"A Poison Vermis???"
The moment Leon said it, the knowledge flashed through Jeanne's and Rose's minds, and when they looked again at the strange corpse on the ground, it matched a passage in their memories. Recalling everything the records said about the Poison Vermis, and the lessons countless predecessors had paid for in blood and tears, they both realized how dangerous this monster was.
They exchanged a look, faces grim.
"They have almost no presence, they specialize in ambushes, and they live in groups. The worst part is... their poison doesn't spare even adventurers with Abnormal Resistance. Unless the resistance has reached the fourth stage, meaning rank F, you can't have any real resistance to it."
"And the poison of a Poison Vermis can't be handled by ordinary Antidotes or purification magic at all. It can only be removed with a special Antidote made from materials taken off a Poison Vermis..."
Jeanne looked at Rose.
"Do we have a special Antidote in our supplies?"
Rose shook her head with regret.
"We have plenty of general Antidotes stocked, but unfortunately, this kind of special Antidote with such a narrow, specific use... we didn't prepare any at all this time."
"We were caught completely off guard."
Jeanne frowned hard and drew a deep breath.
"Now we're really in trouble."
But no sooner had she said it than she saw Leon calmly handling the Poison Vermis corpse, without a trace of worry on his face. Jeanne and Rose exchanged a glance. Knowing this man as they did, someone who operated that carefully would never overlook a threat as nasty as the Poison Vermis. Even though this was their first time opening up the 28th floor, with gaps in their information and not enough familiarity, they believed Leon must have something in reserve.
"Leon, do you have some kind of solution?"
He sealed the precious Poison Vermis venom in a specially made container, then stood up, toying with the Magic Stone in his hand, raised an eyebrow at the two of them, and dropped a hint with a curl of his lips.
"Did you two forget? Besides the nine of us here, we've got one more well-endowed healer who didn't come on this Expedition."
"Hm?"
Jeanne and Rose blinked, then it hit them.
"Lydia?"
"Right! Lydia! We have the Holy Water she made with her own skill!"
...
Name: Secret Recipe Holy Water
Origin: Orario
Type: Elixir
Effect: Purifies abnormal states such as curses and poisoning, calms the mind, relieves fatigue, restores injuries slightly
Description: Her Highness the Princess's bathwater, a holy item you can't get just by looking for it!
Notes: Because the maker's level is low, if the abnormal state exceeds the maker's capability, it can't be fully removed, only temporarily suppressed. If you want it gone entirely, you can take the roundabout route (if quality isn't enough, make up for it in quantity)
...
Rose dug several vials of Secret Recipe Holy Water out of the elixir pouch in the Wonder Pack. Her eyes ran over the description and effects, her hands paused, and something subtle flickered in her gaze.
Jeanne had been waiting beside her for a while, and seeing Rose still not moving, she stepped closer, anxious, a question on her face.
"Rose, haven't you found them yet?"
"Oh, you did find them? So this is the Holy Water Lydia made under Iri's guidance?"
"Then hurry up and use it on Laurier!"
Rose opened her mouth, closed it, opened it again, wanting to say something. But hearing Laurier's cries of pain, she decided to swallow that faintly mocking "Description" for now. Nothing right now mattered more than easing Laurier's suffering. As for the explanations or jokes it might cause later, those could wait. Where Leon came from, there was an old saying for this: whatever comes, you deal with it.
With Laurier's life on the line, the fallout could wait!
"Leon, I'm leaving the lookout to you!"
"No problem."
With that, Leon formed a cross-shaped hand seal with full ceremony.
"Ice Clone Technique!"
Chunks of ice grew up fast out of the ground with a sharp cracking sound, finally shaping themselves into human forms. Then Leon, with the party at the center, quickly sent the clones spreading out, patrolling the surroundings on guard, in case what happened to Laurier happened again.
"Hm?"
Leon frowned, split off another ice clone and put it out in front of himself, then narrowed his eyes and studied the withered, crooked-necked trees of the Withered Bone Wasteland, his face turning serious.
I knew this dump felt familiar. Take away the grassland and this is just a remake of floors 9 to 12, isn't it? Which means... all these things are Plus, max versions of natural weapons?
The thought made him suck in a cold breath.
Damn it, natural weapons on the 28th floor. How terrifying would the combat boost they gave the monsters be...
Meanwhile, Jeanne and Rose hurried over to Laurier, surrounded by everyone, pulled out the cork, and poured the Holy Water over her injured forearm without hesitation.
The next second, under everyone's tense stares, the Poison Vermis venom that clung like rot in the bone began to recede and fade at a visible rate, under the combined work of Irisviel's healing magic and the Holy Water.
Seeing that the Holy Water did work, everyone let out a breath and spoke up in delight.
"It's working!"
"Thank goodness!"
Laurier's small face was still screwed up in pain. She bit down hard on her lip, but the cry still tore out of her.
"It, it hurts!"
White smoke rose from the wound with a hiss, and a sharp, foul stench spread with it, making several people nearby frown and cover their noses.
"Ugh... that smells awful."
"The poison of a Poison Vermis really is dreadful!"
As the venom was gradually cleared away, everyone's nerves eased a little.
But seeing Rose still frowning hard, Aura's and Kureha's hearts tightened again.
"Rose, the poison's almost cleared. Is there still a problem?"
Rose gripped the little vial in her hand, her lips pressed into a line.
Just then Iri, who had been fully focused on treating Laurier, finally had the spare capacity to speak as the pressure dropped. She sighed and explained, resigned.
"The Holy Water... because Lydia is only Lv.1, its strength is extremely limited."
"If it were an abnormal state from a Lv.2 monster or something like that, the Holy Water could root it out completely. But clearly... judging from how badly Laurier is poisoned, this Poison Vermis is definitely above Lv.2."
...
...
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