I steeled my resolve and activated Fighting Spirit and Berserk simultaneously.
Immediately after, I sprinted at full speed toward the men blocking the exit of the Monster Room.
As I dashed, I drew my longsword from its scabbard and triggered Sword Aura, wrapping the blade in a pale blue light. By then, the men had noticed my movement. They hurriedly readied their weapons, scrambling to face me.
"Wh—!? You bastard!?"
"—Too slow!!"
I swung my sword while still out of physical reach, striking before my enemies could fully set their stances.
The pale blue Sword Aura transformed into a flying blade of light. The man at the front of the group reacted to the slash, which streaked through the air faster than an arrow. He coated his own sword in Sword Aura and used the blade to intercept the incoming projectile.
"Don't underestimate me, kid!!"
"—Neither should you!!"
The aura slash shattered into fragments against the man's blade. However, the impact definitely rattled him, robbing his body of movement for a fleeting instant.
That opening was more than enough.
"——!?"
The man's eyes widened in shock. By then, I had already lunged into his personal space. Without a shred of hesitation, I thrust my sword—shrouded in Sword Aura—forward, throwing my entire weight into the strike.
I felt a brief moment of resistance against his skin, and then the blade buried itself firmly in the center of his chest. Deep. Incredibly deep.
"G-gah...!"
Fresh blood overflowed from the man's mouth. I didn't know how much HP he had, but considering he possessed the Sword Aura skill, his Level likely wasn't that much different from mine. In that case, it was questionable whether I could have defeated him in a single blow, even with an attack on an unguarded spot.
However, the invisible barriers generated by HP have a specific weakness: a continuous attack on a single point.
An HP Barrier only mitigates damage; it doesn't negate it. Even if HP remains, the barrier only functions for a split second. In other words, it’s weak against thrusts.
Just as I predicted, my sword pierced his heart immediately after his HP Barrier triggered and vanished.
I pulled my sword out of his chest as I leaped backward. Having lost its support, the man's body collapsed powerlessly onto the floor of the Monster Room, spilling a massive amount of blood.
“““——”””
A moment of silence descended. Their thoughts were likely paralyzed by the fact that one of their comrades had been killed despite their overwhelming advantage. Every one of them stared with wide eyes—first at their dead companion, and then at me.
Their eyes burned with rage and hatred.
However, I wasn't so naive as to overlook their idiotic lapse in focus. While they were frozen by the sudden turn of events, I had already readied my sword again, preparing to fire a second flying slash.
The next few seconds were critical. I had to kill as many as possible before they could recover. If there was a chance for victory, it lay only there.
I moved to swing my blade without a second's hesitation, but the follow-up never came.
It was a sneak attack.
—Your Level has increased.
Huh?
My thoughts ground to a halt at the announcement echoing in my head.
Why?
Earlier, when I finished clearing the Goblins in the Monster Room, the Experience Points required for my next level-up should have been 3,680. I had checked right after the battle, so I was certain.
Was the man I just killed worth that much experience? No, wait—before that...
Do you get Experience Points for killing humans, too?
A multitude of questions surged, but I didn't have time to ponder them.
This was bad. Really bad. Because leveling up meant—
"—FEELS SO GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!!"
I screamed.
With no way to resist the surging pleasure, I screamed right then and there, my back arching into a dramatic Ina Bauer. My eyes rolled back, and I shrieked while my body spasmed and twitched.
Even as I screamed, alarm bells rang incessantly inside my head. My willpower tried to fight the euphoria and suppress this physiological phenomenon as quickly as possible. Of course it did. If I were the enemy, I would never miss such a massive opening.
I had never been more panicked in my life. It wouldn't be strange if their attacks slammed into my defenseless body at any second.
I refuse to die for such a stupid reason...!
I fought desperately to resist the pleasure. But for some reason—and it was truly a mystery to me at the time—no attack came.
Eventually, I suppressed the pleasure until only a lingering afterglow remained in the depths of my body. I straightened up from my arched position and looked around.
“““——”””
The men, and even Hinata-san further away, were frozen with expressions of pure terror. It was as if they were looking at something unbelievable—or rather, as if they had encountered a blasphemous, hideous monster.
"........."
A strange silence followed. No one moved, and no one spoke.
Ah, yeah... I get it. I totally get it. If someone killed a person and then screamed "FEELS SO GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!!" anyone would react like that.
But that wasn't it. That wasn't it at all. Since they were under a terrible misunderstanding, I had no choice but to explain myself, even in the middle of a battle. I had to protect my dignity as a human being.
"Ah, no, you've got it wrong! I felt good just now because my Level suddenly went up, not because I killed someone, okay!? I'm not that much of a madman!!"
"I... see...! So a total psycho like this actually existed...!!"
The man called Kanzaki muttered, his expression one of trepidation rather than simple terror.
He didn't believe my explanation for a second!
While it was extremely regrettable, further protest was likely meaningless. If I managed to survive, I would have to explain it thoroughly to Hinata-san later so she would understand.
Then, in that instant, the second "sneak attack" arrived.
Thump.
My heart gave an especially heavy pulse. Almost simultaneously, an incredibly large and irresistibly intense urge surged up from deep within my soul.
—I want to kill.
—I want to kill more, more...!
"Huh?"
The question escaped my lips because I genuinely didn't understand what was happening. It was a pure, raw desire to kill.
I like leveling up, but I don't enjoy killing monsters. Much less humans; I'm someone with average sensibilities who wants to avoid killing as much as possible unless there are unavoidable circumstances like right now.
That's how it should be.
And yet, why? What is this? Something is wrong.
Sensing instinctively that something abnormal was happening to me, I hurriedly pulled up my Status. I thought I might be suffering from some kind of Status Ailment.
Unfortunately, there were no ailments like poison or confusion. However, there were indeed unfamiliar entries added to the column.
They were a Title and a Skill.
【Title】
Pleasure Killer — The end result of one who has found pleasure in the act of killing humans. Their spirit is already a monstrosity that views abnormality as normalcy; therefore, they display unrivaled strength in interpersonal combat. Grants the Skill Lust Murder.
【Skill】
Lust Murder Lv.1 — Increases damage dealt to the Human Race by 4.0x. During combat with the Human Race, all stats except HP and MP increase by 100%. Also, Experience Points obtained from the Human Race are increased by 2.4x.
When I read the details, I was stunned. What was this? Could a skill with such absurd performance even exist?
Even if it did, could it be used without any compensation? Could such a skill just sprout up suddenly without paying a massive amount of Skill Points? The description didn't mention any sacrifice.
But that was as far as my logic could go.
"—Ahaha."
It was fun. It was pleasant. It was wonderful. I couldn't help myself.
I felt an unbearable sense of gratification at the thought of being able to kill so many more people. There were so many delicious-looking lumps of meat right here...!
How marvelous...!
"Ahaha, ahahahahaha Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha Ha Ha Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha Ha-Ha Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha-HA!!"
I laughed. My face crumpled into a deep, twisted smile as I looked at the men.
“““——!?”””
Their faces twitched with revulsion. Though terrified, their survival instincts forced them to ready their weapons.
"...Hah! So this brat really was a genuine madman...!!"
Kanzaki, who was still managing to keep his fear at bay, wore a strained expression, as if unsure whether he should be laughing or fighting.
It was strange. No, perhaps it wasn't strange anymore.
I didn't feel like I was going to be killed by these guys at all.
Of course not. Because I was always the one who did the killing.