Author"s Note: I decided to attach a subt.i.tle.
I"m planning to attach it to others as well. (TN: I think this is because the next 3 chapters" t.i.tles start with mantis)
Two weeks have pa.s.sed since then.
Today, we"re going to try again the 4th floor.
Is that okay?
I can only say maybe it"s okay.
Since that time, we beat a considerable number of monsters and increased our strength, but since we haven"t fought with the mantis since then, it can"t be said clearly.
The reason I decided that it was okay, it"s because it became possible to defeat 3 frogs at the same time and that is based on the previous calculation that said that the guys on the next floor are 3 to 5 times stronger.
Because I was still a bit uneasy with the power to beat 3 at the same time, Haku and Koku acquired a little more power to beat even 4 at the same time.
I came to be able to beat 6 at the same time.
Pochi?
Even if Pochi has 8 opponents at the same time, he defeated them easily.
He seemed to be okay even to increase one or two more.
Only Pochi is leading in power.
I think the number of defeated monsters is roughly the same.
Why did the gap open so much?
A sigh came out without thinking.
Well, that"s fine.
No matter how strong become Pochi, it doesn"t change that he"s kawaii.
He"s still waving his tail next to me and looking at me.
Yup.
Kawaii~.
I pat the head of Pochi unintentionally.
Then, Pochi also waves his tail pleased.
Another thing that changed in the last two weeks is that 6 more chickens gone into the dungeon.
I was worried when I bring them, and I saw when they were fighting rats several times, but there seems to be no problem, so they"re acting with the other chickens now.
It has changed this much?
Then, we arrive on the 4th floor, but there is a hesitation to step forward.
I feel scared when I think that it could be like the last time.
Pochi looks at me as if to worry about me.
No, it"s not Pochi alone.
Haku and Koku were looking at me in the same way.
Looking at that, this is useless. Let"s resolve. I make my decision and step forward.
From there, we"re able to proceed as usual.
We advance for a while and the first encounter was two rabbits and one mantis.
And it appears without delay.
Nevertheless just one.
Just right.
Let"s make it my opponent.
"The mantis will be my opponent. I"ll leave the rabbits up to you."
Instructing Pochi and the others to do so, I hold the Tsuruginata on the right hand and the hatchet on the left hand and go towards the mantis.
I equipped the hatchet for this moment. The so-called two-sword style (?).
Then, the rabbits come to me to interfere, but Pochi and the others prevent it.
Because of the difference in power, the rabbits are easily done by Pochi and the others, and the remaining will be the mantis.
When Pochi and the others have finished the rabbits, they took distance from me and the mantis, and change to spectator mode.
I quickly look at them and immediately return my eyes to the mantis.
I approach slowly to the mantis, but it doesn"t move. It has a waiting stance.
I slowly approach like that, and the mantis made a step towards me.
It turned the sickle to me and swing it.
However, as I knew it from the last battle, I wield the Tsuruginata and the hatchet according to that movement without panic.
I knew that the Tsuruginata was okay with mantis sickle, but I don"t know about the hatchet.
Therefore, if there was an abnormality in the hatchet with this, I thought that I should stop using it.
Thinking that the hatchet strikes the sickle.
The result was that I couldn"t feel any abnormality in the hatchet even when it stroke the sickle.
All right!!
It"s possible with this.
I wield the weapons on the left and right hand and handle the attacks that the mantis unleashes.
I was relieved with this.
Actually, I felt uneasy that I might lose in strength by handling the weapons with one hand.
However, it ended in a needless anxiety and there was no loss in strength.
No, on the contrary, I"m overwhelming it.
It"s not easy by all means.
It"s just barely.
Nevertheless, there is no mistake that I"m winning, I"m exchanging blows and parrying them.
I sometimes received it with the shields on my arms instead of the Tsuruginata or the hatchet and change it, but this wasn"t a problem.
Last time I was handling it with the Tsuruginata.
This time I was handling it with the Tsuruginata and the hatchet.
Moreover, the speed to wield the Tsuruginata and the hatchet is faster than last time.
