I Am Not Goblin Slayer

Chapter 268: The Money... It Flew Away

"Petrification?"To be honest, when they learned about this ability, multiple potential targets popped into everyone's minds.

There were quite a few types of monsters possessing petrification abilities.

But when Gauss saw certain special deep hoofprints not far away on the ground, his eyes narrowed slightly.

He seemed to have guessed what monster was inhabiting this area.

Of course, whether it was what he had in mind still needed further verification.

In actual adventures, one must avoid taking things for granted;it's best to have multiple preparations for everything until final confirmation.

"Let's continue forward."

With a clue, the team's search direction became more defined.

Shadow activated her ability, transforming into a shadow to quickly conduct a carpet search of the surrounding area. Soon, she found other piles of shattered stone and, based on their distribution, roughly deduced the direction where the target was located.

"That should be over there."

After Shadow returned to the team, Gauss summarized her information and looked into the distance.

He flew above the forest and could see a relatively flat grassland there. Combined with Shadow's intelligence, the target obviously inhabited that area.

The plain wasn't too far from Gauss's location. As they progressed, Gauss saw an increasing number of petrified statues along the way, some even retaining complete forms.

They looked like vivid works of art.

Even the most skilled master sculptor probably couldn't create such realistic statues.

Especially the expressions of desperate terror on their faces;through their expressions, one could almost feel their helplessness moments before being turned to stone across time and space.

The group examined the stone statues for a moment.

Then they continued following the direction indicated by the footprints.

The traces left by the target also became more numerous.

"It should be a Gorgon."

Gauss spoke up.

The violent hoofprints on the ground were clearly the result of some heavy creature trampling and charging wildly.

When the group passed through the sparse forest and reached the edge of the plain, they indeed saw a large creature from a distance.

"It really is a Gorgon!"

This was a heavyweight creature standing about 1.8 meters at the shoulder, approximately 2.5 meters long, weighing several tons.

Its body surface was covered with iron-plate-like natural armor.

While Gauss observed it, green mist was erupting from its nostrils.

Information about it flashed through Gauss's mind.

Although this monster appeared in bovine form, it was actually extremely aggressive and would actively attack targets entering its territory.

Moreover, it wasn't a herbivore but a pure carnivorous monster.

When hunting prey, it would charge at the target. Enemies suppressed by it would be brutally trampled to death under its iron hooves.

Besides its powerful charge attack, the green steam it exhaled was also a deadly threat;creatures touching the steam would turn to stone.

When hungry, it would smash these petrified prey into rubble, then chew these petrified fragments into powder, absorbing sufficient nutrients and energy from them.

Thus, the presence of a Gorgon would significantly alter the local ecology.

Most notably, the number of large predators near its habitat would sharply decrease—either driven away by it or turned into stone statues, becoming its food reserves.

When hungry, it would smash some to eat.

This was because other carnivorous animals were its "competitors."

In terms of challenge level, an adult Gorgon's challenge level was 5 or higher.

In short, this was a monster with a steel-like body, high natural armor, fast speed, capable of petrifying breath, and extremely aggressive.

Among monsters of the same challenge level, it was considered quite troublesome.

But...

For Gauss, it was a decent opponent.

Because this dangerous creature lacked sufficient long-range attack methods.

Close-combat professionals would find it quite challenging.

Although Gauss admitted he had been using close combat attacks more frequently lately and had just awakened his second sub-profession Sword Soul, he was fundamentally still a spellcaster.

Naturally, he had many long-range methods to attack this "land tank."

At worst, he could use Fly to escape.

"What do you think?"

Gauss briefly communicated his views with his companions.

"I think we can give it a try."

Aria nodded.

Everyone present had good mobility.

Gauss didn't need to mention it - after mastering Fly, he could take off anytime.

Aria could also transform into raven form.

Shadow could activate her shadow ability, vanishing into darkness.

Serlandul might be at a slight disadvantage.

But as a half-snake person, his base movement speed wasn't slow. Combined with equipment bonuses and the Swift Insect Wings skill he obtained earlier in the maze, his speed was also excellent.

Moreover, Serlandul was essentially a "healer" and didn't need to fight upfront.

Most of the time, after applying buffs, he could wait peacefully for the battle to end.

Seeing everyone eager to try,

Gauss confirmed this operation.

Although the afternoon's purpose was reconnaissance, everyone was prepared for combat.

"Since we don't know its exact level yet, we need to maintain distance and use long-range attacks to restrain and attack it."

