Ryujin sat on the side of the street, breathing heavily. Every intake of oxygen brought along a sense of intense pain on his chest, causing him some difficulty, but he was alive nonetheless, and that's all that matters. Lifting his shirt drenched in sweat, he could see a bluish-purple bruise covering his chest.
Seeing the bruise made him recall the fight, and the pain he felt in his chest when the goblin slammed the severed arm on his chest left him like he was in a car accident.
The recollection also brought along the moment as he killed the goblin and the soft sensation as the knife's blade forced its way in the monster's flesh offered no resistance. The noises it made in its death throes echoed in Ryujin's ears, causing him to turn pale.
For Ryujin, a typical modern-day Japanese, a few days ago, it was his first time killing a living being aside from bugs, and the memory of it was still vivid in his mind.
It was the second time he killed a goblin, but there was a big difference in wanting to survive and taking a life. He didn't feel guilty. If anything, he felt more of a repulsion though he wouldn't do it differently if he were to do it again.
Nausea invaded his body, and Ryujin could feel the stomach rising in his throat. He thought he had nothing left to vomit, but he was incredibly wrong. The amount of bile before couldn't compare to the puddle on the hard concrete.
His chest ached every time he gagged, but the vomit's scent only made the urge to puke stronger until it eventually stopped after emptying his stomach.
Ryujin dragged his body into one of the houses, dry heaving on the way, but he made it either way. After entering the house, he laid down on the wooden entryway. Feeling slightly weak, he could lay down on the floor and rest, at least until he regained the energy to move.
It was only after half an hour or so when he finally managed to move. He proceeded to go to the bathroom, where he washed the trail of vomit off his face. He sat in the living room afterward, nibbling on a biscuit he brought as he looked at his status.
< Name: Igarashi Ryujin Level: 1
Age: 19
Class: None
Skills: Physical Pain Tolerance (Low), Psychological Stress Tolerance (Low), Battle Concentration (Low)
Strength: 17 + Dexterity: 15 +
Vitality: 20 + Intelligence: 24 +
Agility: 18 + Innate Talent: ??? Status Points: 3
Titles: None >
The first thing he noticed was the level beside his name, which didn't appear before. However, there was not much he could do about that, so the next thing he looked at was the "+" symbol beside his stats.
If this were a game, he would've saved up the points until he had a class. That wasn't an option though, with his life on the line. He might regret it later, but he could only do so while he's still alive.
After thinking about it for some time, he decided to add all the points to vitality. What he needed now was a sturdier body, and greater endurance, strength, and agility were tempting, but the goblins weren't extremely fast, and his method of killing monsters relied on his knives.
Tapping on the "+" symbol besides vitality, he felt a pleasant sensation as a surge of energy traveled within his body through his veins before disappearing.
A look of anticipation appeared on Ryujin's face, and an overwhelming thirst for power filled his heart. He wasn't in his best shape, but the pain he felt was at least tolerable.
However, he was mentally exhausted, incredibly overwhelmed by the problems that show up one after another. Ryujin could only suck it up, as he knew he couldn't waste any time. Checking the knives he brought, he soon left in search of more goblins.
Seeing the state of the city once again, he couldn't help feeling gloomy. If anyone saw the place now, no one would believe that it was once a bustling city where office workers and other essential people gather.
Thinking about it now, he was curious about Yui's family. Ryujin has only visited Chiyoda city once or twice, but buildings were abundant in this area, and there were barely any houses though there were hotels and apartments.
Their house wasn't ordinary as well. It was a modern house complete with a garden and a pool that made it evident that the inhabitants were wealthy.
Because of the constant danger, he could only think of the place as a "safe house" and nothing more though he probably would've never managed to step in that kind of house before monsters appeared.
He was trying to figure out Yui's identity when Ryujin heard a growl in front of him. Standing right there, staring at him was a goblin carrying a wooden club in one hand and a metal pole on the other.
With a ferocious expression on its face, the goblin stared at Ryujin before rushing in to attack Ryujin, who was caught off-guard. Not having the time nor the speed to avoid the wooden club incoming, he could only raise his arms to block.
Feeling the blunt weapon landing on his arms, he couldn't help wincing in pain before using the force to jump backward, creating some distance between him and the goblin. He couldn't spare his arm a glance as he observed the goblin's every move.
While he wasn't looking forward to killing the goblin, he knew he had no other choice since it was related to his survival, besides the thought of leveling up unconsciously served as fuel that lit up Ryujin's desire for power.
Removing the distracting thoughts inside his head, Ryujin focused on his fight with the goblin, his vigilance at its peak.
Unlike before, when he managed to injure his previous opponent, he wasn't as lucky this time. The goblin was in its peak condition while Ryujin, on the other hand, was already slightly injured.
