It was the day after I had spent myself gathering materials. I was indulging in a leisurely, late breakfast when a series of thunderous booms suddenly rolled in from outside.
"It sounds like the Leader Rhino has arrived," I said. "Shall we go?"
"This will be the perfect way to work off breakfast," Glen-san replied.
The two of us left the mansion and headed toward the site of the old irrigation pond. Glen-san seemed to remember the layout from his earlier scout of the village perimeter, so he led the way without any hesitation. As we drew closer to the pond, the noise grew louder and the air grew thick with a violent, savage presence.
Concealing ourselves with Hide magic, we observed the situation from a distance. A massive beast, nearly three meters tall and four meters long, was repeatedly ramming its body into the heat-radiating trees surrounding the pond. With its rhinoceros-like horn and long, shaggy coat, there was no mistaking it—it was a Cannonball Rhino. However, its sheer size far exceeded the averages I had seen in the records.
"So that's the leader," Glen-san muttered. "I’d heard stories, but he really is acting strange."
"Cannonball Rhinos are herbivores. Normally, they ram into heat-radiating trees to knock down leaves and branches for food, but this one is far too agitated for a simple feeding session."
"Doesn't look like he’s eating to me. He’s not fighting anything either. So what the hell is his goal?"
"Who knows—wait!"
I spotted a young Cannonball Rhino, less than a meter in height and length, hiding in the grass about ten meters away from the giant. I loosed a blast of Wind Magic just as Glen-san lunged forward.
"Kyoon!"
The little one was likely the child rhino Kormi had mentioned. It let out a high-pitched cry and recklessly attempted to square up against the giant, but my magic reached them a split second before the collision. It had no visible effect, however. Cannonball Rhinos were known for their magic resistance, likely thanks to that thick hide.
Still, it was enough if I could distract the beast for a moment.
"Hah!"
Glen-san closed the distance and drove his hammer into the leader’s cheek. The impact sent a shockwave through the rhino's massive frame, but it didn't utter a single cry of pain. Instead, it merely turned its bloodshot eyes toward Glen-san and glared.
Fortunately—if one could call it that—the Leader Rhino's earlier rampage had flattened the surrounding brush, giving us a clearer view of the pond. I used Space Magic to blink to Glen-san's side.
"Glen-san."
"Yeah, I put everything into that swing and it didn't even flinch. First Kormi, and now this... this village is full of tough customers. Things are getting interesting!"
"Of course you’d find this fun."
The man was certainly reliable, though I struggled to wrap my head around his combat-hungry perspective.
"Can I leave the big guy to you for a bit?"
"Sure. You take care of the shrimp."
Glen-san lunged back into the fray, and I turned my attention to the child rhino while the leader swung its horn in an annoyed arc, trying to swat Glen-san out of the air.
"Kyuuu!"
The child rhino immediately began to intimidate me. From our previous vantage point, I hadn't been able to see it, but standing behind the little one was an adult Cannonball Rhino—likely the mother Kormi had spoken of.
Like the Village Chief and the others back at the mansion, she appeared perfectly alive, but a jagged hole gaped in her neck, and her hind legs were mangled and crushed. Given the context, the leader had undoubtedly been the aggressor. As an undead, her body was slowly regenerating, but she wasn't going to be moving anytime soon.
The child was trying to protect his mother. And now, he was trying to protect her from me.
"Don't worry, I’m not your enemy... though I suppose that won't get through without Kormi to translate."
"Kyut!"
"Whoa!"
Just as I was considering whether I should form a contract to communicate my intent, the child rhino charged. Even for a calf, it was still a powerful monster. I could dodge it easily enough, but I had to be careful; with the leader still active, I couldn't afford to be careless.
To keep my promise to Kormi...
"This is going to be a bit rough, but bear with me!"
I made the declaration even if he couldn't understand it. I put my back to the pond and circulated Qi through my body at full capacity.
The calf charged in a straight line, thrusting its horn forward with everything it had. Just before the impact, I threw my body backward, seizing the calf by its neck and horn.
"Get some distance!"
"Kyoon!?"
Using the calf's own momentum and my strengthened muscles, I executed a modified circle throw. The child rhino drew a wide arc through the air before splashing into the pond behind me, landing right next to his mother. In battles between their kind, being thrown or knocked down like a sumo wrestler often meant the loser acknowledged defeat. I hoped the little one would take the hint, but I decided to reinforce the message.
"Let’s see... 'Stay'!"
"Kyuu!?"
I loosed a pulse of Dark Magic toward the calf as he climbed onto the bank. I focused on a singular command: Stay by your mother. Even a vague sense of dread, similar to Fear magic, would be enough if it kept him from attacking.
It was an improvised move, but the child rhino retreated toward his mother’s neck, keeping a wary eye on me as he backed away.
