122 - - The Brave Fight Tantalion

We, the members of the Royal Academy, were participating in the second round of the school battle, [Triathlon].

Gaius won the long-distance swim.

Sakura is participating in the long-distance run.

I had entered the last event of the triathlon, the long distance flight.

"But it's a big tree!"

The competitors are in the middle of a forest.

The forest is called the "Abyssal Forest," a deep forest infested with demons.

It is always like night, and there is one place where there is an open space.

Towering over it is this huge tree that you can look up at.

"Are you kidding me, Chancellor?　I can't believe I have to climb to the top of such an impossibly huge tree!　This is crazy!"

The participants in the long-distance flight are me for the Royal, Anti for the Imperial, and Tsukasa (a female student) for the Imperial.

"It seems to be a ...... tree called [God Tree], ...... Julius-sama."

And the Eastern Federation, Dantalion is going to join.

"Foul rot ...... Mr. Julius. Did you see the success ...... of Mr. Gaius in the long swim ...... just now?"

"No, not the content. I heard he was at the top of his game."

"Would you like to see it? ...... and Usa ...... recorded the footage ......."

"Hey, you didn't just say you were snooping, did you?

"Oh, sorry. Let me see."

Dantalion takes out his crystal ball.

It contained a video recording of the long-distance swimming match that had just taken place.

"You can now use 50 percent of your spirit. Yes, yes, that's good.

"No, hey!　Aren't you too calm?　Your brother turned the ocean into a glacier!"

"Well, you can do that normally, can't you?"

"Ordinary people can't do that!"

While the antagonists scream, Dantalion says

"It was a magnificent ...... bond of ...... master and servant. Say x Guy ...... good coupling ...... and I must get to writing ...... immediately."

"So, you're writing a ...... novel?"

"Yes,...... but only to the extent that I can ...... enjoy it. ...... Yuri x Anne ...... Anne x Guy The ...... school battle is ...... a lot of side dishes, and the ...... fantasy is ...... enhanced."

"Hey!　What's going on with me in your novel!"

While they are having a friendly conversation like this, the chairman of the board of directors makes an announcement.

Anti has a broom in his hand.

"How are you going to fly without a broom?"

"Yeah, you don't need to use it to fly, man."

The other two nod.

"Since when did the school battle become a monster athletic meet?

After a short time, the players come through the forest of the abyss.

Kazuma comes to us first, using a jet of flame.

Kazuma hands the tusk to Tsukasa.

She manipulates the wind to reach the top of the sacred tree.

"Nice work, Kazuma. I can't believe you can afford to rescue her."

"Thank you ...... for saving her ......."

Kazuma says with a grin.

"Never mind!　Whoever it is, I help those in need!　It is the duty of those who have the strength to do so!"

Sakura comes next, gasping for breath.

Right behind her came Zagan, almost as fast as the Imperial schoolgirls.

"Sorry, Julius-han. I'm late because I'm not allowed to ride on the servants.

That's enough. Thank you.

Meanwhile, an Imperial antagonist patted the schoolgirl on the head.

"Well done!　With all these men!"

"Thank you, Mr. Anti!"

"But how did you get through the forest of demons?"

"Mr. Zagan saved me!"

Is that so? I'm sorry for helping my men even though we are enemies.

Zagan, a masked Eastern Federation man, shakes his shoulders.

"It's okay. I'm the knight of the girls! I can't leave a girl in trouble."

Now, all the schools are assembled and the final long-distance flight begins.

Anti flies up on his broomstick.

I crouch down and fly right up into the air.

"How are you doing that?

"What, I'm just jumping normally?"

"Normally, you can't jump a few dozen meters in a single bound!"

I was about to pass the antagonist when...

"Watch out!"

"What?"

He grabs Anti by the neck and throws him to the side.

"Fogeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"

Like a leaf in the wind, the antlers fly away.

"What's the use in blocking me!　Let the monsters battle each other!"

"What? I'm not jamming you."

Something is growing from below.

If you look closely, you can see that it is a string.

"What?　What's with all the threads?

Like a tsunami, an enormous amount of threads are growing out from the bottom.

I wave my arm and flick it off.

The threads were about to reach the skies above and capture Tsukasa of the Holy Empire.

"Thank you for saving me, Julius. ...... I would have been caught by now. ......"

"No, it's too soon to tell."

"What?"

Another mass of threads rushes in from below.

I make an air foothold and avoid it sideways.

