Chapter 69 - I Dodge to the Left

"Thanks to the undead, I'm sick to death of killing the same bastard twice."

HUMMM

Spirits appeared behind me one by one.

"But I think I could make an exception for you."

Even when it came to killing someone twice.

WHOOSH—BOOM!

The fox swiftly moved out of the mana explosion's range.

"Whoa."

He brushed off his collar, which the intense heat had scorched.

"Since when are spirits this fast?"

"I haven't even started yet."

I stacked movement speed buffs on the spirits.

FWOOOSH!

Three spirits charged at the fox.

BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

But he ran along the wall, narrowly evading the mana explosions. He was even faster than before.

"Hasgard..."

Amelia's faint voice came from behind me.

"He stole... my eldest brother's ability. He'll be... faster than you think..."

She hurried to share what she had discovered before she collapsed.

"Well? You heard Her Highness."

The fox heard her too and shrugged.

"And you still haven't answered me, Daywin."

He swished one tail, pointing it at me.

"I asked how you got out of there."

He was pointing at me, but that question wasn't meant for me. Since Chiron was nowhere to be seen, he must have done something to him.

"There's something I'd like to ask you, too. Answer that, and I'll tell you."

"Fine. I did ask first... but I suppose I can be generous."

"My brother told me something."

BOOM!

A shaft of light descended from the sky, piercing the ceiling of the mage tower's top floor.

Pure white armor.

Its plates began attaching themselves to my body one by one.

"Apparently, foxes piss wherever they like and call it marking their territory."

CLACK

A pauldron locked into place last, completing the armor.

"Do you do that too?"

"..."

Instead of answering, the fox gently shook his head.

"If you don't want to talk to me, why not just say so?"

"Yeah, I really don't."

A spirit clung to my blade.

WHIIINE

The blade took on the spirit's color. The instant it was filled with divine power...

WHOOSH!

I unleashed an enormous wave of sword aura.

RUMBLE!

It surged forward like a tidal wave, filling the space from floor to ceiling to leave him nowhere to dodge.

BOOM!

The mage tower's wall cracked under the blow and sagged at an angle.

As for the fox...

"Whew."

He poked his head out of a hole he had somehow made in the floor.

"Foxes are good at digging, too. Didn't your brother tell you that?"

"Sure. Nice toilet."

"..."

Looking unusually displeased, the fox slipped out of the hole.

CRACK

Cracks spread across the blade that had housed the spirit.

This sword had been pretty expensive, too. Maybe it had one more use left.

Next, two spirits attached themselves to my greaves, one on each leg.

WHIIINE

Behind my calves, the spirits with stacked movement speed buffs let out a high-pitched hum, as if announcing they were ready.

"Think you can keep up?"

The fox spoke, then darted right up to me so quickly that it could have been mistaken for teleportation.

But I had already begun moving my leg. As he closed in, I kicked him.

WHACK!

He had come within inches of me, only for my leg to send him flying back.

"Heh heh."

He easily regained his balance with his tails and grinned.

"You know, the first prince acquired a spell developed in this mage tower. The best movement spell in existence, in fact. But he couldn't use even a quarter of its potential. No matter how good a spell is, it's useless if your body can't withstand it."

He tapped his chest with one tail.

"Unless you've got a body like mine."

The fox drew a deep breath and slowly closed his eyes.

"I've devoted my entire life to strengthening my body."

He exhaled as he spoke, white vapor escaping his mouth.

"First, I had to build a body that could make full use of anyone's abilities, no matter whom I ate. I ate strong humans, over and over and over."

ZIP!

The fox moved behind me. He could have struck me as he passed, but he didn't. As if to show off his speed.

"I'm not even at top speed yet."

As he spoke, the delayed gust of wind slammed into me. I turned toward him—

BOOM!

He rammed his body into my back. Not a punch or a kick; he simply hurled himself at me.

The body slam crushed the armor on my back. Naturally, I lost my balance and crashed into the wall.

"Hah..."

I brushed off the stone dust raining onto my head and got up. I glanced around at the three spirits flying nearby.

This enemy inevitably reminded me of my battle with the fourth Karma. As I had then, I cast [Enhanced Detection] on the spirits.

The spirits smoothly turned their gazes to the fox. They rotated to follow his every movement, as though determined not to miss a thing.

WHOOSH!

He rushed in at tremendous speed and swung a fist.

BANG!

But he struck a spirit tracking his movements, not my head. It blocked the attack as though sticking itself to his fist.

"Oh."

He regarded the spirit that had stopped his fist with curiosity.

"So that's how it works."

He threw a testing kick, and a spirit followed that too, cutting off its path.

BOOM!

After blocking his instep, the spirit flew back to my side.

"Now I see why Karma lost without putting up a fight."

"So you're the one who sent Karma."

"Me, you could say. Though 'us' would be more accurate."

The fox gave a nasty smile and swung a tail.

BANG!

Again, a spirit blocked it—but then he fanned out all nine tails like a peacock.

THUD-THUD-THUD-THUD!

Each tail moved independently, raining down heavy blows.

The spirits followed his movements and blocked them, but he had nine tails, two hands, and two legs.

"Looks like you don't have enough."

CRUNCH!

I blocked a kick that slipped through the spirits with both arms. Cracks began spreading through my gauntlets.

"Ah, now I get it."

The fox smiled as he folded his tails. Despite attacking with literally his entire body, right down to his tails, he showed no sign of fatigue.

"You can't summon an unlimited number of them."

He pointed at a light spirit.

"That mediocre fool Karma only had two swords, so you shut him down easily... But I'm different."

