If he still had an ordinary human body, Kuon believed his current speed would be something impossible. But that kind of hypothetical was pointless now. Because at this very moment, he was moving at a speed that should have been enough to tear human skin.
The distance was not great, but the acceleration his body carried was more than enough to move faster than any enemy eye could follow. That was precisely what happened to the creature before him—something that looked like a mutated wolf.
The mutant wolf—with its dark, slimy fur that could harden into a weapon—looked around frantically, sniffing at the air in a panic as the figure of Kuon it had been facing suddenly vanished without a trace.
"…."
Even so, the creature's natural senses and instincts were quick enough to pick up on Kuon's presence.
The mutant wolf turned, intending to ambush Kuon standing behind it. But before it could move, Kuon quickly shot out his left hand and seized the wolf's muzzle as it opened to bare its fangs, leaving the creature with no choice but to growl and thrash as it tried to wrench its mouth free from Kuon's grip.
Without drawing out the mutant wolf's suffering, Kuon drove his claws straight into its neck, killing it instantly. But he could only confirm its death with certainty after pulling out a small crystal embedded within the muscles of the wolf's nape.
The wolf collapsed limp onto the ground, while Kuon remained standing where he was, examining the crystal he had just extracted.
He had already collected several similar crystals from the same type of monster, and touching them directly with bare skin produced a stinging sensation strong enough to make even him nauseous. So Kuon carefully pinched the small crystal between two of his claws.
'This is already the eighteenth time this week….'
The wolves were neither particularly strong nor weak. If Kuon had to rate them on a point scale, he would give them five out of ten. But what troubled him was—where were they all coming from?
This forest was nothing like their natural habitat, and every mutant wolf he had fought so far had appeared alone without a pack—entirely unlike the wolf behavior he knew.
Kuon looked at the mutant wolf's corpse with frustration. He had tried a few times already, but the wolf's flesh was completely inedible. The bones and hide might still have uses, but Kuon was still struggling with dealing with a carcass in such a strange state. Not only was the hide incredibly elastic, but the black slime coating it made everything far more difficult.
In the end, Kuon could only discard them as far from his riverside base as possible. Because like any other biological matter, mutant wolf carcasses would rot.
Turning the crystal over in his hand with genuine curiosity, Kuon made his way back to the place that had served as his base for the past two weeks. He sat leaning against a tree and began examining all the crystals he had collected from every mutant wolf he had encountered.
If they were ordinary crystals, Kuon would have dismissed them entirely. But what caught his interest was their ability to contain Aether—magical energy—up to a certain amount.
For some time now, Kuon had been experimenting with many things, including testing his theory of infusing magical properties into objects around him. The results were all failures. Every object seemed to resist absorbing Aether, and most ended up exploding when Kuon injected too much energy.
But the crystals he obtained from these monsters were different. This material could naturally contain magic—or more precisely, the crystals were something like a physical manifestation of the wolf monsters' own Aether.
"I'm still not certain whether my guess is right, but…."
The stinging effect Kuon felt when touching them directly might come from the monster's ability to channel venom through its hardened fur. But that was still only his own estimate. Kuon had no crystals from other monsters to use as a comparison.
From what Kuon had observed of the monsters, they all carried Aether patterns and sensations distinctly different from his own. Possibly due to the difference in purity, but setting that aside, Kuon still believed their unique abilities were produced by Aether forming unusual compositions and structures within their bodies. And the crystals embedded inside them could be described as a byproduct of that process.
"This isn't useful yet."
Kuon let out a sigh, then threw the crystal across the river after injecting some of his own Aether into it. The moment the crystal hit the ground, a small explosion occurred, scattering dirt and sand in every direction.
It wasn't as though he had done it on purpose. That was simply what happened every time Kuon injected his own Aether into one of the crystals. A compatibility issue was likely the main culprit.
Two weeks had passed since he was dropped into Lios, and though fairly monotonous, Kuon had spent his days focused on chasing the milestones he had set for himself.
At the very least, he had to leave this place within a month.
Because his body resisted exhaustion, Kuon could train himself for extended periods without needing rest. He could also conduct further research on his abilities at night, then train his body and magic again in the morning—all of which he had done without pause for the past four days. Kuon hadn't even bothered to sleep.
Kuon had finally reached peak productivity with his current body. It was a condition far more ideal than anything he had managed back on Earth.
