Chapter 14: Defeating the Blood Bear and Getting a New Skill
With heavy thuds that shook the ground, a giant bear—a Blood Bear—appeared.
It seemed to have followed Ash, tracking the scent of blood, its favorite.
“Aah!? S-Sis!?”
Ash let out a heart-wrenching, anguished cry.
The Blood Bear was roughly holding a young girl. Due to its immense strength, the girl had fainted.
“Th-This is… bad.”
Having a hostage was an unforeseen situation.
As expected, in this world that had become real, situations that would be impossible in the game were occurring.
We couldn’t use Servia’s [Albidus Fire] to attack the Blood Bear, as it would endanger Ash’s sister.
More importantly…
“Brother Cain, that girl is having her blood drained!”
Tentacles extending from the Blood Bear’s back were wrapped around the girl’s body, piercing her. It was sucking her blood through those tubes, which throbbed with a sickening pulse.
At this rate, Ash’s sister would lose her life in a few minutes.
To make matters worse, due to the blood-sucking, the Blood Bear’s stats had been buffed, and its strength had skyrocketed.
Guooooooooon!
The Blood Bear swung one of its arms, launching its claws like bullets. It was a special attack called [Flying Claw].
“Both of you, get back! I’ll deal with this thing!”
I stepped forward to protect Servia and Ash.
My Skill [Arrow Deflection] increased the success rate of deflecting projectiles by 50%.
Combining this with the skill [Swordsmanship Level 3], which increased the accuracy of sword techniques by 30%, I could almost certainly nullify projectile attacks.
“Haaaaaaaah!”
I struck with my sword, deflecting the Blood Bear’s claws.
“Whaaat!? Y-You, you’re an amazing swordsman!”
“It’s not ‘you,’ it’s Cain.”
“Aah, Cain…!”
Ash exclaimed in admiration, but I didn’t have time for that.
The Blood Bear charged, roaring.
The intensity was incomparable to the game. If I hadn’t experienced the mock battle with Lancelot, I would have been completely overwhelmed.
To protect Servia and Ash, I mustered my courage and met its attack.
“Brother Cain, that’s reckless!”
“It’s okay, I can do this!”
The Blood Bear’s attack pattern was [Flying Claw] if the enemy was far away. If approached, it had a high probability of unleashing a downward strike with its right arm as its first move.
To dodge this, the optimal solution was to move around to the Blood Bear’s left side.
Gaaaaaaah!
A powerful arm strike that would likely be an instant kill if it connected was unleashed, but I managed to dodge it without difficulty.
“Hmph!”
I slammed a slash into the Blood Bear’s flank.
Though hindered by its thick, armor-like fur, the additional dark attribute damage seared its side.
The Blood Bear let out a cry of agony.
“Seriously? Amazing!”
I raised my sword to deliver a follow-up attack. My target was the Blood Bear’s weak spot: its chest.
Hitting it there would result in a critical hit.
But, in that instant, the unexpected happened. The Blood Bear used the girl as a shield.
“Guh!?”
I forcefully stopped my sword.
The Blood Bear’s powerful arm slammed into me, and my vision blurred.
The impact was enough to make my consciousness fade. Sent flying, I bounced and rolled across the ground like a ball.
This is bad.
“Brother Cain!”
I heard Servia’s anguished cry.
The Blood Bear charged, intending to finish me off.
Just then, countless plant vines wrapped around the Blood Bear’s body.
“I won’t let you kill Brother Cain!”
It was Servia’s power as the [World Tree Saint].
She was manipulating the surrounding plants, trying to stop the Blood Bear’s charge.
“Huh!? No way, is she controlling plants!?”
Ash let out a bewildered shout.
“No chanting, and it’s beyond the realm of a unique skill! Could this be…!?”
It seemed he had figured out Servia’s true identity.
Dammit, all because I was so useless…
Though dazed, I took an [Enhanced Recovery Potion] (X-Potion) from my waist pouch and drank it. Vitality surged through my entire body, and the critical damage I had taken healed as if it were never there.
The Blood Bear tore through the plants with brute force and closed in.
“Kuuuuuuh!”
Servia was giving it her all, but she hadn’t yet fully mastered her saintly powers and was being overpowered.
However, the Blood Bear’s movements were considerably slowed by the restraining vines.
Alright, I can do this.
“Haaaaaaaah—!”
I kicked off the ground and charged fiercely.
The Blood Bear seemed completely caught off guard by me, who had been on the verge of death, suddenly regaining my strength.
While circling around to the Blood Bear’s back, I slashed through its blood-sucking tentacles.
Goaaaaaaah!
The Blood Bear swung its powerful arms, but I slipped past them and caught the falling girl.
The correct way to evade this particular attack motion of the Blood Bear was to dodge downwards.
“Servia, take care of this girl!”
“Yes!”
The plant vines controlled by Servia gently enveloped the girl and carried her away.
“Sis!”
Ash cried out, moved.
“Alright, there are no more hostages now!”
I unleashed a barrage of slashes on the Blood Bear. No need to hold back anymore.
Goaaaaaaah!
It desperately tried to counterattack, but its blows couldn’t reach me, as I had seen through its attack patterns and motions.
Dark flames erupted from all over the Blood Bear’s body, and its flesh began to break down. This was the true essence of the life-corroding power of darkness.
“Servia! Lend me a hand, it’s time for the finishing blow!”
“Yes, Brother Cain! [Albidus Fire]!”
Servia, understanding my intent, engulfed the Blood Bear’s entire body in fierce flames.
Writhing in agony, it lowered its guard on its weak spot, its chest.
I delivered a full-power thrust to the Blood Bear’s chest. The dark power from the [Black Moon Sword] corroded and destroyed its heart.
The Blood Bear let out a death cry and collapsed to the ground.
“We did it! Brother Caiiin!”
Servia cheered.
It was a victory we had grasped by combining our strength.
“You have defeated a monster with a level difference of 30 or more.”
“Congratulations!”
“You have learned the skill [Giant Killing].”
“When fighting an enemy of a higher level, if your HP drops below half, your Attack Power and Agility will increase by 100%.”