Chapter 22: I Refuse!
“Bang—!”
“Bang——!”
“Bang——————!”
Chikari Makoto and the spider with the baby’s head clashed repeatedly.
The ground cracked, trees fell, and the battle quickly intensified.
Number Six pushed her sensory abilities to the limit, but she could only barely keep up with their movements, unable to predict the spider’s attacks and assist Chikari Makoto.
For the first time, she truly hated her own weakness.
Faced with the person who had saved her life twice, her normally prized sensory abilities were useless.
“Thousand Feathers Style!”
A sharp cry echoed.
Chikari Makoto’s golden eyes shone brightly, and she gritted her teeth.
“—Storm Dance Duet!”
A concentrated surge of pale golden energy poured into her fists, overflowing with power.
Trailing long streams of energy, Chikari Makoto lunged forward.
An uppercut slammed into the spider’s head, just below the baby’s face.
Black blood spurted out, and Chikari Makoto’s golden eyes narrowed into slits, a flicker of madness within them.
That was just the first part of the duet; the even more ferocious second part was coming!
“Thousand Feathers Style – Lightning Speed!”
Lightning Speed combined with Storm Dance. Her right fist, unable to withstand the immense power, cracked, and blood flowed.
Chikari Makoto showed no pain, her expression growing calmer and colder.
Her deep golden eyes burned like embers, flickering like lightning.
She remembered the ancient martial arts passed down through her family, perfectly suited to her Qi ability, and combined it with Natsuba Hanae’s archery movements.
Inspiration struck.
Her body as the bow, twisting the world; her arm as the string, pulling back the heavens; her fist as the arrow, piercing the sky!
Twisting her hips, she unleashed her power in one fluid motion, striking with unstoppable force!
She would call this move…
Myriad Feathers Style.
“Heaven Splitter!!”
“Boom——————!!!”
The sound was like thunder.
Half of the spider’s head exploded, and its body was sent flying as if hit by a truck.
It landed in the distance, all six legs in the air.
Chikari Makoto’s Qi plummeted, but its upper limit suddenly increased.
This meant that once her Qi recovered, she would be close to reaching B-rank.
Her shoulders heaved, her right fist trembled, dripping blood, and she gasped for breath.
“That should have killed it.”
“Comprehending a new, powerful move in a desperate situation… Am I the protagonist of a story?”
“Protagonists in manga… do whatever they want.”
For some reason, Chikari Makoto thought of her cherished collection of “mom” manga. If she were the protagonist, then the emotional exchanges between the protagonist and the mom in the manga would be between her and…
Her rebellious daughter spirit burned brightly.
“Zaaaaaaaaaaaa———!!!!!”
Just then, a piercing roar echoed through the area.
Chikari Makoto’s pupils constricted.
She quickly looked towards the spider.
The flesh of its head was rapidly regenerating. It shakily got to its feet, its blank white eyes filled with hatred as it stared at her.
“Damn it.”
Chikari Makoto’s face paled.
“A Half-Calamity level supernatural being with half a Rule has such terrifying regeneration?!”
She had misjudged. The spider’s weakness wasn’t its head, despite its large size serving as a distraction.
She instinctively clenched her right fist, ready to fight again, but it trembled uncontrollably, powerless.
She could only use her left fist, which was slightly weaker.
But Chikari Makoto still had a chance.
She could still use Heaven Splitter with her left fist. If the weakness wasn’t the head, then it was the spider’s body. If she could pierce through it…
It would definitely be incapacitated.
The more she fought, the clearer Chikari Makoto’s mind became, her fighting spirit soaring.
This was the Chikari family’s innate combat talent.
The Chikari name wasn’t earned for nothing; it was earned through countless hunts of supernatural beings!
Chikari Makoto’s golden eyes shone brightly.
She raised her head and shouted,
“Bring it on!”
She stomped her foot, the ground cracking around her like a spiderweb, and she shot forward like an arrow, leaving afterimages in her wake.
The increase in her Qi’s upper limit had enhanced her physical abilities.
Although her right arm was unusable, her legs were fine, making her even faster than before.
She could surpass the spider in terms of speed.
Chikari Makoto stared at the spider.
Its blood-red, scythe-like leg glowed ominously, and it swung downwards!
A blade of light flashed.
Filled with a deathly stillness, it shot towards Chikari Makoto.
But she wasn’t Nenba Yukawa. With her current speed, she could easily track the blade of light’s trajectory.
She instinctively dodged.
However, she saw a sinister smile on the spider’s face.
Chikari Makoto instantly sensed danger.
She knew the spider was intelligent, but it had a fatal flaw: it couldn’t help but reveal its intentions with its expressions.
Like a villain explaining their grand plan to the protagonist.
Chikari Makoto looked at the trajectory of the blade of light.
Its target was Number Six!
The spider’s blade of light had a suppressive effect.
Its deathly power instilled fear in both body and mind, paralyzing its victims and making them tremble in terror as they awaited death.
Chikari Makoto was strong enough to resist.
But Number Six wasn’t; she was only a C-rank supernatural user.
Moreover, her sensory abilities made her even more aware of the spider’s terrifying nature, its oppressive Rule.
This heightened perception usually helped her avoid danger.
But now, it made her even more susceptible to the deathly power, even more terrified.
Although her mind screamed at her to dodge…
Although her instincts told her to run, run, run!
Her body was frozen in fear, trembling uncontrollably.
So… she had become a burden again.
Perhaps it was for the best. If she died, Miss Makoto could fight without holding back.
The blade of light was upon her.
Number Six suddenly felt no fear. She closed her eyes.
“—Crackle.”
The sound of rapidly flowing energy.
The next moment…
White shoes, crackling with energy, stomped on the ground, forcibly changing direction.
“Boom———!!”
The expected pain didn’t come.
Instead, a loud explosion echoed from in front of her.
Number Six opened her eyes in confusion and saw Chikari Makoto standing before her, her back to her.
Chikari Makoto turned slightly, her face a bit disheveled, and said grumpily,
“Honestly!”
“I wasted a Golden Feather to save you. Can you not give up so easily?”
“If you die so quickly…”
“Mom will definitely make me quintuple my training! I refuse!”
Leave a Reply