Pov: Vik
Then, like some kind of changing creature, they merged into each other. Soon, they became a new being. This new being is also a Manticore, but it is larger, stronger, and unfortunately, it is S-rank.
Sigh! I shouldn't have raised a flag. Now, I have to fight at least two S-rank monsters. One is this Manticore, while the other is hiding, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. I can already picture that this other S-rank monster is trying to exhaust me by making me fight this Manticore.
With the Manticore becoming S-rank, a significant change occurred in its strength. I shouldn't have played with it from the start; I should have killed it when I had the upper hand.
Now, it has turned into something much harder to handle. Trying to catch me off guard, it shot its scorpion-like tail at me. Since it raised its rank, its tail became stronger. When I dodged it, the tail split into several more tail-like appendages aimed at me.
I dodged all of them, but then the Manticore itself charged at me, swinging its claws. Not wanting to engage up close, I created some distance. First, I hurled a ball of thunder at it, stunning it, then I retreated.
While considering my next strategy, I heard Louriel's voice shouting from her raid party.
Louriel: "Hey, Vik, do you need help?"
After hearing her, I shot another five balls of thunder at the Manticore. I have a feeling it is weak to electricity. It got stunned and nearly lost consciousness. Looking back, I saw Louriel standing outside the formation, watching me.
I said, "I'm not some weak guy, Louriel. These kinds of monsters aren't enough to make me sweat." I said this arrogantly, but she replied, "Are you confident you can handle this all alone?"
I nodded, focusing once again on the Manticore because it had healed itself. I sorted out my strategy. I planned to attack with long-range strikes. After dealing significant damage, I'd finish it with one swift blow.
I continued my long-range attacks, but soon I noticed the Manticore seemed exhausted. Then, it looked at the sky and roared. As soon as the roar sounded, I felt rumbling in the surroundings. With my heightened senses, I could see another horde of beasts coming towards me.
Now things were getting a bit tricky. With the approaching horde, this Manticore would have a chance to escape and heal, which was not part of my plan.
But just as the beast horde got close, thousands of arrows shot from behind, specifically from the raid party's formation. These arrows were made of different elemental energies—some were fire, some thunder, and many others.
The arrows acted like a grim reaper and killed thousands of beasts in seconds. Soon, Louriel came to my side, followed by the tanks from her raid party. Unfortunately, in the chaos of the beast horde, the Manticore got a chance to retreat, running back into the distant forest while the horde attacked us.
Seeing this, Louriel looked at me and said, "Vik, I don't have much time to waste. If you want to practice more with these beasts, I can let you use the private dungeon of our Horizon guild. But now, let me clear this dungeon quickly since I have some paperwork to do in the guild."
Saying this, she signaled her raid party, and in front of me, they all transformed. I knew they were some kind of undead creatures, but seeing their forms was a new experience for me.
Those in front, the tanks with shields, transformed into giant blue monsters with horrible faces. Their shields also enlarged, and now they stood as giants 30 meters tall. I looked at them and tried to gather information. I soon learned they are a type of warrior troll.
The same thing happened to the others. The sword-wielding members transformed into giant knights riding spectral horses. The strangest thing was that these knights had no heads on their shoulders; they carried their heads in their left hands while wielding their swords in their right. These headless monsters are called Dullahan according to the system.
The archers also transformed into skeletons wearing archer robes, wielding their bows. In the back were several skeletons dressed in robes that covered their whole bodies, leaving only their hands visible. They were skeleton mages.
All of Louriel's summons worked together tactically, killing monsters rapidly. Watching all this made me feel like I wanted my own army of monsters.
Louriel and I didn't join in the slaughter of the beast horde; instead, we exchanged glances, understanding each other's motives as we dashed towards the fleeing Manticore. Only through it could we locate the hidden S-rank monster. Otherwise, we'd have to search the entire dungeon.
Using our powers, we shifted the space around us, almost teleporting behind the Manticore. It sensed us and charged at us with its claws while poisonous darts rained from its tails. We easily dodged them. While doing so, I asked Louriel to hang back and watch, promising her I would clear the dungeon in a few minutes.
In my next face-off with the Manticore, I didn't hold back. I immediately used the Chaos Titan body refining technique, forming full armor around myself. With armor made of crackling blue thunder, I dashed towards the Manticore. I concentrated a ball of thunder in my fist and released it upon contact with the Manticore.
Unlike normal attacks, this fist didn't contain the destructive power of thunder, but rather its passive features. With this blow, I silently transferred an electrical shock into the Manticore's body, which coursed through its nervous system.
The intensity and precision of the attack made it look like the Manticore died while having a seizure. After handling it, we focused on the path it had been following. It seemed to be headed towards a valley area in the deep forest.
Upon reaching that area, we finally found our hidden S-rank monster, but it wasn't what we expected. The hidden S-rank monster was a large insect-like creature with many eyes and appendages, and it was producing numerous eggs from its body. Different beasts were hatching from these eggs.
I finally understood why this dungeon escalated to S-rank so quickly; it must be due to this creature. Without giving it a chance to fight back, Louriel conjured a blade of ethereal darkness and swung it, killing it in seconds.
With the monster slain, all the beasts born from it also perished. However, I still had questions about this strange insect. As if sensing my doubts, Louriel said, "This is GU, an insect-type monster usually tamed or cultivated by a group of cultivators called Gu masters. But this GU is much stranger than others of its kind."
Saying this, she raised her hand, releasing a dark mist that engulfed the large insect. I assumed she was trying to make it undead. But soon, it failed; nothing emerged from the corpse, as if the monster didn't have a soul.
Then she said, "My suspicion was right. This insect GU was cultivated by someone very powerful, who possesses great ancient knowledge and talent for Gu cultivation. Apparently, they are another Chosen One like us."