At first glance he looked a lot like a Frogman, especially if you looked at his big belly, which seemed to be full of air. Or the suction cups on his knuckles. Even their faces were quite similar. However, his skin was grayish, not green, and he did not carry a harpoon in his hand, as frogmen always did.
But most importantly...
Wings ...?
On his back were a pair of wings that seemed completely out of place. It looked like they had been cut with scissors and glued there.
Crrh!
Suddenly, the one who was climbing rose into the air before landing on the deck.
So those wings weren't just for show, huh?
«Emily, what rank is it?» I knew I couldn't give a completely accurate classification with Crisis Detection, but it would still give us a rough idea.
«It's not even rank seven, since I don't detect it as a threat at all».
That was all the confirmation I needed.
«Under rank seven...»
Now there were about fifteen of them, silently watching us from the silver water. As more of them began to climb onto the deck, I shouted orders. «Don't rush to attack them yet! For now, we need to gather as much information as we can about them».
«Ugh!» Ainar, who had tried to run towards them, stopped when he heard my order. Luckily, he knew how to listen.
«Behel-aaaaaah!» I quickly ran forward, raising my threat level with Wild Burst. It didn't take long for mysterious monsters to attack me. However, his attack pattern was completely different from what he expected.
They did not use their teeth or claws. They also did not hold a weapon like a harpoon in their hands. So how did they attack?
Swoosh.
Apparently out of nowhere, some kind of lightning-type projectile materialized and shot towards us. Of course, since I was below rank seven, the attack did me no harm. I blocked most of the rays with my shield, but not even the ones I couldn't pierce my skin.
What the hell...?
I was paralyzed. But it wasn't because of a state of Paralysis or anything like that. It just surprised me.
«Mr. Yandel... Right now, that monster...»
Yeah. So I wasn't the only one who noticed.
Erwen spoke then, finishing Versyl's sentence. «Wasn't that Fleminas' Thunder Bone?».
The seven rank monster Fleminas was a lightning type monster that appeared in sections of the third and fourth floors. So why was this thing using an ability unique to another type of monster?
Is he a special mutant or a Mini boss?
The idea was on my mind, but it was impossible. The fifteen monsters in our deck used exactly the same ability.
A type of monster that uses the same ability as another...
If that was the case, what about his other abilities?
After a little more bait and experimentation, I discovered another surprising fact.
«It is... the Iron Falcon Armored Feather».
«Oh! I know that one! That's the rank six Seaworm Bubble!»
«No. rank six... That's rank seven...»
His three active abilities came from different monsters. I was wondering what his passive abilities were, but unfortunately, that was a little harder to figure out. I swung my hammer, trying to get rid of one of them, only to be suddenly thwarted at the last second.
[Due to Rotten Mucus, your attack failed.]
So you have the Frogman passive? No wonder they looked alike. Well, that's enough research for now. It's time to get rid of them.
«That's enough for now. You can kill them!»
«Are you sure?»
As soon as I gave the go-ahead, Ainar ran forward and started killing them all. We were the first not only to discover a new type of monster, but also to defeat them.
[You have killed a seagull frog. EXP +0]
That? I don't think I got any EXP from that. Sure, it was lower than rank seven and wouldn't give me much, but I should still feel something at least...
[No. 9999: Beginner's Luck Activated].
My thoughts instantly derailed as soon as I saw what was happening.
«...An essence!»
Woah, he had really released an essence.
«...Versyl! Quick, grab a vial!» I hurried to instruct our magician, my mind buzzing.
So will this essence give the user the Rotten Mucus of Frogman or the active ability of the Sea Worm, Iron Falcon, or Fleminas? Or maybe all of them?
...This could irrevocably change the entire system of essence combinations.
***
Our first battle was over, and our loot was a green essence. He had to check it later to confirm it, but for the moment, it seemed to be the Iron Falcon's Armored Feather, if the color was any indication.
«Versyl, how many vials of essence are left?»
