Chapter 9

Jae gradually formed a frown as he listened to Bailey’s story.

Of course, Bailey didn’t notice this, as if he did, he would’ve long since ceased talking.

“―and so we arrived here. That’s when I started a campfire for light and warmth; it’s what some adventurers that visited the village in the past taught me to do in this type of situation. That’s when I finally had some free time and… well, you get it, right? I had to punish her. I had to. For everyone else’s sake! Right!? You get me, right...!? You understand! Exactly!! So I took the―”

Jae glanced at the campfire; sticking out from it was a small iron rod.

He then looked to the little girl collapsed on the ground covered in tattered cloth that could barely be called clothing.

She had long, snow white hair and two black horns on her head, one of which was half-broken.

The horns were similar to those belonging to the previously encountered monsters.

Like Jae saw before, the girl’s skin was damaged all over―lacerations, burns, bruises, scars, small cuts, swellings and abrasions―a myriad of injuries covered the girl from head to toe. On top of that, she seemed to have some mental trauma.

“―so once I was tired of that, I thought that she might not understand why I was doing it, so I politely expressed my reasons for all the chastisement, while physically punishing her again to convey just how wicked she was, and hey hey, get this―even after everything I did for her, she screamed at me and yelled at me to stop! I mean, just how impertinent is that, right!? To show a human, and the very village chief at that, with such disrespect!!? Haaa. Of course, following those events I just HAD to reprimand her again by―”

Bailey talked rapidly with trembling eyes and an excited face, as if enthusiastically bragging about what he had done.

Unfortunately, it seems he was too focused boasting about his own story to realise the twisted expression on Jae's own face.

“......How vile. I’ve had enough of this.”

“Ah? Oh...! Yes, exactly, mister! It is extremely unforgivable how―”

“I’m talking about you.”

Bailey paused.

“....Excuse me?”

He had a dumbfounded look on his face.

It quickly, though, transformed into one of rage.

“I thought you agreed with me!!?”

“Shut up.”

Before anyone could realise, Bailey's head was once again grasped by the young man's much larger hand, and he could no longer move.

Quickly, the boy began sweating buckets.

“All those damages on this girl.... you're saying you produced them? You?”

The iron rod in the fire and the several patches of seared skin.

The numerous physical and mental scars that will likely never fade.

The uncountable bruises, scratches, scrapes and the half-broken horn.

From what Jae heard of his story...

This one boy, Bailey, had caused about 70% of them in an attempt to avenge all the people from his village that died due to a recent 'Demonic Beast' attack.

The other 30% had supposedly already occurred before that attack, from him and some other kids in the village that had by now perished.

Well anyway, it was an obvious case of abuse, to say it lightly.

"ENOUGH!! Let go of me NOW!!! I am in the right!! What’s wrong with disciplining those inferior to you, huh!? I am―”

Suddenly, Jae grabbed Bailey's face.

*grip*

Bailey, in turn, screamed.

"―GaAaAAaaAAAaaAAAAAAAHHHH!!!?!?!??"

He began to scream endlessly as Jae tightened the grip on the boy's head, bit by bit.

Of course it was too much for such a small boy to handle.

"Did I permit you to speak?"

"MMMPPHHAAGH!!!"

"Silence."

Abruptly, a voice was heard inside Jae's mind.

[You know, the girl might become afraid if you continue acting like a monster.]

Then, Jae made an expression as if he were surprised, quickly replaced with a deep frown.

He unwillingly let Bailey go, who dropped down and landed on his front-side.

The boy thought he was extremely fortunate to survive, of course, but was too terrified of death to think.

Hmph.

But then.

Bailey abruptly froze.

His face quickly darkened and he began to retch as he crashed even further without resistance.

It was because of the earth-shaking pressure that forced him deeper into the ground.

As if someone had suddenly increased his gravity, it took all Bailey's strength to simply keep his eyes open, let alone get up.

He was far too petrified to even look at anything other than the ground ahead of and all around him, let alone Jae himself.

