IRM Chapter 27

Night demons, forest wolves, ghouls… The various dark creatures on the outskirts of the Dark Night Forest had been stimulated by the towering pillar of light that shot up into the sky, and now they were attracted by the fresh blood and flesh, approaching them through the shadows. The pungent stench combined with the lingering smell of blood from before tugged at everyone’s nerves.

It also brought with it a blood-boiling fighting spirit.

The steel armor of Bill and his brothers still had fragments of flesh and blood clinging to it. Their eyes gradually turned red, and they roared like wild beasts threatened by danger!

They grabbed their heavy greatswords, battle axes, and other weapons, and the moment the magical beasts crossed the warning line, they suddenly roared and charged out!

What a sight of unstoppable momentum and overwhelming force!

They completely left the four tender and delicate little mages behind.

The little mages: “……”

They finally understood why beastman warriors couldn’t find mages to party with. This operation of abandoning teammates the moment they got excited was truly mind-numbing.

Ji Chi sighed. He knew it—berserkers with poor coordination were simply a disaster!

“Don’t stray too far from me. Use long-range magic attacks. Don’t worry about magic power—tell me immediately if you run out of potions,” Ji Chi turned his face and whispered his instructions.

He gripped the ice-cold, smooth sword hilt with both hands, a trace of nostalgia flashing in his eyes. The tactile sensation in this holographic game wasn’t fully developed—Ji Chi could feel the weapon in his hands, but he couldn’t sense their heavy, murderous texture.

Ji Chi raised his sword and slightly bent his body. This was his first real battle in this world.

The four beastman warriors had already gone completely berserk, their attack power visibly increasing. They could take down enemies with a single strike, and the heavy, massive steel weapons in their hands were like the light magic brooms of little witches, dancing wildly through the forest and occasionally smashing creatures into pulp.

However, contrary to their attack power, their aggro management was rapidly declining. Several magical creatures had already broken through the berserkers’ defensive line and were pouncing toward the little mages!

Seeing this, Saintess Coralie snorted coldly and stomped her foot heavily. In an instant, she output a large amount of magic power, and the light elements converted from her magic power boiled around them, burning the magical creatures and causing their movements to freeze for a moment!

Taking advantage of this moment, she swung her wand fiercely, and rows of light swords shot out in a fan shape, piercing through the bodies of the magical creatures and eliciting miserable howls.

The light elements in Saintess Coralie’s attacks were too pure. The health points of these magical creatures immediately dropped below the danger line—all monsters entered berserk mode!

The magical creatures that had entered berserk state became even more ferocious. They let out sharp hisses and rapidly approached Saintess Coralie, their speed actually twice as fast as before!

Saintess Coralie saw the drooling bloody maws of the magical creatures getting closer and closer to her. Her eyes remained completely calm, as if she had been frightened into immobility. In reality, she was already accustomed to such scenes. The wand in her hand was dancing lightly beside her body in a peculiar rhythm, with bright, burning strands of light interweaving thread by thread.

Just as she was about to take advantage of the magical creatures’ relaxed vigilance and cast a light net to catch them all in one go—

“D-don’t be afraid! I’ll pr-protect you!” A head of red hair suddenly appeared in her field of vision, and a thin, pale little figure resolutely stood in front of Saintess Coralie.

Although Brandon’s legs were still trembling at this moment, he had to protect the frightened Saintess Coralie! (Saintess Coralie: ? What exactly is wrong with you?)

The young master swallowed his saliva and pointed his wand, which was trembling so much it left afterimages, at the magical creatures. Just before they pounced, he quickly began chanting.

Bright fire elements gradually responded to his chanting. Just as an explosive fireball was about to condense at the tip of his fiery red staff—a night demon shot out from the darkness overhead at a speed they could barely track, its bloody, deformed face suddenly appearing right in front of Brandon’s face!

The young master was scared stiff.

His chanting suddenly caught in his throat, and the final note turned into a soft whimper—

Then, a cute little spark leisurely floated out from the tip of his wand and gently touched the night demon’s face~

Brandon: O.O

Ji Chi: =.=

Saintess Coralie: “……”

Saintess Coralie exploded in rage. “Is your fire magic meant to provide goddamn warmth?!”

Saintess Coralie felt genuinely angry at these useless men! She didn’t mind carrying the entire team, provided they didn’t mess with her mental state here!

Saintess Coralie, who had been ruling the Dark Night Forest since childhood, had never felt so frustrated!

The night demon that had been gently touched by the little spark didn’t feel any healing warmth. It opened its mouth full of fangs and bit down toward the tender young master!

“Ahhhhh I’m going to die—” Brandon let out a girlish scream!

Whoosh—a cold light flashed, and the night demon’s fangs stopped above the young master’s neck. The entire monster split cleanly down the middle, and foul-smelling blood flowed everywhere.

Ji Chi held his sword with one hand and casually swung it to the side. A bright red line of blood suddenly appeared on the ground. He knelt and gave Brandon a knightly salute. “This young lady, are you alright?”

