The monster that emerged from the sunset-lit forest was enormous. Its body looked three times the size of a human’s, with thick, powerful limbs and a neck so broad it seemed impossible to cut through with a sword. Even the presence it exuded was unlike that of the monsters found everywhere.

A troll. That was what such monsters were called.

Adventurers classified trolls as Blue-rank monsters, and the prevailing view was that three or four Blue-ranked adventurers could bring one down together. The Blue-ranked adventurers gathered here could easily have hunted one by teaming up, but...

“That’s...”

No one made a rash move.

“That’s the Bloodred Troll. What’s it doing here...?”

Because what had appeared before them was no ordinary troll.

The Bloodred Troll.

A mutant troll known by that name, it had killed fifteen Blue-ranked adventurers several months ago before vanishing, prompting a bounty to be placed on it. Unlike ordinary trolls, this particular specimen was cunning and highly intelligent.

Cambria’s Central Guild had assigned the Bloodred Troll a rank of Red.

Black, Purple, Blue, Green, Red, White.

Red was near the top of the six ranks. A monster of that rank was considered a manageable opponent only for a group of at least eight Green-ranked adventurers. Knowing that, the adventurers did not move rashly.

This monster was beyond their capabilities.

The same held true even for Marsen, the Green-ranked adventurer with the highest rank here. Had those gathered been an expedition assembled in advance to hunt the Bloodred Troll, she might have taken the lead.

‘But...’

Marsen looked around.

Everyone was preparing to withdraw and run. That was only natural. They were adventurers and mercenaries, after all, people who put their own safety first. Marsen was no different.

Do not take on dangerous work.

Do not attempt anything that will cost you.

Your own life always comes first.

That was this city’s unwritten rule.

Some might scoff and call them selfish, but those who lived here were adventurers and mercenaries... not knights or heroes who risked their lives charging into dangerous battlefields.

“... Tsk.”

Marsen clicked her tongue and took a step back.

Seeing even the strongest among them prepare to flee, the adventurers slowly put distance between themselves and the troll. The Bloodred Troll was merely glaring at them; it had yet to move.

It grinned.

Then, at last, the troll’s behavior changed.

As the adventurers began backing away, the Bloodred Troll curled up the corners of its mouth and stepped forward. The instant the ground shook beneath its heavy footfall, the adventurers turned outright and began to run.

“Run!”

“The mercenaries! What’s the Red Eye Mercenary Company doing? They’re supposed to deal with monsters like that...!”

Panic was contagious.

As the adventurers fled, swearing, one of them was shoved by someone else and fell face-first onto the ground.

“Hey, fuck! Which bas—”

The adventurer never finished.

The Bloodred Troll was a seasoned hunter, and it did not let prey escape once it showed an opening. With a thundering footfall, the troll began charging toward the fallen adventurer.

“A-aaargh!”

A club resembling an uprooted tree.

Just as it was about to swing down at the adventurer, someone rushed toward the fallen figure, seized them firmly by the scruff of the neck, and hurled them backward.

KRAAASH!

The club slammed into the ground, throwing up a cloud of dust.

As the dust began to clear, a lone adventurer emerged, facing the Bloodred Troll. The fleeing adventurers watched from a safe distance.

What lunatic was that? What madman would volunteer to become bait?

The person standing there was a Black-ranked adventurer. A newcomer among newcomers, so recently arrived that he did not even know the city’s unwritten rules. The mysterious young man who had monopolized everyone’s attention during this clearance operation stood before the troll.

CLANG!

He drew his sword from its scabbard.

As though he intended to fight the Bloodred Troll.

“Supervisor.”

Sword drawn, Najin looked toward the supervisor on the platform. Seemingly flustered, the supervisor had sent a distress signal and was preparing to flee as well, but Najin’s presence made him stop in his tracks and look at him.

“How many points is that worth?”

“... What?”

The supervisor could not answer Najin’s question.

Even the adventurers gathered there failed to understand his words for a moment. He was asking about points? Here?

“Looks pretty big at a glance.”

Najin grinned, pointing the tip of his sword at the troll before him.

“How about thirty points?”

Adding thirty to Najin’s current score would give him sixty-five points.

That would surpass the highest score ever recorded in the Dochenberg Forest Clearance Operation: fifty-seven points, set by Varger, now deputy commander of the Red Eye Mercenary Company.

... The all-time record.

Before joining this commission, Najin had checked not how many people were participating in the hunt, but the highest score in the history of the Dochenberg Forest Clearance Operation.

His first-place finish was already assured.

