Sword Saint's Reincarnation
Book 2 Chapter 16: Basilisk Wilds (1)

The beast raised its head, roused out of its slumber. An unfamiliar scent reached its senses, standing out from the permanent smell of blood and destroyed flesh. The creature’s yellow eyes glowed as its slit pupils became even thinner. All of its senses became sharper. Its gaze pierced through the cave’s entrance and through the gaps between the trees, assisted by its extraordinary senses of smell and hearing. This intensification of its perception abilities allowed the creature to reach a single conclusion.

Intruders.

Its expression contorted into a savage, beastly grin as its eyes curved into half-moons. Were they part of the city it had seen before the System had chosen to help it? Or were they from another place altogether? It didn’t matter. Now that there were actual humans inside its domain, there was no reason for the beast not to hunt them.

Gradually, it slithered out of the cave. As it went past the entrance, it narrowed its eyes. Its mana expanded out of its body, carrying a single order to everything in range, filled with the Boss’ authority: find and attack the intruders.

The monster grinned again. Now that it had left the cave, the presence of the humans became even clearer to its sharpened senses. It had been too long since it had last faced an enemy; even if the intruders were weak, ripping them apart was still bound to be fun.

The creature knew that the intruders would meet their deaths. Even if it meant stepping in personally.

***

Rylan narrowed his eyes as he turned toward the floating System notifications. For a few seconds, the only sounds were those from the environment around them.

“Rylan,” Gerard suddenly said from the side.

Rylan nodded. There was no need for any more words. He perfectly understood his father from his tone alone, without needing to even glance at his expression.

This is a problem.

The fact that the Dungeon would lock them inside was something that neither he nor Gerard had expected. Naturally, Roland had faced Dungeons with similar mechanics, but the probability of one of those being the first Dungeon he stepped into in this life was so low that Rylan had disregarded this possibility.

For a Dungeon like this, the strategy was entirely different. This was no longer about making progress or improving his abilities. What mattered was staying alive and in good condition until Alice and the other professors entered the Dungeon.

Even if the enemies aren't too strong, we don't know how many there are.

However, that wasn’t the only source of Rylan’s worries.

“We were noticed,” he said with a furrowed brow.

Gerard frowned.

“…I’d hoped my perception was playing tricks on me. We’ve just entered the Dungeon.”

Rylan nodded, part of him thankful for his father’s willingness to believe him without a second thought. But there would be time for touching conversations later.

“It’s too far away to gauge its level, given my current power level. But, I’m certain. Something has realized that we’re here.”

Gerard’s frown intensified.

“…I’d prefer if it was the Boss.”

Rylan nodded again, understanding his father’s words.

“If whatever noticed us is just an ordinary enemy and not the Boss, this just got a whole lot harder,” he replied.

Gerard raised his staff, looking around. Rylan unsheathed his sword and did the same.

That was too fast.

They had barely stepped into the Dungeon before the creature’s awareness locked onto them. He had only been able to notice because he was supported by Roland’s experience and because he had been circulating his mana from the moment he entered the Dungeon.

“If it was the Boss,” Gerard said, still looking around. “We don’t have much time before it sends something after us.”

Rylan nodded with a serious expression.

“Yeah. We need to find an easily defensible position and stay there until the professors arrive.”

Gerard glanced at him.

“And your growth? Awakening Aura and stuff?”

Rylan scoffed.

“It’s not more important than your life. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you from getting a single scratch, Father.”

Gerard raised an eyebrow, staring straight at Rylan. After a second, he smiled and turned away.

“I should be the one saying that. You’re my son.”

“And you’re my father.”

Gerard’s smile became wider.

“Lead the way, son. We’ll make it out of this alive.”

Rylan nodded, accepting his father’s attempt to help them focus on what mattered. Without another word, he dashed straight to the right, out of the clearing the Gate was in. As intended, Gerard was able to only just barely keep up with his movement speed. Rylan’s mana circulated throughout his body at full throttle.

