Chapter 2: A Gang of Orangurangs

Chapter 2:
A Gang of Orangurangs

 

Part 1

 

I SLEPT LATER than usual the next morning. The previous day was rough, and I wanted to recover as much HP as I could.

“Kssh… Kssh…”

I figured the black lizard would get up before me, but when I opened my eyes it was still sleeping by my side, its deep, contented breaths in my ear. Well, its nap was interrupted yesterday when the humans came. Maybe it was tired.

I caressed the lizard’s head, and it nuzzled my hand. It had a happy look on its face. I wondered if it was having a good dream. Lately, I woke up next to the black lizard almost every morning.

I checked View Status to see if my wounds from yesterday were healed yet.

 

Species: Young Plague Dragon

Status: Normal

Lv: 37/40

HP: 148/161

MP: 157/157

 

Still a little short of fully recovered, but it would do. I’d be able to get through the day just fine. Though I had a feeling it was past noon, so the day was already half over. Well, sleeping in for a change wasn’t a problem. It wasn’t like I’d made plans with anyone, and I didn’t have a schedule. I could sleep the entire day away and no one would complain.

I figured I’d check the black lizard’s status while I was at it.

 

Species: Venom Princess Lacerta

Status: Sleeping

Lv: 23/35

HP: 120/120

MP: 143/143

 

Hmm, hmm. Looking good. Strange; we defeated the twinheads but the black lizard only went up three levels. I guess I was expecting it to grow faster than that. Maybe I just had a skewed perspective since I always got so many wild skills when I level up.

I wondered when it would evolve. Honestly, if the lizard got stronger, there’d really be no reason for my presence. Even during our battle with the twinheads, I was little more than bait.

After the black lizard woke up, we both ate some jerky. Once we were finished, I set an empty pot in front of it.

“Kssh?”

“Raar.”

It tilted its head and gave me a puzzled look. “Kssh?”

“Raar!”

“Kssh!”

We exchanged cries and gestures; I was attempting to ask the black lizard to produce some more poison for the jerky. Eventually, I somehow got the message across. It made a happy noise of agreement.

I was sure those orangurangs were going to come back for my jerky soon, and I wanted a trap ready to assure them they’d made an enemy. They always came in a group of four. If I could poison one of them, the black lizard and I could take care of the other three.

Right now, I was level 37 of 40. Only three more and I could evolve. Those monkeys would probably put me over the top. If I could just evolve, I’d be freed from this terrible form, and my chances of getting whacked in the stomach with a hammer upon first sight would go way down. The black lizard was smart, so I was sure it would recognize me if I evolved in front of it.

Obligingly, it went to the back of the cave and poked its head into an empty pot, filling it with poison. Last time it did this, it scratched me a bit when I tried to watch, so this time I respectfully turned my back. I figured it didn’t want me to witness it yakking up all that poison from its body. In battle, it seemed to spray the poison so easily that I hadn’t realized there was a whole process to it.

The poison it made was perfect. First of all, the color was faint. The kind I made before had changed the jerky’s hue, but this would be invisible. Not only that, but it hardly had an odor at all. I’d used a ton of piperis when I made mine to try to cover up the smell, but the orangurangs probably had a much better sense of smell than I did.

Poison masters were just in a different class. I dipped the jerky into the pot, mixing in the dried meat one piece at a time. I made an X shape with the branches outside to mark it, to make extra sure I wouldn’t eat it by mistake.

Afterward, my hands burned from the poison, but the black lizard licked my fingers and cured me easily. The two of us hid near the cave entrance, keeping an eye on the tree where we’d strung up the jerky. Now that the orangurangs had gotten a taste for salty meat with a spicy aroma, I was sure they’d be back. But as time passed and they didn’t show up, my irritation grew. Should I put more meat out, or add more piperis to entice them?

“Kssh!” I wasn’t the only impatient one because the black lizard hissed and started fidgeting. I idly entertained it for a while, but then the stakeout began to get really annoying. Before long, the two of us were wrestling each other on the ground.

“Ahh-ahh, ooh!”

I’d practically forgotten what we were doing in the first place, when suddenly I heard a pained cry. The orangurangs were here. I quickly slipped out from underneath the black lizard and sat up.

“Ahh! Ahh!”

“Ah-ohh!”

“Ahhh!”

One of the orangurangs was foaming at the mouth, and the other three surrounding it were hopping from one foot to the other. It almost looked like dancing, but they were clearly in distress. Watching it all go down was kind of funny, even if I knew they were suffering. Time to check and see if the poison was taking effect.