He twitched those troublesome tails, taunting me.

"You haven't had more than five out this whole time. Is five your limit?"

"Yes. For now."

"Huh? I didn't expect you to just admit it."

"You're right. This isn't like fighting Karma. Your speed, your power, your tails."

"Yes, yes, of course. I'm in a different league."

"Then I'll have to fight differently too."

WHOOSH

All three spirits hovering in the air attached themselves to my body.

All five were on me now, reinforcing the armor's plating.

Instead of blocking with airborne spirits, I would move myself. The spirits wouldn't be receiving my buffs anymore, so there was no reason to keep them in the air.

"What's this? Giving up on defense?"

"Spirits have different mana circuits from humans. They can accept far more mana. In other words, if I keep enhancing them, they can eventually match even your top speed."

"Hmm. Even if they can match my speed, five of them can't..."

"Stop you. Not with those nine disgusting tails of yours."

I pointed at the fox's fiercely widened eyes.

"So I've decided to enhance you instead."

069

HUMMM

Mana gathered at my fingertips, and the buff spell took effect.

Movement Speed Increase

I sent it into the fox's body.

"... What?"

"How's that? Feeling lighter on your feet?"

"What... are you doing? What are you doing?! I was enjoying myself! Why would you... This isn't fair!"

"That mouth of yours is the problem."

Movement Speed Increase

I layered a second buff over the fox's body.

"You said you've strengthened your body to withstand any spell. Your limit for accepting mana must be different from a human's, too."

Movement Speed Increase

Three stacks.

"Didn't you hear me? I can withstand any spell. You seem to be trying to overload me, but this isn't nearly enough."

"Overload you? No. That's not my intention."

Movement Speed Increase

The fourth.

"As you can see, I'm merely making you faster."

"So you've given up fighting after all... Is that all you've got? You don't think you can win, so you'd rather make me even stronger? Do you think you can die honorably if you can say I was hopelessly beyond you?"

Perhaps he felt his duel to the death had been sullied; the fox looked genuinely offended.

"Cut it out! Fight me properly!"

He swung his arm irritably—and...

WHOOSH!

The momentum threw him off balance, sending him tumbling.

"... Huh?"

He braced a hand against the floor, looking bewildered.

"Do you understand now?"

"What did you..."

"I told you. I'm only making you faster."

He pushed against his knees to stand, but even that left him staggering, barely managing it.

I seized the moment to give him another buff.

Five stacks.

WHOOSH!

He rushed at me, but instead of reaching me, he crashed into the wall.

"What's wrong? Having trouble adjusting?"

"You..."

"As you said, Karma was mediocre. I couldn't use this method on him. But you happen to be fast enough to give even my spirits trouble."

The fox slowly rose.

"But that's because you're using stolen magic. Your body wasn't that fast to begin with. So if you suddenly became too fast even for you to control..."

His eyes flashed as he lunged, but this time he hit the ceiling and fell to the floor.

"Could you really adjust?"

"Kh, heh..."

Sprawled on the floor, he lifted only his head.

"So... you haven't given up... Good...!"

He deliberately slowed his movements to avoid moving too quickly.

"But you shouldn't move too slowly, either."

WHIIINE!

I leaped in and brought my fist down at his head. He rolled aside to dodge it, but moved too quickly and slammed into the wall again.

Still, he wasn't embedded as deeply as the first time.

He was gradually adapting.

"How arrogant."

He brushed off the dust and took his stance.

"I am a perfect organism."

While he stood still, I cast another buff on him.

Six stacks.

"No matter how fast I get, all I have to do is adapt."

"I wonder how long you can keep that up."

"You'll regret making me stronger."

BOOM!

He lunged, shattering the floor beneath him. The breaking floor was all I could see.

His movements were now invisible to the naked eye.

Just as I thought he had finally become too fast for me to track...

"What will you do now?"

He charged at me and swung his tails. There was no way I could block an opponent too fast to see.

CRUNCH!

A tremendous blow knocked the breath out of me and sent me flying. Even my spirit-reinforced armor couldn't withstand it, crumbling away in pieces.

"Ghhh..."

Through the agony, I moved my uncontrollably trembling fingers.

A buff.

Seven stacks.

"You're insane. You're still going to enhance me? I told you, I'll adapt..."

Eight.

Nine.

Ten.

Eleven.

I kept increasing his speed.

"... Fine. Let's end this. If you want to die, so be it."

The fox prepared to charge.

"I dodge to the left."

"What?"

When I didn't answer, he shook his head as if he'd had enough, then kicked off the ground.

BOOM!

The fox charged with a deafening roar, and then—

CRUNCH!

He smashed his head into the wall and spewed blood.

"Gah, hhk..."

Perhaps the sudden impact had rattled his brain; he staggered, unable to keep his balance.

"What... You shouldn't even be able to see me now. How did you dodge..."

"I dodge to the left."

"What is this... nonsense you keep spouting?"

Blood ran from his forehead into his eyes.

Hearing me say I would dodge left, he accelerated toward my left side.

But...

BOOOM!

"Ghh, gaaah..."

Once again, he rammed himself into the wall and writhed in pain.

Twelve stacks.

"How... are you... dodging this?"

His speech was slurring, perhaps from the repeated blows to his head.

"I dodge to the left."

"What the hell... are you doing?!"

As the fox shouted, I checked the message window.

"The other way this time, then."

No matter how fast the fox became, even if I couldn't see him, it didn't matter.

Simulation in progress...

Checking the outcome of your choice.

You dodge to the left, but take a direct hit from the enemy's attack and die with 100% probability.