Bursting the Organization's Head
Kwaaaang!
"Hm?!"
The moment Tiny grimaced at the feral killing intent laced through the roar and the prickling demonic energy crawling over his skin.
Crack.
With an unpleasant bursting sound, a massive tree came crashing down right toward him.
He dodged it effortlessly.
"Kyaooo!"
From in front leaped a hulking monster over three meters tall, its red eyes gleaming. It vaguely resembled a human, but its mottled green skin was grotesquely hideous—a bipedal abomination. And with two heads, no less. It swung a massive axe that looked terrifying even at a glance.
"Kyaooo!"
"Tch!?"
Kwaaaang.
Rumble rumble.
Tiny hurled himself aside to evade the axe, and the ground where he'd stood split open a good ten meters or so.
"Grrr."
The monster glared down at Tiny with chilling red eyes, clearly displeased that its attack had missed.
'Twin Head Troll...'
Tiny's gaze locked not on the beast, but on the enormous axe it had aimed at him. It looked too finely forged to be natural—clearly made specifically for a monster to wield.
'...Definitely has an owner.'
A mana beast, a monster, wielding a human weapon. And this one seemed to surpass monster rank 4 with ease. Rank 4 meant it would take several mana users or mages of equal level to take down without casualties. A variant with two heads and its own dedicated weapon? Effectively rank 5 territory.
And that wasn't all.
- Kill it no matter what!
A repulsive, reverberating voice echoed from afar. Its source was surely the one controlling the beast. If a black mage was boosting this thing's power on top of that...
'...Things just got more troublesome. Wolrang, take that bastard down!'
The moment his will stirred, Wolrang vanished from beneath his feet and streaked past the monster like the wind.
"Kyaruk."
The baffled monster ignored the vanished Wolrang and swung its axe at the target right in front of it once more.
Paaang!
Thud.
Craaaack.
The obliquely descending axe cleaved the earth in two. Astonishingly, the force behind it far exceeded Tiny's expectations.
'Doesn't matter if it doesn't hit!'
Reading the monster's large wind-up, Tiny easily dodged and swung his Stamp in a mighty arc at its left knee.
Thud.
Wooduuuuduk.
"Kyaaaak!"
Thump.
The monster let out a wretched scream and dropped to one knee.
"Die!"
Seizing the opening, Tiny spun his warhammer high, aiming for the left head.
But unexpectedly.
"Kraaaah!"
Roaring, its eyes flashing red, the monster yanked its axe into the path of the Stamp to block the strike.
Kwaaaang!
"Kieeeek!"
"...Tch."
Tiny clicked his tongue as he was pushed back by the thunderous clash of Stamp and axe.
'Can't end it in one shot, huh.'
Bracing for a drawn-out fight, he separated the haft of his Stamp.
"Kyaaak!"
In that instant, red energy surged over the troll's skin, and it closed the distance in a blur—far faster than before. Its pulverized left knee had healed as if it were a lie.
"Tch!"
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Craaack crack.
Rumble rumble.
The axe hammered down in rapid succession, eyes spinning with speed, each blow far more powerful than before, turning the surroundings into chaos. Tiny, who'd been waiting for an opening, was reduced to pure evasion—no chance to counterattack.
'Damn, faster than I thought.'
Trolls ranked as stage 4 monsters despite their high regeneration and strength because their movements were slow and they lacked special techniques. But that was exactly why.
Berserk.
The instant they sensed danger, they exploded their physical abilities—including regeneration—several times over in a frenzy. That's why hunters usually finished them with overwhelming firepower in one hit or via ambush.
'Too late for that now...'
He'd suspected as much from the two heads, but this one's berserk state was on another level.
'...Doesn't mean I can't take it down.'
If he was willing to risk it, he could trust Ironclad's defense to deflect an attack at an angle and immediately smash its head. It was a tactic he'd used against tough foes in his past life, and it had worked plenty of times.
But he had another option now.
'Wait out the berserk...!'
Its massive size meant huge telegraphed swings—perfectly readable. That made it feasible.
Thud!
Rumble rumble.
The lethal momentum that could kill just from a graze was enough to make anyone shrink back, no matter how confident in their speed.
'...But I'm no rookie.'
As long as he stayed sharp, it didn't apply to him. Nerves on edge, he dodged every savage strike that fell like crimson lightning.
But had he provoked it too much?
"Kyaaaak!"
