Genocide Reality - Chapter 24 - An Area Where Underground Water Pools

“Heup.”

 

As soon as I descended from the rope on the seventh floor, my feet nearly slipped. The floor was sparsely covered with slimy aquatic plants.

 

A little further ahead, I reached a fast-flowing river. Water splashed onto my face, and in the distance, I could hear the sound of a waterfall.

 

The thick scent of water indicated that this seventh floor was a waterlogged area where underground water accumulated in large quantities.

 

The accumulated underground water flowed here, turning it into a treasure trove for aquatic monsters.

 

This floor featured some monsters with a slightly different appearance.

 

As I was walking along the passage toward the waterway at the end of the level, a Merman, a half-fish man, appeared out of the water, perhaps having heard my footsteps.

 

Their upper bodies were covered in blue scales and they wore leather pants on their lower halves. Three, four, maybe five of them had climbed up from the water, dripping water droplets as they approached.

 

They all had harpoons with sharp blades in their hands and stood in front of me, threatening me.

 

“Gii!”

 

It was a strange cry.

 

“What’s the matter? Not coming at me?”

 

I also waited, pulling ‘Solitude’ and taking my stance.

 

I didn’t want to make any flashy movements because my feet felt like they might slip.

 

“Lo Poizu Foi (Beginner Poison, Shoot!)”

 

The lead merman chanted at me and sent poison arrows flying.

 

I deflect the small green dart with my ‘Mantle of Diminishing’.

 

My poison resistance is quite well-trained, so this level of poison attack doesn’t really matter.

 

Well, that’s not important right now.

 

I dodged the poison arrows that they sent flying one after another, and swung my sword at the head of the lead merman, holding a harpoon at the ready.

 

Four more to go, and enemies with some degree of intelligence were actually easier to kill. They became fearful of my overwhelming strength and started to back away.

 

“Come on then!”

 

With swift stabs, I pierced the hearts of the startled enemies on my left and right, leaving only two more.

 

The two tried to dive into the water to escape.

 

“Midor Fuu Din Foi (Intermediate Lightning Release!)”

 

I sent an lightning magic below.

 

A dazzling bolt of lightning shot out from my hand.

 

It looks spectacular, but it is not as powerful and consumes a lot of mana due to its long chanting time, making it inferior to the flame spell firewall.

 

But it is more effective against water than flames.

 

Enemies who fled into the water were electrocuted and floated up. I killed them with a single thrust, as they were foaming at the mouth and convulsing.

 

It’s nothing of consequence.

 

“But it’s strange.”

 

Ignoring the treasure chest that appeared, I proceeded down the passageway, which was slick with blue blood and water spilled by the mermen, so as not to slip.

 

The merfolk was not a race that used magic, although it was supposed to be intelligent.

 

Could it be that they are based on an enhanced version of monsters?

 

However, even if their strength is upgraded, it should only affect the monsters’ toughness and numbers. There shouldn’t have been any modifications to enable them to use spells.

 

“What if we think of it as evolution?”

 

Ten days since Genocide Reality began… No, we’ve only been here for ten days, but this dungeon has been around for much longer.

 

The Murder Troll on the third floor told me that he had slain a hundred adventurers. The group party of Rabitta Rabbits who reached the sixth floor had been adventuring for much longer.

 

Considering that this dungeon has accumulated such a wealth of combat experience, perhaps it has evolved beyond what I know of GenoReal?

 

It’s not surprising that an intelligent enemy would at least learn a new spell.

 

Thinking about it this way… somehow, I feel sleepy.

 

“Tsk, now it’s Mermaids?”

 

On the other side of the channel, there was a mermaid with a lyre. Unlike the mermen, these guys are fish in the lower half of their bodies. Their upper halves appeared to be sharp-eyed women with exposed bosoms, but they were still monsters.

 

I retrieved a lapis lazuli from my pocket to use it. This gem was known to counteract drowsiness.

 

Mermaids had a troublesome tendency to lull their opponents to sleep and then attack them.

 

Even if you fell asleep, being attacked would wake you up from the shock, so it might not be a problem on its own. However, in the presence of other monsters, it could be precarious.

 

As a solo player, they could become my natural enemies.

 

Despite their female appearance, I knew that if I didn’t kill them as soon as I saw them, they would try to kill me.

 

“Hai Ia Foi (Advanced Flame, Shoot!)”

