Episode 118 Dark Clouds (2)
5th grade monster troll.
Although he is a synonym for regeneration, he will still die if his heart or head explodes.
But I put all my team’s power into cutting off that bastard’s ‘arm’.
And finally.
[Geez-!!]
He sealed the remaining arm of the bastard and rendered him incapacitated.
In other words, an environment has been created where Misha can just pour in the damage without any risk.
Tadah.
Misha, who had been paying close attention to keeping her distance from the troll’s long arms, was the first to jump.
And then it landed on my shoulder—
Phew!
At the same time, he thrust his twin swords into his eyeballs.
No matter how high your physical resistance is, there are bound to be vulnerable areas.
[That’s it-!!!]
The troll’s struggles grew more intense as the acid-enchanted sword plunged into its fragile eye.
Nimiral, what power… … .
“Rain, Bjorn?”
“Don’t worry about this, just keep poking!”
I shouted, squeezing the bastard’s arm with my thigh with all my might. Misha, who knew that this was not a situation to be leisurely, focused on swinging her sword instead of answering.
The first variable occurred here.
Phew, phew, phew-
The moment Misha kept thrusting the knife into his eye socket.
Knock! Knock!
There is a scratching sound.
Up to this point, it was expected.
Because people also have bones behind their eyeballs.
but…….
“… Rain, Bjorn? It’s too hard to go in!”
Bone strength was the issue.
Even if it was a thick arm bone, I thought it would be enough to quickly break the bone and pierce the brain.
Yeah, it’s not something that’s going to be easily given up on.
“Go on.”
“Okay!”
Soon Misha grabbed the ‘Snake Fang’ and continued to poke the eye socket.
Then, a second variable occurred.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
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As time passed, the trolls began to run wild.
The blind guy gave up trying to get me off him and just charged towards me with his only free foot.
The problem is… … .
“Dwalki! They’re after Dwalki.”
Somehow, the eyeless troll cub runs straight to where Dwalki is.
[Ghaaaaaaaaaaaa!!]
Rotmiller hugged Dwalki and dodged him everywhere, but he chased after him violently as if he could see ahead.
“Magic! I can definitely feel the magic!”
I didn’t know about this phenomenon either.
Is it really true that he instinctively senses and follows magic like the dwarf said?
‘Nimiral.’
Whatever the reason.
Just when I thought everything was done, things started to go wrong in an instant.
Less than ten seconds after the incident, Dwalki and Rotmiller were cornered.
It was a natural thing.
If it was Misha in that spot, I wouldn’t know.
Because Rotmiller’s physical stats weren’t high enough to allow him to run away from a level 5 monster while holding one person in his arms.
[Ghhhhhhhhhh-!!!]
Soon, the troll charged towards them as they were cornered. The dwarf tried to stop it, but it was no use.
Boom!
The dwarf was kicked by the troll and flew like a soccer ball, crashing into the wall. It seemed that his MP had run out and [Counterweight] had been released… … .
Damn it, why at this moment?
“Rain, Bjorn?”
“Oh, I see!”
Still, Rotmiller took advantage of the brief moment of gap the dwarf had created to escape from the corner.
Of course, it was only a matter of buying some time.
Was it about 3 seconds?
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Rotmiller, who was running towards the other side, was caught by the troll and rolled on the ground to avoid its kick.
Now, from my position, I couldn’t see the situation of the two.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
In that state, the troll kicks down.
“Hee, heek… … !”
It doesn’t sound like anyone is being trampled because it’s rolling hard…
If we leave this troll alone any longer, someone will surely die.
Dwalki, Rotmiller.
No, maybe it’s both.
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Kuung-!
It was a crossroads.
Misha was so busy thrusting the knife that he was completely unaware of the situation below.
All judgment was mine.
Kuung-!
If you let go of your arms here and go down, you can protect Dwalki or Rotmiller.
But in the end, that choice will lead to annihilation.
If I fall, the troll will attack Misha with his free arm… … .
Because you’ll never get another chance.
‘Shit.’
Close your eyes tightly.
And then I find myself thinking about it.
Wasn’t this something that would happen at some point?
Kuung-!
[Dungeons and Stone] is not a game that pursues adventures full of dreams and hopes.
As the game progressed, the death of companions seemed inevitable, and as long as the main character survived, the adventure would continue.
Yeah, that was that kind of game.
This fucking game—
Kwajik-!
Then a crushing sound was heard from below.
The sound of flesh and bone being crushed, something I’ve heard countless times since I opened my eyes here.
Misha stops swinging her sword, perhaps sensing something strange.
Of course, it was only for a very short time.