Enraged, yellow smoke suddenly billowed from both mouths, blanketing the area.
"Ugh!?"
The moment he accidentally inhaled a bit, his head spun. His Mana Body reflexively maxed out detoxification to break down the toxin, but he still staggered briefly.
'Damn it! What the hell...?'
And in that instant, the red-energized axe blade plummeted toward his head.
Sensing it was too late to dodge, Tiny gritted his teeth.
"Hah!"
Thud.
His body, suddenly weighted to the max, shook the ground. Channeling his full body weight, he slammed the Stamp into the axe's flat side.
Kwaaaang!
"Kiruk!?"
He caught a glimpse of bewilderment on the monster's face as it was shoved sideways along with its axe. It was a split-second improvisation, but the artifact's weight amplification, shock amplification, and gravity attribute combined for destructive power that surprised even him.
'Stamp's the best! Gravity attribute's the best!'
Cheering inwardly, Tiny lightened his weight and shot forward like an arrow.
Kwaang.
Wooduk.
His blow shattered the left knee again, bones visibly crumbling this time.
"Kieeeek!"
But the variant troll, its skin now even redder, regenerated bone and flesh in seconds and swung its axe anew.
'Damn, how...!'
Even for a Twin Head Troll, this was ridiculous.
'...Must have some magical enhancement.'
By the time Tiny's ominous hunch solidified, the attacks were accelerating.
Thud. Thud. Kwaaang!
Rumble rumble.
"Kyaaaak!"
But dodging nimbly with every swing drove it into hysterics. Frustrated by Tiny's untouchable form, its eyes burned an almost aflame red. The forest began to lay in ruins from its increasingly ferocious rampage.
'Just a bit more! Just a bit more!'
Tiny felt cold sweat trickle down his back as he barely evaded, but a feral grin spread across his paling face.
He'd noticed the berserk's toll—its energy nearly depleted. Its oily skin was drying out, flaky. And right on cue, a signal from Wolrang hit his soul: the beast tamer hunt was successful.
'Good boy, Wolrang!'
"Kreuek!?"
The moment the tamer's link snapped, the berserking monster's movements slowed dramatically. Without the tamer's demonic energy to fuel its exhaustion, its earth-shattering axe swings lost their speed.
Tiny's eyes flashed as he kicked off the ground, ever watchful for his chance.
"It's over now!"
Thud.
"Kek!?"
One stomp compacted the churned earth solid with immense weight. Riding the recoil, Tiny leaped lightly and swung the Stamp with all his might.
Kwaaaaaaaaaang!
Ruuuuumble.
The black hammer fell like lightning, smashing between the necks, pulverizing the torso, and embedding into the ground.
His full-power Meteor Strike crushed the superior monster in an instant—leagues beyond the test swing before leaving Valentia.
Thud.
"Kirrr...."
With its body scattered, only two heads and four limbs remained; the troll's death rattle was pathetically feeble.
Tiny, staggering briefly from the all-out exertion, exhaled sharply and unleashed a weak shockwave outward.
Paaang!
Using mana, he shook off the troll's blue blood coating him in one go.
"Hoo...."
The relieved sigh naturally curved into a thrilling grin.
"Perfect!"
He felt the battle's experience etch into his body. Fights with strong foes threatened life, but survival bred growth. For Tiny, who inscribed it real-time via his Mana Body secret art, the gains were amplified.
'Now that I'm an Expert, one real fight like this beats months of training.'
His confident laugh might terrify onlookers. Standing amid the blood-soaked carnage of his making, grinning triumphantly—it was downright eerie.
"Wait, Enaxen's not far... Wanna take this in?"
But the truly scary part was...
"No way a beast like this popped up randomly. The local guild must have a bounty. At this rank, probably..."
...his cool-headed opportunism amid the slaughter.
* * *
Under Wolrang's paws, the man had stayed composed at first. Even blustered.
"Puhahaha! Your master's already dead! Know that!? Then you'll be left with just a fist-sized core, and the organization will come reclaim it. You dumb bastard! Puhaha!"
But when the black-haired boy approached lugging two troll heads the size of his torso.
The man's face drained white; he dropped to his knees.
"P-Please spare me!! I-I was just following orders!"
The pale middle-aged man turned ashen, prostrating desperately.
Tiny grinned slyly down at him.
"Of course! Why would someone just following orders be guilty? Poor uncle. With your beast dead, you can't even report back to the organization, right?"
