Trapped in a Game That Flopped

Chapter 139

Episode 139

[Lv.999 Stun skill has been activated.]

Bzz, bzzt, bzzzt!

Sparks, as small as my shrunken body, erupted in a shower.

Of course, the target of the attack wasn't Adam, but the dozens of Sirens sitting bunched together on the distant rocky island.

The Sirens, who had been sleeping soundly, jolted as if struck by lightning at the tingling electric current that suddenly flared up.

"--------!"

"--------!"

I could see the monsters, their eyes now open, all opening their mouths and screaming.

"Uht!"

Adam, who had been feeling his own hair, instinctively covered his ear from which the earplug had been pulled.

Vwoom!

I dodged Adam's huge hand as it swung threateningly, quickly leaping down below his shoulder.

Soon, I felt a pressure as if my body was being snatched and squeezed tight.

'Nice catch!'

Perhaps it was worth rolling around together as a party-that-wasn't-a-party for several days, as Elaine, who had been watching, seemed to have caught me at the right time.

"-----Kkieeeek!"

Just then, the Siren's scream, which hadn't been audible, faintly pierced through my earplugs.

'HP –399'

HP 600

"Ugh!"

Along with the HP, which had dropped by a large amount, I clamped my hands over my ears just like Adam had a moment ago.

Sirens attack by putting their enemies to sleep with songs and screams.

One of them alone isn't that dangerous, but the problem was that the stun I just shot woke up the entire horde of Sirens.

I used a brief lull in the screaming to sneak a peek at Adam.

That bastard, while staring with a serious face at the monsters that had woken up and were diving into the water one by one, calmly took something out from his breast.

It was a new earplug.

'That dirty item-reliant bastard!'

The Sirens I had woken up swam rapidly through the sea to attack the enemy that had invaded their abode.

Shing.

Adam, who must have seen it as well after putting in his new earplug, immediately drew his sword.

Luckily for me, he seemed to have decided to take care of the attacking monsters first, rather than focusing on finding the invisible me.

Unlike me, his goal was likely to clear the dungeon, so it might have been for the best.

Having thus rationalized my cowardly act, I urgently shouted.

"To the cave! To the cave!"

I couldn't miss this chance.

When I stomped my feet while pointing at the cave, Elaine faithfully played the role of a horse.

Not long after, we were able to safely get inside the cave, the Sirens' nest.

"Pant, pant... Agh, what is that bastard?"

Elaine, whose invisibility wore off just as he entered the cave, asked as he gasped for breath.

That was a question I wanted to ask the developer bastards.

Why the hell do I keep running into the very guys I want to avoid the most...

At this point, I was beginning to wonder if they were all conspiring to screw me over.

I leaped off Elaine's palm and immediately downed the miniaturization antidote potion.

"Take this, Green Mask."

After returning to my original form, I handed Elaine a new set of earplugs and a mid-grade potion.

It was because the earplugs he was wearing now were damaged by the Sirens' group scream and could no longer be used.

"You have more? Are you really a general store, or what?"

Elaine's eyes went wide at the new earplugs that kept appearing as if from a magic jar.

I didn't bother to tell him I still had 99 more earplugs.

They might not be as high-grade as Kassel's or Adam's, but when it came to items, I wouldn't lose out to anyone.

I spoke quickly to Elaine, who was accepting the things I held out with a bewildered face.

"Drink that, and put on the new ones. And while I go catch the boss, you stand watch here."

"Watch?"

"Yeah. If that bastard insists on coming, you have to let me know."

"Noona, you can beat it down in like three minutes... You think that bastard can make it here in that time?"

"It'll take about 10 minutes this time. Maybe even longer."

I replied with a shrug.

I knew its weakness, so catching the boss mob itself wasn't very difficult.

However, its level was high compared to the boss mobs I had caught so far, so its HP pool was also large, which meant it would take more time.

"Then that's even more of a problem."

At my answer, Elaine's face became quite serious.

"I don't know if I can maintain invisibility for that long. Even if you don't beat me up, noona, I think onion juice is streaming from my eyes right now."

Only then did I look back at his face.

Just as he said, Elaine's eyes were bloodshot red, probably from how much he'd rubbed them with the onion.

Come to think of it, Elaine had been helping me while continuously maintaining his invisibility for well over 30 minutes.

"Ha... You're right. You shouldn't do it anymore."