"That's one problem solved... Wait, what?"
"Hey! What's the matter? Come on!" Glen-san shouted, trying to provoke the beast.
"Kuoooo!"
The Leader Rhino wasn't even looking at him. It was running in a erratic zig-zag between the pond and the shore, kicking up clouds of mud, before suddenly turning back to ram the trees again. It didn't seem to be ignoring Glen-san so much as it failed to realize he was even there.
If I don't settle this soon, it might head toward the mother and calf, I thought.
"Guoooo!"
As if answering my concern, the Leader Rhino let out a roar and charged straight for me.
"Careful!"
I fired a Fear spell and dove into the grass, narrowly evading the charge. The rhino pivoted, its horn still pointed forward, and chased after me. I used Space Magic to teleport to the water's edge. The beast thundered past my previous position and slammed into a tree with such force that the trunk splintered and tilted.
"I knew it was strong, but a direct hit would be instant death..."
"Hey, Ryoma! Something’s wrong with this thing!" Glen-san called out.
"It’s been wrong from the start, hasn't it?"
"No, not that. Look at how it’s moving. Its defense is insane—maybe S-rank dragon level—but it’s fighting like a total amateur. It’s like some weakling who’s been pumped up by Strengthening Magic and thinks he’s invincible."
If Glen-san felt that way, his intuition was likely correct. I looked at the rhino again. Its sudden burst of aggression had vanished; now it was staggering, saliva dripping from its half-open mouth as if it were about to fall asleep. The hostility I’d felt a moment ago was gone.
Strengthening, extreme agitation, then sudden lethargy...
"Glen-san! When you were trading blows, did you see any purple spots on its body?"
"Purple? Yeah, the inside of its mouth was covered in them. Look."
He gestured with his hammer. Looking closely at the rhino's gaping maw, I could indeed see vivid purple blotches on the mucous membranes.
"I thought so."
"You know what it is?"
"It’s a Doping Bee. Or rather, he was stung by one. They’re a rare type of bee-type magic beast whose venom acts as both a powerful stimulant and a sedative. They use it to strengthen the monsters near their nest, turning them into frenzied guardians. The trademark of their sting is that purple discoloration."
"There are bugs that can do that?"
"Evidently. It wasn't in the guild reports, but they’re a rare species. They might have been overlooked in a forest this vast."
"I guess a monster getting a bit more violent wouldn't even be news out here... Still, you're well-informed for a kid."
"The stingers and honey are used in medicine. That’s how I recognized the symptoms."
Regardless of the cause, the situation remained. The beast was quiet for now, but it would go on a rampage again soon. We had to take it down, but if Glen-san’s attacks weren't working, conventional strikes were useless.
"The venom is likely dulling its sense of pain, but that doesn't mean the damage isn't accumulating. If we keep at it, it will eventually fall."
"That’s too much work. Fighting a drugged-up beast is no fun."
"I figured you’d say that."
I was getting better at predicting his reactions. In that case, we needed a single, decisive blow to a vital organ.
"Guoooo!"
"There he goes again!"
"Bind Ivy!"
"Guou!?"
Using Wood Magic, I commanded the vines from the nearby trees to ensnare the rhino. They were naturally tough, but when woven together by magic, they became a reinforced cage.
It wouldn't hold for long. Each time the rhino thrashed, the vines snapped one by one.
"Mud Pool!"
"Guoa!?"
I mixed the pond water into the earth, turning the ground beneath the beast into a deep quagmire. The vines creaked under the strain, but with no traction, the rhino couldn't muster the force to break free. It was a spell I rarely used as a close-quarters fighter, but I was glad I had learned it.
"Glen-san!"
"Oh? I get it. I'm going all out, then!"
I pulled the scabbard from my waist and activated its deformation. Glen-san kicked off a nearby tree, leaping high into the canopy. I used Space Magic to blink directly onto the neck of the struggling beast.
"Whoa!"
The rhino bucked, and I fixed my feet in the vines to keep from being thrown. I focused my Mana Perception, sharing my field of vision with the Metal Slimes that made up the scabbard.
"Grrr-ooo!"
Hostility and immense data flooded my mind, but I pushed through the noise with sheer focus.
"There!"
Following the same principles as Healing Magic, I traced the rhino's mana body to locate the exact position of its brain. I drove the reshaped scabbard home to serve as a guide. I had transformed the curved casing into a straight, solid rod; its opening flared like a funnel while the tip was honed to a lethal point. It looked less like a weapon and more like a massive iron nail.
"Here I come!"
Glen-san’s voice thundered from the treetops. Without looking up, I used Qi to reinforce my body and the Metal Slimes.
A second later, a roar and a crushing impact surged through my arms, vibrating through my entire body.