 

Species: Orangurang

Status: Poison α (Major)

Lv: 16/30

HP: 68/96

MP: 83/83

 

Yes, it’s working! It’s working! The monkeys’ attack power wasn’t actually that high. They had a diverse set of skills, but their overall stats were weaker than the claybear’s. I could take care of two of them single-handedly. One was too poisoned to fight, so that just left three. The black lizard and I could handle them, easy. Now was my chance to get rid of those filthy jerky-stealers. I would turn them into my dinner and a boatload of experience points.

 

Part 2

 

WE LEFT THE CAVE and showed ourselves to the orangurangs. The instant they saw me, they looked at their poisoned comrade and appeared to put two and two together. They knew I was responsible.

“Ah-ooh!”

“Ahh!”

“Ah!”

The three monkeys howled with anger and leapt towards us, their long red fur blowing in the wind. I figured I should check their stats.

 

Species: Orangurang

Status: Normal

Lv: 17/30

HP: 98/98

MP: 45/45

Attack: 82

Defense: 51

Magic: 60

Agility: 92

Rank: D

Special Skills:

Earth Type: Lv —

Group Attack: Lv —

Nimble: Lv 2

Resistance Skills:

Falling Resistance: Lv 3

Normal Skills:

Bite: Lv 2

Scratch: Lv 3

Stone Throw: Lv 4

Monkey See, Monkey Do: Lv 2

Clay Wall: Lv 1

Monkey Whistle: Lv 3

MP Transfer: Lv 2

Title Skills:

Forest Acrobat: Lv 2

Co-op: Lv 2

Loyalist: Lv 4

 

Their levels varied a bit, but their stats were mostly the same. Their skills and stats were well balanced, but nothing jumped out at me. Their best skills were the co-op ones. The twinheads we fought before had average stats of over 140 and a ton of skills; it was an all-around fierce opponent. Maybe that was influencing my opinion of these monkeys, but this just didn’t seem like a tough fight.

“Raar!”

The black lizard jumped into action at my signal. Time to use its Clay Gun as backup again.

“Ahh!”

“Aah!”

I easily evaded the two that tried to come at me with a Scratch attack and then tripped them with my tail. They hit the ground with a loud thud. I turned my attention to the third one.

“Aaah!” It folded its arms and barreled towards me with a forceful punch. I used its momentum to my advantage and countered with a Dragon Punch to the gut.

“Ooggh!” It flew backward and grabbed a tree branch with both hands, swinging all the way around it like a high bar, before landing gracefully on the ground. A bold move, though it definitely took some damage from my punch, clutching its stomach in pain. So far, there hadn’t been any need for the black lizard to intervene.

I wasn’t expecting it to be so easy! I had leveled up a lot recently. I was much faster, and thus able to deal with any unexpected movements. The orangurangs didn’t pack the punch that claybears did, so I wasn’t worried about them knocking me out with a single counterattack. They didn’t have any wacky special skills or extreme strength like the twinheads did. I couldn’t think of a single reason why this battle would be tough.

Chances were I could handle it all on my own. Knocking one of them out with poison put me at a huge advantage. Their strategy as a trio seemed off, too. They were probably more used to working as a group of four. As the three of them regrouped, they moved to surround me. Normally they’d have all four sides covered. Well, one of them could still move around to my blind spot, so I’d have to be careful.

If things went south, the black lizard could use Clay Gun to back me up. Plus, clearly the monkey who took me on from the front was hurting from my punch.

I’d have this wrapped up in no time.

I could tell they were being cautious of the black lizard as they closed in on me, even though the lizard wasn’t making a move yet.

“Raaaaaaar!”

I mustered up my most intimidating roar, using Bellow directed at the ground in front of the orangurangs. Apparently that punch had finally made them realize the difference in our abilities. They froze up, giving me a big in. Their incomplete battle formation crumbled. I turned around and threw them a menacing glare.

“Ahh!”

“Aah!”

One of the monkeys lunged at me in desperation, but I caught it easily while nailing the other one with a swing of my tail. The first one threw off my grip and tried to scamper behind me, but I matched its movements and closed in, nailing it with a fist in its face.

The orangurang fell to the ground behind me but quickly curled up into a ball and sprang to its feet. These guys definitely knew the right way to recover from a fall. But that didn’t mean they weren’t taking any damage. This battle was already decided.

I’d knocked about half their HP off—one more hit to each and it was game over. As a final gambit, the three of them put their backs to each other in one solid unit.

Oh, were they planning to run? But I really had my heart set on monkey stew tonight. Sorry, but graywolves just aren’t gonna cut it. I’m going to eat the three of you and enjoy every bite.

