The hunting of the wizards’ experimental subjects.
There’s a reason Kail Meyer got saddled with this mission.
While hunting trolls might be tough for an Expert-level Knight, it’s not so bad for a Master-level one.
Even without using Aura Blade, that’s true. In fact, didn’t Kail just easily take down a troll without his Aura Blade?
By the same logic, hunting ogres and cyclops isn’t all that difficult either. Gawein figured taking on all three at once wouldn’t be much different.
Gawein judged that combining the abilities of these three monsters into one didn’t make it some super-powered beast, but rather just a slightly stronger monster.
The second reason was to expose the wizards’ exaggerations.
Wizards are known to inflate their achievements to secure more research funds. Thus, it had become common for minor anti-aging spells to be reported as immortality magic.
With this understanding, Gawein didn’t fully trust the report sent by the Academy wizards who created the experiment.
How could mixing three types of monsters they knew result in such a powerful creature?
And so, the mission was passed down, lower and lower—until it finally landed on Kail, a Master.
“These damn trolls.”
Swish!
Kail swung his sword, effortlessly slicing through the trolls’ necks. Behind him, Ruby, gripping her sword nervously, watched Kail dispatch the trolls so casually that she wondered if these monsters were really supposed to be this easy to defeat.
She knew troll skin was tough enough to blunt blades, and even Aura-enhanced swords could break if not wielded properly, yet Kail had been flawlessly executing perfect strikes since the start.
Ruby, starting to think troll-hunting might actually be easy, impulsively charged at one herself and nearly got herself killed.
Had Kail not saved her, Ruby would’ve lost her life right there.
“Th-thank you…”
“No problem.”
Casually shaking the blood off his blade, Kail headed toward the mountain peak. The higher he climbed, the more he sensed a murderous intent crawling up his spine.
‘It’s up there.’
The chimera created by the Academy wizards. It hadn’t seemed too dangerous when left unchecked, but now it had grown enough to wreak havoc on the Academy.
Fortunately, the monster was still growing. Meaning, if it had reached its full form, even Kail wouldn’t stand a chance alone—but now, he could handle it.
—Hrrmm.
“There you are.”
In the distance, Kail locked eyes with the massive one-eyed monster and smirked. The creature, spotting Kail, immediately hoisted a giant bone club.
The two monsters charged at each other furiously.
And in the next moment, they clashed.
***
After both the first-year and third-year cadets had left, the Academy grounds fell into a brief silence. The problem wasn’t the peaceful quiet—it was the calm before the storm.
As instructors and professors relaxed while staying ready to spring into action, Gawein briefed the Headmaster about the mission.
“So… Cadet Kail has gone to Troll Mountain.”
“Yes, well. He’s a Master. He should be able to handle trolls easily.”
“Hmm… Somehow, I don’t think this is just a simple troll hunt.”
The Headmaster flipped through the wizards’ report: the ogre’s strength, the troll’s regeneration, the cyclops’ magic resistance, plus traits from various other monsters.
At first glance, it seemed impressive, but at the same time, not all that threatening.
Regeneration or not, a severed head means death. The ogre’s strength was formidable, but nowhere near as strong as an Aura Blade, and the cyclops’ magic resistance couldn’t stop an Aura Blade either.
“Well, nothing to worry about.”
To a Master, such a monster was just another target waiting to be hunted.
The Headmaster thought the same, closing the report nonchalantly. Then, he cautiously offered Gawein a drink.
“We have some excellent tea. Care for a cup?”
“Oh, splendid. Getting old makes my body frail…”
“Haha, no one’s going to take care of your health but yourself.”
The two began enjoying their snack time like old men. Their worries about Kail, sent off to Troll Mountain, had long since vanished.
***
BOOM!
A massive bone, seemingly out of nowhere, slammed into the ground, causing an explosion like a missile strike. The bone quickly retracted, swinging back toward Kail with terrifying force.
Kail leaped backward lightly, evading the attack range, but the Hecatoncheir’s monstrous strength still generated a fierce gust of wind pressure.
Shivering from the intense wind pressure that could’ve blown his head clean off, Kail stared at the Hecatoncheir.
