Class 4 Monster?

Ariana's eyes widened, her voice rising with disbelief. "You guys discovered the succubi? Shouldn't Kami-sama warn us when we're in the presence of monsters?"

Anyi shook his head. "No, when a succubus disguises itself as a human, there's no reminder. Their Prana is concealed, masked under human features."

Layton chimed in, turning toward Miruku. "Is it the same for you, Miss Miruku?"

Miruku remained silent, giving only a slight nod in response.

Ariana's curiosity deepened. "So, it's like the Slime King, right? If we don't see its true form, there's no warning?"

Layton nodded, but Ariana's attention shifted swiftly back to Anyi. "Wait, that means… Anyi, how did you find out they were succubi?" She asked with mounting excitement.

Anyi hesitated, the weight of her question hanging in the air. How could he possibly tell Ariana that the succubi had tried to seduce him, using their charm to beguile his senses? He had recognized them by the subtle scent of their magic, a scent only someone who had faced them before could detect. He glanced at Miruku, who immediately blushed and looked away, avoiding his gaze.

"Well…" Anyi began, carefully crafting his response. "They tried to ambush me in my sleep. Their physical strength is lacking, though, so I was able to overpower them and interrogate them about their identity."

Ariana's eyes widened in fascination. "They tried to attack you? Why?"

"Probably because they learned from the Rod Hero that we, as heroes, are determined to destroy the monsters. They wanted to stop me before I became a threat."

It was a perfect answer—one that conveniently skipped over the more... delicate details. At least this way, he didn't have to explain anything inappropriate for young ears.

Layton, ever curious, jumped in. "But you already knew the tavern master's horn wasn't going to harm you. Did you realize that when the succubi attacked?"

Ariana's curiosity reignited. "Wait, what?"

Layton filled her in with an exaggerated flair, recounting every moment he had witnessed: from Rose's transformation into her true form, to the ineffective charm magic, and finally, Rose's desperate charge. His retelling left Ariana laughing, though still confused. "But if her charm didn't work, why wasn't Anyi affected by her powers?"

Anyi glanced down, preparing his response with a calm, calculated tone. "That succubus had 300 Prana attribute points. If she wanted, she could've unleashed a large-scale magic attack and wiped us out in an instant."

Ariana's face paled slightly at the thought. 

"But she didn't use it," Anyi continued. "Which means she likely doesn't know how to. Her horn might have been infused with mana, but the real concern was that she might've been leading us into a trap. If we killed her, her mana could've exploded—killing us all in the process."

Layton scratched his chin thoughtfully, absorbing the information. "That makes sense. I guess it wasn't just dumb luck that saved us, huh?"

Miruku's eyes grew wide. 'So that's what he was thinking!'

Both Miruku and Layton now reflected on the narrow escape. While they had assumed Rose's attack had been little more than a desperate, clumsy attempt, Anyi had considered a much graver possibility—a mana explosion upon her death. If that had happened… Miruku shuddered.

In her mind, an unsettling image formed. She envisioned her own gravestone, marked with her name, in the middle of a vast, desolate field. The scene was bleak and filled with angry passersby, their faces twisted in fury as they hurled insults at her memory.

"The sinner who killed thousands! Death is too merciful for you!" one person shouted, spitting on the stone.

Another hurled rotten fruit, while others, with furious glee, smashed the tombstone to pieces. "This one deserves no monument!" they cried, cursing her name.

And then, from the heavens, a golden rain began to fall, crashing into the tombstone and leaving nothing but a gaping crater in the ground. Standing at the edge of that crater was Ariana, her face shadowed with sorrow and righteous anger, her fists clenched at her sides.

...

Miruku's sudden movement startled everyone as she dropped to her knees in the carriage, bowing deeply toward Anyi. Her voice was full of regret. "I have realized my mistake. I apologize. It is clear to me now—I am intolerant, and I beg for punishment, starting from the lowest level."

Anyi blinked, confused. "Uh... What?"

Did he say something wrong?

Layton, ever curious, broke the awkward silence. "Speaking of which, what's a Goblin Centurion?"

Anyi, glad for the diversion, shook his head. "I don't know much. But when I asked the succubi, they explained that a Goblin Centurion commands ten Goblin Shamans, who each lead a hundred Hobgoblins. A Hobgoblin, in turn, commands twenty regular Goblins."

He paused, letting the weight of the numbers settle in. "If we compare them to slimes and other goblins, a regular Goblin is a Class 1 monster, the same as a slime. Hobgoblins are Class 2 monsters, while Slime King are Class 3. Goblin Shamans rank above the Hobgoblins, likely Class 3 as well, like the Slime King. The Goblin Centurion... most likely Class 4 or higher."

The carriage grew deathly quiet as his words sank in.

"Class... 4?" Layton stammered.

The mere thought of facing a Class 4 monster hit them all like a punch to the gut. Subjugating a Class 3 Slime King had nearly cost them their lives. Even now, with Anyi in their midst, the Slime King loomed large in their memories—a force that had nearly broken them. The oppressive weight of its presence had smothered them in fear and despair.

Ariana, who had remained silent, felt her heart pounding in her chest. 'Class 4…' It sounded like a nightmare, and the idea of facing such a creature gnawed at her insides. The reasonable part of her mind screamed at her to retreat, to turn away and run before it was too late. She knew the odds—they were far from ready for this. 

But more than anything, she couldn't bear the thought of letting her companions die.

"That's not all," Anyi continued, his voice steady but grim. "According to the succubi, there isn't just one Goblin Centurion in the forest."

The trio stared at him, dread building in their chests.

"There are three of them."

A sharp intake of breath filled the carriage as the full reality of their situation hit.

'Three Class 4 monsters…'

Not just that—three Goblin Centurions meant thirty Goblin Shamans, three hundred Hobgoblins, and a staggering six thousand Goblins.

Ariana's head spun, her ears ringing. It felt like they were being pushed toward an unstoppable army—an invincible force that could easily crush them. The sheer scale of it was overwhelming.