"Y-Yes! P-Please just spare me. I'll give you everything I have! H-Here!"
He emptied his pockets, stripped naked, and clasped his hands in frantic plea.
Tiny tsked pityingly.
"Tsk tsk, why strip? It's ugly—put your clothes back on, uncle. I just need info."
"R-Really?"
"Sure! But no lies, got it? If you do... my boy's got a nose for that scent. You know what I mean?"
"...Of course, of course!"
Missing Wolrang's head-tilt, the man nodded eagerly, face flushed.
"Alright... First, why try to kill me?"
At the oddly smiling question, the man rapidly spilled.
And some time later.
"So... your organization's base is in the Free City Union's lawless city, and the market lord's the boss?"
"Yes, exactly!"
"You got summoned by magic message, originally a bandit gang active in the eastern empire?"
"Y-Yes! So sharp, sir!"
As Tiny confirmed each detail the man blurted, he bobbed his head, face brightening. Tiny's smile seemed fully convinced.
But Tiny's thoughts differed.
"Then it's all lies."
"...Pardon?"
"The market lord has nothing to do with you, you've never operated in the empire—eastern or otherwise—and definitely no bandits. The rest is too trivial to mention... Right?"
"W-What are you suddenly...?"
The man looked mortally wronged, but.
"Heard you lot's heads explode if you spill secrets? Some curse magic...?"
Tiny's sly grin froze the man's face.
"Oh, that expression says it's true. I just smash first and ask never, so I didn't know."
"...Haha. M-Must be a misunderstanding."
He forced a laugh, trying excuses, but.
"Misunderstanding my ass... Don't wanna die? Spill every 'lie' you know. What's left is truth."
The boy's cold expression brooked no denial.
And shortly after.
"What's the organization up to in Carun?"
"Nothing! I...!"
"Lie."
"......"
"Know the HQ location?"
"Yes, I...!"
"Don't."
"......"
With each one-sided Q&A, the man's face paled further. But irritation crept into Tiny's.
"Uncle, you really know jack shit!"
"Y-Yes... I'm just a grunt, I swear! P-Please spare me!"
Weeping now, he groveled. But Tiny's black eyes stared unblinking at his chest.
'A 4th circle black mage's just a grunt? Organization's bigger than I thought.'
At this level, controlling a variant troll was probably a hack.
"S-Sorry!"
"Uncle, answer one right and I'll really spare you. Know what your organization's doing in Carun? Think hard. Last chance."
"......D-Don't."
Under the icy gaze, he muttered resignedly. Tiny's eyes lit up.
"Trying to lure the Kraken?"
"Pardon?"
"...You really don't know this one."
"Kraken...? Why bring up a legendary beast...?"
"Shut it, uncle. Stealing a holy relic then?"
The man's face turned to dirt.
"H-How...?"
"Good, you know that. Now answer properly. Who's in charge? Spill the top guy you know—position and name. Ah, subjective, so no reverse lies. Speak straight?"
"......Y-You said you'd spare me?"
"Mm... Talk, and I will."
His casual reply flushed the man red with rage.
"You know I'll die anyway!!"
Tiny grinned murderously, grabbing his collar.
"Gek, khek. L-Let... go..."
"How many died to make those filthy four circles in your chest? Sold your soul? Then how many more after?"
Killing intent seized the man's soul; his eyes rolled back, foam bubbling from his mouth.
Only then did Tiny tsk and release him like trash.
"Heuk, huuk. Kkulk."
Irredeemable scum, but he needed to coax out info first.
"Listen up, uncle. That head-exploding curse if you spill secrets? I only heard rumors too. You never saw it either, right?"
Seeing the man's eyes waver, Tiny cheered inwardly.
'Never actually seen it, huh?'
Keeping calm, he continued.
"Think about it. Sounds like bullshit, doesn't it? Your bosses aren't watching grunts 24/7. Magic curse? Sure, possible. But who wastes high-end curses on trash like you?"
Pushing him to the brink with venomous intent, while dangling slim hope.
His silver tongue made the absurd logic sound plausible—even to a man who'd never buy it otherwise.
And finally.
"Just name and position. No—name only! Your boss. Then you're free. No location needed."
At the sweet final offer, the man's lips parted.
"All I know is......"
Moments later, in the ruined forest's corner lay the man's body, neck down intact, rotting away. As if his head had burst.