LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 21
“…What a peculiar armor.”
“Is it strange?”
“What kind of golem is this? The alchemists would probably love it.”
It’s a shame there’s no mirror to see myself. I’ve never felt so disappointed not seeing my reflection. I think I look quite impressive, reminiscent of some stylish heavy armor from a game I played ages ago. I’ve got antlers, or rather horns, added to the helmet, and the bark is processed well, giving it a majestic, not shabby or clunky, design like a knight in green-colored heavy armor.
“But can you move in that?”
“No problem.”
It looks heavy, but it’s surprisingly light. If I had made it full plate level, I would have collapsed from exhaustion just walking. I’m not the type to create armor without considering that. I’ve made something similar before. Back then, I got so carried away with my skills that I almost died wearing it without considering my frail body. But I’m different now.
“Can you fight in it? It seems incredibly uncomfortable.”
“It’s fine. There are ways.”
This isn’t my first time making such armor. Naturally, I’ve prepared some means to make it usable.
Anyway, now I should dress Renny in it too.
“Come here. You need to wear this.”
“That looks really hot… Ugh. I guess I have no choice.”
“Take off that half-crushed armor.”
At that point, it would hurt more than protect her. Following my words, Renny hurled the cumbersome armor away. Once the armor that concealed her body disappeared, Renny’s well-trained form was revealed.
Hmm, this one’s not too shabby either… She doesn’t have the noticeable assets like Karina, but the faint outline of her abs shows through her slightly exposed midsection and her healthily tanned skin is quite attractive. She’s literally a healthy beauty. Maybe it’s because the fierce image from the game still lingers that it doesn’t stand out more.
“What are you staring at! Hurry up and put it on me!”
“…Just stand still for a second.”
I need to check the size. I circled around her once to assess the mobility of the armor. It seemed like about a third more material was needed. Since Renny is much stronger than I am, making it slightly thicker wouldn’t hurt.
I kept revising the design in my head as I scrutinized Renny’s body. She was shivering, perhaps due to the cold, but considering the weather here stays above 20 degrees year-round, that didn’t make sense. I need to hurry and make her armor.
“Spread your arms. Until they form a right angle.”
“Like this?”
Renny looked at me with an anxious expression while spreading her arms like when measuring her waist. What could be the issue? I’m not sure, but…
Let’s just get on with it.
“Crafting.”
The required materials were drawn toward me. Thankfully, I didn’t have to exert any energy for this part. The materials slowly began to take shape according to my design in my head. I made the inner lining out of leather, layered bones on top, and covered them with bark. After about a minute, the armor emerged before me, glowing in shades of green.
“Not bad.”
“This is a bit stuffy.”
“Where is it stuffy?”
“…My chest feels a bit tight.”
“Got it. Repair.”
This should do. I looked down at Renny, who was adorned with the small golem… no, armored suit. Unlike what I envisioned, its appearance truly resembled a golem, and I couldn’t help but sigh.
Is it “big golem” or “small golem”?
Is my aesthetic sense limited to this?
“…Why are you drooping? We need to scout!”
“…Fine.”
I nodded weakly.
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“Ah, what a dreadful smell. I think it’s worse than sulfur…”
Renny grumbled as she crossed the puddle. Thankfully, the armor I made held up well against the toxins in the puddle. I followed her, scanning the surroundings.
It’s quiet.
Why is it so quiet?
Even though we’ve entered the most dangerous part of the forest, the silence is unsettling. Have all the snakes… died? No, that cannot be. I don’t want to entertain such grim thoughts. That would truly be the worst outcome. It means the difficulty has absurdly spiked. I shook my head, trying to dismiss the distractions, and refocused on scouting.
However, by the time we passed the fifth puddle, not a single snake was in sight.
What’s going on?
“Are there really snakes here? I can’t see anything alive, let alone snakes.”
“…They should have popped up by now.”
Even if other snakes had melted away, why is the Hydra being so quiet? It’s not a fan of intruders in its territory. Is it too exhausted from fighting zombies? Or could there be another reason? There aren’t enough clues to decide. This entirely purple forest is chillingly silent.
Time passed without a hint of how long we walked.
Renny and I almost simultaneously halted and stared at each other. All we could see were her exposed eyes, yet I understood what she was trying to convey.
Shh-
Shhhh-
We quietly gripped our weapons. A feeling of unpleasant friction spread through the still forest. The source of the noise was painfully obvious.
Thanks to the helmet obscuring my face, my field of vision was limited, restricting the information I could gather visually, but my heightened hearing picked up the sounds once more.
Sweat beaded on the leather covering my hands. It was uncomfortable, but that wasn’t the issue right now.
That sound.
The reptilian noise sharpens my senses. It’s lurking somewhere, watching us. It’s not a suspicion, it’s a certainty.
We have to kill it.
Listen closely.
