A Bet on One Wish
"I... didn't hear that wrong just now, did I...?"
Wow. You're better at provoking than I thought.
I didn't teach you anything like that...
It's just his nature, I suppose.
What the hell. Why were they all staring at me like that? I had simply spoken the honest truth. According to Alkest, that thing would unleash a full hundred and twenty percent of my power. So of course Mir wouldn't stand a chance if it came to that...
Squeeze.
"Urk."
"You. Do I look that weak to you?"
A sharp sting flared in my side. When I glanced down, Mir was pinching my flank with a death grip. The moment I tried to pry her hand away, she only clamped down harder, as if warning me not to move.
"Well, I'll admit you're strong. But don't get it twisted and think that makes you stronger than me."
"The one who's mistaken isn't me, it's—"
Squeeze.
I'm sorry. I'll shut up, so please just let go. I feel like my flesh is about to rip off.
"Hah! Fine. If you're that confident, let's make a bet."
"...A bet?"
"Yeah. Whoever takes that thing down first. The stakes will be..."
Mir pondered for a moment before speaking again, her expression brimming with confidence.
"The loser grants the winner one wish. How about it?"
I don't understand where that child gets all her confidence.
Doesn't she just believe she's stronger?
A wish. I could ask the protagonist herself for a single wish?
"You won't regret it?"
"Of course not. Oh, but perverted stuff or anything like that is off-limits, right?"
"I won't!"
No matter how beautiful Mir was, I wasn't so consumed by lust that I'd demand something shameless like that.
Huh? You weren't going to?
Our disciple is surprisingly pure-hearted.
"Have these people lost their minds!"
"......?"
Just how did they usually see me to say things like that? I clutched my throbbing forehead and shot a mild glare at Cheonma and Hoya.
Your gaze isn't very respectful.
How can those be the eyes of a disciple looking at his master?
Did we say something wrong?
...Never mind. I'd just ignore them. Paying them any attention would only exhaust me more. These two were usually so reliable—why were they busy tarnishing that image right now?
I left the pair of ghosts clicking their tongues in disappointment or wearing ambiguous expressions alone and mulled over Mir's proposal again.
"...Fine. Let's do it."
No matter how I looked at it, there was no reason to refuse. At my agreement, Mir flashed a satisfied smile, spun around, and charged straight at the doppelganger wearing my face.
"Hey! You have to actually say 'start' first!"
"Start!"
Did she really want to beat me that badly? I let out a small sigh and swung my sword at the doppelganger, which was mimicking my every move just like Mir had.
Clang!
Heavy?
I faltered for a second at the unexpectedly weighty strike. The instant his attack was blocked, the doppelganger spun halfway around and launched a kick.
It was obviously something I could dodge... but I didn't.
Thud!
His kick slammed heavily into my side. He'd reinforced his body perfectly—the sound alone was no joke.
"......!"
"What, you feel pain too?"
Funnily enough, the one grimacing wasn't me. It was the doppelganger who'd thrown the attack. That twisted face of his made the faint ache in my side feel like nothing at all.
I smiled and glanced down at the spot I'd been hit. The black energy of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art had spread across my clothes in the shape of a lotus flower, like a painted pattern.
Is that the Diamond Body? Hoya's eyes widened as she muttered in a daze.
No, it's something different...
To be exact, it's a technique created by imitating it. Of course, it's still incomplete.
Diamond Body. An essential skill for tanks that, once learned, made opponents spit out curses that sounded almost like praise. The prerequisites and training process were so demanding, however, that very few people had actually mastered it.
Crack.
In my previous life, my character had never managed to learn it due to all those conditions. But even if I couldn't learn it myself, I'd watched others use it countless times. I'd fought alongside them and faced them as enemies.
Drawing on those memories, I'd combined my body's talent with Cheonma's teachings to imitate the Diamond Body. It wasn't perfect, as evidenced by what appeared now, but I'd succeeded.
Crack.
Of course, unlike the original, the lotus pattern blooming across my body was black from the Heavenly Demon Divine Art rather than golden. Its form was riddled with cracks, looking as if it might shatter at any moment—an unstable imitation.
But it's enough.
Even incomplete, a Diamond Body was still a Diamond Body. It was living up to its reputation.
