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Chapter 47
[Translator – Pr?ks]
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Chapter 47. Mushmom (3)
6.
Mushroom Monsters.
The most common monsters in Maple World, they were a source of fear for many adventurers.
But they were also a source of amusement.
“Mushrooms are scary. But if you see something scary too often, you get tired of it. Eventually, it becomes funny.”
After hunting them so many times, mushroom monsters started to look ridiculous.
In fact, veteran adventurers were wary of mushroom monsters, but they rarely felt tense.
But there’s always an exception to the rule.
“If Mushmom appears, it’s a different story.”
Mushmom was the exception.
“Remember. If you find Mushmom, don’t even think about fighting. Just run away.”
And it wasn’t just any exception.
Mushmom.
Like its name suggests, the mother of mushroom monsters, it had the ability to create a massive number of mushroom monsters.
“If Mushmom is there, it means there are at least 100,000 mushrooms.”
The number of mushroom monsters it could create was beyond the adventurers’ control.
That’s why…
“Everyone, run!”
Miner and her party started running at full speed without looking back.
Woo!
Behind Miner’s party, a giant mushroom, 15 meters tall, was chasing them.
It was Mushmom.
Woo Woo Woo!
It wasn’t just any Mushmom, but a Zombie Mushmom.
Keeee!
Naturally, tens of thousands of small zombie mushrooms accompanied the Zombie Mushmom.
They were chasing Miner’s party together.
The scene looked like a tidal wave, a tsunami, rushing towards Miner’s party.
Of course, the Zombie Mushmom looked different.
Kung, Kung!
Every time the Zombie Mushmom with its giant legs moved, the ground and the forest cried out as if screaming.
That was another reason why the Zombie Mushmom was terrifying.
“Avoid engagement at all costs!”
It was impossible to survive being crushed by the Zombie Mushmom, no matter how skilled the adventurer was.
It went without saying that it was impossible for an adventurer to tank against the Zombie Mushmom.
Well, not entirely impossible.
An adventurer with skills like Physical Training, Iron Body, and Endure, or an adventurer above the 4th Circle, could withstand it to some extent.
In other words, in this Orange-grade Mystic Gate, where only adventurers below the 3rd Circle could enter, there was no one who could stop the Zombie Mushmom.
That was why Miner was running away.
Of course, she didn’t intend to just run away forever.
‘We need a decoy.’
Someone had to act as a decoy, drawing the attention of the Zombie Mushmom and the zombie mushroom horde.
And there, only one person could do that.
‘I have to do it.’
Only Miner could.
It wasn’t about some noble sacrifice.
‘Only I can do it.’
Only Miner and a few of her crew could act as bait against the Zombie Mushmom, the tens of thousands of zombie mushrooms, and the zombie ribbon pigs mixed in.
She was fully prepared.
All that was left was to act.
“Gio!”
At that moment, Miner called out to Gio, her right-hand pirate.
Without hesitation, Gio reached for the gun at his waist and fired it into the sky.
“Gio?”
Miner was surprised.
Bang!
As the bullet Gio fired exploded, emitting a red light, Miner shouted.
“Gio!”
“Captain, I’ll accept my punishment later.”
The bullet Gio fired was the cry for help and he had to do it to save Miner.
Miner didn’t get angry.
It was because she understood his perspective and there was no time for anger.
The El Paume party was also busy fighting the zombie mushrooms in this vast stage.
In other words, the chances of them seeing this light were low.
‘He’s not in a position to help.’
Even if he saw the red light and came to help, how could he?
Nothing would change.
Miner had to move.
And she moved.
She broke away from her fleeing crew.
She aimed the pistol in her hand at the distant Zombie Mushmom.
The distance was great.
It wouldn’t be easy to hit it, even with the Zombie Mushmom’s massive size.
‘It won’t even feel a tickle in most places.’
At this moment, the only place Miner could inflict significant damage was the face, specifically the eyes.
‘Multiple shots.’
Not just one or two, but multiple shots were needed to make the Zombie Mushmom direct its rage towards her.
But Miner didn’t hesitate.
“Swift Fire!”
Activating her skill, she pulled the trigger.
Bang, Bang, Bang!
The bullets flew out with the gunshots, hitting the Zombie Mushmom’s two eyeballs.
Keeeeeee!
The repeated attacks made the Zombie Mushmom scream in rage.
It looked at Miner, who had fired the shots at it.
“Come on!”
