Chapter 257
Chapter 257
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 257
Chapter Title: The Devil's 9th Floor (4)
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Coco let out a hollow laugh inwardly, utterly dumbfounded.
*This guy's a real comedian, huh?*
To think a guy who could barely draw a holy sword was pulling off something like this.
It was beyond imagination.
And what was even more shocking was that she hadn't noticed a thing until the situation had reached this point.
*He hid it so meticulously.*
To analyze her this thoroughly, to replicate her to this degree—it was only natural that some unconscious tells would slip through.
But Yuri had shown absolutely none of that.
*If there had been any, there's no way I would've missed it.*
To evade her eyes and 'learn' her so perfectly, to 'master' her...
On that front alone, it deserved praise... no, outright acclaim.
Moreover, Coco instantly grasped why Yuri had done this.
*Smart guy like him must've figured it out ages ago.*
Why she, who never lost in speed, was still untouchable.
And what it would take to win this fight.
*He's trying to analyze my domain?*
He was imitating her to dissect the unknown power called a 'domain.'
Coco was certain of it.
And in a way, it was a pretty plausible idea.
But...
*You think that'll be enough?*
Imitating your opponent didn't mean you could copy everything.
Especially when the one you're imitating was on a higher level—how could you fully match their abilities?
*Let alone when that ability is in the realm of absolute senses.*
Coco had solid reasons for her confidence.
The techniques of Steel, Chain, Transformation, Demon, and Saint.
They were divided into certified ranks from 1st to 6th dan, but at their core, they dealt with the scope of wave synchronization rates.
From certified 7th dan onward, however, the scope changed entirely.
If 1st to 6th dan were like the same exam subjects, 7th dan and above were entirely different tests.
For a mere certified 6th dan like Yuri to imitate her and analyze her domain?
It was like trying to solve a problem he'd never studied.
*Looks like the ace up your sleeve after all that scheming... but mimicking me at that level won't bridge the gap between you and me.*
That certainty allowed Coco to remain composed.
But that composure vanished after just *one move*.
Swoosh-.
Yuri's hand drawing a circle in empty air.
Yuri's hand drawing a circle in empty air.
It paused briefly, just as it was about to move again.
*Here it comes?*
Coco anticipated the path of Yuri's hand and prepared in advance.
At the same time, her own hand traced a short semicircle.
Normally, that alone would have put Coco half a beat ahead of Yuri.
But something unexpected happened.
Swoosh-.
Yuri's hand moved far faster than Coco had predicted.
Just barely catching up to the half-beat lead she'd created.
"......?!"
Startled, Coco tried to predict Yuri again and twist her body, but Yuri stuck to her like he'd anticipated that too.
Coco was stunned by Yuri's successive catches.
*What the hell?!*
Yuri hadn't deployed a domain.
Yet he was moving as if he were handling one.
*How?!*
Yuri's movements defied common sense to Coco.
Amid her shock, Yuri smiled inwardly.
*Got it!*
Coco was convinced Yuri was analyzing her domain to learn the unknown.
But that was only half right.
Yuri had no intention of stopping at merely analyzing the unknown called a domain.
He planned to dissect it perfectly, exploit it somehow, and ultimately make that unknown power his own.
*You think I'd let a golden opportunity like this slip away!*
The domain.
No one had taught Yuri how to open it.
But he could observe it.
Right before his eyes was someone who'd reached that lofty realm, demonstrating firsthand how to wield a domain.
With such a perfect textbook right there, why search afar for answers?
So Yuri decided to imitate.
Everything about Coco!
Her thoughts, actions, habits—all of it. He learned and mastered them to uncover what a domain was and how it activated.
If he imitated her a thousand, ten thousand times, the feel would come eventually... he believed.
A brute-force method, perhaps, but with the 99-day time limit, Yuri had no better options.
And on the 49th day of this brute-force endeavor,
Yuri finally glimpsed a clue.
*No, can I even call it that?*
He had seen something.
But even Yuri wasn't sure what it was.
Like grasping at vague, fluffy clouds.
He'd gotten a sense of how to wield a domain, but couldn't explain it in detail.
So all he could do was put what he'd grasped into practice himself.
But that brought another problem.
*How do I even use it?*
He'd gotten a vague idea from watching Coco wield her domain, but the issue was he couldn't deploy one himself.
Yuri's current state was abnormally distorted.
It was like skipping the first two steps of a three-step process—1, 2, 3—and only witnessing and learning step 3.
Anyone who knew would call it nonsense.
How could you learn step 3 without the prerequisites of 1 and 2?
Without insight into domains, without even deploying one—how could he wield it!
Yet that impossible feat... happened through sheer tenacity and monstrous talent.
And the even more absurd event came after.
Unable to obtain a domain, Yuri filled in steps 1 and 2 with the cards he had.
[This thing called a domain is something you barely grasp through countless experiences and efforts... but you're different. As a demon style user, you should be able to mimic something similar, even if not 100% identical. Maybe about 40% the same? Hmm... honestly, feels more like 30%...]
Johan's past advice.
From that, Yuri created his demon style spiderweb.
He used it to substitute for the domain's mystery.
A so-called pseudo-domain.
And its effects exceeded Yuri's expectations.
*I see it... no, I feel it!*
How to describe it?
A sixth sense?
Or super-sensation?
In the pseudo-domain woven by his demon style spiderweb, all of Coco's flows were read.
The flows from her breathing.
The sensory flows from twisting bones and muscles.
Even the flows from her mana waves.
