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Chapter 5. The Mushroom Forest (3)
7.
One of the common misconceptions that beginner adventurers have is the qualities of a veteran adventurer.
“A veteran is someone who is good at catching monsters!”
He had strong fighting prowess, and beginner adventurers considered it to be the most important value among adventurers.
But it was completely different.
The top priority of veteran monsters was survival, and the most important skill they had to learn to survive was how not to fight monsters.
The party led by the adventurer wizard Dolan was the same.
“If you go this way, there’s a group of green cap mushrooms. Let’s go back.”
They were veteran adventurers with over 100 experiences conquering Mystic Gate.
They could avoid combat whenever necessary, so they continued their adventures without engaging in any significant engagements.
They did nothing wrong.
Because they were dragon-led and meticulous.
It definitely was.
They did nothing wrong.
“Hahahahaha!”
“what?”
But then one of my colleagues suddenly started laughing.
“Hahahahaha!”
“Zel, why are you suddenly like this?”
“Hahahahaha!”
Like crazy.
“Why are you here… … Hahahahaha!”
Even that was just the beginning.
Starting with one person, everyone in the party of six suddenly started laughing hysterically.
“Hahahahaha!”
“Hahaha, yuck, yuck!”
Of course, it wasn’t an ordinary laugh.
Their faces, bursting into laughter, looked more sad than ever.
It was everyone’s fault.
‘It’s poison.’
That this laughter is evidence of addiction.
“Everyone, haha, everyone, run away, haha… … .”
And they knew what the outcome they were about to encounter was.
If you’re a veteran, there’s no way you wouldn’t know.
thud!
How dangerous it is to talk loudly in a place full of monsters.
8.
“It’s a toadstool.”
The moment he heard El Palm’s explanation, Divo’s expression turned fierce.
It wasn’t because I knew about the poisonous mushrooms.
I had no idea.
“It’s a monster that can only be seen beyond the Mystic Gate, and it’s very hard to see.”
The toadstool was a monster that even El Palm had encountered less than ten times.
That meant it was an incredibly rare monster.
The number of monsters El Palm has faced so far is in the hundreds of millions.
That was also why Devo’s expression was crumpled.
An unknown monster appeared, and it was even poisonous? That would be the most dangerous case.
“The existing detox potion won’t work, right?”
Most adventurers had at least one antidote potion on hand. It was expensive, but not more expensive than their lives. And these antidote potions were effective against many poisons.
The problem was that the poisons meant here were so well known that they were known to be multiple poisons.
This means that the possibility of it being effective against the poison of the extremely rare poisonous mushroom is virtually zero.
That wasn’t all.
“More than that, what you were talking about earlier… … .”
“It’s a symptom of addiction.”
The poison of the toadstool itself was not that strong. To be exact, it was not lethal enough to cause immediate death. Even if poisoned, it was enough to last for about a day.
“So, when you get poisoned, you scream like crazy?”
“Yes.”
The problem was that the moment I got addicted, I started laughing like crazy.
This means that you cannot follow the most ironclad rule of all: do not speak loudly in places where there are monsters.
That wasn’t all.
The act of laughing was a difficult act in many ways. It was like laughing too much and getting a stomachache.
How can you fight in such a state?
A life-or-death battle that requires a high level of concentration?
There’s absolutely no way that it’ll work.
At this point, there was only one thing that Debo was expecting.
“Boss, what do you think?”
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‘The boss doesn’t know.’
I wonder if there isn’t a way for El Palm to figure out the identity of a boss monster just by looking at its addiction symptoms.
“It won’t be easy.”
At El Palm’s words that came out then, Divo’s expression hardened even more.
‘Yeah, I guess so.’
I’ve never seen it before, but just hearing the description, I can picture just how terrifying a boss monster it is.
El Palm also knew.
‘The toadstool’s poison doesn’t have a very wide range of effects.’
This isn’t just any ordinary toadstool.
‘The size of the giant toadstool is more than 4 meters even for a small one. If its poison was within the effective range, there is no way that veteran adventurers would have missed its presence. Even so, being poisoned by its poison is… ‘
Here El Palm was kept in mind.
‘There is a very high possibility that there is an item that increases the effective range and power of the poison of the poisonous mushroom.’
Divo said, seeing El Palm looking so troubled.
“Boss, shall we escape?”
Let’s find the exit quickly and move.
It was a sound decision.
It’s foolish to talk about annihilation hunting when you can’t catch a dangerous boss monster, let alone one that’s impossible to catch.
Also, no matter how great the value of the boss monster was, it was not wise to risk one’s life.
It wasn’t just Divo who made that judgment.
pop!
A bomb exploded in the forest, and soon Divo and El Palm came into view.
The sight of red smoke bursting from the sky.
“It’s an emergency signal.
9.
One of the most important values pursued by the Adventurer’s Guild was none other than increasing the survival rate of adventurers.
Adventurers obsessed with titles competed with each other, and because the competition reached its peak, accidents often occurred.
So the Adventurer’s Association established some rules.
“When a pirate adventurer shoots smoke bombs from a gun or cannon, it means the following.”
One of them was the existence of smoke bombs.
“If a green smoke grenade is fired, it means it is a safe place. If a yellow smoke grenade is fired, run away unconditionally. If a red smoke grenade is fired, all adventurers will gather.”
Among them, the red smoke grenade was an emergency signal, meaning that everyone should gather in the place where the smoke grenade was fired.
