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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Thorn Prairie (2)
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Thump-thump—!
Her feet pushed off the ground, and the surrounding landscape blurred past in a rapid streak.
Seven monsters appeared before Lee Yuri's eyes.
Black Hedgehog
While its appearance resembled a hedgehog, its size was so immense it made comparisons to such a cute, small animal feel almost insulting.
Its eyes were blood-red, and the spiky quills bristling on its back were coated in a thick, viscous liquid.
"Watch out for ambushes. There are eleven in total. Four are hidden underground."
Jin Yuha, who had activated her detection skill, warned them about the ones ambushing from beneath the ground.
Lee Yuri glanced down at the ground.
She then saw subtle differences in the ground's color and quills sprouting like grass.
'Hmm, I knew they were good at digging tunnels... but it's hard to imagine these massive creatures hiding underground.'
Was that why their danger level was rated B-class?
"Lee Yuri, deploy shield."
As Jin Yuha's command fell.
*CRASH!*
Lee Yuri stomped her foot down, thrusting her shield forward.
*VWOOM—!*
From the cross-shaped shield, a blue defensive barrier unfolded like an opening umbrella.
The moment the shield was deployed, the creatures hidden underground and those standing in front fired their quills.
*SHHHWIIING—!*
*THWACK-THWACK-THWACK—!*
Each quill struck the shield like a bullet, with terrifying speed.
'...There are so many.'
Even if the barrier's size could be arbitrarily increased, it was impossible to block all the incoming projectiles with a shield of limited size.
Lee Yuri tracked the incoming quills without even blinking.
She distinguished which quills would reach her party members behind her and which wouldn't, then mentally mapped out her movement path.
"Gukbap Junior!"
From behind, Lim Ga-eul's voice rang out, and 'Acceleration' imbued her body.
Her body felt noticeably lighter.
Lee Yuri's feet moved without hesitation along the optimal path she had pre-designed.
The feeling of her body moving exactly as she thought was truly exhilarating.
Lee Yuri smiled, thinking that.
***
'Whoa, Lee Yuri's on fire today.'
Lee Yuri's shield mastery, a result of her tireless effort and consistent training, was already considered excellent among tanks.
But today, her shield was absolutely tearing it up.
'...Wait, wasn't she weak against projectiles?'
I watched her from behind, tilting my head.
In Velvet School Life, a character's performance varied wildly depending on the enemy's attributes.
In Lee Yuri's case, while not a complete counter, she wasn't particularly efficient against enemies that fired projectiles from a distance.
'She's good at blocking attacks aimed at herself, but she usually struggled to protect party members behind her...?'
As a dodge-focused tank, she couldn't use heavy shields, so her shield was only large enough to cover her own body.
This meant she was naturally weak against attacks targeting other party members from afar.
'So I thought she'd just aggro them with a skill and deal with them that way...'
Yet, seeing Lee Yuri now, I couldn't help but wonder if I had been wrong all along.
She utilized her strength in speed, moving deftly to block the quills.
As for the attacks headed our way...
*STAB!*
*STAB!*
*STAB!*
A long, spear-like quill embedded itself right next to my foot.
Drops of venom dripped onto the ground, emitting acrid white smoke.
Lee Yuri hadn't blocked every single attack, but she had deflected or shielded every one that would have directly hit us.
The volley of quills finally ceased.
Now it was the damage dealers' turn.
I turned my head to the side.
Kang Dohui, her face stern.
Her eyes were wide, probably thinking internally,
'Why hasn't a tank like that been famous until now?'
Or something similar.
"Hey, Kang Dohui."
"...Huh."
When I called her, her reply came a beat late.
"Wanna bet?"
"...What?"
"Let's bet on who can kill more."
"A bet? You, with me...?"
When I said it with a smirk, Kang Dohui retorted, sounding provoked.
"...Mutt, I think you're mistaken. You only beat me in our last spar because—"
*WHOOSH—!*
Before she could finish her sentence, I drew Moonlight and pushed off the ground.
"Mutt..."
Following suit, Kang Dohui bit her lip and charged towards the monsters.
*SLICE—!*
I gripped Moonlight's hilt tightly and swung it horizontally at the massive monster before me.
Quills sprouted from its hand, which it thrust forward.
It seemed to be trying to block my sword with its quills, but—
*SLICE—!*
Moonlight severed its entire throat, along with its claws.
"KAAAGH—!"
Blood gushed from the gaping wound as the creature shrieked.
But I didn't spare it another glance, immediately searching for my next target.
The next targets were the Black Hedgehogs still hidden underground.
After using my detection skill to pinpoint their locations more clearly,
I gripped the sword in a reverse grip and plunged the pommel end towards the ground.
*STAB—!*
The sword tip plunged deep into the ground.
When I pulled the sword from the earth, black blood stained its blade.
*RUMBLE-RUMBLE-RUMBLE—!*
For a moment, the ground vibrated as if stretching, but then instantly quieted.
The sword tip had pierced its brain, killing it instantly.
