Volume 1 Chapter 26: Facing Phantasmal Beasts

(Walson)

... Err, uhm. I can't come up with any opening speech.

Am I supposed to? I mean, we are currently in a battle.

Well, whatever. Let's just get to the battle.

"Kiaa!Kiaa!"

I shot spider webs all around me non-stop, swinging through the air all over the place.

Crazed screeching from the [Kirins] constantly follows behind me, even when I'm in the air.

... These arseholes can freaking fly! Totally didn't expect that.

"kiii..." I heard one of the [Kirins] inhaling, and immediately swapped the glove on my right hand into a [Gale Glove].

[Gale Glove] also shares the simple appearance as my suction gloves, meaning that it looks inconspicuous and ordinary. Basically, I added some wind magic stones to the exterior of the gloves.

The magic stones were bought from the magic stone shop in the village, the one where Grace works. She also gave me a discount, which was quite convenient.

If you inject the stone with some mana or energy, it will send out a strong gust of wind. As for why I'm using it now...

"Hey!" With the blast of air from the stone, I managed to change my course mid-flight, enabling me to dodge the crystal-looking-'breath' attack from the [Kirin] behind me.

Oh My Gawd, what was that!? What kind of breath is that? Why couldn't it have been something obvious like fire, why does it have to be this crystal looking thing?

It appears to be able to afflict the 'Wither' status, since the tree that was hit by it started to blacken and wilt right in front of my eyes.

"Kiaa!?" I pushed all the magical energy that was in the wind magic stone in one go, and ended up right beside the [Kirin].

This time I swapped the [Gale Glove] that was out of juice with a [Mini-dispenser]. Thanks to the tool-bar (or 'belt') from Minecraft, I can quickly switch through the items that I have on my person.

Aside from things I can equip, I can also store ordinary items, and they would end up immediately in my hands if I so desire.

"Sorry in advance!" The [Kirin]'s face was completely plastered with spider web, and heave-ho, I flung onto the equine's back.

It sped up abruptly, trying to shake me off. But too bad~ The spider webs are very sturdy, enough so that not even the destructive Melon could karate-chop it apart.

The webbing covered the entirety of its face, obscuring both of its eyes and rendering it blind. My hands did not stop when it started its wild dash.

After binding the legs, I guided the Kirin towards the ground.

"Kiaaaaaa-" As we approached the ground, the moment it was in range of my "Sphere of Influence" (the farthest distance of which I can place or break a block), I placed a gigantic pad of slime blocks I have [Assembled] in advance.

The slime balls that can be gathered from the blocky slime monsters can be made into slime blocks. I made this while practicing acrobatics, to ensure that I don't die from falling. Plus, we all know how fun it is to play on trampolines, why should I stop myself if I could do it with slime blocks instead?

It's doing its job spectacularly as both the [Kirin] and I fly bounced high into the air. With that opportunity, I silently shot a string to a nearby tree with one hand, while the other was working on binding the [Kirin] tighter.

"... And done." I lept off the tree, landing on the ground.

The [Kirin] is dangling from the tree, helplessly struggling while entangled in my reinforced spider web.

I took out a bottle of [Milk] and shoved it into the [Kirin]'s mouth.

[Fairy Kirin (Young)_LV48_HP:1378/3678_Status: Normal_Title: Fairy Tree Guardian]

Oh Oh! The curse seems to have been lifted.

Minecraft [Milk] is truly a wonderful, all-purpose item.

The [Kirin] has quieted down right after drinking it and seems tired and sleepy as a result.

Turning my gaze towards Grace's direction, I saw a bedraggled [Kirin] looking like a brat dragging a puppy over the beach.

There is also the fact that almost the entirety of its body is buried underground, with just the head poking out through the earth.

Grace is currently whacking it with her wooden staff repeatedly in an effort to 'knock out' the [Kirin], which makes it both a comical and pitiful sight.

Naturally, Grace is standing by the side of the [Kirin]'s head and not in front of it, to prevent the [Kirin] from retaliating with its breath attack. She also repeatedly checks the sturdiness of the earth magic she just used, making sure that the [Kirin] does not escape from its earthen confinement. The [Kirin] has been completely immobilized to the point that it couldn't even turn its head.

