Strange Grief Wants to Retire ~ The Weakest Hunter Dreams of a Hero ~ - Volume 1 - Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Grieving Souls

Rudolph Davout had absolute confidence in his strength. He had learned lance techniques from rigorous training during his time as an imperial knight. Once he changed occupations and started raiding treasure vaults, he only refined them further. His power, bolstered by mana material, had far outgrown that of his former self back when he was known as a top-class Lancer among the knights.

His lance-type Relic, strong enough to bend steel clubs, was called the Wind Dragon’s Fang. It was able to pierce through the thickest of shields, and anyone who was caught up in the resulting gusts would be blown away in the process.

He didn’t only excel in offense, however. As an ex-knight, one could say that Rudolph’s true specialty was defense. His armor wasn’t a Relic, but normal phantom attacks could hardly scratch it. Combined with the shield in his left hand, he was an iron wall. Rudolph was confident that his defensive abilities could stack up against Grieving Souls’ legendary Immutable.

Though he had little experience, he was still a level 5. As long as he continued to accumulate experience over time, gaining a title of his own was no distant dream. Rudolph’s party members weren’t quite so powerful, but together, they made a fine party.

He had accepted this request primarily because of his profound confidence. The target had been a level 3 treasure vault, two levels below the vaults Rudolph’s party typically raided. There hadn’t been any logical reason to be concerned, but it being a lower-level vault didn’t mean that they could neglect proper preparation.

At first, things had gone well. They had easily swatted away various phantoms as they progressed deeper and deeper. It had taken three days for them to notice that something was off, when the phantoms had abruptly spiked in power. It had been a minor difference at first, but it had grown and grown until the White Wolf’s Den had begun spitting out bizarrely powerful phantoms.

If anything, Rudolph’s party may have been too strong. In terms of the request they had come to fulfill, they had been one man short. Yet Rudolph Davout and his party members had still managed to overpower these abnormally-strong phantoms.

They had been wary at first, but that had quickly faded. After all, it may have been strange for the phantoms to suddenly grow stronger, but the party was still stronger than them, so there hadn’t been an issue.

The appearance of the silver, bone-wearing wolf knights had been cause for raised eyebrows, but with Rudolph’s power, his Relic, and his capable party, they still hadn’t posed all that much of a challenge.

At that point, they had realized that something was very wrong. However, the raid was only supposed to last another day after that, so they’d figured they had energy to spare. Rudolph had deliberated for a few moments, but he had then quickly decided to push forward.

Then, on the final day of their raid, Rudolph and his crew had met a smaller wolf knight covered entirely in human bones. That being was the incarnation of the Silver Moons’ grudge against humanity.

Once everyone had regained consciousness and recovered some of their stamina, we began the fateful trek home. In war and raids alike, retreat was the time when most casualties arose. Especially considering half of us were injured, escaping from a vault this crazy was a far-fetched prayer.

The Great Greg was hauling two big guys, Li’l Gilbert was carrying one, and Rhuda took charge of the lightest girl. Rudolph’s party members could walk if they pushed themselves, but it was best that they preserve their energy in case they needed it.

Mercifully, Rudolph used up the rest of the mana in Healing Faith, so he was now able to walk on his own. He wasn’t in top shape, but if he used his lance as a cane, he could walk in his suit of armor, albeit slowly.

Tino cautiously led the way. With my lack of both strength and resistance, I was just dead weight. But I was still the highest level!

Rudolph looked ready to collapse at any second, but he said, “If the boss appears, I’ll be your shield. I can at least buy you some time.”

“Nobody gets left behind,” Tino responded promptly. She was becoming a fine hunter.

Ignoring her reply, he let out a groan. “I entrust my comrades’ lives... to you. Get them to Zebrudia; that’s all I ask.” There was deep regret in his voice.

Hunters needed luck just as much as, if not more than, skill. It was all too common to hear about high-level prodigies disappearing at random. I didn’t know what they had come here for, but it looked like they were acting safely enough to me. If nothing else, they probably just had shit luck.

This was a rough job. With or without that boney-faced boss he’d mentioned, it would be difficult to bring everyone home alive if those wolf knights showed up. And if I knew that, then Rudolph was sure to be painfully aware of it. He would also know that should the need arise, the first ones we would abandon would be our emaciated rescue targets. His level 5 recognition wasn’t just for show. Surely he had seen countless friends and comrades lost along the way.