«Twenty-seven».
«I thought Melbeth had only given us twenty».
«I also brought everything I had, just in case».
«Ya veo... »
«What should I do with the vial?»
«You can save it for now. It will be easier to keep track of them if one person takes care of everyone». After deciding what to do with the vials, I turned to my companions. «But most importantly, what did you feel? When did Ainar kill the first one...?»
«Oh, you mean there was no sense of accomplishment? Like the one you usually have after killing a monster for the first time?»
«Hey? Did everyone else feel the same? I thought I was the only one...»
Seeing as none of them felt like they were gaining any EXP either, it was clear that there weren't any to find in the first place.
So the concept of this plant is quite strange...
In addition to not providing any EXP, we had confirmed that at least some of the monsters here had the characteristics of various monsters, like a chimera. Realizing this, I felt a little depressed. If all the monsters here were like this, we wouldn't be able to find any abilities yet to be discovered. I was hoping we'd at least find something new. However, on the other hand...
«...I can't believe there are monsters here with the abilities of various species. Once this information is made public, things will sink into Chaos».
This could end up causing a massive commotion, revolutionizing the way people combined essences and abilities and potentially opening up new, completely overpowered teams. It was as if we had just unlocked a secret customization feature.
If I can take advantage of the Steel Giant's active ability without the passive one... then I won't have to worry about weapon limitations».
Along the same lines, there are many other active and passive skills that I would like to get my hands on, but that were not included in my final build due to the mediocre stats associated with their essences. What if he could use the orc hero's giantization with another passive ability? That meant my final team could be even stronger. Path of Heroes wasn't bad, but it wasn't anything special either, since it was only rank five. Overall, its performance and effects were mediocre. The total stats granted by the essence were also quite low. If it weren't for the fact that gigantization and union were a great combo, then I would have chosen from a wide range of essences with even higher stats...
...Is there a monster that can give me the same ability with better stats?
I had no idea. There was also the possibility that this type of monster was unique and we would never encounter anything like it again. At the same time, there was a possibility that we would encounter new monsters with totally new and never-before-seen essences.
This is fun.
As a player who loved Dungeon and Stone, my heart was pounding with excitement. What awaited us? I was looking forward to knowing what else we would find. However, I knew I couldn't get too careless or excited. After all, the unknown was both an opportunity and a disaster about to occur.
«Lift anchor!»
After getting rid of the monsters on the deck, we resumed our journey. It seemed like this entire area was home to these electric frogs. From time to time, they would come out of the sea and climb up to our boat. But this time, however, we hunted them with Distortion.
[Versyl Gowland has cast the high-level space-time spell Distortion.]
These things were a new type of monster, so he was sure that whatever they released could be sold to the Magic Tower for a high price.
«¡Bjorn!»
«If you're bored, you can at least clean the cover.»
«It's not that, I have something to say!»
«... What is it?» Throughout the entire trip, Ainar had been peppering me with irrelevant questions, seemingly unconcerned about the danger that might await us.
For example: «What name are you going to give them?».
«Name...?» Actually, I hadn't even thought about that. How are monsters named? «Erwen, you know?»
«Um... Not sure...»
Unexpectedly, Erwen didn't know what the monsters were called either. Versyl, despite being a wizard who should know these things, was a gambler and didn't seem to know either.
«The truth is that... I had never thought about it... I guess whoever was the first person to find a monster was the one who gave it a name».
«Um... probably».
Having overheard the conversation we were having, Amelia left Auyen alone for a moment and approached us with open interest. «Nanari», declared.
"...¿Which?"
«What do you think Nanari? Sounds good... and... I think it's cute too».
Huh. Surprisingly, he liked that kind of thing.
«...We are naming a monster right now. Why should we make it sound cute, Emily?»
«But the name can't be anything? Whatever the person who found it wants it to be?»
«I guess.»
