Archie’s fights hadn’t been nearly as difficult as he’d imagined they’d be. The moment he arrived at his designated spot in the Culinary District, he’d worked alongside a few Oni to evacuate the streets before planting himself in front of the District’s teleportation beacon. He’d expected something “futuristic” like those ultra high-tech structures you’d find in the Paradiso Kizushi continent, but the teleportation beacon was nothing more than an unassuming shack behind a high-end fashion store. You’d never guess that groups of ten Honor Guards would pour out of it in ten-minute bursts, but there they’d been.
He’d split up with Lochness, sending her to wait at the beacon in the Culinary District. They both used the same, admittedly cheap strategy of blasting the groups with a full-powered [HIGH-PRESSURE BLAST] the moment they appeared. It’d been great for gathering XP, but it did a number on his aura reserves. Thankfully, after about twenty minutes of this strategy, the Honor Guards stopped popping up. He’d received a message from Shuten Douji that they’d instead begun to target other Districts where he had Oni stationed, so Archie decided to move to join them.
On the way, however, Archie spotted a lone Honor Guard sitting in the alleyway. The white and purple armored man had scruffy black hair, a scarred lip, and a permanent scowl etched onto his face. He’d been sitting cross-legged on the ground, gathering a significant amount of aura as he muttered something incoherent to himself. Archie unsummoned Lochness and began to gather aura as he scanned the man.
NAME: Fujimoto Kano
AGE: 22
LEVEL: 64
CONTRACT TYPE (if applicable): Myth
CLASS: A
HEIGHT: 170cm
APPROX. WEIGHT: 80kg
EYE COLOR: Green
SKIN COLOR: Pale Peach
ETHNICITY: Saikoujin
BLOOD TYPE: B+
NOTABLE FACT: Fujimoto Kano is a combat prodigy. He attended a Mamoru Youth Camp as a child and impressed his counselors with his athleticism and mobility. From the age of six to the age of seventeen, Kano had been training with various members of the Mamoru Clan. At age eighteen, he was taken on his first mission with the Clan to subdue a rampaging Curse in Bukimiburgh. The mission must have shaken him because following this outing Kano abruptly stopped his training with the family and applied to join the Honor Guard.
“You!” The man, Fujimoto Kano, snarled.
Archie had recovered enough aura to fill his MP bar up to about 85%. It was a good thing he did because Kano launched himself at Archie the second he finished speaking!
Just like his System said, Kano was indeed a skilled fighter. He didn’t necessarily hit hard, but he hit fast. Archie did his best to block swipes from the man, but the man would respond to kicks to his exposed areas. When Archie would block a kick, he’d get hit with a punch to the face. He’d been forced to use his [INTIMIDATE] debuff Skill on Kano to slow him down. It worked, and Archie used that to slam a [WRAITH STRIKE] into the man’s stomach. It connected for 14% damage, sending him flying into a streetlight on the empty city street. Archie gave chase, charging another [WRAITH STRIKE] in his fist.
Unfortunately for Archie, he’d fallen right into Kano’s trap. Just like Shota earlier in the day, Kano conjured vines from nothing and held Archie in place. It was only then that it finally clicked for Archie who Kano was.
“You’re… Shota’s brother!” Archie choked out.
“Damn right I am!” Kano snapped. “I watched you beat my brother down like he was dirt! If you thought I was gonna let you get away with that, you’re an idiot!”
Archie had a few ways to get out of this situation, but both of them led to more collateral damage than he was willing to cause. Most of his System’s “buffs” were entirely useless, but that [SILVER TONGUE] benefit did have its uses. If he could get out of this without getting squeezed to death or destroying any of the city, then he’d rather do that.
“I’m only here to get help get rid of Futakuchi-Onna. Your brother fought me on her behalf, so I subdued him. If you were watching, you’d know that as soon as we came to an understanding we stopped fighting.”
Kano’s face shifted slightly. He was still angry, but [SILVER TONGUE] had begun working its magic. “I saw all that.”
“Then why didn’t you join in? You could’ve come into the shop at any time during or after our ‘fight’ to see what was wrong.”
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
Fujimoto flinched. “You looked strong and I panicked. I was gonna step in, but then I saw you all getting friendly and wasn’t sure what to do.” He looked down. “I only joined the Honor Guard because my brother spent a lot of time in Saikou. I wanted to look out for him because we’re all we got. Then that Futa chick came in and made him a prisoner and forced us to start messing with the Oni. I wanted to be the one who got rid of all the bad Honor Guards and got him outta here.” He looked up, tightening his grip on the vines and frowning. “Then you came along!”
