Chapter 7

The next morning.

I sensed someone entering the bedroom prepared for me. Footsteps approached the bed where I lay sleeping.

“……..”

I gripped the handgun hidden under my pillow, ready to fire at a moment’s notice. If anything felt off, I’d pump them full of lead before they could make a move. Maintaining my posture, I sat up, feigning a natural wake-up.

Alice was standing before me. She was dressed differently than yesterday, wearing a collared one-piece dress adorned with a purple ribbon. Her hair was perfectly set. She looked exactly like a refined, innocent young lady—a stark contrast to me, with my rough stubble and bare torso.

I felt no hostility. It seemed she had simply come to wake me. Alice bowed toward me.

“Good morning, Mr. Jack. I’m sorry to start so early, but it seems you have a guest.”

“A guest? For me?”

What was this? I shouldn’t have known anyone in this world. Alice tilted her head curiously, looking just as puzzled as I was.

“I don’t know him either. He demanded to see ‘the foreign man with the gun.’ That’s probably you, isn’t it, Mr. Jack?”

“Yeah, sounds like me. Who the hell is it? I don’t recall making any dates.”

“A man in formal attire. He looks very angry. He’s waiting for you outside the gates.”

A man in formal wear? Still didn’t ring a bell. I figured the fastest way to find out was to go see his face myself. I couldn’t exactly leave him out there.

I pulled on the T-shirt I’d tossed beside the bed. “Thanks for letting me know. I’ll go take a look.”

“Be careful. He’s likely dangerous. I can feel a deep hatred radiating from him.”

“You can tell that?”

Alice had hinted at something similar during our dinner conversation yesterday. I wondered if it was an alchemist skill, or perhaps a personal ability. In this world, no effect would surprise me.

Alice gave a small nod to my question.

“Yes, a little. I can sense basic emotions—joy, anger, sorrow. I can’t read thoughts, only the color of their emotions and spirit.”

“Still plenty useful. Well, I’ll stay sharp.”

“I’ll have breakfast ready when you get back.”

“Sounds good. Looking forward to it.”

I equipped my gear and left the room alone, carrying my rifle. It was loaded, of course. There was a distinct possibility I’d be opening fire without a word the moment we met.

If I had to guess who hated me, it would be the gate guards from this town. It wasn’t impossible that one of their colleagues had come for revenge. To them, I was a felon who had forced his way into the city. It was only natural they’d want me gone.

Regardless of who it was, I doubted this would be a peaceful chat. I had to stay focused.

Arriving at the entrance of the mansion, I opened the front door. Someone was standing outside the grounds, glaring at me through the black iron fence.

The moment I saw him, I let out a whistle.

“Heh. Well, color me surprised. So that’s how it is.”

I certainly knew that face. It was one of the Japanese men who should have been dead—the man in the business suit who had been summoned alongside me. Back at the summoning, he was the one who had protested against Chancellor Vilarze.

I called out as I walked through the garden toward him.

“Well, you look lively. I figured for sure you’d been blown to kingdom come.”

“I’ve been looking for you… I’m lucky to find you in the very first city I checked. Blowing up the Imperial Capital… that was your doing, wasn’t it?”

The man in the business suit spoke while suppressing a surge of passion. I gave him a straightforward nod.

“Of course. Those people pulled some nonsense on me, so I gave them exactly what they deserved.”

“I knew it… Do you have any idea how many people were sacrificed because of your atrocity!?”

“Dunno. Not my problem.”

I responded flatly to his interrogation. It was a bit late for accusations to bother me.

“You monster… have you no guilt!?”

“If I did, they wouldn’t have nicknamed me ‘The Bomber’ back home.”

I’d been called that even in my original world. I’d killed more people than I could count. If I felt guilt every single time, I wouldn’t have been a mercenary in the first place.

Ignoring the dissatisfied man, I asked a question of my own.

“More importantly, how are you alive? That blast was large enough to collapse the city in an instant. I didn’t think anyone would survive.”

I opened the gate and stepped outside the grounds. The shock trap didn’t trigger from the inside. I stood face-to-face with him, nothing between us. The man clenched his fists tight.

“It’s thanks to my skill. The other Japanese survivors are out there too, saved by their own abilities. You aren’t the only one who got a cheat power. We aren’t working together, but I guarantee every single one of them is plotting revenge against you!”

“Ho? I’ll be so excited I won’t be able to sleep. But why tell me that? You’ve ruined the surprise.”

“To plant despair in your heart. I have to make you regret this deeply… Besides, what does it matter what I tell a man who’s about to die?”

