I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 289

Since ancient times, the sky belonged to winged creatures.

Wingless humanity had always lived on the ground, and even as science and magic advanced, that didn’t change much.

It was closer to being able to levitate or propel through the air, rather than flying freely.

As a result, flying entities imparted a strange sense of intimidation to humanity.

Creatures that freely soared through the sky—the domain of gods—how strong and free must they be?

Considering that humanity had actually been ruled by dragons in the past, it was perhaps a natural thought.

Furthermore, creatures that could fly possessed an overwhelming advantage over ground-dwellers.

It was difficult enough to hit a flying bird with a gun, let alone with other weapons.

Therefore, "flying monsters" had historically caused immense destruction.

Monsters famous for their ferocity, like the Gryphon, were especially difficult to subjugate.

While a Gryphon could fly freely and strike whenever an opportunity arose, the defenders had to keep their eyes locked on the sky at all times.

That was why Ludwig had once advised that if one ever faced a flying monster, they should target the wings first.

Because most flying monsters lost more than half of their combat capabilities the moment they crashed to the ground.

-Kieeeeeek!

But that was only true for ordinary flying monsters.

Monsters that looked like pterosaurs, or Gryphons with the head of an eagle and the body of a lion...

Having been warned repeatedly, I had considered flying monsters to be a kind of disaster and was prepared for one to attack at any time.

"W-What the hell is that?!"

Yet when a flying monster actually launched an attack, it was bewildering.

People might ask, ’You’ve met a dragon, so why panic over just a flying monster?’

A dragon might actually have been better. At least that was closer to a reptile.

The problem was that the monster currently swooping straight down at us was closer to an ’insect’.

[I-It looks like a stag beetle, doesn’t it?]

Just as Cain said, long pincers like those of a stag beetle protruded from its head. They looked razor-sharp at a single glance.

But beneath those were sharp, jagged teeth, and fitting for an insect, an extra pair of arms sprouted from its body.

Most decisively, its solid-looking carapace exuded an intimidating presence that suggested it could never be pierced.

Sseogeok!

In the meantime, the stag beetle monster swept past us in an acrobatic maneuver.

Fortunately, we had prepared in advance, so we weren’t sliced apart by its pincers.

Instead, the surrounding trees were cut down in bunches. Monstrous cutting power.

Pudududuk!

True to its insect nature, the stag beetle soared back toward the sky with rapid flaps of its wings.

I observed the creature, which sported an overall brownish hue just like a stag beetle.

’Its external appearance is close to an insect... so why is its body structure like a human’s?’

You might not understand what I mean. As I mentioned earlier, it had ’arms and legs’.

You might ask if insects don’t already have limbs, but insects only have legs.

However, that thing had two pairs of arms and one pair of legs.

Which meant it could stand upright on two legs like a human.

Pudududuk!

Now wasn’t the time to ponder. I quickly readied my gear.

I didn’t know why it had attacked this place, but it was definitely because of me.

Didn’t the Spirit Deer visit this place last time because it felt a powerful aura?

Originally, it intended to absorb me, but dropped the idea the moment it recognized who I was.

’In insect terms, I must be like royal jelly prey.’

It wouldn’t be strange if other monsters came looking. It was just my rotten luck that a flying monster attacked first.

Before the stag beetle could strike again, I nocked an arrow on my bow string.

If I could target the wings as Ludwig advised, that would be great, but of all things, this was an insect.

Aiming for an insect’s fluttering wings was realistically too difficult, so I intended to fight it with raw firepower.

Piing!

The moment I released the string, the arrow flew at extreme speed.

Though it flew in the air, fortunately its movement pattern was straightforward. Meaning it was easy to hit.

Soon, the arrow struck the stag beetle with dead accuracy.

Kwagwang!!!

It triggered a massive explosion, generating a gust of wind.

Normally, taking that hit would shatter any creature into pieces.

Huuuuung!

"What?"

But the creature was completely unharmed. It emerged right through the smoke generated by the explosion.

