Chapter 2 “We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.”

In a mountain range that was extremely dry and barren, the young man opened his eyes.

“A blue sky.”

The young man woke up and now found that his body was lying on hard, sandy, and barren ground.

“Hmm, why does my body feel so sore like this?” the young man said as he got up.

“Hmm? A staff?” the young man muttered, looking at a staff that was now broken in his grip.

“Where is this? Am I really in another world right now?” the young man asked, observing the area around him.

The young man stood up, rubbing his sore back. He noticed that he was truly in a region that was very unfamiliar to him.

Blue sky, dry and sandy land, and a giant green creature sleeping soundly.

“Wait... What!? A giant green creature!?”

“Why is there a giant in this place!? No! Why did I wake up near that giant? Damn! I have to get out of here before the giant wakes up!” the young man thought.

“Guh? Gaah...”

The giant woke up from its slumber. The giant looked a bit confused, then sat up, scratching its head, and observed the surroundings.

Seeing this, the newly awakened young man immediately ran with all his might to get away from the green giant.

The giant just looked at the young man without paying any attention. Then the giant stood up and looked at its own shadow on the ground it was currently stepping on. It observed its large muscular hands and body.

Suddenly, with great ferocity, the giant roared and chased the young man who had previously fled from it.

“GROAAAAR!”

The giant screamed and ran after the young man very quickly, causing all the small animals around to hide and flee from the area.

“Shit, Shit, Shit! What is this! God, I know you have good intentions for me, but why did you send me near such a terrifying giant!” the young man complained as he continued to run away from the giant.

“GROAAAAAR!”

In an instant, the giant was now very close to the young man.

“Damn it! Anyone, please help me! I'm not ready to die in this place!” the young man shouted with all his might.

But no one answered his plea for help.

The young man felt confused and desperate. He wondered why God had sent him to a place like this.

And a few moments later, the young man suddenly remembered the broken staff in his right hand.

“Ugh, instead of wasting my energy running, it seems better to try to fight it using this broken staff of mine,” the young man thought.

Immediately, the young man stopped his running and prepared to attack the giant.

The young man now stood upright, planted his feet firmly, and pointed the sharp end of the broken staff toward the giant.

“First, I will try to hurt it,” the young man said.

“GROOOOAARR!”

The giant then thrust its right hand claws towards the young man. However, the young man quickly lunged forward and stabbed his broken staff into the giant's palm.

“STAB!”

“Feel that! I've said it before, I don't want to die in this place!” shouted the young man.

Earlier, the young man had contemplated that it might be impossible for him to kill the giant with just a broken staff. But he had an idea—what if he could inflict a very painful wound on the giant to make it scared and leave him alone? He knew that wild animals would be afraid and startled to find out that their prey could fight back. Therefore, the young man thrust his broken staff with all his might.

And the attack succeeded; now the staff was deeply embedded in the giant's palm.

Instantly, the giant screamed in pain, and without hesitation, it used its left hand to slam the young man away.

The young man was shocked by the turn of events. Although he anticipated the giant's retaliation, he wasn't prepared to dodge it.

“BAAM!”

The young man was struck and thrown a great distance, like a stone skipping on the surface of water. Meanwhile, the giant only stared from a distance, then pulled out the staff embedded in its right hand and discarded it.

"Aaaa! It hurts! Khk! It hurts! It hurts so much! Could it be that my ribs are broken? Shit! It hurts like hell! Please someone help me!” Moaned the young man who could now only lie limply on the dry ground.

“Grrrr...”

The giant stared at him with a very sharp gaze. Slowly, it stepped towards the fallen young man.

With each step, the dry ground in the area trembled. And with the sound of its footsteps alone, the young man grew fearful.

To the young man, the sound of the giant's footsteps sounded like the countdown of an executioner who was preparing to behead him.

With all his strength, the young man stood up, trying to forget his pain. He screamed and then gritted his teeth very hard.

“God! Do you still want to test me at this moment!?”

“Alright, if that's what you want! I'll prove that this second life you've given me will be the best for me!”

“I'll make sure I won't die in this unfamiliar place!”

The young man then limped away from the giant. However, the giant continued to walk and came closer.

“Why is it so stubborn! What does it really want from me? Comparatively, my meat is also very little compared to a cow!” thought the young man.

“Or maybe... it just wants to toy with me?”

“...Damn it! Why does my fate always turn out like this!”

“Ah, forget it, no more complaints! The most important thing is, once I'm free from this place, I promise that one day I'll repay all your actions!” thought the teenager.

“GROOOARRR!”

Suddenly, the giant roared, startling the young man. Surprised, the young man stumbled and fell forward.

“Khk! Shit! What now?” said the fallen young man, diverting his gaze backward.

“TRANG! TRANG! TRANG! SLASH!”

The sound of metal clashing and claws echoed behind the fallen young man.

He saw that behind him, there was now a woman with long red hair fighting the green giant that had been chasing him. Compared to the green giant, the woman fought with a beautiful and swift technique.

In her right hand, the woman held a katana, and a black cloth was tied around her head, covering both of her eyes.

Witnessing the event, the young man's eyes sparkled in admiration for the woman's fighting technique. Even now, the young man had forgotten the pain he had been experiencing since earlier.

The woman fought by utilizing the giant's body size. She moved through the gaps between its legs and climbed onto the giant's body, leaving the giant overwhelmed by the speed of her attacks and movements.

“GROOOAAAAR!”

Once again, the giant roared, then leaped backward, preparing to charge and pounce on the woman.

The woman stood and assumed a stance. Now, she looked like she was preparing to unleash a decisive attack in this one-sided battle.

The giant stared at the woman sharply, and the woman returned the gaze just as sharply. The atmosphere at that moment seemed so quiet and serious.

After a few moments, the giant suddenly roared and ran away, leaving the woman who was still preparing to attack.

The dry ground trembled harshly as the giant fled. After ensuring that the giant had indeed moved away, the woman then shook and cleaned the blood that still clinging to her sword using the black cloth she had used as an eye cover.

“Phew...”

The woman exhaled and relaxed her sore shoulders. Then, she sheathed her sword and gazed at the sky for a very long time.

The young man then remembered the wounds he was enduring. Without much thought, the young man shouted for help to the woman in front of him. Instantly, the woman turned her face and walked toward the injured young man.

“You...” said the woman as she observed the severely wounded body of the young man. One of his joints seemed to have shifted in the wrong direction.

“He... help... me,” groaned the young man.

The woman just stood there, observing the young man lying in pain. After a few moments, she began to ask.

“Are you okay?” asked the woman.

“Please... help... me...” uttered the young man, who then finally passed out due to the injuries and pain he was experiencing.

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