Dusk Taker’s small foot stepped firmly right on top of the fallen Cyan Pile’s mask.
“500 seconds remaining huh. ...Well, you did better than I thought, Mayuzumi senpai. You have more talent here than kendo.”
After a ‘Fufufu’ laugh, Noumi raised his right hand claw high. The cyclic, concentric circle of purple wave increased in strength.
“So then, I will take the payment for robbing 1.3 second of my real time. From your Burst Point, pain, and then humiliation.”
On Takumu’s throat, that right hand was going to thrust in, right before that ——.
“Wait, Noumi!!”
From as close distance as a viewer was allowed, Haruyuki yelled.
To Dusk Taker who stopped his hand, and glanced at him with his round visor, Haruyuki continued to desperately throw his voice.
“Wait... if it’s points I will give you mine! In order to fight with you, Taku used up a lot of points! I still have extra, so if you want to rob, take it from mine!!”
Half of it was his true feelings.
—— However, the other half, was Haruyuki’s plan to bet on a slight chance.
He suddenly kneeled down there, pushing the face of his helmet onto the ground crawling with insects, and Haruyuki said with a sound close to crying.
“As you see, I beg you, Noumi!!”
Kneeling down on the ground ungracefully, was of course his first time in the accelerated world, but that was not so in the real world.
Last year, before he met with Brain Burst, Haruyuki suffered terrible bullying from three boys in his class. Whenever possible he was extorted buns and juice, and when he did not have the money to buy it, they forced him to apologize by kneeling on the ground like this. They were humiliating memories that he did not want to remember, but right at this moment, he use all those times’ desperate sound and manner to continue strongly rubbing his head on the ground.
“...Uwaa, that’s the worst. The worst in many ways, Arita senpai.”
Noumi’s appalled sound echoed.
“Going that far for something like friendship is a sickness, are you still a Brain Burst owner? Not acting like that in the duel field, even I feel that way.”
“...You can think whatever you like. I will of course pay next week’s points as well, please... I beg you!!”
“Yea, yea, I understand. Somehow, you remind me of the pill bug that I was teasing in my courtyard when I was a child. But well, I acquired flying ability from this person as well...”
In the sound filled with large dose of disgust, he heard the sound of Noumi’s foot leaving Takumu’s face. Next, he felt that Noumi was manipulating the install menu through the HP bar.
Then, with a sharp warning sound, a window showed up in his view. It was a confirmation dialog for changing this field from one on one «Normal Duel Mode» to gallery included «Battle Royal Mode».
Haruyuki lifted his head up slightly, then after looking at Noumi who was shaking his head in exasperation, and Takumu who was still fallen, immediately pressed the YES button.
With that, if Takumu also consented, then the mode will be changed to where Haruyuki will be a dueler instead of gallery. That’s right, without waiting for next week, he would be able to fight Dusk Taker.
However, although it was expected, Takumu did not press the button for a while. Naturally, Takumu also should have believed Haruyuki’s words at their face value, so having his points that was going to be taken away shouldered by someone else, was not something that his pride would allow.
From a position above ground where the standing Noumi barely could not see him, Haruyuki stared at Takumu with all the power he could put into his two eyes.
‘—— Press it.’
‘—— I have not given up yet. I want to fight him. I have to fight him. That’s why, press the button, Takumu!!’
The scream in Haruyuki’s brain, might have actually reached him.
Takmu’s eyes inside his damaged mask opened wide for a moment, then lifted up his shaking arm —— and touched a point in the air.
After a few silence filled seconds, suddenly the various data display in his view vanished. Right after, with a ‘Glop!’ sound, Silver Crow’s HP gauge extended in the upper left corner. The right side gauge remained empty, but above Cyan Pile and Dusk Taker’s head, a fully recovered gauge floated. With the remaining time under 400 seconds, the flame words [FIGHT!] floated up, and blew apart.
‘...Finally.’
