Chapter 107

“Th-that is not what I meant…!!”

Using the hook of New Moon, Kelly skillfully pried away the sword he held in a blade-lock and thrust Moon-render in her right hand through the opening.

Stab!!

“Kugh!!!”

The lion staggered backward, clearly reeling from the impact.

Seizing the opening, Kelly leaped into the air and brought both halberds down in a crushing strike.

KWA-AAAANG!!!

The ground buckled and sank, unable to withstand the force.

The lion somehow managed to block it with his round shield, but one of his knees buckled and hit the floor.

“Shut up and fight! Give it your all!! Don’t disappoint me! Don’t throw cold water on my excitement! You said you were a knight!”

At that moment, sparks flew from the lion’s eyes.

KRA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HAAAAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Straightening his bent knee, he swung his shield with terrifying speed, swatting Kelly away as if throwing her.

“Ugh…!”

Launched all the way to the ceiling of the corridor, Kelly masterfully reduced the impact by embedding one halberd into the ceiling and hanging there.

“Ha. Yeah. Are you finally getting fired up? Then fight! Come at me! If you’re a warrior, speak with your blade! Stop flapping your gums!!”

While still hanging from the ceiling, Kelly hurled Moon-render from her free hand straight at the lion.

The halberd tore through the air with a piercing whistle. The lion, who had been charging toward her, swatted the halberd out of the air with his greatsword, his eyes burning with rage. But—

“Improved Lightning Shock!!”

Using the Moon-render embedded in the ground as a medium, a bolt of lightning thundered down from the sky through the hole in the ceiling.

KRA-BOOM!! Zzzzzzzzt!!!

“KRA-AAAAAARGH!!!”

The lion let out a scream and braced himself against the ground.

However, using his massive magic resistance, he quickly broke out of the paralysis and let out a roar filled with fury.

KRA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HAAAAR!!!!!!

“Fine! Not with words, but with strength! I shall bring you to your knees with everything I have!”

“That’s it! Good! You should have done that from the start!!”

A head-on clash of pure power against power.

KRA-BOOM!!

The momentum and speed were so immense that sonic booms erupted every time the lion and Kelly swung their weapons.

The lion overwhelmed Kelly in every physical aspect—strength, weight, and durability—yet Kelly did not budge.

Her perfected techniques and her ability to read two or three moves ahead somehow bridged the gap.

The problem was…

Creak, crackle.

Chel clicked her tongue as she watched the lion’s cracked armor repair itself automatically.

“That’s cheating.”

“Well, overcoming those kinds of disadvantages is what makes one a powerhouse and a Master.”

“Every time I see you like this, Orabeoni, you’re really…”

“I’m what?”

“Nothing. Forget it.”

“How vague.”

The battle continued with enough intensity to bring down the entire labyrinth.

“Die!”

Crunnnch!

“KRA-HA-HA-HAAAAR!!!”

KWA-ANG!

“What is that shield for, decoration?! You can’t even block this?!”

“Kugh!”

“What is that greatsword for, show?! If you can’t block with the shield, use your sword! Don’t you know that?!”

“Guh!”

“I could dance with my eyes closed and do better than you! You beastly bastard!”

“KRA-HA-HAAA!!”

I realized it once again… when Kelly is fighting or showing hostility to an enemy, her mouth is quite foul.

“You bastard! Is that all you’ve got?! Are you even eating properly?!”

“Eeeeeeek!! Is that the only way you know how to speak?!”

“What, am I supposed to giggle and laugh while swinging axes to kill you?! You moron!”

“Shit!!!”

“Oh. You know how to swear too?!”

“Y-you… you truly have a remarkable talent for raising one’s blood pressure!!”

“I told you to stop talking and fight!”

KWA-ANG!!

“HAAAA-HAP!!!”

Seeing an opening, Kelly thrust both New Moon and Moon-render forward simultaneously in a cross-stab.

