Ch.46Upper Level – Communal Space (1)

I had entrusted Kitsune with barrier technique training while I carved a path forward, cutting down hordes of monsters.

“It really was most convenient when only one centipede appeared at a time…!”

Three bees that launched an attack from the cliff beside the path were cut down with a single sword strike.

I’d have preferred that to be the end of it, but they were remarkably persistent. Even with their heads separated from their bodies, they still fired their stingers at me.

Though the stingers flew quickly, I was already familiar with this pattern, so they posed little danger.

“These contain poison, so be careful not to get hit.”

“Understood…”

While I could handle most threats myself, I warned them in advance since we couldn’t predict what might happen if more monsters swarmed us.

No sooner had I finished speaking than poison rained down from above.

The wide-area spray made it difficult to counter with my sword. But I didn’t necessarily have to be the one to handle it.

“Lilly, if you would.”

“Got it~”

At my request, Lilly snapped her fingers, summoning a sudden gust of wind that pushed the poison away from us and onto the ground.

When I looked up to find the monster that had sprayed the poison, I spotted a spider.

The spider, which had been performing aerial acrobatics by shooting webs at the walls and ceiling, seemed to be gauging the situation before positioning itself behind me to spray poison.

“This place is truly an insect gathering.”

Of course, from the moment I confirmed the enemy’s presence, I hadn’t lost track of its movements. I cut the web it was traveling on and then sliced through its neck.

‘It should start decreasing about now.’

These attacks occurred roughly every five minutes. There was a reason the monster attacks were so frequent.

It was because we carried scents that didn’t belong in this mine. They were all coming to test if we were prey they could eat.

The solution to reducing these attacks was simple. Keep cutting down the approaching monsters until they recognized us as predators.

After slaying the spider, the number of attacking monsters gradually began to decrease.

“Now we can move more comfortably. The path should be this way.”

With fewer monster attacks, we could proceed more pleasantly. However, we weren’t heading straight to the middle level.

Among the numerous caves in the wall, I walked into one that hadn’t been developed as part of the mine.

Kitsune noticed this and questioned where I was heading.

“But… this doesn’t seem to lead to the middle level. Where are we going?”

“Ah, there’s something I absolutely need to collect.”

Although rumors claimed there was nothing to gain from the community, that wasn’t entirely true.

Especially when it came to minerals, there was no better place to obtain them than here.

‘If you try to get them just by mining, you’ll only leave in tears due to the abysmal drop rates.’

I proceeded deeper into the cave without getting lost in its many branches.

Along the way, there were paths that seemed to emit energy suggesting they were the right way, but knowing they were all traps, I ignored them and continued on my chosen path.

Soon enough, we came upon a massive cavity with a mineral placed in its center.

The mineral emitted a brilliant light along with a mysterious energy. It was such a powerful aura that I wondered why we hadn’t noticed it from outside.

“Is that what you needed to collect?”

“Seems like it?”

Curious about the powerful energy, Kitsune and Lilly looked at me, wondering what it was.

Since there was no reason to keep it secret, I answered them simply.

“It’s Orichalcum.”

“The divine mineral created by Vulcan?”

“That’s right, and this is probably the highest grade among them.”

While Mithril was the finest naturally occurring mineral, Orichalcum was the supreme mineral created by divine power.

It was also believed to be the main material for holy swords and several legendary weapons.

‘Now that Vulcan’s body has fallen into slumber and his spirit has descended into Arges, this is likely the last Orichalcum.’

And among all the Orichalcum that had ever existed, this boasted the finest quality.

It was also an essential material for crafting the God-Slaying Sword, along with Nectar.

“However, retrieving it will require some effort.”

*Squirm*

Perhaps my voice was too loud.

The resident of this place raised its massive body with a squirm.

“What… is that…?”

“It’s a Lesser Dragon, or more specifically, a Lesser Dragon with a dragon pearl.”

