Chapter 93

In the center of the raging gust, Aero stood there.

Dressed in a green dress, the sword was no longer in her hand.

"What is that... Did you discard your sword?"

"Discard my sword? Don't be ridiculous. My sword is all this wind."

Like a conductor, her arm waved.

The wind responded, forming a barrier around Lamina.

"Stormbringer"

"Trouble!"

Lamina unleashed a quick draw.

A powerful strike, loaded with all her might.

However, it was impossible to slice through the main current of wind that had become a wall.

"Tch... No good"

"It's futile. You can't cut through the wind."

"Damn..."

The wall of wind gradually closed in.

Even before making contact, new wounds began to appear on Lamina's body.

"Go ahead, wither away in there."

The wall of wind accelerated, enveloping Lamina.

Mercifully, her body did not disintegrate amidst the swirling mass of blades...

"Sure enough, you escaped upwards!"

"!"

Lamina had jumped up to escape.

The center of a tornado is generally calm.

Though it was no longer a calm center due to the contraction, there was enough time for a brief escape.

However, Aero had anticipated this.

"Ha!"

While Lamina was immobilized in mid-air, the blades of the storm attacked.

"Air Walk"

Lamina cast Air Walk.

Kicking the air, she fled to the side.

Though grazed by the widespread attack, she avoided a direct hit.

Then, kicking the air again, she rapidly approached Aero.

"Second quick draw, Twin Fangs!"

"Grunt"

Twin Fangs, a quick draw technique that prioritizes speed and aims to hit with certainty.

The first strike is a regular quick draw, and the second strike involves returning the sword to the scabbard and then performing another quick draw from the opposite side.

By executing this sequence in a single breath, it creates the illusion of simultaneous strikes.

Originally a technique that relies on strong footwork and momentum, Lamina performed it in mid-air.

Despite this, her sword movements were beautiful and powerful.

Aero, momentarily mesmerized, blocked the first strike with one arm.

However, before she could react to the second strike, the sword reached her body.

A shallow cut was inflicted on Aero's lower chest, causing her to bleed.

Landing and preparing to press the attack, Lamina was met with Aero jumping back to avoid the follow-up.

"I didn't expect to be wounded in this state..."

Aero was somewhat shaken.

She should have been able to defeat Lamina with the previous combination technique.

However, she not only avoided it but also managed to wound her.

Aero had never fought a "human" for so long in the past.

"But your legs are done for now."

"..."

Lamina's right leg, which had been grazed by the wind when she escaped the tornado and used Air Walk, was covered in gruesome wounds.

Her left leg had fewer injuries and could still move adequately, but agile movements were no longer possible.

"Kneel now, and I'll sever your head in one go. But if you still want to fight... don't expect an easy death."

Aero's presence was more oppressive than ever.

Lamina, facing this pressure head-on, reached for her sheathed sword without averting her gaze.

"I won't give up. I'll see this through to the end."

"...You're a death-seeker."

Lamina took a quick draw stance and sharpened her focus.

She showed no signs of pain from her injuries and did not exert unnecessary force.

"If you want to suffer, so be it! I'll cut off your limbs one by one and gradually carve your body!"

"..."

Aero unleashed the largest storm she had ever created.

The blades of wind cut into the surrounding houses and approached Lamina.

"...Final quick draw, Zero."

Lamina stepped forward with her left foot.

Blood spurted from her right foot as it hit the ground, but she paid it no mind.

With a smooth motion, her sword was drawn and swung with a white glow, slicing through the wind and cleanly bisecting Aero's torso, despite the distance.

"What...?"

She only recognized that her wind had been cut and dispersed.

The invisible strike did not damage the surrounding houses, only bisecting Aero's torso.

In the short time before her death, Aero continued to ponder the nature of the technique.

Ultimately, she never discovered its true nature before losing consciousness.

"It seems you didn't see it. I'm relieved. I can still fight on."

Lamina sheathed her sword as Aero's half-body hit the ground.

"Damn..."

The moment she sheathed her sword, her strength drained, and she collapsed to the ground.

"I've lost too much blood... I can't move. I hope Jiun and the others are okay..."

While lying on her back, Lamina continued to worry about the others.

◆◆◆

"Ugh... Hah"

"..."

Kicking Mirage's fallen face with my right foot.

"Ugh"

I delivered a punch to her torso as she recoiled, followed by a high kick to her face as she bent forward.

I caught Mirage, who had flown down the side street at incredible speed, and slammed her face into the ground.

"Ugh"

"..."

I continued to punch her relentlessly, ignoring the dents in the ground.

Finally, her mirror shield and my copy caught up, and I shattered the mirror and kicked the copy to death.

The copy's form returned to the mirror and disappeared. I see.

"Damn"

"Tough"

"Ugh"

Kicking her in the stomach, she flew down the straight road.

The residents might start to notice the commotion, but I don't care.

"Hah... Hah... What is your power...?"

"Doesn't matter. Such things."

I closed the distance with a kick and slammed Mirage's head into the ground.

Cracks spread like a spider web, and a groan escaped from under my hand.

I lifted her and repeatedly slammed her into the ground.

