“Why is this happening!”
The bright moonlight spilled onto Kersey’s tearful face. She was still wearing her short-sleeved, short-pants pajamas, with soft, slip-resistant beige slippers on her feet, and a staff in her hand. The reason so much moonlight was hitting Kersey was that a corner of the bathroom ceiling was missing… no, a large section was missing outward, the entire wall gone, turning the bathroom into an open-air one.
“Grrr…”
An ape-man gripped the broken edge of the wall, its body reeking of body odor and swamp. A second ago, it had demolished the bathroom with two punches, appearing so suddenly that the whole house shook. It looked like a Booze-loving Black Ape, but lacked the signature wine barrel. Like the Black Bear she’d seen that morning, its outer body floated with a red armor.
“A red transparent armor again! Could this really be a vampire attack? …The point is, I can’t beat them at all!”
Kersey temporarily dubbed it a “Red-Armored Ape” based on its new appearance. The Red-Armored Ape panted and growled, its two red eyes flashing dangerously. Kersey gripped her staff, facing off against the Red-Armored Ape, watching its every move.
“No, wasn’t this village supposed to be protected by a barrier, so monsters wouldn’t easily find it? Why…”
She knew her Level was lower than her teammates’, and she wasn’t good at close combat. Now she wasn’t even wearing a Priestess Robe with damage reduction. A single finger of the Red-Armored Ape was as long as Kersey’s thigh. One wrong move, and Kersey feared she’d be crushed to pieces. Her staff wasn’t a mace suitable for bashing.
‘Is today just an unlucky day for bathing, so all this trouble happens?’ Kersey thought darkly. She quietly aimed the Magic Stone at the top of her staff toward the Red-Armored Ape’s eyes, preparing to use Starlight to steal its vision—
A hurricane-like fist hurtled toward Kersey with terrifying force.
“—!!”
No, there wasn’t time to release the skill!
Kersey closed her eyes in despair, instinctively curling up. From past experience, she knew what posture minimized damage. But against such a huge fist, she wasn’t sure she could defend. Even if she had her Priestess Robe on, the monster wouldn’t just stupidly wait for her to put on equipment, right?
‘Maybe I shouldn’t have taken this Dungeon Task. At this hour, the café should be getting busy… With a fist that big, will it break all my bones in one blow?’ Kersey’s heart raced involuntarily.
“Kersey! Are you okay! Are you dressed?”
“Cass? Thanks for your gentlemanly spirit! Hurry and help! Cass!”
The anticipated violent impact didn’t come. Kersey thought she might be entering a Life Review, imagining so many things in an instant. The pink-haired girl, still in a defensive pose, carefully opened her eyes and slowly lowered her arms.
The Red-Armored Ape’s fist was approaching steadily—she could even see the distinct muscle lines and black fur blowing in the wind.
But it was only approaching.
Very slowly, as if the bone in its arm was stuck.
“What’s going on? Did its hand cramp?”
Not understanding the situation, Kersey prayed quietly while keeping her eyes fixed on the fist’s movement. She carefully stepped out of the attack range across the somewhat cracked floor, heading toward the changing room—
“Don’t move, don’t move. Be good, be good, please don’t move.”
“Kersey!”
Before Kersey could reach the curtain, Cass burst in swinging his sword. Luckily, Kersey pressed against the wall, avoiding being cut.
“Gwooh!!”
Instantly, the Red-Armored Ape roared, its fist no longer slow, approaching Cass at high speed. But a moment before impact, the fist slid away and smashed into the wall. Taking advantage of the monster’s recovery after the swing, Cass stepped forward. A blue light enveloped his blade—Skill Sonic Slash activated, drawing a blue arc. The sword didn’t aim for the monster’s fur but dug into the flesh under the Red-Armored Ape’s thumbnail—slicing upward.
At the same time, a bright orange thin line appeared from the lower right to the upper left on the monster’s back.
“Bried! How did you get there? Jumped out the window?”