Eventually, the boy simply collapsed on the cracked and indented ground and lost consciousness.

The girl looked at his unconscious body and noticed something.

.......Wet patch.....

A fairly noticeable one at that....

He must've really been that frightened then.

Well, it didn’t matter.

For now, at least, she believed she was safe.

It seemed that her body realised that too, as, gradually, her eyelids grew heavier.

Her eyelids became heavy and her muscles relaxed.

―She began to fall asleep.

Her closing eyes stared at the young man's wide back the entire time.

It felt so reliable, like that of a dependable older brother’s.

Although the girl knew she hadn’t ever even seen the stranger before, she couldn’t get the feeling of familiarity out of her mind.

She then, for the first time since his appearance, turned her gaze from the stranger to something else.

Towards her favourite thing in this world.

The girl looked lovingly, and in great comfort, at the soft, white, and fluffy fur blanket she was currently wrapped in; that she'd previously wrapped herself in, to defend from the beatings of Bailey, who couldn't take it away.

It was the same colour as her snow-like hair, and was akin to a cloud, which made it truly unique.

She still remembered the day she woke up in this blanket.

Ever since that nostalgic time, she never left it.

.....Thank you....

She felt unending gratitude for the stranger who came in like a knight on a horse from a fairy tale to save her.

Thank you.... for saving me...

Unfortunately, there was nothing that could be done.

It was too late―the girl wouldn’t be able to pay him back even in a hundred lifetimes, and with all the damage that has been dealt already to her body, she understood very well that her ‘end’ was imminent.

“……hu―......e―....”

If at all possible, she wished to at least express her thanks to her saviour in words..... nevertheless, no matter how hard she tried, no voice would come out; only small, pitiful gasps of breath.

*thump*

Finally, her small and fragile body slumped down as its long sought after rest commenced.

This girl of the Demon race.

Her name was Rena, and this incident would come to be known as the crucial turning point in her eventful life.

"......"

Silently, Jae walked over to the girl’s body on the ground and something appeared in his hand from thin air―It was a leather flask containing a strange, brightly glowing liquid inside of it.

Then, a voice spoke out within his head.

[What do you think you are you doing? Healing such an inferior thing... Do you not know the definition of 'Pride'?]

This time, it was a deep and frightening voice, yet at the same time, a noble and dignified one, giving the impression that the owner of such voice was of such monumental status.

“Shut it.”

[What a spoiled brat huh. Has way too much for what he deserves. Hmph, yes, if I had what he had when I was young, then everything would be much better. Indeed, it is so.]

[What a little shit! The fucker, you should just bloody kill him already!!! What are you doing, wasting time like this!?]

And then two familar voices sounded―a distorted, raspy one, and a mature, adult-like and tough one.

[Mmmmm, rather... isn't going so far as to heal it a bit.... isn't simply 'resting' enough of a reward...??]

[.....Have you seen their skills? Maybe eating them would--]

And the final two voices that were previously heard.

“You lot really speak what’s on your fucking mind don’t you. Just shut the hell up and let me do what I want.”

Jae brought the flask to the girl’s mouth before abruptly pausing.

Skill「Pride」has activated

Jae's brows furrowed.

"......What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

[Using such a tone with this me... I am the one to ask questions and to obtain answers.]

[Why do you go to such lengths to heal a practically dead child? She has done absolutely nothing of worth in this life and is inferior to even that shitty brat over there in terms of physical status.]

[Even if her magical ability is exceptional, it is a racial trait. There is nothing special about this child that requires you to go out of your way and act as if you're inferior.]

[You have completely no reason to do this. Nay, you have more reason to not do it. Healing such a pitiful creature is lowering yourself to below them. That is not what Pride means. To be the most prideful means to be the most powerful.]

[Moreover, this would be the second time, I hear. Last time was already a bit much, but it was forgiven because of that situation's conditions and because I wasn't there at the time.]