In spite of his bravery, Tino answered curtly, “Worry not. As long as Master is here, we have nothing to fear.”

Girl, you’ve got way too much trust in me. All I can do is run away.

The Night Hiker was a one-man Relic, though perhaps you could carry one more person if you tried really hard. Fortunately for me, Tino was small. In the worst case, I could abandon Li’l Gilbert, Greg, and the rest in order to escape together with Tino.

But of course, now that we’d come this far, we had to get everyone home in one piece. I’d do my best, but I wasn’t going to forget my priorities.

Rudolph turned to me and bowed his head deeply. I’m not God or whatever, so there’s not much point in bowing to me!

He talked at length while we walked along the narrow path. “I’d say we’re only alive because it was toying with us.”

“Toying with you how?”

“It wielded a sword with incredible strength. Even my most powerful thrusts were easily parried. It cut through our shields and our armor, digging into our flesh and bones. If it’d been serious, it could’ve killed us all with ease. But it only injured us and left us alone. I imagine it wanted to weaken us and torture us to death. Or maybe we were just supposed to starve. It’s intelligent enough to be cruel, and it’s abnormally strong.”

These unbelievable scraps of information made even Li’l Gilbert look grave.

The denser the mana material surrounding a vault, the more powerful the phantoms within. Their intelligence, strength, and equipment could all be affected. Low-level vaults contained phantoms that were little more than glorified monsters, but as you got into the higher levels, it wasn’t too rare to find ones smart enough to understand human language. Still, such advanced phantoms had no business showing up in a vault like this.

Rudolph continued, “Just once, I tried entering a level six vault. Before long, I hit the ground running, but I swear that the phantom we ran into here was even stronger than the ones back there.”

I had a hard time buying it. This was a level 3 vault; a little change in the environment shouldn’t have been enough to make them that much stronger. Unusually powerful phantoms showed up once in a while when there were sudden shifts in the surrounding area, but I’d never heard of it being that extreme.

“I understand it’s hard to believe, but I saw it. The difference in power was awe-inspiring. I’ve never seen such incomprehensible, fear-inducing technique.” Rudolph’s clear-cut features warped into a terrified grimace as he shuddered. “With those skills, the thing might even be on par with the Protean Sword.”

“The Protean Sword?!” blurted the Great Greg, his eyes nearly popping out of his sockets.

It was a name that any Swordsman would know. Li’l Gilbert’s gaze hardened; he seemed equally familiar with it.

Tino glanced at me, watching my reaction. It’s okay, kid. Don’t worry about me.

The man behind the nickname was rumored to be the strongest Swordsman in the capital. He’d learned orthodox swordsmanship from the Sword Saint and used that as a foothold to learn any and all other styles. A real, dyed-in-the-wool sword maniac.

His real name was Luke Sykol. Like it or not, he was a member of my party. Funny. While everyone was sitting there astonished, I was the only one who didn’t especially react.

Unlike mine, Luke’s title wasn’t an exaggeration. He was top-tier when it came to swords and swords only. Even Ark couldn’t hold a candle to him; the guy was just leagues ahead. If there was a phantom that strong out there, Luke would’ve gone to kill it long ago.

Still, Rudolph was looking pretty ghastly. Being defeated came with some fear, of course, but he was saying all of this to the people who’d come to save him. No doubt they were strong; I certainly didn’t want to run into them.

It was becoming clear that Tino wouldn’t be able to win alone. Damn, I really should’ve brought Ark.

I’d been hearing the howling of wolves for some time now. Each time, my heart leapt into my throat. As the eerie sounds echoed through the narrow tunnel, it was hard to determine the distance between us and them. Not that I had the ability to tell anyway. It would’ve been nice if Red Alert told me about it, but this piece of junk often just didn’t react.

“It was small. Not even half as big as the knights with half-bone masks; maybe the size of a person. But it was much, much stronger.”

“Not my lucky day, huh?” the Great Greg said with a heavy sigh.

I totally empathized with the guy. Bet Greg would make a good drinking buddy, assuming we both make it back alive.

Rudolph had taken down a fair few phantoms on his way here, it seemed. Though the unexpected wolf-men had caught them off guard, they hadn’t faltered. After defeating several of these half-masked phantoms, they decided they were about done, and then were attacked just before they could leave. Considering how unpopular the request was, they probably would’ve died of exhaustion without our intervention.

