The sound of bones that resembled reptiles' creeping on the hard marcasite ground became stronger with each passing second.
Dante looked into the darkness ahead. "They are getting closer to us!" He said, and then he looked Nathaniel. "Stop slumbering and put the girl down! These skeletons are faster than I had expected!"
Nathaniel put the girl down, but his movements were stiff.
"Hey, clumsy girl! You can hold the torch for us, right? We have to fight now." After seeing the girl's nod, Dante turned to Ulfred.
The old man stuck his torch between two marcasite rocks on the cave wall and faced the darkness ahead. He was ready to fight.
Dante didn't need to say something to the old man. He looked like an inborn warrior at the moment.
"Good!" He joined Ulfred at the front rank, not giving other glances to the blonde and Nathaniel on the back.
The sounds got closer and closer. Before long, small figures come into the light!
"Old man, there are quite a bit pygmy skeletons. My stats should be higher than yours at the moment. Let me go first!" Dante said, and without waiting for an answer, he stood in front of Ulfred.
The party had small thighbones that belonged to the pygmy skeletons on their hands, but Dante was sure that it would be just a little more efficient than bare hands.
Pygmy skeletons resembled a ten years old child's skeleton on appearance. However, between them, there were some differences too.
Their heads were broad and a bit flatter on the top. Their arms were longer than standard. They didn't have weapons, but their hands were long, and their fingers looked like sharp bony claws.
Dante held the thighbone horizontally with one hand and waved it with all of his might toward the neck of a pygmy skeleton that was speeding via to him! His movements were brute and devoid of elegance!
"Haaa!"
*clank*
Its neck broke to several pieces as soon as they collided, and its misshaped head rolled on marcasite floor, even producing some sparks!
However, its body didn't stop its movements after losing its head! It didn't slow down at all!
"Ahh! You little monkey!"
[You lost 5 HP!]
Three red lines appeared on Dante's right thigh! It wasn't a deep wound, but redness still started to spread on his clothes slowly!
'One scratch caused me to lose 5 HP! How cruel!'
Dante had suffered from a little shock, but it didn't stop him to spring into action!
With his left hand, he punched the pygmy skeleton at the middle of its chest, crushing its sternum and ribs completely! His punch even broke its spine, scattering pieces of bones everywhere!
[You lost 3 HP!]
'What a bullshit!'
Dante hit its serrated bones with his bare hand, causing his hand to got damage from his own blow!
The skeleton's upper body had turned into fragments of bones, and its lower body had dropped to the ground, but it still tried to get up!
Dante wasn't surprised from its actions this time! He stepped forward immediately and gave a vicious stomp on its pelvis, completely shattering it!
[You gained 3 EXP!]
Pygmy skeletons were a kind of undead monsters. Naturally, killing them was a hassle. These skeletons wouldn't die unless one thoroughly destroys them.
"Aim their limbs first! These things do not die easily! Destroy their bodies!" Dante cried out!
Having knowledge about one's mortal enemy was essential. He had to admit. His calculations were flawed.
He used too much of his strength on his previous blows. That was his fault.
His first blow was bigger than needed, and there was the distraction from his little shock, causing him to lose his balance. The combination of these two factors cost him 5 HP.
On his second blow, again he used too much strength, causing him to lose 3 HP from his own attack.
The pygmy skeletons were fast, but they were small, fragile and weak creatures at the same time. All he needed to do was being calmer!
However, he learned his lesson. He was deadlier now!
Dante moved forward without losing any time! He slashed the thigh bone vertically on a skeleton's arm, shattering it instantly! Then to its other arm, leaving it armless and harmless!
Their bones were dusty and old. Breaking them wasn't hard. On the other hand, his own weapon was a fragile bone too. After swinging it three times, it broke in two pieces!
He wasn't upset because his hands were deadlier weapons! HP lose was just a small price!
He punched the skeleton's sternum again with his left hand! This time, his punch had less strength backing it, but it was still enough to shatter the monster thoroughly!
[You lost 1 Hp]
[You gained 3 EXP]
'One more pygmy, and I will level up!'
Current Dante had 8 EXP, 2 more EXP needed for him to level up!
He looked at his teammates.
Ulfred was holding a pygmy skeleton from its arms, firmly locking its movements! It was trying to bite him continually!
A moment later, Ulfred raised the monster into the air and flung it on the hard ground!
Despite his old appearance, he was tall and had a well-built body.
The small skeleton dropped to the ground from two and a half meters altitude with the momentum Ulfred had given it! That shattered its bony body instantly!
However, its head was still producing tooth hitting tooth sounds! With a stomp on it, Ulfred crumbled it under his foot!
As soon as his first prey died under his hands, the old man jumped on another one! His savageness was truly awe-inspiring for the eyes of the rest!
'Good job old man! Now that suited with your appearance more!'
Then Dante looked at the back.
The clumsy blonde was shivering at the side with creased brows. Her lips were trembling from fear too. She was holding the bone torch with two hands.
Dante wasn't surprised at all.
'At least, she is holding the torch for us!' Dante thought.
However, Nathaniel was not at present. Dante's eyes couldn't find him anywhere!
"Did Nat run away? How he dare!" He couldn't help but get angry!
They were fighting with their lives on the line, but one of them unexpectedly made a bolt for it, with the first chance he got at that!
That was what Dante thought in the heat of the battle. However, neither he nor Ulfred had the time to bother themselves with the clumsy blonde and Nathaniel's behaviors.
Till now, three pygmy skeletons had died under Dante and Ulfred's hands. There had been six pygmy skeletons rushing toward the party at the start. Now, there left three!
Old man Ul grabbed one of them from the back of its rib cage and raised it into the air again. The small skeleton monster was frantically moving its limbs and producing clanking sounds from its mouth as if it understood what will happen to it a few moments later.
This time Ulfred pushed it to the wall with just one hand. The skeleton's frantic movements were getting intensified as he had compressed it between his hand and the cave wall with ever increasing strength!
*Boom*
Its small bones couldn't hold on any longer and shattered into tiny pieces under the strong pressure!
Something caught Dante's attention at this moment.
Old man Ul shouldn't have been this strong. He was a level 1 participant like the rest, and him receiving a stat bonus reward from an achievement had little chances. Then what was that power?
Dante was sure he was able to do the same, but in terms of brute strength, Ulfred seemed no weaker than him.
Dante could think about it later! There was another enemy in front of him, an enemy that he must destroy thoroughly!
Dante dodged a claw attack by rolling over the ground! While on the roll, he grabbed the pygmy skeleton's leg and with the momentum he had gained, he slammed the creature to the marcasite cave wall, shattering it into a thousand pieces!
[Level up! Now you are a level 2 participant!] was the sound he heard inside of his head after killing his enemy!