Saintess Coralie let out a cold laugh and mockingly added, “Our little countess was a bit frightened. What she needs now is a cup of warm forest red tea.”

As she spoke, she meaningfully glanced at the magical creature’s blood flowing on the forest floor.

The young master slowly recovered and followed her gaze downward, his Adam’s apple bobbing once.

Saintess Coralie raised her hand and blasted a pouncing magical creature to death beside Brandon’s feet, staring at him coldly. “If you dare throw up, you’re finished.”

Young master: TvT

Evan, who was still working hard to dispel darkness and serve as a lighting tool nearby, saw that the biggest crisis at this moment actually came from internal strife and anxiously called out, “Be careful! They’re getting faster and faster!”

Time was gradually approaching midnight, and the power brought by moonlight made the magical creatures of the Dark Night Forest even stronger. They no longer attacked frantically but coldly stared at the little mages, their ghostly gazes scanning every weak point.

Ji Chi looked around, then at the young master whose face was gradually showing unwillingness and self-blame. He walked toward him with his long sword and smiled gently. “Do you know? In other games… um, places, mages can also engage in close combat.”

The young master looked up in confusion.

Ji Chi held out the sword in his hand to him. “Young Master Elliott, could you enchant this sword with a burning magic circle for me?”

Brandon didn’t understand why, but he obediently raised his hand and placed it on the sword. Soon, fiery red magical patterns spread from his palm, covering the slender blade.

After the magic circle was completed, Ji Chi raised his sword.

Roar—dazzling, scorching red flames instantly ignited on the sword! The originally black obsidian blade reflected heart-stirring fiery red light under the firelight!

Ji Chi smiled slightly at Brandon in the firelight. “Watch closely.”

He lightly kicked off and disappeared into the shadow-heavy forest with afterimages, leaving only the fiery red light on his sword blade, cutting through the darkness!

Ji Chi, who hadn’t yet unlocked warrior profession skills, calmly swung his sword. There were no dazzling sword lights, no aggressive martial techniques. He relied only on the muscle memory formed by half a year of boring daily practice, combined with his powerful and agile physical abilities, slashing across the fierce faces that pounced at him one after another.

The splashing warm blood, the sliding foul-smelling organs, the sticky flesh fragments clinging to his body—everything was disgusting and uncomfortable, but these things felt much better than lying in a hospital bed with eyes open, counting the beeping sounds of a heart monitor.

Ji Chi had already struggled out of his most fearful moments. Now he feared nothing.

Brandon stared blankly at Ji Chi’s sword-wielding figure.

He watched that bright firelight cut down the pouncing magical creatures with clean power and ease. Some of those monsters were as massive as mountains, some as hideous as ghosts, but they all had only one fate: to wail and turn to ash in the flames.

So strong! The young master’s eyes gradually lit up with fire. This was what he wanted to become! This was the heroic image of dragon-slaying he had imagined!

The magical creatures in front of them had a maximum level of only lv.20. A high-level mage could easily take them out with one move, let alone Ji Chi at peak level. He dodged the pale fangs of a bone dragon and swept his sword forward in a brilliant arc.

All the surrounding magical creatures froze, then in the next moment their bodies collapsed and fell apart, revealing a small clearing in the forest.

The little mages were stunned when they saw this scene.

After spending so much time together, they had gradually understood this guy’s nature. He had very high talent—those elemental sprites that seemed mysterious and elusive to ordinary people were treated almost like obedient slaves by him, doing whatever he told them to do.

Most hateful of all, this guy had supreme talent but did things that humans would do? While others practiced how to efficiently use magic power, he went jogging; while others studied the operating principles of magic circles, he practiced swordplay; while others worked hard to summon elements, he lifted weights, and without even summoning them, elements would eagerly run over to fan him and bring him water…

The little mages: “……”

Damn it, so infuriating! His attitude of not being interested in magic was exactly like saying “I’m not interested in money”!

However, they really couldn’t say anything, because they had seen Ji Chi’s seriousness, seen him working hard for other professions through wind and rain.

And these efforts were no less taxing than their own.

But even so, Ji Chi clearing out a whole area of monsters in just a few minutes was still too devilish!

Brandon murmured. “How is it possible… he’s just a mage…”

Saintess Coralie frowned and observed Ji Chi’s movements. “He didn’t use any sword techniques. This was purely achieved through physical speed, reflexes, and strength.”

Saintess Coralie drew a gleaming dagger from her thigh, suddenly half-knelt and stabbed it hard into a night demon’s corpse. The sharp dagger tip penetrated the night demon’s tough skin but got stuck on its hard ribs.

Saintess Coralie’s eyelashes trembled. She withdrew the dagger and straightened up. “But even with just his basic physical qualities, he wouldn’t lose to any great swordsman who has mastered martial techniques.”

“He really is a… genius…” Saintess Coralie sighed as she looked in Ji Chi’s direction.

