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“Oh my head······.”

I really flew a long way.

The pain was a bonus.

This was the first time I’ve properly taken a hit since being reincarnated.

“I’m a manly man… maybe just a drop of tear will escape······.”

But I gritted my teeth and endured it.

Manly men don’t cry.

“However, I feel like I hit something while flying just now.”

“What the hell······!”

At that moment, a growling sound came from beneath me.

To be precise, it was a heavy and chilling voice filled with menace.

“I’m Luke!”

I answered simply because I was asked, but who was this?

I felt something hard underneath my butt.

Could it be a rugged beauty with a rough voice and lucky pervert vibes!?

Whoo━! This otherworld is amazing!

Should I touch their chest a little?

– Thud.

“Hm?”

Something hard?

What is this AAA-grade chest?

“Get off me now······!”

Ah, my bad. Sorry about that.

Slowly getting up, I checked who was under me.

“Ugh!!”

It was a man with purple skin, well-trained muscles, and wearing black gauntlets.

‘Wait, I was touching a man’s chest!?’

Forget being a demon; this guy was just a disgustingly manly dude.

“F*ing hell!!!! Why isn’t it a woman!!!!”

“…What are you talking about?”

Instead, I wished that a voluptuous woman would have appeared instead.

Someone might say I’m too picky.

But is it really being picky? No. I think differently.

Anyone would have the same reaction, man or woman.

Would you rather have a muscular dude under you or a glamorous woman with all the right places in all the right places?

Those who choose the former are merely respecting their preferences, but let’s be honest, they’re just gay.

Just until a moment ago, I was feeling on top of the world; now, I’ve plummeted to the lowest point.

No, it’s not low; it’s anger level.

And why is there a demon in the middle of the forest?

If there’s a demon near the academy, that means that bastard must be around too.

‘I found him.’

Without needing to look around much, I spotted him nearby.

With noticeable red hair and a face like a parasite.

The legendary jerk who had devoured all sorts of sweet potatoes and was living it up with a harem just because he was the main character.

Arthur.

The protagonist of this novel was knocked out cold, lodged in a tree.

“Oh, that sweet potato lump. Look at him lounging around doing nothing.”

Upon closer inspection, Riche was there too, and I quickly grasped the situation.

The gauntleted demon. Arthur and Riche.

This was the very first event occurring in the academy as part of a practical event.

It’s an initial event that occurs to get Riche’s favor, but honestly, it’s just the author shamelessly shoehorning in some plot.

If you ask how such a story is ranked number one, well, readers eat it up just fine.

Anyone who’s read a bit knows the feeling.

The demon in front of me, although weaker than Riche, had a magical power resistance feature, so regular magic wouldn’t harm him at all.

The only things that would work on him are light attribute attacks and physical attacks—oh! How fortuitous that there happens to be someone here with a sword and possessing light attributes?!

The reason he’s set as a low-tier villain despite having the cheat skill of magic resistance is that he’s just a trash mob to power up Riche.

So I should save Riche and raise my favorability, huh?

‘I’m still just a guy, though.’

I glanced around.

Riche was looking at me with a shocked expression, and surrounding us were two unknown male extras lying unconscious.

Even while I was assessing the situation, the demon was sending me killing intent.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Luke, idiot. How many times do I have to tell you?”

Seriously, how long after being asked do you need to ask again? Even a goldfish would be smarter.

At that moment, I heard Luna’s voice follow me.

“Luke-senpai!”

“Oh~ Luna, you made it?”

“This isn’t the time! Right behind me······!”

-Uwoooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thud, the ground shook. A loud roar echoed from the path Luna had just come from.

“Oh right. I was hunting.”

“I tried to hold it off as much as I could, but I ran straight toward the direction you flew without looking.”

“It’s targeting me specifically.”

That attack must have really hurt. Seeing how fired up it was, I wouldn’t know since I’ve never experienced such a pain, even in my past life.

The monster, following its instincts, roared in anger, seemingly blind with rage.

What if there were traps? It just charges in, swinging a club.

“This won’t do! Meat Shield!”

Swoosh.

I hid behind the demon.

“W-What!?”

I can understand the surprise.

Out of nowhere, a guy appears and makes things go sideways, and just to make matters worse, he’s using the demon as a shield against the monster.

‘But who cares? I’m going to die anyway.’

Before I die, I’ll tank for him. And when I do die, I’ll gain a lot of experience and maybe even a new skill.

This deal has no downsides for me.

And he’s got to repay the debt for ruining my mood.

The demon raised his arms to block the club coming his way.

When caught off guard, all he could rely on was his own sturdy physique.

He could have just dodged, but apparently, he was the kind of idiot who just showed off his body.

The reason a demon can be weak against physical attacks and still raises his guard as if he were a warrior is something I know firsthand—it really hurts like hell.

The demon that was initially set as low-tier was far weaker than an ogre.

-Thud!

The clash of the demon’s arm and the club produced a heavy sound.

There was a crack as something seemed to break, but the ogre’s club remained intact. Looks like it broke the demon’s bones instead.

