Sword Saint's Reincarnation
Book 2 Chapter 13: Veria Woodlands (4)

Rylan evaluated the creature in front of him while clicking his tongue.

The monster seemed like a weird mix between a tree and a human male. Over three meters tall, it had long limbs covered in tree bark that ended in large hands and feet with sharp claws. The torso was mostly uncovered and resembled human skin far too much. To top it all off, the creature’s face looked like an ordinary man’s. The green hair looked like grass, while its eyes were the color of wet earth, with black sclera.

Rylan narrowed his eyes.

I didn’t let my guard down.

Naturally, this deep into the Woodlands, experienced as he was: even if only because of Roland’s memories: there was no chance he’d become careless. He hadn’t stopped paying attention to his surroundings or anticipating an attack with every step.

However, because he couldn’t keep the mana circulation permanently active, he was forced to rely on his senses to grasp the right moment to use it. The Spriggan’s long-ranged attack had aimed precisely for the gap between his perception and his reaction. His peripheral vision grasped the projectile that had shot toward him. It looked like a large wooden blade, sharper and tougher than a steel sword.

Rylan straightened his posture. If he hadn’t twisted his body and put his sword in the way in a split second, he would’ve lost his left arm.

Pretty good.

The attack’s speed and power had both been threatening. His heart beat faster. That wasn’t where things ended, however. He glanced to the side. A second Spriggan walked out of a large tree’s trunk, phasing through the wood like a ghost.

It was a terrible situation, but he didn’t let his mind be shaken.

“Rylan,” Gerard said from the side in a heavy tone, his voice dripping with determination.

Rylan nodded. He didn’t need his father to say anything else. Naturally, this was a battle they’d fight together.

“I’ll take the one on the right and move on to the other one once I’m done,” he stated as he swung his sword once and grabbed his wand with his free hand.

Gerard scoffed.

“Yeah, right. I’ll help you once I kill mine. Just stay alive.”

Rylan grinned. He moved at the same time that his father pointed his staff at the left Spriggan.

Falling Snow Steps: Drifting.

His mana circulated throughout his body as fast as it could. His muscles rippled with power and energy as he shot forward, almost parallel to the ground. The Spriggan only raised its large left hand in response. Rylan’s perception grasped the surroundings’ mana’s movement before his other senses. Without hesitation, he dove to the side and twisted his body. A heartbeat later, a tree root shot out of the earth and pierced through where his chest had just been.

The earth rippled. Another tree root tore its way out of the ground and started circling Rylan. He swung his sword at it, fueled by as much power as he could muster. The blade touched the root’s exterior and dug into it, only to completely sever the thing a second later. However, Rylan narrowed his eyes.

It’s pretty tough.

It wasn’t as if he could easily slice through them. That only made his environment more dangerous. He let out a breath and looked at the Spriggan, then at the many trees around them. They only meant that the number of roots in the ground was nearly countless. Cutting off one or two served no purpose.

He raised his wand and pointed it at the Spriggan, which had tilted its head and raised its other arm.

“Firebolt.”

The small bundle of fire took shape and shot toward the Spriggan’s chest. The creature’s eerily human face immediately frowned as it brought its right arm in front of its chest. Rylan didn’t stop running, closing in on the enemy with every large step. The moment the Firebolt touched the Spriggan’s arm, the monster recoiled, as if afraid. Rylan narrowed his eyes.

As expected.

The flames spread throughout the creature’s arm, roiling across the surface of its hide. The spell failed to inflict any damage at all, but it had stopped the Spriggan in its tracks. Without missing a beat, Rylan took a strong step forward and swung his sword. His mana coated the blade’s edge, moving erratically like lightning.

Stormcaller Sword Style, Second Movement: Crackling Edge.

The blade reached the Spriggan’s belly and sliced past its thick hide. Muscles and organs were forced to give way to the merciless edge with a clean sound, but Rylan wasn’t willing to stop there. He pushed his body even more, making the blade cut its way out of the monster’s belly and continue toward its left forearm, almost splitting the creature in half. The Spriggan bent its torso, leaning in. The moment the blade was about to reach the creature’s arm, Rylan blinked.

Without hesitation, he gave up on his attack. Using the Sword Art’s force, he jumped to the right, sliding across the earth to avoid a claw swipe. Rylan looked at the Spriggan as he let out a breath, letting the remainder of the mana used to activate Crackling Edge disappear. The monster was weirdly still, except for its twitching right claw.

