The Regressed Mercenary’s Machinations

Chapter 264: This was truly a fight for survival. (1)

Ghislain shouted at the people who had suddenly lost their focus.

“Get a grip! Quickly, deal with the monsters around us first!”

The battle was still ongoing. Some of the monsters that had been fighting the soldiers turned their bodies toward the enemies at the rear and charged.

The knights and hunters snapped out of their daze and began attacking the surrounding monsters. However, their expressions were grim.

‘What’s going on? They weren’t attacked, so why are they coughing up blood?’

‘Did they get hurt somewhere without realizing it?’

‘Then how are we supposed to deal with these charging beasts?’

Their minds were riddled with worry. They were even considering whether it was better to retreat now.

Splat!

Kaor slashed down a monster approaching Ghislain before speaking hastily.

“My lord! Are you scared? Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?”

Kaor felt a twinge of unease. He had seen similar symptoms before.

It was when they had fought the Blood Python. Back then, Ghislain had used an immense amount of power and collapsed, unconscious, for over a day.

‘Damn it! Is it something like that again? Did he overextend himself?’

However, the situation was slightly different from back then. During the Blood Python fight, Ghislain had entered the creature’s body and been affected by its venom.

This time, that wasn’t the case. It seemed more like he had exhausted himself by rampaging alone.

Without knowing Ghislain’s exact capabilities or the penalties he suffered when using his strength, it was impossible to gauge how dangerous the situation truly was.

Still, judging by the spears that had been flying around and now lay scattered on the ground, it was clear he had expended all his energy.

Ghislain wiped the blood from his face with a quick swipe and spoke.

“I’m in a lot of pain right now.”

“…Then what about the one that’s charging at us now?”

“You handle it. You can take it down alone.”

“How am I supposed to take down something like that by myself?!”

“Are you scared again?”

“I’m not scared!”

“Then go fight. I’m sure you can handle it. There’s no time. Move!”

“Raaaaaargh!”

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The Twin-Headed Ogre barreled forward, sending even other monsters flying as it approached.

The knights and hunters recoiled in shock and stepped back.

“Damn it, what do we do about that thing?”

“Do we all just rush it together?”

“And leave the other monsters alone? If we focus only on that one, we’ll be overwhelmed by the rest.”

An ogre was a monster that even dozens of knights couldn’t guarantee taking down. It wasn’t called the ruler of forests and mountains for nothing.

With its immense strength and swift speed, even a single hit could shatter the bones of an average knight.

The Twin-Headed Ogre was even more formidable—far more intelligent and much larger than a normal ogre.

If all the knights and hunters present worked together, they might be able to take it down, but more than half of them would certainly die in the process.

When fear takes hold, someone needs to lead the charge.

Ghislain, coughing up blood, knelt. That left the next strongest person to step up.

All eyes turned to Kaor.

“W-why the hell are you all looking at me?!”

Kaor was flustered. He had no confidence in taking down such a monster on his own.

“Graaaaah!”

The Twin-Headed Ogre was now right in front of them. Its sheer presence was so overwhelming that even nearby monsters kept their distance.

Hack!

Ghislain spat out blood again and addressed Kaor.

“Hurry! You’re the only one who can stop that thing!”

Kaor’s eyes wavered. He had never seen his lord in such a weakened state. It was hard to believe.

His resolve wavered. The lord, who always seemed like an unshakable pillar of steel, was now making a desperate plea to him.

Kaor had rarely been entrusted with such expectations in his life, especially from someone as powerful as his lord.

A true man couldn’t betray such trust.

“Damn it! Leave it to me!”

“Raaaargh!”

Whoosh!

The Twin-Headed Ogre, now within striking distance, swung its massive club.

Crash!

Kaor raised his greatsword to block the attack. The ogre’s strength was so overwhelming that he nearly lost his grip on his weapon.

“Guh!”

The impact made him feel like his insides were churning. He couldn’t hope to win with sheer strength. Determined, Kaor decided to rely on speed and retreated.

Whoosh!

“Hup!”

However, the follow-up attack was far too quick. It was hard to believe something that massive could move at such a speed.

Clang!

Kaor barely managed to block the next blow, but this time, his body was lifted into the air and thrown backward. The sheer force and speed were beyond belief.

For a moment, Kaor thought he might actually die this time.

‘But I’m the only one who can do this!’

Aside from his lord, he was the strongest here. If not him, no one else could possibly stop it.

His lord seemed to have sustained internal injuries. Fighting that enormous ogre required ample space. The first step had to be ensuring the lord’s safety.

