Sticky Sewer (3)

Moon Bora, who was staring at the [Red Slime], narrowed her eyes.

“This is a type I’ve never seen before. Actually, very little is known about slimes in the first place.”

Moon Bora was right.

Slimes were rare creatures that required a complex ecosystem and various conditions, making them hard to find in both dungeons and fields.

Thus, there were almost no records on general types.
Higher types, variants, and boss types were even less documented.

“It’s a [Red Slime]. Its grade is C. However, that’s just its grade; its pure firepower can reach B-grade.”
“…Do you know how to defeat it?”

Nodding, I drew the [Saint’s Sword].
Seeing is believing.

I told Moon Bora to prepare a spell in advance, and that I would signal the right timing.

I bent low and charged forward, using [Flowing Slash].

It was used solely to charge in as quickly as possible, so there was no need to even draw my sword.

As I closed the distance, the creatures writhed.

One of them convulsed, transforming its gelatinous body into sharp spikes aimed at me.

It was an attack technique utilizing the [Fluid Body] that all ‘slimes’ fundamentally possessed.

‘…It seems their level isn’t high.’

The higher the level of [Fluid Body], the greater the number of tentacles that could be extended and the more varied the forms that could be transformed.

This is why ‘high-level slimes’ become troublesome later on.

Their attacks were quite fast and unpredictable, but none of them reached me.

The reason was that the [Agility] and [Sprint] I had activated beforehand added wings to my already swift speed.

It felt as if a cool breeze was enveloping my entire body.
Before the signal reached my brain, my feet moved.
I dodged here and there, imbuing power into the [Saint’s Sword].

The blade emitted a white light.

Each time I swung, the body of the <Red Slime> fell apart as if torn by hand.

The reason was that the strikes I delivered were judged as [Blunt] instead of [Swordsmanship].

All types of <Slime> had high resistance to ‘Slashing’.

However, they had no resistance to ‘Blunt’ or ‘Impact’, so hitting them with the flat side of the sword dealt more damage than expected.

Thwack!

“Eeeek!”

Eventually, one of them couldn’t hold out and burst.

Seeing this, the remaining three, which had been eagerly swinging their tentacles, started to thrash about.

The crimson aura inside began to swell.
It started to bubble and boil.

An instinctive sense of danger.
I shouted loudly.

“Moon Bora! Now!”
“[Icicle]!”

Moon Bora pulled the trigger as if she had been waiting for the command.
A burst of blue coldness erupted from the staff gun in her hand.
The magic bullet exploded and froze three <Red Slimes> precisely.

‘As expected of Moon Bora.’

Though she was ambiguous as a dealer.
Her magic was delicate, accurate, and swift.
This was a significant advantage.

She possessed the skill to strike only the enemy without harming allies fighting in close quarters, like me, so I could trust her to cover my back.

I spun the [Saint’s Sword] around and gripped it.

My left hand spread open with my palm forward, while the sword in my right hand was pulled back.

Pa-ba-bak-!

Three swift and precise thrusts spread out.
[Triple Thrust].
On top of that, the sword was coated with [Burning Flames], causing crimson flames to roar.

The blade that pierced through the frozen body delved into the core of the <Red Slime>.

Without looking back, I quickly moved to where Moon Bora was.

“…Seha? The battle isn’t over yet, you know?”
“No, it’s over. Just watch.”

Right after I finished speaking, the bubbling <Red Slime> went pop with a small explosion.

The explosion’s range was small.
But the power was by no means weak.

As proof, the ground where they stood melted and flowed like magma.
Considering that this place was a dungeon maintained by constant magical power—it was an incredible firepower.

“…What?”
“Those guys have a skill called [Flammable Gas] that increases explosion damage.”

Also, they had a trait called [Overheat] that constantly raised heat.

Lastly, [Clone Bullet], a self-destructive skill triggered when their health dropped to a certain level or they witnessed the death of a comrade.

They also possessed a skill to project flames.

At my explanation, Moon Bora looked horrified.
Monsters focused solely on self-destruction were not common.

“…It’s a very lethal skill structure.”

In the original world, everyone would have said this upon seeing them.

‘Grenades…’

They were monsters modeled after typical bombs.

Therefore, handling them directly meant dodging explosives from all directions, consuming a lot of stamina.

In other words, it was a place where our angelic Ma Hana was highly likely to get seriously injured.

‘That can’t happen.’

I couldn’t bear to see my Meowi get burned and cry out, ‘Meeeoow…’

Additionally, Ju Na-young was also dismissed.

Though a combatant with top-grade power and speed, her reckless nature in fights meant she would inevitably get caught in the explosions.

“That’s why you need me, right?”

“Right, the best way to handle them is to freeze them first, then attack their core with a fire attribute attack. Plus, we need someone like you who can coolly assess the situation and provide support at the right moment.”

“…Even if you suddenly compliment me, nothing good will come out.”

What’s that supposed to mean?
It was a fair assessment.

After that, I explained their habits, and various precautions.
And the surprise attacks that could come from ‘cracks in the wall’ since they were <Slimes>.

