An ordinary profession creates the world's strongest

Hajime once again peeked out from behind the rock to observe the situation. No matter how one looked at it, this was the moment when a wolf was preying on a little rabbit (it wasn't cute enough to be called a little rabbit). Hajime stood up and tried to take advantage of the chaos to move.

however……

“Chuck!”

After the rabbit made a cute sound, it jumped up on the spot, spun around in the air, and used its long and thick rabbit feet to perform a roundhouse kick at the first two-tailed wolf.

Boom!

An unimaginable kicking sound was heard, and the rabbit's foot hit the two-tailed wolf's head.

then--

Click!

A sound that shouldn't have been heard was heard, and the wolf's head was twisted to an impossible angle.

Hajime froze in the posture he had risen.

And during this period, the rabbit used the centrifugal force of the roundhouse kick to flip again in the air. In an upside-down state, it stepped into the air and fell to the ground like a meteorite. At the moment before landing, it did a vertical somersault and launched a powerful heel kick at the two-tailed wolf at the landing point.

Clap!

The second wolf's head was crushed before it could even let out a dying cry.

At this time, two more two-tailed wolves appeared and pounced on the rabbit that had just landed on the ground.

"This time, the rabbit is finally going to lose." Just as Hajime thought this, the rabbit suddenly stood on its ears, supporting itself, and spun at high speed with its legs spread out, as if in a breakdance position. The two two-tailed wolves that had lunged at it were sent flying back by a tornado-like spinning kick, crashing into the wall. A crashing sound echoed, blood splattered onto the wall, and the two-tailed wolves' bodies slowly slid down, motionless.

The last two-tailed wolf raised its tail and growled, then its tail began to discharge electricity. It seemed that was the unique magic of the two-tailed wolf.

“Guaaaaa!!”

Accompanied by a roar, the electric shock flew towards the rabbit.

Yet, the rabbit, with its swift footsteps, dodged the fast-approaching electric shock. And when the shock ceased, the rabbit charged forward, unleashing a somersault kick at the wolf's jaw. The wolf was sent flying backward, crashing to the ground with a cracking sound. The wolf's neck must have been broken.

“Chuck!”

Kicking Rabbit gave a whoosh of victory (?) and clapped its ears with its front paws.

(…Oh my god, please tell me this isn’t true…)

A forced smile crossed Hajime's face, his frozen body still unable to move. That rabbit was more than dangerous; compared to it, the Nightmare Warriors that had been tiring Hajime and the others were practically toys. And it might even be stronger than the simple, monotonous Behemoth's attacks.

“If we’re discovered, we’ll definitely die.” Anxiety showed on Hajime’s face, and he stepped back unconsciously.

But that action was a huge mistake.

Click.

The sound was particularly loud in the cave.

As Hajime stepped back, he accidentally kicked a pebble under his feet. It was a clichéd and deplorable oversight. A cold sweat streamed down Hajime's forehead. His face, which had been looking at the pebble, stiffened like a piece of machinery that had been forgotten to be lubricated. He turned back to check on the Kicking Rabbit's reaction.

Kicking Rabbit looked at Hajime impartially.

Its eyes, like dark red gemstones, narrowed as it tracked Hajime's form. Like a frog caught in a snake's gaze, Hajime froze, unable to move. Though his soul blasted him with all its might, urging him to flee, his body remained frozen, like a tattered nerve.

Soon, Kicking Rabbit, who had been looking back at Shi, turned to face Shi, bent his legs, and prepared to strike.

(coming soon!)

The moment Hajime instinctively grasped this, Kicking Rabbit's legs exploded with power, leaving an afterimage behind as it charged forward at lightning speed.

When he came to his senses, Hajime had already unconsciously jumped sideways with all his strength.

Then, a cannonball-like kick landed where Hajime had been a moment before, creating a hole in the ground as if by an explosion. Hajime rolled on the hard ground, landing in a sitting position. He stared at the sunken ground, his face pale as he stepped back.

