Chapter 1: Life in the Mountains is Tough

And so, when it felt like about a year and a half had passed since I arrived here… well, I don’t actually know how much time has passed… but I think it’s been about that long.

I tried to cut my finger to check my status, but since not even the fangs of any monster could scratch me, I had to bite it myself to draw blood. When I checked it, things had gotten weird.

Name: Wazu | Race: Human (88%) | Age: 16

Stat	Current Value	Stat	Current Value
HP	I can withstand anything	MP	It’s zero
STR	My single strike shatters stars	VIT	Even a Holy Sword would snap
INT	I can’t use magic, you know	MND	Magic? Pointless
AGI	Probably faster than light… no way	DEX	Equal to or better than a great artist in history?

Skills

• Swordsmanship Lv: 2

• Hand-to-Hand Combat Lv: 8

• Presence Detection Lv: Max

• Extreme Man-Eater (Unique)

• Status Ailments Almost Nullified

• Goddess’s Astonishment (Unique)

…That’s what it was. I have so many things I want to interject about… or rather, I can’t deny the feeling that I honestly overdid it…

First off, the part I think is weird… or rather, the part I don’t understand why it dropped: “Human (88%)”.

Eh? What is this? What does it mean? Just looking at this text, it’s saying I’m 88% human, but the remaining 12% is something else? Then what on earth is that 12% supposed to be? It’s written in a way that makes me incredibly anxious about the future… Could you please stop writing it like this, Goddess…?

I understand having no “MP”. It was like that to begin with. But, what’s up with “HP” being “I can withstand anything”? Does that mean, for example, even if I get hit repeatedly by great magic, ancient magic, or any high-power direct attack, I won’t die? No, no, no, that can’t be true, right? Just thinking about what if it’s wrong… I’m too scared to test it!

“STR” says “My single strike shatters stars”… What? Eh? Are you serious? Does it mean exactly what it says? So if I punch seriously, I’ll shatter it? A star? For real?

“VIT” says “Even a Holy Sword would snap”… It would snap? It’s a Holy Sword, you know? A Holy Sword is a Holy Sword, right? It doesn’t have some alternative reading, does it? If that snaps, doesn’t that mean any weapon is useless…

I’ll skip “INT”… “MND” says “Magic? Pointless”… Basically, judging from the HP text, it means even if I take a magic attack, it won’t do anything, right? I can just tank it entirely…

For “AGI”, please give me the words that follow “Probably faster than light…”. Don’t cut it off halfway. By “no way,” does that mean there’s a possibility of it? I’ll test it out secretly later.

“DEX” must be the fruit of my training. How many times did I prick my finger with those fang-needles… It hasn’t happened recently, though, since halfway through the needles started shattering instead… However, because I managed to make clothes I’m satisfied with, I think I’ll at least take pride in this part.

…Somehow, looking at this absurd status has given me a headache.

But there’s still more. Next are the skills.

I’m over “Swordsmanship”; I don’t intend to level it up now, and somehow it just doesn’t suit my nature. That’s exactly why I’ve been fighting mainly with “Hand-to-Hand Combat,” and it’s probably how its level got this high.

If I recall correctly, the maximum for the skill level system is “10,” which displays as Max… If that’s the case, Level 8 means it’s pretty high. Well, I guess fighting the extraordinary monsters on the mountain would make it rise rapidly like this… but why isn’t it Max?

…Come to think of it, lately, my fights end with just a single punch or kick… Of course it wouldn’t level up from that.

“Presence Detection” is at max value, and if I hadn’t sensitively perceived presences, I would’ve been the one getting killed. So I can accept this one.

Yes, up to this point, it’s a natural result in a way… Yes, up to this point… The problem is:

Extreme Man-Eater (Unique)

Can eat anything and find it delicious.

The more bizarre or poisonous it is—things that would normally cause physical abnormalities—the more delicious it tastes.

Eating high-ranking items provides an extreme status increase correction.