It looked down, staring straight at the injury on its belly. Blood and organs leaked out of the deep wound as it forced itself to keep from leaning backward and worsening the injury. Slowly, it raised its gaze and looked at Rylan, its left hand trying to keep its organs from spilling out. The surrounding mana changed. It was as if the forest were holding its breath. The Spriggan opened its mouth, only for a piercing howl to tear its way out of its throat in an overwhelming fashion.

It was almost like the forest had been dead all along and had now just returned to life. The leaves and grass rustled as the sounds of different animals resonated with the Spriggan’s howl, which echoed loudly. In the cacophony, the sounds of monsters were also clear. The ambient mana levels spiked, rising without stopping. Rylan could feel the tree roots in the earth underneath his feet move.

With a calm expression, he started to run to the side with Drifting and pointed his wand at the Spriggan.

“Firebolt.”

This time, however, it was as if the monster couldn’t even see the spell. It only ran toward him much faster than before with another howl. Blood and unknown organs spilled out of the cut. The spell landed on them, but apart from flinching for a second and shaking its head, the Spriggan showed no sign of being affected by it.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

It went berserk, huh.

It was an annoying ability that allowed it to ignore the pain it was feeling. Still, he was pretty sure that the Spriggans’ weakness was fire. However, because he was only at the Second Circle, his Firebolt lacked the necessary power and density to pierce through the defenses of a monster like this. At most, he would be able to achieve something by targeting existing injuries, like he’d just done. His grip around the sword’s hilt became tighter. He would need to rely on his swordsmanship for this fight.

Rylan dashed toward the Spriggan. The moment he stepped into its range, the monster executed a claw swipe with a scream. At the same time, tree roots tore their way out of the ground and branches fell from above.

Focus.

He avoided everything he could while attacking, but against a foe like this, it was only natural to be injured. Gradually, cuts appeared on Rylan’s skin. Some of the Spriggan’s attacks tore through his leather armor, but he managed to avoid serious injuries using nothing but experience.

Its movements are simple.

The creature had gone berserk and didn’t have much intelligence to begin with. He was able to predict its movements. Rylan narrowed his eyes, perfectly calm even as pain coursed through him from the different injuries. He and the Spriggan traded blows, blade against wooden claws. Whenever he could, he threw in Firebolts and Wind Blades.

Time ticked by slowly. It happened as Rylan sliced the Spriggan’s chest and spun to the side with a diagonal step to avoid an attack, then immediately cast a Firebolt and threw it at the monster’s head.

The surroundings’ mana changed again. It rose even higher before igniting. The overwhelming inferno took shape in an instant, covering the crown of the trees and roiling on the tree trunks. Rylan glanced at Gerard and at the second Spriggan. His father’s Shield was nowhere to be found, which made him furrow his brow, but the Spriggan was firmly restricted in place by earthen shackles around its legs. Before Rylan could shout at Gerard to watch out for the wooden projectiles, the fire above and around them revolved and descended.

Like a hurricane, the flames devoured the figures of both Spriggans while avoiding Rylan entirely. The two creatures immediately wailed, shaking in place. The fire’s movements only became more intense as it devoured the two enemies in a spinning, flaming storm. Rylan nodded to himself after noticing that the magic flames were gradually becoming even hotter. He wasn’t fighting alone. Still, this wasn’t the time to be in awe of his father’s skills. Rylan pointed his wand at the nearest Spriggan.

“Earth Spikes,” he whispered after finishing his chant.

As the creature continued to wail in the flames, the earth rose in the shape of spikes that pierced its lower body. Weakened by the magical fire, the hide failed to protect the Spriggan against the Spikes, which tore their way through its legs. Rylan put away his wand and grasped the sword’s hilt with both hands, then dashed forward. In response, the hurricane of fire around the Spriggan became smaller but equally as intense. It was Gerard’s way of helping him and allowing him to approach the monster.

With a grin, Rylan thrust his blade forward, aiming straight for the previous wound he’d created with Crackling Edge.

Stormcaller Sword Style, First Movement: Thunderbolt.

With one strong push against the ground, he accelerated forward. The flames parted around the weapon as the attack landed, then sunk in deeper. The blade, which was buried in the Spriggan’s organs, pierced through everything in its way and came out on the other side, then kept going. Rylan’s figure crashed against the Spriggan’s as the flames tried desperately not to harm him. With one strong push, the monster’s feet left the ground. Together, they flew toward the second Spriggan. Rylan clenched his jaw as his body pressed against the Spriggan’s.

