As the hulking beast charged from beyond the river with surprising speed, the earth rumbled with each step taken by its powerful legs.
It was clear who it was charging at.
Mikan immediately ran, while Ringo grabbed me by the scruff and hurled me above the trees.
"Stay there!" she shouted urgently.
The beast tore through the river, sending up an immense splash. Ichigo stood firm, sword drawn with both hands, already preparing a technique.
The boar closed the distance fast, tusks lowered, aiming to gore her. Only seconds remained.
"Sword Style: Mirage," she muttered under her breath.
She swung with blinding speed, but the beast remained undeterred. Its deadly tusks plowing straight through her.
Or so it seemed.
It struck only her afterimage.
This was my sister Ichigo's technique, Sword Style: Mirage. A sword art where the user imbues overwhelming killing intent into both weapon and posture, only stepping aside at the final instant. The opponent, convinced the strike is unavoidable, commits fully to the attack.
Against beasts that rely purely on instinct, it was devastatingly effective.
As the boar thundered past, Ichigo didn't waste the opening. She slashed at the back of its rear hind leg with full force.
Thankfully, the beast fell for it.
However—
CLANG
She grit her teeth as her sword bounced back.
"Shit! The weakness is gone!"
Ichigo leapt backward as the beast skidded across the ground, tearing furrows in the dirt as it struggled to halt its momentum.
She saw it clearly, Its legs were covered in a thick, chitin-like material—tough enough to repel her blade.
She quickly assessed the situation. Mikan had already fled for help. Ringo was sprinting toward her. Merun was nowhere to be seen.
Stay calm, Ichigo, she told herself. You are the hunter.
Fleeing wasn't an option. Neither she nor Ringo could outrun it, and leading it back home was unthinkable.
She made her decision.
They had to kill it here. She still had techniques she hadn't tried yet.
The mother Erymanthian boar turned with a furious squeal and charged again, launching into a deadly bull rush.
Ichigo activated her technique once more, causing the beast to slam into empty space. She and Ringo exploited the opening, striking at different angles. Each time, using different sword techniques—cuts, thrusts, slams.. anything. Probing desperately for new weak points, but to no avail.
Ringo's blows lacked the offensive technique and power to break through, and her own blade wasn't sharp enough to break through its thick hide and shell covered legs.
They were in for a long, brutal fight.
—————————
Watching the battle unfold from above, I knew I wouldn't be much help. This thing was clearly a peak squire-level beast... at least in terms of vitality.
The fight had reached a stalemate.
Ichigo and Ringo lacked the firepower to injure it, let alone kill it. Its hide was harder than steel, and while it kept falling for Ichigo's misdirection, it never adapted. It was a beast driven purely by rage and confusion.
Still, Ichigo looked worse by the second. She was drenched in sweat, breathing heavily, her technique clearly taxing her concentration with every use.
I had to think of something.
The moon?
it was still midday. They wouldn't last that long.
Should I climb down and call for help? Too late. Mikan definitely already did that.
Fuck, what can I do?
…Think. THINK, MERUN.
—————————
It has no weakness… none of our attacks are working… my blade.. isn't sharp enough. I've used all my techniques… Ichigo thought, her vision blurring from the nonstop strain.
She felt like they had been fighting for hours.
Her katana was about to break. She was at her absolute limit. Her spirit nearly broken.
Each Mirage draining every bit of her stamina, ravaging her mind.
I must use Mirage once more and…
The worst finally happened.
She had fallen unconscious while standing.
As the boar charged again, Ringo noticed the change in her sister's eyes.
"ICHIGO! WAKE UP!" Ringo screamed. But it was no use.
She threw herself in front of her sister, planting her feet in an extremely low stance, bracing her body and drawing on every defensive technique Father had ever taught her.
If she pushed Ichigo away, the beast would still target her.
She had to take the hit.
But I knew she wouldn't survive it.
"REDIRECT IT!" I screamed.
Ringo froze for half a second, startled that I was still there. Then something clicked.
She shifted her stance... not to block, but to redirect.
The beast arrived like a speeding truck of destruction.
For Ringo, time slowed.
She saw it. A line. The path of destruction. Her palm traced the trajectory of the tusks. As they bore down on her, she poured every ounce of strength into forcing them aside. Her palms gently guided the tusks aside.
She succeeded.
Barely.
