kscans

Chapter 215 - Two Extremes

“—Well then… still want to go?”

“I’d like to retreat, but my orders are to stall you completely, you see…”

Two shadows stood in a world of ice, enveloped in a swirling, pure-white mist.

The original waterway was nowhere to be seen. The entire area, right up to the walls, was covered in a layer of frost. The expressions on the faces of the two men confronting each other in this frozen wasteland were a study in contrasts.

One, though his breathing was slightly ragged, still wore a composed expression that suggested he had plenty of fight left.

The other was visibly exhausted. His avatar, exhaling white breaths due to the biting cold, wore a bitter smile that he couldn't hide.

“You’ve surprised me, Irori-kun. It’s like… did something good happen to you?”

[Full Auto] had known of [Sword Protector]’s might, honed under the tutelage of the famed [Sword Saint], but today he was facing a skill set that felt even sharper. Before he knew it, his partner had been taken down, and all he could do was laugh as if to say, “Give me a break.”

Watching him, Irori, who had so effortlessly overcome the numerical disadvantage, simply smiled as if it were nothing and swung the blue sword in his right hand.

“Who knows—I just can’t afford to lose to my junior, that’s all.”

“Your junior, huh… I’d very much like to meet him myself.”

“You’re more than welcome to go and see him.”

Irori took a step forward. The ice beneath his feet groaned, and pillars of frost rose up as if to mark his footprints.

“—After you get past me.”

“Tch… [Quintet, Five-Fold Manipulation]!”

In response to that single, slow step, Fuji leaped back with all his might and flung his arms out like a conductor. Instantly, five replica dolls materialized from the void and assaulted the approaching samurai of foreign appearance.

“[Enka—”

The dolls, frozen solid in mid-lunge with a sharp crack, stood motionless. [Sword Protector] walked between them.

“—Senjin].”

With a single, sweeping slash that cleared his surroundings, he cut down all that stood against him.

“My, my…! This is a problem…!!”

Continuously summoning dolls as he retreated—while it was truly his only means of resistance, the young man known as Fuji was earnestly trying to fulfill the order given to him by the ‘Queen’.

It might have looked like he was being played with, but he was managing to hold the line, just barely. The proof was that Irori, while effortlessly handling the waves of dolls, had yet to make a move to take Fuji’s head directly.

At the same time, however, Fuji wished he would make a move for his head. Being forced into a war of attrition with a foregone conclusion was not a situation he welcomed in the slightest.

The problem, as expected, was his observation eye, praised as being on par with the [Sword Saint]'s—or rather, his natural fighting ‘instincts’, a kind of innate talent for combat.

He had another trick up his sleeve, one he had yet to reveal to the world, separate from the five-doll simultaneous control that exceeded his previous limits… but unfortunately, it seemed he couldn't fool Irori's senses.

However, that only meant he couldn't land a decisive blow—

“Ah, honestly… As inexhaustible as ever.”

By forcing [Sword Protector] to constantly deal with the endless stream of dolls, he was without a doubt succeeding in his orders to rob him of his ‘time’.

Irori had lost his patience and activated [Engage], taking down Fuji's partner, but while that had crushed their hopes of victory, it hadn't hindered the mission itself.

It was melancholic to see his prized ability, the very embodiment of his title, be so completely shut down, but he would not fail in his duty.

With the first-ranked retired and the second-ranked [Sword Saint] out of the public eye, stalling the man who was effectively the strongest PvP player in the East was the greatest contribution he could make to the Southern Faction—and by extension, to their ‘Princess’.

—Crack.

In the world of ice where the sounds of one samurai clashing with five doll-samurai endlessly echoed, a single, sharp noise reached their ears with startling clarity, simultaneously halting the movements of both rankers.

Each took a step back, and while keeping a wary eye on the other, they turned their heads to look at the source of the sound—but there was nothing there.

Which meant…

“Ah, so this is it.”

Fuji’s previous fighting spirit vanished as if it were a lie. He lowered his conducting hands and went limp, as if in surrender.

Irori, on the other hand, lowered his sword and relaxed his stance, giving a half-lidded glare into the empty space, though a smile played on his lips.

“You’re late, Tetra.”

“Sorry, Irori-senpai. The commander who was supposed to guide me was busy with ‘other things’.”

I got lost—with those words and a wry smile, the figure of a boy appeared, not by fading in, but as if he had been there all along, inserted directly into their perception.

“Alright then, I’ll leave the rest to you.”

“Leave it to me. By the way, you should probably hurry.”

They exchanged words as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

What was strange was the fact that the ‘enemy’ was also watching this scene unfold as if it were perfectly normal.

With the black-clad boy remaining and the samurai in his formal robes swiftly departing, Fuji watched Irori leave without a fuss, then turned his gaze to the boy, his will to fight completely gone.

“Aren’t you a little too passive?”

“Well, everyone watching on screen probably thinks ‘game set’ too.”

“…Specialized builds are all-or-nothing. It’s a cruel world.”

[Full Auto] and [Undying]—both possessing unique avatar builds that differed greatly from the norm, they shared the massive disadvantage of being unable to provide ‘excitement’ on their own. The two of them shared a similar smile.

Two extremes meant that in a perfect matchup game, one-sided stomps were refreshingly the norm.

For example, like [Full Auto] against a high-AGI avatar.

And for example—like [Undying] against [Full Auto].

“…But hey, it’s been a while since we last fought—why not aim for an upset?”

“Oh?”

At the boy’s uncharacteristic words, a surprised Fuji tilted his head.

“How rare, to hear you taunt someone, Tetra-shonen.”

“I told you to stop with the ‘shonen’.”

When Fuji playfully poked at him, Tetra seemed to realize he had said something out of character. He scratched his cheek as if to cover his embarrassment and glanced slightly upward.

Up there was… probably the score counter for each faction, which was displayed on every participating player’s user interface during the Four Pillar War.

“It’s nothing, it’s just—”

The boy, who held no weapon, also needed no stance.

The only thing that showed he'd flipped the switch was one thing.

“—It’s just that I can get swept up in the excitement too.”

Only the fighting spirit swirling in his eyes, aimed squarely at him.

“I see… Then maybe I should get serious for the first time in a while?”

“I’d welcome it. But still—sorry, it might end up one-sided anyway.”

What escaped him was a boyish, charming smile… but Fuji knew.

He knew about the incredible monster this innocent-looking boy kept inside.

A rustling, heavy wind brushing against his skin—it wasn't his imagination. The shadows writhing and squirming at the boy's feet—that wasn't an illusion either.

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen this… since I was supposed to avoid encounters with you.”

Though his voice didn't tremble, a genuine ‘fear’ seeped into the pit of his stomach. Setting aside the fact that he was a natural counter, any ‘person’, before being a game player, would—

—surely not be unafraid of the ‘dark’.

“—Dazzling Release.”

The key phrase was spoken, the proof of its speaker.

And inscribed upon the battlefield was the title that marked its chosen one.

“Embrace—[Grimnote, Black Sky Roc Wings].”

From his black-clad body, a waterfall of black feathers overflowed.

Swallowing [Full Auto] and its master, who did not flee, along with everything else—the ‘darkness’ soundlessly, equally, covered all.