Focus.

His senses sharpened. The smell of blood mixed with the damp atmosphere and the wails of different beasts. One howl in particular sounded far closer than all the others. In a flash, Rylan gauged his options. It was obvious that they wouldn’t be able to reach a good spot before the beast arrived. They needed to make do with what they had.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Rylan scanned the environment with his perception. The blades of grass on the ground, the insects crawling up the rocks, the overwhelmingly tall trees. Roland’s experience filtered the information and came up with a plan on the spot. Without hesitation, he ran toward a tree in the opposite direction of where the howl had come from. Gerard followed him closely, breathing deeply.

Rylan ground to a halt as he spun, raising his sword and pointing backward with his free hand. Gerard nodded and got behind him. Gerard’s mana started moving, resonating with the world around them. For a few seconds, the air was completely still, disturbed only by the increasingly louder howling. Rylan narrowed his eyes, looking straight at the approaching large figure.

The beast avoided the trees with surprising agility, even though it should have been too dark for something so large to make such precise movements. The creature looked like a wolf, only much larger than any other Rylan had seen. It was as tall as a small troll, and much longer, as a four-legged beast. Even from this distance, he could see its sharp yellow eyes, which were filled with bloodthirst.

The wolf steadily closed in. At that moment, Rylan’s ears twitched. Another set of rapid footsteps reached them, making him frown. As if on cue, he managed to hear a third, heavier set. Above, the leaves rustled as the branches bent to make way for a large creature. His gaze became colder. There was no room for mistakes. He couldn’t let Gerard get hurt.

His heart thumped in his chest. His muscles grew taut, readying themselves to burst forth in an instant. Rylan let out a breath and looked up. Slithering down the tree trunk was a large brown snake, twelve meters long. Its forked tongue periodically left its mouth. It opened its mouth with a hiss, displaying its two sharp fangs.

It’s venomous.

He lowered his center of gravity. There was no need to talk to Gerard about what he was going to do. They had spent the last week working on their coordination exactly for moments like this.

Falling Snow Steps: Snowfall.

Rylan stepped on the air and shot upward like an arrow. The snake hissed and lunged toward him, but he only stepped to the side and spun. The snake closed its maw where his head had been, only to be met with his flashing sword. The blade reached the creature’s neck, flowing like water. The moment it hit the snake’s scales, however, Rylan narrowed his eyes. Without hesitation, he used the air as support to put his full weight and strength into the weapon. Despite his efforts, the blade only managed to dig a third into the monster's neck. The snake’s slit pupil zeroed in on him as its blood leaked out of the wound.

With a calm expression, Rylan stepped backward, floating in the air as the snake coiled its body, ready to burst forth and lunge toward him again.

It was then that the wolf arrived.

Rylan glanced down. The giant grey wolf jumped through the space between two of the enormous trees and landed a few meters in front of Gerard, snarling. Rylan immediately readied himself to shoot downward, but as if it could read his mind, the snake lunged toward him with a hiss. He dodged to the side at the same time that the atmospheric mana below him ignited. Rylan grinned and focused on the enemy in front of him.

The snake’s lunge had hit nothing but air. Extended so far from the trunk, the creature started falling, contorting its body and looking at Rylan. He shot toward it with Snowfall and swung his sword. It landed straight on the wound he’d already created at the start of the battle. The blade tore through flesh and the monster’s throat, empowered by Rylan’s increased stats. A heartbeat later, the snake’s head was separated from its body as the light in its eyes died.

Without wasting a single second, Rylan looked down to behold several Fire Spears devouring the giant wolf’s frame, making it howl in pain. The wolf shook its snout from side to side as the flames seared its flesh and reached its bones. Some distance away, Gerard raised his staff. The air changed. It gathered around the wolf and started to spin. The flames burned even more fiercely, fed by the second spell. The small hurricane ignited, creating a veritable storm of fire that sought only to burn the wolf to ashes as quickly as possible.

