"The essence of combat is to kill. There's no hard philosophy to it. You either survive the fight or kill your opponent, that's it."
Arthur explained while we were surrounded by trees deep in the forest.
It was around 8 at night; we had secured the camp some distance away.
I had asked Arthur to help me train.
The result was—the guy took me to kill monsters from the start.
I mean, it was what I wanted, but shouldn't we at least train some basics before diving into live combat?
Arthur's response was—there's no experience better than fighting through death.
Well, it wasn't like I was scared.
Arthur had assumed that being a young noble, I didn't have what it took to kill.
Yet.
He might be thinking of making me learn to slice my opponent's flesh before ending their lives.
Little did he know who I was in my previous life...
"You see that area over there."
Arthur asked, pointing towards what could be called a lock of trees.
"Stand over there. It's the best spot for attracting monsters. The air is moving southwest, so the smell of your body will reach them faster."
Why say it with such an indifferent face?
"Alright."
Nodding, I made my way with a sword in my hand.
It wasn't anything fancy, just a normal sword with a sharpened blade.
I stood there, waiting for something to show up.
Time ticked as seconds turned into minutes.
Are the monsters here dumb?
Why aren't they attacking me? Don't they want some quality food?
Turning to face Arthur, I raised my hand in a questioning gesture.
"I will stay a little far away. They might have been intimidated by my presence."
With a slight smirk on his face, he made his way out of my sight.
If he knew something like this would happen, then why stay here?
That old man!
I loosened the tension in my shoulders, taking a shallow breath, preparing myself for the upcoming trial.
If it could be called that.
And this time, I didn't have to wait long.
Grrrh…
A low growl reached my ears from the side.
I immediately turned, scanning for any unusual movement.
The rustling of leaves shattered the tense silence.
Tightening my grip around the hilt, I widened my stance for better control.
And then I saw it.
A beast emerged from between the trees.
It looked like a wolf—only larger. Much larger.
Its sharp fangs glistened under the pale moonlight as it prowled forward on all fours, eyes locked onto me.
I raised the sword in front of me, my body tensing, ready to react at a moment's notice.
The wolf lunged.
Fast.
In the blink of an eye, it was right in front of me.
I sidestepped, narrowly avoiding its jaws, but the sheer force of its movement sent a violent gust of air crashing into my chest, knocking the breath out of my lungs.
So fast…
This wasn't my old world.
Every creature here was strengthened by mana.
Their speed, their power—far beyond anything natural.
Missing its prey only enraged the beast further.
Before I could fully regain my balance, it dashed at me again, claws slicing through the air, aiming straight for my chest.
I lowered my center of gravity, braced my core, and thrust forward.
The blade shot toward the wolf's neck.
At the last moment, the beast twisted its body mid-air, narrowly avoiding the strike.
Damn!
It changed its trajectory.
Too smart for a mere wolf.
My heartbeat thundered in my ears, but I didn't retreat.
Using the momentum, I surged forward.
The sword swung sideways in a clean arc.
Shkk!
The blade connected.
But it didn't cut through easily.
Why is this skin so bloody hard?
I forced more power into my arms, guiding mana through my muscle cells.
Srrch.
The resistance gave way.
Blood burst from the wound as the blade sliced deep into its flesh.
The wolf whimpered, stumbling back, trying to create distance.
Like hell I'd let that happen.
I lunged forward, grabbing the beast by its head and slamming it into the ground with crushing force.
WHAM!
The impact shook the earth beneath us.
Pinning it down with one hand, I raised the sword with the other and drove it downward.
The blade pierced straight through its skull.
The wolf let out a final, broken roar as my hand pressed it deeper into the soil, leaving it no room to resist.
Then—silence.
Even I was surprised by my own strength.
Maybe it was my mana control.
The ritual had refined it to an absurd degree.
I could direct mana precisely where it was needed, amplifying my muscles far beyond their limits despite my low reserves.
The sword slid free with a sickening sound.
Blood sprayed across my face.
The wolf's body went limp, the light in its eyes fading away.
It felt…
Thrilling.
Was I scared?
Heh.
I had killed many people on Earth, losing count after I turned fifteen.
Every kill increased my influence by leaps and bounds.
People trembled in fear seeing me before them.
Like I would lose to this measly beast.
Blood sprayed on my face as I removed the sword.
The wolf's body slumped to the ground, the life in its eyes fading.
I turned towards the direction where Arthur left, a satisfied smirk forming on my lips.
The man must have been impressed by my decisiveness.
Most newbies hesitated before their first kill, whether it be an animal or a human they had to end.
I was different.
Or, in mild terms—
More experienced.
I exhaled slowly, trying to let the adrenaline settle.
Huh?!
I could feel my core being saturated with mana.
It felt like mana, but it was something different.
I felt like I had absorbed the monster's…
Soul?!
Was such a thing even there in the game?
As far as I remembered, the only way to increase one's power was to cultivate using the mana in the surroundings.
A person had to inhale mana through his lungs and also absorb it from the surroundings.
Then he had to let the mana flow through his body, improving his power by small bits every time one cultivated.
It was a long process, and not something with immediate effects.
Of course, if someone had engaged in combat, then his muscle cells were more prone to mana absorption.
The efficiency with which mana flowed through the body increased after combat.
So it was considered the best practice to train your body to failure and then cultivate to make it stronger. It was like eating enough protein after a workout for better muscle recovery and growth.
It was the usual norm.
So why was I able to directly absorb the mana—or whatever it was—from this beast?
I could feel the increase in my power, however small it was.
I needed to ask Arthur about this anomaly.
There's so much—
I heard movement in the nearby trees.
My body tensed for combat.
More monsters appeared before me, each having the unquenched hunger to devour me.
Let's think about this matter some other time.
I clenched my fists, holding the sword in my right hand, ready to kill.
Haa…
This was going to be fun.