Volume 3
Chapter 5 Part
3
Princess
Dances with Vermillion Gold, O you, Sever the Causes and Effects 3
Translator : PolterGlast
It is said that the
former Nakiri territory was an uncharted land where many Giant Ogres roamed.
It is the confluence
of the dragon veins leading from the Nanbane Mountains, and at the same time,
it is one of the largest miasma reservoirs in Takamagahara.
The people who live
here have spent their everyday lives resisting the attacks of the Giant Ogres.
They forge their
swords and hone their skills. All in order to at least strike a blow at the
Giant Ogres.
Hatred of demons and
determination. Perhaps it was a natural consequence of this fierce struggle
that they forged it into a sacred artifact.
The katana had the
appearance of an ordinary katana, as if it had been carved out of a person's
determination itself.
The blade was about
two feet long, and the dull luster of the iron, which didn't give any
impression of sharpness, reflected the ambient light dully.
Jin lightly unsheathed
the katana and called out a single word that was engraved in his soul.
"Hyakkimaru."
With that alone, a
powerful wind split the void and the steam curtains opened up at once.
A gust of wind curled
around Nakiri Jin's body, and he stepped forward as if drawn to it.
With a gliding gait,
he dived into the Giant Ogre's chest and unleashed an unrestrained blow into
its exposed belly.
―Go~on~.
A sound so thunderous
that it was hard to believe coming from a human striking a living creature
overwhelmed the surroundings,
―Unable to withstand the shock that rippled through its
belly, the Giant Ogre stomped its foot against the ground.
The Giant Ogre's skin,
strengthened by the miasma, was more flexible and harder than half-formed
steel.
Moreover, because of
its unusual resistance to magic and spiritual power, it is extremely difficult
to break through its skin even with spirit techniques, not to mention slashing
attacks.
It is not for nothing
that the Giant Ogre was able to overcome the spirit techniques of Saki and
Ryota, who are direct descendants of the Eight Families, even though they are
still inexperienced.
The Giant Ogre, a
representative of such toughness, took a few steps backward, and Jin's mouth
was pursed in dissatisfaction.
"Tch, these damn
filths.
...... They
underestimate me, huh?"
Giant Ogre increases
its strength according to the time it has spent since it was born. Judging from
the response after hitting it, this demon was no more than five years old.
Even so, it is still a
formidable opponent, but this time they met a wrong opponent.
The Giant Ogre swung
its fist down with a big swing.
The speed was not so
fast, but the huge fist, clenched in a tight grip, compressed the air as it
approached Jin.
Jin, on the other
hand, held his katana as a shield against the fist.
―Clash.
With a deafening sound
and splattering raindrops, the clash momentarily stained the surroundings
white.
The Giant Ogre's still
poor intellect visioned Jin being blasted away like a rag. ......However, the
scene after the vision cleared easily betrayed the Giant Ogre's expectations.
The sight of Jin, who
was holding his blade tightly, without seeming to have any difficulty at
stopping its fist.
Unable to comprehend
the phenomenon, the Giant Ogre backed away in fear.
The distance between
the two was slightly opened, and without missing this opportunity, Jin first
closed the distance in a single step.
Hyakkimaru cried out,
as if it had a will of his own.
"Don't whine,
Hyakkimaru.
Although it's a puny
one, it's been a long time since you've eaten an ogre. I'll feed it to you
right away."
―Ga!!??
The Giant Ogre, which
is supposed to be a powerful metamorph, is treated as a food.
The Giant Ogre's poor
reasoning turned bright red at the obvious cheap provocation.
―And,
The Giant Ogre, which
was regarded as prey, saw his brethren swinging a telephone pole behind Jin.
The violent force
generated by its stout arm effortlessly swung the pole down as if it were a
twig, dragging the sparking wires through the air.
Even if he were a
guardian, he would have chosen to evade the massive mass, but the height and
momentum of the swing drove it toward Jin.
However, Jin did not
waver as he focused his gaze on the Giant Ogre in front of him, and he simply
raised his Hyakkimaru casually toward the violence approaching from the rear.