It was a high-level technique called Shadow Cross—one I’d seen several times. The angles were subtle; if one was blocked, she could use the blocked strike as a pivot to shift the direction of the other, ensuring one would inevitably bypass the defense.

“KRA-HAAA!!”

But at that moment, an anomaly occurred.

As if barely blocking one as Kelly intended, the lion threw his body forward the moment the second halberd struck his armor, delivering a Shield Charge right into Kelly.

KWA-AAAANG!!

“Gah!!!”

New Moon was knocked loose and flew into the air, while Moon-render, which took the brunt of the Shield Charge, bent like a bow before Kelly was sent flying backward.

Crash! Tumble! Clatter-clatter!!

She rolled and bounced across the ground like a kicked tin can. After being pushed back dozens of meters, she finally managed to stop herself by stabbing Moon-render into the floor.

“Cough, cough.”

A dry cough followed.

Even with his armor, the lion had thrown himself into a piercing strike. He gave a bitter smile as he looked at his right shoulder, where blood was streaming through the cracks in the broken plating.

A single sharp intake of breath was all it took for the lion to stem his bleeding.

He tapped his armor, which was already beginning to patch itself back together through auto-repair, and addressed Kelly.

Phew… I may be stronger than you, but that is only due to my massive, sturdy body as a monster. I acknowledge that your skill as a warrior far surpasses mine. Though you insulted me with your tongue while swinging those halberds, I know it was all to teach me where I am lacking.

Instead of answering, Kelly leaned on Moon-render and spat out a mouthful of blood.

“What are you rambling about? Shut up and pick up your weapon.”

The lion continued, undeterred by her attitude.

Therefore, why not withdraw without a winner? You could join forces with the others and face me again. I managed to block you just now, but if we continue like this… you will die.

Crack.

Kelly popped her dislocated shoulder back into place, a thick sneer spreading across her face.

“You brat. Fine. I’ll be honest, you’re pretty good. Sword-and-shield looks easy, but it’s a path that feels a thousand miles long once you start… You learn faster than I thought.”

Rip.

Feeling constricted, she stripped off her blouse and stockings and tossed them aside. Then, she tore the sides of her pencil skirt, creating deep slits for mobility.

As she kicked off her sole-less loafers, her glamorous physique, combined with the now precarious outfit…

“Ahem.”

No, wait. It is a universal truth across all worlds that exposure and defense are inversely proportional. To wrestle with a brute like that, she clearly needed that kind of ‘defense upgrade.’ Yes. Absolutely.

Having ‘adjusted’ her gear, she pulled out her final card.

“Last Order.”

She let go of her control, releasing the reins on her physical and mental mana to let them run wild. In this state, the time she could hold on was likely barely a minute.

“Phew…”

The whites of her eyes were shot with red. Her killing intent was overwhelming. The fighting spirit enveloping her wasn’t just hot anymore—it was heavy, almost intoxicating.

“Hehehehehe…”

The lion flinched at the sudden shift in Kelly’s atmosphere and tightened his grip on his sword and shield.

“Let’s play, kid.”

With a pure white smile filled with a chaotic mix of negative emotions, Kelly charged at the lion like a wild beast.

The fight, at its core, didn’t change much. The lion hunkered down behind his sword and shield, while Kelly unleashed a relentless storm.

The only difference was that Kelly, having abandoned mana control, turned that excess energy into magic.

“Empowered Lightning!”

KRA-BOOM!

“Flames. Here. Swirl. Muspelheim!”

FWA-SHHHH!

Spells cascaded one after another. As the lion retreated, flustered by the sudden change in pattern, Kelly lunged forward, barking out a command.

“Transparent power. Manifest here. Repulsive Psychokinesis: 64-Shot!”

A single white magic circle bloomed like a flower beside her, pelting the lion with telekinetic bullets.

Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!!