Simultaneously, the orangurangs put their fingers in their mouths and whistled. The three whistles overlapped, joined by a fourth, as the poisoned monkey lifted its head despite its agony.

The sound grew louder all at once, reverberating inside my brain. This had to be their Monkey Whistle skill. Was it gonna give me a weird status effect? I wasn’t sure what they were trying to accomplish, but I needed to make them stop ASAP. I doubted they were going to show off their skills and then run away.

I threw myself into Roll, spinning towards the nearest monkey. It evaded my telegraphed move easily, but my goal was to get them to stop whistling, which I did.

The noise stopped, its echoes following a few seconds later. My relief, however, was short-lived. An incredible commotion of footsteps and screams kicked up, coming ever closer. I turned to see an orangurang about twice the size of the others running straight for me.

Uh-oh. That whistle was a Call Allies skill?! And now the boss is coming?

The huge monkey had a scar across one eye, adding to its intimidation factor. It was clearly on a whole different level from the other four. The black lizard, who had up until now been hiding in the shadows, quickly came to my side. Taking advantage of our distraction, the other three monkeys picked up their poisoned comrade and carried it off to safety.

The orangurang boss glared at me with cold, vacant eyes. A chill ran down my spine, and I instinctively took a step backwards.

Dang it! Every single time someone realizes they can’t beat me, they just call in a friend!

 

Part 3

 

THE ADDITION of the boss made this a two-versus-five situation. Well, one of them was extremely poisoned, so I supposed that was two versus four. Before, I could make up for the numbers disadvantage with my superior stats, but there was no telling what would happen now that the boss had entered the fray. Might as well check its stats.

 

Species: Giant Orangurang

Status: Normal

Lv: 27/40

HP: 198/198

MP: 140/140

Attack: 123

Defense: 82

Magic: 110

Agility: 122

Rank: D+

Special Skills:

Earth Type: Lv —

Group Attack: Lv —

Nimble: Lv 4

Resistance Skills:

Falling Resistance: Lv 3

Physical Resistance: Lv 2

Normal Skills:

Bite: Lv 4

Mega Claws: Lv 4

Stone Throw: Lv 4

Monkey See, Monkey Do: Lv 3

Clay Wall: Lv 2

Monkey Whistle: Lv 3

Rest Wide: Lv 4

Quick: Lv 2

Power: Lv 1

Telepathy: Lv 4

Title Skills:

Forest Acrobat: Lv 2

Co-op: Lv 2

Clan Boss: Lv 5

Loyalist: Lv 3

Supporter: Lv 3

 

It had a lot of HP, but overall its combat abilities weren’t that great. I mean, they were good compared to an ordinary orangurang, but I had it beat in attack and defense.

I was most concerned about that special skill “Supporter.” Quick and Power seemed like pretty straightforward boost magic. And I was guessing Rest Wide was a recovery spell that could affect several party members at once. So not only could he heal the monkeys after I went to all that trouble of knocking down their HP, now it was going to boost all their stats, too? How was that fair?

Fortunately, the Giant Orangurang didn’t seem to have any specialized attack skills. I’d just have to hit before it tried anything stupid.

“Raaaaaar!” I jumped right at it and used Baby’s Breath. I’m gonna trap you and burn you up, you big monkey!

“Ksssh!” The black lizard backed me up with Clay Gun, shooting clay bullets at the Giant Orangurang.

“Ah-aah-ooh,” it uttered softly. The three other monkeys came out of hiding and quickly stepped in front of it.

“Ahh!”

“Ahh!”

“Aaah!”

They lifted their arms and stomped the ground, and a large earthen wall rose out of it, blocking my hot breath and the black lizard’s clay bullets.

Well, that must be Clay Wall. The three of them were combining their powers to make a barrier around their boss.

“Ah-oh.” The Giant Orangurang made a noise, and light appeared from behind the clay wall. It had to be healing its allies.

I needed to take out the boss or there would be no end to this. But I still had to deal with its minions and their wall.

Crap, and it would probably boost them and make them stronger, too. I’ve gotta do something. Circle around behind? No, it’ll be faster if I just knock it down!

I curled up into a ball and used Roll, heading straight for the wall. It deflected me, but I did feel it give. As I hurtled through the air, I stretched out my body and landed on my claws. And just as my legs hit the ground, the wall began to crumble.

“Ahh!”

“Ahh!”

“Aaah!”

On the other side, the monkey minions appeared to have completely regained their morale. They’d obviously received magical boosts in addition to recovery. They quickly surrounded me and the black lizard, moving much faster than before.

“Ahh!”

“Ahh!”

Two monkeys came at me from either side. I evaded the one on the right and guarded against the other with my arm. Its claws swung at me with incredible force, ripping off scales and piercing into my flesh.

