The Paper User: Exiled for a ‘Trash Skill,’ Awakens True Power and Rises with Two Unique Skills - Chapter 18

Chapter 18 : Promotion Exam – Part 4

Three hours later, I found myself deep in a forest lit by countless floating forest jellies. Their bluish glow illuminated the surroundings in a dreamlike blue hue.

As I passed a towering tree with a trunk wider than ten meters, a waterfall came into view. Around the falls, massive boulders were piled together, coated with a layer of green moss.

This place looked promising. I’d spotted animal tracks nearby, which likely meant monsters that preyed on them were close too.

I parted the undergrowth and approached the waterfall.

The area around the waterfall opened into a clearing. The giant moon in the night sky bathed me in soft light.

Tonight’s moon was beautiful—its cratered surface was clear and sharp.

But… now wasn’t the time to admire the moon.

I scanned my surroundings. The bushes just beyond the waterfall pool were rustling ever so slightly.

Something’s there.

I gripped my dagger tightly and stepped toward the waterfall’s misty basin.

Ideally, I’d run into a Flying Turtle. One of those could net me five large silver coins in materials.

Rustle… rustle…

Emerging from the brush was… a pale blue slime.

"Ah… just a slime, huh."

A bit underwhelming. Still, if I got lucky, I might at least grab a Slime Fragment. Might as well take it down.

Just then, something dropped from above the waterfall—long, massive, and black.

I leapt back instinctively to gain distance.

What landed was a colossal centipede, more than fifteen meters long. Its slick black body gleamed in the moonlight, and countless yellowish-white legs twitched along its segmented form.

"An Armored Centipede!?"

The name escaped my mouth before I could stop it.

It wasn’t as dangerous as a Crystal Dragon, but still a high-level threat. Its fangs were venomous, and despite its size, it was fast and had terrifying defense.

I narrowed my eyes at its orange-glowing antennae.

Armored Centipede Antennae were used in medicine to treat phantom-spirit disease. Two of them could easily fetch a large gold coin.

"I would've been fine with a material worth one gold coin..."

Clack… clack… clack…

The centipede lifted its head like a snake, clicking its fangs together.

No choice. If I beat it, the promotion exam’s as good as cleared!

I gripped my Mana-Eater Dagger tightly.

When I fought the Crystal Dragon, I had powerful allies at my side. This time, I was alone. One slip-up and it was over. I had to stay sharp—focus.

I slowly shifted right, keeping the thicket to my back.

The centipede’s head mirrored my every move.

And then—

With a flurry of yellowish-white legs, the Armored Centipede charged straight at me.

"『Magic Barrier – Strength Nine』!"

Silver-glowing sheets of paper layered in the air, forming a wall.

The centipede bit straight through it with its fangs.

"Even strength nine can’t stop it!?"

I didn’t have any strength ten barriers left in storage. And creating one from scratch on the spot would take too long.

While circling to its side, I slashed with the Mana-Eater Dagger. A pale blue blade extended over a meter, slicing into the centipede’s legs. Yellow fluid splattered as the severed limbs thrashed wildly on the ground.

"Zzzh… zzzii…!"

It screeched an eerie sound and began circling me.

Just cutting one leg wasn’t enough to slow it down.

I bit my lip hard, readying myself for its next attack.

Its mouth opened—and from it came a barrage of fireballs, each over twenty centimeters wide.

I conjured paper footholds and leapt repeatedly, dodging the attacks midair.

Its body was tough—too tough to end it with a single strike. I’d go for the right-side legs first.

"『Wind Shuriken』!"

I pulled a hundred shuriken from my coat’s pocket and flung them all at once, targeting its right legs. The spinning blades sliced several limbs clean off.

The centipede’s body tilted slightly, its pursuit slowing down.

Nice! Now I can go for the head—

Suddenly, it twisted its massive body.

The tail end slammed into my abdomen.

A crushing impact launched me through the air.

Gah! Damn… didn’t see that coming.

I gritted my teeth and pushed myself to my feet.

Fortunately, thanks to the clothes Almine made me, the damage was minimal. I could still fight!

I countered the incoming fireballs by summoning water-infused paper, then bolted toward the monster.

Clack… clack… clack-clack…

Its jaw clicked behind me.

This is it!

I summoned five walls of paper between me and the centipede.

With razor-sharp fangs, it tore through one after the next.

You think paper's all easy to slice through, huh?

As it crashed into the fifth wall, it suddenly found its head stuck—wrapped in sticky, adhesive paper.

Gotcha. That last wall wasn’t ordinary—it was made of a special clingy type.

The centipede thrashed its head against the ground, trying to scrape the paper off.

"I’m not giving you the chance!"

I dashed in, stabbing my elongated dagger into its mouth, now sealed within the paper cocoon.

Still, the beast went berserk, flailing its long body.

Fine. Time to finish this.

I pulled out the stockpiled fire-infused paper from my magic pocket.

"『Flame Dragon Great Axe』!"

Hundreds of paper sheets combined into the shape of a massive axe, its blade engulfed in orange flames.

The axe swung down like a titan’s blow, cleaving the centipede clean in two.

Yellow fluid sprayed everywhere as its split body spasmed violently.

"Zzzz… zzhh…"

Its movements slowed, then stopped completely.

I exhaled deeply and slumped to the ground.

"I… I did it…"

Gasping for breath, I stared at the massive corpse.

So, combining paper into a weaponized form worked. With this method, even massive monsters could be taken down.

"Wait, no time to rest—I need to harvest the materials."

I stood up—only to be met by a sharp pain in my abdomen.

Tch… guess I’ll have to waste a potion.

I grabbed a recovery potion from my magic pouch and downed it in one go.

The pain faded quickly, my body feeling lighter.

I approached the centipede’s corpse and stabbed the dagger into the joint between its head and thorax.

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