Chapter 182: Road to Fruition Part 2

It’s far too early to celebrate. Katsu managed to win one round, but this only means that from here on out this is going to be hell-incarnate.

The strategy we’ve come up with for Katsu to be able to remain victorious is nothing more but a trick. A sort of a warp gate that takes you from the main road and throws you right in the middle of the dark and barren off-road. It is escaping all the common sense associated with playing the conventional fighting games.

It’s supposed to be ridiculous by default…… Or at least that’s what we want others to think.

Essentially, what Katsu tries to do here is to subdue a rampaging horse or a tornado with his bare hands. And it’s not nearly as easy as it looks.

After all…… managing mob aggro is harder that you’d think. It all depends on how well he’ll manage to push it all onto Silvia Goldberg.

And she probably must have understood that, because she must have had roughly the same idea. I wonder what kind of combo would they make if they were ever to pair up as a team?

And screaming…… Ah, now I get it. It must be that famous “break switch” technique.

I mean, during matches like that the tension basically goes through the roof, so it’s no surprise that even America’s number one would like to went all of those pent-up emotions from time to time like that.

And the result was that Meetias managed to quiet down rip Silver Jumper a new one in under four minutes.

「…… Hahaha, won’t you look at that, Pumpkin-kun. It was so bad that it actually hurt to look at it.」

「Well, can’t argue with that one……」

Could it be that my darkest scenario regarding Silvia was actually coming true? That thing…… what was it, exactly?

Meetias basically holds a handicap in that he can only use his mobility in linear moves. So if Meetias wanted to do a sharp turn, it is necessary for him to stop for a moment, turn in the right direction and then continue to move.

The usual way in which Silvia’s Meetias achieves his unpredictable moves is high-speed movements due to kicking off the ground, mid-air kicks and using buildings and obstacles as footholds. Think of a way in which a rubber ball thrown at high speed and force acts in a small closed space.

「She probably uses a lot of side-stepping and bending to make better results……」

Because of that, even though it shouldn’t be possible, Meetias was able to move in a lot smoother way than he normally should.

No matter what happens…… I’m sure that right about now Silvia Goldberg’s emotions were at their peak, and it was showing through her actions. Right about now she must have been at even greater edge then she was during her battle with Clock Fire or even Cursed Prison.

「An unexpected boost…… But that’s also an opportunity.」

I can say that with all certainty, because I was experiencing that myself on a number of occasions. That sudden battle boost…… She was basically running on fumes right about now.

For example, it’s like running a marathon, and then breaking into a mad sprint while ignoring your running strategy and overall pacing, just so that you can give it your absolute best and aim for the record…… After that, you drop on the spot, out of gas.

Silvia Goldberg’s toughness is nothing to scoff at. It’s monstrous. But even the most terrifying monsters have their limits, no matter what they may be. Her spirit may still want to fight, but her body will give up way before that.

That’s right. Now is our biggest chance. The bird that usually flies higher than the rest and for way longer is finally about to become out of breath.

「It’s alright, Katsu……」

This is it. The pure contest of skill. Right now it all depends on that, no more cheap tricks or relying on RNG.

「Plus, we have caffeine on our side.」

Come on now, Natsume-san. Don’t look at me like that. It makes me look stupid.

「Maybe if you weren’t stewing your brain with energy drinks so much, you wouldn’t throw such cringy lines around, my dear Pumpkin-kun.」

「Is that what it looks like to you?」

He could feel sweat going down his cheeks. No, he was sure it was just an illusion.

There was no technology that would be able to recreate that, so it was probably a sign that his real body must have been sweating intensively.

(What it that, she can still perform this well even though she’s been through so many battles today? No, no…… such high-level performance is not something that can be maintained endlessly.)

It’s like flipping a switch over and over again. At the surface level it might not have any drawbacks, but deep down it might eventually cause some serious damage.

Yes, sometimes it was even clearly visible when Sanraku was losing his boost. He would often be angry and irritated after that, but that technique of his was clearly allowing him to use more of the power of his brain than he would normally be able to. That much was clear to everyone, even when looking from the sidelines.

But at least his life wouldn’t shorten or anything like that because of that.

(At least after going all out like that Sanraku feels like sh*t…… So it’s not without its drawbacks……)

A one in thousand chance. Silvia Goldberg, who up until now was unbeatable, was finally within his reach.

But it wasn’t a mere coincidence. It was the result of an intricate strategy that he came up with together with his friends. It was thanks to their combined efforts that he could be right here right in this moment.

And if so, then there were basically two things he could do right about now.

Beat Silvia Goldberg and pray that his wallet would be able to emerge alive from the imperial feast that would ensue upon his victory.

「Now then, let’s win this thing!」

Even though Kei wasn’t one hundred percent sure he would be able to win…… He also didn’t feel like losing either!