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Ah, sweet pain, though somewhat dissatisfying, as she couldn't inflict any as well. The bloodlust of that warrior has made her tingle, although now she feels nothing of it; most likely because she's accidentally hidden under trunks and dirt.

The oni has reverted to its shameful, dirty form of a young girl with red hair and horns, as her youki is too busy to keep her alive, so it can't sustain her true form.

She can barely breathe, and she has trouble staying conscious, but her master's orders were clear: Delay that person as much as possible. She just had hoped that she could kill Katakata and torture Bro a bit first.

“Hm... this felt odd, as if only the red demon had a will,” the oni hears the warrior saying.

“Wha---what was that?” It's the voice of a young male.

“Wannabe-archwizard, I don't have time to explain that. Let's see...” The warrior swings his sword and one giant cloud of dirt comes, as he unleashes a massive attack that would have easily cut the oni into pieces. “I missed him... well, at least I've separated Katsuragi from the rest. Ugh...”

“Sir Gottfried, your arm. [Heal]!”

“I may have overexerted myself, I'm clearly not in my prime anymore. However, someone has to take care of the boy. Meldorn, I leave it to you. The rest comes with me. Boy-wizard, do you have magic that can trap them?”

“Not at that distance, especially with them running.”

“But you have a spell that increases our speed, right?”

“Yes, but it has its backlash.”

“Use it anyway.”

The oni feels an urge, she has to delay them. This is the order her master has given, it's bound to her essence, she has to do something. “...hey...I...still...”

The warrior looks at the trunks she's buried under. “Unexpected. I really lost my touch during retirement.” Can he see her, in her weak, puny form, which only exists with one arm and above the stomach? “Let's ignore her, we're almost there.”

“...fight...me...” The young man starts chanting a spell. “...I...kill...you...” One man starts running, following Bro most likely. “...kill...kiiiiiilllll...”

Then the chanting stops: “[Accelerate]!” Three men start running and are away in a blink, while the last one heads towards a different direction.

Left behind lies the oni, shamed and physically broken.

―○●○―

Kenta may be separated from us, but we have to go on. Kyou and Ara are still here, so we'll be fine. Kenta has a plan, when we're in the forest, he can put it into action.

Suddenly, we are overtaken by three people. It's the wizard, the priest, and Instructor, all of them out of breath. The priest looks like he's about to faint, I hope he'll be alright?

“Would-be, encase all of us,” Instructor says while drawing his weapon. I have never seen Instructor that annoyed or angry before. The wizard begins to chant, but I can't interrupt him, as Instructor confronts me with ragged breaths: “This is enough, Stupid Disciple #1. I will bring you home.”

Why does he keep calling me #1? Nevermind, I draw Friedensbote, my trusty sword. It will clash with Nebelschnitter once again, a sword so sharp that it cuts through mist. If you look closely, even the rain is repelled by the sharpness of the blade. He's still not using his buckler, so he's not taking me seriously.

“[Fountain Gun]!” Ara shoots her spell at the wizard, but Instructor deflects it back to her, therefore she's thrown back. “Ouch.”

I need to keep Instructor busy, then Ara and Kyou can come up with a plan! I jump into action: “[Crescent Moon]!” I use it to approach, and while Instructor is parrying this one, I'll use my next skill: “[Sweep]!”

Why am I the one upside down? I swing my legs to correct that. Danger from the front, I parry and bring my body out of the way to avoid that thrust. He actually attacked me! Finally! “Stupid Disciple #1,” he groans as if I'm a great disappointment: “Stop using those attacks. They're bad for you. Also, you're thinking about your attacks? Since when? I've put so much effort for you to move without using your meager brain before. Your sword tells me everything!”

Ah, Instructor once told me that a good swordsman is able to read the thoughts of his opponents from their weapon, which puts him one step ahead of everyone. 'It'll be hard for anyone to blend their thoughts out, to live only in that moment, but you, Stupid Disciple, are almost there. I've never seen a child with a head as empty as yours.' So I underwent his special training.

Wait a minute, that wasn't a compliment! “Oh, angry?” Instructor says as I swing my sword at him. He looks tired, but every move of him is as sharp as ever. “I call you stupid, because you are!”

I may not be the brightest, but calling me stupid... it's not like that! Kenta told me that's because I never used my head because… because everyone always goes out of their way for me, because... because of people like you! “YOU WERE MY INSTRUCTOR! WHY DID YOU LET ME BECOME THAT WAY!” I mount another attack.

He just avoids it. “I'm not your parent, idiot, and wasn't it you who skipped out her studies to train more?”

One more! “YOU LET ME!”

He clashes his blade with mine and my fingers become numb. “Because you're as stubborn as me, and aren't fit for studies in the first place.” He then picks up some dirt with his sword and hurls it at Kyou and Ara, who tried to sneak past us to the wizard.

