Chapter 140 – The Great Decaying Lake

We walked along the shore, heading toward the narrow strip of land that continued across the lake as if crossing it.

That narrow path connected the islands scattered throughout the lake. We decided to choose an appropriate path from among them and proceed deeper.

Some islands were completely isolated, not connected by paths, and those places inevitably had treasure chests placed on them, which was troublesome.

To retrieve those treasure chests, we had to leave the footholds and move through the swamp. And those places inevitably had many enemies deployed.

Visibility would also be problematic in this area. A mist-like substance hung thickly throughout, and even with Night Vision Magic, visibility wasn’t good. That said, using torches or magical lights would alert the enemies above, so it was better to avoid them.

Ultimately, proceeding with Night Vision Magic was the safest option here, so I had already cast the spell on my companions beforehand.

“You said it was a lake… but this is a swamp.”

“How deep is it?”

“In the deepest parts… probably about waist-high for me?”

Most places would be just above knee-height for an adult male.

Getting stuck in the mud would slow movement, and there were enemies in the mud too. If dragged under, it would be extremely dangerous since the entire area was a poisonous swamp.

“So the narrow paths and the lake interior are dangerous, right?”

“Correct. As I mentioned during the briefing, watch above and below.”

Sludge Men attacking from within the mud. Fly Heads with human faces attacking from the darkness above. These were enemies we’d be fighting everywhere around here, connected through the Great Corruption Lake.

Since we were using water walking and aerial movement anyway, we didn’t plan to tackle this place conventionally… but for now, we were moving low above the narrow paths to observe the enemy’s nature and countermeasures first.

If we flew too high, we’d be attacked by enemies, so I figured our usual exploration would be similar to this.

“Enemies from above.”

Even as she spoke, the attack came. Sheila’s brief warning. Since we were blocking odors, we couldn’t use olfactory detection. So Sheila and Lavigne’s hearing, and Irmhild’s temperature sensing would serve as our detection sensors.

As expected, it was a group of Fly Heads gliding down from above with almost no wing noise. About the size of soccer balls.

Though called human-faced, they weren’t that realistic. Their exoskeletons merely resembled faces, about as human-like as Heike crabs. Still, given the location, they were plenty creepy.

What required caution were their large mandibles and needles. Since they possessed paralysis poison and blood-sucking attacks, they could become quite troublesome if we got our feet caught by Sludge Men or unknowingly took their poison.

“Engaging.”

No sooner had she spoken than Sheila kicked off the air to intercept. Each time the Cutlass seized from the Nautilus emitted a pearly gleam, Fly Heads were cleaved in two and fell into the poisonous swamp.

Grace followed after her. Against the approaching Fly Heads, Sheila kicked off the air for a high-speed retreat. As if filling the gap, Grace swapped positions to become the Vanguard.

Grace swept away the Fly Heads whose attack timing had been disrupted, using the flat of her axe. The power was impressive indeed, shattering multiple enemies to dust without regard for air resistance.

Marlene raised her rapier toward the sky. The Saucer flew around as if circling through the air, deflecting and scattering at high speed the Fly Heads attempting to attack Sheila and Grace from behind.

There wasn’t just one Saucer. Just as one Saucer blocked Fly Heads trying to approach Marlene, Dullahan appeared from a Magic Array floating in the void. Simultaneously, it swung down its Greatsword, smashing them to pieces.

“What about looting?”

Sheila momentarily glanced over, concerned about the Fly Heads being rapidly knocked down and sinking into the swamp.

“Don’t worry about them. The ones that sank aren’t worth the recovery effort. Let’s only collect those that fell on land.”

“Understood.”

She replied briefly, slicing through the aerial enemies. Though Sheila’s weapon had changed from a Dagger to a Cutlass… since the blade was lightweight and had considerable sharpness, it essentially maintained the same number of attacks while extending her reach.

“There.”

It seemed enemies were approaching from the ground side too. Irmhild nocked an arrow and slammed it into the swamp. Then, from the swamp she hit, a Sludge Man with an arrow stuck in its head emerged uncontrollably.

A monster with a tar-like body. Close to humanoid in shape. The design made it look like a dome-shaped, rounded head was attached around the shoulder area.

Sludge Men’s attacks were basically ambushes or sneaking up and grabbing.

They were strong and had high durability. However, they moved slowly, hence their ambush tactics… For Irmhild, who could detect them with temperature sensing, they might be easy opponents to handle.

However, Sludge Men had extremely strong Resistance against status ailments. Note that attacks like Poison, Paralysis, and Confusion wouldn’t work on them.

Irmhild fired arrows in rapid succession. She froze not only the surrounding hidden Sludge Men but also the area around the standing Sludge Man, sealing their movements. There, Ashley’s Water Cutter sliced them apart.

