Chapter 84: Walking of the Air Cleaner

"Canyon of the Ancient Souls." They say it was the site of a decisive battle in a great war that occurred a little after the Divine Age... back when humanity had not yet reached its current level of civilization.

Ironically, the war was forced to halt due to the intervention of monsters, but the miasma pervading the place, which produced massive numbers of dead, has turned it into a nest of undead who hate the living.

And as time passed, it has swallowed not only the humans who died in the war long ago, but also stray monsters and brave humans who tried to pioneer it, becoming a danger zone that still scatters death and curses to this day............

...That is the description of the area "Canyon of the Ancient Souls" given by Emul, who deliberately lowered her voice as if telling a ghost story.

Unfortunately, my horror resistance is reasonably high. Whether it's the run-away type horror games or the zombie shooting games disguised as horror games where you get a shotgun in the second half. Trash games in the horror category, which are inherently full of unreasonableness, are amazing. Evil spirits accelerating at the speed of track athletes... their killing intent is so high it becomes a gag game.

No, that doesn't matter right now. The problem is the characteristics of the area "Canyon of the Ancient Souls."

"Miasma emitted by the Area Boss drifts throughout the entire area, and staying in the area for a long time inflicts the 'Curse' status. Furthermore, half of the spawning monsters use debuff hexes... it's the type of area that harasses you thoroughly until you reach the boss..."

"That is why you need items with holy power or a Cleric to accompany you, desu wa!"

Unless you buy expensive "Holy Water" in Fourfolkshire or party with someone holding a Cleric-type job who can use "Purification" magic to remove the Curse status, you will be forced to conquer while constantly having your health whittled away by the curse and feeling constant discomfort painted all over your body. Indeed, it is certainly a troublesome stage, but...

"...Hey Emul, it seems I've become a little too strong."

"It seems so, desu wa..."

"Only the air around you is awfully clean, isn't it?"

The effect of nullifying magic and hex interference from beings weaker than Lycaon the Night Raider.
The effect that monsters lower than the individual's level will flee from the "Curse" holder.

Possessing Lycaon's "Curse (Marking)" on both my torso and legs—encompassing both these demerits and merits—the area around me is filled with strangely fresh air as the miasma is repelled. Furthermore, having leveled up to my heart's content with the experience from the Wethermon battle without suffering any level-down penalties like OiKatzo or Pencilgon, I have easily surpassed the recommended level for conquering this area...

"Look at that, Emul. Those perfectly synchronized movements... they must have been a strictly disciplined army in life."

"Could it be that they are unanimously just running away, desu wa?"

"Even though they fear the Emperor of the Night, even the Wyvern Zombies are forgetting to fly."

Watching the rotting Wyverns flee with thumping, unsteady steps, we proceed along the bottom of the canyon as if taking a stroll.

"Hey, I was thinking... couldn't we have just walked along the cliff edge above without going down to the canyon floor...?"

"If you're suicidal, that might be fine, but I'll pass."

"There are looooots of Crystal Scorpions lurking above the Canyon of the Ancient Souls, desu wa. If even one spots you, ten times that number of Crystal Scorpions will appear in less than ten seconds..."

Apparently, their level is over 100. Hahaha, a mob lynch by monsters over level 100? That's way more horrifying than the background story of this area.

Well, speaking meta-ly, it's a countermeasure to prevent players from cutting corners, and an element that serves as both stress relief and a shortcut once you become stronger than the Crystal Scorpions or whatever. At least it allows for shortening the time for round trips between Fourfolkshire and the next town, "Eighthold."

"Uumu... I know this is just a passing point, but when it's this easy, I kind of want to... pick a fight."

Ahead of my gaze, monsters approaching with the clop-clop sound of hooves show no sign of running away even after seeing me. No, can they even see me?

"A Dullahan, huh... Nice. 'Horse and Swordsman'... I just fought the ultimate version of that recently."

Both rider and mount are headless. They must have been renowned knights in life. Clad in armor that barely retains its form as protective gear, they approach with a dignified appearance, controlling headless horses.

"A-Are you going to launch a preemptive strike...?"

"Stay, stay. Maybe it's an NPC who retains reason and can be reasoned with, right?"

"Fool! Dullahans don't have mouths!"

"Ubyaaa! It drew its sword, desu waaaa!"

"Hahaha, you're absolutely right! Go go go! It's Dullahan hunting time! Sorry, but handle your own miasma countermeasures!"

Readying the Empire Bee Twin Blades, properly repaired and with durability restored, I also dive toward the charging Dullahan. Now, let's begin verifying the new skills and such!

"Let's ignite it... Ignition!"

This skill, usable only at the start of combat—highly limited in usage but guaranteed to be usable in any battle, truly fitting for an Ignition—gradually increases DEX and STR until thirty seconds have passed since the start of combat. Since the effect duration is one minute, it's likely a skill where you warm up the engine for thirty seconds and unleash the fully warmed engine for the remaining thirty seconds.

Although it's not full power for the thirty seconds after activation, the fact that stats continue to rise remains unchanged. The Dullahan fires a sphere of miasma, rolled up and solidified, but I dodge it by shifting a step to the side while running.

