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82 Chapter

“…You said you’re being controlled?”

Reiner, who had collided with the tree, stiffened his face as he drew his sword and stood up. He nodded vigorously, emitting an insane aura to momentarily bind Harabana’s movements.

Casting mana onto the sword was like spritzing perfume once and leaving a scent on your body, while transforming mana into lethal intent and expelling it was akin to opening the perfume bottle and dumping it all on the floor. It was a significant loss of practicality.

Even the aura strong enough to bind a giant monster’s feet could not be sustained by me, a Sword Master, for long.

“There’s no time to explain in detail. Quickly, go to where the horses are tied and escape on horseback!”

I shouted urgently.

Harabana was said to be the strongest among countless species of monsters. Among monsters, it was the largest, incredibly violent, and rare enough in numbers that when it descended upon a village, it would turn the entire place into ruins single-handedly. I couldn’t assure Reiner’s safety while facing Harabana.

Grrr… Kraaang!

As my aura slightly diminished due to my speaking, Harabana, which had been suppressed by my aura, seemed to breathe easier and let out a loud cry. In my desperate state, I didn’t even check if Reiner was fleeing and withdrew the aura I had been consuming, coating the sword with mana instead.

As I withdrew the aura, a massive foot charged toward me.

Ka

The pitch-black aura of my sword clashed with the claw-like foot. With a scraping sound, part of the claws and foot was severed. Harabana screamed in pain. I swiftly slashed at the rapidly approaching foot and teeth with my sword.

“Damn it. Why is Harabana here?”

My head spun with countless thoughts. The pain of poison seeping into my shoulder further hampered my focus. Why did the monster controlled by the northern peoples appear in the middle of a hunting competition forest? The content from the original work was just on the edge of my memory.

“First, let’s deal with Harabana.”

As my head began to spin and my focus started to wane, I quickly snapped myself back to attention. I could think later; first, I had to deal with Harabana.

“Harabana isn’t easy to catch with ordinary methods.”

Despite its massive size, Harabana was quite fast and smart. Its skin was so thick that it would take about three thrusts with a Sword Master’s aura to inflict a critical hit, confirming that its title of the most powerful monster was well-earned.

“But it has a weakness.”

My monster-hunting career spanned over eight years. Through numerous intense battles with Harabana during those eight years, I had uncovered its fatal weakness.

“Right on the palate.”

Harabana’s palate skin was incredibly weak. If I were to thrust my sword there, there was a 99% chance Harabana would die.

“But… I’ll have to be prepared to get bitten by its poisonous fangs.”

I gritted my teeth as I felt a throbbing pain in my shoulder. Harabana’s poison was deadly. If it weren’t for my resistance to poison, any ordinary person would have surely died the moment they got bitten.

“I should be ready to faint at worst.”

Since I had already been bitten once while protecting Reiner, the likelihood of being bitten again when attacking the palate was high. No matter how much of a Sword Master I was, facing Harabana’s deadly fangs twice in quick succession would take time to recover.

Swish.

Dodging the enormous foot that was coming at me, I unleashed the maximized aura my giant form could output. To stab the palate, I needed to slow Harabana’s movements. As I wildly attacked with the black aura, Harabana let out a strange scream, but its thick skin was only slightly scratched and still intact.

“That hurts.”

The poison gradually spread, causing my shoulder to swell. The bitten shoulder was, unfortunately, the right one that held the sword, making every time I raised my arm to swing the sword that much more dizzying. Just as I was about to dodge the incoming foot and swing my sword again—

Swish.

The claws that charged towards me were intercepted by golden aura coming from behind. I stared blankly for a moment at the holy golden aura that danced in the air before slowly turning to look back.

“I am no longer that sick child from back then.”

Hair wavy in the wind, he held the sword’s hilt as if to shatter it. With strong will shining in his golden eyes.

“I will no longer merely be protected by you.”

Reiner met my gaze with determination reflecting his regrets about the past and his resolve for the future.

“Don’t try to handle this alone anymore.”

“…Ah.”

I exhaled briefly, meeting his gaze. I had forgotten how accustomed I had become to facing calamities alone.

Reiner was no longer the child he was back then, and I didn’t have to fight alone anymore.

Swish.

Amidst this newfound realization, Harabana’s attacks continued. I dodged the gigantic, claw-like foot as I quickly cut it. Harabana let out a howl again, but still, its body bore no significant wounds.

Ten claws on one foot. Harabana had four feet. I had managed to cut just two out of the total forty claws.

Harabana was the strongest among the monsters, powerful enough to rival dragons. Indeed, facing Harabana alone was challenging.

“…Right.”

I nodded, letting out a sigh-like laugh. I jumped into the air and stood beside Reiner.

