Chapter 53

Night Raid (2)

If I had let my guard down, then I'd let my guard down.

If I'd been complacent, then I'd been complacent.

That was what went through my mind as I stared into the golden eyes glowing in the darkness.

The most dangerous time in a forest was night.

Night, when every trace of light disappeared and only darkness remained.

Even so, I suffered less from the disadvantages of darkness than most.

For reasons I didn't understand, I could see through pitch-black darkness to some extent.

But right now, I couldn't help resenting that ability.

'What the fuck... How is something that big...?'

A pair of ominously glowing eyes shone within the darkness.

And because of my strange vision, I could clearly make out the creature they belonged to.

Overall, it resembled a tiger, except for the long fangs protruding from its mouth.

But what was truly terrifying was its size.

Its eyes were visible above the barricade standing in front of me.

For reference, the barricade the dwarf had given me was taller than I was.

Judging by height alone, this thing was easily well over two meters tall.

'A four-legged animal has a higher eye level than me...?'

That was absurd.

Then again, this was the Forest of Four Seasons.

Despair was already creeping over me, but another instinct forced it back.

The instinct to survive.

I tightened my grip on my sword and shield.

"Grrrr...!"

Maybe the tiger sensed my fighting spirit, because it growled threateningly.

It was obviously nothing more than a warning, yet my knees weakened and my entire body felt as though it were stiffening.

Good thing I'd had at least some time to mentally prepare myself.

If I'd run into it without warning, I might've fainted on the spot.

"Hoo. Hoo. Hoo."

I deliberately controlled my breathing.

The pressure it gave off was so overwhelming that if I didn't consciously focus on breathing, even that felt difficult.

Could I really fight that monster and win?

Just looking at it, it seemed far stronger than the mother Owlbear.

'Don't tell me the mother Owlbear moved her nest because of this thing?'

There was a good chance.

If she'd merely gone scouting, she wouldn't have taken Wonmo with her.

This bastard was practically a neighborhood tyrant.

Except this was the kind of tyrant who could kill you just by crossing paths with you.

I wanted to run away immediately, but I forced myself to stay put.

'Running now would be even more dangerous.'

Wonmo was still asleep inside the cave.

And the surroundings were still completely dark, meaning sunrise was a long way off.

Running wouldn't change the fact that I was in danger.

'Best-case scenario is that it decides to leave...'

Predators that relied on hunting tended to be cautious.

Hunting consumed a tremendous amount of energy, and if they got injured badly enough to lose the ability to hunt, starvation could easily follow.

That was why they generally backed off if they judged something to be too dangerous.

The problem was that the chances of this tiger deciding I was dangerous were pathetically low.

Just compare its size to mine.

Its eye level alone was at least a full head higher than mine.

Literally speaking, I was bite-sized.

There was only one thing I could do.

Fwoooosh—

I coated my sword and shield in aura.

Even in the darkness, blue wisps of energy rose around them.

It was like a hedgehog raising its spines.

If you wanted to hunt me, you'd better be prepared to get hurt.

Apparently, the tiger sensed something unusual from the aura, because it didn't immediately attack.

Instead, it prowled around outside the barricade.

'Thank god I put up that barricade.'

Without it, the tiger would've already been right in front of me.

Even if it attacked, it still had to get over the barricade first, which gave me at least some breathing room.

'Please leave. Please leave. Please leave.'

I prayed over and over in my head.

But the tiger simply continued prowling around the barricade.

Cold sweat ran down my cheeks, and my palms were drenched.

I had no idea how long that tense standoff lasted.

"Grrrrr...!"

The tiger suddenly stopped.

Then it slowly began backing away.

For a moment, relief washed over me because I thought it was retreating.

Then I realized something was wrong.

'Wouldn't it normally turn around if it were leaving?'

But the giant tiger was only walking backward.

Almost as if it were creating distance so it could leap over the barricade.

"Ah."

And sure enough—

Tap-tap!

"Fuck me."

At this rate, my head was going straight into that mouth.

And after that?

Could a body without a head even move?

Grip!

The tiger charged forward after backing up, then effortlessly leapt over the barricade.

For something so enormous, its jump was unbelievably agile and smooth.