Kaor turned his head and shouted loudly.

“My lord! Get to safety for now! Everyone, escort the lord and—”

“Hey, hey, hey! Kaor’s handling the ogre, so the rest of you clean up the surrounding monsters! Why aren’t you moving faster?!”

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Before Kaor could finish, Ghislain had already picked up his greatsword and was cutting through the surrounding monsters. Seeing Ghislain back in action, the knights and hunters sighed in relief and refocused on the fight.

No one paid Kaor any attention.

“…Damn it?”

Ghislain had already lowered his core to the second stage. He could no longer sustain the third stage.

While he could still face the Twin-Headed Ogre even at the second stage, he deliberately refrained from doing so.

This time, Kaor needed to handle it.

“Hey! If you’re fine, then the lord can just—”

Kaor couldn’t finish his complaint. The Twin-Headed Ogre was relentlessly pressing its attacks, leaving him no room to breathe.

Clang!

“Urgh!”

Every time Kaor blocked, he was pushed back further and further. Blocking wouldn’t work. He needed to fight while evading.

The area behind him had been cleared of monsters, leaving it open. Kaor retreated further into that space.

“Graaaah!”

The Twin-Headed Ogre charged forward, showing no intention of letting him escape.

“Damn it… How the hell am I supposed to…?”

The ogre, with its massive body, appeared even more menacing as it rushed forward, raising its enormous club high.

Kaor felt an uncontrollable wave of fear creeping in.

Whoosh!

The ogre’s club sliced through the air, aiming to crush him. Kaor focused every ounce of his concentration and barely managed to dodge.

Slaaash!

Kaor’s greatsword sliced into the ogre’s side. Despite channeling his mana into the attack, the blade barely penetrated its absurdly tough hide.

All he succeeded in doing was further enraging the Twin-Headed Ogre.

“Graaaah!”

Whoosh!

The next attack came with incredible speed, leaving Kaor no time to evade. He hastily raised his greatsword to block, but his stance faltered.

Crash!

“Argh!”

Kaor was sent flying and rolled across the ground. He couldn’t keep up at all.

‘I… I can’t do this. There’s no way I can win.’

Determination or grit meant nothing if the enemy was unbeatable.

Until now, Kaor had been brimming with confidence and motivation. Fighting alongside powerful allies, he had nothing to fear.

His lord was a monster in his own right, and the others were no less formidable. Gillian and Belinda were unmatched warriors, and Vanessa, though conditional in her abilities, possessed the greatest destructive power in the territory.

Against strong foes, they always led the charge. Unconsciously, Kaor had grown complacent, his fighting spirit waning.

And now, faced with the brutal reality, he was overcome with fear.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The Twin-Headed Ogre’s attacks showed no signs of slowing. Kaor kept running, trying to widen the gap between them, and shouted.

“My lord! I can’t do it! You have to take care of this monster!”

Suddenly, Ghislain’s voice echoed in his ears.

― If you want to grow, you have to fight with your life on the line and win.

“Damn it! I already fought for my life against Doncard and won!”

― That’s not enough. This is a real fight for survival.

“I’m telling you, it’s beyond me! Help me!”

― To grow, you must overcome situations where no one will help and no one can be relied upon.

“This isn’t growth—it’s suicide! How am I supposed to fight something I can’t beat?!”

― You can beat it. I wouldn’t entrust this to you otherwise.

“Damn it! How?!”

― You’ve grown weaker than you were before you met me. Understanding that on your own is what makes it meaningful. Do your best.

With those parting words, Ghislain fell silent. Kaor swore under his breath and focused solely on evading the ogre’s attacks.

A whirlwind of emotions consumed him—rage, frustration, fear, humiliation.

Yet, despite everything, one thought refused to leave his mind.

‘I’m weak right now.’

Though his skills had improved, he felt weaker than before. He understood exactly what Ghislain meant.

It wasn’t about physical ability. The fighting spirit, the ferocity that once earned him the title of the Mad Dog of the North, had dulled over time under Ghislain’s protection.

Just like before, there was no need to fight with relentless ferocity or risk his life. He had strong allies by his side.

Relying on others wasn’t a bad thing. Fighting alongside comrades wasn’t wrong either. That’s what allies were for.

But relying on them while allowing himself to grow complacent was the problem. All that remained of him was a foul temper.

‘Damn it, how did I end up like this…?’

He had felt it even when fighting Doncard—he was quick to grow tired and even quicker to slack off. He only responded when problems were right in front of him, and even then, only reluctantly.

His ability to think on his feet had kept him alive so far.

