The result is really satisfying.
[Shadow Infantryman Lv. 2]
[Shadow Infantryman Lv. 3]
[Shadow Infantryman Lv. 2]
[Shadow magic warrior Lv. 2]
The level of the soldiers has improved well. Moreover, since these shadow warriors were considered part of his skill set, even Souta's level had increased by 3.
What I like the most is one more thing.
"Get up."
[Shadow extraction successful.]
[Shadow extraction successful.]
[Shadow extraction successful.]
….And the point of it is the fact that he can recruit new 'friends' now.
Roooarr...
From the shadows of the few Ice Bears Souta had chosen, which of course included the boss Ice Bear, black forms began to slowly appear.
'Whereas I thought an Ice Bear in armor would appear...'
Unfortunately, my hopes were far off.
These creatures come with a name tag that says 'shadow beast Warriors'; on a cursory glance, they somewhat resemble Ice Bears, but it is still difficult to ascertain whether these monsters are actually tangible or not.
The creatures continued to Pant as a black mist resembling steam billowed from their backs.
'Well, uh, they may not look so nice, but, they're definitely the shadow of an Ice Bear.'
Rooaarrr…
Souta's ears twitched after hearing the roar of an Ice Bear from a distance. There are actually Some Ice Bears.
'I mean, this isn't the only Ice Bear Den, is it?'
It's getting late, should i visit there tomorrow?
A bright smile formed on Souta's face.
"Krrooaar..."
An Ice Bear screamed and fell to the ground.
The Shadow Warrior pounced on him and made sure he could no longer breathe.
[Level up!]
"Good..."
Souta was standing on another' bear farm'.
It has been five days since our arrival in this snowy world. He's already cleared three bear farms.
'It seems that I have killed most of the Bears in this forest.'
His level has increased considerably during this time. Likewise with his soldiers. Initially, they had to attack the bear in pairs to kill it, but now, they can achieve victory in a one-on-one fight.
It's very satisfying.
After the soldiers ' stats improved, I gave them different roles.
I can now store 30 shadows. 28 Warriors took part in the battle, one Shadow Warrior went around picking up magic crystals, while the other secured the bear meat.
I didn't even have to move a finger, but still got the loot from the hunt, so this proved to be very practical for me.
'I can't feel the presence of any other monsters around here anymore.'
It seems that I have more or less taken care of all the monsters in the forest.
In such cases...
'Should I start trying to kill the boss?'
It may take at least a month, or in the worst case scenario, several months before dungeon break occurs. He couldn't just sit here and wait for the gates to open.
'And, I still have to kill that impudent ice Elf as well...'
A despicable Monster that dared to provoke us. His proud smile is still etched in my memory.
Meanwhile the horde of ice Elves looked at the corpses of the ice bears lying in the forest, seeing that their leader who was riding a horse smiled maliciously and cunningly because he had encountered an interesting thing.
The Mato dimension
Approximately 5 hours have passed, if counted since himari and the others were trapped inside the gate.
The Chiefs are still looking for a way to open the gate. Among them, Chairman Fubuki Azuma was the most anxious, considering himari, who was one of her daughters trapped inside.
Chairman Mira Kamiunten seemed to be annoyed after trying various things to get into the gate, Mira clenched her fists, trying to restrain her emotions.
"Ah! No gaps at all! What the hell is this gate!?"
Ren stared silently at Mira,actually she thought of using her ability to teleport one of the leaders inside. But she soon abandoned her intention because it was too risky.
Fubuki stared at the Izumo chief who was still trying to Ame-no-Mitori to get into the gate.
"Tsk... The space inside is completely isolated. I can't even get through? This is crazy!"
She tried again, this time with more effort, but still no result. His eyes began to flicker in frustration.
Bell worriedly asked
"U-Um... Is Tenka-san really unable to enter...? If so, how can we save them...?"
Chief izumo sighed, breathed and held his breath
"Well, this is a big deal. Normally I could teleport anywhere without any problems, but this space inside the Red Gate was like a separate dimension... It's not just an ordinary barrier. It seems that this is completely separated from the outside world."
The Red Gate loomed before them, emitting a sinister aura. The Chiefs of the Anti-Demon Corps could only stare in tension, while Fubuki stood still, her fist trembling. Her breathing was heavy, and her normally calm expression was now filled with worry.
