<Author’s Notes>

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As Gio spoke, he moved his black-bladed katana.

With force, in a diagonal slash.

Ars retreated from the spot.

Even while he retreats though, Gio’s blade that had bitten into him tore through his flesh.

His chest split open from the heart to the left side, blood spilling out.

At the same time, Ars launched a counterattack at Gio during his retreat.

Parrying it with his other katana, Gio leaped toward me.

[So, it’s you.]

[Seems you’re still in one piece.]

Even as he responded to me, Gio’s gaze was fixed on Ars’s equipment.

The gear belonged to Armia, his comrade also belonging to the Faraway Country.

[As stated in the information beforehand, communication through dialogue with this Divine Servant seems difficult. Therefore…… her safety isn’t something I’m not certain about.]

At my words, Gio just responded curtly.

[————I see.]

The twin-bladed swordsman, crouched like a black leopard, seemed calm.

But I could tell.

He was suppressing a raging fury deep within him.

At the same time———- he understood it.

Losing his composure against this opponent could lead to certain death.

(I’d heard he could be hotheaded, yet strangely composed at times…… I see now——— he’s not just a reckless man. And……)

I recalled Touka’s words:

“If you exclude Seras, Sogou, and the Takao Sisters, next in line would be Gio and the Mad Beauty Emperor.”

(Even Touka acknowledged him as one of the skilled warriors……)

[Perhaps it’s fortunate that I’ve met up with you here.]

[Same here.]

Gio replied, continuing to observe Ars.

[I can’t let someone who survived the outside world die in a place like this. That’s why I picked a position close to yours.]

I let out a soft laugh.

Then, I shared the information I had gathered about Ars with Gio.

Ars———– had already begun regenerating.

The blood he had spilled seemed to flow back into his white body.

The torn flesh had also closed up.

[The heart isn’t the “core” then.]

Gio noted with a keen eye.

(As expected, he notices everything……)

I had noticed it too.

When Gio attacked, Ars had instinctively protected certain areas———-

(It seemed like he prioritized defending his neck and torso with his shield and blade whip……)

This likely meant that one of those areas could be Ars’ critical weak point.

[So, what should we do, black leopard twin swordsman? Should we retreat from here and try to regroup with the others?]

Gio stood up from his crouched stance.

He adjusted his grip on his katana, careful not to apply too much force.

[That depends on whether that guy would even let us escape.]

(Fumu…… He’s level-headed enough to consider retreat as an option……)

“However……” Gio continued.

[Still, I’d rather avoid making the mistake of focusing too much on retreating and getting killed because of it.]

[Umu.]

Sometimes, attack is the best form of defense.

By engaging in combat, one can minimize the opportunities for the enemy to exploit.

Sometimes, taking on a fight could even save lives, allowing time to wait for allies.

[Besides————-]

Gio glanced at his hand.

[From what I felt…… He didn’t seem like something completely out of our league.]

I shifted my stance, keeping my eyes on Ars.

[———–Shall we?]

With a slight shift in his katana’s angle, Gio replied,

[……Let’s give it a shot.]

Fighting might create an opportunity to retreat.

Or perhaps, valuable information could be gained through combat.

It could even become useful information that can be passed on to others.

After exchanging glances, Gio and I returned our focus to Ars.

His aura———- had changed.

(Fumu…… Choosing to fight might have been the right decision after all.)

It felt as if Ars’ killing intent had slightly diminished the moment we adopted a combative stance.

Had we tried to flee, he might have pursued us relentlessly with the sole intent of killing.

However, the moment we showed the intent to fight————-

His atmosphere shifted, Ars seemingly intent to “enjoy” this battle.

(Is this person seeking conflict itself? The air of disappointment vanished, and at the same time, the intent to kill diminished……)

In other words.

Does disappointment turn into a willingness to kill without question?

Ars opened his arms and assumed a stance.

The blade-whips on his shoulders danced.

[ ” Becoming stronger is fun…… What’s wrong with that? Vysis…… You sure don’t understand anything. ” ]

Ars charged forward.

Me and Gio stepped forward, splitting to the sides.

Gio went to Ars’ right, faced with his sword.

Meanwhile, I went to Ars’s left, faced with his shield.

The whip blades were swung toward both sides.

Both of us dealt with the whip blades using our katanas.

(The trajectory of the whip blades is, for now, easier to read but——–)

Gio skillfully dealt with both Ars’ whip blades and his sword using his katana.

As for me, I continued the offensive and defensive movements, carefully looking for an opening.

If she were to be recognized as just support, having such a role would lose its meaning.

The support role is alive only when they make the opponent a true attack come from them.

Back in the time I was a Blood Champion.

In the early days, we fought in groups.

