The cold sweat I’d felt earlier was enough to tell me it was bad news, but the moment I saw the monster, I knew it was in a completely different league to that orc I’d killed before.
My body threatened to shiver violently in fear, but I desperately tried to suppress it and calm myself down.
Stay away. Stay away. Stay away, I chanted again and again in my head.
But as the Ducalursus continued sniffing the ground where I’d been standing—probably getting a good whiff of my scent—it slowly began taking steps toward the tree I was hiding in.
Why is this happening to me? I thought. Everything was going so well!
This sudden hitch in my plans triggered a torrent of rage within me.
Shit! It won’t be long before it finds me up here!
I racked my brain, desperate to find a way out of this. I knew the monster would follow me if I tried to run. Even if I found a different hiding spot, it’d find me again in no time.
No matter how I tried to think through it, I couldn’t figure out a way to escape with my life.
If I’ve got no chance of running, then maybe my only hope at surviving is to be the first one to strike, I thought, stealing myself.
I’d just have to take my chances and launch a surprise attack. My odds weren’t great, but they were certainly a whole lot better striking first than waiting for the monster to shake me out of the tree and attack me while I was prone.
I slowly unsheathed my sword, trying in vain to calm my breathing. Then I waited, looking for my opening to attack.
Just two more steps... Just one more step... Now!
I jumped out of the tree and brought my sword down on the Ducalursus with all the force I could muster.
Our positions couldn’t have been more perfect. Its head was lowered to the ground as it sniffed it, so it hadn’t even noticed me above. What’s more, since I was coming down from high in the tree, I could use the full force of my gravity to lend some heft to my strike.
The life-and-death stakes were exactly what I needed to focus all of my energy into the perfect strike.
Or so I thought...but even with the perfectly timed hit, and all the strength of my desperation behind it, it wasn’t enough to make a fatal blow.
The monster was a full five meters tall, and probably weighed a whopping eight hundred kilograms.
I’d pierced its flesh, but I hadn’t managed to reach the bone. Even as a fountain of blood spurted from the wound, the Ducalursus threw a powerful swipe at me.
I positioned my sword between us like a shield to protect myself, but the force of the blow was still so strong even through the sword’s metal that it knocked the breath out of me.
I was so close to collapsing back, but I managed to stay standing. I watched the Ducalursus closely as it closed in for a follow-up.
A searing pain had spread through the muscles of my flank. I could barely even breathe, but my spirit wasn’t broken.
Even as the blood from my surprise attack gushed from the monster’s neck, it snapped at me like it was ready to eat me. I took my sword in my right hand and plunged it into its open mouth.
My sword had taken a real beating from the monster’s hit, but I was hoping it would at least still be able to pry its mouth open for a second.
I pierced the Ducalursus’s upper jaw, momentarily fending off its vicious bite by forcing its mouth to stay open. I reached into the bag at my side and pulled out some ghost grass, which I threw into the beast’s open maw.
Since it couldn’t close its mouth, the ghost grass went straight down its gullet and into its stomach.
If that poison doesn’t work instantly, I’m going to die here, I thought.
But almost immediately, the Ducalursus began swaying from side to side and started retching and flailing wildly, like it was trying to throw up the contents of its stomach.
I was in a world of pain, but there was a real risk that I’d die if I got caught up in the beast’s rampage, so I forced myself to move back and gain some distance.
Once I was a little out of the way, I fell to my knees and followed the monster with my eyes. It vomited again and again, but it just wouldn’t keel over. Its hulking body continued to sway violently as it started making its way over to me again.
It seemed it was still intent on killing me, but I could tell that it didn’t have long to live. Its footing was shaky, its eyes were bloodshot, and it was shaking violently. The ghost grass poison had taken effect, and it was obvious that the Ducalursus was on death’s doorstep.
I wasn’t in great shape either, though. The blow that the monster had landed on me had done a lot of damage, and a sharp pain radiated through my whole body. I couldn’t even stand up.
