Volume 8, Chapter 5 - Trying Out Challenging the Trial – Part 5
This chapter is updated by wuxiaworld.eu
Diablo shouted her name.
So a level 200 fight was this fierce──is what he thought in astonishment.
It was an exchange of what seemed like rule breaking Martial Arts that he had no idea how to deal with.
Before, Sasala had said “as an Adventurer, you’re probably stronger than someone like me” but, how would it be if she fought seriously?
At the very least, if it were Diablo before he leveled up as a Warrior-type, he would have been cut down with the first Martial Art that ignored distance.
Even the Evil Monkey, as expected of something that was the previous Master Swordsman Graham who had turned into an Oni. He was unmistakably a formidable enemy.
Even so, Sasala was the superior one.
Taking control of their fight, she broke the enemy’s stance. He thought that she would kill him with that last attack.
At that instant──
She was not a Master Swordsman, but had returned to a girl that missed her foster father.
「Sasalaaaaaa!!」
Diablo’s shout didn’t get through.
There was no way the Evil Monkey would let that opening get away.
Without any hesitation, he struck his katana on her.
「ッ！」
Sasala fell face down onto the ground.
Fresh red blood spread out on the rocky area.
It was an attack that slashed diagonally from the shoulder. Most likely, it had reached her heart, and seemed like it resulted in instant death.
Diablo’s hand trembled.
He took his Magic Staff, the 《Tonnerre Empereur》, out from his pouch. At the same time, he also took out an Ability Increasing Potion.
The enemy was a level 200 Warrior──
Just him going all out still wasn’t enough.
「《Flare Burst》!!」
Last time, he had evaded this.
However, the fact that he evaded it should mean that he can’t withstand it.
Just as expected, the Evil Monkey jumped away before the explosion could happen.
Gaining a small bit of time, Diablo transformed the 《Tonnerre Empereur》. Into the Magic Sword clad in purple lightning, 《Libéré》.
With this, his attack would increase sevenfold. However, his MP consumption would also skyrocket.
「《Lightning Arrow》!!」
Arrows of light, enough to cover up the sky, headed towards the Evil Monkey from all directions.
There is no way he could evade this.
「Shi!!」
Astonishingly, the Evil Monkey cut away the approaching 《Lightning Arrows》. It were as if there were a barrier made through slashes.
So it meant that magic with that level of power wouldn’t get through.
「In that case, 《Lightning Bullet》!!」
Next came bullets of light.
The power was in a different league.
It was originally a single shot attack, but it increased to several bullets through 《Libéré》.
He evaded them.
「Kuh……」
He was too fast.
Even if it was done from a bit of a distance, to think that not even the magic that took down Feudal Lord Galford would get through to him at all.
「OOOOO!!」
The Evil Monkey swung down his katana.
Diablo moved to the side.
The slash bisected the air. So it was the Martial Art that ignored distance.
If he had not seen Sasala use it in the earlier fight, he would have been killed.
──So what I need is a high powered, impossible to evade, ranged attack!
「《Cross Blizzard》!!」
Countless tornadoes came forth.
They would freeze everything that they touched, and would break and scatter that through the gales.
The Evil Monkey kicked the ground.
He immediately closed the distance.
It was because if the caster were killed, the magic would vanish.
「OOOOO!!」
The slash of a former Master Swordsman, came falling.
Diablo caught that with the Magic Sword 《Libéré》.
「Gah!!」
His bones creaked.
He felt like he was going to be blown away.
However, he endured it.
Firmly stepping on the ground with his feet, and putting all of his body’s strength into his sword, he pushed back.
If he were to lose to the pressure, his posture would break. And if that were to happen, he wouldn’t be able to cope with the next attack.
「GOOOOOO!!」
The flow was the same as his fight with Sasala earlier. At a distance where it seemed like he could reach if he extended out his hand, he stopped his feet threw countless slashes.
What was different was──that Diablo’s ability was not yet good enough for him to cross swords with the Evil Monkey.
A one-sided defensive fight.
Moreover, it was difficult to even defend against him.
Diablo curved the ends of his lips.
「Hmph……Damned monkey……Haven’t you forgotten something?」
「GOFUU!?」
「《Dark Press》!!」
Magic from up close.
Moreover, having no need for it to make a direct hit, it was an area attack, though the range was quite short.
Making the opponent’s weight increase several times, it would seal their movements.
With the Evil Monkey’s level, it would have a limited effect but……his slashes had definitely weakened.
