The fate of the duel between Kenrou Kanata and the outlaw sickle-wielder Baiken?
“Let’s go, Baiken!”
“Come at me, young pup!”
Baiken firmly blocked my slashes with his chains, then swiftly swung his sickle to counterattack.
While Double Mohican also used chains, Baiken’s mastery of them was on another level.
Perhaps Baiken had trained him, but Double Mohican must not have been a promising disciple.
He looked utterly dim-witted and uncoordinated.
It’s easy to get fixated on the approaching weight, but the real danger of the Fuujin-ryu lies in the sheer versatility of their chains.
They can be used for offense, to keep opponents at bay, wrapped around arms as shields, or to constrict and seize an opening.
I tried to adapt by staying in a mid-range, but Baiken adjusted the length of his chains to match.
Honestly, there was no room to exploit. He truly lived up to his boast of being the strongest disciple.
“Lord, I shall assist you!”
Shizuru-san, having dealt with Hyaha, rushed over, but I stopped her with a hand.
“This is a one-on-one duel, no interference!”
“Instead of putting on a show, why don’t you accept the help? You’re at a disadvantage, aren’t you?”
She wasn’t being serious. She wants me to maintain appearances so I can’t accept her help, right?
“I was just probing. Shall we get serious now?”
“The ones who couldn’t win even when going all out are the ones who say they’ll get serious now, aren’t they?”
I agree with that. But I’ll show you that there are rare exceptions!
“Guh! …Is that the Evil Eye?!”
His immediate defense with the sickle showed he was skilled, but I couldn’t let my guard down.
He’s experienced, attacking with the weight without looking at my eyes, relying on my footwork.
If he’s relying on footwork, this is it! I leaped and attacked Baiken from the air.
I unleashed the Wolf Eye on Baiken, forcing him to look at me, but he defended with his sickle. This seals his sickle!
My downward strike, the Yousougeki, was blocked by the chains wrapped around his arm, just as I anticipated.
I immediately ducked and, with the wakizashi I had already drawn in my left hand, pinned Baiken’s right foot to the ground.
Baiken tried to dodge, but his reaction was too slow. I had already fixed his foot with Psychokinesis as I lunged.
The sickle swung down from above me as I ducked, but I evaded with a backflip and rose to face him again.
Even with his foot pinned, he didn’t carelessly try to yank it out… I expected as much.
Baiken casually gripped his chain sickle, a smirk on his face.
“My guess was wrong?”
“Something like that. I’ll be content with just immobilizing your movement.”
“It’s difficult to press the advantage from here, isn’t it? For my own learning, could you tell me what that technique was?”
“Sixth Sword Style, Kagenui.”
“In return, I’ll show you mine. Fuujin-ryu, Tsutagurami.”
A feinting weight flew towards me, but I evaded by taking half a step back.
The chain wrapped around the hilt of the wakizashi I had driven into his foot.
“Hmph!”
Baiken pulled out the wakizashi, chain and all. Impressive, he escaped Kagenui without showing an opening.
At that moment, the battle behind us as we glared at each other shifted.
“Kyaaaah!!” “How dare you!”
Rick tossed aside the impaled, half-naked corpse of a fallen member and threatened the surviving older sister.
“I’m not the masochistic type. I’m tired of being whipped!”
Even with a two-on-one disadvantage, Rick had been dominant. There was no way they could win against him one-on-one.
The remaining half-naked older sister was quickly cornered by Rick.
“Baiken-sama! Help me!”
“…Give up and die there. It’s your own fault for not being able to win, even two against one.”
“You can’t be serious!”
“That’s the end for scum! Perish!”
The hammer attached to the tip of Rick’s polearm struck her forehead, and the woman died instantly without even screaming. She fell backward like a puppet with cut strings.
Baiken glanced at the two female corpses lying on the ground and muttered to himself.
“…In the end, humans are alone. Alone. They die because they are weak. If they are strong, they live and can control everything. Isn’t that right, Kenrou?”
