Translator: CinderTL
"Hmm?"
Roland stared intently at the Fireball dancing on his fingertip, his brow slightly raised.
Was it an illusion?
The process of condensing magic elements seemed... smoother than usual?
This smoothness wasn't due to Pixie Tracy's enhancement, but rather originated from within himself.
It felt as if an invisible yet resilient strength had quietly surged from the depths of his consciousness.
Like an intangible framework, it subtly stabilized the aggregation of fire elements, making the flow of magic more precise and even slightly faster.
The sensation was extremely faint, like a pebble dropped into a deep pool, its ripples vanishing before they could spread.
Had he not been in a state of heightened mental focus, he would have barely noticed it.
Roland shook his head gently, dismissing the strange sensation, and then stilled his breath, concentrating his mind.
His sharp gaze locked onto the densest cluster of Slaad Toads in the swamp below. A cold, predatory smile curved his lips.
The swamp, covered in duckweed and bubbling with methane, exuded not only the stench of decay but also a faint, suffocating odor—a pungent mix of sulfur and rotting organic matter.
This was highly concentrated swamp gas, a deadly trap hidden beneath the deathly wetlands.
The moment the Flame made contact...
Roland's mind raced. The agitated Fireball, like a precisely launched stone projectile, tore through the dense fog and plunged straight into the center of the swamp.
Boom!
As Roland had anticipated, the instant the Fireball struck the swamp, it detonated the dormant, terrifying strength hidden within.
The narrow passage convulsed like a giant drum thrown into a furnace, collapsing inward before erupting in an earth-shattering explosion far exceeding the power of a mere Fire Arrow.
Crimson flames, thick smoke, and scalding mud erupted skyward, forming a brief yet horrifying pillar of fire.
The shockwave slammed against the jagged rock walls, sending loose stones tumbling down in a rattling cascade.
Within the blast's epicenter, the dark green duckweed instantly vaporized into ash. The murky swamp water boiled and evaporated under the extreme heat, revealing the seething, bubbling black sludge beneath.
Yet as the raging flames and smoke began to dissipate, Roland's pupils constricted sharply.
The expected sight of charred monsters failed to materialize.
While the shockwave had indeed hurled over a dozen Slaad Toads violently against the rock walls or into the mud, the scene remained chaotic.
Their bodies were charred black, their thick skin covered in blistered burns, and they emitted agonized, furious hisses.
But that was all.
Not a single one was reduced to ashes in the flames.
Even the monsters blasted into the air struggled to their feet, staggering forward or leaping with burns, their eyes gleaming with chaotic, savage light. Their resistance to fire far exceeded Roland's expectations.
"They can withstand even a swamp gas explosion? It seems... these demonic beasts called Slaad Toads possess an extremely high resistance to fire..."
Witnessing this, Roland's brow furrowed deeply.
Below, the Slaad Toad swarm had been completely enraged.
They roared in disarray, blindly spewing acidic venom toward the explosion's epicenter and the cliff above.
The venom splashed against the rocks, emitting a piercing hissing sound as it corroded the stone, releasing acrid white fumes.
"Trouble..."
Roland exhaled softly, rapidly assessing the situation.
The failure of the flames had caught him off guard, but it also reinforced the need for caution against these unknown demonic beasts.
Their physical strength might not be exceptional, but...
Roland's gaze swept over the demonic beasts' viscous skin, oozing with an unknown pus, and the surrounding rocks, pockmarked by acid corrosion.
To engage these creatures, born carriers of plague and lethal toxins, in close combat?
That would be tantamount to embracing death itself.
Unless absolutely necessary, he would never let them approach within ten feet of him.
Fortunately, he wasn't entirely unprepared.
Roland's hand darted behind him, drawing three arrows from his quiver.
These arrows were forged entirely from fine iron, their shafts etched with intricate, densely packed spell patterns.
They were disposable, enchanted arrows he had crafted at the blacksmith's guild, using limited materials and his rudimentary knowledge of enchantment.
