Ossan Boukensha – 118

Rock Lizard

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“Hmm… I think it may be a rock lizard.”

When I talked to Mezerir about the mysterious monster I encountered in the cave, her answer was quite surprising. Rock lizard…I had heard of them before. Their scales were often used for armor. But I didn’t know their hunting rank or anything else.

“No one talks about them in Suelbur. Are they more common in Amernisus?”

“I have heard that they appeared before. But I don’t know much about that.”

So there was no real information. Well, knowing its name was pretty big. The problem was the hole that it went into. That one had been rough, and was clearly different from the other tunnels that the killer ants had dug. It was likely a natural cave that the killer ants had reached.

“Since it went back inside, it must lead somewhere. But it’s too dangerous to investigate.”

I doubted that it was alone. From what I had seen, I could probably take it on, but not if there were more of them.

“It is in the northern forest, isn’t it? That is close to the lost forest. Ajifu, can’t you do something?”

She said it so casually. I expected a ‘please don’t be reckless’ or something like that…

“Well, I am an Adventurer. If the price is right, then I could consider it.”

“Oh. So what do you want? Money?”

“No… I want to gain entry into Amernisus!”

“Very well. It’s a deal then.”

I had assumed that she would reject me, but her answer was quick and lighthearted.

“You didn’t even think about it. Are you sure?”

“Depending on the results of the investigation, I may have to make a report. Besides, I have not been back in a long time, so it is a good opportunity. And I would want a guard to help me get through the forest.”

Wha…t!?

“Wait, that doesn’t need to be a reward then?”

“You are the one that asked for it, Ajifu. Besides, you can’t wish to gain entry without any reason for it.”

So it was more like a quest? Well, I was the one who said it was fine if I could go to Amernisus…

“So once you are finished, I will take you with me. Good luck with your investigation.”

The matter was settled before I could even say anything. Perhaps it was best to think a little more before making such deals.

I discussed it with the chief, and he agreed that the entrance to the cave would be buried after I finished investigating the hole. There was also the idea that more Adventurers could be hired, but I objected to it. More people would be good if we meant to fight, but if I was alone, then I could sneak around with my Night Vision skill.
Obviously, we could just hire Adventurers with that skill, but most Adventurers did not boast about their skills, unless it was their main one. Regardless, I felt confident that I could do this on my own.

And so on the following day, after careful preparations, I headed to the cave. The smell of death wafted around the entrance. As slimes did not go underground, the corpses would have remained. But thankfully, there was a current of air. And so I steeled myself and stepped inside.

While I stayed on my guard, there were no signs of anything moving. The goblins had not returned. And so I reached the open chamber without difficulty, and the same, brutal scene appeared before me.

It was not pleasant, but there was some relief. If there were many more rock lizards beyond the crack in the wall, then surely they would have eaten the rest of the goblins.

When I peered inside of the crack, I saw that there was a gentle, rocky slope going down. And a chilly breeze was blowing.

“Time to go.”

I muttered to myself as I stepped through.

While it was an investigation, it didn’t mean that I had to get a map of the entire cave. I was no explorer. Still, there was a part of me that enjoyed going through the cave.

Even if I had been asked to do it, I did not mind.

The cave grew wider as I advanced. I climbed up giant boulders and passed through freezing streams of water. My goal was the opening where the wind blew through. If there was a wind current, then this place must connect to another exit.

Also, there was a surprising amount of living creatures. Mushrooms on the ground, bats on the ceiling, and bugs as well. I had even seen white fish and shrimp in the clear water. There was an ecosystem on a pretty great scale down here.

But not many monsters. I had not seen the rock lizard yet. There were some paralyze bats hanging from the ceiling, but they appeared to be asleep.

And just once, a monster that looked like a white centipede had attacked me. But it went down with one hit.

“Phew…”

I stopped to rest. After all, I was exploring a roadless cave while wearing armor and carrying a two-handed sword, as well as other supplies. My pace was slow, and I grew tired easily. Even with the cave’s low temperature, I was hot. My sense of time was already gone, and I had no idea how long I had been traveling.

As I chewed on some black bread and dried meat, which I washed down with water, I heard a rock rolling a short distance away. And so with dried meat still in hand, I went to see what had caused it.

The thing that I had thought was a rock, was moving. Slowly, I reached towards the hilt of my sword as I inspected it.

As the rock began to rise, its surface started to change from gray to brown. So it had a camouflaging ability. And the silhouette was familiar. It had the same measurements as the thing I saw yesterday. A rock lizard.

While it would be fine if it just continued on its way, I was also so close that I would have to fight if it attacked me. Besides, the ground was uneven, and I was not nimble enough to run here. And so I held my breath and waited.

The rock lizard rose and slowly turned around to look at me. Our eyes met. Time passed as neither of us moved.

There was nothing pleasant about staring into a monster’s eyes, but I could not look away either. I wanted it to leave, but this thing liked meat. It would not leave a free meal so easily.

The rest of its body twisted so that it was fully facing in my direction. There was no point in thinking about avoiding a fight now. I unsheathed my sword and charged it with magic energy. I had charged it too much yesterday, so that the blade became very light. I tested the weight this time as I controlled the flow.

Upon seeing this, the rock lizard lowered its head defensively.

“Me-zroi-tar…”

My chant was interrupted by the swipe of its tail. My sword swung down and clashed against it. At the same time, I kicked the ground and jumped back.

With the sword in the center, my vision spun as I rotated forward and landed on the opposite side of the tail. Though my foot got caught on a rock, I landed on my hand and stood up. The rock lizard’s tail swung through empty air and then it slithered dexterously and moved its body around.

“Me-zroi-tar-mez-rei. Protection!”

In the meantime, I cast the magic again, and prepared to fight back.

Seeing me fully prepared must have made it cautious, as the rock lizard stopped while there was still some distance between us. And then it raised its body and the neck…began to expand as it let out a horrible croak. A chill ran down my spine.

I moved around behind a boulder and ducked. Immediately after, shards of rock came flying. While I had not been able to see the attack, they had probably been fired from its mouth. They had incredible force.

I peered out just as the firing stopped. Its head had been lowered again. I could not let it continue that attack. But from the looks of it, it could not do it in rapid succession.

That being said, it seemed like a good idea to fight in a place where I could easily find cover.

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