episode_0007

Silently masking his footsteps and erasing any presence, he tracked the young Great Eagle.

Even if hidden in the thicket, getting too close would surely be sensed instinctively, so he maintained a distance of 3 meters and followed slowly.

After a few minutes, the Great Eagle stopped walking.

At the spot where it halted, there was a small puddle formed by rainwater collecting in a shallow pit in the ground.

“Is it here for hydration?”

The Great Eagle cautiously surveyed its surroundings in front of the puddle.

It was checking for predators.

I gripped the hilt of my longsword tightly, holding my breath.

How much time passed?

Soon, the unalarmed Great Eagle relaxed and dipped its beak into the puddle to drink.

-Chapchapchapchap!

Drinking water made one vulnerable, so it seemed to be hastily sucking it in.

“Now’s the time! It has to be now!”

The situation was perfect for a surprise attack.

I took a deep breath.

Now, I would rush forward and pierce the Great Eagle’s throat with the longsword in my hand.

Even though it was a juvenile, the feathers of the Great Eagle were as tough as copper. So, I aimed for the neck.

What was needed was a swift execution of one of the three basic sword techniques, the first form of Thunder Swordsmanship, ‘Stabbing,’ taught by Eilis.

I prepared to spring forward by raising the back end of my foot.

If I waited a little longer, the Great Eagle would stop drinking, so I had to act faster.

I counted silently in my mind.

5 seconds.

4 seconds.

3 seconds.

As the number approached 1, my heart raced faster.

…2 seconds.

Finally.

1 second…!

“Now!”

With the momentum from setting my hind foot, I charged fiercely towards the young Great Eagle.

“….!”

The Great Eagle seemed to notice me faster than expected.

In my haste, I quickly rotated to the left, using the recoil to thrust the sword like a fencing move.

-Shiiieeek!

-Thud!

“Kkieeeek-!”

“Darn it!”

The young Great Eagle narrowly dodged by moving its head at the last moment.

“All because of this sluggish body…!”

Should have gone on a diet a bit more.

Thanks to that, the tip of the sword only lightly pierced its tough skin.

The Great Eagle, with damaged wing muscles, let out a painful groan as it flapped its wings frantically.

“Kkieeek! Kkieeeek!”

“Aargh, aargh. Don’t move!”

Desperately, the Great Eagle flapped its wings to pull out the embedded sword.

Blood spurted from the wound, splattering in all directions.

I struggled against the Great Eagle’s strength as it tried to free the stuck sword, wielding it back and forth with both hands.

“Aargh! You, damn it!”

With all my might, I pulled out the sword.

Simultaneously, I swung the sword to strike the Great Eagle’s neck.

A vertical cut.

This was the basic sword technique I practiced 10,000 times every day for this moment. There was no room for error.

-Whooosh!

-Thud!

“….!”

“Kkieeek!”

It missed. The sword struck the ground emptily.

“Damn it! Because of this damn body…!”

Despite having one damaged wing, the creature displayed incredible agility.

“Kkieeeek!”

The Great Eagle fled deeper into the forest, howling.

“Is it trying to call for reinforcements…!”

This couldn’t go on. If the other Great Eagles, which were feasting on the deer carcass earlier, joined in, I would be in danger.

“I can’t let that happen! I’ve been waiting for this day… Let’s see who wins for real!”

I chased after the Great Eagle like a madman.

“Gasp, cough-!”

“Kkieeek!”

Perhaps due to being young, even giving it my all, its pace matched my chubby body.

But because of that, the distance between us did not close.

“Kkieeek!”

“Kkiek! Kkieeek!”

Dozens of Great Eagles began pursuing me from behind.

It was a crisis.

“There’s no other way…!”

I successfully caught a Great Eagle, but I will be surrounded by many Great Eagles even if I succeed.

It’s better to catch it quickly and run away.

As I walked through the forest at full speed, slashing tree branches with a knife, I reached into my pocket and pulled out a Ganryeoncho root.

Before entering the academy, I tried not to eat much to maintain the best physical condition…

Just as I was about to force the Ganryeoncho into my mouth.

“Huh?”

“Squawk! Squaaaawk!”

The fledgling Great Eagle that was fleeing made a U-turn and started running back towards me.

‘…What’s going on?’

I don’t know what’s happening, but this is an unparalleled opportunity.

Putting the Ganryeoncho back in my pocket, I gripped the longsword with both hands and assumed a stance.

*Exhales slowly…*

I took a deep breath and stopped.

This time, I won’t fail. I opened my eyes wide and focused on the fledgling Great Eagle running towards me.

And from afar, I spotted the pitiful neck of the young Great Eagle.

I positioned my elbows at right angles, pulling the sword above my head slightly diagonally.

*Exhales deeply…*

When it approached close to my face,

I calmly exhaled the held breath and swung the sword.

Vertical slash.

– Whoosh!

– Swish!

“Squawk….”

*Thud. Thududuk.*

The cleanly severed head of the fledgling Great Eagle rolled on the lush earth.

The flowing blood between its neck dyed the blade red.

– Shriek!

Using the strength of my wrist, I flicked off the blood from the sword in one go.

‘There’s no time to hesitate now. I must grab the body of the Great Eagle and run away quickly!’

As I prepared to run again,

Something strange happened.

“…? Why aren’t they chasing me?”

The dozens of Great Eagles that were chasing me were standing about 10 meters away, staring blankly.

“……?”

…A sense of foreboding crept in for a moment.

The path where the fledgling Great Eagle was running towards.

