Brain Games
Kyle remained silent as he stared at the three Masters who had revealed themselves before him. The moment he uttered a single word, it felt like that alone would act as the spark to ignite a fight. But he couldn't stay quiet forever. After checking the direction they'd come from, Kyle cautiously opened his mouth.
"Didn't you see a woman on your way here?"
"Hmm─ I think I might have, but then again, maybe not."
"Who knows. Could this be her?"
The woman, who had been holding nothing in her hands, spoke casually as she tossed over a crushed head. The face skin had been completely peeled away. Kyle stared silently at the three of them while looking at the mangled flesh that made it impossible to identify whose face it had been. He couldn't tell if this was really Aria's corpse or if it was just a bluff meant to rattle him.
Doesn't matter either way.
In this situation, getting worked up meant death. Even if she was dead, there was nothing he could do about it. Kyle forced his rising anger back down with that thought. He gripped his sword and spoke.
"If you've laid even a single scratch on her, you're all dead."
The three Masters grinned with amusement at his words. The large man, having confirmed Kyle's reaction, finally revealed the Aria he'd been hiding and spoke.
"So this is your weakness, huh?"
"Hahaha, Kyle… sorry. I got caught."
Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. The three of them, having realized Kyle's weakness before the fight even began, looked at him with disappointment. But Kyle immediately changed his expression and snapped his fingers.
Snap─!
The moment the sound rang out, an Aura Blade flew in from somewhere and pierced straight through Aria's body.
"Huh─?"
The three who saw the Aura Blade quickly released Aria and jumped far back. They scanned their surroundings with expressions that clearly wondered where the hell that Aura Blade had come from. Kyle ignored them and snapped his fingers once more.
Several more Aura Blades rained down onto Aria, who had collapsed forward after being impaled. The three stared at Kyle in utter disbelief as they watched her fall with a final gasp.
"…Wasn't she your lover?"
"Lover my ass. I figured it'd be better for her to die by my hand than yours, so I killed her."
And then─ Kyle gripped a sword in each hand and glared at the three of them.
"Now that there's nothing in the way, we can have a proper fun fight."
The three looked at the grinning Kyle like he was some kind of lunatic. But that only lasted a moment. They glanced at each other, nodded, and stuck out their hands to start playing rock-paper-scissors.
"Rock, paper, scissors…"
"Rock, paper, scissors!"
"You gonna let me win this time?"
The result was the large man's victory. Kyle raised an eyebrow as he watched the other two quietly step back in acceptance.
"You two aren't fighting?"
"No need to bring three people just to deal with one fresh Master brat."
"Even though you all came together?"
"Well, we heard there was an interesting guy around. Got curious, that's all."
The large man said this as he pulled a hammer out of thin air. Kyle immediately realized it was high-grade spatial magic. The man holding the hammer grinned at Kyle.
"Don't worry. These two will just be watching."
BOOOOM─!
The hammer that slammed into the ground made the entire earth tremble. Kyle glanced at him, then slowly stepped forward. The hammer looked so heavy it was impossible to guess how many tons it weighed. And then there were the man's massive triceps as he swung it. Just from that, Kyle could roughly tell how the man fought. His specialty was probably overwhelming strikes using that ridiculously heavy hammer.
In that case, the counter is…
Not blocking even a single blow and overwhelming him with one-sided attacks at absolute speed. Having formed his plan, Kyle shot forward instantly. At a speed so fast the man couldn't even react!
Kyle was certain of victory, but then he saw the hammer filling his entire field of vision and his eyes widened in shock.
What the fu─
KWAAAAAANG─!
An impact so massive it was hard to believe it had hit a person rang out as Kyle flew into the distance, smashing through dozens of trees. The man who had just hit a human home run rested the hammer on his shoulder and looked at Kyle.
"You okay─?"
"Cough─!"
"Still alive, huh. Must be young and sturdy."
The man muttered this like he was praising Kyle for still being conscious, then spun the hammer in his hand as he approached. The overwhelming weight he'd shown when first pulling out the hammer was nowhere to be felt now. Sensing something off, Kyle spat out the blood filling his mouth and glared at the man.
"What the… how are you so fast?"
"For a young guy, you've got a pretty stiff head. If that thing on your shoulders isn't just decoration, use it to think. Think."
The man tapped his own head a few times, then revealed one of his secrets. Information that wasn't really a secret anymore.
"This hammer has a state-of-the-art anti-gravity device made with the latest magitech inside it."
"Anti-gravity… what the hell is that supposed to mean."
