Chapter 147: The Grind Begins
Starting the next day, after school was out, Dennis would take Daisy to a secluded room in the school warehouse. He then summoned Diana, Dahlia, Donna, Deborah, Dulcia, and Daphne to his location using the teleport skill for party members. After that, Dennis opened his dimensional training room. They arrived inside a vast, empty space with grid-patterned walls and a view of deep space. Dennis opened his quest interface.
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Quest List :
Exterminate 200 Bug Crawlers rank E. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 150 Tusk Crawlers rank D. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 120 Blob Mantis rank C. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 100 Hydra Mantis rank C. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 80 Spider Chameleon rank B. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 70 Scorpion Worm rank B. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 50 Chimaera Beetle rank A. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 45 Raven Queen Bee rank A. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 40 Chimaera Crab rank A. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 20 Claw Centipede rank S. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 15 Strider Kraken rank S. [Do the quest ? [YES] [NO]]
???
???
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"Okay, let’s go. We’re taking on the Strider Krakens," Dennis said.
"Ready. Let’s do this, honey," Daisy said, preparing to draw her katana.
"We’re ready!" Diana, Dahlia, Donna, Deborah, Dulcia, and Daphne shouted.
Dennis pressed the "Yes" button. Immediately, monsters shaped like water striders—long and oval-shaped with four long legs and hundreds of tentacles sprouting from their backs—appeared. The front of each monster’s head featured a funnel that could blast ink to blind enemies. The creatures were absolutely massive, likely as big as the Claw Centipedes, and there were fifteen of them.
"Stay close to me, honey," Dennis said.
"I will, honey," Daisy replied.
Without wasting another second, Dennis activated his Berserker Aura. Everyone was instantly enveloped in a thick, red flame aura that boosted their strength. Then, he triggered his own Rage. As the Strider Krakens lunged toward them with blinding speed, closing the distance, Dennis let out another shout using his Stun Roar, freezing them all in their tracks. He leaped into the center of the horde and, "Blaam," slammed into the ground using his Ground Slam skill, causing the enemies to sink into a massive crater.
"Now!" Dennis shouted.
Immediately, Diana, Dahlia, Donna, Deborah, Dulcia, and Daphne dove into the pit. Diana stretched out her arms, manifesting incredibly long blood whips that she lashed out, slicing two Strider Krakens clean in half. Dahlia backflipped through the air, treading on the wind itself, and aimed her hands which were shaped like pistols. Several portals opened, revealing gun muzzles that rained fire down on three Strider Krakens until they were pulverized. Meanwhile, Donna moved like a blur, weaving through the tentacles while lopping them off, quickly carving two Strider Krakens into neat, cube-shaped pieces with her twin knives.
Deborah channeled her dragon breath into both hands, which swelled into two giant dragon claws. "Blam," she slammed her palms down onto two Strider Krakens, crushing them flat beneath her weight until they died. Dulcia landed in the middle of three Strider Krakens, who instantly coiled their tentacles around her. Dulcia let out a scream, snapping the tentacles, then formed a giant energy axe and spun in a circle, cleaving all three monsters.
Finally, Daphne hovered on her wings above two Strider Krakens and raised both hands. A brilliant light descended from above, illuminating the monsters, and two spears shot down, impaling the massive beasts. But as they hit the ground, the spears transformed into giant scythes that dragged both creatures into a pit of darkness and hellfire before vanishing entirely. Daisy sliced through the legs of a Strider with rapid strikes, running circles around it while cutting down every tentacle that came her way. She then leaped up and drove her sword into its back until the creature let out a final shriek, collapsed, and stopped moving.
The quest was completed instantly. They all gathered as the gaping hole in the ground leveled out, returning to its original state. Dennis opened the quest list once more.
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Quest List :
Exterminate 200 Bug Crawlers rank E. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 150 Tusk Crawlers rank D. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 120 Blob Mantis rank C. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 100 Hydra Mantis rank C. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 80 Spider Chameleon rank B. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 70 Scorpion Worm rank B. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 50 Chimaera Beetle rank A. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 45 Raven Queen Bee rank A. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 40 Chimaera Crab rank A. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 35 Thousand Legger Butterfly rank A. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 20 Claw Centipede rank S. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 15 Strider Kraken rank S. [Completed] [Repeat ? [YES] [NO]]
Exterminate 10 Mandrake Lady Bug rank S. [Do the quest ? [YES] [NO]]
???
???
