Chapter 63
Without a sound, it briskly walked out from beyond the corner, appearing with no warning whatsoever.
It was huge. A humanoid monster standing three meters tall.
Its glossy, metallic sheen resembled the armor of a medieval knight, yet its form evoked that of a crustacean.
Clicking its jaws, it blocked the explorers' path in the middle of the black brick corridor, the play of light and shadow making its presence all the more imposing.
"What the hell is that thing...?"
"Weren't there only Dungeon Dachshunds on this floor?"
"That sure as hell doesn't look like a dachshund."
The B-rank explorers held their breath in tense silence.
A-rank, 45th place, 'Despair's Baker' glared sharply at the monster.
Though some explorers affectionately called him Jam Grandpa, the sixty-year-old man radiated the dignity and presence worthy of a top explorer.
"It's probably a Wandering Boss, I'd say."
The baker's mutter sent a stir through the entire team.
"Wandering Boss...? No way, they actually exist...?"
"To get to meet such a rare being... I'm moved. The dungeon must love us."
Each reaction was different.
"What do we do, Hasegawa?"
"We have no choice but to take it down. Fortunately, we have enough firepower here. A Wandering Boss... it's my first time seeing such a rare monster in my 13-year career, but if we assume it's on par with the 18th floor Resource Boss, it's not an unbeatable foe."
That reasoning from veteran Tsuruo Hasegawa was the shared understanding among all the explorers present.
An A-rank 9th place, and an A-rank 45th place.
That alone was formidable, and there were also several B-rank explorers. With this group, even a 10th-floor dungeon boss could be taken down without issue.
Of course, the Wandering Boss was shrouded in mystery. Reports were extremely rare, and defeat logs close to nonexistent. Its ecology and threat level were virtually unknown.
Even so, based on the unshakable rule of dungeons—"the deeper the floor, the stronger the monsters"—there should've been no way the Wandering Boss before them could pose a serious threat to a team with two A-ranks and eight B-ranks.
Yes, it should have been that way.
The explorers eagerly activated their skills and dungeon equipment.
"We're tired, man. Let's finish this quick and turn it into some bonus cash"—that was the kind of optimistic vibe they had.
The situation turned dire in an instant.
It happened just as one B-rank explorer slightly bent his knees to step forward.
A gust of wind tore past.
In the blink of an eye, two B-rank explorers were sent flying.
Their bodies twisted unnaturally, floated into the air, and slammed hard into the ceiling.
Red stains appeared on the ceiling. The unconscious explorers fell to the ground with a sickening splat.
It was because that thing had M O V E D.
Or perhaps it should be said that just by M O V I N G, it had neutralized two B-ranks.
A chill ran through everyone there.
Their heartbeats quickened.
Throats dried rapidly.
Even Tsuruo Hasegawa, top explorer, found himself experiencing a chill he hadn't felt in ages.
Because even he had only barely managed to track the shadow of the monster's high-speed movement.
Cold sweat poured down. Eyes widened.
Everyone imagined it.
It just happened that those two B-ranks were walking in front. But—if *I* had been in front, could I have seen and dodged that speed the first time?
"Scatter!"
Tsuruo Hasegawa shouted.
The explorers, who had been paralyzed in a state of fear, snapped back to their senses at his voice.
They spread out across the corridor with swift, fatigue-free movements.
The previously relaxed atmosphere vanished, replaced by sharp, ruthless glares locked onto their enemy.
They readied weapons, activated skills, and prepared attacks using the anomalous substance.
One B-rank explorer immediately launched a counterattack.
"Skill activation——'Accelerated Blade Lv2', 'Sharpness Lv3'!"
That B-rank explorer was confident in his speed.
Which is why he volunteered as the vanguard, aiming to strike with a magic sword.
The blade of the magic sword glowed blue-white, a high-frequency blade infused with humanity's wisdom. By channeling high-frequency vibrations into the edge, it became a scientific weapon with greatly enhanced cutting power. Strengthened further by skills, it could easily slice through 100.0mm armor plating.
A flash.
A trail of blue-white slash lingered in the air.
Gaaang. Clatter clatter clatter——
Shards reflecting light scattered.
The magic sword had snapped in half and shattered.