Since neither the Dullahan nor the horse has a head, I can't even hear a neigh, but I can tell from the preliminary movements that the horse made some kind of motion. And intending to run me over, the headless horse and the Dullahan riding it charge without decelerating.

"Roughly the speed is... startup is... three, two... jump now!"

Timing it, I unleash Vorpal Blade Arts [Water Mirror Moon]... evolved to Third Form? ...while jumping back three steps with a backstep.

I adjust and land the hit of [Water Mirror Moon] on the coordinates where the charging headless horse will be in a few seconds using the backstep. Did my player skill increase from the Wethermon fight, or is it because my body moves smoothly due to stat increases, or did the RNG just tilt in my favor?

Considering the body structure of a creature called a horse, what happens if it tries to forcibly turn around toward hate from behind? Especially while running, trying to direct attention in the exact opposite direction.

"Uwah, my condolences."

The headless horse, trying to turn around in an impossible posture, rolls over. The Dullahan, blown away by the double combo of inertia and centrifugal force, dances in the air. If that were all, I'd just be happy about it, but the reason I pitied the Dullahan is that in the direction he? was blown, Bilac was winding up a sledgehammer...

"Oryaa, fly awaaay... Megaton Swing!"

Bogon! A striking sound that clearly couldn't be produced by half-hearted damage echoes. The Dullahan, whose chest armor was shattered by power offsetting and surpassing the various energies of being thrown from the headless horse, dances further into the air. Though it's someone else's problem, my own chest starts to hurt... but I won't show mercy. At the very least, the fact that it didn't run from the "Curse" means it's an opponent higher level than me; if I let my guard down, there's more than enough chance of dying.

Just how much STR was put into that swing? The Dullahan flies toward me in an arc higher than when it was thrown by the headless horse, if only in distance. I could attack it as it falls, but let's try a little challenge, combining it with a skill test run.

"Moon Jumper, and Six-Boat Leap...!"

Using Six-Boat Leap, which increased the number of jumps granted distance and skill correction due to the increase in "Boats," and Moon Jumper, which applies correction to upward jumps, I leap up to the height of the Dullahan, which had been caught by gravity and started falling, in a single breath. Honestly, the reason for attacking in mid-air is thin, but I think accumulating challenges like this might lead to new skill developments.

"Aim for the aerial jump...!"

Infight activation. And against the Dullahan who is being blown away... that is, in a flinch motion, I deliver a dropkick using Hate Trample. The dropkick hits the part shattered by Bilac as if rubbing salt into the wound, and the Dullahan is slammed straight down. I also correct my posture in mid-air and land... ignore the fall damage, ignore it! The headless horse hasn't gotten up yet; let's finish the Dullahan first.

Since I've surpassed Emul's level, borrowing Emul's power is no longer parasitic play.

"Emul! Magic standby!"

"Yes sir!"

Confirming Emul activated Add Spell, I check Bilac's position. She's holding the sledgehammer again like a major leaguer, and that chin jerk... does it mean "Send it over here"?

"Bring it on... Nursing play that makes the NPC look good is a mandatory skill in trash games...!"

Conditions like "Won't clear unless the NPC delivers the final blow" or "Only the NPC has effective hits against the enemy" are common even outside of trash games, so assist play is important. Especially in battles where the NPC falling means Game Over, the battlefield control is trained whether you like it or not, as it can present a hellish aspect depending on the AI.

"Launch trajectory, position, distance... Alright, chart complete!"

I retrieve the chanting Emul, carry her in my left hand, and close in on the rising Dullahan. Activating Infight, I aim my clenched right fist at the Dullahan's solar plexus.

"Eat this, the power of triple digits!"

Hand of Fortune pierces the Dullahan's solar plexus. Even an undead dull to pain can't ignore a triple-digit Luck punch to a weak point; the Dullahan's body bends into a V-shape. Then, I thrust Emul, held in my left hand, forward as if aiming a handgun.

"I name it: Rabbit Gun [Turret Palm]...!"

"Tch...! [Magic Edge]!"

Emul looked like she intensely wanted to say something, but she held it back and fired a blade of magic at the Dullahan. After all, Emul, who hung out with me and OiKatzo during leveling, has leveled up reasonably well too.

The Magic Edge fired from point-blank range hits the Dullahan without missing, and the impact, doubled in power by Add Spell, blows the Dullahan away. And the destination of the Dullahan's trajectory, dancing in the air for the third time, is...

"Titan Blast!"

If the earlier Megaton Swing was Bogon!, then the current Titan Blast is... let's see.

"Gwara-gowa-gakiin! I guess?"

"Sunraku-san! Don't you think you're treating me roughly!?"

"Here, have a carrot~"

"Waaai!"

While casually offering a carrot (bribe) to Emul, I saw off the Dullahan, which had been sent flying with refreshing vigor.

Author's Afterword:
Since reproducing movements similar to the actual level is the trigger for skill acquisition, attempting various actions is correct as gameplay.

If you attach "of the Dead" to something, zombies seem likely to appear regardless of the context.