The man supported by Li’l Gilbert piped up deliriously, “It’s all my fault that we—”

“Don’t say it, Helian.”

It seemed like Rudolph and his buddies had their own fair share of troubles. But seeing as we were in such a sorry situation, I didn’t want to hear a word of it.

With a shrug, I said, “You guys can talk about that on your own time once we’re back in the capital.”

“Uh, okay.”

“Goodness, Master. You really are God.”

If I were God, I’d call down lightning and burn this goddamn vault to smithereens.

We walked slowly to match the pace of Rudolph and his crew.

About halfway back, the Great Greg frowned at us and spoke for everyone when he said, “So are we screwed, or what?”

“What’s going on?” Li’l Gilbert looked uncomfortable alongside him.

The wolves’ howls had grown more frequent now. At first, they would echo a few times and then stop. Now, it was rare to have a moment of silence. I didn’t know what, but it was clear that something was going on.

I was already down to five of my seventeen Safety Rings. Six hits, and I was a dead man. Furthermore, I had almost no usable Relics. My Hounding Chain hadn’t returned, and though my Shooting Rings were still available, I’d already used my trump card. In other words, they likely wouldn’t be useful in stopping the enemy.

I did have one Relic on hand that had some charge, but it was magic that obliterated the entire area—courtesy of my little sister—so that would have to be a last resort. I could only use it once, after all, and wide-area magic was inferior to single-target magic when it came to power. It was dubious whether or not I had anything that would work well on a level 7 or so phantom.

Huh. Are we actually screwed? Did I bring the wrong Relics?

Nothing had gone according to plan. The rescue targets were still alive, and Tino couldn’t handle the phantoms in here alone. I appreciated that Li’l Gilbert and the rest actually put in an unexpected amount of effort, but everything else sucked. Plus, I had lost a Relic! Was this karma?

While I groaned and cursed under my breath, Tino stopped ahead of me. “Um, Master, something big is coming our way.”

She turned around, and I could see anxiety and hopelessness written all over her face. It really stirred up my desire to protect her.

Her claim prompted the group to prepare for battle immediately. The guys let the rescue targets down from their shoulders and huddled against the wall. Rudolph’s chiseled face was covered in a cold sweat as he lifted his lance.

Everyone was ready to fight. In the midst of the nerves and seriousness in the air, I gave a half-hearted shrug. With no other option, I pulled Tino behind me and stood in front. Even I had some measure of pride.

“What are you doing?!”

“It’s dangerous. Stay back.”

Gotta do what you gotta do. It was time for me to show off my strongest human missile yet. I wasn’t sure how much mana the Night Hiker had left in it, but I ought to at least be able to get one clean hit in. The enemy shouldn’t expect a high-speed missile to come rocketing through, so the first one should hit... I hope.

I’d slammed into armor before, but if I could create a miracle here, I might be able to knock its head off. Of course, that hit would mean losing one of my lives, but it was unavoidable.

The incredible nervousness slowed my heartbeat, like the thing had given up on panicking. Was that even possible? Though if I was really up against something as strong as Luke, well, I’d just die. I strained my eyes, looking ahead. From a dimly lit corner, it emerged.

Rudolph gasped as all the color drained from his face. It was the phantom he had told us about, the one whose entire face was covered by a skull. About half the size of the silver wolf knights, it was around as big as me. But the overwhelming pressure emanating from it was beyond comparison to the wolf knights we’d fought.

This phantom was much more human in appearance than the others. From the side, it appeared to have canine ears, but the shape of its head and its hair were humanoid. An obsidian sword hung from its hand, dragging behind it.

“What is that thing?” Li’l Gilbert croaked. He was shaking like a leaf.

Oh, it’s strong as hell. Red Alert had finally started to heat up. Why’d I even bring you, dammit?

The phantom was on such a clearly different level that even I could understand it. Surely Li’l Gilbert was even more aware. Then, as if chasing the phantom, yet another humanoid figure appeared. It looked almost comical next to the first, as this one was tiny and wore a bone mask with a big grin on it. Instead of armor, it donned light clothes, but it had metal boots so long that they reached its knees.

This new figure, approaching with light steps, held in its hands two familiar-looking Relics: the Silent Air sword I’d dropped somewhere along the way, and my Hounding Chain. I rubbed my eyes and surveyed them carefully.

