The Tale of A Man Who Believed That His Reincarnation Had Granted Him A Japanese Sword And The Greatest Battle Sense, Only To Have The God Finally Inform Him "Huh, I Didn't Give You Any Combat Sense… That's Scary…" - Episode 34

“H-Hey, are you really sure about this, Feodora…?”

“…No, not really. That guy always comes up with the craziest ideas.”

“Well, Enri’s plan is definitely dangerous, but it’s also very effective for luring out our target… Though, yeah, it’s really risky.”

A deserted village lay a short distance from Redinbara, the necromancer’s hideout. In the center of the abandoned village, a massive bonfire roared, its flames rising high into the sky. Surrounding the fire, camping gear and tents were set up as Leo, Feodora, and Alice cautiously continued their preparations.

As for me, I was busy slicing through the remaining houses in the village with my katana, reducing them to rubble before tossing anything burnable into the bonfire. I turned the process into a little game—if the house collapsed in two strikes, it was a “normal success,” and if it fell in just one, it was a “good success.” It made demolition surprisingly fun.

The plan to lure out the necromancer was simple: camp out in his precious workshop, spend the night, enjoy some good food, and chat about old times.

If we openly mocked him by setting up camp here, the necromancer would surely lose his temper and send every undead under his control to attack us. Once we took care of those, he’d have no choice but to come out himself. Perfect. Oh, and by the way, the horses we rode in on were too scared to come near, so I left them tied up somewhere safe.

“Burn, burn, burn—let the corpses burn!”

To add to the effect, I made another fire downwind from our campsite and started kicking limbless corpses into the flames.

When Alice noticed what I was doing, she let out a strangled “Agh!” and ran over in a panic, staff in hand.

“‘Grant these souls the peace of flames—Cremation!!’ …Wait! Enri! You can’t just burn corpses that were raised with necromancy! If you don’t purify them with holy magic first, the tainted energy could cause explosions!”

“Oh, really? My bad. …So, uh, Alice, I’m about to burn all the ones I just cut down. Could you cast that spell a bunch of times?”
“Eh…?! That purification spell is one of my few mid-level spells, and it takes a lot of my mana…”

I wanted to destroy everything the necromancer had painstakingly created, so I had no choice but to burn all the bodies. Feeling a little guilty, I gave Alice a quick bow and resumed my task of kicking corpses into the fire.

Half-crying, Alice kept chanting the spell, grumbling about my “awful workload.” Eventually, Feodora helped out too, and thanks to the boosted flames, all the corpses I had cut down were reduced to ashes in about three hours. By the end of it, Alice was trembling like a newborn fawn, barely able to stand without using her staff for support.

“Alice, you were chanting purification magic the whole time? Y-You did a great job… I’m surprised you didn’t run out of mana. That spell drains a lot of energy, right?”

“I… I have a lot of mana, so… Fe-Feodora, lend me your shoulder… Please…”

Feodora helped Alice over to the campfire, where Leo was tending the flames. When he saw them return, his face lit up with relief.

“Finally! You guys are back! …Wait, Alice, are you okay? You’re twitching like a half-dead fawn.”

“Hahh… Hahh… I’m fine… Just need a break…”

Alice staggered into the tent we had set up and collapsed inside, still gripping her staff. Seriously, thanks, Alice. If anything else happens, I’ll handle it before you even have to cast a spell, so just rest easy.

“Leo, did anything happen while we were off purifying and burning corpses?”

“Nah, nothing… There were a few limbless corpses wriggling around, but Feodora burned them all.”

I unsheathed my katana, sat cross-legged by the fire, and gazed into the flickering flames.

“No attacks yet… Probably because I’m here, huh?”

“Maybe… Or they’re just waiting for nightfall.”

Leo looked uneasy, while Feodora remained tense, ready for battle at any moment.

That wasn’t good. If they were too on edge, we wouldn’t be able to properly provoke our enemy.

“Leo, Feodora, have you two always been in a party together?”

I tossed another piece of firewood into the flames, speaking as casually as if we were in a café. They exchanged glances, confused by the sudden topic.

“Uh, yeah… But is now really the time for that?”

Leo sounded uncertain, but Feodora quickly caught on and played along.

“Yes, I’ve been stuck with this idiot Leo ever since we became adventurers. He’s always rushing in without thinking, so if I don’t watch him, who knows what trouble he’ll get into?”

“That means you’ve been on a lot of adventures, right? I’d love to hear about them! After all, I’m just a rookie adventurer—this is only my second day.”

The sky had already turned dark, and the warm glow of the fire flickered against the night. Feodora started recounting her past adventures with great enthusiasm, her tension melting away. Leo, still not entirely getting the point, occasionally chimed in but kept glancing around warily.

“Feodora, thanks for sharing! The part where you ran from the golem in the ruins and when Leo almost got taken away by a water spirit—those were hilarious!”

“Yeah, I figured we could have a fun campfire chat, but I didn’t expect to relax this much. Maybe we should tell the Adventurers’ Guild that this place is actually a great campsite instead of a necromancer’s hideout!”

I pulled a cloth from my pack, casually tied it over my left eye, and loudly declared how comfortable and peaceful this spot was. Even in the darkness, I could feel the sharp hostility directed at me.

“Still, this is disappointing. We came here expecting a necromancer, but all we’ve seen are rotten corpses. If that’s the best he can do, then he’s not a necromancer—just a worthless corpse collector, a pathetic garbage hoarder.”

“Enri! You can’t just go around provoking the—ah!”

Leo finally realized what I was doing. He hesitated, clenched his teeth, then forced a grin.

“E-Enri… How are you so strong, anyway?!”

“Hmm… Maybe because I’ve cut down a lot of people. And not just people.”

Yes—what was needed now was mockery. A prideful enemy, humiliated by having his minions effortlessly slain and his lair turned into a casual campsite, would be seething.

For someone who couldn’t bear the thought of being belittled, pride was as valuable as life itself. And when that pride was shattered, all that remained was a desperate need for vengeance.

Just then, a gust of wind scattered the bonfire’s embers, and in that instant, I saw them—massive, pitch-black beasts lunging from the darkness behind Leo and Feodora.

Tearing off my blindfold, I stepped forward. In a single motion, I swung my katana, slicing one beast’s head clean off. Shifting my weight, I drove my blade through another’s throat, sending its massive body crashing into the forest.

From behind me, another creature attacked, but a swift elbow to its jaw and a quick slash to the throat ended it instantly.

As I reset my stance, I saw something approaching in the darkness—a figure in a black robe, chanting with an outstretched hand.

Then, from the ground, something massive began to rise.

“A-Are you serious?! That’s… a dragon?!”

“A dragon… zombie?!”