episode_0086

black land.

In the wilderness, which was completely pitch black beyond the horizon, only thick fog was rising.

There was not a single living creature.

Insects were suffocating to death due to demonic energy, and all plants were drying out and falling apart.

Not even a single weed was left behind.

The only thing moving on the screen was a blonde boy holding a great sword.

…is it a polluted area? It’s a pretty harsh background.

Demonic energy, the harbinger and trace of monsters, erodes the world.

Until it becomes a barren land where life cannot be born.

Therefore, it was customary for the subjugation of monsters to always be accompanied by a priest who would perform miracles of purification.

Unlike insects or plants, humans can survive for a while in a contaminated area, but if they stay for a long time, they will eventually be eroded by demonic energy and die.

Therefore, in order to fight against monsters, you always had to have enough priests or have the skills to end it in a short decisive battle.

Damian’s complexion also looked a little more tired than usual.

It’s natural. Every time you breathe, you will feel like acrid energy seeping into your lungs.

And, the fog gathers in one place.

As if a drain leading under the ground had been opened, a black spiral swirled and descended.

Finally, the magic energy that collided with the ground exploded in all directions.

A black storm raged.

Damien covered his face with his left arm.

yet.

– Ugh…!

It raises the body.

Is it about 2m in size? It was a shape that resembled a human being, but it was not a human being.

A monster that moves with a skeletal body, rotten internal organs as tendons, and attached demon energy as muscles.

The two legs are strangely bent, possibly from a horse’s leg bones.

A human skull is placed where the pelvis should be.

The spine and ribs connected to the skull continued like a tail behind it.

The spine, which was bent forward, had small horns sprouting from every joint, and six pairs of human arm bones with fingers instead of ribs were constantly writhing.

The half-rotted horse’s skull, placed where the head should be, rattles with its blue eyes glowing.

Instead of arms, entangled tentacle-like intestines hung from both shoulders.

There was a rusty sword entangled at the end of the tentacle of the intestines.

Is it a command bell? It’s so disgusting.

Milia, who was looking at the screen, swallowed her saliva.

“Everyone pay attention. That is a monster. Command bell, ‘mixed remains’. It is a small monster that mainly appears in old battlefields.”

Kaline calmly continued his explanation.

” Since it is a small species, it can be subdued by deploying five or six knights… However, due to the nature of the spirit species, it will not be easy if you do not have the assistance of a priest or prepare appropriate countermeasures in advance.”

Damian doesn’t have that kind of means right now.

…I don’t think I can win. After all, it is a command bell. It would have been better if it was a hybrid strain.

Or, did you choose that on purpose? To emphasize the danger of monsters?

Whatever it is, yeah. It must be fun to see.

I looked at the finally completed form of the monster with interest.

“Gaaa!”

The remains roar.

The human hands forming the ribs were pointed towards the sky as if praying.

The boy, clutching a great sword, rushed towards the monster.

—-

You probably know the technique called variation.

A piece of music that repeats the same melody endlessly, with slight variations.

It was playing.

Using bone fragments, internal organs, bloodshed, and screams as musical notes.

– Quang!

Damian dodged the sword that hit like a whip.

The rusty sword that hit the floor bounced elastically and chased after him.

“Pfft…!”

Damian, who blocked the attack with the blade of his sword, swung his greatsword again.

The arm of the intestines was cut off in an instant, scattering black liquid.

And, it continues again.

Black smoke rises from the cut, returning the severed arm.

Just like before.

“Ugh…”

The rusty whip is swung again.

It is said that the tip of a whip can exceed the speed of sound even if a person swings it.

Damian, who had blocked the attack three or four times, was thrown backwards and rolled on the floor.

Damian jumps up and rushes again.

It’s the right choice. First of all, I had to keep a close range at all times.

If that monster’s attack method is to swing its arms like a whip, then inside is the safest place.

It bends its upper body to let go of the tentacles targeting its head, then touches the ground and digs in like a swallow.

The tentacle at the end of the great sword was cut into pieces, creating a gap for a moment.

“Haaa!”

Damian slashed his greatsword vertically. Aiming for the monster’s head, the half-rotten horse’s skull.

And it gets blocked.

– Quad deuk!

If you stick a shovel into a gravel field, will it make a sound like this?

The movement of the great sword stopped with the overlapping sound of crushing.

Twelve arms lined up like ribs held Damian’s sword.

Ten arms broke apart like cookies, but when it finally reached the last two arms, the sword attack used up its strength first.

And play.

Twelve arms hold the sword tightly.

“Fall…fall!”

Damian let go of the handle and shifted his weight to kick the great sword.

