"Suu Slasherr!"

Hyyun hyyu!!

'Ohhhh'

This is great! I am flying! No, I am Spider-Man. Wait... I am using a hook at the end of my whip. So, am I BATMAN? No, since the hook is in the form of a scythe, it's more like a whip-scythe man...?

"(Oh well.)"

I stop spinning the scythe and try to land on the ground... BAM!

'Owww, that hurts!'

It requires delicate timing to keep transforming it, so it's quietly nerve-wracking. I get up from the rough ground and bounce forward in a disturbed mood.

'I couldn't land perfectly this time either! Sigh...'

More importantly, the problem is not finding prey.

I have spotted small animal-type magical beasts a few times, but they have high detection abilities and quickly flee. They probably have some kind of escape ability. Even if I try to catch up, since I am chasing instead of escaping, my speed doesn't increase.

With my normal agility, I couldn't catch up with them at all even if I ran at full speed.

'Surprisingly, there's nothing when you're looking for it.'

Mana is dense around this part, so I should encounter something soon, but enemies aren't appearing at all. Ah, wouldn't it be nice if something like that "Bear" from before appears?

Speculating, my "Toughness: 818" should nullify attacks from "Superior Beasts." So to confirm whether this speculation is correct, I should check around here. By the way, the bear seemed to be above "Superior Beasts" in "Beast Rank."

Basically, "Beast Rank" increases according to the size of the body.

"(Even a goblin would be fine, come on out──)"

──Block!

Kikin!

"Kwii!"

Suddenly, my block automatically activated against the swooping attack of a strange bird that descended through the branches with her two crossed whips.

If only a slime's (my) field of vision wasn't omnidirectional, it would have been dangerous.

"Kweh!"

The attacking strange bird immediately withdrew. Hovering at branch height, it looked down at me. It looked like a beast belonging to the raptor class, like a hawk or an eagle.

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It's about one and a half meters in length. With its wings spread, it would probably be about three meters. Could its "Beast Rank" be "Superior Beast"?

Even the claw strike from earlier, felt through "Block," was just a bit lighter than the final blow of the crab. I was surprised by the sneak attack, but maybe I've encountered a manageable opponent.

"Pihyow!"

"Sura!!"

We stared at each other for a while, but when the strange bird let out a high-pitched cry, it suddenly flapped its wings violently. Mixed with the sound of its wings, I heard something cutting through the air, and something burst on my body's surface.

"Sla!"

"Something" continued to hit me consecutively. My "HEALTH" hasn't decreased at all, but with each impact, I gradually retreated.

'It's like a bomb, and the impact is making my head spin!'

I pinpointed the identity of the mysterious attacks. Sensationally, it's more like a mass of air than a blade of wind. It's squarely an "Air Bomb."

'But what should I do in this situation?'

The opponent's attacks are ineffective, but I also have no means of attack. I can't use "Escape-type Skills," and neither my "Whip" nor "Demonic Lighting" can reach the bird.

"(...No, wait a moment...)"

While enduring the air bomb, a single idea flashed in my mind. Once decided, I acted immediately.

First, I should leap to the left...

ZOOOM---

And then right? BAM-

'Shit!'

Once again.

Leap to the left, jump, move to the right! Yeah, as I guessed, moving in zig-zag is the solution!

'Alright, 'Escape' and 'Evasion' are both activated.'

I sank my consciousness inward, which once again confirmed my attempts were going smoothly. Moreover, 'Evasion' is a skill that increases the speed of evasion actions, learned from the crab battle.

'Now, let's go!'

And suddenly I dashed forward. Of course, towards the strange bird.

Since I was charging at the opponent, the effects of 'Escape' and 'Evasion' naturally remained active and expired.

'Did it work!'

To put it plainly, the plan is simple: I'm moving forward to flee.

At this time, the strange bird is airborne. By deliberately passing under it while showing no signs of offense, I manage to keep my skills activated.

If 'Escape' and 'Evasion' were making escape judgments based on 'moving away from the enemy,' then this strategy would have failed. But I'm confident it will succeed.

During the recent zigzag jumps, 'Escape' and its allies were still active even though I wasn't moving away from the enemy.

"(Change of plan! I'll jump over the opponent's head and escape, 'Leap'!)"

Running while dodging the air bullet with 'Evasion,' I closed the distance enough to leap.

However, the opponent isn't foolish. Despite guiding the attack with 'Provocation,' upon seeing my sudden approach, it attempts to escape into the sky.

My plan to jump over its head fails, and it seems like I'll graze a trajectory about a meter below.

Too bad, too bad.

"Sla!"

Adapting flexibly, I move to my next manoeuvre.

Stretching out the whip that had evolved longer, I exclaim, 'Lightning Strike!'

I release lightning from the tip of my whip. The strange bird, which was about to escape, takes the lightning strike and momentarily stiffens.

"(Take this!)"

"Kwweeeee!"

Alright! I wrap the long whip around the strange bird's ankle.

Then, with my weight added, its balance is disrupted, and the strange bird plummets.

"Su-Ra! SU-RAA!!!"

'I won't let you escape! 'Crush,' 'Crush,' 'Crush!'

Immediately after the crash, I swiftly take the mount position using 'Leap,' delivering continuous stomps.

I inflict the strange bird with my "CRUSH" skill, but the bird seems to have truly formidable toughness.

Unable to escape from the attack, the strange bird's resistance weakens rapidly due to the combined effects of 'Continuous Attacks.'

To finish it off, I transform my body into a spiked club and slam it down. I feel my body's sharp protrusions digging deep into the bird's body as it finally succumbs to death.

...

Aresanl Slime's 'Soul Accumulation Level' has risen to 27.

...