Chapter 46: Traces of Pterosaurs
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When facing a powerful enemy with greater overall strength than yours, there is no need to hesitate once you have gained the upper hand, but instead, to use all your strength to knock the enemy down and defeat him!
With one move, Izzy launched a fierce attack with lightning speed, and the spear in his hand left an afterimage.
From a certain moment on, a faint light began to emanate from the silver-gray spear, climbing up little by little and spreading bit by bit.
Izzy, who was in the midst of the battle, did not notice the glimmer of light but only felt that the spear seemed to become lighter and easier to wield.
The giant arm that wanted to smash down was deflected and sent flying.
The hand that tried to sweep was swiftly dodged.
The Minotaur, with scars all over its massive body, appeared riddled with flaws in Izzy's eyes.
The spear transformed into a deadly weapon, descending upon the Minotaur with a piercing sound as it tore through the air, repeatedly inflicting injuries on its tough body.
The last thing that came into view was a horizontal flash of silver light, followed by the sound of fabric tearing. The Minotaur staggered with its shattered body, let out a low, dying scream, and fell backward.
After a few seconds, the huge body disintegrated into black ash, and a glowing magic stone with a blue-purple hue fell to the ground.
"Minotaur... well, I can handle it."
Izzy stopped in front of Ryuu and stretched out a hand toward the magic stone on the ground. A deep blue halo appeared in the palm of his hand. The magic stone on the ground shook twice, then quietly floated up and landed in his hand.
"When other adventurers hear what Mr. Izzy said, they'll probably be so angry that they'll come at you with their weapons," Ryuu said, slowly walking up to Izzy.
This had always been the case, and she had grown numb to Izzy's ability to effortlessly defeat monsters of higher levels.
If Ryuu were familiar with modern Internet terms, she would undoubtedly blurt out a complaint about Izzy being an "old Versailles man."
"Let's return for now, Mr. Izzy. It's only been one day; the target shouldn't have moved to the lower levels yet."
After taking a look at the surrounding environment, Ryuu judged that they were already deep into the fifteenth floor. Any further would lead to the sixteenth floor, so she made a suggestion to Izzy.
The main purpose of the two now was to locate and defeat the Pterosaur.
As an "Strengthen" monster, although the Pterosaur had the possibility of moving to other floors, it would typically stay on its birth floor for a short time to hunt magic stones.
After all, this was the middle-level area, and the fifteenth floor at that. The frequency and quality of monsters born here were considerable, an irresistible temptation for the Pterosaur.
"Yeah, that's fine," Izzy replied. After putting away the Minotaur's magic stone, he nodded in agreement, and the two began retracing their steps.
"——Roaroooooooooooooooooooooo!!!"
Suddenly, a deafening roar erupted, shaking the cave and causing the walls to tremble.
The sound echoed endlessly in the cavern, making it impossible to ignore.
A bad premonition arose in the hearts of all adventurers in the area, but it didn't last long. It was quickly replaced by excitement and exhilaration—they had finally located their target!
Countless adventurers began moving toward the source of the roar.
"Mr. Izzy, that's—!"
"Ah, there's no mistake. That roar belongs to the Pterosaur, and it sounded close. Someone must have spotted it first. No matter what, let's go and take a look!"
"Um!"
Izzy and Ryuu, having also heard the roar, made a quick assessment before sprinting into a dark tunnel.
...
At the end of the long, shadowy tunnel lay a vast, expansive cave.
The entire cavern was a spacious expanse of gray-white stone, with scattered boulders piled haphazardly along the walls.
A fortunate team of adventurers had arrived first, drawn to this location by their commission from the guild to defeat the elusive Pterosaur. They had come prepared to take on the challenge.
But upon entering the cave, they paused in their tracks.
From their vantage point, it was clear that this cave bore the marks of an intense battle.
The ground was pockmarked with deep craters, evidence of a violent clash between two massive, ferocious monsters. The once-solid surface had been churned and trampled into chaos.
Charred, blackened scorch marks streaked across the gray-white floor, demanding attention and filling the air with the acrid smell of burned stone.
Elated by the discovery, the adventurers, convinced they were close to their goal, decided to spread out and search the area thoroughly.
They combed through the scattered stones, examined the ground's gaping holes, and even inspected the jagged crevices in the surrounding walls.
Finally, at the highest point of the cavern, atop a massive pile of rocks, they found it.
A creature with a rugged, dark red body like molten lava, sharp claws, long fangs, and countless scales. Its wings, formed of warped membranes, extended ominously.
It was a dragon.
A rare elite monster of the middle levels, its presence was seldom encountered. The dragon's distinctive wings confirmed its identity as a "Pterosaur."
Disturbed by the presence of intruders, its dormant eyes flickered open, and it revealed its formidable form atop the rocky hill.
Standing at its highest vantage, it spread its wings wide and let out an ear-splitting roar.
The force of the roar sent shards of rock flying in all directions. Its piercing cry, capable of shattering eardrums, reverberated through the cavern, leaving the adventurers paralyzed and gasping for breath.
Its enormous body, nearly five meters in length, loomed ominously. What should have been a light red Pterosaur now stood before them as a dark red monstrosity, its hardened form unmistakable.
This was not an ordinary Pterosaur.
It was an "Strengthen ,species," a creature with hidden power far exceeding that of its ordinary kin.
"This is… the 'Strengthen species'...?"
The scarred leader of the adventurer team muttered in disbelief, his voice trembling as he tried to suppress his fear.
He had never seen an "Strengthen species" before, nor had he encountered the "abnormal situations" that adventurers so often dreaded.
At most, he had dealt with events like a "monster party" or the maliciously engineered "monster gift."
But this was something far beyond his experience.
Still, the scar-faced man had a history with Pterosaurs.
Once, he had stumbled upon one and slain it with relative ease.
His team, composed of Lv.2 advanced adventurers who had undergone sublimation, had no trouble capturing a small Pterosaur back then.
It was this previous triumph that gave the scar-faced man the confidence to lead his team and accept the guild's commission to defeat another one.
For that reason, he had always dismissed the threat of "Strengthen species" as exaggerated rumors.
But now, standing before this creature, he realized just how mistaken he had been.
This beast was nothing like the ordinary Pterosaur they had faced before.
It was a monster far beyond the capabilities of these lower-level Lv.2 adventurers.
Born as an "Strengthen species," this Pterosaur had not only grown more powerful but had devoured the magic stone of a Minotaur.
That act alone had likely pushed its strength to unimaginable levels, perhaps even approaching the upper thresholds of Lv.2.
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