The man spat out the blatant provocation. His face was a messy mix of tension, fear, and rage. It made sense—no matter how much he hated me, there was no way he could jump into a deathmatch without hesitation. He’d probably lived a peaceful life until now.

Seeing him desperately trying to maintain his bravado, I put my hand to my face and let out a loud laugh. I’d seen something truly hilarious so early in the morning. This guy was the best. I felt like giving him a standing ovation. I laughed, ignoring his bewildered expression.

Once I’d had my fill, I wiped the expression from my face and stared him down.

“…I see. You’ve got some guts, talking like that. You could have lived a peaceful life if you hadn’t thought about revenge. But fine. Come at me, tough guy. I’ll blow you into tiny little pieces.”

“You madman! If you’d just worked as a Hero for the Empire, we would have eventually gone home! We could have lived without a single struggle until then!”

The man screamed and drew a sword from the scabbard at his waist. It seemed he intended to cut me down with it. Interesting. I didn’t hate that kind of spirit.

As he prepared to lunged, I raised a hand to stop him.

“Wait a second. Before we kill each other, tell me your name.”

“…Why are you asking that now?”

Taken aback, the man furrowed his brows. He looked like he couldn’t understand the logic. He was visibly irritated. I slowly moved my fingertips toward my holster and spoke.

“—Because if I’m going to build you a grave, it’d be a hassle not knowing the name to put on it.”

The moment I finished the sentence, I drew my handgun and fired from the hip. Three perfectly aimed shots struck the man: two in the chest, one in the forehead.

‘That was easy. Game over.’

I was certain of the kill, but a high-pitched metallic clink echoed through the air. The bullets that had hit him reversed their trajectory and came flying back at me with terrifying speed.

“Whoops. You’re kidding.”

I fired my rifle with one hand, knocking one of the three returning bullets out of the air.

I rolled across the ground to evade the remaining two bullets. As I stood up, I noticed a hot liquid trickling down my cheek. I wiped it with the back of my hand—it was blood. One of the bullets must have grazed me.

Touching the wound on my cheek, I let out a whistle of admiration.

“Interesting magic. What kind of trick are you using?”

“It’s the effect of [Absolute Reflection A+]. It doubles any damage directed at me and reflects it back. That’s how I survived the Great Explosion at the Capital. As long as I have this skill, nothing you do will ever work. I am invincible!”

The man spoke with absolute confidence, leveling the tip of his sword at me.

“You wanted to know my name, didn’t you? I’ll tell you, as a souvenir for the afterlife. It’s Koji Mineda.”

“I see. Koji, huh? Thanks for telling me. I’ll try to remember it until my victory toast tonight,” I replied cheerfully, casually twirling my handgun.

“Hey, don’t just stand there daydreaming.”

I stepped in with a short, quick burst. Koji couldn’t react; he stood there like a pole. A moment later, he swung at me with a speed that made me want to yawn. Evading the strike, I lunged forward with my knife.

The thrust aimed at his flank connected perfectly.

However, the moment it struck, cracks ran through the blade, and the knife snapped off at the hilt. My hand, still holding the handle, was violently repelled. His side, where the blade should have sunk in, was completely unmarked.

Realizing the attack had failed, I leaped backward. Watching his sword whistle through the air where I’d just been, I tossed away the useless hilt.

We had been repeating this dance for several minutes. My attacks didn’t work; instead, they came back at me with double the force. It felt like trying to pick a fight with a massive slab of iron. Regardless of my high-level status, my power was meaningless against Koji’s skill.

The only saving grace was that Koji’s combat technique was that of a total amateur—the movement of a complete civilian. His offensive capability was pathetic, consisting only of swinging a cheap sword around. I could have dodged him with my eyes closed. Thanks to that, I was able to drag the fight out.

“S-so… you… finally realize… it’s useless… don’t you…” Koji panted, his voice ragged. He looked utterly exhausted.

If I remembered correctly, his starting level was 80. Level correction should have boosted his basic stamina, but here he was, gasping for air because his clumsy movements were wasting energy. My own breathing wasn’t even labored. Back in my old world, this level of exertion was a warm-up. This wasn’t even a workout.

However, my body was covered in countless bruises and small cuts. Every single one was reflected damage. Nothing fatal, but the stinging pain was getting annoying. I had spent these few minutes testing various methods of attack for one purpose: to kill Koji.

And thanks to using my own body as a test subject, I had made a few discoveries. I pointed back toward the mansion.

“Well then. Can we wrap this up? Breakfast is waiting.”

“What… what are you talking about… in this situation? You have no… chance of winning.”