‘Looks doable.’
In games, the Hecatoncheir had impenetrable skin and regenerative abilities that made it nearly invincible, even against Aura Blades.
A creature capable of ripping out mountains and hurling boulders weighing hundreds of tons.
But this one didn’t seem quite like that. This freshly-made monster was certainly horrifyingly strong, but it hadn’t yet reached the level to overwhelm a Master.
Still, underestimating it would spell doom for any Master.
‘The problem is…’
Kail glanced behind him at Ruby, hiding far back. Her presence meant he couldn’t use his Aura Blade.
Without Aura Blade, defeating this monster seemed tricky. There was no way to block the massive bones it swung around.
After a brief moment of thought, Kail decided to just go for it. The Headmaster and Duke had told him to keep it hidden, but who else was here besides Ruby?
Even if she blabbed, the fact that he was a Master wouldn’t spread.
“Ahh, sudden enlightenment.”
Still, he needed to put on a show, so Kail muttered nonsense and unsheathed his Aura Blade.
A supernatural beam of light erupted, cutting through everything. The indestructible bone that had overturned the earth moments ago was cleanly sliced in half.
Seeing the Aura Blade, the Hecatoncheir twisted the bone in its hand to minimize damage, but Kail’s blade was faster, splitting the bone in two.
CRASH! Dust exploded as the broken bone hit the ground, obscuring the view. Bursting through the cloud, Kail swiftly cut the Hecatoncheir’s Achilles tendon.
—ROOOOAR!
The severed tendon slowly regenerated, but losing balance was unavoidable.
Propping itself up, the Hecatoncheir roared furiously at the streak of light flying toward it.
The low-frequency roar of a giant monster slammed into Kail, but he calmly countered the Hecatoncheir’s attacks.
SCHLICK—blood and flesh soaked the ground. Sensing death from the excessive damage, the immortal monster met its end as Kail slashed its face in half.
—GRRRRAAAH!
“Shut up, you brat.”
Through the split jaw, Kail swiftly severed the exposed neck. Leaving the rolling head behind, he immediately cut off the Hecatoncheir’s limbs.
He stabbed its heart, severed its arms and legs, and tore through its insides.
Ensuring a flawless kill, leaving no chance for regeneration, Kail flicked the blood off his blade.
“You, you, you…”
From afar, Ruby, hiding behind a tree, stared at Kail in disbelief.
Pointing a trembling finger at him, she stammered, “Ju-just now… Au-Aura. Aura Blade…!”
“Oh, this?”
WHOOSH—Aura surged along the blade. Ruby nodded frantically. Kail shrugged.
“I awakened mid-fight.”
“Wh-what kind of excuse is that!? Awaken just like that!?”
“What’s wrong with that?”
Kail looked at Ruby as if to say, “What else do you want?” Seeing his expression, Ruby slowly regained her composure and realized he was right.
Indeed, what could she do? Kail had awakened, and only he could claim how it happened.
Left speechless, Ruby gazed at Kail with awe, seeing him as someone with outrageous talent. Ignoring her stare, Kail picked up the Hecatoncheir’s head.
It was too large to carry, so he cut off an ear and discarded the rest.
“Let’s go.”
“Uh… uh, Kail—what about teaching me the Secret Sword Technique?”
“No thanks.”
“Aw, come on…”
***
The Hecatoncheir’s corpse twitched. Despite inflicting fatal wounds, Kail should’ve been more cautious.
From the corpse’s belly, a youngling cautiously emerged, devouring its mother’s remains to grow.
Escaping the corpse, the youngling began consuming its mother’s body to grow. This was how the Hecatoncheir chimera evolved—predatory reproduction.
—Grrr…
Having devoured its mother’s body and absorbed her experiences and memories, the youngling recalled why its mother died and began devising countermeasures.
The blade of light that killed its mother. To resist that cutting light, it had no choice but to wield a similar blade of light.
—Au-ra…
Clues from Ruby’s words guided the youngling as it began moving away from the corpse.
It would strive to master the light blade. Even if it failed, its offspring would try, and their offspring after them.
Continuing to evolve, it would eventually reach its goal someday.
