The shape of its head evoked the image of a crown.
Just as I had predicted, it was a gigantic frame.
Its size was close to that of the dragon zombie.
However, the ceiling here wasn't high enough for it to stand upright.
So it crawled along the ground in a low, quadrupedal posture.
Its bones were close to orange in color.
Small orange lights flickered deep within the pitch-black eye sockets.
The lights moved busily, almost like eyeballs.
Protrusions extended from its shoulders.
Bones shaped like human arms and legs.
Bones that appeared to belong to other monsters jutted out as well.
This thing...
Was it growing by incorporating the bones of other creatures?
That earlier room might have been a storage vault for bones to absorb.
"ヒィ゛ぃ゛ィぃェぇァぁァあアあアあ゛ア゛――! ゲろ,ゴはァぁァあアあアあア――!"
The roar just now was likely a threat.
It resembled the dragon zombie's bellow.
It still showed no sign of attacking.
The Skeleton King was intently observing us.
"Hati-dono."
Mist, beside me, bit her lip.
"Hm?"
"Please look at the bone beneath its jaw. If you look closely, you should see a silver section."
"...Yeah."
"If that part is crushed, it can probably be defeated."
"Hm."
"However——I must state the reality plainly."
Staring fixedly at the monster, Mist continued.
"That is not a monster that mercenaries gathered to conquer this ruin could possibly handle. Even the Sword Tiger Corps might struggle... It is massive yet agile, its bones are extremely hard, and I have heard that magical techniques using magical essence have little effect. Therefore, Hati-dono's techniques as well——"
The Sword Tiger Corps.
They must have been quite formidable after all.
"..."
I fixed my gaze on the Skeleton King.
Its glowing golden eyes darted around like swift winged insects.
They seemed to fix on Mist far more often than on me.
It considered her the greater threat.
Between the two of us, it judged the woman to be the stronger one.
I see.
Having Mist around could draw the enemy's attention away from me...
So——how to attack?
The memory of the Soul Eater resurfaced.
Did this monster counter with ultra-fast interception the moment we attacked, or not?
I couldn't tell yet.
What level of monster was this thing?
To maximize certainty, I wanted to time my skill activation precisely with the instant it shifted to attack, catching it in that opening——
"Hati-dono, I have a request."
Mist spoke up.
*Crack,*
*Creak,*
*Crackle——*
Veins of ice rose along the blade of Mist's sword.
The ice gradually increased in volume.
"I will transform this sword into an ice striking weapon and attempt to crush that weak point. Furthermore, I will now use a certain power to generate special armor that dramatically enhances my physical abilities. With this power, we may be able to defeat that monster. However...this is a power I would prefer to keep hidden as much as possible. Therefore, could you please keep what you see here confidential?"
The Skeleton King opened its massive jaws wide.
I had already noticed light gathering in its mouth for some time.
It intended to fire something at Mist.
But——it hadn't fired yet.
There would be a moment when its aggression surged sharply.
To catch that timing, I continued watching intently.
Sometimes a gamble might be necessary.
But normally, I preferred to prioritize certainty like this.
Find a definite opening and finish it.
"And——I'm sorry. If the monster's strength exceeds expectations, I may not be able to spare attention to protecting you. So if it comes to it, please escape from here with Pigi-maru-dono——"
"ぎィぃ,ゲ,ろォぉォおオおオお゛オ゛――――!"
It entered the state right before releasing something.
The moment with the greatest opening——
Right here.
"――[Paralyze]――"
*Shuuuuu...*
"O, oo――oo――"
The light in the Skeleton King's mouth began to fade.
Unlike the lizardman, it didn't explode.
"――oo゛, oo? oo...?"
The monster's movements stopped completely.
Confusion emanated from the Skeleton King.
Though it had no expression, I could tell.
I took one step forward.
"――Eh?"
A short, stunned sound escaped Mist's lips.
The formation of her ice weapon halted midway.
I slowly turned around.
"Got it. I swear I will never reveal your power to anyone without your permission."
I turned my face and hand back toward the Skeleton King.
As long as this works, weak points and everything else become irrelevant.
"[Poison]"
The Skeleton King's gigantic body turned purple.
Poison——success as well.
Following the腐 dragon, the skill proved effective even against a monster made entirely of bone.
I didn't fully understand the principle behind this skill.
But for now, status abnormalities had succeeded against every opponent.
With the sole exception of that shitty goddess.
"What in the world...? A technique...?"
Mist looked up at the bone king with a puzzled expression.
She stood frozen, ice weapon still at the ready, eyes wide.
Ah, right.
This was the first time she had seen [Poison].
I turned back toward her.
"I'll keep quiet about your power. In exchange——"
With the poisoned bone king at my back, I said,
"Could you also keep this power of mine confidential?"
Mist still seemed unable to fully process the situation.
"And about that anomaly that happened in this ruin... it was most likely caused by the corpses of monsters I killed with this power."
"H-Hati-dono's...?"
"From what I heard from the Sword Tiger Corps members we met along the way, that's the only explanation that fits right now. When I kill monsters with this power, they basically show no external wounds. Oh, and you've experienced it firsthand before, haven't you?"
In the past, Mist had been hit with [Paralyze] in that forest.
She still hadn't noticed the sleep part, it seemed.
"Well, this power——"
I jerked my thumb toward the Skeleton King behind me, which was heading toward death.
"Seems to be a bit abnormal in this world."