On the finely honed silver blade, a pitch-black aura was overlaid. Instead of standing guard in front of Reiner, I stood next to him with my sword pointed forward.

“You’re no longer a child I need to protect.”

It was not merely about me protecting him; we were in a cooperative fight.

Reiner’s expression rippled with surprise at my reaction. Waves of emotion surged in his golden eyes.

“…That’s right.”

And soon, a confident smile appeared.

Over his sword, the golden aura shone. Although weaker than mine, it was undoubtedly indicative of him grasping the peak of being a Sword Expert.

The golden and pitch-black auras soared high and fused at their tips into a strange hue.

“I will fight alongside you from now on.”

Reiner’s mature face layered with the innocence of the boy he once was. The boy who once looked tentative holding a sword had now grown strong enough to fight beside me.

“Strange feeling.”

Though I felt a bit nostalgic about him growing up so fast, I also felt a proud sense of accomplishment as if I had raised him. It was complex but, if I had to say, overwhelmingly a positive feeling.

“I want to become someone like you.”

With sparkling blue eyes filled with admiration, the boy who had whispered to me had returned as someone capable of fighting together.

I made a face of bittersweetness and then smiled heartily at the boy from back then.

“Alright. Now fight alongside me.”

Boom!

The giant body charged between Reiner and me. The ground shook and a deafening sound spread all around. Reiner and I, both wrapped in mana on our feet, effortlessly stepped aside to dodge Harabana’s attack.

Boom boom.

With a massive sound, the ground was dug up around us. With the opponent doubling in number, it was not difficult to dodge Harabana’s hastened attacks, which seemed frantic. As I slashed the incoming giant foot’s claws, I glanced at Reiner. The deafening noise made my ears ring, and I had to yell to communicate.

“Have you fought monsters before!”

“I’ve faced a few, but I’ve never fought this one!”

Reiner shouted back, answering while directing his attention to Harabana’s tail as it charged towards me.

‘Reiner doesn’t know Harabana, it seems.’

I bit my lip. The fact that he referred to it as ‘this monster’ rather than ‘Harabana’ suggested he was unfamiliar with it.

‘Of course. While its meat is considered rare and high in nutrition worthy of the nobility, its precise appearance isn’t widely known.’

Furrowing my brow at the strange liquid oozing from Harabana’s body, I realized Harabana was an extremely rare monster, and its meat traded at quite a high price; thus, only nobles could taste Harabana meat.

However, if nobles who valued dignity saw Harabana’s appearance, which could make them vomit, they would surely lose their desire for Harabana meat.

Consequently, detailed information about Harabana’s appearance was often treated as a tacit secret among merchants. After all, they had to eat too.

‘I, a crazy mercenary specialized in monster hunting, know everything from Harabana’s appearance to its features.’

I thrust my sword heavily onto Harabana’s thick foot preparing to charge at Reiner.

“Harabana is a rare species of giant monster known as the ‘Silent Tyrant of the Deep Forest’! Its fangs are coated with deadly poison, so be careful not to even brush against them!”

“Yes! But…”

Boom!

With a missed strike, the tree shattered in an instant. Reiner frowned at the blaring noise, his expression turning strange.

“The Silent Tyrant of the Deep Forest… is that correct?”

His tone was thick with the meaning of questioning its quietness. He looked perplexed at the contradictory combination of square fire and ice that won’t melt like an unburnable thing.

With a mocking smile, I replied to Reiner seeing his bewildered expression.

“Typically, Harabana is far from quiet, but it changes when it encounters an enemy that poses a threat!”

Ducking to evade an incoming attack, I slashed sideways at Harabana’s leg.

For someone with my extensive experience in monster hunting, facing a giant monster like Harabana wasn’t too difficult at all. If Harabana only had sharp fangs and claw-like claws, I could have dealt with it swiftly within ten minutes.

Even so, the reason I found it hard to tackle Harabana alone lay elsewhere.

‘Looks like it’s about to start.’

Feeling the magic above Harabana’s body strengthen as it was struggling against me and Reiner, I tightened my grip on the sword.

As Harabana spread its limbs wide and was pushed back by my aura, the monster suddenly stopped moving.

“…What?”

Seeing Harabana abruptly halt its furious attacks startled Reiner. Feeling the ominous magic ripple, I swallowed nervously.

“Harabana…”

At the moment I began to speak, Harabana’s body flickered and began to thin out. Its existence seemed to fade away as if it were being sucked into a syringe.

The strong aura and sense of presence, which felt tangible, soon washed away, and when the place where Harabana had stood was completely empty, blending in with the surrounding scenery—

I opened my mouth heavily in silence.

“For a limited time, it can completely erase its existence.”

That was the reason Harabana was called the ‘Silent Tyrant of the Deep Forest.’

 

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