Good coordination. Despite the poor visibility, they could detect enemies, so both ground and aerial defenses were fine.

First—let’s finish off the stubbornly surviving Sludge Men.

“Thunder Cloud!”

Electrified dark clouds swept across the surface of the Great Corruption Lake. They showered the engulfed Sludge Men with intense Lightning Strikes, wiping them out completely.

Hmm. Considering the Sludge Men’s durability, it seemed better for me to handle ground-side interception.

Then, from across the swamp, I saw an upright giant crocodile approaching with a club in hand.

Rotondile. A crocodile monster adapted to the Great Corruption Lake, possessing Poison Resistance. Among the monsters appearing in the Great Corruption Lake, it could be considered relatively major.

They were positioned at key locations and adopted behavioral patterns of intercepting when approached. Maybe there was a treasure chest nearby. I should remember the direction it came from well.

“I’ll handle that one. Everyone else, move toward the first island while fighting. Form a circular formation for defense.”

After giving instructions, I kicked off the air and charged at the Rotondile. Matching its brute force with an Upward Swing of my own.

It used its club to stir up mud, serving both as a blinding tactic and makeshift shield. Breaking through with my Shield, I rushed in, and as if waiting for me, it aimed for my head with a downward strike. I dodged the club with a sideways jump and fired a Fireball as I retreated.

Using the blast as cover, I rushed in. Then, the wildly swinging club came at me from a diagonal downward angle.

I blocked it with my Shield and jumped as if riding the club.

Not yet—. Rotondile had a hidden card: a Shockwave from its roar. The attacks with its fangs and tail were also threatening. So first, I needed to seal its fang attacks.

“Light Bind.”

Flying over its head, at the moment we passed each other, I cast the spell as I retreated. My target was the crocodile’s head. I bound it as if tying up its jaws. Simultaneously, by placing the light-emitting Light Bind before its eyes, I used it as a blinding tactic.

The Rotondile, having lost sight of me, was clawing at its face trying to escape the Light Bind’s restraint. With its monstrous strength, it would likely break free soon, but I had already positioned myself completely behind and above it—a perfect blind spot.

Using Levitation to kill inertia while flipping my body. I kicked off my Shield and accelerated with Air Blast. I Charged at the Rotondile below me.

Acceleration and impact. A scream of agony. The moment Ouroboros’s horn pierced through its skull, Lightning Magic activated. The Lightning Strike scorched the Rotondile’s cranium.

I shifted Form mid-air and floated near the lake surface. Looking back over my shoulder, I saw the Rotondile swaying, losing strength and beginning to collapse.

If it fell like that, it would sink into the mud. Using Levitation to make it float, I carried it to the island where everyone was. Apparently, they had mostly finished cleaning up over there too.

“To defeat a Rotondile so easily… I knew it, but even upper-tier Guardians wouldn’t stand a chance against you.”

Claudia said, sounding astonished.

“That type—the ones relying on size and brute force—are easy for me.”

Normally, fighting in the Great Corruption Lake meant poor footing, so Rotondile, which primarily used force, would make Vanguards struggle. But for me fighting at low altitude, it didn’t matter much.

Now. Let’s get to looting.

“What can you get from this lizardman-like thing?”

Irmhild asked.

“The hide can be processed. You can make corrosion-resistant leather Equipment.”

Regarding Rotondile, there might be some Equipment to look forward to. Our Armor was fairly well-equipped already.

“What about Fly Heads?”

“Collect their poison sacs to get paralysis poison. Sludge Men… their blood can be made into medicine.”

“…Medicine.”

Sheila made a subtle expression. I understood how she felt.

“Yes. The fact they can stay submerged in this poisonous swamp unharmed means they have strong Resistance to poison. So their blood can be processed into powerful antidotes.”

Should we just sell the Sludge Man Materials…? We have the Clear Blood Magic Tool, and knowing what it actually is makes me a bit resistant.

They fetch a decent price, so financially it’s not bad. But we have to wash the surface with Water Magic, which makes looting somewhat tedious.

“Ah. Also, there might be a treasure chest nearby. Since Rotondile are base defenders… hmm. It came from over there.”

“Then I’ll check it out with Ilm.”

Seraphina and Irmhild exchanged glances and smiled. Irmhild fired a String Resonance toward the direction I indicated, and Seraphina gathered the sound that spread out and reflected back.

Seraphina seemed to analyze the Magical Power of the sound she collected for a while, but soon raised her head and pointed toward the darkness beyond.

“Over there. There’s something square.”

We all flew low toward where Seraphina pointed and found a treasure chest placed in the middle of a small landmass.

We’d been in places not particularly blessed with treasure chests—the Dusk Forest, the water of the Magic Light Water Vein.

Additionally, the Great Corruption Lake tended to be avoided. The treasure chests here were likely untouched. I had high hopes for what might be inside.