Chapter 52
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Race: Toadman Lv12–15
Job: Warrior Lv2–5
Skill: 【Tongue】
【Spear Arts】 or 【Axe Arts】
【Agility Enhancement】
【Aquatic】
【Night Vision】
【Mucus】
【Lightning Vulnerability】
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These are the stats of the Toadmen who attacked us. To be honest, they aren't any different from Ratmen. They're weaker than the Lizardman fisherman, and poorly armed to boot. The Village Chief could probably mow them down as easily as we could.
However, there were simply too many of them. Didn't we defeat more than a hundred just now? If the Lizardmen were overwhelmed by sheer numbers, their village would surely be crushed with ease.
For now, their incursions into our territory are sporadic, but if they launched a coordinated invasion, the village would collapse. If things got that bad, Dragon Lord Agnasrerim-sama would probably take action, though.
"There are simply far too many of them."
That was the sole and greatest result of this investigation. The answer to every mystery probably lay in discovering what had caused this abnormal proliferation.
When I explained the situation to the Village Chief, the cunning-looking old man visibly panicked. According to him, Toadmen did reproduce more quickly than Lizardmen, but it was normally impossible for them to have more than a hundred warriors.
The Lizardmen's village had a total population of about five hundred, of whom approximately fifty were warriors. The Toadmen's total population was estimated at one thousand, so if the proportion of warriors in their settlement was the same as among the Lizardmen, they should have around a hundred warriors.
However, even though we had defeated more than a hundred of them, our opponents still seemed to have plenty of strength left. Their total population had almost certainly swelled. It was now even clearer that the cause of this and the Toadmen's abnormal behavior were not unrelated.
"Our immediate goal should be to reach the Toadmen's nest. There must be something there."
"I get that, but with that many of them, there's no way even we can break through as we are now, right?"
That's exactly the problem. Advancing while defeating the countless Toadmen wasn't realistic. It was obvious that someone would eventually fall, and our entire battle line would collapse from there.
The safest course would be to grind our levels little by little, then challenge them once everyone reached around level 30. We should be vastly stronger after evolving, so there would be a good chance of making it through.
The downside was that it would take an enormous amount of time. Iris, currently level 24, was the lowest-level member of our party. How many hundreds of Toadmen would we have to hunt before she gained six levels? I suppose it was common in online games, but just thinking about it made my head spin.
"Then I'll go!"
Ruby was the one who volunteered. Right, she was an Assassin Slime. She excelled at stealth and could move silently even around water. She was the perfect candidate—or rather, the perfect monster material—for the job. However, there was a problem with that plan too.
"By yourself?"
None of our companions could match her level of stealth. That meant she would naturally have to act alone. Wasn't that asking too much? She could probably escape even if she was discovered, but it was certainly very dangerous.
"I'll be fine! I'm confident in my ability to run away!"
"I see... Then the rest of us will fight noisily as a diversion and draw their attention. Is that all right with everyone?"
If the remaining four of us ran wild, it should reduce Ruby's burden somewhat. It was the best support those unable to accompany her could provide.
"Sounds good. It's much better than slowly picking off a bunch of weaklings."
"Ruby, don't push yourself!"
"Do your best!"
It seemed everyone was convinced. I thought Genjuro would object, but he actually seemed pleased to see his granddaughter perform. They really were two of a kind.
We decided to depart after logging out and taking a break. The encounter with that monstrous Dragon and our successive battles with the Toadmen had left us mentally exhausted. Fortunately, this was a safe place. There was no need to leave anyone behind as a lookout, so we would all log out together.
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I'm back. Oh, I'm first. I suppose that happens sometimes.
Now, what should I do during this interval? It's an awkward amount of time for doing anything. Hmm...
Ah! That's right, I remember now! There were some Skills I'd planned to get once I had spare SP. The stat-boosting Skills! 【Intelligence Enhancement】, 【Mental Enhancement】, 【Health Recovery Speed Increase】, and 【Magic Power Recovery Speed Increase】!
I can't believe I completely forgot. We're going to be fighting one battle after another, and I still have SP left over from the event, so I'll get them right now. The required SP hasn't changed since before. All right, acquire!
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You spent SP to acquire 【Intelligence Enhancement】.
You spent SP to acquire 【Mental Enhancement】.
You spent SP to acquire 【Health Recovery Speed Increase】.
You spent SP to acquire 【Magic Power Recovery Speed Increase】.
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I dumped 26 SP into them! Combined with 【Scythe Arts】, that makes 38 SP, but I still have plenty left. I might need it later, though, so I think I'll stop here.
"I'm back."
"Izam, you're early."
"Wooo! I'm fired up!"
"Now, now, calm yourself."
Oh, everyone had arrived. It was unusual for all four of them to show up almost simultaneously, too, I suppose.
More importantly, it was time to depart for the Toadmen's territory. All right, time to make as much noise as possible!
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"Whoa, there are a ton of them."
I'm Ruby, the Assassin Slime. I'm the scout of 'Nightwalk', a party made up entirely of monsters. Right now, I'm infiltrating the Toadmen's nest all by myself.
Swimming smoothly through the water, sneaking in unnoticed was surprisingly easy. I took out every Toadman I encountered along the way without alerting them, so my 【Assassination Arts】 level went up. Yay!
The journey here was easy, and they haven't noticed me, but... the nest is larger than I expected, and there are a lot more Toadmen too. I've got to be careful from here on!
"..."
I stretched my Slime body thin and crept farther and farther inward, along the walls and ground and over the rooftops. I got a scare when the thatched roofs creaked, but I wasn't discovered. That was a close one!
"This must be it."
The building I'd singled out was the largest house of them all. It must be an important facility. When I observed it from the shadows, I found that security was as tight as I'd expected.
