The Goddess Granted Me the [Hatching] Skill and Somehow I Became the Strongest Tamer, Commanding Mythical and Divine Beasts - 92

Chapter 92: VS Crystal Cockatrice

After passing through the forest, we arrived at a slightly open area.

From below the cliff, we could hear the sound of water flowing rapidly. The area was surrounded by rocks, and it resembled the place where we had fought the other day.

“Everyone, draw your weapons and stay alert…”

A sense of unease hung in the air. As we focused on the rocks, a monster appeared from behind them.

“Coc…Riko?“

It cried out and stared at us. With no obstacles around, we were facing each other directly.

“What… is that?”

It looked like a cockatrice, but its body was covered with blue, transparent wings.

“Looks like a cockatrice, but its whole body is made of crystal?”

“Could be a mutated subspecies? Mutations are usually two ranks stronger than the original.”

In other words, it was probably an A+ rank monster, equal to an Elder Lich.

“Everyone, don’t let your guard down…”

While I was giving this warning, the mutated crystal cockatrice charged at us.

—Clang!—

“Ugh!”

I managed to block the first strike, but another attack came immediately after. Its attacks were relentless and fierce. I was soon overwhelmed, having to defend myself non-stop.

“Everyone, scatter! Attack from blind spots and support Klaus!”

At Ritz’s command, the national adventurers spread out and began to attack with their weapons.

“What!?”

But the crystal cockatrice dodged some of their attacks with its swift movements.

“It’s like it has eyes behind its back…”

I heard Hanna’s voice, filled with surprise.

At the same time, its snake-like tail opened its mouth, showing its fangs.

“Right, the snake…”

Just like a regular cockatrice, it had a chicken’s body and a snake’s tail. Not only did it possess agility similar to Carol’s, but it also had the ability to turn things to crystal.

“Riko Criss!“

This troublesome monster kept attacking us, making it a huge threat.

“But if it focuses only on me, that’s fine.”

I didn’t want anyone else to get hurt. As long as I didn’t lose, I felt I could manage.

“Carol, just as I promised, I won’t take a single hit.”

Though I was startled by the sudden attack, I quickly got used to it and realized the cockatrice was slower than Carol.

“Impressive, he’s withstanding those fierce attacks.”

“That’s… Tamer Klaus.”

“Our weapons can’t deal damage. Klaus is our only hope!”

As expected, the crystal cockatrice’s body seemed to be made of an incredibly hard crystal, and the weapons the national adventurers carried couldn’t break it. Most likely, I was the only one with the weapon capable of dealing damage.

It used beak attacks, snake bites, and even wind blades through magic when I tried to distance myself, but I was able to dodge them all.

“Coc…Riko!“

Gradually, I pushed back the crystal cockatrice. As I took some hits, I realized that this cockatrice’s actions seemed to have a certain purpose. It clearly didn’t want me to go in a certain direction. Whenever I feinted towards that direction, it took the bait.

“Hahh! Heat Slash!“

I coated my Sun Sword with Phoenix Flame magic and launched a slash.

—Clang!—

The sound of metal clashing with stone echoed, and the crystal cockatrice was forced back.

“Look! The crystal cockatrice’s body has cracked!”

“Now’s our chance!”

I quickly followed up with more attacks as the cockatrice retreated.

“Coc…Riko!“

It let out a painful cry, but I couldn’t let up now.

Things were going so well that I became a little overzealous and forgot to watch out.

“Shaaa!“

The crystal cockatrice allowed itself to take damage, drawing my attention and creating an opening for its snake to attack.

There was no time to dodge. If I wasn’t careful, I’d be turned into crystal. For a moment, I saw Carol in my mind…

—Rage—

Suddenly, Rock jumped into the snake’s mouth.

“Rock!?”

He was flailing his legs while being bitten by the snake.

“Jaaa!?“

“Coc!?“

The chicken head and snake were both startled by the unexpected ambush.

“Now’s the time!”

—Clang!—

I slashed one of its wings, causing it to lose its balance.

“We’ve got this! Just a bit more!”

“Cocooooo!“

With the damage we’d dealt, we were now in the lead, but the crystal cockatrice started pulling away from me.

“Is it trying to escape?”

“If we let it go now, we won’t be able to save Carol!”

The crystal cockatrice started running. As I considered the possibility of it escaping, a flash of inspiration hit me. I thought of the technique that Phoenix and Purple had used to absorb Elder Lich’s magic.

“That’s it!”

I focused on recreating their skills in my mind.

“Crik!?“

Rainbow-colored flames erupted from beneath the crystal cockatrice, stopping it in its tracks. But that alone wouldn’t be enough to stop it.

“Magical Thread of Absorption!”

I controlled my magic, transforming the rainbow flames into a thread that restrained the cockatrice’s movements.

“Got it! It’s captured!”

“Riko!“

The crystal cockatrice struggled, but since it was losing its power due to the magic draining it, it couldn’t break free from the thread. I managed to pin it down before it could escape.

“We did it!”

“You can use magic like that too…?”

Ritz, Hanna, and the other national adventurers cheered as the battle ended.

“Now, if we take its claws to the Alchemist Guild…”

If Tabasa and Lorraine were there, they might be able to create a potion to reverse the crystalization.

As I was approaching the captured crystal cockatrice…

—Chill—

A sudden, chilling fear overwhelmed me, freezing my spine.

The sky darkened, and an overwhelming sense of pressure filled the air.

Looking up, I saw a massive dragon hovering above us.

It was a black dragon with scales larger than Scarlet’s red dragon, gleaming with ruby-like red eyes.

“Why… is there a dragon here?”

Everyone held their breath. The battle with the crystal cockatrice seemed insignificant now. The strongest mythical creature, an S-rank monster, had appeared.

Everyone felt like they were being threatened with death, as if a sword was held to their throats. Then, the black dragon opened its mouth.

“Wooooooo!“

A compressed breath of magic was unleashed.

“Griiiiii!“

The blast struck the crystal cockatrice, causing the cliff to crumble. The cockatrice was swept away by the rushing water and disappeared.

The black dragon didn’t seem to notice us and, after a while, flew off.