Chapter 21

: Defense Specialized and Second Event
 
Risa and Kaede were in the town of the second stage.
Because today was the day for the second event, their fighting spirits were perfect, they also did all they could do to prepare.
And right now, the announcement from the administration came.
 
「This time’s event will be an exploration type! The highlight is the 300 pieces of silver medal scattered in the field after teleporting! Gathering 10 pieces of these will make it into a gold medal, and you are able to exchange the gold medal to skills or equipments when the event is over!」
 
The announcement flows like that and the status window opens by itself, and shows the gold and silver medal.
Within those, Kaede was familiar of the gold medal.
It was the gold medal that Kaede received as a commemorative gift for the last event.
 
「The players in the top ten of the last event already have 1 gold medal each! You can defeat and steal it from them, or you can ignore and do your best on exploring!」
 
Some accessories such as luxurious rings and bracelets, weapons like large swords and bows are shown one next to the other in the window, every one of them is sleeping somewhere in the field that they were about to go.
Of course, there was also large shields.
 
「Even if you die, you will only drop medals! Your equipments would not drop so please do not worry! The only time that the medal would drop is when you are defeated by a player. Please do not worry, and do your best exploring! After death, you will respawn at the initial point that you are going to be teleported!」
 
For the meantime, it was a relief.
If the equipments wouldn’t be stolen, it would be at ease to some extent.
They could do their best on exploration.
 
「This time’s event will last one week in game time, the time that would pass outside the game would only be two hours since we will be accelerating the time! There are some spots inside the field that monsters would not come inside so please take advantage of it!」
 
It means, even after sleeping and spending time inside the game for one week, it would only pass two hours in reality.
 
「How can I say this, that’s a strange feeling」
「They said, once you log out you’re not able to join the event again, that’s why, we can’t log out if we want to join the event until the end. After that… they said that party members will teleport on the same place」
 
Risa and Kaede heard the explanation, saw it in the status window, and after discussing, decided to try to not log out.
 
「Medal enough for two, I hope we get it」
「Un, let’s do our best!」
 
The body of the two became light, and disappeared from the town of the second stage.
 
「n…… we’re here?」
「Looks like we’ve arrived」
The feeling of earth that is sensed from the feet.
The two was in the middle of an open grassland.
You can see islands floating in the sky as if gravity had no effect on them, and you can also see mountainous areas far away. And in the wide open sky, you can see the appearance of dragons flying elegantly.
 
The field that the administration prepared this time, was a very rich and natural, utopia for monsters.
It was a fantastic world that was as if taken out from anybody’s fantasy world dream.
 
「Ohh〜! Beautiful!」
「Amazing… it’s so beautiful shiver came down on my spine」
 
The two were walking on the grassland while talking, and even though they walked for 20 minutes, they didn’t encounter other players. Thinking that Kaede immediately had an opponent last time, maybe this time, the stage that was set this time might possibly very wide.
 
「Will we be able to find a medal〜…」
「Who knows? Well, let’s do it slowly? There’s still a lot of time」
 
The two was talking like that, but they a goblin pushing aside the small grass on their right. It looks like it has targeted the two, and chases after them even though they went left.
 
「If the opponent is only a goblin… Snow White is good enough huh」
 
Kaede reequipped her large shield. Because she could not be wasting 【Akujiki】.
 
「Can I use this equips for a while? I’ll just change it to the Mirror of the Dark Night in case of anything」
「Okay〜! I’m counting on you. This time, I’ll defeat them okay?」
 
Risa approached the goblin very quickly and swings her dagger. The goblin tried to receive it with the club in its hands, but there was no way that the weapon with bad quality could stop Risa’s dagger.
 
Supa, the club was cut off together with the very deep red line in the goblin’s body.
And, the first attacker easily became light and disappeared.
 
「Oh〜! You’re really fast!」
「Fufufu〜 thanks! I wonder if this is the area for weak monsters?… there might not be any medals」
「n〜… maybe so. I think that the medals are in a place more difficult to see」
 
It looks like Risa agrees on Kaede’s opinion and for the meantime, searched around caves or forests, terrains that seem to have a lot of monsters.
 
And walking about an hour after that.
「Right, Grasslands! Left, Grasslands! Behind, Grasslands! In front, Grasslands!」
 
Risa couldn’t help but be shouting. Wherever you look, it was all grasslands. It was definitely grasslands up to the horizon.
 
「It’s too wide〜… for a while now, only goblins come out… see, it came again…」
 
As Kaede had said, the goblin was walking while dragging a rabbit that it probably caught as prey. It doesn’t seem to have noticed Kaede and Risa, GugyaGugya it was laughing happily with an annoying voice.
 