There was, however, one critical problem he hadn't been able to fully resolve yet.
Kuon had been trying to use [Accel] continuously in order to condition his brain to the unusual processing speed, but the biggest problem was this: the ability consumed an enormous amount of energy, meaning Kuon would always feel exhausted and hungry every time he used it.
This was the daily routine Kuon had built for himself while staying in this place.
***
That evening, Kuon sat in silence staring at the campfire burning before him. Roasting over the flames were several fish he had caught.
Because [Accel] demanded so much energy to use, Kuon's food intake had inevitably grown to several times what he normally ate. It frustrated him, but there was nothing he could do about it for now—at least not until he could optimize [Accel]'s usage alongside its side effects.
"Two weeks … no, one week should be enough, right?"
Kuon ran through many considerations in his head as he chewed the fish he had just lifted from the fire.
He planned to leave this forest as soon as possible, but there were still several preparations to be made, including optimizing [Accel] itself. He didn't want to imagine a scenario where the Gift ended up killing him in an emergency.
'I'll give myself one week to maximize this Gift's potential.'
If there was no meaningful progress within that time, there would be no choice but to develop it gradually on the road. Because however things went, Kuon had no interest in wasting more time lingering here.
During the time he had been stuck in this forest, other Drifter had surely been making aggressive moves. And unlike him, other Drifter could easily access information about Kuon if they asked their viewers to look into it.
'Never mind making moves—I haven't even seen another person yet, let alone a map of this country.'
The temperature was fairly cold both day and night, and if the calendar between Earth and Lios were the same, then spring was currently underway. Based on that, Kuon guessed that the country he was in was located in the northern region.
Kuon flicked the wooden skewer he had used to grill the fish, and it embedded itself into a tree trunk with speed and accuracy that defied belief.
Aside from the issues with his magic and Gift, Kuon had fully acclimated to his new physical condition. So he could allocate his time entirely toward closing those gaps.
***
"I think it's time."
Kuon rose from where he had been sitting after finishing his preparations. Around him was the campsite he had already cleared.
A full week had passed before he even noticed, and now the time had come to leave.
His first goal was to find other people. Or better yet, reach the nearest civilization.
Kuon glanced briefly at the spot he had used for all his activities over the past few weeks, then walked away without much thought.
His preparations should be sufficient. Though he still hadn't fully resolved [Accel]'s excessive energy consumption, he had at least conditioned himself to the state.
On the other hand, there was still no notable progress with his magic. Whether it was because his understanding differed, or because his execution was wrong, Kuon didn't know the exact reason yet. But so far, his experiments with magic had mostly ended in disappointing failures. Because of that, he had even begun to think the problem lay with his own Aether—that it simply wasn't capable of manifesting what he wanted.
Perhaps it would help to have a real-world reference for it.
Kuon had made a simple compass to guide his way, and right now he chose to head south—following the direction of the river's flow. He had tried a northern route a few days earlier, but abandoned it when he sensed the atmosphere of the surrounding forest beginning to shift drastically.
Not an atmosphere that inspired fear, but something harder to describe. When he had stepped into that area, it had felt as though the density of Aether suddenly shifted and began slowly trying to crush his body with steadily mounting pressure.
Beyond that, the east and west were no better—the trees only grew denser, indicating deeper forest territory.
In the end, the southern route was the only sensible option available to him right now.
To conserve energy, he would use neither magic nor his Gift during the journey. That way, he could allocate his time entirely to walking without taking rest.
But, as ever, plans didn't always go smoothly.
Kuon leapt to the side and hurled a rock at the creature. It landed squarely on its head and made it flinch for a moment. But only for a moment, because it quickly shook it off and charged toward Kuon with clear intent to ram him.
Right now, Kuon was meeting the first obstacle of his journey. It looked like a wild boar, but its size—nearly matching Kuon himself—was enough to justify calling it a monster.
Kuon kept dodging the creature's charges, continuously analyzing its movements.
Its attack pattern was simple—it used momentum and slammed into Kuon with raw power alone. But its impressive speed and strength meant Kuon couldn't afford to take it lightly. It was far stronger and faster than any mutant wolf he had faced.
Having read the pattern, Kuon immediately began working out how to deal with the creature before him.
Kuon threw another fist-sized rock at the boar's head—making it flinch again. Then,
"Come at me already, you annoying pig."
