A Fateful Encounter
Nairin had a thought.
My luck is absolutely rotten.
Even though she deliberately entered the tower alone, for some reason, she kept running into her own kind or other races.
That was Nairin's chief complaint.
Elf society had a strict hierarchy.
Strictly speaking, Nairin was a recruit—a greenhorn who had only just begun climbing the tower.
Therefore, any elves she encountered inside were essentially her superiors.
Of course, seniority could easily be overridden by sheer skill, and Nairin was exceptionally talented.
It was just that her level was low due to the limit on tower entries.
If they were at the same level, there weren't many elves who could overwhelm her.
But...
"Nairin, take the lead."
Right now, Nairin was a private. A private first class at best.
"Understood."
She had no choice but to do as she was told.
Weaklings, she thought.
The front was where they were most likely to encounter traps and hostile races. It was obvious why they were putting her at the front.
If she lacked skill, she was a meat shield. If she had skill, she was a guard dog.
Neither was a role Nairin wanted.
Pathetic.
Once, elves were hailed as the strongest race.
But at some point, they became obsessed with nothing but earning Contribution Points.
Elves were no longer the terrifying rulers of the battlefield feared by all.
They had long since become nothing more than petty point loan sharks.
Of course, elves were still strong. One of the strongest in the dimension.
But...
What does that even matter?
This was no time for idle thoughts, but Nairin couldn't help but sneer.
Perhaps she, too, had lost her sense of tension.
But back then...
Nairin recalled the Hide-and-Seek Map.
Or rather, the bizarre human she had met there.
The immortal monster, the Sullae, whom even gods supposedly couldn't kill, had been butchered with a crude orc dagger. A being so terrifying she questioned if he was even human.
In his presence, she had felt tension for the first time in ages. No, it was fear.
Shiver...
Just thinking about it sent goosebumps down her spine.
She hadn't even been able to report it properly at the time. Even if she claimed the Sullae had died and she returned, no one would believe her.
They would probably assume she had gone mad and throw her into the dungeon.
But Nairin knew. What she had witnessed was no hallucination born of madness.
If only I could meet him again...
Nairin didn't even know what she wanted to do if she did. And yet, she wanted to see him again. That overwhelming existence.
Rustle.
"Someone's there."
The moment Nairin turned her head, Laisel, the highest-level elf among them, spoke first.
Foolish.
It was so stupid it made her want to sigh. Speaking aloud when they didn't even know who the opponent was? What if they heard and ran away, or launched a preemptive strike?
Of course, most elves never considered the possibility of being attacked. They had always been the strong ones. That was why he spoke so carelessly.
In truth, it was a mistake Nairin could have easily made herself. If she hadn't met that overwhelming being in the Hide-and-Seek Map, she would have done the exact same thing.
"I was getting bored anyway."
Drawing his bow and arrow, Laisel smiled. "Shall we go rabbit hunting?"
The other two elves drew their weapons as well.
"Nairin."
Laisel clicked his tongue.
"Flush out the rabbit."
"...Yes."
Nairin quieted her footsteps and moved through the brush. To think that after entering the tower, she was being used to flush out prey.
They don't know how to hide their tracks.
Nairin followed the footprints. The target's movements seemed quite fast, but the tracks were left wide open, making them easy to follow.
Judging by the size of the footprints, it wasn't a goblin or an orc. It was right in the middle.
Snap!
She had tracked them well. The sound of a snapping twig echoed right next to her.
Slash!
Nairin swung her sword, cutting down the tall grass.
"Gasp!"
As the grass fell away, the "rabbit" was revealed.
"Good job, Nairin!"
"You've finally found a use!"
"Now get out of the way!"
Unlike Nairin, who froze in place, the three elves rushed toward the prey with smirks on their faces.
"N-No, wait—!"
Before Nairin could stop them—
Slash!
Just like the falling grass, the three elves collapsed. Stiff as logs.
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
Before Nairin could even grasp what was happening—
Squelch!
Squelch!
Squelch!
Hot blood splattered onto Nairin's face.
Soon, heads rolled to her feet.
Roll, roll.
Then, a man stepped forward.
He stood, stepping on Laisel's dirt-covered head.
"Who are you?"
It was the human. The one who had hacked the Sullae to pieces.
If you meet an elf, avoid them at all costs.
This was a fact known to all humans. No, not just humans—every race knew it.
Since fighting them was hopeless, the rule was to run. If you were fooled by their beautiful appearance and smooth talking, a horrific fate awaited you. Never let your guard down.
I had received the exact same education. If you meet an elf, avoid them at all costs.
Of course, I had the Heavenly Slaughter Star. The ability to kill anything.
But did that mean I was invincible? No. And besides, I had never actually met an elf before.