My heart races. The sound grows nearer. The moment for a choice is fleeting.
Where will it spring from?
Left? Right?
Both sides alternate in sound. That means…
“Renny, take the left.”
I swung my shovel towards the right. Immediately, a heavy impact jolted through my hand. My shovel became stained with the snake’s fluids and blood. A horrible stench invaded my helmet and entered my nostrils. It’s unbearable. But I must endure.
I can’t lose my life over a mere smell. As always, I aimed for the snake lunging at me with a familiar motion. Despite its mouth being half-ripped, its size was still capable of swallowing an adult man—it approached me, disregarding the blade of my shovel.
So these snake bastards have been quiet because…
“A zombie snake? What a nightmare.”
“I’ve never seen a snake turn into a zombie before.”
Tearing open the grotesque mouth of the rotting snake further, I felt a momentary relief as the pressure on the shovel decreased. I released one hand from the shovel, placing it on the snake’s snout.
“Crafting.”
Its brows were pierced by a sharpened bone from a bear. The now purple blood sprayed as the snake zombie’s strength dissipated, and when I pulled my shovel out, I kicked it down to the ground.
Fortunately, I succeeded in piercing its brain in one go.
“Dismantle.”
I’m glad I brought the bones of that leader creature. They’re sturdy and oh so effective. I reverted the makeshift spear crafted from the bones around my wrist back to its original state.
Turning around, I saw Renny decapitating the snake’s head and shaking the blood from her sword.
“It’s just a big guy.”
“…That’s only you.”
“Anyone knighted can do this much. Ah, noble heirs unaware of the world must have been a warm meal.”
Knights are something scary. To take down a creature that looks like it’s five meters long with a single strike is something else altogether.
Alright, time for a check.
I lifted the head of the snakes that was half-melted in a poisonous puddle. Its terrifying appearance had me worried it might haunt my dreams, but a job’s a job. I carefully inspected the snake’s head.
“It’s quite young.”
“What do you mean?”
“Adults can grow close to 20 meters long.”
These snakes, despite only eating rabbits, are absurdly large. Most are likely dead already… But if any are alive or turned into zombies, that would be a real nuisance.
“Zombie snakes… it could become quite troublesome.”
“What will we do? Head back? Or push further in?”
“We’ll go deeper. We’re only at the entrance.”
I replied while grabbing William the First from my leather pouch. Now that I’ve confirmed the existence of zombie snakes, it’s time to raise our guard.
I threw William the First as far as I could. The hare sailed through the air and quickly melted in the puddle.
“That area seems safe.”
“Okay.”
We adjusted our movement plans. We’d toss hares into dangerous areas, gauge the situation, and then move forward. With continuous bait-throwing, we successfully dispatched the heads of five snakes that revealed themselves.
…That’s right. There were snakes everywhere.
I struggled to analyze the situation, feeling the weight of my now lighter pouch.
Thankfully, not all snakes turned into zombies; it seems only some larger ones became zombies. So the Hydra might have turned too.
That means we need to check the Hydra’s state. I can’t be sure it’s easily become a zombie.
I scanned the forest and headed toward the cave where I suspected the Hydra would be.
By the time we reached a rock overlooking the cave where the Hydra was hiding, my leather pouch loaded with hares was entirely empty.
“Did I catch too few?”
“I don’t think they’ll come out more than that. I’ve caught at least about ten…”
Fatigue was unmistakable in Renny’s voice. That was understandable. We fought our way through a forest filled with acidic toxins without being fully recovered. I too was feeling worn out. Not only from the visuals of the horrors I witnessed but also from mental fatigue.
Seeing their heads split open and still having them charge at me was unsettling.
Human zombies are the weakest.
“Let’s wait here and see if the Hydra reveals itself.”
“Got it. Ugh, this feeling is unsettling…”
I spent time peeking my head out from behind the rock.
Ten minutes, twenty minutes, thirty minutes… time dragged on.
Enduring the time without being able to remove my armor due to the toxins was torture. Maybe it’s just in my head, but my soles felt like they were burning. Perhaps the bark’s effectiveness has worn off.
While all these unfavorable situations piled up, I wasn’t happy about it, but I had no particular way to address it.
How long had we waited behind the rock?
The sun, which has started to set, began to cast crimson rays, sprinkling mysterious brilliance throughout the poisonous puddle-filled forest.
“…Let’s withdraw.”
“Yeah. Let’s head back quickly.”
Let’s go back, wash up, and rest. It would also be good to bring back a bunch of hares and deal with any remaining snakes.
I finalized the plan slowly forming in my head and turned my body.
No, I was about to turn.
Had I not noticed the nine pairs of eyes watching us from the depths of the cave.
How did they figure it out?
“Damn.”
Nine heads opened their mouths wide. I understood the meaning of that action.
That…
The world began to turn purple.