“Raar!” I flinched and bent backwards, kicking off the ground from my blind spot. The three monkeys were closing in on me. Oh hell.

They’re gonna bulldoze through me just with sheer numbers!

“Aagh!” A rock whizzed past, and the third orangurang collapsed. Nice going, black lizard. That was a close one.

“Ahh-ooh!” The orangurang who scratched me took hold of my arm again. I didn’t resist; I waited until its grip on me was firm and then bit down on its shoulder as hard as I could.

“Aghh!” But it didn’t let go, and it was so entangled with me that I couldn’t move. And that was when the Giant Orangurang took the opportunity to aim a punch at me. The black lizard charged into it with Roll. The Giant Orangurang took the impact in the chest and staggered.

I took my chance and used Roll in midair, my orangurang luggage still hanging on. The centrifugal force flung the monkey off me, and it hit the ground hard.

“Ahh-ooh!” it screamed, rolling around and clutching its head.

Heh heh. I bet that one hurt.

From my vantage point, I could only keep track of the Giant Orangurang and the black lizard. I turned just in time to see the other two orangurangs hurling rocks.

“Urgh!” One struck my cheek, and the other got me straight in my left eye. I grabbed at my face as the Giant Orangurang pushed the black lizard off and started running at me. Crap, I was completely on the defensive now; it was all I could do just to figure out the position of my enemies. Desperately, I unfolded my wings just as the Giant Orangurang punched me, using the force of the attack to propel myself backwards and away from it.

The black lizard used Roll to escape from the boss monkey and join me as soon as I landed. It must have taken some hits, too; it was covered in cuts. I checked its HP. Down to half.

Apart from agility, the black lizard had exceptionally low stats. It was best suited to performing long-ranged attacks and then finding an opportunity to charge in. But since we were way outnumbered, that tactic put the brunt of the responsibility on me and my favored physical attacks. We were still losing, even with the lizard’s backup.

Okay, so, starting with the boss was the wrong move. I needed to go against the usual rules of combat and ignore the biggest threat in favor of picking off the minions one by one.

Speaking of the minions, they were gathering around their boss. Don’t tell me it’s going to heal them again? I ran to try to stop them, but the three monkeys all started throwing rocks. I dodged as many as I could without sacrificing speed, which meant I ended up taking some hits.

“Raaar!”

I inhaled to let out a blast of Baby’s Breath, but the three orangurangs converged back into a familiar formation.

“Ahh!”

“Ahh-ooh!”

“Ahh!”

Another clay wall appeared between us. I curled up without losing momentum, using Roll to charge into the wall. I bounced off it just like last time, then landed. The wall collapsed, revealing the three monkeys—once again all healed up.

I-Is this just impossible? Back to square one, and we were the only ones hurting. I glanced towards the black lizard. I couldn’t let it get in close range again. Should I try to face all four of them alone? No, there was just no way I could do it. But there had to be some way out of this. I had to think of something.

 

Part 4

 

THREE ORANGURANGS with one Giant Orangurang leading and healing them. The orangurang who ate the poisoned jerky…I could probably put out of my mind. The giant one was periodically healing it, but I still doubted it could even get up.

 

Species: Giant Orangurang

Condition: Quick Power

Lv: 27/40

HP: 198/198

MP: 54/140

 

The Giant Orangurang had more than a third of its MP left. Beyond unfair, really, that it still had so much left after using Boost and Recovery so many times. I could wait it out until its MP was completely drained, but I didn’t know if I could last that long.

I needed to use a strong skill like Nutcracker to take out all the minions at once, but I didn’t know when I’d get the opportunity. I’d managed to knock one unconscious, but the other three were still prepared to gang up on me. The chances of grabbing a squirming monster and flying up in the air for a one-on-one fight were basically zero. The monster would have to be already immobilized with no other threats around.

And even if all those conditions aligned, the best I could do was take out one of the monkeys. Sure, it would make the battle easier, but it just wasn’t worth risking the damage I’d take in the process.

If only I had some way to recover health myself. I checked the three orangurang minions’ stats—of course they still had plenty of HP and MP left. One of them showed Poison α (Major) as a status condition, but as far as I could tell, it was still moving normally. The black lizard’s Venom attack must have only been a scratch, so the effects would take time to show up. The black lizard’s battle strategy had been the same since we first met—a sudden attack with a direct hit followed by a retreat and waiting out the poison.

If this battle was like the one against the twinheads, where the lizard could draw the enemy’s attention so I could attack, it would be a different story. But we were outnumbered. The black lizard was forced to abandon its surprise attack and join me on the front lines. Double Poison was an option, but it would affect me, too, and there was no guarantee the black lizard would have a chance to cure me in time.

