Chapter 53 – Giant Subjugation Quest #10
“We have arrived at the coast of Corfu. Adventurers, please prepare for battle.”
After the voice of the leader of the subjugation echoed, I got off the carriage and stepped onto the sandy beach.
It was a beautiful beach with sparkling sand grains, but I was not in the mood to enjoy it. Because the corpses of monsters are lined up all over the beach.
“Why are the hermit crabs dead? Luke.”
“It’s probably something the giants did. It looks like they ate the flesh and threw only the hard shell out.”
Carcasses of hermit crabs lying on the beach were hollow inside their shells. The stomach had been torn apart, and the flesh inside had been pulled out coolly. It seemed that the giants had enjoyed the crabmeat to their heart’s content.
“Don’t let your guard down. This is a dangerous area where monsters haunt.”
The leader of the subjugation team started guiding the way at the head of the subjugation party. Me and Rebecca, along with other adventurers, followed the leader of the subjugation, but surprisingly it didn’t take long to discover the coastal cave.
“It’s big, it’s big. It has a big belly.”
“It’s a ship ridden by giants.”
The voices of rumbling adventurers.
As the adventurers said, there was a large ship anchored on the beach. It was a canoe without a sail. However, it was several times larger than a normal canoe, and it was a size that was not lacking even compared to a reasonable sailboat. Rebecca spoke to me with a surprised expression.
“Are giants on ships?”
“Yes. Actually, the giants are not technically residents of the Midgard continent.”
“Then where do you live? At sea?”
“No, if you cross the sea, there is a land called Jotunheim, and that land is the home of giants. They come to the Midgard continent to plunder.”
“Jotunheim-! Great, is there another continent other than here?”
“I’ve only heard of it. But giants always use boats to raid villages near the sea. It must be true that there is a land of giants beyond the sea.”
“Wow.”
Jotunheim.
A land of giants located in the northern hemisphere of this world.
When Rebecca heard about the land, she put on a look of disbelief. If it was information about Jotunheim, it was common knowledge among the people on the continent. The desert kingdom she lived in really seemed to be an isolated place from the outer continent.
“I found the entrance to the cave! Look here!”
One of the adventurers who went out to search raised his hand and shouted. True to his words, there was a large cave entrance at the bottom of a sheer cliff. It was the only cave that existed around the canoe. The giants must have found shelter in these caves.
“I’ll take the vanguard.”
“Come with me, young man. I will lend you my strength.”
“Thanks to you, I feel reassured.”
The leader of the subjugation took the lead and entered the cave. Old Nickel stood next to the subjugation leader holding an axe, and the adventurers followed the two. Ddeokdae and Barbarian in plate armor were leading the way, so it felt a little relieved.
“Please light up the lanterns you received and shine the light in front of you.”
The subjugation leader handed out lanterns to the adventurers in each group. However, he did not have to rely on the light of the lantern because there were crystals that scattered light throughout the cave. Is it a natural ore that is created in this cave? Thanks to that, even though I entered the cave, it wasn’t that dark.
“The giants deserve a shelter here. I won’t get lost because of the shiny stones.”
“Luke. If you pick up those shiny things and sell them, won’t they make money?”
“If it was money, the adventurers would have already robbed it of everything. Adventurers don’t miss out on any opportunity to earn money for free.”
“Oh, that’s convincing-.”
It was when the subjugation party was moving near the entrance of the cave.
Suddenly, the leader of the subjugation who was walking in front opened his mouth in a surprised voice.
“It’s full of spiders.”
“Looks like they built a nest in this cave.”
What the subjugation leader was talking about was a monster in the form of a spider. A group of spiders as big as wild dogs were running around in front of me, and it was terrifying just to look at them. It was disgusting to see him crawling around on his eight legs.
“Huh.”
“Gee, gross.”
Adventurers were screaming everywhere. Anyone would be surprised to see a spider as big as a dog crawling around. Rebecca, who was next to me, also trembled like an aspen tree.
“I told you in advance, I fucking hate spiders.”
“Who likes spiders? Anyway, we’ll have to fight them.”
