I Have a Task Log

Then, a wet squelch sounded out from beside Colin.

Turning his head, he saw Dorn slowly getting up, one foot on the Mind Flayer’s corpse. The octopus-faced creature was covered in dagger wounds, utterly still.

"I... I don’t feel so good..." "M-me too."

The voices of Kase and Orelia came from behind.

Colin turned around and saw the two of them standing where they were, clutching their heads.

He shouted, "He’s the only one left! Push through!"

Karen, standing not far away, seemed to realize his fate. But he didn’t charge forward to attack. Instead, he silently raised his Large Shield and backed into a corner.

Kase shook his head.

He raised his hand and plucked another leaf from his Longbow. In an instant, it transformed into an Arrow and flew toward their opponent.

The Arrow struck his opponent’s Plate Armor and ricocheted off with a DING.

That shot was like a starting gun. Everyone began hammering the tough nut with ranged attacks like Magic, Divine Arts, and Spiritual Energy.

After several rounds of attacks.

WHOOSH!

Colin launched another Flaming Arrow.

Under his precise control, the Magic detonated right on Karen’s Helmet, knocking the Charell Helmet clean off his head.

The sturdy, Full Plate Armor-clad body collapsed to the ground with a loud CLANG.

The moment Karen fell, a muffled squelch erupted from the back of his head...

Even the worldly Colin had no desire to watch closely or describe what happened next. To put it simply, a living Intellect Devourer wriggled out from the back of Karen’s head.

Unable to hold back any longer, Kase swung his Giant Axe and brought it down directly on the creature, splitting it in half.

With another wet SQUELCH, purplish-red slime exploded everywhere.

Fighting back his nausea, Colin said, "I have to say, Kase, nice work."

"What is this thing?" Kase flicked the slime from the blade of his axe.

"When some unlucky soul falls unconscious, an Intellect Devourer can use its Spiritual Energy to burrow into their head. It eats the brain little by little and takes its place. The Intellect Devourer learns all of the victim’s memories, allowing it to replace them almost perfectly."

Dorn paused before adding in a scornful tone, "Otherwise, why do you think these things look like brains?"

"That’s just twisted." Kase’s face scrunched up. "That’s no normal creature."

"You’re right. These things aren’t normal creatures. They’re made by those octopus-faces from the brains of living beings. When a so-called ’useless’ ordinary sentient creature falls into their hands, this is the end most of them meet."

With that, Dorn spat on the ground. "Fucking octopus-faces!"

Enduring the foul stench, Colin walked over to Karen and began to collect his equipment.

’As disgusting as this is, the gear is all genuine Magic Equipment. There’s no way I’m leaving it behind.’

"By the way, what just happened?" Orelia asked. "I felt like I just fell asleep on my feet. I even had a dream that we were all eating cake together."

"If you’d been out any longer, those things would have been munching on your brain like it was cake," Dorn said, walking over to the Mind Flayer and beginning to harvest materials from it.

Colin explained, "That was a Mind Blast. Simply put, it’s a Spiritual Energy ability that directly attacks the brain. It’s less effective on more intelligent people. If you aren’t so bright, you can even be knocked unconscious by it, just like what happened to you two."

"Huh? Does that mean I’m really dumb?!" Orelia exclaimed.

"I get it for Colin, but why did the shorty wake up before we did?" Kase said indignantly.

"What’s that supposed to mean?" Dorn retorted as he sliced off the Mind Flayer’s tentacles. "My brain is far more intelligent and healthy than yours or the others’. That much is obvious."

"Oh, give me a break..."

Colin was cut off mid-sentence by the sound of splashing water in the distance.

"Come to think of it, I think there were a few people in front of that cabin," Kase said.

Colin set down the equipment he was holding and walked toward the Mind Flayers’ cabin.

He hadn’t gone far before he saw six figures lying on the ground.

Five of them lay motionless on the ground. The splashing sounds from earlier had come from the only one still conscious, who was kicking their boots in the flowing sewage.

Colin drew closer for a better look. Wasn’t the person on the ground making all the noise the very same pink-haired Gnome he had met not long ago?

She was securely bound and had been thrown on the ground, while her companions were all unconscious.

Colin stepped forward and cut her Hemp Rope bonds with his Dagger, then untied the cloth gag over her mouth.

"Mr. Colin! Why are you here? Thank you for saving me, thank you so, so much! Those damn monsters are just disgusting! We took down one of the tentacle-headed bastards, but the others were just too tough! Mr. Colin, you are hands-down the most handsome man I’ve ever seen in my entire life..."

’My gods, I should really introduce her to that Bronze Dragon we met before.’

Colin fought the urge to tie the gag back on and asked, "Why are you all here?"

"Morel hired us to investigate the disappearances," Leia said. "Then I found a trustworthy gang and paid over seventy Gold Coins for reliable intel and advice. I’m also a Mage specializing in the Divination school, so it was simple to deduce the culprits’ location."

’Over seventy Gold Coins? Making money off nobles sure is easy.’

Colin asked curiously, "Who did you buy the information from?"

"The Hundred Eyes Gang."

The moment he heard the name, Colin was at a loss for words.

’I’ll just consider this me saving seventy-plus Gold Coins on account of my reputation.’

"Don’t just stand there catching up, you two," Dorn said, nodding his head toward the Mind Flayers’ cabin. "How about we go see what kind of unspeakable conspiracies these disgusting monsters are cooking up?"

"Are your companions going to be alright?" Colin asked, looking at Leia.

The Gnome called out loudly, "If your Priest has enough energy to cast some Divine Arts, we certainly won’t say no!"

"I actually haven’t used much..." Orelia said, lowering her head guiltily.

Colin then followed Dorn toward the Mind Flayers’ cabin.

The cabin’s interior was nearly devoid of furniture or decorations. Aside from two sets of tables and chairs and an iron-strapped chest, there was nothing. In terms of feeling "lived-in," it was probably worse than a goblin’s hole.

It felt as if it had been built by creatures who knew what a house was, but were completely ignorant of its actual purpose.

A Mind Flayer’s corpse lay in a corner of the room. It seemed this was the fruit of Leia’s party’s labor.

Colin and Dorn walked over to the two tables.