NOVEL WEB Chapter 40 – Valley of Death
Today’s the day.
Me and Ririna are setting up a barricade in the valley Sarasa told us about. We’re going to deal with the horde once and for all. Ririna made some reinforced wooden planks for us to build with, and now we’re about to finish setting things up. Ririna made it so that vines with thorns covered the barricade and created a small outpost for her at the back. It was very sturdy, despite the fact that it was completely improvised, but that’s not the point of the barricade. We only need it to buy us some time in case of an emergency. It can hold back the monsters long enough for us to run deeper into the valley and escape. They’re not gonna chase us if it comes down to that, so this is good enough.
The valley is large enough for around five people to be able to walk side by side. Ririna narrowed down the path even further with her thorny vines. The path is made out of dirt, and the walls of the valley are taller than a five-story building. Today’s weather conditions are perfect. The sun’s shining straight down at us in a perfectly clear sky. It’s as if the heavens want a clear view of what’s about to happen.
“All that’s left is to open this sack.” Ririna crouched next to a large sack containing a batch of the magical dirt she had made for the merchant. Ririna cut the sack open with a knife, and glowing dirt was exposed to the open air. “Given our location, I’d say it’s gonna take around half an hour for the first monsters to arrive.”
“Yeah…”
“…” Ririna stood up after emptying the sack onto a big pile. “This is a pretty good place… isn’t it? It’s just what we were looking for…”
“It’s nice… We’ll have to thank Sarasa later…”
“I wouldn’t have remembered this place if not for her…” Ririna stayed quiet after saying that, and so did I. It has started… Thirty minutes from now on, the hordes surrounding the town are gonna be here… “Here, Iroha. The Torn Violence Potion. Make sure you drink it just before the monsters get here.”
“Of course, thanks…” Ririna hands me the small vial, and I take it.
“…” Ririna looks off into the distance in the direction of the monsters. What is she thinking right now?
“Ririna… Is this really gonna work?” Given how many monsters there are, even with all these preparations, it may not be enough…
“What? Are you getting cold feet now?” Ririna’s tone was calm but a little flat. She was struggling to maintain her composure. “You’re the one who insisted I shouldn’t give up.”
“I know, but…” That may have been irresponsible of me.
“It will be alright. We’ve done everything we could, so now we’ll just have to give it our all. It’s the only thing that’s going to improve our chances.” She’s right. I already said I’d fight, so there’s no point in worrying about those things, but… “Don’t start second-guessing yourself now. If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t even be here. You’re the one who gave me hope. I thought this was an impossible task, but if there’s anyone who can find a way to make it work, it’s you.”
“Me? That’s not true… I’m nothing special… I’m not the kind of person who can get through impossible situations. The only thing I’m good at is making mistakes, and my life is a mess because of that…”
“Iroha… I don’t know about any of that. We may only have met recently, but the Iroha I know is someone who’s always been there for me since we first met. She’s capable of pulling through when faced with unfavorable odds and enemies stronger than her. I believe in you.”
Wait, what? Is she serious? That’s not who I am at all… Is it? Someone who’s able to pull through…? That’s crazy… That’s not true at all…
“I’m going to get into position. I’ll take care of the flying monsters, so you can focus on what’s in front of you. Good luck, Iroha.” Ririna tapped my shoulder before climbing up to the little outpost behind the barricade. She’ll have an easier time supporting me from up there.
I’m still not convinced I can create a miracle like Ririna wants, but, for her sake, I have to do this. It’s not about creating a miracle. I have gotten stronger, and I have Ririna’s potion. It should be good enough to give me some leeway to make some mistakes. I’m just doing what I can.
“They’re here, Iroha. Can you see them? Get ready!” It’s about to start, huh? It’s time to take the Torn Violence Potion… The red liquid inside the vial is still bubbling. I was hoping it would have settled down by now since it’s not a very appetizing look. Ririna said it tastes like strawberry at least… Here goes nothing! The strangely sweet liquid went down my throat smoothly, and I still retained my mind. That’s two out of three promises. Now what about the strength?
The first monster to arrive was a furious-looking, bright red boar. It looked like it wasn’t gonna stop even after colliding with me. When it got close enough, I swung my sword and cut through it without feeling any resistance. Wait, without feeling any resistance? I swung my sword through the air again to make sure I wasn’t imagining things. “Ohhh! I see now!” My sword feels so light right now! “Ahahahahaha!” I really am stronger! No wonder I didn’t feel any resistance! Her potion’s doing wonders already! Now that’s a miracle!
