I Am Not Goblin Slayer

Chapter 86: Slaying the Mantis Man

The Mantis Man was without a doubt the strongest enemy this small team had encountered in the dungeon, and possibly the most formidable foe in their entire adventuring careers.

The past few days of smooth dungeon exploration had made the team members subconsciously grow complacent and overconfident.

Even Lawrence, though he had voiced warnings, had fallen into the mental habit of assuming this dungeon run would proceed without major incident.

Until the appearance of the Mantis Man struck them like a thunderclap.

Fortunately, although the Mantis Man's presence was overwhelming, the team were not inexperienced greenhorns.

They quickly regained their composure.

The stronger the enemy, the more critical it was not to lose one’s composure.

The Priest Apprentice Adrian helped the already-injured Liam to the rear of the group. He used Life Stabilization to stabilize Liam’s internal injuries while pulling a small red potion bottle from his pack.

It was a Basic Healing Potion, capable of providing life energy to injured adventurers in a short span of time. It was also one of the valuable rewards they had obtained during earlier dungeon explorations.

Each small bottle fetched no less than 30 Silver Coins.

Adrian poured the healing potion into Liam’s mouth. Not long after, a flush of color returned to Liam’s previously pale cheeks.

Seeing this, Adrian breathed a sigh of relief and proceeded to examine him further.

With Life Stabilization and the healing potion combined, Liam’s life was no longer in danger.

Meanwhile, on the battlefield ahead—

Realizing the threat posed by Gauss, the Mantis Man’s compound eyes flickered red. It locked its gaze on Gauss from afar, letting out a series of high-pitched screeches from its mandibles.

It ignored everyone else.

With a sudden deep crouch, it gathered strength in place. Its powerful hind legs exploded with terrifying force, and it shot forward like a cannonball—aimed straight at Gauss at the end of the line!

Some of the front-line members also realized who the Mantis Man’s target was.

"Gauss! Watch out!"

At the front, the Half-Orc Sork, who had been vigilantly on guard, saw the Mantis Man dart past him at high speed. He abruptly turned and roared toward Gauss, who stood at the far end of the ambush path.

He shouted while simultaneously trying to lunge forward to intercept the Mantis Man.

But the difference in their speed was just too great!

He could only watch helplessly as the Mantis Man’s impossibly fast figure surged away from him.

The Ranger Bianca took a deep breath and fired an arrow, trying to disrupt the Mantis Man’s charge trajectory.

But the Mantis Man, while moving at high speed, only tilted slightly, and the arrow skimmed past its carapace, leaving behind only a faint, barely noticeable white mark.

As for the others, they had all been bracing for a sudden attack.

Caught off guard, none of them could react in time during those fleeting moments to interfere with the Mantis Man’s charge.

It was just too fast!

By the time the Mantis Man reached Gauss, its speed was terrifying.

Gauss’s pupils contracted sharply, but fortunately, he had instinctively rolled to the side even before the Mantis Man arrived.

"！！"

The Mantis Man’s massive scythe-like Main Forelimbs slammed down on the spot where Gauss had been standing.

Gauss clambered back up from the ground in a scramble.

Luckily, he had anticipated the attack.

Even though he had the protection of Mage Armor, such a high-speed assault with immense power was something to be avoided when possible.

Mage Armor had its limits too.

The Mantis Man’s blow, carried by overwhelming momentum, immense size, and exaggerated claw-blades, was nothing like what those goblins could inflict. Ten goblin strikes wouldn't equal the force of this one attack.

Gauss hurriedly got to his feet and stepped back a few paces.

At the same time, he drew his weapon and looked up at the Mantis Man.

Failing to land a hit, the Mantis Man’s compound eyes flickered—seemingly surprised—but it quickly adjusted its posture.

Like four scythes crossed before its chest, its forelimbs came into position.

The next moment, its hind legs bent slightly.

This was the sign of a short-range jump. Compared to a long-range leap, the crouch was shallower and took less time,

But the impact was also far less devastating.

The Mantis Man did a short hop, landing in front of Gauss, and swung its claws down once more.

"Bang!!"

Its claw-blade struck against Gauss’s rapier, which he had raised just in time to block.

Immediately, Gauss felt a tremendous force traveling through his tightly gripped weapon. In that brief clash, he realized he was being overpowered.

Fortunately, his 7 Intelligence allowed him to rapidly pick up on details mid-fight.

In a brief moment of heightened perception where the world seemed to slow down, he caught sight of a Secondary Limb slicing sneaky toward his abdomen from another direction.

"Boom!"

The Secondary Limb hit his lower abdomen, triggering Mage Armor to release a strong protective field.

Waves rippled rapidly across the armor’s surface.

So heavy!!

Using the force transmitted through his weapon, he let the momentum fling him backward.

Barely stabilizing himself mid-air, he rolled twice and got back on his feet.

By following the Mantis Man’s force, he avoided taking the full brunt of its hidden follow-up attack.

What a cunning Mantis Man!

