(Heartfelt thanks to Sondery, Snow Fox Rain Abandon, Pokémon, Tetra0017, Chenfeng, Bu Leng Mu Leng, and Passing Sauce-Runner for their rewards!)
"Roar—!"
An exceptionally resounding roar shook the entire forest, as though the atmosphere itself had been churned up by the soundwaves, raising gusts of shrieking wind.
The Giant Serpent's enormous tail carried terrifying power as it swept through the air like lightning, viciously lashing toward the rapidly retreating Gagaran.
"Don't underestimate me!"
Seeing the Giant Serpent pursue her, Gagaran roared angrily. While maintaining her rapid retreat, she raised the Spiked War Hammer in her hand and swung it like a windmill, smashing it fiercely against the enormous tail whipping toward her.
"Bang—!"
The collision between the war hammer and the snake's tail sent out a ring of shockwave-like force.
As the blast swept over her, Gagaran's arm holding the war hammer went numb. Her whole body was thrown backward, crashing into the ground. After rolling several times, she finally steadied herself, sprang up, dropped to one knee, and panted heavily.
As for the enormous tail, it only paused slightly from the impact. Some of the scales on it seemed to have cracked, but it had not suffered any real damage.
The hardness of a Giant Serpent's scales and skin could rival mithril.
In this world, openly known materials harder than the Giant Serpent's scales and skin were limited to orichalcum and adamantite.
Without strength powerful enough to shatter even mithril, it was simply impossible to harm a Giant Serpent in the slightest.
Furthermore, the Giant Serpent's body occasionally secreted highly poisonous fluids capable of killing someone instantly, while its gaze possessed a petrifying effect. It truly was the nemesis of close-combat fighters.
"As expected, I can't do anything to a Magical Beast like the Giant Serpent on my own,