Hero's Adventure Chronicle (5): The Hero's Plummet to Earth
The Hero plummeted toward the ground. As he rapidly closed in on the earth below, he steadied his stance, slamming his greatsword into the dirt to absorb the impact before glaring up at the wyvern hovering in the sky.
The wyvern, airborne and locking eyes on the Hero, stared right back. Sure, the Hero could leap into the air, but he couldn't fly freely like a wyvern, so this wouldn't be an easy fight. He could launch slashing attacks, of course, but their power diminished with distance, and their straight-line trajectory made them easy to dodge.
If it had been any other foe instead of a wyvern, it probably wouldn't have taken long.... Hmm.... What would the Hero do? Thinking back to how it had writhed in agony when he'd stabbed its tail, it was clear this one carried a fragment of darkness....
While keeping a wary eye on the wyvern, the Hero scanned his surroundings, then swung his greatsword a few times to chop down several trees. He hoisted one up and—get this—hurled it straight at the wyvern.
Thanks to physical enhancement from his mana, the tree rocketed toward the wyvern in a straight line. Of course, a mere tree couldn't hurt a wyvern—especially one empowered by a fragment of darkness.
The wyvern swatted it away with its tail like it was a joke, shattering the thick trunk into splinters in an instant. But the impact must have irritated the wound on its tail, because the wyvern let out a screech of pain.
"Kieeeek!!!"
What the heck was that? That dumb lizard.
But the Hero didn't stop, chucking tree after tree in rapid succession. Some veered off course, others clipped the wyvern's body, but none did any real damage. The wyvern, realizing the logs couldn't hurt it, started ignoring them.
"Hup!"
Too late, it noticed the Hero riding the final log as it hurtled toward it. He'd probably jumped on right after throwing it. I'd seen villains pull that stunt in old comics....
"Grrrrrr!!"
Spotting the incoming Hero, the wyvern desperately spewed fire from its maw.
"Haat!"
Balanced atop the flying log, the Hero swung his greatsword, cleaving the fireball in two. The halves exploded behind him, the blast propelling him even faster toward the wyvern. His blade arced toward its head.
"Kyaaah!"
The wyvern jerked back, dodging the greatsword. But the Hero had anticipated that, spinning in midair to unleash a slashing wave. It tore a long gash across the wyvern's wing membrane.
"Yes! Drop!!"
"Kieeeek!!!"
With one wing membrane shredded, the wyvern couldn't fly anymore—it was no different from a grounded bipedal lizard. Crashing down was inevitable.
The battle that followed turned the area into a wasteland of devastation.
"Kyaaaaah!!"
Now fully aware that the Hero's sword could slice through its hide effortlessly, the wyvern never took its eyes off the blade, spewing fire to attack.
"Haat!"
The Hero cleaved the fireballs apart and charged without hesitation. The scattered flames ignited trees around them, spreading like a wildfire, but he pressed on undeterred. He closed in under the wyvern's jaw and swung.
The strike merely grazed it as the wyvern reared back its head. But that glancing blow must have hit a bad spot, because the wyvern unleashed a horrific screech.
"Kiaaaaaaaaah!!!!"
"Shut up!!!"
The Hero seized the opening, slashing at the wyvern's body. He carved its hide, severed its tail, snapped its horns—a brutal melee. The wyvern fought back fiercely with claws, slamming its half-severed tail, snapping with its jaws, but the Hero overwhelmingly dominated.
Once it lost the advantage of the skies, the wyvern's victory was as good as gone.
And—
Schwick!
In the end, only decapitation awaited it. Well, par for the course. Unlike other lesser dragons, wyverns had wings. They sacrificed thick, heavy scales and powerful, weighty muscles and bones for a sleek, aerodynamic body optimized for flight—and a relatively fragile one at that. Without its wings, it stood no chance against the Hero.
Sure, its fireballs were threatening, but the Hero could handle even the fireballs I launched.
"Hoo...."
The Hero gazed at the headless wyvern corpse, took a deep breath to steady himself, and slumped onto the dirt. Victory was sealed once he severed its greatest weapon—the wings—but the fight hadn't been a cakewalk.
Covered in ash from burned trees, exploded dirt, and wyvern blood, he was a total mess. He took a moment to rest, staring at the body. What was he thinking right now? If he weren't playing hooky, I'd be dying to ask.
After a short break, the Hero slowly stood, brushed off the grime and ash, slung his greatsword over his back, and headed back to the village now that the danger was dealt with.
Hmm.... When would he end his little runaway adventure? Beating a wyvern—even one tainted by darkness—meant no monster could touch him. I wished he'd wrap it up soon and kick off his real hero's journey.
With that, the Hero returned to the village.
What caught the Hero's eye was a massive serpent laying waste to a small village.
"What...?"
Oh. That snake.... It was still alive...?
I thought it died after taking a fireball from the wyvern and flying off.
"Tch!"
The Hero broke into a sprint. Leaving that thing unchecked would spell disaster—it was obvious.
From afar, the serpent slithered rapidly, chasing something. Ahead of it, a small figure was faintly visible—a girl, naturally.
A total wreck. Her shoulder bore a puncture wound like something had impaled her, her right arm dangled broken, yet she fled from the snake.
But her legs didn't carry her far.
"Kyaaak!"
She tripped over what looked like a root and tumbled across the ground.
"G-Gotta... run...."
She didn't give up. Using her still-intact left arm, she pushed against the dirt to rise.
But her left ankle was twisted at an unnatural angle.
"K-Kuhhh...."
Biting her lip hard, she held back tears. She had to run now, or that snake would devour her.
It knew she couldn't escape anymore and approached leisurely.
But her strength was fading, bit by bit. Her life force ebbed away.
The serpent, now close, gaped its massive jaws to swallow her whole.
Just as the girl teetered on death's door—
"Haat!"
A greatsword plunged from the sky, piercing the serpent's head.
Kwachik!
Bursting through tough scales, skull, and palate, the blade ended the snake in one strike.
"Ngh!"
The Hero yanked his sword free, leaped from the falling serpent, and rushed to the girl.
She was covered in wounds—no spot left unscathed. Her breathing grew fainter.
He hurriedly channeled his mana to activate his life force and poured it into her. Following the Life Goddess's teachings, he used his own vitality to heal another—a healing spell.
He unleashed it full force, mending even severe injuries swiftly, but her breaths only weakened. All wounds healed except the shoulder one. No—it was turning pitch black.
Poison. The giant serpent's fangs had sunk deep into her shoulder.
"Ngh.... Damn it...."
"C-Cold...."
Her voice was a faint whisper—not her usual torrent of words, but a fragile flutter like a butterfly's wing. The murmur of one nearing death's end.
"Damn it! Don't die! Don't you dare die!!"
"Ah, haha.... Sleepy...."
"No sleeping! You'll die if you sleep! Stay with me!"
"The famous... Hero.... You.... I'm... so... surprised...."
"Yeah! I'm the Hero! So don't die!!"
The Hero poured everything into the healing, but he couldn't stop her life from flickering out. He wailed in anguish.
"Sorry...."
And with that, another life faded away.