Chapter 92

"Hurry, sleep――<Cold Sleep>!"

The black ropes that had severed Thor's arm changed direction with a swift turn, slicing through the air just above the ground.

Upon hearing the familiar incantation, Thor instinctively plunged his sword into the earth.

The cord-like object that had attacked his feet got entangled with the sword.

Another one that suddenly shot out also came to a halt as if sewn into the air.

Seizing the moment, Thor quickly picked up his left hand and immediately kicked off the ground to create distance.

An invisible coldness that induced sleep then covered the rock's shadow.

Breathing heavily, Thor pressed his left hand and activated <Pain Relief> while thanking it, then used <Restoration>.

As he retreated, Sora and Moo came running over.

"Thor, are you hurt!?"

"Is your hand okay?"

Thor nodded lightly at the two of them and quickly took off the leather glove, which had its strap torn.

"Moo, please give me the blood-stopping medicine."

"Medicine? Here you go, Thor."

Moo pulled out a small vial from the pouch at his waist, removed the stopper, and dripped the bluish liquid onto the wound that Thor had deliberately left unhealed.

The high price of five silver coins was not for nothing; the blood began to clot almost immediately.

Salissa, who had been watching from the back, approached and muttered in surprise.

"Your arm didn't fall off just now...?"

"No, it was just the glove's strap and a bit of flesh on my arm. See?"

Thor spread his fingers dramatically and showed the wound between his elbow and wrist.

He casually put the torn glove back on.

"It must have mistaken it for a glove..."

The guide, who didn't seem entirely convinced, lowered her eyes slightly.

Sora, full of enthusiasm, spoke up.

"Hey, hey, Thor. Was that a snake? But it looked more like a bug... Oh, a centipede?"

"You observed well. It's a bug. Or rather, part of it."

Thor's cheeks relaxed slightly at the slightly proud look on the girl's face, and he returned his gaze to the white rock standing upright in the wilderness.

The mysterious cords had already disappeared under the rock, their <Fixation> having been released, and they had awakened from their sleep.

Only the sword embedded in the ground remained.

"Part of it? So the main body is hidden in the ground?"

"No, it's not hidden. When it acts so boldly, it's easy to overlook."

Thor's words made the girl focus her eyes on the rock's shadow.

She then realized a possibility and exclaimed in surprise.

"Wait, could it be!"

"Probably the rock itself is the rock beetle we heard about."

At Yuril's suggestion, Thor nodded deeply.

They had been told in the pre-mission briefing that there were bugs that mimicked rocks, but the size had not been disclosed.

The size, which far exceeded their height, was beyond their expectations.

"So those long black things...?"

"Probably the antennae. They seem to have an incredibly sharp edge."

Thor sighed at the clean cut on his cloak.

His armor was damaged, his sword left behind, and he had even used valuable medicine.

Thor was not being careless.

He had judged that there was no place to hide other than the ground and had been diligently looking for any signs.

Having defeated many molehorns and rock lizards, he had a bit of pride in sensing changes in the ground.

But the sudden attack from under the rock, without a sound, caught him off guard.

That one moment could have easily turned into a fatal injury.

Thor calmed his rising emotions with his usual breathing technique and returned his gaze to the rock standing brazenly.

"Well, let's see what we're dealing with."

First, to test its hardness, he pulled out a disassembly knife from his belt and threw it at the rock.

The blade hit the rock's surface with considerable force and bounced back with a hard sound.

"It's not just rock-like; it's a rock itself."

"Um, how do you defeat a rock?"

"Maybe with a hammer or an axe. Hmm, what should we do..."

Knowing the position of the antennae, he could attack from behind, but using a sword against that exoskeleton would be very difficult.

Unfortunately, they didn't have any tools to chip away at the rock.

Flipping it over to target the abdomen might work, but they lacked the tools and manpower to do so.

Aiming for the face, where attacks might penetrate, would mean dealing with the troublesome antennae.

Given their incredible sharpness and the fact that they could wrap around a sword without breaking, they were likely very sturdy.

Moreover, with two of them, they might need to use <Fixation> or <Reversal> frequently.

In any case, this monster could easily retreat out of attack range if they kept their distance.

It seemed to attack only those who carelessly approached, thinking it was a windbreak.

Without a way to deal with it, retrieving the sword and moving on was an option.

However, Thor had a strong reason to want to defeat this monster.

As Thor struggled to come up with a plan, the party's ace, the silver-haired beauty, spoke up.

"I have one thing I'd like to try. Is that okay?"

Yuril's suggestion was not a full-fledged strategy.

Following her instructions, Thor approached the rock.

In his hand was, surprisingly, a sled.

The moment he reached the same position as before, the two antennae shot out again.

The black cords, moving at a speed that couldn't be seen, attacked the sled, trying to cut it in half.

But the claim of it being made of true silver was not a lie.

With a strange sound, the two tentacles were easily deflected.

At the same time, the purple snake, <Electric Spine>, wrapped around them, slightly impeding their movement.

"Fog, seal――<Ice Crystal>"

Without a moment's delay, Yuril's magic technique was activated.

Thor pulled his sword from the ground and leaped back.

Holding the sled and his sword, Thor observed the rock beetle's movements.

The large amount of cold air absorbed into its body needed some time to take effect.

Judging that it was about to slow down, Thor took a step forward.

At that moment, the rock trembled slightly.

Simultaneously, large cracks spread across its surface.

The rock began to crumble with a loud noise, and Thor couldn't help but gape in amazement.

Turning to Thor, who was stunned, Yuril shook her long ears and smiled as usual.

"Oh, it was more fragile than I thought."