Chapter 51

A red dorsal fin protruded from the waves for just a moment.

Tall, who had been trying to clear out the sleeping monsters, suddenly pulled back his right foot, turned his body, and swung his cloak.

In the next instant, a large fish leaped out of the water, splashing.

The monster twisted its body in mid-air, pointing its sharp snout toward the shore.

Then, it fired a large, red mass of water with tremendous force.

Tall deflected one of the water bullets, the size of a clenched fist, with his cloak.

He changed the trajectory of another aimed at Sora by slashing upward from below.

But the last one hit the ground in front of him.

Water droplets scattered with force, landing on the frogs that had been greedily sleeping around Tall.

The monsters immediately woke up and began to move, emitting ear-piercing croaks.

"Fog, seal them—<Ice Crystal>"

At the familiar voice of Yuril, Tall kicked the gravel at his feet and ran.

The red poison frogs, slightly slowed by the flying stone fragments, were hit by the freezing air.

With a crisp sound, the moisture on the monsters' bodies rapidly disappeared.

The power of <Ice Crystal> was far beyond what Tall knew.

The ice magic seemed to have a strong effect on the frogs, whose skin was covered in poisonous mucus.

Closing the distance to one of the frogs that had become sluggish, Tall cleanly severed its head.

But as he turned to attack the second one, the remaining frogs jumped with all their might.

Not at Tall, but back to where they had been.

The frogs, half-frozen, one after another, jumped into the river behind them.

The water splashed repeatedly, and the group of monsters disappeared into the red-black river surface.

As Tall tried to chase after them, a red dorsal fin appeared in the water again, scattering water bullets.

He deflected one with his cloak and knocked another away with the flat of his sword.

Leaving the last one to Sora, Tall turned his gaze back to the river, but the monsters were already gone.

"They've escaped again."

"What a pity. We should have dried them out more thoroughly."

"Those Gekogekos, they must have been scared of Moe!"

The first hunt went smoothly, but in the three subsequent battles, they only managed to defeat one frog.

Picking up the dead frog from the ground, Tall let out a small sigh.

These poisonous monsters, of course, were not suitable for consumption.

After cutting off the tongue, the required part for the hunt, and placing it on a large stone, he threw the body part to the side and stacked it.

Tall, who had restored his contaminated knife and gloves with <Restoration>, called out to his companions.

"Let's take a break. Yuril, can you make some tea?"

The new hunting ground turned out to be more challenging than they had expected.

The first problem was the small number of monsters.

On average, two groups appeared every hour in this place.

While it was better than the mole days, even with fewer prey, walking around the forest could be a distraction.

However, here, on the gloomy riverbank strewn with red-black stones, they had to wait endlessly.

The only one in a good mood was Moe, who was enjoying stacking stones.

The second problem was the troublesome nature of the monsters.

The name of the monster that suddenly appeared earlier was the Blood Spitter.

Its body length was about the length of Tall's arm, and its body, covered in red scales, was a long, narrow triangle when viewed from the side.

It was a rather nasty monster that fired water bullets from the river.

Moreover, despite being a fish and a frog, it seemed to have a sense of camaraderie, helping other monsters.

The red poison frogs were also troublesome even after death.

The slimy poison remained even after death, and it could seep into clothing upon contact.

Therefore, every time they cleaned up, the number of uses for <Restoration> decreased.

Taking a cup of steaming herbal tea, Tall sat down in a chair.

Moe, who had run over immediately, hugged his neck from behind.

Seeing this, Sora laughed happily and leaned on Tall's arm, pulling a chair closer.

"Oh, you two are such good friends."

"Yes, when I get irritated, I just stick to Tall. Yuril, how about you?"

"That's a good idea. Then, I'll join in too."

Moving a chair to the other side, the silver-haired beauty also leaned on Tall, enveloped by the sweet scent and soft touch.

Sipping the contents of the cup in silence, Tall pondered how to break the deadlock.

"Tall, your eyebrows just went down a little. Why is that?"

"Don't worry about it. That's just how men are."

"Maybe it's because Moe is cute?"

While sipping the sweet herbal tea to relax, Tall thought about how to improve the situation.

"Changing the hunting ground seems difficult at this point."

"Yes, the good spots are probably being used by others."

"That fish is a real pain. It's too far to reach."

"We can handle the attacks, but if the frogs are awakened, it's a different story."

"Ah, if they wake up, we could put them back to sleep, right?"

"That would be quite difficult."

While the inhibiting magic was powerful when it worked, it had a significant weakness.

The success rate dropped dramatically if it was used multiple times on the same target in a short period.

It was said that this was due to the monsters developing resistance after learning from danger.

"Should Moe jump into the water and take care of them, Tall?"

"Let's wait until Moe gets better at swimming."

"It's still dangerous, Moe. You need to practice more in the bath!"

"Right, I need to get clean and clean."

Throwing a stone to estimate the depth, it seemed that the Blood Spitter's river was chest-deep even in the shallow parts.

The red, murky water would make visibility terrible.

Entering the water was not an option, according to Tall's judgment.

Although they were in a bit of a bind, no one's face was clouded.

For Tall, who was used to adversity, this was not a problem.

In fact, he was enjoying it.

Yuril felt the same way.

She was thoroughly enjoying the comfort of using magic in a long-awaited real battle.

For a woman who had faced strong enemies for a long time, a little nuisance was not worth worrying about.

In fact, she could handle it if she really tried, but she was secretly holding back to prioritize the growth of Tall and the others.

Sora, for her part, was looking at the current situation positively.

This was the time when Tall and Yuril were in trouble, and there might be something she could do.

She began to secretly focus on finding it.

Moe wasn't thinking about anything.

The child's main concern was today's snack and dinner menu.

Yawning carelessly, Moe snuggled up to Tall's back, whom she loved so much.

Sticking together, feeling each other's warmth, the break passed.

Eventually, the cups were empty, but Tall remained seated, not moving.

Sora, wondering if he didn't want to leave, smiled when Tall suddenly spoke.

"By the way, how long do you plan to keep watching?"

The ones who reacted to this question were the group behind the tent, on the other side of the embankment.

Three blond heads, which had been peeping at Tall and the others, quickly withdrew.

The men, crouching, began to whisper to each other.

"Damn, they noticed."

"It's because the big brother stuck his head out too much!"

"But I was worried when they would start."

"Yeah, that's understandable. I've never seen such a beautiful woman before."

"I prefer the cute type. You know, the kind you want to protect."

"No, no, the best is the mature charm!"

"What the hell, can't you understand the beauty of a modest chest!"

"Hey, that's not something to ignore! The important thing is the meat on the butt."

At first, their voices were low, but as they got excited, they grew louder.

Eventually, the sound of punches and small curses echoed, but it soon quieted down.

Then, under the watchful eyes of Tall and the others, a man with a bruise around his eye appeared from the embankment.

With a shy smile, the man with purple eyes spoke as if nothing had happened.

"Sorry for the interruption. Go on, continue."

"Like hell we will!"