"So, this is the Great Megwest Empire territory." Compass Carburettor muttered upon crossing the Bureta Forest, landing atop a faraway hill as he took in the view. He turned around, noticing the pillars of Fektra collapse as they were no longer interested in killing them.
It seemed like the fact of them never leaving their forest was indeed true, thankfully for him. Moreover, he noticed that there were no monsters around their vicinity. It seemed the fact of them being repeatedly eaten by the Fektra prevented any other monster from venturing into the region.
Though, that also allowed Compass Carburettor and Duchess enough time and space to rest. They had expended a lot of Darlac already. And in response to the battles they would fight next, it was wise to replenish their Darlac reserves first.
"Use this time to familiarise yourself with the Spydragon," He pointed southwest, "Scout in this direction while I scout northwest. We'll move from one safe point to another and avoid battles as much as possible."
He then sent his Spydragon flying in the respective direction, thinking, 'The capital, Mohart is around 1300 kilometres from here. This is a significant distance. Travelling by air would indeed be faster.'
'But first, I have to make at least one another Dungeon Monster part of the Secret Society. That way, I'll have enough manpower to help me in the Mohart Dungeon. Regriel is bound to obtain something that would shorten his journey. So, he'll probably travel this stretch of 1300 kilometres within a week.' He thought, sighing as he focused, sensing the areas that the Spydragon flew through, using its eyes to scout the place.
In the meantime, he consumed some of the rations, replenishing his Darlac reserves slowly. An hour later, they began to move once again, flying through the air at a high altitude as they proceeded towards another hilltop.
The Great Megwest Empire was a land of mountains and valleys. So, there were numerous hills along the way for them to use and get a clear view of their surroundings.
'What the heck is this monster?' He frowned, spotting a monster similar to a tiger in appearance but with two heads instead. Moreover, its body was five times the size of tigers he had seen on Earth. That wasn't all, he soon spotted a herd of tiger monsters running as a pack as they targeted a group of serpentine monsters.
These serpentine monsters were lizards with really long bodies, spanning around 5-6 metres each. On a general glance, the tiger monsters seemed stronger than the lizard monsters. But, the moment the two groups fought, they were evenly matched.
While fighting, the tiger monsters breathed out a faint mist that began to corrode through the bodies of the lizard monsters. And in response, the lizard monsters bit onto the fur of the tiger monsters, causing the bitten area to turn to stone and then fall off like sand.
'Vicious!' That was the only word he could think of, having zero intentions to confront them. After all, even if he won, if he was affected by their attacks, he was a goner. Moreover, there were zero benefits in risking his life to kill them.
So, he simply decided to move away from the place. But, reality didn't go along with his thoughts. The Katia produced a lot of noise, grabbing the attention of some of the tiger monsters.
As the humans in the air were tiny, not many were interested in hunting the prey that barely amounted to a snack. In response, the massive bodies of the lizard monsters were enough for them to eat to their fill and even have some excess leftover.
But, two of them still chased after the duo in the air, following them on the ground.
Compass Carburettor whispered, "How long can you maintain flight?"
"Around three to four hours, I guess. I have yet to calculate the amount of Darlac I have in me. But based on the rate of consumption, this is a general estimate." Duchess replied.
"Then, let's continue flying for around for an hour first." Compass Carburettor said, watching the two tiger monsters chase relentlessly without breaking any sweat. Until all the Darlac stored within the Darble Crystals growing on their foreheads was expended, they wouldn't become tired.
So, the tiger monsters constantly kept pace. But after half an hour had passed in such a fashion, they stopped, for their territory had ended. And beyond that was the territory of another monster species.
"That finally left us." Compass Carburettor sighed in relief, soon frowning as noticed a vast lake span before them. And, swimming within it was a marine monster species with whale-like bodies.
And, as the duo flew overhead, numerous shadows streamed within the waters before the heads of the marine monsters peaked out, one after another until the entire surface area of the lake was covered by them.
The image alone was nauseating. Moreover, the act of the marine monsters opening and closing their mouths, revealing their grotesquely pulsating flesh almost caused him to vomit. As for Duchess, she was calm, stating after some observation as she smacked her lips, "They look delicious!"
"Seriously?" Compass Carburettor groaned, "Don't you feel like vomiting after seeing such a scene?"
"Why?" She asked in return, "There's an unlimited amount of prey below. And, they seem pretty weak. I can easily kill ten of them without suffering any damage. After all, they seem to be the product from a Level 1 Dungeon."
"And, no matter what they are, Level 1 Dungeon Monsters pose no threat to me." She said, causing him to recall the fact that the one he was conversing with only looked human on the surface, but in actuality was part of a scarier race that loved to feast on the kidneys of humans.
"Then, let's stop and set up camp here." Compass Carburettor said, noticing the entrance to a Dungeon within a kilometre from the lake.
"But, why are there no monsters around the Dungeon Entrance?" Duchess frowned, for based on her knowledge, when Dungeon Monsters poured out of the Dungeon, they always camped around the entrance, guarding it.
Even if a group of the Dungeon Monsters decided to travel farther in search of prey, their instincts prevented them from leaving their home—the Dungeon they were born from—undefended.
"This is strange indeed. Let's investigate it." Compass Carburettor said as Duchess slowly lowered their altitude, "This is, after all, the first Dungeon we came across in the Great Megwest Empire. It would allow us to learn more about the truth of the incident that happened more than a century ago."
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Author's Note: November Mass Release Quota
For every 10 GT (Golden Ticket): 1 Bonus Chapter would be released