It was the moment when I was about to prepare the magic sphere by making hand signs.
Suddenly, old Nickel reflexively turned his head and spoke to me, who was preparing to attack first.
“There’s the blond youngster.”
“Yes?”
“Stop the magic. There’s no need to provoke the spiders by attacking for nothing. They’re very timid. I can’t think of attacking an armed subjugation party.”
Do you have eyes on the back of your head?
How the hell did you know that I was going to use magic in the back?
No, maybe it’s true that there’s really no need to fight before that.
“How does the elder know that? Monsters are ferocious by nature.
“Trust my old experience.”
Old Nickel walked forward alone with his ax on his back. They were approaching the group of spiders in a defenseless state. The adventurers looked at old Nickel with a cold expression.
It included me and Rebecca, of course.
“What is that old man doing now?”
“Aren’t you going to fight the spiders by yourself? It’s like a savage.”
Rebecca raised her hand in cheers for the nickel inspiration.
“Freak it all out-. Savage grandpa!”
It was then.
Old Nickel took a deep breath and stamped his feet down on the ground. The spiders that responded to the sound the moment their foot was tapped looked at Nickel. The sight of countless bright red eyes staring at Old Nickel could be described as spectacular.
“Are you crazy?”
“That old man will do something! Or let’s just jump out, Luke.”
At that moment, an amazing thing happened.
The spiders that reacted to Old Nick looked at the subjugation party behind them and turned their backs to run away. It was absurd to see him hurriedly running away, spitting out threads from his back end. Dozens of spiders gathered near the entrance disappeared in an instant.
“Oh oh!!”
“Awesome Barbarian!”
“It’s a savage stomp!”
The adventurers burst into exclamation toward Old Man Nickel, who was in front. He wasn’t particularly savage and just stamped the ground with his feet normally, but at this moment old Nickel became a hero of the subjugation party. The subjugation commander bent over at Old Man Nickel.
“You’re amazing, old man!”
“Thank you. At this age, my back hurts. Fighting with the monsters one by one is too much for me. Let’s save our strength before defeating the giant.”
“You’re a barbarian, don’t you want to fight?”
“They’re young. I’m an old barbarian.”
Indeed, it was the appearance of a bus driver of the subjugation party.
I couldn’t help but think of someone as I watched Old Nickel calmly walk forward.
It was Ethan who called himself a monster behavior expert.
A grotesque halfling who tried to seduce a kelpie and was blown away after being hit by her hind leg.
Old Nickel here looked a hundred times more professional than he did.
“Isn’t it too compared to some halfling?”
“Ah, the kid who only talked about that? That old man is much better than him.”
When the spiders disappeared, the adventurers of the subjugation party were able to move forward. I, along with Rebecca, moved along with the ranks of adventurers. Towards the depths of the coastal cave where the giants are hiding.
*
“What’s so clinging to your feet?”
“It’s troublesome to take off one by one. The shoes are sticky, so I can’t move at all.”
After a while.
The adventurers who were walking in the coastal cave had no choice but to complain more and more. It was because unexpected obstacles were preventing them from moving forward. Even the subjugation leader and Nickel Old Man expressed their disapproval of the obstacle.
“The spiders were sprinkling thread on the floor.”
“Because arachnid monsters have a habit of spitting up threads like excrement. The deeper you go into the cave, the more sticky the floor becomes.”
‘The floor of the cave was covered with sticky threads spit by spiders. Thanks to this, whenever I moved, the sticky things stuck to the soles of my shoes, making it difficult to take my feet off.
“It seems to be getting more and more sticky.”
“Looks like the spiders are spewing thread all the time. It’s just as good that they pile up on the floor.”
I’ve seen spiders roaming caves a few more times along the way, but they often spew threads on the floor without any special meaning. Even though he was doing his daily activities, he spewed threads like a habit.
As if the workplace were opened in a straight line.
‘I need Madecassol.’
I wanted to apply Madecassol to the tails of the spiders.
To prevent the new flesh from sprouting and spewing threads.
“Elders, is there any way? We need a way to get rid of this spider web.”
