The Gloomy Busty Adventurer is Being Targeted (3)
It was chilling. The forest's darkness seemed even more ominous right after someone's death.
"What now?"
"Uh, yeah?"
Epi blinked in slight confusion, asking for clarification.
"Like I said earlier, dealing with these guys was my goal."
With the objective achieved, all that was left was heading home. There was only one reason Libia had left the decision to her.
"I'm not a professional adventurer, so penalties don't bother me. But you?"
"Going back is fine. But..."
Epi seemed to have something weighing on her mind.
"We've come this far—let's at least stop by the village."
"We'll probably end up searching for missing people too."
With grotesque monsters roaming the woods like this, it wasn't the kind of place to just grab tea and leave.
"Aren't you worried about Libia? Why are things like that wandering the forest?"
"......"
She was worried. The forest's ecosystem felt completely upended in just a few weeks. Investigating what happened wouldn't be too hard.
But the choice had to be made carefully. Forests, caves, ruins—if monsters lurked there, the deeper you went, the more trouble you'd find.
"Could be the Demon King's influence."
"Then let's just check if the village is safe."
Libia recited a guardian holy art. The pair ventured deeper in. Rotana Village would come into view soon.
"What the hell...?"
"Ugh! Disgusting."
The two recoiled at the sight of the ground completely covered in flesh. Pink chunks writhed everywhere their eyes could see. Eerily, the scattered pieces pulsed with warmth, as if alive.
"Is all this monster corpses?"
"No... doesn't seem like it."
Trusting her holy art, Libia cautiously reached toward the flesh.
It twitched.
"It's alive."
And it was trying to latch onto her hand. She shook it off in a hurry and bit her lip.
"What happened to the village?"
There were traces of fences, but it was hard to believe people had lived here. A hunch told her checking the depths would reveal the truth, but it wasn't something she could rush into.
What the hell happened in this forest?
"No way I can handle this. Too gross."
Epi crouched weakly, dry-heaving. It wasn't unreasonable to show weakness here. Libia had always thought her own stomach was tough, but this was a first.
Strangely, her body heated up inside. It didn't feel like a simple instinctual danger signal, which only made her mood worse.
"Let's get out of here. Reporting what we saw is enough."
"...Yeah."
"The village that posted the request is gone anyway."
Epi and Libia started running back in a hurry. Then, monsters poured out from the hitherto silent woods.
Red Lotus. At least twice as many as before.
"Libia! Get behind me!"
"I can protect myself!"
Back-to-back, they swatted away the Red Lotus lunging from all directions with arms and legs. Libia deployed Resistance Holy Art, repelling the charging monsters with shockwaves. In the gap, Epi nocked five arrows and unleashed rapid shots, snapping their necks.
Their teamwork was flawless, but the tentacle dogs kept emerging from the darkness.
This can't be right. When did we get surrounded?
If they'd run into a pack deeper in, maybe—but getting snagged at the entrance? Something was off. More tentacle monsters flooded to block the retreat, including Blasphemy crawling on the ground.
Blasphemy resembled a starfish with four flat tentacles, suction cups on its underside making it expert at clinging to females. Undoubtedly one of the forest's most dangerous alongside Red Lotus. Its biggest trait? Females loved its looks.
Twitch twitch twitch!!
"N-nooo!!!"
Epi freaked out the moment she saw it. Even a dung beetle jumping at her would've been cuter.
Libia repelled the Blasphemy with Resistance Holy Art in Epi's place as she panicked.
"Keep shooting. Unless you wanna die covered in those things!"
Blasphemy persistently targeted their breasts and asses, jumping relentlessly, but bounced off thanks to the holy art's protection. Still, they couldn't rely on that alone. The guardian power repelled sudden impacts strongly but was vulnerable to clinging foes. They'd shaken it off by slamming their bodies around; standing still and letting it attach would sap their strength to dislodge it.
Way more annoying than dogs. It feels designed to counter guardian holy arts.
"Arrows are running low! Libia!"
Epi gripped her remaining arrows like daggers, slashing the leaping Blasphemy's bellies. They'd killed dozens, but no end in sight. Were they planning to finish them off here? What had they even done to deserve this?!
"This won't end! We gotta break out."
Libia chanted Resistance Holy Art again, summoning a wide pale starlight to blast the tentacle monsters aside and clear a path.
"Escape!"
"This way—the path we came!"
But.
"Ah...!"
Unfortunately, it wasn't the lead runner Epi who stepped on it, but Libia following behind. A Flesh Incarnation's thorny tentacle pierced her thigh!
"Ugh!"
It was horrifying. Libia had never felt terror prickling her scalp like this.
Something's been injected.
"Libia!"
Epi whirled around desperately from ten paces ahead. The tentacle monsters stirred creepily.
"Go!"
Libia was gloomy by nature, but not so fragile as to drag a comrade down in a pinch. Better she die alone than pull Epi in.
"Hup!"
But Epi turned back. For the simple reason she couldn't abandon a friend, she decided.
"What are you doing? We'll both be in danger...!"
Epi grunted as she hoisted Libia onto her back and started running.
"I told you! Elves are always on the side of justice!"
