* * *
The frostworms clacked their powerful jaws.
Following their master’s command, they rushed forward, eager to tear into their prey—to bite, shred, and serve him up in pieces.
They only focused on the Hero.
As humiliating as it was, I could only be grateful for one thing.
Demons looked down on humans.
Completely.
Utterly.
They didn’t even consider the possibility that we could pose a threat to them.
Which meant they never went all out from the start.
And that was exactly what we always aimed for.
The Hero drew his sword.
Though his holy blade had lost its radiance, stained black, it was still as sharp as ever.
A pale gray aura curled around the blade like mist.
By the time I registered what I was seeing, he was already moving.
Wherever his sword struck, the frostworms were torn apart.
They never even got close to his feet—swept away, crushed, and obliterated.
They never got the chance to showcase their powerful jaws.
The Hero kicked off the ground and leaped high into the air.
Incredibly, incredibly fast.
That kind of speed isn’t something the eyes can track—it’s something you sense with instinct.
If you try to follow it with your gaze, it’ll already be out of sight, and the next time you see it might just be the moment a blade pierces your heart.
Shhk.
The dormant holy sword slashed through the demon’s ice-covered arm.
The blade, once clouded like an overcast sky, flickered weakly with a silver sheen.
It was the divine power bestowed by Dieter.
The hero, already possessing overwhelming strength, had gained the power of the gods, creating an extraordinary synergy.
Fortunately, ice attributes and the hero were a favorable match.
True to his cold demeanor, he wasn’t particularly affected by the cold.
“How…?!”
The demon let out a furious scream.
It stabbed into my head like an arrow piercing through my skull.
My mind reeled, my senses dulled, as if someone had smeared thick black paint all over my thoughts.
Just hearing it felt like an invasion.
Only when I finally exhaled did I realize I had been holding my breath.
My heart was still beating sluggishly.
Ah, I should have received a blessing from Dieter before coming here…
The nausea bubbling inside me made it hard to breathe properly.
But while I lay there like a crushed insect, the hero had already severed the demon’s other arm.
His speed was, as expected, impossible to follow with the naked eye.
At this point, calling this an extreme situation didn’t quite fit anymore—but that was fine.
I never wanted to see him struggling alone in the first place.
I was glad my worries were unfounded.
“H-How… could a mere human—?!”
The demon’s voice erupted in disbelief.
“For a final statement, that’s quite dull.”
For the first time, the hero spoke.
The demon roared.
From its fury, a blinding white frost surged forth, engulfing him.
The icy blast was so bitterly cold that all I could do was shrink back.
It was a chill so sharp, so relentless, that it felt like it could freeze my very blood.
But the hero did not shrink back. He swung his sword, deflecting the incoming blizzard.
The frigid energy, failing to reach its target, swirled around before solidifying into jagged shards of ice.
He shattered them with a swift kick and used the blunt remnants as footholds, launching himself back into the air.
He soared.
The holy sword aimed straight for the demon’s heart.
But the demon, whose severed arms had already regenerated, lashed out.
The hero was struck by solid ice crystals and sent flying.
I clamped my hand over my mouth to suppress a gasp.
He crashed down onto the frozen ground in the distance.
The impact sent cracks spiderwebbing through the ice, his footprints sinking deep into the surface.
He slid back, scraping against the ice dust, leaving a long trail behind him.
“I’ll drink your blood.”
The cold intensified. It was freezing enough to lock my breath in my throat.
My body trembled violently.
Even the hero seemed slightly affected by the cold.
He shook off the frost clinging to his arms.
Then, more creatures stirred beneath the frozen earth, answering the demon’s call.
The hero crushed them underfoot, shattering them like brittle shells.
He slashed through the creeping frost that had wrapped around him like thorny vines, breaking free.
But he was a moment too late.
The demon pulled a horn from its chest and blew.
A deep, echoing sound rang through the battlefield.
No.
Of course, it wouldn’t be that easy.
We had just missed our best chance to end this quickly.
That eerie, drawn-out signal reverberated through the snow-covered birch forest.
Answering the call, other demons began tearing through the trees and shaking the earth as they approached.
‘We have to stop this.’
Even one-on-one, a prolonged battle against a demon was dangerous.
The hero was strong enough to seize an opportunity and pierce its heart, but expecting the enemy to remain arrogant forever was a foolish gamble.
Humans don’t pay attention to ants crawling at their feet—until they get bitten.
Then they stomp down with their full force.
That’s why our last real chance had already passed.
We should have cut the demon in half when both its arms had been severed, leaving it helpless like a frozen chunk of ice.
But the hero had let that moment slip away.
Because there was no mage pouring all their magic into weakening the demon.
Because there was no hero nearby to climb onto its back and divert its attention while the hero aimed for its heart.
‘We need to run.’
Because I, the one standing here beside him, was nothing more than a weak human—one who couldn’t do anything to help.
Self-loathing surged through me.
‘At the very least, I need to bring reinforcements…
I pushed myself up.
I had never wanted things to escalate this far.
From the beginning, I should have stopped this madness.
“How pathetic.”
I froze.
A new demon emerged, its form resembling a massive, fused mass of boulders.
Unlike most demons who wielded magic as their primary weapon, this one carried an enormous spear.
It was jet black, encrusted with a grotesque array of gemstones.
Not decorations—just crudely stuck onto the weapon’s surface.
Both the spear and the jewels were smeared with a thick, sticky red substance.
Decaying flesh clung to them.
A putrid stench rode the wind.
How many humans had it devoured?
That spear wasn’t rusted red.
The iron wasn’t what reeked of blood.
My legs trembled.
Even so, I had to move.
I couldn’t let the hero fight alone.
He wouldn’t listen even if I told him to run.
I had to move.
“This…? This is why you summoned me?”
Its voice.
A deep, resonant voice, dragging me down like chains around my ankles.
I crawled forward—it was all I could manage.
And yet—
“Pathetic.”
The demon swung its spear.
The ground quaked.
The frozen earth split open, the ground beneath us collapsing into a gaping maw.
I curled in on myself and tumbled downward.
* * *
Thank you💗💗💗