The warning to avoid elves wasn't just because they were strong. If it were just about strength, there were plenty of other strong races.
However, no other race was as bellicose or as cruel as the elves.
Slaughterers.
The races that had already suffered near-extinction at the hands of elves called them that.
While humanoids who looked somewhat similar to elves weren't subjected to systematic genocide, those who crossed paths with them died in droves.
Let's keep a low profile...
So, I didn't want to stand out either. Not because I was scared, but because if I did something wrong and the elves decided to launch a human extermination campaign—just like they did to the orcs—it would be catastrophic.
Good thing I spotted them first.
Let's avoid them. They weren't a race worth interacting with. I wasn't avoiding them out of fear! I was avoiding them because they were filthy! Like avoiding dog crap! It was exactly like avoiding a pile of shit!
"I was getting bored anyway..."
"Rabbit hunting..."
While the elves were talking, I stealthily moved in the opposite direction.
Avoid them. Just avoid them!
Fortunately, the terrain was a dense jungle filled with various plants, making it easy to hide. Through the bushes, between the trees, quietly and carefully, I walked away.
Slash!
To my surprise, the tall grass covering my head fell away all at once.
And standing on the other side was a breathtakingly beautiful elf.
"Gasp!"
No, wait, I was definitely going in the opposite direction! How did she get in front of me so fast?
My panic was short-lived.
Zing!
A sharp, painful sensation shot through the crown of my head. It felt like goosebumps, or maybe static electricity.
Along with that bizarre sensation, my hand slid down and gripped my dagger.
"Good job, Nairin!"
"You've finally found a use!"
"Now get out of the way!"
Their voices were filled with amusement. And beneath those voices, I felt it.
Murderous intent.
The tingling at the crown of my head was caused by their bloodlust.
Until now, whether it was ratmen, lizardmen, vampires, orcs, werewolves, cyborgs, or creekers... none of them had ever emitted such intense bloodlust.
Was that why? My body moved faster than ever before.
Grabbing the hilt, drawing it from the sheath, and swinging the blade—it all felt like it happened simultaneously.
Slash!
Exchanging daggers with Cha Yerin had been an excellent decision.
Unlike the ragged orc dagger, this incredibly sturdy blade sliced through without a single hitch, effortlessly cutting the elves' throats.
"Ack!"
"Gah!"
"Urgh!"
Naturally, trying to slash three at once meant I couldn't completely decapitate them. I only sliced halfway through below their jaws.
But this was a dagger with a paralysis attribute, wasn't it?
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
The three paralyzed elves collapsed like logs. Oof. They fell face-first. That looked painful.
Step!
I quickly mounted the body of the middle guy, who had the strongest bloodlust.
And—
Stab!
I drove the blade straight into his Adam's apple.
Crack!
Along with the sound of his neck bones shattering...
Tick...
Time began to flow slowly.
Tock...
Killing Time
I leaped onto the guy on the left.
Tick...
Stab!
And drove the blade in once more.
Tock...
With this, once again...
Killing Time
Finally, I leaped onto the guy on the right.
Tick...
Huh? This guy was tracking me with his eyes. It was only for a split second. Did he max out his Agility?
Well, whatever.
Stab!
He only managed to twitch the tip of his finger.
Tock...
After severing the heads of the three elves in an instant, I realized.
Ah, right.
Thanks to the effect of Killing Time, the first elf I encountered looked as if she were frozen in place.
I should finish that one off too...
I walked toward the remaining elf, step by step.
But...
She's a bit different.
I couldn't feel any bloodlust from the last elf. The bloodlust I felt from the other three... was completely absent here.
Instead, her face was filled with panic. No, it was fear.
She was even frozen in a posture where she seemed to be reaching out, as if trying to stop the other elves.
Strange.
Weren't elves supposed to be a race with a disgustingly cruel nature? Then why was this one...
The moment my thoughts reached that point, the effect of Killing Time ended.
Roll, roll...
Thud, thud!
The severed heads rolled across the ground.
Step!
I stepped on one of them and pointed the tip of my blade at the still-living elf.
"Who..."
"...are you?"
The color drained from the elf's already pale face, making her look almost like a vampire.
"I-I am..."
Her voice trembled violently. What was this? She didn't have the arrogant tone of the others.
"I, I, I, I am..."
She was going to bite her tongue at this rate. Was she perhaps a bit slow in the head?
"Sigh..."
Right. I suppose there could be slow ones even among elves.
As I clicked my tongue—
Thud!
She suddenly fell to her knees. She hit the ground so hard I wondered if her kneecaps had shattered.
And then—
Thud!
The elf slammed her forehead directly onto the ground.
"I have desperately wanted to meet you!!!"
"...Huh?"
Yep. This one was definitely a bit touched in the head.