"no...himari..."
She tried to convince herself that her youngest daughter was fine, but her inner voice kept screaming otherwise. Fubuki bit her lips, her hands clenched stronger and stronger. Kyouka looked at her with concern., But soon with Fubuki's movements.
"Fubuki...?"
Fubuki raised her hand using the Sunset ability. The light shone, and in an instant it released a yari-based spear out of thin air with a symbol resembling the sun on the tip of its spear. Kyouka immediately tries to prevent it.
"Fubuki! don't do anything rash!"
But Fubuki refused to listen. With all her strength, she swung Sunset at the Red Gate. The force of the blow sent a shockwave ripping through the earth beneath them. Her spear's slash tore through the air at blinding speed before striking the Red Gate—the resulting blast was deafening.
BOOOM!
When the dust disappears, the result is... nothing. The Red Gate remained firmly standing, without even a hint of a crack.
Fubuki gasped, her eyes widened in disbelief, her spear quivering in her hand
"No ... no way ... no way!"I... can't save Himari...?"
Fubuki collapsed to her knees, her teeth sinking into her lip. Never before had she felt so utterly powerless. Her eyes shone with unshed tears—not of rage, but of crushing despair.
Varvara stood some distance away, staring at Kyouka who was trying to calm down the desperate Fubuki. Her keen eyes watched Kyouka's every move, her facial expression remained flat, yet full of admiration in her heart.
Varvara spoke softly, more to herself
"As always... she remains steadfast even when others crumble. How does she do it? Even after her unit was torn apart, she still rose, unwavering, and reached out..."
Ren stared at the gate ' it turned out that even coercion did not work. Then ... maybe my guess is correct, if the only one who can get them out of there is themselves.'
Inside the gate
At their modest camp, Himari daydreams of being a little bored
"we've been here more than 5 days. But until now... " Himari turned towards the forest. "he's Gone Again, huh?."
suddenly a snowball rolled into his face
Himari cleans the snow on her face and looks at the pitcher,it turns out that it was nei who was playing with shushu.
"Ah, sorry Himari-san. I didn't mean to."
Himari just sighed seeing nei's behavior,then immediately stood up from where she was sitting, then approached nei.
"it's okay nei-chan,it's just that I'm glad you can still be this cheerful even though we're trapped inside here." Himari put her hand on nei's head while smiling, but in the middle of that warm moment.
Buk
One snowball landed back on himari's face,himari with a slightly annoyed face cleared the snow on her face. He then turned slowly towards shushu who was smiling nosily.
"Come on, himari. Don't be too tense," while smiling nosily. "instead of daydreaming, come join us for a snowball." Then throw snowballs at himari.
Himari then smiled
"well, then. I accept your challenge! Nei-chan come on!"
"good! Get ready shushu-san!"
Shushu ran away from them and looked back.
"Hey, you guys cheated! Two against one!"
The three of them play snowballs,distracting themselves from the fact they are still trapped inside the gate. However ... from within the forest the three of them had not yet realized the horde of ice Elves waiting for the right moment to attack. Until it was time for the ice Elf leader to whisper.
"Vah'kael."("attack")
Dozens of arrows hurtled down Himari, Nei, and Shushu. With mesmerizing reflexes, Himari shot forward, her left arm transforming into a missile launcher that unleashed a series of mini-missiles. Boom! Boom! The arrows shattered into pieces in the air.
The leader of the ice Elves squinted, surprised but still calm. As Himari turns to aim at the elf army—
stab!
A dagger pierced her left arm, cutting off the flow of energy. "Tch—?!"Her mechanical abilities were instantly extinguished. Before she could react, the ice Elf leader pulled her body roughly and then—
Bang!
"Agh -!"A hard kick landed on her solar plexus, throwing her a few meters away. Himari rolled on the ground, breathing heavily.
"Himari!"Nei shouted, but the ice Elf leader was already moving like the wind. In an instant, he caught Nei and threw her into the middle of the elf army.
"Lle naa quel... nan 'amin asked entula," said the leader with a cold smile, his eyes narrowed at Himari who was trying to get up. "Lle tyava quel."("Your game is over.")
Nei writhed trying to fight back, but the elves immediately surrounded her. "Let go -!"A pressure on her neck made her unsteady, and she was again subdued.
