Fixing the Danjeon (5)
I moved silently, erasing my presence and muffling my footsteps as I tracked the young Great Eagle. Even though it had hidden itself in the thicket, it would surely sense me if I got too close. So I kept a careful three-meter distance and followed slowly.
A few minutes later, the Great Eagle stopped walking. Where it had halted, rainwater had collected in a small puddle formed by a shallow dip in the ground.
Did it come here to drink?
The Great Eagle glanced around warily in front of the puddle, checking for predators. I tightened my grip on the hilt of my longsword and held my breath.
How much time passed? Eventually, sensing no threats, the Great Eagle relaxed and plunged its beak into the puddle, gulping down water noisily.
Chomp chomp chomp!
It was drinking in a frantic rush, completely defenseless while it drank. This is it! It has to be now!
The situation was perfect for an ambush. I took a slow, deep breath. From this moment on, I would charge forward in one burst and drive the longsword in my hand straight through the Great Eagle’s neck. Even though it was just a fledgling, a Great Eagle’s feathers were as tough as copper. So the neck was the only viable target.
What I needed was the first form of the Thunder Sword Technique—a swift application of the “thrust” from the Three Talents Sword Style.
I’ll use it exactly as Iris taught me.
I planted the balls of my feet and prepared to spring forward. The fledgling would stop drinking soon, so I had to act faster. I counted down in my head.
Five.
Four.
Three.
The closer the count got to one, the harder my heart pounded.
…Two.
Last one.
One…!
Now!
Using the momentum from my planted back foot, I charged fiercely toward the young Great Eagle.
“……!”
The fledgling seemed to spot me faster than I’d expected. In a panic, I twisted sharply to the left, using the rotation’s force to thrust my sword forward like a fencer.
Shiiiing!
Thwack!
“Kieeeeeek—!”
“Damn it!”
The young Great Eagle had jerked its head aside at the last possible moment. Because of this sluggish body…! Maybe I should have dieted more before coming here. As a result, the tip of my sword only grazed the base of its wing.
The Great Eagle, its wing muscles damaged, let out a pained cry and flapped its wings wildly.
“Kieek! Kieeeeeek!”
“Uwaaa, uwaaaaaah! Stop moving!”
The fledgling thrashed desperately, trying to shake the embedded sword free. Blood sprayed everywhere from the wound. I was yanked back and forth by its strength, gripping the sword with both hands as it swung me around.
“Uwaaah! You—fuck!”
I wrenched the sword out with all my might. At the same time, I swung it toward the Great Eagle’s neck. A vertical slash. The basic sword form I had practiced ten thousand times every day for this very moment. Failure was not an option.
Whoosh!
Thwack!
“……!”
“Kieek!”
I missed. The blade struck the ground uselessly. Fucking hell! Damn this fat body…! Even with one damaged wing, the creature moved with terrifying agility.
“Kieeeeeeek!”
The young Great Eagle fled deeper into the forest, screeching. Is it calling for its flock…?!
This was bad. The other Great Eagles that had been pecking at the deer carcass would join in. If that happened, I would be the one in danger…!
I can’t let that happen! I’ve waited so long for this day… Let’s see who wins, you bastard!
I ran like a madman, chasing after the fledgling.
“Huk, huuuk—!”
“Kieek!”
Maybe because it was young, even at full speed its pace was similar to mine with this chubby body. But that also meant the distance between us wasn’t closing.
“Kieek!”
“Kiek! Kieeek!”
Behind me, dozens of Great Eagles began to appear in pursuit. This was a crisis.
No choice…!
Even if I managed to kill this one, I’d be surrounded by the rest. In that case, it was better to finish it quickly and run.
While slicing through branches with my sword and sprinting at full speed, I reached into my pocket. I pulled out a single stalk of Gangryeon Herb.
I had wanted to avoid eating it if possible, hoping to stay in peak condition until entering the academy, but…
The moment I tried to shove the herb into my mouth—
“Huh?”
“Kieek! Kieeeeee!”
The fleeing fledgling suddenly made a sharp U-turn and began charging straight toward me.
…What the hell?
I had no idea what was happening, but this was an unbelievable opportunity. I stuffed the Gangryeon Herb back into my pocket and gripped the longsword with both hands, settling into a proper stance.
Huu…
I inhaled slowly and held it. I wouldn’t fail this time. I widened my eyes, staring intently at the Great Eagle rushing toward me. I locked onto the pitiful neck of the fledgling sprinting from afar.
I raised both elbows at right angles, pulling the sword back above my head. Slightly diagonal.
“Huuuu…”
The moment it came within arm’s reach, I exhaled the breath I had been holding and unleashed the strike. Vertical slash.
Whoosh!
Slice!
“Kie…”
Thud.
Roll…
The cleanly severed head of the young Great Eagle tumbled across the grassy dirt. Blood poured from the stump, staining the blade of my gripped sword crimson.
Swoosh!
I flicked my wrist, shaking the blood off the sword in one clean motion.
No time to dawdle. Grab the corpse and run!
I was about to sprint again when something strange happened.
“…? What? Why aren’t they chasing me?”
The dozens of Great Eagles that had been pursuing me had stopped about ten meters away, simply staring at me with blank eyes.
“……?”
…A chill of unease crept over me. I slowly turned my head in the opposite direction from where the fledgling had frantically run.
And before I could even finish turning—
“Krrrrrrrrruuuuuuuuu—!”