My friend’s HP and defense wasn’t very high, so we had to default to a long-distance attack with Clay Gun. This wasn’t good.

At that point, I was considering abandoning the cave. I was attached to it, of course, but I wouldn’t risk my life for it.

I checked on the enemies again.

The Giant Orangurang had a third of its MP left. Of the four monkey minions, two still had plenty of HP and MP, one had a light case of the special poison, and the fourth had been downed by the poisoned jerky. Was there some way for me to take that one hostage? Make it my monkey prisoner?

The Giant Orangurang was using up its recovery magic on the downed one to keep it alive, even in the midst of battle. Clearly its loyalty to its comrades ran deep—my hostage plan should work. And the black lizard could heal my poison.

I studied the Giant Orangurang to check its particulars. It was the boss and highly intelligent, so it should be open to negotiating.

Giant Orangurang: D+ Rank Monster. Evolved orangurang who has won a duel against the previous leader. That is the only method for evolving into a Giant Orangurang. Since they are so closely linked to evolution, orangurangs regard duels as sacred. Learns many Recovery Magic skills to support the group.

Wait, so do they just instinctively know the requirements for evolution? That sounded a little suspicious, to be honest, but I could worry about it later. If they regard duels as sacred, they must be smart enough to bargain.

Hmm…that Telepathy skill of the Giant Orangurang’s…I wonder.

“Raaar!”

I roared once, conveying with my voice and expression that I needed backup. The black lizard ran into the brush. The orangurangs split up, two heading towards me, the third going after the lizard. I was anxious for my friend but also grateful that we could share the responsibilities of battle. No way just one orangurang could catch the lizard.

The monkey coming at me on the right was the one with Minor Poison α, its movements slightly sluggish and awkward. I faked to the left then raced past the orangurang on my right. I dodged the Giant Orangurang with Roll, then quickly jumped out of it. I circled round behind the incapacitated, jerky-poisoned monkey and stabbed my claws into its throat.

“Ahh…ahh…ahh…”

The orangurangs’ faces twisted with rage, all three of them rushing me at once. I knew from the beginning that I couldn’t negotiate with them, but how about the Giant Orangurang? The one with Telepathy?

I ignored the three minions and focused on the boss. This had been a losing battle from the very beginning, and if I missed my shot here my only choice would be to run away. Now that my enemies’ attention was focused on me, the black lizard could easily retreat.

“Looks like you understand my skill. Yes?”

The Giant Orangurang’s thoughts reverberated in my head. I wasn’t hearing words…it felt deeper than that, more basic. I felt its emotions and personality lapping at my mind.

So this was Telepathy.

My bet had paid off. Once the other orangurangs saw me and the boss communicating, they all froze. But now I knew I had my work cut out for me. I now fully understood the Giant Orangurang’s anger, its wild pride, and its intelligent, primal personality.

 

Part 5

 

I TRIED TO GET my thoughts in order to respond to the Giant Orangurang’s message. I was sure I couldn’t use logic to negotiate with it. If it wanted a logical resolution, it could have used Telepathy from the very start. But if I just charged in, a fight would be unavoidable. I’d have no choice but to run away and abandon my cave.

My claws remained lodged in the poisoned monkey’s throat as I sorted through my thoughts and visualized sending them to the Giant Orangurang.

“This monkey will die from the poison if left untreated. But the black lizard can cure it. In exchange, please let us go.”

I watched the Giant Orangurang as I answered it. It barely reacted. Did the telepathy not work? Maybe you had to have the skill to send messages, and everyone else could only receive them? If that was true, I was screwed.

“Impossible. Once I have engaged in battle with an enemy, I never let them escape. Sacrifices may be necessary to gain myself the advantage.”

Well, at least I could be sure it heard me now. A conversation was possible.

“If the black lizard and I fight with all our strength, I’m fully confident it’ll end in a draw.”

I wasn’t bluffing. I could draw the attention of the other monkeys and let the black lizard unleash the poison cloud on all of us. That would leave us at a complete standoff.

“The weak get picked off and die in obscurity. That is our principle. We ascend to the rank of chief after killing our own forefathers.”

It was no use. I was able to communicate with it, but its mindset was still 100 percent monster. And to be perfectly blunt, I didn’t get it.

“Wait! In that case…”

“Enough. This is nothing but a waste of magic.”

If I didn’t do something, it would shut down the telepathic link. And then I’d be forced to outrun the others, who he’d already given a huge speed boost. If I used Roll, I could probably beat them at top speed, but the Giant Orangurang had the skill Nimble and the title skill Forest Acrobat, so if I factored in the time I’d lose from having to dodge it and other obstacles, it would end in a complete wash.