Seeing that, Himari clenched her teeth. "Transience... active!"The wound on her arm glowed, the biomechanical tissue slowly fused back together. "Shushu! Save Nei-let me deal with him!"
Shushu nodded, her body suddenly doubled in size. With heavy steps, she lunged at the line of elves that surrounded Nei.
Suddenly—
Swoosh!
The Ice Elf leader appeared like lightning beside Himari, his dagger snatching towards her ribs.
"Do not dream!"Himari growled, and in a split second, her right arm turned into a ferocious spinning chainsaw—BRRRRRT!
Kreng!
The elf was forced to jump back, dodging the attack. But Himari didn't give him time to breathe.
"Switch: Machine Gun!"Her left arm - still half recovered-metamorphosed into a heavy weapon. "Eat this!"
Ddorrrr! Energy bullets scatter.
The Ice Elf leader frowned, his face momentarily showing panic. His hands move quickly-click! Click!- deflect some bullets with his dagger, while his body rotates like a vortex to avoid the rest.
"Lle nwalma amin i'indó!"("You are really testing my patience!")
Himari stood up straight, though her body was still splashing unstable energy. "You haven't seen anything."
Suddenly, the ice Elf leader looked back. Shushu had already cleared the way, but the elves continued to block him. With a sudden movement, The Ice Elf leader ran away from Himari, targeting Shushu.
"No!"Himari wanted to catch up, but the rest of the elf army immediately closed its way.
In the distance, the ice Elf leader jumped onto Shushu's back who was still in the form of a giant. "Amin naa' quen ta." ( "I'll end this,") he whispered, his dagger flaming.
Shushu, realizing the danger, suddenly deflates her body back to normal size..
"Lle creoso."("Too easy.")
Stab!
The dagger hit Shushu on the shoulder. Before she could scream—
Whap! A spinning kick landed on her temple.
"Ghk -!"Shushu bounced, her body collapsed helplessly in a snowdrift
The Ice Elf leader landed gracefully, a triumphant smile expanding. "Sii'... lle selaya ereth." ("Now...you're on your own."), he said, staring at Himari who had already killed all the elves who surrounded him.
Blood dripped from the corner of Himari's mouth. But in her eyes, the flame of resistance was still burning.
Himari activated a mode, her entire body bathed in the light of glowing marks appearing on her forehead and on her forearms as she activated a special mode—a combination of the various blessings she had learned and mastered.
The light echoed across the battleground, making the elves retreat wary.
However, the ice Elf leader instantly realized the danger. He began to move quickly, trying to get close to Nei, who was still being held hostage, in order to make the girl a hostage of the shield.
But Himari didn't let that happen.
"Ame-no-Mitori," she whispered.
Instantly, a dimensional portal opened right behind the ice Elf leader. In an instant, Himari stepped out from behind him, activating chief Yakumo's Night Storm—a gust of strong wind exploded from her body, flying the ice Elf Leader away from Nei.
Once the situation was under control, Himari immediately activated All-Killing.
Her shadow flickered—and in an instant, several clones appeared around him.
"You two, protect and save Nei," Himari orders the two clones.
The rest? They turned around, staring at the ice Elf Leader together.
The hands of the Clones change shape—some become heavy cannons, others form melee weapons such as swords and energy Spears. The battle Aura surged sharply.
Meanwhile, the two Himari clones tasked with rescuing Nei move on without much of a hitch. The strength of ordinary Elves is not comparable to even a single clone of Himari.
One of the Clones turns her arm into a missile launcher, and points it at a line of elves trying to block.
"Fire."
The explosion shook the ground. The missiles sped off, hitting and destroying the vanguard of the elf army. The ground shook, trees fell, and the sound of explosions silenced everything.
As soon as the smoke filled the area, one clone of Himari who had been waiting slid forward, using Beast Power to increase her speed.
He pierced through the ruins and darted towards the elves who were holding Nei hostage.
The panicked elves tried to threaten, swords pointed at Nei's neck.
But before they could move...
"Ame-no-Mitori."
Himari clones firing missiles appear from a portal just behind the elves.
Instantly, it activates Python.
Consecutive blows hit the body of the elf who was holding Nei hostage, followed by a quick rotation—the elbow hit the jaw of the elf who attacked from behind, until the sound of bone cracking was heard.
The other two elves advanced frantically.