But Najin had no interest in a middling victory.

He had no intention of settling for first place with only a narrow lead over second. He wanted an overwhelming first-place finish. A perfect victory that shattered the all-time record, one that no one could belittle.

“I’d appreciate it if you gave me more, too.”

As he spoke, Najin leaped sideways in a gliding motion. The troll’s club struck the ground once again. Another cloud of dust billowed high into the air. This time, however, there was no need to wait for it to clear.

SWISH!

A sword swept through the dust.

Najin’s blade parted the cloud. And dust was not all it cut. His sword sliced into the Bloodred Troll’s hide, shallow though the wound was.

Blood spattered.

Yet something else drew the gathered adventurers’ attention more than the spray of blood. The sword in Najin’s hand as he burst through the dust. Their eyes fixed on the radiance gathered along his lowered blade.

A brilliant white light.

Something infinitely close to sword aura shone in its own unique color, alone amid the forest stained by sunset.

2.

Cambria, the City of Opportunity.

Since coming to this city, Najin had yet to fight a powerful opponent. He had sparred with Volkman, but that had only been a sparring match, not a battle with his life on the line. That was why Najin had been hoping for one.

A life-or-death battle against someone equal to him.

Or stronger.

He knew that was the way to improve his skills quickly. Nothing was as valuable as experience fighting a powerful opponent.

‘Of course, I need to gauge my opponent before I put my life on the line...’

Najin glanced at the Bloodred Troll before him.

It was certainly an exceptionally powerful opponent. With Excalibur and his complete platinum sword aura kept hidden, he could not be sure of victory.

‘But.’

Even without using them, he at least did not feel he would lose. The mercenary company in the heart of the forest would arrive to support them before long anyway. In the worst case, withdrawing would not be a bad option.

That was only if things went wrong, though.

Right now, Najin was aiming for victory. He opened his eyes wide. His bloodshot eyes read the Bloodred Troll’s movements. Tracking the club, he kicked off the ground and began to run.

“Whew...”

Najin let out a long breath.

As he drew breath again, Najin sucked in the mana spread throughout his surroundings. Only a minuscule amount of mana had accumulated within his body... but at this moment, that quantity meant absolutely nothing.

It had only ever been residue.

The mana training method Merlin had taught him.

Its primary purpose was not to accumulate mana. It was designed to strengthen the channels through which mana flowed, and to strengthen the body itself, creating a body optimized for mana.

Thus, the mana stored inside Najin was merely what remained after strengthening his body. The amount of mana he could wield became apparent the instant he took a “breath.”

BOOM!

Having finished his breath, Najin accelerated in an instant.

Broadened channels and a body adapted to mana. Working together, they produced speed that was in no way inferior to that of Sword Experts who had reached their rank well over a decade ago.

Movements that equaled a seasoned Sword Expert’s—or surpassed them.

Najin’s sword flashed as he accelerated. Dodging the Bloodred Troll’s club, he slashed its hide. But the instant he swung, he felt it. The cut was shallow.

‘It isn’t cutting properly.’

“Of course it isn’t,” Merlin murmured.

“Troll hide is tough. Even when you try scorching it with magic, it doesn’t burn easily. It’s naturally highly resistant. Cutting through it with sword aura takes a knack, you know.”

She offered, “Want me to tell you?”

‘No need.’

Najin declined.

His eyes darting rapidly, Najin predicted its next move. He moved with the troll’s raised club and advancing steps in mind.

‘I think I know how, too.’

Najin adjusted his grip on his sword.

Not long ago, Najin had seen Mid-Ranking Priest Volkman’s sword carve through orcs without even producing sword aura. Of course, troll hide was tougher than orc hide...

But didn’t his own sword bear sword aura?

Then he should be more than capable of slicing through that troll’s hide. Najin adjusted his stance.

THUD!

The instant Najin stepped forward, his presence changed.

No longer that of an agile hunter seeking openings, but that of a priest of the sword who had honed his swordsmanship for many long years.

SHING!

The power of swordsmanship executed with a strengthened body and a sword clad in sword aura was incomparable to before. A technique performed from a perfect stance. His flashing sword swept along the side of the troll’s swinging club.

Only the troll’s hide possessed that resistance.

The club was merely a wooden bludgeon.

Naturally, it could not withstand sword aura.

With a crisp slicing sound, the club split in two. The severed piece fell, its cut surface smooth. The sudden loss of the club’s weight left an opening in the troll’s stance, and Najin did not miss it.

SWISH...

Najin’s feet traced a dizzying pattern.

