NOVEL NEXT Chapter 11.1
Chapter 11.1. The Big Rat
The big rat. What makes it different from ordinary rats is its size. Because of their size, their legs are slower than those of rats. That’s because its legs are neither thick nor large enough to support its body. In a world where dragons fly, and skeletons exist, the weight of a rat depends on its magical power, but a rat has almost no magic power, so its legs are weak.
Although they’re slow, they can still run as fast as a child. It seems like a design error makes a rat bigger. Instead, its fangs are sharp and can pierce through thin cloth with a single bite.
Finally, because they are so large, they don’t seem to enter dirty and cramped places, and they do not carry germs. So, the guys in the abandoned town can go. I’ll leave them with no comment.
Such big rats were gathering around, chirping and squealing. There are already 20 of them flocked. They like the smoke or approach the burning wooden cage. But they’re scared of the fire and stop there. They do not look at us. They are so engrossed in the smoke that we can say that they have rediscovered us.
I made a fireball with my index finger, released it at one of them, and it ran to me. Even though they’re crazy about it, they fight back only when attacked. That’s right.
[Sakimori-san, that thieving cat is watching us from the next building floor above. You might not want to switch places with me.]
“Understood. No problem.”
I have been fighting alone when Shizuku isn’t around. No problem. But if it’s a bad situation, please take care of it.
[Are you okay with that kind of equipment?]
“? The only equipment I have is a knife.”
[Totally, totally, totally…]
For some reason, Shizuku puffed up her cheeks and got angry in a cute way. But why? Sometimes Shizuku gets weird.
“Hmph.”
I kick at the approaching big rat. With a thud and a dull thud, the big rat is blown away like a ball but quickly gets back up. It seems that a single kick is not enough to knock it down. I knew that, though.
[Shadowcat]
I twitch my index finger and use shadow magic. Shadow magic, unlike elemental magic, it’s an interesting magic that is quite useful. I got it when I got the rare G monster core. By the way, the rare G monster was a big slime, but it was just a slime about twice the size of ordinary slime.
I have only met three of them in the past 20-plus years. I got it after careful consideration and thought.
The most amazing thing about its power is that it can transform magic power into the user’s monster. Thus, it is possible to make a large number of errand demons.
I pour half of my mana into a black cat the size of a large dog. The claws on its legs are sharp, and the fangs in its black mouth are sharp and cone-like.
“Mike- I’ll catch them. You take them down one by one.”
“Meow!”
The black cat meows, gets back on its feet, pounces on the big rat, hold it down with its paws, takes a bite of its neck, and bites it off. It shuddered, and the big rat stopped moving.
Even though they have the same status, my four-legged animals are stronger than rats.
I took a pebble scattered on the ground and aimed at another one. It hit the other one and came at me, but Mike bites and then kills it.
It would be tough against a goblin, but a big rat is no problem. Cats are good against rats.
The old man tried to fight coolly, but the big rat was unexpectedly stupid, so he turned into a painful old man who hit the rat with a pebble. The old man throws a stone at the rat, and Mike beats it up. Don’t you need the old man?
After a hundred of them, I got tired of it. The floor gets covered with blood, and the smell of death swirls around. We’ll have to burn these later. And it will be a plague. And I don’t want to hate jerky anymore.
The key is that they appear little by little. They don’t attack all at once, so there’s less chance of me panicking. After 200, the number of enemies is dwindling. Mike is killing the big rats without me even needing to catch them.
“This should be okay. Anybody can hunt, right?”
I hadn’t expected the big rats to get hooked on the smoke. That would be a safe way to take them down from fishing like a game. If you’re careful with the amount of smoke. If it’s too much, it could be bad.
[It didn’t work this time, but I’m sure it’ll be fine, right?]
“We succeeded this time. …… I see.”
Shizuku points her tiny index finger toward the entrance of the building. Among the remaining 30 or so big rats. There is a big rat with a dull iron glow instead of dingy rat-colored fur, it had entered the building. It’s faster than the other big rats. It’s at the level of a motorized motorcycle.
[Fireball]
Considering the danger, the old man immediately uses magic. I create a volleyball-sized flame in my palm, then it hits the approaching big rat and covers it in fire, but the rat slips out without stopping to run. Not a scorch on its fur.
“Myaaa!”
Mike opens its mouth and jumps at it. It bites down to bite off its neck and clatters back with a high-pitched sound. It sounds like metal. Its hardness also seems to be on par with metal.
“Rare, huh? It’s been a while. Mike, stay back and take out the other enemies!”
And it’s an F-rank rare. With a grim look on my face, I create a water ball.
[Aqua Prison]
If it’s a small monster, I can envelop it in water. I focus my hands on the rare rat as I point it. I place the water ball in the path of the rare rat coming to me. Without stopping, the rare rat rushes into the water. Its body glows red.
[Iron Charge]
The water ball bursts open while I somehow understand the voice of the rat’s martial arts. The rare rat’s body, charged with magical power, has repelled and nullified the magic.