"A sword… A sword is inside me?"

Julian gritted his teeth as he looked at the sword pierced through him; a peal of laughter, still very much trying to escape from his lips.

And soon, he held his breath; his hand… sensually gripping the hilt of the blade embedded in his thigh. And despite the pain, there was a strange sense of… euphoria bubbling up within him.

"Ho…" With a grunt, he casually yanked the blade free from his leg, blood spurting from the wound. His hands were slick with his own blood, but his eyes gleamed with delight as he inspected the weapon.

"This sword is terrible," He scoffed; the tone of his voice, dramatically different from his usual voice, "The balance is off, the edge is dull… who made this trash?"

And for the very first time, Julian encountered something that he could consider…

"...Ugly," he whispered, "No human hands could have actually made this, so that makes you the monsters, like Daemons. And that means…

…I can actually test this sword on you?"

"Khee…?" The goblins hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to make of the crazed man in front of them. But soon, however, the first goblin lunged at him again; its claws threatening to rip Julian to shreds.

And Julian swung the blade in a wide arc without any hesitation.

"O… Oh?" Julian's lips trembled; feeling the satisfying resistance as it cut through flesh.

"Khee!?" The goblin let out a shriek as its arm was severed, dark blood spraying across the forest floor. Julian grinned, his heart racing with excitement. The sword was dull, and every strike required more force than necessary, but that only made the fight more thrilling.

Another goblin charged at him, and Julian clumsily blocked its attack with his own sword, the force of the blow sending vibrations up his arm. His leg was still bleeding heavily, but he didn't care – He had never felt more alive.

His smile widened as he awkwardly sidestepped to the next goblin, delivering a brutal slash across its chest. Blood splattered onto his face, warm and thick…

…but Julian just laughed, savoring the moment.

"Ha… Haha!" Julian laughed in excitement; his movements were incredibly sloppy and as crude as the sword he was holding since this was his first time fighting – his swings, however, were incredibly precise. After all, he had always tested his blades whenever he finished crafting them…

…and he swung a lot; swords, daggers, even axes.

Due to the sloppiness of his steps, however, one goblin managed to get behind him, stabbing him in the side with a jagged dagger.

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"Sh…" Julian groaned in pain, his knees nearly buckling, but his smile never wavered. He spun around, slashing the goblin's throat in one swift motion, feeling the blood spray across his chest. He stumbled, his vision blurring for a moment as the pain surged through his body, but he refused to let it stop him.

Another goblin rushed forward, screeching wildly. Julian caught its arm and used the moment to stab his sword through its gut; smiling as he twisted the blade while pulling it out.

More blood poured onto the ground, mixing with his own as he fought in a frenzy.

Despite the growing number of wounds covering his body, Julian moved with a crazed energy, every strike of the sword sending a surge of adrenaline through him. He hacked and slashed with reckless abandon, his laughter growing more unhinged with every goblin that fell.

But the goblins were relentless, and Julian was tiring. His movements were slowing, the pain in his leg and side becoming harder to ignore. His breath was ragged, his muscles aching as he blocked another strike. A goblin's clawed hand raked across his back, tearing through his shirt and skin, but he spun around, slamming the hilt of his sword into its skull with a vicious crack.

Blood dripped from his body, his clothes soaked in it. He could feel himself weakening, his vision growing hazy, but he couldn't stop. He didn't want to stop.

"Grah!" With a final burst of strength, Julian plunged his blade into the last goblin's chest, driving it deep until the creature let out a gurgling scream before collapsing at his feet.

Julian stood there, panting heavily, blood dripping from his wounds as he looked at the carnage around him.

He swayed on his feet, barely able to stand. His entire body screamed in agony, but he refused to fall. Not yet. If he passed out here, he would be taken back to Earth.

Back to his old body. Back to being blind.

"No…" he wheezed through clenched teeth, staggering as he tried to stay upright. "I'm not…

…I'm not going back."

"What the… what happened here!?" And then, a figure suddenly appeared from the bush, rushing toward him – it was the person who had been sent to fetch him.

"What the fuck…?" The man's eyes were wide with shock as he saw the bloodied and beaten Julian standing amidst the dead goblins.

"Hey, are you alright!?" The man screamed, he was about to catch Julian since it seemed like he was going to fall...

...but Julian swung at him.

"What are you doing!?" The man was able to step back.

"O... Oh?" Julian wheezed, "Are you... are you human?"

"Yes! My name's Marcus! I'm supposed to fetch you!"

And as soon as Julian heard that, he quickly stumbled forward but Marcus was able to catch him before he could fall. Julian, however, quickly started touching Marcus's face.

"Okay..." Julian whispered, "...Human."

"F… fuck…" Marcus felt the warmth of Julian's blood, "You…

…You need a healer! You're going to die if we don't get you to Archon! Why the fuck are you all the way out here!? You're lucky I have a [Tracking] skill!"

Julian let out a weak laugh, his grip still tight on the sword.

"I'm not… I'm not going to die…" Julian whispered as he tried his best not to fall unconscious, "I'm not… going back…"

And with that, Marcus dragged him through the sea of trees, the blood-soaked forest behind him fading into a blur as Julian clung to consciousness with everything he had.

<...>

<...>

"I'm not... going back."