The tentacle monsters pursued! Epi somehow knew intuitively. More traps like the one Libia stepped on lay ahead. Dodging them with elven instinct, she sprinted the shortest route.
"Watch... out... on the ground...!"
"Don't worry! Elves don't step on stuff like this!"
Squeeze.
Libia clung tightly to Epi's back. Hope of survival sparked, bringing back the fear she'd forgotten. Thanks for not leaving me. The words welled up to her throat.
"Hah... haa... You paid back the favor quicker than I thought!"
"...Thanks."
"Let's get outta here together!"
Libia had closed her eyes, focusing on detoxification. If the paralysis didn't lift, Epi would be endangered too. Her guess was spot-on—the path Epi took carrying her was already blanketed in tentacle monsters.
"When did they get back here?! You freaky bastards!"
Epi drew her arrows, slashing Red Lotus and Blasphemy one-handed while avoiding Flesh Incarnation on the ground, protecting her back-borne comrade, shaking off clingers!
"You okay now? Can you stand!?"
"Not yet...!"
Libia bit her lip. Simple paralysis poison? She'd have shaken it off ten times by now. Detoxification Holy Art had zero effect.
"Gonna set you down a sec!"
Epi laid Libia down during a lull in the wave and took a deep breath. Widening her stance as if refusing to budge an inch, she summoned transparent arrows in her hand.
Skill: Arrow Creation.
Epi seemed set to fight the endless tentacle wave to the end right here.
"Epi!"
"I'll protect you to the end."
Using skill Designated Marksmanship to show her resolve not to retreat, Epi began picking off charging foes one by one. One shot, one kill! Endless arrows from creation, refusing to back up even as enemies closed in, shooting them dead point-blank!
"Ngh...!"
Libia could only wait for the paralysis to fade. The thorn had pierced just four seconds ago, but now her arms twitched faintly.
"Almost got 'em all. Looks like we're winning?"
The tentacle assault halted, silence fell. Moments later, Epi felt faint tremors.
From the side!
Turning, a hulking orc burst out.
Aiming for the eyes!
She had to keep them open to track movement! But Epi had vowed inwardly not to retreat no matter what, so the orc's charge didn't faze her. She calmly aimed for Younghee's eyes as it lunged shoulder-first!
Ting!
But Epi's arrow bounced off a guardian holy art.
"Blocked...!? How!"
Younghee burrowed deep into the frail elf's guard, swinging a fist. A gut-wrenching blow landed!
Splat!!
"Guwaaah!!"
Epi floated briefly from the impact before collapsing like a puppet with cut strings.
"Churrk."
The orc Younghee lumbered toward the prone, gasping Libia.
"Hyah...!!"
Their adventure seemed over. Until Libia sliced off Younghee's arm with her hidden blade.
Spurt!
"Chiiik!"
Blood fountained. A definite critical wound.
"Haa... haa..."
Libia grimaced like she had a splitting headache. The blade in her hand wasn't ordinary. A sword of starlight. The Divine Sword, said to be usable only by the church's elite. And this Divine Sword Summon was beyond Libia's current level.
Hastily conjured, poor calculation left it unstable, form flickering.
Grab it before it fades...
The moment Libia lunged with the gleaming blue sword.
Goblin Bog leaped from the brush, blocking the blade to shield Younghee, then kicked her down.
"Agh!"
Libia's hard-won Divine Sword shattered like glass.
"Kek... kehe!"
"Ngh!"
Libia repelled Bog with Resistance Holy Art, summoning the Divine Sword again. This candle-in-the-wind blade was her lifeline. As long as she had it, monsters couldn't approach easily—one touch showed its power.
Younghee couldn't move from blood loss; Bog sized up the situation. This was their chance.
"Epi, get up!"
"Ugh... urgh... ngh......"
Epi rose. They ran again. No words, just ragged breaths alternating. Nothing but bolting the shortest path out of the forest.
Maybe that's why. Epi stepped on a Flesh Incarnation and tumbled pathetically.
"Hak... hak..."
"Eek...!"
No strength left to struggle. The Flesh Incarnation jabbed a needle-tipped tentacle into Epi's thigh, injecting paralyzing fluid.
Squirt, squirt.
"Ah... ah..."
Twitch. Twitch.
Each squirt buried Epi deeper in despair, her body jerking stepwise.
Libia watched helplessly.
"Go... Libia..."
"......"
"Just... legs... can't move..."
Her head knew. No saving Epi. But Libia couldn't abandon her. The righteous elf who'd saved her twice in the same spot.
"Somebody!!"
Libia shielded Epi with her body and yelled.
"Somebody help us!!"
She screamed desperately. Repelled the hyena-like tentacle horde with Resistance Holy Art, kept yelling.
"Please, anyone!"
"Idiot..."
Epi cried. Pitiful that Libia couldn't leave her, but glad deep down.
"Anyone, please help!!"
Splat!
A Blasphemy slapped onto Libia's screaming face.
"Mmph!!"
Struggling to pry it off with her hands was futile. Blasphemies clung thick to Epi and Libia too.
"No... hate it! Mmph! Mff! Mff!"
The two women lost consciousness just like that.