Rei spent about thirty minutes harvesting the corpses of the Bloody Diles. Some had been blown onto the shore by the Earth Crab, while others were still clinging to life until Rei brought the Death Scythe down to finish them off.
By the time the number of collected carcasses exceeded twenty, stillness had finally returned to the surface of the oasis.
"Looks like it’s over. So, which side do you think won?" Rei asked, holding the Death Scythe at the ready.
Elena tightened her grip on her whip-sword before answering. "The Earth Crab, naturally. Its carapace was exceptionally hard. As the one who struck it with a Flying Slash, surely you understand that best, Rei?"
"Guruuu," Seto warbled in agreement.
"Yeah, I figured. It’s not that I can’t kill it, but high-defense opponents are always a pain—tsk!"
Midway through his sentence, Rei sensed a sudden surge of murderous intent radiating from the oasis. He reflexively channeled magic power into the Death Scythe and swung.
In an instant, a thin, laser-like stream of liquid fired from the water was sliced clean in half by the Death Scythe's blade.
Given the speed of the projectile, the feat was significantly more difficult than cutting down a flying arrow, but Rei didn't seem particularly impressed with himself. He turned his gaze toward the water and activated a skill.
"Magic Shield!"
With that command, a shield of light manifested before him. It was Rei’s defensive trump card, capable of blocking a single attack completely.
Remaining wary of the oasis behind his shield, Rei reached up to wipe a stray droplet from his cheek that had splashed there during the previous strike.
"Water...?"
Indeed, it was water. Ordinary, plain water. As he stared at the moisture, likely sourced from the oasis itself, he realized the true nature of the attack. It was a strike using highly compressed water, functioning exactly like a water jet cutter. He also realized this was likely what had caused the water pillars he’d seen erupting from the pond earlier.
"Tch. For a monster called an 'Earth Crab,' it's surprisingly good at fighting underwater."
He clicked his tongue and muttered, doubting the crab would willingly leave the pond now that it had found a way to use the water as both armor and a weapon. However, the very next moment, Rei’s eyes widened in surprise.
The Earth Crab, which should have stayed in its advantageous submerged position, crawled out of the oasis.
As the giant crab-type monster emerged, parting the water, neither Rei, Elena, nor Seto could immediately comprehend why it would abandon its stronghold. In truth, the Earth Crab would have stayed in the water if it could. However, firing that water laser consumed a significant amount of magic power. Having used it repeatedly against the Bloody Diles during the underwater melee, the monster had almost nothing left in its reserves.
Because the Earth Crab’s fundamental combat style relied on close-quarters grappling, the water jet was its only long-range option. With its magic power spent, it had no choice but to close the distance for a direct physical confrontation.
Ideally, it should have remained hidden beneath the surface to recover its magic power while letting the intruders pass, but several factors made that impossible. Primarily, the oasis was still teeming with other predators. With many Bloody Diles still active, a weakened, low-mana crab would likely be hunted and killed if it stayed in their territory.
Furthermore, the Earth Crab’s pride would not allow it to let the two insolent humans who had damaged its claws escape. It recognized that Seto was an exceptionally powerful gryphon, far stronger than itself, but it foolishly believed it could still prevail. This lack of strategic judgment was precisely why, despite its raw power, the species was categorized as a lower C-Rank.
"Shaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
The Earth Crab screeched from its fanged mouth, intent on crushing or severing its foes with its remaining claws. Despite being a crab, it didn't scuttle sideways; it charged straight toward Rei’s group. Between its forward charge and its multi-jointed tail, it looked more like a scorpion than a crab.
"Well now, the crab's so angry it's turned bright red."
"It was that color to begin with," Elena countered. "It's a rather spirited fellow, considering we haven't even applied any heat yet."
"Guruuu." Seto let out a cry, as if asking if it would taste better once they did.
Despite their banter, the group was fully prepared to react to the monster’s next move.
"Shaaa!"
The Earth Crab struck first, vigorously spitting bubbles from its fanged mouth. The attack was unleashed much like Seto’s Fire Breath; one might have called it a Bubble Breath.
Rei judged that the bubbles lacked direct offensive power, but he saw no reason to let them hit him. He leapt to the right, his Magic Shield following his movements. Elena leapt to the left, while Seto took a short running start before flapping its wings to take to the sky.
Seeing Elena prepare to lash out with her whip-sword and sensing Seto beginning a dive from above, Rei decided to pull back. He left the vanguard to Seto and the midguard to Elena, leaping backward to provide long-range support.