While kneeling, Haruyuki whispered inside his chest.
Finally, this moment arrived. The rematch with Noumi Seiji / Dusk Taker. To take back the many things he was robbed, it was a fight that he must not lose.
With ‘Clomp clomp’ sounds of the metallic schoolyard being stepped on, the dusk avatar approached. Taking on the green light raining down from sky, that shape shone a strange color. Maybe he was still maintaining his mind power, since waves of emptiness dripped from both of his hands.
While he was crouching down, Haruyuki silently moved his right hand to his chest, folding his thumb inside the palm, with the remaining four fingers lined straight.
‘My arm is a sword. No matter how hard the armor is, even if it was empty darkness, it will pierce through anything, a light sword.’
At the same time as he held that firm image, he felt intense heat being created at his fingertips.
The footsteps approached. Cold air stroke the back of his neck.
Stopped right in front of him. One foot was lifted up, casually stepping towards Haruyuki’s head ——
“...Shii!!”
With a short psyche, Haruyuki’s left hand caught the foot that was going to step on him, and while being pulled up by that, he extended his right hand straight out at the same time.
“...Ku!?”
Even while leaking a short sound, Noumi showed fearsome reaction speed, and used his left hand to block Haruyuki’s thrust.
A strange ‘Kyuaaan!!’ sound echoed throughout the field. Haruyuki’s right hand fingertips that became a pure white sword, was swallowed by Noumi’s left hand five fingers claw. However, neither of them touch each other. The white and purple, light and emptiness auras clashed, releasing a high pitched resonance sound.
“...Whatt ...this, skill is...!? You dog... when did you, this kind of trick...!!”
Noumi snarled, and the purple wave’s power increased. The imagination of darkness that erase various kind of existences fed into the system, trying to cut off Haruyuki’s hand.
Against that, Haruyuki resisted with the image of a laser that can pierce through various kind of existences.
Speed. Light speed.
‘...That’s right. You, are faster than anyone.’
At the moment that he felt he heard that faint sound, Haruyuki shouted.
“Hardship... Pass, throughhh!!”
Like thousand of icicles breaking apart, a huge, and also fleetingly clear sound filled the battle ground.
With a slicing sound, Haruyuki’s right hand sword that extended over one meter all at once, pierced through the darkness created by Noumi’s left hand, and blew it apart without a sound. Right afterward.
Dusk Taker’s left arm itself, from palm to shoulder, shattered all at once from the inside out.
“Kuo...”
Noumi was largely bent backwards while spraying out large quantities of reddish purple sparks, as Haruyuki released Noumi’s left leg, he continued by thrusting out his left hand.
“Oooo!”
The attack that was aimed for the center of the chest, however was regrettably deflected upwards by the enemy’s right arm, and was stopped leaving a cut on that armor. Noumi back dashed with fierce speed, and stopped with two legs spreaded wide.
There was a chance for followup attack, but Haruyuki did not chase after him. Maybe he wrung his image too strongly, so that white fireworks flicker and blinked in his view. After shaking his head many times to make those go away, and opened his eyes wide, Noumi had already taken
a cautious posture.
“...Hee, e...”
From under the blank spherical visor, a mocking but hoarse sound leaked out.
“No way, mind power attack huh... That meant, all night yesterday, you went on a training in the mountain huh, Arita senpai.”
“It didn’t even take one night though.”
After the quiet answer, Haruyuki also stood up. With his both hand fingers lined up, white light and vibration sound remained.
“Fuun? I heard of you losing indecently to some small fly in the blue legion though. I was worried if you could earn the quota points properly, but instead of that, you have enough energy to bite back huh. I had not foreseen this.”
After the ‘Kuku’ sneer, Noumi shook his right hand quickly, and the purple wave that was there was blew away.
“...What, already out of energy?”
“Hahaha, no way!!”
After the bright sound shout —— Noumi moved his right hand once more. As if to cut across in front of his body, his hand was raised high to the upper left.
