The day after Suchee and the others from the Slum District had begun living in the warehouse, Rei stood before Gilm's Main Gate in the early morning, just as he always did, before the sun had fully risen.
The adventurers gathered around him were clearly more numerous than yesterday.
Non-adventurers with dissection skills had also increased, and the number of Slum District residents under Suchee's leadership had grown to roughly eighty.
If only adventurers had grown in number, it would likely have been because Rei's Earth Wall had reduced the Cobolts entering Gilm.
But the rise in others—particularly non-adventurers who simply possessed dissection skills—was largely driven by the promise of receiving Gigant Turtle meat.
The Slum District residents had grown in number because Suchee, upon returning the previous day, had shared what happened with those she trusted. The people who had been waiting and watching had judged the opportunity reliable enough to join.
Naturally, nearly all of them had moved their residences from the Slum District into the warehouse as well.
Amidst all this, Rei and his group finished their procedures and stepped outside Gilm as usual...
"Just as I thought."
"Gruu."
Even before the Main Gate opened—no, from the moment they had approached it—the stench of blood drifting from the other side had grown thicker. Rei muttered his observation, and beside him, Set purred in agreement.
Those who hadn't noticed the blood scent before the gate opened certainly noticed it once it did.
A murmur spread through the crowd.
That said, it was already understood from the past several days that a fair number of monsters would be lingering near the Gigant Turtle dissection site come morning.
Because of that, not many people panicked at the strong scent of blood.
The proportion was higher among those doing this job for the first time today.
"Rei-san, we're counting on you."
"Got it."
At the usual Guild Staff Member's request, Rei stepped outside Gilm together with Set...
"Heh."
In that instant, upon seeing what stood before him, Rei let out a sound caught somewhere between admiration and surprise.
What stood in his line of sight was a monster he had fought before—and at the same time, one he never had.
It exceeded five meters in height, its body wrapped in what appeared to be the fur of some monster or animal.
Its bulging muscles projected an overwhelming sense of raw power to anyone watching.
It had a single eyeball, and sharp fangs jutted from its mouth.
A C-Rank Monster—the Cyclops. But this individual was clearly different from an ordinary one.
Its skin color wasn't in the blue or green range of a normal Cyclops. It was white.
Not white as in Caucasian, but a snow-like pure white.
In other words...
"A Rare Species, or a High-ranking Species."
In response to Rei's murmured words, the Pure White Cyclops spat out what it had been chewing onto the ground.
It was something Rei had grown accustomed to seeing over the past few days—the upper body of a Cobolt.
The lower half had already been bitten off and was gone. Internal organs spilled from the severed torso lying on the ground.
"Eek!"
Who exactly among those behind Rei had let out that scream was impossible to tell.
But it was only natural. An ordinary Cyclops was already C-Rank, yet this one was a Rare Species or High-ranking Species.
That meant it ranked above a normal Cyclops—making it a B-Rank Monster.
Gilm had many skilled adventurers, but if asked whether vast numbers of them could easily defeat a High-Rank Monster like a B-Rank Monster, the Guild Staff Member would silently shake his head.
That was because the number of adventurers dropped drastically once one reached B-Rank, the threshold for being considered a High-Rank Adventurer.
Of course, even C-Rank Adventurers could win if they gathered enough numbers, set traps, and fought on favorable terrain... but the likelihood of casualties would also be high.
Moreover, there were no B-Rank or higher adventurers here. That is, except for Rei.
If it were a little later, Vihera might have been present, but she generally arrived later in the morning.
(Vihera would definitely be envious.)
Given that Vihera relished battles against strong opponents, she would undoubtedly be jealous to learn that Rei alone had fought this White Cyclops.
Thinking that, Rei felt glad he would be able to obtain this White Cyclops's Magic Stone.
He drew Death Scythe and the Twilight Spear from his Misty Ring and spoke.
"Set, circle around from behind!"
"Gruu!"
At Rei's command, Set let out a sharp cry and ran across the snow that had fallen during the night.
The White Cyclops naturally tracked Set with its single eye.
To the creature, Set was surely the one it perceived as the most dangerous opponent in their group.
But turning its gaze toward Set while Rei stood before it was a fatal mistake.
Rei ran across the snow that had been trampled by battles between Cobolts, the Cyclops, and other monsters.
He closed the distance to the White Cyclops at a speed worthy of being called a sprint...
"GAAAAAAAH!"
The Cyclops, finally noticing Rei's presence, opened its mouth—and in the next instant, a ferocious blizzard erupted from it.
Ice Breath.
An attack method impossible for a normal Cyclops.
But it was obvious from its appearance that this was no ordinary Cyclops, and Rei had naturally anticipated it would possess some special attack.
Using his Sleipnir boots, he flew through the air.
Watching the blizzard pass beneath him, and considering that it was currently winter—and finally, though this last point might be a stretch—seeing its snow-like Pure White body color... Rei half-convinced himself.
(I see. This thing is probably one of those monsters that only appear in winter.)
Rei had fought monsters that only appeared during winter on several occasions before.
Most were stronger than normal monsters, and a notable common trait was their white appearance—just like this Cyclops.
While thinking such things as he leaped through the air, in the next instant he swung Death Scythe at the Cyclops that had closed within range.
"Power Slash!"
