"Now then, have you ever seen strategy videos titled something like 'Trying Out XX' while pying various games?"

  What they do is actually quite simple—they come up with clever ways to easily defeat normally tough enemies. That’s all there is to it.

  "Alright, now all that’s left is to open the Mochi Dungeon here, and we’re done."

  On a cliff overlooking the ke, I set up bear traps and tatami-flip traps, then finally opened the Mochi Dungeon as the finishing touch.

  Though, I made sure to choose just the right spot to open it.

  "Wait, can you even stick a key in a pce like that?"

  Amina, who was currently fluttering her wings and circling around me, voiced her doubts.

  In other words, since she was flying, that meant my current location was at a considerable height.

  And for good reason.

  My footing was on the head of Angler.

  This golem’s height was no joke—someone with acrophobia would never even think of climbing it.

  "It’s working, so no problem."

  Bancing perfectly on the small foothold, I stretched my hand as high as possible to unlock the dungeon. By simply willing it into existence, the dungeon formed in midair.

  "Nel, go take out just the boss for me. Don’t escape—just come back to the entrance afterward.""Got it."

  And so, Nel went off to defeat the boss of this strange, floating dungeon.

  Watching her nimble figure climb up Angler and disappear into the dungeon, I got to work on maneuvering Angler inside.

  I kicked off Angler’s head, dove into the dungeon, and drove an anchor stake into the entrance.

  Using that stake as a handhold, I made Angler jump up, grab it, and haul itself inside.

  "This is… kinda weird to look at."

  A golem cmbering into a dungeon floating in midair—from the outside, it must’ve looked downright surreal.

  Amina’s reaction said it all.

  "The pcement is crucial. Amina, bring me the rope connected to the shield stand.""Is that really how it works?"

  After curiously watching Angler squeeze into the dungeon, Amina flew over, gripping the rope with her feet.

  "Here, take it.""Thanks. Now, I just need to set up these two shield stands…"

  I then used Angler to pull the rope and haul a rge shield stand into the dungeon.

  The pcement was about five meters in from the entrance. I drove the spikes of the shield stand into the dungeon floor to secure it.

  "Liberta, I took care of it!""Nice, thanks. I just finished setting things up here too."

  While I was busy, Nel returned after defeating the Kagami Mochi.

  She rested her halberd on her shoulder, looking completely at ease.

  "Was that overkill?""Obviously!! One hit!!"

  Back when we first started, she’d nervously struggle against dungeon bosses. Now, she could take them down effortlessly.

  Time really flies.

  "We’re all set here. You two have your Training Bracelets equipped, right?""Of course!""Yep.""Nel, once you’re outside, double-check if Ingrid has hers on too.""Got it."

  I scanned the area to make sure nothing was overlooked, then—

  "Alright, let’s do this."

  It was finally time for the real deal.

  "Nel, Amina, regroup with Ingrid outside and get ready. Don’t show yourselves until the enemy’s fully stuck in this dungeon, got it?""Yeah, we go all out after they’re caught in all the traps, right?""Exactly. Nel, you’re our main attacker. I’m counting on you.""Leave it to me!!"

  Nel leaped down, while Amina simply flew out of the dungeon.

  "Alright, Angler, show me what you’re made of."

  And with that, I began fishing inside this dungeon.

  "The bait’s all set. Now, I just need to reel in the target."

  I handed Angler the Mythril fishing rod, eyeing the Mithril lure at the end.

  A handcrafted lure by Master Ganji.

  A silver fish-shaped lure made from Mithril, forged with a bcksmith’s skill, complete with a sharp hook.

  Once it sinks into flesh, there’s no easy way to remove it—a fine piece of work.

  "Now, just gotta attach this…"

  I carefully covered the lure with a pinkish substance—a mix of mochi and fish blood—using gloved hands.

  The result was something vaguely fish-shaped.

  "Now, toss this into the ke, and it begins."

  The dungeon entrance was decently rge, but casting the lure all the way into the ke from here was no easy feat.

  With limited visibility of the outside, aiming for that exact spot seemed tricky—but after thousands, maybe tens of thousands of attempts, for me—

  "Like this."

  Figuring out how to maneuver Angler was easier than riding a bike.

  "There."

  Just like in the game—I swung the rod back, then cast forward. The weight of the lure sent it flying, nding about sixty meters from the cliff.

  Given its original weight, the spsh was noticeably rge.

  "Now, just gotta make it move like a fish."

  I maniputed Angler’s arms to reel it in.

  Watch this rod work—trained through countless hours of VR fishing games to mimic lifelike movements!

  With this, I’ve even caught swordfish in games.

  "In games, you get a bite within seconds, but reality doesn’t work like that."

  Or so I thought—

  "Wait, it hit already!?"

  Guess not.

  The ke’s surface reacted immediately.

  A dark shadow moved straight for my lure.

  Under the clear sky, the water wasn’t perfectly transparent, but the shadow was unmistakable.

  "First try, HIT!!!"

  Its swimming speed far outpaced the lure’s retrieval.

  In an instant, the shadow caught up—and the Marsh Dragon’s jaws snapped wide open, cmping down on the bait.

  The Mythril fishing rod bent sharply.

  A normal rod would’ve shattered instantly.

