I breathed a sigh of relief as I watched the Wyvern circling slowly in the sky, letting out high-pitched shrieks.

As a first opponent for the day, I'd say we lucked out.

The Wyvern itself was undoubtedly a powerful monster, but from the perspective of our strategy, it was a "hit." The longer it stayed in the air, the more time we could buy, and it was likely impossible for that thing to run amok on the ground with total freedom.

"Priestess-sama, how are the other spots?"

"Yes. It seems the same creature has spawned there as well."

That was a relief.

If different monsters spawned at each location, it would make it much harder to coordinate countermeasures.

"I don't know exactly what kind of attacks it'll use, but that thing should be easy to stall. If they have the breathing room, send out a transmission telling them to focus their attacks on the wings to pin it to the ground, then retreat to buy time. We don't know what's coming next, so tell them not to kill it even if they think they can."

Without its wings, it was just a lizard. Unlike a true dragon, its combat capabilities on the ground were likely low. After all, those legs were quite spindly.

"Anyway, let's bring it down!"

Staring up at a flying monster from below wasn't going to get us anywhere. We were the ones who had to go for the speed-clear, after all.

Shamash-san fired off a barrage of ice magic, while Shello-san, Rebecca-san, and Hetty-san notched arrows and loosed them into the sky.

In moments like this, I didn't have much to do. I'd barely practiced with a bow. I wasn't completely incapable of magic, but precision-sniper types were still beyond me.

I really should have asked Mugen-san to prepare a gun. If it was just a shotgun, that guy probably could have managed something.

The team's attacks hit home, as if being sucked into the Wyvern as it flapped slowly through the air. The Wyvern let out a piercing cry and turned its long neck toward us.

Suddenly, it folded its wings—

"Whoa! Scatter! Scatter!"

It dove straight at us in a headlong plunge!

It was massive! It was nothing but pure terror when something the size of a Hiace van came falling out of the sky. Its neck and legs were thin, but the torso was incredibly thick—round and heavy.

I wondered what kind of attack it would execute coming from the sky, but the Wyvern simply performed a belly landing right on the ground. A literal body slam. Getting hit by that would be instant death.

Well, I supposed it couldn't change course once it committed; as long as you dodged properly, it was an attack that wouldn't hit you.

The Wyvern, having belly-flopped with enough impact to gouge the earth, frantically flapped its wings in an attempt to take to the air again. Now was our chance!

"Don't let it fly! Charge!!"

A coordinated assault!

There was no room for finesse. I didn't know if the wings would actually tear off, but we focused our attacks entirely on them regardless.

Rebecca-san's Dragonslayer sword pulsed with light, scattering exceptionally large shards of radiance. Marina was relentlessly pummeling the Wyvern's head with her giant hammer. It was a total beatdown.

I had memories of playing a game exactly like this!!

However, the Wyvern wasn't just taking it; it swung its neck and tail around to retaliate. I got sent flying by a neck-swipe. The Wyvern took that opening to lift off again. It shrieked and wailed, seemingly fuming with rage at the sudden lopsided beating.

"Damn, we couldn't take the wings. Or is it impossible to break them?"

If they wouldn't come off, we had to fight accordingly.

Honestly, it was easy to get carried away during a "beatdown window," but at the other spots, it might have been better to just let it body slam, ignore it, and let it keep repeating that cycle to buy time.

By the way, we were sharing the enemy's attack methods and behavioral patterns in real-time through the Priestess-chan's spirit communication.

Magic and arrows flooded the Wyvern as it screeched in the air. It was hovering at about the height of a five-story building, so the projectiles were hitting consistently. If it had climbed to 100 meters, we would have had no way to touch it.

"I'm landing hits, but magic doesn't seem very effective! It looks like direct physical attacks are the way to go with these things!"

Shamash-san spat out a curse.

Resistance to magic might be a common trait among boss-class monsters. Perhaps because this world originated from a game where the inhabitants aren't very athletic, many monsters seem to be resistant to magic. In exchange, they're weak to physical strikes. That's exactly why we were able to fight this well.

"Eh...? Hahaha! What a wicked idea! You're the best!"

Shamash-san bared her teeth in a grin.

We also had casting nets ready, so throwing those was another option. I didn't care what methods we used. The result was all that mattered!

"Here it comes!"

The Wyvern, hovering with heavy wingbeats, unhinged its jaw. Red flames flickered deep within its throat.

"Fire breath! Priestess-sama, if you please!"

Was it a fireball type or a flamethrower type? Either way, if she blocked it with spirit magic, the damage would be mitigated.

Priestess-chan immediately deployed a defensive barrier in the line of fire. The Wyvern threw its head back once and then spewed a breath of flame like a flamethrower.

『It's the concentrated stream type!』

Etowa shouted, and I just ran straight ahead to get out of the way. There was a roaring vwoom, and the sheer force of the exhaled flames whipped up a gale.

"Hot! Whoa! My back is burning!"

Escaping the heatwave that felt like it was charring my back, I looked back to see the flames spewed from the dragon—shimmering in shades of vermillion and white—scorching the earth.

The spirit magic barrier Priestess-chan had set up was floating in the air, but since she hadn't used a Spirit Stone, the flames had mostly bypassed it.

"Whoa..."

That was the kind of attack that kills you instantly if it hits.

No jokes, that was a legit fire breath. It looked hot enough to melt iron...

The flames stopped.

Surely, no one got hit by that, right...? A cold chill ran down my spine.

『Everyone is safe!』

I had a brief, terrible flash of imagination, but Etowa, watching from the lookout tower, confirmed everyone was okay... Thank goodness.