"Heeeeyyyy!　Oh, they're coming after me!

Swirling like a serpent, a swarm of threads rushes toward me.

They run through the air, but the threads follow them.

"Why don't you just burn them with magic?

"No, that would be too sad."

"Kawa ......?　What are you talking about, at a time like this?

I flutter ...... in the air and stand above the crowd of threads.

"This is not ...... thread!　It's not hair, is it!"

A lot of hairs attacked us, trying to capture us.

"Anti, stay ahead!"

I grab his broomstick and throw it into the air.

"Hoogeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"

A swarm of hairs attacking.

I see all their movements and avoid them, and run toward [the surgeon].

I fire a palm strike at [her] who is in the center.

But a pillar made of hair appears to protect her.

"I don't care!

I hit the pillar.

The impact is felt on the other side, and she goes flying away.

Her hair comes loose with a bang .......

I stand in the air and look at her in front of me.

"Nice work, Dantalion!"

Dantalion, the leader of the Eastern Commonwealth.

He has long black hair that almost touches the ground and completely covers his face.

"That's what I'm talking about,...... Mr. Julius,...... my ...... [Black Hair Spell]... ...to avoid it. ......"

"Hair ...... no, a curse to manipulate thread-like objects at will. Nice trick."

"You've been ...... spotting me beautifully, ...... as I'm sure you have."

Dantalion looks at me through my hair.

"I don't understand ...... why you didn't burn ...... your hair with ...... flames. ......?"

"Well, of course it's because I feel sorry for you if your hair gets damaged, isn't it?　A girl's hair is her life."

With a jerk, she moves her body.

"You can ...... call me a ...... woman and ...... give me a ......."

"Of course you do. You don't want your beautiful black hair to get all messy, do you, girl?"

For a moment, Dantalion remained motionless.

"I'm glad ....... But ......."

Zooooo ......!　An enormous aura erupts from her body.

This black-colored aura is the power of a spell.

It is the source of the demon's power.

"I don't want ...... to be left out. I want to ...... settle this in a fair ...... and serious fight."

I smile and take a stance.

"I love straight guys like you, don't you?"

"Is that a ...... roundabout ...... confession of love ...... to Gaius-sama?"

"Oh, yeah. I love him too."

"Thank you for the rotten ...... food. I'm going to ...... now!"

Dantalion's hair grows longer.

She floats in the air.

But she is not flying.

If you look closely, you can see that she is standing on taut hair.

Her hair grows longer, and a spell washes over me like a tidal wave.

Run for your life, Julius!　You're going to die in my grip!"

I take a stance.

And I punch away at the tsunami of hair that's surging toward me.

Immediately after that, my hair comes loose from its ...... bundle.

"What?　What the hell?　What happened?

"What, you just erased the curse that's controlling your hair?"

The hair does not have a will of its own.

It is Dantalion who is moving it, or more specifically, she is using a curse to move the hair.

Then, if only the curse is pinpointed and destroyed, the hair will lose control and fall apart.

"Brilliant ...... Julius. How could you aim only at the ...... curse without damaging the hair?"

"Because I can't bear to hurt such a beautiful and silky hair."

Again, Dantalion stiffens.

What happened?

"No, no, ....... You can't ...... compliment another woman like that. Don't you have ...... a partner ...... named Mr. Gaius? ......"

"Hmm?　What does that mean?"

I have no idea.

"I mean ...... pretty ...... not ...... beautiful or ...... flattering. It's ......."

"No, I wasn't trying to flatter you. You're just beautiful. Not only do I like the way you look, but I really like the way you stand up for yourself."

Dantalion looks down.

"Please, Mr. Julius, ...... don't ...... say such ...... kind words ......! ......"

His voice was tearful.

His body was trembling.

"I'm sorry ....... Because ...... my ...... nature is ...... ugly ...... ......"

"So what. I'm not just saying that because of the way you look.

She turns her head and looks at me like this.　

"Now let's ......[show you] what you really ......[are] like."

She clasps her hands together in front of her body.

"What is she doing?"

"Anti, run away now!"

"What?"

"You're gonna die, aren't you?"

"Hee-hee-hee!"

She makes a mark with her hand.

"[Instinct awakens]"

That was the moment.

Her body explodes from the inside out.

"Heeey!　Ji-suicide!

"No, I released the power of the spell that was hidden in my body."

"Why don't you put it in more understandable terms!"

