Gallery 48 - Dumpster

I Gained a Gallery in the Wild - Eps 48 Lakeside (3)

The giant crab's claw came crashing down. I barely managed to dodge the attack.

The movement itself was large and surprisingly sluggish, so dodging it wasn't difficult.

But the vibration that rippled through the ground when it struck. That vibration wasn’t ordinary.

‘F- First, mana…!’

I composed my startled heart and circulated my mana. I felt a cool stimulation in my muscles.

Thanks to practicing whenever I had time, I was able to respond quickly.

"Kururuk."

Meanwhile, the giant crab raised its claw again. It was surprisingly agile for its huge body.

As soon as I saw that, I moved my legs. It's better to abandon the thought of blocking that.

Teok!

"Huh?!"

But I made a mistake because I wasn’t used to the terrain. Something caught my foot as I stepped backward.

For a moment, it felt like the world was spinning, and then the sky came into my vision.

Even as I toppled backward, instinct took over.

"Keuuk...!"

A considerable shock was transmitted from my back. Still, it was bearable.

Right before hitting the ground, I curled my body to minimize the damage.

This was the result of performing a breakfall, just as SwordMaster's post had taught.

Rumble-rumble—

Even as I staggered and was about to fall, the giant crab didn’t stop.

Perhaps because it had many legs, it approached quickly despite its massive body.

Slip—

I tried my best to get up, but I slipped slightly.

Meanwhile, the crab’s pincer slowly lifted and cast a shadow over my head.

Getting up from this position is difficult. I instinctively raised my shield to block it.

I prayed that this shield would protect me, and drew out the mana in my body to its maximum.

Kwaang!

A sound like metal clashing with metal. And the impact that followed.

My arm felt numb, but it was bearable. Weaker than the Muscle Mushroom.

I hurriedly rolled my body before a follow-up attack came flying.

Kwaeng!

It seems the giant crab slammed its pincer down once more while I was rolling.

I felt the vibration pass through my whole body as I silently got back up.

The giant crab moved its numerous legs, adjusted its direction, and then approached me again.

‘Forget blocking and countering.’

If I kept relying on my shield, my arms would be torn off first.

I needed to somehow aim for an opening, but it was hard to find.

'The attacks are monotonous but fast, that's the problem.'

I thought while constantly moving my legs.

This too was a tip SwordMaster had taught. Think while moving your legs.

Only then can you lead the situation to your advantage without giving the opponent an opening.

Bam!

And SwordMaster's advice was effective. The giant crab missed.

The giant crab struck down its pincers toward the spot where I had just been.

Now’s my chance. I channeled mana into my sword and swung.

The sword, shimmering like a heat haze, immediately split the pincer.

Crunch!

The claw part of the pincer was cleanly severed.

It wasn't a very effective hit. Only the claw part fell off, not the whole pincer.

It's inevitable because it's so big. I can’t slice through the whole thing in one strike like certain people.

‘One at a time.’

But it's enough. If I attack little by little like this, I can kill it.

Whoosh!

The giant crab quickly swung its pincer arm that now had no claw.

The pincer itself was like a huge blunt weapon, so it was still plenty threatening.

I didn't stop moving my legs to identify the creature's weakness.

'Wait. This thing....'

And then I was able to find one noticeable weakness. And a very fatal weakness, at that.

The crab's species cannot help but walk sideways. Even though its body had gotten bigger, that characteristic hadn't changed.

In combat terms, this means their attack range is severely limited. No matter how wildly they swing those claws, there's an obvious boundary to their reach.

'Especially the speed of rotating its body is very slow.'

While the giant crab is waving its pincers around, I moved my legs nimbly and took its rear.

The giant crab tried desperately to turn around, but it was far too slow. It couldn’t even strike me with its claws.

This was the unfortunate fate of a creature designed only to walk sideways.

Swiish!

While the giant crab tried to turn, I cut off its legs instead of its pincers.

With a single swing, two legs were cleanly severed.

A joint work of the HeavenlyDemon’s Sword and my aura.

Thud!

The giant crab lost its balance because two of its legs were sliced off at once.

Seeing one side of it wobble, it seemed it was difficult for it to even keep its balance.

