kscans

Chapter 29 - The Duel and the Heart

The battle began.

Me versus Ave. A duel to the death born from his one-sided misunderstanding.

We rushed each other, our swords clashing. For a moment, it seemed we were evenly matched, but his physical strength was lacking. I pushed forward with ease, a pained expression twisting Ave's face. He must have underestimated me, letting his guard down.

It was his own fault, but I wasn't so naive as to get cocky here.

His greatsword pulsed with a blue light. In games, it was common sense—an absolute certainty—that weapons like this were enchanted with special abilities.

Pinning his blade with my own, I activated Analysis.

The source of the blue light was an Ocean Magic Stone.

A quick search revealed it was a magic stone found near the sea, capable of drawing out the power of water.

Just as I thought—a magic sword. The moment the thought crossed my mind, I felt magical energy surge into his blade and immediately leaped back.

Seeing this, Ave scoffed. "Hmph. So you can sense the power of my Ocean God Sword. Even trash like you must have some experience, it seems."

He showed off the sword boastfully.

The Ocean God Sword... What a grandiose name.

"The Ocean God Sword? Is that what it's called?" I asked, turning to Bardos. "Ever heard of it?"

Bardos simply shook his head. He didn't know it either.

Ave, watching our exchange, sneered. "Hmph, it's only natural that scum like you wouldn't know. I was the one who gave this sword its name. Only three people, including myself, know of it."

He puffed out his chest, brimming with confidence.

I was dumbfounded. Three people? That had to mean him, me, and Bardos. Of course we wouldn't know it. I quietly raised my sword.

I had no desire to speak with this man any longer. My posture said it all.

Seeing my stance, Ave declared, "Hmph, so you're done talking. Very well. I have nothing more to say to you either. From here on, I'm coming at you with everything I've got."

Ave raised his sword. I agreed with the sentiment. I looked at his blade again, but it held no magic. He must have been trying to blow me away earlier. The fact that he wasn't imbuing it now... he was still looking down on me.

Just as I reached that conclusion, he charged.

I met his advance.

This time, we didn't lock blades. Our swords slid past each other in a cross. From there, it became a true sword clash.

Our blades met, parried, and deflected. The exchange continued, with neither of us landing a blow.

I conserved my stamina, deflecting his attacks and countering. When he blocked my counter... he tried to push me back. But his strength was weak. I easily dodged his blade without losing my balance.

I don't know how long our back-and-forth lasted, but at least three minutes must have passed.

Then, he suddenly jumped back. He must have realized this wasn't getting him anywhere and decided to regroup. I took the opportunity to check my own condition.

I was tired, but I could continue fighting. No pain, and plenty of magic left.

The assessment: no problems.

But when I looked at my opponent, his breathing was ragged, his mouth gasping, zee haa. His face was drenched in sweat, his hair a mess.

My impression was one of utter exhaustion.

Was this guy really a genius adventurer? Getting this tired from a mere skirmish... I couldn't help but sigh, wondering what kind of easy jobs he'd been taking to reach C-rank.

Ave saw my sigh.

"Hah... hah! To be tired from just this much... your stamina must be at its limit! I could end this now, but I will show you mercy. That is the pride of a knight! Now, witness the power of my Ocean God Sword with your own body!"

Ave began pouring magic into his sword.

Did he really think I was tired because of that sigh? Was he insulting me to hide his own fatigue, or did he genuinely believe it?

Either way, I screamed inside my head. You were the one who said you were done talking! I wanted to say it, but it would only lead to more pointless banter, so I held my tongue.

As I was thinking, water began to gush from his sword, shrouding the blade completely.

Raising his now-aqueous sword, Ave gloated, "Behold! This is my ultimate technique! Scum like you would normally never lay eyes on this in your lifetime! But to free that beautiful woman and make her mine... I have no hesitation in using it!"

Ave shouted, revealing his trump card.

I felt a surge of anger so intense a vein might just pop on my temple. Piki.

Make her mine? He must have meant Tina-san.

Was that his reason for trying to join her party?

An adventurer's life is one lived side-by-side with death. Trust is paramount, though romance can blossom as well. The bonds forged in that crucible cannot be broken by anyone. Yet this fool, ignorant of their trust, barges in demanding to join their party, bragging about being a genius, and to top it all off, he has the audacity to talk about making Tina-san his property.