"I'm in my true [demon] form."

The immense amount of power of the spell eventually takes a form.

"A giant spider!　What is this monster aaaaahhh!"

In front of you is a spider large enough to look up at.

Its body is a poisonous mixture of black and purple.

Eight huge limbs.

Its face was the same as Dantalion's from the waist up.

"It looks more like an arachnid than a spider."

"Heeeeyyyy!　What a hideous monster!"

Dantalion murmurs weakly.

[This is ...... me. ...... How do you like ...... me?　Isn't it ugly ......?"]

I move instantly onto the anti-broomstick.

"Tei."

Dogaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!

Anti-Shinju, who has been hit on the cheek, crashes into the sacred tree.

I wrapped it with a ward, so I guess it will be all right.

"What are you doing?　I thought I was going to die!"

"Don't call a girl ugly or a monster. Don't you feel sorry for her?"

I look at Dantalion, who has turned into a giant spider, and I say.

"That's cool."

[U,no lie...... it's a lie...... it's a lie!

A frightening amount of spider silk is spit out from her buttocks.

It wraps around the sacred tree and turns it into a white ball of hair in no time.

The tree rots away with a sizzling sound.

"Ughhh!　It's melting!"

The threads seem to contain a special curse.

A curse that melts those who are wrapped around it.

It's such a ...... terrifying monster!　Please tell me you're scared!　Curse me ...... for being ugly!

"I can't say what I don't think!"

She flinched in shock.

[It's a lie ....... People are ...... all ...... like that, ...... at first, saying they're beautiful, ...... but then they're not. ...... later they find out who they are and say ...... I'm scared ......!

Cursed spider threads, spewed out, fall like rain.

"Geez!　If that thing hits me, I'll die!　It's all over!

[Yes!　The devil's true curse can only be repelled by the devil's curse!

Says Dantalion with a mournful cry.

Only the devil knows how the devil feels!　If you think you understand, try being the devil!

"Yes, you're right. I get it."

[What? ......?

I cross my arms in front of me.

What are you ...... doing?

"By the way, Dantalion. You know what my previous life was, don't you?"

The rain of spider threads is about to rain down on us.

Eugene the Brave. Isn't he the strongest and bravest ...... in the history of mankind?

"Oh, so you do know. Then do you know who the brave man (I) was born from?"

Dantalion nods his head in puzzlement.

"You'd better look it up when you have time," Dantalion says. Now ......."

A tremendous amount of [spell power] gushes out of my body.

No way. ...... is that it?

"[Instinct awakening]"

At that moment, the power of the curse surges through my body.

The power of the devil's curse envelops my body.

After a few moments, there I am, clad in black armor.

Oh, no!　The power of the curse is a deadly poison that only demons can use!　If you try to use it with a human body, you will die instantly!

"Unfortunately, my previous life was a special one. Well, ...... and..."

I make a magic sword appear in my right hand.

I put the power of the curse into the sword.

I swing the sword at the rain of spider silk.

Zbaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!

A jet-black slash runs through the air, obliterating the spider threads.

With the impact, Dantalion's spider body dissipates.

KURARI...... and Dantalion fall down.

"Hey!"

I move to the position where she falls.

I take her in my arms.

"No way, it's ....... That's impossible ....... That was the ...... power of the devil. How can a human being use ...... when there is no such thing as ......?"

"Everyone says I'm a monster."

He smiles and says.

I'm not so wrong.

"If you think you're an ugly monster, then I'm a monster too. I understand what you're going through.

Too much power sometimes makes people uneasy.

Many times I was persecuted because of it.

I don't understand everything you are going through. But ...... I can tell you this."

I reach for her face.

I push her bangs away with my hand.

There it is, a surprisingly beautiful and well-defined face.

"You should cut your hair. Then people will understand a little better. They'll see that you're really beautiful and not scary."

Slowly ...... and Dantalion's eyes fill with tears.

"That's the first time ...... I've been told such a thing ...... in my life. ......"

"Some people are so blind, aren't they?"

Dantalion weeps.

"Let's go to the barbershop after the game. If you don't like it, I'll cut it for you later."

"...... Yes. Yes, please.

After that.

I continue the game with her.

Tsukasa was trapped by spider silk and falling to the ground.

Anti was in tears, desperately trying to get to the top.

I came in first.

Second place went to the Eastern Federation (Dantalion).

The Imperial Empire came in third place, and the Holy Empire came in fourth.