Raging Storm, Electrifying Prey
The fierce rain and wind poured down relentlessly. The gale-force winds flattened the bushes on either side of the canyon, pressing them to the ground like they were glued there. In a storm like this, not just goblins or orcs—even a decent bear or tiger wouldn't stand a chance and would get swept away.
Aaah——of course, not me.
"……Feels like a shower after ages."
I spread my arms wide, letting the torrential downpour soak my entire body. My hair, untrimmed for months, slicked back perfectly in a wet ponytail style. Eyes closed, I savored the rain drenching my face and body.
Shwooooaaaa——!
Maybe because my skeleton got rebuilt, but the number of raindrops hitting this massive surface area felt way higher than before. Yeah, I'd acquired it. A height over 2 meters, an even longer wingspan, and this broad frame packed to the limit with dense muscle and nerves. This body, forged through months of hellish training, had reached the point where it couldn't handle much more overload on this island.
Every bone in my body had turned to solid, unyielding stuff—no attack from the angles I could generate would snap it anymore. And no matter what rock I lifted, my muscles never tore from the strain. This was the limit of what I could achieve here. I'd done all I could, so now it was kill or be killed, win or starve.
Just like the protagonist from that old prison break movie I'd seen, standing there with arms outstretched in the thick rain sheets, I started to sense it.
High up in the sky above, beneath the thunderheads, something shining like a golden light source flapped enormous wings.
"……Not my bro sleeping."
I grinned. Even with eyes closed, Berserk Mode. In that split second, I felt the atmospheric flow rushing toward me from far above my crown.
Kukukuku——
Suddenly, the heavy rain over a wide area swirled into a vortex. Countless raindrops caught in it converged on me at a single point.
And then it flashed.
Crackle! Rumble——!
In an instant, lightning struck. Currents spread from each stormy droplet, scorching the air and shredding the spot. The surrounding trees exploded into charred splinters, and where I'd stood, a smoking deep crater scarred the ground.
"……Stings a bit."
"……Kurururu-!?"
As the dumb bird finally descended, its confused cry confirmed it—I hadn't gotten hit by the lightning. One backstep out of the danger zone, and I was just analyzing the thunderbird's power as it unleashed its mid-air bolt.
"As expected. If I'd just bolted blindly, I'd have panicked out at sea."
Yeah. Currents of mana flowing through its massive body, and wings big and sturdy enough to whip up fierce gusts with a single flap. I hadn't known these things got this strong in the rain.
But……
"……Hold up. This seems doable."
"Kurururururu-! Kurururururu-!"
The thunderbird flapped its huge wings toward me as I tilted my head at the scorched canyon floor—but I didn't dodge.
Kukukuku——Crackle!
——Kwarrrrumble!
"Urgh!"
I took the thunderbird's lightning head-on. Stars exploded in my vision for a moment.
Crackle, crackle-crackle!
My whole body shuddered briefly. A burning stench assaulted my nose, my dazed ears rang like bells, and during that short flicker of vision, fiery pain lanced through my body everywhere.
"…………Huh?!"
Blink. Blink?
Soon enough, I was fine—the thunderbird's panicked blinking eyelids were proof as it stared at me.
"……Felt like it shoulda hurt."
"……Kurukukuru!?!?"
It was pretty intense lightning; all the surrounding vegetation was charred and shattered, spiderweb cracks radiating from me across the ground. But compared to the agony I'd endured these past months, it wasn't much.
Sure, my skin was probably blackened in spots, some nerves or muscles twitching or numb—but a few rubs fixed it right up.
"……Oh, natural exfoliation."
"……Kurukukuru!?!?"
A light scratch peeled off the charred skin; a few hard slaps woke the spasming muscles right away.
"Kururu-! Kurururururu-!"
The thunderbird circled above my head, clapping my hands clean as it fired off more bolts—but I wasn't taking any more hits.
Rumble—Boom boom!
And so began our game of tag in the stormy night.
Kwajik-! Kwajik-! Kwajik-!
Lightning hammered down repeatedly at me as I leaped and dodged—canyon center, rock piles, high cliffs, stream edges. The thunderbird's rapid strikes scorched the vast canyon's foliage black, acrid smoke hung everywhere, and dirt and sand erupted like waves from the ground.