"Its movement speed is fast, but its charge path is straight and has a wind-up action. We can use this to predict its movement trajectory in advance and dodge accordingly."

"Also, be careful of its petrifying breath."

"Serlandul, can your healing magic remove its petrification state?"

Facing Gauss's question, Serlandul shook his head.

He had already tested it on those stone fragments on the way.

At least, it didn't work on those scattered stone fragments.

"Then we'll plan assuming it can't. We absolutely must not be hit by its breath attack. Fortunately, its attack range isn't far."

Gauss continued speaking.

Without magic like Restoration to remove petrification effects, one could only rely on Constitution attribute to resist it.

Among those present, he might be the only one who could attempt it;he might withstand the petrification attack.

But, as the saying goes, a wise man does not stand under a dangerous wall.

He didn't plan to experiment with his own body.

"My Fireball should be able to kill it." Gauss continued.

"But since I'm still practicing, my proficiency isn't very high yet, so casting requires some time."

"That target Gorgon will likely run away before my Fireball fully forms."

Gauss stroked his chin.

Don't underestimate wild monsters;they are highly sensitive to mana.

And he only had one chance to use Fireball.

He had to make it count.

Why only one chance?

Because even though his talent Special Stomach provided extra mana, he needed to reserve more mana for casting Fly.

So he couldn't excessively drain his mana for Fireball.

After all, ensuring safe retreat was most important;whether they could eliminate the target this time was secondary.

At worst, they could regroup and come back another time.

As long as they held the initiative, there would be plenty of opportunities.

"Understood, we'll try to provide control for you."

Shadow and Aria nodded.

Their task was to keep the Gorgon within Fireball's explosion range before Gauss completed his Fireball preparation.

"Shadow, can you manage? If it's too dangerous, forget it."

Gauss looked at Shadow.

Her control ability was called Shadow Bind, a skill she exchanged with Adventurers Guild reward points recently.

The effect was as the name suggested. However, her effectiveness would be better than ordinary professionals due to her innate ability.

But, while attacking, damage dealt to the shadow by enemies would also harm the host.

"I'm fine."

Shadow nodded.

"Then everyone be careful, prioritize your own safety."

"Understood."

After briefly discussing the upcoming battle plan,

the group rested for a moment.

During their rest, the Gorgon didn't make any major movements.

They were far enough away.

Plus, the Gorgon had low intelligence and perception wasn't particularly outstanding;detecting them from such a distance was difficult.

"Then, operation begin."

As soon as he finished speaking, Aria and Serlandul began casting buffs on him.

"Enhance Attributes!"

Energy released from Aria's wooden staff merged into Gauss's body.

This time, she used the Fox enhancement direction, boosting Gauss's Intelligence attribute to facilitate his spellcasting later.

After Aria finished casting, Serlandul followed immediately.

"Blessing Spell!"

A heightened Blessing Spell was applied to Gauss.

Under dual enhancement, Gauss felt the mana in his body instantly become much more active.

Serlandul immediately cast Blessing Spell on Aria and Shadow.

As for Gauss's protective field, everyone had already applied it before coming.

"Proceed as planned."

Gauss's body rose into the air.

Aria instantly transformed into a black raven, flapping its wings and vanishing into the sky.

Shadow silently merged into the ground.

A raven soared across the sky.

A few scattered seeds fell like rain onto the ground.

The resting Gorgon sensed the movement and looked up at the sky.

Seeing it was a non-threatening raven, it withdrew its gaze.

If this bird landed in front of it, it wouldn't mind using a petrifying breath to make a small dessert, but since it couldn't reach the sky, forget it.

It didn't have the energy to struggle for such a tiny bit of meat.

"Thump thump thump!"

Suddenly, a few more seeds fell.

The Gorgon lifted its head, starting to feel somewhat annoyed.

"You again?"

Fortunately, its intelligence was low enough.

It didn't have the brain capacity to analyze the reasons and threats behind this.

It just felt irritated by this persistent black bird.

"Bree!!!!"

It intensified its breathing, green thick mist gushing from its nostrils corroding the surrounding grass.

If that bird flew any lower, it would definitely use its breath.

But the raven was clever, flying very high and not descending.

From afar, only a small black dot could be seen.

"Moo!"

It decided to ignore it.

Meanwhile, Gauss had already descended from high altitude to a hill behind the Gorgon.

Looking down at the target from above.

His form was currently in a transparent state.

Not far from the Gorgon.