As he moved, he glanced at the spot where the bubbles had landed. They had struck a tree near the shore, where the foam transformed into a thick, viscous liquid that hung from the branches like industrial adhesive.
"Watch out!" Rei shouted to his companions. "If that Bubble Breath touches you, it’ll glue you in place!"
It was a clever tactic, Rei admitted. If an enemy was immobilized, the crab could easily land a devastating blow with its massive claws, whether it intended to crush them or snip them in half.
In that case... an eye for an eye, he thought. He reached into the Misty Ring to retrieve a specific weapon.
In front of him, Elena’s whip-sword lashed out, successfully severing the claw that had been cracked during their earlier exchange.
"Gurululuuu!"
As Seto shrieked, its body seemed to melt into the air and vanish. It hadn't used teleportation; instead, it had activated its Optical Camouflage skill.
The Earth Crab’s multi-jointed tail lashed out at the space where Seto had been a second before, but the swift strike found nothing but empty air. The invisible Seto was already on the move. A moment later, he appeared behind the monster and slammed a foreleg into its shell. The impact left a jagged crack in the very carapace that served as the crab's primary defense.
"Shaaaa!?"
The monster shrieked in panic, feeling its armor fail. It swung its tail wildly at the air behind it, but Seto had already relocated. Seto's next strike targeted the monster's left middle leg. The joint lacked the sturdiness of the main shell, and it was torn away with ease.
While the leg tumbled across the sand, Elena kept the pressure on. Even though Seto was invisible and moving erratically around the monster, she swung her whip-sword with total confidence, trusting her instincts and her partner.
With one of its right claws already gone, the Earth Crab focused desperately on protecting its remaining weapons from Elena’s blade. This left it completely open to another invisible strike from Seto, which deepened the cracks in its back.
However, the effect of Optical Camouflage was brief. Even at Level 2, the skill only lasted for twenty seconds. As the effect wore off, Seto’s form flickered back into view.
"Gurululuuu!"
For the finishing touch, Seto lashed out with his forelegs, activating his highest-level skill, Poison Claw, to rake across the exposed wounds in the shell.
"Seto, get back!" Rei commanded.
In his hand, he now held a spear. Its head, shaft, and butt end were all a uniform shade of deep forest green. As Rei channeled magic power into the weapon, Seto immediately retreated from the crab. Elena, who had been maintaining mid-range pressure, also pulled back just in case.
"Haaaaah!"
The moment the path was clear, Rei hurled the Thorn Spear.
The weapon became a streak of green light as it tore through the air. It moved far faster than the water jet the crab had fired earlier. An instant later, it punched through the monster's underbelly, which—while tough—was softer than its primary shell.
The spear’s effect triggered immediately.
Countless vines covered in sharp thorns erupted from the spearhead lodged inside the monster. The thorns burst outward, rapidly wrapping around the Earth Crab’s body and limbs. Within seconds, the monster was completely ensnared, pinned to the ground by the magical vegetation.
The Thorn Spear had done its job, but Rei wasn't finished. He drew the Death Scythe and began chanting as he focused his magic power.
"O flame, thou art a being forged of fire. Gather, along with that flame. Flap thy wings with great wings of fire!"
Flames ignited along the blade of the Death Scythe, coalescing into the shape of a bird. Once the creature had reached a length of one meter with a three-meter wingspan, Rei released the spell.
"Phoenix of the Skies!"
With a swing of the scythe, the fire phoenix took flight, soaring toward the immobilized Earth Crab. Rei had chosen this specific magic because he could control the phoenix’s movements with total precision. If he used a simple projectile spell, he risked damaging the Thorn Spear stuck in the monster. He had no intention of destroying such a high-performance magic item.
Under Rei’s guidance, the phoenix flapped its burning wings and dived. Avoiding the spear lodged in the center of the crab’s body, it targeted the monster's remaining claws first. The phoenix streaked past the left side of the crab, its wings of flame surgically severing the bases of the two claws remaining there.
"Sha, shaaaaaaa!"
The Earth Crab, which had likely believed its carapace could withstand a frontal fire attack, shrieked in disbelief as its primary weapons were burned away.
The phoenix didn't stop. It looped around in mid-air and targeted the multi-jointed tail, shearing it off with a single pass. The firebird circled the monster repeatedly, methodically burning away the remaining legs and the final claw.
The Earth Crab struggled to escape, but the Thorn Spear held it fast. It could do nothing but watch as it was reduced to a limbless torso. Once the monster was completely incapacitated, Rei approached and yanked the Thorn Spear free. The phoenix immediately dove into the open wound, incinerating the crab’s internals and snuffing out its life for good.