The sky was overcast, and the sun's rays began piercing through the clouds.
Among partially destroyed buildings near the gate of the Vingard colony,
the chaos was beginning to subside after most of the residents had been evacuated to shelters. Yet the sound of wet chewing and the smell of fresh blood still filled the area.
Anas stood in front of the monster, his hand bleeding.
He held a dagger in his right hand and a short sword in his left.
His breaths were steady, and his eyes focused on the monster before him, never leaving it.
He had anticipated the worst, and unfortunately, his predictions always came true painfully.
The monster assumed its stance.
Its muscles tensed like strings.
From one of the relatively distant buildings,
a bald, dark-skinned man stood over the corpse of a worm- or leech-like creature, his axe embedded in its head.
He watched the scene calmly.
Why is the monster the one assuming a stance while he has the upper hand, and that arrogant boy has none?
The man pondered silently as he observed the interaction between the slim boy and the massive monster.
Anas remained rooted, doing nothing but breathing calmly and staring intensely at the monster—or so it seemed.
In reality, his mind was literally burning.
This thing is unknown to me, which means it's dangerous. I need to understand its capabilities if I want to surpass it.
What exactly was he thinking now?
Anas tried to figure out what the monster before him was thinking.
I am the dominant monster, and there is a human in front of me.
This was a familiar scene for the creature.
But why does it not act like prey? Why did it wound itself? I must be cautious. Why isn't it attacking? Is it setting a trap for me? I must wait until it moves first to crush it quickly.
Anas tried to imagine himself in the monster's place to understand its thought process.
But as long as this being was cautious and unwilling to attack first, how could Anas learn more about it?
This is annoying.
Anas already disliked using his brain.
Yet his mind burned with thought, refusing to quiet down.
As they exchanged gazes,
Anas lowered himself and stepped forward suddenly.
The monster caught the movement instantly and lunged at him with such force and sudden speed that dust flew behind it.
Good, it wants to crush me quickly. I've successfully provoked its instincts.
Anas was so lost in thought that he forgot the monster was charging at him.
Before he could return to reality, the monster was in front of him, raising its hand to strike.
Time seemed to slow for Anas.
The monster's blow whipped the air in his face, ruffling his hair.
Then…
sparks flew in the air!
Thud!
Anas raised the short sword at the last moment to protect his chest but could not absorb the impact fully and was thrown back violently.
He used the short sword to stop himself.
The blade scraped the ground fiercely, leaving a furrow along the soil and rocks, as Anas drove it deeper.
Finally, Anas stopped at a safe distance from the monster, panting.
It's faster than I expected. If that fool weren't with me, I'd have had to flee and fight it guerrilla-style.
He considered the situation from different angles, seeking a solution.
But… every path he thought of seemed blocked.
Wait, it can track me because of my wounded hand. Why didn't I think of that before I injured it? But what can a hand do? This is my nature, and only a fool denies himself… especially on the brink of death.
A large scratch appeared on the sword's blade, yet it remained sharp.
Anas imagined what would have happened if he hadn't raised the sword at the right moment…
Ha, looks like my guts survived after all.
In the opposite corner,
the monster had stopped pursuing its attack and stared at Anas with… confusion?
A cautious growl emerged as it lowered itself again, baring its sharp teeth.
On the rooftop, the bald man's eyes widened.
How hasn't he died from a blow like that despite his thin frame?! His ribs should have been crushed!
Tap tap tap
The sound of regular steps on the tiles reached the man before he heard a familiar voice.
"Why don't you help him? Were you waiting for the monster to finish devouring him to get a better opportunity, but the boy didn't die as expected?"
The man turned toward the voice and saw a girl with long white hair and red eyes.
Her skin was pale. She wore a classic white shirt with a black jacket over it instead of brown, tight long pants, and slightly wider shorts over them.
It was the Guild Hunter uniform—but with her own touch.
Her body was agile and well-proportioned.
She squatted next to the man, her eyes fixed on Anas.
"Since when have you been here?" the man asked.
The girl stared at him without changing expression: "Since the monster faced this boy. I was trailing it to set a trap and kill it (she pauses), but I also did not expect that brat to survive a direct attack from such a monster."
