GILF Hunter

Rocks erupted from the ground with a massive vibration.

The rising stones gathered in one spot, and soon, a giant Golem rose its body.

’Oh, is this the guy guarding it?’

Freya muttered while looking up at the Golem.

It was a monster rarely seen naturally outside of a dungeon. Moreover, it was a Golem of considerably massive size.

Freya turned to look at Rin, who was standing beside her.

’Rin. Go for it.’

’Me? Again?’

She had a feeling this would happen.

Rin wore a dazed expression as she looked up at the dauntingly high Golem.

However, Ariel stepped forward first and spoke to Freya.

’Stop it. You handle it, Freya. Do your disciple-raising later! It’s dangerous if we don’t succeed for certain right now.’

’Hmm... true enough.’

Hearing Ariel’s words, Freya eventually stepped forward herself.

The Golem looked down at the approaching Freya and slowly raised its arm.

Looking up at the Golem, Freya’s eyes shimmered.

The weak points of the Golem, affected by [Weakness Exposure], were clearly revealed to Freya’s sight.

Even if Freya was stepping up, she couldn’t leave everything to her alone. Thinking so, Rin stood by Freya’s side and whispered.

’Where is the weak point? I’ve caught a Golem once before.’

Surely it would stop if the core was neutralized. Thinking Freya’s eyes could easily find it, Rin asked.

But Freya shook her head.

’Huh? There’s no such thing.’

’What? Why? Does it vary by Golem?’

’Those are for Golems made by mages. That thing over there is moving because a wild spirit possessed it. Since the main body is a spirit, there’s no such thing as a core.’

The core that moves a Golem only exists in those artificially created by mages.

Flustered by the explanation, Rin asked.

’Then what do we do? Isn’t this a big problem?’

’Eh? It’s more convenient. Since you can just attack anywhere.’

Is... is that how it works?

Rin felt almost persuaded by Freya’s casual tone.

’You stay at the bottom and block it. I’ll head up.’

Leaving those words to Rin, Freya dashed forward.

Running under the Golem’s feet, Freya instantly climbed its body and swung her sword at the nearest weak point.

Freya’s sword was stained pure white.

It was a glow of mana so densely packed it appeared solid. It didn’t look like mana was just coating the blade; it looked as if the sword itself had been white from the start.

Freya’s brandished sword left deep wounds on the Golem’s body.

’This thing is quite sturdy. Does it have high resistance?’

Thinking so, Freya continued her assault while clinging to the Golem’s body. Long sword gashes were continuously left on its frame.

The Golem swung its hands to catch Freya, but she instead mounted its arms or jumped lightly over them, continuing her attack as if she were flying around the Golem.

...Surely she’s going to try and teach me to fight like that. Is it too late to change teachers?

Holding onto that thought, Rin watched Freya fight with a serious expression.

’At this rate, she’ll take it down in no time.’

’Wait... over there!’

The mercenaries watching the battle with the Golem shouted.

One of the Golem’s arms fell off after receiving a series of attacks.

The large fragment on the ground cracked and broke into small pieces, then rose as new, smaller Golems.

Instead of Freya, who was fighting the main body, the small Golems turned their gazes toward the other mercenaries below.

’Rin! Deal with the ones that fell down there!’

Meanwhile, other rock spirits began to gather, drawn by the noise of battle.

Ariel surveyed the surroundings and spoke to the mages.

’Mages, just prepare for the explosion.’

The mercenaries surrounded the mages as they began their work. Rock spirits were gradually closing in.

’The investigation isn’t properly finished yet, what should we do?’

’...Just detonate it with the maximum possible power. With a size like this, surely it won’t be too excessive.’

The mages exchanged these words and immediately began setting up the magic circle.

Originally, they intended to cause only the minimum necessary explosion for safety reasons, but it seemed now was not the time to be picky.

In the meantime, Rin dealt with the Golem’s remains that had fallen away.

The Golem’s movements were very simple, so it wasn’t particularly difficult, but the Golem cut in two by Rin’s sword rolled on the ground for a moment before rising again as two even smaller Golems.

’Just how many times does this split...?’

Remnants of the Golem were still falling off, and every time she slashed them, they split into smaller Golems, increasing in number.

