Volume 3 Chapter 41
The Next Day
I began filling in the hole in the wall of the village with earth magic, repairing it and reinforcing it. While I also began to demolish the structures within the city walls.
Fixing the wall is to prevent magical beasts from entering after I send off the undead, and create a safe area within the forest. The demolishing of the buildings is to ensure that I don’t miss any undead.
Besides, they were all so worn out that they would crumble after just breaking two or three pillars anyway. They were pretty much useless except for the undeads who would hide them, so burning them down isn’t really a hard decision to make.
When I went to clear out the village, I started by investigating each house. performing a memorial service for the undead as I did. The first division I got to was a dense collection of several small houses, so I took them down one by one, then I burned them with Holy Flame Carpet, cleaning up the wreckage. In the end, I decided to do the same, and clean out the rest of the village in the same way.
The undead that came attacking at me were all mostly taken care of by the grave slimes, the king scavenger slimes, and the light slimes. All the while, I demolished the buildings with the help of the earth slimes and the wind slimes.
The village is a bit too big for me to do everything by myself, but with the help of the slimes, I figured I could finish everything within a few days.
As the operation gradually progressed, I eventually neared the limits of my magic power. I randomly took breaks as I kept going until eventually dusk came.
“I guess I’ll end things here for the day… Oh, right!” [Ryouma]
Abruptly, I opened my Item Box, and from it I took out the guitar that I haven’t used in a while. Then I began my preparations to play the guitar and sing, chantlessly casting dark magic as I play.
It’s started to get dark, so I decided to stop the operation for the day, but just a little, I thought I’d use the remaining magic power I have, and practice the Cursed Song I coincidentally learned in the past.
If you’re wondering why I suddenly thought of doing something like this now, well it’s because I’m really bad at using this Cursed Song magic, and yet I haven’t practiced it at all. I did investigate the spell after learning it, but that’s about all I did.
Funny thing about this spell is that its good part is the same as its bad part, both being its area of effect.
It has a wide area of effect as it works as long as you can hear it, but because of that…
“I can’t choose the target. Which goes to mean that it’s an attack that doesn’t discriminate between foe or ally…” [Ryouma]
Fortunately, though, the slimes can’t hear, and the rimel birds can block off the sound with wind magic, so it doesn’t affect them.
But if I were to use the skill at the wrong place, then there’s a possibility that I might affect the people passing by. I also didn’t learn the spell because I need it, so because of all those reasons, I didn’t practice it at all. I don’t know if I can do something about its indiscrimination by practicing it, but I at least hope to be able to reduce its area of effect. There’s no one around here, so I might as well take this opportunity to practice it to my heart’s content.
As I focused, I began playing the guitar as I sang the theme song of an anime I had heard in my previous life.
But not long after, I had to stop.
“What’s going on!?” [Ryouma]
When I started to use Cursed Song, the apathetic undead in the surrounding area suddenly started hurrying toward me. Seeing that, I immediately had the slimes prepare for battle as I pulled out my katana.
“…Huh? They’re not coming anymore?” [Ryouma]
When I stopped using Cursed Song, the undead suddenly lost all interest, and they scattered away.
“Could it be?” [Ryouma]
I tried playing the guitar again as I used Cursed Song, and the undead all came hurrying toward me again. And when I stopped, they scattered away. I tried playing the guitar again, singing normally without using Cursed Song, and they didn’t come, so in other words…
“The Cursed Song has an effect similar to the grave slimes’ Attract Ghosts?” [Ryouma]
I unexpectedly discovered an effect of Cursed Song in an unlikely place. But while it’s great that I discovered something new, with this I won’t be able to practice here anymore…
“Guess I’ll have no choice but to practice in the abandoned mine once I get back home… Well, I won’t be going on trips for a while once I get back anyway, so I guess I’ll take my time then.” [Ryouma]
The undead suddenly rushing toward me kind of sucked all my strength away, so I think I’ll just go have supper, and rest now.
Day 2 of the Operation
I performed a memorial service for the undead that we lured yesterday. We also somehow managed to finish clearing out the section with many small houses before noon. Then after lunch, we dealt with the houses that were relatively big. Amongst those, many were either workshops or storehouses
There were many bound ghosts in them too. For example, there was this skeleton that’s probably a former black smith as he would lean over the hearth, and smash a rusted hammer against a rusted anvil ceaselessly. Those sort of ghosts never paid me attention even when I entered their workshop. But because of the sounds they made, they were easy to find.