As usual, I don't sense her presence until she speaks, the man thought.
"I don't know. Maybe he did something strange, or he's just lucky. But your not helping him also shows you think like me… sacrificing a little to save a lot."
The bald man returned his gaze to Anas and the monster.
"None of us want to engage in a losing battle that could kill us or leave permanent injuries."
He looked at the boy again.
"And no one asked that fool to fight alone. But…"
The girl narrowed her eyes.
"I disagree with you on one thing. I don't believe in luck. So seeing this monster treat that brat as a worthy opponent to be cautious of sparks my curiosity."
Anas continued breathing heavily for a moment before spitting blood onto the ground.
He wiped it with his right hand and returned his gaze to the monster, thinking: Can't they let me finish my thinking?
Yet he got what he wanted.
This monster now cared only about Anas, meaning it would not attack Bianca. Moreover, the other monsters wouldn't dare approach due to his dominant presence as the top predator.
Anas scanned the monster, realizing his strength was enough to crush it with a single strike.
If I hadn't jumped along the direction of the blow, using the sword as a shield, I'd have been breakfast for this thing, Anas thought.
Going with the flow instead of resisting sometimes worked, but he knew it wouldn't always succeed; multiple similar strikes would kill him.
He noticed one thing: the monster couldn't change its stance mid-attack because of its size.
He needed to exploit this.
"But how?"
Anas muttered while trying to devise a plan, adjusting his breathing again to stay calm.
Standing upright, hands at his sides with dagger and short sword, his eyes swept over the monster and the area.
Suddenly, he moved as before.
Leaning forward, he took two consecutive steps as if to run at the monster.
The monster hesitated briefly, then charged again. Its claws tore into the ground with force and speed, using them for propulsion and stabilization.
At the same moment, Anas sharply pushed off to the left with his right foot.
Did you think I'm foolish enough to repeat the same moves? You need some humility.
Anas treated the monster as if it were intelligent.
The monster tried to adjust its stance.
But Anas didn't stop.
As the monster passed him, their eyes met—the monster's straight pupils and red irises—Anas thrust his dagger into its side, just past the shoulder, exploiting the creature's inability to adjust instantly.
He pushed deeper, but the monster's skin was tough and resistant, like rubber against a normal blade.
He knew if he wasted this chance, he would die a fool.
Without hesitation, Anas reversed his grip, driving the dagger forcefully.
The flesh compressed, then…
Fshhh!
The dagger sank into the monster's skin, blood flowing slightly onto the blade.
Anas ran opposite the monster's charge, dragging the dagger to make a long cut along its side.
Black, sticky, hot blood coated his hand and sleeve, but he didn't care. He increased his speed and pressure, widening the wound.
The monster screamed in pain—but it was not stupid.
It braced its hind legs into the ground at an angle, claws digging in, kicking up dust and creating three wide streaks as leverage to adjust its stance.
Anas' eyes widened; he hadn't anticipated this.
The monster didn't wait—it raised its tail in a swift arc toward Anas, fully exposed.
Anas was hit directly by the tail, flying and rolling violently on the ground.
All he felt was darkness and searing pain from repeated collisions.
Dum tap tap dum crack.
Anas slammed into a wall, creating a loud noise.
He slid down and sat unwillingly, vomiting blood onto the ground. His vision blurred for a moment.
His jaw clenched hard to suppress a scream.
Pain pierced his mind through every part of his body.
His left arm dangled like a severed puppet limb.
What is this feeling? Is this fear of death?
Adrenaline flooded his mouth, mixing with the taste of blood.
His heartbeat accelerated; his breathing quickened.
The pain was intense, but adrenaline dulled it.
The monster writhed from the wound Anas had inflicted.
Looks like I can't use my left hand.
He tried moving it but couldn't; his shoulder seemed dislocated.
Despite the pain, Anas thought and learned from this experience.
If the dagger were poisoned, the monster would be dead. Why didn't I think of this? But as long as I can stand, it's not over. Every pain, every suffering, every mistake, as long as it hasn't killed me, as long as my soul remains in my body, everything that happens… will only make me stronger!