“There’re two of ’em?!”

“Oh, no. Krai, what do we do?”

The Great Greg and Rhuda were on the verge of losing all hope. Our strongest member, Rudolph, froze at the sudden development.

Tino was the one who reacted the loudest. With a pathetic, tearful “Eep!”, she clung to my arms. She wasn’t wheedling like usual, either; she was just terrified.

“Oh, Master! Please, it’s all over. You have to save us! I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’ll do my best, I’ll do anything, but please, forgive me and save us!”

Seeing our cool-as-a-cucumber Tino in a panic, Li’l Gilbert and the rest of our temporary party, alongside Rudolph, were all stunned.

The laughing bonehead slowly turned toward me. Unlike the wolf knights, its eye holes revealed only darkness. Its lips warped to form a grin, as if it laughed upon all the world. I didn’t know what was going on anymore. I couldn’t believe my eyes.

Patting Tino on the head to reassure her and ignoring the rest of our disconsolate group, I kicked things off by saying the first thing that came to mind.

“Shit. Liz, is that you?”

The vast quantity of mana material spawned something befitting the White Wolf’s Den. Cue the awakening of consciousness. The initiation of thought within the brain. The establishment of the ego. Its first emotion wasn’t resentment; it was exhilaration.

Eyes that pierced the dark. Ears that could pinpoint echoes in the distance. All five senses began to work, feeding enormous amounts of information to the brain. Palpable strength filled the body, along with knowledge of how to use the sword at its waist.

It could be likened to the king of the Silver Moons, a being that existed at the logical endpoint of their endless grudges and ideals. Its form was like the humans it imitated, but its way of life was vastly different. The human bones that covered its face were proof of its wolfhood. But in truth, it was closer to human than beast.

The mana material collecting in the White Wolf’s Den had reformed the existing phantoms within into stronger beings than the Red Moons. Knights of silver fur, intelligent and able to freely wield weapons, were born. They were retainers, excellent knights that served the alpha.

Now, over ten years after the Silver Moons had disappeared and left their curse behind, the wolves in the den had achieved their true form. If they had had this much strength to begin with, the creatures known as Silver Moons would not have been driven from their home.

The five hunters who had infiltrated the den were stronger than the ones who had hunted the Silver Moons to near-extinction, but they were no match for the new and improved canines. Even the strongest among the humans, the giant with his lance, couldn’t stand up to the leader and its pack. A single strike of the lance boasted enough strength to pierce thick armor, but it meant nothing if the hunter couldn’t hit his mark.

The boss had the strength, swiftness, technique, and intelligence to surpass the hunters in every way. Unlike the other wolves, it bore no hatred—only exhilaration.

Foolish hunters groveled before the boss’s power, writhing as they realized they weren’t strong enough. It relished the looks on their faces as their hopes were crushed in one fell swoop. So much so that, occasionally, it might overlook the hunters as they fled unknowingly away from the exit.

The White Wolf’s Den was a hunting ground. Poor souls who found their way into the den would find only death. No man could escape the boss’s blade. It brought death to the intruders who sullied its home—cornering them, giving them hope, then crushing that hope before them. The hunters’ despair soothed the ennui felt by the boss and its brethren. In the end, they would have to expand their den, but that could wait until they had more allies.

The boss waited some distance from its chamber, which the hunters would surely return to. Once it heard its comrades’ screeching howls, it prepared to greet the wounded hunters as an agent of death. But just as it thought to do so, it finally met one grieving soul wearing a delighted smile.

One could liken it to wind. Or perhaps a shadow, lightning, flames, or even a storm.

“Huh?” came Li’l Gilbert’s voice.

I didn’t even blink.

Without any sort of forewarning, the boss’s body had been blasted away. As it bounced off the ground with a thud, the laughing bonehead now stood before me.

“What the—?!”

Rudolph, standing next to me, opened his eyes as wide as they would go. The base of his long lance quivered and fell to the ground with a clatter. Rather than gawking, his gaze was more akin to the vacant look of someone who couldn’t get a grasp on the situation. He couldn’t see it. Nobody could have even perceived it.

So fast that even the battle-hardened hunters couldn’t lift a finger, the bonehead brought its face right up to mine. Hot-pink hair peeked out from behind the mask. The voice that came from within was somewhat muffled, but adorably high-pitched.

“I just wanna make sure of something real quick, Krai Baby.”