It wasn't long before everyone was interested in naming the new monster. After all, we were all adventurers to the core. I figured the opportunity to name new species could motivate them on future expeditions, so I encouraged their interest.
«Then let me know if you have any ideas. We can take a vote and decide later».
«A vote... It's fair. Then I will go to Nanari. And I will give ten thousand stones to whoever votes in favor», declared Amelia.
«I said we were going to vote. Why are you suddenly trying to buy from everyone...?»
«Well, it's not like I'm forcing them to accept my offer».
«...Well, do what you want.»
It didn't seem very fair to me, to be honest, but I let it go. With the tone now set, the other members of our clan quickly jumped in to express their opinions as well.
«Ultimate Sundra! What do you think? Doesn't it sound loud?»
«But it's not even rank seven», Versyl replied, rejecting Ainar's suggestion. «Why don't we give it a name based on its characteristics? Since we know that it has the essences of a Sea Worm, an Iron Falcon, a Fleminas and a Frogman...»
«Do you want to combine all that...?»
«Sea Falcon Females!»
"...¿Which?"
«Flemman Sea Falcon!» Versyl repeated enthusiastically. «Isn't that good enough?»
I felt my brain suffer a hard reset at the name, but surprisingly, it was well received by the other members of our clan.
«Oh! How beautiful! It's also a very strong name!»
«...It's definitely catchy. I can even imagine what it's like just from the name».
«Isn't Nanari better? I will give you twenty thousand stones».
After that, a few other names were added to the list of candidates. Finally, it was time to vote, and the results were...
«Siete votos para Gullfrog. Sea… Falcon Flemman holds tres votos. Nanari holds dos votos. Y Kiruru holds one».
«That? That doesn't make any sense. How are there thirteen votes when there are only seven people?»
«Ah, Versyl, didn't you know that? It is in the statutes of our clan. The captain's vote is worth the same as the number of people in the clan».
«...How is that democratic?!»
My voice froze. «Democratic? What is that?»
«Oh, eso es...»
Versyl closed her mouth as she realized his slip of the tongue late.
That's how it is. If you are a player, you must be careful not to say things like that. After all, the term «democracy» does not exist in this world.
«So it's decided. From now on his name is Gullfrog».
Thus, the name of the first monster we discovered became Gullfrog. It was a half-name that occurred to me after seeing his frog-like appearance and seagull wings, but at least, he was better than Sea Hawk or whatever the hell everyone voted for.
***
«Alright, let's all get back to our positions and get to work!»
After being fired, Erwen headed back to the bridge while Auyen and Amelia returned to the helm to steer the ship. Versyl also went fishing again, trying to collect as many samples as she could.
«Ainar, stop wasting time and go clean the cover».
«...But Missha isn't doing anything either!»
«Missha... has something else to do...»
«…¿Eh?»
«Missha... Get on the deck there and take care of the monsters that come up».
«Ohhh! I want that job! Let me do it!»
«¡Shoo!»
In the end, everyone went back to work, and I walked around the boat making sure everything was going smoothly.
Suddenly, Versyl called me. «Mr. Yandel, can you come for a moment?»
«Have you found anything?»
I approached quickly and Versyl handed me an object that he had taken out of the sea. «I just found this. What do you think? Don't you think it will sell at a good price in the city?».
«...A painting?»
«Yeah. Although this place looks like an ocean, the portrait is completely fine. The paper is not even a little wet».
Huh... a piece of maze art would definitely be worth a lot...
«Let me take a look».
Versyl gave me the portrait so I could examine it. But as soon as I saw it, I froze. It was a sketch of a man standing next to a woman who appeared to be his wife. Interspersed between them was a girl looking at the viewer.
«What...? What's happening? Do you... know them by chance?».
It would be an exaggeration to say that I knew them. And it was even harder for me to find a reason why a portrait of this man would be here of all places.
«Something».
The man in this family portrait... It had been a few years since I last saw him, but...
It was none other than Hans A, the man I had sent to the labyrinth during my first expedition.