The Spriggan still shook its arms wildly because of Gerard’s spell. A few of the wild swings landed on Rylan’s torso, shaking him from head to toe from the impact. The claws ripped into his robe and shirt, then dug into his flesh. Blood flowed, but he only gritted his teeth.

After flying for more than ten meters, he dug his feet into the ground and upturned the earth, grinding to a halt as he pulled the blade out of the gaping hole that was now the Spriggan’s belly. The monster kept going, however, and crashed against the other Spriggan like a boulder. Both of them stumbled in place, sliding on the earth.

“Father,” Rylan shouted.

Gerard didn’t reply. Instead, he only raised his staff. A large sphere of fire took shape in front of him. It was even taller than him. Rylan tilted his head. Was this like an advanced version of Firebolt? However, the spell thwarted his expectations. Instead of shooting forward as a sphere, the spell remained perfectly still. A moment later, a large burst of fire tore its way out of its center, as if the spell was a portal to an erupting volcano. The wave of fire devoured the Spriggans completely and kept going, scorching everything in its way.

Grass and bark were burned to cinders. The trees, which were big enough in their own right, were devoured by the flames and destroyed. Leaves disappeared from existence. The very air boiled in a wave of heat.

He didn’t bother to control it.

Still, it was for the best in a situation like this. Rylan watched the Spriggans attentively. Their body started falling apart in the face of the powerful spell; their eyes and lips melted, while their ears and limbs were turned to charcoal. They collapsed under their own weight, turning black as the night sky.

Gradually, the wave of fire disappeared. All that remained in its wake was destruction. However, Rylan shot toward the destroyed bodies of the Spriggans without hesitation.

“Rylan!” Gerard shouted from the side.

“I know! Cast a Magic Shield!” he shouted back.

His perception could sense it. They weren’t dead yet. Their mana still moved within them, and there had been no kill notification from the System. As if on cue, over twenty tree roots tore their way out of the scorched earth and encircled Gerard completely. A branch from one of the undamaged trees around them snapped off and shot toward Gerard like a spear, changing its shape in mid-air to become sharper.

Rylan captured all of this as if time had slowed down. He watched his father carefully, ready to run toward him if the need arose. Thankfully, a Shield took shape around Gerard. Rylan’s gaze softened as he kept running toward the broken Spriggans. Once he got within a two-meter radius of them, without wasting any time, he threw slashes and thrusts one after the other toward the nearest one’s neck.

It was the same principle as the one behind Rainfall, but without the support of a Sword Art. The moment he completely cut off the monster’s head, a System notification rang inside his head, making him focus on the other one. A few seconds later, another notification rang.

Rylan let out a breath and returned to a neutral position, then sheathed his sword. A single System notification floated in front of him.

[You have reached Level 33.]

He raised an eyebrow. The Spriggans gave a surprisingly high amount of XP, even though he’d killed them alongside Gerard. Rylan turned toward his father. The tree roots had lost their strength, while the wooden spear was laying on the ground. The Shield around Gerard disappeared as the man stepped closer.

“They’re strong,” Rylan stated.

Gerard nodded with a serious expression.

“They are. This will be difficult, even to your current self.”

Rylan nodded. His stats had increased, but killing a Spriggan wasn't simple.

"And you? Can you handle them?"

Gerard rubbed his chin for a second.

"I can," he replied with confidence. "These enemies aren't comparable to a Mage in the Fifth Circle. A Spriggan could give Evenon a run for his money, though."

Rylan smiled. At the same time, he knew that there was no room to underestimate his enemies or the Dungeon itself. However, to maximize his growth, he needed to clear it with his father alone. Of course, that didn’t mean he would never turn to Alice and the others if the need arose.

“I didn’t expect Spriggans to show up in groups already, even if there were only two this time. It’s worse than when I last explored this deep. This is risky,” Gerard said with a sigh.

Rylan glanced at the destroyed bodies of the Spriggans and gauged his options.

“…We can keep going, for now. I grow stronger with every fight. If the rate of my growth becomes slower than the increasing danger, we’ll go back and talk to Alice. Besides, we have three weeks.”

The current him couldn’t replace four Fifth Circle Mages, but the higher his stats got, the better he would be able to fill in their role. The fact that his Class increased all his stats with every Level was a godsend.

Gerard nodded with a grim expression.

“Let’s go, then. We should find and kill as many monsters as possible.”

Rylan nodded back. There was no need to rush things and try to jump into the Dungeon right away, especially if something happened to go wrong in there. They should use the time they had to hone their strength and coordination.

Together, they started running in the forest again.