Anas muttered fiercely to himself, standing again despite the pain, leaning on a wall and the adrenaline.
He knew the effect of adrenaline was temporary; he had to seize the opportunity.
Without wasting time or overthinking, he placed the dagger in his mouth, gripping it with his teeth, grabbed the short sword with his right hand, and extended it forward.
The monster recognized that its opponent did not care about death at this moment, tensing its muscles, baring sharp teeth, sparks flowing rapidly around its body.
Its black and red fur bristled; claws dug into the ground, ready to strike.
Red flames erupted from the corners of its mouth and its limbs, forming streams in the air.
Its eyes narrowed, and without warning…
Whoosh!
It charged like a cannonball.
Anas narrowed his eyes, took a deep breath, and remained in the same crouch.
All he thought of now was…
killing.
The distance closed rapidly.
As the monster came near, its jaws, full of saw-like teeth, opened, and a fireball began forming.
Heat scorched Anas' face; the wind from the monster's rush blew his short black hair back.
Yet his face remained expressionless; he prepared his legs.
Not yet… a little later.
This wasn't his first encounter with death; he had always prepared himself to die at any moment. Why rush now?
When the distance was just a few meters, Anas drove the short sword into the monster's left jaw muscle from inside out, exploiting his observation that inside the monster resembled ordinary pink flesh more than anything else.
But the fireball was already rushing toward him.
The house exploded completely, debris flying everywhere with a loud boom.
Dust and smoke filled the air.
Fortunately, Anas had leapt aside at the last moment; only the edge of his coat burned.
He had to leave the sword to jump sharply to the right—the same side where he had cut the monster's jaw muscle.
But the monster scratched his left arm with its sharp teeth during the jump.
He tried to pull the dagger from his mouth to gouge the monster's eye before it adjusted, but…
due to his blurred vision, he dropped the dagger.
Time seemed to crawl. Seconds stretched into hours.
Would all his effort be wasted? Was he merely delaying his death?
But… No! This was impossible! He would not allow it.
Anas thrust his hand into the monster's eye without hesitation.
The monster's pupil contracted sharply as the human hand pierced it.
He pushed violently; a fountain of blood covered his arm with a sticky, dirty, wet sound.
Raaah—hmm hmm, aah! aah!
The monster thrashed and screamed, throwing Anas into the air.
He stumbled back, panting, holding his left shoulder.
If only I had gunpowder, I'd blow it from the inside. Why didn't I think of that in the cursed weapons market?
Even with this successful strike, he still thought of what to do next.
His foolish curiosity surpassed all his fear.
Suddenly… something launched from a nearby rooftop.
Anas turned quickly to see a white-haired girl moving toward the monster, drawing a strangely shaped dagger, sharp only at its gleaming tip.
The monster's body had already started igniting.
The girl struck the monster in its blind spot, thrusting the dagger into its eye.
Her black jacket caught fire from the monster's flames, but she leapt backward swiftly, removed the jacket, and retreated a few steps with skillful backward jumps, then turned to look at Anas, only to see he had already moved toward Bianca, dragging her toward a nearby ruined building.
The girl tilted her head, thinking: Why isn't he rejoicing at the monster's defeat? This person is strange.
Suddenly, she felt heat scorching her face and turned toward the monster to see its flames intensifying.
She ran toward Anas to help him drag Bianca.
Anas glanced at her briefly, then continued dragging Bianca; he wasn't in a position to make many choices.
Once they were behind the building, the girl stared at Anas: "Why did you run?"
He looked at her flatly: "Why did you follow me?"
She stared back: "Because I sensed you know what you're doing, and you act as if you're not afraid."
Anas tilted his head, continuing flatly: "First, no one is without fear. Second, I am afraid; I just know how to act when afraid instead of panicking or screaming, which won't help me. Third, you need to cling and hide well. Fireworks are coming."
Before Anas could continue,
a red light filled the area, smoke billowing.
Booooom!
Rocks flew, and a massive pillar of fire rose amid scattered debris.