Revenge (3)
“Guhhh!!”
Peter, launched high into the air by my Invisible Battōjutsu, soon plummeted limply to the ground.
With a heavy thud!, he hit the dirt, spitting up blood-mixed vomit as he slowly pushed himself up.
But I wasn't the type to just watch an enemy recover mid-duel.
Before he could pull himself together, I rushed at him—and the second draw shot from my waist.
Peter, with the observational acuity unique to a Sword Master, had already foreseen it. But caught up in steadying himself, he couldn't react in time.
The second strike slammed dead into his gut. The armor, already cracked from the first blow, shattered into pieces.
Peter flew back, spraying blood and armor shards, rolling across the ground until his remaining plates were caked in dirt. Then he stopped.
“Grrgh…!!”
Clutching his exposed belly where the armor had broken away, Peter tried to rally once more.
His sheer grit in not passing out after all that was commendable. But that was it.
Whether he recovered or not in that state, the duel was already decided.
His head was still attached not because he'd endured so well, but because I hadn't attacked. He couldn't properly wield aura, let alone dragon vein power, without even being able to stand straight.
He knew it too. As I approached, he didn't rise—just sat there on the ground, glaring at me with eyes full of frustration.
“...What was it you said when you showed up? Something about smashing my head in, right...?”
“……”
“But look—my head's still right here. Guess things didn't go your way?”
“...Yeah. You're right. I lost...”
Peter dropped his head. Seeing that, I drew Yoroi-doshi toward his shoulder.
The blade slipped free and smashed into his unguarded shoulder, slamming his face back into the dirt.
“Wh-what the—!!”
“Looks like you're misunderstanding something. You're not the one who decides when this duel ends.”
Surrender or whatever—it was the victor's right to call it, not the loser's.
But telling him to fight to the death in this near-over state? No way he'd have the will for that.
So, to honor my promise to Hori—and more importantly, for myself—I gave Peter one last chance.
“Here.”
Standing more than ten paces away, I rolled one of the potions I'd gotten from Hori toward the fallen Peter.
Seeing the lead-gray potion bottle roll up, he clutched his shoulder and asked,
“What... is this?”
“A strengthening potion from an alchemist I know. Supposed to massively boost your physical abilities. Honestly, I've never tried it myself, so I dunno the details.”
“It amps you up tons! So just trust it and drink!!”
I ignored Hori's shout from behind and continued to Peter.
“So drink it. I'll wait while you do.”
“What...?!”
“Not getting it? Unless we reset and start over fresh, there's no way you beat me like that.”
Normally, Peter wouldn't go down this easy. But after hitting the ground and eating all those clean hits? Different story.
The accumulated damage from my draws, plus the stamina drain—it was beyond what aura or dragon vein power could fix now.
He'd need a break or some special potion like this to even think about fighting me again.
Peter knew it too, but whether it was pointless pride or suspicion of a trap, he just stared at the potion.
“You seem hesitant, so lemme help you decide.”
With that, I pulled out the first potion Hori had given me.
Seeing it—the same lead-gray hue as the one on the ground—Peter's eyes went wide.
With Hori and Peter watching, I uncorked the bottle and downed the contents in one go.
The moment it touched my lips, sweet strawberry flavor flooded in, and power surged through my body.
Even without channeling aura, it felt like I was—raw, immense strength pulsing everywhere.
“Guh...!!”
Watching the unnatural power-up right in front of him, Peter reached for the potion with a frustrated grimace.
I couldn't read his mind in that brief moment—what calculations flashed through? Fear of actual death? Or figuring since I drank one, it wasn't cheating for him?
Didn't matter. Key point: Peter ditched his dumb pride and drank it.
-Gulp gulp.
Regaining his spent strength and stamina amid that sweet strawberry taste, Peter sprang up on both legs and glared at me.
I smirked at him.
“What? You were gonna drink it anyway—why drag it out?”
“Shut up! It's all... all your fault!! Everything's gone to shit since you showed up!!”