Not only I, but even Ludwig couldn’t help but be taken aback.

One of the biggest weaknesses of flying monsters was supposed to be their ’durability’.

’Is it because it’s an insect with a hard carapace?’

As it grew giant, its toughness likely scaled up proportionally.

A place that gives wings to the wingless, and makes the winged even stronger.Read the latest chapters at NovelPing.

Adding wings to a tiger.

Nothing was more fitting to describe the Forest of the Four Seasons.

"Kyaaaaaah!!!"

But setting that aside, the problem was how to bring that thing down.

I focused on the beast as it flew toward the Shelter while executing another acrobatic flight.

Fortunately, its attack pattern was exceedingly simple.

Fly in the sky, and attack whenever an opportunity presents itself.

Execute a smooth swoop and sweep everything away with its pincers.

Chwaaaak!

The sharpness of those pincers was so extraordinary that it didn’t even make a clashing sound when it struck.

It simply sliced through everything in its path. The problem was my Shelter—specifically, the cave.

Kwareureu!!

"No! My house!!!"

The damn thing finally managed to completely collapse the ceiling of my cave.

I was worried about the items inside, and now I had a mountain of work to do.

Above all, even if it was just a cave, it was the house I had lived in.

You might ask why I couldn’t just build a brick house, but wasn’t there such a thing as sentimental attachment?

’I will definitely roast and eat this motherfucker.’

I glared at the stag beetle that had collapsed our precious cave.

Regardless of my glare, the creature lazily hovered in the sky.

I wanted to rip those pathetic wings right off, but it wasn’t easy.

Its flight speed was fast, and decisively, its durability was sky-high.

"Ahjussi! Were there no creatures like that outside?!"

"If such a thing existed, it would be a calamity."

Even Ludwig, rich in experience, admitted this was his first time seeing a giant stag beetle.

In the first place, insects were generally better off the smaller they were. Otherwise, they would easily catch a predator’s eye and get eaten.

Thus, in dangerous environments, most individuals possessed ’venom’.

Yet for whatever reason, that thing had become a predator itself.

It seemed to have evolved in an abnormal direction, much like the sharkman from before.

’It’s still just an insect. What are insects weak to? Fire should work, but...!’

Unlike the Immortal Herb Colossus, there was no proper window to attack.

That thing could attack whenever it wanted, while we had to just sit there sucking our thumbs.

Though I kept harassing it with arrows, I doubted whether any real damage was being dealt.

’Is there any way... Ah!’

A brilliant idea came to mind. At the same time, it was an incredibly crude method.

I instructed the rest of the group to step far back. There was something I needed to test.

Soon, the party moved far away from me, and right on cue, the stag beetle swooped down.

"Kyaaaaaah!"

Huuuuung!

The stag beetle charged straight at me. I barely threw my body to the side to dodge the strike.

This confirmed it. That creature was strictly targeting only me.

It didn’t pay any attention to the rest of the party. I planned to make good use of this.

’Besides, when it attacks, its head and torso align horizontally. I just have to pray that the Sword of the Heavenly Demon can pierce through it.’

Not pray—it has to pierce it. Otherwise, I’ll be in deep trouble too.

Pudududuk!

Hovering freely in the sky, it bided its time, seeking an opening.

Without even holding a shield, I gripped only the Sword of the Heavenly Demon. This might be my first and last chance.

Of course, due to the inherent limits of insects, its intelligence was abysmal, so it might fall for the exact same move again. It would probably be somewhat numb to pain as well.

’Who knows. Maybe it’s different now that its body structure is closer to a human’s.’

Without loosening my tension, I waited for the creature to plunge.

Did it faintly notice that I was aiming for something? It didn’t come down easily.

As we continued to test each other’s patience, it was the stag beetle that initiated the attack first.

Padadadak!

Accompanied by the distinct fluttering of insect wings, the giant stag beetle descended.

Just as it was mid-swoop, I let out a yell and charged forward.

