Playful days (Part 12)

Blood Manipulation: Striking Blood!

From her hand, bullet-like blood projectiles shot toward me. One struck my belly, sending a wave of searing pain through my body. But I had no time to react—I forced myself up and lunged forward, closing the distance between us.

Eriko jumped back, maintaining a ten-meter gap.

"Blood Manipulation: Striking Blood!"

"That attack again."

This time, I raised my sword. The blood bullet ricocheted off the blade, but Eriko swiftly swung her hand. The deflected blood solidified mid-air, transforming into a dagger that flew toward me at high speed. Before I could react, it stabbed deep into my left arm.

"With a little imagination… this fight is a piece of cake." She smirked.

"You're not getting anywhere."

I gritted my teeth and forced myself up. Charging forward, I swung my sword, but Eriko simply leaped backward, keeping her distance.

"Where's that strength from earlier? Play with me more. Play with me more. Entertain me, little girl."

[Appraisal]

Name: Eriko

Race: Demon

HP: 13,500/50,500

MP: 8,920/10,000

STR: 500

AGI: 350

VIT: 356

DEX: 287

INT: 242

Level: 80

Type: None

Skills:

Her HP had dropped—she'd taken damage from my magic earlier. She wanted to fight at a distance? Fine. I'll play along.

"Lightning Strike!"

A bolt of lightning descended upon Eriko. She summoned creatures from the forest, using them as living shields. Their charred bodies collapsed to the ground, but Eriko remained unscathed.

So that's how she uses Beast Manipulation…

Instead of wasting more MP on Lightning Strike, I switched to fire magic.

"Fireball!"

Blazing projectiles rained down, forcing Eriko to dodge.

"Monster Call!"

Hundreds of creatures emerged from the shadows.

"Eat her alive."

Their crimson eyes locked onto me. Then, they charged.

Enemy Status:

Slime (Lv. 10) - HP: 100/100 - MP: 20/20

Green Slime (Lv. 10) - HP: 100/100 - MP: 20/20 - Ability:

Blue Slime (Lv. 10) - HP: 100/100 - MP: 20/20 - Ability:

Night Bats (Lv. 10) - HP: 300/300 - MP: 50/50

Lesser Goblins (Lv. 10) - HP: 800/800 - MP: 10/10

Cave Wolf (Lv. 10) - HP: 1,000/1,000 - MP: 20/20

Wild Rock Pig (Lv. 10) - HP: 2,000/2,000 - MP: 0/0

Wild Bull (Lv. 10) - HP: 6,000/6,000 - MP: 0/0

Weak, but too many. If I waste my MP recklessly, I'll run out of energy before I even reach Eriko.

"Sword Skill: Cut!"

I slashed through the monsters within reach, then leaped into the trees to escape. Pain flared through my wounds—my belly, my arm. Her blood manipulation had limits, but could she control blood other than her own? I had to be careful.

I cast Healing, sealing my wounds before she could exploit them further.

"You're not running away… Blood Manipulation: Blood Arrow!"

She formed a bow from her blood and fired. The arrow homed in on me, twisting midair to follow my movements.

Damn it.

I turned, sword raised.

But before it reached me—

"Blood Fire Magic: Exploding Blood!"

The arrow ignited, detonating in a burst of flame. Burns seared my skin as I stumbled.

She grinned. "Got you."

She loaded five more arrows.

"Blood Manipulation: Blood Arrows!"

No choice—I dove into the sea beside the forest. The arrows followed, but the moment they touched the water, they dissolved.

Blood is over 90% water. Even in this world, physics still applies.

Underwater, she couldn't use her fire magic either. A natural weakness.

From above, she watched, her expression twisting into amusement. "My blood manipulation… doesn't work in water? This is news to me. To think a higher demon like me has a weakness. This battle just got interesting."

"Water Magic: Water Slicer!"

A blade of water shot toward her. She countered with flames, evaporating the attack. I surfaced and fired again, forcing her to dodge.

"Night Bats! Dive down and kill her!"

"Wind Slash!"

I cut them down mid-flight. But Eriko only laughed.

"Let's experiment. How long does hardened blood last in water? Blood Manipulation: Blood Meteorite!"

A crimson projectile launched toward me. Slower than her bullets, but still deadly. I dodged, but the blood remained intact in the water.

"Success. Then how about this? Blood Manipulation: Blood Burst!"

The monsters she'd summoned suddenly convulsed. Their bodies exploded as their blood was ripped from them, forming a massive orb above her.

"Blood Manipulation: Rain of a Thousand Blood Swords!"

The blood hardened into blades and descended like a storm. I dove, but the swords cut through the water, slicing my skin.

I had two choices: drown or die impaled.

"Ice Magic: Ice Wall!"

A frozen barrier blocked the onslaught. I surfaced, gasping for air.

"Still alive? Then how about this? Blood Manipulation: Giant Blood Sword!""

A massive blade cleaved through my ice wall. My MP was down to 5,450, while she still had 8,674. At this rate, she'd corner me.

Strategy mattered more than levels. If I wanted to win, I had to outthink her.

Using wind magic, I propelled myself toward her, sword ready. I swung.

Steel met flesh.

"I did it…"

Her neck was cut.

She smirked. The wound closed instantly.

"Did you think you could kill me? Blood Manipulation: Blood Death Scythe."

A massive scythe formed in her hands.

"Playtime's over. Goodbye, little elf."

Pain exploded through me as my left arm was severed.

I collapsed, rolling in agony.

Eriko approached, scythe raised.

This is bad.

This is really bad.