Ara can evade, showing again how well she can manage with projectiles, while Kyou is hit at the side, whimpers once, and then falls down, holding her side in pain, as the speed of that dirt transformed it into a hard projectile.

“[Icicle Kn-]” Ara creates ice shards, but lets them drop, as Instructor is already between her and the wizard.

[Swishstride]! I'm mounting another attack from an angle, hoping this gives Ara the opportunity to get pass Instructor, but instead he back kicks my blade from the side. The impact makes his foot and Friedensbote bounce from each other, now he will kick me again, while I still need to get my arm back, I lift my arm for a block, but... the attack never comes.

Because Instructor makes sure to keep Ara in check, so that the wizard can finish his spell: “[Earth Wall]!” Suddenly, the earth begins to move, dirt is rising, and we're trapped in a wide ring of high and thick walls made of dirt. There is no escape now.

This means I have to win. With Instructor not really making many offensive attempts, it means I only need to break through his defense. When I can land a hit, we can somehow make it work out.

Thrust, swing, hit, kick, jump-kick, sweep, swing, thrust! I just have to do it like Kenta said and be like always! Yes, confidence is coming to me, I can do it!

“You can't.” My body freezes, as suddenly Instructor Gottfried punches where I was supposed to go to cut my movement, then he spins around me, trying to get his elbow on my head. He's attacking now! This only means that I have driven him into a corner! “You? I'm just tired of this farce. Though there is something I have noticed.” He takes a step back, swings Nebelschnitter through the ground and a wave of wet dirt is about to bury me, I can also only jump back.

“Urgh-” What? I look in the direction of the sound and see how Kyou is lifted into the air by Instructors foot, then he slams her to the ground, only to kick her so hard that she flies at the earthen wall and falls to the ground like a sack of potatoes.

Anger wells inside me, as he has hurt her again! “Leave! Us! ALONE!” If it weren't for you... Kenta, Kyou, Ara! Why do you keep hurting them if it's me that you want!

My body feels lighter than usual, as I start my next attack. Swing from above, yet also a kick from the side, he may dodge it, but with a somersault I can connect with a kick with my other foot! Blocked! Then use the recoil to get some distance.

I start running, then I fall into a sudden [Swishstride] to increase my speed, but that's not all, I somehow realize, that I can do sidesteps without losing speed, so sidestep, [Swishstride], sidestep, in one second I am before Instructor, now behind him *Clank* “[Swee-]” He trips me again, and I'm too fast! No, I'll make a roll and jump back for another attack!

Oh, Instructor won't let me! Instead, he's about to kick me, but I only need to push myself from the ground at the right angle, and now I can swing my sword—another parry, but this is enough to get back on my feet.

I will take you on! I will beat you! You'll see! Kyou and Ara will fight your companions, and Kenta will figure out how to break that wall.

As long as we're all working together, nothing can stop us!

―○●○―

My body hurts. Every step becomes torture. I can clearly feel the flesh where Gottfried cut me before, I can feel my bones screaming, all the pain I could ignore before comes back at me, so close to the finish line, which is the great forest.

There is someone behind me... Meldorn. I clench my spear, while I notice that he only has a bow. Finally some luck. No Gottfried in sight, now I just have to kill him and get away. Then they won't follow, then we have won!

Kill him... kill him... “Each thrust has to count. If you falter, the game gets away.” No, I can't hesitate. I pull my hood deeper, steeling myself.

He looks at me. Without blame, without sorrow. He's not hurt by my betrayal, it's just as it is, and he will deal with it. He's always in the moment, something I always admired.

Meldorn unleashes a barrage of arrows, and I bring my screaming body to circle around him, evading his attacks. I also use this to get closer to him, he has no spear with him, so as long as I get close, I win!

Wait, why is he running as well!? Why does he keep shooting!!! He also picks up the arrows he has shot and reuses them! This... mobile archery!? He gets closer! I try to hit away some arrows, as running alone won't let me evade all, but two burrow into my body, one in my right arm, one in my right calf.

I need to get more distance, his rate of fire is way too high, I need to make him use up most arrows. He has two quivers, one of them already half empty. He doesn't attack right now, most likely observing what I do while conserving arrows.

With my [Focus] on him, I can see clearly all of his movements, basically predicting each of them, though he really wastes no movements, which gives me the least possible time to react. However, I have my win-condition in this skirmish: I get into melee range when he's out of ammo.

With this in mind, I start to move sideways, as if I'm looking for an attack angle, but in reality I move to the cluster of arrows from when I circled him before, and I step on them, making them break.

Meldorn shoots three arrows within a second, all of them with a curve their way to me. It reminds me of my [Seeker], though what he does is more like course alteration of the arc instead of a correction. So Meldorn really has [Skills].

I can't [Focus] all three of those arrows, so let's shake him up: “[Speedthrust]!” My [Skill] propels me forward, and Meldorn lets another arrow lose, but I cancel my attack, deflect the arrow with my spear, and as I was about to chain another, the ground begins to shake, which made me look at the other side of the fissure for a moment.

