Episode 151: Golem Valley ②
“Fire Lance!”
A spear of fire shot from the tip of Eleonore’s extended sword, sinking into the chest of a golem that stood about three meters tall. There lay the source of the golem’s power: a Golem Core, black and about the size of a basketball.
The Golem Core, struck by the Fire Lance, melted with a sizzle, and the light vanished from the golem’s eyes. The rocks forming the golem crumbled with a rumble. That’s a golem defeated.
Eleonore’s getting the hang of using magic, huh? Her accuracy has improved significantly.
“They’re coming from the left too! Three golems! Frontliners, take them down!”
Following my instructions, Cornelia and Claudia moved.
Rumble, clatter!
The two frontliners quickly dispatched the golems.
“Three more from the right. Lily, if you please.”
“Nn.”
As Lily pointed her right hand at the approaching golems from the right, three rock spears materialized.
The rock spears launched the instant they were created. With a deafening crash of massive objects colliding, the rock spears pierced the chests of the three golems. Among them, one golem had its upper body blown away.
Lily’s magic seems more than powerful enough for Golem Valley. How reassuring.
Then, two more golems appeared from the front. Are they drawn by the sounds of battle? In any case, it’s convenient that they come to us without us having to search.
“El, you’re up.”
“Yes!”
This place, which had been like a small clearing, was becoming buried under golem remains, like gravestones. It’d be great if we can keep hunting golems at this pace.
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At this rate, hunting a ton of golems, we delved deeper and deeper into Golem Valley. After taking short breaks and meal rests along the way, we eventually reached a cave. It was a downward-sloping cave, likely leading underground.
Now, what to do…
Golem Valley has two goals. To put it plainly, the summit of the table mountain and the underground area. In terms of difficulty, the summit course is easier. The underground is harder.
We’ve fought numerous golems so far, but everyone in Reginleif still seemed to have plenty of strength left.
Right. Let’s try the underground.
“Let’s go underground this time.”
The difficulty increases underground, but so does the experience gained from defeating monsters. If we have the potential to challenge it, we should actively do so.
What’s the big deal? If it’s too much, we can just come back. Let’s take it easy.
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A monster in black armor approached. It was about two meters tall. A red jewel in the center of its chest glowed ominously, and from it, red lines pulsed irregularly across the black armor, like spreading roots.
It was a Living Armor, an empty, animated suit of armor.
The Living Armor charged, using the large shield in its left hand to cover its body. A Shield Attack. Even though it’s empty, a charge with the total weight of that thick armor is nothing short of a menace.
“Hyaah!”
However, Cornelia nimbly dodged the Living Armor’s Shield Attack and flashed her Holy Sword.
With just that, the Living Armor rapidly rusted and weathered away. Cornelia’s Holy Sword must have precisely shattered the jewel on the Living Armor’s chest.
Living Armor and Golems. They’re completely different monsters, but their weak point is the same: the Core embedded in their chest. If you destroy that, you can defeat them in one hit. Just like golems, if you ignore the loot drops, they’re perfect monsters for grinding experience.
The Living Armor carries a large tower shield, so I guess that raises the difficulty of defeating it a bit. It should also be stronger than a golem in various ways, but that didn’t seem to matter to Cornelia.
After hunting Living Armors for a while as we descended the cave, a new type of monster appeared.
In the dark cave, illuminated by the torchlight, stood a figure in silver armor. A Silver Living Armor. It’s a higher-tier version of the regular Living Armor.
But—
“Nn.”
A rock spear shot from Lily’s fingertip. The massive projectile easily destroyed the Silver Living Armor’s shield and tore off its upper body.
The remaining lower half of the Silver Living Armor rapidly rusted and weathered away.
What a quick exit for a monster that just made its grand entrance.
After that, Silver Living Armors started appearing sporadically among the regular Living Armors. But Lily, of course, and even the frontliners, were taking them down in a single blow.
Everyone in Reginleif is stronger than I imagined. Cornelia, whose Gift evolved, is a given, but Claudia and Lily are more than strong enough too. Eleonore is struggling a bit, but she’s somehow managing to keep up with the other three.
Considering Eleonore, this area is probably about right as a hunting ground. If we go much deeper, the enemies will get stronger.
Let’s focus on defeating Silver Living Armors for a while.
At this rate, it looks like we’ll be relying on Golem Valley for some time.