The mass that would
crush most things was stopped by steel that was supported by the strength of a
mere human arm, and the excess shockwave kept the falling raindrops in the air
for a moment.
Expect to see a cocky
human turned into lumps of flesh by the ensuing impact.
...... But after the
shockwave subsided, what stood there was the figure of Jin, standing motionless
with a telephone pole and steel locked in opposition to each other.
"Is that all you
got, puny filth? You'll have to wait your turn."
His declaration was
brief, and the Hyakkimaru was swung out.
The path the tip of
the Hyakkimaru carved in the air was sharp, despite its dull brilliance.
With an audible
cracking sound, the pole shattered, and the demon was sent hurtling backward.
―Agaah!!?
With a crash, the
Giant Ogre plunged headfirst into the brick wall of a multistory building.
Treating the Giant
Ogre, which was supposed to be a powerful metamorph, with ridicule, Jin
furiously swung his Hyakkimaru at the other Giant Ogre.
Jinroin-style
Spirit Technique, Shoden, ―Kamaitachi.
A sharp slash soared
through the air, digging into the Giant Ogre's physique, leaving it no time to
evade,
―It rushed backward.
―Ga!?
From shoulder to
waist, a large slash was carved into the Giant Ogre's skin.
A confused scream
escaped from the Ogre's mouth, as it felt a pain it had never experienced
before.
The ogre had once
attacked a human village, even if it was only a newborn.
Naturally, it had also
engaged in battle with protectors.
At that time, it had
experienced numerous spirit techniques, but it managed to withstand them all
with its own body virtually unscathed.
That was why he was
unable to comprehend the reality that he had been injured by a spirit
technique.
Hyakkimaru is a sacred
artifact belonging to the Nakiri lineage.
Its authority is
simple and straightforward.
It only strengthens
its owner to the point where he or she is able to engage in a fight with an
opposing demon.
―Be stronger than the demon.
―Be tougher than the demon.
All of this is for the
sake of destroying the demon.
Its power is limited
to the Ogre species, which is why it will never be defeated against a Giant
Ogre.
With a whirling storm
of wind in his blade, Jin slid into the Ogre's chest and took an offensive
stance.
Jinroin-style
Spirit Technique, Consecutive Technique―
"Shiragasane."
―Gaaaaah!!
Jin's multiple slashes
inflicted countless lacerations on the demon's skin.
Confused by the light
but non-negligible pain, the demon stepped forward, clearly at a disadvantage.
"Tch!"
With a single click of
the tongue, Jin quickly switched from offensive to defensive.
The fist that the
demon swung down was received and swept away by the turning blade. His
strengthened physical strength easily knocked down the barrage of fists that
hurled at him.
The onslaught was
eventually interrupted, and Jin tried to take advantage of the opportunity to
step forward―,
"!"
Miasma crawled through
the body of the Giant Ogre, spewing its fury through the gaps between its
wildly protruding teeth.
Even its already huge
physique swelled unnaturally.
*Squelch, squelch*.
The coppery skin quickly covered the lacerations while making a squelching
sound.
Giant Ogre's recovery
ability is indeed outstanding, but when it heals so rapidly, it is nothing
short of abnormal.
Jin's mouth breathed a
sigh of conviction as he saw this phenomenon for the first time.
"I thought it was
just a summoning technique, but looks like it has been altered in some way,
huh?
―Well, it doesn't matter. If I chop off his neck,
there's no way he'll survive."
―Gaaaaaah!!
Giant Ogre's cry
intersected with his mutterings.
The two kicked the
ground and closed the distance at the same time.
――――――――――
Swinging the tip of
his spirit weapon upward, Akira aimed at Padre's torso.
The man, still wearing
the mask of Banda, gave a loud laugh while matching the oncoming slash.
"Hi, hi. Are you
getting frustrated?
If you could just push
one more step, the blade would have reached me."
"Tch."
While being toyed with
by his opponent's provocations, Akira kept on slashing.
Akira was the one
keeping on the offensive. Despite this, however, Padre's gait kept misleading
the tip of Akira's blade.
The slick footwork did
not allow the blade to reach the true core of the torso.
―Fwoosh.
