Manowa - Chapter 55

Chapter 55

Chapter 55 – Entering a different/strange world/boundary

◎Rock Hold Cave – Second Level – Morning

「Less enemies this time ne」

Kazane arrived at the location they had reached yesterday . Because of the Navigation System, they were able to take the shortest route without hesitation . Even only encountering monsters once .

「It’s because it’s the same path as yesterday . Most monsters tend to avoid the paths where their companions were killed in combat . 」

「Is that so . 」

「However, there are cases of aggressive monsters doing the opposite . The Ogres use such methods . 」

「Ah I see ne」

I/Kazane remembered that the crazy monsters reacted excessively to the Ogre that hurt itself .

「Well, there should be a place to descend nearby . 」

And so, descending down, Kazane reached the third level .

◎Rock hold Cave – Third Level

「Wha!?」

To that scene which had been existing for some time ago (existing for a long time) Kazane was speechless . Yumika and Tiara who were behind were also the same .

「What is this?」

Yumika called out . Strange plants grew from the clefts in the rocks of the cave, the ceiling of the cave was split (open),there seemed to be empty space/sky behind it . However is a strange empty space/sky with purple and red mixed together .

「As we move forward, the surroundings will change further . It seems there are castles and towers in some places . 」

「It’s like a fantasy waa . 」

Kazane answers with a stiff/stunned face . An honest/normal dungeon was made light/fun of .

「The monsters gradually become stronger as we descend levels . Be careful . 」

「Understood/Roger . Well, it seems that they are coming right away . 」

Kazane pulls out her Black Fang with both hands .

「Is it the worker ants?」

「No, different smell . Is this a Burrow Tiger? It seems there are two . 」

「Again/Also . Fix your posture . /Ready yourselves . 」

Zinray readies his spear, Kazane gives instructions .

「Tiara, this time the knight will be a defense rather than an offense . Protect (with) Louise together . 」

「I understand . 」

「Roger that」

With the mobility of the Burrow Tiger, it is possible it will get past Kazane, also it could attack Tiara in the back . It was necessary to increase the defense .

「I will kill/go first . Kazane you follow, Yumika deal the last blow . 」

「Willingly/Heav-ho」

「Understood Sensei」

Both of them replied

「Mu, here it comes . 」

The violent footsteps echo in the cave .

「Zinray-san, the two of them are heading that way . 」

「Hmmm, shall we eat/recieve them together?」

Zinray holds his spear poised to (attack) .

「「Gyaooooon!」」

The Burrow Tigers leap at the same time . However the claws from the heavens did not reach .

「Yumika, this is『Weeping Willow』」

Zinray, who looked to be infront of the Burrow Tigers, suddenly appeared/moved behind them before they could react . Looking at the flow of the technique, it was seen by Yumika to be a slight movement that turned around behind the enemy .

「And, this is『Vibration』」

Zinray quickly stabs the Burrow Tiger as his spear makes a strange *jijijiji* (Vibration sfx) sound .

「Kyaan!」

The Burrow Tiger screamed and crumpled . It did not look dead but there is no sign of moving either .

「Gyaooo」

The second Burrow Tiger which saw it’s mate defeated tried to turn to Zinray, only to be faced with Kazane .

「Skill · Tiger eye」

Kazane invoked the skill to match it .

「Guruu!」

However the eyes of the Burrow Tiger shined, and it still leaped at Kazane as though nothing had happened .

「This, a failure?」

The Tiger Eye skill of Kazanes which stops the opponent’s movements is a skill she got from the Burrow Tiger . Thus the Burrow Tigers own Tiger Eye had the effect of offsetting the abnormal condition from the same skill, in short, the skill of Kazane was invalidated .

「You, what are you doing?!」

Yumika shouts from behind . This shout brings Kazane back to her senses, stabbing her cane into the ground she says/shouts .

「Then go, Skill  · Golem Maker · Nurikabe-kun!」

A wall of soil rises from the ground with a *zuzuzu* sound, hitting the abdomen of the Burrow Tiger in mid jump . A pitiful beast scream is heard .

「Hey, do it now . 」

To Kazanes words Yumika says “I know I know” while launching an attack . Yumika thrust her spear at the Burrow Tiger’s’ forehead, while it was still stunned from the unexpected attack from below .

And so, the fight was settled . After that, the materials were collected as usual .

「Alright, you can peel off the fur without damaging it . 」

Kazane throws the Burrow Tiger’s fur into the item box .

「By the way Zinray-san, you were quite motivated/into it/bloodthirsty this time?」

『Weeping Willow』and『Vibration』, this is the first time Kazane has seen either of them .

「『Weeping Willow』is a technique for dodging attacks and moving/repositioning around behind with minimal actions/movements . 『Vibration』is for destroying the insides of the (enemies) body with intense vibrations . It is used when you want to defeat an enemy without damaging their exterior, like now . Both are for Yumika to learn and practice . 」

「Difficult ne . 」

Yumika says with a bitter face .

「You need to watch it to learn it, compared to『Flash』the degree of difficulty is lower . 」

「Understoodddd」

While weeping, Yumika replied .

