Dungeon of Fire - 8

The ceiling trembled.

"Bad news— if we stay like this, it'll collapse. We have to get back right away!"

At that moment, the ceiling behind us collapsed, blocking our retreat.

At the same time, the wall ahead—previously a dead end—cracked open.

There was no choice but to prepare for the worst.

I signaled everyone with a glance. Clara leapt onto the magical tri-wheeled vehicle.

I hurled the explosive stone.

A large hole opened in the wall, connecting to a passage. We rushed through in single file and leapt into the inner room.

The room was pitch black. I quickly scattered the light magic stones I had on hand, illuminating the space. Clara attached light magic stones to her arrows and shot them into the ceiling.

The entire space was now lit up, making our surroundings clearly visible. But right in front of us was something we didn’t want to see.

The light from the scattered gemstones flickered and scattered wildly, clearly outlining its shape. Though it had no limbs, its body stretched over fifteen meters, standing more than three meters tall.

But what drew our eyes even more was its form: its head resembled that of a snake, its middle part was thick, and its tail tapered to a thin end.

There was no doubt. This thing... was a "Tsuchinoko!"

"What are you talking about!? Taro. It's a monster. Let's take it down."

Alex dashed forward, throwing his opponent off balance.

To draw out the opponent's attack methods. This was something we had agreed upon beforehand.

Let Alex, who moves quickly, disrupt things just enough without overexerting himself, while the three of us gather information in the meantime.

As scheduled, the centipede-like monster is following Alex's gaze, tracking him with its eyes.

Hun!

I heard a sound. I looked at Alex and felt like I was flying—no, being thrown through the air?

The chuchu was surprisingly swift despite its large size. Alex landed gracefully, though cuts were visible across his face and body.

"Alex, are you alright!?"

I immediately used a healing gem. Thanks to frequent use, wounds like these now heal much faster.

Alex's injuries began to mend, but his arm remained restrained.

"Perhaps there's a crack in your arm, but that's nothing serious.

Still, your opponent is faster than I expected."

Alex said, demonstrating his battle axe with a swing. It looked manageable, at least.

The healing gem was gradually taking effect.

Still, that monster was incredibly fast. And those scales—probably tough... If that's the case...

I threw a smoke bomb.

To be honest, it's only a brief distraction. But that's enough.

Aleks and I burst out from the smoke.

We fired specialized arrows into the creature using crossbows fitted with attachments. As expected, the hard scales blocked our shots. The tsuchinoko beast glared at us.

"Damn it, no good."

It's alright—my aim wasn't just for that.

We have arrows with far greater power than crossbows.

Hun... hun—two sharp sounds slicing through the air.

Clara’s magic arrow, fired from her bow, pierced the monster’s head from within the smoke. This should be able to penetrate even those tough scales.

Clang... clang—two distinct sounds rang out.

"Impossible! I didn’t hear anything about it being that hard!"

Two arrows struck—one barely piercing, the other completely deflected.

As the Tsuchinoko fiend lightly shook its head, the arrows easily flew off.

"No time for chatter! Get out of the way, now!"

I shouted.

But the fiend was faster.

It charged straight toward Clara. Clara—she wasn't blown away.

Kenny had caught her. The ground had been dug into, forming a line along the shape of Kenny’s feet, pushed several meters back.

Both of them were incredibly strong. Kenny gritted his teeth, veins bulging across his body. With a roar, Kenny pushed the monster away.

"Thank you, Kenny! But don't push yourself too hard!" "Ugh!"

As she spoke, Clara dashed toward the magic tricycle.

Kenny draws his short sword and swings, but it clinks sharply as it bounces off— the blade won't penetrate.

Alex's blade slashed toward his neck, but the Battle Axe's edge barely carved into the tough scales, stopping short as it hit their resistance.

I just can't seem to deliver the final blow.

The monster does not use any special attacks, instead repeatedly charging with its tough scales and massive body.

Alex or Kenny typically take the front line, blocking and dodging attacks while Clara and I use smoke grenades, striking whenever we see an opening. It seems that the gaps between the scales allow for slightly more effective hits. Still, other scales block our attacks, making them shallow.

We can't keep going like this. We're falling into a grueling endurance battle, and the one who'll run out of stamina first is definitely us.

We need to finish this before that happens.

That's right! If the outside is hard, what about inside?

I hurl the explosive gemstone at the Tsuchinoko's eye area. However, the fragments from the shattered gem do not wound its eye. A membrane-like layer descends, covering the eye.

But it stops moving. I fire the special arrow into the monster's mouth.

It entered perfectly into the mouth. Good! This should trigger the lightning!...But it doesn't seem to be that simple.

The Tsuchinoko trembled for a moment and froze, but then resumed moving without issue.

"Doesn't work at all!"

"Taro, now's not the time to fool around! It's huge! Aim for the strongest one!"

"Got it. Everyone, prepare for that attack. Keep it distracted until we're ready. Then Clara, I need your help."

Got it! Sure thing! Alright!

Each response came in turn.

Silver-colored arrows, dullly glowing, are scattered throughout the room of the demon beast. Alongside them, glowing gemstones are also placed at intervals.

Both Alex and Kenny have drawn significant attention from the monster, but they're now on the defensive. Their stamina is starting to fade.

No need to rush.

Since Clara and I prepared together, we managed to set up the lightning equipment in an instant.

"Good, great. Everyone, come behind me."

Everyone ran and gathered behind me.

The Tsuchinoko monster followed, drawn toward me.

But electricity is dozens of times faster than you!

I held back just enough, then unleashed the lightning with dynamic precision and careful control.

Geometric patterns emerged from the gem as usual, spiraling tightly around my arm. The spell activated swiftly, and a thick, swirling light of red and blue enveloped the tsuchinoko beast.

Lightning spread through space, striking in all directions. From the scattered gemstones, electric arcs shot out, and I was certain I had it firmly locked on.

A sharp, crackling sound echoed through the air, accompanied by blinding light that filled the surroundings. The scent of burning air and flesh drifted through the atmosphere.

Eventually, the attack ended, and the scattered light stones lost their power, leaving the area completely dark.

I had pushed my attack to maximum output, leaving me exhausted and kneeling on one knee.

The other three activated the reserve light stones, illuminating the surrounding area. The plaza where the monster was located appeared dim but spacious.

The Tsuchinoko lay sprawled, emitting smoke from its entire body. It was a problem if it didn’t collapse soon.

I joined in lighting up the surroundings using a light stone. I picked up a light stone lying near the Tsuchinoko and activated it.

The magic stone glowed brightly, softly illuminating the area around me.

Then, I activated a scouting spell to check for any other enemies.

Another light magic stone near the Tsuchinoko lit up. No—only the light magic stones scattered around the Tsuchinoko were glowing.

This thing... still alive!