About thirty minutes had passed since they had defeated the three Skeletons at the three-way fork and began traveling down the central passage toward the stairs to B17F. After dealing with several more ambushes by Skeletons and Zombies—dispatching them without much effort—the group arrived before another fork in the path.
"To the left," Elena muttered, consulting her map.
Following her lead, Rei and the others proceeded down the left-hand passage without a second's hesitation.
"If we continue this way, we'll reach a hall. Once we arrive there, the next floor won't be much further."
"Heh, it's that close? In that case, wouldn't it have been better to just head for the next floor right after we saved Tibia's party?"
In response to Rei's comment, Elena gave a slight tilt of her head and showed the map to him.
A nearly straight line was indeed drawn on the parchment, but the passage was unmistakably long.
"I see. It's straight, but the distance is quite significant."
"Umu. Furthermore, while the path we came from was safe because we had cleared out the monsters, heading this way back then would likely have resulted in us being ambushed by enemies we hadn't defeated yet."
Rei nodded, convinced by Elena's logic, and they continued down the hallway.
As the map indicated, the trek was considerable. After nearly two hours of walking, the entrance to the target hall finally appeared.
They were attacked by monsters a few more times during the trek, but they were almost exclusively Skeletons and Zombies. While the former were merely a nuisance, the putrid stench of the latter made them grimace. Rei and Set burned the corpses away with Flame Magic and Fire Breath respectively, incinerating them completely without bothering to harvest materials or magic stones.
And then...
"Ugh!"
The moment the entrance to the hall came into view, Rei groaned reflexively.
Elena reacted much the same way. Set, possessing Five Senses far sharper than its companions, rubbed its nose with tears welling in its eyes, while Iero pressed its own nose against Set's back.
"Guruuu..."
"Kyu."
The putrid stench wafting from the room was that overpowering.
"..."
Rei and Elena exchanged a silent glance.
If possible, they didn't want to step inside that hall, let alone see what was within.
However, since they were aiming for B17F, they could not avoid the room that contained the stairs.
Eventually, as if yielding to Elena's gaze, Rei stepped forward and peeked inside.
What met his eyes was a group of Zombies numbering over twenty. They weren't gathered under any specific direction; they were simply lingering there.
(Why are there so many Zombies huddled in one place?)
Frowning at the intense rot while scanning the room, Rei noticed one entity that looked different from the rest.
The other Zombies were all oozing decay, their rotting flesh and bones causing eyeballs or internal organs to spill out and trail behind them as they aimlessly shuffled or stood still.
That held true for the one Rei was looking at as well, yet its appearance was distinct.
While it certainly emitted a putrid stench, its skin retained a degree of suppleness unlike its peers. Purple and green mottled patches dotted its body, and its movements were significantly smoother than those of a standard Zombie.
This creature stood at the very back of the pack.
(A High-ranking Species Zombie... if I remember correctly, that's a Ghoul. I didn't think there'd be one of those here.)
Ghoul Information flickered through his mind.
Unlike a common Zombie, if a corpse in good condition—fresh and largely intact—becomes a Zombie and is then bathed in high concentrations of Magic Power for a set duration, it is reborn as a Ghoul.
Their abilities were essentially a superior version of a Zombie; they retained some of their past intellect, allowing them to target weaknesses or even command other Zombies.
(I see. That's why the Zombies are gathered in this hall. They're under that Ghoul's command. How troublesome. No, maybe not? It’s a nuisance, but it’s not a bad deal if I can get a Ghoul Magic Stone out of it.)
Quickly reaching a decision, Rei retreated to where Elena and the others waited.
"How did it look?"
"As I thought, there's a group of Zombies inside. But there was one surprise. I confirmed the presence of a Ghoul, a High-ranking Species Zombie."
Elena grimaced at the report.
It wasn't that the enemy was unbeatable. However, no one would normally choose to fight something emitting such an overpowering putrid stench.
"What if we wipe them out with Set's Fire Breath and your magic?"
"That might be the quickest way, but even if we ignore the Zombies, I want the Ghoul Magic Stone."
"Guruuu!?" Set cried out reflexively.
For Set to perform magic stone absorption, it had to swallow the stone. If asked whether it was comfortable swallowing a stone coated in the stench of a rotting corpse, even Set had its limits.
While Set didn't mind eating insects, it seemed magic stones wrapped in the putrid flesh of Zombies and Ghouls were another matter entirely.
Rei gently stroked its head as it voiced its shock.
"Don't worry. I'm not going to make you absorb it, Set. Like with the Skeletons, I'll use the Death Scythe."
"Gurululuuu..."
Profoundly relieved, Set let out a long sigh.
"I understand the plan for the Ghoul. Is there only one?"
"Yeah, based on what I saw in the hall."
"I see... but in that case, shouldn't we hold back on the Fire Breath? It would be a waste if the Ghoul was accidentally incinerated along with the rest."
Rei acknowledged the validity of Elena's point.
However, he shook his head in the next moment.
"No, I don't want to waste too much time here. Fortunately, the Ghoul is at the very back. If Set uses Fire Breath to incinerate the Zombies near the entrance first and stops once the Ghoul gets close, it should be fine. ...Think you can do it?"
"Guruuu!"
Leave it to me, Set purred.
Fire Breath was one of Set's most used skills; it was thoroughly accustomed to its reach and power. Its cry indicated it was confident in meeting Rei's request.