The bullets battered the lion’s entire body—shield, armor, and flesh alike. Of course, telekinetic bullets wouldn’t normally damage a 10-Star monster, but they served their purpose: they created a split-second opening in the lion’s defense.

“Hap!”

And that ‘moment’ was all Kelly needed to trigger a high-level technique with a long wind-up.

A 720-degree horizontal spin to accumulate centrifugal force. She whipped her body through the air with the grace of a figure skater’s Axel jump.

And then, a pulverizing heavy strike aimed straight for the lion’s round shield.

“Equip Break!”

KRA-CRACK!!!

“Kugh!!”

In a single blow, the shield was split top to bottom. Seeing the lion completely exposed and defenseless, Kelly licked her blood-stained lips.

“Bouncing Moon.”

As her halberd bypassed the shattered shield and floated in the air, Kelly’s foot snapped up, kicking the back of the halberd’s hammer-head with everything she had.

BOOM!

As if by magic, the halberd changed its trajectory, soaring upward in a crescent arc—

CRACKLE-SNAP!

…and finally shattered the lion’s jaw at an angle.

“Wow. Holy shit. She actually won. Crazy bitch.”

Chel let out a gasp of admiration as she caught Kelly’s collapsing body.

“Like I’d… lose to a kid like that… ugh…”

“Always has to have the last word with that mouth of hers.”

“Argh… I’m dying.”

“Rest. I’ll give you a painkiller. We didn’t bring a priest, so you have to look after your own body. Got it?”

“Huu… anyway, it’s over. I’m not doing anything for the next two months.”

But at that very moment, an anomaly occurred.

The lion, who had been unconscious, suddenly bolted up like a zombie and clanked his breastplate wide open. Revealed inside was an octagonal, large-caliber cannon.

“Huh? That’s—!?” Elizabeth let out a terrified shriek.

“Orabeoni. Doesn’t it look like the armor is moving on its own now, not the lion?”

“Probably. It’s likely programmed to do that if the wearer loses consciousness.”

At our relaxed conversation, Elizabeth shouted in a panic.

“Is this really the time for that!?”

I grinned and patted the girl’s head.

“Elizabeth. Let me teach you something.”

“Huh? Wh-what?”

“In situations like this, you lose if you panic.”

“Eh…?”

Light began to charge rapidly in the center of the barrel. Even though it was just the preparation stage, the sheer volume of light being emitted turned the labyrinth as bright as midday.

Well, the best move would be to block it with Spatial Fracturing like before, but…

Why bother?

Just before the torrent could burst from his chest, I leaped forward and cast a simple sequence.

“Dig.”

First, I created a slope right at his feet.

“Glide.”

Then, I dropped the friction coefficient to zero. Finally, I gave his heel a powerful shove with my own heel.

Sliiiiiip. CRASH!!!

And just like that, he flipped over in a perfect display of slapstick comedy.

“You’re just an empty shell; where do you get off acting all tough?”

Immediately after, the light exploded from his chest toward the labyrinth ceiling. It was a staggering torrent of energy, far beyond what the previous robot had unleashed.

KWA-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!

Pinned down by the recoil of the cannon carving into the ceiling, the armor-clad lion flailed his limbs helplessly.

“Pfft…”

“Khmm…”

“Everyone, don’t laugh… cough…”

Since the output was so high, once he started firing, he couldn’t stop or move. As the lion lay there spread-eagled like he was begging to be taken out, Kelly approached, the blade of Moon-render screeching against the floor.

She had the aura of Jason Voorhees approaching a victim with a chainsaw. Her eyes gleamed with a sadistic light.

And the place she eventually arrived at…

“Hey, no way…”

It was right between the lion’s legs.

“Haha. Ahahahaha!”

With a hysterical laugh, Kelly raised Moon-render high. Then, without a shred of hesitation—

SLAM!!!

…She brought it down.

“KRA-AAAAAARGH!!!”

…I guess even when you’re unconscious, that kind of pain is unavoidable.