Chapter 30

“Take care on your way out.”

“Yeah. Take good care of the house. Do your homework on time. And don’t bother Belva.”

Days of relentless downpour.

I geared up and stepped outside.

Another rift had appeared nearby.

Who could it be this time?

The energy felt a bit off.

It was somewhat different from the opponents I’ve faced so far.

……

Not an assassin, not a knight.

Are they planning to send a monster?

But, contrary to my expectations, what appeared was a scruffy-haired man in crimson martial attire.

“Hmm. So this is the place.”

His steps were leisurely.

A sense of ease enveloped his entire being.

“Rainy days have their own charm, don’t they?”

His fluttering robe bore intricate patterns.

It felt somewhat familiar.

Isn’t that the symbol of a martial arts sect from those martial arts novels?

Then he must know martial arts, right?

A sense of anticipation welled up.

Martial arts, huh.

He seemed unaffected by the poison, standing in the rain as he surveyed the surroundings.

He appeared to be trying to grasp the terrain.

The man’s energy perception meticulously covered the vicinity.

His utilization ability was absurdly superior compared to the amount of magic power he possessed.

This is interesting.

Quality over quantity, huh.

It was my first time facing an opponent like this.

Honestly, I’ve only been dealing with small fries lately, so I came out without much thought, but this was an unexpected gain.

“…Huh?”

But then, a massive shadow loomed over the man.

—Crash!

A sound echoed. Crash, it went.

It wasn’t a grand sound.

It was the sound of someone stepping on an empty drink can with force.

A sound too light and trivial to signify someone’s death.

An unfinished last word.

A corpse turned to mush.

I looked at the ground, indented with the shape of a footprint.

Nothing remained of the man but a handful of blood.

‘……’

My head is spinning.

Just now, the man’s response was swift and immediate.

The moment he sensed a massive object falling towards him, he concentrated his magic power in his legs.

The remaining magic power was expelled upwards, altering the trajectory and speed, and then he tried to move aside.

If it weren’t for the intense pressure of magic power that swept across his front at that moment, he would have easily escaped.

I look ahead.

There’s a dinosaur that just crushed a human like a bug and is now turning its head towards me.

Just facing it, I feel a suffocating pressure.

Yet, why is it?

I feel no despair, no frustration within me.

I simply prepare for battle and draw my weapon.

“Belva. It’s here.”

[I know.]

How many times have I thought about it?

How many times have I imagined it?

[Today’s the day.]

At Belva’s words, I nodded slightly.

Yes. Today’s the day.

I hate to admit it, but I seem to have become more of a primitive than a modern human.

If I can just take this thing down, I’ll become the king of the jungle, and I feel a deeper thrill than ever before.

Honestly, isn’t it unpleasant?

This is my territory.

How dare it.

“────!!”

The creature stretched its neck high into the sky and let out a long roar.

Just the sound alone sent a shock through me, making my body tremble.

I smiled and adjusted my breathing.

If it’s going to buy me time like that, I’m only grateful.

First, I dashed forward and thrust my sword.

No matter how agile it is for its size, a hundred-meter-tall creature can’t move as fast as I can.

The sword, imbued with aura, touched its skin.

Surprisingly, it bounced off without leaving a single wound.

Is it just that its skin is tough?

No.

Aura can slice through solid steel like tofu.

That must be… it’s surrounded by a protective layer of magic power outside its body.

And with a higher density of magic power than my aura.

It can’t possibly maintain such a barrier all the time.

It just has to.

Anyway, the attack opportunity is gone.

Immediately, its tail swings around, smashing all the trees in the vicinity.

I could dodge it if I wanted to.

But to do so, I’d have to step back once.

To give up the opportunity and retreat safely.

Or to take the risk and close in.

The choice was obvious.

I took a breath and activated attribute fusion.

From the tips of my fingers, I slowly burned, until my entire body was engulfed in flames, just as its tail sliced through my flesh.

Dirt flew, and plants were uprooted.

Whoosh.

It worked.

I’ve been practicing this since last time, and it succeeded as I practiced.

And I also confirmed that not all parts are covered in magic power.

Not retreating was the right decision.

I returned my body to normal and leaped onto its back.

“Graaaah!”

It let out a roar.

Given its body structure, attacking from here shouldn’t be easy.

Right?

The moment I thought that, a blue light erupted from the spine I was standing on.

