Chapter 196: I completely forgot, appraisal-type skills are hard to find the right timing for

[A/N: We are just a few more golden tickets away from reaching another milestone!!]

"Hellhound!"

Through the voice tube, Uraka continued giving instructions.

"Distance is close! Prepare for close combat! Magicians stick to defense! Don’t let the ship or cargo get damaged!"

Kazui, Crio, and Marisa had already activated Aura Mail and Aura Speeder. Marisa drew her sword and readied herself, the sheath carried on her back.

"If it were one-ring, fine, but if two-ring it’s troublesome."

While glaring at the Hellhound with stern eyes, Crio considered. Hellhounds existed as one-ring Private-class and two-ring Corporal-class.

Private-class Hellhounds were in the strong class among small fry. Corporal-class were not small fry, and in the case of Hellhounds, due to the huge body as well, unless middle-class or higher, it was a dangerous opponent to face alone.

The Brigade that attacked Aquila had also included Hellhounds. At that time, they had been easily defeated by concentrated fire of long-distance attacks from numerous magician adventurers.

This time the Hellhound had appeared at a place of medium-distance range from the start, and moreover if a fast-footed Hellhound, a place where the range would be closed in an instant. That was why Uraka gave the instruction to intercept on the premise of close combat.

As Uraka speculated, the Hellhound kicked the ground and charged toward the Gadalbarooha. In an instant it closed to just before the Gadalbarooha.

The Hellhound collided with the transparent defensive barrier, generating a collision sound as if a traffic accident had occurred and intense sparks. Immediately the defensive barrier shattered with a breaking sound, countless fragments shining while dissolving into the atmosphere and disappearing.

The Hellhound that shattered the defensive barrier protecting the Gadalbarooha with a body blow landed on a container near the bow. It faced the humans on the deck about twenty meters away... toward Kazui and the others.

It had recognized Kazui and the others as the first prey.

"No way... the defensive barrier with just a body blow..."

While surprised and flustered, Crio readied herself.

(At this range, maybe General Appraisal can be used.)

While also surprised and flustered, since such a thought floated in his head, he activated General Appraisal for now and made both eyes shine. Then his vision was filled with character information.

(Uwa! Hard to see!)

Despite the enemy being in front of his eyes, his vision became filled with character information and hard to see. He immediately released General Appraisal.

(During combat, unless hiding behind cover or in a state where companions are drawing the enemy, vision gets crushed, so must not use.)

Right after thinking so, he recalled. That he had received such advice from Lumia and Monica.

To him who still only owned Sexual Appraisal as an appraisal-type skill, Lumia and Monica had advised on how to use appraisal-type skills. In preparation for when he obtained other appraisal-type skills from now.

When using appraisal-type skills during combat, vision became filled with information and hard to see. That was why when companions were drawing the enemy or while hiding behind cover, appraisal-type skills must be used...

He recalled having received such advice from Lumia and Monica after using it.

(I completely forgot, appraisal-type skills are hard to find the right timing for.)

He reflected on having forgotten the advice. In the recovered vision, the Hellhound about twenty meters ahead had begun opening its mouth aiming at Kazui and the others who had stopped moving.

From the opened mouth white light began to be released.

(Howling!)

Howling was a medium-distance attack skill that released aura granted destructive effect from the mouth and attacked enemies. Since launched from the mouth and emitting a large sound like a roar at launch, it became a skill name meaning roar.

Monsters with appearance similar to dogs or wolves such as Hellhounds often owned it. If Private-class fine, but if Corporal-class Howling, it became a threat in power for lower-class adventurers.

At close range, lower-class adventurers’ aura defense and such could be shaved in one hit and kill. Howling had short range distance but wide attack range, and most of the front deck became the attack range.

(If Corporal-class, must not let it fire!)

With his evasion ability, it was not that he could not dodge Howling. It was possible to evade by jumping down from the Gadalbarooha and such.

However, Howling reached the bridge and such, so if the defensive barrier was broken, the hull might receive major damage. That was why he thought must not let Howling fire.

Not only he but Crio and Marisa made the same judgment. The three kicked the container and charged toward the Hellhound.

The timing of starting the charge was almost the same. But he closed in on the Hellhound with speed like a gale that overwhelmed Crio and Marisa.

Judging that Aura Speeder would not make it in time to prevent the Howling of the Hellhound that had already opened its mouth and begun releasing aura light, he switched the skill from Aura Speeder to Rapid Yalt, and while releasing faint yellow light from his whole body began the charge.

(Make it in time!)

With truly lightning speed, the Kazui who ran into the Hellhound’s bosom kicked the container and jumped. From diagonally below he kicked up the Hellhound’s jaw with a flying kick.

Like a boxer who ate an intense uppercut, the Hellhound’s mouth was forcibly closed. The enormous aura that was just about to be released lost its place inside the Hellhound’s mouth, became a runaway state and exploded.

An explosion sound echoed, and the Hellhound’s head blew off while scattering a large amount of shining aura around. A scene as if firing a gun with the muzzle blocked and the gun misfiring.

Normally, attacks by aura, whether human or monster, excluded oneself from the attack target. The Hellhound’s aura granted destructive effect would not originally damage the Hellhound’s body.

But this time the Hellhound had gathered excessive aura in its mouth for the sake of immediately releasing outside, and eaten an intense flying kick. The mouth closed, unable to endure the sudden rise of internal pressure from the concentration of excessive aura, the head was blown off from inside.

The Hellhound’s head had been destroyed in an explosive form not by the destructive effect of aura but unable to endure the excessive internal pressure. Aura defense used by human adventurers such as Aura Mail normally protected the inside of the mouth the same as the body surface.

Monsters whose level was not low, same as human adventurers, had the inside of the mouth protected by aura defense, but low-level monsters were not so. The inside of the mouth hard to receive attacks was normally not protected by aura defense.

That was why against low-level monsters, major damage could be dealt by the method he performed.

(Yes!)

He raised a voice of joy in his heart.

(The method taught by Lumia and Monica went well!)

He had been taught by Lumia and Monica the countermeasure against monsters that used Howling. Monsters that gathered excessive aura in the mouth, if forcibly closed the mouth with a striking technique right before the attack, the head would misfire.

Using that, while preventing the launch of Howling, he had been taught the method of defeating monsters such as Hellhounds in one hit. Actually doing it was a first for him though.

If the head or chest was destroyed, monsters mostly became defeated, and Hellhounds were no exception. The Hellhound whose head was destroyed began to collapse while releasing light, like a sand statue collapsed by strong wind.

The existence of an enormous amount of shining sand grains that had been the Hellhound disappeared as if dissolving into the atmosphere. Leaving one small magic stone on the container.

He released Rapid Yalt that had finished its role and extinguished the faint yellow light his body released.

"The Hellhound... in one hit..."