"Since Flame is ineffective, let's try pure elemental force."
A cold resolve flashed in Roland's eyes.
With fluid precision, he drew back the heavy, custom-made hunting bow, its taut string emitting a faint groan.
He locked his aim on a robust Slaad Toad that had just struggled to its feet and was frantically spewing acid against the rock wall, as well as the relatively solid patch of dry, hardened mud behind it.
The bowstring twanged!
Hum!
The enchanted arrow transformed into a dim streak of light, far surpassing the speed of ordinary arrows as it shot with pinpoint accuracy toward its target.
The arrowhead sank into the Slaad Toad's viscous back with a dull thud, inflicting minimal physical damage.
But the moment the arrow struck, the spell pattern etched upon it erupted in a blinding flash.
Boom!
A deafening explosion, even more muffled and penetrating than the previous Fire Arrow blast, erupted violently.
This time, the explosion's core wasn't the expansion of flames, but the raw, untamed magic element itself.
Centered on the arrow's point of impact, a visible, iridescent shockwave ring expanded outward in an instant.
The Slaad Toad struck directly didn't even have time to scream. Its massive body exploded violently, scattering like mud struck by a giant hammer.
Viscous green flesh, shattered bones, and ruptured organs mixed with turbulent magic element currents, spraying outward in all directions.
The shockwave mercilessly swept over its nearby companions.
Several Slaad Toads caught in the blast were instantly torn apart and hurled away like insects crushed by an invisible giant hand.
Those farther away were violently slammed against the jagged rock walls by the raging shockwave, their bones cracking with sickening snaps before they collapsed limply to the ground.
Even the relatively solid patch of earth was blasted into a shallow crater, churning up black soil.
The effect was immediate and devastating.
Roland felt a flicker of relief, but his movements remained relentless.
His fingers danced across the bowstring, launching another volley of enchanted arrows in rapid succession.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Deafening explosions echoed wildly through the narrow passage, shaking loose stones from the rock walls that cascaded down in a rattling shower.
Each blast struck precisely where the Slaad Toad swarm was densest or closest to critical pathways.
The hissing roars below were instantly drowned out by the thunderous explosions and the dying shrieks of the monsters.
Within moments, the number of surviving Slaad Toads had plummeted. The few remaining creatures, terrified by the sudden, incomprehensible terror of the explosions, abandoned their blind acid-spewing frenzy and instinctively retreated deeper into the swampy darkness, seeking refuge in the shadows.
Roland slowly lowered his hunting bow. Only a handful of enchanted arrows remained in his quiver.
His cold, calculating gaze swept across the ravaged battlefield below, littered with mangled limbs and scorched earth, assessing the outcome.
Though he had expended nearly all his enchanted arrows, his objective had been achieved.
With minimal personal risk, he had eliminated the deadly threat blocking his path.
Yet Roland's vigilance remained unwavering.
After all, the witch Vanessa had warned him that even more formidable entities lurked within this swamp, the Slaad Toad's habitat.
Mindful of this, he refrained from hasty action, remaining crouched atop the cliff face, his eyes narrowed like those of a seasoned hunter patiently scrutinizing every ripple and shadow in the swamp below.
Time passed in deathly silence.
How long he waited, he couldn't say. Even after the mortally wounded Slaad Toads had ceased their death throes, the swamp remained eerily still.
Seeing this, Roland's brow furrowed in concern.
He cautiously scanned his surroundings, his gaze finally settling on the swamp's edge.
There, the force of the earlier explosions had collapsed a deep underground cave, its entrance now visible in the dim light, flickering faintly.
(End of the Chapter)
---------------------------------------------------------
Continue Reading (𝙆𝙉𝙄𝙂𝙃𝙏) on CinderTL• ⓒⓞⓜ
Read Ahead to Ch374 • 𝕱𝖗𝖊𝖊 𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘 • No Login
🎉 10,000 Chapter Discount is Live. Ends June 2.
---------------------------------------------------------