Reincarnated as a step-dad in a fantasy world-Chapter 373: New problem

Without hesitation, the very first item Alex walked up to was the sword made with the essence of a level seven monster.

Out of all the treasures he bought, this one fascinated him the most—after all, it wasn't every day that one got to see something of this calibre.

However, this weapon was the one he needed to be the most careful with.

As was shown during the auction for this sword, the instant he opened the glass container it was sealed in, the aura of the blade would leak outward, releasing an overwhelming mana that formed into the image of the beast it had been forged from.

Even inside his private booth, Alex had felt the danger emanating from the sword. Now that it was within his personal space, he had no idea what kind of reaction it might trigger.

He was determined to observe it more closely, however, and nothing could stop him.

Without an ounce of fear, he opened the lid of the glass container—and the very instant he did, he almost regretted it.

The moment the enchantment cast upon the glass container stopped restraining it, an overwhelmingly bestial and suffocating mana spread outward, saturating the room in a single instant with sheer, raw bloodlust and a pressure so dense it made the air feel like molten lead pressing down on his chest.

Before he knew it, Alex was on his knees, his breathing laboured as beads of sweat rolled down his forehead. 'Calm down, it's not real,' he kept telling himself. However, it was difficult to believe those words when the mana slowly coalesced into a giant... wolf that towered above him, its glowing eyes brimming with hunger and primal malice as it looked down upon him like a predator watching its prey.

'Damn,' Alex cursed mentally, a chill running down his spine. 'This thing is terrifying. More than that, it's extremely powerful—to the point that even after its death, it still carries that overbearing aura. Who could have killed such a thing?'

Strangely, it was as he had this thought that something seemed to snap inside of him. The very idea that someone—possibly many people out there—could crush this beast, while he was here kneeling before a simple echo, a mere shadow of its former self... it didn't sit well with Alex. Not even a bit.

Gritting his teeth, he slowly picked himself up from the ground and stared back at the beast with unwavering defiance.

It seemed that the wolf didn't like the look in his eyes, because the very next second, it struck down at him with blinding speed.

Alex flinched, not expecting to be attacked this way, but he quickly overcame his surprise and raised his hands in front of him to protect himself. Yet, a moment later, he felt nothing—as the massive paw of the spectral wolf passed cleanly through his body.

He realized then that the wolf's attack had never been physical. It wasn't made of matter, after all. But that didn't mean its attacks were meaningless or harmless.

The wolf's blow might have done nothing to his body, but that was because his body had never been the target. What it aimed for instead—was his will.

As the paw passed through him, Alex collapsed on the ground once again, a wave of despair crashing over him. He felt, in that moment, that this was his rightful place—on his knees, broken. He should have never stood up to the great wolf. He was nothing but an insignificant man. How could someone like him hope to defeat such a foe?

The very second he had this thought, it vanished—and in its place, a burning, unfathomably deep anger surged from the depths of Alex's soul. Shame twisted in his gut for ever entertaining such weakness, but as he recognized the source of the irrational fear he had felt, that fear was consumed and replaced by something else entirely.

Rage.

He stood up once again against the wolf, but this time, he wasn't just trying to resist its presence—he wanted to erase it. This thing that had made him feel such shameful, disgusting emotions had no right to exist before him.

"You won't beat me in a battle of will, you damned thing," Alex growled, his every word strained as he forced each one through the storm of rage that threatened to consume him. "Just accept your death and disappear."

The wolf growled in response before striking once again.

Its paw passed through Alex's body, but unlike the last time, he didn't fall to his knees. In fact, he didn't even budge from where he stood.

It wasn't that the wolf's attack hadn't worked on him—it had. But the irrational fear that tried to take root again was burned to ash by the smoldering fury raging through his soul.

"Didn't you hear me?!" Alex shouted, his silver eyes lighting up with a mesmerizing flash.

In that slight moment, nothing about him—his voice, his expression, his presence—resembled the man he was moments ago.

The wolf whimpered and scrambled backward before vanishing completely, returning into the longsword in a flicker of ethereal mist.

Even after it had disappeared, Alex kept staring at the spot where it had stood just moments earlier. Then, suddenly, he stumbled forward and collapsed, unconscious.

***

A few minutes after he fainted, Alex woke up, a stinging headache bombarding him.

"Damnit, why does my head hurt so much?" he wondered as he sat up, holding his forehead and gritting his teeth in discomfort.

Fortunately, after a few seconds, it began to subside, and he was finally able to focus on something else.

Looking around, his gaze soon landed on the still-open lid of the glass container. But now, there was no wolf—no overwhelming presence.

"What happened in there?" he murmured as he stood to his feet.

Of course, he remembered everything that had happened. It was just that—even though he knew what took place—it still felt... strange. During those moments, it was as if he was both present and absent at the same time. This was definitely one of the most bizarre sensations he had ever experienced in his life—both lives.

"Forget that, I have something more pressing to do," he said as his eyes landed on the longsword.

Now that it wasn't trying to intimidate him or anything of the sort, he could finally evaluate the true worth of the weapon.

Taking hold of the handle, he lifted the blade, the polished surface reflecting the silver gleam of his eye. "It fits nicely in my hands and feels comfortable," he mumbled with an appreciative smile.

All these thoughts vanished the very next instant as he felt a sudden spike of power coursing through his body. It was as if just by holding the sword, he had become stronger.

And it wasn't just a feeling...

[Strength: 700 (750)

Agility: 700 (800)]

As he pulled up his status, he realized that both his strength and agility had surged—simply from holding the longsword.

"It's amazing!" he exclaimed, his eyes wide with excitement. But the thrill didn't last long as a thought crept in and dampened his enthusiasm. 'And yet nother method to boost one's strength...' he sighed inwardly.

If a sword forged from the essence of a level 7 monster could grant him such a boost, there was no reason to think it was exclusive to him. Anyone wielding a weapon of similar or superior quality would gain the same benefits—or possibly even more.

'Quit thinking about this, he reminded himself. In any case, someone who owns a weapon of that caliber is either extremely rich, extremely powerful, or both. Either way, they wouldn't be easy to deal with—with or without their weapons.'

Instead of brooding over it, he decided to focus on the positives. If my stats are enhanced this much just by holding it... how much stronger could I become if I form a connection with it?

To form a connection with a weapon—especially one capable of channeling mana—the process was simple: send a pulse of mana into the weapon, and if compatible, the bond would form.

However, as Alex attempted just that, it felt as though his mana had crashed into an invisible wall and rebounded with such force that he was forced to drop the sword.

"Damnit!" Alex cursed, clutching his hand—the same hand that had gripped the sword. The skin had reddened and cracked, and it looked as though it had been scorched.

Fortunately, the burn marks weren't too severe. After soaking his hand in a cloud of yellow healing smoke, his skin gradually returned to normal.

Everything had happened too fast for him to react, but he had clearly felt it. 'The sword... it rejected me,' he thought with a tired sigh.

But this time, it wasn't the sword acting out of hostility. No—the rejection came from something else entirely. His mana wasn't strong enough. Or rather, its quality was too low.

Because the weapon had been forged from the essence and core of a level 7 monster, Alex—whose mana was that of a level 4—had been judged unworthy. The mana embedded in the sword refused to bond with his.

"Now..." He mumbled, scratching the back of his head, "...how do I deal with this problem?"