So it’s this~! This is the cause~! This skill that started from “Foul Eater”… has gone this far… The correction has become “extreme,” and my status becoming abnormal must be due to the influence of this skill. Regardless, I’ve gotten this strong thanks to this skill. Thank you.

Status Ailments Almost Nullified

Nullifies any and all status ailments. However, some are still effective.

Taking various poisons and paralysis attacks… getting dizzy and collapsing… throwing myself into the harsh mountain environment… I want to praise myself for finally making it this far. I did it. But the problem is the “some are still effective” part… This is just a guess, but it means status ailments I haven’t experienced in this mountain or forest will still work. Right now, alcohol is the only thing that comes to mind… Well, I don’t drink anyway, so it doesn’t matter.

Goddess’s Astonishment (Unique)

Wait! Just how strong do you intend to get?!

…Could this mean you’re even stronger than me, a god…? Huh? Huuuh~?

…Hm? Hold on a second, Goddess… Am I stronger than a god? You’re kidding, right?

Well, in reality, there’s no way to test it, and it’s just something the Goddess is saying on her own…

I think I’ll just avoid thinking about that.

What I do know is that right now, even if the mountain’s weather changes dizzyingly, I’m completely fine, and the monsters that appear are absolutely no match for me. Truly, an abnormal level of strength.

I overdid it a little.

When you get this strong, you run into the opposite problem: a lack of opponents.

There’s no one around to test just how strong I’ve become.

Well, considering the surrounding situation, I can certainly feel that I’ve become ridiculously strong, but still.

So, I wandered around the mountain as if taking a stroll, seeking an opponent to fight.

Since the mountain’s weather no longer bothered me at all, I just walked aimlessly.

Monsters appeared occasionally, but they were mostly finished with a single punch.

After slaughtering monsters in one hit over and over, I actually managed to learn how to hold back—or rather, to fight while pulling my punches. Because if I didn’t, the monsters would explode and scatter into pieces from a single strike.

If that happened, there would be no materials or anything left, which makes surviving difficult.

It was essentially learning to hold back out of sheer necessity.

However, what I seek right now is an opponent that allows me to gauge and truly feel my own strength.

And so, seeking an encounter with a powerful foe, I continued climbing the mountain.

As I climbed the mountain, I realized something.

It’s true that past a certain altitude, the weather raged wildly, but once I reached above the clouds, the weather didn’t matter anymore. Well, I suppose that’s obvious.

It felt like the air had gotten slightly thinner, but for the current me, it wasn’t a major issue.

My body immediately adapted, and I just kept walking. Glancing to the side, I marveled at the magnificent scenery above the clouds, and stayed there for a while to keep gazing at it.

I don’t know how long I was staring, but I was pulled back to reality by the sound of something heavily flapping its wings. When I looked around to find the source of the sound, a massive black object descended from the sky right in front of me.

It was a Black Dragon.

Unless my eyes were deceiving me, it was that same Black Dragon—the one you could say had saved me, albeit indirectly, when I was first attacked by the fish and cat monsters.

The Black Dragon stood up, looking down at me with its massive frame as it exhaled roughly through its nose.

Its eyes showed confusion, as if looking at something strange.

“…Why is there a human in this place?”

……….Hm?

“The Dragon spoke~~~!”

I raised my voice loudly, shocked by the sudden turn of events.

The Black Dragon placed a front paw over its face, looking annoyed by my loud voice.

Are its ears located there?

The Black Dragon glared at me as I wore a look of pure astonishment.

“…Honestly, raising your voice so suddenly… I am a dragon who has lived for over a thousand years. Speaking human words is a simple matter!”

“…Huh… so that’s how it is.”

Basically, once a dragon lives long enough, even speaking words becomes an easy feat.

As I was nodding along to those words, the Black Dragon called out to me again.

“Now then, human. How on earth did you get here? This is not a place a human can possibly reach.”

