kscans

Chapter 213 - It Runs Swiftly

“—[Rabbit Rapid, Crimson Brilliant Bullet].”

That was probably the name of the 'magic' that followed the chant his ears had been catching in snippets.

It was likely the ability hidden within that strangely shaped dagger. His right hand was still gripping the hilt behind his back, the red blade still sheathed, but light was leaking out.

However, there were no other visible changes.

In Arcadia, magic was supposed to be flashy. Even if this wasn't magic, phenomena that required chanting generally followed that principle. Based on the movement of his lips, what he had chanted was a medium-to-long incantation… which meant the 'supernatural' event it triggered should be anything but trivial—

“…Tch!”

It doesn’t matter. Maru II put an end to his thoughts, which had lasted less than a second, gripped his weapon, and kicked off the water-filled ground.

To be honest, the only reason this fight was even happening was thanks to his opponent's good nature. With a clear advantage in agility, if Haru had been serious about running, there would have been nothing he could do.

He could probably even force a [Break] engagement if he wanted to—but his opponent’s refusal to do so was the biggest reason why [Great Tiger] had lost track of when to retreat and had ultimately been taken down.

I like it, he thought.

It wasn't that Maru II belonged to the battle-crazed masses of Istia, nor was he a thrill-seeker like his master, [Great Tiger]—it was just, well…

That attitude of trying to enjoy everything before him to the absolute fullest.

That spirit of meeting an opponent's full power head-on with his own, without a moment's hesitation.

And…

“—Hah… ha ha…!!”

—that terribly innocent and joyful smile, which was clear enough from his visible mouth alone, and which seemed to draw a smile from his opponent as well.

As a fellow player to enjoy a game with, he was endlessly appealing.

…So then, just how high was this young man going to climb?

Dagger, longsword, spear, greatsword, mace, warhammer, scimitar… as his virtual brain spun at ten times the normal speed, on the verge of burning out, he unleashed a versatile offense, changing forms and styles.

And this monster, who parried it all with only his left hand holding a small shield, his right never leaving the hilt of his dagger… with every single action, his speed increased. This white-and-blue shadow, cloaked in red light—just how far would it go?

Driven by curiosity, [The Dictionary] focused his gaze, trying to peer into the depths of the hood, and—

—

—in the darkness, whether it was an eye or not, he thought he saw a brilliant 'red' shine.

◇◆◇◆◇

In reality, it wasn't that I was being theatrical or holding back the power hidden within the Rabbit Dagger. And it certainly wasn't because I was embarrassed to be caught smugly reciting that ridiculously cryptic chant.

The reason was simple: the unique effect called [Rabbit Rapid, Crimson Brilliant Bullet] was just hopelessly, infuriatingly difficult to use.

Difficult to use is one way to put it; the path it leads down is just uncontrollable. Even with the player skills I had honed under the Sword Saint's tutelage, it was a top-tier demon card that I couldn't fully tame.

Yes, a demon card, precisely.

I wasn't going to rely on my trump card, the Joker, but I never said I wouldn't play the demon card.

The generation of [Parabellum Bullet] is merely a secondary effect.

The true, primary power of [Rabbit Dagger: Parabellum]—the effect of [Rabbit Rapid, Crimson Brilliant Bullet]—is the updating of my maximum speed.

In other words, once this power is activated, the moment my avatar marks its maximum allowed speed based on my agility stat, that limit gets raised, little by little.

Little by little—meaning it accumulates.

And an avatar's 'maximum possible speed' isn't just limited to running. For example, there's also… the speed at which I swing a weapon.

Every time I swing my left hand, armed with the [Revolving Shield of Rotation], to bat away the countless incoming attacks.

Every time I swing the shield, designed primarily for offense, at top speed.

The accumulating AGI points manifested as a crimson aura, similar to the enhancement from my Crimson Valor spear—but with an ominous, clinging quality.

I was getting so hyped that I was aware of my own grin. Perhaps it was contagious, because Maru II was also smiling cheerfully, though… I was pretty sure the twitching in his cheeks wasn't my imagination.

He was probably thinking something like this:

—Just how much faster is this guy going to get?

Unfortunately, the only answer I could give to that question was an utterly lawless one.

“Keep up, [The Dictionary]—there's no limit.”

[Rabbit Rapid, Crimson Brilliant Bullet]… its power is to update my maximum speed.

And for that speed, which was now skyrocketing in an instant—a ceiling does not exist.

“Ngh…!?”

My fist, now running on an ever-breaking limit, finally surpassed the processing speed of my opponent, who had been compensating for his agility disadvantage with his superior thought speed.

I deflected the dagger aimed at my neck and, in the same motion, slammed a backfist into the side of his head. But really, every single ranker is a monster…

Even after taking a direct hit, he never broke eye contact, not even flinching or reflexively closing his eyes. His composure was insane!!

“[Parabellum Bullet]!!”

I summoned a multitude of red daggers before me. Maru II reacted instantly to the swarm of glittering blades floating in the air, but… sorry, that was a bluff.

[Blink Switch]—I ignored the wall of knives I had just created and summoned the [Giant's Hand Axe] in my left hand. He must have predicted its trajectory from the angle of the blade, because just as I expected, I brought the massive black axe down right where he was trying to escape.

The speed of my swing had long since left AGI: 350 in the dust—at this point, I’d probably reached that ridiculous number I graduated from a while back, AGI: 500.

Or rather, I had reached it.

Because in this very instant, that axe swing had already made even that maximum speed a thing of the past.

—Alright, I’m running out of time myself.

Why? Because the reason this outrageous power is a ‘demon card’ and not a ‘trump card’ was finally starting to show. That last swing, which had greatly exceeded my avatar’s limits, had chipped away at my HP, not Maru II’s. That was the proof.

Unlike [Shukuchi], which is built upon a solid foundation of technique despite its absurd results, the super-acceleration from [Rabbit Rapid, Crimson Brilliant Bullet] is more like a doping effect, a blessing from this ‘Red’ thing.

Excessive power destroys the body—meaning if I continue to accelerate like this, my avatar will be unable to withstand the stress exceeding its stats and will self-destruct.

Furthermore, this is treated as slip damage from overload, not self-inflicted damage… so even if I had started at full health—which I hadn't, thanks to Maru II's earlier attack—it wouldn't meet the activation conditions for my unique title, [the Acrobat].

Incidentally, trying to suppress my maximum speed and stop the updates is also a no-go. This selfish little dagger, the moment it senses me holding back, immediately gets pouty and throws away the enhancement effect…

In other words, if this fight drags on, I will self-destruct.

Well then, the answer is simple, isn’t it?

“Alright, let’s begin—I'll end this in ten moves!”

Finishing an opponent in a limited number of moves is one of my new specialties!!