After reaching his position, he began waiting for Shadow and Aria's actions.

Although if he cast Fireball directly now, this Gorgon might die in the explosion if caught off guard, it was still best to aim for a one-hit kill opportunity.

He stared at the Gorgon, regulating his breath and concentrating his mind.

He wasn't lacking in patience.

Before long, he noticed that as a large cloud blocked the sun overhead, a slightly darker shadow also arrived near the Gorgon along with the cloud's shadow.

Clearly, Shadow was in position.

The raven overhead and Gauss on the hilltop both began preparations slowly.

Truly effective lethal attacks often only required an instant.

Gauss slowly raised his White Wand.

This battle would still begin with him taking the initiative.

Vast mana instantly surged within his body, and the airflow around him seemed to change.

Mana surged wildly toward the tip of the White Wand.

"Boom!"

Visibly, the air in front of the White Wand collapsed for a moment.

During these days since mastering Fireball,

he hadn't refrained from practicing.

In fact, whenever he had time, he would find a deserted open field in the wilderness to practice spellcasting.

These days, Fireball's proficiency had reached lv2 (2/20).

However, the more powerful the spell, the greater the preliminary commotion often would be.

Perhaps for high-level spellcasters, Fireball wasn't much different from an ordinary cantrip, but Gauss currently clearly couldn't achieve such controlled proficiency.

The raven in the sky began descending, landing dozens of meters away from the Gorgon.

The Gorgon raised its eyes.

Noticing this scene.

But it didn't take any action.

Meanwhile, on the hilltop, Gauss's wand was already swinging toward the Gorgon's direction.

As he concentrated his mind, a dazzling spark suddenly appeared above the Gorgon's spine!

Then, countless natural mana began surging wildly into that small fiery point!

The Gorgon below immediately detected it!

Its spine turned icy cold, as if countless needles had pierced its back. A bad feeling instantly made it spring up from the ground.

There's an enemy!!!

Almost instantly, it reacted.

Monsters that survive as "bullies" in the wild aren't slow to react.

Those not fast enough to respond to nearby dangers often die before growing up.

But, almost simultaneously.

The raven landed on the ground.

Quickly transforming into a human form.

Heightened spellcasting "Entangling Roots"—the seeds deployed earlier instantly expanded and sprouted, turning into countless vines crawling up the Gorgon's steel body.

"Snap snap snap!!"

Dozens to hundreds of vines only restrained the Gorgon briefly, then quickly snapped one by one as it exerted strength to break free.

The spark was still rapidly absorbing external natural mana.

Fortunately, the time Aria bought was enough for Shadow, who had been keeping her distance to avoid detection, to rush over.

"Shadow Bind!"

Countless tentacle-like black shadows surged violently from the ground.

"!!!"

The shadows entangled its horns, four legs, torso—all restrainable parts.

Breaking free from Shadow Bind's strength wasn't easy.

"Bree!!"

It gushed green thick mist from its mouth. The thick mist, like living creatures, automatically sought out the surrounding shadows.

Two forces collided and consumed against each other.

During this tug-of-war time, the energy within the spark grew stronger and stronger.

Suddenly, at some moment, the shadows rapidly receded like a retreating tide. Before the Gorgon could react.

The shadows, in a flash, enveloped Aria and quickly moved away from the Gorgon's location.

Above the Gorgon's head, the small fireball that had accumulated sufficient energy finally revealed its terrifying presence.

A blazing white miniature sun released intense brightness.

"Thump!"

The Gorgon hadn't fully charged up, but its body already started moving!

There was no time for full preparation.

Instinct told it that the attack above, not yet fully descended, would be extremely terrifying.

But, the temperature above grew hotter and hotter.

The Gorgon's internal lubricating oils rapidly evaporated. Its iron plates rubbed violently, sparks flying everywhere, emitting sharp piercing sounds.

In the extremely brief time, its body couldn't produce new lubricating oil quickly enough. The dry joints also made its movements slightly sluggish for a moment.

Of course, these were secondary.

Most crucially, although Gauss's Fireball preparation time currently required some duration, the time from officially completing energy absorption to officially detonating could be very brief.

In fact, if Gauss hadn't allowed time for Shadow to evacuate with Aria, he could have detonated the Fireball even earlier.

Seeing from the corner of his eye that the shadows had already moved far away, Gauss didn't hesitate any longer.

With a thought, he pointed the White Wand forward and softly uttered.

"Explode!"

Time seemed to freeze at this moment!