Still clinging to my arms, Tino tried to hide behind me.

The laughing bonehead paid her no mind, jabbing her thumb backward and asking, “Is that thing our new member, or what?” There wasn’t a trace of tension or fear in her tone. Seeing that she was just the same as ever was strangely relaxing.

The boss, knocked all the way over to the wall, fell to its knees before rising again. It scrutinized the laughing bonehead, whose back was currently turned to it. The only human aspect they shared were the bones covering their faces.

I didn’t know of anyone else this dangerous. Well, actually, I knew some people who were even more dangerous. Everyone but Tino was afraid of the bonehead as she spoke. Tino herself was downright terrified of her.

I sculpted my tense facial muscles into a smile. “Pfft, no. Hey, how about you lose the mask?”

“Really? Whew! I didn’t think so either, y’know, but I thought the mask was kinda like ours. Oh, by the way, here. I think you dropped these, Krai.”

Oh, she was pissed right off. Liz’s voice was almost saccharine as she handed over the Silent Air and my beloved Hounding Chain. She only called me “Krai” without the “Baby” when she was livid. With a pompous air, she put a hand to the mask that covered her features and yanked it off of her face.

Nobody moved. The Great Greg, Li’l Gilbert, and even the boss behind her stood motionless as they watched.

Her hot-pink hair fluttered, unbound. Revealed for all to see were her tan skin, thin lips, chiseled nose, and most strikingly of all, shining pink irises. She was beautiful, but she gave off the aura of a dormant volcano ready to erupt at any time.

Rhuda gulped. “What? It was a human?”

“No freakin’ way.” The Great Greg took a step back, unable to cope with this turn of events. Did he know? Was he one of those people who followed the crowd?

Liz finally looked over, as if she had only just noticed the people other than me here. “What? Do they, like, not know about us?” She smiled, but the blazing light in her eyes proved it was fake. “Are you hunters? I mean, Krai’s right here. What are you, fakers? I can’t believe people from the capital wouldn’t know.”

Her mask—the laughing bonehead, party symbol of Grieving Souls—fell to the ground.

Liz then laughed, arrogantly and derisively, both at the phantom and all of the hunters present. “Wow. People still don’t know Grieving Souls, huh?”

Everyone was aghast.

Again, one could liken her to wind. Or perhaps a shadow, lightning, flames, or even a storm. Her little figure was chock-full of energy, like the sun. All of these described the Stifled Shadow, Liz Smart, well. Her face, her appearance—it was the real Liz, all right. But why was she here?

Seeing that I was just full of questions, Liz whispered, “Sorry, Krai.”

I didn’t buy it. Her little mouth was trembling, like she was holding back a sob or stifling some intense emotion. Although she looked ready to cry, Liz wouldn’t do that.

“You don’t know how sad I am. I beat that castle, ran back home as fast as I could, and you weren’t there! Then, I heard you went to a treasure vault, of all places.”

Her voice faltered. Her skin flushed, and her eyes glowed like cinders. The air around her warped like a mirage. Liz was hot. The heat rising from her warmed the cool cavern.

She is really, uh, fired up. Maybe she’s all excited from beating that treasure vault?

It was all too common for hunters to go wild when they had too high a dosage of mana material. Also, the Night Palace, the vault she’d been to, wasn’t exactly close enough to run back from. How in the hell...?

“Sad. Just sad! Do you even know...” Liz paused, collected herself, then spat, “how embarrassed I am?!”

Her eyebrows warped, her eyes narrowed, and her cheeks and lips grew taut.

“I trusted you, really. I thought it was all a mistake; maybe Krai here was just too much of a worrywart, right? But look. My little apprentice...” She glared at Tino. “Can’t even take out the trash. Hot damn.”

Everyone aside from Tino was shaken. Tino, meanwhile, had long surpassed that and was now practically dying. Before, I just heard her teeth chattering. Now I even felt it through her hands as she squeezed my shoulders.

It’s okay, kid. She’s not gonna kill you, or whatever.

Li’l Gilbert tried to interject. “Hey, what the hell’s—”

“Say what? Go die, kid. Can’t you see I’m busy apologizing here?!”

He was quickly thrown against the wall. A moment later, we all heard the dull sound of armor being pierced. The cave shook. The laws of physics were going haywire.

His eyes rolled back in his head, his armor caved in, and his hands were twitching nonstop. What a noble sacrifice.

