39. The Important Thing Is an Unbreakable Spirit
39. The Important Thing Is an Unbreakable Spirit
Laziness.
It was the single greatest obstacle to the fulfillment of desire—and yet, ironically, that very emotion could be called the byproduct born of every kind of desire.
For all beings with an ego craved safety, and therefore instinctively felt a sense of security in the act of doing nothing at all.
-Ding-ling-ling~♪
So he wanted to do nothing.
If he could convert that emotion into power, he wanted to do nothing even more intensely than ever before.
The moment faint music drifted over from beyond the valley, Sloth felt himself more swayed by that urge than at any other time.
So much so that even though the sound felt oddly familiar, he gave up even on the act of rummaging through his memories for it.
"......Sloth."
A low voice reached him just as his eyes began to close under the weight of that swelling desire.
Drawn by it, he turned his gaze and saw an orc standing its ground with a mace planted into the earth.
Hellcry. A newly risen officer of the Demon Lord Army who had killed the previous captain while Sloth was asleep and usurped the position.
"This duel does not end until one of us is dead."
Though he was nothing more than an orc, Sloth held no particular thoughts about him.
He simply belonged to the Demon Lord Army, and as a mere foot soldier, he had to follow the captain's orders.......
Lazy as he was, he wasn't so lacking in self-awareness as to forget even that much responsibility.
"Yes. I understand, Captain."
Yes, nothing more than the bare minimum of responsibility.
The sole reason Sloth began to drag his heavy body upright in this place was just that.
Without a shred of deference or respect toward his opponent.
Simply because he knew this was the only way to be freed from the bother.
"I'll praise you for not ending this in one blow, but in the end, that's all it amounts to."
Having absorbed a shock practically no different from being struck by a carriage running at full force, moving any further than this was clearly impossible.
So this next blow would end it.
-Kwoong!
The attack he swung after widening the distance feebly struck nothing but the wall.
It was quite some time afterward before he noticed the target had slipped away.
"...Huff, huff."
It couldn't exactly be called swift movement.
In the first place, the body was so exhausted it was practically crawling on the ground.
It was just that his own nerves were so terribly sluggish that his reaction was late.
"Such bothersome resistance."
Where the man was crawling toward was the spot where Sloth had hurled his spear.
He understood clinging to that weapon since it was his sole means of striking back, but that did not translate into deference or consideration.
Even now, he could feel his desire intensifying under the ongoing melody.
Why did that man shun the path that would make things easier for both of them, and struggle so desperately instead?
"Why do you go so far to endure such agony? The outcome won't change regardless...."
He stalked the man crawling wretchedly with slow steps, then put strength into his fist the moment the distance closed.
The spear was still out of reach for him.
The delay had stretched a little, but that brief reprieve did not ultimately lead to a miracle.
This fight would end with this.
"Don't drag this out any longer. It's just more of a bother."
-Shwaaack!
The sound of something tearing through the air rang out the instant that certainty settled in.
He felt his nerves jolt alert, but turning his eyes toward the source of the sound came several seconds too late.
He didn't know the process of what had happened.
Only the result barely registered in his vision.
Nothing but the result: the spear that should have been far away was somehow grasped in that man's hand and swung toward him.
-Kwaang!
That spear sliced across his shoulder before his fist could complete its swing, and soon the attack veered from its intended trajectory, slamming into the side and violently scattering fragments.
The earth shuddered as it absorbed the force laden with massive weight.
-Crunch, crunch!!
Seizing that opening, two consecutive strikes broke his balance, and afterward, the human who had widened the distance plunged a hand into his own bosom.
Was he still trying to find some means of resistance?
Sloth stared blankly at that sight, then silently began to examine his own chest where it had been gashed by the spear.
The outer shell would regenerate even if cut, but the bleeding that had already occurred wouldn't vanish.
He hadn't yet suffered lethal damage like organ injury, but if these minor wounds that pierced his defenses piled up, things could truly become dangerous.
