Hero and Savior

First, I called the dungeon's layout to mind.

The Buffalokin were upright buffalo-men, specialists in raw strength. The Wanderer Orcs were castoffs abandoned by their own blood, same as that one-eyed orc I'd run into before—the kind of trash that had nothing going for them but years of scraping by.

An open-field dungeon meant a vast, sprawling map. And if this was the first floor, the whole damn place was the dungeon.

On top of that, it's an annihilation run. Beat every last mob into the dirt. The named one comes last, of course.

There were three more dungeons besides this one, but I was leaving those alone. I'd hit them when it actually mattered.

"Do you require any further assistance?" the goddess asked.

"From here on out, it's spectator time. All right—time for a little show-and-prove!"

I drew my sword and poured on the speed.

"Hwooooorngh!"

Buffalokin came roaring into view, bellowing like the end of the world. I didn't care. I carved through every monster the instant it showed its face.

The blade punched through hide and muscle alike.

A white arc split the air. Blood sprayed in a wide fan.

"Uwoooorgh!"

One Buffalokin lunged from behind a pillar. I stayed calm and drove a front kick straight into its gut. The impact landed with a dull, meaty crack, and stars spun over the stunned creature's head. I took its neck before it could blink.

The points stacked up as I worked through them. Not a fortune—they were low-grade trash—but it added up.

Tch. Shame there aren't any goblins. I could've wrung those little bastards for all they were worth and made this even easier.

Unlike before, I was cutting them down without any real trouble. I really had grown.

A sudden clatter of kicked gravel came hammering toward me. A Buffalokin had lowered its head and triggered its specialty—a full-body charge.

"They just keep coming with this shit."

The easiest answer in the book. Sidestep the runner. Swing from the flank. One clean cut, and it was over.

A charge was a straight line, and they weren't even that fast, so the threat was limited. Hero hopefuls still died to these things in droves, though. They'd try to tank it with their bodies or plant a shield and hold—then get flattened by a surge of force they never saw coming.

"For honor!"

"I give my life to the wanderer's path!"

"Your head—I'll take it! Ogaaah!"

Wanderer Orcs burst into view, their topknots whipping. About seven of them. Even for me, taking that many at once was a waste of effort.

But still.

I provoked them to their faces.

"Come on, come ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠on! How pathetic do you have to be to get dumped by your own clan? Heh heh."

"You bastard!"

The orcs charged, greatswords and maces clenched in their fists. I broke sideways at once, bouncing off the terrain, using every scrap of cover. They burned themselves out trying to keep up. I funneled the fight into a narrow pass and let the walls do half the work.

"Grrh, out of my way!"

"I saw him first!"

A slash. A spray of blood. A wet, splitting crack. I put them all down. Easy. Too easy.

No question about it. I've gotten stronger. I'm dropping them without even using Aura.

I let myself feel a little smug.

"Hmph! Do not let your guard down!"

"I'm not. I've got a goddess to protect, after all."

"Hnn... talking nonsense. Hmph. And just who is protecting whom...♥"

So why did the end of that sentence come out so sweet and sticky? God, the goddess was just too cute, too cute, too cute!

I pushed forward, cutting down monsters as I went, and rummaged through the relic chests scattered here and there.

Now that was the real charm of a dungeon.

I kept going, and a space wrapped in a translucent film came into view. I stopped in front of it and grinned.

"This place seems like a barrier."

"More precisely, it's the boss room. Kill whatever's waiting inside and the dungeon disappears. That's the idea."

"Ohh. I find myself curious what treasure it will yield. Will you fight?"

"Do you even have to ask? Sit back and watch!"

I rolled my neck and stepped forward. The film pushed against me, then gave, and I felt myself merge with the space beyond. A thought settled in as I crossed.

There's a byproduct you get from killing this thing. It'll go a long way toward putting Jaun back on his feet.

I flicked the blood from my blade and smiled without a sound. Everything was unfolding according to plan, and the rush of it had my pulse up.

There was a quest in the game for saving the heroine of the plague village, and this is what you used for it. I'm sure of it. Come on out, Lizardman!

I lifted my head. The boss was waiting.

It was a Wanderer Orc, its entire body dyed a deep, furious red. The kind of monstrous, muscle-pumped physique that looked like it had been inflated with a compressor.

W-wait a second?

What the hell? This isn't the boss mob I know.

I blinked in silence. Had I come to the wrong place?

No. This was it. The only dungeon that spawned Buffalokin was this one.

Goddammit. Don't tell me the lore's gotten tangled up again!

A sigh slipped out on its own. Originally, the boss here was a Lizardman. Handled right, you could bury it with either speed or raw power and call it a day.

This thing was a different animal. Even a gym rat with a body like that had to be mainlining steroids instead of food.

Fine. I saw this coming. It's a freak orc instead of a Lizardman, but I can handle it. This much, I can handle.

I drew a breath and stepped forward. Then I kicked off the ground.

I launched with my sword leading, hung in the air for a beat, and swung the instant my boots touched down. The orc met me with its axe.

Power slammed into power. Sparks leapt between the weapons.

The overwhelming force threw me backward. I couldn't believe it.

I'm losing in raw strength. But what if Aura comes out to play? Au. Ra.

I ignited my Aura and charged the orc again, crashing into it head-on. Steel screamed against steel. I locked weapons with the thing and held, dropping my upper body to bleed off the force, planting both feet and wrapping both hands around the hilt.

The ground tore up in sheets as I was driven back.

What the fuck? Why am I losing? I'm not supposed to be losing.

This thing should have been hovering around ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠D-rank at best. So why was I the one getting shoved?

The orc shuddered, then roared.

"Kraaaaaagh!"