Shit! There is a giant circular wall of earth there and I'm sure that the girls, Gottfried, and the rest of the party are inside... ...nothing I can do, concentrate on what's in front of me: Meldorn. It feels like I'm about to piss myself and my whole body hurts, and there are still arrows stuck in it, but I have to work with what I have.

Back to destroying his arrows. He shoots at me again, but as long I have my [Focus], these straight shots will be blocked. *Stab* I feel a sharp pain in my arm. Did my block miss? No, he aimed at my arm in the first place... did he read my motion!? “Monsters and animals adopt habits. Observe those, use those. When they're under stress, they will always fall back on them, as those habits have helped them survive so far.”

The arrow is stuck through my left triceps, but I can still muster all my strength. Most likely because I'm a hero, but every movement hurts. He's putting me on a timer here, I may not have the luxury of waiting!

Only one power surge left. If I use it, the pain it causes will incapacitate me, which means I will need some minutes to do anything other than staggering and crying out in agony. Even if I'm able to use that power surge to beat Meldorn, I can't help anyone afterward.

Therefore, I have to deal with him without relying on that. Shit, I won't say that I wasted my other two on Gottfried, but it's bitter that they didn't even make him comment on them, so short they fell.

Going on the offense now would be foolish. Meldorn has the larger reach, so he can attack me when I bridge the gap, it will also be increasingly difficult to avoid his arrows, and he already showed that he can run without losing his accuracy, and switching to bow myself would not only leave me open for a while, but also make me compete with him in an area where he's much better than me.

What are the alternatives, though? Only an idiot would charge in just to become a pin cushion.

Call me an idiot.

Going [Pikeman], my muscles grow and contract around the three arrows that are stuck into my body, but I need the power and endurance. “[Speedthrust]!” I'm either stupid or super-smart, predicting eight moves in advance, shocking Meldorn by doing exactly what shouldn't be done.

One, two, three, four, five arrows. One in my right shoulder, two in my right side, one in my left side, and I even got a second into my right calf. However, I can shrug it off, don't underestimate my [Pikeman]'s resilience! Meldorn retreats back without missing a beat, but I press forward, this time moving slightly to let an arrow bounce off the armguard of my left arm.

Here I am, my attack misses Meldorn, but I swing my spear, and I barely avoid another shot, as the shaft of my weapon hits him across the body, throwing him to the ground. Time for the finish blow! “When you go for the killing blow, don't doubt, don't hesitate.”

My arms won't move... Shit! MOVE! This is the chance! No, this isn't the time to think how much I owe him! SHIT!

Meldorn jumps up and uses his bare hand to thrust an arrow to my face. I get a cut right on my forehead, as I barely dodge, and then he notches that arrow on his bow and- *BLAM* The shoulder part of my armor shatters, as I instinctively move to the side, and I'm thrown several meters backwards. As I land, I feel the prior arrows burying themselves deeper into my body...

I can't. I can't win this. Meldorn has outdone me in everything. Despite my efforts to mask the tracks, he tracked us. He's a better archer, and bested me in melee combat. And even after I made my desperate attempt, and brought him to the point where I could make the kill, I hesitated, while he's merciless.

If I can't win a fight, I have to run. The great forest has to be behind the next hill. There I may hide myself, use the time to recover with pots and Kyou-san's poultices, and then I can figure out what to do next.

I stand up, and even that doesn't seem to faze Meldorn, even though I'm more of a bloody mess than a human right now. I run backwards, towards the hill, which makes Meldorn hesitate before he collects some of his arrows instead of chasing me immediately.

Almost at the hilltop, behind will be the forest, there I have a chance! Almost, almost!

Another arrow hits me, this time my left shin. It's still stuck, but the moment I'm at the forest, I can use [Entangle] to hinder him, [Mask of Wildlife] to hide, I can-

Arriving on the hilltop, I see a great forest, still lush and carrying leaves in green, red, orange, and yellow. A perfect depiction of an autumn forest. However, what I believed to be a hilltop is actually a cliff and the forest is maybe thirty meters (almost 100 feet) below.

So I either jump or fight.

Fight it is.

I'm cornered and out of options. Even if I botch it, I won't stop! If I stop now, everything I worked for so long will be for naught. All the effort, all the pain, all of it would become worthless.

I turn around, looking into Meldorn's eyes, who still seems not to harbor any feelings towards me. I take my stance and deflect another arrow with my spear. I guess I’ve become more and more like Rine, huh?

Suddenly, my foot breaks through the earth beneath, and my other leg gives in to the pain for a moment, causing me to lose balance. Another arrow hits me, and I'm thrown back a bit... I'm falling down the cliff... unable to move... sticking out boulder incoming.

*Gnraksh*

Oh. Red. It got into my eyes.

*Brrk, bk, srrrkkkrrc, rumble*