In addition to that, while catching the opponent’s katana with his Magic Sword, he stuck out his left hand.
「Be frozen! 《Absolute Zero》!!」
However, Diablo’s left hand that was stuck out, was sent flying.
Fresh blood scattered about.
「Wha!?」
「GUFUO」
──So everything up until now was just a lure!?
In the Evil Monkey’s left hand, he was gripping a short sword.
Where was he carrying it?
By perceiving the opponent from their outward appearance to their equipment, Diablo was able to guess variations in their way of fighting.
Even though the opponent’s equipment should have only been a single Japanese sword……
「Diabloー!?」
Probably watching from the shadow of the rocks, Shera raised a scream-like shout.
In front of those girls, he would not show an unsightly appearance.
He gritted his teeth.
──Did you think you won just by taking a single left arm!!
Diablo made him eat a head-butt.
The Evil Monkey tried to evade it, but it hit his left shoulder.
「UU!?」
「The activation requirement, is touch!」
There was no rule that said that it had to be done with a hand.
《Absolute Zero》 activated.
The Evil Monkey started to freeze from his left shoulder.
At that rate, his whole body would surely turn into an ice sculpture──But things wouldn’t go so easily.
With instant judgement, he swung his katana towards his own body.
Fresh blood spilled onto the ground.
Into the pool of blood, *botori*, the Evil Monkey’s left arm fell. It was frozen.
The hand breaking, the short sword fell out.
The Evil Monkey’s short sword that fell onto the ground, as if it had melted, vanished. However, with the blood from cutting Diablo, and through the Evil Monkey’s own blood, Diablo knew that it had existed there.
──Was it a short sword that could turn invisible!?
What was unknown at level 200 wasn’t just the techniques, but the weapons as well.
Both sides had lost their left arms.
However, it was hard to say that they were equal.
Diablo became unable to use any sort of potion. There was no way he could let go of the weapon he held in his right hand.
In the MMORPG Cross Reverie, there was no loss of limbs, and no matter how much damage was received, items wouldn’t become unusable.
In this other world, it was different.
Diablo’s body wasn’t as sturdy as a level 200 Warrior’s body. He was at a disadvantage in a drawn-out battle while bleeding out.
──I have no choice but to decide the match with the next attack!
However, the Evil Monkey’s gaze was glaring at something different from Diablo.
「GRRRR……」
「Wha!? You, where are you going!?」
The Evil Monkey kicked the ground, and started running in an unexpected direction.
Towards the two girls watching from the shadow of the rock──Towards Rem and Shera.
Did he react to something?
The Evil Monkey’s target was moved from Diablo who was in front of him to Shera. Was it when she raised her scream not long ago?
Diablo’s heart sprang up.
「As if I’d let you go! 《Lightning Meteo》!!」
Countless lightning attacks fell towards the Evil Monkey.
The enemy gouged the ground with his katana.
Breaking the rocks, a cloud of dust fluttered about.
Right before the lightning of the 《Lightning Meteo》 hit the Evil Monkey, it hit the fragments and sand that were blown up, and then flowed towards the ground just like that.
──He cut the ground and turned it into a lightning rod!?
It did nothing but slow him down.
Faster than Diablo could fire his next move, the Evil Monkey arrived at the spot the girls were at.
「OOOOO!!」
「Hii!?」
Shera was a genius as an Archer, but she was weak when danger drew near. Her body freezing up in fear, she became unable to move.
Rem met the enemy with a Summoned Beast.
「《Aslau》!!」
Being cut away with a single sword stroke, it turned into a black crystal.
No matter how strengthened it was by her equipment, with a level 40 Summoned Beast, it wouldn’t even work as a shield.
The Evil Monkey turned towards Shera, and swung down his katana.
When Diablo was about to fire a whole body magic──
「Wha!?」
There was someone that caught the Evil Monkey’s katana.
They cut in in front of Shera, with a sword in hand.
It was Sasala.
Blood was flowing from her forehead.
「T, Tou-sama……Please stop……Shera is……my disciple and……m, my friend……nan desu.」
Shera shouted Sasala’s name.
Rem opened her eyes wide in astonishment.
「So you were alive, Sasala!?」
「I, I……seem to have a constitution where I don’t receive damage, once per day, after all.」
「But, the blood is……」
「I was fine, being cut but……since I was slammed down into the rock underfoot with a lot of force, I hit my head.」
It seemed that she flashily started bleeding because of that, and had lost consciousness for a while.