The Great Greg rushed over to him, helped him up, and gave him a potion. Li’l Gilbert had guts, but he should’ve sized up the enemy first. Liz was faster and more volatile than anyone else here, by far.

Not even bothering to look at the guy she’d just wrecked, Liz looked behind me at a shrinking Tino. “T, what the heck am I supposed to do? Am I incompetent? Did I mess up your training? Are you not talented, were you not paying attention, or did you not want power badly enough?

“Hey, answer me already, you little shit! You freakin’ trash heap! I didn’t raise you to be garbage! Krai’s gonna hate me now because of you! You made me look terrible! Die! Just die if you’re not up to the task! Die in a ditch! Choke on your tongue and die!”

“I’m sorry, my dear sister! I’m sorry! It’s all my fault. I’m sorry for being such a problem. It’s all because I’m so weak! I’m sorry!”

Liz spat abuses at Tino, while Tino apologized like a broken record.

“Don’t apologize to me! There’s someone else you should say sorry to!”

Everyone was cringing hard. Even the boss!

Tino had been giving it a hundred—no, a hundred and ten percent. It wasn’t Liz’s fault, either. The real problem was me, the guy who’d pushed this stupid request on her. But if I said it was my fault, no doubt Liz would still blame Tino. That was just her nature.

Instead, I placed my hands on Liz’s shoulders before she could get a hold of her. “Liz, Tino really gave it her all. She took down phantoms, and she found the rescue targets we’re here for. Yep, I’d say she did a good job.”

Big words, coming from me of all people. No doubt everyone here was thinking the same thing.

But as she didn’t know the circumstances, Liz was shocked. Her attitude did a complete one-eighty as she looked up at me and asked, “Huh? She really did a good job?”

“Yep. They all worked together and took down this one big, white wolf. That’s pretty great work, if I do say so myself.”

“One? Only one? Is it really worth letting her live after all?”

What in the world was pulling at her heartstrings right now? While I sang Tino’s praises, Liz cocked her head in confusion. It felt like I was consoling a terrifying monster. Oh, wait. That’s exactly what I’m doing.

“Yeah, totally! I want her to keep living. And good job to you, Liz, for learning to hold back a little.”

“Oh, you noticed! Cool, right? I remembered to stop just before hitting people! Only because you made me do it, though.” Liz lit right up. Her rage from seconds ago was gone with the wind.

That was a normal hit, wasn’t it? She didn’t stop, did she? But Li’l Gilbert was still alive, so I figured that was progress. Past Liz would’ve squashed him flat. Look at me, teaching the genocidal beast restraint. Am I a genius, or what?

Not that I had actually done anything.

“Sorry for being such a problem, Master.” Tino’s faltering, fragile voice came just in time.

She wasn’t Liz’s long-time apprentice for nothing. She knew what we needed here.

“Look, T, you’ve got talent. You just lack motivation, effort, and the readiness to die for what you want. Since you’re a hundred times weaker than me, you gotta work a hundred times harder.”

“Uh, yeeeah. Totally.” I didn’t know what she was talking about, but they must’ve had some master-pupil telepathy going on.

She was still stomping on the ground like she was mad, but for the most part, Liz’s anger had subsided. Liz was a moody one, so there was no telling what might set her off into a blind rage, but at the very least, it never lasted too long.

While we bickered, the bone-masked boss didn’t move an inch. It just held its sword at the ready, watching Liz’s every move with utmost caution. Despite having taken a blow from her, the phantom’s body showed no signs of damage. Unlike Li’l Gilbert, its armor wasn’t even cracked.

Just then, we heard footsteps approaching. From the direction Liz had come, another creature appeared. It was a giant, almost as tall as the ceiling. I remembered that figure, the one stooping over in the cramped space: it was one of the silver-pelted wolves from the boss chamber.

The gun it carried was probably used for rapid fire. Most firearms phantoms carried were based on those of civilizations that had flourished in the field of physics for a time. Many of them couldn’t be replicated by modern tech and came with enough power to pierce muscles hardened by mana material. They were tough for hunters to deal with.

The boss looked up at the wolf knight, much larger than itself, and gestured our way. It silently turned toward us.

So the reason he didn’t attack us wasn’t because he was waiting for an opening, or because he was scared of Liz... but because he was waiting for his buddy?

