Swamp Battle

"Only some small details about the creatures' appearances," Brian explained. "At the time, I was mainly being shielded in the back by the other mercenaries. My position was also at a considerable distance away when the team leader encountered them."

"But surely they must have told you of what went down afterwards?" Alex frowned as he heard this. "Or, did those mercenaries choose to keep their experiences to themselves?"

"It wasn't like that." Brian shook his head as he slowly revealed, "When they returned from their engagement with those monsters, a couple of them wound up in serious conditions. The leader was among them as well. By the time he had recovered his consciousness, he was in an unstable state and demanded the rest of his team to leave."

In the wet landscape the group was trailing across, the rain that was falling overhead started to lessen in intensity, decreasing the frequency of water droplets over the carrier's makeshift rooftop. The sounds of pattering slowly began to cease, allowing communication to be easier to comprehend.

"What?" Judy closely observed the face of their employer, half-suspecting he was trying to be deliberately mysterious. "Just like that, they wanted to leave immediately without another word?"

"Yes, and it was the same for all the others who had reawakened." Brian bit his bottom lip while continuing to elaborate on the events that transpired, "What's most strange though, were that the ones who had wanted to leave were those most injured by the monsters. The majority of the mercenaries unanimously decided to give up on my commission, convincing the rest to follow suit.

"No matter how much I persisted, none of the members wanted to stay in Everrain a moment longer, and the team even gave up part of their claim to the rewards. The way they left, it was almost like they were traumatized by something..."

Brian's sentence trailed off into silence. For a short moment, nobody else spoke.

"Traumatized...?" Leo murmured while frowning contemplatively, his voice raised loudly enough to only reach his ears.

'The most likely possibility is some kind of strange ability. Based on Brian's limited account, it's probably best we don't let ourselves get injured when dealing with these creatures.'

Meanwhile, Alex decided to break the momentary silence with a few words of caution.

"Whatever the case, even if none of us have any extensive knowledge, we should all already be prepared for the worst. It's not like it's our first time dealing with the unexpected."

The rest of the team nodded in agreement.

"That's right." Judy smiled with encouragement, remembering their battle with those despicable goblins. "Our best bet is to play it safe."

"But," Brian still looked uncertain as he fidgeted with his fingers, "are you sure that's really fine? I mean, aren't you guys just a little bit concerned?"

"We are, of course," Leo replied from the front calmly, temporarily putting his thoughts aside. "But we have also dealt with our own fair share of surprises, so there isn't a need for us to be too nervous."

"Yes, being too nervous is a troublesome thing on its own." Sarah took this time to deliver her own sentiments.

By the time the group delved deeper past the marsh and found themselves inside a complete swamp, increased traces of various flora sprouted around them. In addition to the surrounding plants, there were also other animals hidden away.

It was around this time that the adventurers officially went on to complete their researcher's request, on guard for the dangers lurking around.

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Across the murky depths of the swamp, fresh rainwater cascaded asynchronously over the flora that dominated most of the region. Pools of water were filled up steadily before overflowing into the surrounding soils, nurturing specific plant-life that were underneath the cover of overhanging branches and leaves. Small channels were reformed thanks to the grooves marked in the earth, forming an interconnected web of fluids that signaled the arrival of a new day to the natural inhabitants living here.

In this particular area, straight pathways marked by humans would gradually become lost from sight, demarcating the wilderness around the city of Everrain. Living within these parts, an ecosystem of animals and monsters co-existed in a relatively peaceful capacity. That is, until outsiders began to venture through their territories...

Echoing through the distant fields of twisted tree limbs and protruding roots, sounds of fighting could be overheard. Accompanying them were splashes of water which frequently disturbed the peaceful stillness of the murky puddles. They were caused by the struggle of humans that have encountered some inhospitable monsters.

Deep within the swamp, the adventurers were now engaging their first obstacle of Everrain.

Crack!

A fallen branch lying on a wet soil was snapped in half as a metallic sabaton stepped on it with considerable force. Following that was the movement of an armored man wielding a sharp sword with one hand.

"HA!" Alex slashed forward with a burst of speed, cleaving through the tough scales of a giant beast.

More splashes were formed in the wet environment, having resulted from the fallen severed head of a Redhorn Crocodile, one of the fiercest creatures native to Everrain. Resembling its namesake, this species were armed with blood red spikes protruding several inches above the scales on its back and shoulders; these ravenous reptiles were some of the most fiercest monsters residing in the majority of wetlands across Bavalon. Adult members of this species have an average length of ten meters extending from snout to tail, and are able to reach a height of five feet when raised on its four limbs. The combination of their skin and scales were stated to be capable of matching up the durability of steel.

The most dangerous feature possessed by these beasts was their ability to eject the limited mounds of spikes from their two shoulders as a method of attack. These spikes were often launched with enough force to pierce through unenchanted armor, and can move with the speed of a projectile shot from a ballista. Furthermore, potent numbing toxins coated around the sharp ends, being strong enough to weaken the constitution of an Advanced level warrior. These poisons also lined the spikes on the crocodiles' backsides, acting as further deterrent for attacks from other predators.

Thankfully, only those located on the shoulders could be used as projectiles, and they often cannot be shot outwardly without end. Once a spike has been detached from any area on the creature, it will usually take up to several hours before they can be completely regrown. That being said, the average adult Redhorn Crocodile can still unleash half a dozen rounds in succession if angrily provoked.

Right now, the adventurers were confronting these terrible monsters that'd recently sprung up beneath the swamp's murky surface.

"Maintain a limited enclosure!" Alex advised his team. "Do not spread out too far."

At this moment, the Redhorn Crocodiles were swarming in from multiple directions, circling around the entire group whilst glaring gluttonously with their dark red pupils. Because Brian did not possess much effectiveness in combat, he was made to stay sheltered within Leo's carrier to avoid any random spikes that may get launched through the air.

[Icicle Formation]!

Standing at a certain distance behind Alex, Leo waved his unsheathed magic sword and casted a water elemental spell. The monsters that were beginning to pounce on his teammate suddenly found their hides being penetrated by condensed swamp water shaped in a manner resembling stalagmites. These points of ice managed to bury themselves quite deeply into the sturdy bodies, having been strongly enhanced by the supplementary power of Everrain.

Blood dyed the swamp's wet surface, signaling the waning vitality of these creatures. Close to eight of them began dying in agony, but not before new members swarmed in to take their places.

Poisonous projectiles were soon sent flying through the air, becoming a hazardous danger for the battling adventurers. Fortunately, they were all immediately blocked by a set of holy barriers projected by Sarah, who was positioned next to the carrier where Brian was huddled in. Since the adventurers needed to protect their employer from harm, it had been decided that the priestess of the team would be made to stay in close proximity with him to prevent any incidents along the way. Nevertheless, if the situation proved a bit dire, then she was more than inclined to take part in supporting the rest of her teammates.

Besides Sarah who was guarding the carrier, Judy stood in the center of the team, sending waves of spells that covered a sufficient area to either kill off or hinder the approaching creatures.

[Acidic Barrage]!

[Storm Blades]!

Judy used her wand to focus on sending omnidirectional attacks to each of the directions where a Redhorn Crocodile was poised to strike. Her first spell was enhanced by Everrain and dealt some considerable damage, killing a decent chunk of the mob. However her second spell was only able to inflict grievous injuries that restricted the monsters' mobility.