Chapter 32: Mega Golem First Battle 2
The moment the bald man man appeared, I finally understood the reason behind this attack.
(So this is revenge for the other day!? An ambush in the middle of the night? Are they insane!?)
I’d already thought they were dangerous people, but now it was painfully clear—they were the sort one should never make enemies of. Borrowing money from a group like that… Miss Shifa’s father must have been unbelievably careless!
Either way, I had to survive this.
Thanks to the golems, we’d been managing to push the intruders back, but that bald man—he was on another level entirely.
Sure enough, the golems that lunged at him were destroyed one after another in an instant. I kept crafting replacements, but their numbers were dwindling fast.
“Hey, brat. This your doing? Making me waste my damn time, huh?”
The bald man crushed the last golem nearby, then began striding toward me. My stomach turned to ice. Wh-what do I do!?
“Nii!”
“That way!”
Led by Milk, I bolted toward what had once been the neighboring house. After converting it into a vegetable garden, that area was far wider and more open.
“Tch… didn’t I tell you not to make me work for it!?”
The bald man came after me, footsteps pounding the earth.
Normal golems wouldn’t work. Against him, they weren’t even speed bumps.
〈Would you like to create a Mega Guardian?〉
That’s it!
The soil of the garden began to bulge and rise, and from it emerged a towering Mega Golem, at least five meters tall. Its sheer size radiated an overwhelming sense of power and reassurance—but if I could, I wanted more.
〈Would you like to create a Mega Guardian?〉
Yes, please!
〈Would you like to create a Mega Guardian?〉
Absolutely!
〈Would you like to create a Mega Guardian?〉
One more!
Yes! I’d done it! Four gigantic figures rose at once, their massive shadows swallowing the moonlight.
When I looked up, the bald man was completely surrounded by the four Mega Golems.
“H–hahaha… you’ve gotta be kidding me…”
His voice trembled as he stumbled back, collapsing onto his rear. Before he could move, one of the Mega Golems reached down and grabbed him like a ragdoll—then slammed him mercilessly into the ground.
Bashin!
“Oof—ouch… that looked painful…”
I winced and turned my face away.
The man’s body struck the earth with such force that his back arched on impact, bouncing once before lying still. He wasn’t moving. From the look of it, he’d been knocked clean out.
Maybe… four of them had been overkill.
“B-big bro!?”
“Retreat! Get out of here!
“We can’t fight something like that!”
The remaining henchmen rushed forward, dragging the unconscious bald man away before fleeing into the night as fast as their legs could carry them.
“A-are we… safe now?”
“Nii-nii!”
Milk chirped proudly as if to say, ‘All safe now!’
“Thanks, Milk. I couldn’t have done it without you.”
“Nii~”
“Still… I’m exhausted. So sleepy…”
The sky was still deep and dark. Part of me wanted to crawl back into bed, but—
“…Sleeping in the bedroom might not be safe right now.”
There could be another attack. It felt wiser to stay right here, in the open garden, where I had the golems close by.
So I lay down beside Milk right where we stood. Her fur was soft and fluffy—far warmer and cozier than any blanket I owned.
Even if another ambush came, I knew Milk would wake me in an instant. And with the golems on guard, what could possibly happen?
Feeling that comforting thought settle over me, I drifted quickly into sleep.
――――◇◇◇――――
The Underwater Area
“So this is the underwater zone…”
“Wow, it really is underwater!”
Shifa and her two fellow female adventurers had finally reached the entrance to the most difficult area in the entire dungeon.
To this day, no one had ever cleared it. Even the volcano zone was said to be easier in comparison.
And no wonder—the entrance itself was submerged. Exploration meant swimming, and swimming meant dealing with countless aquatic monsters. For land-dwellers like humans, fighting underwater was nearly impossible.
And worst of all, there was the issue of breathing. With most of the zone submerged, taking a single breath of air would be a rare luxury.
“But we’ve got this.”
Anii said, pulling a small vial from her belt pouch. Inside shimmered a sky-blue liquid.
“The Aquatic Potion. Once we drink it, we’ll be able to move underwater just like on land.”
“That’s so amazing~,” Sena said, her tone as carefree as ever, while Shifa looked on with reverent awe.
According to Merlin, the potion would create a thin membrane of air around the drinker’s body, allowing them to breathe, walk, and even swing their weapons freely underwater.
“Wanna give it a try?”
“Let’s do it.”
Normally, such claims would sound too good to be true—but after witnessing the success of the Ice–cooling Potion, they had no reason to doubt it.
The three of them tilted their heads back and drank in unison.
Gulp, gulp, gulp.
“Pwah—whoa, it tingles! So fizzy!”
“My throat burns…”
Laughing and comparing impressions, they cautiously stepped into the water, inch by inch, until finally they took the plunge—submerging completely.
(Incredible! I can actually breathe!)
(My clothes aren’t even wet!)
(I can run!)
Their voices sounded slightly muffled, but perfectly audible. That meant coordination in battle would still be possible.
(Wait—something’s coming!)
Anii’s sharp instincts kicked in.
Apparently, her Hunter’s Scent skill worked even underwater.
(Fish.)
(Ooh, a fishie~ …Uh, it’s kinda big?)
It wasn’t just a fish—it was a monster shark, its maw filled with rows of gleaming teeth.
Two meters long at least, it darted through the water toward them with terrifying speed.
Sena raised her sword casually, waiting until the last second—
(Yah!)
(––!?)
The creature never expected a land-dweller to strike back. Her blade cleaved straight through its skull, the water flashing red for an instant as the shark went limp, lifeless, sinking into the depths.
The three exchanged stunned looks.
It seemed the Aquatic Potion worked even better than they’d hoped.