Chapter 406

Chapter 411: Monsters and a Maiden (Please Subscribe!)

The gray sky, the heavy air, the lifeless ground, and the strange monsters that either came from somewhere or were bred right here on this very land.

Another glimpse of this alternate world was nothing more than these sights.

Beneath the dimming heavens, winds laced with sand howled past, sweeping dust across dunes.

On the desolate, endless surface of the earth, a small black dot moved along the horizon.

If you closed the distance and looked closely, you’d see it was a tall human wrapped in a ranger-like cloak.

A faintly glowing dark silver spear floated behind him, just within reach.

As an adventurer, Izay was currently exploring the unknown surface of this otherworld.

But something seemed to have gone wrong at the outset…

“I was careless. I forgot to set coordinates last time I came, so this time my crossing position is off again. Guess I gotta find the place anew.”

Izay took a bite of his half-charred lamb skewer and sighed as he gazed upon the endless expanse of yellow soil and desert.

Last time, he remembered appearing in some desolate ruin.

But this time, he had ended up in some random corner of the sandy wasteland, with a few rather grotesque-looking monsters nearby.

—His crossing point had been miscalculated.

This was due to his own operational error.

The “Mysterious Anchor Point” not only anchors and connects two different worlds but also has many other functions.

Like adjusting the flow of time, bringing people across, and recording coordinates.

If one travels back and forth between worlds without recording coordinates, then where Izay would end up through the “Mysterious Anchor Point” would be entirely random.

For example, last time he ended up in some ruins, this time he’s in an unknown desert nook.

Orario was fine; he’d set the coordinates in his room during his first crossing.

Here in the alternate world, there was nothing for it.

Still, Izay didn’t intend to record coordinates in the middle of a desert.

At least, not until he found a place worthy of his eye.

“Now… let’s look around and see if there are any sentient beings still active on this surface. The whole world can’t possibly be destroyed, right!?”

Izay took another bite of his lamb skewer, planning his next move.

It must be said that Fairy products were reliable.

Even though the wind and sand were swirling around, anything that approached within a meter of him was blocked by an invisible gentle breeze, preventing even a speck of dust from landing on him.

How excellent!

Izay nodded approvingly.

However, he wasn’t the only one thinking this way.

The monsters hidden beneath the sand were observing him like a moving snack, finding him equally delightful!

Sitting at home doing nothing while snacks fall from the sky? It doesn’t get better than this.

After a short rest, food delivered itself right to their mouths. Could anything be more considerate?

The monsters gave Izay a thumbs-up!

Then, they burst out of the sand, ready to feast on this easy meal with their kin.

……

Generally speaking, these monsters resembled ropes.

More accurately, they were like pythons.

But they weren’t “snakes.”

Instead of scales, countless slimy needles covered their bodies.

The exposed needles stretched and contracted in the dusty air, carrying an unsettling danger.

(About Lv.4 lower rank in strength, probably?)

With his head tilted back, Izay observed the nearly ten-meter-tall thin monster before him.

“Hmm…”

Even ordinary monsters roaming the surface had this level of power.

Just this fact made it more dangerous than the Dungeon World.

After all, outside of Orario, it’s quite hard to encounter creatures above Lv.3 in the Dungeon World.

Both adventurers and monsters were scarce.

Maintaining a sense of novelty, Izay tried to discern something about the monster before him.

However, perhaps angered by this behavior, the thin monster suddenly coiled its body and launched itself towards Izay in a furious charge!

“—’Steadfast as a Rock’!!”

Before the impact arrived, the magical incantation rang out first.

In an instant, a sturdy Rock Elemental Shield enveloped Izay.

The full-body spike attack that could pierce through steel merely caused a faint ripple on Izay’s Jade Shield.

Seeing this, Izay shook his head.

“Lv.4… Not even worth exercising for me now…”

“But this number… might barely count as a warm-up.”

Looking at the over one hundred thin monsters surrounding him, Izay gripped his weapon tightly.

In the next moment, he vanished without warning.

A counter-spinning whirlwind.

The spear tip carved elegant arcs in the air, crescent-shaped flashes of cold light erupted, and the dark silver spear wielded like an extension of his arm created a blood-soaked melody of slaughter.

There was no sound of collision, only the echoes of torn bodies.

It was like cutting vegetables; the thin monsters were sliced apart effortlessly. With each flash of light, the monsters attempting to charge Izay were dismembered into pieces.

This wasn’t a battle.

It was a one-sided massacre.

Izay was like a player leveling up, slaughtering waves of enemies coming to offer experience points.

The only difference was that after clearing the area, he didn’t level up.

A hundred or so Lv.4 monsters simply couldn’t provide enough experience for him. At best, it was a playful warm-up.

After spending a bit of time eliminating all the attacking monsters, Izay used the direction of the last fallen monster as a marker and continued onward.

His goal was to find signs of biological activity in this hellishly desolate world.

Perhaps it seemed childish to try and find them this way.

But Izay possessed the Development Ability “Luck,” combined with his unique skill “Star of Enlightenment.”

As long as he proceeded with purpose, the likelihood of him eventually finding traces of civilization was quite high.

……

Far away, coincidentally in the direction Izay was heading,

The sound of a roaring furnace echoed continuously, shaking the atmosphere and the sandstorm.

Accompanying this powerful noise, a massive airship descended slowly onto the sandy ground from the sky.

Not far from where the giant airship landed was a large city ruin that had decayed into rubble.

Roughly estimated by its size, this city could have housed over ten thousand people.

Wide streets paved with stone slabs, countless collapsed houses, and some colossal buildings that likely belonged to important figures.

From the scattered dead trees spread over a wide area, it could be inferred that there once might have been a substantial forest here.

“This is a rare large ruin… This expedition will surely be interesting.”

“Don’t get too relaxed, Nafude. This city’s size alone could accommodate over ten thousand people. It’s our first time accompanying the salvage team to explore ruins, so we should stay vigilant here.”

“I know, Lain. You say don’t relax, but aren’t you just as curious? Stop pushing me!”

“Nafude, you’re so noisy! I’m just telling you to be cautious. What does that have to do with me being curious about the landscape down there? And I’m not pushing you, the window is too small!”

At a window in one of the rooms on the airship, two girls observed the scene below, exchanging words back and forth.