Landing directly in front of me, the tiger radiated the overwhelming majesty of a true lord of the mountain.

"ROAR!"

The tiger opened its jaws wide and lunged at me.

Was it because of the pressure radiating from it?

Or was it the sheer terror of knowing I was genuinely about to die?

My breathing stopped.

My body wouldn't move.

It didn't even feel like my own body anymore.

'Move.'

I had to move.

But I couldn't.

'Move, damn it.'

I kept ordering myself.

But my body refused to obey my mind.

Before long, the jaws that looked capable of crushing my head in a single bite were right in front of my face.

Time seemed to slow down.

Then someone suddenly yanked on my clothes.

My balance shifted backward, forcibly pulling my body out of the way.

Snap!

It happened in an instant.

The tiger's enormous jaws snapped shut on empty air.

If I'd been even a fraction slower, they wouldn't have bitten air.

They would've bitten through my skull.

Thud!

"Urgh!"

The impact of falling on my ass brought sensation back into my body.

On top of that, I'd bitten my tongue when I fell.

The sharp pain seemed to shoot through my entire body.

"ROOOAR!"

The tiger's roar drilled into my eardrums.

I hurriedly looked up.

Normally, I'd expect it to follow up with another attack, but it didn't.

If anything, the opposite was happening.

It was shaking its head as though it were in pain.

I couldn't figure out what was happening, but this was an opportunity.

I hurried to my feet and took a fighting stance.

Only then did I see what was hurting the tiger.

Slash! Scratch!

It was Namu-Ppareumbo.

Namu-Ppareumbo had latched onto the tiger's face and was raking it with his claws.

The tiger swung its front paws around, desperately trying to knock him off.

But who was Namu-Ppareumbo?

This was an animal with eyesight and reflexes sharp enough to snatch a fired arrow out of the air.

Even a tiger would have trouble shaking him off easily.

Whoosh!

However, apparently even Namu-Ppareumbo couldn't overcome the sheer difference in size.

The tiger violently shook its head, sending him flying.

Fortunately, he flew in my direction, so I managed to catch him without any real trouble.

Though calling it "catching" was generous.

All I really did was adjust my position so he could land on my back easily.

'So this guy was the one who pulled me.'

Now I knew who had yanked my clothes.

Namu-Ppareumbo had saved my life.

I felt grateful for only a moment before turning my attention back to the tiger he'd been clinging to.

There were claw marks across its face, but the damage was minor.

'Right. I'm not dying here.'

I hadn't forgotten SwordMaster's advice.

Never stand still.

Keep your legs moving no matter what.

Just like it had worked against the giant crab, it seemed like it could work against this tiger too.

THOOM!

"Urgh...!"

But unlike the giant crab, this thing was agile.

The instant I tried to swing my sword, it lashed out with its massive front paw.

I barely managed to block with my shield, but the impact was horrifying.

'Don't forget to breathe. Draw out every bit of strength I have.'

While I was thinking, the tiger lunged at me fiercely.

The size difference was so extreme that even a casual swipe of its paw was a serious ordeal for me.

Whenever it brought a front paw down from above, I couldn't help staggering under the force.

Tap!

At least every time I dodged sideways, it exposed a small opening.

Whenever it opened its mouth wide to bite me, the motion was large.

As long as I could dodge, that created plenty of openings.

Slash!

"ROAR!"

"Ah."

The tiger and I each made different sounds.

The tiger let out a roar of pain.

I let out a disappointed groan.

I'd managed to cut it with my sword.

The problem was that the blade had only gone about halfway through.

The tiger's hide was far tougher than I'd imagined.

'Even with Heavenly Demon's sword coated in aura?'

No wonder the mother Owlbear had taken Wonmo and fled.

Still, more than half of its front paw had been severed.

Its combat ability should've dropped considerably.

If it tried swinging that paw again in its current state, it would probably tear the rest of it clean off...

"ROOOAR!"

"?!"

Something was wrong.

I'd clearly cut halfway through its front paw, so how the hell was it still swinging it?

I froze in confusion for only a moment before hurriedly raising my shield to protect myself.

CLANG!

"Urgh!"

The impact was far stronger than before.

My body lifted off the ground and went flying backward.

At least I didn't land directly on my back.

