Oni type monsters were generally intelligent.
Many could understand words and even grasp the finer points of fighting in a group. They could even take full advantage of their weapons. They were monsters that resembled people not just in shape, but in intelligence as well.
A group of ten hobgoblins set their eyes on Nick and his party, and began encircling them to block their escape to make sure they would kill them.
“There’s so many of them, what a pain… Sem!”
“Here it goes… Mighty!”
Nick received Sem’s strengthening magic and slipped between the hobgoblins.
“Gagyah!?”
He moved into the hobgoblins’ encirclement. The hobgoblins tried to catch him, but it was like trying to catch mist.
As a panicked hobgoblin tried to respond with its short sword, it suddenly found itself upside down, as a powered up Nick smoothly grabbed it by the ankles and flipped it upside down. In the next moment, it was up in the air, headed towards its surprised comrades.
“Don’t look away!”
Karan did not fail to take advantage of the unrest taking over the whole group, and in the blink of an eye, scattered them all over the place with great vigor.
Despite their numbers, the hobgoblins were not much of a problem.
“Alright, let’s keep moving… Tianna! The paths converge right ahead, so give up and let’s go.”
“W-wait just a little…!”
“No! Try it on the next route!”
Nick grabbed Tianna’s hand and pulled her along.
Their pace was not slow, but not fast either. Nick felt as though it was 50% slower than when he went here with All Martial Arts.
“But Nick, shouldn’t we let the other team take care of the mid boss in the next area to save our strength?”
Asked Sem.
“No… Dagger Wolves shouldn’t be a problem for a party of our rank.
The chance to pick the next route is more important. One of them is clearly the better route.”
“Better?”
“The longsword route.”
From the third point to the sixth, the path split into three routes.
The first was the longsword route. The most orthodox among these three.
There, monsters called Lesser Ogres, which were basically smaller ogres, would attack with longswords, but that was about it, and they would not perform any fancy attacks.
The path itself was also relatively flat, and not very prone to accidents, so most adventurers picked this route.
The second, was the longspear route.
This route was more troublesome. The Lesser Ogres here used longspears, but there were fewer of them, so they did not pose much of a threat. However, there was another, peculiar monster named Magic Bullet Shell.
This snail-like monster would feed on the spears that grew naturally in the labyrinth, and generate its hard outer shell.
However, this shell was nothing more than a secondary threat. The real danger was the way it stored foreign matter inside of it and shot it at enemies in an arrowhead-like shape. This would be easy to deal with if an adventurer got close and dug into its shell, but to get close in the first place, they would have to slip past its bullets.
“Yes. We’re not going to pick the longspear route… And the battle ring route is out of the question.”
The third route was known as Battle Ring, it got its name from the throwing weapon called Chakram that could be found in it.
Not many people could use it well. One would think the monsters that inhabited this route would use it skillfully, but even the Lesser Ogres could not use it well. Many even gave up on using them as throwing weapons and instead used them at close range.
There was not much more to this route, so it was less menacing than the other two.
However, the adventurers walking through this path would also have to use the same weapons, meaning the route’s difficulty depended on how well the adventurers could use Chakram. Some would say this was a place for strange hobbyists.
“I think using a Chakram sounds pretty fun, but…”
“I was going to say you’re the only one here that thinks so, but…”
Tianna said with a giggle.
“I want to try it too.”
“Work on your special technique first. If you can’t use it, we’ll have to pick the safer route.”
“I know!”
As they talked, they reached the point where the two routes converged, and heard the sounds of a battle.
It appeared Wanderers hadn’t finished the mid boss, Dagger Wolf just yet. Nick and Tianna let out sighs of relief.
“…They’re underestimating us aren’t they?”
“Ah, geez!”
They said as they looked at how unconcerned their opponents seemed.
“Willy be careful. You are not used to fighting in the front line! Marcus, help him!”
“Ou!”
“Leave it to me! Now!”
Wanderers were fighting a Dagger Wolf, a wolf as big as a tiger, that held a dagger in its mouth.
It pounced on the Wanderers, but Bellocchio yelled instructions while Willy and Marcus followed them as if they were his limbs, avoiding attacks perfectly.
Marcus skillfully dodged the Dagger Wolf’s attacks with minimal movement, not letting himself fall victim to its speed. Eventually, he put the monster in check with an axe he picked up along the way.
The weirdest part was Will, the sorcerer. His movements were not as skillful as Marcus’, but his axe attack was strange.
“Here I go… 《Wind Pressure Slash》!”
The moment Willy’s attack hit the Dagger Wolf, a certain pressure of sorts ran through its body. Even though Willy was clearly a lot lighter, the monster’s big body was sent flying.
“It’s like the Fire Dragon Slash.”
“Yes… What’s that all about?”
Said a puzzled Karan, and Nick whispered in agreement.
“Did he learn… 《Magic Blade》…?”
“Magic Blade?”
Tianna then answered Nick’s question.
“It’s a technique to activate magic through a weapon, like it’s done with a staff… Except instead of firing it from the tip, it activates the moment the weapon makes contact. It’s as powerful as it is difficult, and it’s supposed to be pretty high level magic…”
Tianna tilted her head, but Willy was indeed using such a technique.
“Alright! Now!”
Said Bellocchio, and Suisen, who was waiting in the back, jumped forward.
A strange blue something surrounded her body, but it was not just for show. It was bringing her incredible agility and strength.
“Shah!”
“Gyauh!”
Even a small hand-axe repelled the monster’s front limbs.
The Dagger Wolf let out a pained roar, and Wanderers’ victory was certain.
“Bellocchio is only giving directions, but he’s not just saving his strength. Is he training them while having them take down the Dagger Wolf?”
“He was waiting for us. That’s it isn’t it?”
Nick agreed with Karan’s displeased whisper. Perhaps it was his way of showing he had no intention to decide the match right then and there but he did seem very relaxed. Nick thought to himself it was very cheeky, when suddenly Tianna interjected with a cheerful voice.
“…I see. I get it!”
“What’s going on with them Tianna?”
“I don’t know.”
“Hey…”
Nick mumbled, but Tianna ignored him and started fiddling with a short sword she picked up.
“That’s not it. I figured out how to use magic in this labyrinth.”