After that, I entered the large houses. When I did, I understood that there were two different types of large house.
On one hand, you have the housing complexes that worked like apartments or inns. And were probably inhabited by people who can fight as weapons and armors could be seen littered all over the place. Moreover, there were also undead that could use the weapons quite well, so this hypothesis is probably true.
Then on the other hand, you have the houses of the authorities. These type of large houses had much more things compared to the others. Moreover, there were also undead who would fight while sitting down on a chair as they muttered orders such as ‘go protect!’ or something.
It’s not like the other undead listened to their orders either. After all, there’s no one left who could listen to orders anymore, so seeing an undead do that was kind of funny. Although, it also made me feel empty.
After I finished demolishing a few more houses, I neared the limits of my magic power, so I decided to take a break. I spent the break, practicing with several of the weapons I got from my grandpa.
The first thing I practiced with was the mythril spear that dazzled blue when light shone on it. It’s light and durable, but more than that, what’s really worth mentioning is its conductivity to magic, which makes using magic battle technique with it really easy.
Moreover, when I tried channeling my magic power through the spear to cast a fire ball, I found out that the magic power consumption became smaller. This is supposed to be a spear, so it’s probably the mythril that’s causing the reduction of magic power consumption.
The next thing I tried out was the thin, black-colored, adamantite rapier. It might look thin, but it’s made out of adamantite, so it’s a lot heavier than it seems.
I’m not well-versed with rapiers, but I do know that you’re supposed to thrust with them, so I practiced with the rapier by thrusting it into the pillars of the house that I haven’t demolished yet. When I did, the rapier easily pierced into a wooden pillar.
After that, I tried piercing the wooden pillars and brick walls at full strength with ki reinforcement, and the rapier didn’t bend at all. When I took it a step further, and swept the rapier against the wooden pillar, the pillar was hacked down despite the fact that I was only relying on pure strength. Of course, the blade didn’t bend either… Were rapiers meant to be able to cut wooden pillars like this?
The last weapon I tested was the adamantite katana. This one’s much more durable and sharp compared to the iron slime blade I normally use. It’s undoubtedly an excellent sword. Only, it’s quite heavy. I can swing it no problem with qi gong, but it’ll be quite exhausting in a long fight, so it’s a bit worrying to use. From here on, I should wait for my body to grow while I train myself to build up some muscles.
The Third Day
By noon, most of the memorial service of the villagers had been held. When I took a break, and walked around the village, I took the opportunity to search the area, and I ended up getting some herbs. Unexpectedly, I actually got some pepper that I could use for seasoning.
When I saw the pepper, I couldn’t help but raise my voice in delight. Pepper can be bought in the village, and in fact, I have actually bought them many times. But because they’re so expensive, they’re not something I use on a daily basis.
Buying pepper from a store in the town will cause the food expenditures to rise several times, so it’s actually a luxury to use it. I’ve also gotten used to food without pepper. And besides, I’ve already been living in this world for four years, so their common sense has already rubbed off on me to some extent.
Sill, I’ve been using black pepper in my previous life normally, so I personally don’t think it’s that much of a luxury. But even if I don’t consider black pepper itself to be a luxury, since one small bottle goes for a small gold coin – and to add to that – if I were to actually use it as if I was still back in my previous world, I’ll end up spending several times worth of a day’s living expense. Because of that it does feel somewhat luxurious. I might be making a killing, but it seems I still haven’t rid myself of my frugal mentality. Well, it still beasts being a spendthrift though.
“I might be able to solve my black pepper problems if I come here to get some every now and then. I found a good place.” [Ryouma]
If you take too much, a new one won’t grow again, so it’s important not to thoroughly uproot the herbs. I’ve heard this warning many times. And especially so in the adventurer’s guild as they’ll tell you the same warning at the reception desk before letting you off.
When I began harvesting, I was, at first, constantly warning myself to be careful, but when I saw how many herbs there were, I changed my mind. It’s because there were so many that even if I didn’t thoroughly empty the field, I would still have more than enough. Most likely, the amount I take from here will last me enough for the whole year.
