Erika's feet lightened with each step towards the hidden monster. She let her blades hang beside her waist, the black mist enveloping her entirety as it turned her hair jet black. The surroundings became darker and darker as she approached, the forest and river now filled with an eerie darkness, the sounds of animal cries growing distant.
Within moments, the girl arrived at the beast, now illuminated by the moonlight.
It was a giant, a hulking mass of muscle and flesh that stood on four legs, its head covered in a mane of fur. It had a snout like a bear but with razor-sharp teeth that jutted outwards from its lips. Its body was covered in a hide of thick black fur, and the girl could make out a faint glow emitting from its chest.
"So you finally arrived, little one."
Erika froze.
"I must admit, I am surprised that you would come here, to the heart of the forest. This forest is not a place you may enter."
"What are you?" Erika asked, her voice quivering slightly.
"Me? I am merely a guardian, a protector of this land. And you, girl, are trespassing."
"I see."
Erika sheathed her weapons. She took a deep breath, steadying her racing heart as she stared up at the giant beast.
"Then I will slay you."
—Vindication: Activated—
She disappeared in a blur, appearing right below the monster, her dual blades slicing through the air aimed at the bear's throat. An attack with no concern or care for the monster's words or warning.
However, the beast was faster.
In the blink of an eye, an enormous claw slammed into her midsection, sending her crashing into the trees. She crashed through multiple trunks, her body rolling across the ground before she slammed into another tree.
"Ugh..." With one last thud, her body smashed into the thick trunk of another tree. However, the power was not enough to crash through, and her body slammed into the solid wood as she caught up blood before rolling onto the ground, her arms loose and her body covered in shadow.
Ryuji watched the interaction, notifying the guardian to look at him with a fearful look. Of course, the forest that adventurers constantly attack couldn't have a guardian above a certain level. It seemed the knights constantly hunted them.
It seemed wary of Ryuji, backing away before rushing after Erika.
"Show me, Erika. I know it caught you by surprise, but that's it. I am watching." Ryuji didn't approach. Instead, he sat on a fallen stump, his eyes flickering with a neon blue light as his sclera turned black, able to see the entire forest ahead of him with his demon vision.
"Haa....haa...." Erika panted, her lips dripping with drool and blood as she wiped it, her eyes narrowing upon hearing the thunderous footsteps of the bear approaching her rapidly, adrenaline and the will to win flooding her body and mind.
"You are weak," the beast roared, rushing to her faster, destroying trees on its way. "Leave."
Erika didn't reply.
"But...I guess it was foolish of me to expect a filthy, corrupted human to understand."
"You didn't fight him. That means you are fearful of combat against Ryu..."
Her voice was low, cold, and devoid of emotion. Yet it made her aura flutter and explode with energetic flair—a black flame blazed around her body while she held both swords and lowered her hips. An eerie, yet beautiful, smile upon her face.
"I will not hold back. I will kill you."
This time, Erika didn't rush forward.
Instead, the girl disappeared, turning into a blur before she rushed behind the monster, her dual blades coated with a shadowy flame, her body already in mid-air, as she rotated twice, slicing horizontally at the monster's hind legs, with a ferocious amount of force, her eyes alight with an azure shine.
"Why are you crying? Are you happy?"
Erika nodded.
"Then, why are you shaking, trembling?" Ryuji's tone was low and soothing, his words gentle as he wiped her tears, his pupils flickering with an ocean blue light as he gazed at the excited girl, her aura now calm.
"Ehehe... I never tried to force my blade to flurry past seven strikes... I think I overdid it a little." Erika chuckled, her hands shaking, her eyes blinking, trying to focus, yet Ryuji's hands were warm, and she couldn't help but lean forward, resting her body on his.
"Seven strikes? Erika, your blade cut that poor thing over twenty-seven times... I am quite shocked, even the use of your strange shadow fire to strike a second time the moment your body vanished to the next location. Is that what you learned with Kathryn and the maids?"
He saw her struggling to stand and lifted her into his arms; the light body of Erika shocked him with her ability to defeat a monster five levels higher than hers. She was undoubtedly talented, maybe not in pure swordsmanship, but her brain and how to use her talent definitely surpassed how Ryuji used his skills.
"Uhm... I practised this alone at night, when feeling lonely or you chose to sleep with Yumiko..." Erika mumbled, her arms wrapping around Ryuji's neck as she pressed her body against his, her head resting on his shoulder.
"Did you feel lonely often? You never said anything."
"Mm! I didn't want to appear too needy... plus, you looked happy sleeping with her." Erika smiled, her eyes narrowing as she thought of the many times Ryuji spent the night with Yumiko. "I wanted to have something special so that you would praise me like her...
so I pushed myself, even when it hurt my lungs, and breathing felt like swallowing fire, or my abdomen felt like a knife was stabbing me, I trained..."
Ryuji listened to Erika, walking back to the river while stroking her back with his fingers. Out of her sight, bloody spikes protruded from the ground, penetrating all monsters that came within a fifty-metre radius of the two. Ryuji only needed to imagine the spell and its condition to activate, to make these ridiculous trap spells.
Though they would be less effective in an actual battle, while he could focus on Erika alone, the spells were easy to maintain; he wanted to give all his attention to her right now.
Because she won, far better than he expected.
"I see."
"Are you not mad? I practised without telling you, and I did it at night... in secret?"
"I'm not mad, and maybe you can let me join you next time. I would like to know more about you too. You and Yumiko are different, and I like that about you." Ryuji chuckled, his hands sliding down her body, squeezing her butt gently.
"Ah, that tickles, ugh... it hurts to laugh. My stomach is all bruised."
"Anyway, I'm impressed. But there are a lot of improvements we can make. As for your bruised stomach, let me rub it better."
"Idiot..." Erika turned away, her face a deeper red from before, yet Ryuji couldn't see her expression.
"Your thighs, too. How about your breasts and back?"
"Ugh... pervert."
"Well, then, let's get you cleaned up and take you home."
"Okay..."
"After we enjoy a little longer looking at this beautiful view together, okay?"
"Nn!"
"Also, Erika?"
"Mm?"
"I like you too."