Data.130 – Old Bowman, Chaotic Battleline

While Gray’s shouts worried me, I had to help Canaria, who was struggling in front of me first.

She had likely let go of the submachine gun because it was out of bullets.

Normally, guns in NSO didn’t run out of ammo.

Just like my bow had an infinite supply of arrows, bullets were also infinite.

However, the firearms in this hospital were different.

You had to find spare ammo or a submachine gun would run out very quickly.

And in Canaria’s case, she had probably wasted no time in using everything…

“Canaria. I’ll put the submachine gun ammo in the trunk for you.”

“Ah, Mr. Kyuji! Thanks! Now I can shoot again!”

“Well…try not to waste it…”

“Ahahahahaha! Okay!!”

And then the submachine was unleashed on the zombies once again.

Her aim seemed a little better than before.

Kyuka had shared quite a lot of bullets with us, so it should last for a while.

I should go and check up on Gray while I can.

I doubted that his scream had reached the front side.

“…No, maybe I should at least tell them what had happened.”

If there were enemies on the upper floors, that meant they might be attacked from the other side of the stairs. It could greatly affect their chances of survival.

While the earpiece only worked on the same floor, what about using it on the staircase…?

“This is Kyuji. Can you hear me, Mr. Oliver? Over.”

‘…Oh!? I see! So this can be used on the stairs as well! Over!’

Alright, it worked.

I suppose since we were both on stairs that connected the first and second floors, it was treated as the same floor.

“I heard Gray screaming from the floor above, and so I’m going to go and help him. Did you hear it too? Over?”

‘Gray!? I didn’t hear that! He must have been much closer to you then! Understood! We’ll be careful of ambushes from above! You should be careful too! Over!’

“Yes, we will be. Over.”

Thankfully, he was quick to understand.

He immediately realized the possibility of enemies attacking from above.

Still, at some point, I had become the commando…

There were too many advance guards here, and so I had to move a lot to cover for them. It was a lot of pressure.

Well, it also felt good to be relied on…!

I dashed up the stairs two steps at a time at first, but stopped because it made my joints hurt.

And so I went at a normal pace while being watchful of my surroundings. And then I reached the 3rd floor.

“…There are no signs of fighting near the stairs.”

So is it the 4th floor?

Or had he moved after screaming…

“Hey! Gray! Are you all right!?”

….Ahhhh…

There…!

It was this floor!

It sounded like he was far away, so he must be in one of the rooms.

In any case, I would head in that direction.

“Gray! I came to help you!”

…He…here…!

There he is…!

“Seal Demon Bind!”

I chose a skill that wouldn’t affect Gray if he was hit by it.

Gray was released right before the magic circle opened, but the lightning wasn’t unleashed from it.

The enemy had seen me and escaped…!

“Kyu…ji…! It’s…still here! be careful! It stays invisible even if you hit it!”

“Got it! That magic circle is safe, so just heal yourself for now!”

I also used Exorcism Barrier and waited.

But I couldn’t hear any breathing or footsteps, which was one way to find an invisible enemy.

And it didn’t attack me or do anything to reveal its position.

Perhaps it was waiting for the effect of my skill to wear off…

It was a smart monster. However…!

“Bound Arrow Storm!”

Countless arrows bounded around the room.

As this was a waiting room with a lot of chairs, it wasn’t as effective as when used in a narrow cave.

The arrows would spread over a wider area in a place like this.

But that was fine.

If they spread out this much, at least a few of them would hit the enemy.

And then I would be able to tell where it was…!

“There! Gatling Webcloud Arrow!”

The white net covered the invisible being.

At this point, it might as well have been fully visible!

“Gatling Burning Arrow!”

Still, the invisible enemy did not show itself.

But it did turn into light that faded away, so there was no doubt that I had killed it.

“Th-that was amazing, Mr. Kyuji! You killed an invisible enemy so easily!”

“Well, I would have likely died if I was attacked without warning. It’s because you told me about it. But I suppose it took you by surprise?”

“Yes. As I move alone, I was careful about sounds and special traps, but it just came out of nowhere.”

An invisible enemy attacking without any signs or warning…that was odd.

It seemed a little unfair to me. So there must be a secret as to why that monster is invisible.

Perhaps it actually came in from the entrance on the first floor, and climbed up here without anyone noticing it…

It was possible, since it seemed to move independently, unlike the other zombies who immediately attacked the player in front of them.

That being said, they really could have given us more of a hint…

“So there really wasn’t a moment where it stopped being invisible?”

“Yes, it never did. Even I thought that it would, if I just used my defense skills and waited long enough…”

“Hmm. In any case, I suppose we just have to keep hitting it then… I could always just attack it with arrows, which would mark it, but in your case…”

“Don’t worry! Now that I know what to do, I have a skill that should be effective! Spread Gem!”

Numerous gem-like fragments spread out from Gray’s hand.

They sparkled prettily in various colors, but were sharp enough to pierce monsters if they made contact.

Yes, it would be perfect for marking them.

Vo…vo…voaaagghh….

I heard a strange groaning sound, and then a pale zombie appeared in the midst of the flying gems nearby.

And it hadn’t appeared from the shadows. It just seemed to materialize in thin air!

“This might be the invisible bastard…!”

“But I don’t think that my skill hit it! And yet it was scared enough to show itself!”

“Let’s take it down then!”

It wasn’t a threat now that we could see it.

And so the two of us took care of it in an instant.

“Is there a big difference between this skill and the skills you used to fight it before?”

“Uhh…ah! Yes, yes. Spread Gem is a magic skill that deals damage based on Magic Attack!”

I see. So that zombie’s weakness is magic.

And so if you use magic skills near it, it will stagger and show itself even if it wasn’t hit.

But Oliver and Anne used physical attacks. And so did Garbow and I.

On the other hand, Kyuka and Canaira were magic users. So that was why the invisible zombies had been able to go right past us.

“I should have at least one magic skill… That being said, you seem to use physical attacks, Gray. So I’m surprised you have a magic skill.”

“Actually…it’s just a coincidence. All the skills I get are for close quarters combat. And so I wanted to increase the ways that I could react to things, so I used my NSO medals to acquire it. It was only later that I realized it was a magic skill. But it didn’t do much damage… The fact that it’s so shiny means it can distract enemies, but it’s not one of my main skills, and so I often forget that I have it…”

“Ah, I understand that. You often forget old skills when you keep getting more…”

Both of us were very forgetful then…

In any case, I had been able to save Gray, and we now knew how to deal with the invisible zombies.

It was most likely that they had come up from the first floor, and so now that Kyuka and Canaria had returned, they wouldn’t be able to get past us again.

As Gray would continue to gather items, I had to rejoin Canaria and hold off the wave of zombies…

Crack-crack-crack…!

Kiiiiii…!

“…”

“…”

The sound of a glass window breaking and a strange voice…

Ahh, so we had visitors from above as well…