My rage reached its peak.

"...Enough with the grandstanding. Just come at me. You'll get no mercy, even if you cry."

I imbued my words with a palpable killing intent and a surge of magical energy.

He felt it, letting out a small yelp—Hih—and stumbling back. But he quickly regained his composure and raised his sword.

"I-If you insist, then I'll show you! My ultimate technique, Splash Slash!"

He yelled and swung his sword horizontally.

Water sprayed from the blade, flying toward me like a volley of bullets.

I dodged.

The water bullets slammed into the earthen wall, gouging out chunks of dirt. They didn't punch through, but a direct hit on a person would do serious damage. So that's it. This is the technique he used to hunt so many monsters and reach C-rank.

His swordsmanship was below average, his stamina even worse. The only reason a guy like him had survived this long was thanks to that sword. He'd mistaken its power for his own and become an egomaniac. In that case... I used Matter Conversion on the sword in my hand, changing it to a certain metal.

Then, I wreathed my left fist in fire magic and took a karate stance, pulling my fist back to my hip.

Ave saw this.

"Hoh, so you can use magic. I don't know what you're planning, but know this—it's useless before my ultimate technique!"

He swung his sword again, and another spray of water bullets shot toward me.

Seeing them, I yelled.

"Fire Shot!"

I thrust my left fist forward, and an explosion of flames erupted, flying toward him.

It was a move I'd seen in a certain anime. Wondering if I could use it, I had trained relentlessly. It didn't work at first, but after much research and practice, I finally perfected it. I never thought I'd have to use it here, but to shatter this guy's ego, the best way was to meet his attack head-on with a similar technique and overwhelm it.

I'd already gauged his power from the dents in the wall and unleashed a greater amount of magic and firepower.

Fire and water, two scattered volleys, collided. The water touched the fire and instantly evaporated, disappearing. The fire, however, was not extinguished by the water and continued straight toward its target.

Seeing the fire bullets closing in, my opponent panicked. He dropped his sword, clutched his head, and crouched down.

The fireballs flew over his head and exploded against the earthen wall.

A series of explosions rocked the cave, and the shockwaves sent the cowering Ave tumbling.

The explosions ended. The wall was heavily gouged, but the cave itself was intact.

I was honestly relieved.

I'd been sweating, worried that the force and sound of the blast would cause a cave-in. I checked to see if Bardos was alright.

Bardos was on one knee, using his great axe as a shield to protect himself. Assured of his safety, I started walking toward the pathetic figure of Ave, who was sprawled on the ground.

He was still trembling, likely suffering from the aftershock of the explosions.

Looking at him, I sneered, "...What's wrong, genius? Scared by something like this? I'd laugh if I heard you call yourself a knight."

At my taunt, Ave looked up.

The moment he saw me, he scrambled backward into a sitting position. He tried to raise his sword, but realizing his hands were empty, he frantically looked around for it. He found it, staggered to his feet like a toddler, and picked it up.

He brandished the sword and yelled, "...H-Hmph! To pass up a perfect chance to defeat me... scum will always be scum! You'll die regretting you didn't finish me off then and there!"

He screamed and charged at me, sword held high.

Enough with the speeches. I was sick of listening. I held my sword in my right hand, horizontally to my left, and poured magic into it.

As he closed the distance and brought his sword down, I swung mine sideways.

The blades met, but they didn't lock.

There was a sharp pakkin sound. It was the sound of my sword cutting his in two.

He stared at his own sword—his Ocean God Sword—in disbelief that it had been broken. He just stood there, staring. How could I have broken a sword made with a magic stone?

It was because I had changed my sword into Mithril.

When I'd previously seen the armor of the Beautiful Sword and used Analysis on it, I learned it was made of Mithril. Leona had told me something then.

"Mithril isn't just hard. When you imbue it with magic, its strength and defensive power increase. It's the same for weapons; pour magic into a Mithril blade, and its sharpness increases."

"...However, there's a limit to how much magic it can hold. Pouring in more than that won't make it any stronger. Also, different stones have different limits for how much magic they can channel. The higher the limit, the rarer and more expensive the stone."

