My back struck a tree, stopping all of my momentum as the dull sound of steel and wood impacting rang out throughout the silent night. Several pine cones came crashing down as I swiftly rose. I was at the top of my game, so a little crash wasn’t going to keep me down.

  The sweet agony only helped me focus and quickly find out where the offender was… Soon, they were illuminated by my purple glow, revealing them in full to me.

  It was an elf, and he raised one hand to block out the light from reaching his eyes for a few moments before he adapted to the new light level. Indeed, ‘Forward Shine’ wasn’t very good at blinding people. I would need one of those other light upgrades to do that, but unfortunately, I did not have them.

  “Now… That’s not what I was expecting. Just what am I looking at?”

  The elf was dressed in a manner that made it incredibly obvious that he was either a druid or something closely related to that–Wearing greenish robes decorated with herbs, flowers, and twigs, as well as carrying what was clearly a branch as a staff.

  “Do you speak too, Monster of Steel?”

  I hate the way this guy speaks…

  “W–W–What? Did you n–o–t hear me just now?”

  The elf frowned, raising his staff.

  “I see, I find this most difficult to write off as a mere coincidence… You seem more reasonable than the last one I conversed with. Which is a shame… I wish I could have asked you questions, but I strongly suspect that you are responsible for the death of one of my own”

  I don’t like that elf at all. He makes my nonexistent skin crawl… But I don’t get what it is that gives me this impression. He doesn’t look strong at all. Perhaps it’s because of his words? The way he speaks, as if he knows something important but specifically does not mention it, while speaking of that topic, is incredibly annoying…

  Sylbi speaking in riddles is acceptable. He’s a damned creature from the Abyss. He’s allowed to spout some cryptic nonsense, that’s sort of a birthright in his case. But this elf? He’s just like those guys who brag about something but don’t actually show any proof that they truly have bragging rights.

  Those men were the worst. Why would I give a damn if your dad is a decorated knight? All you’re doing is telling me that your dad is way more attractive than you, and that you are a damned disappointment and stain on your family!

  Good thing I can’t get headaches anymore. This bullshit is mind-numbing…

  “L–Listen, you lon–long-eared bastard… What the hell are you t–talking about?”

  I hope my quintet, who are currently stored within me, are taking notes. It was subtle, but I just employed a very useful manner of deception on this guy.

  Namely, I just got myself outraged about the way he acts all mysterious, which is something that truly infuriates me, but from his perspective, it probably looks like I am talking about the accusation he threw at me.

  In short, I was utterly truthful, but still did something to lie.

  Now, will he fall for it?

  The elf raised an eyebrow,

  The distance separating us was about ten meters. I believe he was able to lift and throw me by using roots or vines, so he definitely had the means to attack from this range. I, on the other hand, was a bit too far… My copper wires couldn’t extend past five meters at most… Well, if I tied them together, I could definitely go beyond that limit, but they would be quite easy to parry…

  Mmh… If I puke my ‘Machine Blood’ at this angle, he should be showered in it… But that will only be effective if he panics and lets me get closer. This guy gives me the impression that he will be able to tell if something is dangerous or not…

  A little ‘Embodiment Of Negativity’ then? I could blast my melody at him. I recovered it along with the rest.

  “Oddly enough, it would appear that you were truthful?”

  He said.

  …Oh, he actually fell for it? Can he tell the truth apart from lies? Sweet, they are even easier to trick than regular people.

  I remember when I was asked questions about what had happened to Harvey’s Diner. A cleric from some church worshipping a truth god had been hired, and I had quite a lot of fun… Turns out, you can get away with even worse deceit when your interlocutors know what is true and what is false.

  They believe that ability way too much and pretty much trick themselves.

  The elf didn’t put his guard down, however.

  “In recent times, there has been an increase in encounters and sightings with highly uncommon creatures, Obsession Fiends of all sorts, Sin-Plagued Creatures, Gravity Spawns… But also a rise in unique beings from what I have seen. You seem to belong to this second category. What are you? Do you know anything about the other creatures?”

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  He pointed his staff at me.

  Is that bastard threatening me? Do you have any idea what I can do if I get my hands on you?

  I focused the shine of my eyes onto the elf, which gives the impression that I am frowning in my own way.

  “B–B–Buddy, I have no idea about those ‘u–uniq–que’ beings of yours. Wh–Why don’t you unclench and get rid of that broom up your ass?”

  “How uncouth… But it seems like you are once again telling the truth. What exactly are you? And why were you staring into a child’s bedroom in the middle of the night?”

  “You–ou talk too much”

  “Why not another question then? I couldn’t help but notice that the number of animals on this farm has decreased significantly since the last time I was here… You wouldn’t happen to be the one responsible for this, would you?”

