The storm had calmed.

  Not inside him.

  His heart was still beating too fast.

  Out here, everything could flip in a second.

  Yūshin broke the silence.

  “RAW…”

  “You okay, RAW? Can you handle the two of us?”

  The lion dipped his head slowly. Unshaken.

  “RAW?” Reiboku asked.

  “RAW… he’s my summon. He tore that monster to pieces. The name stuck.”

  “So it was him…” Reiboku breathed. “The one who ripped its head clean off.”

  Yūshin nodded.

  “He leapt in front of me when I was completely lost. I was about to give up… to bow out. And RAW lunged forward. He braced against a wall, clamped its throat, and with one bite… he tore its head off.”

  “Right, RAW?” he added, running a hand through the lion’s mane.

  Reiboku stared at him.

  “Wait… you already told me that. But you said you… weren’t knocked out.”

  Yūshin looked away, embarrassed.

  Then he turned back to Reiboku.

  “And you… how do you feel?”

  Reiboku slowly raised his stump.

  “As you can see… I’m down an arm. But I’m alive.”

  He clenched his jaw.

  “And I don’t have a choice. I have to fight.”

  He inhaled, lower.

  “Except I can’t activate my skills. And I leveled up. I’m sure there’s a way… I can feel it.”

  “What’s the point of leveling if I can’t use what keeps me alive?”

  Yūshin thought.

  “Hmm… Some skills don’t show up on the wrist. Maybe you should look somewhere else.”

  A flicker of hope crossed Reiboku’s face.

  In one motion, he slid off the lion.

  “I need to hunt. I need to know for sure.”

  “I have to reach level six. I’m only two levels away from unlocking a new skill.”

  The moment he said it, a rumble rolled through the forest.

  That was the signal. Time to move.

  Without hesitation, Reiboku pushed into the dense vegetation. A living wall.

  Impossible to see far.

  Sounds blurred.

  Even the world’s scent felt smothered.

  Yūshin stayed back. He let him go.

  RAW stood motionless beside him, watching tense.

  Reiboku slowed. Listened. Then moved again.

  Three gray wolves. Twisted.

  Their flanks were covered in rough scales, like crocodile hide. An aberration.

  Reiboku froze, mind sharpening.

  His calm was absolute.

  It’s them or me.

  The first wolf sprang, fangs bared, aiming for his leg to pin him down.

  Reiboku slipped aside with a fluid hop and, in the same motion, drove his shiv into its flank.

  One.

  But it hadn’t gone deep enough.

  Not a clean hit.

  Blood burst. Warmth splattered the dust.

  The creature staggered, wavered.

  Not dead.

  The second one lunged immediately, jaws wide, snapping for his throat while he was still airborne.

  Reiboku spun midair and whipped a roundhouse kick straight into its head.

  The animal crashed down, stunned. Still alive.

  “I can do this.”

  Reiboku didn’t wait.

  He rushed it and buried the shiv into its forehead.

  A geyser of blood sprayed the grass.

  A cold breeze rose, carrying the metallic stink of slaughter—an odor that would draw other predators.

  The last wolf, bigger, growled.

  Its reddish eyes narrowed.

  It backed up, planted its feet. Its paws sank into the soil.

  It was readying a real leap.

  Yūshin watched closely. RAW beside him, alert.

  The wolf jumped.

  A harsh, guttural howl tore through the air.

  Reiboku, unshaken, stepped back twice.

  Then—fast he struck.

  Once—into the left eye.

  Twice—into the right.

  Three times between them, straight into the skull.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  The monster collapsed without a sound.

  But behind him, the first wounded wolf was already launching itself at his back.

  Reiboku didn’t have time to dodge.

  The impact hit like a battering ram.

  His makeshift armor absorbed it then shattered. Wood, sinew, scraps—everything exploded apart.

  He rolled across the ground.

  A thread of blood slid from the corner of his mouth.

  No rest. Not even a second.

  He braced, threw himself onto the beast, and stabbed into the open wound.

  Again. Again.

  With a choking death rattle, the wolf went limp.

  Panting. Clear-eyed.

  Reiboku straightened.

  No time to turn.

  A dull sound nailed him in place.

  Bam.

  The ground trembled under his feet.

  Something had just smashed through the brush.

  Reiboku turned.

  A Razorback.

  Massive. Wild. Unchained.

  A slab of muscle bristling with bony spikes, horns as long as sabers.

  It burst out, foaming at the mouth, drool mixed with rage.

  Reiboku barely managed a sidestep.

  The horn grazed his shoulder.

  Flesh tore with a wet crack.

  A scarlet spray exploded into the air.

  Reiboku backed off, teeth clenched.