Diablo let out a loud voice.
「I will ask you this, once more, Sasala! You are going to fight, aren’t you!?」
「Y, yes. I will fight.」
「Will you cut him down!?」
「ッ……That is……If that is, Tou-sama’s desire!」
She pushed back the katana she caught.
The Evil Monkey moved back.
Sasala held her sword overhead.
That sword, carried a light to it.
She looked defenseless, but the Evil Monkey didn’t attack carelessly. So it was because he knew about it that he didn’t make a move.
Sasala opened her lips.
It was quiet, but it was a voice filled with resolve.
「Tou-sama……This is the last move that I was taught by you, Tou-sama. I beg of you, please see it with your own eyes.」
「GRRRR……OOOOOOOOO!!」
The Evil Monkey shrieked, and raised his katana overhead.
Sasala also responded.
「TEIYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!」
Whole bodied howls.
The light that dwelled within her sword enveloped Sasala’s whole body, and before long, everything was turned into a torrent of light.
It resembles 《Transfer》──is what Diablo thought. It was a magic where one would turn into light and travel to another town in an instant. In this world, there was surely didn’t exist movement that was faster than that.
It was an instant.
No, was there even the passage of an instant?
At the same time she turned into light, it was already over.
When he realized it, Sasala already stood at the Evil Monkey’s back. Her sword was swung down.
And then, even the Evil Monkey, his katana had taken a full swing.
「KA……」
Between the two that had their backs turned towards each other──
Sasala collapsed.
Did she lose!?
Diablo rushed over to her.
「Oi!?」
He roused her in his arms.
Sasala, shedding tears, cried.
「I, I did it……」
「What did you say?」
Diablo moved his eyes to the Evil Monkey.
Dropping his katana, he turned around to face this way.
On his body, there was the sign of being deeply cut from his left shoulder to his right flank.
Blood was spurting out.
*Hara hara* His monkey fur fell.
The appearance that was a large monkey densely covered in thick hair turned into his former human appearance.
「……That was magnificent.」
The one who was the Evil Monkey──the previous Master Swordsman Graham, collapsed onto the floor.
Sasala rushed over to him.
「ッ!? T, Tou-sama!??」
「Fu, fufu……So despite, turning into an Oni……I couldn’t reach you……」
「Tou-sama! I, I……I……」
While shedding tears, Sasala hugged Graham. Her shoulders trembling, she wept.
「……Y, your sword……had reached the state the founder had sought after……As your teacher, there is no greater……happiness.」
「N, no way……Someone like me, still had far to go!」
「However……I became impatient……For a match with an extremely great swordsman. E, even if……I had to fall into heresy……」
As they thought, he did it for the sake of fighting against Sasala.
He sought a single bout not as her parent, nor as her Shishou, but as a single Warrior.
Going *gohoh*, Graham coughed violently, and spat out blood.
「Tou-sama!」
「……Do not cry……I……am satisfied. H, having fought……with the serious you……it was the best match, of my life……Guh……It’s unfortunate but, this body was simply incompetent.」
「Tou-sama, I, simply did as you had taught me……」
「Something like, my teachings are……」
Diablo stood at the side.
「”The arts of a Master Swordsman, are for the sake of teaching people”──That is what I have heard. In that case, you should be proud, predecessor. The daughter you had raised, is the strongest Warrior.」
It seemed that Graham was no longer able to move.
He moved only his eyes towards him.
「……O strong, Adventurer.」
「I am your disciple’s disciple though.」
His voice became softer.
「……care……hter……Take care……of my daughter」
「Leave it to me.」
With a trembling hand, Graham entrusted his katana to the young girl.
「Sa……sa……la.」
「Tou-sama!」
「……」
His last words, didn’t make a sound.
However, his expression, was that of a father looking at his daughter.
The previous Master Swordsman breathed his last breath.
He would never open his closed eyes again.
Sasala fell onto his chest.
「AAAAAAAAAAaaaa, Tou-samaaaaaaaaaaaaaaー!!」
Diablo couldn’t do anything but watch.
He had no words of comfort.
It was because he felt that it was what Graham desired and thought that there would be a meaning to it for the two of them that he entrusted the conclusion to Sasala.
However, was he truly not mistaken about that?
A young girl killed the foster father she loved and respected with her own hands.
──Was this the correct thing to do?
He would surely carry this question for the rest of his life.
Liked it? Take a second to support Novels on Patreon!