"Ha… Ha ha…"
I notice myself laughing. Humans tend to laugh when they are confronted with something nonsensical.
It is already the fifth day since the world started overflowing with monsters. I thought I had my share of surprises, but apparently I was being naïve.
"…..Ruuuuuuu…ruuuuuu…."
Is that its cry? The colossus rock giant steps forward whilst shaking its body unsteadily.
Zuzunn!
That alone causes the earth to shake. For a moment, my body floats in the air. I nearly fall down.
"Tsu…."
This is bad. I might get sucked in.
Run. Move, my feet! I run at maximum velocity. The surrounding area is already reduced to rumbles after its last "Roar". Using "Enemy Detection", I locate Ichinose-san and Rikkchan.
There must have been monsters and people cooped up in their houses around us. I sense multiple presences from underneath the wreckages. My improved hearing picks up words like "It hurts", "Someone help me", and "Giggiiii".
"As if I give a d.a.m.n."
I don"t have the leeway to mind other people"s businesses. I run. Without thinking of anything else, I run towards where the two girls are. There they are.
They"re around 20 meters ahead of us. They are found underneath some boulders. Besides them, I can see the body of Aka who is at the size of a baseball. Despite being in its weakened state, it must have managed to s.h.i.+eld them.
Good job, Aka. I"ll praise you a lot later on.
"Furu furu."
I guess my feelings were conveyed, Aka who is mimicking a hood wiggles in delight. While patting my hood, I head towards them.
"Are you both safe?"
"Ouch…. Yeah, somehow."
"We, we"re fine…"
I remove the boulders around them using the Item Box. It"s a relief that their injuries both seem light. Their weapons are fine too.
"What is that monster…How did it suddenly…"
"I don"t know, but we don"t have a choice but to escape from it."
"I agree. Resisting it won"t do anything to it."
Attacking with ma.s.sive quant.i.ties of objects using the item box, squeezing it with shadows, and utilizing Ninjutsus will deal negligible damage against an opponent so huge. Ichinose-san"s bullets and Rikkchan"s slashes won"t make a difference either.
It"s too disadvantageous to battle. And the size difference is too ma.s.sive.
"Yes, so please excuse me for doing this…"
"Eh?"
"What?"
I carry Rikkchan on my left and shoulder Ichinose-san on my right.
"Eh? Onii-san?!"
"Kakakakakak kazu, Kudou-san!?"
"I"m sorry but please stay still."
Apologies, but I won"t be taking any complaints. I can"t afford it right now. With my current status, there is no problem with running while carrying two people. Not to mention Ichinose-san, Rikkchan"s agility is far lower than mine, so moving in this fas.h.i.+on is faster.
Also, these two are surprisingly light. Why are girls so light and soft in the first place? No, I don"t have the time to be thinking about this. I begin das.h.i.+ng.
I"m fleeing while using "Escape" and my over-300 agility to their utmost. My speed gradually increases, and the distance between us is also getting beigger.
"…So it"s no good."
But I can still feel it. The "bad feeling" is not going away.
"What… is that…?"
Ichinose-san is the one who says that. Her head is turned towards the back, so she must have a clear picture of what is happening. From behind, I hear eerie sounds of something breaking and being peeled off.
"Eh, l, lies. To throw something like that is…"
"Tsu…"
With that alone, I can imagine what"s going on. My instinct and skills are ringing at maximum volume. I stop abruptly and jump to the right while enduring the pain coming from the bones due to the recoil.
The next moment, a building flies past where we were standing with great momentum.
"What the…?"
DOGOOOOOOOOOOON!!!
Several buildings collapse as if they"re made of paper. Dust rises up in the air and blocks our vision. Standing among the rising dust, my brain fails to process the event that has transpired.
"What just…"
Gigigi
I turn my head while sounding like a rusted machine. My vision gradually becomes clear. A distance away, I see the huge golem in a posture like a pitcher who has finished pitching.
"Ruuuuuuu…."
I finally understand what happened. I see. So it threw it. Using its stupidly huge hands, it demolished a stupidly huge apartment and threw it at us. That"s all there was to it. How simple.
"A real monster…"
What is this? The scale is too different. There should be a limit to absurdities.
"Ruuuuuuu…"
The golem now scoops up the rubble pile at its feet. No way… is it going to throw that at us this time?
This is bad. Throwing something ma.s.sive is already bad enough. I don"t have the confidence of dodging a wave of boulders. Just one hit is enough to take someone out. Ichinonse-san and Rikkchan have despairing expressions on their face.
However, the golem does something unexpected.
"What…?"
This time around, I seriously can"t comprehend what"s occurring. It"s eating the rubbles. It"s pouring it into its mouth as if they"re peanuts.
"Ruuuuu…Ugu….Agu….ruuuuuu…."
A creepy chewing sound resonates throughout the air. After swallowing, it scoops up another pile of rubbles.
The attack… isn"t coming. Why?
"Ah…"
I should have escaped immediately. Instead, I saw the "scene". My enhanced vision captures the figures of humans between the rubbles. My enhanced hearing captures the screams of those people.
No!
Stop!
Someone save me!
I don"t want to die, I don"t want to die, I don"t want to die.
Ignoring their pleas, the golem continues its meal. Along with the sound of rubbles being crushed, sounds of something being minced get transmitted to my ears.
Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha. Boribori. Guchagucha.
"Uuuu…"
I almost vomit. Digusting. It"s too much gore. Since I could withstand the sight of people being killed by monsters, I didn"t think the sight of people being eaten would be so much more terrible.
My spirit cannot withstand it. A voice is heard inside my head.
"Proficiency has reached a certain threshold."
""Stress Resistance" has increased from LV 9 to LV 10."
"The level of "Stress Resistance" has reached the upper limit."
"Certain conditions have been met."
"You have acquired the skill "Mental Distress Resistance"."
"The existing skill "Stress Resistance" has been integrated into the skill "Mental Distress Resistance"."
""Mental Distress Resistance" has increased from LV 1 to LV 2."
"The existing skill "Fear Resistance" has been integrated into the skill "Mental Distress Resistance"."
""Mental Distress Resistance" has increased from LV 2 to LV 3."
"The existing skill "Aberration Resistance" has been integrated into the skill "Mental Distress Resistance"."
""Mental Distress Resistance" has increased from LV 3 to LV 4."
Instantly, I feel light-hearted. My mind returns to normal so quickly that the previous suffering feels almost like a dream.
Oh, I did it. I reached the limit of "Stress Resistance". So "Mental Distress Resistance" is the skill above that. Furthermore, by integrating other resistance skills, it has leveled up many times. It really helps. With this, I can act calmly again.
"Haha…"
I unknowingly smile.
"What happened, Kudou-san?"
Ichinose-san acts anxiously.
"Nothing, I just panicked a bit. Let"s quickly flee."
Putting my strength into holding the two girls, I activate "Escape". I can still hear the sound of someone screaming behind me. I can also still hear the sound of someone being crushed.
But I am no longer worried.
We successfully leave the giant behind while it is concentrated on its meal.