Chapter 20: Instinct of the Beast King
A loud smack rang out as a wet spray of blood splattered into the air, followed by the heavy thud of a Stray Devil collapsing to the ground, motionless.
A system prompt immediately appeared before Akira's eyes:
[Ding!]
[You have obtained 0.1% Inherited Template progress!]
He stared silently at the message. His Template progress now stood at 19.1%.
Lately, his luck had been unusually good—encountering numerous Stray Devils in a short span. Many of them were mid-tier, granting a full 1% progress each.
But now that he was so close to the next threshold, the rate of increase had suddenly dropped.
— — —
[Name: Shin Akira]
[Identity: Transfer Student, Kuoh Academy]
[Rank: 3 (Low-Class Devil)]
[Template: Enkidu (19.1%)]
[Noble Phantasm: Chains of Heaven]
[Talent: Consummated Shape]
[Skills: – ]
[Equipment: – ]
[Items: – ]
— — —
Only 0.9% left.
Akira could feel it deep within his bones—once he reached 20%, his strength would undergo a dramatic leap. Even now, he stood at the peak of Low-Class Devils. With the Chains of Heaven at his command, he felt confident not only holding his ground against Mid-Class Devils, but actually defeating them.
A faint rustling reached his ears.
Several figures approached from a distance. It was the Gremory group. After all, Stray Devil extermination in this region was officially under Rias Gremory's jurisdiction.
But recently, Akira had been beating them to the punch more often than not. This wasn't the first time.
"My, my~ Shin-kun beat us here again," Akeno remarked playfully as she walked toward him.
By this point, she was undoubtedly the closest person to Akira at Kuoh Academy. All matters regarding the publication of Oregairu had been handled by her. Akira merely sat back and received the results.
At first, Rias and her group had been confused, but after reading the novel—even Rias, a noble-born Devil of the Underworld—had found herself moved by its quiet strength. Backed by a major publisher and armed with a masterpiece of a story, Oregairu had exploded in popularity within the light novel community.
In just under two weeks, Akira's earnings had already reached nearly 10 million yen.
"Shin-kun, you seem awfully passionate about hunting Stray Devils. In just two weeks, you've taken out 80% of our targets before we even got here," Rias said with a tired sigh.
Akira gave a slight shrug and smiled. "Well, what can I say? I just happen to run into them a lot~"
"Do you seriously expect us to believe that?" Rias narrowed her eyes in disbelief.
Honestly, she wanted to smack him. This green-haired, green-eyed boy with flawless looks and a calm demeanor was out wandering like he was bait every night.
Even worse—he had a habit of strolling into remote areas in the evening or late at night.
That wasn't coincidence. That was intentional provocation.
"Rias-senpai, don't be like that. I'm a good student, remember?" Akira offered with a mischievous smile.
"Oh yes. A good student who never pays attention in class, skips constantly, and always leaves early."
Rias deliberately emphasized the word good.
Academically, Akira was practically a delinquent.
"But… my grades are perfect, right?"
That one line shut her down.
Rias opened her mouth to retort—then closed it again.
Because it was true. In the recent mock exams, Akira had scored a perfect 100 in every subject. His name had gone viral throughout the school.
Since then, none of the teachers dared to say a word about his truancy or early departures.
Without warning, a violent gust cut through the night air.
From the shadows, a dark figure lunged toward Akira at blistering speed.
"Watch out!" Akeno called out instinctively, her palm flashing as she summoned a burst of lightning.
The bolt lit up the dark alley—but the enemy dodged it effortlessly.
Even Koneko and Kiba rushed forward to defend, but Kiba couldn't keep up with the speed.
This wasn't a Low-Class Devil.
It was something far more dangerous.
A vicious slash was halted inches away from Akira's face as a silver chain materialized out of thin air, its metallic surface gleaming under the moonlight.
The enemy revealed itself in full—twisted features, beast-like legs, and elongated arms ending in claws that gleamed like obsidian.