“Keep going!!!”
At my shout, Misha resumed swinging her sword.
Kakak, kakak, kakak!
I gritted my teeth and put all my strength into restraining the troll’s remaining arm.
It was at that time.
Phew-!
A Dwalki comes into view, having been kicked out by a troll. Its spine is broken, and its body is twisted to a deformed degree.
This made me realize one thing.
It wasn’t information I really wanted to know, but… … .
So the sound that was heard at first must have come from Rotmiller’s body.
“… … Sob!”
Have you seen the Dwalki that rose to our eye level?
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Misha flinches for a moment, then swings her sword repeatedly with an expression on her face as if she might cry at any moment.
“Die! Die! Die! You monster! I said die!!!”
I had to watch my comrades suffer in order to survive, but the situation only got worse.
The curse was lifted when Dwalki was hit.
An arm that recovers quickly and has the effects of [Super Regeneration] applied normally.
“Misha Karlstein cast [Ice Crush].”
“Misha Karlstein cast [Ice Crush].”
“Misha Karlstein cast [Ice Crush].”
Knowing that there was no time, Misha swung her sword down with all her might. That was the moment when every minute and every second felt like an eternity.
Kak! Kak, Kak… Kwak!
At the same time, a refreshing crashing sound was heard from somewhere.
The body of the troll that was holding onto you with your whole body disappears.
“Killed the troll. EXP +5”
***
The troll’s body, which had died, turned into light and disappeared, and Misha and I fell to the ground.
Normally, we would have balanced ourselves and landed on both feet, but none of us felt like doing that.
Kuung!
As I was lying on the floor, staring blankly at the ceiling, a fist-sized magic stone fell next to my head.
Boom. Degururur-
That was all the loot.
There was no dramatic increase in the number of integers.
I felt once again that this moment was real.
Yeah, it’s not a dream.
The choice I just made.
The sight of Dwalki flying away in a miserable state due to that choice… … .
“Rotmiller! Dwalki!”
I threw away my desire to rest and forced myself to sit up. Misha was already running to pick up her fallen comrade.
“Rotmiller! Come to your senses!!!”
“Heh, don’t… shake… it…!”
“Uh, I’m sorry!”
Amazingly, Rotmiller was alive.
One of his legs was broken and crushed, but it was not a life-threatening injury.
It was literally heaven helping us.
If the head or upper body had been trampled, that would have been the end of it.
“Before me… D, Dwalki first… … .”
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“Oh, I got it!!”
While Misha ran to Dwalki, I turned my gaze to check on the dwarf.
No major trauma was apparent.
‘Did you just bang your head against the wall and pass out…?
The problem was Dwalki.
“B, Bjorn!! What should I do! D, Dwalki won’t, won’t breathe… … .”
“Get out of the way.”
He pushes Misha away and feels Dwalki’s pulse.
Breathing has stopped, but the heart is still beating faintly.
It means there is still room for revival.
Cheeeeeeek-!
First, take out a bottle of high-level potion and pour it into Dwalki’s mouth.
I know this is only a temporary measure.
His spine was half-folded, and his legs were broken by the impact of the fall. His internal organs were also damaged, with blood continuously flowing from his nose and mouth.
And Dwalki is a normal human.
That too, of the magician profession famous for its paper body.
‘Fuck.’
I bit my lips.
It is unclear whether an injury of this level can be saved with a high-level potion… … .
“Dwalki! Just hold on! You took the potion, so you’ll be fine in no time!”
Even if you survive, there will definitely be huge aftereffects.
If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have used the highest-grade potion there—
“Po, Sean… … .”
I turned my head to the voice of Rotmiller, who was vomiting with difficulty. At first, I thought he was asking for a potion for me too.
but…….
“Use this.”
Even as he shuddered in pain, Rotmiller held out his hand, holding a vial of potion, toward us.
“It’s a top-notch potion.”
What, a top-tier potion?
Is that what it is…?
“I bought it just in case, huh. Use this on him… … .”
Before I could even reply, Misha ran over and got the potion, and I stopped her from pouring it into my mouth.
“If you keep feeding him like this, he’ll never be able to walk.”
“what?”
Potions aren’t a panacea.
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If you just feed the potion without adjusting the bones, it will leave even greater aftereffects.
thus-
While Misha fed me the potion little by little, I put my broken leg and spine back into place. Even though I put them back in place, I only roughly put them in place… … .
The rest will probably be taken care of by the potion.
Isn’t this a top-level potion that can even heal a severed arm?
“Phew… … .”
As I watched Dwalki in heavy tension, I let out a long breath that I had been holding back.