"Very well. I shall focus on supporting you from the rear with Wind Magic. ...Truth be told, I have no desire to strike a Zombie with my Whip-sword. I'll make an exception if necessary, of course."
Rei found himself nodding in total agreement.
"I feel the same. I don't want to touch a Zombie with my Death Scythe, either. ...Well, I suppose I have no choice if I'm going to take the Ghoul Magic Stone."
Exhaling a small sigh, Rei shifted his focus and looked at Set.
"Set, go."
"Gurulululululuuu!"
Letting out a roar, Set marched straight to the entrance of the hall, opened its beak, and unleashed its Fire Breath.
"Voooh..."
"Ahhh... uuuh..."
The Zombies began shuffling toward Set.
With every movement, the sounds of rotting flesh slapping the cobblestone and putrid internal organs dragging across the floor reached their ears.
However, the Fire Breath prioritized the nearest targets, burning the rotting meat into nothingness.
A few minutes after Set began its barrage, the flames—which had filled the area with light and heat—subsided.
Nearly all the Zombies in the hall had been literally burned away.
The only ones left were a few stragglers and Rei's target, the Ghoul.
"Guruuu?"
Is this enough? Set asked with a slight tilt of its head. Rei reached out to pet it.
"Yeah, that's a perfect result. Thanks to you, the enemy count is way down. Now then, I'll go take care of the Ghoul. Set, wait here."
"Gurululuuu!"
With Set's encouraging cry at his back, Rei took his first step toward the Ghoul. The creature was watching from the back of the room, seemingly possessing a level of intelligence higher than that of its subordinates.
Elena moved to stand beside Rei.
"Leave the remaining Zombies to me. I intended to support Set, but I wasn't needed."
"Got it. I'm counting on you."
Because they trusted each other's abilities, they could delegate tasks without excessive explanation.
Feeling the weight of that trust, Elena gave a small smile and extended her right hand toward a Zombie approaching the advancing Rei.
She held nothing, but Magic Power gathered at her fingertips.
"Come, I am your opponent! Do not think you can approach Rei so easily!"
Her spirited shout echoed through the room. Even with their rotted brains, the Zombies seemed to react to the authority in her voice, turning away from Rei to face her.
"Ahhh... uuuh..."
Keeping the nearby Zombies in his peripheral vision, Rei continued through the hall.
The Ghoul stood perfectly still at the far end, its eyes fixed on him.
No clear emotion could be seen in its gaze, yet it stared at Rei with an eerie intensity.
While its skin showed a supple moisture far beyond that of a normal Zombie, the fact that it was a corpse remained evident, particularly where its right ribs were exposed.
Rei closed the distance, searching for a weakness.
The moment he came within five meters...
"Ahhh, aaaaaaaaaa... aaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
With a massive shout, the Ghoul kicked off the floor and sprinted toward him.
Its speed was incomparably faster than a Zombie—so much so that one would never have guessed it had been shuffling aimlessly just moments ago.
However, that was only true when compared to regular Zombies. Compared to the monsters Rei had faced time and again, it was arguably slow.
"Aaaaaah!"
The Ghoul swung its arm high, letting out a roar.
Its skin was firmer than that of its subordinates, but it was still torn in several places, revealing raw meat and exposed bone.
Judging that any direct contact would send fragments of rotting flesh flying, Rei took a step back to evade.
The arm swung through the empty air—but in the next instant, the Ghoul's right fist suddenly bore down on Rei's face despite the comfortable distance he had maintained.
"What!?"
Startled by the unexpected reach, Rei reflexively spun the Death Scythe's shaft with his wrist, striking the Ghoul's wrist away. He winced at the squelching sensation of hitting rotting meat.
As he put distance between them, he finally realized what had happened.
The Ghoul's arm had stretched.
To be more precise, it had dislocated its shoulder, elbow, and wrist, effectively extending its attack range.
It was a tactic only possible for an Undead that felt no pain.
"Well, that's a nuisance."
Rei frowned slightly. However, if he knew the trick, he could counter it. He feinted a step forward, and just as the Ghoul raised its arm again to intercept him, he swung the Death Scythe.
"Flying Slash!"
He unleashed the Flying Slash at point-blank range, perfectly timed to counter the Ghoul's own reach.
The shockwave from the blade instantly severed the Ghoul's raised right arm.
"Ahhh, aaaaaaaaaaaa!"
The monster didn't even seem to realize its arm was gone. As it tried to swing down with a limb that no longer existed, it lost its balance and stumbled onto the cobblestone.
Slash!
Rei did not miss the opening. Channeled with Magic Power, the Death Scythe's blade swept upward, severing both legs at the knees. With a backhand stroke, he severed the remaining left arm at the bicep.
"Rest in peace!"
Rei delivered the final blow to the Ghoul, which could do nothing but writhe helplessly on the floor.
His strike bisected the creature's torso, simultaneously slicing through the Magic Stone in its left chest.
"So, no Skill Acquisition even from a High-ranking Species Zombie, huh."
Just as he muttered, Rei clicked his tongue in frustration.
Scanning the room, he saw that Elena had already finished off the rest. Having gained nothing of value—they had no desire for dismantling the Zombies—the group left the hall and continued forward. After navigating several more forks, they finally found the stairs leading to B17F.