Gliding steps, almost like a dance. This was Mid-Ranking Priest Volkman’s swordsmanship. An advanced technique taught only to Mid-Ranking Priests who had fully mastered the four basic stances.

With this technique, Volkman had cut down an orc in a single blow.

Recalling Volkman’s movements then, Najin straightened his bent knees. He swung his sword as though springing upward. The flow built up through successive steps, the accumulated force, was released in a single swing.

SWIIISH!

This time, he felt the cut. His blade tore through the troll’s hide, spraying fresh blood. It was a devastating blow that would have made most trolls scream and recoil. But the Bloodred Troll was in a different league from ordinary trolls.

GROOOAR!

The troll let out a monstrous roar and swung its fist.

In a split second, Najin twisted in midair and caught the fist with his sword, but he could not completely absorb the impact. He was sent flying like a projectile and crashed into a tree with a crunch.

But Najin immediately got back to his feet.

As though that much was nothing. Coughing and spitting out clotted blood, he wiped the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. Far from contorting in pain, his face bore a smile.

Because he had gotten a feel for it.

For how to cut through that thick hide.

3.

The adventurers who had been about to flee stopped in their tracks and watched Najin fight the Bloodred Troll alone.

At first, they had intended to use him as bait to escape. Now, however, they simply watched his battle in silence. An unbelievable sight was unfolding before their eyes.

The Bloodred Troll, a monster with a Red-ranked threat level.

And a young man facing it alone.

Najin and the troll were evenly matched. It was unbelievable. Did he merely wear a Black-rank plate while actually possessing Red-ranked skill? The adventurers’ gazes wavered.

“... Shouldn’t we help him?”

Someone said this and tried to move forward, but at that instant Najin whipped his head around. His cold eyes stopped the adventurer in their tracks.

Stay out of it.

This is my prey.

His chilling gaze seemed to shout those words. Stealing or interfering with someone else’s prey was forbidden. That, too, was an unwritten rule among adventurers. In the end, they could only watch Najin’s hunt in silence.

GROOOAR!

The troll roared and swung an uprooted tree. By the time the tree slammed into the ground and raised a cloud of dust, Najin was no longer there. Gliding in from the side, he leaped and planted his foot on the tree in the troll’s hand.

Najin ran up the slanted trunk.

Climbing onto the back of the troll’s neck, Najin held his sword in one hand. With his other, he drove a dagger hard into the troll’s eye socket.

AAAAARGH!

The troll screamed.

Unprotected by hide, its eye was all too easily pierced by the sharp dagger. Hanging from the back of the troll’s neck with the dagger buried deep in its eye socket as his anchor, Najin swung his sword one-handed.

SWISH! SWISH! SWIIISH!

His incomplete sword aura flashed again and again.

His repeatedly swinging blade raked the Bloodred Troll’s thick neck over and over. The heavy hide around its neck grew ragged, and blood sprayed in every direction.

Even when the troll shook its body violently, Najin did not fall. Even when it reached out to seize him, he evaded its grasp. Finally, screaming, the troll repeatedly rammed itself into a tree. Only then did Najin kick off its shoulder and leap down.

GRRK, GRRRK...

Foaming bloody froth at the mouth, the Bloodred Troll glared at Najin.

A dagger protruded from one eye, and blood streamed from the shredded hide around its neck. It looked as though perhaps one or two more sword swings would sever it completely.

The adventurers watching felt a chill.

At times, he moved like a seasoned swordsman who had wielded a blade for many years... and at others, he was as terrifying as a hunting hound tearing into its prey’s neck.

Overwhelming.

Watching the young man’s overwhelming display, the adventurers instinctively understood.

Though still Black-ranked, this adventurer was no one they could call a novice. He was no novice. Like those who had reached the summit of this adventurer city, he was a rising star who would ascend to those heights in no time.

A new star rising over this city.

The adventurers were not the only ones watching that star. One of Cambria’s five pinnacles, who had arrived moments earlier in response to the distress signal, was watching as well.

“Hah.”

Roselin Ascalo let out a disbelieving laugh.

“That bastard’s insane.”

A smile spread across Roselin’s lips as she murmured those words. It was the smile of someone who had found a kindred spirit. Chuckling, Roselin watched Najin’s movements.

Najin took his stance.

To prepare for the final blow.

The most powerful strike he had ever witnessed. The instant he assumed the stance to imitate that strike, Roselin’s eyes widened. She recognized it.

She had intended to watch a little longer, but now she could not.

The young man might not know it.

But that was a technique he should not have been able to use—and one that must not be used against a monster like that.