CH 2

Chapter 2: They Who Fought One on One

As the cool blade passed through my thigh, a soaring heat pierced through my nerves. 

"U-uwAAAAHH!!"

When I realized that the tip of the rapier had cut me, I screamed and fell on my butt. 

"Oi! Guys! There’s a solo here! Everyone, retreat! We’ll pass it to him!"

The leader of the group called out to the people around him.

I couldn’t comprehend the meaning behind his words—I didn’t want to. 

First was the woman with the staff: she looked at me and then walked past me without saying a word. Next was the warrior who had been knocked away, then the rest of the group—-they all stopped fighting and ran straight behind me. 

Obviously, the giant wolf that had been fighting them would try to chase after them.

And there was just one person between it and them.

In other words, the wolf ran straight at me, then—

"U-UWAAaaaaaAAAAhhhHH!!"

Terrified, I tried to jump to my right, but the pain of my slashed thigh was so intense that all I could do was roll around on the ground.

Lured by my scream and movement, the wolf completely locked its sight on me. 

The people that had run behind me found themselves in a safe place as the wolf focused its attention on me.

The wolf started to run towards me. 

I’m going to die.

I will be eaten by that huge, ferocious wolf and die.

No, I don’t want to die.

I don’t want to die, I don’t want to die, I doN’T WANT TO DIE, I DON’T WANT TO——

My thoughts raced.

All sorts of bad premonitions scattered through my mind.

My life flashed right in front of my eyes. 

Then—

【The ‘???’ Skill Has Gone Berserk】

Your mind has been stabilized in exchange for some of your emotions

Confusion is adjusted by +1.00

Some kind of ‘Display’ popped up in my vision.

That was really not the time for it, so I didn’t even want to try to understand the meaning behind the phenomenon.

But at the same time that the ‘Display’ appeared, I could feel my head getting clearer.

The rush of thoughts quieted down, the bad premonitions vanished, and I could entirely focus on what I had to do. 

I stood up, pivoting on my right leg, not using my other leg that had been cut. 

Just at that moment, the wolf pounced on me. 

"!!"

* * *

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Proofreader - ilafy

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I jumped towards the wolf at a diagonal angle.

However, I was much, much too slow. Even with the adrenaline rush, I couldn’t keep up with the wolf's speed. The wolf’s sharp claws tore into my right bicep as we passed each other. 

It was then that I heard the voices of the people who had escaped behind me. 

"—Okay! That’s the position! Fire! Close the path!"

A chill ran down my back.

The wolf wasn’t my only enemy.

The humans were against me too. 

You used me as bait to get away!

And that wasn’t enough?!!

When I looked behind me, following the chill on my back, I could already see the roaring flames filling the entire corridor. 

The wolf also noticed the roaring flame, but it was too late. The wolf that had tried to jump onto me to bite me to death was unable to evade the hurling flame.

Of course, it was the same for me. 

—Fuck those guys! They’re burning me along with the wolf!!

I cursed in my heart.

The roaring flame then scattered—and exploded.

I protected my head with both of my arms and put my face down, jumping away from the explosion as far as I could. Nevertheless, a blast of concussive wind struck my back with the flame and blew me away. 

The flame scorched my entire body.

It felt like I had been put under a burner.

The pain was so intense it felt like my sanity was slipping away. 

I used the intense pain as a distraction to keep my head thinking.

The pain served as a focus to keep my willpower ablaze. 

After being blown away and slammed into the ground, I slowly opened my eyes and looked around.

The flame that had filled the entire corridor had magically vanished. 

However, a wall of fire was beautifully erected in the direction where those people had escaped to.

"S-so… ack…"

So that was their aim.

My burning throat wouldn’t let me finish those words.

Then, I reassessed the situation.

The wall of fire had blocked the exit; all that was left was the giant wolf and me.

I digested that bitter fact slowly. 

The wolf stood up, and so did I.

However, from the looks of it, it seemed to have been exposed to the flames more than I was.

It was probably due to the size of its body and the fact that it jumped up on me, providing some kind of cover for me.

It was more damaged than I was, weakened.

The wolf was breathing hard and appeared to be staggering.

Its eyes, however, were still showing a murderous gleam.

Its spirit hadn’t waned at all, and it let out a grunt as though to say "wounded wolves are the most dangerous" before it trotted towards me. 

I steeled my resolve.

The position I had ended up in was strategically good.

The wolf couldn’t see it, but behind me was the greatsword that the warrior from before had used. If I tricked the animal and used the sword, however slim it might be… I would have a chance of winning. 

Immediately, I turned on my heel and ran as fast as I could.

However, the moment I turned around, I saw the wolf preparing to pounce on me from the corner of my eye. 

The pain in my left thigh was intense, and the danger alarm in my head rang loudly. 

Nevertheless, I ran.

Each step was a struggle as I forced myself forward with my feet that had gone numb.

I had no time to determine the correct timing to counterattack.

I couldn’t predict how and when the wolf would be coming at me. 

Even so, I ran as fast as I could, picked up the greatsword, then turned around and used the momentum to swing the blade.

The greatsword was so heavy that I couldn’t even fully prop it up with both arms, but I simply used my momentum to swing it out with all my might, risking everything in a single swoop. 

With a raw, dull sound, I saw the blade bury itself in the wolf’s neck. 

"I-I did—! gh-ghUAck!!"

My counterattack landed true. And yet, the wolf pressed down on my body, even with the greatsword lodged into its neck.

I managed to dodge the flailing fangs and claws, albeit barely, but being pressed down on by a two-meter tall giant was fatal. 

The unbelievable weight of the wolf bore down on me, forcing everything in my stomach to flow back up and be vomited out of my mouth.

Furthermore, the wolf continued to try to devour me, despite its neck almost tearing away. 

It opened its huge mouth and tried to swallow my head whole.

I pulled back my dwindling consciousness, twisted my body to its human limits, and dodged the bite.

Then, I used its weight to bury the greatsword even deeper. 

"AAa, aaAAAAaaAAAHHH—!!"

I screamed and waved my hands, trying to shove away the two-meter giant. 

Then, a small gap opened between the wolf and me.

I used that gap to scramble away from under the wolf. Then, when I felt like the greatsword could no longer dig any deeper into the flesh, I let go of it and moved away. 

The wolf didn’t follow me.

No, it was trying to…

But its body wouldn’t listen.

The wolf bled profusely: its body was burned and battered. 

Because I could see the wolf properly, I noticed it.

One of its eyes seemed to have burned out and gone blind. An arrow was lodged deep into its hind leg, making it limp. The greatsword must have reached its airway; the sound of its breathing made a whistle-like sound. It was obvious that it was much more injured than I was. 

"Haa… You are, already…"

Those words spilled out of me.

The wolf limped towards me, dragging the greatsword.

I took every precaution to keep myself in its blind spot so that it wouldn’t catch sight of me. 

It didn’t take long until the wolf fell.

Then, the giant body vanished, releasing a pale, emerald-green light.

With a clank, the greatsword and the arrow fell to the ground. 

"Eh…?"

Just like that, it had vanished.

There was not a body left behind. The wolf was gone like a light, like an illusion. 

I was stunned by what I had witnessed.

In the wake of the wolf’s disappearance, a shimmering, green stone remained.

【You have earned the title ‘The Beginning of Deep Green’】

Strength is adjusted by +0.1