BXBX NOVEL Chapter 459: The Easternmost Strange Land
For the first half day, the speed of my flight was less than half of my best, as I only used [Autoregeneration] to restore my wings enough to get into the air. After leaving Ardesia and getting far enough away from Lilixira, I rested at every spot I could find until eventually I was able to fly satisfactorily.
I then I took a large detour to throw off Lilixira, so it took an entire two days until I could see our destination. But, thanks to that, my health is fully restored.
I raise my head. Far away, a vast land covered by thick fog is coming into view. In the distance I can vaguely make out mountains and, closer to me, an extensive forest spreads out.
It’s not as though it’s too far away to see clearly. It’s just that the visibility is so poor. Beelzebub’s kin are C+ rank at most, so it’s likely they’ll be eaten by other monsters in the fog before finding us.
This is supposedly the worst of the world’s Four Great Monster Domains, the easternmost Strange Land. I can’t predict at all what we’ll find. But, if I can’t break through here, then I can’t win against Lilixira or Beelzebub.
I look back to confirm that Aro and the others are ready. I’m already paying close attention with [Presence Perception], but there’s no telling what monsters will appear. It’s disheartening to not have my partner here to notice things before me. But, the only way is forwards.
The moment I touch the ground, I sense bloodlust. I hear the sound of something kicking off the ground behind me. I swiftly turn around, throwing Aro and the others from my back in the process.
I swing my foreleg up to block. Right in front of my face, I see a huge mouth opened wide. It belongs to a giant black wolf, about five metres in length. Its four eyes glare at me sneeringly.
I intentionally let it bite my arm. I lost a little blood as a result, but it’s not a major wound. First off I should check this guy’s species.
【[Fenrir]: B rank monster】
【A vicious giant wolf that possesses a nimbleness unsuiting of its huge body.】
【It is said that wherever its shadow appears, destruction is sure to follow.】
【After eating everything it can, it sprints to the next area. A swift-footed calamity.】
I see… It’s more-or-less what I would expect from its appearance. Continuing on, I check its status.
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Species: Fenrir
Condition: Normal
Lv: 72/80
HP: 673/673
MP: 292/292
Atack: 405
Defence: 211
Magic: 288
Speed: 561
Rank: B
Characteristic skills:
[Dark Attribute: Lv-] [Olfaction: Lv7] [Automatic HP Recovery: Lv8] [Soft Steps: Lv8] [Demon Eye of Instant Death: Lv3]
Resistance Skills:
[Physical Resistance: Lv3] [Magic Resistance: Lv2] [Poison Resistance: Lv4] [Paralysis Resistance: Lv4] [Confusion Resistance: Lv3]
Normal Skills:
[Curse: Lv7] [Clay: Lv4] [Hide: Lv5] [Dark Sphere: Lv5] [Pure Bite: Lv5] [Beast Tackle: Lv4] [Scorching Breath: Lv3] [Autoregeneration: Lv5] [Ground Tremor: Lv7] [High Jump: Lv5] [Tongue of Defilement: Lv3] [Ally Call: Lv2]
Title Skills:
[Obsession: Lv5] [Big Eater: Lv4] [Final Evolution: Lv-]
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…That’s all, huh. I guess it’s about normal for a B rank.
“A fenrir! For us to meet a magic beast of legend so soon, our prospects are good!”
Volk draws magiatite-jii and lowers his stance.
I use [Autoregeneration] to heal the flesh around the fenrir’s fangs, restoring my skin and scales to prevent it from extracting its teeth.
“…Gi?”
Midair, the fenrir’s movements stiffen. Using all my weight, I slam it into the ground. Huge tremors run through the surroundings, and the fenrir’s four eyes open and mouth open wide. As it tries to get up, I knock it flying with one foreleg and smash its head with my other.
The fenrir’s fangs fly out from the force of my hit. Its neck twisted and splattering blood, it tumbles across the ground. Its body convulses, but quickly stops moving.
【1876 experience points have been acquired.】
【Due to the title skill [Walking Egg: Lv -], an additional 1876 experience points have been acquired.】
【The level of [Ouroboros] has risen from 122 to 123.】
B rank… Huh. With just a B rank, I’m still a ways off.
I don’t know about it being called a calamity or whatever, but monsters that weak won’t be enough to prepare me to fight Lilixira. The westernmost Giant Tree Island had B+ monsters and A- adams all over it. There should be more to this place.
Volk looks at the dead fenrir in surprise for a bit, before regretfully returning magiatite-jii to his back.
“…Seeing this really drives home that the ouroboros is outside the norm. More importantly, with a kill this large, it should provide us with plenty of provisions.”
…As he says that, naturally, my partner springs to mind. If she was here, she might have been rejoicing over the food.
I guess rather than deploring over the fact that the first monster we found was so weak, let’s just be satisfied that we didn’t encounter a dangerous monster immediately upon landing. The worst case scenario would have been a powerful monster like Eldia attacking us right away. If that happened, I can’t be certain that everyone would be safe.
To start with, let’s scout out the area and establish a base of operations. I also want to preserve the fenrir’s meat. We’ll investigate what we can about this misty island, and then plan out the details of what we’re going to do from here on.
It’s possible that there’s a monster capable of conversation like magiatite-jii who could tell us about this area. If I could find a monster like that, our operations from here on would get a lot easier.