Before the Mantis Man could launch another assault on Gauss—

Behind it, Sork charged in with bloodshot eyes.

The beastly fangs in his mouth grew thicker and more prominent.

For the enemy to bypass him, a Warrior, and attack his teammates in the rear—this was a grave insult!

At that moment, his already muscular arms swelled as if blood was flooding into them, as though some dormant bloodline power had awakened within his body.

His thigh stomped down hard on the ground, feet compressing like springs. With the rebound force, his entire body soared into the air!

"Jump Slash!"

His spine bent backward like a taut longbow. His neck, chest, and abdomen stretched into a tight arc, forming a crescent shape mid-air.

The greatsword he raised cut through the air with a sonic boom as he brought it crashing down toward his target.

This full-force, thunderous strike—a desperate blow, a trade of life for life—forced the Mantis Man to temporarily abandon Gauss in the distance and twist around, using a Secondary Limb to block Sork’s slash.

"Clang!!"

A loud metallic crash rang out, and sparks flew.

Sork, leveraging the momentum of impact, skill activation, and the downward gravitational force of his Jump Slash, forcefully activated the power of his bloodline—this composite strike nearly reached the limit of his current attack capability!

But the gap in physical strength between Sork and the Mantis Man was still too great.

Caught off guard, the Mantis Man only staggered half a step backward after initially turning around, unable to exert its full strength in time.

Once it regained balance, its full power burst forth again through its upper limbs.

"Bang!!"

Sork’s weapon was knocked away, and the massive recoil forced him back two steps to his knees. His trembling arms, numbed from the impact, pressed against the ground to keep himself from collapsing.

"Chill Touch."

At that moment, Lawrence’s cantrip finally landed a hit on the Mantis Man for the first time.

A blue Ghostly Skeletal Hand touched the Mantis Man’s surface.

The chilling Energy of Undeath seeped continuously into the Mantis Man’s body through the hand.

This cold energy made it tremble briefly, causing a very short moment of sluggishness—just enough to delay its follow-up attack on the defenseless Sork.

From the ground, Gauss also seized upon this hard-earned opening the others had created.

He gripped his Bone Wand once more and activated Magic Missile, light bursting from the tip!

"Magic Missile!"

Not one, but two missiles shot out in rapid succession.

"Whoosh!!"

Unfortunately, perhaps due to the Mantis Man’s extremely sharp perception and agility—or maybe because its head had such a small target area—the first missile, which Gauss had aimed at its head with high hopes, was dodged as the creature tilted its head, letting it skim past its cheek.

Thankfully, the second missile, aimed at a vulnerable spot on its abdomen, hit its mark.

Like most carapaced creatures, its waist and abdomen housed its respiratory spiracles and needed flexibility for agility. Therefore, the carapace in that region was comparatively weaker.

The larger area of the waist and abdomen also made it harder to evade.

Moreover, the Mantis Man appeared to have briefly stiffened again just before.

"Boom!!!"

The Magic Missile that struck its waist exploded in a brilliant flash of light.

A tremendous force radiated outward from the center of the explosion, sending the over-two-meter-tall Mantis Man staggering backward.

Lawrence and Sork widened their eyes, joy spreading across their faces.

"Thud thud thud!"

The Mantis Man stumbled forward several steps before barely regaining its footing. On its lower back, where its once-light-brown abdominal armor had been, a patch had turned charred black, with yellow-green viscous fluid oozing out. Though not fully penetrated, the hit had clearly caused it damage.

Gauss panted heavily after the rapid succession of Magic Missiles.

He still had mana, but the rapid expenditure over a short period had left him somewhat fatigued. Sweat poured from his forehead.

Still, it was worth it.

The consecutive Magic Missiles had finally dealt real damage to the Mantis Man.

One successful hit meant there could be a second.

Just now, Gauss had also vaguely noticed a small detail...

As Gauss quietly reflected and took a brief pause—

The now-stabilized Mantis Man was struck again by an arrow fired from nearby by the Ranger Apprentice Bianca.

"Thunk!"

The metal arrowhead hit the Mantis Man’s chestplate, leaving a white mark at the point of impact.

Seeing her attack land, Bianca also smiled.

Though it hadn’t pierced the armor, any damage meant the tide of battle was tilting in their favor.

With their numbers advantage, they would eventually wear it down bit by bit.

Especially after Gauss had just successfully landed a powerful Magic Missile that left visible damage, the team, previously dispirited, once again saw the hope of victory.

They could win!

The Mantis Man, suffering pain in its waist and abdomen from the Magic Missile hit, had already become more irritable.

Now, sensing that the annoying “mosquito” it had previously ignored had actually landed a successful hit—and was even smiling in what seemed like mockery—

The Mantis Man appeared humiliated.

Its attention finally shifted away from Gauss.

Its red compound eyes locked onto Bianca!

"Shhk!"

Though hit in the waist by the Magic Missile, the Mantis Man hadn’t lost mobility. If anything, its movements were only slightly slowed.

But for most people present, this reduction in speed made little practical difference.