My breathing was labored, and I had a feeling that I was just moments from collapsing.
While the Ducalursus writhed in pain, I drank a little bit of the low-level healing potion I had with me so I could regain just a bit of strength to keep fighting.
No matter what, I couldn’t let myself rush this.
Now that the Ducalursus was struggling to move, it looked like I had the perfect chance to attack, but I wasn’t operating at full capacity right now either.
Still...not only did the Ducalursus lack the poison immunity I’d been blessed with, but it also didn’t have a way to lessen the pain the way I did.
I just had to wait until I’d recovered enough to make a proper attack—one that was sufficient enough to end the monster’s life before it could try to counter.
As I watched the Ducalursus flail, scratching at itself, I just focused on assessing my current state.
Cold sweat dripped down my entire body as I waited for the healing potion to take effect. Eventually, it must have finally started to kick in, because I felt the pain gradually begin to recede.
It was a weak, low-level potion, so its effect was pretty subtle...but as long as it helped me recover enough to move, that would be enough.
I stood up, gritting my teeth through the pain, and approached the Ducalursus with my sword at the ready.
Even in the midst of its rampage, it seemed to still be keeping an eye on me as much as it could manage. It made eye contact with me several times as it writhed in pain.
I knew I’d have to land a heavy blow—one strong enough to put a complete end to its life—if I didn’t want to suffer a counterattack.
The Ducalursus might have been on the verge of death, but the difference between us was still massive. I’d have to make good use of feints and bluffs if I wanted to pull this off.
As I tried to come up with a strategy to outwit the monster, I dashed in and prepared for a strike.
My sword was already totally busted. If the monster blocked one of my hits even once, it would be rendered useless, so I had to make sure my first strike was true.
I brandished my sword high, planning to bring it down over the beast if it seemed unresponsive, but no such luck. Just as I’d expected, it was watching me. It looked ready to swipe as soon as I leaped out at its side.
If I got close enough for it to hit me, I’d be dead meat.
I pretended I was going in for a strike, but I was going to redirect at the last second and spin around the beast so I was positioned behind him.
Sure enough, just as the Ducalursus swung its left claw out wide to where it thought I’d be, I’d maneuvered behind him.
If its reflexes hadn’t been dulled, it probably could have reacted quickly, but in its present state, it’d likely be difficult for it to even turn around.
That said...I was willing to bet it’d do it anyway. I was counting on it to whip around and try to rip into me with its right claw instead.
My father had taught me never to stake a life-and-death battle on luck, but that was exactly what I was doing. My opponent was a forest spirit that had ruled these woods for heaven knows how long. So, I was putting my faith in its power to rise above the odds.
Instead of lifting my sword, I shoved my hand into the pouch at my waist.
If the Ducalursus didn’t turn around here, then I would lose my one good chance to finish it off. But if it did...
As the beast spat what looked like blood from its mouth, it twisted around and raised its right paw, hurtling it toward me. When I saw it coming, I felt my mouth twist into a smile.
The Ducalursus’s paw missed me, the momentum carrying through as it spun to face me. Staggering, it followed up by swinging its left claw, but I took my hand out from my pouch and made a show of forcefully reaching out for the beast with it.
It must have been wary of the ghost grass after what it had just experienced, because it reflexively moved to defend itself, covering its face with both paws.
Of course, I didn’t actually have any ghost grass in my hand. It was just a fake-out.
I raised my busted-up sword again and, now that the Ducalursus’s paws were over its face, I aimed straight at its heart. Utilizing my full body weight, I plunged the sword into its chest.
The Ducalursus’s whole body was covered in hard, needlelike fur that protected it like a suit of armor, but the force of my blow was enough to penetrate it.
My battered sword couldn’t withstand the force of the impact, and as soon as it pierced the beast’s heart, the metal bent. But it had been plunged into the beast deep enough that that didn’t matter anymore.