The rest of the first wave of monsters finally arrives, and they make their way towards me. All the thorns Ririna grew with her alchemy are hindering the monsters’ movements. They’re funneling them in such a way that their numbers mean nothing. The monsters are all coming from the same direction, so I’m able to attack without having to worry about my back. A two-headed wolf and a swole dear with bull’s horns rush towards me at the same time. But with the effect of the Torn Violence Potion, I cut them both down with a single swing. I like it! This is great!
*Woosh Tzzz!* A lightning bolt shoots over my head and hits a weird-looking bird with four wings off in the distance. Looks like Ririna also has everything under control. That’s reassuring. I’m able to focus on the enemies in front of me, and when they get close enough, I kill them all with a single strike. I’m not about to even give them a chance to attack. Even sturdier-looking monsters, like those who looked like bugs, offered no resistance whatsoever. This potion really is incredible. I’m not sure how many I’ve defeated already… I lost count after around twenty…
[Level up! All your stats have been increased, and you have received additional skill points.]
Oh! There it is! One more level. It’s only going to get easier from now- but before I could finish my train of thought, a familiar face decided to show up and hurl something at me. It’s a fireball! I jumped back and narrowly dodged. Hidden behind the wall of monsters, there was the fox monster I fought the other day. This isn’t good. That fox monster is a pain in the ass… I have to deal with it as soon as possible since I can’t deal with its magic while fighting off the other monsters.
I can defeat it, though… As I am now, I should be able to make my way through the wall of monsters and take it down easily. No… Wait… Is it really a good idea to be diving into the horde just for the fox monster? I’m not sure… It would be awful if I got surrounded. We went through all this trouble just to avoid that, so I can’t let myself get carried away because of the potion. I have to pull back for a moment. I have to rely on Ririna.
“Ririna!” I ran in the direction of the barricade, pulling most of the monsters the fox was using as meat shield with me. “Explode them!”
“Got it!” Ririna understood what I wanted and lobbed one of her bombs over my head. The explosion behind me was so powerful it almost sent me to the ground. Scary… What if that had hit me?
The explosion blew up the monsters chasing me and opened a path to the fox monster. Thank you, Ririna. This is just what I was waiting for. I turned my momentum around and quickly closed the gap between me and the fox monster. Agility Burst! I swung my sword at the fox, and-
“Ouch!” The fox monster dodged my attack and spewed fire out of its tail as it jumped back. My sword dispersed most of the flames, but some of them still burned me. Why didn’t I just use Slash Flurry too? Was I really trying to save MP? Wasn’t the whole point of saving MP so that I’d have it to fight stronger monsters? The fox monster definitely qualifies, so I can’t hold back. I’m doing things right this time! The fox creature was going to retreat back into the horde, but I stopped it before it could get away. “No, you don’t!” It got ready for combat, and its tail flared up, but I wasn’t about to wait for it to make a move. I used Agility Burst followed by Slash Flurry and landed a four-hit combo.
Just like that, the fox monster was no more. I’m on fire today! Even a monster like that is nothing to me. It really didn’t put up much of a fight once I managed to close the gap. I was right!
The fox monster liked to stay in the back, so I ended up overextending to finish it off. As a result, some of the other monsters managed to get behind me. This is bad. I’m going to be completely surrounded at this rate. I have to make my way back to the choke point where the thorns are. I turned my back to the horde without hesitation and charged at the monsters standing between me and the barricade. I had to ignore some of them, even though they were such easily kills. Getting back into position is more important right now. “Whew…”
“Are you alright? You’re a mess.” Another lightning bolt shot out of Ririna’s hand and bounced off a few flying monsters.
“It’s all good! It’s not mine!” Because of all the fighting, I ended up covered in blood. At least I didn’t come in my school uniform today. I recently learned how hard it is to wash off blood stains, so these clothes might be ruined already. Unless Ririna has something that could help…
I put those thoughts to the side and got back to fighting. Now that the fox monster is gone, I can just focus on defeating the monsters as they come. This is cool! It’s like I’m making a last stand and single-handedly holding back an entire army. I gotta have killed hundreds of them by now. I’m unstoppable! No one can get through me! Ahahahaha!
[Level up! All your stats have been increased, and you have received additional skill points.]
How many of them are left? Are we half way there yet? I still can’t see the end of the horde. We’re gonna be fine though. There are no more obstacles, so I can just enjoy my XP farm.
“I’m running out of items, Iroha.” Ririna took down the flying monsters one after the other, so it’s no surprise she’s running low.
“As long as I don’t get swarmed, it’s fine.” The skies look pretty much clear, so Ririna has done her job. Let’s keep going. One, two, three, four! Huh? As I cut through the fourth enemy in a row, no other monster shows up. Is this all of them? No… They’re just staying back. Why?