I immediately fell towards the ground.

I looked up at the dozens of light pillars shooting into the sky.

Does that make any sense?

What kind of boss has no weaknesses?

I frowned and this time, I distanced myself.

Since I’ve been pressing in all this time, it must think I find close combat more advantageous.

I’ve confirmed it has that much intelligence.

As expected,

As I created some distance, he just stood there, watching me quietly.

Probably waiting for me to get close again.

From the distance I had created, I stretched out one hand to stabilize my center of gravity.

While doing so, I kept an eye on him, wary of any other potential attacks he might launch.

Let’s finish this quickly.

Before he notices.

I pulled on my Dimension Power using the center of gravity I had secured, creating a spin.

By now, I’ve gotten so used to controlling Dimension Power that it only took a few seconds to reach a level of rotation similar to what I had achieved before.

Then, he noticed.

As soon as he sensed something was off, he started charging toward me.

We were hundreds of meters apart, but that distance would be closed in seconds.

But.

Whoosh—

A spiral of flames erupted beside me.

The flames, gathering from a wide area into a narrow one, formed a glowing circle in an instant.

The intense heat made it feel like my entire body was melting.

But he didn’t slow down.

As if he intended to crash right into me.

Relying on his durability and Magic Power.

“Really?”

I wondered if he’d be okay.

I asked inwardly, but there was no answer.

Finally, I took a big step forward and released the centripetal force I had been holding onto.

He had reached right in front of me.

[I’ve put up a barrier as best as I could.]

“Thanks.”

I quietly raised my head.

There’s no end in sight.

It’s ridiculously huge, now that I think about it.

I confirmed that the aura I had released was flying in the right direction, then immediately deployed a defensive barrier.

Belva’s transparent barrier was also layered on top.

Beyond it, I saw light.

In the shadow-covered land, the burning aura flew, leaving a bright red trail.

The rain-soaked forest lit up brightly.

Boom!!

Ugh.

It feels like my insides have been flipped inside out.

He had concentrated his Magic Power in the same spot just before the aura hit.

The aura, having pierced halfway through, caused a massive explosion.

I’ve never been this close to a shockwave before.

My vision blurred instantly.

Pull yourself together.

It’s not over yet.

He was… engulfed in flames, raging madly and roaring.

In an instant, the steam created by the fire and rain filled the surroundings.

But I could still sense him clearly.

And he could probably sense me too.

“───!!”

He broke through the steam, glaring down at me with bloodshot eyes.

Despite the burning pain and the shock of the explosion, his intent to kill me was crystal clear.

Crack.

I felt a sharp pressure on my ribs and lungs.

Just using Magic Power alone, he could deliver this much physical impact.

Moreover, I could feel a massive energy building up inside him.

His attack method would likely be his mouth.

In this slowed-down world, I could sense the compressed Magic Power ready to burst through his throat.

This would be my first encounter with Dragon Breath.

Wait, no. Since he’s a dinosaur, should I call it Dino Breath?

Either way, it was a massive breath attack, on a completely different level from the large species I had faced before, finally surging toward me.

Whoooosh—

In a situation where I couldn’t move due to the Magic Power, a point-blank Breath attack.

No way to dodge, no way to block.

There’s only one option.

I gathered all the Dimension Power I had scattered above me.

[This time, you might really die.]

I heard Belva’s cold voice.

It’s a tone I’ve been hearing a lot lately.

Not something she uses casually, but mainly to let me know she’s serious.

Either because I’ve done something reckless.

Or because the situation is extremely dangerous.

This time, it’s probably the latter.

I pondered Belva’s words.

“Might really die,” huh?

I think so too.

But at the same time, I’m absolutely certain I won’t die.

It’s strange, but this conviction has somehow become clear.

Looking back, I’ve never died in any life-threatening situation.

Was all of that really just luck?

All my growth has been specialized for survival.

Designed to let me survive in any situation.

Belva knows.

The process I’ve gone through, how I’ve developed.

My obsession and desire for life.

All of it.

[······.]

Right?

Be honest.

Do you really think I’ll die here?

[···Just come back quickly.]

With a sigh, she said that, and I smiled, clenching my fist.

Crack—

Then, the sphere of Dimension Power, filled with all his Magic Power, twisted and crumbled.

And soon, a silent explosion spread quietly.