As they moved forward, Kazane worried about Yumikas depressed state and called to Zinray .

「Zinray-san」

「What is it?」

「About Yumikas state of mind/mood?」

Zinray chuckles at the question .

「No, realizing the difficulty is only something the self/person can ascertain,  it is the point where the barrier(of entry) becomes visible (TL: ie the next wall to climb over to get stronger) . From here onwards, she will become stronger . 」

「Ooo!」

Kazane was honestly surprised by Zinrays words .

「Well, that will be the story, if she’s not crushed . 」

「O… . oh?」

「If you get frustrated in the middle, regardless of talent, that is where it ends . 」

「Maa, that’s true ne . 」

「Nonetheless, that is only a problem for her (to handle) . I(washi) just train her and will trust her will/determination . 」

Kazane feels a bit jealous of that situation .

（Master huh… could I also become a disciple somewhere?）

Although Kazane uses a sword, her amateur swordsmanship is not very trustworthy/reliable . It doesn’t become strong easily because she doesn’t have natural talent like Yumika .

（Would a skill help maybe?）

I/Kazane thought, but for now I/she did not remember the skills to help the sword .

（Maa, it’s not as if I can do anything about it right now . ）

It’s accurate to say she was strong enough for the current situation . The power of Berserk Ogre Greaves + Killing leg was comparable to a Diablo/Diabo of the demon family . Combined with Ariel Jump and the Wall Walking skill gained from the worker ant the usefulness increases more and more .

（It’s more useful to focus on (where I can grow)/(where my skills fit) ne . ）

Thinking that way, Kazane walks ahead .

◎Rock Hold Caves – Fourth Level

The stairs heading down the the fourth level were located and they descended .

「The cracks are getting bigger ne . 」

The scenery outside the ceiling is coming into view . Although they need to descend, Kazane and Yumika were craning their necks trying to make sense of the structures/scenes . On the other hand Zinray, Louise and Mefirs do not seem to care/try to make sense of it . After leaving the castle, Tiara found everything unusual, but was still quietly impressed this time .

「What’s going on here?」

「I dunno . It seems to be possible to go through the break/crack, but I do not recommend it . 」

「Why?」

Kazane questions Zinray .

「I heard of story of people trying to take a shortcut to the lower levels but ending up floating away in the sky/space . It seems to be a very unstable place . 」

「Oh, that’s creepy ne . 」

If it is something like outside the game area they will keep falling indefinitely and there is a possibility that it will never come back again . Kazane thought it would be better to stick to the path .

「Mu, there are enemies . 」

Kazane discovers the enemies presence with her 『Dog’s Sense of Smell』as usual .

「Which way?」

To Yumikas question, Kazane points to the path on the right .

「There is an/some dead adventure(s) being eaten . 」

I/Kazane ended up wondering whether to say it or not .

「Should we/we should attack now?」

While (the monsters are) eating it is the best time to surprise attack .

「……Yeah ne . 」

Yumika holds a hand on her chest to calm down and agrees .

「The monster is?」

「There seem to be (two) Burrow Tigers and a mixture of something else . I don’t know, I think it’s probably pretty strong . 」

「Is it possible to sneak in with invisible and amush?」

Kazane nod’s to Zinrays question .

「I think you should do that . Quite strong . 」

Louise thinks about it and then issues instructions to Tiara .

「This time, I’ll be defending, so Tiara (you) can push the knight forward?」

「Yes, I understand . 」

Tiara nods to Louises instructions .

『I’ll protect you . 』

Mefirs emits light . Seemingly ready to breath fire .

「Yumika~, you aim for the Burrow Tiger . Try to kill it with a blow if possible . 」

「Hai/Yes」

「Well then, let’s go! I entrust (it to) you Kazane~」

「Un/Yeah」

Kazane invokes Invisible . Wall Walking is also used to walk along the ceiling .

（This, I wonder . It smells like a powerful Burrow Tiger . ）

While feeling that, Kazane turns the corner of the passageway where the enemy is .

「!?」

And, the Kazanes eyes pop out(Lit: rounded eyes) instinctively .

（Big……）

(It was) Standing twice as large as a Burrow Tiger, and looking more like a bear than from the cat faily . It is chewing the corpse which seems to be an adventurer .

（Gulp）

Kazane forced down her nauseous feeling .

（Zinray-san is in position . Then I will go . ）

Kazane released Wall Walking and pushed off from the ceiling .

（Skill・Killing Leg!）

In a lower voice/mutter she activated the skill .

「Uryaaaaaaaaaa!!!」

「Migyaa」

It was an instant .

「Avoided!?」

Kazane was shocked that her attack was avoided . That big body jumped and took distance from Kazane as she got off the ground .

「Uh, it’s the first time I’ve failed a surprise attack . 」

The surrounding Burrow Tiger roars and the huge cat roars at the same time .

「Thunder, run through the clouds!」

And the first attack was Louise’s Thunderstorm .

「Gyaaaaa」

One of the Burrow Tigers was hit and let out a scream .

