Having safely ascended the canyon, Simon now entered the island’s core. A jungle, even denser and more lush than before, unfolded before him like a painting. The atmosphere here was distinctly different. The air was filled with the chaotic sounds of explosions and clashing steel. Grade 3 monsters and higher, the apex predators of the island, now road the area.
After retrieving the golem’s core, Simon proceeded with greater caution. The slightest mistake could make him a target for students and monsters alike.
"Phew."
Simon wiped the sweat from his brow, his eyes scanning his surroundings. He hadn’t fought a single student yet, but he’d already earned over 127 points from hunting alone. Still, from this point on, he had to be prepared for a fight.
As if on cue, he felt a sudden blast of heat and looked up. A ball of black fla was hurtling down at him.
’The sa Jet-Black Fla that irin uses!’
He leaped back, dodging the blast. As he watched the black fire spread across the grass, another fireball shot toward him from the side.
’Fast...!’
To have that kind of firepower and be able to fire in rapid succession was terrifying. Simon ran frantically, weaving through the attacks. He kicked off a tree to create distance, but a massive fla engulfed the trunk, incinerating it in seconds. The sight was chilling.
’This is dangerous.’
Changing direction mid-air, Simon landed softly on the ground. At that mont, his attacker descended from a tree, revealing themself.
Simon’s eyes widened in shock. "irin!"
It was really her. She stood with her arms crossed, a small smile on her face as she gave a little wave.
"I knew it was you, Simon."
"I was worried! Where have you been? Have you eaten—?"
She held up her palm, a clear warning not to co any closer.
"...M-irin?"
"We’ve been in the sa group since we got to Kizen. We’ve cooperated, relied on each other."
Simon quickly assessed the situation. Sothing was wrong. Her usual energy was gone, and her eyes seed hazy, unfocused.
"Honestly," she continued, a black fla flickering to life on her palm, "Aren’t you curious to see which one of us is stronger?"
Simon’s expression hardened as he summoned his Jet-Black. "You want to fight ?"
"Yeah," she answered imdiately. "It’s not often we get a chance to go all out like this."
"Calm down. Wasting energy now is inefficient for both of us."
Her eyes sharpened. "Just get ready!"
The flas in her hand intensified.
Simon forced himself to think clearly. ’Sothing is definitely strange.’ He knew irin was fiercely competitive, aiming to be the absolute best. He’d even vaguely considered that they might clash one day.
But this was too abrupt, too unprovoked. Sensing sothing was deeply wrong, he summoned his skeletons from his Subspace.
"Haaah!"
irin launched herself into the air with Jet-Black Stepping, unleashing a volley of black flas.
Each shot was a terrifying projectile, coming from varied angles and directions. The flas created expanding danger zones on the ground, setting fire to the grass and trees. His room to maneuver was shrinking by the second.
"Haaaaah!"
irin was fighting with everything she had. She was even using the Multi-casting technique from their last duel evaluation—unleashing a barrage with her right hand while preparing her signature Dark Flare with her left. It was a flawless, overwhelming assault designed to corner him completely.
’If it’s co to this, I have no choice.’
Simon was prepared to fight seriously. ’You know well, but I know you just as well.’
He pulled a one-gold bow from his Subspace. Holding the bow in his left hand, he imbued an arrow with Jet-Black.
Leaping over an incoming fireball, Simon nocked the arrow, aid at the still-attacking irin, and... he let it fly. The arrow pierced through her black flas. Blinded by her own attack, she couldn’t track its trajectory.
’Thwack!’
It struck her in the side. Her protective suit prevented injury, but her barrier gauge dropped significantly. She flinched back in surprise.
’In terms of pure offensive power, irin is one of the best in Kizen. But when she goes all-in on offense like this, using a barrage to suppress her opponent...’
Simon nocked another arrow. ’...she’s vulnerable to a simple, pinpoint physical attack.’
The next arrow embedded itself in the tree right next to her head. A bead of sweat trickled down her forehead.
"Don’t underestimate !" she snarled, charging forward more aggressively as she continued her assault.
As Simon maintained his distance, firing arrow after arrow, she began circulating Jet-Black through her body. Her speed increased dramatically, and his arrows started missing, thudding into the ground behind her.
’Wow, if she’s skilled at Combat Magic on top of everything else, this is going to be tough.’
Simon shook his head and nocked another arrow. Hitting a target at full sprint wasn’t easy. The best timing was...
"Haaah!"
The mont she launched a black fla, Simon released his arrow. They both dodged simultaneously. She twisted her head aside while he executed a clean backflip.
After exchanging blows, they both slid to a halt. irin smiled. ’No need to rush. If I just buy ti until the Dark Flare is ready...’
’Thwack!’
An impact on her thigh made her spin around in surprise. ’What? Who just—?!’
Giving her no ti to think, Simon fired another arrow from the front. She leaped sideways to dodge, her eyes scanning the trees behind her, when...
’Whoosh!’
Two more arrows shot out from her left and right, grazing her and taking another chunk out of her barrier gauge. From arrows alone, her gauge was already more than half gone.
’What is going on?!’
Landing on the ground, irin’s mind raced. Attacks from three directions. She rembered Simon used three skeleton archers. ’I see. The skeleton archers...!’
