There’s just this bad feeling I have.
Call it intuition or a sixth sense.
But, I never thought it would come true in this form.

Arriving at the shrine, Lesser Treant was geared for battle, and Alo is really trying her best to stay hidden even though she’s plainly visible.

“Vu~e~eeee!”

Their opponent was an eight-legged black figure whose specialty involves in literally breaking my heart to pieces just by existing. Presenting…… the motherf@%$ing Abyss.

Their stripes are already triggering minor trauma in me.
This is the third Abyss that infiltrated the shrine today.
Damn, these creepy crawlers increased too much.
I’m really starting to think that they’re more of a threat now.

Nevermind that, onto the problem at hand.
Both Alo and Treant are rank D monsters, and their levels aren’t that high.
I don’t think they can beat a rank C monster on their own.
The gap in their status is too wide.
I run to the shrine as fast as I could to stop the fighting.

There were four Earth Rabbits around Alo.
Looks like she made more with her〖Earth Doll〗skill.
The rabbits seem to be protecting Alo from four sides, waiting anxiously in which direction the Abyss will strike.

Alo raises an arm towards the Abyss.

“…… p-, erce……〖Clay〗”

The ground under the Abyss shone dimly, and it hardened into spikes that extended up to the Abyss.
The Abyss blitzed away to evade the attack.

“Vu~e~eeee!”

It continued blitz around Alo.
That speed though…… the bastard is flexing its【Speed: 200】.

By status, the Abyss is leagues faster than both of them.
Alo on the other hand has【Speed: 20】.
The match is clearly against their favor.

“Gru~uooooo!”

I roar as I run, but the Abyss is completely ignoring me.

Alo tried to follow the Abyss’s movements with her eyes, but it kept circling around her, she became dizzy.
Meanwhile, the Earth Rabbits that protected Alo were getting hurled into the air one after another.
They didn’t even cry in agony.
They just… smooshed back into earth clay.

“Gisha~a~a~a~a!”

Lesser Treant swings its large branch…… *ahem* I mean, large arm at the Abyss.
Sadly, due to their difference in speed, it obviously didn’t hit.
But, that reckless action should be able to divert its attention away from Alo.

Except that it didn’t work at all.
How unfortunate.
Lesser Treant’s arm hit the ground instead and he received heavy recoil from it that he greatly stepped back.

There’s bits of wood fragments inside the Abyss’s mouth.
Wait, when did they counter?
Behind the Abyss’s rugged teeth, mixed in with the leaves and bark, there were the remains of Alo’s Earth Rabbit.

“………… Vu~e, vu~e! Vu~ehe! Vu~ehe!”

The Abyss stopped moving around.
It barfed out the mushy remains of the Earth Rabbit inside its mouth.

“Gru~u~ooo!”

Alright, I’m within range!
I immediately spread my wings and fire two shots of〖Wind Slash〗.
The blade of winds slice the Abyss apart.
The Abyss split into two and is now just a pile of meat on the ground.

【Obtained 105 Experience Points.】
【〖The Walking Egg〗skill gives you additional 105 Experience Points.】

I’m glad I made it in time.
Had I arrived one minute later, then Alo, Lesser Treant, and even the Baby Arachne would’ve all been eaten.

…… No, actually, I don’t think they’ll be eaten.
It ate the Earth Rabbit, but then it spat it out.
It probably mistook it for a different rabbit and attacked either way.
Then after having a taste, it decided it was a no-go.

Even though the skin is just earth bounded by magic, earth is still earth.
Of course it can’t eat that.
Maybe it’s because the Abyss puked that there’s this foul odor in the air.

“Ra, bi…… -chan……” [T.N: “Rabbit-chan” maybe]

Alo walks to the pieces of Earth Rabbit scattered on the ground and falls on her knees.
Drops of water leak out of Alo’s eyes, streaming down her cheeks.
She’s unmistakably crying.

If the Earth Rabbit weren’t there, then Alo would’ve been the first to be eaten by the Abyss.
The Earth Rabbits didn’t die for nothing.
They died protecting their creator till the very end.

But, saying that is not gonna make her feel any better.
Alo most likely didn’t make the Earth Rabbits to be her meat shield.
If so, then the reason why she made them was……
It was definitely to alleviate her sadness.
Just like her〖Earth Doll〗skill, I also have a similar〖Fake Life〗skill too.

…… But now, I can’t leave the shrine alone anymore.
I don’t know when another Abyss will attack this place again.
This whole Abyss breeding season is getting really scary now.

The only other way is to increase Alo and everyone else’s level.
Then, Alo and the others will be able to protect themselves.

Alo’s evolution so far were【Wight: F】,【Skull Low Mage: E】, and【Revana Mage: D】.
At first, she was a really fragile skeleton who easily falls apart, but as a【Skull Low Mage】, she could control her body more effectively and her magical capacity increased.
Now, as a【Revana Mage】, she obtained skin made out of earth with magic.
She should be able to look more human on her next evolution.

Following the pattern, her next evolution has to be rank C.
If she becomes a rank C like the Abyss, then she’ll be on par with it.
Plus, if Treant evolves too, then the two of them could easily pound the Abyss in its place.

As for the young spiders, the Baby Arachne… I don’t know when my〖Dragon Moth Scales〗will start to affect them.
In fact, the instant I notice a〖Curse〗condition on them, I am returning them back to the wild.
Until then, I’ll try to farm them up some experience too, but at a distance.
Since we hatched and raised them ourselves, we have an obligation to.
Besides, they see the Abyss as something edible, so if I raise them right, I can grow them into natural-born Abyss hunters.

Now that that’s decided, our target for this hunt is the Abyss then, right?
Well, they’ll eventually show up even if we just walk around…… so, Abyss it is then.
Personally, I want it to be a different weaker monster though.

Wait a minute, Alo and Lesser Treant fought against the Abyss just now.
So, they should’ve received some amount of exp points too.

Right then, let's have a look at their status.

‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
Name: Alo
Species: Revana Mage
Status: Cursed
Lv: 6/30
HP: 46/60
MP: 51/63
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐

‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
Species: Lesser Treant
Status: Cursed
Lv: 4/25
HP: 21/44
MP: 14/29
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐

Alo’s level went up from 3 to 6.
Even though she didn’t put up much of a fight, I guess the Abyss just gives that much exp points to her.
At this pace, if we earnestly level her up with strenuous effort, rank C is just around the corner.

‐‐‐‐«Dragon God’s Shrine»‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
【〖Ouroboros〗: A】Lv: 71/125
【〖Revana Mage〗: D】Lv: 6/30
【〖Lesser Treant〗: D】Lv: 4/25
【〖Baby Arachne〗: E】Lv: 1/12
【〖Baby Arachne〗: E】Lv: 1/12
【〖Baby Arachne〗: E】Lv: 1/12
【〖Baby Arachne〗: E】Lv: 1/12
【〖Baby Arachne〗: E】Lv: 1/12
【〖Baby Arachne〗: E】Lv: 1/12
【〖Baby Arachne〗: E】Lv: 1/12
【〖Baby Arachne〗: E】Lv: 1/12
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