The blade soared in recoil, breaking the tangled bones and breaking free from the restraints.

He grabs the great sword again and cuts off his head. The horse’s head flew through the air.

Ah, that was a misjudgment.

Because it’s different from a troll.

The next moment, the monster with its head cut off pounced on Damian.

Damian fell out with a single groan.

okay. Trolls belong to living creatures, so if their head is cut off, they cannot regenerate themselves and they soon die.

However, nemesis species are dead to begin with. The neck was not a particularly weak point for them.

Since there was no way to stop the restoration, the only way to kill the spirit species was to destroy it again and again until it could not regenerate.

Fortunately, it’s not a ghost lineage.

That means the attack wouldn’t have worked at all.

The battle continues.

Damian’s great sword breaks the leg bone of the monster, and the tail swung by the monster hits Damian.

The monster soon regenerates and Damian stands up again.

The wounds were gradually increasing on his body.

A wound cut by a rusty sword, or rather torn off.

A bruise caused by a bone being struck. Even the lacerations caused by rolling on the floor.

The color of his face was also stained with black essence and demonic energy, making it mottled.

“Damian…”

Milia muttered as if she felt sorry.

Well, no matter how much of a fantasy it is, I would be worried to see them suffering to that extent.

There was no reaction when the other students’ heads were pulled out.

“As you can see, if you go into battle against a commanding species without the appropriate means…even if you have sufficient skills, it is easy to end up in failure.”

Professor Kaline calmly continued his explanation.

The students watched Damian’s struggle without blinking.

Watch carefully. Because that is your future.

Damian, who suddenly became a teaching material, was rolling around pitifully on screen.

—-

Eighty minutes.

The battle lasted a whopping eighty minutes.

“Uuuu…”

The monster’s body collapses.

Bone fragments that can no longer be repaired crumble and spill out, and internal organs rot and ooze out.

The horse’s skull, rolling on the floor, was broken into two pieces and let out its last groan.

A young blue flame slowly faded from the eye sockets.

After a fierce battle that lasted over an hour, surprisingly it was Damian who finally won.

Although his demeanor was not that of a winner.

Broken greatsword. Severed left arm. A shattered leg bone.

His entire body was stained with demon energy and turned black, and one of his eyes was torn off and bloody tears were flowing out.

“If you get hurt that much, you would usually wake up a long time ago due to fear and pain… You always seem to be a very strong-willed cadet. His skills are better than expected.”

Instructor Kaline also could not hide his admiration.

Yes, if you are a future hero, you will have to show that level of grit.

I also felt good inside.

It was quite an encouraging achievement to have already won against the Commander-in-Chief.

As expected, it was rewarding to have Friede beat me up.

I guess I’ll ask Nigel too later.

At the same time as the monster disappears, the contaminated area disappears gradually, starting from the corners.

It’s not a pollution that will disappear automatically, so it’s probably going to be changed to the next background.

Sure enough, the screen started to get darker.

—-

The background of the fourth battle was an ordinary grassland.

A field of shallow grass and weeds spread out in the middle of the day.

Damian, who had been kneeling and panting, got up again.

Perhaps it was just a dream, but the broken sword and the wounds on his entire body had already recovered completely.

Even the mental power that was consumed may not have returned.

“Now that I think about it, Professor, who is your next opponent? The monster must have already been defeated. Will another monster appear again?”

One student asked Professor Kaline a question.

“No. The monster prepared only one thing. I thought ‘mixed remains’ alone would be enough to use for this lecture. That is, so to speak, an unexpected situation.”

Professor Kaline shook his head.

Well, it would have been hard to expect that there would be an opponent in the first year that could fight and defeat the commandant until he died of exhaustion.

“Then, there are probably enemies that can appear… Ah, yes. I’ll show you who he fears the most. Just like the original essence of nightmares.”

Who are you most afraid of?

I can’t even guess what’s coming. Is it Natalia?

If I had participated, at least the final boss would have appeared…

It’s a good thing I didn’t do it. I couldn’t do it anyway.

And then the enemy appeared.

“Oh…!”

The classroom was very commotion.

Everyone was astonished. Even Professor Kaline and Millia.

And me too.

The enemies that appeared were not monsters, monsters, or at least beastmen.

A human being covered in red flesh all over his body and emitting blue light from his eyes.

A warrior wearing scale armor and holding a blue-silver long sword in his right hand.

With the fierce force that erupts like a windstorm, the roughly tied hair rises into the air and flutters.

The air becomes distorted with every step.

The surrounding weeds were twisted and torn apart.

It showed its fangs and grinned like a devil.

It was me.

…No, why am I out there?