Like pent-up rage exploding, Peter bellowed at me in fury.
“Why...!! Why waste that kind of talent on this insane crap?! If you'd just lived normally, I wouldn't have done this, and everything would've stayed on track!”
“On track?! What the hell's 'on track' about this world?!”
Exactly.
How was a world 'normal' where rapier-wielding queers got hailed as sages and Battōjutsu got trashed as assassin trash?
This world overflowed with the lie that Battōjutsu was garbage.
If we didn't fix it fast, it'd stay forever ruled by falsehoods—a broken world.
“Everything's to drag this world back to normal!! I can't abandon Battōjutsu for that!!”
“What bullshit...!! Are you actually brain-dead?!”
“Shut up!! You're the crazy ones!!”
Screaming that, I charged Peter. He reset his stance and swung his hammer at me.
The hammer whistled toward me. Like intercepting it, Yoroi-doshi drew from my waist and clashed.
It played out just like my duel with Jessica once before—same result.
-ZZZzt!
Katana met hammer, and predictably, cracks spiderwebbed across the hammer head. It shattered, shards flying everywhere.
A few days ago, my skill wouldn't have pulled this off. But now my Battōjutsu was A++.
Fragile junk like a hammer? Naturally crumbled.
Even with his only weapon gone, Peter didn't quit. He ditched the handle and threw a punch at me.
“Ngh...!!”
I took the fist to my forehead, then swiftly sheathed the swung Yoroi-doshi.
“Playing games at this stage?!”
Peter's fist swung again. Matching it, I drew the sheathed blade...
“GRRAAAH!!”
And the impossible happened.
A reverse-blade sword had no edge, so cutting with it was impossible.
But somehow, as I drew toward Peter's exposed, armorless torso, the blade's path split his flesh. Red blood sprayed.
'Ah, so that's it...'
I'd reached it. The realm of slicing foes with an edgeless blade.
Sliced diagonally from gut to chest by the reverse blade, Peter collapsed, blood pouring from the gash.
He'd lost too much blood in this short span. He didn't get up—passed out like he was sleeping.
'...It's over.'
My experiment with Hori was done. Peter couldn't fight anymore.
Last time felt life-or-death, but this? He exploited a lapse, yet it ended too quick. Kinda unsatisfying.
Duel over, before sheathing Yoroi-doshi, I wedged the blade under my elbow—like in some movie—and wiped the blood off on it.
My white uniform jacket soaked it up, turning red.
“Fuckin' hell...”
Only had the one jacket. Should've just wiped it in the pond instead of showboating.
Regretting as I eyed the stained jacket, Hori approached from where she'd watched.
“Ian!!”
“Yeah. Data good?”
“Yes! But Ian, blood on your forehead...”
“Forehead? Oh...”
From blocking Peter's punch. The thrill of cutting with a blunted blade had made me forget the pain.
“Got a healing potion?”
“Yes! Here! I brought one for Teacher Peter too—I'll treat him first!”
Hori rushed to heal the fallen Peter. I downed the potion she'd handed me.
Bitter taste. Wonder if she could flavor these strawberry or banana next time.
“Hey, Hori. When do the side effects hit?”
“Um... It's been about five minutes since you drank it, so soon...”
“Five minutes?”
“F-four...”
“Four? Guhhh...!!”
My words cut off as unimaginable agony hit.
Pain always brings screams, but extreme pain? Doesn't even allow that.
Writhing on the ground in this unprecedented torment, I could only silently scream, speechless.
Side effects? Fuck—who'd take this shit knowing?
Even Guan Yu, playing go mid-surgery sans anesthesia, couldn't have handled this—no go, no breathing even.
“Grrraaah...!!”
Peter convulsed too—side effects hitting him. I glimpsed it through the haze.
“Ian!!”
Hori—the one who'd cursed me with this—rushed over, voice thrilled.
“Can you describe the pain precisely?! Which parts? How it changes over time...?”
“……KIII!!”
Fuck... Side effects gone? Smashing her skull.