The Thief of Shadows

'This has gone horribly wrong,' I thought as I was flung through the air along with my sword.

The next instant, I hit the ground with a bone-shattering thud.

"Gah!"

The pain was excruciating, enough to make me want to die. Forcing the agony down by activating Absolute Obedience, I raised my head to find myself thrown a considerable distance from the beast.

'I think something's broken...' I massaged my throbbing back.

Come to think of it, this was the first time I had been injured this severely in this world. If I had to compare it to anything, it felt like the time I got into a car accident back in my past life. I suppose I had been incredibly lucky up until now.

'Is my luck finally running out?'

If I made even one wrong move now, I would die. Absolute Obedience, B+-rank Swordsmanship, holy relics—none of it would matter. The moment I took a direct hit from that thing, it would be game over.

'There's no way in hell this is a B-rank quest,' I grumbled.

Right then, a system notification flashed before my eyes.

The difficulty rating had spiked in an instant. The reward had gone up accordingly, but I didn't have the luxury to celebrate. From A-rank onward, the probability of failure was statistically much higher than the probability of success.

'Should I run?'

Retreating from an A-rank threat wasn't a bad option. In fact, any sane player would have turned tail and run without a second thought.

'What do I do?'

I stared at the writhing beast in the distance, weighing my options. Ultimately, the only thing that mattered was whether I could defeat him. We were outside the barrier anyway, a place where merely breathing was hazardous. The odds of winning were far more important than the fear of failure.

'The mutations are currently concentrated in his bloated right arm and that tentacle-like left arm.'

Although his face and lower body were distorted, they hadn't mutated nearly as much as his arms. For now, I only needed to watch out for his upper limbs.

'Especially that whip-like left arm.'

Unlike a normal arm, its flexibility allowed for highly erratic attacks. There was no telling how far it could stretch, either.

'I guess I have to test the waters first.'

I scavenged a crude smoke bomb from the corpse of a nearby bandit. I didn't know its exact chemical makeup, but all I needed to know was that it exploded when thrown. If things went south, I would use it to make my escape.

'Gravitus Replicant.'

I reduced the weight of my sword to the absolute minimum and dropped into a low stance. My goal was to end this in a single, decisive strike through a surprise attack.

'Now!'

The beast was thrashing in agony, seemingly oblivious to my presence. Sword in hand, I dashed forward.

'Die!'

Just as he entered my striking range, his writhing movements abruptly shifted. His tentacle-like left arm whipped toward me with blinding speed.

"Urgh!"

I instantly released the weight of my sword. The sudden shift in my center of gravity jerked my body aside, narrowly ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠evading the strike. But the follow-up attack came immediately.

Crash!

The beast's massive fist slammed into the earth. The ground shook violently, nearly throwing me off balance, but I managed to stay upright by driving my heavy sword into the dirt. However, this left me completely defenseless against his next move.

A heavy blow struck my ribs, sending me flying once more. Fortunately, I managed to break my fall and land on my feet this time, avoiding another brutal impact. Still, the damage was done.

'Maybe I really should have run.'

It wasn't too late. I could just smash the smoke bomb and flee. But as I hesitated, something caught my eye.

"Die!"

He swung his mutated arms wildly, attacking the opponent before him. He could no longer remember who the boy was. He simply hated the fact that someone was standing in his way.

Struck by the tentacle, the boy was sent flying. Yet, after rolling across the ground, he stood right back up. He wasn't particularly strong, but he was incredibly persistent.

Just then, the boy suddenly pulled out a black bead.

'What is that?'

He had definitely seen it before, but his clouded mind couldn't recall it. Only after the bead shattered and black particles began to blanket the area did he realize what it was.

'Is he trying to run?'

He thrust his tentacle toward the spot where the boy had been standing in the darkness. But the boy was gone.

In that exact moment, he sensed a presence right beside him.

'When did he get so close?'

He had known the boy was fast, but this caught him off guard once again. Still, approaching under the cover of darkness was nothing but a cheap trick. No matter how dark it was, a silhouette would always be visible at this range.

He spun around to catch the boy trying to slip behind him, but—

'Huh?'

He couldn't see him. The boy had vanished completely.

'Where did he...!'

Just as he tried to turn back to the front, the boy materialized out of the empty darkness. The holy relic held in the boy's hands was already descending toward his head.

'That's...!'

Only then did he spot the dagger clamped between the boy's teeth. It was his own holy relic, Amyah.

'Am I really going to die by my own blade?'

No, to be precise, it wasn't even his. He had stolen it from someone else, after all. In a way, it was a fitting end for a thief.

The boy's holy relic cleaved through him with devastating, crushing weight.

I had succeeded. It hadn't been an easy fight, but I had managed to take him down. Though I had sustained some injuries, it was fine since I wouldn't need to grind for SP for a while. After all...

I now had enough SP to acquire Precocious (Small). Once I learned it, I would have to diligently train to raise my proficiency in Swordsmanship and Wind Authority before facing the Demon King.

It was exactly the same effect I remembered. For reference, Precocious (Large) completely halted physical growth, but instead of "moderately increased," its description read "dramatically increased." While the difference between "moderately" and "dramatically" was quite substantial, "moderately" was more than enough for me.

On top of the SP, I had also obtained an unexpected reward. I cast appraisal on the dagger in my hand.

This was also a holy relic I was already familiar with. However, I had only known it to be obtainable in the Reim Kingdom several years prior; I hadn't expected to find it here.

'Well, not that I'm complaining.'

It was an incredibly useful relic for a 2-star. While it was highly situational, depending on how it was used, it could perform on par with a 3-star relic, much like the Gravitus Replicant. I slipped Amyah into my inventory, thoroughly satisfied.

'So, all that's left now is to defeat the 71st Demon King.'

If I succeeded in taking him down, I might be able to unlock my second inheritance.

'Come to think of it, there isn't much time left.'

There were barely two weeks left until his arrival. I needed to make the most of every moment to prepare.