It closed the gap in a single burst. The moment I saw it, I snapped a front kick out to keep it honest—but the orc calmly circled to my flank and started swinging that massive axe like it was a spoon, blow after blow after blow.

A maddening flurry. I parried what I could, slipped what I couldn't, and kept circling. The second a gap opened, I punched a counter through it.

The orc carved a diagonal with the axe. I slid aside. As if by a lie, the axe came in from the opposite side. I got my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠shield up.

Something like the crack of bursting air went off, and the arm locked behind the shield shuddered as if it were about to come apart. I clenched my teeth and held—and the orc bellowed again.

Looking closer, I saw it. The thing was wrapped in a red energy that looked uncomfortably like Aura.

What the hell kind of power is that...? I can't take this head-on. I'll lose!

The orc whipped the axe with everything it had. I barely twisted my torso out of the way. The wall behind me split wide and shuddered.

How the hell is this a one-star dungeon? Are you fucking kidding me.

Settings getting scrambled was one thing. This was past the line.

"Kraaah!"

I got my sword up just in time to catch the next swing. Both arms rang and rang, threatening to tear free of their sockets.

But something that strong left plenty of holes. Every time it committed to a strike, I nicked it in return—a cut across the thigh, a stab to the chest, a slice through the ear. I was farming bleeds, betting that time would do the killing for me. Of course, the longer it went, the stronger that red energy became.

Aura? What even is that red shit.

The crimson force thickened, and the pressure came with it. I cut left and right in quick bursts, throwing my blade off-beat. The point punched into its chest—and the orc grabbed the sword with a bare hand and hurled me.

I smashed into the wall and bit down hard. It came on like a nightmare, axe already in motion. I caught the blow on my sword, and a fist slid past the blade and drove into me.

The punch buried itself in my chest. The air left my lungs in a single choked rush. A hand locked on my collar, and the world started to spin.

It slammed me around by the throat like a rag. My forehead split. The back of my skull cracked. My vision went red in seconds. Still holding me, the orc leapt.

"Kuhaaaaagh!"

It piledrove me into the floor. Even that wasn't enough; it kept roaring, fury nowhere near spent.

Fuck me, he's not even a berserker. Goddamn orc bastard!

I coughed, and blood came up with it. My body was already falling apart. I still dragged myself upright, limping.

The orc put everything into the next swing. I slipped it by a hair and lifted my sword.

A clean stab, dead center in the chest. The orc kept moving anyway. I ripped the blade free and gave ground.

It's speeding up. Getting harder to read.

It felt like the thing was getting stronger by the second. The axe appeared in front of me and I slipped it. Same as before, a fist came in from the side. I got the shield up just in time.

Then the fist opened, clamped around my throat, and squeezed. As it wound up to throw me again, I lifted myself with magnetism and drove a high kick into its skull.

The orc staggered, stunned, stars spinning.

Orcs are weak to magic and status effects! In that case...

I unleashed a frantic storm of cuts. Every one of them should have been fatal. The orc moved like it didn't even hurt. The thing was exhausting.

I slipped to the side, and an elbow it threw on the way through buried itself in my cheek.

"Ghk—!"

I hit the floor and dragged air back into my lungs.

One more clean hit and I'm done. In that case, I've got no choice.

The orc came on like it meant to finish this. I watched it close and thrust my hand straight out. The ring flared.

"Keeheeheeheeng!"

I summoned Rin, swung into the saddle, and shouted.

"If I can't do it alone, I'll just fight alongside my other half!"

We charged the orc. Hooves hammered the stone; static crawled along Rin's coat. Mid-gallop, Rin threw a scream straight at the orc.

"Hiihiiiiiing!"

Lightning hammered the orc. Its posture broke mid-charge. I slammed Rin into it in that opening and drove my sword home.

Trash mobs give three thousand, six thousand—and the boss gives twenty-five. Cheapskate.

"Hahh— pffhh!"

My nose felt clogged. I pushed, and a thick stream of blood poured out. Nasty. Real nasty.

A pouch the orc had been carrying rolled across the floor and stopped against the toe of my boot.

This is...?

Thank god. At least the reward was still intact!

I ran for the territory at once. I looked like hell and should have regenerated first, but that didn't matter. I was in too much of a hurry to even check the dungeon clear rewards.

If I regenerated on the way, at least I wouldn't die. I rode Rin hard and hit the estate.

If even the title was kicking in, I really had been in bad shape. Well, damn.

"Are you all right? Should you collapse, I shall support you at once!"

"Don't worry, Goddess! Hyah!"

I passed the lord's manor and went straight into the mansion. The servants stared at me in shock. I didn't care.

I ran for Jaun's room. Renata and Jeira were still there, exactly as I'd left them.

"Decoct this and give it to the young lord. That should take care of it."

"Lashu—what—"

Both women went white. I shook my head.

"The young lord comes before me right now. You understand."

I handed over the Lizardman Elder's Heart and sat down near the room to rest. The two of them bustled around in a panic, but my head was swimming, so I just kept it down.

Some ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠time passed, and Renata and Jeira came running back to me.

"Jaun opened his eyes again! And somehow, the color's come back to his face!"

"He might be all better, right? Ahh-hhk!"

"Lashu, how in the world...?"

"Yeah. How did you even get that?!"

I'd solved it. I just smiled and nodded.

They could see the state I was in, and both women poured their thanks over me. Renata, especially, looked at me with a gaze that threatened to melt right off her face.

"Thank you, Lashu. You are our hero and our savior."

"Don't mention it. For an acting lord, this much is only natural. I am a hero, after all."

The affection bumps were a bonus. Renata came toward me with tears standing in her eyes.

"Come with me to the treatment room. I'll look after you myself."

And with that, she let a sultry little smile slip from her eyes. Mama Renata—don't tell me this is what I think it is?!