"Huh? Another Stray Devil? But the Underworld hasn't reported any new activity…"
Rias frowned, puzzled. The chaotic, bloodthirsty aura radiating from the creature left no doubt—it was definitely a Stray Devil.
These beings were once Devils who had betrayed their masters and become cursed by their contracts.
While Rias tried to make sense of it, Akira's eyes lit up with barely contained excitement.
Perfect. The missing 0.9% had just come knocking.
"You want to kill me? Go ahead and try."
He didn't flinch, meeting the creature's fiery gaze head-on.
In an instant, the Stray Devil blurred again—its speed even greater than before.
But golden rings spun into the air, rotating rapidly.
From within those radiant loops, silver chains erupted with a sharp hum.
The glowing links moved with uncanny precision, weaving together into a shifting barricade around Akira's body—like a net of divine judgment.
Claws raked against metal.
A burst of force rang through the air.
Bones cracked as momentum clashed with divine power.
Each strike rebounded violently, doing nothing but damaging the attacker. Slashes were deflected, claws bent, and with every exchange, the creature's body took more punishment.
Rias watched silently. She could tell at a glance—Akira had grown.
His mana flow, his control over the Chains, his summoning capacity—everything had improved in just two weeks.
For a human, that kind of growth was terrifying.
Most humans—even Sacred Gear holders—hit a ceiling somewhere around High-Class Devil rank. Very few ever reached Maou-level.
But Akira… was different.
The Stray Devil lunged again, reckless and desperate.
One opening was all Akira needed.
A chain surged forth, coiling around the enemy's shoulder and driving itself in with brutal force.
That single mistake led to another. And another.
The creature's wild flailing turned into a mess of errors. The silver chains took advantage of every gap, wrapping tighter with each failed attack.
Golden light burst from the bindings as they ignited with judgment energy, cutting through the night like a silent roar.
The system's voice returned.
[Ding!]
[You have obtained 3% Inherited Template progress!]
[Ding!]
[Congratulations, Host! You have awakened a new Talent: Instinct of the Beast King!]
— — —
[Instinct of the Beast King]
| Born from the wild. Despite speaking with grace and behaving politely, the user possesses an untamed, feral combat instinct |
— — —
The moment the new talent activated, Akira felt it—an overwhelming surge of power coursing through every fiber of his being.
It wasn't just energy. It was something deeper.
A primal awareness. A wild, animalistic intuition.
Instinct of the Beast King—a combat sense honed by nature, not taught by any mentor.
Though Enkidu was known for his gentle demeanor, once he entered battle, he transformed completely.
Not into a knight.
Not into a hero.
But into a beast.
That was the origin of the title Beast King.
He wasn't raised among humans—but monsters.
— — —
Author's Note: This is a personalized take on Enkidu's background. If it doesn't align with your interpretation, I hope you'll understand. This story doesn't seek to copy the original 1:1
— — —
✨ Special thanks to my newest Patreon supporters!
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
$10 – Joseph Sepulveda, Big Brizzz
$7.50 – Brian Ramsey
$5 – M C, sansdaman 142, Jose Carrillo, Dez, Danny Fowkes, Sword Saint, p0tat0
$3.50 – rerrizen, Ecokane 0, Tobias Sinkewicius
€10.50 – Just Some Guy With A Mustage
CA$11 – Devin Broughton
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Your support means the world and helps keep this series alive!
— — —
📚 Want to read more chapters or get early access?
Join my Patreon here:
🔗 patreon.com/FaaanzKun
✅ Enjoy 33 chapters ahead of WebNovel!
✅ Plus, get 2 new chapters every day, exclusively on Patreon!
> Already caught up with the latest chapter on WebNovel?
Continue the journey early for just:
$3.50/month
$5/month
Join now and dive deeper into the story—weeks ahead of the public release!
Thank you for your amazing support 💖
— — —