I had heard stories about him being a battle maniac before. But who would have thought it was related to his past life?
Sweat trickling down my cheek. Is it cold sweat?
“Alright, it’s my turn next.”
A reincarnated being based on a war god, proclaimed as an evil god. Faced with such a formidable opponent, no, a difficult opponent, there was someone who struck their fist together with a snap, as if to clear away the fear I was feeling.
An Ōni, which should be the vanquished in a story, leaps out before a former hero who joyfully sets out to defeat the Demon Lord to save the world.
However, by a strange twist of fate, this time the one who should be vanquished is the challenger.
“I will provide support.”
“Alright.”
Even knowing what kind of being the opponent is, my instructor moves forward naturally without being overwhelmed. Before I knew it, he had dispelled the fear within me.
“He’s strong, but can he win?”
Unlike me, who had that anxiety dispelled, a god poses a question to me with a scowl. In the line of Susanoo-god’s gaze, who looks pained, is the Ōni who, discarding the pride of never having received any support in any battle, feels that the evil god Aiwa is a formidable opponent, to the extent that he readily accepts Lunaria’s support magic.
“I don’t know if he’ll win or lose, but I’m sure he doesn’t think he can’t win.”
There are no absolutes in victory or defeat. But, there are certainly factors that influence the outcome. Everyone here knows that the conclusion is decided by the combination of elements like skill and luck, but we also understand simultaneously that our side has fewer factors for victory.
Yet, at this moment, when everyone thinks it’s a chance while Aiwa is enjoying a one-on-one battle, the Ōni takes his first step without hesitation.
I don’t want to believe he will lose, nor can I imagine it.
Susanoo-god, an ancient Japanese god, watches his back with eyes that have seen the impossible, but to me, this action is natural.
“Human King, you can talk, but please rest for your next fight.”
“Understood.”
And I, who is seen as quite exhausted even from that brief exchange by others, move to a position where I won’t get caught up in the battle, as per Lunaria’s instructions, conscious only of keeping my body from cooling down, and sit down. But I don’t avert my gaze. The Ōni is about to challenge a god specialized in combat.
In my own opinion, Susanoo-god, who has judged that victory is unlikely due to the difference in combat power, stays near me, disliking being involved in battles.
Ignoring such a timid god, I face forward, not missing a single moment of the battle.
“Well, just watch. That Oni is no ordinary being.”
I say this with a smile forming on my lips. Surely, the difference in skill between my instructor and Aiwa, who has become a god, is even greater than I imagine. Even with that difference in skill, if someone challenges, Aiwa will undoubtedly joyfully accept that battle. And I believe he will win. I have that much conviction in my thoughts. That’s why I can understand Susanoo-god’s anxiety.
But I, for my part, do not think the Oni who has always shown me a strong back will lose so easily. Maintaining composure, keeping a calm mind. That is preparation for battle.
“Is that so? As for me, I think it’s dangerous unless I quickly hand over this information and bring my sister, or ask my father to call the Greek old man, or the battle-loving Indian, or perhaps get set up and killed by that unpredictable Norse trickster. You seem to trust that Oni, though.”
Even if the Ōni loses and his life is extinguished after this, I will continue to maintain my combat switch so that I can take over. I understand what Susanoo-god wants to say, feeling the palpable tension of the battle air. He probably wants to say that since he’s likely to lose, it’s better to retreat for now and consider regrouping our forces. In fact, I think that’s the correct answer. It’s true that my own feelings are a mixture of anxiety and desire. But I also feel a degree of reassurance, enough to suppress those feelings.
“There’s a difference in rank between an Oni and a god.”
He says this, perhaps out of frustration with my reaction, as if to confront reality.
“If he were an ordinary Oni, then yes.”
That is, of course, an Oni that Susanoo-god knows, an ordinary Japanese Oni.
“As I said earlier, my instructor is an Oni who never fits within the category of ‘ordinary’.”
He judges the Oni based on his own common sense. My instructor, the one I know, shatters that framework of common sense. With a tremendous, thunderous impact, he blows through it.
“Wh-what…!?”
At the sound of the opening battle, and being together, I can tell that Susanoo-god is genuinely surprised, as his face clearly shows. Dumbfounded, as if embodying the word. His mouth opens so wide it seems like his jaw might unhinge, his eyes widen, and he forgets to breathe out fully and inhale, so astonishing is the scene before him. After all, his instructor’s fist struck Aiwa’s face with the very first blow.
“I see, I see. I did not expect that just now.”
“Did you? You didn’t think I could do something so skillful, did you?”
The distance was too great to punch, yet, before he knew it, he was within punching range, and he thrust his fist into Aiwa’s cheek before Aiwa could even defend, knocking him down. It was a single instant, a blow that I only managed to perceive with focused concentration and future sight. The Ōni grins, while Aiwa rejoices with madness.
“Wh-what, what did that Oni just do?”
Even a god cannot see an unseen strike. While Susanoo-god is dumbfounded, unable to deduce the process from the result, the recipient of the attack strokes his cheek where he was punched with his weaponless hand.
“Is this the ultimate state of relaxation? You used my assumption that someone like you wouldn’t use such a skill against me.”
