Volume 1
Chapter 6 Part
1
Phoenix Wings Soar in the Night Sky,
A Single Flame Thrust toward the Moon 1
Translator : PolterGlast
―Time went back a little.
A shock surged through
his body.
Akira's only
recollection at the time was that he and the other defenders in the squad were
all kicked to the ground by the Giant Ogre.
"Gah~, hah~,
buh~!"
For a moment, his
memory was cut off, and he found himself rolling over and over, licking the
ground.
He hit his chest hard
and choked, gasping for oxygen in the air.
"W-what just happened―."
While keeping his
wobbly vision under control, he barely managed to stand up.
Although Akira's
condition was quite bad, his surroundings were even more miserable.
In his vision, he
could see a large number of defiled beasts, mixed in with the protectors and
the squad members he was leading, lying all over the place.
He remembered what had
happened just before.
He was holding back a
horde of defiled dogs with his shield propped on the ground. He remembered
clearly that the flames fired by the protectors had scorched the defiled dogs
and the surface of the shield.
He shifted his eyes to
the side.
There was nothing
there.
As far as Akira could
remember, the wooden walls of houses had stretched for several meters ahead,
but all that remained in his vision was a vacant lot and a pile of debris.
―Boom!!
A thunderous sound
shook Akira, who stood there dumbfounded.
Looking back in the
direction of the sound, he saw a red-copper-skinned Giant Ogre fighting against
Saki and Ryota.
Each time the Giant
Ogre swung its arm, the houses flew through the air as if they were blocks of
wood being kicked around.
Saki and Ryota slip
through the gap of its attacks, close the distance to counter-attack, and
quickly move back.
Each time they did so,
flames and thunderbolts struck the Giant Ogre, but from a distance, it did not
seem to have any effect on it.
――Ga, aaa~a~aa~!!
The Giant Ogre's roar
pierced through the night darkness and reached Akira.
Fortunately, he
regained his consciousness, which had been in a state of trance.
He hurriedly checked
his equipment. The shield he was holding seems to have been shattered into tiny
pieces.
And his talismans were
...... still at his waist.
His body was covered
with injuries, but fortunately, there seemed to be no broken bones.
This alone was enough
to consider himself lucky. He ridiculed himself for this.
He had never had any
illness or serious injury in his life, although he did have a lot of minor
injuries, so he was somewhat grateful for his luck.
"―I'm fine. I can
still fight."
In a voice that was
not quite audible, he encouraged himself.
Then, deep in his
heart, he felt a surging impulse that he had never felt before.
Is it my
fighting spirit? Is it my determination to survive? I wonder why?
If it were the him
from yesterday, he would definitely be perplexed by an emotion he had never
felt before.
―I want power. A power stronger than anything else that
can repel unreasonableness.
A~a, I see.
Is it because
in that temple, the golden-haired girl is looking at me with an affectionate
gaze, with blue flames in her eyes?
―I will give it to you. You will have unrivaled
strength.
Is it because
her cherry-red lips told me so?
His shield was already
gone, and instead, his trembling right hand grasped a spear that had fallen to
the ground.
"―All personnel,
I command you! Lure the Giant Ogre to the river with everything you've
got!!"
At that moment,
Niikura, standing on the roof of a house, sent out that order.
"Hurry up! It
doesn't matter how far to the river, just use everything you've got to lure it
toward the river!!"
Akira followed his
words and started to run, but that was when he realized something.
The Giant Ogre in
front of him was not paying attention to his surroundings.
Instead, it was
focused only on Saki and Ryota, and was attacking them frantically.
Saki and Ryota, on the
other hand, seem to have their hands full just defending themselves against the
onslaught of the Giant Ogre.
The storm of violence
wielded by the Giant Ogre almost completely stopped the combined attacks of the
two apprentice guardians, and the skin of the Giant Ogre completely nullified
the spirit techniques that were being fired at it.
After focusing all
their attention on the Giant Ogre's onslaught, they were barely able to keep up
with it.
That's why, the moment
they shifted their attention and tried to run toward the river, they would be
crushed by the fists of the Giant Ogre.
Saki and Ryota were
also aware of this, and although Niikura's orders must have reached their ears,
they were unable to take action to escape.
Niikura was also
trying to turn the hostility toward himself by attacking it from a distance,
but it did not seem to be working, perhaps because the power of his spirit
technique was inferior to that of Saki and Ryota.
At this rate, even if
Akira were to carry out the order, it was unlikely that he would be able to
lure the Giant Ogre to the river.
"―Dammit!!"