“Is that so? You shouldn’t assume you’re invincible forever. Only ruin awaits the conceited. Shall I show you firsthand?”

I suddenly lunged at Koji. I slipped past his horizontal swing and restrained him, making sure not to cause him any actual pain. In two seconds, I had disarmed him and pinned him to the ground.

This was the strategy against*[Absolute Reflection A+]. As long as I was merely obstructing his movement, no reflection damage occurred. To put it simply, it was just an extension of a handshake. As long as I didn’t deal damage, it was fine. Restraining him was a contact act that didn’t classify as an “attack.” This was the weakness I’d discovered during the melee.

“Guh! You… let go…!”

“Not a chance. Just think of it as a passionate hug from a fan.”

As Koji screamed, I pinned him down and stuffed a bomb into his mouth. It was one I’d taken from the gatekeepers—a low-yield, firecracker-like explosive.

“!!!!!!”

“Calm down. You’re being a nuisance to the neighbors.”

As Koji thrashed about, I pulled an oil lighter from my back pocket. I’d kept it even while trying to quit smoking; I liked it because it was useful for all sorts of things. I pinched the fuse sticking out of the corner of Koji’s mouth and lit it.

“!?”

Koji tried to spit the bomb out. I immediately clamped my hand over his jaw to stop him. This, too, wasn’t an attack. I was just holding him. Sure enough, there was no reflection damage.

“Come on, now. Don’t be a picky eater.”

The fuse burned down and finally disappeared into Koji’s mouth. A few seconds later, a muffled popping sound came from inside his throat.

“!!”

Koji’s eyes rolled back as his body jerked. A thin trail of white smoke rose from the gaps in his lips. Then came another pop. This one was clearly louder than the first. Without pause, a third rang out. A fourth followed immediately.

Koji’s moans gradually turned into screams of agony. The pops grew louder at an exponential rate. By the time they surpassed the twentieth, they had evolved into full-blown explosions. The interval between sounds was nearly zero.

“The reflected damage doubles, right? The explosion detonating inside your mouth has nowhere for the energy to escape, so it just keeps reflecting infinitely. It starts with pathetic power, but after enough doubling… well, you get the idea. Now, I wonder how long you can hold out?”

“!?”

Koji’s cheeks bulged with every blast. They looked ready to burst at any second. He fought desperately to pry my arms off, but unfortunately, I didn’t budge. The physical strength of Level 385 wasn’t just for show. The resistance of a measly Level 80 was like a baby throwing a tantrum. Even without level corrections, the result would have been the same.

“Ngh… hhh…”

Koji’s throat distended wildly as something slid down his interior. It seemed he had swallowed the reflecting explosive energy. He probably couldn’t contain it in his mouth anymore. Witnessing this, I let out a sigh.

“Ah, well. You’ve gone and done it now.”

Now Koji’s stomach began to bulge, becoming the source of the explosions. In an instant, it was on the verge of tearing open. Swallowing it didn’t solve anything; it just moved the location of the blast.

I looked down at the suffering Koji. “Do you want me to help you?”

“…!”

“Then will you forgive me and be my friend?”

“….! ….!!”

Koji nodded frantically while sobbing. His eyes were pleading for help. The sound of the explosions had become a roar, vibrating through the air. Due to whatever mechanic was at play, Koji’s entire body began to bloat. His abdomen was vibrating violently, inflating like a balloon.

I noticed a crowd of people watching from a distance. Perfect—I’ll let them be the audience. I grabbed Koji by the head and hoisted him up.

“Ah, my dear Koji. To celebrate our new friendship, let’s play a sport. Except, you’re the ball.”

“…!!!”

“Well then, enjoy the ride until the very end!”

With that, I threw Koji with every ounce of my strength. Flying like a cannonball, Koji spun at high speed and smashed through a nearby abandoned house.

The next moment, Koji exploded.

Blood, flesh, and organs were scattered with a sickening squelch. Shards of bone flew like shrapnel, further pulverizing the ruins. The area was instantly transformed into a dark red, splattered nightmare.

His body had reached its limit. It seemed his “invincible” reflection skill didn’t account for the durability of the user himself. It was a truly spectacular end. There wasn’t enough left of him to even identify.

Several screams erupted from the spectators. To watch without permission and then make a fuss—what a bunch of nuisances. I wish people had some morals.

“Haha! A trick shot where the ball disappears! A shame I can only perform it once.”

I clapped my hands, satisfied. It had gone quite well for an improvisation. A job well done. After a final glance at Koji’s remains, I turned and headed back to the mansion for breakfast.