The moment he applied the domain-handling method he'd stolen and learned from Coco to his demon style spiderweb, Yuri's eyes opened to a new world.
A massive influx of information in an instant.
It flowed in without blockage.
And sorted itself naturally without overload, forming a single precognition.
A foresight of how Coco would move.
Experiencing it firsthand, Yuri finally understood why he couldn't catch up to her.
*No wonder I couldn't win!*
What good was predicting moves meticulously?
When the volume and quality of incoming information differed this much.
And the resulting outcomes differed!
*If this pseudo-domain, only 30-40% of a real one, does this much...!*
Then what about a real domain?
He couldn't easily imagine its level, but one thing was certain.
*Anyone certified 6th dan or below... can't touch even the hem of a 7th dan's robe inside a domain.*
The absolute sense of a domain, precise enough for foresight.
To those certified 6th dan or lower, it was an insurmountable wall.
*This... I have to obtain this power no matter what!*
It was just a fake domain now, but someday he had to make it his.
Of course, priority one was escaping this damned tower.
And right now, Yuri faced the chance to escape right before him.
Srrk-.
In the gray world.
Coco's phantom, drawn like thin blue pen lines, appeared.
And immediately, the blue phantom Coco moved right.
Yuri's eyes flashed as he sensed it.
*Here!*
Pashuk-!
His brain intent unfolded, and his sword slashed where the blue phantom had moved.
The moment the gray world reverted to normal colors,
The real Coco began overlaying the spot the blue phantom had just moved to.
The sensory foresight from Yuri's pseudo-domain was becoming reality.
*Fuck... this worked!*
Yuri was convinced.
It had landed perfectly.
With this, he could escape this damned tower.
And at that moment.
Ssssss- whoosh!
A deep inhale all at once.
The cigarette burned fiercely as a result.
Sizzle-!
Then, the red ember finally reached the mark.
Almost simultaneously, as Yuri retracted his sword and stepped back big.
Coco stopped moving and stood still.
"......"
"......"
Silence hung between them.
In that brief quiet, the sound of Coco exhaling smoke deep from her lungs came.
Hoo-
As the massive cloud dispersed into the air,
The fabric near Coco's shoulder fluttered, sliced about 15 cm.
Yuri's sword had finally cut her clothing.
But.
"Ptoo."
Yuri spat to the side with a face full of irritation.
Coco, meanwhile, grinned.
Their contrasting expressions said everything about the fight's outcome.
Coco spoke first, smiling with her eyes.
"You admit it, right? Your time ran out before your blade?"
"...Your lung capacity is impressive."
Yuri's lip twisted in annoyance.
This attack had landed perfectly.
His hope of escaping this hellish tower with it.
It was exactly half-fulfilled.
The attack had connected.
But just before his sword sliced her clothing, Coco had sucked in the cigarette hard, letting the ember hit the mark first.
So close it felt simultaneous.
But both Yuri and Coco had seen it clearly.
The ember reached first.
Yuri inwardly tore at his hair.
*Ah, damn it, I messed up! Should've argued it was a tie!*
It was so close he should've pushed back.
But in the heat of the moment, he'd lost control of his expression.
Looked like he was admitting defeat to anyone watching.
Too late to argue now.
Still, Yuri tried protesting.
"Come on, that's gotta be cheating, right? Suddenly sucking it down like that?"
"Hmm? Gonna nitpick that to weasel out?"
"......"
"Heh, did I cheat? I clearly said until I finished my cigarette. Whether I smoke it fast or slow is up to me, isn't it?"
"...Fuck."
His protest fell on deaf ears, so all Yuri could do was mutter a curse and resign.
*Ha... yeah, no way it'd be that easy.*
He had a pseudo-domain; she had the real thing.
She couldn't have failed to predict her shoulder fabric getting sliced.
But.
*Still, for Coco to burn through the cigarette and end the round like that... means my pseudo-domain really pushed her to the brink.*
That she felt that much crisis this round.
*Good!*
That was enough.
It meant there was hope.
*Yeah, I did it once... can't do it twice?*
Yuri took the current situation quite optimistically.
His plan and efforts had worked, so if he kept it up, he could escape this damned tower soon—he was sure of it.
...Until Coco's next words.
"Guess I underestimated you too much."
"Guess I underestimated you too much."
She said, pulling out a new cigarette and lighting it.
Normally, she'd follow by taking out a match.
But not this time.
"From now on, shall I get a little serious too?"
Coco's right hand went to her waist.
And what emerged wasn't a match.
Two large, long silver iron rods, far bigger than matches.
As Coco gripped one in each hand and pulled them apart left and right.
Clank-.
A gray chain stretched taut between the short rods.
Seeing it, Yuri muttered softly.
"...Three-section staff?"
Right after his murmur, Coco's three-section staff began spinning ferociously.
Whirr whirr-.
Silver afterimages bloomed around her like a gale.
They soon vanished into her armpit.
Clack-
Right hand gripping one end of the rod, the other tucked under her right arm—Coco.
She extended her left hand toward Yuri and beckoned lightly.
"Come on in."
Rooooar-!
The black woman with half-lidded eyes, cigarette in mouth.
Just adding the three-section staff changed the pressure completely.
"......"
Yuri muttered blankly amid the stinging red killing intent.
"Ah, shit... damn it."
Done it once, can't do it twice?
*Yeah... no second chances.*
The difficulty had just skyrocketed.
"...Fuck."
Thought he'd beaten the final boss, only for the *real* final boss to pop out.
An even stronger one at that...