Kicking Rabbit slowly and calmly stood up, leaping back to the ground with all his might, charging towards Hajime. In his panic, Hajime constructed a stone wall on the ground, but that wall was easily breached, and Kicking Rabbit's kicks shattered Hajime's body.

Perhaps instinctively, Hajime instantly raised his left hand to block the blow, avoiding a crushed face. However, he was also thrown back by the impact, rolling on the ground again. When the rolling stopped, he felt a sharp pain in his left hand.

“Ugh—”

A closer look revealed his left hand, bent abnormally and dangling in the air, seemingly shattered. He crouched on the ground in agony, his eyes still desperately gazing in the direction of the Kicking Rabbit. This time, it didn't lunge, but approached with a leisurely, effortless pace. If Shiji was not mistaken, the Kicking Rabbit's eyes held a look of contempt and mockery, as if it were completely toying with its prey.

Hajime could only sit on the ground awkwardly and keep backing away.

Finally, the Kicking Rabbit stopped in front of Hajime. It stared at Hajime, who was sitting on the ground, as if it were watching a crawling insect. Then, as if deliberately showing it to Hajime, it raised one leg high in the air.

(…Is that the end…)

Incomparable despair washed over Hajime. With a look of resignation, he stared blankly at the Kicking Rabbit's raised foot, only to see a fatal kick descend with a gust of wind before his eyes.

Hajime closed his eyes tightly in fear.

"..."

But no matter how much time has passed, the expected impact has not yet arrived.

Hajime trembled as he opened his eyes. Kicking Rabbit's foot was right before his eyes. It swung down and landed incredibly close to him. "Is it toying with me again?" As Hajime's despair deepened, he noticed something strange. Upon closer inspection, Kicking Rabbit was trembling.

(W-What's going on? Why is it shaking... It looks like it's afraid of something...)

It wasn't "as if," Kicking Rabbit was actually afraid. In the passage to the right, where Hajime had originally intended to escape, a new monster appeared. Kicking Rabbit was actually afraid of that being.

The monster possessed a massive body, approximately two meters tall, covered in white fur. Its body was also streaked with dark red lines. If anything, it resembled a bear, except its arms extended to its feet, and its hands bore three thirty-centimeter-long claws.

The Claw Bear had soon drawn closer, glaring at Kicking Rabbit and Hajime. Silence enveloped the surroundings. Not only Hajime, but Kicking Rabbit too was frozen, motionless. No, it couldn't move, just like Hajime had just now. Kicking Rabbit stared at the Claw Bear, frozen in place.

“…Gurgle.”

As if fed up with the situation, the Claw Bear suddenly growled.

「!?」

Kicking Rabbit shuddered for a moment, as if awakened from a deep sleep, then turned and fled like a rabbit. The sprint he had previously used to annihilate the enemy was now used with all his might for escape.

However, its attempt was unsuccessful.

The Claw Bear, with a speed belying its enormous size, closed in on the Kicking Rabbit, using its long arms to swing its sharp claws. The Kicking Rabbit, however, utilized its own agility and lightness to twist its body and dodge the powerful blow accompanied by the gust of wind.

From what Shi saw, the claws of the Claw Bear did not touch the Kicking Rabbit, and it looked like it had completely avoided the Claw Bear's attack.

but……

After the Kicking Rabbit landed on the ground, its body separated diagonally, spurting out a column of blood like a fountain, and the two halves of its body fell down.

Hajime was stunned. Kicking Rabbit, who had just displayed such overwhelming strength, was completely defenseless and easily killed. Hajime completely understood why Kicking Rabbit had fled in fear. That Claw Bear was a monster of a different level. Even Kicking Rabbit, with his skills as a capoeira master, was no match for it. (Editor's note: Capoeira is a unique dance form that lies between art and martial arts. Its movements incorporate numerous martial arts moves such as side flips, roundhouse kicks, and handstands.)

The Claw Bear walked leisurely towards the Kicking Rabbit's corpse, stabbed it with its sharp claws, and began to eat it voraciously.

