kscans

Chapter 643 - An Immature Nova

The Southern Faction, Sotalm’s, tenth-ranked member, the [Heroine] Oume Touri.

Brawling Sister, Bare-Knuckle Lady, Rock-Paper-Scissors-Is-Always-Rock, Prayer (Physical)—she has been given many nicknames, but if one were to describe her abilities in a single phrase…

Her name is, the Walking Epicenter.

Taking a single step forward, the [Heroine] effortlessly, far more effortlessly than Kanata could draw and swing his short sword with his right hand, twirled a great warhammer that was much larger than her own body.

Not a hammer… but a mallet. The great mallet, made entirely of jet-black ‘wood’ from its handle to its head, was a simple block of wood, save for the golden pattern carved like a prayer on its head.

The Fifth Tier Anima, [Grace Lucate, Earth-Shaking Root-Flower Vine]—its hidden ability is befitting the name ‘Walking Epicenter,’ a forced vibration impartation to matter that requires no attack power or impact force whatsoever.

The reach of that power,

“Alright, let’s begin.”

—for example, naturally includes even the very ‘earth’ itself.

No sound, no shockwave, nothing that would clearly declare the fact that it had struck the floor occurred. The great mallet, twirled as if she were toying with a pen, touched the ground at the [Heroine]’s feet.

“Hk, ngh…!”

The next moment, a massive vertical tremor, so extreme that even an avatar with superhuman physical abilities couldn’t possibly have remained standing without being prepared, assaulted Kanata.

And then,

“—Hoh?”

In the very epicenter of the quake where even walking was difficult, two figures moved. Having dodged a fist that was swung nonchalantly after her form blurred and flew unnaturally, Oume Touri let out a voice that seemed both amused and intrigued, her eyes keenly tracking her target.

To fulfill the challenge he himself had thrown down, the boy charged head-on, kicking aside instinct, reason, and fear, and swung his right hand.

Charging head-on—and from behind, a position he had gained by tracing an arc at three hundred miles per hour, he drove his blade straight for her neck, casting aside all hesitation and doubt.

To her neck, the blade approached, and,

“—I see, that explains it. No wonder they picked you as a runner.”

“So haaaaaard…?!”

The short sword, which should have perfectly struck a vital point from above her glittering golden hair, was repelled head-on with a high-pitched metallic sound.

Though surprised, his mind, which had been hammered into him the ‘courage and grit to never stop thinking, even in a panic’ through endless sparring with a thousand blades, immediately began to work.

Following his left, a right step forward. His avatar, sliding at top speed without being hindered by the lingering tremors, instantly created distance between the monster and Kanata.

What resulted was a scene after their initial exchange of greetings, their faces lit with their respective inner thoughts.

On one side, Kanata. This was the second time he had faced a ‘Ranker’ on the battlefield, and there was no getting used to it. Having received the pressure up close, his resolve didn’t waver, but he couldn’t ignore the shiver that ran through him.

He had only just started running. Though he had the spirit to learn and imitate, he was naturally far from becoming one of them, and he couldn’t possibly put on a fearless smile. He disguised the trembling of his blade, which had nothing to do with the numbness from the feeling of striking steel, by pressing his left hand against his wrist to steady it.

On the other side, the [Heroine], who watched Kanata without giving chase or showing any disturbance.

“You’re good. It’s been a while since someone who isn’t a Ranker got the first hit in on me.”

“…I’m honored.”

As she brushed her hair back with a swish, as if to tidy up the places they had both struck, her tone was so crisp and clear that one could believe there was no hidden meaning behind it.

As if she didn’t mind in the slightest that a deadly weapon had been slammed against her neck a moment ago—and indeed, with not a single scratch on her body or her HP, she smiled brightly.

“I haven’t forgotten, but could you tell me your name one more time?”

“H-Huh… K-Kanata, it is.”

“Alright, Kanata. I like your spirit and your drive. I’ll be sure to remember you.”

She let go of the great mallet that had shaken the earth and flew forward with her bare hands.

The great mallet, which should have been left behind, was, before he knew it, back in her hands. Twirling it once more, the [Heroine] cheerfully spun her words—and in this time and place, that,

“To be honest, I wanted to fight the [Acrobat] one-on-one, so I split off from the others… It seems I didn’t draw the short straw after all. I’m glad.”

“Hk…”

—was nothing less than a declaration that she was raising her motivation and, in addition, shifting up a gear.

To the small but brave challenger who unconsciously swallowed hard as the pressure of information, which already felt crushing, swelled without limit—

“Once again, I am the Southern Faction’s tenth-ranked member, the [Heroine] Oume Touri. You can call me Oume-san.”

Her face, which would look demure if she were quiet, twisted into a fiendish expression overflowing with fighting spirit.

“Now, come at me—Don’t you go and get crushed so easily, Kanata.”

And though she said to come at her,

The [Heroine] took another step forward herself, as if to say, ‘But I won’t wait.’