 

A large fireball flew straight up and instantly burned up the two mermaids that were perched on top of the small rocks.

 

I feel a sense of growth as the advanced magic succeeds.

 

The next to appear was the Sea Serpent.

 

Despite the relatively spacious area with underground water flowing like a river, its dragon-like head that could swallow people whole and its long, serpentine body didn’t seem like creatures that could inhabit such a place.

 

“In this cramped space, how is this massive creature even surviving?”

 

It lunged at me with its wide-open mouth, but I swung ‘Solitude’ vertically with all my strength and cleaved it in two.

 

I endured the heavy impact that weighed on my arms and was drenched in the splattering pale-blue bodily fluids.

 

“Phew!”

 

Being able to cut down an attack of this mass head-on shows that my strength is improving.

 

However, the Sea Serpent, despite its boss-like appearance, was nothing more than a brute with low intelligence, capable of only monotonous attacks.

 

While it would have been dangerous if it had dragged me into the water, it intentionally stuck its head into the land passage, almost inviting me to cut it to pieces.

 

The head was split open vertically, but when I struck it again with the long blade of the ‘Solitude,’ the head fell off without a struggle.

 

Even after the head fell off, the long torso continued to writhe about for a while.

 

Eventually, it stopped moving, and the large corpse of the giant Sea Serpent floated on top of the water.

 

“I suppose I can eat this one too.”

 

I took out a knife and cut a bit from the head to taste it.

 

What can I say about this flavor?

 

“I guess it’s more like snake meat than fish meat…”

 

The flesh was reddish-black. It had a color that didn’t look very appetizing, like grayish meat with a tinge of blood-red, unlike the typical red-fleshed fish. Even though they both lived in underground water, it seemed different from fish meat.

 

The taste wasn’t as bad as it looked. It had little fat, and the meat was somewhat tough, with a taste somewhere between pork and fish, but the texture was crunchy.

 

It seems to be nutritious, so it is a good enough treat in the dungeon.

 

Its lack of distinct flavor was its characteristic. Even when eaten raw, it wasn’t particularly delicious or unpleasant, but it had the potential to become something more when cooked.

 

“Should I make a meal out of this?”

 

During battle, I didn’t notice it much, but even taking a small bite would make my stomach growl.

 

Come to think of it, I had brought the rest of the pot-au-feu that Kazuha had made in a container.

 

I couldn’t bring the soup itself, but when eaten together with the vegetables that had absorbed the soup’s flavor, it might help enhance the somewhat bland taste of the Sea Serpent.

 

This is the only time I can afford this luxury, though.

 

“Okay, I feel better.”

 

I ate as much as I could on the spot and decided to roughly chop up and pack the Sea Serpent meat in my luggage.

 

Even though it was plain-tasting sea serpent meat, among the ingredients available in the dungeon, it was a top-class food. I had to be careful and make it last.

 

I continued down the winding corridor for a while.

 

During that time, I encountered several mermaids that cast sleep spells on me, but I burned them all up with fireballs.

 

It wasn’t that I disliked cutting down those in female form; it was because they were support-type monsters that didn’t approach me.

 

The monsters on this floor didn’t seem to know how to work together, so they didn’t appear in groups of different types of monsters.

 

I had stored up some lapis lazuli for emergency use, but it may not have been necessary.

 

“Well, it looks like I’m getting close to my destination.”

 

I’m not going straight to the boss’s room; instead, I’m following a wide detour.

 

“It was around here, wasn’t it?”

 

Gingerly stepping into the water, I found a spot where the water was still extremely shallow. This was the only place where I could walk on water normally without wading.

 

Piranhas swimming around in the underground water bit my leather boots, but I quickly killed them by stabbing them with ‘Solitude’.

 

I could have eaten them, too.

 

Well, let’s not do that yet.

 

I don’t like to eat small fish raw, and it seems troublesome to eat them because their scales are too rough and their teeth are too pointy.

 

It must have been bad anyway, because it was so bony.

 

After crossing the underground river, I reached the other side and came to a large room. In the center of the square, there was a large fountain, and a large number of merfolk were living there.

 

It was a gathering place for the merfolk.

 

All at once, they started screaming like “Gii Gii” and rushed towards me.

 

“Good, I’ll take you on!”

 

There are fifteen of them, or maybe close to twenty.