A powerful wind rushed
in from the rear, slightly opening the gap between Padre and Akira
"Crap...!!"
A slimy black figure
forcibly intruded into the gap.
Akira lost sight of
Padre due to the Centipede's intrusion.
The same pattern has
been repeated since a few minutes ago.
If Akira attacked, he
could easily close the gap, but if the gap opened up even slightly, he would
have to start all over again from the beginning due to the intrusion of Armored
Centipede.
This is no
coincidence. The Armored Centipede definitely has the intelligence to make
tactical decisions.
With a hint of
frustration, Akira unleashed a cleaving slash.
The slash, which was
filled with spiritual power, carved a trail of flames on the Armored
Centipede's carapace, but―.
―Unscathed.
―Ki, ki?
It tilted its head
slightly, as if it did not feel much pain, and then swung its towing limb out.
The flexing limb fired
like a whip, forcing Akira to retreat even further.
"Damn it!!"
"What's the
matter?
That kind of firepower
won't do a scratch on Banda, you know?"
"Silence!"
He shouted back at the
taunts echoing from beyond the Centipede,
―Release a blow from the upper stance.
Kihoin-style Spirit
Technique, Shoden―
"Enga!"
―Ki!?
The flaming slash
produced a small-scale explosion, and the Centipede's huge frame lifted
slightly.
Perhaps this made the
Centipede angry, its poisonous yellow-colored limbs extended toward Akira.
―Swish, swish, swish, swish!!
"!!"
The many limbs chased
after him, and although he was able to repel some of them, Akira chose to
evade.
The unrelenting yellow
spears chased after Akira, and each time it pierced the surface of the ground
in the form of limbs.
"...... This is
weird. I believe your firepower is not that weak. What are you holding back
from? ―Aah,"
Padre's tone was laced
with sneer, then, he only realized what he was saying after he said it.
"It's the exact
opposite, huh? You were afraid of causing harm to the people.
―Alright, even though I'm looking like this, I'm still
a priest. Let me relieve you of your worries."
"Stop―!!"
Following Padre's
mockery, the massive body of the Armored Centipede wriggled.
Before Akira could
stop it, it plowed through the walls of the multistory building, traversing in
various directions.
Screams erupted from
everywhere in the building, perhaps from those who had been hiding, unable to
move.
"F*ck*ng
bastard!!"
Anger drove Akira to
move, and flames coiled around his sword blade in response to his spiritual
power.
Kihoin-style
Spirit Technique, Chūden―
"Hayabusa-gake!!"
Stepping with all his
might on the steam-swept ground, he leaped to the Armored Centipede which crawled
along the walls of the building.
He went over the
shattering window glass and grabbed the towing limb that swam in mid-air.
By trailing over the
limbs, he closed in on the Centipede's torso.
Rushing over the wall,
he accelerated further.
A moment after staying
in mid-air, the blade swung toward the tail of the Armored Centipede.
Kihoin-style
Spirit Technique, Consecutive Technique―
―Shigure Ryūgo.
There was no time to
hesitate. Akira twirled from his waist and released a blazing slash.
It was released
without regard to his collapsed posture, and albeit slightly, it certainly
sliced through the Centipede's torso.
―Gyaaaaaa!
A soul-deafening
scream erupted from the Armored Centipede's mouth, and its huge, rampaging
frame fell from the wall to the ground.
It fell to the
pavement with a resounding thud, wailing and writhing in pain on the ground as
if it were a human being.
Akira, who landed on
the pavement a little later, measured the distance between the two of them.
He held his sword,
still smoldering with a vermillion-gold glow of fire, in a mid-level thrusting
stance, and braced himself carefully.
His aim was to unleash
the quickest possible spirit technique.
Kihoin-style
Spirit Technique, Shoden―
"Hibaridzuki!!"
The scorching thrusts
were delivered with all his might.
―G-Gyaaa!!
The Armored
Centipede's flank was gouged deeply, and while screaming, it looked upward to
the sky.
Perhaps regaining its
senses from the pain, it fell down and bared its fangs at Akira.
Akira, on the other
hand, retracted his sword and slashed vertically from Hassō-no-kamae stance.
