The Young Lady With the Most Powerful Specs Was Just Too Cute, so I Started Teasing Her—But Then She Tried to Trap Me With a Chain, so I Kept Running Away With All My Might - Chapter 18

Playing Tag with a Monster: Round Two

I splashed through the water and kept running deeper into the woods, my mind racing as fast as my feet.

Just running away isn’t going to cut it.

If I keep this up, I’m going to get caught eventually.

I have to break its momentum somehow.

To find a way out of this, I have no choice but to fight back.

I gripped my sword tighter as I ran.

The monster was weaving through the trees, closing in on me.

But I was slowly starting to get used to its speed.

I could tell what angle it was going to use to close the gap.
How high it was going to swing its claws.
When it was going to sink its body low.

Just like it was watching me, I was watching it right back.

We were both reading each other now. So, I purposely slowed down my pace just a little bit.

It took the bait.

Exactly like I thought it would, the monster leaned forward to pounce.

In that instant, I used a tree trunk as a pivot to pull a sharp turn and swung my sword in a horizontal slash.

“Take that!”

I wasn’t aiming for the neck.

I went for the arm. If I could stop those long arms even for a second, it would buy me more time.

The tip of my sword sliced the skin. Blood sprayed. But that was it.

It didn’t stop. In fact, the monster let out a wide, creepy grin that looked like its mouth was tearing open.

“Tch, my sword isn’t enough! It’s way too tough!”

A claw came swinging. I leaped backward.

The tree right where I had been standing a split second ago was split vertically and came crashing down.

A sword isn’t enough.

With my strength, I can only leave shallow scratches.

If that’s the case, I have to hit it with something much heavier.

I changed my direction and dove toward an area with some massive boulders.

The monster chased after me.

It knew I was weakening. Listening to its footsteps, I slipped past the side of a boulder and kicked off the ground as we passed each other.

Beneath the rock, there was a muddy patch that had been carved out by the rain.

You wouldn’t notice it during the day, but under the moonlight, the dampness made it look different.

“Ugh!”

The monster jumped in without hesitating.

Seeing that I had supposedly lost my footing, its heavy body stomped right into the muddy ground.

That’s when I gave the fallen tree propped against the boulder a hard kick.

Losing its support, the massive rock tilted and started to tip over.

“Get crushed!”

The boulder rolled. It slammed right into the monster’s shoulder.

A dull thud echoed through the forest.

I even heard the nasty sound of meat and bone being squashed.

Yes! Or so I thought.

The monster didn’t get crushed.

It caught the rock with one arm and shoved it back.

“Are you… kidding me?”

That shouldn’t even be possible! The boulder came flying right back at me.

“Whoa!?”

I dived to the side. The rock smashed through a tree behind me and finally stopped.

The monster, whose shoulder should have been ruined, stood back up while cracking its neck.

It was bleeding. It was hurt. It was definitely annoyed.

But it wasn’t enough to bring it down.

“You’ve got to be joking…!”

Still, I didn’t have time to stand around.

I started running again.

This time, I headed for a spot where the trees were packed tight.

It was a narrow area with a bunch of thin trunks lined up.

With its huge body and long limbs, it should be hard for that thing to move in there.

While running, I spotted a specific tree and slammed my sword into it.

The base of the thin tree was half-rotten. If I cut it at an angle, it would snap off like a sharp stake.

“Fall!”

I sliced it with my sword and pushed with my shoulder. The wood groaned.

Right then, the monster came lunging in.

The timing was perfect.

The sharp tip of the falling tree pierced the monster’s torso like a spear.

I felt a solid thud as it hit home.

“Nice!”

But even then, it was shallow. It stabbed deep, yeah.

But it didn’t reach the vitals.

The monster twisted its body along with the tree and forced itself off the stake.

I heard the sound of meat tearing, but it was still moving. What kind of freak is this thing?

“I mean, I knew you were a monster, but still!”

The moment I shouted, it vanished from my sight.

This is bad.

By the time I realized it, it was too late! It came from the side.

It wasn’t a claw. It lunged at me with its arm.

I reflexively put my sword out in front of me to avoid a direct hit.

But the blow was just too heavy.

“Gah—!”

I was blown away, my body slamming hard against a tree trunk.

All the air was knocked out of my lungs. I couldn’t breathe.

A moment later, the pain hit.

My ribs were broken.

And honestly, it felt like more than just one.

“Hah… agh…!”

My mouth tasted like iron. Blood started spilling out.

The pain felt like my stomach was being turned inside out, and every breath felt like needles were scratching the inside of my chest.

Man, the knight apprentice is actually going to die.

No, I can’t.

If I stop here, it’s all over.

I pressed my hands against the ground and forced my body up.

My legs were wobbly. My knees were shaking like crazy. Even my vision was getting a bit blurry.

I’m in real trouble here.

Even if I wanted to run, my legs weren’t listening to me anymore.

Still, I took one step back.

The monster stepped out into the moonlight.

It was covered in blood. Its shoulder and torso were mangled. But more than anything, it looked happy. Its mouth was pulled back in a wide grin, and its glowing eyes were locked on me.

“Haha… you think you won, huh?”

I couldn’t help but laugh.

Is this the end of my “playing hero” act? I wanted to buy at least a little more time, but hey, I think I led it away long enough.

The Duke and Ludie should have had plenty of time to get away by now.

If that’s the case, then I guess it’s fine.

The monster took a slow step forward.

It’s over.

Just as I thought that, it happened.

Something black sliced through the night.

With the speed of a swarm of snakes, pitch-black chains coiled around the monster’s entire body.

“—!?”

For the first time, the monster writhed as if it were actually surprised.

But the black chains tightened around its arms, bound its legs, and even wrapped around its neck, slamming it straight into the ground.

The earth shook. Dust swirled into the air.

The monster’s massive body sank into the forest floor as if it were being buried alive.

That one hit was abnormal enough, but a split second later, shouts came from another direction.

“Now!”

“Stab it!”

It was the mercenaries. With Platinum-san in the lead, the mercenary group that had charged into the forest all pounced at once.

Swords were thrust into the monster. Spears were driven deep.

The mercenaries didn’t hesitate for a single second.

One after another, their blades bit into the body of the pinned-down monster.

Blood sprayed everywhere. Roars echoed out. But the black chains didn’t loosen. Instead, they tightened even more, until I could hear the sound of the monster’s bones creaking.

“Nil!”

Hearing that voice, I looked up.

Standing there in the moonlight was Ludie.

Her face was expressionless, but her eyes were fixed straight on me.

Behind her, several more black chains were still swaying in the air.