The impatient captain sought advice from old Nickel.
Old Nickel was just stroking his chin with a puzzled expression.
“In fact, spider monsters are sometimes vulnerable to heat. But how can they find fire in a space full of moisture like this? The lanterns given to adventurers also work with magical power.”
“You mean fire?”
At those words, the leader of the punitive force clouded his words.
The leader of the punitive squad turned his head and looked at me.
As if wishing for something.
“Fire?”
“Can I have a fire?”
Before I knew it, dozens of adventurers turned their heads and looked at me.
These were the adventurers who helped me build a bonfire.
One of them spoke cautiously.
“Incubus brother, can’t you handle fire magic?”
“Yes, what about it?”
“Then, wouldn’t it be possible to remove the spider’s web with fire magic?”
“Hmm.”
Hearing that, I had a puzzled expression on my face.
The only fire I could light was the size of a finger.
It seemed that the firepower would not be enough to burn the cobwebs that lay in a mess on the floor.
“I don’t know if it’ll work because the firepower is too low. But I’ll give it a try. Don’t expect too much.”
I made a hand sign and started a fire.
Small sparks flickering on your fingers.
It was the moment when I put it on the spider webs on the floor.
Chiyiyiik-!
The cobweb melted in an instant. It was melted by the heat before the fire reached it.
I looked at the weaving spider’s web with a puzzled expression.
“What, what melts so well?”
There was a hole the size of a fist in the spider’s web around the finger that touched the ground. I just put it on, which means it melted like ice cream. I was surprised that it worked better than I thought. Of course, I wasn’t the only one who was surprised.
“Oh, the spider web melted.”
“What kind of flame is that?”
“Did you borrow the flames of hell like a dreamer?”
The adventurers who were staring at me were talking loudly.
As soon as I put my finger on it, a hole was pierced through the cobwebs.
It is worth looking at my fire with amazement.
But I could swear to you that this was an ordinary flame.
It’s a tiny orange flame that would come out when you turn on the gas stove.
“How did this happen? Old Nickel!”
“That’s how it should be. Arachnid monsters are weak against heat enough to melt them with low firepower. But did you know how to use fire magic?”
“Didn’t you know? I even lit the campfire at the camp.”
“I didn’t know because I slept in the wagon all day.
Oh, did old Nickel sleep alone in the carriage while others were making a bonfire?
He didn’t even know that I was using fire magic.
I turned my head again and looked at the cobweb-covered floor.
“Are you saying I have to run my fingers through the floor? There are too many spider webs.”
“You don’t have to. There won’t be any cobwebs in the spaces the giants hide in. If they don’t have a pervert-like habit for gooey things, I’d put them away.”
“Then?”
“After walking further from here, make a fire in a space without spider webs. You can burn the soles of the adventurers’ shoes with fire.”
Indeed, old Nickel was right.
After the subjugation party moved forward for some time, they were able to arrive at the space where the cobwebs were forcibly torn. Judging from the fact that the shape of a large palm remained, it seemed that giants had been working on it.
The subjugation party finally set foot on hard ground without spider webs.
“Please raise your feet. I will burn it with fire.”
“Please be careful, Mr. Incubus! Please!”
A place believed to be the lair of giants.
At the entrance, the subjugation party decided to have a maintenance time for a while.
During that time, I burned each adventurer’s shoes with fireworks. The spider webs that melted like liquid whenever the fire came close to them were amazing.
Then, when his eyes met Rebecca, who was putting her feet together cutely with her legs raised.
I smiled and opened my mouth.
“How is it? Do you understand now?”
“I know what.”
“My fire magic is more useful than your shield.”
“…Crazy!”
Hearing that, Rebecca grabbed the back of his neck.
She stared at me with her molars clenched together.
“Are you sure you still cared about that? We had an argument before we left?”
“Of course! So do you admit it? Right now, the soles of your shoes depend on me, so think carefully before answering.”
Rebecca replied, shaking her body.
“…Yes, fire magic is better than a shield! It’s fucking great!”
“Haha.”
I laughed shyly with sparks on my fingers.