「Spell・Fire・Vortex!」

Kazane also fires at the Burrow Tiger that was hit, surely dispatching it .

「Kazane, look out!」

Hearing the cry of Yumika, Kazane activated the skill Rush and dashed out of the way .

The huge cat landed with a crushing blow on the location Kazane had just vacated . It was a solid blow that ripped the ground open .

「Elder Cat . It will have a Child Stone on it . 」

Zinray shouts so .

「Is it strong?」

「Considerably . 」

Normally it would be a boss on the 10th to 20th Level .

Zinray charged and another/(the other) Burrow Tiger was killed with a continuous stab . The fur is not cared about . There was a need for extra forces to be sent off(TL: to deal with the enemies quickly) .

「Ginyaaaaaaa」

The Elder Cat roars . Angry that its minions had been killed it charged towards Zinray .

「Uoooooo!」

And Zinray, which a fighting spirit, deflects the Elder Cats claw attacks which strike from left and right continuously .

「Spell · Fire · Votex!!」

Kazane shoots magic from the side .

「Nyaa」

However it ducked down .

「Also avoided?」

「He has a good intuition . Kazane, your surprise attacks/sword will end up being read/predicted . Don’t attack with the sword . 」

「I know . 」

That said, what should I do?

「Skill・Golem Maker・Tebasaki-san!」

Thinking that she tried to stop the foot first . The『White Blaze』staff/cane was stabbed into the ground and a Golem in the shape of a large hand emerges .

「Go!」

Following Kazanes instructions Tebasaki-san strikes to hold down the Elder Cats legs . However it instantly jumped out of the way .

「Flame Knight, knock it down!」

Tiara’s Flame Knight charges over .

「Ginyaaa!」

The Elder Cat punched it and as it exploded jumped out of the way again .

「There!!」

However as it floats in the air Yumika sends out a spear attack . Holding the power of lightning『Thunder Spear』striked out, which has the power to kill a Burrow Tiger with one hit . And the Elder Cat was stuck .

「I stabbed it! !」

Yumika shouted .

「Well done Yumika!」

Zinray praised the disciple by saying so, and he also set up a spear .

「Take this as well!!」

The same『Thunder Spear』is thrown . The Elder Cat scream is heard . The second spear pierced as well . However, it is not over yet .

The elder cat lands on the ground while staggering due to the damage . And tries to retreat .

「Tebasaki-san! !」

However, Kazane adjusted the timing and let Tebasaki grab the feet of Elder Cat as it landed .

「Nyaa!」

The grabbed Elder Cat can not move . Kazane used Ariel Jump and closed in on the Elder Cat .

「GoooooO!」

This time the devastating and deadly Killing Leg hit without fail .

「You did it! What?」

With a *zuuDong* and a roaring sound Zinray see’s the Elder Cat fall and calls out to Kazane .

「Phew, yes . I did… I wonder?」

Kazane confirmed after verifying that she leveled up . And, it is also confirmed that the skill list increased .

（Skill『Insight』? Indeed, it made the Elder Cat strong and difficult to deal with . ）

Kazane was convinced that way . Applying a plus to hit correction and avoidance,『Insight』is one of the most useful skills in Zexiahart .  The avoidance of that Elder Cat was also because of that power .

（But now it’s my thing/skill . ）

「Alright/Yoshi」

Kazane nods to herself . The expression was filled with delight like a child given a toy .

But right after that,

「Indeed, you are an interesting existence . 」

Then『Insight』kicked in . It was only just received and then immediately activated .

There was an overwhelming sense of crisis foretelling the coming of the worst enemy .

Diablo, the voice of the demon who had said so was echoed .

Name: Yuihama Kazane

Occupation: Magic Swordswoman

Title: Ogre Killer (There’s no princess?)

Equipment: Cane [[White Blaze]], Two Handed Sword [[Black Fang]], Silver Breastplate, Silver gauntlets, Silver sheep Clothing, Carapace Bull trousers, Berserk Ogre Greaves, Indestructible Cloak (and Futons), Mystery Pouch, Crimson Saint Casket, Legendary Spirit Summoning Ring

Level: 21

Vitality: 76

Magic Power: 123+300

Strength: 32

Agility: 25

Endurance: 17

Wisdom : 30
Dexterity : 20

Spell : [[Fly]] [[Torch]] [[Fire]] [[Heal]]

Skill : [[Goblin Language]] [[Night Vision]] [[Crushing Blow]] [[Dog’s Sense of Smell]] [[Golem Maker: Lv2]] [[Rush]] [[Fire Principle: Second Chapter]] [[Healing Principle: Second chapter]] [[Air Jump]] [[Killing Leg]] [[Fear Voice]] [[Invisible]] [[Tiger Eye]] [[Wall Walking]]『Insight』

Kazane「Level rises, points into muscle strength . 『Insight』is passive skill ne . Even if a knife is thrown from behind, you/I can say「Ha」and turn while catching it . 」

Yumika「No, it’s impossible unless you raise your strength/train a bit more . Though I can do it . 」

Kazane「Seriously? I casually bragged about it too . 」

Yumika「No, I am training seriously ne . 」