Chapter 10: The One Who Hones Names (2)

"...Huff... wheeze..."

Ragged breathing and a face flushed crimson. His broad shoulders and arms trembled violently while sweat poured down his forehead like a torrential downpour.

Anyone could see that Kadim wasn't in good shape.

“W-What’s wrong, my lord! No wait... how could someone who tears demons apart end up in such a state... Ah!"

Duncan had a pretty good idea what was wrong. He rushed over to Kadim and examined the upper part of his chest where dry cloth covered something underneath.

Just as he'd suspected.

When he peeled back the cloth, thick pus that had pooled in the wound came oozing out. The inside was completely festered and looked ready to rot away at any moment. It was the wound from when that paladin's spear had pierced him earlier.

'Ugh... gross...'

Duncan barely managed to suppress his nausea.

"Why didn't you say anything when it got this bad! We shouldn't have moved out today at all. You should've rested in the village for a few more days..."

"...Huff... wheeze..."

Kadim shook his head weakly.

A few more days of rest wouldn't heal this kind of wound. That damned Blessed Armament must have carried some kind of blessing meant to deal fatal damage to demons.

'Shit. Should've realized this sooner...'

Of course, such blessings don't affect humans. But Kadim was different. He was a berserker who gained power through demon blood. When he drank that blood, he could be temporarily affected by such things.

Duncan had no clue about any of this and offered some misguided advice.

"My lord! What if you... what if you tried drinking some demon blood? I don't really understand it but whenever you drink that stuff you seem to get all energized..."

"..."

Drink demon blood when that's exactly what caused this mess? It was like telling someone with lung disease to smoke cigarettes. He tried to let out a bitter laugh but ended up with violent coughs erupting from his throat.

Still, it wasn't as if there was no way to overcome this crisis.

'It should be around today...'

Kadim looked at Duncan with bloodshot eyes.

"Hey... what did the moon look like yesterday?"

"Huh?"

"The moon's shape. Was it... was it completely dark? A new moon?"

"Uh... I think so."

"Then... take the sword from my belt and put it next to me."

Kadim didn't just have the [Blood Berserker] as his Unique Trait.

On nights when the moon completely hides itself and only clusters of stars flow gently through the sky at midnight, that's when Kadim could use his other Unique Trait.

If he could use that, he might be able to get through this crisis somehow.

The only problem was...

'Damn it. I need to stay conscious until then.'

It was sunset with clouds slowly soaking up deep red hues. There was still a long time until midnight. He had a feeling it was going to be a bitter wait.

To regain his strength, he forced himself to swallow the porridge Duncan had brought. But his stomach acid surged upward and he vomited it all back up. All that was left was a nauseating twisting in his gut and a dizzying sensation in his vision.

As a stopgap measure, Kadim kept pinching his thigh to stay conscious. Before long, his entire thigh had turned black and blue. Duncan paced around restlessly while watching the barbarian's condition.

How much time passed like that?

Finally, the sun set and night deepened. There really wasn't much time left. Kadim gripped his sword hilt in one hand and clutched his thigh with the other while breathing heavily.

But this world isn't some comfortable cradle that embraces weary and tired travelers.

The dark forest bared its fangs.

–Awoooo...

–...Awoooooo!!!

–...Bark bark bark!

–Grrrrr bark bark bark!

Ominous howling sounds came from far away and soon reached right nearby. It wasn't just one or two of them. A murderous presence surrounded their entire campsite.

"My... my lord, these sounds are..."

Duncan went pale and his shoulders shook violently. He soon looked more like a patient than Kadim. Strictly speaking, he was the one closer to death right now.

"Huff... hide behind the campfire merchant."

“Yes? B-But, my lord, your body…”

"So what... you're gonna fight those monsters instead?"

Duncan scurried behind the campfire without another word.

Kadim let out a bitter smile. To think he still had to fight in this state. He could barely manage to stand up only by using his sword tip to prop himself against the ground.

'Damn mutts... couldn't you visit a little later...'

Ghostly blue lights glinted between the sparsely growing trees. Vicious monsters with fur as stiff as iron wires approached.

–Bark bark bark!

–Grrrrr bark bark bark!

A pack of Blade Wolves attacked the campsite.