Wasn’t there anything else I could do? Some magic words that could flip the situation in my favor? What about the jerky? Nah, I doubted it could be bribed like that. I considered all the information I had—the thoughts we’d exchanged with Telepathy, the Giant Orangurang’s temperament, and the knowledge of the orangurangs’ customs that I’d learned from the Divine Voice’s description.

I sent one more thought to the Giant Orangurang, on the verge of throwing in the towel.

“Th-then I challenge you to a duel.”

I had only a vague idea of what a duel might consist of in the orangurang world—a ceremonial fight used to decide who would be their boss and how they would evolve. Under normal circumstances, I doubted they would ever even consider accepting a duel from another species of monster. But somehow I got the vibe that the Giant Orangurang might give me a chance.

And if it said yes, I’d knock this down to a one-on-one fight; no more worrying about being outnumbered. I’d bash its head in so it couldn’t use Recovery Magic anymore, and then taking care of the four minions would be a piece of cake.

The boss still didn’t answer.

“If it turns into a melee, I’m sure the black lizard will take you down with it. If you accept the duel and defeat me easily, then there’s nothing for you to worry about. Isn’t that the best option for you? If you accept, the black lizard can cure your two poisoned minions. It’s a win-win situation for you.”

“Duels are traditionally reserved for choosing new leaders or resolving conflicts with other clans. There is no precedent for this…but there are no rules against dueling another species. As long as you and the black lizard are a clan, that is.”

Wait…did it really agree? Or was it pretending? Maybe it was planning to make the black lizard heal its minions, and then they’d all attack us at once.

No, I didn’t think so. From everything I’d gathered about the Giant Orangurang’s personality, it wasn’t the type to lie about things like this.

“Fine. I accept. They will not touch you until the duel is over. These duels are a sacred ceremony for us—a clashing of souls. I do not intend to dishonor our tradition.”

After sending me that thought, the Giant Orangurang glanced over at its three minions, who still stood there motionless.

I politely let go of the poisoned monkey’s arm and stepped back a little. The other monkeys crept in to retrieve their exhausted comrade. Then all four of them backed away.

I looked at the black lizard, trying to urge it to cure the monkeys’ poison. It hesitated for a moment, as if unsure if that was what I really wanted, before slowly approaching the orangurangs and curing the two poisoned monkeys.

“Ah?”

“Aa.”

The orangurangs exchanged glances, speaking softly to one another. The black lizard sensed something, because it tried to back away.

The two orangurangs grabbed hold of the black lizard.

“Kssh! Kssh!”

“Raaar!”

I roared with anger at the Giant Orangurang.

“Don’t get the wrong idea. That black lizard has no stake in this duel. If you win, I will free it.”

I’d considered telling the black lizard to poison them all in case things went downhill for me, but apparently that was no longer an option. The Giant Orangurang and I had a firm grip on each other; doubtless it guessed what I was planning.

I had to focus. On pure stats, I had it beat, but I couldn’t overlook all the Giant Orangurang’s stat-boosting and recovery magic. My HP was already down. Though I was the one who had suggested it in the first place, this would be a tough fight. But unlike our previous situation, this was a fight I had a chance at winning.

 

Part 6

 

I FACED THE Giant Orangurang.

“Ah!”

“Ah-ahh!”

“Ah-ooh, ah!”

“Aa!”

The minions made noises as they held the black lizard down, excited to see some bloodshed. A duel really was serious business to their species.

“Ah-oh…”

The Giant Orangurang let out a soft noise and lumbered toward me. I went ahead and checked its status again.

 

Species: Giant Orangurang

Status: Quick Power

Lv: 27/40

HP: 198/198

MP: 49/140

 

Damn, its status boost was still there. I thought for sure it would’ve worn off by now. And all that Telepathy only burned off 5 MP. I should’ve dragged it out longer. Whatever. No sense in dwelling on the past. If I kept pushing, it probably would have rejected the duel.

I didn’t have any time for regrets—I had to figure out my next move. Most pressing was getting its MP down. That was what made monsters with recovery magic so dangerous.

 

Normal Skills:

Bite: Lv 4

Giant Claws: Lv 4

Stone Throw: Lv 4

Monkey See, Monkey Do: Lv 3

Clay Wall: Lv 2

Monkey Whistle: Lv 3

Rest Wide: Lv 4

Quick: Lv 2

Power: Lv 1

Telepathy: Lv 4

 

Its skills were basically the same as the normal orangurangs’. I desperately wanted to believe it wouldn’t use the Monkey Whistle to call in more reinforcements. If I beat this guy only for an even bigger orangurang to show up, it’d all be over.