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"Straight to the next one, okay?" Dennis said.
"Yep, keep it going!" his seven wives shouted enthusiastically.
Dennis pressed YES to face the 10 Mandrake Lady Bug rank S. Ten monsters appeared. Their forms were a hybrid of a red-and-black polka-dotted female body and a mandrake plant, featuring arms and legs that looked like green roots. Their faces were pale and beautiful, with ladybug wings on their backs and hair made of leaves. They stood only about 7 feet tall—not overly large—with green eyes that flared red the moment they spotted Dennis and the others.
But instead of attacking, the monsters lined up side-by-side, leaving Dennis and his seven wives confused.
"Why are they just standing there?" Daisy asked.
"I’ve never seen monsters like these before," Diana said.
"Hmm... let’s try shooting them," Dahlia suggested.
Dahlia immediately fired a shot from a distance. "Waaaah!" One of the monsters opened its mouth, and its scream formed a sonic shield that deflected the bullet. The sound was deafening, echoing through the room. Dennis, Daisy, Diana, Dahlia, Donna, Deborah, Dulcia, and Daphne all had to cover their ears against the piercing noise.
"Wow... that scream," Donna muttered.
"Hey... I can’t hear a thing... these monsters seem interesting, too bad they’re just a simulation," Deborah said, covering her ears and trying to dig them out.
"Alright, if they’re long-range attackers, it means they’re weak up close. I’m going in," Dulcia said.
"Wait... hold on!" Daphne shouted, trying to stop her.
Too late. Dulcia had already rocketed forward like a meteor toward the line of monsters. Her hands opened, and two glowing energy axes appeared in her grip. She leaped, swinging her axes at the line, but suddenly the leafy hair of two monsters lashed out and bound her wrists. "Waaaaaah!" Three monsters blasted Dulcia point-blank with their sonic screams. The impact hit her body so hard she was sent flying backward, skidding across the floor on her back.
"Hey... Dulcia!" Dennis yelled, rushing over to her.
Dulcia stood up. She seemed physically fine, not a scratch on her, but her face was pale with confusion as she clutched both ears.
"I... I can’t hear... Hey! Help me! I can’t hear anything at all!" Dulcia screamed in a panic, her face turning white.
Dennis immediately grabbed Dulcia and hugged her tight to calm her down, while the others moved forward to shield them. Deborah checked Dulcia’s ears while the rest stared at the monsters. The creatures remained in their neat line, staring back with red eyes as if watching for their next move. Finally, Diana, Dahlia, Donna, and Daphne bunched together to cover Dennis, Daisy, Dulcia, and Deborah.
"How do we fight them?" Dahlia asked, observing the enemy.
"They’re playing defense and not initiating. We have to be tactical about our attack," Diana said.
"Hmm... how, though? I don’t want to end up like Dulcia," Donna said, thinking hard.
"What if we fight sound with sound?" Daphne suggested.
Diana, Dahlia, and Donna immediately turned to look at Daphne as if she had grown two heads.
"Huh... and how do we do that?" Diana asked.
Daphne didn’t answer. She pressed her hands together at her chest and closed her eyes as if in prayer. Then, she began to hover, and suddenly her wings turned pure white while her angel halo glowed brighter than ever before. The sky above opened up, and seven four-winged angels carrying trumpets appeared, standing beside Daphne—two on the right and two on the left.
They immediately blew their trumpets toward the monsters. The creatures were caught completely off guard, and "crack," the two monsters hit directly by the sonic waves from the trumpets shattered into pieces. After that, the angels vanished along with the light from above.
"Yes! It worked!" Diana, Dahlia, and Donna cheered.
But right after that, Daphne plummeted to the ground and lay there motionless. "Wait, what?" The three of them were shocked. They rushed over to her, only to find Daphne smiling and mumbling in her sleep.
"Oh boy... she’s asleep. She ran out of energy," Diana said, checking on her.
"Wait... she’s asleep and only two monsters are dead? What about the rest?" Donna asked.
"Um... you guys might want to see that," Dahlia said, pointing at the monsters.
Diana, Donna, and Dahlia looked at the remaining eight monsters. Their eyes widened as they saw the polka dots on the creatures’ bodies turn into long black thorns. Their beautiful faces distorted into horrific screams, their jaws dropping incredibly low. Their hair, which had been hanging down, rose up and began writhing like leafy tentacles.
"Uh oh... they’re pissed. This is bad," the three of them said in unison.