“I also, was not just... sleeping!!”
With that sound, he pulled and wrung his arm.
At the same time as that movement, the horn that was extended from his back, opened wide left and right with a rustle.
Five shafts of bone on each. Those were connected by thin membranes. The devil’s wing —— flight ability robbed from Silver Crow.
In front of Haruyuki who was involuntarily breathless, the wings were extended high, and was strongly flapped once.
Right after, with a ‘Thump!’ of air shaking, Dusk Taker’s body flew up in a straight line.
There was not a single fragment of the akwardness from the previous day, that was spectacular flying. Soon after reaching a lot higher than the school roof, he turned his body around and started hovering.
‘—— No, I can’t be shocked by something like this.’
Haruyuki bit his lip, and said that to himself. Noumi was someone who can use the «Incarnate System». And then, the flight ability control is the same image control type. Then it would be easy for him to get the hang of it.
From the ominous silhouette carved in the green sky, a singing like sound came pouring down.
“...Actually, this is a great thing, these wings! Having this one sided advantage, but still only level 4! But well, with only those short limbs for weapons, Arita senpai can’t do anything about it... Don’t worry, I am different! Way better than senpai, I will use this power properly... like this!”
Cutting his words off, Noumi extended his right hand straight out, and sang out in low volume.
“Equip «Pyro Dealer».”
The system that accepted the voice command, started materializing new enhanced armament on Dusk Taker’s right arm, which Haruyuki looked on while standing still.
What was created, was a huge equipment that covered the whole arm. Many pipes extent to the elbow from the large tank like object carried on the shoulder, and connected all the way to the back of the hand where the firing mechanism was.
‘—— Long range firepower!’
Haruyuki’s inner teeth bit down, and all of his nerves tensed.
0.5 seconds later, casually like children playing with fireworks, flames spew from Noumi’s short looking gun barrel.
Those were as words said, flames of fire. Not bullet or beam, just like fantasy type game dragon blew out breath attack kind of high density flames, poured down from far above with a roar.
He did not have the time to be doubtful about how to counter it. Right after Haruyuki dashed forward on reaction, an explosion sounded behind him, and an intense feeling of heat hit his whole back.
“Kuu...”
While that leaked out from his clenched teeth, he desperately ran. Even with random snake runs, explosions of flame soon chased after him. Sparks of fire bounced around the surroundings, and his HP bar was cut by a few dots.
After running west along the walls of the school building for close to ten seconds, the explosion sounds finally cut off. As he turned around while the bottom of his feet slid on the ground, Haruyuki looked on in awe.
In the center of the wide school courtyard, an about five meters diameter crimson lake was form. From there small rivers snake around as they extended, and all the way to right in front of Haruyuki, bubbling liquid metal flowed.
The new enhanced armament that Dusk Taker called out, was clearly a flamethrower. Furthermore, it could create terrifyingly high heat. If he was directly hit by it once, then the ground under his feet would melt and movement would be almost impossible, which would leave him just burning there.
Haruyuki looked from the shining red pool, to Cyan Pile who was crouched down nearby. After the duel mode was changed, his HP gauge was fully recovered, which also healed all his outer wounds, but it seemed like the shock from full body pain had not left him yet. It would take at least one minute before he could join in the fight.
“Fu... Fufufu.”
A few tens of meters above Haruyuki who was thinking in high speed, Dusk Taker’s innocent laughter sounded.
“As I thought, the combination of «Flight Ability» and «Long Range Firepower» is awesome. While hovering high in the air like this, I can re-charge my special skills gauge with field destruction bonus. True perpetual motion... to say it bluntly, I am invincible.”
And then the flamethrower was once more turned towards him, and towards this avatar that was truly a «Flame Demon» right now, Haruyuki threw his suppressed voice.
“...About that. Your invincibility, is missing just one necessary condition.”
“Oh? What kind?”
“That is, those who can fly... is not only you!!”
