The thick poisonous smoke and pungent acidic stench still filled the air inside the underground nest.
Alrain refocused his gaze on the giant monster in front of him. His eyes narrowed sharply, staring at the Queen Giant Wasp that was now thrashing in anger.
Zoom!
Alrain darted incredibly fast, cleaving through the poisonous air while gripping sword blade made of highly compressed wind magic that had perfectly formed in his right hand.
He swung his sword, aiming directly at the monster's neck with full force.
Clang!
The clanking sound of metal colliding rang out very clearly and loudly, echoing into every corner of the cave.
The lethal slash that usually could cleave through monsters like tofu was now forcibly halted. The wind magic sword in his hand were completely unable to slice the monster's neck. His sword scraped harshly against the Queen Giant Wasp's exoskeleton, sparking blinding glints of fire.
It's incredibly hard! Alrain thought while continuing to press his sword against the monster's neck, trying to find a weak point. It feels like I'm slashing through thick, multi-layered steel. It seems this monster truly is the king here!
Realizing his attack yielded no results and instead left his defense wide open, Alrain immediately retreated. He leaped backward, putting a distance of a dozen meters between them to avoid a sudden attack from the monster.
However, the green-haired youth's composure was instantly tested. He became extremely shocked upon seeing the giant-bodied monster dart quickly toward him with a speed that was utterly absurd for its size.
The monster attempted to attack and brutally pierce Alrain using the two spear-sized stingers at the ends of its left and right arms.
With high reflexes, Alrain dodged the lethal thrust. The tip of the stinger merely pierced empty air and obliterated the stone pillar behind him into shattered pieces.
The monster, already enveloped in absolute anger, did not give up. It continued to chase and attack the human who had dared to infiltrate and disturb its territory.
Without the slightest bit of mercy, the monster gave Alrain absolutely no pause to counterattack. It kept moving in relentless pursuit, swinging its stingers and destroying the rock formations inside the cave.
Damn! It just keeps chasing me! Alrain thought while continuously dodging the consecutive stings directed at him. I cannot fight freely in this narrow space. I must lure it out of the cave so I can fight freely without the fear of this cave collapsing.
Realizing the risk of being buried under rocks if a large-scale battle was prolonged in a closed space, Alrain changed his strategy.
He darted toward the outside of the cave. However, the youth did not use his full speed, instead, he darted at a speed deliberately balanced with the monster's maximum speed, ensuring he acted as the perfect bait.
And just as Alrain intended, the Queen Giant Wasp was fully provoked. The monster scuttled and darted following him from behind, causing small tremors with every step it took.
Even though its body is that massive, that monster can still keep up with me! Truly terrifying.
Splat!
A spray of thick venomous fluid was launched once again by the monster from behind as they traversed the corridor.
Sensing the lethal, venomous acidic fluid approaching, Alrain tilted his body and dodged the attack again with a very agile movement.
The fluid hit the cave wall beside him, instantly melting the hard rock in the blink of an eye.
The two of them continued to dart and chase each other along the dark corridor, until finally, a sliver of sunlight became visible. Alrain exited the mouth of the cave, heading toward the vast forest area. The giant monster also lunged out of the cave, tearing through the vines covering the entrance.
When everything went exactly as he had planned, Alrain smiled in satisfaction.
Being in an open space, he no longer needed to hold back. He immediately spun his body to face the monster while continuing to dart backward in the air.
Alrain focused the mana inside his body directly at the Queen Giant Wasp.
Crackt! Crash!
A bolt of lightning descended from the sky at the speed of light. The lightning struck right on top of the Queen Giant Wasp's body with extraordinary destructive power.
So powerful was the energy pressure that the lightning strike not only engulfed the monster but also obliterated the ground surface beneath its body, creating a sizable crater and blowing up a thick cloud of dust.
Did it work?
However, the answer to his question arrived in a lethal form. From behind the veil of the swirling dust, three shots of thick green fluid emerged, darting incredibly fast toward him.
Alrain immediately dodged them with perfect precision. Yet, the monster did not stop. A second and third attack were launched consecutively from within the dust cloud. He evaded the barrage of deadly acid attacks time and time again with a mesmerizing aerial dance.
Realizing there was a brief opening in the monster's spray pattern, Alrain seized the opportunity to counterattack. He once again formed a sword blade out of wind magic, then darted through the dust cloud straight toward the Queen Giant Wasp with his magic sword now sharply drawn.
Clang!
Sparks sprayed into the air once more. The Queen Giant Wasp highly deftly parried Alrain's slash of the wind sword using the thick stinger on its left arm.
This is crazy! It's not just the head that's hard?!Alrain exclaimed in his heart, his eyes widening in disbelief because, for the second time, the direct attack he launched had absolutely no impact on the monster's outer skin. Just what kind of monster is this?
Despite being surprised, Alrain did not halt the rhythm of his attacks. He continued attacking, launching slashes from various angles. From above, below, down to the Queen Giant Wasp's blind spots. However, all those attacks were successfully deflected and parried with extreme precision by the monster's two stinger arms.
While continuously clashing in physical strength mid-air, Alrain's mind worked very rapidly. He kept analyzing the body structure of the monster he was fighting.
His eyes caught an important detail. Although the monster's exoskeleton, head, and stingers were as hard as steel, its mobility heavily relied on the six giant legs supporting such a massive body. The joints connecting its legs were not covered by the thick steel-like shell.
What if I attack and cut off its legs one by one? Alrain thought, formulating a new tactic.
Without a second thought, Alrain shifted his target point. He feigned an attack toward the monster's head, then instantly changed his trajectory, darting into a sharp dive toward the Queen Giant Wasp's rows of legs at an extremely high speed.
Alrain's momentum could not be stopped.
Slash!
His magic sword slipped past the gap in the monster's defense, and with a single, highly powerful vertical swing, he successfully severed one of the monster's three left legs right at the joint. Thick yellowish-green blood squirted out, soaking the ground.
"KIIIIIKKKKKKKK...!!!!!!!"
The monster shrieked in pain for the very first time. Its voice was extremely loud, high-pitched, and incredibly deafening, creating a small shockwave in the surrounding air.
The Queen Giant Wasp lost its balance for a moment, and its massive body swayed to the left.
Goodness... its scream really makes my ears ring. Alrain cursed as he spun his body away, landing on a tree branch, rubbing his lightly ringing ears.
A cold smile was once again etched on Alrain's lips upon realizing that his attack just now had succeeded perfectly. Now, he knew for certain the weakness of the monster that possessed a steel-like exoskeleton skin.
Mobility is the key. If I cripple all of its legs, this monster is nothing more than an armored sandbag.
The green-haired youth raised his magic sword, staring straight at the monster that was now thrashing in pain.
"Time for the final battle, you damn monster!"