'But the same goes for that bastard.'
No, the opponent's condition was arguably far worse.
A human who had no regenerative power, no matter how much strength he mustered to grip and swing his spear.
There might be variables if the man could wield magic power, but he showed not even a hint of it.
So if the fight dragged on like this, the one who crumbled first would undoubtedly be his opponent.
-Shatter!
As though overturning that prediction once again.
The bastard pulled glass bottles from his bosom and began smashing them indiscriminately against his head, shattering them.
-Shatter, shatter.
The drugs inside spilled over his head and various parts of his body, and the moment they seeped into the wounds, raising a 'hiiiisss' sound—
—The man, enduring that reaction with his body, fiercely twisted his grip on the spear shaft and began to clench his jaw tight.
"Kha, aaah....... Urgh!!"
Recovery potions.
Drugs that operated on the principle of burning wounds shut to rapidly stop bleeding and heightening recovery power to swiftly mend fractures and abrasions.
So long as it wasn't an amputation, they could even revive paralyzed nerves, exerting outstanding performance as emergency treatment that restored mobility to incapacitating injuries.
Provided one could endure the atrocious pain that came with them.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaagh!!!!"
But atrocious pain invariably wrecked the mind and shattered judgment.
Thus, they were never items to be used in the middle of combat, yet he nevertheless bore it with his body and screamed himself raw.
A roar that was impossible to tell apart — a scream filled with agony, or a battle cry mustering every ounce of strength.
"What in the......."
"Grrraa, aaaaaaagh!"
Along with that, ferociously swung spear strikes shaved away his hide, and those attacks continued one after another, beginning to push his body back.
And at the end of it, exploiting the gap where distance had opened, a spear throw unleashed with full force.
-Bang!
When that attack burst with a thunderous roar and embedded itself in his body.
Sloth felt the tremor emanating from that spear and ground his teeth.
'A spear that moves on its own.... A weapon possessed by a soul?'
He only now realized that the reason the weapon, which had been far away, could end up in that man's hand was because such an ego had been awakened.
He tried to pull it out before it could gouge deeper into his body, but before he could, the spear wrenched itself free and flew through the air, returning to the man first.
Trickle, streams of blood flowed from the spot where the spear had been ripped free.
The moment the accumulated damage advanced past minor wounds into severe injury, Sloth shot a glare gleaming with subdued fury toward him.
"Just why......."
Feeling pain was bothersome.
So much so that he wouldn't even bat an eye even if his heart were targeted, for feeling fear of death was also bothersome.
And yet the suffocating frustration he felt in this moment was surely born from being unable to understand his opponent.
"Why do you fight so far? Why do you go that far while suffering so much......"
-Bang!!
The moment the spear caught in that hand plunged into his body once again.
As the throwing force strengthened in tandem with the ego dwelling in that spear, he felt destructive power through his body that pushed his footing backward.
"Don't get cocky, you lazy-ass piece of shit."
The man who had thrown that spear spat through gritted teeth in response to his frustration.
"Your power's filthy strong, but your speed's garbage....... Your stance is a mess and you can't even focus your punches. Don't you think expecting a fight to end with a roughly flailed-around blow like that is nothing but excessive greed on your part?"
A feeble human who, even while feeling his body burn away from the recovery power unleashed by the potion, endured even that agony and directed a lucid gaze toward him.
That attack was certainly destructive, but the limbs trembling violently even now told him the man was little more than a candle before the wind.
"Someone who can barely even stay standing after one of those half-assed blows doesn't get to say that to me."
So just one more hit.
If he could land just one more.
-Kwaaang!!!
A stomp charged with that single-minded intent overturned the surrounding ground and threw off the stance of the opponent standing on it.
It was a natural sequence of events to leap from the spot to escape such precariousness.
Perceiving that a situation from which evasion was impossible had been created, Sloth soon focused his gaze upon him and channeled power into his body.
