The One Who Waits for the Strong
S.E.N — Orochi.
At the sound of his name, the man lifted his hood slightly. Beneath it, eyes that evoked some cold-blooded reptile glinted with a sharp light.
"UR Master."
"That's right. The UR Master."
Ryu Hwi advanced slowly toward Orochi, deploying his Shuffle Gun so he could fight at a moment's notice.
"Did you come all this way to catch me?"
"Not exactly."
Orochi answered in a flat, indifferent tone. The clipped, wooden way he spoke felt almost mechanical.
"Then what's your objective? Why are you interfering with other Gamers?"
According to Midgard's intelligence files, Orochi's purpose was listed as unknown. And because his purpose was unknown, even his smallest actions had to be treated with suspicion.
"My pleasure is, one thing only, the strong."
The strong deserve respect — that was what he meant.
With that single phrase, Ryu Hwi understood Orochi's entire operating principle.
"Strong ones, respect, receive. Prove your strength."
"So you're just telling me to fight you out of nowhere, huh."
Orochi spread three fingers.
"Against me, survive 30 seconds, and I acknowledge you."
"Not defeat you?"
"That, is impossible."
Incredible confidence. Though with skills like his, he probably had every right to it.
Steadying himself, Ryu Hwi fanned out the Shuffle Gun's deck.
"Come at me."
The instant the words left his mouth, Orochi swung his fist from where he stood.
A distance that no blow could possibly reach.
But Ryu Hwi remembered — he'd seen it before, how the shockwave from one of Orochi's swings had pinned even Nox's feet in place.
An overwhelming pressure bore down on him, as if a colossal fist were right in front of his face. Even knowing the attack was coming, the pressure that made his whole body prickle made him flinch for a split second.
Orochi wouldn't even need thirty seconds to wipe out every Gamer here. A single swing of that fist would be more than enough.
At least, it would have been — until now.
[Defense — 1 of 10]
He took the fist head-on.
The barrier forged from the Shuffle Gun absorbed Orochi's full strength — and then shattered.
Orochi, clearly not expecting his attack to be taken head-on, let a flicker of surprise cross his face.
"Forget the thirty-second condition. Here's a new one: ten. Knock me down within ten attacks from now on. Do that, and I'll acknowledge your victory."
Who did this guy think he was, testing him?
Not a chance.
"I'll knock you down, within 30 seconds."
"That, is impossible."
Ryu Hwi threw Orochi's own words right back at him.
Orochi concentrated even more power than before and swung his fist.
KUUUWAAAANG!
That was not the sound a swinging fist should make. It sounded like a jet taking off.
Ryu Hwi countered by tapping the deck once more.
Through / Permeation
One of the cards he'd newly loaded into the deck — the permeation ability to pass straight through walls or anything else without obstruction.
Orochi's fist passed clean through the now-transparent Ryu Hwi, dealing no damage whatsoever.
"Nine attacks remaining."
"26 seconds."
Energy gathered in Orochi's fist. This was no longer the simple shockwave of a swinging arm like before.
Come to think of it, this guy's exerting his power without even using a Field.
The other S.E.N members had all deployed their Fields first before unleashing the full extent of their abilities. But Orochi was wielding monstrous power without one.
Could he manipulate his abilities freely even without a Field?
Orochi's fist glowed red-hot with heat. Thrusting both fists forward, he released that heat all at once.
Ryu Hwi tapped the deck again in response.
Castling
The special technique that swapped his position with the enemy's.
When his location abruptly changed, Orochi wore a stunned expression — and then took his own unleashed attack square in the body.
"……!!"
Driven back two or three steps by the sheer force, he swung his fist to deflect the remainder of the blast.
Tough as hell. In terms of raw physical ability alone, he'd rank near the top even among S.E.N.
"Eight attacks."
"15 seconds!"
Spurred on by competitive fire, Orochi raised his fist high into the sky as if vowing that this time, this time for sure, he would bring Ryu Hwi down.
The instant Orochi hammered his fist into the ground, a shockwave rippled outward in every direction. The earth shuddered violently as if an earthquake had struck, and Ryu Hwi immediately called on the Shuffle Gun's power.
Flight Cape
The cape wrapped itself around Ryu Hwi and lifted him into the sky.
"What an idiotically brute-force power… wait—?!"
It hadn't been just a shockwave. His Intuition saw through what came next.
Orochi's power, traveling along the ground, surged straight upward from directly beneath him, reaching for the heavens.
And he didn't stop with one strike — Orochi pounded the earth in rapid succession. The surging fighting spirit linked together, forming a pillar that stretched high into the sky.
"With this…"
"I'll count that last one as two attacks. Six remaining."
"……!"
Warp Gun
Before Orochi's attack could fully erupt, Ryu Hwi used the Warp Gun to teleport behind his back.
"Your thirty seconds are up. Now then — you have six attacks left. Use them well?"
The strong deserve respect!
Orochi's soul reveled.
Meeting a strong one brought him joy, and he craved the battle against them. They would fight until one of them died, and a winner would emerge. That desire sought to consume Orochi — but he gritted his teeth and held it down.
"My, defeat."
"……."
"You are, strong. You deserve, respect."
Before long, the fighting spirit Orochi had been radiating vanished entirely.
Ryu Hwi, who had fully expected the fight to continue, stared at him in brief astonishment.
A being who lived by the strong deserve respect… stopping a fight after only a handful of exchanges?
The look in Orochi's eyes moments ago had unmistakably hungered for battle with Ryu Hwi. And yet, as an S.E.N, he'd suppressed that desire?
