The Strongest Villain Sets Out: Reincarnated into a Merit-Based Clan, I Become the World's Strongest Swordsman - Chapter 9: Luka's Madness

I began fighting the bear monster.

When I approached, the monster turned toward me with keen senses. Glittering red eyes glared at me sharply and narrowly.

“Grrrrr… GROAH!”

Without even wiping the blood plastered around its mouth, the bear monster kicked off the ground. It charged straight at me.

“A beast, just like its appearance.”

It opened its mouth, trying to bite and crush my body with its vicious fangs. An attack that relied on speed. I quickly dodged to the side.

I struck my sword into the wide-open torso.

“Mm.”

My sword couldn’t cut through the bear’s body. It only slightly slashed the skin, causing blood to flow.

“GUAAAH!“

The monster screamed in pain. Next, it swung its right front leg. Sharp claws tore through the air as they approached me.

I used my sword as a shield to guard.

“!”

I received a tremendous impact. My body was blown backward.

“As expected, your physical abilities are superior.”

My right hand that I had used to guard was tingling and numb. Defending multiple times wouldn’t be wise.

[What will you do~? You can’t win like this~]

From a distance, Lilith was leisurely relaxing. What a skillful one, lying down in midair.

“No problem. If I can wound it, I can eventually kill it.”

“GROAAAAH!“

The bear monster charged at me again. When I dodged to the side like before, this time I slashed the monster’s hind leg.

I changed my aim. Ignoring the thickest torso, I first reduced the monster’s mobility. Accurately targeting the tendon area, the bear monster collapsed to the ground.

It would stand up again soon anyway. Taking advantage of the opening while it was down, I thrust my sword tip toward the monster’s neck.

“Guah!”

“Oops.”

I canceled my attack midway. I pulled back to dodge the monster’s claw attack that came as a counterattack.

However, my evasion wasn’t perfect. My right hand took damage. Flesh was gouged out, and blood spurted magnificently.

[W-wait wait! Isn’t this a crisis, Luka!]

Seeing my figure after jumping back greatly, Lilith’s composure crumbled. She approached me at tremendous speed.

She was staring intently at my mangled right arm.

“You’re noisy, Lilith. It’s just my dominant hand that got hit. I’m still alive.”

[You’ll die from blood loss! What will you do?! Will my revenge end here?!]

“It won’t end, so don’t worry. What do you think I picked up this holy relic for?”

[…Holy relic?]

“Yeah. This necklace is an item that grants divine power to its wearer. Divine power is the power of healing. I can’t use regeneration-level recovery, but I should be able to manage first aid.”

Saying that, I escaped by jumping backward. I pulled out bandages from my pocket and vigorously wrapped them around my right hand.

There was pain. Intense pain. But it wasn’t unbearable.

After roughly binding my right hand with bandages, I activated divine power through the blood-stained bandages. Warm light enveloped my right arm. I couldn’t restore the lost flesh and blood. At most, I could stop the bleeding combined with the bandages.

The pain didn’t disappear, and I couldn’t move it either. I had merely prolonged my life. The situation hadn’t improved one bit.

[Awawa! We have to run quickly!]

“Hah? What are you saying, Lilith?”

[Eh?]

“I never said I’d run. Once the bleeding stops, I’m fighting that damn bastard again. I’ll definitely kill it next time.”

[WHAAAT?!]

KIIIIN, Lilith’s scream stimulated my hearing. So noisy.

[There’s no way you can win in that condition! Are you stupid?! Are you going to die?! Don’t die!]

“That’s why I’m not going to die. Well, just watch. I didn’t go to pick up this necklace just for this alone.”

I stopped my feet. The bear monster charged at me from the front. I drew my sword with my left hand and readied it.

I wrapped myself in aura. Amplifying the output even more.

[H-huh? Luka, what are you…]

I didn’t answer Lilith’s question. Instead, I kept increasing my aura output more and more.

I had already exceeded the amount I could control. My muscle fibers throughout my body tore and screamed in agony. It hurt. It hurt, but ignoring that, I increased the output even further.

Continuing, I drew divine power from the necklace and healed my entire body. This was the ultimate trump card I had devised.

When aura was released in uncontrollable amounts, it placed enormous strain on the body and broke it down. I just need to heal that broken body with divine power’s healing one after another.

Of course, my divine power relied on the holy relic and was unreliable. But if I could heal the minimum necessary, that’s enough. If I can move—I can kill my opponent!

“GROAAAAAH!“

A mass of muscle more than twice my size unleashed a charge while scattering killing intent.

This time it wasn’t evasion followed by counterattack. I released an attack while dodging diagonally to the side.

We crossed paths with each other, and my maximum arm strength that exceeded my limits—slashed through the bear monster’s torso in one strike.

[N-no way!]

Lilith was agape with astonishment. Behind me, the monster collapsed, creating a pool of blood at my feet.

Despite having won, Lilith’s reaction was thin. Thinking that, when I sheathed my sword, Lilith suddenly shouted.

[Y-you idiot——!]

A second KIIIIN.

I’d prefer she not speak so loudly since it makes my ears hurt. It’s quite a serious injury. It affects my wounds too.

[Releasing uncontrollable amounts of aura is insane! You could have died with one wrong move!]

“Heh. That’s what the divine power was for. I calculated it properly.”

[What’s with that smug face? I’ll hit you, you know?]

“W-wait. Right now I’m seriously injured. It’s tough just standing due to the aura strain.”

To be honest, even my left arm that swung the sword was in tatters. It hurt just to move it.

[Of course it does! Geez! I never thought your screws were loose to this extent. If Luka dies, everything ends for me!]

“Sorry. But it’s interesting, right? I’m probably the only one who combines aura and divine power like that.”

[Do you know the phrase “self-destruction”?]

“All’s well that ends well.”

[You’re insane.]

Seeing me still smiling, Lilith’s shoulders dropped with a thud.

From her perspective, my death as her contractor would be problematic. I understand her worry, but you can’t become the strongest without crossing dangerous bridges. I’ll risk my life many more times going forward.

“More importantly, after I rest I need to carry the bear monster to my sleeping area.”

[Could it be… you’re going to eat it?]

“Of course. You don’t find such valuable food very often. We got lucky.”

[…I don’t really understand you, Luka.]

“? Is that so?”

I don’t really understand what she’s saying, but I don’t really understand myself either. Understanding yourself is difficult. Even understanding others is quite hard.

I plopped down on the snow and focused on recovering my lost stamina. First day of survival. What a tremendously rough start from day one.

If possible, I’d like even more spectacular problems to occur. I still haven’t fought nearly enough.

———————————

Luka: “I want to fight more! (Pretty much dying)”

The divine power that appeared in this chapter is basically healing magic. When mastered, you can even handle powerful recovery that rewinds time…?