Despite its aggressive temperament, the Giant Orangurang seemed to predominantly use backup magic. I hoped when it came down to a one-on-one fight, I’d have the advantage. Of course, I was already weakened myself.

If my assumptions were right, Rest Wide used up around 10 MP, and HP Recovery cost about 80.

So in a normal fight, the Giant Orangurang could use Rest Wide about five more times. But I was hoping to force it to use some other skills instead. First order of business was getting Quick and Power off it, though. Back when I fought the Giant Potortoise and it used status effect magic on me, it didn’t last long at all. It might be best to buy some time at the beginning of the battle.

The Giant Orangurang moved toward me, hunching down on all fours instead of walking upright. Its arms pushed off the ground, boosting its speed and closing the distance between us even quicker.

There was just no way to do this as long as it had Quick. If it came down to a punch-out, I’d be at a disadvantage without recovery magic.

I took a step backwards and used Baby’s Breath. The Giant Orangurang dodged it easily, then charged past me.

I didn’t understand what it was trying to do; I just looked up in time to watch it sailing over me. Then I saw the tree.

I spun and readied myself for its next move. It kicked off the tree, angling itself right towards me.

Breath wouldn’t be a fast enough counter, and at this point I couldn’t risk taking damage in exchange for a single hit, since it could just heal itself. The Giant Orangurang had to know that, too.

I wrapped my wings around myself in defense, feeling the Giant Orangurang’s weight hit me as it landed, sending me sprawling from the impact. The boss didn’t relent, intent on hitting me as hard as it could.

This guy was just ridiculously strong and moving completely differently from when it fought with the group. I imagined its hesitation was due to the black lizard.

I kicked off the ground hard and spread my wings, alighting on a high branch.

“Ahhh!”

The Giant Orangurang punched the tree, shaking it violently and knocking me off. I grabbed wildly for the branch, clinging to it. My opponent climbed the tree with incredible speed.

Damn it! The magic still hasn’t worn off yet!

I let go of the branch, letting myself fall. The boss immediately changed direction and came after me. I used Roll to keep out of its gasp.

The Giant Orangurang hit the ground with a tremendous thud.

“What’s the matter, Tiny Dragon? Fleeing in terror doesn’t make for much of a duel. It’s sacrilege against the ceremony, not to mention rude.”

Its Telepathy message sounded irritated, but I didn’t really give a crap about its feelings right now. If I stopped, it would crush me. At the very least, just stop using recovery magic!

That’s what I wanted to say, but the other monkeys looked at me and tightened their grip on the black lizard. I kept quiet.

“Ahh!”

“Ahhh!”

They pointed at me and jumped up and down with obvious laughter. Wow, uncalled for.

Since I’d agreed to their rules, I was worried that they’d do something bad to the black lizard if I disrespected the duel.

Fine, then. If you’re really dying for some punishment, you got it.

I slowed down Roll, letting the Giant Orangurang draw closer. When it was in range I was forced to dodge its hands as they came at me from the left and right.

Gotta find a suitable tree… Oh, that one’s good!

It was the perfect height and looked pretty sturdy. The branches were ideally positioned, and the trunk was just the right shape.

I made a beeline straight for the tree. Behind me, the Giant Orangurang sped up. I rammed myself against the trunk, using my scales like spikes to help me climb.

“Ahhh…?”

The Giant Orangurang paused as it tried to figure out what I was doing. And in that moment, it let down its defenses.

I took my chance and swung off a branch above me, propelling myself at the Giant Orangurang’s face.

I remained in my Roll in midair but stretched out my tail and whacked the monkey across the face. At the speed I was going, it was like getting hit with a whip.

“Aghhhh!”

The Giant Orangurang curled up to protect its face.

I pulled my tail back in, tackling the back of its head with Roll, and then sprang out of range of retaliation.

“A-ahhh…” The Giant Orangurang slowly shook its head as if trying to make sure it could still move its neck. Lacerations from my tail covered its face. It ran its finger along the deepest cut, smearing blood and narrowing its eyes at me.

“Ahh-oh.”

Yep. Looks like it worked. Now let’s see what’s left.

 

Species: Giant Orangurang

Status: Confusion (Temporary, Minor)

Lv: 27/40

HP: 43/198

MP: 48/140

 

Oh, that whittled down more than I expected! Turned out direct hits work. Now that its HP was low, I expected it to use Rest Wide. My goal was in view. And hey! The boost magic was worn off, too! Hurling myself right at its face was worth it, then.