And he quickly grasped what kind of attack it was.
“Hey, hey, it’s common sense that muscles stiffen too much and lose power, right?”
“Yes, yes, that’s right. But, even so, is there anyone who can completely relax their power in front of me?”
“Isn’t there someone right here?”
Aiwa, still stroking his cheek affectionately after receiving that blow, noticed that the Ōni had overcome the greatest obstacle to relaxation, fear, and his eyes gleamed.
“What my instructor did was an attack with a change in speed. From a state of relaxation, he suddenly exerted full power, delivering a blow with extreme instantaneous force. A strike with acceleration from zero to maximum power.”
The muscular Ōni demonstrated it. In a way, it was an unexpected blow. Even I, who have only seen him unleash a barrage of full-power, all-out strikes, am surprised in my heart, explaining this to Susanoo-god. Glancing at Susanoo-god next to me, I saw his shocked expression.
My instructor is surprisingly skillful, despite appearing to fight with brute force.
“Yes, that’s right. Oh, you humans and you, striking before me, are such mean people.”
“I am an Oni.”
“Yes, then I must thank you, you mean Oni.”
However, the previous attack only served to ignite Aiwa’s fighting spirit further.
“This is bad, this is bad! Just being able to land a blow isn’t enough! You understand, right?! Only by being able to defend against his attacks can offense and defense be established! At that size, that Ōni will be cut to pieces immediately!”
Landing a blow was successful, but the result demanded the necessity of finding a way to defend against Aiwa’s next attack. I was able to evade by the skin of my teeth using future sight. However, my instructor cannot do that. As I wondered what he would do, Aiwa, without even drawing his divine sword, made his hand disappear. To be precise, it was a slash attack so fast it looked like it disappeared. It’s a taste of his own medicine, returning the favor for what my instructor did. Such a thing could be a fatal blow to a life.
“Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!?”
But that is only for ordinary beings.
“Be quiet.”
“But, but!! That! That!!”
“Have you lost your vocabulary?”
“Why are you so calm?! This is insane!! What kind of Oni is that?!”
“He simply caught the blade with one hand, didn’t he?”
“He’s not ordinary!! He’s not ordinary! Even if he’s not serious, it’s still strange!”
“My instructor’s grip strength can crush a steel ball.”
“Even with that much strength, that slash shouldn’t be stoppable!”
I never thought my instructor would be defeated so easily.
“Don’t choke me, I can’t take off my armor.”
“Why are you taking off your armor in this situation!?”
“After taking a hit and observing from the outside, I realized that with the opponent’s slash attack, this armor would only hinder my movement. So, I thought I might as well take it off to move a little better.”
“Eh, at that rate, can’t you win normally?”
“No, I can’t win. The opponent is completely playing around. If he changes his mind slightly, it won’t be easy for my instructor to defend like this anymore. We’re being given a handicap.”
He is defending against attacks, and it appears to be a proper exchange of offense and defense, but it’s a facade. My instructor’s blows are fast and sharp. However, since it’s not his primary offensive style, the attacks don’t reach the core. Therefore, Aiwa can receive them with a smile. It’s an exchange of attacks and counterattacks. But for us, the damage to the opponent is negligible, while he can take our lives with a single blow without mercy.
Diligently removing his armor and attaching body reinforcement talismans to prepare for his turn.
“Does that even do anything?”
“It might offer some peace of mind.”
I can predict it won’t last long, perhaps a few minutes. Depending on the opponent’s observation skills, I don’t think the tactic of deflecting slashes by catching the blade or striking the spine will last forever. If only I could find a weakness before he gets serious.
“No way, it’s impossible! The more this continues, the more that guy’s body will ‘adapt’ to the god’s power!! It’s already this bad now! In an hour, he won’t even be able to do this anymore!”
Huh?
“What did you say just now?”
This exchange was for the purpose of finding a weakness, but Susanoo-god said something quite intriguing.
“No, I mean, in another hour he won’t be able to do this–” “Before that.”–“Are you talking about his power adapting?”
“Yes, isn’t it adapting?”
“Well, even if he was a god in his past life, his base is an angel. Even with a vessel capable of accepting it, it takes time to completely absorb it. Right now, he’s just using the god’s power; he hasn’t made it his own.”
“Meaning… if it hasn’t adapted yet, it might be possible to strip it away?”
“Well… it’s not impossible, but there are only a handful of beings in the gods who can do that.”
“No, maybe I can.”
Before the power adapts, it means that power is not yet fixed. In other words, for Aiwa, Isalia’s power is still impure. The reason he’s unleashing attacks of blows and slashes is simply because he hasn’t mastered that power.
“Eh, you can do it? Even my old man can’t strip that away easily.”
“That’s because it’s not your specialty, you gods. There are beings in this world who have spent millennia perfecting strange things.”
Then that makes things simpler. I immediately establish a telepathic connection.
“Keiri, Suella, come here right away.”
The clue to the solution, whether it can be a breakthrough, is a race against time.
Today’s word:
Are you asking for the impossible? That’s an everyday occurrence for a corporate slave.
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