At least they weren’t that difficult to fight, so it was a relief she could buy time on her own.

As Freya said, the material seemed incredibly hard, but to Rin, it felt almost the same as the rock spirits.

It meant she could cut through them easily in one go.

According to Ian, there would be almost nothing she couldn’t cut with this sword.... That was proving to be true.

Meanwhile, the mercenaries protected the mages while fending off the swarming rock spirits.

Holding her bow, Ariel asked one of the mages.

’How much longer?’

’3...’

’3 minutes?’

’2... 1... Finished!’

The mages all rose from the magic circle.

’It’s done! Everyone, evacuate!’

’To behind that rock over there!’

’That far? Just how big of an explosion are you planning!’

The mages pointed to a rock quite far away. The mercenaries all rushed toward it.

Freya and Rin, who were dealing with the Golems, also received the signal and jumped down, moving far away from the magic circle.

—BOOM!

The magic circle glowed, and a massive explosion occurred.

A pillar of fire erupted, and thick dust billowed in all directions.

’...Did we get him?’

Rin muttered, peeking her head out from behind the rock.

A moment later, after the dust settled.

The Golem and rock spirits were nowhere to be seen, likely caught in the blast. It seemed even a Golem couldn’t withstand an explosion of that magnitude.

Rin and the other mercenaries slowly gathered back at the site.

Deep within the large crater formed in the ground, there was something glowing and pulsating.

’Is that it?’

’Now, Rin. It’s truly your turn.’

Freya patted Rin’s shoulder.

Having come this far, Rin asked Freya with a slightly unsure expression.

’Do you... do you think I can really do it?’

’What are you talking about? We already finished talking about this before coming in.’

’That’s true, but...’

’Well, if you can’t, it’s going to be a huge disaster.’

Having to personally finish off a Behemoth of such massive size with a single sword. It felt like absolute nonsense.

Rin hesitated as she approached Behemoth’s mana source. She could feel an immense flow of mana.

Ian had called it Behemoth’s heart, but it wasn’t an actual heart. It could be called the source that moved Behemoth’s mana.

For a creature of this massive size to survive, the help of mana was essential. If it could no longer use mana properly, it could not maintain its body.

They said Behemoth couldn’t even support its own weight without mana.

Breaking this wouldn’t kill Behemoth immediately, but it would become unable to move its body properly and would no longer be a threat.

’Ah, Rin. Wait a second. I’ll get ready quickly.’

Airi, who had rushed over, unpacked the bag she was carrying on her back.

Airi began taking out potions one by one from the bag. They were items Ian had prepared in advance.

’This is the first one, then drink this one...’

’Is that a packed lunch...’

From attack power increase potions to herbs that temporarily strengthen mana.

Watching this, Freya laughed.

She had seen mages do that once in a while, but it was Freya’s first time seeing a swordsman do it.

’Phew... finished.’

Rin, who had been chugging potions for a while, stood up and focused her mana for the last time.

Originally, Rin didn’t know how to handle mana at all, but as her mana stat rose significantly through various stat bonuses she had received, she could finally feel the mana.

Although she was still at a beginner stage, since the amount of increased mana was substantial, she could produce quite incredible power.

However, because she was still clumsy at handling mana, it took a long time, which was a minor flaw as it couldn’t be used in actual combat.

Holding her sword and concentrating, an ominous glow began to flicker on Rin’s weapon.

’Then, here I go!’

Having gathered mana while concentrating for a long time, Rin raised her sword.

Cursed flames rose from the dagger, flowing down the blade like blood.

The mercenaries all stood at a distance and watched.

It was an erosion so deep it could be felt even from afar.

...Just how great an enemy must she have to decide to use such a magic sword?

The mercenaries shook their heads, thinking there must be a tragic story that couldn’t be explained in words.

Rin thrust her sword toward the source of mana.

Pitch-black flames rose and scorched Behemoth’s source, and the curse flowed in along the path of the mana.

It was a build called one that couldn’t be matched in terms of single-target attack power, and although it was a makeshift measure, it was an attack that gathered every possible amplification value for the current best effort.

-Kaboooom...

Immediately, the ground shook as if an earthquake had occurred.

It was the vibration of Behemoth shaking its body.