 

Part 7

 

NOW THAT the Giant Orangurang’s status effects had worn off, I had my chance. I needed to end this fast. I curled up and jumped into a Roll to bring myself closer. It meant I had to take a path straight towards the boss, but now that it no longer had Quick, it wouldn’t be a problem. I’d circle around and tackle it from its blind spot, and it’d be all over.

“Ah…oh.”

The ground rumbled as I approached, a huge mound forming and knocking me backwards into a tree.

Ow. But fine. Pushing the Giant Orangurang into using Clay Wall was good, actually. The wall it made was huge, even bigger than the one all three of the minions made. Surely it must’ve taken up a ton of MP. Now if I could just get it to use recovery and boost one more time, its MP would be gone.

This was my chance. The two of us squared off across the earthen wall, the huge monkey staring right back at me.

 

Species: Giant Orangurang

Status: Quick (Major)

Lv: 27/40

HP: 43/198

MP: 8/140

 

What…? It didn’t use recovery magic. Crap, it just used its MP to raise its speed! It must’ve figured there was no sense in drawing this out; it wanted a fast duel. I was fully confident that no matter how many times it used recovery magic, as long as its status boosts were gone, I’d be fine. The other way around, though…

“Ahh!”

The Giant Orangurang kicked off a nearby tree and threw itself toward me. There was nowhere for me to go and no way to dodge. Quickly, I stretched out my tail and felt it touch a branch. I grabbed on, swung myself around that branch, and curled into Roll, building myself up to an incredible speed.

“Waah!”

I used all my body weight to counter the Giant Orangurang’s attack. It hit the ground and landed hard, splayed out in the dirt. I climbed back onto the branch and wiped the cold sweat from my forehead.

That was a close one—it almost had me. But now I understood that when the Giant Orangurang was moving this fast, it lost most of its control. Its movements became simple and easy to read, and it appeared exhausted. My barrage of attacks was working.

I figured that boost magic was a net positive, but it seemed to put a huge strain on the creature’s body. Still, I didn’t want to keep doing risky evasive maneuvers while it was this fast. Luckily, its drained MP meant it wouldn’t be raising its attack power. My best bet would be a head-on attack. Countering with small hits on the run would tire me out. Plus, only countering meant I had to give up the chance for the first strike.

My best option was: it punches me, I stand my ground, I punch back. A meathead strategy, but its HP was already pretty low.

I landed and squared up. Bring it on. I know this is what you want—a head-on fight, even though sneaking and dodging and waiting for an opening is really more my style.

“Raaar!” I opened up with a good Bellow.

The boss monkey bared its teeth in a chilling smile.

“Ahhhhh!” It howled and charged me, kicking off the ground at the absolute last second and stretching out its arms. Starting with claws, huh?

I pulled my tail back in and let it dig in its claws. Some of my scales tore off, but it was better than losing flesh.

I continued guarding with my tail and punched the big monkey right in the face.

“Ooghh!”

I did it!

Normal Skill “Dragon Punch” Lv 2 has become Lv 3.

This should be it! A win for me!

Its eyes opened wide, and it fell backwards.

“Oh-ahh!” At the last second, it regained its balance with one swift movement.

H-hey, you’ve gotta be kidding me! That punch should have taken care of the rest of its HP! As my mind raced, the Giant Orangurang swung its fist. I guarded too late, and it got me right in the face.

“Raaar!” My consciousness flickered. This jerk literally hit me while it was passing out?! “Graaaaar!” Another backhand blow caught me in the chin. Losing the battle of speed hurt. A lot. Damn it. Winning made me let my guard down.

The monkey boss slowed, winding up for another punch. If it hit, I’d be in trouble. It telegraphed its strikes, but there was still no way to completely avoid it. I had to strike now.

It had to be close to death. Had to be. I just needed to get one more punch in. I didn’t even aim, just let a Dragon Punch loose straight ahead. The monkey’s face crashed right down on top of my fist.

My hand stung. I stared into its face. That was it, right? But then I felt something hard driving into my forehead and an incredible impact as I hit the ground.

“Kssh! Kssh!”

“Ahh!”

“Ah-ah!”

“Ah-ooh!”

“Ah-oh, ahhh!”

I heard the black lizard scream, and excited whoops from the monkeys overpowering it. It sounded like they were celebrating.

Huh. I…lost?

Gained 162 Experience Points.

Special Skill “Walking Egg” Lv — has gained 162 Experience Points.

Young Plague Dragon Lv 37 has become Lv 39.

I-I won? I did it. Only one…level…left to go… Ah, it’s no use… Feels like I’m…fading…

Gained Title Skill “Clan Boss” Lv 1.