The Unyielding Resolve
The ground beneath my feet rumbled violently—ku-gu-gu-gu-gung—! The earth shook like it had lost its mind, and my body vibrated along with it. Yet the trembling that ran through me wasn’t caused by the quake alone.
What kind of killing intent is this…!
A murderous aura so thick it could make an ordinary person faint erupted from that colossal flower. In this world, the presence monsters gave off was apparently called demonic energy, but this was unmistakably saturated with raw bloodlust.
The mercenaries trembled uncontrollably. Some laughed in hollow disbelief.
“F-fuck… what the hell is that thing…”
“Are we… going to die here…?”
“Haha… ha…”
Even veterans who had faced countless battles and monsters were no match for the sheer dimension of a 4-star threat. The terror of death they had never truly known before now gripped them completely.
“C-Commander…”
Even Cerise looked at me with eyes drenched in fear, her whole body shaking. She possessed the talent to become a future Swordmaster and a living legend, but that was only potential. At her current level of growth, this opponent was still far beyond what she could handle.
Because I had yet to make a single move, the eyes of both the mercenaries and Cerise were slowly dying. Were they lamenting their own doomed fate? Or had they already given up on life?
Hah. So you’re just going to surrender?
No. I would never give up. No—I couldn’t give up. I would kill that monstrous bastard without fail and lead every single one of us out of here alive.
You think I’d bow to something of this level?
I had claimed the top ranker spot in countless games and overcome endless trials. Bad teammates, griefers, hackers, trolls—natural disasters I could do nothing about had crashed down on me time and time again.
But this isn’t the same as monster subjugation.
No matter how much they were called calamities, 4-star monsters still had clear weaknesses. They could be killed. If you kept stabbing, slashing, cutting, and smashing them, they would eventually die. And possessing the tenacity to never give up was the one thing I did best.
I shouted so loudly the entire space rang, my body no longer shaking.
“Commander…?”
Hah. Guess we’re dying after all…
Mother…
That fried chicken back then. I should’ve eaten a little more.
The mercenaries—and even Cerise—stared at me as if I had gone insane. They probably thought it was nothing but stubborn bravado. But did they truly believe I couldn’t pull it off?
“Did you all completely trust the advice I gave you from the very beginning?!”
“…………!”
“Have I ever pushed you to do things or training that you couldn’t accomplish?!”
Life began returning to their dead eyes.
“…I believe in you, Commander. Everyone, follow the Commander!!”
As if my cry had finally reached them, Cerise straightened her posture, glared at the Nepenthes, and shouted with everything she had.
Hah. Fuck it. Yeah. What’s there to lose?
Becoming a spearman was all thanks to the Commander anyway. I’ll trust him this time too.
At Cerise’s desperate roar, the mercenaries rose one by one and gripped their weapons.
“Everyone, stand up! Our legend cannot end at the hands of a mere monster like this!”
“Yes! You’re right, Commander!”
“…We’ll follow you!!”
I had no intention of falling to a mere 4-star monster, and I refused to let the Ska Mercenary Group end here.
“Then follow me! Even if your hands shatter, do not let go of your weapons! Never lose your focus!”
We all tightened our grips on our weapons. Even if our hands broke or were severed, our will would remain unbroken.
“Ska Mercenary Group—advance!!”
“Uwaaaaaah—!”
Burning with resolve, we charged toward the Nepenthes. The sight must have resembled David rushing toward Goliath.
Blorp-bl-bl-bl-blop—!
Whoosh. Whoosh.
The Nepenthes watched our advance and let out a bizarre noise as countless vines burst from the ground. These new tendrils were far thicker and stronger than the largest ones we had seen earlier.
I can cut them. I can win…!
Yet they were still frail and insignificant compared to our united will. A single human resolve may be no more than a droplet of water, but when those droplets gather and struggle without end, they can split even the largest boulder.
Swoooosh—!
“Hup!”
Slash— Clang—!
I barely dodged the vine hurtling toward me and swung my sword. A clear ring echoed as if I had struck steel, and my blade only sank halfway into the tendril instead of cutting it clean through.
Vwoooong—!
Squelch—!
“…Hoo.”