Akira's mouth
unintentionally uttered a cursing word.
But,
"What should I
do? Just what am I supposed to do―?"
It was a question he
directed toward himself.
With trembling
fingertips, he pinched out the provided fire-type offensive talisman.
"Just run as fast
as I can, that's all I have to do, right?"
He thrusts the
talisman into the tip of the spear he has just picked up and held it upside
down,
"―If that's the
case, why should I have to challenge the Ogre head-on!!"
Leaving such cursing
words to himself, Akira kicked the ground and ran toward the Giant Ogre.
It would be a lie if
he said he was not afraid. He was not so ignorant of the reality that he could
dream of a convenient future in which he could challenge a powerful Youma like
a Giant Ogre and survive in one piece.
However, He was able
to become a shrine parishioner.
He was able to secure
a place in Shumon Province through the kindness of a girl he knew very little
about.
That's why,
―I wanted to do something that would not embarrass the
smile that Shuka had directed at me.
"A ,
aaaaaa~~!!"
While yelling in the
face of the wind whistling in his ears, he rushed toward the Giant Ogre.
A reckless act that
even a protector would hesitate to do.
This is because, for
someone of Akira's caliber, even the mere graze of the Giant Ogre's fist could
result in him turning into a blood stain on the spot.
Akira himself
understood this well.
Therefore, Akira had
no intention of challenging the Giant Ogre to a melee combat, even if he
intended to get close to it.
He approached until he
had only 4 and a half meters to go.
However, the Giant
Ogre still did not pay any attention to Akira.
It was only natural.
The Giant Ogre only focused its attention on the more powerful level of
spirits.
Let alone high-ranked
spirits, Akira, who did not even possess a spirit itself, was probably less
than nothing but air for the Giant Ogre.
―That's why he can do such a reckless thing.
Taking advantage of
the fact that the Giant Ogre was not paying attention to him, Akira swung his
spear in a big swing while running at a fast pace and threw it,
There do exist things
called spear throwing and throwing techniques, but in Takamagahara, these
techniques are considered to be part of the wrong way, wrong style.
The reason is simple:
after throwing their weapons, they inevitably become unarmed, in other words,
they lose their ability to continue fighting.
To this day, fighting
against Kegare is considered to be a lengthy battle, and all the various styles
emphasize the ability to continue the fight rather than the power of the
attack.
If Captain Asogi ever
found out that Akira was doing spear-throwing, he would surely subject Akira to
special training to the point that he would be vomiting blood.
Nevertheless, since he
could not allow himself to get close to the Giant Ogre, this was the only
option Akira could take.
He had no intention of
fighting in the first place.
He was only going to
approach the ogre, throw his spear at it, and if he got its attention, he would
run as fast as he could to the river as instructed.
*Woosh*. The spear
made a sharp cut through the air and flew straight toward the Ogre.
Actually, Akira did
not really expect the spear to hit.
He had never learned
the art of throwing, and this was the first time he had ever thrown a spear.
He only thought that
if it worked, he would be able to attract its attention.
However, this idea
brought about a result that Akira could never have imagined.
――Ga~!?
*Thud*.
The spear pierced the
raised left elbow of the Giant Ogre, which Saki and the others had been unable
to injure even with their persistence.
The spear, which stood
out against the Ogre's huge physique, was only as big as Akira could handle,
and for the Ogre, it was only as uncomfortable as a splinter.
However, due to this
foreign and uncomfortable sensation, the Giant Ogre's movement stopped for the
first time.
Beside it, Akira ran
as fast as he could,
―At that moment, the bloodshot gaze of the Youma and
Akira's gaze met.
Nevertheless, his
right sword finger slashed through the spiritual threads of the talisman at the
tip of the spear, even from a distance.
The brilliance of the
vermillion gold danced on the talisman attached to the tip of the spear, and
then thunderous explosions and flames released from the talisman struck the
Giant Ogre's left elbow.
――Ga~! A~! Agaaa~a~a~!!
A cry clearly colored
with anguish, a different kind of cry from the previous ones, rang out.
Saki and Niikura, who
had been watching what was happening, were stunned by the reaction of the Giant
Ogre.
The Ogre, who had been
unperturbed no matter how many spirit techniques Saki and the others had used,
showed an expression of anguish at the mere strike of a single talisman.
Saki and the others
understood just how unusual this was.
A gust of wind cleared
the smoke from the Giant Ogre's left elbow.
What appeared after
that was the elbow, which was gouged to the bone.
Saki and the others
were stunned by this sight.
