A sulfurous odor exists in the pockets of water. The pungent stench of rotting vegetation wafted over in a slow invincible cloud -- everyone's nostrils filled with the rich scent of fertile mud. A stiff breeze momentarily swept away the scent of decay and the pungent smell.

A thin blanket of mist glided silently across the landscape. Followed by a sudden uprising of squeals and croaks from tiny creatures a few meters away.

A chorus of frogs and insects' noise grew almost deafening, drowning out all the other sounds.

Everyone felt that eyes were prying in all directions. They were surrounded. They knew it. But they couldn't see any beast that would attack them.

"W-what's going on?" Rox took a whirl at his surroundings, but he didn't see anything. "Are the beasts invincible? Why can't I see them?"

"Because they're in the swampland." Ren pointed at one of the marshes.

Every gaze went to the marshes. Laying on its murky waters with only their bulging eyes popping were dozens of creatures that seemed like toads. But their size was four times larger.

"Are they poisonous?" Roxy asked, and Evie used a [Monocle].

B O L G O I N

Location: Illusion Forest

Description:

"Lords of the swamplands."

They are weaker monsters in the area, but their numbers are problematic. Due to their constant breeding, their growing population became a problem to the other beats living in the area.

The Tormentor of the Marsh, most called them. They used their massive tongue to snatch unsuspecting travelers from afar, pulling them into the marshes where their tadpoles awaited like piranhas hungry for flesh.

Bolgoins's massive legs jumped great distance, and there is no escaping them once engaged.

A T T R I B U T E

HP: 500

MP: 50

STRG: 20 +10 [Domain Bonus]

DEF: 20 +10 [Domain Bonus]

MDF: 10

INT: 5

AGL: 20 +5 [Domain Bonus]

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LCK: 5

W E A K N E S S

Fire

All Physical Attacks

S K I L L S & S P E L L S

Passive Skill:

Jump

Bolgoins can jump a great distance of about two meters in height, depending on maturity.

Active Skill:

Sticky Tongue LV. 5

Bolgoins used their tongue to pull in their enemies in the swamp.

Cost 5 MP

Head Ram LV. 5

The Bolgoin rammed its head against its enemy, causing knockback and stun if LCK is higher.

Cost 5 MP

E N D

Upon knowing the weak monsters with a mediocre set of skills, the others simultaneously sighed in relief.

"Good thing that there's nothing to worry about. I got worried there for a second." Rox laughed a little.

Ren and Evie weren't laughing, though. Their faces were serious while Ragnar wasn't letting his guard down.

"Should we go and search the area for that narrow stream?" Roxy asked the others.

"Wait for a little," said Evie. "We don't want to engage those toads and be swarmed by their numbers just like what happened with the Windigos."

Roxy was confused. "What do you mean? They're just weak-leveled monsters."

"Evie's right," Ragnar seconded. "We have to be careful. Remember what happened to Michael's group?"

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"You mean at the time when they faced those Weltering Welts or something?" asked Roxy.

"We might accidentally engage those toads not knowing that they're non-ending."

Augh . . . Roxy and Rox's shoulders slumped.

"This is a bit tricky." Rox stared at Evie and asked, "Evie, did you ask about this to the NPC too?"

Evie shook her head. "No."

Evie wasn't familiar with Illusion Forrest, so she didn't know what to expect. Her question to Meriyaah was limited to what she experience before. This scenarios was new to her.

"Now what? Are we going to be stuck here?" Roxy wasn't keen on the idea of waiting until something happened. Not with those toads creepy bulging eyes staring at them. "Could it be possible to go back?"

Rox wanted to roll his eyes. "Sis, we're in the middle of the swamp. It's not like we can go back to the entrance or hope to enter another area."

"There must be a way to safely traverse this path without getting mob by giant toads." Roxy bit her thumb. "Just like what happened with the Windigos."

"Yeah," agreed Rox. "At that time, it's the Wisps. However, I don't know about now."

At the side, Ren was silent. He wasn't familiar with Illusion Forest, so this was a first that he encountered this scenario. And when Rox mentioned a clue, Ren flung his attention to marches before his gaze shifted to Pii.

