Dread Beast Wilderness (1)

The Random Dungeon is where we fought the human players during the event. Its entrance occasionally appears in an ordinary field, then disappears after a while. The only thing you can tell from the entrance is the recommended level for conquering it; you won't know what lies inside until you enter. Apparently, its name was also revealed during the event, but even that has apparently been unknown since its implementation. Perhaps the point is to enjoy the unknown?

There are many cases where conquering one is difficult depending on your party composition and available items, but I've also heard that the items obtainable inside are extremely rare. It seems worth going to see for ourselves.

"I'm in favor of going, but what about the recommended level? If it's too high, we won't stand a chance."

"It's fine. It said the recommended level was 30–40."

So that means it's about as difficult as the 'Gale Grassland' we're currently in. It doesn't seem like a particularly difficult place, and conquering it should not be too hard either. In that case, there shouldn't be a problem.

"All right! Shall we go to the Random Dungeon?"

"Sounds fun!"

"I wonder what kind of monsters will appear?"

"Hope some good materials come out!"

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After adding Kanna and Raga to our party, we had them guide us to the Random Dungeon. The dungeon entrance was like a hole in space, its black interior writhing and squirming. Seeing something like that in the middle of the grassland was incredibly jarring.

When we bravely stepped inside, our view changed all at once. The environment around us had completely transformed.

"The 'Dread Beast Wilderness'... A field-type dungeon, huh?"

Apparently, the dungeon we had entered was called the 'Dread Beast Wilderness.' Although it was called a dungeon, what lay before us was a wasteland stretching all the way to the horizon. The ground was dry, and hardly even a weed grew there. Dust was constantly swirling through the air, too.

Apparently, this was the same type as the 'Asura Grassland' created by Jigorou. If so, clearing it should mean defeating the boss somewhere in this expansive field.

"Wow, it's huge."

"Indeed. But the place we need to reach is obvious."

"It's pretty blatant."

Everyone was looking at the one and only hill in the middle of the wasteland. Since there was no other hint about where we were supposed to go, anyone who wasn't exceptionally contrary would head there.

"Looks like we have some guests before we can set out."

Thanks to being mounted, Kanna had a high vantage point and spotted the enemies approaching us. When I saw their forms, I felt as though I had opened my nonexistent eyes wide.

"Are those... dinosaurs?"

"Yes! They're Velociraptors!"

The monsters were dinosaurs in every sense of the word. They had red scales, feathers of the same color growing from their forelimbs, and well-developed sickle claws on their hind legs. Other than their coloring, they were exactly like the dinosaurs I'd seen in movies and other works of fiction. There were six of them, and they were charging straight at us at full speed.

I'm a guy, too. Seeing those embodiments of boyhood dreams moving around had me more than a little excited. But Eiji was even more excited than I was.

"You're pretty knowledgeable. Do you like dinosaurs?"

"I loved them when I was in elementary school, and went to museums again and again! Getting to see them moving in person... This is incredible!"

"Even though there are VR movies and stuff..."

Shifune muttered that under her breath, but there were already several VR movies, sightseeing experiences, and tour-like attractions featuring recreations of the prehistoric world. So there were actually quite a lot of opportunities to experience the power and grandeur of dinosaurs with plenty of realism.

Still, pointing that out would have been rather crass. Men were simply like that. The boyish part of them never disappeared completely. Besides, it was true that there weren't many other works where dinosaurs attacked you with such naked hostility.

So, this was going to be a battle. In that case, as usual, we would start with 【Appraisal】!

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Race: Fire Raptor Lv32–36

Job: Beast Fighter Lv2–6

Skill: 【Fangs】

【Fire Claws】

【Tail Strike】

【Scales】

【Vitality Enhancement】

【Strength Enhancement】

【Agility Enhancement】

【Dexterity Enhancement】

【Intelligence Enhancement】

【Fire Magic】

【Fire Resistance】

【Coordination】

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"They're Fire Raptors, with levels in the thirties. They're speed-type fighters who can also use 【Fire Magic】. They have the Skill 【Coordination】, so watch out!"

"Understood!"

I gave everyone a rough summary of the Appraisal results. As he listened, Eiji stepped forward with his shield raised. The light in his eyes, visible through the gap in his helmet, reminded me of Jigorou when he faced a powerful enemy.

"Gyaaaahhhhhh!!!"

"Hnnngh! Shield Heavy Blow!"

"Goeegaah!?"

Eiji caught the three Fire Raptors that leaped at him as though to tear him apart with their talons, stopping all of them at once with his shield. He then used a martial technique to send them flying with all his strength. Reinforced with true steel, his shield and overwhelming strength sent the Fire Raptors sailing away like cannonballs.

"Compared to the Spartoi, these are a piece of cake."

"Kanna and Raga, circle around to the rear. Shifune, attack from the right. I'll hold the left. Wool, can you try putting them to sleep?"

"I'm going."

"Leave it to me!"

"Okay!"

Kanna and Raga immediately dashed around to the rear. Shifune also quickly closed in on one of the monsters to the right, driving her sharp, jointed limbs and fangs into it. On Eiji's left, I restrained the monsters with Holy Rings placed using [Trap Magic]. We probably could have defeated them with just that.

"Baa, baa. Works great."

But it was Wool's bleating that dominated the battlefield. Perhaps because the monsters were lower-level and had no resistance, one after another fell asleep every time he bleated. Against ordinary monsters, not just Fire Raptors, Wool's bleating was nothing short of terrifying.

"Oh? This is easy."

"Gegheeh..."

"Is that thanks to Wool-kun's power?"