My goal was to make this creature completely lose its mobility.

Since its turning speed was turtle-slow, I exploited that to the fullest.

Swiish! Swiish!

I kept to its rear, not its front, and cut off its legs.

Thanks to that, cutting the remaining legs was no trouble at all.

Thanks to this, cutting off the remaining legs was no problem.

Chwaak!

Finally, I completely cut off even its proud claws.

The crab is left sprawled on the ground with only its body remaining.

Perhaps because it was a crustacean, its body was still squirming even though all its limbs were severed.

Soegok!

I climbed onto the giant crab's carapace and slammed the sword down.

The blade came down right between the eyes, the center of the upper part.

Kagagagagak!

I pulled the sword downward like yanking a lever.

Since the HeavenlyDemon’s sword could cleave even solid wood like tofu, it came down with ease.

Soon, the blade reached the bottom of the shell, and I yanked it with all my strength.

Swish!

Since it had already lost all its legs, it didn’t split clean in half.

But I was satisfied with the fact that its movements had stopped completely.

I lightly shook off the pieces of internal organs stuck to the sword.

“Huft!”

I let out a ragged breath. My heart was pounding violently due to the surging adrenaline.

If I hadn’t found its weakness, this fight would’ve been much harder.

No, not just tough, it was a situation where I could have lost my life if I’m not being careful. It was strangely thrilling.

"Kkururuk."

"Kkuruk."

Before I knew it, small crabs had gathered and began to busily eat the giant crab's corpse.

A sight of them faithfully carrying out their role as scavengers, even against the giant crab.

I watched the scene for a bit before posted a post on the gallery.

---

Title: Giant Crab Hunting

(Photo of a huge giant crab carcass)

A giant crab way bigger than a person jumped out at the lakeside ;; It used its claws like clubs.

At least its turning speed was terribly slow, so catching it wasn’t hard. What the hell is this thing even ;;

---

I just uploaded the post and didn’t check the comments. Returning quickly was the priority right now.

As if falling on my butt wasn't enough, I had rolled all over the ground.

If I leave it like this, it will not only stink but I could also get sick.

'I better bring some good shoes next time.'

This incident made me realize just how important shoes is.

Especially when I slipped, it felt like my life flashed before my eyes for a moment.

I took another deep breath and started walking to return.

‘The fish carcass... is over there.’

I didn't forget the way back.

Because there was the fish carcass and also the leftover crab carcass.

The thought of having to go back with this uncomfortable feeling already made me dizzy, but I had no choice but to endure it.

“Kkururuk. Kkuruk."

“...."

I saw a crab on the way, so I gently picked it up.

Right after, I bought a backpack at the auction. Not a little pouch that hangs at the waist, but a proper backpack you carry on your back.

‘Can’t hold back.’

I had to eat this right away as soon as I got to the cave. I’ve got to give some to Round Fluff and DizSpeed too, so I put in two more.

I thought about giving some to the dwarf, but unfortunately trading is only possible tomorrow.

Crabs were perfect for drinking side dish, so I plan to come again tomorrow.

'Since AllFather said they're edible, they should be delicious, right?'

I wasn't particularly worried about parasites.

It didn't seem like they would kill each other and spoil.

So far, these guys only ate their own kind when they were already carcasses.

Rumble-rumble-rumble—

While I was quietly delighting inside, the ground began to shake.

Not once have I had a good experience when an earthquake occurred.

The moment I had that thought, I hurriedly looked around.

Splash! Swish!

From the depths of the lake, giant crabs began to appear one by one.

Their size was similar to or slightly larger than the one I just faced.

There were at least five of them. I could only stare blankly at the sight.

I barely managed to take down one, and now five show up? If I hadn’t moved away, I would have been in serious trouble.

‘Is this really a lake? Not the sea?’

Looking at how it doesn't have the characteristic salty smell of the sea, it is indeed a lake.

I moved carefully, worried that the giant crabs might notice my presence.

Thank goodness, they didn't give me a single glance until I reached the river mouth.

They were busy picking up and eating the carcasses of their own kind with their pincers.

‘They're faithful to their instincts.’