Not to mention its thick, robust muscles that made its body extremely tough. And Ryujin couldn't even claim he had the advantage when it comes to weapons. While his knife was capable of piercing the goblin's natural hard skin, the wooden club and the metal pole had longer reach.
It wasn't an exaggeration to say that he was inferior in every aspect. He also felt that it was too late to feign weakness for a surprise attack, perhaps it would've worked if he did it just as Ryujin got hit, but he lacked the experience and couldn't think of anything else but reduce the damage.
The monster may not be the smartest creature in the world, but it was in no way stupid.
Little did Ryujin know that even the goblin wasn't underestimating him. While it met a few terrified humans, some ferocious ones that the goblin underestimated made it suffer, barely retaining its life. It got the metal pole from a human that nearly took its life.
There was no doubt that this is the actual first fight that Ryujin will experience without any advantage. It was a matter of skill, tenacity, and luck that will determine the end of the battle.
Both sides stared at each other warily before the goblin made the first move, swung the metal pole on its right hand with incredible speed diagonally. Ryujin dodged by jumping back, to see the wooden club approaching him from the side. Unable to stop himself from moving backward, he could only clench his teeth and try to block it with his arms.
The club connected to his right shoulder, forcing Ryujin to let out a growl as he tried to endure the pain. Knowing that the goblin will be unable to defend or avoid an attack for a moment, he immediately passed the knife on his right hand to his left before stabbing the goblin on its right shoulder.
Not satisfied with the damage he caused, he grabbed the knife's handle with both hands before dragging it down its arm, causing a long knife wound though it didn't cut deep.
The goblin let out a strange cry as it looked at Ryujin, fury evident in its eyes. Despite the wound on its right arm, it swung the metal pole on its right hand before Ryujin can even recover his position. It landed on his right thigh, causing Ryujin to fall on his knees as he screamed in agony and pain.
While it didn't make him immobile, Ryujin knew that it would be hard to move as he could feel it aching with his every movement causing him to grit his teeth every time. As painful as it was, he forced himself to stand before backing away slowly.
His eyes traveled everywhere, trying to search for something to turn things around, but to no avail. Ryujin continued to back away slowly until his back hit something hard. Before he could even turn around to look at it, he had to duck immediately to avoid the incoming metal pole.
He felt it brush up against his hair before hitting the object behind, which turned out to be a car. Ryujin could not help but shiver when he saw the steel door cave in slightly due to the force behind the swing.
There was no doubt in his mind that if he was a second too late, his head would have been smashed to a pulp.
Unable to even breathe for a second, he saw the wooden club fast approaching. Ryujin rolled to the side before running immediately behind the car, putting the vehicle in between him and the goblin.
It jumped almost immediately on the hood of the car, breaking the windshield in the process. Ryujin immediately slashed the unprotected legs of the goblin, causing some shallow cuts to appear.
The goblin flinched, but it ignored the attack, nonetheless, opting to trade blows knowing it'll win. Needless to say, Ryujin wasn't willing to get hit knowing full well how painful it felt whenever it landed.
Keeping some distance from the goblin once more, Ryujin waited for an opportunity for a fatal strike. Knowing that he's reaching his limit, he felt the pressure increase as the monster was relentlessly attacking, forcing Ryujin to evade every single time.
Sweating profusely, Ryujin looked ragged and his heart was beating wildly when the wooden club landed on his left shoulder for the first time. He was obviously getting slower, and his attacks were becoming weaker by the second.
The pressure constantly increased, and the pain started getting worse. His thoughts were going wild since he could feel death slowly approaching. Anger and fear filled his heart, and a storm was brewing inside him.
Until finally he snapped, throwing precaution to the wind.
[Skill "Berserk" (Low) Acquired]
The goblin raised the metal pole in its hand about to attack when Ryujin ran closer, just a few inches away from it before he swung the knife in his hand across its stomach.
It growled in anger before it dropped the wooden club on its hand before punching Ryujin, who was unable to dodge, immediately knocking him unconscious.
He was just about to fall to the ground when a strange light flickered in his eyes. Stopping himself from falling with one of his feet before slashing towards the goblin's neck, leaving a clean cut from right to left.
Blood spurted from the goblin's neck, shock, and terror evident in its eyes, but Ryujin didn't notice. He grabbed the other knife he had before attacking wildly.
Cuts and stab wounds continued to appear on the goblin's body, and it couldn't even scream. It wanted to struggle, but under Ryujin's relentless attack it didn't have the opportunity.
Until finally the light in its eyes slowly disappeared, but even then Ryujin continued to attack from left and right, stabbing it in fatal areas before passing out.