And while Kaede and Risa were looking at the goblin, it
walked
into the ground.
 
「「……eh?」」
 
The two was astonished and petrified, but when they regained their senses, they quickly moved to the place where the goblin disappeared.
 
「T-There’s nothing?」
「No… there’s definitely something! There should be!」
 
Risa had some kind of idea, and shot the space around there with【Wind Cutter】.
It cuts through the distorted space, and that scene returned to its normal state.
In the two’s feet, there was a staircase leading to the underground.
 
「A skill like【Mirage】… it was hiding the entrance with that. Maybe, there’s another entrance. This grassland, are wide after all…」
「You want to enter?」
「Of course! a cave that is hidden very carefully… there should be one or two medals for sure!」
「Yo〜sh! Then, let’s go!」
 
The two entered inside the cave.
 
「Yo…tto!」
 
Risa slashes through the goblin’s face with her dagger.
It was not like the monsters inside were especially strong, so they were defeated easily with Risa’s attacks.
The path was wide enough for the two to walk side by side, so she is free to swing around her weapon.
 
「Another branched road…」
 
Kaede whispered.
As Kaede had said, this cave had quite a lot of branched road. It was stretching to a lot of paths just like the ant’s lair, and there were also a lot of dead ends and small rooms.
 
「Which way should we go… Maple, what do you think?」
「……then, to the right! It is going down to the right, so I think that if there was a boss it would be in a deep place!」
「Okay〜, then right it is」
 
The two moves ahead of the path. And entered a little larger room.
That time.
 
A roar echoes through, and the ground trembles.
The two felt instinctively. That this was the boss’s roar.
And with that, footsteps and metal sounds approached the two. And with it, unpleasant cries.
 
「The boss might’ve commanded something, the goblins are gathering!」
「What should we do?」
 
To Kaede’s question, Risa said while making a stance with her weapon.
 
「This room is only connected to two places, I’ll leave the other one to you!」
「Okay〜! Leave it to me!」
 
Kaede still doesn’t exchange her large shield.
She was thinking of saving it for the boss.
Kaede drew Shingetsu.
It was the start of the fight.
 
「【Hydra(Poison Dragon)】」
 
She attacked full force from the start. Because the more she increased the number she attacked, the more that Kaede loses her attack power. If it was possible, she wanted to clean it up with one shot.
 
The Poison Dragon that was shot towards the goblins rushing inside the room, was stopped by shining barriers in front of the goblins.
In the back of the passage.
There were three goblins that were taking a stance with their staff in the back of the horde of the goblins.
That is probably, the magic of those three.
But, it seems like that was their trump card, the three was breathing with their shoulders.
Kaede’s attack was just that strong.
In regardless of that, the damage dealt by the Poison Dragon was not only that.
Even if it was blocked, the poison itself that was scattered around wouldn’t disappear.
The goblins that touched that poison agonized, collapsed, became a light and disappear.
 
Even so.
The goblins stepped on their allies that collapsed before they disappear, and came across the sea of poison.
They couldn’t go against the command from the boss.
They were just, moving towards the enemy in front of them.
 
「【Shield Attack】!」
 
Kaede’s attack had almost no damage directly, but it pushes the goblins to the sea of poison with the knockback effect.
Kaede only repeated that, and the number of goblins was decreasing. The three goblins that would’ve originally support them with magic was already exhausted.
 
「【Shield Attack】! It’s the end, with this!!」
 
When the last goblin sank the last time. It looks like Risa also had ended fighting and went towards Kaede.
And, she noticed the magician goblins and started to attack with magic.
 
「【Fire Ball】! And, 【Wind Cutter】!」
 
It looks like it didn’t have any defense, the magician goblins were defeated easily.
 
「Good work, Sally!」
「You too, Maple. That being said, you really did it very flashy〜」
 
Risa was looking at the sea of poison with surprise and astonishment.
 
「Ehehe… rather than that, let’s go! There is surely a boss in here!」
While making a shy laugh, Kaede changed the topic.
 
「I guess so, let’s go! …yo!!」
 
Risa jumped over the goblin that was agonizing in the sea of poison. Kaede of course, walked over it. Her poison resistance was perfect.
 
「If I was to touch it, I’m out with one shot」
 
She wouldn’t receive damage from friendly fire magic, but the effects that it does is different.
It means that if a branch burned by an ally by Fire Ball was touched, there would be damage.
 
「I’ll be careful okay」
「Please do」
 
The two went deeper and deeper to the cave.
The final battle, is very near.