I slowly turned my head in the opposite direction.

And in that moment before fully turning my head.

“Kiiirurururu-!”

A tremendous high-pitched noise struck my eardrums from the direction I was trying to turn.

“Ugh!”

Covering both ears with my hands, I squinted and strained to look in the direction of the sound.

“What….”

And then I realized.

The reason the fledgling Great Eagle had made a sudden U-turn at full speed wasn’t just madness, but there was a valid reason.

There was a monster.

Unknowingly, the Great Eagles that had been chasing me had fled upon hearing the monster’s cry.

I turned my head to look at the monster.

Muscular legs reminiscent of a horse.

Yellow bird-like feet with five claws that didn’t match the legs.

Horns on the head, a torso covered in white feathers like a seagull, contrasting with a brown mammal-like lower body.

On its back were enormous wings that resembled an angel despite covering the entire torso.

“…This is bad.”

That monster was a Gryphon.

My mistake! Did I unwittingly venture so deep that they followed me here?!

I understood the actions of the fledgling Great Eagle.

If it didn’t want to die, it would try to leave the invaded territory.

Between the Gryphon and me, who would be scarier?

Of course, it would be the Gryphon.

So it must have run towards me.

With a wry smile, I suddenly gripped the sword and assumed a stance facing the Gryphon.

This is really bad.

Now, what should I do?

Just as the Gryphon seemed to prepare for an attack,

Strangely, the Gryphon wasn’t looking at me.

It felt like it was looking at something else.

‘…What’s going on again?’

I clearly trespassed into its territory.

Yet, it’s not looking at me?

The dense bushes obscured my view, and I could only see the Gryphon’s legs and torso.

Perplexed, I cautiously leaned my head forward to see exactly who or what the Gryphon was looking at.

‘…!’

When I raised my head, I saw a woman collapsed next to the griffin.

She lay there in a battered state, glaring at the griffin.

“Ugh…!”

With her long ponytail of glossy black hair, eyes as blue and icy as crystals, and a strikingly mature and beautiful appearance that belied her age of 15, she exuded an air of arrogance.

…She was someone very familiar to me. I knew that woman.

“A swordplay maniac, Aria?!”

Aria Silvesta.

One of the heroines targeted by the protagonist.

Initially, she interacted with the protagonist to receive guidance on his genius sword skills but gradually realized her feelings for him.

“Why is she here?!”

It seemed like a dire situation.

She should be at the academy….

I’ve never completed the heroine quest, so I didn’t know what Aria did during vacations.

Given her obsession with swords, she was probably training in swordsmanship during breaks… or so I guessed.

“Was she really challenging the griffin one-on-one here?!”

How sincere must one be about swordsmanship and strength to try to capture a griffin at the age of fifteen?

“Ugh…, ugh….”

Aria struggled to even catch her breath, barely managing to prop herself up with her sword.

Torn fabric scattered around from the griffin’s claws.

Fear etched on her delicate and beautiful face.

It was undeniably a dangerous situation.

“Kikirurururu-!”

In contrast, the enraged griffin was gradually approaching Aria.

‘…What should I do?’

Should I help?

Her life is in danger. But…

If I intervene, I might also be at risk.

Not long ago, I felt threatened by dozens of Great Eagles.

Would my involvement make any difference?

Perhaps it would be more advantageous to seize this opportunity to grab a Great Eagle’s corpse and flee.

As I pondered over these thoughts,

“…Damn it!”

Aria struggled to her feet, gripping her sword. She was trying to confront the approaching griffin forcefully.

“Kikiru…”

The griffin raised its sharp foreleg as if in disdain.

As if sparing no effort, it lightly struck Aria with its muscular foreleg, almost brushing her off.

For Aria, that slight strike was as fatal as being hit by a bear.

-Screaaam!

“Aaargh!”

‘…!’

Blood gushed from Aria’s arms as they were slashed.

-Dengang! Deeng!

Losing strength, Aria fell once more, her dropped sword rolling on the ground.

“Ah… damn it….”

It’s no use.

I should have just stayed put, fixed my equipment, and lived.

I reached into my pocket for a Strong Herbal Pill, thinking,

…This damn meddling.

Why am I always like this?

Is it because of my deceased younger sister?

Every time I see women in trouble, my sister’s image overlaps, and actions precede thoughts.

“Sis! Let’s go on a trip when I earn lots of money! I want to go to Japan! Japanese ramen! Japanese tonkatsu!”

My younger sister, who had always admired Japanese culture.

Working tirelessly to send her to Japan, I climbed the corporate ladder to a deputy position.

But my sister died of cancer, and here I am fooling around in a game world.

“Kikiru?”

“…Huh?”

I stuffed all the Strong Herbal Pills into my mouth and chewed.

-Eujik!

I could feel my blood rushing through my body, gathering explosively.

-Dukung!

A surge of heat spread throughout my body due to the Strong Herbal Pill.

Approaching Gryphon slowly, he raised his sword.

“Kkirururururu!”

Gryphon, visibly enraged by my intrusion into its territory for the second time, fiercely flapped its wings repeatedly.

I gripped my sword and adjusted my stance.

The bodily transformation would soon take place.

After consuming all that fur, I wasn’t sure what tremendous side effects might follow.

Perhaps now was the time to create a brief opportunity to escape.

“Foolish Confucius…? No, but the physique… or is it not?”

Ignoring the woman who spoke to me while lying down, I advanced towards Gryphon, aiming my sword at it slowly.