 

There are so many that it’s hard to tell at a glance, but on the other hand, having this many in a large hall makes it easy to kill them. Fortunately, I mowed down two at a time with a single stroke.

 

They were equipped with harpoons, but they did not use poison arrow magic like the mermen from earlier.

 

They seem different from the ones before.

 

Just as I thought that, someone threw a knife at me from behind.

 

I couldn’t avoid it completely, and it grazed my arm, but thanks to the sturdy chainmail, it was just a scratch.

 

“You pulled it off!”

 

“Gah!”

 

Most of them are weak monsters that monotonously come at me, but there seem to be some smart ones mixed in.

 

The ones that can use magic or make full use of their timing and projectiles are tough.

 

To avoid being surrounded, I step back temporarily and draw the enemies into the corridor as I kill them.

 

In a narrow passage, I only have to deal with a couple of them, no matter how many there are.

 

Among these mermen, those who recklessly charge in are weak, while those who attack from behind are tougher.

 

While I have to prepare for long-range attacks while cutting down the front-line enemies, I’ve become quite accustomed to fighting multiple opponents.

 

“Well, these guys are not that big of a deal.”

 

Compared to giant dragons, these guys are only as strong as humans on their own.

 

Moreover, since they’re on land, it doesn’t matter how many of them there are; I have the upper hand.

 

If I were a merman, I’d try to somehow drag adventurers into the depths of the underground water, but they don’t seem to have that kind of cleverness.

 

Things got considerably easier after I killed more than half of them. They stopped their attacks and began to flee.

 

“Even if they try to run, there’s only one exit from the square, and it’s this way.”

 

“Gyaah!”

 

“Come on, you better run for your life!”

 

“Gah!”

 

I induce a panic state and cut down those who are huddled against the walls and in disarray.

 

Still, it seems I let some of them escape as I was killing them.

 

“Hmph, they got away.”

 

Thinking about it, I could say that a bunch of mermen were much smarter than the students I dealt with on the first floor, just because some of them were able to escape at the expense of their allies.

 

I briefly considered chasing and killing them, but it would be a waste of time, so I decided to let them go. Those who escaped might become tougher enemies with increased combat experience, perhaps part of the dungeon’s evolving system.

 

“An evolving dungeon, huh?”

 

It’s an interesting phrase. While finishing off the mermen who were writhing in the corners of the room, I pondered.

 

I need to be cautious not to rely too much on my knowledge of the game, but the idea of facing stronger enemies intrigued me.

 

As long as it’s not an unfair and arbitrary evolution, I might be up for the challenge.

 

If things continue to go according to our strategy, it will not be fun. I had come here knowing that I was risking my life.

 

Drinking a recovery potion, I looked at my chainmail, which had been shredded by a throwing knife.

 

If I am killed by a foe who has grown stronger by relying on my knowledge of the game, it means that I have reached my limit as a gamer.

 

Injuries are a sign of inexperience, but conversely, they are also a sign that you can become stronger.

 

People learn because they experience pain. If it’s a hardship that doesn’t kill me, I’m more than willing to accept it.

 

I switch my weapon from ‘Solitude’ to the spirit blade, ‘Onsatsumaru’, and step into the empty fountain in the center of the square.

 

There, I thrust my hand into the fountain.

 

“There it is…”

 

I grab and pull out an item that my hand touched, and it’s the ‘Boots of Water Spirits’.

 

However, at the same time, ‘Water Elementals’ appear at the four corners of the square.

 

These spectral entities, resembling water tornadoes, are also monsters. When I retrieve the rare item ‘Boots of Water Spirits’ from the fountain, it seems to unseal and release them.

 

As I jump out of the fountain, they start casting lightning magic from the four corners.

 

“No incantations…”

 

These guys seem to be able to use magic without chanting.

 

They are small blasts, so they must be low grade, but they are four shots at once. If I had been in the fountain, I would have received quite a damage from the electric shock.

 

If I were to get knocked out due to the shock, it would be game over on the spot.

 

Avoiding the first-time kill, my knowledge of GenoReal is still valid here.

 

“But how long can that last?!”

 

I slash at the nearest water elemental with Onsatsumaru.

 

It took two swings to kill it and then it was gone.

 

In the meantime, three Water Elementals send more lightning magic my way.

 

I sensed it coming, so I crouch down and narrowly avoided it. Three bolts of lightning magic collided above my head, creating a violent spark.