Brandon stared blankly at the night demon on the ground with its eyes wide open in death, bit his lip, and drew a dagger from his waist that was studded with various dazzling gems. He gripped it with both hands and, imitating Saintess Coralie, stabbed hard at the night demon’s body!

With a clang, the young master whimpered and curled up on the ground clutching his hand. He looked tearfully at his reddened palm and the gem dagger that had broken and scattered to the side, as well as the completely negligible small wound on the night demon’s skin.

[Night Demon Corpse HP-1]

[Brandon HP-2]

Saintess Coralie looked at the young master’s pitiful appearance and sighed softly. Just as she was hesitating whether to comfort him for protecting her, she saw him wipe his face and pick up the dagger again. His right hand covered it, and just like when he had covered Ji Chi’s sword, a small fire magic circle appeared.

Brandon’s palm was still twitching from pain, but he gritted his teeth and raised the now-burning dagger again, stabbing down once more!

Puff—the extremely hot flame cut into the flesh like a red-hot blade through butter, sliding smoothly deep into the muscle.

Saintess Coralie was startled and looked at him with some surprise.

But it wasn’t over yet. The dagger firmly embedded in the night demon’s body suddenly emanated an extremely bright red light. When the light became blindingly bright, it suddenly exploded. The night demon’s corpse was instantly blown to pieces, and blood and flesh fragments splattered all over the young master and Saintess Coralie.

Saintess Coralie, covered in various fluids: “……”

Damn it, can we kill this teammate?

The young master was amazed. He seemed to have discovered something incredible. He even ignored being covered in blood and flesh—he seemed to have found a direction!

By this time, the magical creatures attracted by the light had been mostly cleared out. The magic circle on Ji Chi’s sword had been consumed. He swung his sword one last time, and the restored jet-black blade passed through an undead knight’s chest and continued until it embedded in the tree trunk behind it, pinning the entire monster to the thick tree.

The bears, who were gradually recovering from their berserker state, saw this and happily patted Ji Chi’s shoulder. “Your magic is so strange! It looks like a warrior’s!”

Brandon snapped out of his epiphany. Hearing this, he jumped up. “That’s right! Mages can also be warriors! Mages can also engage in close combat! What I need isn’t a wand! I need weapons that can be enchanted with magic circles! Hahahaha!”

The bears were stunned for a moment by the young master’s bold declaration. They turned to look and immediately noticed the bloody stains all over him and Saintess Coralie, as if they had been pinned down and beaten and torn by magical beasts for several minutes.

The four bears immediately felt terrible.

Bill stared blankly. “Their hair has all fallen off…”

Second brother beat his chest in anguish. “We violated our promise as warriors…”

Third brother was grief-stricken. “We’ll never be able to party with mages again…”

Fourth brother was full of curiosity. “Brandon actually didn’t throw up?”

Ji Chi: “…” Fourth brother, what’s wrong with you? Don’t remind him!

Brandon’s triumphant movements froze. He slowly lowered his head and looked at the red and white matter stuck to his chest. His face turned pale, and his throat made a gulping sound.

However, the young master managed to suppress his urge to vomit—he was going to become a close-combat mage in the future! How could he retreat because of such a small difficulty!

Fourth brother watched him gradually adapt with admiration, clicking his tongue in wonder. “Amazing! You’ve already become an excellent warrior!”

Bill was puzzled. “Can mages also become warriors?”

Second brother answered casually, “Why not? I’m a warrior, and I also sing very well!”

Third brother was delighted. “So that’s also possible!”

The little mages: “……” So that’s also… possible?

As dawn and dusk alternated, the day and night of the Dark Night Forest changed three times. The task sheets on the mission board decreased one by one, and the scores of the Class S teams in Madam Emma’s hands kept changing, except for the team at the very back.

Madam Emma sighed, her tone filled with worry as she asked Joseph beside her. “Have Ji Chi and the others encountered some danger? With their abilities, they should have come to receive the next task long ago. Haven’t they summoned you?”

Joseph shook his head, and his eyes also showed rare anxiety. He took an imperceptible deep breath and said, “It’s alright… Reize is watching over them.”

“Hmph, you’re not even sure yourself when you say that, are you? Can’t you just admit that you’ll get them killed? You cursed demon!” Antoine’s gritted voice came from beside them.

At some point, he had also entered the tent and happened to look up and meet Joseph’s eyes. His left eye, exposed under his long bangs, stared viciously at Joseph like a venomous snake coiled in darkness.

Madam Emma frowned. “Antoine! It’s been so many years since that happened! What more do you want!”

Antoine sneered coldly, “Over? How can it be over? It’s far from over… Joseph will kill more people! Just like those geniuses in your class who might already be sleeping forever in the Dark Night Forest!”

Joseph’s face suddenly turned deathly pale.

“Sleeping forever? That’s not quite right, though we really didn’t expect that brown bears would sleep for such a long time—” A somewhat annoying voice with a drawn-out tone came from the tent entrance.

Ji Chi slowly stepped into the tent and tilted his head to look at Antoine. “However, respected teacher, may I ask if you are cursing us?”