Episode 102: The Scorching Pup
Yuma was perplexed. Suddenly, a strange dog appeared, blocking his path.
“What the heck is this? A monster!? This is outside the Dungeon, you know!”
The dog lowered its stance, growled, and charged at Yuma. White steam and flames leaked from its mouth as it attacked in a straight line.
“Eeeeeh!? Why!?”
Yuma activated his Metallization ability and leaped backward, barely dodging the dog’s attack. They both stopped moving, glaring at each other from a distance.
–Why is this thing attacking me!? I didn’t do anything!
The dog bared its fangs in a Demon-like Expression, growling as it pounced again. Yuma spun around and ran with all his might.
–You’ve got to be kidding me! Why do I have to fight this thing?!
But the dog was chasing him with terrifying speed. The sight of a gleaming dog chasing after him at full speed was scarier than he imagined.
“Uooooooo!”
Yuma activated Bloodstained Ore (Bloody Ore). He ran in a zigzag pattern, putting a considerable distance between himself and the dog. He made a large detour around the residential area, completely losing the dog.
“Haa… haa… That was a surprise. What was that dog? It’s nothing like Mamezou.”
The duration of Bloodstained Ore (Bloody Ore) expired, and the light on his body faded, but he hadn’t deactivated Metallization yet. Yuma took a breather for the time being and started walking again.
“Ah, I’ve gotten pretty far from home.”
As he grumbled and walked along the dimly lit night road, he immediately noticed something was wrong. He could hear the sound of something being kicked from a corner of the quiet residential area. When he turned towards the sound, that dog with the burning red glow jumped out from the shadow of a building.
“Seriously!? What is it with you!”
The dog came straight for Yuma.
“Does it know where I am!? This dog?”
Yuma immediately ran away, but the dog stuck to him like glue. He couldn’t shake it off without using the power of Bloodstained Ore (Bloody Ore).
–Damn it! If possible, I don’t want to fight some random thing…
Dodging the approaching fangs of the dog, he used the power of Bloodstained Ore (Bloody Ore) to increase his speed and create distance.
–Yesterday, I got cocky and got completely thrashed… The Chimera seems to have fallen into a Hole and died, but I could have been killed.
Since he didn’t know how strong this dog was, he shouldn’t fight it carelessly.
Yuma looked around as he ran. Then he noticed a roadside ditch. There was a concrete lid, and it seemed to lead to a waterway further ahead.
“That’s it!”
Yuma went near the ditch and used his Liquid Metallization ability to transform his body into a round Metal Slime. Bouncing up and down, he slipped under the concrete lid.
“Heh heh heh, how about that! I can make my body small, so I can go anywhere. You can’t do that with your big body, you little pup!”
As he proceeded through the waterway with plenty of composure, he heard a sound from above.
“Hmm? What is it?”
The surrounding concrete was smoking and turning red. Looking up, he saw the dog tearing through the concrete with its Fangs of Scorching Heat.
“Eeeeeeeeeh!?”
Yuma panicked, but somehow he bounced with his round body, trying to escape. The next moment—Bakku!
“Eh?”
Yuma was caught in the dog’s mouth. His metallic body was bitten by its fangs, and he was swallowed whole.
“Aaaaaaaah!? I’m being eaten!”
Passing through the esophagus, he was sent to the stomach. It was a hellish place, seething like magma.
“I-Is this gastric acid!?”
Yuma could only stare in disbelief at the unbelievable sight.
◇◇◇
The Hell Garm, having devoured the round metal ball, tried to return the way it came, satisfied. It didn’t know what it had eaten. But it understood that it had taken something into its body that continuously emitted a large amount of Mana, allowing it to be active for a while. As it was wondering where to go next, it noticed a strange sensation in its stomach. The Hell Garm stopped walking, and the throbbing in its stomach intensified, becoming hot.
“Gaa!?”
Suddenly, hundreds of thorns protruded from its stomach. The Hell Garm was pierced all over, collapsing to the ground and writhing in agony. It didn’t know what was happening. Somehow, it managed to get up, but blood spurted from all over its body. With faltering steps, it wandered into a nearby parking lot. The parking lot next to the darkened building had only a few cars and hardly any streetlights. As it walked, covered in blood, the thorns gradually shortened and all retracted. The monster breathed shallowly, slightly relieved. Once the thorns were gone, it could regenerate its body. Just as it thought so, hundreds more thorns grew from its stomach, piercing its body again.
“Gugyaaa!?”
The Hell Garm was in agony. It couldn’t defend against the attack from inside its body. Rolling around on the ground in extreme pain, the thorns retracted, and instead, a long Longsword protruded from its stomach. Blood gushed out, and intense pain ran through its entire body. The Hell Garm screamed in agony, looking at the sword coming out of its body. The sword melted and formed a black puddle on the spot. The accumulated water gradually took shape, transforming into a human figure. It was a rugged, black human. It extended a sword from the back of its right hand and stood with its back turned. The Hell Garm felt it. The terrifying amount of Black Magical Power overflowing from that human.