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When I activated my Manly Man title, the two lackeys knelt before me.

“······?!”

“Wha… Are you a Blood Magic user?!”

In contrast, the leader, a woman, showed no signs of distress; she didn’t seem weak at all. Indeed, when I heard the lore about this world, elves were supposed to be a strong race. The two kneeling before me were likely A-Rank Adventurers, but the woman in front of me must be among the stronger A-Ranks.

As I observed her carefully, the two downed elves struggled to get back on their feet. They were trembling, trying their best to rise, but the more they attempted, the more they seemed pushed down by an unseen force.

“Don’t get too cocky with just this much…!”

“Right. Being arrogant is a bad habit.”

I drew my sword. Time-wasting with meaningless chatter only leads to getting blindsided, a fate reserved for protagonists. I swung my sword, aiming to behead the elf.

-Clang!

The elven woman, who had been standing idle until now, parried my blade with her own. It seems she does protect her underlings after all.

“I have my own standing, so I can’t just watch my subordinates die.”

“How touching, your bond with your kin.”

“We have urgent matters, so I hope you can understand if we resort to somewhat forceful methods.”

The way she spoke, she sounded as if she had already won. It was that arrogance that had led them to be stuck in the forest, unable to emerge. If one race had the highest average power, it would only make sense for the elves to dominate this continent. But the reason they don’t is exactly that arrogance. They’re naturally endowed with strength, so few elves train, and living for long means they don’t reproduce often, leading to a lower population compared to other races.

“Having just parried your sword, I understand why Yggdrasil wants you. Still, you won’t be able to defeat me with that.”

As the elf woman’s blade circled around, she aimed to strike my sword’s side, channeling wind into her attack. It wasn’t a lie that she could easily target my neck, but for whatever reason, she forced the angle to aim for my arm instead.

I managed to pull my arm back just in time, but I was still faster than her, so it couldn’t be helped. Blood streamed from the area she had cut.

‘It’s been a while since I’ve bled.’

It might sound arrogant, but the only time I really bled was when I actively attacked Luna during a skill test. Even in competitions, even professors of decent standing couldn’t leave a mark on me with magic, so this elf must be stronger than I initially thought.

“Alright. Strategy complete.”

“Strategy…?”

“I’ve figured out how I can take you down.”

Just now, she appeared to focus more on speed than power. If it were not the case, she wouldn’t have chosen to slide my sword away. If she had parried, I’d have been wide open for a stomach shot; she must’ve avoided that because she’s weaker. And as I’ve just discovered, while she’s definitely faster than me.

“···That’s quite the arrogant claim.”

“Take a look in the mirror, you goblin brat.”

“Go, goblin?!”

In some worlds, dragons are called lizards, and humans are referred to as monkeys. So, couldn’t elves just as easily be viewed as goblins? Other than skin color, we both have pointy ears too. Just because our skin colors differ, doesn’t mean we don’t share humanity. Similarly, could it be that the only difference between elves and goblins is skin color?

In any case, all I need to do is lay down a single hit on such brats. And conveniently, I have a skill suitable for it, so I might as well test it out.

◈ Skill Information

Name: Charge Attack

Rank: B+

Description: By assuming a specific posture, you can gather power for up to 5 seconds. The longer you gather strength, the stronger your next attack will be.

I turned my waist to prepare for a horizontal slash.

“···What are you doing?”

“Preparing to kill you.”

Thankfully, she kept talking while I gathered power, so 3 seconds passed.

“You think I’ll just let you hit me like that?”

“That’s not yours to decide.”

It’s up to me.

For reference, the skill description didn’t mention that I couldn’t move while charging. Nowadays, while gathering energy, I’ve seen people jump or teleport; surely I could manage that too. Just as I hit the 1-second mark in my internal timer, I kicked off the ground and propelled myself forward. I didn’t aim at the woman but at the two elves still kneeling.

“Wha…?!”

“That’s how you use hostages, damn brat!”

If I simply rushed in, I’d have a hard time landing a hit. But what if I made the situation unavoidable? She claimed earlier that she wouldn’t let her kin die, so she’d have to protect them. In order to do that, she’d have to block my attack. By the way, she wouldn’t be able to let them get hurt like before. This next attack is much stronger; if she tried to deflect it recklessly, she risks the hostage’s neck getting cut.

Our righteous elf lady wouldn’t be able to gamble with her kin’s life that way.

“How cowardly…!”

What’s cowardly about a life-and-death battle? After you die, go tell your ancestors you perished from a cowardly attack. She had no choice but to position herself between me and her lackeys, defending with her sword raised and a shield at the ready.

In the meantime, time progressed.

“5 seconds elapsed! WRYYYYYYYYY!!! Crush!!!”

-Crash!!!

With all my strength, I swung my sword, and she went flying through the walls of the Adventurer’s Guild alongside the subordinate she was protecting. I had no idea how powerful a gathered attack would be, but after smashing through several walls, I got a good gauge of its strength.

As I watched the elves fly away, I suddenly heard Adela’s voice behind me, accompanied by a sigh.

“…Should I claim damages from Luke?”

“Why? I’m the victim here. Shouldn’t you claim it from them?”