An incredibly shrill noise slammed into my eardrums from the direction I was turning.
“Ugh!”
I clamped both hands over my ears, squinting as I struggled to look toward the sound.
“Ah…”
And then I understood. The reason the young Great Eagle had made that desperate U-turn wasn’t because it had gone mad. It had a perfectly logical reason.
There was a monster.
The Great Eagles that had been chasing me had fled the moment they heard its cry. I turned my head to look at the creature.
Muscular, elongated legs reminiscent of a horse. Yellow, bird-like toes with five sharp talons that didn’t match the legs. A horn on its head. The upper body was covered in white feathers like a hawk, while the lower torso looked like that of a brown mammal. On its back were massive, angelic wings large enough to completely cover its body.
“…I’m so fucked.”
The monster was a Gryphon.
This is my mistake! I chased it so deep into its territory without realizing?!
The fledgling’s behavior finally made sense. If it didn’t want to die, it would try to escape the invaded domain. Between the Gryphon and me, obviously the Gryphon was far more terrifying. That was why it had run toward me.
I let out a bitter laugh and unconsciously raised my sword, assuming a stance toward the Gryphon.
I’m really fucked.
What the hell do I do now?
The moment the Gryphon seemed to prepare for an attack, something strange happened. It wasn’t looking at me.
It was staring at something beside me.
…What now?
I had clearly intruded on its territory. Yet it wasn’t even looking at me?
The dense thicket blocked my view, so I could only see the Gryphon’s legs and torso. Curious, I slowly poked my head out to see exactly who it was glaring at.
……!
When I leaned out, I saw a woman collapsed beside the Gryphon. She was in terrible shape, glaring up at the monster despite her injuries.
“Ugh…!”
Long, elegant black hair tied in a high ponytail. Eyes as blue and clear as ice crystals. A mature, stunningly beautiful face that didn’t match her supposed age of fifteen, paired with a haughty expression.
…She was someone I knew very well.
Sword Maniac Aria?!
Aria Silvesta. One of the heroines the protagonist was supposed to romance. In the early story, she approaches the protagonist to learn from his genius sword talent, gradually realizing she has fallen in love with him.
Why the hell is she here?!
It was clearly a life-or-death situation. She should have been at the academy… I had never cleared her heroine quest before, so I had no idea what she did during vacation. I had vaguely assumed she was the type to obsessively train her swordsmanship during breaks.
But she was out here one-on-one with a Gryphon?!
Just how serious was she about the sword and strength that she would go hunting a Gryphon at only fifteen years old?
“Huk… huk…”
Aria was struggling to even breathe, barely able to support herself with her sword. Her clothes were torn to shreds by the Gryphon’s claws. Her beautiful face was covered in horrifying gashes. No matter how I looked at it, the situation was dire.
“Krrrrruuuuu—!”
In contrast, the enraged Gryphon was slowly advancing toward her.
…What should I do?
Should I help? Her life was clearly in danger. But… if I helped, I might end up in danger too.
Just moments ago, I had felt my life threatened by mere dozens of Great Eagles. Would my involvement really change anything?
It would be smarter to take this chance, grab the fledgling’s corpse, and run.
While I was hesitating—
“…Damn it!”
Aria forced herself to her feet, gripping her sword. She was trying to face the Gryphon head-on even though it was right in front of her.
“Krrrru…”
The Gryphon raised a sharp foreleg as if the attempt was laughable. It lightly swatted at her with its muscular limb, as if its beak and horn were too valuable to waste on her.
But even a light swipe from a Gryphon was like being mauled by a bear to a human.
Slaaaash!
“Kyaaaaaah!”
……!
A large amount of blood gushed from the deep gashes on both of Aria’s arms.
Clang!
Clatter!
Aria lost strength and collapsed again. The sword slipped from her grasp and rolled across the ground.
Ah… fuck…
I couldn’t just leave. If I had walked away, I could have quietly fixed my danjeon and lived peacefully.
I pulled the Gangryeon Herb from my pocket as I thought, This damn meddlesome personality of mine. Why am I always like this?
Was it because of my dead little sister? Whenever I saw a girl in trouble, I kept seeing her face, and my body moved before my brain could stop it.
We need money to live, so your big brother has to work hard. Can’t you understand that just a little?
The resentment I felt for not being able to spend more than a few hours a day with my sister—who had waited at home, depending only on me after our parents died—came flooding back.
Oppa! When you make lots of money, let’s go on a trip! I want to go to Japan! Japanese ramen! Japanese pork cutlet!
My middle-school-aged sister who had adored Japanese culture. I had worked myself to the bone, climbed the corporate ladder to a managerial position, all to send her to the Japan she dreamed of. But she died of cancer, and I ended up possessing this body in a game world, doing stupid shit like this.
“Krrrru?”
“…Huh?”
I shoved all the stored Gangryeon Herb into my mouth and chewed.
Crunch!
I felt my blood surge violently through my danjeon, exploding with power.
Thump!
A scorching heat rose throughout my body. I slowly walked toward the Gryphon.
“Krrrrruuuuuuuuuuu!”
Seeing a second intruder in its territory, the Gryphon flapped its wings furiously in rage.
I gripped my sword and took a stance. Overload would hit my body soon. I had no idea how severe the side effects would be after eating that much, but right now, I might be able to buy her enough time to escape.
“The trashy young master…? No, the build is… different?”
Ignoring the woman speaking to me from the ground, I approached the Gryphon and slowly leveled my sword at it.