“How, you ask…? By walking?”

“Walk—! No, no, no, no matter how you look at it, this is normally not a place you can just walk to!”

“Even if you tell me that, I really just walked here…”

“No, no, no, speak honestly. You surely used some sort of peculiar magic or something to get here, didn’t you? Come now, I won’t be angry, so try speaking the truth.”

“No, that’s why I’m telling you, I really did just walk! What is with this dragon… how skeptical can you be?”

“Skeptical? Skeptical, you say! I will not allow you to speak of me like that! What part of me is skeptical?!”

“Well… because even though I’m telling the truth, you won’t believe a word of it.”

“No, I believe you. Of course, I believe the words you say, but I was simply pressing the issue just in case you were under some sort of misunderstanding. Yes, this was merely a confirmation, done for your sake.”

…What is this Black Dragon talking about?

My mouth hung open in disbelief, while the Black Dragon in question averted its gaze from me, trying to whistle a tune that made no sound.

How should I put it… it’s true I was indirectly saved by this Black Dragon in the past, but right now… Are all dragons… like this? It’s kind of shattering my image of them…

I let out a heavy sigh, looked the Black Dragon squarely in the eye, and continued talking.

“That’s unnecessary worrying, so I’m fine. I properly walked here.”

“I-Is that so? Then I shall believe your words. Yes, indeed. I certainly wasn’t doubting you, so make sure you don’t forget that.”

No, you were absolutely doubting me. Or rather, it’s highly questionable if you even believe me now.

“And so, why are you here? For what purpose did you come all the way near the summit of this mountain?”

“Purpose? Hmm… Nothing in particular, but if I had to say, to seek out the strong?”

When I answered the Black Dragon’s question after some thought, the dragon instantly became in a great mood, happily curling the corners of its mouth upward into a wide grin.

“Oho, the strong, you say! Then this is perfect! No one has come up here recently, and I have had a bit too much free time on my hands. If you seek the strong, then I shall be your opponent!”

“Well, you say ‘I’, but I have absolutely no idea who you are?”

“…”

“…”

“…Do you truly not know? Of me?”

“Not at all, completely clueless.”

“…No, no, surely you’ve heard tales of the Black Dragon said to reside on this mountain?”

“…Never heard ’em.”

“…What about the name ‘Dragon King Ragnil’?”

“Nope, don’t know it.”

When I answered honestly, the Black Dragon started sulking for some reason, drawing swirls on the ground over and over. A certain melancholy drifted from its figure.

Eh? Could it be… is this my fault?

Did I just coincidentally not know, but it’s actually something recognized worldwide?

As I was worrying about how to talk to the still-sulking Black Dragon, it suddenly jumped up vigorously, indignant, with eyes that looked like it was on the verge of crying.

“Gaaah! Enough of this! You seek the strong, do you not?! Then I, the King of Dragons, shall be your opponent!”

“…King of Dragons? Oh, so that ‘Dragon King Ragnil’ from earlier was you referring to yourself?”

When I pointed that out, the Black Dragon’s face turned bright red for some reason. Well, honestly, since its scales were black I couldn’t actually tell. I just felt like it did based on the atmosphere.

“S-Shut up! Rest assured! I will not take your life! I will merely beat you to a thorough pulp! And it is absolutely not because I am flustered, or embarrassed about being called out on it, or anything like that!”

Seeing it rattle on so rapidly like that seemed a bit… cheap, I guess? It made me want to ask, Are you really the Dragon King?

“Well, whatever… if you say you’ll be my opponent, I guess I’ll take you up on it.”

“Alright, die~~~~~!”

“Hey! Didn’t you just say you wouldn’t take my life?!”

At the same time as its words, the Black Dragon swung its front claws down at me.

I effortlessly caught its claws with one hand.

Seeing that, the Black Dragon wore a look of utter astonishment.

“What! To catch my claws with such a tiny frame!”

Well, I probably would’ve been uninjured even if I didn’t catch them.