"Don't make any more trouble for me with a body already turned into rags. Human......!"
Bang! The moment the rising leap and the punch that followed transformed into afterimages.
That blow was worthy of being compared to a cannonball without exaggeration, and yet no trace of fear was drawn on his face.
Was it because he hadn't realized the fact that the attack was aimed at him?
'No, that's not right.'
Just before the fist could pierce his skull, Sloth, who had been fully focused on the target, clearly saw it.
The two eyes, wide open and lucid.
That not for a single moment did they look away from the fist aimed at his head.
-Shyaaak!!
The moment he focused on the flying shell until the very end and dodged it at the crucial instant not by luck, but by sheer will.
His hand, which had just barely preserved his life by a hair's breadth, was precisely twisting and gripping the spear he had previously lodged into his own body.
-Crunch!!!
A chunk of flesh tore away along the spear's trajectory as it was pulled. The carapace shattered into pieces.
And using the opening that created, he planted his feet firmly, putting his weight into it as he repeatedly swung his body into the attack.
'It doesn't make sense. How in the world...?'
Moving a body that had only received emergency treatment should only worsen the condition. And the pain from the drug soaking that body should be tearing his mind apart even now.
-Ding-ding~♬
The faint sound of an instrument playing amidst the chaos.
As he felt his urges growing stronger, as if responding to that noise, he felt his momentum building more and more, teeth clenched in a grimace.
Just as his own desires were strengthening.
Because that performance was amplifying this being's desires as well, vomiting up all the confusion that should have been clouding his mind.
'Ah, I see. So that's how it is.'
But was it really possible, with only that?
Just by gaining a weapon that could wound him and sharpening his focus, could a being truly hold hope of overwhelming him?
'This guy... the longer it drags on, the more annoying he becomes.'
By the time he realized such a thing was possible for the human standing before him, he had already lost even the thought of swinging a fist.
-Boom!
And finally, at the end of the fierce exchange, the moment the thrown spear pierced through his body.
The will imbued within it amplified the force, ultimately slamming him into the cliff face.
And then....
***
-Rumble, Crash!
The moment the impact carried by the spear's power rippled through the entire cliff from the point of collision.
The resulting rockslide fell onto Sloth's head, burying his body soon after.
It was a tremendous display of power, as expected.
The sharpness alone could cleave stone, but what was more noteworthy was that the spear's ego exerted mana on its own.
The physical force exerted by it especially amplified the power of throwing spears and the like, creating an effect that allowed it to move toward me even from a distance.
-Whoosh, Thud!
The spear slipped out of the rock pile and settled right into my hand.
The blood soaking the blade and shaft reminded me that the monster who had been relentlessly pushing me was also a creature made of flesh and bone.
Yes, it can be killed.
That damned monster was one of those that could definitely be killed with human strength.
"Cough!"
But the problem was that my condition was too poor to confirm the kill.
The pain I had been enduring did not subside but grew ever stronger. I downed the potion I had on hand and wrapped emergency bandages over the wounded area.
It was only first aid, just enough to let me move.
And even that came with excruciating pain every time I moved, to the point that I felt my blood drying up moment by moment.
"Shit, damn it. You have potions in this world, but why don't you have any painkillers...?"
It was agonizing.
Just standing caused dizziness and nausea. The blood surging from my internal injuries rose up my airway, making even breathing a torment.
No matter how strong my desire to live was, the willpower drained away under a pain that surpassed it.
-Ding-ding~♬
Because I was in such a state, I was certain of it.
I didn't know why Marilyn was playing her instrument beyond the cliff, but if it hadn't been for her performance, this fight would have ended long ago.
Before this spear, which recognized me as its master, could fly to me, I might have been buried by the thought of just giving up and ending my pain after the next hit.
-Rumble, rumble
But it was still too early to say the opportunity I had seized was bearing fruit.
The opponent was a demon who converted sloth into strength. The toughness he had cultivated from it wouldn't let him fall just from taking a few spear thrusts.