I swallowed a sigh and rummaged through my pocket again, taking out a high-grade healing potion.

"Take it."

Following that, I took out and handed him a miniaturization potion and a miniaturization antidote potion in succession.

Elaine's expression turned strange at the potion bottles that were pouring out, as if I were some kind of snake oil salesman.

But there was no help for it. I really was a snake oil salesman.

"Drink the miniaturization potion and hide over there and stand watch. If it looks like Adam Hailey is coming, run over and let me know. That's easy, right?"

I said, pointing to a large rock behind Elaine.

At that, he nodded his head and strutted.

"That much is, well, a piece of soup."

"Don't be overconfident. He's sharper than you think."

Adam was quick-witted enough to find me instantly when I was hiding behind the rock wall.

When I warned him several times, Elaine finally answered, disgruntled, "I get it! I just have to be careful."

And he obediently drank the potion I gave him.

I, too, drank a potion to fill my depleted HP and MP to the max.

"Then I'll go catch it quickly."

Leaving him, whom I couldn't trust at all, behind, I turned around.

And I quickly went deep inside the cave.

Unlike the cave entrance, which was made of dry land, the inside was submerged in the high tide.

Before long, damp moisture soaked my feet.

Splash, splash!

I waded through the seawater, continuing to walk until the water level reached my waist.

The inside of the cave, which had been flat, gradually gave way to jagged stalactites sprouting up, as if to announce it was a monster's habitat, creating a gloomy atmosphere.

It was dark inside the cave, but thanks to the phosphorescent stones embedded in the walls and the water's surface reflecting them, it wasn't difficult to see ahead.

Splash!

After walking for some time.

Finally, in the distance, I saw a huge doll, as big as a giant boulder, heaving rhythmically.

"Zzzzz! Pff... Zzzzz!"

A fish-human, as large and plump as if four Sirens had been combined.

[Lv.160 Queen Siren]

That bastard seemed to be in a deep sleep, as it didn't stir at my presence.

If it were a normal Siren, one could easily catch it in that gap, but the Queen Siren was different.

As it was a boss mob, it had a fair bit of difficulty; no matter how much you attacked the deeply sleeping Queen Siren, its HP wouldn't go down.

If two hours passed in that state, the level 80 minions would respawn again, so it was no different from a wasted effort.

Moreover, the scales and carapace covering the Queen Siren's skin were extremely hard, so it couldn't be woken up with a normal weapon.

A weapon of Legendary-grade or higher, like 'Lumiekar,' or.

"Stun!"

[Lv.999 Stun skill has been activated.]

There was an attack to wake it up by applying a shock, giving it a very powerful electric current through the water.

Mercifully, attacks derived from a user's magic power could not harm the user.

Thanks to that, I poured out my magic power to my heart's content.

Bzzzzzzzzzt!

An electric current shot out from under the water's surface, spreading like a lightning strike.

The Queen Siren, whose tail was at the end of it, must have felt quite a jolt, as it shot its tightly closed eyes open and immediately shrieked.

"--------Kkieeeek!"

"Uuht!"

'HP –99'

HP 900

As expected of a boss, with just one scream, the new earplugs shattered, and my HP was slashed.

While I instinctively covered my ears.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, that huge bastard's form vanished from before my eyes as if by magic.

Unlike normal Sirens, the Queen Siren had the ability to teleport and hide its body.

It was, in effect, the start of the battle.

Before that bastard appeared again, I quickly took new earplugs out of my pocket and replaced them.

"Onslaught."

And then, I grabbed one of the thick stalactites standing jaggedly next to me and used my strength to break it.

Craack!

This was enough for a weapon.

At that moment, Whoosh!

With a fierce splash, the giant Queen Siren appeared right in front of me.

"------!"

"Stun!"

The moment that bastard unleashed another sonic attack on me, I quickly blasted it with stun.

[Lv.999 Stun skill has been activated.]

Bzzzzzt!

At the sparks that once again shot out across the water's surface, the Siren's eyes rolled back, and it let out a bizarre shriek.

"------Kkieeeeeeek!"

"Uuht!"

'HP –99'

'HP –99'

HP 702

As the earplugs broke again and the scream pierced my ears, my health was cut down in succession, and I felt a

considerable, hot pain in my ears.

"Agh, stop screaming already! Sure Strike!"

At the pain I hadn't felt in a long time, I seethed with anger and leaped straight toward that bastard.