Namu-Ppareumbo, who was clinging to me, acted like a brake and softened the fall.

"ROOOAR!"

"Argh!"

The tiger didn't stop attacking.

I barely managed to roll away just before it pounced on top of me.

Namu-Ppareumbo escaped with his usual lightning-fast movements as well.

There was no follow-up attack.

Apparently, once the two of us split apart, the tiger hesitated over which one to attack first.

That gave me enough time to get back on my feet and regain my stance.

'No way! Did it regenerate?!'

I stared wide-eyed at the tiger's front paw.

The paw I'd cut halfway through had already been completely restored.

The same went for the scratches Namu-Ppareumbo had left across its face.

Every wound was gone.

Its durability was already monstrous enough, and now it had regeneration on top of that.

So that was why it had attacked even after I'd tried to intimidate it.

Any damage it took could simply be healed.

"This is bullshit."

"ROOOAR!"

As I muttered under my breath, the tiger opened its jaws wide and charged.

It seemed to have decided that killing me first was easier than going after the elusive Namu-Ppareumbo.

A perfectly rational decision.

But I had no intention of dying obediently.

'When I get an opening, I'll put everything into one strike.'

I wouldn't just cut halfway through.

I'd sever the limb completely.

Even with powerful regeneration, a severe wound like complete amputation should be harder to restore.

And if it could regenerate even from that...

Well, then I'd just have to bet everything on one final struggle.

THOOM!

The tiger's front paw slammed into my golden shield.

I'd braced myself beforehand, so I only slid backward slightly instead of being sent flying.

But blocking one attack wasn't enough.

The tiger fought with relentless persistence.

It never backed off.

'The barricade's behind me.'

As I kept retreating while defending myself, I eventually found my back pressed against the barricade.

The tiger apparently saw that as its chance and raised one front paw high into the air.

An opportunity.

I watched the paw descend until the very last moment.

Just before it struck me, I quickly spun to the right.

CRACK! CRUNCH!

The sturdy wooden barricade shattered into pieces.

If that paw had hit me properly, my head would've been crushed flat.

But it wasn't me that got crushed.

It was the barricade.

With the barricade taking the blow in my place, the tiger couldn't help staggering slightly.

"RAAAAGH!"

I put everything I had into attacking its front paw.

I poured mana into Heavenly Demon's sword.

The aura no longer looked like a faint haze.

It whipped around the blade like flame.

This would be enough.

SHNK!

"ROOOOAR!!"

And the result was excellent.

The tiger's right front paw was severed completely.

With one of the limbs supporting its enormous body gone, it should've lost its balance.

"ROOOAR!"

But the tiger was still going strong.

Even with its front paw gone, it maintained its balance and opened its jaws wide at me.

I'd let my guard down slightly.

It was too late to dodge.

Too late to block properly with the shield.

Instinctively, I thrust the arm holding the shield forward.

CLANG!

"Rrgh?!"

The golden shield went straight into the tiger's mouth.

It became wedged between its jaws.

The tiger itself seemed startled that a shield had gotten stuck inside its mouth.

It tried desperately to spit it out, but apparently it was wedged too tightly.

Its jaws repeatedly opened and closed around it.

'Now!'

I released the shield and gripped Heavenly Demon's sword with both hands.

Then I drove the blade straight into the tiger's neck.

STAB!

No matter how tough its hide was, piercing attacks were another matter.

The moment the sword sank into its neck, the tiger let out a scream of pain.

But with the golden shield firmly jammed inside its mouth, only a strange muffled sound came out.

I took advantage of that opening and forcibly twisted the sword buried in its neck.

SLLLICE!

The blade slowly began cutting through the tiger's neck.

I was gripping it with both hands, yet this was all I could manage.

The combination of the tiger's extreme durability and regeneration made even Heavenly Demon's sword coated in aura struggle to cut through it.

"GRRROAR!"

"AAARGH!"

The tiger began clawing at my body with its remaining front paw.

Its razor-sharp claws felt as though they were slicing my flesh into strips.

Thankfully, the uniform Princess Cheonggu had given me minimized the damage.

Even so, I could feel blood streaming beneath my clothes.

It felt like the tiger's claws were ripping chunks of flesh straight off my body.

"AAAAAAARGH!"