[Now, one more time.... Do you have a real reason to heal this worthless Demon child?]

…Son of a bitch. Just because you’re Pride you think you can get in my way and order me around, huh? Anyway, none of your points make any damn sense. Ha, fucker.

“You want a reason? Then is 'information' enough? I need someone to answer my questions since I’ve been in that shitty forest for a while, right? And....”

[Hmm....]

“...Isn’t acting in benevolence also a show of how great I am? It isn’t lowering myself in the slightest.”

[Hahh?...... I suppose... that could be correct.... Indeed, I never considered that 'healing' could be a prideful act, since I never even considered doing it myself.... Hm, yes, due to showing the recipient the supreme power of an extraordinary healing ability, I suppose it would.... Hm. Fine, then. I cease the interference. Though, you must only use your own powers of restoration. Using something like a potion gives off a worse impression.]

“....Hah.”

Fucking idiot. Really.

Jae, after confirming the end of Pride’s obstruction, looked again towards the girl. His eyes glew bright colours of green and blue.

Hm. Somehow, it's not as bad on the inside as I thought it'd be, though calling it 'not bad' wouldn't be accurate. Is it because she's a Demon? Her natural restoration abilities are quite high. Though, that blanket definitely helped aswell, huh. Even then, the injuries on the outside...

They were something far too severe and brutal for a child to have. Jae crouched down.

"Don't worry.", he whispered to the sleeping girl who quite obviously seemed to be pain.

Reaching out a hand, he gently stroked her tense head.

"You have done well."

Her hair was incredibly soft and Jae could imagine just how far any girl would go to have hair like it.

Slowly, the anguished expressions on the girl's face began to alleviate along with Jae's warm hand and gentle words.

"You have endured a lot."

"You can really be proud of yourself for that."

"But you don't have to do such a painful thing anymore."

"And..... I'm truly sorry about what I've caused to happen to you."

"I'll make sure you don't have to live with such awful scars."

"I won't allow such a thing to happen again."

"It's fine if you don't forgive me."

"Even if you hate and despise me, I will not complain or deny."

"Since this was all my fault."

"But still."

"I'm sorry."

Then, a tremendous light emanated from the girl's body. It disappeared in the blink of an eye. When it was gone, Jae took another look with his 'magic-embued eyes' to confirm that the injuries went away with it.

"Huuu.... Good. It went without issue."

Sure enough, the girl's body was completely restored to an uninjuried state. All the previous injuries; the burns, fractures, lacerations, et cetera―were all gone.

....Aside from one, that is. The one thing that hadn't healed.

―The horn.

One of the girl's horns was half-broken before. It still was, even after the restoration magic was cast. Initially, Jae was confused, thinking that something, somehow, went wrong with the magic.

But his question was answered by a voice.

[It's a racial trait of Demons. Once one of their horns is broken, even if it's only a slight chip, it will never heal back. Because their horns are anti-magic. Supposedly, it's to help the growing Demons control their large magic capacity easier, and, unfortunately, is one of the reasons why they're hunted so greedily by humans.]

...A unique trait to the Demon race, huh...

It was something that could only be described as sad.

The girl would have to live with that half-broken horn for the rest of her life.

Something that wasn't her fault. Not at all.

Nevertheless, she would have to live with it, forever reminded of what had been done to her.

It was truly sad. There was nothing Jae could do about it, since magic will not work.

....Well, it should be enough. Now just resting should do what's left of it.

In other words, the remaining healing of her mental state, that could only be completed through adequate rest. Though he healed her mind somewhat by reducing the stress, fatigue and trauma, it's not like magic can heal the exhaustion of everything that happened to her. Her heart was drained and overworked.

More than anything else, it was enervation of the soul itself.

Jae looked at the girl, who now lay in the blanket peacefully now that her wounds were all healed, before picking her up.

"....She's light."

Has she not been able to eat properly? I should feed her something when she wakes up. Ah, but 'monster' isn't food fit for normal people.... Eh, I'll figure something out.