Without warning, Kano blasted Archie with a much stronger version of Shota’s peashooter attack. Unlike his brother’s, Kano’s was like a pea minigun. It absolutely shredded Archie’s HP bar, sending it down to just 30%.
I’m sorry, Saikou. I can’t afford to hold back anymore.
Archie summoned Lochness, sending his partner to flank Kano while he cast [WATER DANCE]. The buff doubled the strength of his next move, and so he decided that move would be [GYRO STOMP]. The Skill wasn’t particularly flashy or spectacular. All it did was launch him a few meters into the air and increase his mass before sending him crashing down below like a meteor. It normally only wasn’t that bad, but paired with a [WATER DANCE] and his increased Level? Archie was glad the city streets were empty in case this got ugly.
Lochness flanked Kano, wrapping herself around him and keeping him in place. As his control over his vines loosened, Archie cast [GYRO STOMP], ripping himself free from them and positioning himself above Kano’s position. Archie turned in the air and pulled his arm back. He plummeted back down to the ground and punched Kano into the city street with a loud boom.
Hit for 70% damage!
The attack left a deep crater in the ground. There was dust everywhere and brick strewn about alongside glass from newly shattered store windows. Archie was relieved that there hadn’t been anyone nearby, and even more relief to find Kano totally subdued. He’d considered hitting the man with a [WRAITH STRIKE] and not a normal punch. If this had taken this much of his health, the [WRAITH STRIKE] would’ve killed the man!
Archie recalled Lochness as he stood over the battered Kano. This fight was over. He panted like a dog and had the HP of a deer. He pulled the man up and walked him into a nearby store, sitting him on a chair.
“You’re not gonna kill me?” Kano panted.
“Of course not!” Archie snapped, somewhat offended. “You’re a good person at heart.”
“I’ve been told,” Kano scoffed.
“But the reason you lost here is because you aren’t fearless enough. If I were in your position earlier, I would’ve walked in and beat the hell out of whoever threatened my brother, Levels be damned.”
“You say it like it’s that easy to change your outlook. People like you and that Futa chick–”
“Please stop calling her that.”
Kano clicked his teeth. “You two are strong! I’m not cut out to fight people like you! I thought I was, but I’m just not!”
“Then quit fighting. There are other things you could be doing with your life.”
“I can’t! If my brother’s gonna travel the world, he needs someone around him who can keep him safe. I can’t afford to lose him.”
Archie was reminded of a lesson his father had taught him growing up. “You chose this road, now walk it”. It was an old man’s way of saying to stick by your decisions, though his mother always said it was the reason the man was so hardheaded. She may have been right, but that lesson was why he’d managed to make it so far in life. Hell, it was why he’d made it so far with the Seekers. Somnia was an Unbound prodigy that even made Yugo sweat under the right circumstances, Yugo was an unbeatable Level 500 juggernaut, and now Rui was a Curse User with a seemingly endless pool of aura at his disposal. And what was Archie? A baker with above-average aura reserves? It bothered him how inferior to the others he was. It’d bothered him when it was just him and Somnia, and it bothered him more now that Rui was in the mix. And yet…
“This is the road you chose to walk,” Archie found himself saying. He caught himself, remembering there was someone in the room with him. “If you want to fight for your brother, fight unyieldingly. If you want to remain an Honor Guard and fight for your home, fight until you’re the last soldier standing. You chose to be your brother’s keeper, so be your brother’s keeper. It doesn’t matter whether I’m your opponent, Futakuchi-Onna is your opponent, or Typhon rises from the dead and it’s your opponent. Walk the road you chose to walk.”
Kano stared at him for a long time before finally dropping his guard and letting the aura he’d been gathering fully dissipate. He smiled for the first time, though the gesture was weak and subdued.
“You’re right. You’re absolutely right.” His smile widened. “Take me to those corrupt Honor Guard. I’ve got something for em’.”
Archie raised his hands defensively. “How about you walk that road once you’ve healed, yeah?”
“No way! You motivated me! I’m ready to go now!”
“I’m happy that I did, but you really shouldn’t–”
Kano stood, winced from pain, and then grabbed Archie by the collar. “Those guys kept my brother locked away like a prisoner! I’m not sleeping until I’ve knocked 'em’ off!”
I don’t know if [SILVER TONGUE] is a gift or a curse sometimes…
As if Fate wanted to answer that question for him, a familiar, grating window appeared in his vision. His face fell as soon as he read the first two words.
LEVEL UP!