But when faced with a problem he couldn’t handle, his mental state crumbled in an instant.

Kaor bit his lip. From a difficult childhood to surviving alone, he had lived with tenacity and venom in his heart.

That venom had faded as he grew accustomed to comfort, and with it, his strengths eroded.

‘I’ll kill it.’

Kaor gritted his teeth, and a murderous glint flickered in his eyes.

This wasn’t like when he fought Doncard and was angry merely at the prospect of losing. The Twin-Headed Ogre was an opponent he couldn’t defeat without accepting the possibility of death.

This was truly a fight for survival.

Boom!

For the first time, Kaor’s greatsword clashed head-on with the Twin-Headed Ogre’s club.

Kaor’s face twisted with strain. He was still being pushed back, but his resolve was far greater than before.

‘This will be my final battle.’

With that resolve, he swung his greatsword with all his might.

Clang! Clang!

He dodged when he could and blocked when he couldn’t. His body accumulated more and more wounds.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Every time he blocked, he was sent flying and rolled across the ground. Even when he barely managed to land an attack, it didn’t leave a critical wound.

If anything, it only fueled the Twin-Headed Ogre’s rage.

“Graaaaaah!”

Its roar alone felt like it could burst his eardrums. Kaor clenched his teeth and charged again.

Crash!

The club and greatsword collided again, but this time, Kaor’s sword was sent flying even further. Before he could recover, the ogre’s club came swinging back.

Kaor hastily raised his arm to block the incoming blow.

Crash!

Crack!

“Gahhh!”

The single blow shattered his mana-reinforced arm. The leftover impact coursed through his body, twisting his insides and causing blood to spill from his mouth.

At this point, he should either flee or surrender. Instead, Kaor gritted his teeth even harder.

His eyes now gleamed with madness.

“Die!”

He abandoned all defense. Pouring nearly all his mana into his greatsword, he swung with reckless abandon.

Focusing solely on offense, his sword finally managed to cut through the ogre’s iron-like hide deeply.

Slaaaash!

A long gash tore across the Twin-Headed Ogre’s chest, unleashing a torrent of blood.

“Graaaaah!”

The ogre screamed in pain for the first time. It began flailing its club wildly in response.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Its wild movements were easier to dodge. Kaor backed off and looked for an opening.

He cleared his mind. All that remained was a simple cycle: dodge, block, and attack.

‘A wall….’

At some point, the Twin-Headed Ogre began to resemble an enormous wall in Kaor’s mind—a colossal barrier that had obstructed him his entire life.

A wall so solid and vast it seemed impossible to overcome or break through.

As he risked his life, his fighting spirit reignited. As his venom returned, fear disappeared.

Only one thought now occupied his mind.

‘I will break through that wall.’

Fueled by that single purpose, Kaor pushed his battered body forward.

Clang!

The wall didn’t budge. It didn’t even seem to sustain a scratch.

Clang!

Another strike, yet the wall remained still, standing proudly as if mocking him.

‘Heh.’

Kaor laughed. He no longer cared whether he overcame the wall. What mattered was that he was moving toward it.

But was this effort even meaningful?

Clang!

It wasn’t. It was nothing more than a futile struggle.

Clang!

Yet he didn’t stop. This was the only way forward. He had nothing left to lose, and his sheer stubbornness drove him to keep attacking.

Then, Ghislain’s voice echoed again.

― I’ve already taught you everything you were lacking.

― You’ve reached a crude, but genuine realizations on your own.

― What you lacked was the time and experience to embody those lessons.

― Now, bring everything together. If it’s you, it’s possible.

― By doing so, you’ll forge your own path.

Fwoosh!

The fundamentals of swordsmanship Ghislain had taught him.

Following that teaching, Kaor’s sword extended forward.

The state he had briefly glimpsed during the fight with Doncard now came into view again.

But this time, it felt different. His instincts sharpened through countless battles, and the insights gained while risking his life now layered atop what he had learned from Ghislain.

Swish.

His sword path shifted.

This was a realization Kaor had earned through risking everything. Not a textbook technique or a quick adaptation, but a path uniquely his own.

And that path sought out the single weak point in the wall.

Slice.

‘I’ve cut it….’

The wall remained standing, yet Kaor’s sword had left a long, deep scar upon it.

A scarred wall was no longer invincible. The single crack might one day serve as the key to shattering it entirely.

Fwoooosh!

The illusory wall vanished, and Kaor’s focus returned to reality.

Bloodied and wielding his greatsword, he now saw the Twin-Headed Ogre collapsing before him, its body missing both heads.