If you took a direct hit from that, healing was the last of your worries. You'd be a charcoal briquette.

The Wyvern flew around for a bit longer before diving back to the ground, launching another body slam.

"We're ending this here!"

I didn't want to let it fire another breath. Which meant we just had to keep it from taking off again.

I dodged the Wyvern's kamikaze-like tackle by a hair and slashed at its flapping wings with all my might. The golems Shamash-san had summoned piled onto the Wyvern. Even the winged drake couldn't withstand that and writhed in agony.

Once it reached this point, it was a one-sided slaughter. We just had to watch out for the bites and the tail.

Shello-san's greatsword roared, and Hetty-san's naginata lunged at speeds the eye couldn't follow. Rebecca-san's holy sword gleamed, and Marina's iron hammer smashed into the side of the flying dragon's face. I thrust my magic sword into whatever part of it I could reach.

Shortly after, the Wyvern vanished with a final death rattle.

"We did it...!"

Left behind were the usual giant Magic Crystal and—

"An egg?"

"It's an egg."

"It's a dragon egg, de-arimasu!"

It was an egg.

Like a dinosaur egg... with a mottled pattern...

It was roughly the size of a basketball, similar to the Magic Crystal.

"For now, let's recover the egg and regroup!"

If we took it too easy, the next monster would spawn.

According to the data, there should be some sort of interval.

We gathered once to have the Priestess-chan heal our injuries with magic. We carried the egg back to the base camp.

"Ah, might as well appraise it."

Mirror of Truth.

Mirror of Truth - The Judgement

【Category】  

Egg

【Name】

Wyvern Egg

【Description】

An egg very rarely dropped by a Wyvern. If kept properly warm, a baby Wyvern will hatch. It's also delicious to eat.

【Magical Properties】

None

【Spirit Blessing】 

None

【Owner】

Jirou Ayase

"Ingredients...!"

...Well, I wasn't going to eat it, though.

A Wyvern will hatch? If I had a creature that could spit a breath attack that powerful on our side, I might be able to conquer the world.

Though, knowing how these things work, it'll probably be nerfed once it becomes an ally. If Rebecca-san is around, it might even serve as a means of transport—a substitute for a helicopter.

Things were getting pretty incredible, but we were still right in the middle of the Hitotsuzuki. For now, all of that will have to wait until this is over.

* * *

The next one to spawn was a swordsman about three meters tall.

It had a reddish-black body and long, disheveled red hair. It wore an ethnic mask and gripped a pair of dully gleaming scimitars in its hands.

It approached us with a slow, deliberate gait, showing neither panic nor arrogance. It was clearly not the type to be caught off guard by a wrecking ball or a ballista.

"I am Rakshasa. Let us settle this fairly."

It stood poised, speaking with a solemn gravity.

A true warrior. The "strong character" vibes radiating from it were overwhelming.

Just what kind of monster was this...?

"You mean... one-on-one?" I asked instinctively.

"I care not. Come at me all at once, children of men."

I stole a glance at the others. Shello-san looked like he definitely wanted to take it on solo, but since we were aiming for a speed-run, we didn't have time to play around.

Rakshasa didn't seem to have any intention of initiating the attack; it just stood there. I knew that if I approached carelessly, those twin blades would flash and my head would be gone in a heartbeat.

"Shamash-san, summon four golems and have them pin it down at any cost. Priestess-sama, please deploy a barrier on the golems using a Spirit Stone. Once we successfully restrict its movement, everyone just pile on and beat it to a pulp."

Because it felt like a top-tier foe, I fought a bit more cautiously. Time was precious, but charging in blindly would be reckless.

According to reports, the other spots were handling the Wyverns well, so we had a little breathing room. Wyvern attacks consisted of body slams, fire, and tails—as long as they stayed alert, the fire could be dodged.

Of course, tragedies could still happen, but I couldn't look after everyone that closely.

"Nuoo."

"Nunnuoo."

"Nununnuoo."

"Nuoonu."

The summoned golems let out their goofy groans as they closed in from four different directions.

Rakshasa attacked the golems with its twin scimitars in a dance-like motion. Its strikes were full of composed grace, but the barriers held, and it couldn't take them down in one hit—

Squish.

The golems successfully swarmed and pinned it down.

"Tch—! What is this?! How cowardly!!"

"Cowardly my foot! Let 'em have it!"

With its arms seized and its body held down by golems of similar height, the monster was caught in a chaotic mess.

We all launched our attacks at once.

The monster was strong, but for a humanoid type like this, human logic still applied to some extent. If its feet were swept, it fell; if it was pinned down, it couldn't move.

"...Is it really okay to fight like this?"

"Why not? Becky, you're so serious."

It certainly wasn't a "proper" way to fight, but for today, I asked for forgiveness on the grounds that winning was all that mattered. Rakshasa died without ever showing its true potential, still pinned down by the golems.

As a drop item, the twin scimitars it had been holding remained.

Finally, a weapon drop!

【Category】

Melee Weapon

【Name】

Twin Blades of Rakshasa

【Description】

A pair of twin blades rarely dropped by Rakshasa. A set of swords that can be equipped by melee combat classes. Possesses the power to rend souls, increasing the critical hit rate against undead. Cannot be equipped individually.

【Magical Properties】

Anti-Undead: B

【Spirit Blessing】

None

【Owner】

Jirou Ayase

"Ohhh! It's a magic weapon!"

A weapon specialized for undead is incredibly useful. After all, the majority of monsters are undead. Well... maybe not all of them. I feel like there are more magical constructs lately, like statues.

Anyway, it's great regardless. The attack power looks high. The question of who to give them to can wait for another time.

In any case, that's finally two down.

Four more to go!