I wrapped my blade in mana and poured in more strength. Only then did the tough vine finally sever.
“Listen while you fight! These vines can only be completely cut by weapons imbued with mana!”
Squelch— Crack— Crunch.
The mercenaries who heard my shout immediately coated their weapons in mana. The vines that had seemed impossible to cut began falling one after another.
“Good. We can do this…!”
“As expected of the Commander…!”
Feeling the possibility of victory growing, we fought with even greater ferocity.
“Haaap—!”
Squelch— Squelch—!
In this chaotic battlefield, the one shining brightest was, of course, Cerise. While I could barely sever a single vine with my full-powered strike, she sliced through several at once as easily as cutting paper.
Good. We can do this…!
Ordinary people would never have even imagined it—subjugating a 4-star monster with only a single mercenary group, and with such a small number of people at that. Most of the Empire would have called it a lie.
But the members I had chosen for the Ska Mercenary Group were anything but ordinary. Each and every one of them possessed enough talent and skill to aim for the position of commander in any other group.
Squelch—!
Another vine fell to Cerise’s blade. Now only the Nepenthes’ main body remained, already tattered from countless attacks. It looked like we would finish it soon!
Blo… blorp-bl-blop—!
Crunch…!
But then an anomaly occurred. The Nepenthes began curling its heavily wounded body inward.
“What is it trying to do?”
“We almost have it! Let’s finish it off!”
“I’ll take the lead…!”
At first the mercenaries and Cerise were puzzled, but the Nepenthes’ curled posture looked like it was trying to defend itself. Judging from its wounds and sluggish movements, they assumed it had suffered a fatal blow. Burning with fighting spirit, they charged straight at it.
But… was that posture really for defense? The way its body contracted and twitched looked like…
It’s gathering something…?
“…Damn it all! Everyone, run! Get away from the Nepenthes—!”
Hisssssssss—!
The moment I realized its true intention and shouted, the Nepenthes unfurled before my voice could reach them. An enormous cloud of powder burst out.
“Kuh… ugh… my body…”
“Fuck… why won’t it move…!”
“…Commander…!”
The mercenaries who had taken the powder head-on froze in place as if paralyzed. Even I, who had been the farthest away and received the least exposure, felt my entire body go numb. I couldn’t move a single fingertip.
Paralysis powder…!
Blorp-bl-bl-blop~!
The disgusting giant flower began swaying its whole body as if delighted that its plan had worked. It was the monster equivalent of teabagging a completely defeated opponent.
Slither—!
“Ugh… let… go…!”
“My body won’t… move…!”
“Cough… Vice-Commander…!”
One of the damaged vines wrapped around Cerise and lifted her into the air.
“Vice-Commander Cerise…!”
Blorp-blop~
It seemed the creature had instinctively decided to eliminate the strongest and most threatening target first. The vine tightened around her with crushing force.
Crunch—!
“Kuh… aaaagh…!”
The steel-hard tendril squeezed violently. The sickening sound of bones creaking echoed across the battlefield.
“Commander…”
“Vice-Commander Cerise…!”
Soon her eyes began to dim, and she looked at me with desperate longing.
Fuck. Is there really no way?
Both I and the paralyzed mercenaries could only watch helplessly as Cerise was crushed. If only my body wasn’t numb… Wait.
Swish—!
It’s easier to move than before.
Since I had been the farthest away, the paralysis seemed to be wearing off on me faster than the others. The biggest problem was the dizziness that made my mind feel paralyzed as well.
Get a grip. I have to save Cerise.
Wake… up!
Stab—!
I pulled out a knife with my slightly mobile arm and drove it into my thigh. There was no pain, but because this was a clone body, the shock cleared my head instead.
“Vice-Commander Cerise!”
Tatata—!
With my body finally moving properly again, I cloaked myself in mana and charged toward the Nepenthes.
Blo… blorp-blop?!
Swoosh—!
The Nepenthes flinched in surprise before hurling the remaining bundle of vines at me.
Whirr— Clang—!
I dodged the tendrils and struck them with my mana-infused sword. Since each one was incredibly tough, it was only natural I couldn’t cut them in a single blow. My hands shook violently as the vines pressed in harder.
