Chapter 53: The Second Feral Beast
〖Territory〗. It’s a 〖Skill〗 that establishes a 〖Zone Control〗 and dominates the world.
Within the 〖Zone Control〗, laws and the environment are distorted, causing various special phenomena.
It’s like a stage gimmick, altering the 〖Zone Control〗 to favor the one who activated the 〖Territory〗.
However, it seems that when a 〖Feral Beast〗 becomes powerful, its influence overflows, sometimes affecting even the outside of the 〖Zone Control〗 as an aftereffect.
“(Man, human knowledge is truly amazing.)”
I thought that again, recalling what Ergo had told me.
Even though 〖Feral Beasts〗 are uncharted territory for me, humanity as a whole has encountered them many times.
Naturally, they have a general understanding of their unique abilities.
Thanks to that, I was able to learn about 〖Territory〗 and the 〖Zone Control〗 it creates beforehand.
“(If I remember correctly, the Forest Turtle’s 〖Zone Control〗 was the 〖Great Forest Sea〗, right?)”
I recalled the words of the plump young man, Ergo.
〖Zone Control: Great Forest Sea〗 mainly has the effect of activating plants, and as a result, plants grow easily in this forest.
As someone planning to defeat the Forest Turtle, I was concerned, “If I kill the Forest Turtle, won’t people like Paula, who make a living by gathering, be in trouble?”
But the 〖Zone Control: Great Forest Sea〗 has been integrated into the land for hundreds of years, and even if the 〖Zone Control〗 itself disappears, the aftereffects will remain for a while, so it’s not a problem to defeat it.
I thought, “If it’s going to disappear someday, isn’t that a big problem?” But in the first place, 〖Feral Beasts〗 are disasters that can destroy towns if they go on a rampage, so it’s better to defeat them if possible.
That’s why I plan to defeat it as soon as my combat power is ready.
“(Well, I can’t do it now though.)”
According to the latest records, the Forest Turtle’s 〖Level〗 is about 200.
It’s a monster, plain and simple. I doubt I could even be a match for it in my current state.
But leveling up with the average 〖Dire Beast〗 would take too long.
Raising my 〖Level〗 from 99 to 100 requires a massive amount of 〖Experience Points〗, unlike anything before.
This is commonly known as the 〖Level 100〗 wall.
That’s why I’ll defeat an easy 〖Feral Beast〗 and get a large amount of 〖Experience Points〗.
Besides the Forest Turtle, there’s another 〖Feral Beast〗 in this forest, and it only became a 〖Feral Beast〗 a few decades ago, so its 〖Level〗 is still in the early hundreds.
I’ve already gathered information about its habitat and abilities from Ergo and Paula.
“(The area ahead is the Demon Beast’s 〖Zone Control〗, huh? It’s easy to tell…)”
I’ve just reached the border. It’s the boundary between the green trees and the poisonous-colored trees.
It’s clear that the area beyond this point is the 〖Feral Beast’s〗 sphere of influence.
Swallowing a bit of fear, I bravely stepped in.
I wasn’t immediately poisoned upon entering, and I continued to walk through the forest normally.
“(Well, it seems I am being poisoned though.)”
When I focused my awareness inward, I felt an unpleasant sensation, like something was patting me with bare hands.
This must be the effect of the 〖Zone Control〗.
“(The effect of 〖Zone Control: Poison Swamp〗 is to enhance poison effects and indiscriminately apply 〖Poison〗. Because of that, all the plants around here have become poisonous. Well, my 〖Resist〗 is high, so it seems I’m fine.)”
It’s easy to forget, but due to the effect of 〖Perfect Defense〗, a portion of my 〖Toughness〗 is added to my 〖Resist〗. I won’t be affected by ordinary 〖Status Ailments〗.
However, I don’t know what would happen if I were hit directly by the main body’s attack.
“(After all, the 〖Feral Beast〗 ahead is—)”
As I headed towards the denser 〖Mana〗, I saw my destination.
The gaudy trees of the forest ended, and my vision suddenly opened up.
There was a purple swamp that looked poisonous.
It was at least four times the size of a school pool, and in the shallows of the center, a Demon Beast was sleeping.
“(That’s the ‘Unavoidable Hundred Poison Lord,’ huh? It looks just like I was told.)”
“Unavoidable Hundred Poison Lord” isn’t just a nickname. It’s a proper species name.
Apparently, many 〖Feral Beast〗 species names are like that.
However, that’s long and doesn’t give a clear idea of its appearance, so I’ll use a different name in my mind.
A more intuitive name that expresses its characteristics: Hydra.
“(Well, it only has five heads though.)”
I thought as I looked at the sleeping Hydra. Its thick torso, covered in dark purple scales, branched out and connected to five heads.
The Hydra from the myths I know had nine heads, so this is slightly different.
But the fact that it has powerful poison is the same.
According to human information, it has many poison-type 〖Skills〗, and even high-level adventurers would be on the verge of death if they were exposed to it even a little.
Its torso is as thick as a large tree, and its total length is no less than ten meters.
I should prepare to attack before it wakes up.
~Unrecorded Information Area~
…
Fue Toukouya (Jewel Armory Slime)’s 〖Folly〗 has been activated.
…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“(〖Replicant Form – Imitation〗)”
I imitated two wind-breaking bows.
The 〖Crashing Strike〗 from high altitude that I used on the Chaos Spawn was also an option, but if the swamp’s poison was effective on me, it would be bad in combination with the 〖Zone Control〗 effect, so I took a safer approach.
It has multiple heads, so there’s no guarantee I can take it down with one blow.
Then, I climbed a sturdy-looking tree nearby and stared at the Hydra.
The first attack is crucial. I need to land the most powerful blow possible, as I can attack it while it’s defenseless and also get the effect of a 〖Surprise Attack〗.
So, I took out an explosive arrow, tied it to the end of a whip, and then… instead of nocking it on the bow, I took a big swing.
Then, using the maximum centrifugal force, I threw it with all my might!
“(〖All-Out Throw〗!)”
〖All-Out Throw〗 is an upgraded version of 〖Throwing〗, with the added effect of being able to perform a powerful throw by consuming stamina.
The explosive arrow, aided by that, flew through the air faster than a shot from a bow, reaching the Hydra in an instant.
Then, it exploded.
““Hyuooooh!?””
The five heads cried out simultaneously.
Since 〖Sniping〗 also applies to throwing, the explosive arrow hit one of the Hydra’s heads as intended. Thin smoke rose from the point of impact.
That was the signal to start the battle.
The battle between me and the Unavoidable Hundred Poison Lord, Vaple, had begun at this very moment.