I’m the so-called victim? They were the ones who drew their weapons first, and they initiated the intimidation; I just dealt with the situation before I was killed. And yet, she wants me to claim damages? In that case, I’d just pass that on to the elves.

“Luke, are you alright?”

After the battle, Riche approached and began tending to my wounds. Although blood still flowed, I knew Yui could help with that, and since my arm was still intact, I was okay.

“Yeah.”

Honestly, even if my arm were severed, it wouldn’t matter. As long as I’m alive, our top-notch Saint would be able to restore it. It’d probably hurt enough to make me tear up, though.

“Let’s deal with them first.”

I had intended to leave their faces unrecognizable, but the elven woman defended her lackeys so exceptionally well that they ended up only slightly battered. However, the lackeys seemed to have fainted, so now I had to finish the job.

I approached the elven woman, who was gasping for breath against a nearby wall.

“You all are quite remarkable. Given diplomatic issues, you didn’t even consider the consequences of your actions.”

Even if they fought with me, this is still the Empire, the land of humans. If they ran amok like this, a war could break out. Yet they acted recklessly without a thought. If I were in their position, I might have done the same for my goals, but that’s something only the strong can afford to do. It wouldn’t work out if the weak attempted to act similarly.

“If this is Yggdrasil’s will, so be it.”

Wow… This is why zealots are problematic. Listening to their words, you’d think Yggdrasil commanded them to cut off their limbs. Supposedly, Yggdrasil has a good nature, but…

Cough, the elven woman must have been so unsettled that she began to spit up blood.

“Ha… Yeah. You won. Kill me.”

“I’d prefer not to.”

“Wha…?”

Just a moment ago, I was filled with the desire to kill, but hearing her say that casually took away all my resolve. After all, considering what they had just tried to do to me, even dying would be too gentle a fate.

“Weren’t you trying to cut off all my limbs? Then shouldn’t you pay the appropriate price?”

In truth, I had no idea what elves valued. In stories, characters like Arthur swooned over world-saving declarations and jumped in to help, while I had never seen a scene where someone clashed with elves. Just a moment ago, I’d been contemplating whether or not to burn Yggdrasil, whose presence they revered, but that wouldn’t bring them any suffering.

I wanted to give the elves not just mental torment but physical pain too. Suddenly, my gaze landed on the elf’s pointed ears. I reached out towards the female elf’s ears, but upon seeing my hand, she shook her head violently, evading my touch.

In that instant, a light bulb turned on in my mind. What truly differentiates elves from humans? Their long lifespans and high average power, yes, but those traits are only evident on the surface. The way elves proudly showcase their ears must be a significant element of their identity. Similar to how goblins are mocked for their long ears, elves likely regard their pointed ears with pride. I would now trample that pride into the ground.

I grabbed the hair of the two fainted elves and dragged them toward the Adventurer’s Guild. The woman was still conscious, so if she wanted to save her comrades, she would have to follow suit. Upon returning to the guild, my first priority was finding Adela.

“Adela. Do you have any Goblin ears left?”

“I do, but… What do you need them for?”

“What do you think?”

I’m going to use them to make a Kanflin. One of the conditions for joining the Adventurer’s Guild is to gather Goblin ears, and since goblins are easy-to-catch monsters, there are always Goblin ears on hand. I accepted the goblin ears from Adela and approached the still-fainted elves. I called the trio who had been waiting behind me.

“Hey, everyone. Come here.”

Luna and Riche stood by my side, asking what was going on, while Yui noticed the blood running down my arm and asked if I was hurt. Putting the bleeding aside, I needed their help for what was about to happen.

“Luna. Cut off this elf’s ears.”

“W-wait a minute…!”

Hearing my command from a distance, the female elf shouted urgently. But the life of the defeated belongs to the victor. I ignored the elf’s pleas and ordered Luna to cut off both her ears. Without a moment’s hesitation, Luna grasped the elf’s ears and severed them. The elf’s eyes widened in shock, and she screamed at the sudden agony.

“Wh-why?! Aaaaah?! Aaaaaaah!!!”

Regardless of her screams, I ordered Yui to halt the blood gushing from her ears. I needed to avoid any fatal blood loss. As Yui worked her magic, the blood that had been flooding from the elf’s ears stopped abruptly, like a faucet being turned off.

The elf, who had been clutching the severed part, stared blankly when the bleeding suddenly ceased. Upon seeing her own ears lying on the ground, she wailed.

“My, my ears… M-my ears!!!”

She had just attempted to turn someone into a cripple, yet she lost her own ears and is throwing a fit. I kicked the howling elf in the gut, causing her to stumble backward, then mounted her as I pressed the Goblin ears I had collected from Adela against the severed edges.

“Riche. Burn it.”

“W-what?! Just a moment…! Please, not that…!”

Please, what? If they had begged for mercy, I might have let them go. It seemed Riche had grown accustomed to such actions, as she didn’t feel a shred of guilt as she activated the procedure. A sizzling sound akin to sizzling flesh echoed in the air as the elf convulsed in pain.

“Ahhh!! Stop!! P-please, no more!!!”

 

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