 

“Haha, just barely safe.”

 

It’s kind of fun.

 

There’s something exhilarating about the thrill, even though it makes no sense.

 

I advance confidently, swinging Onsatsumaru recklessly to defeat the next Water Elemental.

 

Here comes more lightning magic, this time two bolts.

 

I crouch and dodge again. Magic is just not effective; its limited straight-line trajectory is quite a fatal flaw.

 

“It would have been different if this weren’t low-level magic.”

 

I slash at the other one.

 

It’s like slashing a tornado, so I do not feel any response, which is sad.

 

After slicing through the last one in a routine manner, I start to feel my breathing become irregular.

 

Health and stamina can be restored with potions, but not the nerves that have been worn out.

 

However, I’ve finally obtained the ‘Boots of Water Spirits’.

 

These boots are highly functional as regular boots and will come in handy on the next floor, the eighth floor. I quickly discard the leather boots and put on the new ones.

 

“Now all that’s left is the boss.”

 

I went straight to the boss’s room, slashing away at the approaching mermen, casually.

 

Gradually the cobblestones became cleaner and the sound of the water faded away. The boss’s room is not a waterfront zone. It’s probably because the stairs leading downward are nearby, and they wouldn’t want to get wet.

 

“Now then, is Poseidon here?”

 

I say this as I open a gate adorned with luxurious blue designs.

 

“It’s not Poseidon, I am Ennosigaeus1. Adventurer.”

 

The man sat in a large chair placed in the middle of the room like a throne.

 

A nearly two-meter-tall, half-naked man clad in a loincloth.

 

His strong muscles made one think of Hercules, but this guy is even more illustrious; he’s the god of the sea in Greek mythology.

 

No, he’s a degraded copy at best, more like the ruler of the underground waters.

 

He stood up and held up a trident. This is Triaina, the three-pronged divine pike. A powerful weapon for an already formidable foe.

 

When you get to the seventh underground level, the bosses are not just strong, but also very skillful.

 

“You are an adventurer, but you don’t strike by surprise, do you?”

 

As I stand ready with ‘Solitude’, Ennosigaeus, calmly wielding the Trident of the Gods, asks inquisitively,

 

“Do adventurers often launch surprise attacks, then?”

 

“Well, from my experience, many of them tend to enter the room and immediately start casting spells or throwing projectiles.”

 

I see, that sounds like something they would do.

 

“I wanted to face you head-on, as our fighting styles seemed similar. I guess I’m a bit different.”

 

“Hmmm, head-on by yourself. It’s been a long time since I’ve had the pleasure of fighting a warrior who looks like he’s got some backbone.

 

“Oh, before we fight, let me ask you, were you the one who taught the mermen poison arrow magic?

 

“Yeah?… I did something like that. I found a scroll with the spell and taught it to them out of boredom. But it was just a makeshift solution. Judging by your arrival here, it seems it didn’t help much.”

 

I see, so he’s the one who taught them.

 

“Hey, what if you had taught all the Merfolk spells and had them ambush me together? Maybe then you could have killed me.”

 

“It’s impossible. Those foolish Merfolk wouldn’t wait indefinitely for adventurers whose arrival is uncertain. Besides…”

 

“Besides?”

 

“If adventurers stopped coming because of such a thing, I’d be bored!”

 

Ennosigaeus thrusts with the ‘Triana’, launching a heavy blow from his towering and muscular frame.

 

There’s no finesse to it; he’s putting all his power into the strike.

 

I catch it head-on with my ‘Solitude’.

 

I can’t overpower him, but he can’t overpower me either.

 

It seems like a match of strength.

 

My whole body trembled with joy at finding an opponent with whom I can fight on an equal footing.

 

“You’re strong, I think I’ll enjoy this more than the sea serpent.”

 

“I am the guardian deity of the spring, and I won’t be compared to the likes of a Sea Serpent!”

 

Splash Trident?

 

Each time Ennosigaeus swung his great trident, a violent splash would occur and a storm would erupt.

 

If it’s just this kind of posturing, I can do it too.

 

I slash left and right, and with a rumbling sound in the air, white trails follow—Samurai Blast!

 

“It seems you can do a little.”

 

“That’s my line!”

 

Ennosigaeus swung the ‘Triaina’ and a tremendous storm broke out.