Miner didn’t avoid its gaze, and the Zombie Mushmom felt even more enraged.
Thud, Thud, Thud!
The Zombie Mushmom started running towards Miner with its minions.
The chase began.
It wasn’t easy.
After just one minute, Miner already felt like her whole body was turning to stone.
The pressure of having tens of thousands of zombies and the terrifying Zombie Mushmom behind her was almost unbearable.
And that wasn’t all.
Keeeeeee!
Urrrrr!
Zombie mushrooms and zombie ribbon pigs, jumping out from all directions, relentlessly gnawed at Miner’s concentration and mental strength.
Of course, the worst was yet to come.
‘Oh no!’
Suddenly, a wall of zombie mushrooms appeared in front of Miner.
Front, back, all sides!
There was nowhere to go!
Miner knew instantly.
Even if she somehow managed to escape, it would take too much time, and the distance between her and the Zombie Mushmom would close.
The end had come.
But she didn’t give up.
Bang!
She cleared a path by taking out the zombie mushrooms swarming from all sides.
Thud, Thud, Thud!
The sound of the Zombie Mushmom’s footsteps in her ears grew louder.
She knew then.
‘This is the end.’
Even facing that realization, she didn’t close her eyes.
She prepared instead.
‘I won’t die without a fight!’
She glared at the Zombie Mushmom with her golden eyes.
Then she saw it.
Whoosh!
‘What?’
A line of flame crossed her head.
Thud!
The line pierced the Zombie Mushmom right between the eyes.
‘What was that?’
Surprised, she turned her head in the direction the line had come from.
And she could see it.
Whoosh!
‘How, from that distance?’
A flaming arrow flying from an incredibly far distance.
7.
“How, from that distance?”
El Paume didn’t answer Dibo’s question.
“Fire Arrow.”
Instead, he summoned a Fire Arrow and launched it straight ahead using telekinesis.
The Fire Arrow flew endlessly.
So far that it eventually disappeared from sight.
Dibo was surprised again.
‘But, he can’t even see it clearly?’
From his perspective, the target wasn’t visible.
Moreover, the target wasn’t just any target.
It was the Zombie Mushmom, a colossal creature.
‘Just how far away is it?’
If such a massive creature wasn’t clearly visible, it meant the distance was beyond common sense.
Yet, El Paume’s Fire Arrow was flying that far distance and hitting the target accurately.
No matter how amazing El Paume was, it was impossible to hit a target he couldn’t see.
And indeed, it was.
El Paume couldn’t hit a target this far away when he couldn’t see it.
‘I can see it.’
In other words, El Paume was clearly seeing the target.
‘Thanks to Artemis’s Eye.’
Artemis’s Eye, the necklace that was Eagle Eye’s relic, was making it possible.
‘To think the effect was actually vision enhancement.’
El Paume had heard rumors about Artemis’s Eye.
It was said to be a unique item that increased the wearer’s vision based on their circle level.
But it was just a rumor.
In El Paume’s time, there wasn’t a single adventurer who possessed Artemis’s Eye.
But Eagle Eye was the owner of that item.
Furthermore, this item became famous because of its value.
‘It seems to increase vision by about 1.0 per circle, so my vision is now close to 5.0.’
The item’s effect was vision enhancement!
It might not seem like much compared to other unique items, but it was far from it.
For an adventurer, good eyesight was a far superior talent compared to any other ability.
In fact, there were even those who were included in adventurer parties solely for their good eyesight.
Of course, using a telescope wasn’t bad, but the world seen through a telescope was smaller than one might think.
Moreover, fighting while using a telescope often hindered rather than helped.
‘It’s like an eagle.’
In fact, El Paume’s current vision was comparable to an eagle’s.
Despite the great distance, the Zombie Mushmom was clearly visible to El Paume.
Hitting it was a piece of cake.
El Paume even had something else.
‘If I use X-Ray vision here…’
X-Ray magic.
‘My brain wouldn’t be able to handle it.’
But using X-Ray magic right now was dangerous.
And there was no need to use it anyway.
“Fire Arrow.”
All he had to do was pierce the target’s forehead with a flaming arrow.
“Fire Arrow.”
Certainly.
“Fire Arrow.”
Steadily.
“Fire Arrow.”
Like water droplets piercing the ground, El Paume continuously fired Fire Arrows.
He didn’t have to worry about how long he would keep firing.
The right time would come.
Keeeeeee!
Keeeeeee!
The Zombie Mushmom, feeling threatened by the repeated attacks, turned its head towards El Paume.
