behind me.
Human footsteps... but something was off.
'Solo?'
I was used to solo play, but most formed parties of two or more.
Floors 5+ were deep zones, recommended for parties of four or more.
Yet the sound from behind was just one knight in heavy armor.
I pulled out a Designated Return Scroll just in case and waited for whoever it was.
Step.
The knight rounded the corner and came face-to-face with me.
I didn't recognize the face under the full plate armor.
Shing—
"Oh, I thought you were a monster."
"......"
The knight, who drew his sword the instant he saw my face, confirmed I wasn't a monster and sheathed it.
But... his movements caught my eye.
Shlick. Shlick. Shing—
Exaggerated flourishes as he shook the sword back and forth before holstering it.
A skilled knight for sure, but those over-the-top motions reminded me of one NPC.
Girtas.
Now a has-been in the back room... but once a famed knight who made a name across the continent with his blade.
The man was a spitting image of that old guy's childish antics.
A son...? No, he had no kids.
I recalled his dialogue about not taking disciples.
The NPC was a show-off by design, full of trivia.
"See you."
The knight gave a light nod and continued on his way.
His strides were disciplined, not the product of a day or two of training... yet his face was boyish.
Almost doll-like.
'...Ilana?'
Come to think of it... how did those two witches enter the city?
Looking back, Elana the puppeteer probably wasn't a witch, but Ilana definitely was.
The witch storyline was slated for the next patch, so info was scarce.
To sneak into the city incognito... they'd need help from somewhere.
'...The guard captain's crew?'
If the old guard backroom guys cut a deal with the witches, entry would've been easy.
They got caught by the Labyrinth Lords and chased out later... but from what I heard on the last day, they'd achieved their goal.
Not knowing the details left lingering questions.
"Whatever."
I shelved the thought for now.
Leveling up took priority.
To avoid getting swept up in big waves, building strength was the simplest way.
"Hoo."
I'd taken down three Whispering Shellbug swarms in a day.
Fatigue was setting in, so I used a Designated Return Scroll to warp to floor 4, then descended to floor 3 and escaped the dungeon via return scroll.
A hassle, but necessary to keep the Designated Return Scrolls secret.
Once out.
"Mr. Rain. The priest from the last party has woken up."
Guard Captain Den, switching shifts right at the dungeon entrance, approached me.
"If you head there now, I can guide you. It's shift change anyway."
"Sure."
He finished handing off duty after asking me to wait a moment, switching to more casual attire.
Following him to the hospital, a memory from the first boss hunt surfaced.
There had been an issue in the boss room back then...
Elana, disguised as a low-rank explorer, had tampered with it.
And Guard Captain had cleaned up the mess, apparently.
This alone suggested the guards were involved.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
I tabled the thought.
No need to tip my hand yet.