'They can't even dodge underground, so this is a total cheat code.'
*STAB!*
*STAB!*
*STAB!*
I continued to stab and pull my sword from the ground, eliminating the creatures one by one.
...
Soon, the four monsters hidden underground met their demise.
I turned my head.
Kang Dohui came into view, kicking the arm of the last remaining monster.
*CRACK—!*
One of the hedgehog's thick arms exploded as if a bomb had detonated.
"Mutt. That's six for me. You've only got five."
Kang Dohui smirked, then launched herself into the air from her spot.
Her body rotated, and her outstretched leg swung towards the creature's head.
*WHOOSH—!*
But then.
*CLANG—!*
I intervened, blocking Kang Dohui's roundhouse kick with the flat of my sword.
The flat of my sword, pushed back by Kang Dohui's kick, struck the hedgehog's head.
"KYAAK!?"
*THUD—!*
The massive, one-armed Black Hedgehog lost consciousness and collapsed on the spot.
"...Mutt, what was that?"
Against a backdrop of scattering dust, Kang Dohui's brow twitched as she spoke in a chilling voice.
I let out a small laugh.
"Ah, this one needs to be tested."
"...Tested?"
"Yeah, Ga-eul Senior!"
I turned my head and gestured to Lim Ga-eul.
Lee Yuri and Lim Ga-eul, who had been standing behind, ran towards us.
"What's up, Junior?"
"Come test those gloves."
"...Huh?"
"You haven't used them once yet. You need to test them to see how effective they are in a real fight, don't you?"
"Oh."
I turned my head to the other party members.
"Lee Yuri, Kang Dohui, keep an eye on our surroundings."
"Yeah, got it."
"Tch, so this was your plan all along."
Lee Yuri nodded, and Kang Dohui clicked her tongue but stood guard without complaint.
"Alright, Senior. Swing hard once. It's already unconscious. It'll be fine."
Lim Ga-eul hesitated, then gulped and stood in front of the monster.
"Hmph!"
*WHIP!*
As Lim Ga-eul flailed her hand awkwardly in the air.
*CLINK—!*
A clear sound rang out as the tip of a quill on the Black Hedgehog's back vibrated.
"Aim again."
"Hmph!"
*SLICE—!*
This time, two fingers were severed.
I watched the scene, stroking my chin.
'Hmm, I'll have to help her with her stance.'
In truth, it would be safer to master it through sufficient training at the academy.
But testing it against a real monster, like now, wasn't something you could do often.
'Well, it's not like we chose a dungeon below our party's level for no reason.'
I nodded and approached Lim Ga-eul.
Standing behind her, I took hold of her wrist.
"...J-Junior!?"
Lim Ga-eul looked back at me, flustered.
"Focus. You need to get your stance right now. Even if Gukbap and I try our best to protect you, some attacks are bound to slip through sometimes. You need to be able to handle those by yourself."
"...Uh, uh-huh."
She nodded, but fidgeted uncomfortably.
"Hold still."
Then, *stiff*. Lim Ga-eul's body went rigid.
"Alright, open your eyes wide and really look at your opponent first."
"Mm-hmm!"
"Then, stretch your arm all the way up and across."
Her wrist rose above her shoulder, guided by my hand.
A pose that looked almost like a tight embrace.
Lim Ga-eul's face flushed a fiery red, as if it would burst.
"J-Junior... This feels like I'm being hugged—"
"What was that?"
"Oh, no, nothing!"
"I said focus. You keep getting distracted. Anyway, now extend your arm straight out and swing it down. Use the momentum of extending your arm strongly."
*SWISH—!*
*SLICE—!*
A long, deep wound appeared on the Black Hedgehog's face, gushing blood.
At that moment.
"KEEEEYAAAACK—!"
The creature, which had been unconscious from the pain of its face being sliced, shrieked and rose to its feet.
Quills shot out in all directions, not just one specific path.
*SWISH!*
*CLINK—!*
*CLINK-CLINK-CLINK—!*
*CLINK!*
I swung Lim Ga-eul's hand like a sword, deflecting the quills.
Her attack power wasn't enough to cut all the quills, but it was sufficient to deflect their trajectories.
Lim Ga-eul was now tightly held in my arms.
"If you do it like this, you can protect yourself sufficiently. Starting tomorrow, if you have time, practice deflecting attacks in the personal training grounds."
I looked down at her and said.
"...Ah, alright. But J-Junior."
"Yes?"
"Uhm... C-Can you let me go now? The other juniors are staring at us so intently...?"
I glanced around to see Lee Yuri and Kang Dohui staring at us with cold, unblinking eyes.
...
...
***
"Leader..."
"What."
"Ah, no... This isn't the route we were originally going to take."
The damage dealer mumbled nervously beside him.
Joo Taerin's expression twisted into a fierce frown.
"Shut up!!! I'm going to make sure that damn Cheonhwa party pays."
Fiery sparks flickered in Joo Taerin's eyes.