"It means I can freely adjust its weight however I want."
The man had taken a special interest in that function. At the level of an Aura Master, the weight of a weapon didn't mean much. The quality of the Aura one emitted determined the power of the strike. The man who had personally crafted this massive hammer had trained himself in the technique of handling a hammer that weighed nearly zero. In doing so, he had created the ultimate strategy that deceived enemies from the very first strike and guaranteed he would always land the opening blow.
"Well, it doesn't work on people who already know about it."
A method that guaranteed the first hit against anyone who didn't know. The man, Hephaestus, had killed numerous Masters of equal standing using this very strategy.
"─I am Hephaestus, the 'Hammer' of the Holy Weapons."
"Why even bother with the name?"
"You should at least know who killed you."
Hephaestus said this as he approached Kyle. Kyle, still lying on the ground, stared intently at the man coming toward him before breaking into a grin.
"…Kyle Meyer."
"I already know your name?"
"Yeah, but you still gotta hear it."
In that instant, Kyle's eyes flashed with light. Realizing that Kyle's will hadn't been broken, Hephaestus immediately went on guard, scanning all directions. But no matter how much he stayed alert, he couldn't stop the Aura Blades that suddenly materialized out of thin air. It wasn't quite at the level of the Heart Sword that directly pierced the opponent's heart, but Kyle's Aura Blades still possessed an utterly broken ability.
"Ugh─!?"
His shoulder was sliced open. His Achilles tendon was cut. The moment Hephaestus, now wounded in two places in the blink of an eye, braced himself against the ground, another Aura Blade appeared above his head. Just as he tried to throw his hammer in desperation, thinking he couldn't die like this, an Aura Arrow flew in from behind and knocked Kyle's materialized Aura Blade out of the air.
It was Kayness's shot. Kyle looked at the scene and let out a bitter smile.
"I thought you said you absolutely wouldn't interfere?"
"─KAYNESSSSSSS! ARE YOU MOCKING ME?!"
Even after having his life saved, Hephaestus roared in fury as he glared at Kayness. Kayness simply shrugged as if it was no big deal.
"My arrow was just a little too fast. If it had been a bit slower, it would've arrived right as you died."
"…You."
"I'll apologize. Hephaestus, and Kyle. I have no intention of interfering in a one-on-one fight. However─ if the opponent you're fighting dies, that's a different story."
Kayness said this as he aimed his bow at Kyle. Kyle immediately understood what Kayness's words meant. As long as Hephaestus was alive, it was one-on-one, so he wouldn't interfere. But the moment Hephaestus died, he would attack Kyle. And right now, fighting two Masters at once in his current condition would be suicide.
"…Go."
Having realized this, Kyle glared at Hephaestus and spoke. Hephaestus looked back and forth between Kyle and Kayness with clear dissatisfaction before carefully standing up.
"─Brat. Next time we meet, it'll be different."
"That's what all the guys who lost to me say."
"Uha, uhahaha! Fine! This one's my loss!"
Hephaestus said this, turned around, and left the area with Kayness. The nameless woman who had been with them had already disappeared long ago along with Hecate, who had been lying on the ground.
The fight was over. Through this battle, Kyle realized that there were far more strong people in the world than he'd thought. And that once someone reached a certain level of strength, fights no longer flowed as simple contests of brute force. He needed something more than just increasing his raw power. Something to protect both himself and the people around him.
Kyle thought this as he looked at Aria, who was still lying on the ground.
"…Aria. You can stop pretending now, right?"
"─Is it over?"
The moment he called her name, Aria's head snapped up and she rose to her feet. She brushed the dust off her clothes with a few quick pats, then stuck her tongue out with a bright smile.
"You got pretty hurt… you okay?"
"Not really… can you carry me back to the academy?"
"Just a second. Hey, mutt─!"
At Aria's call, the Worshipper appeared from wherever he'd been hiding. Kyle saw the Worshipper under Aria's control and finally let go of his tension, collapsing on the spot. As she looked at Kyle losing consciousness in front of her, Aria carefully pulled his head against her chest. It was the first time she'd seen him look so weak.
Kyle…
Aria wondered if she could control him right now. She began to sing softly into his ear. Watching Kyle's expression gradually loosen as he listened to her song, Aria let out a small chuckle.
"Never mind. If I do something bad and get caught, he'll just get mad again."
She could have moved his heart with her ability, but Aria chose not to. She decided to seduce him using only her natural charm. After ordering the man she'd brainwashed to carry Kyle on his back, Aria returned to the academy together with the Worshipper.