CH 173

In the darkness where only starlight was visible, two men stood at the main entrance of a building. From a hiding spot, I confirmed their presence, and John behind me spoke up.

“Two of them, huh… Just to confirm, you can see them clearly, right?”

“Of course.”

Compared to being on guard for magical beasts in a deep forest, it’s easy to sense the presence of humans standing in the orderly town. And given the situation, it’s likely the same for them… in other words, overconfidence in the darkness would lead to being taken by surprise.

“Alright then. I’ll take care of the one on the left, so you handle the one on the right.”

“Got it.”

Assuming from the start that we can see them, there’s no problem in taking action. I leaned out from around the corner and activated [Hermes Dash] to instantly close in on the man, striking his head with the back of my sword. As he fell, the other man beside him collapsed, and John gently caught him.

“Nice work.”

“You too. By the way, was it okay to kill him?”

John, unapologetic, answered while placing the man with a small hole in his forehead on the ground.

“It’s more important not to make a fuss, so yes, if necessary. But please don’t behead them with that sword. Cleaning up afterward would be too much of a hassle.”

“Well, I’ll keep that in mind.”

The standards of “discretion” in this world are hard to understand, but if he says it’s okay, I guess it’s fine to cut them down if necessary. For now, we’ve dealt with the immediate obstacles. All that’s left is to enter the building and climb up…

“Hey, wait!”

“Huh?”

John suddenly stopped me, and I halted in my tracks. His face was twisted in frustration, and I could detect the presence of people stirring above us.

“Are you an idiot!? Why didn’t you watch out for security cameras and sensors!?”

“Huh? Cameras and sensors?”

“Ugh… Anyway, they now know we’ve infiltrated this building. Armed guards will be swarming us at any moment.”

“What!? Why!?”

“It’s because you screwed up! Anyway… just like we agreed before, if you’re going to hold me back, you might as well be a decoy.”

“Hey, wait!”

As John unilaterally declared this and ran off, the lights inside the building come on, and several men came down the stairs.

“There he is, the intruder!”

“The guards have been… taken out. Don’t kill him, incapacitate him and make him talk!”

“Damn it, what the hell is going on!? I don’t understand!”

Facing the men with small magical devices in their hands, I can’t help but curse. I may not be able to keep up with the situation, but there’s only one thing to do now.

“Well, whatever. If I’m a decoy, might as well go all out and cause some chaos!”

“Fire!”

As I raised my [Dawnbreaker] sword once more, something was fired from the enemy’s magical devices, striking my arms and legs with force. These small, high-speed projectiles were too much for even me to defend against, but with my [Invincible] activated, there was no need to block them in the first place.

“What the- it’s not working!?”

“It’s a shield! Throw jammer grenades!”

Surprised to see me unharmed, the enemy rolled several metal spheres towards my feet. The fist-sized objects were difficult to cut through, I managed to cut two of them, but the remaining three exploded with a cracking sound… However, nothing happened.

“Huh? What was that?”

“Alright, fire!”

“…It’s no use, it’s not effective!”

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“Why not!? Are you saying it’s military-grade!?”

“Ah…”

Although I had merely defended myself with [Invincible] the men were in complete chaos. It seemed like I could easily defeat them all right now, but… Since I am supposed to be a decoy, it would be better to buy some time, right? I looked relaxed just standing there…

“Hey, you guys, back off!”

While I was contemplating, a particularly large man pushed his comrades aside and approached me.

“If bullets don’t work, it’s probably an inertial field barrier, huh? If we had a Gatling Blaster, we could break through, but this is quicker.”

The bald-headed man, with a vicious grin on his face, clenched his knuckle duster.

“You’re waving around an antique sword too. Then I’ll beat you up with this!”

“Great, you’re straightforward! I’ll take you on!”

“Get crushed!”

I deflected the big man’s fist with the back of my [Dawnbreaker] sword. There was a clashing sound, and the man’s arm bounced up, but immediately another fist plunged into my side.

“Ugh… That was light!”

""

“Don’t underestimate me! I’ll break you next time!”

Despite the throbbing pain in my side, I continued to confront the big man. My sword was single, but the enemy’s fists were two. Moreover, he was physically stronger, putting me at a slight disadvantage.

However, I wasn’t completely losing. Dodging his swinging fists and returning the favor, I slammed the back of my [Dawnbreaker] sword into the big man’s side… What!?

“URYAAAA!!”

“Damn, it didn’t work!?”

“Heh heh, the tables have turned now.”

It seems that under his normal clothes, he’s wearing high-performance armor. My attack doesn’t faze him, and he continues to throw punches at me as I’m forced to retreat.

“What now? Your attack won’t work on me!”

“Hey, hey, just because you could withstand one hit, you’re whining? Are you only big in size?”

In the storm of raging fists, I desperately defended and counterattacked. It seemed like an even match, but I was gradually being cornered. That’s when a small whisper reached my ear.

“It’s alright now.”

“…Is that so?”

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“Have you given up? Then die!”

The big man’s fist exploded in my face as I dropped my guard. But…

“What!? What is this!?”

“Sorry, playtime’s over.”

Although his fists hit my unprotected face, they couldn’t hurt me anymore. I had turned off my banishment skills for a dramatic fight, but now nobody could stop me.

“Why, why isn’t it working!? Did you switch shields!? You guys, shoot him! The guns might work now–“

“They won’t.”

With one swing of my sword, the limbs of the men around me were severed. The groans and strong smell of iron filled the air, and the big man’s face twisted in fear.

“What the hell is this!? What happened!?”

“You get it, right? I was just buying some time.”

“Grrr… ahhhhhhhh!!!”

Anger, fear, and the world’s injustices all fuel the man’s powerful fist as it charges at me. I fend it off with my sword once more, but this time with the blade instead of the back.

“GYAAAHHHH!? MY HAND!? MY ARM!?”

“Oops, maybe I cut a bit too much because it was too soft? Well, get it treated later. You’re lucky to be born in a world with such advanced civilization.”

“Th-the pain… AAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!”

“Well, even then, it seems coming back to life after death is impossible.”

Instead of cowering in fear, the man still advanced. There’s no reason to hold back. I cut off the man’s head and leave the place filled with resentful groans. Afterward, I casually fend off the sporadic attacks while climbing the stairs… Finally, I reached the destination room.

“…Huh?”

For some reason, Canal is still tied to a chair, and a magical device that shoots debris is pressed against her head.