The boss's carapace didn't have so much as a scratch.
"Wha—?!"
It swung its arm and casually swept sideways.
The unguarded B-rank explorer took the attack head-on, was launched over 10 meters, and tumbled down the far corridor like a rag doll.
He didn't move a muscle.
The vast talent and training attained by only the top 2% of explorers was rendered useless in such a crude, violent way.
That fact chilled the hearts of the explorers.
Everyone now realized the metallic monster before them was an enemy far beyond their imagination.
"That thing's a metal monster with extreme defense!"
"A legendary metal monster...!"
"It really existed...?"
The B-rank explorers were frozen in fear.
Once again, it was the old man who moved.
"Despair Rolling Pin Technique!"
While the B-rank explorers recoiled in fear again, 'Despair's Baker' surged with fighting spirit and boldly charged.
The baker held a rolling pin.
"That thing's supposed to be a weapon?" Don't underestimate it.
The baker's rolling pin, after thirty years of kneading dough, had transformed into an anomalous substance. His beloved rolling pin, 'Chaos Rollin', is a sacred relic well-known in the Japanese baking world.
If something like that were wielded as a weapon, its power would be unimaginable.
"This 'Chaos Rollin' can stretch *anything*. I've stretched even diamonds down to 0.01mm thick. There's nothing it can't stretch."
He swung the rolling pin with all his strength.
Definitely not something you'd show to customers.
Gonnk!
The rolling pin landed a hit.
"What?!"
But it didn't work.
It had caught the rolling pin with its bare hand.
"Guh, what power... even with my Strength at 5,000, it doesn't budge!"
"*Click click*"
It clicked its jaws in mocking laughter.
The baker activated the rolling pin's ability. He tried to stretch and deform the metal monster's arm.
But even after activation, there was no change in the monster's steel arm.
"Its defense is exceeding the stretching power of 'Chaos Rollin'... what madness is this?"
"Fall back, Baker! You're gonna get hit!"
"No, I won't back down, Hasegawa."
The baker took a deep breath. Filled his lungs to the brim—and then
"Eat this, monster——'Murder Yeast'!"
The baker threw his mouth open wide and spewed out a deadly bacterium. You're the real monster here.
The skill 'Murder Yeast' unleashes a fast-acting, deadly toxin. If it hits, the monster suffers 200 damage every 0.1 seconds for ten minutes, melting away without a trace. Such poison-based skills are highly effective against enemies with high defense.
——Through the cloud of death, a metal fist burst forth.
The fist smashed into the baker's face.
Blood and shattered dentures flew through the air.
"Gahh... the poison, didn't... work... it had resistance... gah..."
"Clang clang."
The metal monster clutched the baker's rolling pin tightly in its left hand, formed a fist with its right, and ruthlessly pummeled the baker's face. Again and again and again.
Though dazed, the baker tried desperately to hold on using a defensive skill.
After the metal fist smashed into the baker's face thirteen times in total, he finally let go of the rolling pin.
"Your face is dough"—with that humiliating message, the baker was slammed into the wall, coughed up blood, rolled his eyes back, and lost consciousness. A hard knockdown indeed for a 60-year-old man.
The metal monster casually tossed aside the Chaos Rollin', looking thoroughly bored.
Clink clank—an empty sound echoed, as if expressing the baker's regret.
Six seconds after the baker went down, four more B-rank explorers were defeated. All in a single blow. Without defensive skills, it was a one-hit knockout. That's how powerful the attacks were.
With each passing second, the team's annihilation became more certain.
Tsuruo Hasegawa, the leader, was forced to make a decision.
"I'll buy us some time. You all go call for backup."
"But there's no way you can handle it alone...!"
"Who do you think I am? A-rank 9th place, 'Justice Representative.'"
"Understood. Then we're counting on you to stall it...!"
"Stalling's fine and all... but hey, there's no rule saying I can't just take that thing down, right?"
Trusting in the thick back of their representative, the B-rank explorers immediately turned back toward the stairs. They ran off to summon the front-line explorers on the 19th floor.
"Come on then, monster. I'll show you the power of a member of the National Diet."
Tsuruo Hasegawa loosened his tie and gave the massive monster a sharp glare.