As if answering Kuon's provocation, the giant boar immediately charged toward him, building up enough momentum to ram him into paralysis. It was something like a large truck barreling forward at hundreds of kilometers per hour.
Naturally Kuon didn't let himself get hit. With perfect timing he sidestepped out of its path, then caught one of the horns that had been aimed at him with his left hand.
The boar didn't stop just because Kuon had caught its horn. It actually accelerated and began thrashing in ways that would have made anyone else sick and thrown clear. But Kuon's grip was iron-tight, firm enough that he could demonstrate sheer dominance against its strength.
Kuon used the momentum the boar gave him and vaulted onto its back. He then moved his right hand—the one wearing Glans—and raked it across both of the boar's eyes.
The result: a clean slash across the eyes. Blood burst out forcefully, as the boar's movements grew even wilder from its rampage.
"That pain must be making things difficult for you, so go ahead and free yourself as fast as you can."
Kuon readied his weapon once more, this time targeting the vital point at the nape of its neck.
Its tough hide and dense fur made it difficult for Kuon's claws to pierce through, but that was no issue if he simply applied more force to drive them in.
His claw blades pierced through the boar's nape and reached the vital point Kuon had targeted. But rather than dying immediately, the boar's movements became even more brutal, and it managed to throw Kuon off its back.
Kuon corrected his landing posture and watched in silence as the boar slowly began losing its life energy. At this stage, Kuon only needed to wait until it died completely.
While waiting, he began reviewing the brief fight that had just taken place.
Kuon had never seen another person to compare himself against. But judging from the time and strength he had needed to fight the boar, he should already be strong enough by ordinary human standards.
Of course, that was accounting for his simple fighting technique, which relied entirely on physical strength and flexibility. Compared to someone who actually used refined techniques, Kuon would most likely lose.
"Well, this gives me good material for improvement," he murmured, watching the boar collapse to the ground, spent of all energy and blood.
" … Thank you for the meal."
Kuon took hold of one of the boar's horns and began dragging it away from its own pool of blood.
This creature had no crystallized Aether in its body, and it wasn't coated in the strange black slime like every wolf he had faced. Most likely it was simply a wild boar that had happened to mutate in size. Kuon intended to keep its meat as food.
'Should I rest here until tomorrow?'
His body wasn't tired yet, but it would take him a fair amount of time to prepare the meat from a creature this large. Besides, night was nearly upon him.
He had almost never wandered far at night, since getting lost was far too easy without the right markers. Kuon didn't want to risk losing his bearing, even though he was curious about fighting more of the monsters that were active in the dark.
But now he had a compass, so perhaps there was no reason to worry.
Making up his mind, Kuon began arranging his belongings in a suitable spot and let the blood drain fully from the boar's body while he explored the surrounding area. He didn't intend to go far—just a few dozen meters around.
The sky had gone fully dark by the time he returned.
***
It was one week since Kuon had begun his journey out of the forest.
He had yet to find any signs of civilization, but the trees that had once packed the forest were beginning to grow further apart, which meant he was heading in the right direction—away from the forest.
Partway through the journey, his ears caught a cluster of faint sounds from the distance. Sounds he could only describe with one word: chaos.
The screams of several people, accompanied by a heavy impact—as though something had slammed into the ground.
Looking up at the sky, he noticed that even flocks of birds were flying away from the direction. Something bad was clearly happening.
Kuon shook his head, dispelling his momentary hesitation, and moved toward the chaos.
What he found was a small settlement, tucked fairly deep within the forest, a wooden fence encircling the entire area. But even from outside, Kuon could already see the remnants of chaos that still lingered here.
Several buildings had collapsed, and several people lay on the ground, motionless—lifeless.
But out of all of it, what drew his attention most was the object responsible for the destruction.
Embedded in the ground and in the bodies of those who had lost their lives were long cylindrical rods with sharpened tips, similar in shape to drill bits or spears. Only—Kuon was certain these were no ordinary weapons—because every single one was made of solid, cold ice.
Kuon checked the pulse of every person he found, but there was no hope—everyone here had already lost their lives to the ice spears.
Beyond that, looking at the overall state of the place and the equipment they had used, Kuon doubted this was somewhere that could be called 'good'. Judging from its hidden location, this was most likely a bandit group's base.
'In that case, there's no reason to take their side.'
