The Secret Technique Beyond Physical Enhancement
“GUAAAAAHHHH~~!!”
A tremendous roar suddenly echoed through the Forest of Demons, making the trees and leaves tremble violently.
At the same time, several unusually massive orcs appeared… dark-skinned, with builds closer to professional wrestlers than sumo wrestlers, each one a size larger than a normal orc and radiating a distinct presence.
These were [Orc Generals], monsters bearing the title of orc commanders.
And then…
A pitch-black giant that radiated even more pressure than the Orc Generals appeared, mowing down trees around it, crushing trunks in its hands, and leaving footprints in the ground with every step it took.
[Orc King].Its appearance truly suited the title of king of the orcs. The tusks jutting from its mouth were magnificent, and its gigantic frame surpassed even the Orc Generals.
For a moment, the Hero Party panicked at the appearance of such monsters, but they immediately calmed down and prepared to intercept them.
“A big one’s here. Don’t let your guard down. We do this like always.”
Everyone unleashed magic at once, but it barely seemed effective. The Orc Generals charged straight at the Hero Party. Even Crown Prince Erason, who had been batting away massive orcs until now, got blown back, and Waltz tried meeting them head-on with his sword, but every strike was deflected and he was quickly pushed on the defensive.
Princess Elizabeth’s arrows and Milian’s magic struck them too, but whether it was working or not, they never stopped advancing… Almeria was pouring out recovery magic at full power while also maxing out enhancement magic, but they still couldn’t keep up at all.
The Hero Party barely had the advantage in speed, so nobody had been hurt yet, but it was only a matter of time before someone got caught.
---
A considerable amount of time had passed since the battle began, and the frontline fighters, Crown Prince Erason and Hero Waltz, had dropped to their knees.
Princess Elizabeth in the rear had run out of arrows and mana. Milian had barely managed to kill a single Orc General with one last grand spell. Right now, only Almeria was still fighting using close combat and light magic, but the outcome was obvious.
Milian, having exhausted her mana, staggered forward on trembling legs to support Almeria, but because her attention slipped for just an instant… she failed to notice the Orc General approaching.
“Milian, no! Behind you!”
Princess Elizabeth shouted, but Milian reacted too late… A huge shadow raised a massive sword over her, covering her own shadow, and she saw it swinging down.
(Ah… so this is where it ends. I wonder if Milian did well… Hey, Mama, Big Sister… will you praise me?)
That was what she thought, but maybe because of human instinct, the words that came out were…
“… No, I don’t want to die. Help me, Mama… Big Sister…”
“GAKIIIIN!!”
The sound of metal crashing together rang out from behind her. Then a fierce gust of wind, probably from the descending greatsword, blew Milian’s purple hair wildly through the air. And suddenly, she realized she was crying.
Timidly, she turned around.
There…
“Yo, you okay? That was a close one, Sleeping Princess.”
Holding back the descending greatsword with one hand using a blue-glowing katana…
… Was Julius, Milian’s former fiancé.
As far as Milian was concerned, Julius had always just been “the person who gave her tasty food,” and she’d never particularly thought anything else about him.
Seeing him, Milian stood up, and Julius used his free hand to wipe away her tears.
“What a waste. A beauty like you shouldn’t be crying. Well, just wait a bit. I’ll finish this quickly. Almeria, heal everyone and pull them back.”
Julius put strength into the arm blocking the greatsword and flung it aside. Then, in less than the time it took to blink, the Orc General’s head had already been severed. Before that head even hit the ground, Julius appeared behind the Orc General fighting Almeria, and in a single slash, the monster split cleanly down the middle.
One Orc General after another fell dead beneath Julius’s blade. As the black-haired, black-eyed human cut them down one after another, even the Orc King gradually began to show fear.
---
The Orc Generals couldn’t even survive a single strike from Julius. Before they realized it, they were already lying dead on the ground.
Every member of the Hero Party watched that scene unfold.
Back during the Orthros fight, everyone except Almeria had been unconscious, so this was the first time they had ever witnessed Julius’s true battle prowess.
His overwhelming combat ability captivated them so completely it felt like time itself had stopped.
After killing all the Orc Generals while still keeping his attention on the Orc King, Julius pointed his katana downward and gave it a swing, flicking the blood from the blade.
As if that motion were the signal…
Julius and the Orc King collided.
The Orc King tried to overwhelm Julius by increasing the number of attacks, but…
“No good. You’ll need to be faster than that.”
Every time the Orc King swung its massive sword, Julius cut it somewhere in return. Faced with a strength far beyond anything it had ever encountered, the monster gradually began retreating in fear.
“The technique I’m about to show you… is something the Hero Party will have to learn too, so watch carefully…”
One of Shiranui’s secret arts, known as Magic Combat Arts… the beginner technique [Envelop].
Something like wavering flames burst from Julius, wrapping not only around his body but even around the katana he held.
This technique flooded the entire body with mana, enhancing physical abilities and weapon performance beyond normal limits.
Julius swung his katana at a nearby boulder…
… And the blade passed through it effortlessly, slicing diagonally through the rock. The moment the severed stone began to fall…
Julius became,
faster than before,
leaving behind only afterimages,
closing the distance to the Orc King,
and in a single instant,
he shredded it into pieces.
The members of the Hero Party watched Julius, who had overwhelmingly crushed the Orc King, a monster even stronger than the Orc Generals that Erason and the others couldn’t defeat, as though it were nothing at all, and realized they were looking at someone far beyond their reach.
Julius stood there after instantly killing the Orc King, his entire body wrapped in a hazy aura-like mist, the glowing blue katana resting over his shoulder.
That sight completely seized the hearts of the women.
They stared at him with absent-minded “pooo…” expressions for what felt like forever.
Maybe it was female instinct…
Like being drawn toward the strongest male…
What do you think about this chapter?
