In an instant.
The wild instincts of the Demon Bear screamed loudly, warning it of the deadly danger right in front of it.
The bone tail, which had previously been pressed to the ground by the bear's massive body, suddenly trembled violently, emitting a dull gray light.
"Tail Whirl!"
Clang!
The bone tail moved wildly. Its sound resembled iron chains being whipped through the air, transforming into a terrifying lash that swept toward Saelran with brutal speed.
"Hm?"
Saelran felt the gust of wind strike his body, his pupils narrowing. Without hesitation, he immediately leapt backward.
A cold flash from the joints of the bone tail shot past Saelran's previous position, leaving a sharp whistling sound.
Boom!
Not far away, a large tree split in two and crashed to the ground with a loud thud.
Saelran landed steadily, then glanced at the shattered tree trunk. He exhaled slowly.
"Such power… I wouldn't withstand it."
With his current physical defense, even a single hit would have been enough to injure him.
"So this is a characteristic ability of the Demon Bear. No wonder adventurers consider them more dangerous than orcs."
As his initial shock subsided, a faint smile appeared on Saelran's face.
The Demon Bear struggled to rise from the ground, panting heavily. Every time it tried to support itself, its front legs trembled.
Losing one arm and continuously bleeding clearly slowed its movements and left it gasping for breath.
The heavy flow of blood had disrupted its balance, and its strength drained far faster than its instincts could recover.
It seemed the bear could lose consciousness at any moment.
Clearly, this was one of the advantages and disadvantages unique to the real world.
In a game, that slash might have only reduced the Demon Bear's HP without impairing its mobility.
Of course, the same applied to Saelran.
"It seems that ability can only be used once."
As if answering his thoughts, the bone tail that had spun wildly earlier now wrapped around the Demon Bear's body again.
The tail no longer floated freely like a living snake.
It hung limply across its back.
"Tail Whirl" was the ultimate skill, only usable once a day by the Demon Bear. It was usually reserved for decisive attacks, when life and death were on the line.
"Then," Saelran muttered, "it is my turn."
Bang!
The ground beneath his feet trembled as Saelran lunged forward. In a single breath, the distance between them vanished.
In the blink of an eye, he was once again directly in front of the Demon Bear, which had lost one of its legs.
His iron sword flashed, slicing straight toward the creature's waist.
"Raaaughh!"
Suddenly, a black shadow fell from above.
The other Demon Bear roared and leapt from the air, its massive body crashing toward Saelran.
"Rapid Slash!"
Saelran had already read its movement.
The sword, originally aimed at the bear in front of him, rotated in the air and slashed upward in a single smooth motion.
Whoosh!
The Demon Bear's bone tail swung reflexively, forming an emergency barrier just as the sword blade struck.
Clang!
Crack!
The strike pierced the barrier. The bone tail drove deep into the leaping Demon Bear's abdomen, accompanied by the sound of ribs cracking.
Bang!
The massive body was struck by Saelran's slash. The Demon Bear lost its balance in midair, hitting several tree trunks before crashing hard to the ground.
If it were not for the bone tail blocking part of the slash, the attack would have been enough to split its body in two.
Even so, the impact still reverberated through its body. Its internal organs shook violently, and thick blood spurted from its jaw as it fell to the ground.
"Roaaar!"
With Saelran's attention momentarily diverted, the wounded Demon Bear reacted. Its bloodstained jaws opened wide, lunging just inches from Saelran's body.
"Instant Reflection!"
Saelran moved as if time had accelerated.
He immediately stepped back, creating distance while swinging his iron sword.
Splat!
The weakened Demon Bear's abdomen was cleanly sliced open. Blood and internal organs sprayed out, its body convulsed violently before collapsing lifelessly to the ground.
Its massive body twitched reflexively, claws gripping the earth before it finally lost all strength and went limp.
The scent of thick blood filled the air.
"After using that ability, its tail cannot even move normally."
"Better not to use it at all."
Saelran looked at the now motionless bone tail, then flicked his sword, dripping blood onto the ground.
『Gained 369 Experience Points!』
"More than an orc. No wonder it is a deep forest monster."
Experience from a single Demon Bear was almost equivalent to what he had gained from hunting for the past several days.
"Roaaar!"
Bushes and leaves shook violently.
The last Demon Bear, which had been thrown back, staggered to its feet. Its breathing was heavy and irregular, red blood streaming from the corners of its mouth.
"Hurgh…"
"Hurgh…"
Its wild eyes glanced at its fallen companion, then shifted toward Saelran with pure hatred.
"I thought you had fled," Saelran said calmly. "Turns out you two work well together."
"Roaaar!"
The Demon Bear roared and charged.
A cold flash streaked through the air.
In an instant, the nearly three-meter-tall giant tensed, then slammed into the ground. Leaves around it scattered, forming a circle.
Silence once again enveloped Arkenwald Forest.
『Gained 382 Experience Points!』
Saelran glanced at his attribute panel.
[Experience Bar: 9256/9500]
He only needed two hundred more experience points to raise the Genius class to level ten.
Saelran felt relieved.
After spending a month in this forest, the dark and cold environment had inevitably created a sense of oppression over time.
"As expected of Master."
"Very strong! Even Demon Bears cannot compare to Master."
"Master is the strongest human I have ever seen."
"Some orcs that once guarded our tribe died at the jaws of these Demon Bears."
"They are truly cruel and dangerous."
"..."
With the death of the two Demon Bears, the hobgoblin, Mugo, trembling in fear and held tightly in Saelran's left hand, finally spoke with a mix of shock and joy, his voice filled with admiration.
"Quiet."
Silence returned.
Saelran walked toward the Demon Bear corpses. The most valuable part of these two beasts was their coiled tails.
The bodies of the Demon Bears probably had value as well, but Saelran really did not want to store any more monster corpses in his inventory box.
He was already overwhelmed dealing with over two thousand goblin corpses; he did not know what to do with them.
The Adventurer Guild did collect goblin pinky fingers, but he wondered if they also collected entire goblin corpses.
This thought crossed Saelran's mind as he looked at the Demon Bear's bone tail.
From the outside, the texture and sound resembled iron chains, but in reality, it was bone.
White in color with a metallic sheen.
Saelran looked toward the base of the tail and discovered that its front part actually extended from the back of the Demon Bear.
The bear's fur was black, but the tail was white, standing out sharply against the forest background.
The tail appeared to float in the air, seemingly alive, but with the Demon Bear, the tail had also died.
Hmm?
Then Saelran noticed something he had overlooked.
On the Demon Bear's head were small protrusions resembling horns, which he hadn't noticed before due to the bear's thick fur.
"No wonder this monster is better known as the Demon Bear rather than by its original name, Ursapulus."
"Heh, In my previous life, it was an extraordinary and unimaginable creature. The bone tail extending from its back can protect its exposed neck and vulnerable belly."
"Truly compensates for its weaknesses."
Then.
Saelran did not remain idle. He used his iron sword to slice through the bear's back. He had assumed the connection point would be as strong as the bone tail itself, but it turned out to be quite fragile.
With little effort, he detached the bone tail.