Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
Izumi Pov.
Earth Golems. Giant humanoid monsters that seemed made entirely of rock. I suppose that's why the walls and hallways were so wide and the ceiling was so high. There were no obstacles other than the natural Dust that grew on the lower edges of the walls, making it easier for the giant golems to move. The golems moved slowly in my direction; it was a group of four. I squeezed Wado Ichimonji in my hand and looked at the golems closely.
Despite their namesake, these Golems were completely alive, with a thick layer of earth and rock covering their bodies. But that didn't mean I couldn't use the transparent world on the Golems. It was… fascinating. The organs, the shape, how they worked, the appearance—everything was so different from a normal person.
Most importantly, I could easily see the essence stones. The fatal weak point of all monsters. Break the stone, and it dies immediately.
Water Breathing - Third Form: Flowing Dance. I kicked off the ground hard and moved fluidly in the direction of the Golems. The Golems were slow to move, but their arms were deceptively fast. Even with that surprise, it's not like any of them could reach me. I slipped through all of the Golems. They were tall, at least 10 times my height. But that didn't stop me. I could see them, I could see their essence stones so easily.
Wado Ichimonji sliced through all the stone layers, blood, flesh, muscle, and the shield that the monsters naturally emitted. It then stabbed through the golem's body, immediately severing the essence stone. The monster shuddered and fell as if its ropes had been cut. But by then, I had already moved on to the next one. Wado Ichimonji continued slicing through the essence stones without any problem at all.
I took a deep breath as the four giant bodies fell lifeless to the ground. I stared at them for a few seconds before my smile grew even bigger. I stomped my foot and ran in the direction of where I sensed the next group.
Another 5 golems. Followed by another 2. And another 3. Another 5. Another 2. Another 8. Another 3. Another 5. Another 4. Another 4. Another 2. Another and another and another and another.
I kept switching between breathing styles— Water, Sun, Thunder, Beast, Love, Insect, Sound —no matter which one I used or how many golems I faced at once. The result was the same. The golems fell dead as Wado Ichimonji sliced through the essence stones without any resistance. My smile was practically maniacal at this point.
I'd lost count of how many earth golems I'd killed, but the count was well over 50 when I stopped counting. At some point, the dungeon had changed; the ancient ruins had been replaced by a cavernous structure. The Dust was growing increasingly abundant; where there had once been a few piles of crystals, there were now vast reserves of Dust everywhere.
The presence emitted by the monsters themselves was also increasing, feeling stronger and stronger, but it wasn't enough to bother me; they were still falling and easily defeated. The dungeon was large; I suppose I should have expected it to be, as it is an A-rank dungeon.
Finally, after killing around 200 golems with ease, I arrived at the strongest presence I could sense. The evil, malicious aura was filled with more hatred and anger than I'd ever felt. The nest of the dungeon boss.
It was an Earth Giant, practically the size of a building. I shuddered just feeling its presence even though the smile on my face never disappeared. I quickly looked through my transparent world and quickly found its essence stone. It was in the hardest place to reach—too high and too deep for my sword to reach, and too protected by the rest of its body. It was the densest place, making it difficult to pierce. So I had only one option.
I placed Wado Ichimonji in my teeth and drew Enma and Sendai Kitetsu from their sheaths. I let my Haki infuse into my swords before my Haoshoku Haki surfaced. My King's Haki immediately challenged the earth giant's aura causing it to react. It let out a viscous scream as its single red eye focused on me with extreme prejudice. I smiled without thinking. I took a deep breath and kicked off the ground hard, leaving a small crater, and launched myself towards the giant.
Santoryu Ogi: Ichidai Sanzen Daisen Sekai (Three Sword/Blade Style Secret Skill: Great Three Thousand Great Thousand Worlds). In midair, I began to spin the swords in my hand. Unlike its smaller counterparts, the earth giant did react quickly to my attack and moved accordingly.
He was terrifyingly fast for his size, but it didn't matter. My Haki-infused swords sliced the incoming fist in half with my attack, and I continued on. Still with the same momentum, I slashed horizontally at the giant's waist, splitting him into two giant pieces. The giant roared in pain as he was sliced in two. But he didn't stop me.
In fact, neither did the giant. Even in midair, he swung his only good arm in my direction. I, still imbued with Haki, slashed my swords in his direction. The arm was severed at the shoulder. I finally landed on the ground as the various pieces of the giant fell to the ground, causing the cavern to shake.
I looked at the giant and almost felt disappointed. It was an A-rank dungeon boss , which was probably enough to classify it as an S-rank monster, but it was… terribly disappointing. The only thing it had going for it was its defense and a bit of speed. I'm sure any A-rank would have a hard time breaking through its hide to damage it and would be killed by the swift and devastating blows.
I suppose his vitality is substantial as well, since I could hear it moaning in pain even though it was now just a torso and head with only half a left arm attached. I sighed, but I breathed again and prepared to attack. The essence stone was now in a much easier position to cut.
I prepared to hit him before stopping dead in my tracks. I didn't have to kill the boss. I had to let them loot the dungeon.
I paled slightly as I looked at the dungeon boss practically dying I… is it possible that he stays alive long enough for the mining and gathering teams to get everything they need?
I have to find Tawata as soon as possible. I… looked around. I guess it's better if I just stayed put. I sighed tiredly. Oh well. He'll find me eventually. I shrugged, jumped onto the earth giant, leaned back slightly, and closed my eyes.
