Konbini Ossan Volume 6 Chapter 6 — The Adventure of Tears

After reaching the royal capital and offering only the bare minimum of greetings, I immediately turned around and headed straight for the Adventurers’ Guild.

I had already given Arisa all the necessary instructions for the shop. She would handle things well.

Right now I didn’t want to talk to anyone.

I wanted only to throw myself wholly into this work.

At the guild, I went straight to the request board and scanned the posted notices, focusing on extermination jobs.

I soon found what I was searching for and tore the slip from the board.

It was a request to thin out the monsters in a forest overrun by Wurgas.

Originally the forest had only been plagued by an abnormal boom of Big Rats.

But since the response had been slow, they became food for giant caterpillar monsters called Catercrawlers, which in turn rapidly multiplied.

The extermination of the Catercrawlers also fell behind, letting them pupate and emerge as their final form — moth monsters called Wurgas — leading to a full-scale outbreak.

The request was to enter this forest and cull both the Wurgas and the Catercrawlers.

My goal was the cocoons produced during the Wurgas’ pupal stage.

Thread harvested from Wurgas cocoons is not only an exceptional magic catalyst, but when processed becomes stronger than leather, shimmering faintly in seven colors.

Cloth made from this thread is used for top-class dresses and trades at tremendous prices.

But once a Wurgas emerges, it consumes its own cocoon as nourishment for rapid growth.

And as a magical creature, its pupal period lasts less than a day.

Unless one happens to encounter a Wurgas right before or just after hatching, the material is nearly unobtainable.

To make matters worse, while Catercrawlers are manageable, Wurgas are said to be impossible to defeat without at least an A-rank adventurer.

Their danger makes their cocoons all the rarer.

But with Wurgas mass-producing now — and with my power — obtaining the amount needed for one dress would not be difficult.

I hadn’t stumbled across the request by chance.

Back in Waynesvale, rumors of a Catercrawler outbreak had already spread. I gambled that the situation might still be unresolved — an unpleasant prediction, but a correct one.

I accepted the request at the counter and immediately left the guild and the capital.

The forest where the Wurgas outbreak was occurring was seven days away on foot.

But my physical abilities were no longer within human limits.

At full speed I could knock a carriage flying if we collided.

I sprinted toward the target location without hesitation.

I arrived at the forest that same night.

Clouds covered the sky, and without moonlight the deep woods were swallowed in unnatural silence.

But that suited me just fine.

“UOOOOOOOH!”

I roared as I plunged into the forest.

I released «Miasma» and «Cursed-Sludge», letting them drift around me.

From the cursed mud I shaped the cursed orichalcum substance — the one I had once proudly named Dark Matter to show off to Arisa — into a sword and grasped it.

Thanks to my skills, I am immune to poison, disease, curses — including my own miasma and cursed mud. There was no danger in wielding Dark Matter.

Cutting down everything obstructing my path, I charged deeper into the forest.

“Damn it…!”

The words spilled out before I realized.

“Damn it, dAmN it! DAMN IIIIT! ”

I was consumed by an emotion I couldn’t control.

Tears flowed freely.

My body trembled.

My head felt feverish with rage, yet cold and detached enough to see my own pitiful state from the outside.

The noise drew in the Wurgas.

A mass of them swarmed toward me.

But with all my stats at SS, these monsters were nothing.

Those touching Miasma or cursed mud rotted and collapsed instantly.

Those that sensed danger fled, but I didn’t allow escape — I pierced them with Dark Matter spears, or rushed them and cut them in two.

“…aaaaaaAAAAAHHHHHH!!!! ”

My inarticulate screaming echoed as I slaughtered Wurgas mindlessly.

Kill, kill, kill—

Slash after slash, as though taking out my rage on them, I reaped countless lives.

Eventually, I broke into what seemed to be a clearing.

There stood one massive cocoon far larger than a normal Wurgas’, surrounded by dozens more.

Beside the giant cocoon stood a goblin.

“Guhahahaha! You’ve done well to come, human! I am Metidovan, the Wise General, one of the Demon King’s Seven Marshals and the closest to filling the vacant seat among the Four Heavenly Kings!

…

Behold! This is the moment my ultimate creation is born — the Omega Wurgas, evolved from the Omega Catercrawler I formed by forcing countless Catercrawlers into cannibalism!”

Cracks formed on the giant cocoon.

At the same time, cracks appeared on all the smaller cocoons, and Wurgas began to emerge.

From the largest cocoon appeared a monstrous Wurgas five times the size of a normal one — the Omega Wurgas.

“Now! Tremble before the terror of the Omega Wurgas, born from the ultimate-”

“YoU’re nOiSy as HELL! SHUT UUUUUUUUP!!!!”

I couldn’t endure the goblin’s monologue.

I charged and cut off its head in a single stroke of Dark Matter.

Dead before it even understood what happened.

Next was the Omega Wurgas.

It had just hatched and its cocoon remained.

Perfect — I could use it for the dress.

“YOu dAmN BASTAAAARD!!!!”

I sheathed the Dark Matter sword in cursed mud and swung.

The mud scattered outward, sharp as blades.

The swept arc expanded, unleashing a storm of cursed mud that tore through the surrounding Wurgas and the Omega Wurgas.

The enormous swarm of moths was cleaved cleanly in two and died instantly.

“KYOOOOOoooon~!”

The Omega Wurgas gave a final death cry before crashing to the ground, motionless.

I approached the giant cocoon quietly.

It was clearly of exceptional quality — richer color, deeper seven-colored shine than normal Wurgas cocoons.

“Arisa…”

Without realizing, I whispered her name.

Then I collected as many cocoons as possible, including the precious one, and stored them in my item pouch before leaving the clearing behind.

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E/N:

Damn 😭! Honestly, totally understandable crashout… What's going to happen next?

Stay tuned!

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Soul Devourer of Infinite Growth

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