It was fortunate for Hinata Sakaguchi to meet Izawa Shizue. Even though it was for a very short time, Shizue was the only one to whom Hinata truly opened her heart.
One month.
In that short period, Hinata took away all of Shizue's skills and left her side.
It was because she feared rejection. Ultimately, she was afraid of being taken from.
Most of all,
"We are a burden to Shizue-san. The guild is poor and can't even afford to support the living expenses of those who work. So, would you like to work together?"
The boy's words, as if it were nothing.
She knew he was simply inviting her, but the words about being a burden were deeply etched in her heart.
It was at this moment that she resolved to leave Shizue's service.
When Hinata was about to leave Shizue's side, the boy chased after her and said,
"Let's definitely meet again. Definitely! When that time comes, help me!"
Hinata, who was honest and straightforward, accepted his words.
Though she was emotionally distant, she felt a bit of warmth for the boy just because they were from the same hometown.
So, she agreed without any hesitation.
Then, Hinata set off on her journey.
The world was filled with despair, and people could easily lose their lives. In such a world, she gained strength to survive.
During her travels, she was shocked by what she saw in a country she visited.
People had been killed by a disaster-level monster. Amidst this, there were those fighting to protect the children.
Not a single adult fled; they became shields for the children.
She thought that only those who could think of nothing but protecting themselves would survive.
But the ones fighting were called Holy Knights.
They regularly patrolled the area around the village, protecting people and upholding justice.
Hinata felt that this was the place she belonged.
And she believed in it without any doubt.
Ten years have passed.
Hinata, who once did not believe in gods, now stands at the pinnacle of sacred guardians, protecting the people of the Holy Papal State of Ruberius.
It was ironic, but it was a noble profession for those who could live for others, protecting the people of the Holy Papal State of Ruberius.
Hinata believed in and trusted this without any doubt.
Living for others. Even if it meant sacrificing her own body.
If she did so, everyone would be happy. At the same time, the monsters had to be eradicated.
Monsters always interfered with people's happy lives.
While the main city was protected by a strong barrier, the surrounding villages were different.
The Holy Knights patrolled regularly, so the damage was minimal, but the regular attacks by monsters were a common occurrence.
Unlike the Jura Great Forest, the monsters in this western region had less prey.
Only deserts and barren lands stretched out.
The barren land was said to be the aftermath of a battle between powerful demons.
There were many places with high concentrations of mana, and monsters frequently appeared. Therefore, the Holy Knights, who protected people, gave them hope.
It was not uncommon for Holy Knights to be deceived and killed by monsters.
Because it happened frequently, the church's doctrine explicitly prohibited any dealings with monsters.
This could be called the wisdom of the Western Holy Church, which had protected people's lives for hundreds of years.
To the point where following the doctrine was believed to lead to happiness.
Hinata, who initially did not believe in the doctrine, found herself agreeing with its rational thinking.
And somehow...
Following the doctrine became Hinata's own sense of justice, which was an ironic story.
Days spent fighting monsters without sleep.
When did she start feeling bored with the repetitive daily routine?
Since becoming the leader of the knights, measures were implemented, and the damage was now surprisingly minimal.
Predicting the emergence and impact of monsters, methods of cooperation, and patrol timing.
The optimization of such systems proved effective.
That's why the trust the Holy Knights had in Hinata was high, she thought.
Therefore, she could not go against the doctrine.
She had responsibilities and a mission to protect people from monsters.
She had gained the trust of her subordinates and a place to return to.
Nikolaus, who told her he loved her...
Hinata was probably afraid.
While she seemed detached from everything, she was most afraid of losing what she had gained.
Under complete management, people could live happily.
Hinata believed this.
And the state of the Holy Papal State of Ruberius, a completely managed society, proved that her thinking was correct.
It was only natural.
So, as usual.
She would defeat the monster, nothing more.
A simple thought. But that was fine.
Following the doctrine was the meaning of her existence and her justice.
The twisted heart of Hinata, a girl who had never been loved by her parents.
The one belief that supported her heart.
To protect that belief, Hinata resolved to fight.
And now.
The situation is bad, laughably so.
But because of it, she shook it off.
She stopped worrying and thinking.
Whether her belief was right or wrong, it didn't matter.
The demon king in front of her was beyond the reach of her unique skill, "Mathematician."
It was on a completely different level. The difference was so vast that even the regret of letting it escape earlier had disappeared.
Just a boring routine.
It was now coming to an end.
A hopeless battle was the act of a fool. Yet, Hinata felt a sense of excitement.
(If I'm wrong? Then... prove it, Demon King (Rimuru)!)
Drawing her greatsword, the Dragon Slayer, Hinata faced the demon king.
With a faint smile, Hinata's heightened excitement was evident as she directed her sword at Rimuru.
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Facing Hinata, Rimuru thought again.
This woman has no openings.