“The battlefield dictates that the strong live and the weak die. I agree with that. However, I cannot agree that strength grants the right to do anything one pleases. You may choose to be a loner, but there are people who live supporting each other. Those who lack self-control despite their strength are merely a nuisance.”
“Then perhaps you’d demonstrate by exterminating some pests?”
“I will. I will make you pay for trampling on decent people with my blade.”
Baiken is about 180 cm tall, but his body is twice as thick as mine.
If his appearance isn’t a deception, he must be tough. But I’ll end it in one blow.
I assumed the Hassō stance, lowering my stance further. It was the Hassō stance of Mugen Ittouryu, Jizuri Hassō.
Baiken, in response, held his sickle in his left hand and spun his chain in his right, preparing the basic stance of Fuujin-ryu aimed at confusing the opponent.
He threw the weight, looped the chain behind him, and launched a simultaneous attack with the sickle from the front and the chain from the back – a technique difficult to counter…
“Die!”
I dodged the incoming weight by twisting my neck and unleashed the power I had gathered, moving low like the ground.
I leaped like a swallow, low to the ground, and flashed past Baiken with my gleaming blade.
Baiken, standing still like a statue, took a moment before speaking.
“…What was that technique?”
“Fifth Sword Style, Amatsubame.”
“I’m surprised you attacked before the chain could return… Allow me one last question. Why did you announce your style and name?”
“I completely disagree with your way of life and your thoughts, and I despise them. However, I can respect the efforts you have put in through your training. That’s why.”
“…You’re a strange one. …But… well… done…”
Blood trickled from his mouth as he uttered his final words, and Baiken’s knees buckled.
He fell forward and became still.
“Well done, Lord.”
“What a foolish man. To possess such skill…”
I flicked the blood off my blade and sheathed my sword.
“He was a fearsome opponent. I didn’t expect the Road Gang to have such a skilled individual… Let’s return to the village.”
“I think it’s fitting for them to be left out in the open, but I’ll bury them. Though the people Baiken and the others killed might hate us…”
“They likely will. However, I believe it’s for the best.”
With the help of the White Wolf Group, we buried Baiken and his crew in the valley, and we returned to the village.
Upon returning to the village, I had Natsume and Rick rest, and decided to learn Mugen Ittouryu from Shizuru-san until the morning sun appeared.
Until now, I had been teaching myself through scrolls, but if I had the opportunity to learn from a person, I should seize it.
I demonstrated my katas in the mansion’s garden, and Shizuru-san performed a master demonstration, making the time pass quickly.
“Are you truly self-taught? For someone self-taught, your fundamentals are surprisingly solid…”
It’s a secret, but I studied under Grandpa for six years when I was in elementary school. I’ve spent a lot of time perfecting the basics.
“Is that so?”
“I have shown you all the techniques passed down in the cadet branch. You have solid fundamentals, and for some techniques, your mastery is even higher than mine… Lord, you are a genius. As expected of the main family’s bloodline.”
“I apologize for making you stay up all night. But it was unavoidable due to my mission.”
“Regarding the mission, Shizuru will accompany you. I must protect you, Lord.”
“No. What if another like Baiken appears? It is Shizuru-san’s duty to protect the village.”
“But if something were to happen to you, Lord…”
“If I am to die on the battlefield, then I am only a man of that caliber. The revival of Yashi would be a distant dream.”
“You can omit the ‘cooperation,’ you know?”
I said the matter of the head of the family was under further review!
“At any rate, once the campaign is over and things settle down, I will definitely return here! Until then, you’ll wait patiently, okay!”
“It cannot be helped. I will have the White Wolf Group escort you to your destination.”
“No, thanks. Just until we pass through the marshlands.”
“We are intimately familiar with the geography of this area. We even know paths not marked on maps, you know?”
“…Could you guide us to our destination?”
“If it is the Lord’s command, we will gladly do so. The White Wolf Group will undoubtedly be eager.”
Shizuru-san smiled at me with her brightest smile, a decision forced upon me.
…This is bad. The outer defenses are being gradually breached by the rubble known as established facts…
I will defend the inner moat to the death! I won’t lose!