Hajime was unable to move because of the continuous excessive fear he had encountered, and because the Claw Bear was still staring at Hajime with sharp eyes while chewing on the Kicking Rabbit's corpse.

The Claw Bear swallowed the Kicking Rabbit in three bites. It growled and turned towards Hajime. Its gaze made it clear—you were the next meal.

Hajime saw the predator's eyes and panicked.

“Wa ...

He screamed meaninglessly, even forgetting the broken left hand, and desperately got up and ran in the opposite direction of the claw bear.

However, there was no reason why Hajime could escape from an opponent that even the Kicking Rabbit couldn't. Hearing the sound of wind whistling past, a powerful impact struck Hajime's left side, knocking him against the wall.

“Ugh!”

The air in his lungs was forced out by the impact, and Hajime coughed, slowly sliding down the wall. His vision was shaken by the impact, and he barely looked in the direction of the claw bear, only to see it chewing something.

But what was it chewing? The Kicking Rabbit should have been eaten by it a while ago, and why did the hand it was chewing seem familiar? The incomprehensible situation made Hajime's mind confused. He looked at his left hand, which had become lighter for some reason, or more accurately, at the place where his left hand had been...

"Strange?"

Hajime's cheek twitched, and he tilted his head, confused as to why his arm was gone? Why was he bleeding? Perhaps it was because his mind and heart refused to comprehend the truth. However, Hajime couldn't keep avoiding reality. The pain seemed to wake Hajime's mind, telling him that this was reality.

“Ah, ah, ahh ...

Hajime's screams echoed throughout the maze as his left arm was severed below the elbow.

The reason was the Claw Bear's unique magic: its three claws were entwined with wind blades, capable of extending up to thirty centimeters, capable of severing the opponent. Considering this, losing only one hand was a stroke of luck. It was unclear whether the Claw Bear was playing with its prey or simply due to Hajime's good luck, but even if Hajime were to be split in half like the Kicking Rabbit, it wouldn't be surprising.

After tasting Shi's arm, Claw Bear walked towards Shi leisurely. There was no contempt in its eyes like the Kicking Rabbit, but it just regarded Shi as food.

The Claw Bear approached him, slowly extending its front paws toward him. Since it didn't use its claws to cut him, it might be planning to eat him alive.

“Ah, ah, guwuwuwu, refine, ‘refine’!”

Because of the excessive pain, Shi's face was wet and sticky with tears, snot and saliva. He placed his right hand against the wall behind him and continued to practice, which was almost an unconscious action.

This was the sole power of Hajime, a man often criticized for his incompetence, his magical aptitude and physical abilities being low. Normally, this magic was used solely for the processing of swords, spears, and armor. Those with such a vocation were invariably blacksmiths. Thus, despite being told that this power was useless in combat, Hajime, with the ingenuity only possessed by someone from another world, devised a method of use that surprised even the Knights, and successfully saved his classmates. Because of this, in the face of life and death, Hajime unconsciously relied on this power, and thus found his way out.

After a flash of sky blue light, a small hole opened up on the wall behind him. Just as the Claw Bear's front paw was about to touch the hole, Shi rolled his body and got into the hole.

Seeing its prey escaping before its eyes, the Claw Bear was furious.

“Guaaaaaa!”

It roared, unleashed its unique magic, and swung its claws at the cave it had entered. A violent sound of destruction followed, and the wall was gradually dug open.

“Aa ...

Hearing the claw bear's roar and the sound of it digging into the wall, Hajime fell into a state of semi-panic, continuously practicing cultivation, trying to get as far away from the monster as possible. He moved further and further inward.

Without looking back, he continued to practice repeatedly, crawling along the ground. The pain in his left hand was no longer in his mind. He followed his survival instinct and continued to use his only strength.

How far has that progressed?

Hajime didn't know it, but he could no longer hear that terrifying sound. But he hadn't actually advanced very far. The effective range of a single refinement was about two meters (almost double the initial range), and with his left hand bleeding heavily, he probably couldn't move for long.