It was the first time
that they had ever heard of a single talisman being able to corner an Ogre to
such a degree, let alone a mere spear being able to penetrate through the
Ogre's armored skin.
The Ogre, still
showing its rage in spite of the intense pain, glared at Akira, who was running
away in the direction of the river, and roared.
Without even looking
at Saki and the others, it turned and began to chase after Akira.
"G-, go after
it!!"
Niikura, who seemed to
fall into a state of shock upon seeing the scene, quickly recovered and began
to issue a command.
Saki and the others
also began to sprint after being rushed by Niikura.
However, the speed of
the Giant Ogre was so fast that it was doubtful whether they could catch up
with it by the time they reached the river.
Akira kept on running.
He had already been
running for nearly 10 minutes, but he did not feel tired at all, and on the contrary,
an exhilarating feeling that seemed to go on forever enveloped him.
"Ha,
haha~!!"
He laughed.
Even the pain in his
lungs, as he gasped for oxygen, felt good, and he was convinced for no reason
that his stamina would continue unabated.
But in reality, he was
in no position to be laughing.
The roar and the
raining pieces of debris conveyed the reality that the Giant Ogre was coming
after Akira.
It was indeed
frightening. But more than that, the fact that such a huge Youma was chasing after such a small, insignificant person with
bloodshot eyes made Akira feel irresistibly thrilled.
Akira ran as his
emotions demanded, to the point of forgetting to breathe.
The street he was
sprinting down was a straight line that led to the river.
Beyond the open
unobstructed street, he could see the bank leading to the Tatehami River.
―There are only 100 meters to go to reach the Tatehami
River.
If he could overcome
this distance, Akira would win.
With unprecedented
seriousness, he put all his strength into his legs.
―At that moment, an explosion resounded, and a house
flew through the air right at the end of the street Akira was running down.
"Are you kidding
me!?"
Akira was startled,
but he could not slow down.
Ahead of Akira's vision
as he sprinted, a second Giant Ogre appeared from behind the billowing dust in
the area where the house had once stood.
――Ga, a, aa~a~aa~!!
Perhaps already
recognizing Akira as an enemy, it leaped toward him at the same time as it
roared.
The trajectory of the
Giant Ogre leaping through the air accurately targeted Akira.
If things continued as
they were, the Giant Ogre would trample him down and turn him into blood stains
on the ground.
Akira was convinced of
this and threw himself forward to roll.
The Giant Ogre landed.
The street shook, and
Akira's body, which was rolling on the ground, bounced off the ground like a
bouncing ball.
"Ugh."
He gasped for air and
almost crouched there, but he got up with his willpower and started to run
again.
And now, the number of
Giant Ogres chasing Akira turned to two.
―50 meters away from the river.
Is there
anyone else who can distract them, or am I just running away by myself?
Such a question filled
with a sense of loneliness passed through Akira's mind, but of course, there
was no one to give him an answer, so he just kept running.
―20 meters away from the river.
However, the situation
in which he had no choice but to run came to an abrupt end.
One of the Youmas stomped behind Akira, and the
impact caused his body to fall forward.
The impact, which
could not be ignored, was felt in Akira's stomach as he rolled sideways while
reflexively protecting his face.
He was then kicked by
one of the Giant Ogres.
The pain was so
intense that he was convinced that it was nothing out of the ordinary, and that
he was floating in the air like a kicking ball.
The Ogre's leg
strength was so great that Akira's body easily jumped over the remaining 20
meters to the Tatehami River and led him to the other side of the riverbank.
Akira's body rolled to
the center of the riverbed following the slope of the riverbank.
"......Agh~, ~a,
ha."
Despite being treated
like a piece of rag, Akira's consciousness was still clear.
His breathing, which
had almost stopped due to the impact, was forcibly regulated to swallow oxygen.
Then, he moved his
body, which had finally stopped, like a caterpillar, and slowly got himself
back on his feet.
―My legs can still move, and my arms as well.
He moved his joints
carefully and quickly to check his body's movements.
His protective gear
was off, and his uniform was in tatters. More than anything, his pouch
containing various talismans had gone somewhere.
But fortunately, there
were no broken bones and no signs of serious injuries.
―Certainly, I have suffered countless fresh wounds and
scratches, but I have never suffered a serious injury or broken bone in my
life.
As he thought so
without any reason, he suddenly glanced downstream at the river.
There he saw a white
Orochi, an apparition of a giant snake, thrashing about, writhing and
slithering.
Was that the
apparition of Kutsunagahara?
―Is that Captain Asogi fighting against it?
A figure wielding a
katana was seen in front of the serpent's nose.