My breathing has returned.
It would take a while for him to come to his senses, but his pale complexion had improved significantly.
“… … That’s a relief.”
The rest can be taken care of with advanced potions.
Of course, there was no time to sit still and rest.
“Don’t just sit there, help me.”
“Oh, I see. What should I do?”
“Bring Hikuro and lay him down next to you. Just in case, feed him a bottle of low-level potion.”
While Misha followed my instructions, I examined the injured leg of the neglected Rotmiller.
“What happened to Dwalki?”
“Don’t worry. Thanks to you, my life was saved. So why don’t you worry about yourself first now?”
“That too… I see. Hehehe.”
“It’s going to hurt quite a bit.”
“I know… Ugh! Ugh!!”
All immediate measures were finished when the ‘potioned’ Rotmiller groaned and passed out.
Was it the same for Misha too?
“Bjorn… … .”
Misha looks at me with eyes that seem to want confirmation.
I answered with a snicker.
“Yes, they all survived.”
“Really… thank goodness… really… … .”
Misha’s body slumps as if her strength has left her.
It seemed like it only made sense after hearing my answer.
Actually, I still can’t believe it.
‘Really… I thought no one died.’
I don’t want to die.
No, I’m just glad everyone survived.
But there were too many parts that were too uncomfortable to be completely happy about.
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That makes sense… … .
Because I did well.
Plan well in advance.
Dealing well with variables when they explode.
So, it’s not like we’ve overcome the crisis.
‘I was… lucky.’
I was just lucky.
After I admitted this, it finally made sense to me.
What does it mean to live as an explorer in this fucking world?
Today, everyone survived like in a movie.
but…….
‘Probably… it won’t always be like today.’
I know better than anyone else.
There’s no way a guy like me would ever have luck like today again.
***
As time passed, one by one they came to their senses.
The first one to open his eyes was the dwarf.
“… … Yeah, so they all survived.”
The dwarf, who had confirmed everyone’s survival, did not laugh heartily as usual.
Just repeating the same words as if praying.
“Thank goodness. Yes, yes… I’m really glad… … .”
After all, if you’ve been an explorer for several years, you’ve probably experienced quite a few things. The death of a comrade is like an explorer’s fate.
“Everyone is safe even after meeting the trolls. I guess I should make an offering to the temple when I get back… … .”
The next one to wake up after the dwarf was Rotmiller.
I approached him timidly and started spitting out an apology mixed with excuses.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t expect the troll to act like that when he can’t see.”
“… How could that be your fault? We should be the ones thanking you. Without you, none of us would have survived.”
“but…….”
“Your judgment was right, so don’t blame yourself.”
It seemed as if Rotmiller already knew that I had made a choice that would involve sacrificing both of them.
Of course, there’s no way I wouldn’t know.
I yelled at him to keep doing that.
“Ugh, ugh… … .”
After some time had passed, Dwalki also opened his eyes and groaned.
“Don’t move. Your wound hasn’t fully healed yet.”
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“Everyone… are you okay… … ?”
“We’re all okay! So don’t worry!”
“Ah… Mi, Miss Misha… I’m glad you’re safe… … .”
“Idiot! What are you talking about?”
“T, that’s… … ! Cool! T, is that so… … ? Hahaha.”
The atmosphere, which had been extremely heavy, brightened up a bit as Dwalki, who had been in the most serious condition, woke up.
“Haha, the five of us caught a troll. I can’t even brag about this. No one will believe me!”
The dwarf also started joking around as usual, and Misha was no exception.
“Ugh, I should have gotten some Jeongsu! I feel so wronged. After all that suffering, I got nothing out of it, right?”
“Didn’t you save your life?”
“Rotmiller, if you look closely, you’re a problem because you’re too greedy.”
“Yeah, you said you used the highest-grade potion this time? Oh, of course, don’t worry. We’ll all pool it together and pay for it.”
“Then I feel a little relieved.”
“Oh, but Bjorn. What are you going to do now? You’re not planning on going any higher than this, are you?”
“Whoa… Who the hell do you think I am? Of course I’ll rest for a while.”
“No, Misha? Why are you asking Bjorn for advice? I’m clearly the leader of the team.”
“Oh… is that so?”
Anyway, that’s the dwarf’s question.
My suggestion to stay on that floor until the labyrinth was closed was accepted without any objection.
Well, it wasn’t a state where we could continue the exploration.
We rested and soothed our tired bodies and minds there after a fierce battle with the trolls.
“The labyrinth is closed.”
“The character moves to Lapdonia.”
A week passed and my sixth exploration came to a close.