"Uwaaaaaah!"

"Kiaaaaaak!"

The beast also shrieked, baring its hideous teeth.

Just before those massive pincers could slice me in half—

Chwareureuk!

I dropped to my knees and slid across the ground, thrusting the Sword of the Heavenly Demon upward, completely infused with aura.This chapter was copied from novelping dot com without permission.

As I thought earlier, its head and torso formed a horizontal line when it attacked.

Meaning, there was a high probability of it getting sliced cleanly in half by the Sword of the Heavenly Demon.

Kwajijijik!

Just as expected. The aura-infused Sword of the Heavenly Demon easily gouged into its hard shell.

’Holy shit! It’s this hard?!’

The problem was that even as it sliced through, the carapace was far tougher than imagined.

Even for the Sword of the Heavenly Demon, which cut through most things like tofu, this shell resisted.

It felt like sawing through a thick chunk of meat with a dull blade.

I squeezed out every ounce of my strength to ensure I didn’t lose my grip on the Sword of the Heavenly Demon.

Kwaddeudeuk!

Catching the full momentum of its dive, its body was shredded in real-time.

I gritted my teeth furiously to endure the violent recoil.

Because its body was so massive, cutting through took a considerable amount of time.

Hududuk!

What was even more disgusting was the blood. Chunks of flesh and blood dripped relentlessly onto my face.

Good thing I had covered my body in Body-Protecting Gangqi, or I would’ve suffered a truly foul experience.

Kuuung!!!

Before long, the giant stag beetle’s torso split cleanly in half.

I exhaled the breath I had been holding and lowered my raised hands.

’Ah. Right. This might explode...’

But I couldn’t relax yet. I had channeled quite a lot of aura into the Sword of the Heavenly Demon.

Last time I did that, the blade went haywire and sprayed aura in all directions.

Uuuuuung-

That didn’t happen this time.

Whether the masterpiece blade had adapted to my aura or I had succeeded in controlling it—

The Sword of the Heavenly Demon only vibrated slightly before growing quiet. What a relief.

"Phew..."

I settled my breath and turned around.

Behind me, the stag beetle I had sliced in half was twitching uncontrollably.

Even if its body was close to a human’s, an insect was still an insect; it kept squirming despite being halved.

’Ugh. Disgusting.’

I was wrong to think of eating that thing. I’ll harvest a reasonable amount and burn the rest.

Soon, the party members who had taken shelter returned, gathering around the dead stag beetle.

The size of the stag beetle was easily comparable to a giant.

And given its immense physique, disposing of it was going to be a problem.

’I wonder if it has an Inner Core?’

Wrapped in my Body-Protecting Gangqi, I began searching for an Inner Core.

A beast of this size was bound to harbor an Inner Core.

"Don’t just stand there, help me dig through it. I did all the hard work."

"Ahem."

"Ugh... So gross."

In the end, we all rummaged through the stag beetle together and found its Inner Core.

Naturally, the Inner Core was much larger than the ones from the fish. It would definitely be of great help.

’At least I’m glad only this one showed up...’

Kuuung!

Just as I was feeling relieved, a massive tremor suddenly shook the ground.

The moment I felt that vibration, I turned my head with a sinking feeling of ’no way’.

Kuuung! Kung! Kung!

The vibrations grew louder and louder. It was coming directly toward the Shelter.

Perhaps because the stag beetle had just demolished all the surrounding trees, the source of the tremor revealed itself clearly.

"Grrrk..."

"..."

A dinosaur. A dinosaur vastly bigger than the raptor I saw last time.

But the appearance of that dinosaur was... how should I put it...

[It looks like it’s wearing bone armor. Does such a dinosaur exist?]

"...I don’t know either."

At the same time I gave Cain a helpless answer—

"Kwaaaaaa!!!"

Kung! Kung! Kung! Kung!

A Tyrannosaurus clad in full-body bone armor charged straight at us.

"Piiik?"

Not you.