Chapter 274: Floor 21: Breakfast Preparation! (Not Really)
Floor 21 was quite peculiar and could prove troublesome for some groups. Josh was by the side of the road, actively researching it.
He'd have to face flying enemies?! It was a good thing that he still had that Gnoll bow! If anything, it would make excellent shooting practice. "Teleport-in!" he confidently declared.
[Welcome to Floor 21 Hellish! Mission Crack Some Eggs — 6!]
What?! Josh couldn't help but frown.
"What's that about eggs? This challenge should be eagle hunting season. Are we going to make breakfast instead?" Josh retorted.
[Explanation: This task has been deemed harder by the system!]
[Good luck!]
"Gotcha." In a way, it made sense. If the eggs were filled the progeniture of deadly giant eagles, then they were bound to be under strict guard. He would most likely have to commit genocide to reach them.
Josh inspected his surroundings, noticing what seemed to be a mountain at the horizon. He started walking toward it, but there was already company arriving. A shrill bird call was heard.
SCREECH!
In the reddish sky, there were now eight ginormous birds circling as they eyed him. They had quite noticeable features.
- White heads.
- Brown feathers.
- Piercing green eyes.
- Sharp talon and claws.
- Wings spanning a few dozen meters.
- Green energy was crackling around their bodies, seemingly increasing their speed. Was this wind magic?
They looked even more deadly than majestic. Had these creatures been on Earth, they would never have been chosen as a symbol; Instead, they would have annihilated humanity! Josh grabbed his bow hurriedly as he stared at them.
<Hairy Giant Eagle Lv 24> (Uncommon)
He then felt them dive toward him right after he had spawned! Their speed was incredible! They were even faster than a speedster trying to impress a sexy woman! Josh didn't even bother shooting them. There was no time!
He threw himself on the ground, feeling razor-sharp claws miss his back. He couldn't even sigh in relief: he had to evade again! This time razor-sharp beaks missed him, but it wasn't even over! That's when razor-sharp wind blades missed his head!
Finally, it came to an end. The Giant Eagles didn't linger and took flight once more, becoming tiny dots in the sky. Josh didn't let go of the opportunity and shot arrows, one lodging itself into the neck of one of them.
It fell with Josh hacking it to pieces to get revenge for their attack. Seven eagles were remaining, and it seemed like they were guerrilla-type attackers. They would swoop in, give it their all, and retreat afterward.
Right now, the green energy surrounding them was weaker, and they seemed to need to recharge it over time before they could attack again. Did Josh need to kill only one every attack? No, this didn't make much sense.
He would cut them melee range! The best-case scenario was to get all seven targets at once. How could he do this? It wasn't like he could slash them all at once, right? — or could he?!
Josh carefully concentrated on his morphing weapon. It perhaps wasn't the highest grade, but it was so helpful! A few seconds later, he was delighted. He intently watched the eagles flapping their wings until they disappeared from his vision.
Still, he knew this was only a trick. He sat down to rest, happily letting his guard down as he felt them creep back toward him. The creatures made sure to stay out of his line of sight. These birdbrains couldn't comprehend Josh's sensing abilities!
Then it was execution time. They dove once more, planning to get revenge for their fallen brethren. They all nicely lined up, ready to attack once after the other. Sadly for them, the plan was only good in theory.
The Giant Eagle leading the charge suddenly felt that something was amiss. This was because the human had thrown something toward his back without even looking.
The approaching item seemed to be circular, had sharp edges, and was flying fast! Sadly for the eagle, it would remain puzzled forever. It didn't have the time to evade that the chakram had opened its neck. It then followed its course toward the others behind.
In total, four eagles fell from this single attack, with Josh taking out his bow and shooting the survivors. They aborted their assault and scattered all over, trying to save their feathers. What kind of monster was this?! It was everything but prey!
With their last dying breath, the eagles screeched loudly. It probably meant something like: "Fly you fools!" or maybe it was something less heroic like "We're fucked!". But, Josh did not speak eagle and kept shooting, not a care in the world.
Two more fell, full of magical arrows. One lone survivor managed to get out, staring one last time at Josh, giving him a look full of hate before leaving.
"Tough luck birdie, you guys shouldn't have attacked in the first place." Josh shrugged. It seemed like it was fleeing toward the mountain at the horizon. It was time to follow the unfortunate guide!