“Uwaaaaaah—!”
I poured every ounce of my mana into the blade and brought it down.
Crrrrk… Crrrrrrrrk—!
Squelch—!
At first only a small gap appeared, but by relentlessly hammering the same spot, I finally sliced the entire bundle in half.
Blorp-bl-bl-blop—!!
Good. Only the main body remained. I rushed toward the Nepenthes, which was writhing in agony after losing all its limbs.
This time, I would carve out its weakness without fail.
Tatata—!
I approached the monster, concentrated mana into my legs, and leaped high into the air. Information I had casually read in a monster encyclopedia floated through my mind.
The Nepenthes, whose entire body was as hard as steel and possessed tremendous regenerative power, appeared to have no weaknesses. However, there was exactly one vulnerable point. At the back of its petal “head”—roughly the size of a human skull—there existed a core about the size of a human head. That was the Nepenthes’ nucleus. Striking only that spot would allow one to defeat it.
…Though the records said that hundreds had died to its fierce vine attacks before anyone could reach it, and successful cases were extremely rare.
“Haaap—!”
I soared high and swung my blade toward the Nepenthes’ weak point.
“Commander… cough… behind you…!”
Behind?
Hearing Cerise’s dying voice, I glanced back.
Swooooosh—!
A single vine the Nepenthes had hidden until the very end shot toward me.
Stab—!
“…Kuhup.”
I had perceived it, but the speed was simply too fast to react. The vine pierced straight through the left side of my abdomen. There was no pain, but my body jerked to a halt. Blood poured from both the wound and my mouth.
“No…!”
Cerise’s voice filled with despair reached me. She must have thought I would die here without being able to fight back.
But I can still move?
Of course I could. This was a clone body, so there was no pain and my limbs still obeyed me. If this had been my real body, the agony would have left me unable to move a finger. But I was a clone.
Swoosh—!
Blorp-blop?!
Squelch.
Clunk. Clu-clunk…
I focused my mana and sliced the Nepenthes’ nucleus clean off.
Sluuuuurp… Thud.
As the Nepenthes’ massive body collapsed, I was able to descend to the ground as well.
“Commander!!”
With the Nepenthes dead, Cerise must have been freed from its grip. I saw her running toward me.
…Ah. But why do I feel so sleepy? My vision is getting a little blurry too…
“…Cough. Vice-Commander Cerise…”
“Commander?! Please stay with us! Open your eyes, please!!”
Tatata—!
“Damn it all…!”
“Commander…”
The other mercenaries, now free from the paralysis, came running as well. Looking around carefully, I saw that no one had died. That was a relief.
“Cough. Didn’t I… tell you? That we could do it… cough!”
“Commander…! Please stop talking…! Your wound is opening wider…!”
“…Don’t cry, Vice-Commander Cerise… No one is dying…”
Cerise looked down at me and began shedding tears. Hearing the sound of sobbing, I scanned the blurred surroundings and saw that the other mercenaries were crying too.
Hey, guys. I’m not dying.
I’m perfectly fine. This is just fatigue. If I sleep a little, I’ll be okay. Really.
“Cough… cough…”
Of course I was still spitting blood, but it didn’t hurt, and this level of injury would heal after a short rest.
“Commander! Please, get a hold of… yourself!!”
“Vice-Commander Cerise…”
What is she saying? Cerise seems to be crying and saying something, but I can’t hear it clearly. Ah… it feels like I’ll lose consciousness soon, but I should still say what needs to be said.
“The mana stone… the Nepenthes’ nucleus… and that sword… collect them… cough.”
Yes, yes. A 4-star monster’s mana stone and nucleus should fetch an unimaginable amount of money. And that sword… for some reason, I have a feeling it’s expensive too. We should take what we can, everyone. It all belongs to us now.
“I’ll… take a little nap.”
Ah… I really can’t hold on any longer. I’ll sleep for a bit and then enjoy a satisfying settlement session!
“No… Commander! Please don’t close your eyes… Please… please!! Nooooo…!!”
“Hic… Commander…!”
“…Damn… it. Sniff…”
I could hear some kind of noise, but an overwhelming drowsiness washed over me. I surrendered to sleep.