Her sword movements, slowed by her thought acceleration, could barely be deflected.
Even though their swords were already clashing, his attacks barely grazed her, while her attacks seemed about to graze him at any moment.
Not to boast, but they didn't graze him.
Thus, they avoided each other's attacks while looking for openings.
But it was truly impossible to see any openings.
Even with the support of Raphael after his awakening as a demon king, Hinata was a monster.
Honestly, he thought he could overwhelm her a bit more.
She read his sword's trajectory perfectly, deflected it without hesitation, and then sharply counterattacked, piercing his openings.
If it were the old him, he would have been helpless.
The last time they faced each other, Hinata hadn't shown her true strength.
While engaging in intense exchanges, he observed Hinata.
A faint smile played on her lips, and her eyes were fixed on him.
But Hinata's movements didn't rely on her eyes. Her eyes captured him, and her senses detected the surrounding atmosphere, acting as a sensor to detect attacks.
Her body's center of gravity remained stable, and she maintained a natural posture to respond to any movement.
Her movements were fluid, and she executed various attacks without any preparatory motions.
He didn't know how she predicted his attacks, but his movements were completely read.
In the heat of battle, he avoided Hinata's attack movements by relying on his physical abilities.
Naturally, the one with more unnecessary consumption was him.
Because of his superior physical abilities, he could somehow avoid and counter her attacks.
There was no comparison in skill levels; Hinata was superior.
However, despite the overwhelming skill gap, Hinata didn't let her guard down.
She didn't use any small tricks and only used her sword, enveloped in aura, to counter him.
The aura seemed to be solely of the holy attribute, and if it hit, it would definitely cause damage.
According to Raphael, her sword had special abilities and could even break his barriers.
Most importantly, her effective attacks didn't rely on flashy techniques or magic but on solid swordsmanship, which was typical of Hinata.
In reality, apart from Hakuro, no one could withstand Hinata's sword strikes.
But even Hakuro couldn't win by incorporating magical attacks.
Since there was no effective magic against him, he didn't use magic.
Hinata was a genius in battle.
Even if she summoned a clone to attack, it would be instantly cut down.
The only drawback of Raphael's ability was that it couldn't be fully used by anyone other than the main body.
That is, manipulating a clone like a puppet without consciousness, or projecting a copied consciousness with aura abilities.
If the main body's consciousness was projected, and it died, it would return to the main body, allowing the ability to be fully used, but not simultaneously with multiple clones.
It was impossible to give Raphael to a clone mode.
While the unique skill was one thing, the clone's abilities were somewhat equal to the main body but couldn't fully copy all abilities.
Sowa was good at adding only the necessary abilities.
In a situation like this, where he was evenly matched with a supported opponent, rashly attacking with a clone would be meaningless.
Creating an opening in Hinata with a clone's attack would be possible, but if it created an opening for him, it would be disastrous.
A simple strategy would be to wait for Hinata to tire. After all, he wouldn't tire.
Their attacks never hit each other, and time just passed.
At some point, the battle in the area seemed to have ended.
Some were lying down, and others were sitting on the ground, seemingly exhausted.
But their eyes were fixed on their battle.
It was impossible to follow with their eyes, but they must have wanted to see the outcome.
In any case, he had no spare attention for the surroundings.
He had to respond to Hinata with all his might.
The only sound around them was the clashing of their swords.
Hinata's greatsword, about her height, was made of a bluish crystal-like material.
It was an incredibly beautiful sword.
Hinata wielded it with a light, effortless grace, despite its size, which was impressive.
Some skill must have been assisting her, but her movements were mesmerizing.
And Hinata's expression.
At some point, she had a smile on her face, like an innocent girl.
It wasn't a harsh or cold smile.
She simply swung her sword, completely focused on the battle.
A genius, perhaps.
Thinking about it, he might have been happy.
Despite the hardships, being born as a monster, gaining companions, and enjoying happy times.
What about Hinata?
Shizue-san said that she learned all the skills in a month and left her side.
He hadn't noticed it before, but he had doubts about it.
Would Shizue-san have left Hinata alone?
That uncertainty couldn't be erased.
A clear instability.
Too much power and the active mind of a girl who had passed puberty.
Was it because he was an adult that he felt this way?
The current Hinata, in that unbalanced state, would easily fall for a control technique.
Would Shizue-san have sent such a girl alone?
Driven by this doubt, he pieced together some information and analyzed the situation with Raphael.
The most suspicious possibility was the thought restriction on Hinata.
It was likely that it happened when he first came to this world.
While he couldn't fully read Shizue-san's memories, he vaguely remembered that Hinata was initially honest.
After a month, she suddenly announced that she was going on a journey...
Considering this information and the person who was with Hinata and Shizue-san...
"Why did you think about leaving Shizue-san's side?"
While their swords clashed, he asked during a breath.
He was gradually getting the timing right and found it less difficult to react to Hinata's movements.