"Watch out!"Gauss, just having steadied his breath, suddenly had a bad feeling as he saw this scene.

But he had barely finished speaking—

The Mantis Man had already leapt before Bianca.

A towering shadow engulfed her.

Before she could react—

A scythe-like forelimb sliced through the air, leaving a white trail, and slashed diagonally at Bianca’s neck.

"Crack!"

Its sharp forelimb sliced through like a blade through tofu, barely encountering any resistance. A bowl-sized clean wound was carved out, blood spraying everywhere!

"Thud!"

A head, its eyes still confused and unaware of what had just happened, thudded heavily onto the ground.

Gauss’s eyes went wide, his throat trembling.

Bianca… was dead?

He was no stranger to beheadings.

He had decapitated at least dozens of monsters.

But this time, it was his teammate who had been beheaded.

Just the night before, they had laughed and shared food together—now, she was beheaded, her corpse in a tragic state. The absurd contrast of these scenes flickered repeatedly before his eyes, leaving his heart unsettled for a long time.

He had not formed deep feelings for Bianca. A few days was not enough time to develop true friendship.

But the psychological shock of death in an instant left him with an inexplicable, racing heartbeat.

At this moment, he truly realized—

Life was so fragile.

He swallowed hard and slapped his cheeks, forcing himself back to clarity.

At the same time, he took out some Dried Meat Strips from his pocket.

This was not the time for sentiment.

Taking a deep breath—

"Everyone be careful! It's even more aggressive after being injured!"

After loudly warning his teammates, the only thing Gauss could do was quickly chew and eat, relying on Rapid Digestion

to restore his mana and stamina.

His hunch was correct—the injured Mantis Man had become more aggressive.

And the next person it turned to was the Rogue Apprentice Edith.

Edith’s face turned pale. Though shocked by her comrade’s death, she quickly adjusted her mindset.

Facing the charging Mantis Man, she did not wait helplessly. She triggered her mechanism, firing a bolt aimed at the Mantis Man’s Waist and Abdomen.

The Mantis Man noticed this and had to alter its trajectory mid-charge. It veered sideways like a dragonfly skimming water, then immediately redirected itself toward Edith.

But that brief delay was enough for Edith to react.

She grabbed a "Spore Bomb" from the pack at her feet.

This item had been the first reward they had received earlier.

They had already used one for testing during exploration—two remained.

If it hit, it could inflict substantial damage on the Mantis Man.

As a Rogue Apprentice, Edith was highly perceptive.

Using the bolt to force the Mantis Man to shift course, she then threw the Spore Bomb into its anticipated path.

It was a sound plan.

But she overlooked the most crucial fact—the Mantis Man’s perception was just as sharp.

The instant the Spore Bomb hit the ground, its Compound Eyes locked onto that area, sensing a powerful threat.

This wasn’t like the earlier situation when Gauss’s Magic Missile succeeded thanks to a combination of Sork’s Jump Slash, the momentary effect of Chill Touch, and the volley of Magic Missiles that overwhelmed the Mantis Man.

As the Spore Bomb landed, the Mantis Man’s hind legs exploded with force, launching its body several meters sideways just before the blast.

"!!!"

The violent shockwave from the Spore Bomb’s explosion ignited a ghostly blue flame, lifting black smoke into the air.

"Did it work?"

Edith squinted.

The next instant, a massive yellow-brown figure stepped through the black smoke—

It wasn’t dead!

Edith’s legs buckled, and she fell, but her powerful will to live drove her to crawl away on all fours, desperate for one last chance.

But behind her, a towering shadow loomed.

The Mantis Man was about to kill her just as effortlessly as it had beheaded Bianca.

"Magic Missile!!"

Gauss, running over, squeezed out the remaining mana in his body. The tip of his wand flared brightly!

A condensed, high-speed blue missile shot out, aiming directly for the Mantis Man’s Compound Eyes.

The Mantis Man had to halt its attack and tilt its head to dodge the Magic Missile.

As the missile brushed past its head, the intense flash of light caused momentary blindness in its Compound Eyes.

Yes, this was what Gauss had discovered during the earlier battle.

Its eyes couldn’t handle intense close-range light. The sudden brightness stunned its body briefly.

He had originally considered casting Light Spell, but it required touch to apply strong illumination to the target.

And the situation was too urgent for much thought.

Fortunately, everything went smoothly.

Blinded, the Mantis Man froze in place.

The second missile had already torn through the air and arrived before it!

But this time, the target wasn’t the Mantis Man.

It was the pack on the ground near its feet—the one Edith had dropped, which contained another Spore Bomb.

"Boom!!!"

The Magic Missile pierced the pack, and the Spore Bomb exploded instantly!

A massive detonation spread from the center like a hammer smashing into the Mantis Man.

Countless fine spores rapidly expanded, releasing powerful flame shockwaves that stacked in intensity through the air!

The ghostly blue fire clung like maggots to flesh, instantly engulfing the tall figure clad in chitin armor, now sent flying through the air.