Only I know that this world will end – 075 | Sousaku – 創作

And found.

When they went to the residential area where he had fought a fierce battle with the Minotaur, they found the battleaxe lying on the ground in the middle of an alley, as if it had been left there as a lost and forgotten object.

"――It's here! "

Shouting, Akira rushed to the axe.
The blade of the battle-axe was sticky with old bloodstains, but the sharpness of the blade seemed undiminished, reflecting the moonlight and giving off a dull glow.
Akira looked around, remembering the story he had exchanged at the hospital about the disappearing corpse of the monsters.
But, as expected, the Minotaur's corpse was nowhere to be found.
Considering that there was no way that anyone could carry such a huge body, this was probably the phenomenon of the monster's corpse disappearing that Nao and the others were talking about.
There was a large amount of black blood on the ground, and these pools of blood were the only thing that told you that there had indeed been a dead body there.

"Good for you."

Nao gave a small chuckle and came up to Akira, avoiding the bloodstains left on the ground.

Then Nao stared at the axe somberly and muttered softly.

"Looking at it again, it's really big."
"Well, it's the weapon of the Minotaur."

So saying, Akira grabbed the battle-axe, which was the same size as his own, and lifted it up in one motion.
The weight could be felt, but it was not a problem. Seeing that his body did not seem to be screaming, it was likely that the effect of the increase in strength value.
Akira moved away from Nao and took a quick swing once to see how easy it was to use.

(……Yeah. I knew it, it's easier to use, probably because my strength has grown considerably compared to before.)

Akira muttered to himself in his mind, and after a few more swings, he tried a few more movements, this time with a monster as an opponent in mind.
Cutting down and up. A sideswipe and a circular rotating slash centered on himself.
Akira sought his own way of fighting, mixing in the techniques he had developed in his previous battles, such as throwing and hand-to-hand combat.
And so, after deciding on a certain fighting style, Akira grinned.

(Good. When I swing it, it feels like my body is pulled a little, but I don't get pushed around. That's good enough. Now if only I could use this weapon right after I return to death――――)

And just as he thought of this, Akira remembered that existence.

(Oh right, the inventory! I should register it on that one!! )

A system that allowed you to carry over your selections to the next Return from Hell.
When Akira remembered its existence, he immediately registered the minotaur's axe in his inventory.

(Okay, that should bring it to my next Return from Hell point.)

Akira turned off the inventory screen displayed and slung the battle-axe back on his shoulder.
Then Nao turned to Akira and said.

"You look like a bandit."
"……Could you please put it more nicely? It doesn't sound good."
"Then what else can I say? "
"For example, you know. Kintarou, the boy from folklore who had an axe and superhuman strength…… Maybe? "
"Is that better? I wonder."
"Isn't he cuter than a bandit? "
"It's the same."

At that moment, Nao laughed at Akira's words.

"――――Nao-san"

Suddenly, Akira, whose expression had turned serious, called Nao's name.

"What? "

She must have had a bad feeling about the expression on Akira's face.
Nao's smile suddenly faded and her expression turned serious as she asked the question.

"What the hell is going――――"

Nao continued to speak, but her words were cut short.

She also realized what Akira was trying to say.

"……We're surrounded."

In a small voice, Nao stated.

"……Yeah. And it's all Black Wolves and Grey Wolves."

Akira nodded and looked around.
In the midst of the surrounding houses, behind the brick wall that divided the property, at the turn of a narrow alley.
Slowly, creepily.
A pack of wolves with black and gray fur slowly appeared before Akira and Nao.

――There were twelve of them in total.

Perhaps all the wolves that were in the area had gathered.
The wolves that appeared were drooling from their mouths and snarling hostility toward Akira.

(Damn, the impact of trophies is too big. 『Wolf Hunter』 Hostility +20. 『The Hunter』 Hostility +30. In addition, with the 『Wolf Killer』 that I just acquired, I have an extra +40 hostility. All together, that's a total increase of 90! I am more often attacked by these guys than by any other monster, by far!! )

In the past, when dealing with wolf monsters, he had basically let Nao fall back behind him.
Because as long as the effect of the trophy was to force hatred, if the wolves were split between the front and rear guard, the wolves would most certainly have gone after Akira.
But now, surrounded without gaps to prevent escape, there was no way for Nao to escape from the animosity.

(This is not good…… This would force Nao-san to fight.)