The number of guards was one thing, but more importantly, the enemies looked strong. They were more muscular than the Toadmen I'd seen so far, and their faces looked much more severe. I figured they were around level 20, like us.
If I told you that ten of them were surrounding the place, you'd think sneaking in was impossible, right? But it's fine! I have a secret weapon!
"Liquefaction, activate!"
This Skill turns my body into a complete liquid. I gained the ability to use it after receiving the blessing of the 'Goddess of Wind and Exploration,' Horyuse-san. It's probably a Skill unique to me.
I can only use it once per in-game day, and it isn't suited for combat, but it is certainly convenient since it lets me infiltrate almost any place. Besides, the Toadmen's nest is situated under almost the exact same conditions as the Lizardmen's village, so it is perfect for the current situation, with water everywhere!
I mingled with water seeping through the ground as I approached the house, then successfully slipped in through a gap in the earthen wall! It worked!
"Whoa!"
"Geko?"
That was close! I had infiltrated some kind of hallway, and just as Liquefaction wore off, a patrolling Toadman turned the corner! I thought they'd noticed me!
I hurriedly leaped up and stuck myself to a beam, then moved along it. The house seemed simply built, so I should be able to peek into every room from the beams. I'll look around.
Hmm. I don't see anything that looks like the cause of their sudden population boom. There was a place that seemed to be a treasure vault, packed with ornaments made from monster materials, and a similarly stocked armory, but neither held anything impressive...
I mean, Iris can make better accessories for me. She even succeeded in developing an item recently that increased movement speed when equipped. Compared to Iris-brand accessories, the treasures the Toadmen had gathered looked pretty disappointing.
"The only place I haven't checked is here... Hmm? Is that a voice?"
Judging from the house's structure, the last room was in the center. As I approached it along the beams, I heard voices coming from inside. There must be something there! I'll thin my body and slip in through a gap in the wall!
"Huh!?"
What is that smell!? What is this smell!? The sewer where our base is located stinks too, but this is a completely different kind of stink! How should I put it... Yeah! It smells like chemicals in a science lab! An acrid smell, or rotten eggs!
"Ger-ooh... Gegogogoh..."
Inside the room filled with that acrid smell was a female Toadman larger than any individual I'd seen so far. How did I know she was female? Because she was laying eggs right now!
Ugh, frog eggs about the size of human heads... Urgh! I'm starting to feel sick...
"Gegogoh... Geh..."
I'll just have to put up with feeling sick... This female might be the cause. Every time she makes a sound, she lays some kind of gel-like substance filled with eggs. It looks like she lays around ten eggs each time. No wonder they can multiply without end.
"Can I do it...? No, I will."
If this Toadman was the cause, defeating her here should clear the quest. Then I'll finish this!
I'm not acting recklessly for no reason. I genuinely believe I have a better chance of defeating her than not.
My 【Assassination Arts】 level is 13. I've gained two combat techniques so far. The first is Night Raid. Its effect is to increase the success rate of surprise attacks at night—specifically, from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. in-game. It's around 7:00 p.m. now, so the effect applies. She definitely hasn't noticed me, so it should almost certainly succeed.
The second is Bone Severing. Its effect is to make cutting with a slashing weapon more likely. It doesn't say so explicitly, but I think it makes it easier to cut off someone's head and kill them instantly. Since it works even outside of surprise attacks, it's useful.
As for weapons, I have the two daggers I received from the 'Trial of the Azure Moon.' Izam appraised them for me, and these are their stats.
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White Dagger Quality: Divine Rarity: G (Divine Grade)
A snow-white dagger that banishes all evil. Indestructible. Owner-bound.
Its true power will be unlocked as its wielder grows.
Initial Effects: 【Cutting Power Increase】 Lv3,
【Monster Damage Increase】 Lv3
Black Dagger Quality: Divine Rarity: G (Divine Grade)
A pitch-black dagger that devours all evil. Indestructible. Owner-bound.
Its true power will be unlocked as its wielder grows.
Initial Effect: 【Agility Enhancement】 Lv3
【Transformation】
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I was confused at first. There were two daggers, but they had fewer weapon abilities than everyone else's weapons. I even got depressed thinking I was being treated unfairly, but that wasn't it. 【Transformation】, which unlocked when I reached level 20, was what these weapons were designed for!
"Transformation: Chaos Black-and-White Sword!"
The Black Dagger can transform and combine with the White Dagger! When they fuse, the weapon's attack power increases, and I can use both weapons' abilities. The fusion has a time limit, but that's plenty for a single surprise attack!
"Hah!"
I dropped silently from the beam behind the Toadman and swung the Chaos Black-and-White Sword horizontally. I clearly felt it cut through skin, flesh, and bone.
Clunk...
The Toadman's head fell to the floor with a dull sound. The instant kill was successful!
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Your Race level has increased. You acquired 1 SP.
Your Job level has increased. You acquired 1 SP.
Your 【Dagger Arts】 level has increased.
Your 【Assassination Arts】 level has increased.
You acquired the Title 'Invisible Assassin'.
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Wooo! Yes! A Title for the first time in ages! I wonder what it does...
Brrrblblblblblblblblbl!!!
Eeeeh!? Wh-what is that!? I was about to loot the corpse and flee, but eggs came blasting out of it at an incredible speed!? I don't know the exact number, but there must be hundreds...! This isn't the time to celebrate my new Title! I've got to crush as many as I can...!
"Gero?"
"Geko geko?"
Oh no! That filthy sound called the other Toadmen over! Even though I'd assassinated it without making a sound! But they haven't realized that I'm the culprit yet. Hurry, escape! Then I'll report to everyone!
I was planning to clear this quest myself, but I guess hidden quests aren't that easy! It's a little frustrating, but I did everything I could!