In fact, Hajime was almost unconscious due to heavy bleeding, but he still struggled to move forward.

however……

“‘Refine’…‘Refine’…‘Refine’…‘Refine’…‘Refine’…”

No matter how much he practiced, the wall before him remained unchanged. It seemed his magic power had been exhausted before he lost consciousness. His hand, which was touching the wall, slid away powerlessly, as if its strength had been exhausted.

His consciousness was hazy and he was about to lose it at any moment, but he managed to stay awake and turned over to lie on his back. He stared blankly at the dark ceiling. There seemed to be no green stone in this area, so there was no light.

Hajime unconsciously recalled the past, perhaps what they call a revolving lantern. From kindergarten to elementary school, middle school, and then high school, all kinds of memories flooded through his mind, and the last memory was... the time he spent with Kaori by the moonlit window, and her smile when he made a promise.

After that beautiful scene appeared, Hajime's consciousness was swallowed by darkness. Just before he completely lost consciousness, he felt a drop of water on his cheek.

It was as if someone was shedding tears.

tick tock...tick tock...

Feeling the water dripping onto his cheeks and into his mouth, Hajime felt his consciousness gradually regaining consciousness. He felt strange about this and slowly opened his eyes.

(…Am I still alive?…Am I saved?)

Hajime, confused, struggled to stand up, his forehead hitting the low ceiling.

“Ahgu!?”

Only now did he remember that the cave he had created was only about fifty centimeters wide. Hajime, hoping to extend the height of the cave through refinement, was about to reach for the ceiling. However, when he realized only one hand had entered his field of vision, he wavered.

After a moment of daze, Hajime finally remembered that he had lost his left hand below the elbow. In that instant, the hand that should have been gone felt a phantom pain. Hajime instinctively pressed his hand, his expression contorted in agony. Then he noticed something: the flesh at the broken part of his arm was bulging; the wound had healed.

"W-why? ...I lost so much blood..."

Although it was dark and blind, if there was light, one could see that Hajime was surrounded by a pool of blood. Normally, such a large amount of bleeding would be absolutely impossible to save.

Hajime felt around with his right hand, feeling something clammy. It must be the blood that had still not dried. Sure enough, the heavy bleeding wasn't a dream. Judging by the blood still being there, it must have been a short time since he fainted.

Despite this, the wound had healed. Just as Hajime was wondering about this, water dripped onto his cheeks and lips again. The moment the water dripped into his mouth, he felt a slight surge of energy return to his body.

“…Could it be… that’s why?”

Hajime endured the phantom pain and the fatigue brought on by anemia, and stretched out his right hand in the direction of the water droplets to refine it.

He dragged his shaky body forward, refining the water once more, advancing deeper and deeper. Miraculously, drinking the liquid seeping from between the rocks seemed to restore his magical power. No matter how many times he refined it, his magical power never ran out. So, Hajime, sleepless and restless, like a maniac, continued to refine in his pursuit of the water source.

Soon, when the flowing mysterious liquid turned from drops into a trickle and the amount of water began to increase significantly, after moving forward, it finally reached the source of the water.

“This…this is…”

There is a basketball-sized mineral that emits a pale blue light.

The ore was embedded within the surrounding stone walls, seemingly assimilated to them, dripping downward. It was a stone of mysterious beauty. To put it more precisely, it was like deepening the blue of aquamarine and making it shine.

For a moment, Hajime even forgot about the phantom pain and was fascinated by the ore.

Then, as if he was greedy and attracted, he stretched out his hand towards the stone and kissed it directly with his mouth.

Immediately, the pain he'd felt disappeared, his hazy mind cleared, and his fatigue gradually faded. It seemed that the fluid flowing from this stone was the reason Hajime had survived. This fluid seemed to have a healing effect. While the phantom pain didn't go away, and the lost blood didn't return, his other injuries and magic power were instantly restored.

Hajime didn't know that the stone was actually called the [Divine Crystal], and it was the greatest secret treasure in history, a legendary mineral that had been recognized as a lost object.