ITDG 07

Chapter 7

Crack—! Craaash—!

Boom!

Craack!

Boom!

Darnuk began swinging his fists wildly, smashing the surrounding trees.
Each time his massive arm swept through the air, trees dented inward and then toppled over.

Leaving a trail of fallen trunks behind, Darnuk turned toward Dermo and let out a thunderous roar.
It was as if he was saying, “Come at me if you dare!”

“So he’s blocking my flanking routes…?”

Dermo had fought Darnuk countless times through multiple playthroughs.
But this was a new pattern—one he had never seen before.
The higher difficulty level must have changed the boss’s behavior.

“GRAAAAAAH!”

Pounding his chest like a beast, Darnuk roared.
Just moments ago, the creature had been helplessly pummeled.
Now, its confidence surged like a raging tide.

“…Troublesome,” Dermo muttered, clicking his tongue.

The monster stood its ground and didn’t make the first move.
But charging in head-on would be far too risky.
Just look at that massive frame, those menacing fists—
a frontal fight would be suicide.

If capturing the demon wasn’t his objective, retreat might have been an option.
But right now, he had to take it down.

Dermo flexed his aching right hand and steadied his breathing.

Tap.

His figure blurred in motion.

When brute strength wasn’t an option, there was only one strategy left—
hit and run.

He’d need to chip away at that rock-hard skin somehow.

Whoosh!

Darnuk’s enormous fist came swinging.
Dermo twisted his hips sharply to avoid it.

[Skill ‘Strange Joints’ activated.]

His upper body contorted unnaturally—
almost grotesquely flexible.

Deflecting the powerful blow, Dermo raised his hammer high and brought it crashing down—
right onto Darnuk’s elbow joint.

A heavy thud echoed—
but the monster didn’t even flinch.

Whoosh!

Darnuk swung horizontally next.
Dermo threw himself flat to the ground just in time;
a gust of air roared over his head.

He rolled and sprang back up, thrusting forward—

Clang!

The hammer struck Darnuk’s shin.

Pain shot up Dermo’s arm—his hand tingled and burned.
He was the one attacking, yet somehow it hurt him more.
Blood from his split palm trickled down the hammer’s handle.

But he didn’t stop.

“Haaaaah!”

Bang! Bang!

Dermo swung again and again,
dodging every incoming attack by the skin of his teeth.

Smash! Crack!

His hand throbbed with agony,
but he gritted his teeth and kept hammering.

Nothing in the world is unbreakable.
Even if his own body tore apart, he would keep striking until that armor cracked.

And finally—his persistence paid off.

Crriiick—!

Tiny fractures appeared on Darnuk’s leg.

“GRAAAAAH!”

Sensing the damage, the monster howled and stomped furiously,
kicking up a blinding cloud of dust.

Dermo shielded his eyes, swinging his arm to clear the air.
His visibility dropped to near zero.

Not good.

Sometimes, to advance, you had to know when to retreat.
And now was that time.
Fighting in this dust storm was a gamble he couldn’t afford.

“…Damn it.”

He cursed under his breath—

Whoosh!

A giant fist broke through the dust—
already inches from his face.

At the last second—

Crack—!

Dermo twisted his torso, narrowly avoiding the blow.
The wind from the punch brushed past, whipping his blond hair violently.

He rolled hard across the ground.

What a bullshit difficulty level.

A close call—one more second and his skull would’ve been pulp.
Panting heavily, Dermo forced his racing heart to calm.

To think I’d struggle this much… against a mere one-star demon.

Still—
he could handle this.

Dermo raised his head.
The dust hadn’t yet cleared.

He kicked off the ground and sprinted forward.

Even though he couldn’t see, he knew exactly where to aim.
Based on the monster’s last attack trajectory—
its damaged leg should be right… there.

“Haaaaaaah!”

With a battle cry, Dermo brought his hammer down—
straight at the cracked spot.

Smash—!

He hit with all his strength,
the momentum of his charge adding extra power.

Crraaaack—!

The fractures spread outward, echoing like breaking glass.
A sound that marked Darnuk’s defeat—
and Dermo’s victory.

[Skill ‘Agile Movement’ has ended.]

Even slowed down, Dermo didn’t stop.

Bang! Crack! Smash!

“Let’s finish this!”

He hammered relentlessly.
The cracks widened like a spiderweb, and shards of hardened skin began to fall away.

“Yes!”

Now, Darnuk’s raw flesh was exposed.
The demon tried to shield its vulnerable leg—too late.

Dermo swung the lantern in his left hand and smashed it against the wound.

Clang!

Darnuk’s tough hide was meant to protect against flame—
and Dermo knew it.

With the outer armor gone, the creature was as good as dead.

The shattered lantern spilled fire onto its leg.
The flames spread fast, consuming it entirely.

The demon dropped to its knees,
frantically patting at the flames with its hands.

“Oh no, you don’t! After all that effort, you think I’ll let you put it out?!”

Wham! Wham!

Dermo’s hammer rained down mercilessly.

GROAAH!

Darnuk screamed in agony—
burning leg, crushed ribs, no escape.
Its shrieks echoed through the forest.