But the dense forest canopy shrouded the archers’ positions in darkness. They were also well out of her Dark Flare’s range.
’Reload.’
Simon nocked an arrow. His three skeleton archers, linked to his thoughts, did the sa, taking aim at irin.
’Your weakness is long-range physical attacks,’ Simon thought. ’And now you’re facing them from four directions.’
The fundantal strength of Summoning was numbers. By leveraging that advantage to its fullest, Simon had completely turned the tables.
’Don’t look down on . You’re not the only one who can think!’
irin bit her lip and deployed a new magic circle.
Two of the four arrows grazed her, her gauge dropping again. As Simon and his archers reloaded, she retreated to the base of a tree, dropping to one knee and placing a hand on the ground.
’Jet-Black Elental Magic, Dark Ice-type—Wall of Ice’
A massive wall of ice erupted from the ground, shielding her from three directions at once. The next volley of arrows glanced harmlessly off its surface.
Seeing this, Simon lowered his bow, relieved. ’This is as far as it goes.’
He’d had no intention of actually taking her out. Now that she was on the defensive, he could simply make his escape. He was about to turn and leave when her voice stopped him.
"Simon!!"
irin scread from behind him. "Are you really going to end it like this? Are you going to finish our first real match in such a boring way?!"
Simon turned back.
"Fight properly!"
Her Dark Flare was finally complete. The ice wall was rapidly lting under its intense heat.
’I don’t know what’s gotten into you, but...’
Simon raised his bow again. ’If you’re going to push it this far, then you’ve awakened my fighting spirit.’
The ice vanished. She broke into a sprint, channeling Jet-Black to its absolute limit as she gripped the Dark Flare in both hands. It was a pure, all-out assault, with no thought given to defense.
Simon aid his bow, channeling Jet-Black in his legs. His skeleton archers prepared to snipe.
’A precise predictive shot is still beyond my skill. I’ll have to finish this with a close-range shot when she gets near.’
The distance between them shrank with terrifying speed. The air crackled with tension. Just as Simon was about to release the bowstring...
’...Huh?’
Beside irin, he saw a crack spiderwebbing across the ground.
[Boy! It’s him!]
Pier’s urgent voice scread in his mind. [It’s Vickrum!]
’That’s Vickrum?’
Simon’s eyes widened. The fissure was racing toward her at an incredible speed. They were on a collision course.
’Tch!’
Simon threw down his bow. He crouched low, pouring every ounce of Jet-Black into his legs. Then, with the most powerful Jet-Black Step he could manage, he shot toward her.
’What? Why is he suddenly doing that?’
irin’s pupils trembled. Rushing headfirst into a Dark Flare was suicide. All she had to do was extend her arms to finish him, but she hesitated. His desperate expression looked nothing like that of an attacker.
Her arm froze. And for the first ti, a question surfaced in her mind.
’Why am I... fighting Simon?’
In that fleeting mont of hesitation, Simon closed the distance and struck the back of her neck, knocking her unconscious. Without pausing, he grabbed her and threw himself into a powerful backflip.
’KABOOOOOOOOOM!’
The very earth seed to overturn. The ground exploded in a shower of rock and soil as sothing massive erupted from the fissure.
’My god...!’
It was the arm of a colossal monster, wrapped in what looked like green, living bandages. Its giant hand closed on empty air; Simon and irin, tangled together, had dodged it by a hair’s breadth.
’Ugh!’
He’d leaped without thinking and wasn’t prepared for the landing. He hugged irin tightly, shielding her with his body as he crashed to the ground. The impact sent him sprawling, and she rolled away across the dirt.
"irin!"
Unconscious, she was rolling toward the cliff’s edge. The giant arm thrashed about, searching for sothing, before planting its palm on the ground.
Simon froze. From the canyon opposite, the face of a giant monster was rising into view.
’So that’s...!’
The forr captain of the Giant Corps, Vickrum.
The titan looked around with dazed, unfocused eyes, then turned its back as if it hadn’t found what it was looking for.
[Boy! He’s getting away!]
"But...!"
The unconscious irin was still rolling down the slope toward the cliff. Glancing between Vickrum and his friend, Simon gritted his teeth and ran toward her.
’Jet-Black Step, again!’
Simon sprinted with all his might. Just as irin’s body tipped over the edge of the precipice—
He caught her wrist in the nick of ti. Covered in dirt, Simon panted heavily and looked up.
’Thud! Thud! Thud!’
The jaw-droppingly massive giant was walking away toward the other side of the cliff. It scanned its surroundings as if searching for sothing, then its body began to shrink. It grew smaller and smaller, until it was no bigger than the trees, and then it vanished from sight.
’Phew.’
Simon pulled the unconscious irin back onto solid ground. Thanks to her protective suit, she seed uninjured, though her barrier gauge was in the single digits.
’What’s this?’
Stuck to the nape of her neck was a strange, pristine white feather.
As Simon reached out for a closer look, the feather dissolved into the air and vanished.
’Pitter. Patter.’
Simon turned back. A few raindrops pattered down from the overcast sky, and then, with a sudden roar, a downpour began.
’First, I need to find shelter.’
He could get the full story later. Scooping the unconscious irin into his arms, Simon got to his feet.
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