Forest Cracks.
A clearing in the forest, once soaked in the blood of monsters and reeking of rot, now gleamed with unnatural tidiness.
Over the last half month, hundreds of trolls had been enslaved to clear it. Even the most stubborn bloodstains had been scrubbed clean by monstrous hands.
"ROAR!!"
A guttural cry erupted.
Guu, the troll warrior, charged with a massive three-meter-long magic sword, wind screaming in its wake as it sliced through the air toward Minori.
But Minori had already sidestepped the attack.
Boom!
The weapon slammed into the ground, kicking up a plume of dust.
From that cloud, Minori burst forth like a bullet, leaping onto the flat side of the sword. Two light steps—and he was in front of Guu.
Steel flashed.
Shlick!
The iron sword split open the trolls shoulder, eliciting a furious howl."DAMN HUMAN!!"
Guu's thick arm rose in retaliation—a crushing slap aimed at the figure dancing before him.
Minori didn't dodge.
Instead, he pressed down on the hilt of the giant sword beneath his feet, using it as a springboard. His free arm snapped forward—
Bang!
A brutal fist met Guu's palm with a deafening crack. Minori was launched backward, skidding along the dirt before regaining his footing.
"You're powerful. I can't win in raw strength."
Minori shook the pain out of his numb arm and smiled.Guu's yellow eyes flared with rage."KILL YOU!!"
He raised the massive sword again.
Minori didn't move this time. He stepped back on one leg, gripped his iron sword tightly in both hands, and fixed his eyes on the descending blade.
Boom!
It came crashing down.
"Four Lights Slash—Destroy."
At that instant, four luminous sword trails cut through the air and merged into a single devastating arc.
Boom!!
An explosion shook the ground. Dust and pressure exploded outward.
Guu's hands trembled. His fingers spasmed, and the magic sword clattered from his grip.
Minori's weapon also shattered, the blade bursting into fragments. Blood streamed down from his cracked palms.
"It worked."
His voice was calm, but his eyes were bright.
The "Four Lights Slash" was meant to strike four times at once, each blow weaker than usual. But this time—Minori had fused all four into a single point.
A burst technique. A killing strike.
He glanced at his status screen.
No new skill.
So it wasn't a separate martial art, just a high-level application of one.Still—he'd made it his own.
"If I can pull off four, what about six?"
It was a passing thought, but the idea lodged in his mind like a seed.
For the past two weeks, this was what he had honed. Using Guu as a sparring partner, Minori had pushed his body to its limits.
He cast Minor Wound Treatment, the warm light closing the torn skin on his palm.
Guu had recovered enough to stand. His beady eyes locked onto the human.
Then… he turned and fled.
"Training's over, my friend," Minori said softly, raising his left hand.
"Charm All Races."
A pulse of magic shimmered in the air.
Guu slowed, his mind clouded by magic. He stopped.
Minori approached the trolls fallen sword—a magical weapon more than three meters long. As his hand touched the hilt, it began to shrink.
When it reached a manageable meter length, he tested the weight.
"Not bad."
Its purple groove released a venom that sapped strength. Useless for him, but a nuisance to others.
Yet its true strength was its adaptive size, scaling with the wielder. Unlike most magical weapons, this one could grow or shrink almost instantly. A perfect fit for trolls—and now for Minori.
He didn't believe Guu had forged it.
"Naga… the Demonic Serpent of the West gave it to him."
A Forest Lord.
And, as of a week ago, Minori had sent word through Guu—inviting Naga to parley.
Whether the creature would come remained to be seen.
Minori looked out at the now-empty forest. The stronger monsters of the troll territory had already been culled. Now he had his eye on Hamsuke's territory and Naga's.
But Hamsuke—the so-called Wise King of the Forest—was too unpredictable.
That's why Guu came first. Naga would be next.
He raised the sword and laid it across his shoulder.
"Let's hope Naga is smarter than you were, Guu."
Because if not, plans would have to change.
"Call the others."
The troll nodded and lumbered away.
Soon, the clearing buzzed with a hundred brutish voices as more than 200 trolls gathered. The air was filled with confusion and roars.
Minori stood before them, casually lowering the sword from his shoulder.
"You've all worked hard."
"So now—rest."
He stepped forward.
Whoosh.
The blade split the nearest troll cleanly in half.
Blood and gore exploded outward.
"Experience gained: 321."
"Flight."
His body lit with magic, rising above the scattering trolls.
From the air, he dove—slamming down into the center of the crowd, flattening those beneath him.
He spun, the magic sword a whirlwind.
Meat and limbs flew.
"Experience gained: 355.""Experience gained: 326.""Experience gained: 331."…"Experience gained: 361."
"RUN!""FOOD FIGHTING BACK!!""HURTS! HURTS!!"
They fled in chaos. But it was hopeless.
Against Minori's speed and flight, they were cattle in a slaughterhouse.
It took an hour and a half to finish them all.
When he returned to the clearing, he was drenched head to toe in drying blood.
A crimson phantom.
He exhaled and looked at the sword.
"A serious bath is overdue."
He wiped the blood off his face with his sleeve and checked his stats.
[Experience Slot: 145422 / 30000]
Level up pending.
And the corpses below were just the beginning.