"There you are!! Damn it! Why the hell did you go off on your own? "Idiot! " I heard Tawata's voice as she approached just 5 minutes later. I sat down once more and shrugged.
"I got lost," I said honestly. She glared at me.
"You got lost? You got lost!?" "I was practically right in front of you, there's no way you could miss me! " I exclaimed angrily. Yes, welcome to my life.
"No, I really am lost. I mean it. It's a mental problem," I sighed tiredly as I climbed off the giant. "Shall I send you my medical records?" I asked as I pulled out my scroll. Tawata grunted loudly before stopping and looking over my shoulder. She paled considerably.
"Miyamura… is that the dungeon boss?" Tawata asked slowly, I nodded.
"The same. It turns out he was weaker than I thought." I said simply.
"I told you we didn't have to kill the boss!! We need the gathering teams to go in and loot the entire dungeon before we kill it!! " Tawata exclaimed, I grimaced "great, now I'll have to write a damn report and come up with an explanation as to why I had to kill the damn monster before even the gathering teams could get in, just because you decided to go and kill it all by yourself," Tawata growled.
"In fact-"
"You killed it alone." Tawata's eyes widened as she interrupted me. "You... killed it alone?" she said again, more slowly. "How did you kill it alone?!" she exclaimed in my direction, looking at me as if she were looking at a monster. Rude.
"First, he's still alive, barely. The big guy has a lot of vitality; his wounds have already closed, and he'll stay alive as long as necessary until he's killed." I said dryly, Tawata narrowed her eyes and looked towards the giant's head, who, to my pleasure, turned his head in their direction and shouted once more. Tawata reacted immediately and drew her swords before stopping.
"Well, he's definitely alive." Tawata said dryly as she carefully put away her swords while continuing to stare at the boss.
" Oh by the way, yes, I finished it off alone, it's not like there's another person in here," I added. Tawata glared at me.
"You're lucky you're still alive," Tawata snorted. "Come on, we have to alert the collection team that they can come in. I also saw your trail of corpses. At least you were mindful enough not to hurt them enough to make them unsalvagable." Tawata added as she turned around.
"Huh? Was that a compliment I heard there? " I asked, smiling playfully as I joined her.
"Dream on, Miyamura." Tawata snorted dryly, and I chuckled.
" By the way, those things were pretty easy too. I just had to cut their essence stones, and they went down without a fight." I shrugged. Tawata stopped once more and turned to look at me in disbelief. I looked at her in confusion before she groaned in frustration.
"For the love of Miyamura! Essence stones are the most valuable part of monsters! " We have to avoid breaking them!" Tawata exclaimed, completely frustrated. I shrugged.
"You never told me that. You failed as a mentor." I said without a hint of shame. Tawata looked at me in disbelief. Since I had no natural expressions, and my skin was really thick, it was impossible to be embarrassed or show any sign of it on my face if I didn't want to. So, my expression remained the same as before. Tawata grunted once more.
"Just… just let's go." Tawata said through gritted teeth.
"Can I grab your elbow? I'll get lost again," I said with a smile, the best part being that I was being completely honest. Tawata closed her eyes as if considering all the decisions of her life up to this point before taking a deep breath.
"You're joking, aren't you? " she asked slowly as she looked at me.
" Nope! I really am capable of getting lost again, I'm sure you don't want to search for me all over the dungeon again." I said simply, I was being honest. The sight of Tawata completely frustrated as her face changed through dozens of expressions per second was worth gold.
"Is... is it really necessary?" Tawata asked. I could see her cheeks blush slightly.
"Well, there is another option!" I said with a smile. Tawata almost looked at me anxiously. I smiled widely.
"...and that's it." I handed the end of the strap to Tawata, and she held it in her hand, staring at it with a completely blank expression. After a few moments, her face exploded red.
" THE HELL I'M USING THIS THING!!!" Tawata exclaimed in embarrassment as she forcefully threw the end of the leash to the ground. The leash Tawata had been holding was attached to a collar that was now around my neck, so it simply fell back onto my body. I tilted my head in confusion.
"Do you want to wear the collar, and I'll hold the leash?" I asked innocently.
"NOOO!! NO ONE IS GOING TO WEAR A COLLAR!!" Tawata exclaimed loudly, somehow Tawata's blush deepened "where the hell did you even get that collar and leash!? And why do you have that on you?! " Tawata exclaimed.
"The question is, why don't you have a collar and leash, Miss Tawata?" I scolded Tawata with a disappointed expression. I could hear Tawata's teeth grinding together. This was so funny. I was grinning completely from ear to ear in my mind.
Actually, it wasn't a conventional collar that I had, it was just a Wrist leash designed for children. The same ones mothers use to keep their children from getting lost. It's also a wrist strap, so it went around the wrist, but it was large enough to fit around my neck.
It was something Mom had used with me practically since I was diagnosed with DTD, I thought it would be a good idea to bring it along so I wouldn't get lost if possible. Now, I can annoy Tawata with this? I'd obviously make the most of it.
"Y-you-" Tawata tried to growl. She seemed to want to take out her swords and cut me several times. I smiled at her innocently before sighing exasperatedly.
"Okay, is this better?" I asked with a condescending look as I placed the wristband on my wrist where it should go. I could see Tawata's veins standing out on her forehead.
"I hope that medical history is true because if it isn't, I'll be sending you back to UA in pieces." Tawata grunted as she grabbed the end of the leash. Once she turned around, my smile grew wider.
Oh, how I'm going to enjoy this week annoying Tawata. Life was good.