 

I’m almost blown away and have to dig my feet in.

 

I try to attack, but there’s no opening at all.

 

Maybe I don’t need to be so straightforward and fight with just my sword.

 

“Midor Ia Foi (Intermediate Flame, Shoot!)”

 

The intermediate level fireball flies.

 

This is fine since the advanced level is less reliable and I just want to create an opportunity with this.

 

“Nuah!”

 

The fireball explodes, creating the opening I needed.

 

For Ennosigaeus, who has strong magical resistance, the fireball would not hurt him.

 

However, because he has a body with intelligence, his body still reacts to the flames.

 

I take advantage of that split-second opening and strike quickly.

 

While his stance falters, Ennosigaeus firmly blocks my sword with his trident, but the blade still managed to cut through to his shoulder.

 

I’d like to finish him off right then and there, but I can’t overpower him. I retract my sword and take a step back.

 

“I’ll end it next time!”

 

“Don’t think you’ve won!”

 

Perhaps thinking it’s now or never, Ennosigaeus unleashes a fierce thrust, brimming with determination.

 

It was an intense upward thrust, filled with unwavering spirit.

 

His life-or-death strike was powerful, and even with my sword blocking it, I couldn’t endure it.

 

That’s why his movement became wide, creating an opening.

 

I made contact with his trident using my sword, then pushed it aside while lowering my hips.

 

The sound of hard steel scraping against each other and sparks flying filled the air.

 

Without hesitation, I leaped into Ennosigaeus’ exposed flank and struck forcefully with a horizontal slash.

 

His unarmored waist, exposed under the loincloth, was sliced by the sharp blade.

 

The blade smoothly passed through his torso, and Ennosigaeus’ upper body was ripped away while spinning.

 

Ennosigaeus’ body was cut in half while still holding the ‘Triaina’.

 

“Ha, ha…”

 

With a face contorted in astonishment and eyes wide open, Ennosigaeus remained motionless in death, his expression somewhat foolish. It might have been laughable in different circumstances.

 

I drove the blade into his chest once more to ensure he was truly dead.

 

He might have already died when his torso was severed, but being a god’s incarnation, I couldn’t be sure of his vitality.

 

However, given his humanoid form, I thought that crushing his head or chest would surely end his life.

 

A treasure chest appeared, finally signaling that it was safe.

 

This was a sure signal that the boss was dead.

 

I felt a sudden wave of exhaustion.

 

It always felt like this when I had to face humanoid bosses.

 

Fighting against monsters provided a sense of exhilaration, as if I had truly vanquished a beast. However, the sensation after killing an intelligent humanoid was not so pleasant.

 

Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in my head.

 

When I wiped it with my hand, I saw blood – not the enemy’s blood, but my own.

 

When I deflected the spear with my sword, I must have narrowly avoided it. The tip of the enemy’s spear had cut deep into my forehead.

 

“Heh heh, you got me there.”

 

The wound on my forehead was a testament to my inexperience, a grave mistake. But I was more than happy about it.

 

If I had been a split second slower or had made a misstep, I would have been impaled by the spear through my head.

 

Thinking about it, we were on equal footing.

 

Both warriors gave their all and I survived. It was refreshing to think that that was all that mattered.

 

After recovering from my wounds with a potion, I washed the blood-stained ‘Triaina’ with water from the water fountain located in the boss’s room.

 

Once it was clean, I placed the divine spear in my backpack.

 

It is an infinite storage, so as long as I can bear the weight, even such a long object will fit in there.

 

“Ennosigaeus, I’ll gratefully take your spear as well.”

 

This weapon doesn’t really fit my fighting style, but I really wanted to take this loot with me.

 

Now, let’s open the treasure chest.

 

“Hmmm… scraps.”

 

Along with the ‘Key of the Sea God’, there are a lot of gold coins and gems.

 

As for me, as there is no point in having any amount of these things, I can only call them scraps.

 

Well, okay, I’ll take it with me for now, and if I think the luggage is too heavy, I’ll leave it scattered around the stairs.

 

I can retrieve it later, and if Nanami’s group finds it, they will pick it up. Well, that’ll be a little reward for them.

 

I used the “Sea God’s Key” to open the gate and proceeded to the eighth floor.

 

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1. So, it means Earth Shaker, poseidon’s nickname apparently, first I saw of here. https://www.dictionary.com/browse/ennosigaeus