Crack—! Snap—!

Blow after blow, Dermo shattered its rocky armor.
The spreading cracks allowed the flames to climb from its legs to its torso.

Soon, Darnuk was engulfed in a roaring inferno.

Dermo stopped swinging and stepped back.
There was no need to approach anymore.
The thing would die on its own.

“Ssshhh… ripped up worse than I thought.”

He stowed the hammer back into his inventory
and looked at his bloodied hands—
skin split wide open, muscles aching everywhere.

He pulled out a single Red-Eyed Herb (Honganchu) leaf and bit down.
The first taste was bitter—then slowly turned sweet.

[Effect of Red-Eyed Herb: Fatigue reduced.]

The relief was immediate.

Sitting down, Dermo watched the burning Darnuk quietly—
then chuckled.

“Hah. Never thought I’d do fire-watching in my life—guess this counts.”

Eventually, the creature stopped moving.
The flames died down.

Dermo drew his sword and walked toward the charred corpse.
A roasted-meat smell hung in the air.

Shhk—

He stabbed between the cracked skin,
split it open, and reached inside—
heat radiated even from within.

When he withdrew his hand, a Soul Stone gleamed in his grasp.

Woooong—

[You have absorbed a soul.]

Dark energy rippled and seeped into his body.
The sensation was almost familiar now.

[Skill acquired: Rock Skin]

[Skill: Rock Skin
Your skin becomes as hard as stone. Greatly increases physical defense and fire resistance.
Duration: 5 minutes
Cooldown: 2 hours]

[You gained 4 stat points.]

“Just as I thought.”

Reading the skill description, Dermo smiled.
This was why he had hunted Darnuk before Pyrovis—the Fire Demon.

Darnuk’s hide existed to resist flame—
meaning his skill would grant fire resistance.

A perfect counter to Pyrovis.

To prove the kill, Dermo sliced off Darnuk’s head.
The soul stone was valuable, but the corpse—charred as it was—was useless.
No reason to haul it back.

“Alright. Time to head home.”

He turned toward the village—
then stopped.

The lantern was shattered.
He had no source of light left.

The only illumination came from the pale moonlight filtering through the trees.

This’ll take a while…

* * *

By the time dawn broke,
Dermo was on his way to James’s tavern-inn,
planning to rent a room for a while.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

As he neared his destination,
he spotted a man swinging a sword through the air—
sweat dripping from his brow, hair flying.

It was Tom—the only one outside besides the guards.

“Not sleeping?” Dermo asked.

“Can’t you see? Training.”

Tom didn’t stop swinging.

“James said you went after a demon,” he said. “Couldn’t find it? Or… did you?”

“Found it. Killed it.”

Dermo showed him his blood-soaked right palm.

“…That must sting.”

“Eh. I’ve had worse.”

“That’s good, then.”

Tom kept training, despite the talk.
Judging by his movement, his ankle was nearly healed—one more day’s rest would do.

Time to start grooming my first companion, Dermo thought.

“Hey, Tom,” he said. “How about trusting me—and trading your sword for a bow?”

Tom froze mid-swing.

“…A bow? Why?”

“Your build and movement—bow suits you better than a blade.”

“You can tell that just by looking?”

Well, not exactly.
It was all right there in the Status Window.

Dermo shrugged.

[Name: Tom
Class: Mercenary
Fame: 2
Strength: 11
Stamina: 10
Agility: 13
Intelligence: 9

Skills: ,

Info: A hardworking man who trains even at the cost of sleep.
Has yet to awaken his true talent.]

‘Eagle Eye’—a skill possessed only by named archers.
Meaning this “ordinary” mercenary could someday become a legend.

With a bit of early guidance, he’d grow on his own after that—
a reliable companion all the way to the end.

“Your eyes are different from the others,” Dermo said.
“When you shoot, imagine losing every sense except sight. Rely only on what you see.”

“My eyes… are different?”

“You’ll know what I mean once you try. Oh, and here—”

He took the half-chewed Red-Eyed Herb from his mouth and handed it to Tom.

“It’s weak now, but just chewing it will ease your fatigue. If you want to get stronger, start by taking care of your body.”

Tom nodded, taking the herb.

“James inside?” Dermo asked. “Need to rent a room.”

“Nah, he’s still awake—drinking and waiting for you. Said he needs the lantern back.”

“Ah… right.”

Scratching his head, Dermo headed toward the tavern.

* * *

Outside the village chief’s house,
the sound of loud chatter woke Bruno from his sleep.

Sunlight flooded through the window—he had overslept, rare for him.

He had dreamt of chasing a glowing bird through pitch-black darkness.
Still dazed, he stepped outside.

“What’s with all the noise out here?!”

“Oh, Chief! Look at this!”
“Do you know what happened, sir?”
“Can you explain this, Chief?”

The villagers crowded around, ignoring his scolding.

When Bruno finally saw what lay at the center of the crowd—
his jaw dropped.

“W-what in the world… Why is that here?!”

There, at his feet—
lay the severed head of a demon,
its crimson eyes still faintly glowing.