NOVEL NEXT Chapter 12
“Mea… do you have any idea what that thing is?”
“I’m sorry, Jin-sama… I’ve never seen anything like it either…”
Right… I mean, it’s strange that I, who probably knows this world the best, have no clue about it.
In this forest, the boss that usually appeared(in the game) is a wolf-like creature, but the one before me… it has a disgustingly eerie appearance that sent shivers down my spine.
Its skin-like substance seemed to be melting into a gooey mess, with bones partly visible.
Honestly, I really didn’t want to fight this thing.
But…
“I won’t forgive anything that disrupts this forest—!”
Mea readied her dagger with a determined look, and as an otaku, I couldn’t just abandon her and run away.
“grrrrrr!!”
The creature emitted a creepy cry and charged at an unexpectedly fast speed.
I immediately activated [Body Enhancement] and quickly leaped away.
Mea moved even faster than I did, already behind the creature.
…As I thought, Mea was pretty strong.
“Haaaaa!!”
Mea enchanted her dagger with mana and swung it at an incredible speed that was impossible to track.
However, as soon as the dagger touched the creature’s body, it decayed despite being protected by mana.
“!?”
Before Mea got attacked, I cast five [Wind Blades], an intermediate-level wind magic.
Invisible blades rushed toward the creature at 200 kilometers per hour, swiftly cutting through its body.
“Now, how about—!?”
However, in an instant, the separated pieces of its body reassembled, and it started moving as if nothing happened.
It seemed to possess an incredible regeneration ability.
“Jin-sama… I’m terribly sorry for involving you in such a dangerous battle…”
“It’s alright. Lately, I had been itching to try using magic on living creatures. This was a perfect opportunity. After all, with its regeneration ability, I could keep firing magic at it without restraint!”
I was comforting Mea, or rather, just expressing my wish.
But it seemed I managed to comfort her, as she slightly brightened up.
“…Thank you very much, Jin-sama. However, it appears there’s no clear weakness to exploit…”
“Well… if it’s just defeating it, there are countless methods.”
“Huh?”
Mea opened her eyes wide in astonishment.
But I wasn’t really lying.
If it had been a true ancestor vampire or something, I’d have been seriously screwed. But this thing only had a regeneration ability…
From my past life reading countless fantasy novels and clearing various games, dealing with an opponent like this was a piece of cake.
However… this forest was Mea’s precious homeland.
There was no way I was going to let it be defiled.
“Mea, could you buy me a little time?”
I detested the fact that I was about to ask Mea to do something terrible.
If only I had been stronger.
But even if I regret it later, I’m not the hero but a villainous noble, so I can’t expect the goddess to smile upon me.
“I’m sure I can, but is there really some way?” Mea looked at me anxiously, and I nodded confidently.
“Yeah, there’s no doubt. So, I’ll need about 30 seconds to buy us some time.”
“Understood.” she nodded after contemplating for a few moments.
And then, without delay, she gripped a dagger that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere and closed the distance to the enemy once again.
While it might have just been a consolation, I activated a protective barrier that could shield Mea only once. But still… damn, it was so not cool!
I’ve got to do my part too!
Just a little while ago, I drew about 80% of pseudo-mana from my pseudo-magic organ, the one I had used successfully once before. I then converted that mana into magic.
“That is the power of the absolute—”
With my incantation (I made it up on the spot), the mana within me started moving frenetically.
“Without it, the world cannot exist absolutely—”
What is it that’s absolutely necessary in this world?
If you ask that question, many things would come to mind.
For instance, fire, water, earth, air. Certainly, they’re all essential in this world. But are they necessary for this world to exist?
—No!
The world could still function without them, without living beings even. However, there are two things that are absolutely essential.
“—Time and space. The immutable law that becomes the origin of all. Twist the absolute shackles that even bind gods and bring forth a new manifestation—”
With this, the preparations were complete.
“Mea—get back!”
“!? —Yes!”
As Mea swiftly retreated from the spot, a huge magic circle appeared beneath both me and the creature.
“Aaaargh!!”
“Sorry, but don’t think you’ll escape! Let’s go—[Voidbound Dimensional Rift]!!”
Now… let’s start round two!
In that instant, the magic circle beneath us and the creature began to radiate, and just as a portal manifested on the ground, we were both sucked in and vanished from this world.