Chapter 917: Little Assassins

...

As Izroth sped to the back of the group, he saw that several other members of his 9th Division had fallen unconscious.

Luckily, the entire group was not yet affected, and those who showed no signs of the affliction could assist their comrades. However, it would not be long before the number of those who fainted exceeded the players who remained conscious.

'To be able to avoid my detection to this degree... This jungle has many hidden dangers.'

All of a sudden, one of the players that Izroth was just passing by suddenly lost consciousness and began to fall over.

Fortunately, there was another player nearby, Clouded Sky, who managed to catch them before they hit the ground.

'Hm?'

Swoosh!

Without warning, Izroth halted his steps and unsheathed his Sword of the Storm. Then, in one quick motion, he swept his blade out at the neck of the player who fainted.

"?!"

Izroth's abrupt attack sent a wave of chills down Clouded Sky's back. The last thing he expected was for the leader of the 9th Division to attack one of his own people!

But, to Clouded Sky's surprise, Izroth's sword only seemed to graze past the player's neck without harming them. Nevertheless, he was still confused by Izroth's actions.

Krieek..!

"What-" Clouded Sky jumped slightly as he heard an unusual noise.

At the same time, he witnessed a bizarre black smoke emerge from the back of the player's neck that Izroth's sword had just barely missed.

The following moment, the sound of something hitting the ground caused Clouded Sky's gaze to turn toward the earth.

"What the heck is that thing...?!" Clouded Sky exclaimed.

On the ground by Clouded Sky's foot were two small streams of black smoke. The source of the black smoke originated from what appeared to be some kind of bug that had been cleanly sliced in two.

Izroth narrowed his eyes as he carefully examined the bug as it had already started to dissipate.

'I couldn't sense its presence at all.'

Name: Ferae Assassin Insect(Elite)

Level: 50

HP: 0/1,000(0%)

〈System Alert: Congratulations, you have defeated Ferae Assassin Insect!〉

〈System Alert: You have been rewarded 1,056 EXP!〉

'Ferae Assassin Insect... Could these little things be the source of our unexpected troubles?'

Having a name with "assassin" in it certainly did not bode well. At the very least, it would also explain why Izroth was unable to detect their presence. Most likely, the insects possessed a special skill that allowed them to completely erase their presence. This meant that as long as one did not see it with their own eyes up close, the Ferae Assassin Insects would remain virtually undetected!

'Despite being a level 50 elite monster, the amount of experience points granted by it is too little. Not to mention, their health is also lacking. This, paired with the fact that it's an insect, their numbers are probably significant in this Ferae Jungle.'

Izroth understood that with no reliable way to detect the presence of a Ferae Assassin Insect, even if he got rid of the ones present, there was nothing to stop more of them from affecting the members of the 9th Division.

'I'll worry about finding a way to deal with them later. For now, I will focus on getting rid of the ones present. Hopefully, those under the Ferae Assassin Insects' influence will return to normal after they're taken care of.'

Izroth, "Everyone, I may have located the source of our problems. Those of you who can still move will assist me."

Izroth then went on to give a brief explanation about the Ferae Assassin Insects along with the best way to deal with them.

Since the creatures had such low health and no defensive capabilities once their presence was discovered, they were not too difficult to eliminate. The hardest part was simply finding them.

Not long after Izroth completed his explanation, the players followed his instructions.

What Izroth told them was simple. He instructed them to first check near the back part of the neck of those who appeared fatigued. And, if they anything that remotely resembled the Ferae Assassin Insect—strike it down.

"Ah, I found one...!" Clouded Sky gasped as he had just crushed one of the Ferae Assassin Insects in his hand.

"There's one here too!" Another player called out.

"These little bugs were actually crawling on people...?! Gross..!"

"This jungle is too terrifying. Where's some insect repellent when you need it?"

As the unaffected players eliminated the Ferae Assassin Insects, Izroth was also on the move as he skillfully weaved through the players with quickened steps. And, with every swing of his sword, a Ferae Assassin Insect on a nearby player was cleanly cleaved in half.

Keeping his swift pace, it did not take long for Izroth to reach the end of the group.

Tap.

Izroth halted his steps as he arrived at his destination. His eyes immediately fell on several unconscious individuals, one of which was Menerva.

...

A few minutes later, all the Ferae Assassin Insects had been destroyed by Izroth and those of the 9th Division.

At first, there were no signs of a change to the condition of those plagued by the bugs; however, roughly one minute after their removal, the players started to regain consciousness one by one.

As for those who were fatigued, they began to rapidly recover thanks to the effects of the Ocean Spring Pill.

Niflheim released a heavy sigh and said, "Luckily, we were able to avoid a total disaster this time. Now that we know of their existence, as long as we check periodically for their presence, it shouldn't be an issue. We lost a bit of time dealing with these bugs, but if we increase our pace for a while, it's still possible to arrive on schedule."

"I apologize for my carelessness. I believed my disorientated condition to be a direct result of my recent sleep deprivation. By the time I discovered the events unfolding, I was overtaken. My attempt to warn you proved to be unavailing." Menerva said in a steady tone.

However, despite her steady tone, there was a hint of an apologetic note to her usually monotoned way of speaking.

"It's fine. After all, even I was unable to discover the presence of those bugs. The fact that you were able to catch it just before you fell unconscious is unfortunate but impressive, nonetheless." Izroth stated in a carefree manner.

Menerva was one of the first players unknowingly impacted by the Ferae Assassin Insect; therefore, she was also among the earliest group of players who lost consciousness.

"There's no need to beat yourself up over it. In the end, we did not suffer any losses." Niflheim noted.

He then continued, "That reminds me, Love Mist really stepped up this time around. If not for her reporting something most others would have brushed off, things may not have ended so smoothly this time around."

Izroth nodded, "I agree. It's only right that she's properly rewarded for her efforts. I will find something suitable for her. But, it will have to wait until we leave this jungle."

This was a good chance to encourage other members of the 9th Division and show them the results of contributing. However, after their recent run-in with the Ferae Assassin Insects, it was too reckless to stop moving in this place for too long a period of time.

...

After waiting a few minutes for everyone to recover and regain themselves, Izroth made an announcement over voice chat.

Izroth, "Everyone, we're increasing our pace. Don't fall behind."

The moment after he finished speaking, Izroth and the 9th Division started to move through the Ferae Jungle at an increased pace. Of course, they made sure not to move so fast that the slower classes, such as magic casters and supports could not keep up. However, at their current speed, they were certainly pushing the limits of those classes.

Then, after moving nonstop for nearly half an hour, Izroth and his group came before a open clearing.

In this clearing was a spacious area of grass uncrowded by trees, unlike the rest of the Ferae Jungle. There was also another unusual phenomenon.

"How pretty..." Sanctity uttered as her eyes widened and she was taken aback by the scene before her.

The clearing was filled with beautiful butterflies with transparent wings that reflected off the sunlight, causing a spectrum of colors to form as a result.

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