  “Wait! I’m coming!” Yūshin shouted, ready to move.

  “Stay where you are!” Reiboku roared.

  A grin split his face.

  “Don’t worry… tonight we’re eating boar steak.”

  RAW rumbled, silent—like he understood.

  The Razorback pawed at the earth, snorted, then charged.

  Heavier. More brutal.

  Chunks of dirt flew with every step.

  Reiboku accelerated.

  He planted, ran, leapt.

  Shiv in hand, he aimed for the monster’s shoulder.

  CLANG!

  The blade bounced off.

  Like striking an anvil.

  The shock blasted him backward.

  His back slammed into a massive trunk—CRACK.

  Bark exploded. The tree shuddered.

  And his body left an imprint:

  a hollow silhouette pressed into the wood.

  The world emptied of air.

  A low buzzing chewed at his ears.

  His gear fell apart, dropping in pieces.

  Blood rose into his mouth. He spat.

  Rust. The taste of an ending.

  Breathless, he slid down the bark… until he collapsed.

  The shiv flew off, swallowed by ferns. Gone.

  Panting. Gasping. Cornered.

  The Razorback growled.

  A deep, heavy sound. A funeral drum.

  It turned slowly.

  Its hooves tore the ground. A wave of dust lifted.

  It was lining up the finishing blow.

  Reiboku tried to rise. Barely.

  Back against the tree. Legs shaking.

  His vision swam. The world tilted.

  Every breath was torture.

  A lightning bolt of pain ripped through his collarbone.

  His right arm hung dead.

  Impossible to move.

  But he was still alive.

  Still.

  And that was already too much for this thing.

  He tore off what was left of his crude protections—rags of leather and worn cloth.

  He tied them with clumsy, frantic movements.

  Teeth, knees, hand… without moving his shoulder.

  Every knot was a scream.

  Every loop, a challenge.

  He wrapped the cloth around his right wrist.

  Tight. Solid.

  The other end? A stick. Thick. Rough.

  Not to strike.

  To pull.

  To cut the pain.

  He closed his eyes.

  Visualized.

  Left arm: gone.

  Right arm: useless.

  Blood. Dust.

  And in front of him… the enemy. The wall. Death.

  He tried to call the skill.

  [Demon Fist]…

  Nothing.

  No surge.

  Not even a shiver.

  He ground his teeth.

  Then…

  An echo. A sentence.

  Listen to your heart. Transcend.

  He opened his eyes.

  The Razorback was only a few meters away.

  Its hooves hammered the ground like mallets.

  Each stride made the earth vibrate.

  Reiboku was out of time.

  He jammed the end of the stick between his teeth. Wood scraped his enamel.

  Sap and blood mixed in his throat.

  He rose, bent his knees, ripped himself through the pain.

  “You want my body? Then take it. But I’m taking something with me.”

  One step. Then two.

  He launched forward.

  The Razorback charged.

  A straight line. A silent scream.

  Tusks forward, the monster coming like a freight train.

  Reiboku ran straight at it.

  A man.

  A dead arm.

  A stick clenched between his teeth.

  And across from him—two tons of rage.

  Then he jumped.

  His whole body folded in the air.

  He aimed. He roared. He drove it in.

  The stick punched between the two tusks—exactly like he’d pictured it.

  And the strap snapped tight.

  CRACK!

  A dry sound. Monstrous. Internal.

  His humerus slammed back into its socket with an obscene pop.

  His arm was yanked backward, wrenched by the traction.

  His torso twisted sideways, dragged by the force.

  Pain hit instantly. Pure.

  A white wave.

  His legs gave out.

  He crashed into the grass.

  Silence.

  The world waited for him to die.

  He trembled. Sweat glued itself to his forehead.

  His heart beat behind his eyes.

  The Razorback had veered off, disoriented, snarling, dragging a splinter of wood between its tusks.

  Reiboku slowly raised his right hand.

  It shook.

  But it answered.

  He clenched it.

  A fist.

  He closed his eyes. Focused.

  Searched in the dark. In the void.

  All the skills he owned.

  And then…

  A mental light.

  [Transcendental Heart].

  A flash. A room. A phrase.

  “A core… between spirit and will.”

  It was still pulsing in his chest.

  What the hell does that even mean…? he rasped, barely breathing.

  He pressed his hand to his torso.

  Closed his eyes.

  No left arm. No weapon. Just him.

  His heart. His will.

  A whisper—almost silent. But absolute.

  Activate… TRANSCEND ME. [Transcendental Heart].

  BOOM.

  A pulse. Deep. Visceral.

  The beat of another heart. Ancient. Buried.

  Light burst from his chest.

  His torso lit up like a living forge.

