The group of twenty explorers, including Zenichi and Kurage, touched down on the mountain path leading to the Kobold fortress.
As they turned back toward the foot of the mountain, a rumbling reached them that already sounded as if it were right at the summit. Zenichi felt the ground vibrating faintly beneath his feet.
It was a tremor born from tens of thousands of Kobolds charging up the mountain simultaneously.
Based on the sound alone, it was clear they had already climbed dangerously close.
"Now then, there isn't much time before the Kobolds arrive! Everyone, please prepare for combat!"
As he addressed his comrades, Zenichi began activating his skills.
Fighting Spirit, Mind Concentration, Union of Mana and Might, Fist Aura, Magic Fist, Magic Fist Aura—then, tossing aside his backpack, he triggered Super Native Body. He could have layered even more diverse skills on top of those, such as External Qi, Mighty Qi, or Hard Qi, but—
"Well, I suppose that won't be necessary."
By the time he had activated Super Native Body and Union of Mana and Might, all of Zenichi’s stats had been boosted fourfold. His average stats easily exceeded 2000.
Even against enemies far stronger than normal Kobolds, these numbers were likely already excessive.
Just then—
"H-Hey! Do we really not need to worry about the fortress behind us?! You sure those Kobolds aren't gonna come pouring out of there?!"
One of the members from the Association shouted, glancing nervously at the fortress behind them.
The Kobolds inside the stronghold had likely already spotted the group. If so, there was a possibility they would emerge to eliminate the threat from the rear.
However, that concern was unfounded.
Since this is technically supposed to be my first time in this kind of dungeon as well, it’s a bit of a pain that I can’t speak with absolute certainty...
Thinking this to himself, Zenichi responded with a deduction.
"Rest assured! For monsters, protecting the dungeon core is likely their highest priority! If that's the case, the Kobolds in the fortress will prioritize eliminating Sage-kun and his team, who have already infiltrated the interior! As long as they aren't defeated, the fortress Kobolds won't come outside!"
While he gave that answer, the other members were steadily completing their battle preparations.
Among them, the most flamboyant was undoubtedly Kurage.
"Aqua Create—Ma-chan Big Mum."
When she raised her long staff above her head, a massive mass of water manifested in the sky in an instant.
It was a staggering volume of water, enough to fill a twenty-five-meter swimming pool. The giant mass wriggled and pulsed as it began to change shape.
What appeared was a single, colossal jellyfish.
Including the tips of its oral arms and tentacles, it was dozens of meters in length. Its scale was such that it could no longer be called a jellyfish; it was more like a kaiju from a special effects film or an anime.
『Whaaaaaaaaaa!!!』 『It’s been a while since we saw Big Mum!!』 『Moooooommy!!』 『As huge as ever!!』 『Kurage-chan is getting serious!』 『The sense of security is unreal lol』
Just as everyone had finished their preparations...
『They’re here!!』 『Too many!!』 『The mountain path is being buried...』 『No, that number is insane...!!』
From the far end of the path, a massive swarm of Kobolds charged toward them with terrifying momentum.
The sight was worlds apart from an army on the march. They didn't approach in orderly ranks; they simply ran forward individually, fueled by intense hostility and murderous intent.
However, due to the Kobolds' physical abilities—which far surpassed those of normal humans—their approach speed deviated wildly from military common sense, despite their massive numbers.
It possessed the force and majesty of a natural disaster, like a landslide or a tsunami that no human could hope to resist.
"This is bad, this is bad! It's really bad!!" "S-Stop them!!" "With my pitch-black flames—no, this is impossible!! Just stall them somehow!!"
The Association, the Fallen Angels, and the members of Hyakka Ryoran and the Battle Cook Brothers all launched their respective attacks toward the deluge of Kobolds.
Aura-based long-range attacks from Combat Arts Skills and magical volleys flew through the air. Seeing that those weren't having much effect, the Fallen Angels switched to stalling tactics using Dark Swamp.
Their attacks certainly took down many monsters. They were all-out strikes that consumed HP and MP lavishly without regard for the aftermath. Over ten Kobolds were felled in the initial volley, and the subsequent stalling from Dark Swamp halted the feet of dozens more for a brief moment.
However, for a swarm exceeding tens of thousands, these were negligible losses. Using the fallen and stalled Kobolds at the front as stepping stones, the followers surged forward.
The time they managed to stall them was likely less than three seconds.
No, perhaps they should be proud that they could stall them even for that long. Stopping a landslide or a tsunami is, by nature, impossible for a human.
『Wait, what?!』 『This is bad!!』 『It’s no use!!』 『Run!!』
The DungeonTube viewers screamed on the other side of the screen. To them, stopping this seemed impossible for a human. The members of the Association, the Fallen Angels, Hyakka Ryoran, and the Battle Cooks all felt the same.
"Now then—"
But in front of them all stood a naked man.
Naked Armor Shinra Zenichi. One of Japan's top explorers.
Extremely few knew the true extent of his power.
And even now, he did not intend to go all-out. —Nonetheless.
"Let's start by killing their momentum."
He spread his legs wide, lowered his hips, and took a side-on stance. Between his legs, Ma-chan Junior desperately hid his crotch.
In his readied right fist, light—a gradient of blue and green from Magic Fist Aura—began to converge.
On top of the numerous enhancement-type skills already active, he activated one more.
Skill—Mastery of Fist Strikes.
Its unlock conditions were to acquire Magic Fist Aura and Union of Mana and Might and raise both to their maximum levels. Furthermore, one had to defeat over 10,000 monsters using Magic Fist Aura.
