Chapter 151: WHY THE FUCK ARE ALL A-RANK MONSTERS HUGE?!

Crossing a Blue Rift felt... strange. Even though he’d encountered one before, the sensation was still not something he could become accustomed to that easily.

Unlike the violent green tunnel leading to the world of chicken, there was no sensation of being thrown through space. Instead, it felt like walking through cool water.

Silas took one step, and the blue light surrounding him gradually faded.

His feet touched solid ground, and dry leaves crumbled under his sneakers. He slowly looked around.

He was in a forest, and an enormous one at that.

The trees dwarfed anything found on Earth, their trunks reaching nearly forty feet in diameter. Thick vines hung from branch to branch, while strange blue moss glowed softly across the bark.

Sunlight filtered through the canopy in countless golden rays.

The atmosphere was peaceful. Far too peaceful for a supposed rift teeming with monsters. Silas inhaled deeply.

"Nice."

The air carried an earthy scent mixed with flowers he had never smelled before. Birds chirped somewhere overhead. A small rabbit-like creature poked its head from behind a bush, stared at him for three seconds, and immediately ran away.

"I feel offended."

[You have developed an intimidating aura. It’s natural for weaker beings to feel afraid.]

"I was smiling."

[Exactly.]

"..." Silas sighed. "So much for first impressions. I’m a good guy, you know."

[...]

He stretched lazily before opening the Shop, completely ignoring the system’s judging gaze. It was almost insulting and diabolical, but who could he complain to? The people he could were being traumatized by the system to train.

’I suddenly feel sorry for Alpha.’

[Don’t blame me.]

’...’

A familiar holographic screen floated before him.

[Recommended Weapons:]

- Iron Katana (E-Rank)

- Mana Steel Katana (D-Rank)

- Azure Edge Katana (C-Rank)

Silas tapped one.

"Azure Edge."

[Purchase Successful.]

[- 120,000 Cupid Points.]

Blue light gathered before his right hand, and a beautifully crafted katana materialized.

Its scabbard was midnight black, while the blade shimmered with a faint azure glow. Tiny mana-conductive veins ran along the fuller, giving it an almost living appearance.

Silas slowly drew it.

SHIIIING!

"Pretty."

The blade reflected his pink eyes perfectly. He swung it once, and the air split cleanly.

"Sharp too. How do I use it?"

[1. Do not test sharpness with your fingers.]

[2. Just swing it.]

"I wasn’t going to test the sharpness with my fingers."

[...]

"I mean it!"

[You considered it.]

"Maybe."

Without wasting another second, Silas disappeared.

BOOM!!

The ground exploded beneath his feet. Minutes later, a wolf lunged. Its head separated from its body before it even realized Silas had moved. Another monster emerged, a giant boar covered in crystalline armor.

Silas didn’t slow down. One horizontal slash was all it took for the armored beast to split cleanly in half. Blood sprayed across nearby bushes.

He continued running. A snake dropped from above. Without looking, he casually thrust upward. The katana pierced through its mouth and exited through its skull. Silas flicked the blade, and the corpse flew away.

[Sword Art Comprehension in Progress...]

[Katana Art Comprehension in Progress...]

"Next."

He accelerated. He shot through the forest like a missile. Tree trunks became stepping stones. Branches became highways. One leap and he was twenty meters away. He barely touched the branches before launching himself toward the next.

The system continuously identified monsters.

[Forest Fang Wolf.]

[Rank: C]

Slash and kill. Only blood and death followed.

[Crystalback Boar.]

[Rank: B]

It died before it could even blink.

[Venom Vine Serpent.]

[Rank: C]

It was decapitated before it could even hiss. Every monster that crossed his path lasted less than a second. Silas wasn’t even using Thread Manipulation, no Heartweaver abilities, or mana. He was using only his body and his new sword.

"I kinda like this..." He smiled. "It’s simple."

His wing, which he could dematerialize and materialize, unfolded slightly behind him to stabilize his movement through the trees, making every landing smoother and every leap faster. The wing was just three feet wide, nothing too huge.

Leaves scattered behind him, while branches bent under his weight before springing back. The forest gradually grew quieter. Then, the birds stopped singing.

Silas landed atop an enormous branch. The place was too silent, causing his instincts to stir. The wind disappeared. Something was watching him.

Thread Perception expanded. Countless glowing threads spread across the forest. Soon, he located one thread. It was different and massive.

Silas’s pupils narrowed.

"Found you."

The branch beneath him suddenly cracked, not because of his weight, but because something enormous had slammed into the tree. The entire trunk exploded.

Silas launched himself backward just before a gigantic claw tore through where he’d been standing.

Wood exploded in every direction. The surrounding trees bent from the resulting shockwave. He landed gracefully atop another branch several hundred feet away.

He looked up slowly. His neck continued rising, and rising.

"You’ve got to be kidding me."

Standing where the ancient tree had once been was a monster easily over twenty feet tall. Its body resembled a gorilla’s, yet every muscle looked carved from black obsidian. Crimson magma-like cracks pulsed beneath its rocky skin.

Four enormous arms hung at its sides. Each hand possessed claws longer than swords. Its lower jaw split into four separate mandibles lined with countless jagged teeth. Two curved horns stretched backward from its skull.

Its golden eyes stared directly at Silas. The creature inhaled, and the surrounding air shook.

ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAR!!

The roar flattened acres of forest. Hundreds of trees snapped in half. Leaves exploded into the sky like a green tsunami. Silas instinctively covered one ear.

He looked at the monster with a blank expression and raised his hands dramatically.

"WHY THE FUCK ARE ALL A-RANK MONSTERS HUGE?!"

The system answered immediately.

[Large size correlates with increased physical capability.]

"THAT DOESN’T ANSWER MY QUESTION!"

[It answered accurately.]

"I HATE ACCURATE ANSWERS!"

The monster didn’t appreciate being ignored. Its upper right fist came crashing down like a meteor, but Silas just grinned.

"Finally."

BOOOOOOOOOOOM!!

The fist collided with the forest floor, and the resulting explosion erased everything within hundreds of feet, but he was already gone.

A pink blur shot upward through the debris, katana in hand, wing spread to about seven feet wide, eyes blazing.

The obsidian giant raised another arm, while Silas raised his blade, and their attacks met in midair.

CLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG!! BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

The collision rang across the entire forest like the tolling of an ancient bell. The battle had begun.

And it would be ending soon.