"Hmm…they should be right about…here."
I stopped in the middle of the forest, consulting the holographic map that was beaming out of my smartphone. A red icon marked my location, indicating that I had indeed reached my destination. There were reports from the nearby villagers of a pack of feral Mad Monkeys raiding their homes, abducting children and slaughtering adults, and as such they had sent a request for help. Even though they were too poor to offer a reward, the money was paid by the Federation, so theoretically any combat mage could take the mission.
I was glad I grabbed it before any of the mercenaries or military organizations did. Then again, there were so many monsters and Emergence events throughout the world that there frequently weren't enough soldiers or combat mages to handle them all. That was why they outsourced the missions to us students. It also provided the benefit of giving amateurs such as us sufficient combat experience as we went into university and improved our chances of joining a prestigious military unit.
Honestly, though…I just wanted to slay some monkeys.
"Scree…!"
Frowning, I turned at the sound of the cry and saw a Mad Monkey. They were E rank monsters, but sometimes they had an Alpha, a Berserk Monkey that led the pack, which was a D rank monster. That explained the D ranking of the mission, otherwise normally Mad Monkeys would only stipulate an E ranking.
Just like the single one that was throwing itself at me right now. Before it could reach me, however, Ursa Major appeared and crushed the poor thing with his claws.
"Thanks," I told Ursa Major. I had already prepared my summoning spells the moment I reached within 100 meters of this place, just in case I spotted a Mad Monkey. After all, this was the area where villagers reported the most frequent sightings of the Mad Monkeys.
The trees around me shuffled, and I glanced around, but despite the optical functions in my glasses, I couldn't see any of them. They had hidden themselves well, using the trees for cover and staying out of sight.
Like I said, these Mad Monkeys were pretty crafty. They knew how to use complex tactics to ambush their prey. Aware that I had a gigantic bear Constellation spirit protecting me, they kept their distance and were assessing the threat.
I could still sense them nearby, though. The fact that they hadn't retreated meant that they were considering me as a prey, or as a threat to be eliminated. They hadn't fled from fear, after all, and continued to monitor me from the shadows.
They probably thought they could kill me. However, they were intelligent enough to realize that a careless move would result in their deaths, just like how their reckless comrade met a messy death at the paws of my Ursa Major.
The huge bear cocked his head to stare at me questioningly, and I shook my head. I could feel his curiosity mentally, but through that same link he caught a glimpse of my plan. He then smiled – as best as a giant bear could smile anyway – and sat back on his haunches, standing sentry over me just in case a Mad Monkey wanted to take its chances.
With my back guarded, I could proceed to the next phase of my strategy. See? This was why I didn't need a party or a team. I could essentially summon my own team or party. I did probably have to serve as a supervisor to my juniors next year, when they started taking missions, to ensure they would be fine, but otherwise I was happy going solo.
Closing my eyes, I raised my right hand and completed a second summoning. A flock of Corvus materialized and took to the skies, soaring overhead and sweeping the forest with their eyes and keen senses.
Immediately I could see where all the Mad Monkeys were hidden, their positions embedded deeply inside the canopies of tall trees, the gaps between leaves that exposed their locations from above. The Mad Monkeys still didn't realize, and watched me oddly. One of them bared its fangs and hissed, and a few of them followed its lead. They darted out of the trees to strike at me, trying to probe my defenses.
Bam!
Ursa Major pulverized the lead Mad Monkey before spinning around to swat another into a tree. The poor Mad Monkey collided with the trunk with a sickening crunch, before sliding downward in a slick of blood, every bone in its body broken. A third was stomped underfoot, and a fourth was bitten apart by his fangs. The fifth cowered and frantically retreated, but Ursa Major kicked a boulder, which flew like a railgun projectile and obliterated the fleeing Mad Monkey before it could reach the safety of the trees.
The rest of the pack went still, clinging into their hiding places.
Unfortunately, it was too late. I could see them, thanks to my hovering flock of Corvus. Raising my left hand, I summoned Orion.
"Betelgeuse," I muttered as I aimed at the sky and infused my right hand with magical energy. A torrent of azure mana shrouded my right arm before flowing through Orion.
The dark gloom of the forest was instantly illuminated as glowing arrows burst out of my bow and streaked upward…only for them to arc before they could pierce the heavens, gently curving downward and raining down in a meteoric shower of destruction.