SLLLICE!

I moved the sword with both hands using every last ounce of strength I had.

It felt like cutting through hide and flesh.

The sensation was disgusting, but survival came first.

SPLURT!

Bright red blood erupted from the tiger's neck like a fountain.

Its blood began soaking my body.

Now it was a race against time.

Would the tiger shred my body apart first?

Or would I finish cutting through its neck first?

I clung desperately to the sword, determined to decapitate it completely.

CLATTER!

At that moment, I heard the sound of metal near my ear.

Without thinking, I turned toward it.

It was the golden shield, crushed beyond recognition and clearly at the end of its lifespan.

The same golden shield that had been lodged in the tiger's mouth.

Which meant the tiger had managed to spit it out.

"ROOOAR!"

CRUNCH!

And that meant its mouth was free.

More than free enough to bite me.

I twisted my body sharply.

"AAAAAARGH!"

It hurt.

It burned and hurt as though molten lava had been poured into the wound.

The tiger had bitten into my shoulder.

Its long fangs pierced straight through my body and came out the other side.

At least I'd twisted away in time, so it hadn't bitten my head.

"AAARGH! AAAAH!"

"GRRRR...!!"

Instead, my right shoulder was completely destroyed.

The bones were probably shattered too.

But I couldn't give up after coming this far.

I refused to let go of the sword.

With my right shoulder ruined, I could only use my left hand.

That was fine.

It wasn't as if both hands were useless.

'Please die. Just die already...!'

I'd clearly sliced open its neck, and blood had sprayed out like a fountain.

Yet the bastard kept struggling until the very end.

How much longer did I have to keep this up?

I could feel my consciousness gradually fading.

Just as the strength began draining from my body—

Something changed.

STAB!

"ROOOOAR!!"

The tiger that had been biting my shoulder suddenly lifted its head.

As it did, its fangs pulled free from my shoulder.

Wondering what the hell had happened, I looked up.

STAB! STAB!

Namu-Ppareumbo.

Namu-Ppareumbo was stabbing his sharp claws into the tiger's eyes.

No matter how monstrous the tiger was, even it couldn't remain calm while having its eyes gouged.

And with only one front paw left, it couldn't properly knock him off.

I froze for a moment, stunned.

Then I immediately seized the opportunity.

My left hand was still firmly gripping the sword.

'With this one strike...!'

The tiger had already lost its balance after losing a front paw.

This was the perfect moment to aim for its head.

"RAAAAAAGH!"

I waited until the tiger collapsed and rolled across the ground.

Then I thrust the sword directly toward the space between its eyes.

Namu-Ppareumbo seemed to understand what I intended, because he leapt away just before the thrust landed.

The tiger was still too preoccupied with regenerating its damaged eyes to respond.

"Grrr...!"

Before long, its eyes recovered.

The tiger shook its head and regained its senses.

But perhaps because it had lost so much blood earlier, its movements had slowed considerably.

For me, this was a priceless opportunity.

STAB!

Heavenly Demon's sword plunged directly between the tiger's eyes.

Normally, it should've gone berserk immediately.

But as I'd said, the beast was exhausted too.

It had lost so much blood that it couldn't even react properly anymore.

SLASH!

I dragged the sword upward.

The blade emerged from the top of its head.

The tiger's skull split in two.

Even with regeneration that powerful, it should die if its most important organ—the brain—was destroyed.

Tremble...

The tiger's body began trembling with its brain split in half.

For a moment, I wondered if it was actually regenerating again.

So I decided to turn its head into a pincushion just to make sure.

STAB! STAB! STAB!

I had no idea how many times I drove the sword into its face.

Even with one front paw gone, the tiger staggered around while somehow maintaining its balance.

Then—

THUD!

It finally collapsed.

Its body was so enormous that the impact alone sent vibrations through the ground.

'Not... not yet. I need to make sure it's dead...'

Its regeneration was too strong.

It could be pretending to be dead before recovering again.

Even in my dazed state, I kept moving the sword.

The first thing I needed to do was decapitate it.

I felt like I wouldn't be able to relax until I'd cleanly cut its head off.

SLICE! CRACK! CRUNCH!

I was still desperately working to sever the tiger's head when—

Thump.

My consciousness cut out.