Kadim's hand moved toward his thigh. He reflexively drew his hand axe and threw it. The axe blade that had been glinting in the campfire light cut through the moment and disappeared into the night.

Woosh—thwack!

–Keng keng!

It hit the front legs of the one leading the charge. The wolf lost its balance and rolled on the ground. Seizing the opportunity, Kadim advanced and plunged the tip of his sword into its neck. The wolf let out a gurgle and kicked its front paws before dying.

He'd easily taken down one but Kadim's expression wasn't exactly bright.

‘Damn it, I was aiming for the space between its eyes, not its leg… My vision is shaking… I can’t aim properly.’

His body was in such a state that he had no confidence in fighting properly. He could have easily dealt with one or two, but there were too many of them.

Other wolves rushed at him without caring about their enemy's condition.

–Grrrrrrrk!

Bam!

–Keng!

He clenched his fist tight and timed it perfectly to slam one wolf's lower jaw hard. The impact broke its neck bone and it flipped belly-up, never to get back up. Kadim used the same method to quickly take down two more wolves.

But in the meantime, one wolf had snuck up from behind and bit down hard on his calf.

"Ugh!"

Shunk!

–Keck!

He had plunged his sword into its skull the moment it bit, so the wound wasn't deep. The problem was that his already uncomfortable movement became even more restricted. The barbarian warrior's face darkened with worry.

"Eek! Get away! Get away!"

–Grruk, grrrrr…

–Grrrrr…

Moreover, Duncan was also surrounded by wolves by now. He was resisting by brandishing a heated poker, but it didn't look like he could last long. The moment there was an opening, they'd tear him apart without mercy.

It was only a matter of time before he and the merchant became wolf food.

"..."

Finally, Kadim's hand moved to his waist.

When he opened the lid of the waterskin, a fishy stench spread. In his current state, drinking it was no different from drinking poison but he had no choice. At least it was better than dying right now.

The barbarian warrior gulped down the demon blood.

–Kruk? Grrrrr…

–Arf, arf arf arf!

–Grrrrrrr…

The wolves sensed the threat with their animal instincts.

This wasn't the time to worry about the weak human hiding behind the campfire. The wolves surrounding the large human sensed that the atmosphere had completely changed.

–Arf, arf arf!

–Grrrrrrr, arf arf arf!

The pack leader gave the signal to attack. The silver beasts bared their sharp teeth and charged all at once.

But Kadim was no longer the sick man who couldn't even throw an axe properly like before.

K-CRACK!

A silver arc of blade flashed in the air.

The wolves couldn't figure out what the hell had happened. They couldn't even see the process properly and only the result remained—one wolf with its head split open.'

Blood-red eyes stared directly at the wolf pack. Kadim kicked the split wolf's head aside and spoke dryly.

"...Dogs that bite people deserve to die."

–Grrr, arf arf arf!

–Arf arf arf arf!

He decided to personally teach these ill-mannered mutts some discipline.

–Arf arf arf! Grrr, arf arf…

Thunk!

–…Keng!                                    

He threw his hand axe and buried it right in the loudest one's skull. Immediately after, he gripped his sword hilt and charged into the wolf pack. He beheaded one and pierced the belly of the one next to it in a single motion.

Shunk!

–Keheng, kekeng keng keng!

A blood-soaked whirlwind swept through as the flashing blade cut through tough hide and dug between chunks of flesh. Fresh blood scattered and soft organs burst out.  The blood on the blade had no time to dry before it was stained with blood again.

The wolves didn't just stand by. But their counterattacks never reached their enemy. Kadim skillfully dodged claws and teeth while swiftly diving between the wolves. His movements were so fast that even animal instincts couldn't keep up.

–Keheng, keng keng!

–Kiiing, kiiing…

In the end, the wolf pack soon tucked their tails and retreated in unison. Kadim wiped the drop of blood from his cheek.

'Whew... that demon bastard was annoyingly quick with his movements, but this effect really isn’t bad...'

The buff from [Blood Berserker] varies depending on which demon's blood he drinks. This time, it was probably an Agility Enhancement buff. Thanks to that, Kadim could unleash superhuman speed while even forgetting about his leg injury.

Unfortunately, it was an effect that would soon burn out.

"Huff ugh..."