"Gyooh..."

Kanna and Raga then charged in after a running start, carried forward by their momentum. The Fire Raptors, unable to move a muscle because they were asleep, were defeated one after another, pierced by halberds or trampled beneath hooves. That's what happens when you sleep soundly in front of enemies several levels above you.

The sound and impact of the charges seemed to wake the remaining monsters, but it was already too late. When they opened their eyes, their vision must have been filled with magic, blades, fangs, and hooves.

"...That was kind of anticlimactic."

"They were lower-level enemies, after all. This is about what you'd expect."

Eiji looked a little dissatisfied. He was probably struggling with the complex feelings brought on by a dinosaur-shaped monster, the embodiment of romance, being weaker than he had expected. But there was nothing to be done about the level gap. If you wanted a difficult fight, you generally needed opponents in the same level range as us.

"More importantly, the materials! Shiitake and Iris are going to be thrilled!"

"Yeah, they will."

Shifune had a point. So I immediately took out my skinning knife and plunged it into a Fire Raptor. Now, what would drop?

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Fire Raptor Scales Quality: Good Rarity: C (Common Class)

Scales of a Dread Beast imbued with fire.

They are relatively thin, but correspondingly lightweight.

They can be used as material for armor with high resistance to fire.

Fire Raptor Talon Quality: Good Rarity: R (Rare Class)

A talon of a Dread Beast imbued with fire.

The talons that serve as the Fire Raptor's namesake are sharp enough to rival blades even without processing.

They can be used as material for weapons with the fire attribute.

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As expected, we obtained scales, talons, and a fire-aspected Magic Stone. I'll omit the details about the Magic Stone; apparently, the remaining materials could be used to make fire-aspected equipment. This was great! The best thing about the Random Dungeon was probably that it let you obtain items that normally would not drop in that field.

The quality was inferior to the drops from the 'Black Death Ice Forest,' but that was unavoidable since these monsters were lower-level. There was no way weak monsters would conveniently hand out powerful items.

"The scales look like they could be used for lightweight armor. Wouldn't they be good for Toji?"

"I think so, too. A lot of people would probably want the talons."

"Fortunately, they aren't very strong opponents, so let's take down every enemy we can. There might be places where we can gather materials, too, so let's keep an eye on the ground as we proceed."

"Okay!"

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We continued our progress toward the hill, but were attacked quite a number of times along the way. Fire Raptor packs were the most common, but we occasionally fought different monsters as well. These were their rare drops.

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Rock Pachycephalosaurus Skull Quality: Good Rarity: R (Rare Class)

The skull of a Dread Beast imbued with earth.

The skull, one of the Rock Pachycephalosaurus's defining features, is extremely massive and boasts a hardness surpassing that of metal.

It can be used as material for earth-aspected equipment.

Aqua Spinosaurus Back Crest Quality: Good Rarity: R (Rare Class)

The dorsal crest of a Dread Beast imbued with water. It is shaped like a fan.

The hollow bone is surprisingly sturdy, and the membrane feels astonishingly pleasant to the touch.

It can be used as material for water-aspected equipment, as well as for high-class dresses.

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These were materials from the Rock Pachycephalosaurus and Aqua Spinosaurus, respectively. Scales and Magic Stones with their respective attributes had dropped as well. Since the only difference was the attribute listed, I'll leave those out.

The Rock Pachycephalosaurus was a monster that charged at us with its smooth, hard skull thrust forward. Its body was larger than a Fire Raptor, and the sight of it approaching with its appetite laid bare was fairly frightening. Its charge was also too powerful for Eiji to take head-on, and we struggled quite a bit the first time we encountered one.

However, its lack of any attack method besides charging was fatal. Once you avoided it, the monster exposed an opening as it slowed down to make a U-turn and come back. Since it also needed time to accelerate, we eventually settled on the optimal strategy of evading it and finishing it off with ranged attacks.

Then again, Kanna decapitated the one we just defeated as she passed by. As expected of the strongest cavalry player.

The Aqua Spinosaurus was a monster with a magnificent, fin-like organ on its back. According to Eiji's trivia, real Spinosauruses apparently regulated their body temperature using that large protuberance. But this was a game, and it served a completely different purpose here.

The fan-shaped dorsal crest was like a staff to a mage. It glowed faintly every time the monster used magic. It could also spray water through the bones running inside it, and seemed stronger than its level would suggest.

We saw other monsters as well, but they fled the moment they noticed us, so we didn't obtain any items from them. Things like this happened when the level gap was too great. It was convenient, but could be considered a drawback of exceeding the appropriate level by too much. It was unfortunate that the amount of dropped items decreased.

"Even so, the creatures here seem quite different from real dinosaurs."

"I guess they are monsters, after all..."

Every monster we'd encountered along the way had been a carnivore. We knew that because we'd seen both the supposedly herbivorous Pachycephalosaurs and the monsters that fled from us eating other monsters. The 'Dread Beast Wilderness' seemed to be a terrifying place where the law of the jungle was constantly being enforced.

After obtaining several of each type of rare drop, we finally reached the top of the hill. Like the plain below, it was barren ground with not a single plant growing on it.

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You have entered the dungeon boss area.

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Our prediction had been correct. The system message informed us that this was indeed a boss area. As we silently braced ourselves upon hearing the announcement, the large boulder sitting atop the hill began to move.

"Broooooooooooooooooo!!!"

Apparently, the boulder was the boss. It sensed the intruders and let out a roar. Perhaps it had just woken up, because it seemed to be in a particularly bad mood. And so the boss battle of the Random Dungeon began.