This was a "pinnacle skill," a category of skills that lacked levels.
Its effect: "Consume 5 HP and 5 MP to increase the damage multiplier of the next strike by an additional 2.0x for Fist Aura, Magic Fist, and Magic Fist Aura. Additionally, the damage multiplier for flying attacks is made equal to that of direct attacks."
"Flying attacks" referred to attacks that projected an aura, similar to the Flying Blade of Sword Aura. Normally, these did not benefit from certain inherent damage multipliers. However, when using Mastery of Fist Strikes, those multipliers would apply.
In other words, a strike using Magic Fist Aura layered with Mastery of Fist Strikes, combined with Fist Attack Damage Boost, resulted in a total damage multiplier of 64x.
Zenichi possessed several other skills to enhance his attacks, but he chose not to use them this time. A single strike delivered with Strength and Dexterity stats exceeding 2000 was more than enough for these enhanced Kobolds.
"—Hmph!!"
He thrust out his fist.
The attribute he layered onto the Magic Fist Aura was "Storm."
The mass of aura released from his fist pulled in the surrounding atmosphere, instantaneously turning into a catastrophic tornado. The vortex grew larger as it advanced, shattering the ground, kicking up earth, and even uprooting the trees lining both sides of the path. They were put through a blender of rotating stone fragments and soil in the midst of the gale, ground into dust in an instant—and those particles themselves became sharp, lethal weapons racing through the tornado at high speeds.
That murderous tornado collided head-on with the Kobold swarm.
"————!?" "————!!"
The moment the Kobolds were touched, they were reduced to a mist of blood.
The tornado, having turned deep red, continued to advance without losing momentum.
It pulverized the earth, destroyed the forest, and ground the Kobolds on the mountain path into mincemeat. When the tornado finally dissipated far ahead, a scar of destruction had been carved into the earth for dozens of meters.
The total number of Kobolds wiped out by that single strike easily exceeded several hundred.
The momentum of the Kobold deluge ground to a complete halt for a fleeting moment.
『Wha—whaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!?』 『What was that?! What was thaaaaaaat!!?』 『Magic!!?』 『Professor, what on earth was thaaaaaat!!?』 『That power is insane!!』
Surprise and cheers rose from the drones.
But even those would soon settle.
『Wait?! The Kobolds are coming again!!?』 『Didn't that make them flinch?!』
The emotion of fear does not exist in dungeon monsters—with the exception of effects from certain intimidation-type skills or spirit-based magic.
It was true that the charging force of the swarm had been neutralized. However, the Kobolds immediately began to move again. They sprinted forward, unbothered by the rough, devastated terrain of the mountain path.
As expected, was it impossible to stall this massive swarm?
Even after seeing Zenichi's attack, which was clearly on a different level from other explorers, everyone thought so.
However, Zenichi was a warrior-type explorer, and his skill build was not originally suited for wide-area attacks.
The type of explorer suited for wide-range attacks and total annihilation was a mage.
"Can you go now, Kurage-kun?!"
Zenichi shouted the question while still facing forward, and the response was a small nod.
Behind him, Kurage pointed her long staff forward. Even at this stage, her face showed no impatience, tension, or fear—only a sleepy, expressionless gaze.
"Ice Aqua Cannon—go."
As Kurage whispered, the giant jellyfish floating above her overlapped its two oral arms and thrust them forward.
Immediately, a massive volume of water, sprayed at ultra-high pressure from its tips, erupted with terrifying force while being focused like a beam.
The thick jet of water was such an irrational amount that it was less a stream and more like a river. With its mass and kinetic energy alone, it could easily blast away boulders and drag buildings down from their foundations.
However, the Kobolds pierced by that thick jet were not merely blown away.
The Kobolds caught within the torrential rush of water were pulverized into dust in an instant.
There were countless invisible bullets within the water flow. They were hard pebbles of ice created by magic. Each one, approaching with the momentum of a rifle bullet, easily shattered the Kobolds' bodies.
The giant jellyfish slowly swept its oral arms from right to left. Each time, the jet of water devastated a wide area, ravaging a fan-shaped space starting from its point of origin.
It swept away the mountain path ravaged by Zenichi's attack, the forests spreading to its sides, and everything else along with the Kobolds.
When the water jet—which had been spraying for over ten seconds—finally subsided, there wasn't a single Kobold left in the space, which now offered an unnervingly clear view.
With that single strike, the number of Kobolds pulverized easily exceeded a thousand, nearly reaching two thousand.
The stalling members and the viewers were rendered speechless by the sight of such overwhelming destruction.
Zenichi turned back to address them.
"Everyone! We don't have time to stand around in a daze!! The Kobolds defeated just now are only a fraction of the total! More will be here soon! As you just saw, Kurage-kun and I can roughly thin their numbers! But even so, there will be Kobolds who bypass us through the forest and break through! I'm leaving those to you!!"
At those words, the stalling members snapped back to their senses.
And the viewers too found hope, realizing they might actually be able to pull this off.
『T-That was incredibleeeeeeeee!!!?』 『Kurage-chan is too strong!!!』 『That jellyfish is insane!!』 『It really is a kaiju!!』 『I couldn't really tell because normal dungeons are cramped, but seeing them fight in an open space really shows how terrifying top explorers are.』 『If we have the Professor and Kurage-chan, we might actually make it!!』
Onto the mountain slope, where the view was now clear, the following Kobolds stepped in one after another.
The overwhelming number of Kobolds approaching at high speed didn't seem to have decreased even after that attack.
Even so, there was no longer anyone who doubted their victory.