As his fighting spirit died down, an even more terrible pain dug into his shoulders. It felt like pouring boiling molten metal on his festering wound and driving iron rods into his flesh. It was agony no human could bear. Kadim's shoulders trembled violently as he collapsed.

In fact, it was something he had foreseen. He'd been suffering so much because of demon blood and then he went and drank more of it? If it weren't for the barbarian's sturdy body, he would have surely died of shock.

–Grrrng…?

–Grrr, grrrrr…

Blue eyes gleamed again from behind the tree trunks. The wolves came jumping out again as if they'd been waiting. The merchant grabbed onto his lifeline's shoulder in terror.

“M-My lord! My lord! Are you alright? Y-You have to pull yourself together! U-Uh? Behind you, behind you!”

The other wolves flattened their ears and obediently cleared a path. The pack leader who had been watching the bloody battle revealed itself.

–Grrrrrrrr…

It was twice as big as a normal Blade Wolf. Its angry howl was chilling enough to make even the most courageous lose their will to fight. Sharp teeth like saw blades showed beneath its completely twisted snout. A bite from that would surely sever even the thickest forearm.

But Kadim wasn't worried.

On a night when the moon watching over the world had completely disappeared, his heart pounded like war drums and his eyes flashed along with the twinkling starlight.

Finally, it was midnight.

The Great Warrior of Atala from the barren wastelands beyond the mountains closed his eyes and recited reverently.

“O Atala, Master of Myriad Arms Who Knows No Defeat. Place your blade in my hand, bless the great warrior who thirsts for strife, let me quench my thirst with the red blood of my enemies. On the night when the eye that watches over the earth hides itself, I hone this blade in your blood-stained name.”

Woooooong—

A brilliant red energy enveloped the sword’s body. At the same time, a vermilion halo spread in all directions. The dark forest was dyed as if it had been consumed by the flames of war. Even the monsters momentarily forgot their wildness and stood frozen, captivated by the atmosphere.

Kadim's second Unique Trait, [The One Who Hones Names].

A trait that borrows Atala's power to give a 'name' to nameless weapons and grant special effects befitting that 'name.'

It was a worthless trait in the game. There, you could easily get rare items loaded with special effects and you could even attach special effects directly through enhancement.

But now was different.

In this game-turned-reality, it was hard to find even a normally sturdy weapon, let alone a rare item. Being able to grant special effects without any materials was an incredibly huge advantage. Without this Unique Trait, he never would've gotten through the early part of his first playthrough when everything was lacking.

Anyway, he'd somehow managed to endure until the condition for using his Unique Trait on a midnight on a moonless night.'

Now it was time to think about what 'name' and what 'special effect' to give this sword.

"..."

The effect Kadim had originally planned was 'Self-Healing.' Actually In fact, that would have been enough until a while ago. But now, his body was so severely damaged that a weak ‘Self-Healing’ would be useless.

[What 'name' will you give this sword?]

An inner voice, spreading not as someone’s voice but as a clear will. It was a familiar resonance, one he had felt in his first playthrough.

Kadim decided on the weapon's name. Only 'that effect' could overcome the current crisis.

"Mosquito."

[...]

"This sword's name will be 'Mosquito.'"

Woooooong—!

The sword gladly accepted its new name and resonated.

The red energy that had spread like mist compressed and was sucked into the blade. The energy that had been writhing like earthworms in lines finally remained on the blade as red characters.

...He couldn't read the ancient script but it probably meant 'Mosquito.'

The reason Kadim chose such a name was simple. The special effect he wanted would only appear reliably with that specific name.

Kadim tested out his newly acquired effect.

–Grrrrrrr…

Swish—!

A trajectory aimed toward the thick neck. The pack leader wolf quickly pulled back but Kadim's sword strike was faster. It lightly grazed the hide and blood drops formed along the blade.

The sword blade greedily sucked up the blood drops and offered them to the master holding the hilt.

Then, smoke rose from Kadim's skin and his wounds healed slightly.

"Whew..."

'Blood Drain.'

A special effect that restores health every time you deal damage to an enemy.

“Now I feel a little better.”

–Kruk, grrrrr…

"...Though it's still nowhere near enough."

The berserker's lips curved like a crescent moon.

It was a smile craved for more blood.

 

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