Well, Liz was really the only person the boss had to worry about. The rest of us were six half-dead hunters, a few healthy-but-weak hunters, and me, the guy who just had a high level. The influence of a high level might work on hunters, but monsters and phantoms didn’t care one bit.

Liz didn’t even turn to look. When she spoke, she sounded completely uninterested. “Huh. Still more, eh? T, d’you want one?”

“Oh, Lizzy, I—”

“Don’t disappoint me, ’kay?”

She was around thirty feet away from the enemy, with its oppressively large weapon. It was too far. The boss was next to it, too. If any one of us took a step out, we’d be full of holes in an instant. In this tiny tunnel, the enemy didn’t even have to aim. Even Tino couldn’t hope to evade it. I mean, no normal hunter could do that.

The sound of armor scraping together interrupted their conversation.

“I’ll guard. No matter what, I’ll try to make an opening for you.” Rudolph, previously frozen in fear, now gripped his shield and stood next to Liz.

His raised shield, its green paint fading and covered in small scratches here and there, was as thick as a mini-brick wall. It wasn’t enough to cover him fully, but at the very least, we could rely on it to block the bulk of the gunfire. He was a pretty good guy.

Liz shot a quick glance at him, and the pleasant look on her face slid right off. “Ugh, no thanks. You spoiled it.”

“What?”

“I was gonna have T do it for me, see, ’cause I’m pooped. Gotta have time to cool down, right? But now people are gonna talk shit about me and it’s all T’s fault. Ugh, I’m pissed. I can’t take it anymore!”

Liz’s slender fingertips picked up her mask and pressed it onto her face, hiding her contorted expression. At almost the exact same time, loud gunfire rang out as countless bullets erupted from the wolf knight’s massive gun. Each flash at the end of the barrel lit the darkness.

In the face of the bullets raining upon us, there was an unidentifiable scream. Then, the darkness returned. It had aimed for Liz and those of us around her. However, nobody fell.

Liz opened her outstretched hand, dropping metal fragments on the ground. They were the bullets that should have rained upon us. The wolf knight lifted his gun again in fear. Unsatisfied, Liz let out an ungodly howl.

Aw hell, she’s pissed again.

“You think normal bullets are gonna work on meee?! Stupid-ass dog, with your stupid-ass, outdated physical weapon! I’m better than that! Don’t assume I’m all the way down at your level! You’re just tryna make a fool outta me! AAAAARGH!”

Another hail of bullets came, shaking the narrow cavern. Liz didn’t move a single step, yet all the bullets disappeared. The bullets, having lost their momentum, fell comically to the ground.

She continued to yell, her breath not labored in the slightest. “I don’t need a goddamn shield! T, you really had trouble with these weak, slow-ass attacks?! Were you even learning from me, kid?! What, you tryna shame me with your incompetence?! This is what you should be doing!”

Truthfully, it was a bit too much to ask.

Rhuda was full-on pale. Could she see Liz’s movements? Rudolph was at a loss as well.

With a smile plastered on my face, I watched Liz have her fun. I couldn’t keep track, of course, but I knew what she was up to. After all, one of the reasons I had so thoroughly given up on my dream of being a hunter was because I had seen all this.

What Liz was doing was simple: she was stopping these bullets with her bare hands and tossing them aside. That was all. Though I understood the basics, it was something beyond simple speed. When she’d first shown me that she could do it, like she was showing off a new toy, her smile was downright traumatizing. In treasure vaults that would require these sorts of beastly abilities, an average guy like me would never be able to keep up.

After one final spray, the wolf knight was out of bullets. I was a little curious as to how he would fight now that he had no ammo, but I’d never get the opportunity to find out.

Liz Smart had plenty of weaknesses: she couldn’t use magic, she acted on impulse, she was rough on her students, and she hated sweets. She really sucked at reading the room, too. But she excelled so much in one area that no one else could hope to measure up: Liz was fast. Faster than anyone else in the world. She was so fast that she hardly left a shadow in her wake. Funny, then, that they called her the Stifled Shadow.

After clapping her hands together a couple of times, Liz looked at the two phantoms. I couldn’t see her expression through the mask, but I could more or less imagine it. Then, the massacre began.

I couldn’t see a moment of it, as if the whole process was omitted and I was just being shown the result.

“When you’re up against armored phantoms, see, you just gotta smash ’em! Armor can only be so hard! Hit ’em from the top, too! Really knock their damn heads off! Kill, kill to your heart’s content! What could be more fun than this?!”

