Chapter 35: Skills of the Fallen Hunter
Morning sunlight filtered through the forest canopy, painting golden patches across the clearing.
Tanaka stood alone.
A wooden sword rested in his right hand.
He had held it many times over the past few days, but today felt different.
He wasn’t practicing.
He was searching.
Ever since killing the bearded hunter a year ago, Devourer had absorbed more than skills. It had devoured fragments of a life. Most of those memories remained sealed deep within his soul, surfacing only as brief flashes.
Until now.
Tanaka tightened his grip.
"I wonder..."
He closed his eyes.
"Show me."
Nothing happened.
Then...
A strange warmth spread through his right arm.
The wooden sword suddenly felt lighter.
Familiar.
His feet shifted without conscious thought.
His shoulders relaxed.
His breathing slowed.
He wasn’t copying someone.
His body simply... knew.
"So this is what you left behind."
He took a step.
The sword flowed through the air.
One slash.
Then another.
The movements linked together naturally, each strike preparing the next. His wrists turned effortlessly, conserving energy while maintaining power.
The nearby goblins stopped hammering metal.
One of them whispered,
"He’s never trained."
Another slowly nodded.
"He shouldn’t be able to move like that."
Tanaka barely heard them.
His body continued moving.
Forward.
Pivot.
Slash.
Step back.
Guard.
Every motion carried purpose.
Then...
The world around him disappeared.
—
Rain.
Mud.
A younger pair of hands gripped a steel sword.
The bearded hunter.
He was much younger.
Training beneath an older swordsman.
Again.
Again.
Again.
The same swing repeated hundreds of times.
Blisters.
Bleeding palms.
More practice.
Again.
Again.
Again.
—
Tanaka’s eyes snapped open.
"So that’s how."
Not magic.
Experience.
Thousands upon thousands of repetitions.
Years of discipline.
Devourer hadn’t stolen talent.
It had inherited the result of another man’s life.
The realization left an uncomfortable weight in his chest.
"I..."
He looked down at his hands.
"These aren’t my achievements."
A familiar little blue slime bounced onto his shoulder.
Boing.
Tanaka smiled.
"No."
"They aren’t."
"But I’ll honor them."
Later that morning...
The goblin blacksmith approached carrying several objects.
A leather chest piece.
Iron bracers.
Simple boots.
A short dagger.
"We’ve been making these."
He scratched the back of his head.
"For you."
Tanaka accepted them with genuine surprise.
"You made all this?"
The goblin puffed out his chest proudly.
"Our craftsmanship has improved."
"Thanks to the dungeon materials."
"And..."
He looked embarrassed.
"...watching humans."
Tanaka couldn’t help laughing.
"You’ve been spying on hunters?"
"We observed."
"Not spying."
"That’s exactly spying."
The goblin pretended not to hear him.
Tanaka slipped on the leather armor.
It fit perfectly.
The bracers settled comfortably around his forearms.
The boots felt sturdy.
Even the dagger rested naturally at his waist.
As a slime, he had never needed armor.
Now...
Every piece could improve his survival.
The dagger came next.
He drew it.
Its balance immediately felt familiar.
Without thinking, he spun it once around his fingers before reversing the grip.
"..."
Tanaka froze.
"I definitely didn’t know how to do that."
Another memory surfaced.
—
Dark alley.
Night.
The hunter quietly cutting ropes to rescue trapped villagers after a monster attack.
Quick.
Precise.
Silent.
—
The vision vanished.
Tanaka stared at the dagger.
"You weren’t only a hunter."
No.
The memories showed something else.
Someone who protected people.
Someone respected.
Someone who laughed around campfires.
Someone who had a family waiting at home.
He sighed quietly.
"I wish we’d met differently."
The forest answered only with birdsong.
The Alpha Wolf arrived shortly afterward.
Its golden eyes rested on the sword.
Then on Tanaka.
"You want to spar?"
The wolf barked once.
Tanaka grinned.
"I’ll take that as yes."
The little slime immediately bounced onto a nearby rock.
Apparently volunteering as referee.
Several goblins gathered.
Rabbits paused their work.
Even younger wolves came running.
News spread quickly.
The Great One was fighting the Alpha.
The duel began.
The Alpha moved first.
Fast.
Faster than most humans could react.
Tanaka barely avoided the lunge.
Instinct.
Not thought.
His body shifted automatically.
The wooden sword tapped the wolf’s shoulder.
One point.
The Alpha immediately circled.
Its tail wagged once.
It was enjoying this.
Again.
This time the wolf feinted left before attacking from the right.
Tanaka recognized the trick instantly.
Not because he’d seen it before.
Because the hunter had.
His feet pivoted.
The sword intercepted the attack.
Wood met claw.
Thunk.
The Alpha sprang backward.
Its eyes widened.
Tanaka laughed.
"I surprised myself too."
The duel continued.
Neither side fought seriously.
Neither intended harm.
It became a dance.
Movement.
Timing.
Prediction.
The watching goblins could barely follow.
The rabbits cheered whenever either side landed a clean hit.
The little slime simply bounced excitedly every few seconds.
Eventually...
The Alpha stopped.
It lowered its head respectfully.
Acknowledging defeat.
Tanaka returned the gesture.
"You’ve gotten stronger."
The wolf huffed proudly.
"So have I."
That afternoon...
Tanaka found something even more valuable.
Books.
Well...
Pieces of books.
Old pages collected from abandoned hunter camps over the past year.
The goblins had stored them because they looked important.
Unfortunately...
Nobody could read them.
Until now.
Tanaka picked up the first page.
Symbols.
Lines.
Words.
For a moment they looked meaningless.
Then...
The memories shifted.
Letters arranged themselves naturally inside his mind.
He read aloud.
"Emergency supply route..."
He blinked.
"I can read."
The goblins looked confused.
"You already could."
"No."
"I mean..."
He smiled.
"I can read this world’s language."
As evening settled over the settlement, Tanaka sat atop the rocky hill overlooking the village.
Smoke drifted peacefully from goblin forges.
Rabbits harvested herbs.
Young slimes practiced bouncing in formation.
The Alpha led the evening patrol.
Everything felt...
Alive.
The little slime climbed into his lap.
Boing.
Tanaka absentmindedly patted its head.
"You know..."
He looked toward the distant horizon beyond the forest.
"A year ago..."
"I thought protecting this village would be enough."
The little slime listened quietly.
"It isn’t."
"The world is moving."
"Kingdoms."
"Guilds."
"Ancient races."
"Dungeons."
"There are things out there far beyond this forest."
His fingers tightened slightly around the old wooden sword.
"I’ve inherited a hunter’s skills."
"A hunter’s language."
"And pieces of a hunter’s life."
"If I’m going to protect everyone..."
"I need to understand the world they live in."
Tanaka stood.
His eyes remained fixed on the horizon.
"When the time comes..."
"I’ll leave this forest."
"Not as prey."
"Not as a monster hiding from humanity."
"But as the Great One."
"And I’ll learn what kind of world awaits us."