Himari's kick hit one elf's chest, lifting him into the air. It jumped and twisted, hitting the second elf's face with its heel.
An arrow shot from a distance-Himari dodged while rolling, then hit the ground with her fist. Explosions of debris and dust blinded the enemy's sight.
From behind the smoke, Himari appeared like a shadow. One-two-three quick blows hit the bodies of the unprepared elves. They crashed like soulless puppets.
The Python movement has arranged everything.
The rest of the elves tried to retreat—too late.
Himari zig-zagged between them, taking them down one by one with a combination of kicks and accurate punches. Brutal. Efficient. Deadly.
In less than two minutes, dozens of elves fell, and Nei was rescued.
One clone of Himari lifted Nei's body, taking him away from the battlefield.
The other clone protects against the remaining Elves, activating the Shield on his arm.
On the other hand
CRAAASSHH!
The Ice Elf leader split the windstorm from the Night Storm and landed violently, hitting the ground and creating a crack splitting the rock below.
But just wanted to be on standby,
"SHING!"
A flash of Himari's clone katana strikes from the left-DINGG!
The Silver Dagger holds perfectly, creating sparks from metal friction.
"Tch...!"
Himari's clone retreats. Tap! Tap! Tap! her footsteps sounded light but trained.
That's when...
"GRUAAAAHH!"
BRAK!
The second clone lunged from the side, Beast Power activated,and a heavy blow hit the ice Elf leader's body, sending the Elf's body thrown like a doll towards the third clone.
The third clone arm had already turned into a missile launcher,and was already aiming at the ice Elf leader
"Shoot!"
Missile launched
SHOOOMMM! KRAKABOOOOOM!
The explosion spread rapidly, creating shocks and bursts of fire.
"BWOOOOOOOSH!"Thick billowing smoke.
Be quiet for a moment…
"GGRRAAAHHHH!"
From behind the explosion mist, the figure of the ice Elf leader jumped out with an angry cry. "WHOOSH!"his body shot like a bullet.
"ZSHHH!"
He dodged the advanced missiles that shot at him, rolling and gliding through the air.
However...
It's not the missile launcher clones that are the target.
KRAK!
Sharp dagger Strikes Back, SHINGG!
About the fourth Himari clone that appeared secretly. "ARGH -!"
KA-THUD!
The Clone's body bounced off, then disappeared in a flash of light, PSSHHHH!
WHUMP!
As soon as it landed, the ice Elf leader spun quickly, "WHOOM!"
His foot hit the knee of a missile launcher clone, knocking her down.
Stab!
The dagger pierces the Clone's head, which then explodes into light.
VSSHHH -!
Silence.
Slow steps are heard... Tap... tap...
The Ice Elf leader stood tall, his dagger still dripping light from The Clone magic energy he had just finished off. His face was covered with scratches and snow dust, but his evil smile expanded again.
Lle ilya er..."("One more left...") Tap... tap…
His steps were light but full of confidence as he swept his gaze around.
And yet—nobody.
"Tch... i'tara...?"("Tch... the real one...?") Suddenly…
ZSHHH!
A clone of Himari appears from behind a shadow to his right—
CRACK!
A crushing blow struck the ice Elf leader's knee, making him kneel suddenly on the snow.
"KRRR!"
Not yet having time to rise, Himari's clone jumped high into the air—beast power was active, energy thundered around him.
"DOOM!"
The blow from above hit brutally.
"BOOOOM!"
The Ice Elf leader withstood the attack with his dagger,the ground beneath them broke, snow gushed in all directions, and the ice Elf leader's body was half-submerged in a frozen puddle.
"GHHHHH -!" he groaned, panicked and lost his balance.
His eyes widened.
But just as Himari's clone was about to swing the decisive blow—
PSSSHHH!
The Clone disappeared in the light, just disappeared.
"Huh...?"
Silence.
Then...
"Heh..."
The arrogant smile of the ice Elf leader was again engraved.
"You can't take it anymore, Can you?"
And sure enough.
A few meters from there...
"Haaah... haah... haa..."
The original Himari stood with a trembling body, her breathing intermittent, sweat mixed with blood dripping down her temples. Her eyes were blurry, but still lit with determination.
Snow falls slowly.
With the rest of his energy, Himari raised both hands slowly…
GOLDEN HOUR.