Therefore, I was able to enter its range without a problem this time, unlike last time I had a hard time to enter.
Then the more I wanted to say what I had been struggling before, the quicker I arrive at the range of the mantis.
From the moment I enter the range, I change to offense.
I attack unilaterally and the mantis devotes itself on defending.
When I somehow succeed in cutting off one sickle, it can"t afford to counterattack, and the mantis can"t defend itself from my attack and the attack of the hatchet strike the mantis waist, no, in this case, it"s better to say chest? strike the chest.
The hatchet cut off the mantis chest like that, and it died.
When I confirmed that the mantis was dead, I was able to breathe out.
It may have looked like I have leeway from the side, but it actually was just barely.
From the beginning to end, only I had attacked, but I would have been fought back if the speed and strength weakened even a little.
If I receive even a blow, it should have become fatal.
If damage was done, the movement would dull, and could I attack?
Probably not.
If I couldn"t attack, this time I would have been defenseless and I would have been killed.
Of course, I think Pochi will help me before it happens.
The time of the fight with the mantis doesn"t take over 5 minutes.
Was it about 1 or 2 minutes?
When I fought before, it took over 10 minutes rather than 5 minutes, so I understood that I have grown considerable compared with that time.
Since the battle is over, I check the state of the weapons and armor.
The Tsuruginata doesn"t have any problem.
How about the hatchet?
I focus on the blade, but the blade isn"t chipped.
The others parts aren"t seriously scratched either.
Next are the shields.
I take off the shields at once and hold it so that I could have a good look.
I check the left and right shields several times, but I can"t find any scratch.
There is no cut nor crack.
These shields seem to be st.u.r.dier than I thought.
If that"s the case, I can use it without any problem on this level.
I"m glad that I could confirm that.
Well, I understood that I could defeat the mantis without a problem if it"s one-to-one.
The problem is Haku and Koku.
If these two can fight and defeat the mantis in one-to-one, they will be able to change their activity in this level in the future.
Therefore, next will be to let Haku or Koku fight the mantis.
Of course, if they are in danger, we need to be able to help them right away.
Thinking about such thing, I cut off the sickle of the defeated mantis.
Then, I separate the stomach and pick it up.
Its size is about 60 to 70 cm and its weight is about 7 to 8 kg.
If I sold it at 5,000 yen per kg, wouldn"t this be from 35,000 to 40,000?
By the way, I heard that the price of the frog meat is "If it"s good, it will be 2,000 yen per kg". If it"s normal it would be 1,000 to 1,500 yen.
The rabbit meat also seems to be priced like that.
Well, there are a few people who want to eat frog meat.
I think this is reasonable.
I put the cut sickle and stomach in the rucksack.
Because the capacity of the rucksack is increasing, even if I put the stomach of the mantis, it enters smoothly.
First I thought that it would be nice if 2 or 3 are put in there, but it seems if it"s like this, 3 or 4 could enter.
It"s not becoming a four-dimensional pocket, but a four-dimensional rucksack. (TN: Yeah, this is a reference to Doraemon)
I carry the rucksack on my back and proceed on the road, looking for the next prey.
I would be glad if the next encounter is also 1 mantis, but I guess it won"t work like that.
I guess I couldn"t have thought about such a thing.
The next encounter was a group of 8 monsters, 1 frog, 2 rabbits, 2 rats, and 3 mantises.
Wow, there are 3 mantises.
Moreover, there are extras.
What to do?
Haku and Koku are determined to confront 2 mantises, but what about the another one of them?
I guess I can beat it as easily as Pochi, but it will take me a lot of time and effort to defeat the other monsters.
They might go toward Haku or Koku if it does it unskillfully.
Then, is it better for me to take the mantis and to have Pochi take the small ones?
If it"s Pochi, he will defeat them quickly.
Yep, let"s go with that.
"Pochi will engage the small ones. Me, Haku and Koku, the mantises"
Instructing that, we get into fighting stance.
When the monsters noticed us, the rats rush out.
That was the signal to start the battle.