"!!!!"
A slash with a
vermilion-gold trail in tow met the falling Centipede head-on.
A loud sound echoed,
and once again, the Centipede's fangs rose to the sky.
"―Damn it. As I
thought, only the head is tough."
"Have you finally
noticed?
A divine artifact
protects Banda-dono, but please keep in mind that there is no victory for you
unless you surpass its indestructibility."
"I have never
heard of a metamorph using a sacred artifact!"
Akira clicked his
tongue in reply.
Padre's mouth
contorted upon hearing Akira's cry of frustration.
"No, no, I
thought you already knew that.
Well, let's see. It
was none other than you who pulled out the thorn (pārijāta) just a few days ago,
wasn't it?"
Hearing these words
spoken proudly, Akira momentarily forgot to move.
The memory of the
battle at Gennaji Temple came back to his mind, and anger rose in his throat.
"That was you,
too!!??"
"―Hi, hi!
However, I don't get it."
With a slippery gait,
Padre slid in to invade Akira's range of attack and slashed.
Although it was not
that fast, Akira desperately tried to parry the slash, which seemed to erode
his blade.
"Why are you not
using your sacred artifact? If you use it together with Arawakamioroshi, you
will easily win this battle."
"―!"
"You see. I am
quite knowledgeable.
We know that you,
Akira-dono, is the Kanna-no-Mikura."
Not only did he
possess a sacred artifact, but he even knew about Kanna-no-Mikura.
Driven by Padre's scornful
voice, Akira pulled out a fire offensive talisman from his pocket without even
a second to think about it.
Immediately after,
with a loud explosion, a blaze of fire covered both their vision.
Not wanting to lose
his vision, Padre kicked the ground and tried to retreat.
Padre's long robe
fluttered slightly. However, breaking through the smoldering red lotus, Akira's
palm grabbed its edge.
"―Hi!"
"―I won't let you!"
The momentarily
fluttering robe of the wood element protected Akira, and in an instant,
everything dissipated into the void.
The wood-element
barriers, which he generated by spending all the wood-element talismans he had
at his disposal, successfully helped him forcefully break through the
explosion. Ultimately, the outcome was in Akira's favor.
The sword that Akira
brandished was soaked in the rain, and its blade shone with an even more
vermilion-gold glow.
Kihoin-style
Spirit Technique, Chuden―
―Kitsutsuki Tōshi.
Divine energy raged,
and a blast of flame was delivered toward Padre's forehead.
―*Crack*.
"!!???"
A cracking sound and a
slightly fragile response returned to Akira's hand. Beyond Akira's gaze. A
thin, but still definite crack was formed on the wooden carved old-man mask.
The sacred artifact
was damaged. This fact shocked and confused even the person who caused it
himself.
"...... As
expected. After being roasted twice with the divine energy of the fire-element,
the damage can't be ignored anymore, huh?
Nevertheless, I must
say, you did a great job!"
But even apart from
that fact, the power of Akira's attack proved to be powerful.
Padre, whose mask was
damaged and barely defended against the spirit technique, took a few steps
backward with admiration in his eyes.
Staggering in the
middle of a heavily marked main road, Padre managed to stop there.
Staggering in the
middle of the main road, Padre managed to stop there.
―He was right in the middle of where Akira had aimed.
"Tsuguho!!"
"~!!"
A golden glow stained
the darkness of the rainy sky, and a blue flame's glare shot forth at Padre.
Tsuguho, whose body
danced in the air, aimed at Padre's back, gaining the momentum of a phoenix
aiming for its prey.
――――――――――
TIPS: About the Sacred
Artifacts of the Land Gods
Unlike the
natural-born divine pillar, the land god is a being whose spirit has ascended
to the summit to become a divine pillar.
Since they do not have
a myth as a divine pillar, they are originally incapable of forging sacred
artifacts. However, there are some land deities who obtain sacred artifacts in
rare cases by forging memories, or history, that have been seared into the
land.
Hyakkimaru is one of
them.
Although it is
restricted to only one type of demon, it has the authority to fight
single-handedly against great demons as long as they are Ogres.
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