It seems carcasses are their first priority. The name cleaner fits it perfectly.

I slowly stepped backward and then turned around. I should gradually return to the cave.

Kugugugugugu!

That was when I felt a trembling of a completely different dimension.

The trembling was much more severe than the earthquake the giant crabs were artificially creating.

I panicked for a moment, thinking it was a real earthquake, but then I heard a noise that I couldn't easily ignore from the lake.

Kwagwagwagwa!

The sound of water shooting up high and falling down. At that sound, I looked toward the lake.

"....."

As soon as I turned around, I couldn't help but be dumbfounded by the scene before me.

I thought the giant crab was big enough, but there was a bigger one living in the lake.

'...Fuck. What the hell is that?'

If the giant crab was the size of a large truck, the crab I was looking at now was the size of a building.

In terms of height alone, it was comparable to a small apartment building.

It was absurdly big, to the point that it mocked the concept of perspective.

Can you even call that a crab? It's on the level of a walking building.

---

Title: Find what's strange in this video.

Author: WildGrills

(Video of the building-sized crab and the giant crab next to it)

What could be strange? Try and find it!

---

ㄴ HeavenlyDemon) Hmm? Why does the sky look so small?

ㄴ WildGrills) That's right. Why do you think it looks so small?

ㄴ SwordMaster) In all my life, I’ve never seen a crab that big? Do those even exist?

ㄴ WildGrills) You have good eyes. I can't believe it even seeing it.

ㄴ HeavenlyDemon) Looking again, it is tremendously large. It piques This One’s interest.

ㄴ WildGrills) Want to come? We can catch it and steam it.

ㄴ HeavenlyDemon) My aides held me back so This One can’t go. I’m sorry.

ㄴ AllFather) Oh ;; Ooh ;;; Fuck what is that?

ㄴ WildGrills) lololololol I don't know either. First time for you too, AllFather?

ㄴ AllFather) The species itself is definitely a Gophers crab.... but I don’t know if we should call that thing a new species. What even is it?

ㄴ WildGrills) I'm just as curious.

ㄴ PassingDwarf) Bro, that’s a whole mountain walking around ;;; But hey, can I ask a favor?

ㄴ WildGrills) You want a crab for drinking side dishes? I can give it to you tomorrow because of the trade cooldown.

ㄴ PassingDwarf) Thx thx, might as well give me that big one.

ㄴ WildGrills) You crazy bastard lmao

ㄴ Wow ;; I'm just speechless. Isn't that a real mystical creature?

ㄴ Fr, looks like it’s hiding a damn inner core inside its shell.

ㄴ If it's that big, it's definitely worthy of being called a mystical creature lolol

ㄴ No plans to catch that?

ㄴ WildGrills) No no ;; I can never catch that. I had a hard time just catching one giant crab.

ㄴ Nothing is impossible in this world. Just gotta try.

ㄴ If you catch that thing the gallery will explode lmao

ㄴ WildGrills) If there's someone to catch it with, I'll catch it ㅋ

ㄴ (No comments)

ㄴ WildGrills) Answer me, you bastards.

I moved my legs while looking at the gallery.

I want to go back as quickly as possible. My body feels heavy because of the dampness.

'But why does the back of my neck itch so much?'

Maybe because I let my guard down, my senses had sharpened. The itchiness felt even more distinct because of it.

Unable to resist the feeling, I scratched the back of my neck with my right hand.

Squish—

And then I felt something squishy. The second that registered, I froze.

My instincts told me. This squishy thing is definitely not good.

Even when I tapped it with my fingers, it wouldn't fall off. I gulped and grabbed it.

Soon I pulled it hard and forcibly tore it off. It stretched out long like jelly.

Ppok!

Something fell off my back with a pang of pain and a strange sound.

It’s big enough that I had to grab it with a whole hand, and it was slippery.

I slowly moved my right hand in front of my face. To check what I had in my hand.

Wriggle— Wriggle—

Soon, I saw a red slime wriggling while caught in my hand—no.

A brown leech with a grotesquely hideous appearance was writhing its body.

And it was an incredibly large leech at that.

"Kkyaaaaaaaaak!!!"

I want to get out of here ASAP.

---

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