Not knowing what Orochi might do, Ryu Hwi stayed on guard — but the man simply stood there in silence. He said nothing in particular, just stood there blankly, until a butterfly flitted past nearby and he turned his gaze to follow it. He watched the butterfly's movements for a while. Five minutes passed with him doing absolutely nothing.
"Hey."
Finally unable to bear it, Ryu Hwi spoke up.
"What?"
"What are you playing at? Is this fight over for real or not?"
"My purpose, is not, a life-or-death duel. Your strength, I confirmed. Sufficient."
"Then what is your purpose? Why are you blocking the way?"
"Hmm…… hmm…… uuuuuhm?"
Orochi wore the expression of someone deep in thought.
"What is, love?"
"What the hell kind of nonsense is that out of nowhere?"
"Are you, in love?"
An unpleasant question.
The sluggish, drawn-out way he talked was grating too.
"I have no intention of wasting time on that garbage."
"You, pitiful life, you have."
[He does have a point.]
YggON piped up to agree immediately.
"I have no time for idle chatter. Just tell me what you were actually doing—"
"Searching, for the strong."
There was no thread connecting this story. He couldn't see how love had anything to do with seeking the strong.
"A friend of mine, died, because of love."
"A friend?"
"Avenging him, is my purpose…… revenge."
Revenge. A short word, and a heavy one.
"DQ, is special."
"……."
"DQ, is Loki's, work. That is why, special. Using DQ, the possibility, of revenge…… exists. But to take revenge, a strong ally, is needed."
"So let me get this straight. You enjoy fighting the strong, but what you're doing right now isn't for your hobby — you're purely trying to find someone who'll help with your revenge… is that it?"
Orochi stood there blankly for a moment, then nodded.
Every single one of those glacial actions made his blood boil. It was hard to believe that the man in front of him was the same Orochi who'd played such a spectacular role in the battle against Nox.
"So that was your little test just now, huh? Fine. But even if I were to pass your test, do you really think there's a Gamer out there who'll just say 'sure' and help you with your revenge?"
Orochi made a deeply troubled face.
The S.E.N all seemed like master schemers, yet this one somehow radiated an overwhelmingly simple-minded, honest-fool quality.
"I'll give, a gift. Then, you help."
"What's stopping me from taking the gift and leaving?"
"Ah."
Orochi made another troubled face.
[What a fool.]
A fool indeed.
To think there was an S.E.N this dense.
The power he'd shown against Nox was absurdly strong. Yet the man wielding that power had a personality that practically begged to be called an idiot.
The strong deserve respect. Only the strong survive. Perhaps because he'd lived by nothing but that single, simple "pleasure" as his motivation, his entire mode of thought was simplistic.
And a being like that was speaking of revenge…
Part of Ryu Hwi wanted to exploit him thoroughly, but betraying others didn't fit his code of conduct. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth — returning exactly what was given was Ryu Hwi's basic policy.
"Let's verify first, then. What exactly is this gift you can offer?"
"If I tell, will you, help?"
"Depends on what you're offering, and what you'd be asking me to do."
Unless it was one hell of a treasure, there was no reason to bother teaming up with this blockheaded S.E.N.
"Clear, a hidden event. Alone, it is impossible, Loki said."
"An event, huh… and the price?"
"Special event, Unique Monster, conditions, I know. I will tell, you."
"……."
Orochi had just tossed over exactly the information every Gamer playing DQ wanted most.
Feeling as if someone had smacked him on the back of the head while he wasn't looking, Ryu Hwi glared at Orochi in disbelief.
"You know all of those conditions? Even 5555, who analyzed the blueprints, couldn't figure them out."
"Not, everything. The important, things, I know. This DQ is special…… Loki told, the secret, to me alone."
Out of all the S.E.N — to Orochi alone?
"Someday, when the time comes, to kill S.E.N, he said, use this DQ."
At those words, Ryu Hwi held his breath.
Which meant the enemy Orochi spoke of was the S.E.N itself.
"Why are you targeting the S.E.N?"
"They, touched, first. My friend, died."
"And because of that, you're breaking the S.E.N's own fundamental principles to take revenge? Who's the target?"
"Do not know. But, from the traces, I knew, only that it was, another S.E.N."
Was there something that only S.E.N could sense in each other?
Ryu Hwi fell into thought for a moment.
The S.E.N were enemies he would one day have to bring down. Orochi was an enemy too, in his own way — but if he was trying to topple other S.E.N, cooperating with him wouldn't be a bad move.
And above all, the merit was enormous.
Granted, that was all assuming everything Orochi said was true.
An S.E.N who wanted revenge badly enough to suppress his own desires and instincts. At the very least, it was proof that that thirst for vengeance was no lie.
"Who exactly was it — the one who got hurt so badly that you'd turn your blade even on your own kind? Was this friend of yours truly that precious to you?"
Anger kindled in Orochi's eyes. It resembled the gaze Ryu Hwi had once seen reflected in his own mirror.
"I am, stupid, and slow. But he, acknowledged me, as an equal S.E.N."
An equal S.E.N?
"An S.E.N died, you say? Who?"
"Seth."
"……!"
He'd heard that name before.
An S.E.N whose whereabouts had been a mystery for some twenty years.
According to Midgard's data, Seth had originally been a dangerous entity whose Boundary rating reached A — but with no recorded activity for two decades, he'd been downgraded to C-rank.
And that Seth was already dead?
"My, only, friend. And……"
Orochi fell silent for a moment. He seemed to be wrestling down agony and grief, mumbling haltingly before he finally managed to speak again.
"He fell, in love, with a human…… and his, family, too — all of them, were killed."
A friend who died because of love.
Calling to mind the one he had to avenge, Orochi spoke as if swearing an oath.
"I will kill them. Without fail."