I Became A Third-Rate Villain In The Hero Academy

Chapter 33: Walking The Rope (2)

Monster subjugating missions aren't limited to simply defeating monsters.

They involve the entire process of traveling to the monsters' habitat, tracking them, and ultimately eliminating them.

Thus, the difficulty of these missions is not solely based on the strength of the monsters.

Although uncommon, Cockatrice subjugation can sometimes be more challenging than exterminating Krakens.

The varied habitats of monsters also play a part.

Some warriors excel on grasslands, while others dominate at sea.

A warrior capable of easily taking down the Cockatrice battle captain on grasslands may find themselves unable to handle a baby Kraken at sea.

Moreover, a monster's strength generally corresponds with its age.

Within the same species, a five-year-old monster will be much stronger than one that is only six months old.

Additionally, long-lived monsters are known as "named" monsters.

Instinctively, other monsters naturally gather around a "named" monster as their leader.

At this point, the level of the monsters in the group significantly increases, and they have increasingly fewer weak points to exploit.

Monsters primarily rely on their inherent physical abilities.

As a result, the presence of just one "named" monster can drastically increase the difficulty of subjugation.

Examples of named monsters include the Great King Beetles, Giant Cockatrices, and others.

Among the named Cockatrices are those with distinctive yellow feathers, such as Cockatrice battle captains, and those with striking red feathers, like Cockatrice commanders.

We moved quickly over the grasslands, which were, of course, also created by magic.

'Hmm, but a grassland-type dungeon? It doesn't seem likely for a Great King Beetle to emerge here.'

Originally, it was a desert landscape. Since the future has changed quite a bit, there might be a possibility that the Great King Beetle won't appear.

Nevertheless, grasslands are the primary habitat of cockatrices.

'I wonder if Noctar is doing well?'

Before entering the dungeon, I told Noctar and his orc friends to use the emergency communication crystal if they felt it was too dangerous.

Especially since Noctar was partnered with the wizard, Andrew, he might become arrogant.

'I hope they understood.'

Due to my actions, the futures of Noctar and the orcs have likely changed.

Like Theo, Noctar is an extra character who, in most routes, tragically dies early after getting caught up in an incident at the end of the first year.

In the current Spearman route, he is a doomed character with only a brief mention of his death.

I feel a sense of camaraderie; I wanted to help him somehow.

As we continued in the direction Siena pointed out,

"Look over there."

Travis gestured towards the top of the hill.

There, a giant monster resembling a chicken walking on two legs appeared.

It was a cockatrice.

"Ah, as expected of a spirit wizard. Impressive!"

Eshild swiftly launched a spell at the cockatrice.

It would inflict significant damage if it struck a vital point.

'But somehow... it's too small?'

The cockatrice seemed rather small for a giant one, barely medium-sized.

Is it different from what I saw in the game because I'm witnessing it firsthand now?

Or is it because I'm observing it from a distance?

Regardless, encountering a monster so quickly is good news.

"Ah, what a shame. I aimed for its legs."

Kii, kiiiieeek!

The cockatrice, struck by Eshild's on its wing, let out a piercing shriek.

"Ah, that wasn't a clean hit. It's too far away. If it were only about 30 meters closer, I would have definitely hit it."

Eshild clicked his tongue.

The wing wasn't the cockatrice's weak point.

Naturally, it hurt since the spell struck its bare flesh, but cockatrices were resilient creatures.

To immobilize it, one should aim for its legs. To kill it with a single strike, target vital areas like its neck or heart.

"At least you hit it. I can barely see it. Ah, it's fleeing."

"What are you doing?! Hurry and pursue it!"

Eshild shouted at his teammates and started running at the forefront.

As expected of an assassin, his agility was exceptional.

"···He's incredibly fast."

Eshild's figure had already disappeared into the distance. Max, Travis, and I hurriedly followed after him.

"······."

Siena, on the other hand, was leisurely pretending to run.

Even so, there wasn't much difference in speed between us.

'Really, spirit wizards are overpowered.'

She must have been receiving assistance from wind spirits.

"Die, you!"

