The woman’s steps were endlessly slow.
At this rate, it was clear I would be killed by the monsters in less than a minute.
Huff I took a deep breath and jumped off the rock.
I felt a tingling pain in my leg.
“No, Noah?!”
“Rubia, there’s an injured person approaching about 100 meters ahead. Behind them, 78 monsters are chasing…”
Rubia, who was in a panic, quickly regained her composure and looked around, opening her mouth.
“With 70 monsters… we need to face them head-on. Hephaestus, remove the tent for me. And…”
Rubia’s gaze was fixed back on me.
I nodded quietly and unsheathed my sword.
“I’ll support you as much as I can, Noah.”
“I’m putting the rest aside; I need you to take care of Hephaestus and the injured person.”
I widened my sensory perception.
I could sense hundreds of monsters residing nearby.
I could see dozens of adventurers preparing their camp.
But…
The pain was lessened.
Blood was not gushing out.
Was it since I faced Carpen…?
Huff…
I drew my great sword and pushed the distracting thoughts to the corner.
I focused solely on the combat.
I concentrated my perception in one direction.
A woman, who seemed to have hope upon noticing us, was etched in my mind.
“50 meters ahead.”
Rubia’s divine power flickered.
I could even feel Hephaestus’s agitated heartbeat.
“30 meters.”
“…Be careful, Noah.”
Rubia’s voice trembled as if she could see the monsters in her sight.
“I’ll trust you, Rubia.”
After checking the potion in my pocket, I began to walk slowly forward.
The woman who was struggling to move made it to me.
Ugh… Ack, ma…
She collapsed on the ground.
A somewhat rough method, but time was of the essence.
I grabbed her arm and threw her back.
Gah-!
She seemed to lack the strength to scream, releasing only the sound of air escaping.
I thought he would handle it on her own, so I firmly held my great sword.
42 goblins.
33 Hon Wolves.
And… 3 Minotaurs.
Uncooperative monsters were charging at us together.
Creatures that normally should be biting each other only had one target in mind.
A strange situation.
I gripped the hilt tighter.
If we went into combat, injuries would be unavoidable.
Then, the conditions for using fragments would be fulfilled.
However… I also couldn’t ignore potential threats coming after this.
I wasn’t sure how the penalties would apply, but…
If safety wasn’t guaranteed, I couldn’t afford to take penalties.
Even now, monsters drawn by the scent of blood were slowly approaching.
Thinking I would have to face at least 120 of them, I deflected the arrows that were flying toward me.
I mustn’t get surrounded.
I needed to hold my ground.
While fending off a dozen arrows aimed to bite into my body, I waited.
Finally, the leading Hon Wolf reached me.
Stomp, stomp I swung my great sword.
The Hon Wolf’s insides drenched the earth.
Swish My follow-up strikes sent me spinning, the added weight smashing a dozen skulls.
Goblin brains splattered everywhere.
Then, I felt Rubia’s divine power tighten behind me.
“Noah!”
The moment I heard Rubia’s voice, I hurled myself to the side.
A spear of divine power, teeming with an ominous aura, brushed past my hair.
Thud-thud- It planted itself in the path of the charging monsters.
And then, it exploded.
Monsters’ flesh flew in all directions.
After that, a multitude of divine arrows fired by Rubia took care of the remaining monsters.
Phew I shook off the meat stuck to my cheek and wiped the cold sweat away.
The speed and power… had definitely increased.
Rubia proudly raised her thumb.
She didn’t stop healing the woman, though.
“It’s unfair… that wicked wizard…”
She must not have heard my mumbling, as she tilted her head.
I just raised my thumb in response.
Then, I tightened my grip on the great sword and aimed it at the Minotaur that would receive my annoyance.
One Minotaur, which just took the explosion head-on, had already turned to mush.
One had lost an arm.
And the last one was perfectly unharmed.
Thank goodness… there was still work left to do.
Since there was no longer a need to hide behind the rock, I pushed forward.
I immediately deflected the giant axe swung my way and drove my great sword into the neck of the one who lost its arm.
With a rough resistance, the speed of my great sword faltered.
Grrr I gritted my teeth and put in more power.
I pierced through its skin, tearing its muscles apart.
-GRAAAAAAAA-!
It screamed in pain.
At that moment, another one’s fist swung from behind.
Gripping the hilt of my great sword with both hands, I pulled myself up in a chin-up fashion.
The fist smashed into the stomach of the dying one.
It fell down.
I kicked its face and pulled the great sword free.
Just as I landed, a swinging axe filled my vision.
And then…
Kang-
Rubia’s divine power clashed with the monster’s axe.
…I could have deflected that one just now.
Stepping on the ground with rage, I swung my great sword with all my strength.
In an instant.