"Nightmare, come out! We're going to make an omelet. Are you ready?" Josh summoned his companion, and they galloped in the sunset (no sun, but the color was right).
Before long, they managed to reach an extremely tall rocky peak. At the top, there were plenty of eagles circling. High up on the side, there were nests that definitely contained his targets.
Wow, just wow. This mission was supposed to be a royal pain, wasn't it? A regular Climber group would probably be pulling their hair out. Scaling a troublesome steep wall while fending attacks from flying monsters sounded like a nightmare!
"System, I feel like there is something wrong with this mission of yours." Josh couldn't help but comment, for he had noticed something terribly wrong.
[The Difficulty is exactly as it should be. It shall not be lowered.]
Why did it feel like the system was happy about this statement? It was probably a misunderstanding. After all, its tone was too emotionless compared to AT!
"Lowered? I'm saying it seems too easy. There are a few dozen nests up there. Looking at how carefully the eagles are protecting them, I'm ready to bet there are way more than six eggs!" Josh explained.
[...]
"So, can we increase the difficulty for better reward?" Josh begged.
[Mission Crack Lots of Eggs — 30!]
"Thanks, system!" Josh was completely satisfied.
Now, was Climbing the rock peak hard? Yes! One could even say it was nearly damn impossible! Then why was Josh so confident? Well, he had never planned to scale it in the first place.
"Let's get this party started, shall we?" Josh confidently walked forward, taking his True Pickaxe out. It was time to have fun!
CLANG!
CLANG!
SCREECH!
At first, it was incredibly smooth sailing, but then the Eagles took offense to the noise pollution. They began organizing raids against him in groups of 10 but only suffered the same fate as before.
CLANG!
SCREECH!
CLANG!
SCREECH!
For every swing of the pickaxe, he would now have to fend a group of enemies. Still, this didn't dishearten him in the least. As long as he survived the guerrilla attacks, he would be fine afterward.
SCREECH!
CLANG!
SCREECH!
CLANG!
SCREECH!
Now, it wasn't a group of bloodthirsty feathery creatures but a sea of them that he needed to face relentlessly. But, every time the crazed bird army came, he would hide in the rock to dodge their magical attacks!
SCREECH!
CLANG!
SCREECH!
SCREECH!
CLANG!
SCREECH!
He was getting close to being done. He could feel it. He just needed to make sure he didn't get crushed under the rubble as everything collapsed. That's why he was digging in a manner that made one side more stable than the other.
SCREECH!
SCREECH!
CLANG!
SCREECH!
SCREECH!
CLANG!
SCREECH!
SCREECH!
Josh did the finishing touches. The last swing was different than the ones before it. The foundation had finally been damaged enough that the entire peak collapsed under its own weight. It did so at an angle as planned.
CRUMBLE!
CRUMBLE!
CRUMBLE!
CRUMBLE!
The rock heavily fell to the ground, creating craters and making the entire Floor shake. Debris was sent flying all over the place, with him having to move a bit to avoid it. Luckily, the epicenter was away from him, and he could happily enjoy the show.
"Now, this is what I call exploiting," Josh commented with satisfaction. Meanwhile, the birds were going crazy. To be fair, the Apocalypse didn't happen every day.
SCREECH!
SCREECH!
SCREECH!
SCREECH!
There were cries of confusion, fright, despair, and anger that were music to his ears.
He could almost hear the sound of dozens of eggs shattering all at once. The collapse had been so sudden that the adult eagles didn't have time to evacuate them. There was rubble everywhere!
Once upon a time, 8 Giant Eagles had tried ambushing the gallant prince. The prince then used his wits and hard work to destroy their entire habitat. The End!— Or perhaps it wasn't?
That is when the screeches of anger became more and more prominent. They were so numerous that not a single instant of silence ever happened. It had a certain rhythm to it, akin to a chant.
The eagles began circling as an organized swarm, the wind started madly howling, the green light from their magic suffused the entire Floor, and they never stopped screeching in unison. It was as if they were casting a humongous spell.
There was trouble brewing!
[Mission completed! Part 2 Beginning now: Survive!]
"Of course..." Josh gave a wry smile. It wouldn't be that easy, right?
That is when a screech resonated: It was deeper, stronger, and awe-inspiring! Instantly, all the other birds became silent as an enormous Eagle appeared on the horizon.
This would be a challenging fight for sure!