Silently, Akira clicked his tongue.
If Nao died, Akira himself would return to the past along with her.
If they went back in time, he would be stuck again for more than half a day.
Right now, his priority was leveling Nao, but since he eventually had to level himself as well, he could not go back so many times in vain.
With that thought in mind, Akira whispers to Nao.

"Nao-san. When I give you the signal, please activate your magic against the Gray Wolf in the front."
"……Gotcha."

Muttering, Nao nodded as if she was ready and readied her pistol.

"Then are you ready? One, two――――Three!! "

As soon as he was done speaking, Akira stamped his foot on the ground and ran forward into the pack.
At the same time, Nao also raises her voice to activate the magic.

"Shock Arrow!! "

An arrow of light shot out of the muzzle and flew into the wolf pack at the same time as Akira.
At that moment, the Grey Wolf, which was closest to Akira in the herd, turned on him, but an arrow of light pierced its face, shocking it so badly that it seemed to explode.

"Gyain! "

Akira quickly kicked the flustered Gray Wolf, twisted his body around, and held the battle axe in his hand at his waist.

"Hmm―――ph!! "

Akira swung his battle axe as hard as he could at the black and gray wolves that were coming at him.
The blade cut through the wind as it encroached, slashing down their bodies with a single flash of its blade.

(――――As expected of something used by the Minotaur.)

Akira grinned as the blood splattered.

(The sharpness and power are totally different. What kind of principle makes it so powerful? )

Was there some kind of effect granted to each weapon that the monsters have, like the damage bonus on the trophies?
Akira thought about this, but quickly switched his thoughts, swiftly backstepped back to Nao, and immediately turned his body around.

"...!? Get down!! "
"Ha! "

At Akira's shouted words, Nao reflexively crouched down.

"Gaw! "

The fangs of a Black Wolf approaching from behind Nao cut through the air, catching the spot where Nao's head had been just moments before.
Akira kicked the Black Wolf in the side, knocking it to the ground with a mighty thud.
However, the position in which he kicked was not good. The off-balance kick failed to carry enough weight, and although it knocked it to the ground, the Black Wolf quickly tried to get back up.
Immediately, Akira tried to move to topple him, but he stopped his movement.
Nao, who was crouched down, had already thrust her muzzle into the Black Wolf, which lay against the ground.

"Shock Arrow! "

With those words spewed out, the impact that hit the Black Wolf this time ended its breath.

"Nice! "
"This is not the time!! In front!! "

At being told, Akira switched his gaze.
Then, there was another Black Wolf already on the way to Akira with quick movements.

"Gah! "

The Black Wolf, fangs bared, opened its mouth to bite Akira's arm.
Akira quickly avoided the attack, and then went on to kick its body with his knee and blow it away.
As he did so, a Grey Wolf, which was right beside him, pounced on him, trying to tear him apart with its sharp claws. Akira used his battle-axe as a shield to catch the attack, and immediately threw a front kick to make the gray wolf back down.
He immediately readied his battle axe to give chase but was stopped by the oncoming Black Wolf and was unable to finish it off.

(It's more exasperating than I thought! )

With a mental click of his tongue, Akira swung his axe and slashed at the Black Wolf.
Akira then held his battle-axe at his hip and looked at the wolves in front of him.

"――――！ "

As soon as he applied force, the muscles in Akira's lower legs instantly bulged and muscles flared up.
Akira, as if exploding from a burst of built-up strength, leaped at the wolves in one swift movement and swung the battle-axe in his hand in a side-swipe.

"Ooooooooh!! "

One after another, the wolves were cut in half by the swinging blade, and black blood splattered all over the area.
At that moment, a screen appeared in front of Akira's eyes, informing him that his level was up, but he turned it off annoyingly and glanced around quickly.

(――Five more to go! )

Muttering in his mind, Akira kicked the ground again and pounced on the surviving Gray and Black Wolves.
With the decrease in numbers, Nao herself must have been able to afford some leeway.
While releasing magic, Nao slowly retreated, and when she reached a position where she herself could not be so easily attacked, she launched her magic one after another as if to support Akira.
The impact of Nao's shots caused the Gray and Black Wolves to stop moving for a moment, and Akira did not miss that opportunity, swinging his axe from one to the other, taking their lives one after the other.

"That should be the last one! "

Shouting, Akira swung his blade at the last one, a gray wolf, decapitating it.