The feeling I had from that time suddenly resurfaced.

Those were quite nostalgic times. 

Now that I think about it, we did something like this back then.

At that moment……

[ ! ]

A flash.

Gio’s strike cleaved through Ars’ shoulder, armor and all.

The whip blade, along with the flesh from his shoulder, was sent flying through the air.

[ ” Guwaaaaahhhh———-!? ” ]

(I see, an attack aimed at reducing the number of blade whips huh.)

At first glance, that figure of Ars appears to be someone wearing full-body armor.

However, in reality, it seems that “all that was Ars”.

Gio detached the blade whip from Ars, along with his armored flesh.

(Mhmm?)

……Ksssht……

The severed flesh is trying to return to Ars.

It moves autonomously.

As if the flesh itself has a will and is moving on its own.

The shed red blood did the same.

They’re moving like a living creature.

In the midst of the offensive and defensive exchange, Gio was about crush the separated flesh————

[—————–]

But Gio instantly stopped his foot.

The whip blade, which had been hanging limply, was moving.

Had he stepped on it, his foot would have been exposed to the attack of the whip blade that remained in the flesh.

Glaring at the enemy, Gio spoke.

[He can control even the severed parts of your body huh.]

(As expected, unless the “core” part is destroyed, it will continue to regenerate……?)

The sound of the katana’s strike.

That sound brought with it the noise of flesh being severed.

Gio’s blade cut through Ars’ arm.

However———- he didn’t sever it completely.

It seems he was attempting to cut off the arm this time.

[ ” Hahh…… Hahh…… Blood…… Kuh…… S- So strong——— this guy, he’s strong……!! But I won’t lose…… Like I would lose…… HAAAAAHHHHH!!! ” ]

His words and voice carried a fierce spirit.

However, the shout echoing from the void still felt somewhat “disjointed”.

I exchanged glances with Gio again.

(What a formidable man. Just through a glance, he can convey his next move…… A warrior capable of such natural, near-perfect coordination, I’ve never encountered someone like him in the past.)

It’s not just his combat skills.

His tall stature, firm muscles.

His combat-ready bone structure.

And above all———- his long limbs, and flexibility.

These are important factors in battle.

Especially height, bone structure, and limb length———— they can be considered innate “talents”.

(He’s fighting on equal footing with that large Divine Servant…… or even better. His physical advantages must play a huge role.)

I’m inferior to him in all of those aspects.

(But———-)

Speed.

Reflexes.

Instinctive predictions based on experience.

That is something I take pride in.

The clash of sparks continued.

In the midst of such a clash————- I suddenly felt a sense of unease.

(———–What’s this? This Divine Servant…… something’s off……)

However, I couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was.

Gio was pushing forward.

It seemed like he was winning in terms of power and technique.

The way he is now makes him seem like a storm of black blades.

Even the flesh fragments on the ground, autonomously writhing and swinging their whip blades, were being dealt with.

(Gio certainly seemed to be at an advantage…… but he hasn’t delivered the finishing blow yet…… As expected, to decide it, it has to be a strike to the neck or torso. Ars is clearly wary of those two spots…… ——–Hmm?)

[ ” D*mn it…… Shion…… Even though I have to defeat the Root of All Evil and save the world———— it’s just so fun…… fighting is so fun! The exchange of life is fun! I’m enjoying it! Kuh…… What should I do? I——— as someone summoned to save this world……. is this the right thing to do? Is feeling like this wrong? Answer me…… Shion…… Hey, Shion…… say something…… ” ]

Ars is speaking.

Could these be the same words he spoke back when he was fighting against that time’s Root of All Evil?

From the context, it’s clear that he was once a Hero from Another World.

[———Tch, what a creepy bastard…… just listening to his words, it doesn’t even feel like we’re “fighting”……]

Although Gio had inflicted numerous injuries on Ars, the battle was still in a stalemate.

(Yes…… A stalemate but……)

Stalemate.

(……A stalemate huh.)

Thinking about such a thing, I couldn’t help feeling second thoughts.

Should we maintain this stalemate and wait for reinforcements to arrive?

But looking at it the other way, there could be enemy reinforcements as well.

(If only Touka and Hijiri were here, they might be able to find a way to victory……)

Even so, I searched for a ray of hope in my own way.

At that moment……

[ ! ]

Two more whip blades grew from Ars.

These two blades sprouted from his elbows.

Even so, Gio continued to press on, unconcerned with the new development.

I also continued the fight.

(Fumu…… If it’s just two more blades, both Gio and I can still handle it…… and besides———)

I focused my eyes.

[……Gio! Could you pull back for a moment!?]

Without a word, Gio immediately jumped back.

I retreated in the opposite direction.