Cutting off his speech, Haruyuki raised both hands high, and at that moment, prayed inside his chest.
‘—— Sky Raker-san. My, other master. Right now, I will use it...’
‘Your, wings!!’
“Equip!! «Gale Thruster» ——!!”
The voice command echoed high above.
Dusk Taker stopped still.
And then, from the sky, two ribbons of sky colored lights came raining down. Those scored directly on Haruyuki’s back, and concentrated ——.
A large, powerful, and beautiful objected was created.
An 80cm in length, about 10cm in width, streamlined booster. Two of those were lined up on his back. The tip a thin cone, the rear a square exhaust, surrounded by a total of four extended small horizontal and vertical stabilizers. That meant instead of calling them boosters, it was the same as him carrying two miniature cruise missiles.
This, was the enhanced armament that caused Sky Raker to be called «ICBM» and «Astro».
Staring at the enemy that seemed to leak feeling of shock, Haruyuki lowered his waist in one go.
The boosters groaned with ‘Hiiiin’ sound. The ground at his feet shone bluish white reflection.
‘...Heart’s desire for sky. That is the true fuel for «Gale Thruster».’
In his ears, sounds from far away again replayed.
‘...There, go on. Since it is you, should be able to fly again, Karasu-san.’
“O... Ooo!!”
Haruyuki roared, and kicked the ground with all his strength.
A huge impact sound shook the atmosphere, and the surroundings were filled with bright light.
Right after, Haruyuki flew towards the sky with tremendous speed. That speed, was easily over the silver wings straight lift off speed.
Dusk Taker’s black silhouette came closer and closer. However at the same time, Haruyuki’s senses also started accelerating, slowing down the subjective approaching speed.
“Wha...”
With leaking of a small sound of shock, Dusk Taker’s right arm flamethrower was pointing towards Haruyuki.
Right before red light came out of that muzzle.
“...Raaa!!”
With that psyche, Haruyuki’s left spear hand thrust out.
The sharp fin
gertips covered by shining white aura, touched the muzzle, and cut it from top to bottom —— reaching all the way to the fuel tank on the shoulder.
With a ‘Shugoo!’ howl sound, the two avatars crossed, then separated. Haruyuki who continued to dance higher in the sky, saw a crimson flash below his feet, and then heard an explosive echo that seemed to chase after that.
He opened his folded arms and legs, and stopped the rise. When he looked down, he saw the familiar Umesato middle school H shape building, the wide grounds, and then the shape of Dusk Taker who floated with those as background.
After the total lost his left arm, his right arm also showed deep damage. The flamethrower was all blown apart, and from his shoulder to elbow was burned deep black. His armor that had shone like amethyst also had cracks running through it, with bright sparks dripping one after another. His HP gauge also, was cut by half.
As Haruyuki controlled his descend path with his two hands opened wide, he head towards the edge of the school yard, where originally a grounds lighting tower was, he landed on top of a portal lined with strange eyeballs.
Different from the wings that was robbed from him, the «Gale Thruster»’s flight did not use up the special skills gauge. However, same as Takumu’s «Piledriver», an instant of firing used up all the energy, and required a long time to recharge.
While checking the new third gauge on his view’s upper left was starting to slowly increase, Haruyuki held his two hand knives at ready.
In contrast, Noumi also waved his damaged right hand. The curved claws, were once again covered by purple waves.
“...I see, I see. You still had that kind of card hidden huh.”
The sound that drifted by, was flat due to shock and anger, but still seem to contain an echo of sneer in it.
“Hey, please tell me, Arita senpai. How and where did you pick up that enhanced armament? You don’t have the points to buy it from a shop right? ...Ah, is it like this, you forced its owner to un-install and robbed it, isn’t that right? That is cruel, even I would not go that far.”
To Noumi who was laughing ‘Kukukuku’ with his throat, Haruyuki calmly responded.
“You would not understand, Noumi.”
“...What did you say?”