Remembering her explanation, I had converted my iron sword into Mithril.

Looking at it now, its luster was different from when it was iron. It was a silver-white color and slightly lighter. A perfect ore for weapons and armor. I sheathed my sword and drove my right fist straight into the face of the stunned Ave. He went flying, letting out a groan.

I walked over to him, grabbed him by the hair, and forced him to his feet.

He cried out in pain and tried to pry my hand from his head, but when he saw my face, he went pale.

My expression was a mask of pure fury.

"Brace yourself. I'm not done with you. I'll make you regret ever trying to defile Tina-san."

With that, I began to pummel Ave with my fists.

Not just his face—I hammered my fists against his armor. It dented, leaving the imprints of my knuckles. He was groaning, trying to say something, but I didn't care.

Just as I was about to throw another punch, someone grabbed my arm. I looked—it was Bardos, who had approached without me noticing.

"...That's enough, Shinsuke. He's lost the will to fight. I don't want to watch any more of this. It's sickening."

Bardos had stepped in to stop me.

As my head cleared, I looked at Ave. He was groaning, his face a mess of tears and snot. It was true; any more of this would be disgusting. I relented.

"...You should thank my partner. If he hadn't stopped me, I would have killed you. Do you get it now? Do you see what an easy life you've led? Go back to whatever town you came from and live out your life as a 'genius adventurer.' It suits you better."

With that, I ended the fight.

Just then, I sensed a presence from the passage leading to the cave entrance. Several people, but no killing intent. As Bardos and I watched, the members of Beautiful Sword emerged.

Seeing them, I asked, "How long have you been here?"

Tina replied calmly, "...Since about the time your fight began."

So they'd been here from the start. I see.

"...Do you despise me?"

They looked at me, puzzled by my words, and I continued.

"I kept beating an opponent who had lost the will to fight, until my partner had to step in. I'm a terrible person. It's only natural if you despise me."

In response to my admission, Tina said, "That's true. Under normal circumstances, it would be a despicable act. But, Shinsuke-san, you were angry because of what he said—'make her mine.' How could we possibly despise someone for that?"

Her words felt like a weight lifting from my chest. I was reminded of my miserable days at the office, constantly yelled at, blamed for failures, and used as a scapegoat. I desperately didn't want to experience that again in this world.

Perhaps my feelings had reached her, because she gave me the answer I'd been hoping for.

But still, I said, "Thank you. I feel a little better. But it doesn't change the fact that what I did was despicable. Right now, I don't feel I have the right to speak with you any longer, Tina-san. Excuse me."

I bowed and turned my eyes to Bardos, about to say, 'Let's go.'

But Tina stopped me.

"...Please wait. There's something I want to tell you."

I stopped and turned to listen.

"This whole incident started because I was recruiting for our party. As I said at the guild, I wanted to team up with someone I was interested in. Back then, I didn't have the courage, and my roundabout approach led to this situation. The responsibility is mine. So, I'll say it right here, right now... who I'm interested in."

She walked right up to me and kissed me. When our lips parted, she declared:

"I... I'm in love with you, Shinsuke-san!"

She shouted it, her face beet red as she looked at me.

I couldn't believe it. Someone like her... felt that way about me? Why? Where? How? As these questions swirled in my head, I felt a murderous aura from behind me. Tina-san noticed it too and looked past my shoulder.

I spun around to see Ave, gathering water around his broken sword.

Beaten to a pulp, Ave couldn't accept it.

That his Ocean God Sword was broken by this scum's blade. That he was reduced to tears and snot by this scum's fists. As these thoughts raced through his mind, he noticed the women had arrived. They were here to save me, he thought. Of course, they were.

My feelings weren't wrong. They would never abandon a genius like me. They came to kill the scum who held my weakness. Yes! That had to be it!

Convinced of this, he watched the scene unfold with a lecherous grin.

Then... suddenly... the beautiful woman... on her own accord... kissed... the scum.

Why? As he wondered, she suddenly screamed, 'I'm in love with you!!!' ...That couldn't be right. There was no way that beautiful woman would say something like that. The scum must be forcing her to say it.