So I had to confirm the kill.
Before something even more absurd could emerge, with my own two hands.
-Boooom!!
The moment I stepped forward to do so, the pile of rocks exploded.
Instantly, something shot past my side and collided with the opposite cliff face. Every nerve in my body stood on end, and my breath froze.
"What the hell... is that?"
Something just flew past.
Even though I was completely focused, all I could do was barely follow a red afterimage.
"Ah, aah... What a pain..."
After pulling itself free from the rock wall it had crashed into, the being slowly opened its mouth, revealing rows of sharp fangs, and began to speak.
With the same voice as the demon of sloth I had been cornering until moments ago.
"Still, putting it off will only make it more annoying, so... I should finish this as quickly as possible..."
Yes, its appearance had changed.
All the thick carapace encasing its body had fallen away, gradually revealing the black flesh within.
The light emanating from the fissures that appeared across it was the red afterimage I had seen. I felt the smile drawn on my lips slowly freeze into tension.
"You... were you hiding your strength this whole time?"
By shedding its outer shell and lightening its weight, its speed had increased accordingly.
It had moved in ambush before, but even that was a level my eyes could react to.
But now, that bastard was moving at a speed that left an afterimage.
If it was possible for him to control his speed and change direction, it wouldn't have been strange if my body had been torn to shreds on the first charge.
"I was giving my full power from the start. It's just that I resolved I can't drag this out any longer, so I decided to finish you off quickly now."
"...Fuck, what are you, some high school kid with a test tomorrow?"
Procrastinating all this time and then feeling the urgency to cram at the very end.
Wasn't that slothfulness itself, from start to finish?
"I really don't care what you think. What matters is that you've been the most annoying bastard I've ever met, and the more annoyed I get, the more pain you'll have to feel."
He just calmly spoke to me, who was looking at him in shock, and quietly took his stance.
Even so, what was clearly drawn in his eyes, fixed upon me, was what you'd call fighting spirit.
"So if you want to be at ease, stop at any time. Human."
"If you stop for even a single moment, I'll end your breath before you have a chance to feel the pain."
There wasn't a shred of consideration in the words spilling from his mouth, but even that felt merciful to me in this situation.
What awaited me afterward was a precarious tightrope walk, with a body in agony even just from breathing, where a single more hit would spell the end.
In such a situation, the pressure emanating from this bastard was enough to break my body, which was barely clinging to its limits...
"I appreciate the concern, but it's useless meddling."
Even so, the thought of giving up here never crossed my mind.
Because right now, I had a weapon that could kill this bastard, and the sound of a performance that was sharpening my mind.
I desperately realized that the key to solidifying my advantage in this moment was utilizing the greatest weapon I possessed.
====
Unique Ability: Existence Imprint
Aptitude Stats
Body: C+++ | Technique: C++
Intelligence: C- | Senses: C+
Mind: A | Arcane: F
====
"...My one and only strong point is that I survive well no matter where you toss me."
Yeah, wasn't it clearly displayed on the status window active in this moment?
The mithril Ego Weapon, the heightened mental state, all of it was ultimately just support.
In the end, it came down to overcoming the pain I felt in this moment and the fear of death waiting just an inch ahead.
[Keep this in mind. No matter what opponent appears, it is crucial not to doubt that you will be defeated.]
If Airi's prophecy was truly real, and if everything that made me who I am in this moment was the necessary condition.
All I had to do was use the future she had foreseen as my guidepost and fight with everything I had.
"So brace yourself from now on. You monster bastard who only ever acts big by coasting on your innate talents."
So I won't give up and I'll fight.
Even if it's just to prove that the reason I've survived in this shitty world all along isn't simply a result of luck.
"Because from now on, I'll show you just how annoying a human you looked down on can be."
That if this bastard can't kill me, then I win.
Honing that single belief sharper than the spear clutched in my hand...