She was small compared to the size of the blanket, since it wasn't really made for her, so Jae wrapped it around her as well for extra warmth, laying her down near the campfire, cleaning it up and improving it for her in the process, with another stuffed blanket for a pillow, that he seemed to pull out of nothing, just like the earlier health potion.

He decided do something about the other 'Bailey' kid later. That one also seemed to have some type of mental problem himself, but it wasn't really a cause pressing for concern and could so be dealt with at another time.

"........Haaaaah........."

Jae then looked up at the sky and, quietly, he sighed.

It was starting to get dark, but it wasn't depressing or anything. He felt something while gazing skyward. It was a strange feeling indeed.

.......Kinda reminds me of when I first woke up inside that forest....

“...Whatever. Those days have long since passed. How long ago would it've been now? I don't even know. It wasn't even good. The only good thing that has come out of anything in this world is Her...."

He slightly furrowed his brows.

“.....Actually, thinking about it now, She was like a saviour for me, huh. And yet she never even said a word before I was forced out....”

[Ah... Her..... I never had someone like that for me.... It makes me recall my days of solitude.... They were good days, indeed...]

[Oh, Her, hahaha!! That was great fun!! Go back, do it again! Or at least, to those other places She mentioned! Aren't they good for fighting?! GO THERE!! Hurry! I want to fight more!!]

[Ahh, those days... The meat really was delectable, huh... I never tasted anything so could in my life. Your cooking's certainly made a great leap, huh? I wouldn't mind going back... Yes, the meals were so very delicious. Ahhh~, just thinking about it makes me salivate....]

[What are you lot going on about? Who's this female you're talking about? And why are you talking as if she is greater than this me? Is it someone related to me, perhaps? If they are great, then of course it's related to me, right? Since I'm the greatest, after all. Well, no matter. They can't possibly be greater than me.]

.....It'd probably be for the best to not tell him that she is the.... Anyway.

[.....A......H-......H-Her, huh.... It was, so difficult, to cope, with no sleep, for so long..... Don't go back..... please. Haa--yaaaaaaahh~.....]

That last voice seemed to tremble as it spoke. No wonder. Jae was even about to pity the owner of the voice.... or at least, until it yawned. That just straight up ruined it. All sympathy disappeared.

Anyway, She was the greatest person for Jae, no questions asked, and forever will be the greatest.

......Wait, that reminds me.

Jae was genuinely surprised when he remembered its existence.

How long was it since I checked? Don't tell me, it was those Hobgoblins from way back......??

"........Hah. No way... I've only been using「Envy」this entire time and I wasn't able to check it for so long that I forgot it even existed...."

The Status Window...

All the while thinking about various things, Jae decided.

How long was it since the last time? Even he himself doesn't know.

*badump badump badump*

With a heart beating faster than normal, Jae opened it.

It was almost exactly like the first time he did it.

He was overcome with anticipation.

―Jae summoned the Status Window he hadn't seen in a long, long time.

".....What the fuck is that thing."

Jae muttured aloud upon laying his eyes on a disgusting green child.

Wait, no, it wasn't actually a green child.

It was a Goblin.

A monster had appeared.

It was a classic.

Dare I say, suitable for Jae's first monster in this new world.

But, aren't they usually in packs or something? Groups, whatever, there's usually multiple of them at once right? So... where are they all? Don't tell me... It was seperated?

This was too good.

But, Jae didn't want to miss this freebie.

And so, he attacked.

Jumping out of the brush, Jae ran full-speed towards the unsuspecting goblin.

Jae's only weapon was a fallen tree branch that he sharpened with rocks a bit.

But, it was more than enough.

The goblin didn't realise until it was too late, and so was hit, in full, by the sharp branch.

*BAM!*

It was hit so hard it smacked into a nearby tree, hard, but that still wasn't enough to kill it.

Apparently, the cut was too shallow.

{GUEEEHHHH!? GIGIGIGIIGGIIIIGIGI!!!}

It charged at Jae with a weapon of its own.