  “Is a wi–wild monster not allowed to eat?”

  “Wild monsters are not capable of articulated speech, I am afraid. At this point, you count more as a person since you are capable of complicated thoughts, which makes you a thief rather than a beast simply seeking to satisfy its instincts”

  Is this guy serious? Everyone knows that lots of beastfolks are still mostly driven by instincts, and we still allow them to be called sapients like the rest! Are the rules different because I am made of steel or something?!

  In the distance, a goat bleated in what was undeniably horror, and not a shred of this negative emotion was drifting toward me despite having left a lasting impression.

  There must be something else that’s terrifying… It probably got in because I ate the locks.

  As for the elf, I could feel the apprehension, distrust, and wariness momentarily reduced as he was distracted by the animal’s plea for help… Definitely a druid, he’s way too concerned by some random goat in the distance when I am right in front of him!

  Without a shred of hesitation, I release several of my lesser servants, ordering them to rush directly at the elf.

  He reacted to this, and I presume he infused his staff with some sort of energy as he just swatted the ghosts away with the branch… In fact, he didn’t just swat them away. He damaged them, something a mere physical strike should be incapable of doing.

  I approached from the front as well, my maw wide open and arms spread out.

  The druid slammed the bottom of his staff into the ground, and a large, translucent moose made from green energy manifested in front of him for all with eyes to see. As far as I was aware, that was a typical sort of spell for druids and other tree-hugging mages.

  The conjured animal might be strong, but so was I, and my resistance to energy wasn’t awful either. I grabbed the charging moose by the antlers.

  It was only able to push me back for a few moments before its momentum was no longer enough to move my heavy steel.

  Naturally, the elf was already in the process of casting another spell. Unfortunately for him, I have a great dislike for mages, and so, I have already devised a few strategies for dealing with them, especially a lone mage.

  Before the fool could complete his second spell, he was struck from behind, targeted in one of his weak spots… Or in clearer terms, Elowen kicked him in the balls mid-casting.

  I have kicked plenty of those at full force in my time… Including during that one sparring session during my knight training, so I was well aware that most men would crumple like soggy pieces of paper once struck, and frankly, Elowen did not hold back in the least there.

  The attack was so vicious that even the moose disappeared as the druid fell over.

  Not wanting him to recover his wits, I immediately moved forward and sent my copper wires directly at the soft bits of flesh. The wires didn’t stab deep, but that was enough for me. I let the wires conduct the lightning stored in the ‘Faraday Box’, and…

  Oh…

  His eyes exploded, and he caught fire.

  Crap. I went way too hard! My bad, I didn’t think the box could store this much lightning, or that the wires could conduct it that well either… I wanted to make sure that he died, but I guess I should have taken into account that I was dealing with a squishy mage and not a resilient warrior.

  Before the flames could do too much damage, I ate the whole body, which somehow put out the fire.

  “G–Good job, Elowen… Co–come here”

  I patted the tomboy’s head. I wasn’t sure what they liked so much about a cold hand of steel touching the top of their skulls, but they greatly enjoyed it.

  Elowen was ‘absorbed’ back into wherever it was that my spirits were stashed in, and I turned my attention to the goat pen.

  Just what was daring enough to try and kill the animals that I spared? And what even could be bold enough to target goats in the first place? As far as I was aware, the biggest predator in the area was the fox, and those things should know better than to go into an enclosed space with several stubborn animals armed with horns and a great enjoyment for ramming into things.

  Mmh…

  My purple glow illuminated the culprit, who was currently feasting on the entrails of a goat, whilst the others had all huddled into the opposite corners, shivering in fear.

  Not only was the goat-eater targeting animals that I wanted to remain alive, but it was also robbing me of some sweet, sweet negative emotions… Emotions from mundane animals were primitive and simple, but I still wanted it all for myself, and who knows, maybe I would find a precise use for animalistic emotions in the future.

  So, not only was this thing going against my wishes, it was stealing from me.

  The creature froze as it noticed the light shone upon its back.

  It stood up.

  It was a whole two meters tall, gaunt like a starving peasant, skin covered in spots reminiscent of someone infested with scabies of an especially nasty sort.

  Its mouth was… Sideways, in fact, if it opened its mouth wide, its dull, empty eyes would spread further apart.

  Huh… Is this what the druid was talking about when mentioning uncommon creatures? Did he summon one by just talking about the topic?

  The monster stared at me with its empty gaze, but made no move to attack, simply turning back around to continue its meal after a few moments.

  Hoi… Is that filthy bastard recognising me as a fellow or something? That’s worse than if it had spat in my face…

  Slightly irked by the idea that this ugly beanpole would look at me and instantly assume that we were friends, I lunged and bit right through him. Tearing him in half before stomping down on his head.

  I’ll teach you some manners!