Over half an hour before the group of adventurers coming to investigate the state of the dungeon arrived on the final floor of the dungeon and ran into the skeleton guards placed by the necromancer of the Eternal Life Sanctum to keep any eye on the passage, Verdell silently slipped off Scaly and firmly planted his two feet on the rocky mountainous surface alongside Scaly before the two of them began their slow descent through the grey cloud that still engulfed the two of them alongside the towering mountain they had just landed on top of.
The cloud in question wasn’t grey because another grey sun existed on this final floor of the dungeon, but instead just because it was naturally grey colored, something that had been rather easy to confirm given how neither Verdell nor Scaly were grey like they had been on the floor above.
However, just as the two thought they were about to leave the grey cloud and see what this floor of the dungeon looked like, they found themselves faced with a thin mist that while nowhere near as thick as the grey mist from the previous floor, still limited their vision to a few hundred meters around them. Meaning the only thing the two of them saw as they emerged from the grey cloud was the empty sky and the barren mountain, they found themselves on. Another mountain peak barely visible at the very edge of their vision in the distance, but beyond that, there was nothing of interest in sight.
Disappointing to say the least given how both had believed they would see an army of undead clashing with an equally powerful army of monsters, the second they left the grey cloud and saw the ground of the final floor of the dungeon.
Rustle~
[Mist Lurking Mountain Toad, lvl 101]
However, maybe as a way to cheer up the two of them, or more specifically cheer up Scaly, a monster just so happened to jump within view of the two of them. Instantly drawing their attention as the two pairs of eyes met the one pair of eyes belonging to the mountain toad-
Croaaak-!
Causing the mountain toad’s pair of large eyes widened even further than they already had. Not wasting a second letting out a somewhat panicked croaking sound turning around to escape back in the direction it had come from without the slightest bit of hesitation.
"You! Get back here!"
Free experience! Don’t run- or hop!
Unsurprisingly, both Scaly and Verdell jumped into action upon seeing this, chasing after the escaping mountain toad. One who wanted nothing more than to stop it from accidentally alerting any nearby undead or skeletons to their presence while the other wanted to claim this hopping bundle of experience for herself. Resulting in a rather comical sight of one large and one smaller figure chasing after the escaping mountain toad that rapidly jumped down the mountain. Relying on gravity pulling it downwards whenever it jumped forward to not get caught immediately by the two chasing it from behind.
Although it wasn’t a particularly powerful monster, it was ultimately still an S Rank Monster and one that wasn’t in an injured state whose jumping abilities alone was terrifying and allowed it to keep both Scaly and Verdell at bay even as the two used their magic to attack it from behind while chasing after it. Utilizing its small size and downright terrifying agility to dodge water blades and fireballs midair with uncanny precision by twisting its body just enough for said magical abilities to miss. Leaving both Scaly and Verdell speechless as they watched the distance between the two of them and the mountain toad showing no signs of closing as the base of the barren mountain slowly came into view.
And when the two officially descended the mountain and found themselves standing on a rocky surface already off the mountain, the mountain toad they had been chasing so far had already widened the distance between them to the point that it was about to disappear into the thin mist and leave them behind for good. A kind of humiliation that neither Scaly nor Verdell had expected to experience after their latest glorious record of taking down two SS Rank members of the Eternal Life Sanctum along with an even strong SS Rank Monster in the form of the Mist Bound Behemoth.
Although all three opponents had been weakened significantly, neither of them expected that a monster that had seemingly just reached the S Rank would leave them in this kind of state once they descended to the final floor of the dungeon and made both Scaly and Verdell seriously worried about the monsters they might encounter on this floor of the dungeon. After all, if even a weak S Rank Monster could do this to the two of them, what would happen if they ran into a strong S Rank Monster or even an SS Rank Monster?
Just the thought of this alone caused the energy within the two to flare up as neither of them wanted the damnable mountain toad to escape and leave them with this kind of worry in the back of their mind.
Crackle~!
Fwoosh-!
And so, without the slightest bit of hesitation, Scaly used her lightning magic that would be impossible for the damnable hopping mountain toad to escape while Verdell used a fire storm spell that engulfed a wide area in a sea of fire. Making it impossible for the mountain toad to dodge relying on its terrifying agility.
Croooak-!
Faced with these two terrifying magical abilities descending from above like the wrath of an angry god of thunder and fire sending down punishment from above, the mountain toad let out a panicked croak. Knowing that it wouldn’t be able to dodge this terrifying attack-
Whoosh~!
BANG!
CROOOOACK-!
But before the attack could land a massive shadow suddenly descended from above and landed directly in front of the helpless mountain toad. Blocking the lightning and fire magic from Scaly and Verdell as easily as a soft breeze. Showing no signs of damage as it let out a loud croaking sound that forced both Scaly and Verdell to freeze in place as they took in the majestic new opponent that had suddenly emerged before them and blocked their attacks with ease.
[Mist Guarding Mountain Toad, lvl 187]
[Description: The evolution of the common mist lurking mountain toad, the mist guarding mountain toad is a powerful SS Rank Monster known to inhabit large mountain ranges far from civilization covered in a permanent mist. Not much is known about this powerful monster outside of the fact that it’s highly territorial and rarely appears in places not swarming with mist lurking mountain toads.
The abilities of the mist guarding mountain toad are similar to that of the mist lurking mountain toad with a terrifyingly high agility, the only other ability that can’t be found on the mist lurking mountain toad being the ability to forcibly strengthen its body with magic to withstand powerful attacks sometimes stronger than itself. Avoid it if possible.]
Seeing this massive toad that had suddenly emerged from the thin mist out of nowhere to block their attacks and also taking the opportunity to glance through its description during the brief awkward silence that came along with its sudden appearance, Scaly couldn’t help silently cursing herself for not inspecting the mist lurking mountain toad she had been chasing alongside Verdell. Feeling that she might have obtained information on the presence of this terrifying toad whose strength exceeded even that of the mist bound behemoth ahead of time.
Then again... Knowing herself, even if there was information on this powerful monster in the description of the mist lurking mountain toad, there was little chance that she would have stopped chasing after the mist lurking mountain toad upon learning about it...
CROOOAK-!
"Quick! Get out of here!" And as the enormous mountain toad let out another loud croaking sound that caused the very ground beneath their feet to shake as it jumped towards the two of them, Scaly didn’t even have to pick up Verdell, as the dwarf had already climbed up on her back as he called for her to escape.
Swish-!
Something he didn’t have to say twice, as she didn’t hesitate in the slightest to turn escape.
This wasn’t just any powerful monster, but one even stronger than the mist bound behemoth! Facing this kind of monster that wasn’t in a weakened or injured state, Scaly understood full well that the current her stood no chance of winning even with Verdell on her side.
Not to mention, she hadn’t forgotten the fact that the description of this powerful toad clearly mentioned any place where it could be found swarmed with mist lurking mountain toads. S Rank Monsters that while weak on their own and something she and Verdell could deal with, would undoubtedly be difficult to fight in large numbers while they also had to deal with an SS Rank Monster at the same time...