The world felt like it had been paused.

Then, space seemed torn!

No deafening explosion sounded initially. The light point first collapsed inward, as if devouring all surrounding light and sound.

Air also stopped flowing.

The next moment, silence was shattered!

A circular blazing white energy expanded suddenly at an incomprehensible speed!

Releasing enormous amounts of light and heat!

The speed was so fast that it instantly swallowed the Gorgon's steel body that had just broken free from the shadows, its iron hooves barely having stepped out.

The intense light even made the sun in the sky pale in comparison.

In the vision of all watching, only a pure, destruction-filled white remained.

After the blinding light, sound followed.

"BOOM!!!"

A tremendous explosive sound burst forth, resounding through the skies.

Scorching airwaves spread wildly in a perfect hemispherical shape.

Wherever they reached, green grass instantly carbonized, soil was lifted layer by layer, surging outward like waves.

The Gorgon at the explosion center didn't even have time to cry out in anguish.

That proud steel armor rapidly turned red under the magical high temperature, then, under the intense shockwave, softened and melted simultaneously, transforming into blazing molten iron, squeezed and twisted by an irresistible force, before finally, under the terrifying light and heat.

Shattered and disintegrated!!

"!!!"

Time seemed to press play again.

Rolling flames and thick smoke rose, forming a small mushroom cloud on the spot.

Aria and Shadow, who had just steadied themselves, felt clear vibrations under their feet and supported each other.

Swallowing saliva, they turned their gazes toward the distance.

Even though it wasn't their first time seeing Gauss's Fireball, Aria was still deeply shocked.

So, did it kill it?

The situation inside couldn't be seen through the thick smoke.

After a long time, as the dust was blown away somewhat by the wind, the scene at the explosion center finally became clear.

A charred crater replaced the former grassland.

Within the pit, dark red, still slowly flowing metal liquid was scattered.

Those were the final remains of the Gorgon's once impregnable body.

In the sky, Gauss slowly descended, landing beside the two.

His face was slightly pale.

But a smile appeared on his face.

"Resolved."

The panel had already displayed the kill information.

This indicated the target was dead. He shared the information with his teammates.

Simultaneously, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.

"Killed Commander-level monster Gorgon*1"

"Path of Command Progress: Kill 5 types of Commander-level monsters (2/5)"

"After completing the stage, reward: Randomly draw one Commander-level monster racial talent."

Indeed, his earlier feeling wasn't wrong.

He knew this Gorgon's strength wasn't as simple as level 5.

Now it was confirmed—at least level 6 standard.

Therefore, Gauss gained another Path of Command progress.

Considered a lucky find.

After all, he definitely wasn't a match for those powerful Commander monsters currently.

Moreover, many Commander monsters themselves had massive monster minions, which would also complicate killing them.

But then again,

This Gorgon could survive here, safe and sound, might precisely be because it lacked minions.

The commotion created by monster minion tribes was far greater than its own impact.

"Great." Aria clapped her hands.

The battle seemed brief but was actually very tense.

"By the way, that Gorgon just now should have been level 6."

"Level 6??"

Aria blinked.

Level 6 monsters weren't comparable to level 5... died so easily?

Although they had killed a suspected level 6 Goblin in a previous mission, that was through trickery.

This time, it was a genuine head-on, solid kill.

Gauss nodded.

This was also what pleased him secretly.

Even though he realized earlier that he possessed the power to kill level 6 monsters, completing this kill was still a milestone event.

After all, this was the first Commander-level monster he truly killed using conventional means.

With the first time, there can be a second time.

"Your Fireball is really abnormal, isn't it?" Aria couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.

Before Gauss could respond, she seemed to remember something and suddenly looked toward the large crater.

"No... wait! Then, those materials wouldn't that mean?"

There was a pool of gradually solidifying iron liquid in the pit.

But, compared to the Gorgon's previous size, the volume had clearly shrunk considerably.

A significant portion must have vaporized in the explosion.

"Gone, so many materials are gone. These were Commander monster materials." Aria gasped sharply.

Although she also realized that killing that Gorgon without Fireball might have been very troublesome, thinking about those vanished rare materials that could fetch considerable money, she still felt waves of heartache.

Money, burned away!

Heart... so painful.

"There's no helping it." Gauss shrugged.

At least there were some remaining spoils in the pit;it wasn't a complete loss.

"Promise me, Gauss."

"What is it?"

"From now on, for those monsters we can defeat, try not to use Fireball, okay."

"Okay."