That's surprising, though.
What is?
You usually hate it when your disciple learns other techniques. I'm shocked you actually allowed this one~
At Hoya's words, Cheonma nodded in acknowledgment.
The Cheonma she remembered had indeed been strongly opposed to me learning any strange new techniques.
That technique is an exception.
Why?
Because the one who used it once blocked a strike from me.
Cheonma closed his eyes as if reminiscing, a faint smile curving his lips.
How could I ignore something so outstanding? It worked out perfectly since Zeon's defensive capabilities were lacking.
Then why did you throw such a fit when I tried to teach it?
...I don't wish to hurt you any further.
That hurts more, you know?!
Hey. I'm in the middle of a fight here. Instead of chatting beside me, how about offering some advice?
Swallowing those inner thoughts, I blocked another attack from Mir's doppelganger.
Thud. Thwack.
"Tsk..."
"Heh."
"Oh? You're laughing?"
Seeing that smile on Mir's face sent a slight chill down my spine. While the doppelganger smiled, my own face naturally twisted into a frown.
I hadn't noticed at first, but after clashing with him, I understood. This guy... was weaker than me, yet stronger.
Thud.
That sounded contradictory, but it was exactly right. To elaborate, my overall stats were superior, but his battle experience and instincts more than made up for the difference.
I'm not exactly lacking in experience myself.
This opponent was different. His movements were so varied it felt like several people were fighting at once.
The original's hundred and twenty percent... Did that mean Mir could fight at a similar level right now, even if a little weaker than what we were seeing?
How embarrassing.
I'd claimed I could win earlier. What if I ended up the one getting beaten instead?
Vrrr.
I channeled a faint trace of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art into my sword and swung. The doppelganger, as if waiting for exactly that, infused his own blade with the power of light and met my strike head-on.
Light and darkness. Normally this is where darkness should lose to complete the picture... Ow!
Don't say unnecessary things.
Crackle!
"Graaah!"
Contrary to Hoya's prediction, I was the one who seized the advantage in that exchange. The Heavenly Demon Divine Art devoured the light in an instant and reached out to claim what lay beyond it as well.
Slash!
The sword that emerged as the light vanished grazed the doppelganger's shoulder. He'd twisted his body at the last second to minimize the damage.
Tap.
He's closing in after that?
Even though he'd been wounded, the doppelganger didn't retreat. Instead, he narrowed the distance between us.
Bam!
"......?!"
"Did I look weak in close combat?"
I countered the fist he threw while trying to dart in and out from my side. The raw impact of flesh against flesh rang out.
"Hey, you need to think about follow-up combos too."
"!!"
I saw him trying to pull away from me. But my hand was already gripping his head, and the barrage of strikes landed even faster.
Thudthudthud!
A rapid series of close-range blows hammered into him. They might have been weaker than a properly braced strike, but the accumulating damage couldn't be ignored.
"Kahak!"
"It's not easy hitting you when you look like Mir."
I hadn't even realized I'd unconsciously let up on the strength in my fists.
For someone who finds it difficult, you were hitting pretty cleanly, weren't you?
"No way."
Look at him. He's still standing on both feet.
Disciple. Focus.
"......!!"
Bang!
The gunshot rang out before Cheonma had even finished speaking. A burning heat bloomed in my abdomen.
"Urgh..."
What? What the hell had I just been hit by?
I released the doppelganger and staggered back, finally spotting the familiar weapon in his hand.
"...A gun?"
No mistake. He was aiming a pistol formed of light straight at me. The faint smoke drifting from the barrel confirmed that the shot to my stomach had come from it.
Bang! Bang!
The first hit had been at close range while I was off guard, but there was no way I'd eat another bullet now that I was fully aware.
The moment the gunshot sounded, I threw myself sideways to dodge.
"You... idiot..."
So the thing could talk. But any anger I felt at those words vanished when I saw the second gun pointed at me alongside a mocking sneer.
"You were dual-wielding this whole time?!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Bullets erupted from the pair of guns in the doppelganger's hands. He'd been swinging a sword moments ago, and now he was using guns? Did he think he was some boss monster from a game?
...He is a boss monster, isn't he?
Right. That thing really was a boss monster. For a second I'd forgotten this entire world had once been a game.