The time had come.
The Zombie Mushmom was now wounded enough for El Paume to inflict fatal damage.
“Fire Arrow.”
El Paume put on a bracelet enchanted with Magic Acceleration and activated Fire Arrow.
Whirrr!
The enhanced Fire Arrow, spinning like a revolver, pierced the forehead of the Zombie Mushmom as it charged towards El Paume.
Then, a sound was heard.
Thud!
The sound of the Zombie Mushmom collapsing.
8.
Thud!
A tremendous roar echoed through the forest as the Zombie Mushmom fell.
It was an intense sound.
Enough to make everyone lose their senses.
Miner, who had been running without rest, couldn’t help but lose her focus for a moment.
‘How?’
It was a sight she couldn’t even imagine.
At that moment.
Swish!
A flaming arrow flew past her nose, and she turned her head in surprise.
“Run!”
With the voice that followed, Miner finally came to her senses.
‘Ah!’
The battle wasn’t over yet.
Cuckoo!
Far from it, tens of thousands of zombie mushrooms and zombie ribbon pigs were still targeting her.
It was still a desperate situation.
Of course, that was just her thought.
Fwoosh!
Flaming arrows began to dance before her eyes, and only then did Miner realize.
‘Unbelievable.’
How El Paume could create such an unbelievable sight.
‘How is this even possible?’
But she didn’t even have time to be surprised.
“Hey!”
Dibo appeared and spoke to her.
“What are you doing? Come here quickly! The boss can’t hold on much longer! His mana is running out!”
Miner ran towards Dibo.
Even in this urgent situation, her rationality was working.
That was one of her abilities.
Not losing her composure in any situation.
Following Dibo, she managed to shake off the horde of zombie mushrooms and finally met up with him.
El Paume was lying on the ground, resting.
It wasn’t a display of leisure.
“Phew.”
El Paume, lying on the ground, showed signs of exhaustion.
It was the price for pushing his mana, concentration, and mental strength to their limits.
‘Artemis’s Eye demands more than I thought.’
Especially when Artemis’s Eye was activated, El Paume’s mana consumption increased dramatically.
‘When Artemis’s Eye is activated, the amount of mana consumed doubles.’
And that wasn’t all.
‘The consumption of concentration and mental strength is even greater.’
The price for using an ability beyond his capacity was taking a toll on his body and mind.
Of course, it was a small price to pay compared to the results El Paume had shown.
Then El Paume got up. He forced his body to stand.
He handed Miner a nearby bag.
“What’s this?”
“Eagle Eye’s relic.”
Miner’s golden eyes widened as if they were about to burst, and she rummaged through the bag.
She found a letter and frantically read it.
Tears, clear tears, began to flow from her golden eyes.
Endlessly.
After crying for a while, she looked at El Paume and asked.
“Why, why are you helping us like this?”
El Paume pondered the question for a moment.
He thought about his connection with Golden Eye.
‘I had received help from her.’
He remembered the help he had received from her before returning to the past.
‘Quite a lot of help.’
And the fact that her help had saved his comrades’ lives, and his own life as well.
El Paume felt grateful for that fact.
“If you fire a red bullet, I’ll help.”
But El Paume didn’t help her out of mere gratitude.
He knew.
“In return, I’ll receive compensation, that’s how we made the deal.”
On the path El Paume was taking, what he needed was not to be swayed by emotions but to think of reality.
“I’ll claim the compensation for this help later.”
And right now, El Paume needed the items possessed by Golden Eye and her cherished Captain Kyrin.
“Now, go join your comrades.”
That was why he had saved her.
Of course, El Paume didn’t intend to end everything here.
He knew.
‘The exit here appears a week after entering.’
He knew the conditions for clearing this place.
‘When everyone is dead, and only one survives, after running endlessly.’
Miner had told him about that in the past.
‘She said the exit appeared after a week like that.’
The condition for the exit to appear was survival.
In other words, El Paume’s party and Miner’s party had to spend a week in this place overflowing with zombies, whether they wanted to or not.
“If you feel it’s dangerous again, fire a red bullet. I’ll help.”
It was an opportunity.
“The payment is deferred.”
The chance for El Paume to claim his compensation from Miner and Captain Kyrin.
And that chance came.
During the week leading up to the appearance of the exit.
Bang!
Bang!
Miner’s party fired two more red flares during that week.
[Translator – Pr?ks]
[Proofreader – Pr?ks]
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