The Otherworld Was Way Too Brutal – After I Healed the Mutilated Girl, She Turned Into a Completely Obsessed Yandere Guard Dog - Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Ever since that water jug incident, Tsugumi’s been acting a little different.

The hostility she used to have toward Cattleya… it’s pretty much died down.

Instead, this heavy, deep silence started wrapping around her.

She probably got hit hard with how powerless she is.

She can’t even draw a single bucket of water by herself.

Meanwhile, Cattleya’s strong, beautiful, and handles housework perfectly too.

That contrast is eating away at Tsugumi’s heart.

“……I’m heading out.”

The next morning.

Even when I called out to her, Tsugumi just gave a weak nod from inside her blankets.

There’s no light in her eyes anymore.

They’re starting to go back to the way they looked when we first met—full of resignation and despair mixed together.

(…This can’t keep going like this.)

I clenched my fist tight and left the house.

It’d be easy to just comfort her with words.

But right now, that’s not what Tsugumi needs.

What she needs is the real, solid hope—and the actual result—of getting healed.

Cattleya, walking right beside me, glanced over.

“Don’t rush it, Jin. You’re giving off serious killer vibes right now.”

“……You can tell?”

“Yeah. Looks like steam’s about to come pouring out of your back.”

Cattleya gave a wry smile.

But she quickly switched back to a serious face.

“Still… that impatience isn’t a bad thing. Wanna push it a little today?”

“Push it?”

“We’re going to the deepest part of the northern forest. The boss is there.”

I stopped dead in my tracks when Cattleya said that.

The lord of the northern forest.

I’d heard the rumors.

They say even veteran mercenary parties got completely wiped out.

The king of the forest.

“……Can we win?”

“If it was just me, yeah, I could win. But that wouldn’t mean anything.”

Cattleya stared straight into my eyes.

“You’re the one who’s gonna do it. I’ll back you up. But you have to be the one to land the finishing blow.”

“Me…”

“Beating an opponent way above your level. That’s the fastest shortcut to breaking through a skill wall. Right?”

She’s not wrong.

It’s always been like that.

The evolution of a skill only comes after you cross the line of death.

“Got it. Let’s do it.”

I answered right away.

For Tsugumi’s sake, I’d step on a tiger’s tail or yank a dragon’s whisker—whatever it takes.

The deepest part of the forest was wrapped in this creepy silence.

No bird calls.

No insect sounds.

Just thick, heavy killing intent floating in the air.

“It’s coming.”

Cattleya drew her sword.

I readied my knife too.

What appeared with the ground shaking was a massive bear.

Feral Bear Mad Bear.

Standing up, it easily topped three meters.

Its whole body was covered in rock-hard muscles and bristly fur.

Its claws looked like razor-sharp blades.

And foam kept dripping nonstop from its mouth.

“GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!”

The Mad Bear spotted us and let out a roar.

The air itself vibrated.

Pure overwhelming mass and violence in living form.

“Same plan as always. I’ll draw its attention. You watch for an opening and go for a vital spot.”

“Got it.”

Cattleya dashed forward.

Her black armor cut through the shadows as she ran across the forest floor.

“Over here, you big lump!”

Her sword slashed at the bear’s arm.

A hard metallic clang rang out—like metal hitting metal.

The fur was so tough the blade couldn’t cut through.

But it was more than enough to get its attention.

The Mad Bear swung its massive arm down.

Cattleya dodged it by a hair.

A huge tree snapped like a twig and dirt exploded into the air.

Now.

I slipped in from behind.

Target: the Achilles tendon.

Take away its mobility.

I flipped the knife into a reverse grip and stabbed with everything I had.

“Hah!”

Solid feedback.

The knife sank deep into the bear’s ankle.

“GAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!”

The Mad Bear screamed and thrashed around.

A log-thick leg came flying toward me to kick me away.

No way I can dodge it completely.

Then—

I gave up on dodging.

I’ll take it.

And heal.

A brutal impact slammed into my side.

I heard several ribs snap inside me.

Pain so sharp it felt like my guts were gonna burst.

My body got blown back and crashed into a tree.

“Gah…!”

A clot of blood spilled out of my mouth.

A normal person would’ve died instantly—or been left unable to move.

But I’m different.

Even while I was flying through the air, I already had my hand pressed to my side.

Level 2 healing magic kicked in.

The broken bones started shifting back into place inside me, crushed muscles began bubbling as they tried to regenerate.

“Ggggaaaaaaaaahhhhh!!”

The pain hit me like a truck.

Pain bad enough to make me black out.

But I gritted my teeth and endured.

While getting blasted back, I fought through the agony—and the second I hit the ground, my body was already back to perfect condition.

The Mad Bear froze, looking stunned.

The prey it was sure it had finished off was somehow standing there totally fine.

Can’t blame it for being confused.

That one instant of opening.

For me, it was the chance of a lifetime.

“—!”

I kicked off the ground.

The pain was still there.

My brain felt like it was burning.

But that pain was pushing me faster.

I slid right into the Mad Bear’s guard.

The one spot not covered in that tough bristly fur.

The soft part near its throat—close to the heart.

I put my whole body weight behind the knife and drove it upward.

I felt the blade tearing through muscle as it sank in.

It went all the way to the hilt.

Hot blood sprayed out like a fountain, drenching me from head to toe.

“Guh… Gaa…”

The Mad Bear spasmed and collapsed on top of me.

Heavy.

So heavy I couldn’t breathe, and burning hot.

But I didn’t let go of the knife.

I kept twisting until its heart stopped.

Finally, all the strength drained out of the giant body.

The Mad Bear went completely still.

“Haa… haa… haa…”

I crawled out from underneath.

I was covered in blood.

My blood and the magic beast’s blood all mixed together.

“Impressive.”

Cattleya walked over.

She reached out a hand and pulled me up.

“You deliberately took the hit to create an opening, huh?”

“……Pretty much.”

“Hmph. I told you to win without getting hurt, but… guess this time it couldn’t be helped.”

Cattleya said it like she was exasperated.

But she also looked kinda happy.

I wiped my shaking left hand.

The status window popped up.

My heart was pounding like crazy.

Please.

We took down something that strong.

Come on, show me the text.

――――――――

・Healing Magic <Repair Evolve>

Lv1. Stops bleeding.

Lv2. Treats wounds and fractures.

Lv3. Regenerate lost organs (small) and remove disease.

Lv4. ＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊

――――――――

“—Ah.”

A voice slipped out.

The garbled text was gone.

Level 3.

Regenerate lost organs.

“We did it… we really did it…!”

My knees almost buckled right there.

I’d finally stepped into the realm of regenerating missing body parts.

I clenched my trembling hand tight.