The great sword swung at a speed that surprised even me, shredding the Minotaur’s two legs.
The body of the creature, easily over two meters tall, fell to the ground.
Even so, it swung a fist toward me.
Holding the great sword backward, I twisted my body the opposite way.
Crack- I felt the sensation of bones breaking as I smashed its skull in.
The beating of the remaining Minotaur stopped.
I expanded my perception.
No monsters were drawn to my direction.
When the situation ended, all tension suddenly dissipated.
I didn’t expect it to end so futilely.
Something feels off… My gear has upgraded, and my perception has sharpened.
Yet, I didn’t perform to my full potential, just a bit…
Just a tiny bit… disappointing.
I could have handled it all by myself…
Of course, it was best to end it without getting hurt…
But this felt like… something… something strange…
Sigh…
On the way back, I finished off the few remaining monsters that still barely clung to life.
“Noah. You did well.”
With her tension eased, Rubia approached with a light smile.
“…You’re a bit strong.”
“Right?”
Her light smile soon turned triumphant.
Ignoring her smugness, I lightly grabbed her hand.
“Oh, the treatment for the gentleman is almost done. But… the wounds weren’t caused by monsters.”
Rubia’s voice grew heavy.
I had somewhat expected it, but…
Out of those I sensed, there were no suspicious individuals.
Then, where did they run from?
“He seems to have lost consciousness now, but I think he will wake up soon. When he does, we should hear him out…”
I nodded and followed Rubia.
“Sis! Are you hurt?”
“Uh-huh… Thanks to the great sword. Thank you, Hephaestus…”
As we arrived nearby, Hephaestus welcomed me, setting up the tent again.
“Alright, now give me the great sword.”
And my great sword…
“Why…? Why…?”
“I need to maintain it. Look at this. If I just wipe it off with all this blood on it, it’ll get ruined quickly. So give it to me now.”
“Ugh…”
“Noah. Listen to Hephaestus. Hurry.”
“Ugh… even you, Rubia…”
Under their strong insistence, I had no choice but to hand over the great sword.
Then Rubia’s hand wrapped around my waist.
“We need to wash up, but we can’t just leave the gentleman alone… so we must go together when he wakes.”
“Is there a place to wash…?”
“Yeah. There’s a valley nearby. It might be a bit cold, but it’s unavoidable.”
“I don’t like cold…”
With a snicker, Rubia suddenly stopped.
“Okay, let’s sit here.”
She naturally sat me down.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
Rubia’s hand brushed my cheek.
“There’s no way I could get hurt this much… Plus, Rubia… you almost killed them all.”
I puffed my cheeks.
I had grown stronger, too!
Back when I took down the Minotaur, I cut off its two legs with a single strike!
I could feel my growth with every swing!!
And also!
I’m a gold-ranked adventurer now!!!
“Does that bother you that much?”
Her hand that was stroking my cheek began to ruffle my hair.
“Uh, it’s not that bothers me… it’s just that… something feels…”
I used to protect her all the time… but now everything’s changed…
Besides, I was definitely… stronger…
But Rubia had leaped levels beyond me…
“Um, Rubia.”
“Yes?”
“Uh, how did you get so… strong?”
“Ah… um, how should I explain this…”
I could hear Rubia’s distant voice.
“When should this… how about when Kar-”
“All done!”
Suddenly, Hephaestus’s voice drowned out Rubia’s speech…
Kar… Kar what!!!
“Ah, um…! He… Hephaestus…!”
“Yes…?”
“Wow- what perfect timing, Hephaestus!”
“Ah… Did I do something wrong…?”
“No… it’s not that… ugh…”
“It can’t be helped. Let’s save the explanation for later… for now, shall we finish up the camp preparations we were just doing?”
“Yeah…”
“Alright, Noah, give me the great sword… and whatever else, I’m sorry…”
Hephaestus placed the great sword on my hand with a thud.
“Uh-huh… It’s alright. No need to apologize…”
I gripped the hilt and activated my perception.
Hephaestus and Rubia’s forms were drawn.
In front of us lay the woman who had collapsed.
But… now that I looked closely…
“Uh… Rubia…?”
“Yes?”
“That person has something in her stomach.”
Rubia tilted her head.
“There’s a strange… stone inside…”
“Yes…?”
“It’s about the size of a fingernail… with a jagged shape… a star? No… stars overlapping?”
Rubia swiftly began examining the woman’s abdomen.
“Noah, are you sure about that?”
“Yeah… I’m sure.”
“Ha…”
Rubia, with one hand on her forehead, pulled out a knife from her bag.
“R-Rubia…?”
“It’s a tracking device used by a specific crime organization. If we don’t take it out and break it now…”
Then, she lowered her voice as she brought the blade to the woman’s belly.
“They’re going to flock here.”