“…Yu Seha?”
“Yes?”
“You seem the most knowledgeable I’ve seen so far. So, you did have some thoughts after all?”
“……”

One hour later.
We were fighting new enemies again.

“Moon Bora, behind you!”
“[Ice Pillar]!”

A shout that pinpointed the location with [Unprecedented Sense].
Without hesitation, Moon Bora cast her spell.

An ice barrier rising behind her struck the creature’s torso.

“Grr!”

The creatures hit by the ice and flung back turned out to be dogs.

If we had to specify the breed, they were close to Dobermans.

But they were merely called Dobermans.

Their internal organs were fully visible, looking more like corpses.

“Seha! Is this place where undead appear too?”
“These guys aren’t undead. They’re slimes!”
“What?!”

[Beast Slimes].
They burrow into dead bodies.
They were a parasitic slime that formed muscles, internal organs, and cores.
Mainly taking shape through animal corpses, they were named ‘Beasts.’

‘…I wonder where they sourced these dog corpses from.’

Well, if one were to ponder such details, every monster in this world would raise too many questions.

‘…They were especially fast, so I had to check.’

The <Beast Slime> was typically focused entirely on speed.
Although their other attributes were subpar, the fact that they were ‘fast’ was more than enough to overpower an enemy.

Currently, my speed stat was ‘23.’

Additionally, I had [Dash] and [Agility], so keeping up wasn’t an issue.

Of course, considering they had as many as four speed abilities, they were definitely faster.

‘The real problem is that [Strangely Tough Skin] ability.’

A versatile defensive trait that grants high resistance to strikes.

With four of these creatures taking turns to perform ‘hit and run’ tactics…

Honestly, the more I fought, the more frustrated I became.

Additionally, Moon Bora’s magic attack was too slow to hit them properly.

“…Sorry. I’m not helping… If I had learned [Frozen Field], it would have been useful.”
“Don’t say that. You are helping enough.”

There was no other way.

“Moon Bora, I’ll be the bait. When you see an opening, freeze them all.”
“…?! It’s dangerous! You’re not as tough as Ma Hana.”
“Don’t worry, and trust me!”
“…Alright. Just in case, I’ll have potions ready.”

I deliberately drew their aggro and charged.

At first, the [Beast Slimes] recoiled in surprise.

Soon, they growled, “Grrrr…!” and all four lunged simultaneously.

A blue light glinted off their teeth.
It was undoubtedly the [Bite] skill.

Crunch!
Soon, a chilling sound echoed from all over my body.

“…Ugh?”

However, the sound of breaking was not my body…
It was their teeth.

[Stone Hardening].
A derived skill acquired from the ‘Twin Head Troll’ with [Eyes of Reversed Heaven].
It was a defensive skill that increased defense and resistance proportional to my endurance for one minute.

‘Hehe, serves you right.’

Of course, it wasn’t without damage.
While not low in endurance, I wasn’t a specialized tank like Ma Hana, so blood streamed from where the teeth had penetrated.

But thanks to this, I gained the upper hand.

“[Ice Pillar]!”

The four pillars that rose up, except for me, hit the <Beast Slime> precisely.

As they were penetrated and frozen simultaneously.

I stabbed the [Saint’s Sword] into the ground and clenched my fist.

Swinging at high speed, I unleashed [Rapid Hits].

[Strangely Tough Skin] was a skill that granted high resistance to physical attacks.

However, their durability stats were poor.
Meaning, that if I could rapidly inflict enough damage, they could be easily defeated.

Of the skills I currently possessed, the fastest in attack speed was [Rapid Hits].

Pabababak!

“Keuk…”
“Ggagaeng…”

Finally, the body of the <Beast Slimes> collapsed, unable to withstand.
Trapped in ice, they began to melt away.

“Phew~ Now the stress is finally relieved. Good job, Moon Bora.”
“…Ah, no problem.”

Moon Bora approached with a potion to heal Yu Seha’s wounds.

She barely hid her surprised face as she looked at Yu Seha.

‘…What?’

During the recent battle, the number of skills Seha had used was uncertain.
But she knew it was several.
The most impressive one was definitely ‘Stone Hardening’.

‘…It must be a derivative skill of [Crack of the Rough Stone].’

When did he learn such elemental skills?
Moon Bora tilted her head in confusion while applying the potion with her delicate fingers.

[Red Slimes].
And sometimes appearing, [Beast Slimes].
It was while dealing with these two creatures.

The ever-reliable trait, [Unprecedented Sense], sounded the alarm once again.

‘…Huh?’

However, this time, the feeling was different.

It was squelchy…
Heavy, and slow footsteps.

“…Ah, damn. This is really annoying.”

Having anticipated the enemy, Yu Seha cursed quite harshly.

“Seha?”
“…I was hoping it wouldn’t come out.”
“Pardon?”

With a sigh, Yu Seha exhaled deeply.

Moon Bora shook her head in confusion.

Seeing the approaching figure, her face hardened like Yu Seha’s.

Black bobbed hair and distinctive yellow pupils.
Still with some baby fat, giving a cute appearance.
Soft cat ears and a small frame.

“…Hana?”
“B-B-Bora…”

Ma Hana.

To be precise…

A slime mimicking her perfectly was approaching with a bright smile.