Speaking of which, the plants were planted right next to the walls of the village, so it’s highly probable that the villagers were cultivating these. And because they all died, no one was left to harvest the herbs, so in the end, it ended up this many. As of now, there’s no one who knows that, so it’s a mystery.
Right after finish, I immediately put the black pepper I had gathered to use. I dried the black pepper with alchemy, and then I crushed it. After which, I then ate the meat of the undead snake with salt and black pepper. Because of the tingling taste and smell, the already delicious meat became even more delicious. From now on, my daily food will be quite luxurious.
The Fourth Day
Thanks to the power of magic and the slimes, I was able to somehow finish cleaning Cormi Village. There were no longer any undead inside the village. And even that gloomy atmosphere has been blown away. I also saw that there were magical beasts outside the village. I’m glad I took the time to repair the walls.
As I’ve taken and burned everything down except for my grandparents’ house, the place has mostly become vacant. It’s already become an abandoned village, so I think it’ll be better if I start referring to this place as the Cormi Village (Formerly). Well, whatever’s fine though.
In any case, I’ve finished what I’ve come here to do. Let’s go back to Gimuru.
I prepared whatever I needed to prepare, then when I went out, I blocked the gate of the village with earth magic. Afterwards, I brought the mimic slime out of the Dimension Home, and I ordered it to use Mimic to transform into a take ostrich.
“I’m relying on you.” [Ryouma]
“..Kuke!” [Take Ostrich Slime]
When I called out to the mimic slime, what responded back was the cry of a mimicked take ostrich. Mimic slimes reproduce even the actual body of the creature they are mimicking, so they are able to gain the full five senses when they use Mimic. Because of that, they would sometimes cry out after finishing the task I’ve given them, seemingly asking, ‘what’s next’.
Back to the Main Topic
After I had confirmed that the mimic slime was ready, I rode it… Clinging is more fitting though, I suppose.
In these past three days, I’ve been sending the undead off, and have been cleaning the wreckages. When I finally ran out of magic power, and took a break, I investigated the mimic slimes, and trained them by having them let me ride them. I also rode on them, whenever I went out to get some herbs, creating more opportunities for them to train.
The impetus behind that is that when I saw the mimicked take ostrich running around, I thought to myself, couldn’t I ride that? And so, I tested it out, and I found out that the leg strength of the take ostrich was actually really strong. It was able to let me ride it and run fast at the same time. Of course, it was slower than when I wasn’t riding it, but it’s still plenty fast, so there’s no problem on that front.
The feathers of the take ostrich were much softer than I had originally thought it to be. I also didn’t receive any discomfort when I rode it. Moreover, the mimic slime was able to make itself bigger with its Enlarge skill, so riding over it was actually quite comfortable. Also, the mimic slime is different from the other slimes in that it can feel fatigue, so I couldn’t overdo it. Thanks to the take ostrich, the way back has gotten a lot easier.
“Go!” [Ryouma]
“Kuke!” [Mimicked Take Ostrich]
The take ostrich rocketed off at my words, and it ran like a sprinting horse within the dense forest.
…It’s fast, but I’ll definitely have to put a saddle over it once I get back. It wouldn’t be nice if I fell after all. If this were a horse, I’m confident that I’d be able to find a saddle for it somewhere along the way. But because it’s a take ostrich, I’ll have to look for a saddle that’s meant for ostrich use. If I find one, I’ll buy it.
Around an hour after departing.
The magical beasts that attacked me from time to time were paralyzed by my Paralyze Mist and scattered by the speed of the mimic slime, so we haven’t stopped at all since we left an hour ago. Around this time, the mimic slime started getting tired, so I let it rest inside the Dimension Home.
I didn’t think it would actually be able to keep that pace up while carrying me for an hour. Apparently, I had been underestimating the leg strength of the take ostrich. Their speed isn’t just explosive, it can also last for extended periods.
It would normally have taken four hours even without any undead, but thanks to the mimic slime I can now get to the lake now with just a little more walk.
As I thought that, I walked. And when I neared the lake, I noticed the presence and sound of something rampaging. Apparently something was rampaging around the lake. Immediately, I used Hide to hide my presence, then I went out to see what the fuss was about.
