Chapter 923: Headhunting

Name:World Keeper Author:
Chapter 923: Headhunting

Deep within the forest, I grit my teeth, grabbing onto my arm that had fallen off from Tsubaki’s last surprise attack. She was being careful not to use her martial will, so I was able to safely reattach the arm, letting the energy fuse back into my torso. However, it was still shocking and painful to suddenly lose my arm like that.

It has only been a few hours since the start of this trial, but I lost count of how many times she had attacked me. If I lowered my guard even for a moment, she came in and struck before I could react. I had my World Sight spread out in a net around myself, but she was just too fast. By the time I was able to respond to her entering my World Sight, she was already upon me.

The worst part was that I couldn’t tell where she was watching me from. If I spread my energy out to search for her, I would briefly feel a reaction from her own World Sight, before that reaction suddenly vanished. It was hard to tell if she was leaving those traces as a decoy, or simply changing locations as soon as our energies felt one another.

Part of me was honestly tempted to tap into my divine abilities, or my Keeper stats. If I did so, I would at least be able to cope with her insane speed. Unfortunately, doing so would also go against the purpose of the test. In the worst scenario, if I increase my own power, she will start using more of her own to maintain the difficulty. If she were to mix her divine powers in with her martial will, I wasn’t entirely sure I’d be able to withstand that.

I took a deep breath, calming myself while keeping my body tense and ready to respond. She can attack from any angle, and won’t allow for even a moment’s pause. I have to keep moving, and keep alert.

If I had a weapon, I might be able to put up more of a fight. At the very least, I’d be able to extend my reach and give myself some more opportunities. Wait... when did she say that she was going to be doing this trial unarmed?

Cold sweat formed on my back as realization dawned on me. The moment I had my weapon, it was likely that Tsubaki would begin fighting me while armed with weapons herself. Although she wouldn’t be using her martial will, her fighting prowess was not to be underestimated.

My World Sight picked up a reaction from my left, and so I immediately turned, my fist raised to greet her. There was a golden blur rushing towards me, hands curved into claws. Her eyes were fierce, and she moved at unpredictable angles. If she simply charged straight, I could use my ki to seal the space and slow her down, forcing her to respond. However, by the time I did so in this situation, she would have escaped the area of my power.

This left me no choice but to greet her as soon as she came into melee. There was no time to take a proper stance, so I simply lashed out with my fist, aiming straight for Tsubaki’s head. I wasn’t worried that my attack would seriously hurt her, as her basic stats were well above my own. At most, I wanted to force her to dodge, or even knock her back a step to give me some time.

In the end, I let out a hiss of pain, watching her dart off to the side. My closed fist fell to the ground, severed at the wrist. What can I learn from this? She’s not trying to point out any mistakes or offer advice.

As I thought that, I controlled my fist to fly back to my wrist, cautiously walking deeper into the forest. How can I make the terrain more advantageous to myself? If I use the trees as cover, it will slow her approach unless she’s willing to bulldoze through them. But, if she was going to do that, she wouldn’t have thrown me towards the forest in the first place.

There was no telling how long Tsubaki wanted to make this trial last. Would it be until the next invasion? No, the next round would be after the Keeper Meeting. It’s possible that she would ask me to go to a game with her where we could simulate the training more realistically... In those scenarios, it wouldn’t end with only severed limbs.

As my foot moved back, I felt something click against my shoe. Too worried to take my eyes off the forest around me, I directed my World Sight to expand and cover the object. I hadn’t noticed it before, but there was now a red gem by my foot. A... Blood Heart gem?

Y-You... if you don’t use your martial will, no. It took Terra a moment to calm down after hearing Tsubaki’s response. You’re right, from his perspective he hasn’t been a god very long. The shock of having his head cut off or his heart destroyed are still primal fears. Are you really willing to push him that far, though? He might activate his full power as a reflex.

Tsubaki shook her head. I trust my Keeper. If he activates his power, it will only be as a defensive measure, not to lash out. I trust that he has enough faith in myself and you not to use that power against me. But that is why I have to do this. If I want him to awaken a martial will soon, I need to convince him that this trial is truly dangerous on a primitive level. I need him to fight me as if his life were at stake, until he adapts to that sensation.

Once his mind is familiar with the concept of ‘fear’ and ‘death’, he’ll be able to analyze his own movements. ‘What can I do to prepare myself?’, or ‘If she attacks like this again, how can I stop her?’ These are thoughts I need to put in his mind. Although he is performing these actions now, they are elementary at best. If he were an experienced fighter, he would be able to launch his attacks from any stance, always ready to unleash his full power.

From what I understand, martial will is not about learning a thousand different techniques with a weapon. In order to obtain martial will, what you need is to be so focused on your weapon that you awaken its potential.

There was a long pause after Tsubaki finished, before Terra let out a sigh. Don’t go for his eyes. If he sees the attack and believes strongly enough that he has died, his divinity will respond and it may very well kill him. You can sever his legs, his neck, or even shatter his chest, but don’t go for his eyes.

A thankful smile appeared on Tsubaki’s lips. I will keep that in mind, Lady Terra. After she said that, her eyes sharpened. In the distance, she could see the Keeper’s shoulders relax, and see how the ki in that area was no longer as sharp as before.

In that case, I shall put that to the test. She thought, her body fading away from the branch.

I let out a sigh of relief after going over the damage from Tsubaki’s last ambush. She had only struck me with her fists, and hadn’t done so with the intention of throwing me back. Instead, it seemed like she was trying to disable my movements. Thankfully, I noticed at the last moment that she had appeared behind me, and turned in time to respond.

As that sigh left me, my body tensed up again. Tsubaki’s form had once more entered my World Sight, rushing towards me faster than ever before. I had barely let my guard down for a moment, and she was already directly in front of me. Her hand this time wasn’t a claw, or a fist, but rather a straight palm, almost like a blade.

I tried to bring my guard up, but she was already upon me. When I expected her to cut off my arm again, her hand swept horizontally. Cutting me off at the waist? No... my eyes widened in horror as I realized that her attack was too high for that.

My head tilted back, catching a glimpse of the sky before tumbling back, and seeing my body standing before Tsubaki. Her eyes were as fierce as ever as she watched my fallen head, spinning and kicking my body over towards me. Had she... no, I wasn’t dying, right? Was I?

No, if I was, there was enough time for Terra to pull me out, wasn’t there? I felt myself freezing up for several long seconds, during which time Tsubaki would have normally already fled back into the forest. Instead, she watched me. Only when my arm began to move again did she retreat back.

The sight of my headless body haunted me, together with that piercing stare. Tsubaki was serious about this trial...