It was hard to tell
from this distance, but even so, the only person he could think of who could
stand up against the apparition was Captain Asogi.
―Boom!!
At that moment, with a
deafening sound that split the night air, two Giant Ogres landed on the
riverbed, with Akira in between them.
On the upstream side
was the Youma that Akira had wounded,
and on the downstream side was the unscathed one.
Both of them were
angrily blocking Akira's escape route, but they showed no signs of moving.
―As one would expect from powerful Youma. They seem to
have more intelligence than the average Youma.
Akira, who had been
expecting them to attack him simultaneously, inwardly clicked his tongue.
When he was in
Tsudzura and was being pushed around with bamboo swords as part of his
training, he had often seen idiots attacking simultaneously and would hit each
other as a result, but he was frustrated that the Giant Ogres did not fall for
it.
The wounded one took a
step forward as if to challenge Akira.
With the back gate
blocked by the uninjured Giant Ogre, there was only one option for Akira to
take.
Sway. He leaned
forward as if he were falling forward, and ran forward in time with the ogre's
step.
His aim was right
under the Ogre's left arm, which did not move properly.
While hiding behind
his opponent's arm, he slipped through the side and advanced even a little
further.
―I will struggle to stay alive even for a few more
seconds until I have a chance to survive!
Aiming at the moment
when the Ogre raised its uninjured right arm, Akira dived deep into its left
armpit.
I'm free.
Just as he was
convinced of this, a reddish-copper skin loomed in front of Akira's eyes,
forcing him to realize that his intentions had been discovered.
The kick from such an
awkward stance was far from as powerful as the previous one, but it still sent
Akira back to his original position.
"Damn it!!"
He glanced behind him,
but the Ogre behind him showed no sign of moving.
On the other hand, the
Giant Ogre in front of him showed no sign of attempting to finish him off, even
though he should have been exposed to a fatal opening.
"―Is it going to
torture me to death?"
Akira thought so, but
changed his mind when he saw the one in front of him closing the distance
slowly and surely, step by step, just at the same time Akira was getting up.
It was planning to
finish Akira off with a single blow head-on.
Having his distance
from his opponent reduced slowly and surely, Akira had no choice but to wait.
The Ogre's fighting
spirit created a sense of pressure as if a mountain was closing in on him.
Unable to move, he
looked up at the night sky with a sense of resignation.
The Giant Ogre was
looming just a few steps ahead of Akira.
He has no weapon in
his hand. He has lost his talismans as well, so there is no way left for Akira
to fight back.
―But even so,
Akira turned his eyes
straight into the Giant Ogre's eyes.
―I still want to live.
―Perhaps, I will lose, and I will surely die.
―But, I will stay alive even if I have to crawl on the
ground.
The cub that lived deep
in his heart growled and bared its fangs at the Giant Ogre until the very end.
―That's right, I will fight back.
Slowly, as if to show
off, the Giant Ogre raised its right arm.
Akira, on the other
hand, swung his right hand as if he were holding a katana.
Even if it was in
vain, if I was going to die anyway, I wanted to at least retaliate with a
single blow before I died.
Perhaps knowing that
this would be Akira's last desperate struggle, a smile of mockery appeared on
the Giant Ogre's face.
However, this smile
made Akira's whole body heat up.
Then, from the depths
of his memory, Shuka's voice came back to him vividly.
―Don't ever forget it, Akira.
I will not
forget. There is no way I will forget.
I became a
shrine parishioner. My debt of gratitude is too great to describe.
―What I grant you is the authority to cleanse the land
of all fire, to absolve it of all sin, and to lay it down in oblivion.
I don't even
need to remember those words.
Because they
were a blessing engraved in my soul.
―Don't ever forget it, Akira.
It is the
essence of the true Samadhi fire.
A single
flame, lonesome yet glorious.
The Giant Ogre raised
its right arm and swung it down,
―At the same time, Akira also moved.
―Its name is-.......
*Roar*. A heat that
seemed to consume Akira ran through his entire body from his Dantian.
Without even a moment
to realize it, Akira grabbed what was born in his sweeping right hand and swung
it unceasingly at the Giant Ogre.
"Jakuen, Gayou~―!!!"
At that moment,
everything in Akira's field of vision was painted with a vermillion-gold glow.
――――――――――
TIPS: About Youma
(Japanese monsters).
Like apparitions, they
are beings whose bodies are almost entirely composed of miasma.
Although they are
often mistaken for apparitions, they are completely different.
They are weaker than
apparitions, but they are wiser and, above all, have a greater degree of
freedom because they are not bound by their past.
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