[Lv.999 Sure Strike skill has been activated.]

Stab!

And then, I immediately and mercilessly stabbed the stalactite I was holding into the top of that bastard's chubby neck.

"Kkieeek...? Keck, keck!"

At that, the bastard, which had been screaming endlessly, suddenly clutched its neck with its webbed hands, choked, and backed away.

And then again, Whoosh! It vanished.

Unlike a moment ago, when it felt like my eardrums would burst, the cave became quiet in an instant.

A brief gap.

"Ha..."

I let out a sigh and quickly changed my earplugs.

Judging by the rate the Queen Siren's HP was dropping, it seemed I would have to repeat this about five or six more times.

That bastard's only weak point was its neck, where its vocal cords were, so I couldn't just half-ass it with skills like I had been doing.

Sssssst. Splash, splash.

In the meantime, it seemed that bastard was about to appear again, as I heard the sound of water splashing from somewhere.

This time, it was quite far away.

"Stun!"

I quickly shouted the skill before that bastard could teleport again.

"-----!"

Normally, a stun attack temporarily incapacitates a monster.

But the Siren's hide was so thick that the stun attack didn't work directly.

However, by applying electricity to the water instead of that bastard, I could deal some damage.

Although it wasn't an incapacitating effect, but merely holding it in place for a moment by shocking it so it couldn't teleport right away.

Even this was something to be grateful for.

It was for this reason that the Siren dungeon was classified as a highest-grade difficulty compared to the monster's level.

'As expected, I did well to harass the developer bastards.'

Thinking that, I approached the Queen Siren, which had flinched from the electricity, and immediately swung the stalactite sword.

"Sure Strike!"

After repeating that act a few more times.

Finally, the Queen Siren's HP bar began to hit rock bottom.

It looked like just one more poke with the stalactite would be the end.

"--Kkieeeeeeeek!"

As if it sensed death approaching, the Queen Siren thrashed about even more violently.

'HP –99'

'HP –99'

'HP –99'

HP 207

Even though I was wearing earplugs, that bastard's final struggle took a big chunk out of my HP.

But it was fine.

I could still hold on, and that bastard was now only left with the last hit.

Sssssst. Splash, splash!

"Stun!"

It was the moment I cast a new stun on that bastard, which had just appeared in front of me with a splash, and rushed in, raising my stalactite.

"Noona! Look out...!"

Suddenly, a familiar voice echoed loudly inside the cave.

'Elaine...?'

It was the moment I, bewildered, was about to turn around.

Pewng!

What was reflected in my eyes was not Elaine's figure, but a rain of several arrows, cutting through the air and pouring down on me.

"What...!"

I immediately threw my body to the side and swung the stalactite.

Thwack, thwack!

Instead of the cool sound of parrying arrows with a sword, two arrows were knocked away with a dull sound, and one got stuck in the stalactite.

Thanks to turning my body quickly as soon as I heard Elaine's voice, I was able to narrowly avoid most of the arrows.

However, Thud!

The last one, which I couldn't dodge, ended up embedding itself in the top of my foot.

"Ack!"

Because of the eerie sensation of something sharp and heavy striking down hard on my foot, I instinctively screamed.

However, there was no pain or HP drop that I had expected to follow.

'Right. My shoes are fully enhanced.'

My armor, hidden under the shabby robe, was all fully enhanced, so it didn't take much damage from most physical attacks.

Besides, seeing as there was no HP reduction, it seemed the arrows that attacked me weren't strong weapons to begin with.

At the belated realization, I, incensed, immediately looked for Elaine.

"Green Mask, are you crazy...!"

However, there was no need to go to the trouble of finding where Elaine was.

I was spared much effort, thanks to the green head dangling precariously from someone's shoulder not far away.

The one casually carrying a grown boy on his shoulder like a piece of luggage was, of course...

"Haha, noona... well, you see. I was definitely hiding and about to run right over to you, but..."

"You are... Don't tell me, Shari Azrael?"

That bastard, who was grinning awkwardly even in this situation, and that bastard, whose blue eyes were wide as if in disbelief.

[Elaine Griselda feels a glimmer of guilt toward you.]

[Adam Hailey feels a very strong level of suspicion toward you.]

And the system windows that popped up.

Looking at all of it in turn, I just laughed weakly.

'Haha. I'm screwed.'