The monsters that appeared here were random. It could be a centipede, a bee, or a spider.

The reason was that whichever monster reached this place first would grow by consuming the energy emitted from the Orichalcum.

‘There might have been nothing here, but fortunately that’s not the case.’

If there were no monsters feeding on the energy, the quality of the Orichalcum would deteriorate, so it was better to endure some hardship to obtain better Orichalcum.

And the monster that appeared this time was a Lesser Dragon. Having grown by consuming the Orichalcum’s energy, its inner core would also be useful for crafting a sword.

“Do we have to fight that…?”

“Isn’t it better to work hard for something valuable than to easily obtain something mediocre?”

I smiled at Kitsune, who seemed to be asking if we really had to fight it.

Then I drew my sword and pointed it at the Lesser Dragon, showing that there was no other way but to fight.

The Lesser Dragon, not Kitsune, reacted to this. Confirming that I was a hunter coming for it, it roared loudly enough to shake the cave, displaying its hostility toward me.

“■■■■■■■■——!!!!!!!”

“It seems to have grown well, given its loud voice.”

“It’s not big, it’s just noisy.”

“It’s charging at us..!?”

While Lilly and I were exchanging jokes, the Lesser Dragon prepared to charge, and Kitsune screamed.

“I’ll draw its attention. Kitsune, please weaken the Lesser Dragon as much as possible with your Shikigami.”

“Understood..!”

Dodging the Lesser Dragon’s charge to the side, I swung my sword infused with sword energy, cutting through its scales.

This was a warning that I could inflict significant damage on the Lesser Dragon, and a threat for it to focus on me.

“Let’s run, Kirara!”

Meanwhile, Kitsune, riding on Kirara, circled around the Lesser Dragon and began steadily weakening it with her Shikigami.

At first, the Lesser Dragon ignored Kitsune, but as it began to notice the changes happening to its body, it gradually started paying attention to her.

“■■■■–!!!”

“You should focus on me.”

Of course, whenever that happened, I mixed in strong attacks to make it focus on me again.

However, the Lesser Dragon wasn’t stupid. It knew who was weakening it and was aware that I was drawing its attention.

It was simply difficult to respond because focusing on Kitsune might result in a fatal wound from me.

But this one-sided attack pattern couldn’t continue forever.

“The Lesser Dragon seems to have adapted to my movements..! It’s starting to counter me…!”

“Please hold on a little longer. The Lesser Dragon’s scales are incredibly tough.”

Having adapted to Kirara’s speed and movements, it began to counter with its tail.

Its attacks against me also became more aggressive. It tried to crush me with its massive body or swallow me whole.

In the process, the Shikigami attached to the Lesser Dragon’s body were gradually scraped off against the ground and walls.

“This is indeed troublesome..!”

I repeatedly stabbed my sword into the areas where I had cut through the scales, but the Lesser Dragon remained resilient.

Though I was accumulating damage, the vitality from its enormous body wasn’t easily broken.

It was also clever and cunning.

The Lesser Dragon used its tail to block and alter movement paths, luring Kitsune toward me.

And when Kitsune and I were in the same position, it gathered its magical power and unleashed the breath attack it had been preparing.

“Huh… wait?! Why are you here?!”

“Kerung?!”

“Get behind me.”

I quickly pulled Kitsune and Kirara behind me. Simultaneously, I created sword energy with the maximum intensity and output I could muster at the moment.

Although it might be insufficient to call it a sword beam, it was still sharp enough to be effective.

With the best sword energy I could currently produce, I split the incoming breath attack in half.

*KWAAAAK–!*

But cutting through the breath attack didn’t solve everything.

The pressure and heat from the overwhelming energy of the breath attack severely strained my arms and body.

As I withstood the breath attack, my arms trembled violently, and despite my flame resistance, I could feel my skin burning.

“Phew… this is indeed challenging.”

I broke into a slight sweat at the Lesser Dragon’s strength, which exceeded my expectations.