What entered my sight were two cannon ball rhinoses. One of them was 2 meters tall and 4 meters long, a cannon ball rhinos with a body bigger than the average cannon ball rhinos. Fighting against that cannon ball rhinos was a tiny, one-meter-tall cannon ball rhinos, that could still be thought of as a child…
…This fight’s no good. The bigger cannon ball rhinos isn’t moving much, but the smaller one keeps challenging the other cannon ball rhinos only to be blown away. But it won’t give up. It stands up immediately after being thrown away, and tries again. The difference in physique is too big, at this rate, the smaller one won’t have a chance to win at all.
Still… Why on earth is that small one picking a fight with that big one? It’s already wounded all over, and yet it keeps desperately charging against that bigger…!?
As I continued to watch the cannon ball rhinoses, I suddenly felt something fly toward me, aiming for my head. As soon as I felt that something coming at me, I bent my body to dodge it.
What came flying was a tongue that looked like it had a sharp arrowhead attached to it. Following back the direction where it came from, I saw a lone tree from which the tongue could be seen growing on one of its branches.
Unsheathing my sword, I headed toward the tree, and I cut off the place slightly above where the tongue was growing from. When I did so, blood spurted out of a part of the tree, and that something fell to the ground. The true identity of what had gone flying at me was actually the tongue of an anchor chameleon. Apparently, it thought it was a good opportunity to attack as I was caught up watching the cannon ball rhinoses.
Thinking that to myself, I suddenly remembered the cannon ball rhinoses, so I turned to see how they were doing.
“………” [Both Rhinoses]
“Ah”
Our eyes met. Looks like they noticed me when I killed the anchor chameleon… Currently, I am facing toward the two rhinos which are both in front of the lake. The bigger one is situated diagonally to my right, while the smaller one is situated diagonally to my left. They both turned toward me.
…I’m not an enemy, you know~
“KUOoOOoO!!!!!!” [Rhinos]
“Wh–!?” [Ryouma]
After a few moments of silence, the bigger rhinos suddenly took a 180 from its previous behavior as it bellowed out a war cry, and charged toward me.
Not good!
Immediately, I hid myself, and jumped in between the trees, dodging the charge. The bigger rhino that had charged toward me, kept going until it crashed against a tree.
The tree bent at the impact, and large cracks could be seen extending from where the rhinos horn had pierced. Not long after, sounds of breaking apart resounded, and the tree completely fell down, causing the ground to shake.
“I’ll definitely dodge it if it comes from the f– woah!” [Ryouma]
That was dangerous!
I had managed to dodge the bigger one, but the smaller one came attacking too!
As I was wondering whether I had to fight them both at the same time, it suddenly occurred to me that there were two cannon ball rhinoses lying down.
For a moment, I braced myself, thinking there were more of them. But not long after, I noticed that they were already dead. From that, I finally understood why the smaller one was picking a fight with the bigger one.
Those two rhinoses were probably the smaller one’s parents.
As I was thinking that to myself, the bigger one turned toward me, bellowed out a war cry as it charged toward me again. Stepping to the side, I dodged it. And then just as I tried to slash it–––
“!? It’s tougher than I thought.” [Ryouma]
That pretty much summed up what it felt like when I hit it. Sure, I did hear that its skin was tough, but my ki clad stroke actually couldn’t cut through it. All it did was cut through the rhinos’ fur, leaving only a shallow cut over the rhinos’ body. It didn’t even bleed a drop. This is the first time something like this has happened since I got to this world, so I’m a bit surprised.
The attacks of the rhinoses’ are linear, so I can just dodge them by sensing the magic power they release before they start the charge. But at the same time, my attacks won’t work, so the situation isn’t exactly getting any better… There is that adamantite katana I got from grandpa though. Should I try using it?
No, it’s dangerous to use an unfamiliar weapon I haven’t even practiced with. If it were just a raptor, then it wouldn’t matter much, but this are cannon ball rhinoses.
But still… what’s up with toughness of their skin? I heard they used neutral magic, but could it be there’s also a hardening technique aside from just the strengthening one? Or could it be this hardness is just normal amongst the bodies of the cannon ball rhinoses?
I kept my eyes fixed on the two rhinoses while I continued to think of a way to deal with them
