The next morning, the orange light of dawn illuminated the world.
Only then did the green-haired witch Schierke finally tear her gaze away, looking rather reluctant. She had stayed up all night, intently watching the back of the man who had fought alone the entire night, slaying countless demonic "monsters." Though he was covered in wounds, he was basically unharmed. She murmured in amazement:
"I never would've imagined..."
"He could do something like that in a human body. With nothing but mortal strength, he slaughtered hundreds, even thousands, of vengeful spirits and demons..."
"Unbelievable!"
"If it were an ordinary warrior, taking on eight or ten would already make him exceptionally strong, wouldn't it?"
"Who is he, exactly?"
Actually, Schierke had wanted to help the previous night. She was only an apprentice witch, but she could use various cursed objects, magical barriers, and a whole range of powerful spells. Helping him repel the spirits and demons—the "monsters" drawn there by that evil brand—wouldn't have been much of a problem.
But then...
That troublesome little girl, who was now fast asleep in a corner behind them, hugging a gigantic plush bear beside the bonfire that had somehow burned down to nothing but wisps of ash, had stopped her. The girl had said that he could handle it on his own.
At first, Schierke hadn't believed that a human could possibly achieve something like that. Now, she had no choice but to believe it.
After all, she had witnessed with her own eyes, from beginning to end, how the black swordsman Guts fought alone all night with nothing but a greatsword. One of his eyes was blind and one of his arms was crippled, yet he battled thousands upon thousands of spirits, demons, skeletons, ferocious beasts, and other "monsters." He had slain more