Chapter 10
The wolves all start growling at once.
The very next moment, the cursed rock is right in front of us.
"Whoa!"
I raise my arms in front of me in a protective stance...
Even so, I calmly analyze in the back of my mind that this probably won't do any good.
THUD!
A loud noise rings out, followed by... pain? Huh? It doesn't hurt.
When I cautiously check, the cursed rock is embedded in the cave wall opposite us.
What's more, the cursed rock has changed shape.
It's gotten smaller.
Once it pulls itself out of the wall, the cursed rock starts moving along it for some reason.
It seems to be keeping its distance from me.
I don't remember doing anything.
What happened?
It came at us... Was that an attack?
Ah, the barrier.
So the barrier managed to protect us.
But this is a little different from what I expected the barrier to do.
Why did it end up embedded in the wall?
This space is larger than the one where the wolves were.
The entrance we came through is near one of the chamber's four corners.
Since the chamber is rectangular, the cursed rock in the diagonally opposite corner looks small.
Apparently, something made it flee all the way over there, but I have no idea what.
Did I do something to scare it?
I mean, is it safe to assume the cursed rock has a will of its own?
I tilt my head and look at the wolves.
They stare back at me with their round, innocent eyes.
A heartwarming moment in a place like this.
No, wait—that's not it. I'd just let my guard down.
When I try to get a little closer, the cursed rock comes crashing toward us again.
For some reason, I decide to let it attack me...
The barrier stops it, then glows and attacks.
...An attack?
Several spearlike shafts of light pierce the cursed rock, then vanish.
It happens in an instant.
What? The barrier attacked, but what was that?
Oh no, is the barrier really something this terrifying?
The cursed rock is embedded in the farthest wall again.
At first, it was almost tall enough to reach the cave ceiling, which must be about twenty-five meters high... but it's gotten much smaller.
It's shrunk by two sizes and is probably seven or eight meters tall now.
Well, I hope you'll forgive me—the one who attacked was in the wrong.
I mean, the barrier can even attack?
When I look at the wolves, they tilt their heads.
I have no idea.
Thinking about the barrier is a waste of time, so I leave it alone.
The problem is the cursed rock.
Since attacks don't affect it, I try moving closer.
It doesn't budge from the wall in the corner.
Was that just my imagination?
Rather than feeling like an inanimate rock, it reminds me of the wolves when I first met them.
A living rock?
Is that why it can create curses?
I steel myself and try casting Purification on it.
The cursed rock flashes briefly, its black rocky surface paling, but it returns to normal almost immediately.
Apparently, Purification isn't very powerful.