Yes. That's it. It must be. Unforgivable. Absolutely unforgivable! With that completely misguided thought, he began pouring magic into his broken Ocean God Sword, gathering water to it.

Tina and I watched as Ave, still moving, glared at us.

And then he screamed.

"...Unforgivable. UNFORGIVABLE!! Scum like you... has no right to live! You should die right here!"

He thrust his magic sword forward, and a torrent of water shot out.

I couldn't understand what he was saying, but I knew what I had to do. I stepped in front of Tina-san and instantly channeled fire magic into my right fist.

"YOU IDIOT!"

I roared and unleashed the flaming fist at him.

The clash of fire and water was not a contest. The water that hit the fire evaporated, and the fire that hit the water was not extinguished. The momentum of the flame didn't slow as it raced toward him. Ave made no move to dodge and became its prey.

The flames continued to burn him.

When the fire died down... a human shape remained, but the face was charred black beyond recognition. After glancing at the burnt corpse, I turned to Tina.

"Tina-san, I'm happy to hear what you said earlier. But I can't accept a confession like this. Because it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. It makes me feel like you're only saying it to take responsibility for this situation, since it's your fault it happened."

"...Of course, I know that's not your intention. But these things depend on how the other person takes it. So... could you wait for me? When we're both in a better frame of mind, I'll be the one to tell you. I'll tell you everything I'm thinking in my own words."

Tina listened to my clear answer.

"...I understand. If that is your answer for now, then I will wait. But please, let me ask just one thing. Please call me 'Tina.' I want to feel like we've taken even a small step forward."

Her face flushed slightly. I replied, "All right... Tina."

It felt a little embarrassing. It was the first time I'd called a woman by her first name, so I felt shy. But hearing it, Tina's face turned red as she broke into a radiant smile. Right, time for the next task. I started to move to bury the charred corpse. All are equal in death—with that in mind, I began digging a hole.

Meanwhile, watching our exchange, Bardos approached Leona.

"Ah, Leona-san, about that fight I mentioned this afternoon... let's call it off."

Leona looked at him. "? What do you mean? Their love may not have been fulfilled, but there was progress. So, I don't mind accepting your challenge."

To her reply, Bardos said, "Nah, when Shinsuke said that stuff, I felt embarrassed myself. The thought of using my partner just to get a fight... So, I've decided that the next time I challenge you, it'll be fair and square, when I'm in a good mood. That's my answer for now."

Leona watched Bardos scratch his head, clearly uncomfortable with such mushy talk.

"I understand. In that case, I will forget what was said this afternoon. Well, I suppose you could say you're being considerate. It's a relief for me to know that you're thinking of others. Honestly, I didn't understand why Shinsuke-san would team up with a battle maniac like you, but it seems that being with him has changed you."

"...Before, you had an aura of someone who would do anything to enjoy a fight. But now, it seems you're considering others' feelings, which makes me quite happy. You are worthy of being called Shinsuke-san's partner. I'll be waiting for our match. You can ask me anytime. I will accept, no matter how many times you ask."

After saying that, Leona looked at the two of us. For some reason, she had a shy expression on her face.

After hearing her reply, Bardos turned his back so she couldn't see him and made a triumphant fist pump. 'Yes!' He'd honestly given up, thinking he'd never get to fight her again. But to hear her say she'd accept anytime... there wasn't a battle maniac alive who wouldn't rejoice.

Bardos's face broke into a wide grin. It was the terrifying smile of a true warrior.

...And from a distance, Milfy and Rumily watched the two pairs interact, looked at each other, and smiled.

I finished the grave. As a headstone, I thrust the Ocean God Sword into the ground.

Then, I said my goodbyes to Tina and the others and left the cave with Bardos. It occurred to me that I never found out why Tina and her party came here in the first place, but I figured I'd ask the next time we met.

Just then, I remembered something.

I'd forgotten to collect the magic stones from the Goblin and the Ogre. The Ogre's horns were especially valuable; I'd heard that if you ground them into powder and mixed it with iron, it created a material stronger than a Colorless Magic Stone.

I considered going back, but I'd run right into Tina's party again. We'd just said our goodbyes, and for me to come back for monster parts... after everything that just happened, that would be way too embarrassing.

I decided I'd come back for them at night.