Another wolf suddenly burst into the fighting area, only for Gerard to casually wave his staff. The flames flew toward the second wolf like living creatures, then wrapped themselves around it in a ruthless inferno.

One of the trees to the north heavily shook as a large creature came out from behind it. Rylan looked at it. It was an enormous brown bear, much larger than even the wolf. Its fur didn’t do much to hide the powerful muscles underneath, while its fangs glistened in the dim lighting. The small, beady black eyes were filled with bloodthirst, and its claws scraped the earth, each as long as Rylan’s arm.

You’re mine.

He stepped on the air and shot toward the bear, which raised its head to look at him. The creature rose to its full height, standing on its hind legs, and swung its right claw at Rylan. With a breath, he used Snowfall again to jump to the side and then back, virtually bouncing around the bear’s attack as if he had walls to step on. Without missing a beat, he gathered his power. His muscles tensed up before springing forth with their full power.

Stormcaller Sword Style, Second Movement: Crackling Edge.

The mana-coated blade sliced through the monster’s hide and fur, severing its shoulder muscles as it approached the bear’s neck at blinding speed. The bear put its other arm in the way, but that only resulted in Rylan’s Sword Art cutting through its flesh and bone like an unstoppable force. The blade continued on and reached the bear’s neck. At that moment, Rylan used Snowfall to add even more power to it as he stepped on the air itself. A heartbeat later, the bear’s head flew through the air with a burst of blood. The scarlet droplets looked like they were floating.

Rylan turned around, still floating as the bear’s headless corpse slid to the side, pushed by his Sword Art’s power. He blinked as he beheld the storm of flames that his father had created. The only remains of the first wolf were a completely charred skeleton which was slowly turning to dust. The second wolf howled in pain as it was devoured by the orange flames.

Rylan fell and touched the ground lightly, like a leaf falling on a lake’s surface. The fire intensified, making a wave of heat hit him in full. The wolf howled one last time before its throat and other organs were turned to dust. The corpse collapsed into itself. A second later, the flames disappeared. He approached Gerard.

“We don’t have much time,” Gerard said with a serious expression as he lowered his staff.

Rylan nodded.

“Yeah, but that won’t change. We only need to find a good spot.”

The situation had changed. It hadn’t been long at all since they had entered the Dungeon, but four creatures had been able to locate and reach them. Even if they were close by, it was indicative of the Boss’ influence on the Dungeon’s monsters. Rylan looked at his open hand and clenched his fist. There had been no time to properly use his spells, but he had still managed to kill two of the monsters.

I’m stronger.

His Level-ups hadn’t been for nothing. Still, that was meaningless if Gerard got hurt. This was no time to get caught up in his desire to surpass Roland.

“I’ll rely on your senses to find the enemies,” Gerard replied after a second. “We’ll fight together.”

Rylan nodded again.

“Yeah, but I don’t think we’ll have much breathing room. These two days will be rough for both of us.”

Gerard sighed as Rylan looked at the canopies far above. They blotted out the sky completely. Somehow, they had ended up in the situation he had been hoping for before being scolded by Gerard. From this point forward, they would fight constantly against powerful foes. Every battle would waste their resources a bit more and push them closer to the brink. Rylan sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.

Damn it.

There wasn’t an ounce of excitement within him because of this, for one simple reason: he wasn’t alone. No, he was with one of the most important people to him. He looked at Gerard with a serious expression.

No matter what, I’ll protect you.

It didn’t matter that Gerard was a skilled battlemage and a capable fighter. Rylan knew it was his duty to ensure his father didn’t get hurt.

“Let’s go,” Gerard said, dragging him out of his thoughts.

Rylan nodded and started running again, his gaze darting around looking for a more defensible location.

It took only two minutes for the next set of enemies to reach them.

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