“Gah! How dare a mere monster…!”

“And you’re a pathetic demon; what’s up with the discrimination?”

“Shut up…!”

With all his strength, he barely turned away the club.

Soon after, the demon and the ogre clashed fiercely.

“What’s happening right now…?”

A confused Luna, who joined late, still didn’t seem to understand the situation.

“Ah. That? It’s a demon.”

“Y-Yeah? The demon I know?”

“Yup.”

It would be rare to see demons in the wild, so it must be exciting for her to see one in the heart of the forest.

But what does it matter? That person over there seems to be the world’s best natural demon attractor.

On the battlefield, the demon appeared to be slightly more on the winning side.

Though he’s a demon, he was putting on a show against the ogre.

-Thud!

But it seemed they were only evenly matched in strength.

What could I even do in this situation?

No need to ponder deeply.

“Oh, you shouldn’t block like that from there.”

“Oh, that attack isn’t supposed to be done like that.”

Advice time.

I learned from the world-renowned Professor Jamminyi, who’s recognized for guiding opponents and irritating them efficiently while prompting anger responses.

For reference, “learning” here implies a more experiential than textbook method.

“How does that feel? Annoying, right?”

“…I could almost smack you.”

Even Luna beside me found it amusing. This was the same even back on Earth. Advising someone raises the blood pressure not just for the person targeted but also those watching and hearing.

Wasn’t it true that all Jamminyi students were prodigies with psychology degrees?

Thus, half an hour passed as I advised while the vicious battle raged on.

Gradually, the battle was reaching its conclusion, and unsurprisingly, the demon seemed to be gaining the upper hand.

What’s really funny is that thinking about the demons we’ll encounter later, this one battling the ogre seems almost cute in retrospect.

– Uwoooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Giving one last gallant roar, the ogre seemed to signal its final stand.

That was a truly impressive echo.

“Ugh…! Well said, brother! I’ll help you!”

“…?”

I ignored Luna as she looked confused and drew my sword from the inventory to respond to the ogre’s roar.

The ogre’s powerful club flew toward the demon while behind me, my blade cut off the demon’s route of escape.

Thus, it became known as—

“Double Lariat!!”

“What, what the···!”

The demon is taken aback, bewildered by what’s happening.

‘His reaction is so funny.’

In the end, the demon had no choice but to make an impossible decision to cling to life in a struggle between life and death.

That choice was to receive my attack with his body while blocking the ogre’s.

Choosing the latter would be his fallback plan, but everyone has a solid plan until they get hit.

“Yup~ I’m way stronger than the ogre~.”

It was a mistake he made without knowing my true power.

Despite whining about the pain after getting hit by the ogre, my strength still exceeded his.

Originally, this request was set by Adela for a 2-person party, meaning I should’ve been tanking while Luna provided support, but surprise—I’m the one with all stats focused on strength.

So after realizing that, it felt like I could win even in a pure strength brawl.

What does that even mean?

It means the demon who underestimated me would be split in two.

“…!”

And with the transformation from demon to ash, he didn’t even have a moment to utter his last words.

Then came the familiar blue light that never fails to greet me.

[ You have defeated the demon Kurga! You have acquired the skill All Attribute Resistance! ]

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

“Whoo━! Sweet!”

Maybe it’s because of the demon theme, but this was my second time defeating one, and just like the first, the experience points were super sweet. My teeth are rotting away from it.

-Plop.

Immediately after, a sound of kneeling reached my ears.

When I turned my gaze forward, there was an ogre kneeling, covered in the marks of our earlier battle.

Having executed the final blow, the ogre has relinquished all it once held—its weapon, the will to fight—everything completely.

“You did well, brother. You are a proud warrior. You can go to Valhalla now.”

Or not.

I neatly decapitated the neck of the creature that had fought for me.

The evidence of the ogre’s hunt was right here—in this severed head.

To ensure I’d secure the kill over something with impressive regeneration, I needed to go for the neck, and coincidentally, the head was chosen as proof.

Adela had informed me about that.

“Next life, may you be born without magic resistance.”

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

“Now that the hunt is done, Luna approached me.”

“Why were you attacking its limbs when you could have killed it so easily from the start······?”

“Because it’s boring to just kill.”

It had been ages since I’d encountered a proper monster; how could I lose the thrill by just shouting ‘die!’ and chopping off its head?

It’s like how cats don’t just kill their prey; they swat at them before chasing them around and tormenting them.

“Well, let’s head back now.”

“Yes.”

“Wait just a moment!”

“?”

As we were about to head back, a voice called us to stop.

There stood Riche, wearing quite a distressed expression, and for some odd reason, gazing at me.

‘What the heck is going on now?’

That’s why you shouldn’t get caught near the academy.

I desperately needed to run before getting tangled up in yet another weird situation.

“Luna! We need to run!”

“Y-Yes?”

“Let’s go! Now!”

I definitely heard someone calling me, but without looking back, I dashed away. A call came again from behind, yet I shamelessly ignored it and sprinted ahead with all my might.

 

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