Chapter 243 - The Undead
"Kakakakakakan!"
Something is approaching us, knocking down trees in the forest.
It was coming so close that it was in our line of sight.
And when I saw it, I felt a chill down my back and broke out in a cold sweat.
What is that thing?
Can this creature really exist?
What I saw were bones coming toward me.
That couldn't have been a living thing.
Because it had no skin, no muscles, only bones.
But even though it was only bones, it was moving.
It had a complex structure of joints, but somehow, despite having no muscles, it did not fall apart, and when it hit a tree, it broke the tree while advancing.
『Is that ...... an undead? I didn't think I'd run into one here .......』
『Undead? Thanatos, do you know anything?』
『Yes, I know. It is said that people with powerful mana sometimes become obsessed with some sort of delusion after death and wander this world. I've only heard about them, but I've actually never seen one before』
『Is that really what all undead look like? I mean, could those bones be ...... from a dragon?』
『Maybe』
A monster with only bones.
We don't know for sure what its appearance was like in life.
I have no real way to guess.
But I can't help wonder if it was a dragon.
Where the bone meets the head, the mouth protrudes forward in a wide arc, and the sharp fangs are still there.
And from that head, a spine seems to extend, eventually becoming a tail.
From the head bone to the tip of the tail, it must be about 7 to 8 meters long as I saw it.
Furthermore, from the spine, there are ribs, but, right now, there are no lungs or internal organs for breathing inside.
Also, not only the ribs but also the bones of the limbs protrude from the spine, but it appears to be a quadruped that walks on all four legs with its front and hind legs on the ground, rather than walking on two legs.
Looking at this alone, it looks like a lizard, but there is one thing that definitely differentiates it from a lizard.
It had wing bones extending from its back.
If it were alive, would it have been able to fly with its wings?
However, the absence of skin means the absence of wing membranes, so even if the wing bones were moving, the lizard did not look as if it were about to fly.
The general verdict is that a large reptilian bony creature with wings is right in front of us.
This is eerily similar to dragons from fairy tales.
『Thanatos, have you ever fought a dragon before?』
『No』
『... Do you think it's gonna be strong?』
『It will, right. Be more careful than that, Ars. Don't get close to that undead."
"Not get close? Why?"
『The magic of immortals is unholy. Their spells harm the living. Look at its feet』
『Gee ...ah. The hell. The trees and grass are rotting...』
The dragon bone monster, let's call it the Undead Bone Dragon.
The Undead Bone Dragon approached us, and for some reason stopped moving.
Perhaps it is trying to find out what we are up to.
It seems to be aiming at our location and observing us even though it only has bones, but I wonder if it has intelligence.
As soon as it stopped moving, weird things happened below the dragon's feet.
Grass and tree roots on the ground, as well as trees near the undead bone dragon, had begun to rot unnaturally.
Was it the effect of his sickening black mana?
The rot is gradually starting from the places that have been in contact with the mana for a long time.
Is it because they are undead that they are harmful to all living things?
I had heard about the existence of dragons when I learned that there were mounted dragon Familiars.
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Yet I had no idea that such undead monsters existed.
I had thought that there would be no such things as zombies or ghosts in a world where humans have won the sphere of survival and are fighting amongst themselves.
But there are?
There are such mysterious creatures in this world.
If such a thing were to come out of the forest and visit Barca, it would be a big problem, wouldn't it?
I wonder if it will be all right.
『Ars, let's run away!』
『Run away? Aren't we going to fight?』
『There's no use in fighting undead. Do you really want to die that much?』
『... No. All right, let's run away』
We are now in a standoff with the Undead Bone Dragon.
Under the circumstances, I had thought that I was supposed to fight it.
But Thanatos chose to run away.
It seems that he decided that there was no way we could take on the dragon seriously.
I am sure of that.
That must mean we are not a match for the creature, even in Thanatos' eyes.
While observing the movements of the Undead Bone Dragon with both eyes, Thanatos and I gradually retreated backward.
※ ※ ※
Damn it!
We shouldn't have run away.
Or rather, I didn't think we'd be able to escape.
And sure enough, it was a failure.
The Undead Bone Dragon was chasing after me, crushing any trees in its path.
Sprinting through the forest, I could hear such sounds from behind me.
Nonetheless, I kept running, not caring about the tree branches hitting my face and body.
It seems that I am moving faster than it, though.
I don't know if its bones alone are not that fast, or if it was mainly good at flying and not so good at running while alive.
However, I have managed to keep running.
Nevertheless, it may be only a matter of time before I am unable to.
The dragon, which is made up of only a skeleton, isn't fast, but it also does not seem to have lost its physical strength.
It would continue to chase me forever.
At this rate, I would eventually become unable to run and it would catch up with me.
How did this happen?
I just wanted to have some fun and made a hot air balloon.
I came to this forest, lost Kyle, lost Thanatos while running away, and now somehow I'm the only one being chased.
Or rather, why is this guy relentlessly chasing me?!
There were times when there were ogres and wild boars along the way, but it was only me that the undead was chasing.
It's no use.
No matter how I try, I can't escape.
I had no choice but to be determined.
"Poison Nullification]
I mutter a single incantation.
It's an original spell I created myself, [Poison Nullification].
I am not sure how well it will resist the corrosive mana of the Undead Bone Dragon.
However, if I am going to fight him while everything else is rotting away, I should at least be able to resist poison.
So, I dealt with the poisonous effect only and then turned my body around.
The dragon is still running at me from behind.
I slashed at it with my most powerful weapon, the iron sword Grand Barca, which I held in my right hand.