One of the tusks were jutted outward and sliced through her arm, cleaving to the bone. Blood erupted as her arm dangled uselessly at her side.
The beast's charge was diverted... but the cost was brutal.
However, as if feeling no pain, Ringo smiled.
That felt… amazing.
All her life, she had only trained Father's defensive techniques faithfully. Sure, she'd shown great compatibility with the techniques, but she never once felt like she had taken a glimpse of her martial path.
But this—redirection—didn't care about size or strength. Especially when faced with an enemy almost thrice her size.
It was the great equalizer.
All of her defensive techniques were deconstructed in her mind, to be used as the foundation for her newfound path.
She had finally broken through her supposed bottleneck.
She was finally a Martial Apprentice.
But it was too late.
She snapped out of her euphoria.
Her sister still stood unconscious. Her own arm was ruined. Despair took hold.
"H-HIDE UNTIL HELP COMES!" she screamed.
By now, Mikan should have reached the village. Help should be coming.
But she knew it wouldn't arrive in time.
The boar turned, locking onto the remaining threat.
Ringo raised her stance again, one arm lay limp at her side, tears started streaming down her face. Her overconfidence had cost them their lives.
If she hadn't allowed Merun to come, would things have changed?
"THEY WILL COME SAVE YOU, MERUN!", she yelled.
The beast charged once more.
Can she do it again?
She tried to see the lines once more... to no avail.
All she saw was her own death.
But it never came.
The boar squealed and veered violently off course.
"What—?" Ringo gasped.
Then she saw it.
Something was on its back.
"MERUN?? NOOOO!!"
—————————
I landed on the beast from above, pure luck guiding my fall. I wrapped my arms around its spine and squeezed with everything I had, and it seemed to work. I could hear some parts of it's bone cracking.
Holy fuck its working! The Saiyan strength I had cultivated for five years was actually enough to somewhat damage this thing!
The beast screamed, staggering sideways.
But it wasn't over.
Now it wanted me dead.
It bucked, twisted, smashed through trees and rocks, trying to throw me off. Like an elephant trying to kill a mosquito.
I could hear Sister Ringo screaming my name in despair as we tore farther and farther away... her voice becoming more faint with each second.
I wasn't letting go.
No way in fucking hell.
I squeeze tighter.
The beast finally had enough. It collapsed on the ground and...
Rolled.
The weight crushed me.
I couldn't breathe. Bones cracked. I could hear my skull cracking. Blood seeped out of my orifices. Each roll was agony beyond anything I'd ever known.
Back on earth the most pain I've ever felt was stubbing my toe on a chair or something...
Still, somehow, I held on, relying on the durability of my body.
Pain unlike anything I'd ever felt flooded me as I heard each bone in my body crack under tremendous pressure... the pain never ended.
Memories surfaced. My old life, my parents, my siblings.
I'm... dying...
My arms finally gave out, I felt my bones turn to dust, I couldn't physically hold on anymore.
I let go.
The beast rose, fury blazing in its eyes. It lifted its hooves—each foot larger than my entire body.
Time slowed.
How unlucky.
Our first hunt… and we found the final boss.
At least my sisters were safe.
Is this really how it ends? Killed by a boar?
How will my sisters feel?
What about father? Mother... she'll be devastated.. I couldn't do this to her...
It's all because of this boar...
this fucking pig...
is in my fucking way.
Something inside me snapped.
Like a dam breaking, rage exploded outward, fully consuming my mind.
I WILL FUCKING END YOU PIG, I WON'T GIVE YOU A MOMENT TO BREATH, I WILL DESTROY EVERY BONE OF YOUR BODY, I WILL BURN EACH CELL TO ASH, I WILL FUCKING DESTROY YOU AND EVERYTHING YOU HAVE EVER LOVED, I WILL RIP YOU TO FUCKING PIECES
With the last of my strength, I focused on raising my mangled arms and roared.
"DIEEEEEEEEEEEEE"
For a brief moment, I felt like an inkling of power flow towards my fingertips.
But that wasn't gonna do anything.
The hooves fell
SLICE
The beast froze.
Then half its body slid away.
It collapsed, dead.
The looming shadow of the beast disappeared. I was left on the ground. Staring at the midday sun.
It's.. dead?
I didn't even have enough energy to turn my head to see who did it.
But as my rage subsided, I felt...
Fucking amazing.
hehe.
I won.