Of course, it was only a rule and could not be enforced.
Because the Adventurer’s Association can’t assign officials to each and every adventurer to monitor them.
Rather, these smoke bombs were often used as traps to threaten adventurers.
However, most adventurers tried to follow this rule, and the more veteran the adventurer, the more they followed the rule.
Because I didn’t know that this rule might save my life.
That was why.
When the red smoke bomb exploded, all four parties of adventurers, except for one party that was completely wiped out, gathered where the smoke was.
Naturally, all the remaining survivors gathered together.
And the pirate Iburu who shot the smoke grenade spoke to everyone gathered.
“I found a boss monster. It was a 5-meter-tall mushroom monster with red, smiling skull patterns all over it.”
Said of the existence of a boss monster.
Of course, those gathered knew.
That the emergency signal wasn’t sent just to let you know that fact.
It was as expected.
“He’s sitting in front of the exit.”
Pirate Iburu blurted out the most important point, and everyone’s expressions hardened.
It was the same with Devo.
‘driving me crazy.’
That guy was a guy who spewed out powerful poison. But that guy, that guy who harbors deadly poison, is guarding the exit?
That wasn’t the only headache.
“As you all know, mushroom monsters don’t really hunt. They can survive without eating.”
Ordinary monsters hunted to survive. That was the most basic of basics.
So it was virtually impossible to stay in one place for a long time. We had to move around somehow.
But the mushroom monster didn’t need to do that.
This means that the poisonous mushroom that has settled there now will never move unless something special happens.
So everyone’s expressions hardened.
“Someone has to be the bait.”
That something special has to happen.
Of course, not everyone was convinced by that. One adventurer raised his hand and said,
“Are we all going to catch it together?”
If you’re an adventurer, you must go on adventures.
There were also merits.
“If it’s a rare species of poison like that, the price will be unusual.”
A chance to earn a title and a lot of money.
But that opinion did not last long.
“Even if it’s expensive, it can’t be worth the price of one’s life.”
Because these people here are veteran adventurers.
So the agony deepened even more.
These are the people who know the value of life better than anyone else.
‘Who will be the bait?’
In that situation, who would choose to risk their life and become bait?
A situation where everyone is only looking at each other.
“We will be the bait.”
At that moment, El Palm raised his hand, and all the adventurers gathered looked terrified at that fact.
“Hey, boss?”
Of course, Devo was among them.
You offer yourself as bait that requires you to throw away your life?
“Are you crazy?”
bedlam.
Moreover, this wasn’t just plain crazy.
The rest of the adventurers thought.
“No, don’t you know our situation right now? One adventurer and one bait slave! There are only two of us!”
It’s pointless to use tiny worm bait to catch sharks.
It was no different now.
El Palm and Divo are the only ones sent in as bait for that terrifying toadstool? How long will they be able to last?
Rather, there is a very high possibility that the situation will only get worse by touching the poisonous mushrooms.
Other adventurers were also concerned about this, and El Palm spoke about their concerns.
“There are two adventurers.”
“Two?”
At those words, all the adventurers looked at each other.
Looks like he’s thinking of asking for one more person.
In some ways, it was wise.
In this situation, it is more beneficial for everyone to share a little bit of risk management rather than one party shouldering all of it.
El Palm’s fingers moved as everyone was tense at the thought that it might be that one person.
For the purpose of designation.
At that moment, when everyone was tense at that fact, El Palm’s fingers stopped.
“Eh?”
In front of none other than Devo.
“Me?”
Divo, who was tilting his head at that fact, soon said with a look of disbelief.
“Boss, are you kidding me? Am I some kind of adventurer? My left hand… … .”
Then, Debo, who was about to show his left wrist, froze in place.
“uh?”
Because I saw a black ring on my left wrist.
“Am I awake?”
The moment when two adventurers become one.
Of course, the other adventurers were not convinced by that fact.
It is impossible to classify an adventurer who has just awakened as an adventurer.
“No, wait. Boss. I am an adventurer, but I am a rookie among rookies who just started out as an adventurer. How can you and I be baiting that monster?”
Because of this, Devo still reacted violently, and everyone was willing to accept his reaction.
That was the moment.
“The two of us will be the bait.”
“No, boss, so… … .”
“Instead, please pay 50,000 mesos to the remaining people.”
El Palm made the suggestion.
“Per person.”
The adventurers burst into laughter in nervous anticipation at the absurd suggestion that seemed obvious to anyone.
One of them, the pirate Iburu, finally couldn’t stand it anymore and said.
“Is this the time to joke around? Your colleagues probably wouldn’t agree with that… … .”
“One, two, three… … If each of them gives me 50,000 mesos, then it’s my share… … Hey, boss. Let’s do it!”
But Iburu closed his mouth at the sound of Divo’s voice.
It was the same for everyone else.
At this moment, everyone just looked at El Palm and Divo with dumbfounded eyes.
Anyway, since Devo had agreed, there was only one thing left.
“The method is simple. My colleague and I will lure the poisonous mushroom. In the meantime, you can exit through the exit.”
Will you accept this offer?
Of course, the worries didn’t last long.
There was no reason to go.
“If you survive and get out, I will go out and get the promised amount.”
There was no reason to refuse since the two adventurers said they would provide bait and that the money should be paid while alive.
Iburu, he held out his hand.
“Please take care of me.”
fantasy,