Pii was also looking at something on the swamplands, specifically the marshes with fireflies.

Is that it? Ren mused to himself.

The fireflies were thin in numbers and often times couldn't be noticed because they flickered dimly.

Pii let out a soft cry. Like it was agreeing to what he thought.

Ren rubbed Pii's chin.

It's worth the try. Ren mused to himself.

Ren was about to inform the others when Rox stole their attention again.

"Hey, look. There are others too besides us."

When the wind swept, it cleared the thin fog revealing the silhouettes of another group.

There were almost twenty of them, and all were mean-looking, like a gang that was about to wage war on another gang.

Ragnar recognized some members, and he muttered, surprised, "Poison Viper?"

The guild they faced before in Gargantuan Cave. The one they had a bout with. The guild was nothing but trouble by manipulating the area for themselves.

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Ren was about to second Ragnar. Good thing that he stopped himself on time. Ragnar would surely ask him where he met Poison Viper.

"You know them?" Roxy asked, amused. Those bunch looked like thugs.

Ragnar only nodded. "Yes. But not personally. Let's just say that my encounter with them . . . didn't end well."

"I see . . ." That explained how Ragnar stared at them like he ate something bitter. Poison Viper was all scary- looking like bullies in school. Roxy thought. She heard about them in the forums and [World Chat]. They were infamous for manipulating caves and exerting dominance over the other players using their numbers.

Rox shrunk from where he stood. "Great. And here I was, feeling relieved that there are others besides us. But who knows that we have to be wary of them too."

Like Evie, Poison Viper also used [Monocle]. After which, each of them laughed at the Toad's weak stats. Their laughter boomed in the swampland, overshadowing the noise from the beasts and loud croaking sounds from the Toads.

Then someone in Poison Viper pointed at Ren's group. Since they were at least fifty meters away, Ren and the others couldn't hear what Poison Viper was saying, but they knew that it wasn't nice based on their expressions.

Some of them even pointed at Ragnar and spat on the ground.

Ragnar crossed his arms and smirked. Those guys must have recognized him from Gargantuan Cave. They were about to storm in Ragnar's direction when the others stopped them before they proceeded forward.

Before they did, Ren and the others caught a flash of a cruel smile from Poison Viper's members, which provoked unease. A wicked glint in their eyes hinted a cruel aspirations. And there was something of a hurry in their movement. Like they were being chased by something.

Confident with their numbers and their strength, Poison Viper marched towards the swamp, unafraid of the toads and the other beasts lurking in the depths.

Taking their first step on the only land between the marshes, numerous long and thick tongues flew in the air, and for a time, it almost covered the horizon, and all of the members of Poison Vipers were pulled into the marshlands.

The damage they received wasn't much, but once they were on the murky waters, thousands and thousands of egg-like creatures swarmed over their body. They looked like little white eggs the size of a pea with a tail. They must be the tadpoles. They were like hundreds of thousands of them, and they covered every inch of Poison Viper's body. They were like worms feasting on dead carcass.

But their damage was only -1. However, attacked by thousands of them, it only took seconds before everyone burst into particles leaving only their angry cries and curses.

. . .

. . .

"Okay. Let's go find another way," said Rox, face white and breath shaky.

Roxy felt like the ground was circling in front of her eyes. Her legs were shaking, afraid to take a single step. Heck! She was even scared to move!

"That's a disgusting way to die," Ragnar said with a satisfied smirk on his face.

"That's not funny! What are we gonna do now? I don't want to be toads' food!" Roxy was starting to pant. She was beginning to get frantic. No one found Toads cute. And definitely not those eggs that looked like worms.

Roxy got hives while Evie's face was still paralyzed. However, her fingers were digging hard against her arm. Evie also didn't like toads and swarms of eggs that looked like brains.

Ren noticed Evie's face whitened and her fingers clutching her arm. Well, her face was white before, but it was not paper white like now.

"No one's going to be toads' food," Ren assured, saying it more to Evie to calm her down. He then explained his finding to the others that they should only cross marshes with fireflies.

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"A-are you sure?" Roxy stuttered.

Instead of answering, Ren stared at Ragnar, hiding his evil grin behind his hood.

"One way to find out. Ragnar, you go and check."