It wielded a crude stone dagger like a sword.

Jae swiftly ducked the horizontal swing and counter-attacked.

{GIII...!!?!}

A large gash was formed across its chest, but as if it didn't even mind it, the goblin swung again.

This time, it was a heavy, vertical-down attack.

It was too quick, and Jae was too close to dodge.

Shit...!!

There was only one thing he could do.

BLOCK!!

Jae held out the branch in desperation against the attack, and―

*snap!*

{Giiie...? GIIEE!}

The branch was broken, but Jae was unharmed.

While the goblin was still in a bad position after attacking, Jae made his move.

He quickly went behind the goblin, and put it in a vicious chokehold.

{GI-KAAUGH!}

It began coughing and spluttering.

What the hell was wrong with this creature?

Even when in this disadvantageous spot, the goblin was still full of vitality.

Tch! Guess I'll have to use it then...!

And, with but a thought, small flames began to appear on the surface of Jae's skin.

「WRATH」!!

They really were insignificant flames that couldn't even be called as a 'fire', but in this situation, it would be enough.

Surely, the goblin would not have such great resistance to heat or fire.

It is supposed to be a low-level monster.

Hell, even when「Envy」was used, it said the creature was only Level 7, even though the actual stats could not be seen.

Releasing the chokehold, Jae instead gripped the sides of the goblin's head like a vice.

He concentrated all his energy on emitting the flames from his palms so the goblin would be directly affected.

"DIE, FUCKER!"

But then.

"Pwuh...!"

The flames suddenly stopped and Jae exhaled greatly as he became extremely mentally tired.

What happened!?

It didn't take long for Jae to find out, because when he checked his status window in a hurry―

Mana Points (MP) : 0/100 Conditions met. Skill「MP Consumption Down [Lv.1]」has been acquired

Shit!

Unfortunately, Jae didn't have any time to think about it.

If he lost focus now, the goblin would break free of his grip, and then he'd be the one in a bad spot.

Ah, fuck!

Realising that pressuring the goblin's head wouldn't help, he tried various things while he had the chance.

Sadly, with his current status and strength, there wasn't a lot he could do.

―Twisting the head to break the neck, pulling the head off the body, etc., none of them worked.

Then, could he only rely on techniques he knew from Earth?

Jae forgot about everything and trusted solely his instincts.

Releasing the head grip, Jae attacked ferociously.

Punch after punch after punch.

Mixing even kicks, knees and elbow strikes in with the constant stream of attacks.

The goblin didn't even have a chance to retaliate as it only absorbed all of the hits.

Conditions met. Skill「Close-Quarters Combat [Lv.1]」has been acquired Conditions met. Skill「Combo [Lv.1]」has been acquired Conditions met. Skill「Fighting Spirit [Lv.1]」has been acquired Conditions met. Skill「Power Burst [Lv.1]」has been acquired

He even acquired some new skills.

The word 'tenacity' really comes to mind when looking at the now, completely bloody goblin.

You tenacious bastard! Just fucking die already!!

And, finally, it happened.

After that continuous combo of strikes..... Jae saw it, while panting heavily.

You have levelled up

"Haaa.....haaaa.....haaaa......AHAH! I DID IT! Mother....fucker....finally... fucking...died."

Skill「Wrath」has levelled up [Lv.2]→[Lv.3]

Then, Jae slowly felt his consciousness wane.

This was it. His stamina and mana both were at rock bottom.

His self, both physically and mentally, were absolutely exhausted out of every drop.

He wouldn't mind it, since at least he'd be able to rest, but....

With his gradually closing eyes, Jae spotted something by chance.

Aaahh....

Walking slowly towards him, they were there.

This really is....

Ahead of Jae were a group of 8 goblins, all bigger in size, Level, and status, than the goblin he had just risked his life fighting.

Skill「Envy」has levelled up [Lv.2]→[Lv.3]

...the end....

Finally, Jae passed out.