"...You've calmed down."

"..."

When the groans stopped and cracks began to appear in the surrounding houses, I wondered if she was dead or just unconscious—.

"Ugh... Hah... Hah!"

"!"

Mirage suddenly opened her eyes, palm facing me, and began to charge energy.

Is this divine power?

"Let's see about that."

"Ugh... Just this much!"

"Tch"

I slammed her into the ground again, but her hand remained pointed at me.

I tried to block it, but the next moment, my vision was filled with light.

Blown upward, I broke through a two-story house and flew through the air.

My upper body was scorched in places, and I felt some pain.

But it wasn't worth making a fuss over.

"Desperate measures, huh?"

"Hah... Hah..."

Landing and returning to the original spot with a kick, I saw Mirage breathing heavily and glaring at me.

She was in tatters.

According to Straw, holy swords cannot regenerate.

So, with this much damage, I should have effectively won.

But from the looks of it, one more strike might be enough.

"Are you ready?"

"Pfft... You should be the one ready."

"Huh?"

The moment I questioned her words, I suddenly felt my strength drain, and I fell to my knees.

"...You didn't expect that, did you..."

Gradually, emotions returned to my mind.

I hadn't even fought for three minutes, yet my divine power was exhausted.

That's strange; after the past few days of training, it should have lasted at least ten minutes...

"You probably expected more activity time. But you haven't mastered the use of divine power. Using it so recklessly, I expected you to run out quickly. Indeed, the damage in the second half was minimal."

"Damn..."

My body felt heavy.

But I had to stand.

You must have taken considerable damage too.

Now is the time... for a decisive blow.

"Come! Big Eater!"

Responding to my call, I grabbed and pulled the hilt of a sword that emerged from the void.

A sinister blade appeared, drooling from its mouth.

"You still had hidden strength."

"Hah!"

"Hmph"

Swinging Big Eater, I missed.

No good, I'm too slow.

Mirage's movements were also awkward, but she was much better than me.

"Here's payback."

"Ugh...!"

Mirage's foot embedded itself in my stomach.

I realized I had been sent flying back down the road I had kicked her down.

After a few meters, I finally hit the ground and started rolling.

I ended up back near the inn.

How far did I fly...

"Mira! Mira!"

"Ugh... Mira...?"

Mira, who had been hiding, ran to my fallen form.

So, you're awake.

Then you need to get out of here quickly...

"Mira, there should be a black-haired child in the inn. He's with me, so go hide with him."

"No way! Setsu, come with me!"

Mira pulled on my arm as I struggled to stand.

But I shook her off and readied Big Eater.

Mirage was already approaching from the front.

"Hmph, you're as stubborn as I am."

"...Shut up"

This bastard... his wounds are already gone.

Do modern swords have automatic regeneration or something?

But then, his clothes...?

Something feels off...

"The holy swords, unlike you 'humans,' do not have healing magic or self-repair functions. They are, after all, just objects. The only way to fix them is to reforge them."

"So... one fatal blow should end it..."

Straw did say that.

So, his wounds shouldn't be healing.

Well, he might have been careless...

"..."

A worst-case scenario began to form in my mind.

I lowered my head and my arm.

"What's wrong, giving up? It's not surprising. Using divine power was unexpected, but you are a 'human.' You cannot defeat us."

"Setsu..."

Mira was trembling in fear behind me.

I gritted my teeth and readied Big Eater—

—and thrust it towards Mira.

"Wh... What...?"

"...I see, I was right."

Mira held a knife in her hand, its blade so beautiful that our faces were reflected in it.

The knife was stopped just before it pierced my back.

I turned around, pulled out Big Eater, and confirmed Mirage.

"Who would have thought your body was a decoy."

Mirage's body cracked and collapsed with the sound of breaking glass.

I turned around and looked down at Mira, the mirror sword Mirage.

She was lying on her back, holding her wound, clearly the inn's daughter Mira.

"Why... did you know?"

"I heard that holy swords can't heal their wounds. The first oddity was that you appeared unharmed. And... it was strange that only the daughter was real while the parents were fake."

If the parents were the two holy swords, they would naturally go out as perverts at night.

If they did that every night, the daughter would surely notice.

And the two would likely see the daughter as an obstacle.

Even if she didn't notice, they would still see her as an obstacle.

If there was any doubt, there was a risk.

So, to avoid suspicion, they would kill her.

By making it look like a pervert's work, everything would be settled.

But Mira was alive.

So, there were two possibilities.

One, they didn't care if she was suspected.

And... someone had replaced her.

"Your ability is convenient. You can copy appearance and personality. You must have disguised the two as well, right?"

"...Yes."

With your ability, you can copy appearance and personality to become an exact replica.

So, the most likely scenario was a replacement.

"I assumed you were the real one. I'm glad I was right."

"What if... I was the real one?"

"Then I would bring you back to life. Big Eater has that power."

If I had continued fighting the decoy, I would have lost.

So, your downfall was simply that you let me get close to Mira.

"You just had bad luck."

Yes, you just had bad luck.

This chapter has too many contrivances.

I'll finish writing Chapter 4, but I'll revise it soon.

Give me some time...