  Veins of fire crawled into his right arm.

  His skin crackled. Muscles vibrated. Bones rang.

  An incandescent seal etched itself across his chest, visible as if beneath the skin.

  Red and pulsing between ember and divine light.

  And a voice. Low. Distant. But familiar.

  Not the Voice… another.

  “You have transcended flesh.

  Your spirit is bound.

  The Heart guides the Power.”

  Reiboku opened his eyes.

  Something had changed.

  No… everything had.

  He was in his body.

  But beyond it.

  More alive than ever.

  He stood.

  Around him, the world slowed.

  Wind. Sound. Even his breath.

  Everything went still.

  He lifted his arm—his only arm. The right.

  A sharp pain climbed into his shoulder.

  But it was bearable. Controlled.

  My arm’s still damaged… but I can do it.

  His fist.

  Elbow slightly bent.

  Palm forward.

  A threatening expression carved itself onto his face:

  pure resolve, murderous instinct.

  His eyes ignited with a dark red glow.

  He murmured:

  [Demon Fist].

  A red-black current coiled over his skin.

  Lightning snapped around his hand.

  Energy hissed along his arm.

  Veins bulged.

  Skin fissured.

  His arm vibrated like a cannon primed to fire.

  The Razorback charged.

  “REIBOKU, MOVE!” Yūshin screamed.

  But Reiboku stayed.

  Still.

  Every muscle locked.

  Every second carved into stone.

  Breath ragged, he felt a thin stream of blood run from his nose.

  When the beast reached him—

  Impact.

  His fist moved.

  A colossal strike.

  FWOOM.

  CRACK.

  The Razorback took it head-on.

  A sharp fracture echoed up through its skull.

  The charge stopped dead.

  Its hooves gouged trenches in the earth.

  The beast stumbled back two steps… swayed.

  But it didn’t fall.

  A growl rose from its throat. Deeper. More dangerous.

  Reiboku stayed frozen.

  Then pain slammed into him.

  His arm gave out almost instantly.

  A violent burn surged from shoulder to neck.

  His fingers cramped. His breath snapped.

  Shit…

  He tried to lift his arm.

  Impossible.

  Muscles refused.

  Nerves screamed.

  I can’t move it.

  The Razorback shook its head.

  Blood ran from its forehead, its nostrils.

  One eye was already sealing shut.

  But the beast steadied itself.

  And charged again.

  Slower.

  But heavier.

  Deadlier.

  Reiboku felt his heart hammer in his chest.

  If I retreat… I die.

  He forced his legs to move.

  His body screamed.

  Move.

  Obey.

  One more push.

  Every millimeter was torture.

  His hand trembled.

  No feeling. No control.

  One… more time…

  His heart suddenly spiked.

  The world narrowed.

  No fear.

  No retreat.

  Only urgency.

  His fingers twitched.

  Then his hand obeyed.

  He clenched his fist.

  He inhaled.

  Then screamed inside his skull.

  [DEMON FIST].

  Red filaments returned.

  Not as strong.

  Not as stable.

  But there.

  The Razorback was already on him.

  Too close.

  Reiboku stepped in.

  Short.

  Brutal.

  And struck.

  Not wide.

  Not heroic.

  A tight hit.

  Straight.

  Right where it was already cracked.

  CRUNCH.

  The head warped under the impact.

  Bone gave—not into shards, but as a whole mass collapsing.

  The Razorback staggered, eyes rolling, hooves still searching for ground…

  then its neck gave out.

  The bulk crashed into him, launching him backward.

  Reiboku hit the dirt.

  Something in his shoulder gave way.

  His arm dropped. Dead.

  Nothing left.

  No strength.

  A savage pain climbed from shoulder to skull.

  A dull hammering pounded behind his eyes.

  His vision splintered.

  He gagged, bile burning his throat.

  He stayed on the ground, unable to rise, breath shattered.

  His heart raced.

  His body trembled.

  But he was alive.

  The Razorback didn’t move.

  A few meters away, Yūshin hadn’t moved either.

  His eyes were wide, locked on Reiboku.

  He’d just seen his skill for the first time.

  “No way…” he whispered.

  RAW stepped forward a few paces. Slow. Majestic.

  His mane bristled. His chest swelled…

  And with a savage roar, he sealed the end of the fight.

  “RAAAAW!”

  An echo that vibrated through the earth… through their chests.

  Reiboku stayed on the ground.

  A crooked grin split his lips.

  Blood ran down his face, but his eyes still burned.

  He looked up.

  Yūshin stood over him, bow in hand.

  A breath. Almost nothing.

  “You were right…” he murmured.

  “Tonight… it’s boar steak.”