For a brief moment, Ars hesitated, unsure of what to do.

[———–……I see.]

It seemed Gio understood as well.

Yes———–

Though the number of whip blades had increased, their reach had slightly shortened.

Ars had been reluctant to increase the number of blades until now.

That’s probably because increasing the number reduces their range.

(And…… with the increase in the number of blades, I felt their power slightly diminished. That’s probably why this Divine Servant couldn’t just increase their numbers as much as he wanted.)

Ars had not been able to fully defend against Gio’s fierce attacks until now.

It seems that he tried to counter by increasing his number of strikes.

In a way———- this could be seen as him switching to a defensive approach.

[……Gio.]

[Ou.]

[While facing this guy, I’m strangely feeling like there’s something out of place.]

[Something’s out of place?]

[I don’t know what the cause is yet though…… It’s possible I’m just guessing wrongly.]

Gio snorted.

[Intuition’s important. Especially…… when it’s the intuition of a skilled warrior.]

(Fumu……)

A skilled warrior.

It seemed like Gio recognized me as one.

Gio skillfully twirled his katana in his hand and said.

[That out-of-place feeling you’ve got might be the key to figuring him out.]

[It’s just intuition without basis, I’m not sure it’s a good idea to take such a gamble.]

[No…… it’s because we’re fighting this guy that it’s worth trying.]

With that, Gio leaned forward.

Taking a stance that resembled a beast, he was about to pounce on its prey.

[To grasp that out-of-place feeling———- I’ll buy us a little more time.]

——–Fwoosh!——–

With a powerful push, Gio charged at Ars.

He immediately began launching a barrage of strikes.

I, in sync with Gio’s movement, closed in on Ars.

An even fiercer clash began.

Gio was holding his own against the Divine Servant.

I, while observing, continued to deflect Ars’ attacks.

——————The battle raged on.

Perhaps thanks to them being designed especially for combating Deities.

Against non-Deities———- against us——— we can manage to fight.

We’re holding our ground.

(That said, we still can’t press the attack…… I also can’t figure out the source of that out-of-place feeling…… Maybe it really is just my imagination———)

[ ! ]

In an instant, Gio’s movements changed.

And I felt it.

He’s telling me to synchronize with him.

Gio severed Ars’s wrist, which resembled a gauntlet.

The severed wrist, still clutching Armia’s sword, tumbled to the ground.

Gio, twisting his body to evade the whip blades——— pressed forward and slipped into Ars’s guard.

At the same time———- I launched my own attack.

I deflected two whip blades and slammed a powerful kick into his shield.

The shield shook violently, and I could tell Ars gripped it even tighter.

Gio feigned a strike at Ars’ torso, then drove one of his katanas into Ars’ thigh.

[ ” Uooooooohhhhh———-! ” ]

Ars roared in agony. Gio, unaffected by the sound, gripped the hilt of his remaining katana firmly with both hands.

———- Creak ———–

I could sense the immense power building in his black hands.

Gio’s target was clear.

He’s——— aiming to sever Ars’ torso.

[ ” Like hell I’ll let you do that———! ” ]

Ars roared again.

In that moment———– my world went silent.

[—————–]

The sea of my thoughts, clearer and more transparent than ever.

That’s something I understood on an instinctive level.

Was it because my foresight had reached its peak?

Or perhaps, a beast’s intuition?

……………. Just now ……………. 

Gio’s words.

“I’ll buy us a little more time.”

“Buying time.”

This could be taken as a declaration of him taking up a defensive battle.

In other words, he was declaring we “aren’t aiming for victory”.

It strips Ars of the option to “fight for a decisive blow”.

However, whether Ars understood the intent of such words is uncertain.

I mean, whether he could even comprehend our words is still unknown.

However———– strategic maneuvering as a warrior is possible.

This much was clear during our exchanges.

Likely, a form of “conversation” through clashing weapons could occur.

In this battle, Ars must have realized it.

I was not the primary attacker but the support.

And———–

“I was striving with all effort to conceal that I’m playing support.”

Indeed, I was committed to that role.

I had been fighting with that intention.

No, perhaps———— Gio also shared this.

However———– Gio suddenly switched tactics.

I grasped his intent in less than an instant.

Our instincts resonated, creating an almost miraculous shared understanding.

Perhaps this only occurred because both were “exceptional warriors”———–

(Regardless———–)

Gio shifted his killing blow———— meant to sever Ars’ torso———– into bait.

And then, he signaled me to “do it”.

Ars’ defenses were already focused on protecting his torso.

Thus———-

(With this one strike———–)

[ ” You lot, not bad——— ” ]

———— Swoosh! ————

My blade severed Ars’ head cleanly from his neck.

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