After a single step forward, she kicked the wolf knight without even giving it a chance to brace itself. The impact crumpled its thick, black armor like it was a sheet of paper. The wolf, a giant compared to Liz, was hurled into the wall. It vanished on impact, leaving only an indent behind. In mere seconds, one threat had already been eliminated.

Without bothering to look back, the laughing bonehead turned toward the boss. It was hard to tell which one was the real monstrosity. The boss readied its sword, wary of Liz. From the masterful way it carried itself, it was clear that Rudolph had not been exaggerating. Straying too close to the beast would have you cut down with ease. Its intense fighting spirit was palpable even from afar; out of the corner of my eye, I saw Rudolph stiffen. And yet, Liz walked up to it like she was on a nice stroll.

Liz seemed unaffected as she entered death’s domain. The sword flickered and vanished, like a flash of lightning, but no scream followed. Rudolph’s eyes bulged in their sockets.

Just hearing about it, you would think this was all a joke. The slashes were invisible to the naked eye, but the wild blade continually struck nothing but air. It was as if Liz were dancing with the sword. She was a Thief, so she didn’t have much resistance to damage. She’d be in trouble if she misstepped even once, but the blade couldn’t even graze her.

“Swords are easy! Grab ’em, parry ’em, dodge ’em, do whatever the hell you want! How the hell could you have a problem with this?!”

Far from it, Liz easily stopped the sword—so fast that you couldn’t even see the afterimages—between her fingertips. The boss tried to fall back, but its sword wouldn’t move.

What’d that guy say? This thing is supposed to match up to the Protean Sword?

Liz had dueled the Protean Sword countless times. It was just one element of Grieving Souls’ intense training. I didn’t know what exactly they were doing now that they were at this high a level, but in Liz’s case, at least, the boss wasn’t even worthy of caution.

Good thing nobody made that Protean Sword comparison near Liz. She didn’t take kindly to people who underestimated her friends.

While she hollered, Liz started lazily toying with the boss. A single bare-handed strike broke through the phantom’s guard and crushed its armor.

“Just DO it! Dodge, they can’t hit you! Hit them, they can’t dodge you! Get into your groove! Kill ’em like you’re dyin’ tomorrow! Get it, T? Don’t neglect your talent, you lazy shit! Hurry! Live fast and hard! You’re running out of time, T! Remember, you gotta work a hundred times harder than me, or else I’m gonna keep getting better than you! Damn slowpoke!”

I couldn’t follow what she was saying anymore. Subjected to this storm of abuses, Tino started crying as she clung to my back. Poor baby. Liz definitely wasn’t born to teach.

“I was in such a good mood, too! Shit!”

As a finisher, Liz lifted her leg—covered by a boot-type Relic called Apex Roots—and sent a powerful kick right into the boss’s side. A dull thud shook the cave, and Rhuda gasped. Liz’s leg had pierced right through the armor and penetrated the boss’s torso.

The phantom spasmed, and an unearthly scream echoed throughout the cavern. Blood gushed out of the wound, splattering onto Liz’s mask. I really should’ve picked a different symbol...

“You calm down yet, Liz?”

“Yeah, a little.”

Her voice was different from when she had been screaming at Tino. Tino stifled her tears, careful not to put Liz back in that bad mood.

She yanked her leg out of the boss’s body with a disgusting schlop. The boss then collapsed to the ground. Seeing as it wasn’t disappearing, it was likely still alive. But that was definitely a fatal wound, so it didn’t have long.

Having lost interest, Liz turned away from the fallen boss and coolly walked over to me. Her boot was soaked in blood. Splotches of it had gotten on her clothes and skin, too.

Overpowering strength. Thorough, unrestrained violence. The result of enormous talent that was lacking somewhat in the humanity department. That was Liz Smart, the genocidal beast who I still couldn’t believe was living within normal human society.

Rhuda and the others sank weakly to the floor. They couldn’t believe it, but that was our Thief. But more than a Thief, I always thought she seemed more like a Brigand.

Liz removed the mask once more. She put a bloody finger in her mouth, stared right at me, and smiled in embarrassment. “Oh, I forgot to say: I’m home, Krai Baby.”

“Welcome back, Liz.” I reached out and pulled her into a big hug.

She was hot, like a fire had been lit inside her.