Chapter 35 - 035_Fish Dragon Hunt
Revised and corrected 032_Status Report.
I've also added content related to future developments, but it's fine to skip it.
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035_Fish Dragon Hunt
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Rodney and his group reached the 7th layer of the Oburosu Labyrinth and discovered the target Serbanui.
On the bank of a river about 100 rom (200 meters) wide, lizard-type Serbanui about 3 rom in length were stationed.
Despite being lizards, the Serbanui named Fish Dragon had sharp claws on their toes, and webs between their fingers. Their whole bodies were protected by hard scales, making it difficult to inflict damage. Moreover, there were over 30 of them in a group.
“There are many of them.”
Rodmel frowned. Probably, he felt it would be tough to deal with over 30 Fish Dragons.
“What should we do, Rodney-sama?”
Yulin stared at the Fish Dragons with sharp eyes and waited for Rodney's order.
“I, Emilia, and Yulin will fire [High Heat Flame Bullet]. We'll annihilate them by rapid fire, but Rodmel and the others should engage any that approach.”
“Understood. Battle stations! Don't let a single one get close to Rodney-sama!”
“““Roger!”””
The plan was decided. Rodney, Emilia, and Yulin decided to attack from about 50 rom away from the nearest Fish Dragon.
A little before that, Rodmel and the others positioned themselves so as not to be in the line of fire of [High Heat Flame Bullet].
“Ready?”
Everyone nodded at Rodney's question.
“Alright, fire [High Heat Flame Bullet]. Don't let the barrage stop!”
““Yes!””
The three fired [High Heat Flame Bullet]. The [High Heat Flame Bullet] flew at high speed and exploded amidst the group of Fish Dragons. Two were killed, four suffered fairly serious injuries, and feelings of anger emanated from the entire group.
That anger was naturally directed at Rodney and the others. The Fish Dragons went mad and headed toward them. Then another [High Heat Flame Bullet] landed. The leading Fish Dragon's body burst apart and fell onto the ones behind.
The three of them, Rodney, Emilia, and Yulin, rapid-fired [High Heat Flame Bullet]. There was no need to aim; they prioritized simply laying down a barrage. If an explosion occurred, it would damage the surrounding Fish Dragons. Even with hard scales, [High Heat Flame Bullet] scattered overwhelming violence.
“This is something else...”
Rodmel was at a loss for words; the barrage of [High Heat Flame Bullet] was so effective. Dozens of [High Heat Flame Bullet] caused destruction that changed the terrain, and the 30 Fish Dragons were annihilated.
Only two made it to Rodmel and the others. Those Fish Dragons were also injured by the explosions, so they were easy to defeat.
“Rodmel, collect the Life Light Stones.”
“Yes, sir.”
The three who fired [High Heat Flame Bullet] rested, while Rodmel and the others gathered the Life Light Stones. There were 32 Life Light Stones. Rodmel and the others already knew [High Heat Flame Bullet] was powerful, but they hadn't thought it was this vicious. The fact that it could be rapid-fired only added to its viciousness.
“Young lady's and Yulin's [High Heat Flame Bullet] are amazing, but Rodney-sama's [High Heat Flame Bullet] is outstanding.”
“I can't compete with a sword, but I don't intend to lose in special root power like [High Heat Flame Bullet].”
Thanks to [Kashima Old Style], Rodney had approached the level of a sword master, but he hadn't reached the level of geniuses like Emilia and Yulin. Lately, he felt that he couldn't catch up to the innate talent a person is born with.
If so, he recently thought, why not specialize in an area where he has more talent or an advantage? Needless to say, that was root power.
To master root power, a certain level of basic ability is necessary. His sword training was not to beat the geniuses but to help him master root power and sharpen his senses.
Using emission-type root power consumes stamina. In particular, powerful root powers like [High Heat Flame Bullet] consume a great deal of stamina. For that reason, training his body was important.
Currently, Rodney can use stamina-draining root powers like [High Heat Flame Bullet] frequently because he has been swinging a metal club every day to train his body. Even before that, he worked hard despite having no talent.
So, is it because Emilia also has stamina that she can use [High Heat Flame Bullet] frequently?
Emilia learned swordsmanship from a young age and ran through fields and mountains. Despite her small, slender body, she seemed to have more stamina than Rodney.
Emilia is a genius. Geniuses also use their bodies efficiently. Each movement of the body was unconsciously streamlined, so she didn't waste stamina, making her appear to have more stamina.
Of course, running through fields and mountains certainly built up Emilia's stamina.
Now, as for Emilia, she was also a genius at using root power. During the fight with the evil spirits, she instantly wrapped her sword in [Sharp Spirit]. Normally, that might be something possible after repeated training, but Emilia did it instantly.
That said, Rodney is not losing in root power either. Since he has the advantage of oral intake, he believes he can do more than just rival a genius; he doesn't intend to lose in root power. He thinks he has made efforts for that.
After their rest, the group proceeded to search for more Fish Dragon groups and found one larger than the previous.
“This time there seem to be about 50.”
“No matter how many, we'll do the same. I'm counting on you, everyone.”
Rodney, Emilia, and Yulin fired [High Heat Flame Bullet]. They flew at high speed and exploded among the Fish Dragon group. Several Fish Dragons were blown away by the force of the explosion and died.
Learning from the previous battle where impact points were too similar or hit the same Fish Dragon, Rodney decided to take the center, Emilia the left, and Yulin the right.
After that, they would try it out and make improvements if necessary.
The division of roles seemed effective, and the 50 Fish Dragons were annihilated by the three's [High Heat Flame Bullet]. This time, none managed to get through the barrage and approach.
After that, Rodney and the others repeated the annihilation battles. After the fourth annihilation battle, Rodney thought:
This is a Fish Dragon hunt festival!
Whenever they found Fish Dragons, there were at least 30 of them. They were able to hunt and obtain a great number of Life Light Stones in a fairly short time.
Rodney chose to just keep hunting. This was to give [Underwater Adaptation] to Emilia, Yulin, and also the other squires and soldiers. If they had enough, that would increase their underwater combat strength. That might be only natural for the lord of Dedel Territory, which faces the sea.
Rodney and the others spent several days hunting Fish Dragons. After four days, they even grasped the cycle of Fish Dragon group redistribution, and their hunting efficiency increased further.
The King, concerned that the military hunting Serbanui would disturb the labyrinth, had imposed a condition that only 10 could enter the labyrinth. Rodney and the others hunted so much that even a 10-man unit was enough to wreak havoc.
But Rodney was keeping his promise to the King, so he had no reason to be complained about. However, since the royal knights did not come to this 7th layer, no one complained.
The royal knights avoided fighting groups of Fish Dragons. They thought it reckless to take on over 30 of the already tough Fish Dragons at once.
It was abnormal that Rodney and the others could do it with just 10 people.
“Rodney-sama, it's about time to return to the surface. We've already far exceeded the schedule.”
It was about time for 10 days since they entered the Oburosu Labyrinth. It was natural for Rodmel to suggest returning to the surface.
Rodney accepted that proposal and decided to return to the surface.
When they emerged to the surface, several knights came to check on the hunting results. Rodney reported encountering Stone Giants on the 3rd layer. He also showed the Life Light Stone from them, but the knights couldn't tell if it was from a Stone Giant.
They hesitated whether to write Rodney's report as is and report it to the King, but since they had no way to verify it, they wrote it as is.
Also, the unbelievable number of Fish Dragon Life Light Stones was thoroughly written and reported.
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