At some point……
"Kurook!"
The thunderbird inhaled deeply and shot sky-high. The raindrops in the area started swirling on a whole new level.
Flash—!
Lightning lit the sky, silhouetting the thunderbird—I knew instantly. Unable to kill me with bolts alone, it was gearing up for a full-body dive at max power.
"Perfect."
I'd been thinking of hurling a rock, but this was a chance to test how far Berserk Mode could go.
Flap-! Flap-! Flap-!
Kwarung-! Kwarung-! Kwarrrrumble-!
As crackling currents swirled around the thunderbird twisting its massive body like a corkscrew mid-air……
I lowered into stance, locking eyes with it.
My vision rippled. I inhaled deeply, absorbing the entire scene.
Throat muscles bulging, I roared.
"Uryaaaah—!"
"Kururururu-!"
Our gazes clashed amid the thunderbird's flashing glare. My world sparked too. The canyon echoed with my feral shout, blood already boiling through my Berserk Mode body.
Now.
I kicked off, every muscle tensed to the max.
Boom!
In that brief moment of launch, I felt it. Twigs and rocks on the ground pulverized to dust around me! The canyon walls blurring past my sides! Raindrops swept into my wake on contact!
Kwakwakwakwakwakwa!
Launched into the air, I met the thunderbird hurtling at me, twisted like a drill.
Like sand in an hourglass.
Everything caught in our paths from sky and earth converged.
Flash————————!
In the instant before collision, I had just one thought.
"Ah."
Chicken for dinner today.
***
Aboard the Hellenger family's ship heading to Monster Island, in the VIP cabin.
Rumble-!
Despite the nonstop foul weather since departure, Ivan Hellenger's face wore only a smile.
"Heh heh heh heh heh."
"Your laugh looks creepy, y'know?"
Sitting before him was a woman. Her voluptuous figure strained against her loosely draped robe, but she topped it with a wizard's hat that might as well have been certified "boring person."
Still, she was one of the few he could open up to. The kind where he could shamelessly admit his goal: "Get popular with as many women as possible."
"Monster Island should do the trick, right? Even to outsiders?"
"More than enough."
"Women'll think it's badass too?"
"Eh, can't hurt."
The woman flipped through her monster guide curtly. Flip, flip.
Feigning nonchalance, she spoke.
"So, what're you giving me for helping out this time?"
"What? Who's helping who?"
"Huh? You asked me to cast support spells."
"No. I said if you're free, come tag along and support. When'd I ask? I said if you're busy, I'd smash it solo. Monster Island. Right?"
"You're hilarious."
"I'm the one giving you a chance. You said you needed monster corpses to analyze from the magic tower the second I mentioned it."
"Th-that's……"
"Then why'd you follow me all the way here?"
"……"
Her face flushed as she buried her gaze back in the guide.
"Annoying."
"What?"
"Nothing."
"Spit it out now. No whining later."
"Fine, yeah! Yeah, okay?!"
The magic tower's rising star, famed for her mighty spells and Ivan's childhood friend.
And at the same time……
"Yeah. I'm just here for monster corpses for magic tower research. So you don't get in my way."
Mage Karina, growing weary of her one-sided crush on her childhood friend, grumbled.
"……Don't vaporize 'em all so nothing's left."
***
Gulp——!
Above a valley on Monster Island, where the thunderbird had vanished without a trace, I reflected on the meat I'd just eaten.
"……Tasty."
Felt pretty good. Who knew it'd taste like real chicken?
Well, more precisely, its texture was different from chicken—like an electric-roasted whole roaster.
"More like electric-roast rotisserie chicken."
Perfectly grilled electric-roast rotisserie chicken. Never thought I'd taste this again in another world.
Didn't see that coming.
But.
"Whew."
There was more I hadn't anticipated.
Eating monster meat like the thunderbird granted attributes like this—really, really hadn't seen that coming.
"Isn't this kinda OP?"
I tilted my head briefly, but thinking of my past sufferings, I reflexively answered myself.
"…Hahaha! As if!"
Kkekke! I laughed maniacally, staring at my fist crackling with golden electricity.
Crackle, crackle-crackle—!