Catching it was just, you know, out of habit.

“Amusing! To think you were a strong enough individual to stop my claws! In that case, I shall unleash my true power for the first time in a while!”

Saying that, the Black Dragon easily pulled back its front foot, flapped its wings to back away slightly, and began drawing air into its mouth.

Honestly, with my current stats, I felt like I could sink it in one blow during this opening, but I didn’t particularly want to obliterate my opponent. My goal in coming all this way was to find an opponent strong enough for me to verify my own power, and in that regard, the Black Dragon—the King of Dragons—was an opponent boasting top-class strength in this world.

In short, it was the perfect opponent.

Having met the ideal adversary, a smile naturally formed on my lips.

“BWOAAARRRGH──────!”

Along with a roar, the Black Dragon spewed out a massive sea of fire from its mouth.

The sea of fire, large enough to easily swallow a human, closed in mercilessly, scorching the ground along with me. Yet, I remained completely unfazed inside the flames. Well, a certain part of me wasn’t unfazed.

My handmade clothes had completely burned away.

Even though I worked so hard to make them… I had been returned to the state I was born in.

Well, there’s no one else here, and I’m not particularly embarrassed, so I boldly crossed my arms, waited for the sea of fire to dissipate, and faced the Black Dragon.

“…”

“…”

The Black Dragon and I faced each other in silence.

“Put some clothes on!”

“No, they burned off so I don’t have any. If anything, having absolutely nothing on makes me want to act bold, you know?”

“I’m telling you to have some shame!”

“Shame… hah! Wait, could it be that you’re a female Black Dragon? You should’ve said so sooner.”

“I am male!”

“Then since there’s only guys here, there’s no need to be ashamed… wait, don’t tell me you swing that way?”

“I do not!”

“Then there’s no problem!”

The Black Dragon wore a troubled expression, looking as if to say, What the hell is this guy talking about?

How rude. There is absolutely no problem here whatsoever!

“More importantly, wait a moment! Why are you completely unfazed after taking my Fire Breath?!”

“No, I’m not unfazed… The clothes I poured my heart and soul into making have burned to ash, so honestly, I’ve taken quite a bit of emotional damage…”

“You’re worried about your clothes?!”

“Oh, and regarding the Fire Breath, it was a little lukewarm, so I think you’d better raise the temperature a bit.”

“…L-Lukewarm? No, no, no, take a good look at your surroundings!”

Tilting my head at the Black Dragon’s words, I looked at my surroundings just as it said.

The ground had melted into a slushy magma and turned bright red.

“…Ohh, the ground is melting.”

“That’s it?! That’s all you have to say after seeing this state?! You’re standing there naked acting completely normal, and that’s all you have to say after looking at the magma-like ground?! What is with this guy?! You lack all common sense!”

Eh? I’m at the level where a dragon is questioning my common sense?

To me, I thought they were completely normal thoughts and actions… or has my wildification progressed without me realizing it… I wonder… I just remembered the dropping percentage of ‘Human’ in my status… that doesn’t mean I’m losing my common sense, does it?

While I was feeling anxious and lost in thought over that, the Black Dragon attacked again.

This time, it flew into the sky and, using the momentum of its glide, swung its claws down at me once more.

“I will finish this!”

“Shut up! I’m thinking right now!”

I casually dodged the attacking Black Dragon’s claws and, in one fluid motion, drove my fist into its stomach. My fist sank deep into the Black Dragon’s belly, and it was violently blasted away with immense force.

Bouncing and rolling across the ground multiple times, the Black Dragon finally came to a stop at quite a distance.

“…Ah, I accidentally did it.”

Crap. Because I was thinking about something, I might have messed up my power control.

The Black Dragon showed no signs of getting up, but its body was twitching as if having a seizure. Its tongue was hanging loosely out of its mouth, but it appeared to still be alive.

Seeing that, I let out a sigh of relief for the time being.