Grace was also doing her best to determine the [Kirin]'s wellbeing while whacking it. Such as checking its pulse and making certain that it was still breathing despite being confined. Looks like this might take a while.

Hm? Why would we want it unconscious you say? Well, I can't exactly feed them with [Milk] normally when they have gigantic fangs that would not hesitate to bite our heads off.

As for Melon... Ah! Their side feels a lot more upbeat.

We missed most of the fight though, since the moment I turned towards her she was already finishing up.

She cut through its defenses and lifted the head of the [Kirin] with her left hand, redirecting the breath attack that was aimed towards her.

She flipped her hold, and with a twist, managed to force the [Kirin] to do a somersault and tumble to the ground. She then shoved a bottle of [Milk] directly into its mouth while it was disoriented.

... Alright. She still did it despite not knocking it out. I guess it was my bad for making that a requirement. Sorry, Grace.

Grace was soon done with her fight too.

I made sure that there were no more hostiles around us with the [Mini-map], before finally turning to the tree.

Alright now, time to deal with this thing.

If we're talking about status effects... then the best solution on hand would be [Milk].

Oh yes, let us reacknowledge the greatness of [Milk].

#I... can't...# telepathic message again, but I ignored it once more.

I fingered the bottle of [Milk] in my hands for a few moments.

I observed the tree closely and wondered what the hell did all of this black stuff was and where it all came from.

But then I quickly gained an answer to that question once I poured the [Milk].

The earth shook... no, it would be more accurate to say that the entire tree, including the roots, were shaking.

The black corruption that plagued the tree was visibly retreating and disappearing. In the end, it almost looks like it has never been there.

And in that moment, something dark dropped down from the top of the tree.

"Nnn!?" I stared at the round black object on the floor with wide eyes.

It was a skull, a black skull.

The color was something very much akin to the darkest charcoal, the color of something that has all of its life burnt away. There was also this black aura that surrounded it, wavering ominously in the air.

... Of course, how could I have forgotten?

A Wither Skeleton Skull.

The Wither Skeleton that only exists in the Nether, dark black skeleton, inflicting the [Wither] status on whomever it attacks.

Once defeated, it has a low chance of dropping this item.

How the hell did this thing end up here!?

Don't tell me, the whole reason the life of the entire region slowly disappearing was all because of this thing?

This won't do... this won't do at all. Such a dangerous thing must be immediately contained and isolated.

Reaching towards the black skull with my hand, I scooped it into my [Inventory], intending to seal it in there for all eternity.

# - Thank you.# This time, the telepathic message sounded a lot more feminine.

"!? "!?" "...!?" All three of us stood still in shock.

What!? I mean, the hell? All the previous telepathic messages had the voice of an old man. The voice we're hearing right now sounds like what a friendly neighborhood lady's voice would be like.

#- My, how rude - I, am Nakula. As of now, am a proud member of the ancient Dryad tribe - My voice was affected by the corruption from earlier- # The tree rustled as if having a mind of its own. Or was it just the wind?

Eeeeeeh!? Did this thing read my mind just now!? Scary! Very scary! I apologize for calling you an old man.

#I - am not scary - I always protected the forest -#

"... Ah, then thank you for your efforts." I paused for a moment. "Lady Dryad, could you please enlighten us on why you've been affected by this... 'corruption'?"

#- I didn't understand - one day I just suddenly was -# The voice of the Dryad said this haltingly, sounding slightly ashamed.

Ah? Eh? Why does she sound like such an airhead?

Did she just forget how it all happened? No, that shouldn't be right.

______________________________

I talked with her some more but ultimately did not gain any more clues from the long conversation.

"Were there any of your other friends that have been affected by this corruption?"

#-No - only myself - I do not wish to cause you any more troubles - we are in your debt - savior - I shall save the others on my own -#

So the whole thing is about to end, good. Let's just leave the rest to the Dryad.

I formed some of my own conclusions of this incident and was just getting ready to leave.

It was getting late, the sun was starting to set.

#- Leaving so soon? - Such impatience - savior - you bypassed the barrier - to save me -#

... She is very chatty. I am slowly starting to feel annoyed by her voice as she continuously chatters on.

#- Huh? - Rude - Well then - savior - please accept my gifts - as thanks -#