Dai Katana Manga Chapter 18

This is the eighteenth chapter of the Goblin Slayer Side Story II: Dai Katana manga.

Full Summary
Myrmidon Monk casts Silence on the living clouds of fog attacking them. Captain's next strike is far more effective and successful dispatches the creatures. As Captain remarks on how strange they were, Myrmidon Monk explains that since they seemed like a gas, that Silence would hold them in place as it stills the air. As he finds coins cut in half where the monsters were, he goes on to reason that the coins were the ritual core used to give the monsters a semblance of life.

With the monsters destroyed, it's time for those exposed to the clouds to drink some antidotes and take a short rest. For which the party draws a ward with holy water that will last for half an hour. As the party rests and chats, Captain begins to second guess himself a bit, as while the fights so far went well enough, their diminished stamina could be a problem going forward. Guessing what's on Captain's mind, Myrmidon Monk quietly tells captain that if a battle starts getting dicey, they can retreat like Knight of Diamond's party did. Somewhat reassured, Captain takes that as a reminder that Myrmidon Monk is on the front line as well, not just himself and Female Warrior. Meanwhile Female Bishop notices a faint smell of blood. Suspecting it might be the scruffy men, and since the party is in unfamiliar terrain with no leads anyways, they decide to attempt to follow the smell. Myrmidon Monk takes over the mapping so Female Bishop can take the lead, and the party checks themselves over as they prepare to move out. Though Myrmidon Monk is still troubled by the idea of such an usual enemy as the gas clouds being used as a mere grunt and reminds everyone to be wary of monster's poison.

Female Bishop takes the leads and starts guiding them through the labyrinth based on what she can smell. As they travel, Captain can't help but reflect on how the oppressiveness of the dungeon limits his senses. He shakes off that depressing line of thought only to start worrying about Female Warrior who clearly has some past with the scruffy men she doesn't wish to discuss. As he starts pondering what to do, his cousin breaks the mood by offering everyone some sweets from town. The sweets and a little bit of banter raise morale, and the party continues onward until they reach a door that Female Bishop is almost certain the scruffy men are behind.

The door isn't locked and Half-Elf Scout can find no traps, and the miasma of the dungeon would hide any traces of a previous battle as well. Yet for all the door looks unremarkable, they trust Female Bishop that at the very least there's some threat behind the door. As such they brace themselves for battle and Captain kicks open the door, which reveals that this is indeed the hideout of the scruffy men who are surprised at more adventurers arriving. Not wasting time with words, Captain's party cuts down a couple of enemies that were near the door. However more approach lead by a particularly intimidating man complaining about it being busy today.

Major Events
The battle with the Scruffy Men begins.