Chapter 125
Four Soldier Ants emerged from the nest.
"Giiii..."
"Ksh..."
"Iii..."
"Gigi..."
They must have watched the fight just now.
They kept their distance, watching me warily.
They were sending in underlings to gauge our strength.
It was the same tactic the Dark Wolf had used at the shopping mall.
Did monsters that formed packs tend to use similar tactics?
"But they don't seem as smart as that one."
The area you're standing in is already within range of my Item Box.
Once again, I deployed wave-dissipating blocks to blanket the area.
"?!"
The Soldier Ants were startled by the blocks that appeared overhead.
Well, they were ants, so they had no expressions, but I figured they were probably surprised.
Some tried to leap back at once, while others raised their arms to block the stones.
Their reactions varied, but they were too slow.
"—Shadow Manipulation."
The shadows spreading from beneath their feet hindered the Soldier Ants' movements.
I'd used the dust cloud to hide it.
You didn't notice, did you?
"Get crushed."
Another deafening roar echoed through the shopping district.
≪You gained experience.≫
"I only got two of the four..."
The two that died seemed to have had their heads and chests crushed, killing them on the spot.
They'd been unlucky enough to take a hit in the wrong place.
"G... Giiii..."
"Gigi..."
Of the two remaining, one had both legs crushed beneath a wave-dissipating block and couldn't move.
The other had lost one arm and everything below its left ankle.
That was the one that had tried to leap back right away.
Apparently, it had immediately cut off the parts caught by Shadow Manipulation and escaped.
It had kept a good distance away, and seemed like the smartest of the four.
"Then I'll take care of this one first."
I finished off the other one, the one that could no longer move.
I made another wave-dissipating block appear overhead and crushed it.
≪You gained experience.≫
"That leaves just you."
"G-Giiii..."
Though it held its sword in its remaining hand, the Soldier Ant seemed unable to hide its agitation.
Well, anyone would be rattled after losing three comrades in an instant.
As Danger Sense had told me, each of them was probably no stronger than a Hobgoblin at most.
They weren't as strong as Orcs or Shadow Wolves, let alone that Death Knight.
(Those guys managed to counter my Item Box attacks the first time they saw them...)
If these couldn't do that, they were only that strong.
They were basically the type of monster that overwhelmed its enemies with numbers.
"That doesn't mean I'll let my guard down, though."
I was keeping watch all around me, and I'd already taken precautions.
≪You gained experience.≫
In the thick cloud of smoke, the voice of heaven rang out.
Looks like my trap worked.
"Giiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"
The Soldier Ant screamed.
It wasn't a Roar with physical destructive power like Momo's or the High Orc's.
It wasn't meant to encourage itself, either.
This was probably...
"A call to its comrades..."
An SOS—a distress signal calling for help.
I'd thought it might realize it had no chance and run, but it seemed the ant hadn't given up yet.
It was probably trying to call reinforcements and overwhelm us with numbers again.
"It won't do you any good, though."
No matter how much it screamed, there was no sign of new ants emerging from the nest holes in the ground.
"Gi? Giiii...?"
The Soldier Ant seemed to find that strange, too.
It kept looking around.
"G... Giiii!"
Then its body trembled with rage.
Finally noticed, huh?
The dust cloud drifting all around us.
It wasn't just ordinary smoke.
"Figured it out? This is smoke from the insecticide you hate."
Before coming here, I'd put several fumigating insecticides in my Item Box, ready to use.
Then, after you came out of the nest, I'd dropped them inside.
The Item Box lets me place and retrieve things anywhere within its range.
And it worked like a charm.
I'd put a lot in there, so it seemed the smoke alone had taken out a few of them.
That must have been where the experience I just gained came from.
"Your reinforcements aren't coming."
Even if they did show up, they'd just be more experience for me.
At least, unless something of an even higher species showed up.
"It's over."
"G... Giiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"
Perhaps realizing it had no way out, the Soldier Ant charged at me with its sword ready.
A reckless, last-ditch charge?
I immediately tried to use my Item Box, but Kiki moved first.
"Kyuu!"
"...Kiki?!"
What are you going to do?
The jewel on Kiki's forehead glowed faintly.
Immediately afterward, a transparent membrane appeared right in front of me.
"What is this...?"
A thin, fan-shaped membrane that gave off a faint light.
Could this be a barrier?
No, probably not.
My Skill—Prediction—was telling me this was something different from a barrier.
"This is... Could it be...?"
The Soldier Ant charged without hesitation.
It didn't seem to see the membrane.
The sword it raised struck the membrane—and then bounced back.
"?!"
The Soldier Ant was thrown into confusion by the sudden turn of events.
Seeing the result, I understood.
This was—reflection.
The membrane of light Kiki had created.
It could reflect enemy attacks.
"Kiki, you had such an incredible Skill...?"
"Kyuu♪"
Kiki rubbed against me as if to say, "I'm amazing, right? Praise me!"
"Haha, I'll praise you as much as you want later."
But first, let's take care of this.
I swung my kitchen knife at the Soldier Ant, whose balance had been thrown off when its attack was reflected.
≪You gained experience.≫
≪You gained enough experience.≫
≪Kudo Kazuto's level increased from 21 to 22.≫
The voice of heaven announced my level-up.
"Phew... Well, that should take care of things for now..."
I couldn't sense any more ants nearby.
The ones in the nest had probably already died or run away.
I collected the magic stones from the Soldier Ants.
The list displayed them as 'Giant Ant Magic Stone (Small).'
Next, I checked my status.
"Status Open."
Kudo Kazuto
Level 22
HP: 240/240
MP: 64/67
Strength: 168
Endurance: 164
Agility: 369
Dexterity: 340
Magic: 35
Magic Resistance: 35
SP: 62
JP: 30
Job
Ninja Lv. 7
Hunter Lv. 7
Shadow Puppeteer Lv. 5
Good, I'd gotten 60 SP and 30 JP, just as expected.
That should let me raise either Ninja or Hunter to Lv. 10.
At last, an advanced Job and a fourth Job would unlock.
I still got a little excited at moments like this.
"Oh, right. But this is a bad place to do that. I'd better get away first..."
I'd made quite a scene, so someone could show up at any moment.
Search hadn't detected anything, but I shouldn't linger.
I pulled my motorcycle out of my Item Box and was about to leave.
And then,
At that very moment,
—Suddenly, the area around me grew dark.
"Huh?"
A shiver ran down my spine.
An oppressive pressure, as if my heart were being crushed.
The entire area grew dark.
It wasn't because the sun had gone behind a cloud, nor had night suddenly fallen.
It was simply that something enormous had appeared, casting a shadow over the surroundings.
The ground shook.
The paved asphalt, the buildings around me...
They began to crumble as if in response to its arrival.
"Damn it... You've gotta be kidding me..."
Of all the times, why did you have to show up now?
Search.
Danger Sense.
Hostility Detection.
Everything inside me sounded the alarm.
Slowly, I turned around.
That thing was there.
"Uu—rrrrrrrroooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!"
A furious roar that made the air vibrate.
With its bellow, the giant Golem—Titan—appeared.
"Kiki, Aka, we're getting out of here!"
I immediately started the motorcycle's engine.
(No, wait a second...)
Just as I was about to flee, an idea suddenly occurred to me.
—Could this, perhaps, be a chance?
I looked at Kiki, trembling on my shoulder.
Kiki's Skill—Reflection.
A simple yet powerful ability that reflects an enemy's attack right back at them.
If... if, hypothetically,
that power worked on this thing too—
If I could use its own power against it and make it destroy itself...
I might be able to defeat it—Titan—right here and now.