The shiny gold slime that had emerged from the magic circle gave a soft, squishy bounce. It actually looked somewhat perplexed. It was only natural, I suppose, given that it had been forcibly teleported, but I wondered if a slime even possessed enough intelligence to feel confusion.
Oops, this was no time for idle thoughts. If this creature was the monster I thought it was, I definitely didn't want to let it get away.
"Wahoooo!"
Shiroru lunged first, determined to get the jump on it. Even if he was only the size of a puppy, he was still a Holy Beast. A single strike from him would have caused a normal slime to burst apart, but the shiny gold slime was different. On the contrary, it was Shiroru—the attacker—who let out a sharp little yelp.
"Shiroru!?"
『Muu... it’s nothing! I was just a little surprised!』
I felt a chill for a second, but Shiroru seemed perfectly fine. Apparently, that yelp had just been a sound that escaped him out of pure shock. He wasn't injured, and his fighting spirit hadn't wavered.
『More importantly, what was that? I was repelled!』
So I hadn't imagined it. To my eyes, it had looked like Shiroru's attack was deflected before it even touched the shiny gold slime.
"Is it not a Golden Slime...?" I murmured.
"Perhaps not," Lowell replied.
A Golden Slime was a rare monster with a golden, metallic body. If one appeared in a dungeon, defeating it almost guaranteed a valuable item drop, making them a veritable jackpot for adventurers. However, taking one down was notoriously difficult. They negated magic, and their unique bodies significantly reduced physical damage. To top it off, they were incredibly nimble and quick to flee.
I’d assumed my high Luck had lured in a bonus monster, but something was off. At the very least, I had never heard of a Golden Slime possessing a barrier that physically repelled attackers.
"Hah!"
Next, a shadow-colored magic arrow fired by Halfa closed in on the slime. However, it dispersed into mist and vanished just before impact. Just as I suspected—it was protected by some kind of magic barrier.
Or so I thought, until—
"Take this!"
In response to Spira's follow-up, the shiny gold slime reacted differently. Until that moment, it hadn't even moved, simply letting its barrier soak up every blow. But for some reason, it actually dodged Spira's vine attack.
...What did that mean?
Was there something about Spira's attack that bypassed the barrier?
I still had too little information to be sure. I needed to see more before I could deduce the logic behind its defense. In that case, I couldn't just stand around watching.
I closed the distance in a blur and thrust my Light-Blade Dagger forward. But before the blade could strike home, it hit something with a strange, resisting pressure. It felt less like being bounced back and more like my momentum was being sucked away.
But I wasn't done. While my movement was momentarily stalled, Lowell stepped in with a follow-up. He delivered a flurry of high-speed slashes, his blade's silvery brilliance raining down on the mysterious slime. That strike went—unhindered—through the invisible barrier!
"Too shallow...!" Lowell muttered regretfully.
The shiny gold slime had managed to react to a flash that an ordinary monster never could have avoided. It hadn't escaped completely, but the blade had only grazed it. It likely took almost no damage.
At any rate, the barrier hadn't reacted to Lowell's strike either. So far, the attacks from me, Halfa, and Shiroru were blocked, while the barrier failed to trigger for Spira and Lowell. I couldn't figure out the rule. It didn't seem to be based on the type of attack, like physical versus magical.
Could it be about the frequency of the attacks? Suppose the barrier vanished after taking a hit but recovered after a short delay. If we timed our strikes during that brief window, we might be able to land a solid blow.
"Lowell!"
"Yeah. I'll go first!"
He must have been on the same wavelength; Lowell moved before I could even suggest a plan. I didn't fall behind and shifted into my own attacking stance.
Lowell swung his arm, sending his Mithril blade toward the slime. The strike swung down without the barrier lifting a finger. However, he only cut through empty air. The slime had dodged Lowell's strike at the very last second.
Even so, the barrier hadn't reacted.
Is it still on cooldown?
If so, this was our chance. Without a moment's delay, I lunged at the slime with my dagger!
But—
"Wha!?"
My attack was stopped cold by the barrier.
Did it recover right at that exact moment?
No, the idea of the barrier having a "cooldown" was just a hypothesis. Looking at the results, there was a real possibility that the barrier simply didn't work against Lowell or Spira. Supporting this theory, when Spira, Halfa, and Shiroru attacked next, the only strike the slime bothered to dodge was Spira's.
I didn't understand why, but right now, the "why" didn't matter as much as what worked. For the time being, we had to build our strategy around Lowell and Spira.
Just as I reached that conclusion, the slime—which had done nothing but dodge until now—suddenly puffed itself up.
An icy shiver ran down my spine. On pure instinct, I threw myself out of the slime's direct line of sight. A split second later, a shadow-colored arrow streaked past the spot I’d occupied a heartbeat before.
"Tort, it's coming back!" Lowell shouted.
I didn't waste time looking back to check; I threw myself into a roll. The shadow arrow whistled past my side again. As I feared, it changed direction after traveling a short distance and began homing in on me once more.
...Is this thing never going to disappear until it hits something?
If that was the case, I needed a scapegoat. I felt a little bad for it, but desperate times called for desperate measures.
While dodging the relentless arrow, I snatched the bundle of Attraction Slips from my bag and peeled one off. I activated it instantly. A magic circle flared to life, and a normal slime appeared. I scooped it up and threw it directly into the path of the incoming shadow arrow.
The moment they collided, the normal slime was dyed pitch black as if covered in ink, and it dissolved into nothingness. Fortunately, the shadow arrow vanished along with it. It seemed it would disappear as long as it struck something. I could work with that.
Or so I thought, but—
"Wait, where’d it go!?"
"Looks like it ran away..." Lowell said, sighing.
While we were distracted by the homing arrow, the shiny gold slime had made its escape. Since we weren't even sure we could win, I suppose you could say we were lucky, but... the presence of such a dangerous creature on the First Floor was a major concern. I’d have to make sure to report this to the Adventurer's Guild.