That skill traded Death Scythe's sharpness for increased raw power in a single strike.
Sensing the mortal danger from the blade of Death Scythe swinging down at him diagonally, the White Cyclops reflexively thrust its right arm forward...
SLASH.
The Cyclops's right arm was severed from the elbow onward, spinning through the air.
That the cut surface was not as smooth as usual was undoubtedly because he had used Power Slash.
Though, for the Cyclops, whether the cut was clean or ragged made no difference—its right arm below the elbow had been severed either way.
"GAH, GAAAH, GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
Perhaps unable to comprehend that its arm had been severed for a moment, the White Cyclops let out a bewildered cry.
But the instant it confirmed its arm had been cut off, pain must have come rushing in.
It tried to stanch the blood gushing violently from the stump... and in the next moment, a sideways blow from Set, who had circled behind it—a Power Crush—sent it flying.
Over five meters tall with a muscular, brawny build. Its right arm below the elbow had been severed by Rei's Death Scythe, but even so, it was easy to imagine how much the White Cyclops weighed.
In fact, those watching Rei's battle from a distance couldn't initially comprehend what had happened, even though they saw it with their own eyes.
Struck by Set, who was less than half the size of the White Cyclops, that massive body was blown nearly ten meters.
Bouncing across the ground several times, the sight was startling enough to steal the breath of all who watched.
"Set, follow up after my strike!"
Shouting, Rei dropped Death Scythe to the ground, transferred the Twilight Spear from his left hand to his right, and poured in magical power.
Rei could wield a spear well enough with his left hand for a normal thrust, but for a throw, his dominant right hand yielded more power and greater accuracy.
The spear flew through the air and pierced through the torso of the White Cyclops, which had been struggling to rise using only its left arm... then continued onward in another direction.
...But in the next instant, the spear returned to Rei's hand.
One of the Twilight Spear's abilities—it could return to its owner's hand at will.
"GA, GAAH..."
That strike had surely been a fatal blow, but the White Cyclops was still breathing, trying to rise...
"GURURURURURURUU!"
Set's strike swung down once more.
Though not as powerful as the previous Power Crush, Set's raw ability alone was more than sufficient. It didn't blow the White Cyclops's head apart, but it carried enough force to snap the bones in its neck.
"GUH... GA..."
That strike became the killing blow, and the White Cyclops collapsed onto the ground.
That said, since there was no way to know for certain whether it had truly died from that one blow, neither Rei nor Set let down their guard.
Preparing to respond immediately should anything happen, Rei picked up Death Scythe from the ground and approached the completely motionless White Cyclops, still holding his Twin Spear Style stance.
All the while, Set stayed ready to attack at a moment's notice... but even as Rei drew right up beside the creature, it showed no reaction.
He tried stabbing the White Cyclops's thigh with the chisel point of Death Scythe. Still nothing.
Confirming that, Rei finally swung Death Scythe once more as a precaution.
He cleanly severed the neck. Since the body had been lying on the ground, the blood gushing from the White Cyclops's neck stained the remaining snow red while rising steam.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
Seeing the beheaded White Cyclops, those watching from a slight distance must have finally concluded that Rei and Set had won.
A tremendous cheer erupted from the crowd, as if to dispel every ounce of tension that had built up.
Listening to those cheers, Rei stored the severed head of the White Cyclops in his Misty Ring.
He considered storing the body too, but at over five meters tall, a massive amount of blood flowed through it, and the blood pouring from the neck showed no signs of stopping.
(First I need to drain the blood... but how should I do it?)
If this were a Boar or Deer—some normal animal—or even an ordinary monster, he could hang it upside down from a tree branch or something to drain the blood.
But near Gilm, especially at the Gigant Turtle dissection site, there were hardly any trees growing.
No, even if there were trees, finding one in this area that could support the weight of a White Cyclops without snapping under it was simply impossible.
(That being the case, would transporting it somewhere with large trees and draining the blood there be the best option? Or else... hanging it from the Gigant Turtle's shell... no, better not.)
True to its name, the Gigant Turtle's shell was enormous, and Rei was certain it would be useful for something.
Given that, staining that shell with blood was something to be avoided at all costs.
While thinking along those lines and petting Set, who had done admirable work this time, Rei noticed the Guild Staff Member jogging toward him.
"Lord Rei, that was incredible. To think you would defeat such a monster..."
"Yeah, glad to hear you say that."
"So, about this Cyclops... I believe it's likely a Snow Cyclops. What would you like to do about the dissection?"
"...Snow Cyclops? This is the first time I've seen one, but is that what it's called?"
"Ah, yes. As the name suggests, it's a High-ranking Species of Cyclops that only appears during the winter. It's a B-Rank Monster, and quite powerful... but with you, Lord Rei, it went down all too easily."
Having displayed what could almost be described as an instant kill against a B-Rank Monster, Rei naturally drew admiring glances from the Guild Staff Member... and from the dissection workers as well.
"Ah... right. Well, something like this. Anyway, once the Gigant Turtle is brought out, I'm planning to go drain this Snow Cyclops's blood with Set. Would that be a problem?"
"No, no problem at all. Um, if you'd like, we could perform the dissection right here as well. What would you prefer?"
To the Guild Staff Member's question, Rei replied that he would gladly take him up on that offer.