Kersey had just passed through the curtain when she saw her friend flying through the air. The orange-haired swordswoman met Kersey’s eyes midair. Her rapier pierced through the monster’s spine; blood spurted from its nape.
The Red-Armored Ape, wounded front and back, let out an ugly howl and released its grip.
“Guoooohhh!!”
It fell backward from the second-floor bathroom. Bried adjusted midair and landed on the Red-Armored Ape’s belly.
“We both made it in time?”
Cass walked to the edge of the bathroom without a wall and looked down.
“Kersey, are you hurt anywhere?”
“…Ah, yeah, thanks. I’m fine. Just a little scared.”
Kersey felt that if Cass had been a few seconds later, she might have already gone back to her room.
Anyway, she quickly changed into her Priestess Robe in her room and then returned to the wall-less bathroom. Looking down at the fallen Red-Armored Ape, she saw it lying on a large rock. Bried pulled her rapier out and dug out the Crystal Core, and the Red-Armored Ape turned to ash.
Kersey glanced at Cass out of the corner of her eye. He was wearing a gray long-sleeved sleep shirt; he must have run out after feeling the tremor. He operated his Ring Chart and instantly swapped his pajamas for his usual Combat Suit.
Come to think of it, just now… was it my imagination? When that gorilla swung at me, its speed did seem to slow down, right? Maybe it was the intense concentration, but Kersey felt the time facing the Red-Armored Ape was incredibly long. Yet when she looked at her Ring Chart, only about twenty seconds had passed since the monster wrecked the bathroom.
“Can I still take a bath tonight…”
Kersey looked at the hot water in the pool with mixed feelings. Luckily, the bathtub wasn’t destroyed.
Down below, Wa Luolan said something gravely to Bried, bowed her head apologetically, and hurried away.
“Huh? Is that… a fire?”
Kersey leaned on the wall and looked into the distance. The place with flickering flames seemed to be the Great Bathhouse—that was where the fire was brightest. Besides that, many tiny fires appeared around the village. The Foxman warriors were holding torches, locked in battle with monsters in various places. Though the Foxmen were clearly at a disadvantage, they seemed able to hold out a bit longer.
“Are you all okay? Guests! Sigh, the wall is broken…”
Nuo Yi ran up, looking anxious. Seeing Cass and Kersey safe, her expression relaxed a bit. She then looked for Bried. At that moment, Bried jumped back up to the second-floor bathroom. She was now wearing a Coconut Brown Jacket over her inner Battle Suit.
“Thank goodness you’re all fine. Ah, now’s not the time for that. A large group of monsters glowing red attacked the village. The whole village is in emergency mode now.”
“So that’s why it shook so violently. That armored gorilla was similar to the Black Bear this morning, but not as strong.” Bried responded to Nuo Yi, then added, “We should move out too. Kersey, you can bathe when we get back.”
“…Don’t mention bathing again. It feels like trouble every time it comes up.” Remembering what just happened, Kersey made a bitter face.
“Move out? Right, everyone follow me. Wa Luolan told me the monsters invading the village are very strong. Even the houses can’t withstand them. The cave’s protective barrier is already open; Lord Valmor is directing the evacuation. It’s safer there.”
“Miss Nuo Yi, you go take shelter. We’ll help fight the monsters,” Cass said seriously.
“But, but…”
Nuo Yi saw Kersey’s eyes twitching, looking a bit scared, but also very determined. The three were fully equipped and had their weapons. She knew arguing was useless. After blessing them, Nuo Yi left: “I understand. Thank you. May the Ancestral Spirits protect you.”
Cass gripped his sword handle. “Let’s go. First we meet up with Wa Luolan. Bried, do you know where she is?”
“Yes. She told me she was handling evacuation. We’ll cut down monsters along the way. Hold on tight—it might get a bit bumpy.”
Bried said calmly, then carried Kersey on her back. She and Cass jumped straight down from the second floor, six meters high, and joined the battle to defend the village.