The Mad Monkeys didn't know what hit them. They were still keeping their eyes on me, and though some noticed something was amiss when I executed my technique, the arrows were traveling too quickly. Some dismissed my attack, wondering why I was aiming toward the sky. The Mad Monkeys probably thought I went mad or something.
A few traced the trajectory of my arrows, but the arcane projectiles were moving so fast their eyes couldn't follow their movements. In the next second, more than a few of these supposedly cautious Mad Monkeys found their skulls or eyes punctured by the blinding arrows, which punched through their heads mercilessly.
These were the lucky ones.
The rest didn't die instantly, the arrows piercing through their bodies in different places and causing them to convulse. They toppled over, shrieking in pain as more arrows continue to stab into them, turning them into pincushions.
…then merciful silence.
Taking a deep breath, I then summoned Canis Minor and directed them to flush out whatever Mad Monkeys that remained. The pack of hunting hounds eagerly loped into the forest, sniffing the air. I also maintained my Corvus to keep an aerial vigil over the area, so as not to miss anything, and also to be prepared for any surprises.
"GGGGGGGGUOOOOOAAAAAAAAAH!"
The "surprise" came, though I couldn't say I didn't expect it. Turning in the direction of the roar, I could already see through Corvus's eyes the enormous monkey smashing its way toward me. It was uprooting trees or tearing them out of its path, bellowing ferociously when it realized what had happened to its pack.
The Berserk Monkey. The Alpha of the pack. Easily ten times the size of a normal Mad Monkey, it was swelling with muscles and looked more like an ape than an actual monkey (yes, there is a difference between a monkey and an ape). Its prehensile tail whipped out, splitting huge trees apart, and I could see a flash of silver at its edge. A scorpion-like blade curved from the tip of the Berserk Monkey's tail, slicing through the trees like laser through diamond (because I know you're sick of the hot knife through butter similes).
"Heh," I smirked. "You saved me the trouble of looking for you."
Initially, I was surprised that the Berserk Monkey wasn't leading its pack of Mad Monkeys, but come to think of it, it wasn't all that strange. Just like lions, where the alpha male lion just lazed around at home while the female lionesses in the pride did all the hunting, the Berserk Monkey must have been slacking off at its nest while its underlings did all the work. But now that an unexpected massacre had occurred and the Berserk Monkey lost contact with its subordinates through whatever mystery means of communication they used, it came charging over.
Perhaps it shared a telepathic link with the Mad Monkeys it reigned over, just like how I shared a mental connection with my Constellation spirits.
No matter. It was too far away and too slow. By the time it reached the vicinity, I already had another arrow prepared and drawn.
"Rigel."
The Berserk Monkey never knew what hit it. My blazing arrow struck it in the chest and detonated, essentially nuking the area.
Rank D or not, the Berserk Monkey was nothing compared to Hades, the monstrous foe I had faced all those weeks ago. I felt perhaps a little disappointment at the lack of challenge, but this was basically easy money.
Oh, no…I can't get complacent. I can't underestimate my enemies.
The only reason why I won this time was because of ample preparation and planning. The Mad Monkeys had no idea what kind of strategies I would employ against them, and they were completely caught off guard. They were also lower-ranked, so they pretty much weren't that strong.
If they were more powerful monsters, they probably would be a lot more dangerous. This wasn't to say the Mad Monkeys posed no threat to me. On the contrary, I knew that they could easily kill me when given the chance, which was why I made so many preparations in the first place. Looking down on them could prove to be my last, fatal mistake.
"Thanks, guys," I said when my Canis Minor returned, their jaws and claws bloody. After one last sweep to ensure that all the Mad Monkeys were dead, I then dismissed my Constellation spirits and prepared for my journey back to school. It was too tiring to maintain my Constellation spirits in the physical world for extended periods of time. Yeah, I could maintain them for a couple of hours if I continually fed them my magical energy, but that would be too draining and I might collapse from the exhaustion. Besides, I might need my magical energy for later. You would never know.
"All right, let's go."
Following the highlighted path visible in my lenses, I began on my return journey. Stepping through the broken trail left by the Berserk Monkey and ignoring the charred crater left behind by my Rigel, I cautiously made my way toward the exit…
Boom!
…only to swivel around at the sudden explosion. Some distance away, I spotted an enormous conflagration blossoming into the sky, the flames blazing hungrily as they consumed whatever unfortunate trees that were within their reach.
"Hmm…" despite knowing it was none of my business, my curiosity got the better of me. The battle with the monster monkeys were pretty unsatisfying, after all. "Maybe I should check that out."