As he ran, Eshild continuously hurled spells at the Cockatrice.

Of course, the Cockatrice also ran away, maintaining its distance.

─Kii, Kiii!

During this, the Cockatrice skillfully blocked Eshild's magic targeting its legs with its massive wings.

...Something about this situation seemed off.

It was difficult to expect such behavior as blocking its legs from a regular cockatrice unless it was being instructed.

A typical monster should have charged at Eshild in anger the moment it was hit by a spell on its wing for the first time.

We played tag with the cockatrice for over three minutes.

"...What is that?"

Eshild muttered under his breath, his face pale as he stared at the approaching flock of cockatrices.

A few seconds later, all team members spotted the flock of cockatrices.

Despair filled Eshild, Max, and Travis's eyes.

'This is hopeless.'

I quickly assessed the situation. There were at least ten of them.

A flock of cockatrices that size would normally require a team of active, intermediate-level heroes for confrontation.

·····And one of them even had yellow feathers.

A 'named' Cockatrice battle captain was among them.

We needed to activate the emergency communication crystal.

"Siena, activate the emergency communication crystal."

"Got it~"

Despite the tense situation, Sierra cheerfully responded and activated the emergency communication crystal.

Once activated, the supervising instructors would arrive in approximately five minutes.

'In any case, we have to survive against this flock of cockatrices for nearly five minutes.'

Escaping wasn't a viable option for us. Cockatrices were as fast as Eshild, the quickest member of our team.

"Uh... uh... what do we do..."

"Damn it, why, why······ why are they suddenly appearing in a flock? Weren't we only supposed to catch one Giant Cockatrice?"

Max and Travis whimpered.

"Damn, this is a disaster!"

As Eshild moved, he threw magic at the approaching flock of Cockatrices.

Due to their large numbers, he couldn't inflict significant damage.

'Sigh.'

I was scared too. It was impossible to stay calm, much like when a ghost jump-scares in a horror game.

In a game, it's okay to fail. You can always try again.

But the situation I'm in now, reality, is different.

One mistake could cause us to fall from the rope and perish.

"..."

The only difference between me and the others was that, due to [Twisted Noble's Dignity], I didn't exhibit any outward signs of fear.

But I was just like them.

Only Siena seemed unfazed.

Instead, she appeared to be anticipating something. As if the situation was amusing, a faint smile even graced her lips.

Confidence that she could alter the situation with her own strength at any moment, I presumed.

'If Siena uses even half of her power, she could easily bind them.'

What a pervert. I really don't want to be involved with that elf.

'Well, I never expected her help anyway.'

I immediately devised a plan.

The goal was to survive until the instructors arrived.

We had to hold out for at least five minutes.

"···So scary, so scary, so scary······."

"What should we do, Eshild?"

"I don't know either, damn it. I wanted to win against Jang Woohee at least once."

However, it was impossible with these kids who had already given up and lost their composure.

If the cockatrice flock gets a little closer, they might each run away.

I had to prevent such a situation at all costs.

"Travis, gather rocks right now. If they approach, throw them and circle around us. Don't be scared; only one or two Cockatrices will follow you."

I promptly gave orders to my teammates.

A ship needs a captain, and a team needs a leader.

"Eshild, use your spells. However, the closer you get to the Cockatrice, the easier it will be to target their weak points. Unlike Travis, focus on reducing their numbers."

In urgent situations, we need to act as one.

As we learned in the Introduction to Hero Studies, even if the head gives the wrong order, the arms and legs must execute it flawlessly.

"Max, ready your shield to block the cockatrice flock."

"······I'm scared."

"With your ability, you can withstand their attacks to some extent."

"But, but······."

"If you don't raise your shield now, everyone here will die. I'll make up for our weaknesses. You can do it."

Having said that, I drew my practice longsword and stood near Max.

Travis, with a blank look in his eyes, picked up a rock.

"Damn it, if I'm going to die anyway, might as well go all out."

Eshild slid a ring imbued with spells onto his finger.

"···Okay, I'll give it a try······."

Max also raised his tower shield.

I glanced at Siena, who wore an interesting expression, and then focused on the approaching monsters.