There was room for growth on his part.
On the other hand, while Hinata didn't seem tired, she was sweating slightly on her forehead.
It was natural, given the intense battle.
However,
"What do you want to achieve by asking this now? Even if I say I don't remember, it's fine, but... I didn't want to be a burden to Shizue-san, I guess."
She answered honestly.
He hadn't expected a proper answer and thought she would ignore him, so he was surprised.
But hearing her answer, a small pain emerged deep in his heart.
Why? Was it a pain in the heart? It was a strange sensation.
Deciding that it wasn't a problem to ignore, he poured more power into his sword. The clash became more intense, sending shockwaves around.
"Shizue-san didn't think you were a burden, you know?"
(No, I never thought I was a burden...)
"Hmm, now... Besides, I don't want to talk about Shizue-san with you."
His sword gained more momentum.
Hinata hadn't shown her true strength yet.
There was a limit to observing the situation.
Desperately blocking and dodging her attacks,
"But I was worried! About leaving you alone!"
(Yes... I was worried. But... there was a child I was a bit worried about.)
Eh?
Was it just his imagination, or did he hear Shizue-san's voice?
"Hey! Don't act like you know! What do you know, you thing like you?!"
His words seemed to anger the calm Hinata.
Something must have touched her sore spot. Before he could think about what it was,
"I let my guard down, my victory! Melting Slash!"
The speed of Hinata's sword increased rapidly, emitting a light.
The sword had the property to destroy any magic and emitted a light that could collapse everything,
Raphael's anxious warning was the first he had heard.
In his 1,000,000x enhanced perception, all he could do was watch the glowing sword approach.
At this distance, angle, and timing.
Evasion was impossible, barriers were meaningless, and the only option was to use a clone to escape, even if it meant losing everything.
But the sword emitted a light that would collapse everything upon contact, burning his body.
Was the conversation to make him let his guard down?
There was no such intention, but it led to his guard being lowered.
[Report. Initiating Belzevut's Great Annihilation. Please give up.]
Among several countermeasures, he was presented with the one with the highest success rate.
Following Raphael's voice, he activated Belzevut.
The moment Hinata's sword touched him, he used Belzevut to consume the technique and the sword.
If this plan failed, his existence might be annihilated.
There was no time to hesitate.
Trusting Raphael, he released Belzevut the moment Hinata's sword touched his body.
...
...
...
In the end, he survived.
He thought he would die, but he survived.
Hinata was staring at him with wide eyes.
But it was only for a moment.
She quickly gripped her sword and faced him again.
He wanted to savor the joy of surviving, but dealing with Hinata came first.
This time, I won't let my guard down!
Actually, he heard Shizue-san's voice, which led to his guard being lowered.
While making excuses, as he clashed swords with Hinata...
[Report. Acquired 'Future Attack Prediction.' Do you want to use it? YES/NO]
He almost let out a voice in surprise.
Raphael suddenly gained a new ability.
This guy is really something.
Observing Hinata's movements, the only reason he could react to her attacks was through attack prediction, and acquiring it was impressive.
He quickly used it.
Several beams of light appeared in his field of vision. As a sensation, it was more like a display in his brain.
One of the beams glowed.
When he swung his sword to intercept the light, interestingly, he successfully intercepted Hinata's sword.
The beams of light seemed to represent possible sword paths based on the current stance of the opponent, and the glowing ones indicated incoming attacks.
After a few attempts, he found that some paths turned black.
This meant the attack was unpredictable and a genuine attack.
In other words, all low-level attacks and feints were calculable.
Hinata, being a swordmaster, could perform unpredictable attacks.
The terrifying aspect of this skill was that it wasn't a prediction but a definite prediction.
It didn't mean a high probability but that the attack would definitely come if the prediction was successful.
In that case... Hinata was no longer his enemy.
With fluid movements, he deflected Hinata's attacks based on the 'Future Attack Prediction.'
It's over! I won't kill you, but... feel a bit of human pain!
Just as he was about to swing his sword, he saw an impossible illusion.
Shizue-san standing in front of him, hands spread out.
She had no burn scars, was an adult woman, and wasn't wearing a mask.
She looked more mature and calm than his current face.
The illusion was visible to Hinata as well, as her eyes widened and she stared at it.
To their shaken selves,
(Rimuru, and Hinata, no more.)
Unbelievable...
The illusion was speaking?
Was Hinata hearing it too? She sat down in shock.
And... his sword stopped just at Hinata's neck.
At that moment, it felt like time had stopped.
Is this... thought acceleration? Moreover, I'm linked with Hinata's thoughts?
"What are you doing? What are you thinking?"
Hinata, with bloodshot eyes, confronted him.
His sword seemed to be invisible to her.
But he had a question.
"Don't you know! I have a question!"
The illusion of Shizue-san, which seemed about to disappear, was clearly