Chapter 22 (1/2)

Specter Knight

“Wow, this feeling…”

Though Lulu unintentionally let that out, everyone felt it.

Until now, the labyrinth had a level of light that they could see clearly with. However, the soil walls of the seventh floor only had minimal lit torches here and there.

Something seemed to be lurking in the darkness.

“It looks like ghosts showed up after all. Though, these aren’t my strong point.”

The one to speak with a cheerful was Maal.

“Maal, by some chance are you able to see somewhat in the dark?”

She nodded at Ria’s question.

“Most beastkin can.”

Indeed, she was a Neko-san.

“Mud walls, huh? If we knew where the center was, it would be nice to break them…”

Though Ria said it seriously as usual, the two magicians seriously stopped her.

The main monsters on this floor were undead and some could pa.s.s through walls. It wasn’t so bad when the enemy could only attack from the front and the rear, but if they came from all directions at once it would naturally have been hard for them to cope with.

The exploration was difficult.

The skeletons were fine. They were just mere skeletons. Aiming to sell off the equipment of well-equipped skeletons, they welcomed it. As expected, skeletal knights roaming the floor not as a floor guardian but as a normal appearance was harsh. Even so, they were only so strong.

The zombies were also fine. Moving corpses were gross, but they were pretty weak. Some of them were excessively strong and clever, but still stopped after their heads were crushed. There were also abnormal conditions like poison and the like, but they could be cured with healing magic.

It was gross collecting magic stones from the undead. Though there was a mental problem with it being disgusting, thanks to the Goblin Bludgeoning Demon Ria-sama, the other members’ loads weren’t that much.

The problem was the ghosts.

So that their physical attacks could be effective towards them, they imbued magic on everyone’s weapons the previous night.

But regarding their means of defending against the ghosts’, they were limited.

Using magic to create barriers was the normal way to prevent it. However, when exploring for a long time, it was impossible to keep defensive magic up constantly.

“I’m getting kinda fired up.”

Ria, who was calm while being surrounded by ghosts, was the exception. The vanguard warriors were used to pain, but this was exhausting.

The ghosts’ attacks stole endurance and magical power from being touched directly. Giving dizziness and lightheadedness, the sudden attacks were dreadful as armor couldn’t defend against them.

Ria, who had an abundance of abnormal condition resistances, was hardly affected with her magic and willpower.

It didn’t feel real since the ghosts were like 3D CG. At best, they gave her gooseb.u.mps.

Probably due to her race, Lulu was strong against the ghosts’ attacks. Maal made use of her senses, quickly avoiding direct contact.

Taking a short rest, the group took out a map. From the way things had went so far, the guardian’s room must be in the center. Though there were a lot of blank areas, they didn’t have the time to fill it out.

“We’ll cut through in one go. The longer we spend here, the greater our exhaustion will be.”

Motivated with Ria’s rough words, the group dove towards the guardian.

They were in a room with a high ceiling and cold air reminiscent of catacombs.

Lined with intricately carved pillars, it gave the feeling of elegance.

Standing in the middle was a knight dressed in elaborately ornate armor. Its hand held a long sword, its face covered and hidden with a visor.

It was tall, but after becoming accustomed to seeing minotaurs and golems, it didn’t feel like it.

However, it held a different atmosphere.

A specter knight.

This was the place the Ogre King said he first lost a comrade.

“Spread out!”

The four, Maal included, spread out like bullets, surrounding the specter knight.

They didn’t have time to spare. If the person didn’t have resistance against it, just being there sapped their vitality. That was the specter knight’s ability.

The specter knight’s focus turned towards the largest figure, Gig.

Its gaze was harmful. Gig held his chest, stumbling forward and crouching down.

Moreover, without wielding its sword, it pointed towards Carlos with its left hand.

“Ugu-”