*Thump thump!* Why is the ground shaking? Better yet, what is that thing? A huge bear-looking monster with yellow spots on its fur stepped out in front of the horde and made its way to the barricade. Most of the monsters stopped moving and made way for the bear monster. One of them didn’t get the memo and decided it was time to charge. *Thump!* Unfortunately, the bear monster didn’t like that and crushed it with its paw. What is this monster? Why is it so huge? It can barely fit in this valley… Well… It’s certainly a scary creature, but it doesn’t seem like it’s going to attack right away. I’ll make the first move.
I slashed its shoulder after closing the gap with Agility Burst. I didn’t know what to expect, but surprisingly, my blade drew blood, and the bear staggered. Is it not as strong as it looks? No, this is because of the potion. That’s good enough for me. I can do this! I followed up with Agility Burst, but this time I wasn’t able to get through its skin. “Could it be…?” Ririna thought to herself when she saw my blade fail to cut through the monster.
Why couldn’t I cut it just now? Wait, I get it, I’m still being stingy. I can’t hold back against this one, I have to use Slash Flurry. The bear stomped the ground where I had landed, and I dodged before unleashing my skill. “It can’t be!” My four slashes landed, but none of them managed to wound it this time. Why? Why is it so tough all of a sudden?
“Iroha! Get back! It’s over! We’ve been fighting for more than half an hour—the potion... The potion has expired!”
“Eh?” Ririna was screaming for me to get back, and, just as my attention gets diverted, the bear monster hits me with its claw. I move my sword to block the attack, but it’s too late, and it sends me flying into the wall. “Guhhh…” Fuck fuck fuck… It hurts so much! It was going so well… We were so close… Is this our limit? The impact caused most of the items Ririna gave me to scatter on the floor.
Ririna throws a small pouch of seeds at the bear, which entangles it with vines. “Come back, Iroha! The vines are not gonna last!” It takes all my strength to get up, and I slowly make my way to the barricade. The other monsters noticed the bear couldn’t move, and something latched onto my leg with its teeth.
“Dammit!” I cut it into pieces with Slash Flurry to get it off me. That monster wasn’t the only one to make a move, and now I am surrounded. This is bad… Really bad… Another angry boar showed up and charged at me. I had to resort to Agility Burst just to get out of the way. My body is so sluggish… The weak monsters kept attacking me, and I had to use my skills non-stop just to scrape by. I’m slowing down… Am I gonna die like this? This wasn’t supposed to happen! If I can just get to the barricade… We can still run away… Why isn’t my body moving properly? It wasn’t supposed to go like this…
Let me through! It can’t be… It can’t end like this… Kill them… I have to kill them. I have to kill them all! That’s right! I just need to kill them all! I want them all dead! I can’t die! I want to live! I want to kill them all! I can save Ririna! I want to save Ririna! I want to kill them all! I want Ririna! I- I…
[New skill available.]
[Violence – Violence Impulse (Cost: 50 Skill Points)]
I want it!
“Iroha! Get back! It’s over! We’ve been fighting for more than half an hour—the potion... The potion has expired!”
Iroha is on the floor… The monster hit her. This is bad. She can barely move… It’s all my fault… I should have known one potion wasn’t going to last.
“Hurry up, Iroha! Get away from- Watch out! Behind you!” Iroha didn’t react, and she was bitten in the leg. She made quick work of the monster, but now they’re surrounding her. This is all my fault! She’s gonna die because of me. I have to help her somehow… What can I do? I’m the only one who should have to die.
She has no choice but to fight the monsters surrounding her, but she’s only getting slower. Come on, Iroha, you promised me! I have to get her to safety, even if it costs me my life… Wait… She’s not slowing down anymore? Am I seeing things? Why? After getting bitten, tackled, and clawed so many times, why does it look like she’s getting faster? No, it doesn’t just look like she’s getting faster—she is getting faster! The monsters are dying. How is this possible?
After a while, the monsters surrounding her were all dead. I don’t know how she did it, but this is my opportunity! I have to get her out of there! I’ll hold back the monsters with my life if that’s what it takes. “Wait… No! Come back!” Instead of coming back to the barricade, Iroha ran toward the horde. Why? We need to get out of here! It’s over! Without the potion, there’s nothing we can do.
“How?” Was I wrong? The monsters keep dying one after the other… Incredible… Wasn’t she at her limit? This is a bloodbath! How is she doing this? As she continues to mow down the horde, Iroha gets covered in blood, but something looks off… The blood looks weird… It’s like the blood on Iroha is glowing… It’s almost… pulsating… Am I imagining things? There’s so much magic coming from her… What am I watching? I can’t stop trembling… Is she still getting faster? She’s stronger than when she had the potion effects… How is that possible? Iroha cuts through multiple monsters with a single slash, and I catch a glimpse of her face. Her eyes were bright red, and… was she smiling?
