Chapter 8: Bird Head Versus Giant Serpent

"The number of hits required has gone up, but I have to be stingy with the durability."

I muttered to myself while shattering an Almiraj into polygons with a Goblin Hand Axe that was on the verge of breaking. I'm saving the Vorpal Choppers, and the Mercenary's Twin Blades are starting to look suspicious in terms of durability. This is the area beginners enter first—call them Beginners, Novices, Rookies, Newbies, whatever—so unless something extreme happens, I should be able to get by on level disparity alone. Or so I think, but...

"......Is that it?"

Ahead of my gaze, the string of artificial structures visible in the distance must be the second town, "Secondil." There is a single suspension bridge spanning the gorge that cuts off the path between this forest—marked on the map as the "Forest of Rampancy"—and Secondil. And blocking the way in front of that suspension bridge like a gatekeeper... or perhaps I should say "coiled-keeper"? A single giant serpent was there, flickering its tongue, waiting for players heading to the next town.

"A so-called Field Boss? Or is it an Area Boss? Well, doesn't matter either way."

It seems I can't reach Secondil without defeating that thing. The recommended party size is three, and the recommended level is 10. Can I handle it solo? Depending on the situation, I might have to go all out, or else I'll be respawning back in Firstia. Actually, I just realized: doesn't a "Waking from a Dream" respawn mean losing all items in the inventory? To avoid proving that hypothesis, I have to clear this with a No-Continue run out of sheer stubbornness.

"Snake-type monster means... Wrapping, biting, swallowing, poison, shedding... Those are the major attack methods."

At the very least, unless the snake suddenly explodes just because the devs thought "it would be funny to subvert player expectations," my Player Skill should be able to handle it.

"If I recall correctly, once a solo player or party challenges an Area Boss and combat begins, other players and monsters cannot interfere."

Honestly, I don't dislike chaotic mid-battle intrusions, so I feel a little conflicted, but being able to 1v1 the boss without worrying about surprise attacks is appreciated. After doing a "rehearsal" (hunting) in preparation for the boss fight, I stepped out of the bushes and challenged the Area Boss of the "Forest of Rampancy": the Gluttonous Giant Serpent.

It has a grandiose name, but in the end, it's a boss for beginners. Its movements are easy to read, and it has no "first-time killer" gimmicks. With this avatar moving almost exactly as I intend, it would be easy to defeat it without taking a single hit... There was a time when I thought that.

"Geeegh!!"

Accompanied by a hopeless cracking sound, the Mercenary's Twin Blades turned into polygons, demonstrating the high armor value of the Gluttonous Giant Serpent. I blundered. Sure, the difficulty is set so beginners can beat it, but challenging it with weapons on the verge of breaking was too much "disrespectful play" (sandbagging). Contrary to its sluggish appearance, the Gluttonous Giant Serpent slithered smoothly across the ground, opening its mouth wide to lunge at me. While twisting my body to dodge, I activated Knuckle Rush, slamming a barrage of fists—too rough to be called martial arts—into the side of the Serpent's face.

(Oh, so each punch has an independent Critical check.)

I hammered in about ten punches, and felt a solid impact on two or three of them. It seems that not every hit in the skill combo crits together; they are calculated individually. Even without a knockback effect, taking the violence of my level directly to the face seemed to deal decent damage, causing the Serpent's head to recoil. In that opening, I executed the "High-Speed Equipment Swap" I had practiced beforehand—a vital technique in games where you can carry multiple weapons—and equipped my hidden ace that I had been saving until now... the Vorpal Choppers in both hands.

Standing there dual-wielding kitchen knives with dark red blades, looking as if they had sucked the blood of previous victims... A half-naked bird-head with intense eyes facing down a giant serpent blocking the bridge to a new town. The sight must be ridiculous. However, for an "Owata-style" critical attacker, this is currently the optimal solution.

"You can't even use a Coordinate Misalignment Bug (Teleport)!?"

Unless you can instantly teleport your coordinates, hit me with invisible attacks from behind, or become a mass of instant-death hitboxes, you aren't worthy of being my enemy.

"I'll fillet you into three piec—Bubeh!!"

Changing the subject: when fighting a snake-type monster, which body parts should you watch out for? Most people would answer the head and the tail. After all, having no limbs is what makes it a snake, so wrapping, biting, and tail swipes are almost the entire pattern. That is precisely why I never expected it to shoot sludge-like substance not from its tail, but from the hole near the tail. Carelessly, I took a direct hit from the Gluttonous Giant Serpent's discharge... yeah, most likely excrement.

Thankfully, it didn't have that "Infernal Quality" called realism that recreates the smell perfectly, but a disgusting sensation—like having a cold, wet compress plastered over my whole body—assaulted me instead of the stench. And the most dangerous part is...

"This is bad..."

My HP is being whittled away every second. Damage over time. In other words...

Poison.

Author's Notes & Lore

Gluttonous Giant Serpent (Tonshoku no Daija): The Area Boss of the "Forest of Rampancy." A monster you must defeat to reach Secondil. Since its constriction and biting attacks have obvious telegraphs, it is an easy boss if you deal with it calmly. However, be careful of the "Poison Feces Attack" it unleashes without any motion tell once its HP drops to a certain point. It deals no impact damage but inflicts a Poison status that deals continuous damage over time.

Translator's Remarks

• "Namepu" (Disrespectful Play): Sunraku uses the term Namepu (short for Nameru Play - "licking/underestimating play").
• Forest of Rampancy: Chouryou Bakko no Mori. "Chouryou Bakko" is an idiom referring to demons or spirits roaming freely and dominating an area.
• "Three Fillets" (Sanmai-oroshi): A cooking term for filleting a fish into three parts (flesh, flesh, bone). Sunraku uses it as a threat to carve up the snake, before getting interrupted.