  But this was no ordinary rod—Master Ganji had poured top-tier materials into it.

  Not a single creak.

  And then there was Angler.

  All its legs braced firmly against the dungeon floor.

  Lowering its center of gravity, it held strong against the massive Marsh Dragon, steadily reeling it in.

  The beast I was about to haul up was a twenty-meter-long giant crocodile.

  Like the Serpent Dragon, this Marsh Dragon lived up to its name.

  By pure physics, such a thin rod and line shouldn’t hold.

  But in this world’s rules—it worked.

  Even if outmatched in mass, Angler’s stats held firm.

  Slowly, steadily, it dragged the Marsh Dragon from the depths toward the surface.

  "This is why we can pull off stunts like this!!!"

  Witnessing this, no angler could contain their excitement.

  This wasn’t a back-and-forth struggle.

  It was a battle of technique—how to nd the boss after it bit.

  No room for counterattacks.

  I channeled mana from Angler into the Mythril rod, activating a skill.

  A single skill embedded in the lure—

  "Expand."

  A seemingly useless skill that merely infted whatever it touched.

  But paired with fishing and mochi?

  It became something terrifying.

  "Oh, it’s panicking!"

  The moment I activated it, the mochi around the lure inside the Marsh Dragon’s throat ballooned.

  Not enough to burst it from within—but enough to block its airway.

  Sticky, stretchy mochi.

  Now clogging the dragon’s throat.

  It couldn’t swallow, couldn’t breathe.

  Even if it opened its mouth to let water flush it out, the mochi clung stubbornly to the lure and wire.

  "Now we’ve got suffocation damage ticking."

  Cutting off its breath.

  This was how we ensured the Marsh Dragon’s defeat.

  A human would st minutes, maybe seconds.

  But this was a field boss.

  A dragonkin, even if a lowly one.

  It wouldn’t suffocate easily.

  Given time, it’d die on its own.

  "But then, what’s the point of all this prep?"

  This was about stacking the deck for a giant-sying.

  The thrashing dragon, struggling to breathe, slowly rose from the water.

  "Hey, long time no see."

  I greeted it like an old friend, knowing it couldn’t hear me.

  Thick green scales, massive jaws, elongated body, long tail, stubby limbs.

  A crocodile in every way—but as a Marsh Dragon, it could spew water breath and wield water and earth magic.

  In its domain underwater, victory was near impossible.

  Yet now, it was being dragged onto nd, suspended midair.

  "One st push!!"

  The cliff was just under ten meters high.

  The Marsh Dragon thrashed, desperate to return to the water, its short legs filing against the rocks.

  Bit by bit, I reeled it up, bringing it level with the cliff.

  Just as its body disappeared from view behind the ledge, the rod shuddered violently.

  The enemy was right there.

  No mistakes now—or things would get messy.

  Not rushing, I timed each pull, inching the Marsh Dragon closer—

  "I’ve been waiting for this!!"

  The moment its snout cleared the cliff, its gre locked onto me.

  A chill ran down my spine.

  This thing outcssed me. Face-to-face, I stood little chance.

  Unlike the Serpent Dragon, if it escaped back into the water, we’d lose.

  Being stared down by such a foe, fear was natural.

  But my words were genuine.

  No enemy suited us better than this.

  So I grinned back.

  "■■■■■■■!!"

  Muffled by the mochi, its roar cked impact—but the Marsh Dragon recognized its enemy.

  The moment it did, it stopped resisting and charged on its own feet.

  Though more at home in water, as a dragonkin, it was fast on nd too.

  It sprinted straight for me, perched high above.

  "Too bad."

  The moment its face snapped upward—

  A tatami-flip trap triggered beneath it.

  Timed perfectly by Nel’s group yanking the rope from afar.

  The Marsh Dragon’s head jerked back, and I reeled hard.

  Its front legs lifted off the ground.

  Its upper body hung in midair as its head was dragged into the dungeon.

  Then—

  "■■■■■■!?"

  A metallic cng echoed.

  The bear trap snapped shut on its tail.

  Now, it couldn’t enter fully.

  Instead, its head was lodged in the dungeon entrance, tail pinned.

  Its front legs filed helplessly, hind legs unable to find purchase.

  To escape, it’d need to sever the line or break the trap.

  "Marsh Dragon Lock—complete."

  Suffocating, suspended by the Mythril rod.

  "Now then—"

  Angler’s orders were to maintain the hold.

  Pulling harder risked breaking the trap, but easing up would let it retreat.

  Adjusting the tension just right, I locked the reel.

  With Angler holding steady, I hopped down, steel scythe-spear in hand.

  "Time to grind some skill EXP!!"

  This sight was nothing new.

  Fighting just the Marsh Dragon’s head was nostalgic.

  "■■!?""Nel’s team started their assault."

  Being gred at by a crocodile was a unique situation—but it wouldn’t st.

  Thinking I was its only enemy?

  Mistake.

  Right now, the three girls were wailing on its retively soft underbelly.

  Especially Nel, our damage specialist—her hits hurt.

  "Alright, enough chatter. I’ll miss out on EXP. So, Marsh Dragon—"

  I leveled my scythe-spear at it.

  "Become my experience points."

  And with that, I lunged at the trapped Marsh Dragon.