Sound reached him again, and now it was clearer. Kuon walked toward it.
There, sitting in resignation on the ground, was a girl with empty eyes staring helplessly at the sky.
Both her hands were shackled in chains, while several people around her had already fallen with ice spears piercing their bodies.
With just this visual information, Kuon had more or less guessed the situation.
For a moment, Kuon's eyes were fixed on her figure, which looked almost unreal. Hair as pure white as his own, so long it would probably reach her feet if she stood. Her frame was small, but tall enough that her exact age was difficult to guess.
She also wore a simple white dress that revealed part of her shoulders. But even the dress was visibly filthy, coated in dust and blood.
For a while, Kuon simply stood still without doing anything—not approaching her, not saying a single word of greeting. He just kept observing the girl from a safe distance while continuing to assess the situation.
Judging from how the girl had managed to kill these bandits even with her hands shackled, she was surely a fairly skilled mage. That assumption made Kuon reluctant to move carelessly.
But his stillness lasted only a short while.
The girl was gripping a dagger that had appeared in her hand at some unknown point. A pure white dagger of striking beauty, emitting a faint silver light from its blade, which bore small ornaments Kuon couldn't make out from the distance.
With it in her hand, the girl pressed the tip of the blade to her own throat.
Her eyes, so utterly empty, seemed to show that she no longer had any reason not to drive the blade into her own throat. And yet, for some reason, Kuon could see deep traces of hesitation there.
Perhaps it was this that made Kuon lose his composure for a moment, because before he even realized it, he had already opened his mouth.
"What are you doing?"
His sudden voice made the girl reflexively spin toward him with her guard up, and she instantly created another ice spear and launched it straight at Kuon. But Kuon sidestepped it easily and kept walking closer.
"Are you planning to kill yourself after taking all their lives? And … why do you look so hesitant?"
The distance between them had now closed completely. Kuon looked down at the girl from where he stood, while the girl looked up toward Kuon approaching from her side.
'Her eyes … is she blind?'
A pair of eyes that had lost all life and light. They looked toward Kuon, yet seemed to receive no information at all—her gaze was utterly vacant.
Perhaps because she sensed no hostility from Kuon, the girl opened her mouth.
" … I … don't know who to kill."
Her quiet voice was hoarse and lifeless, for whatever reason. She turned to 'look' back at the dagger in her hand.
"The power I was just given … I don't know who to use it on."
The dagger fell from her hand and shattered into beautiful particles of light. But the girl didn't change her manner of speaking at all.
"What kind of power is it that you have?" Kuon asked.
The girl turned toward him again and opened her mouth once more. "The power … to kill. To kill anyone with my own death."
Kuon raised his eyebrows for a moment. 'Is that some kind of Gift?' he thought.
"So you can drag someone into death along with you?"
The girl didn't answer, but only nodded slowly without changing her expression.
Though Kuon doubted she could see, it felt as if the girl was staring sharply, cutting straight through to his core.
"Do you know who you want to use that on?"
This time, sadness mixed with confusion formed clearly on her face. The girl shook her head before bowing it—gazing down at the ground.
"Father … mother … relatives, other family members, classmates, strangers who bumped into me on the road and never once helped me … I … don't know who I hate the most."
The moment that list of people left her mouth, Kuon let out a mocking laugh without thinking. The reasons the girl had given sounded utterly foolish to him.
Hearing the mocking laugh from Kuon, the girl furrowed her brow and turned toward him, as if showing her anger. But Kuon brushed it off without a care.
"You really want to kill the people you hate using that power? How absurd."
There were so many people the girl wanted to kill with her power, yet she couldn't choose a single one for the very same reason. To Kuon's ears and mind, this was the most foolish thing he had heard since arriving in Lios.
"Then do you have a solution?"
Her voice began to harden—like a growl, perfectly conveying her irritation at Kuon. But Kuon didn't flinch before her—if anything, he felt that her expression and way of speaking made her feel more alive than before.
For a moment, Kuon only looked at the girl's eyes without saying anything, but then a faint smile formed on his face—a faint smile that looked both daring and sad, one the girl would probably never notice in her lifetime.
Kuon adjusted the position of his monocle before finally saying,
"Use that power on me."
' … Huh?'
The girl—who had not anticipated where their conversation would go at all—could only fall into stunned silence, tilting her head in bewilderment.