Chapter 54: Tension.
The sound of mad laughter rang out, causing the group extreme panic.
"Hahaha..."
Kazuka had finished recovering and stepped toward where Airi was standing; his face was also filled with intense confusion.
"What happened? Why is he laughing?"
Airi shook her head.
"How would I know? There's a possibility something happened to his consciousness."
The laughter grew louder than before.
Suddenly, that laughter cut off instantly, making the atmosphere silent and even more tense. He raised his face, still maintaining a smile, but there was no sound of laughter. That smile was distorted and showed clear madness.
Whoosh!!!
Takeshi charged forward with extreme speed; the hard rock under his feet cracked slightly. He threw a punch filled with energy toward Airi. It grazed Airi's face; she leaned her body back, her hair flying everywhere.
— "So fast."
Kazuka rushed in, his hand creating an energy blade.
But Takeshi spun around once, his left leg acting as a pillar. His right leg swung out a sweep in an arc.
The kick immediately struck the incoming Kazuka; he flew far away, his eyes still wide with shock.
— "Too fast."
Aoto clasped his hands tightly; the form of his Guardian immediately shrank and wrapped tightly around his body.
He looked as if he had four arms: two main arms and two secondary arms made of energy.
Aoto threw two punches simultaneously from his two right arms. Takeshi dodged to one side and ducked, throwing a punch aimed at Aoto's stomach.
But one hand caught it, and the other hand threw an upper-cut punch, making Takeshi spit blood. Both right arms then swung down at the same time, hitting Takeshi's head just as he was lifted off the ground by the upper-cut.
Another large mouthful of blood was spat out; however, Takeshi's face at this moment was expressionless. He didn't even flinch from the pain.
Aoto immediately jumped back.
Whoosh!!!
Boom!!!
An arrow carrying interference energy flew close to Takeshi and immediately exploded.
Smoke and dust flew blindly; the cave shook violently. Takeshi stepped out of the smoke; one side of his shoulder was exposed to the bone. Energy was trying to fill in and heal his body.
From behind, Kazuka appeared and threw a punch straight at Takeshi's head.
Boom!!!
Takeshi took the hit; his head slammed hard into the ground, creating a hole.
Having just thrown the strike, Kazuka had only breathed one breath when his eyes opened wide in surprise.
Takeshi sprang up; the energy surrounding him was even denser than before. The whole group stood there in extreme panic.
On the right side of Takeshi's face, black scales appeared. Takeshi's red eye began to transform and turned black. Even the white of the eye was transformed.
Aoto grimaced because this energy source was shifting differently.
He summoned the large-form Guardian; the giant hands threw spears toward Takeshi. Two spears flew like lightning, but Takeshi... did not dodge.
Stab!!!
Two spears pierced straight through his shoulder and chest, but Takeshi felt no pain; his face remained very calm.
The energy surrounding him grabbed the energy spears and wrapped tightly. The spears then disappeared as if they were being absorbed.
Aoto and Airi immediately backed away, eyes bulging.
Ayaka gripped her bow tightly. She squinted, notched an arrow. The arrow glowed bright blue as energy converged. She whispered:
"If we aren't careful... we might actually kill him."
Kazuka shouted:
"No! We just need to make him lose consciousness!"
Right then, a black tentacle shot out from Takeshi's back, twisting like a whip and lashing straight at Kazuka.
Swish!
Boom!!
Kazuka should have been able to block it, but he was too shocked by Takeshi's face and let his guard down. Kazuka raised his arms to block, but the whip was so strong his arm bones cracked; his legs immediately collapsed. He spat out bright red blood.
The tentacle then lifted up, wanting to strike Kazuka once more.
But at this moment, behind Airi, Aoto had released the Guardian. He closed his eyes tightly; the energy surrounding him was extremely dense like a vortex.
Flash!!
Aoto sped off with extreme speed, making it hard for even Airi to see clearly.
Whoosh!!!!
Ayaka shot an arrow straight at the tentacle that was descending toward where Kazuka was kneeling, his face contorted in pain.
Boom!!!
The tentacle was hit and exploded. Although not destroyed, it stopped.
Aoto now approached Takeshi extremely fast. His two hands held an energy spear, drawing back for momentum.
He swung the spear; a powerful sweeping strike sent Takeshi flying and slammed him into the wall; soil and rocks shattered and scattered everywhere. Takeshi's stomach immediately sprayed blood onto the ground.
Aoto did not stop; he dashed quickly toward Takeshi once again.
Airi, standing far away, panicked and said loudly:
"Remember to be careful, or you will kill him."
Airi also jumped powerfully toward Takeshi, who was standing in the ruins.
— "Must be on guard."
Aoto rushed; the spear was held level with Aoto's ear, the tip forward. He was intending to throw a thrusting strike.
— "His energy is still too much; he won't be easily defeated yet."
Takeshi stood silently. As Aoto drew close, a series of tentacles shot out from Takeshi's back. Aoto immediately braked; he stood there, spinning the spear in a circle continuously like a large fan. The incoming tentacles were immediately slashed apart.
Airi approached from Takeshi's left, but what awaited her was a series of other tentacles. Airi did not stop; her left hand manifested a bright red sword. Both her hands now held two swords…
She swung two energy slashes, making the ground split and cutting the incoming tentacles. The blood sword she just summoned immediately disappeared from her hand.
She continued to approach Takeshi. When close enough, she brought her sword back to gain momentum and swung powerfully forward. But what awaited her was Takeshi turning his face and letting out a horrific smile; plus, the place Takeshi stood was a corner of the wall, making his face hidden by shadows even more terrifying.
Aoto was still fighting off the incoming tentacles, glancing over and seeing Airi approaching. Aoto accelerated his speed, knocking away the tentacles.
At this moment, Airi was frightened by Takeshi's face, but she did not panic. Airi still swung her sword.
Suddenly, from under Airi's feet, tentacles burst up, cracking the ground. Airi lost her balance; she staggered backward.
The tentacle strands then wrapped around Airi's body part by part and squeezed tightly. Airi's voice trembled from the pain.
"Aahh."
Ayaka, standing far away, bit her lip; she was in a very difficult position as she could do nothing.
Aoto saw Airi in danger; he erupted with energy.
"Guardian!!!!"
The Guardian stood 4 tharn tall, its head nearly touching the ceiling of the vault. Two large hands reached out and grabbed the mass of tentacles. Other tentacle strands rushed to wrap around the Guardian's body, but it seemed useless.
Suddenly, Kazuka rushed in from the left, the same side Airi was standing.
Kazuka threw a punch with extreme force, distorting Takeshi's face; his body flew far away.
"You bastard Takeshi, you..."
Kazuka turned back, his face worried, looking at Airi who was tightly wrapped by the tentacles, her face contorted in pain.
"Aaaahhh."
"Wait for me, I'll tear this mass off."
Kazuka grabbed the tentacles and used great force; he pulled each strand off. But when he pulled one off with force, others wrapped around and squeezed tighter, causing Airi more pain.
"Ahh."
Kazuka turned his worried face toward Aoto, who was under the protection of the Guardian, his two hands holding energy spears slashing the incoming tentacles.
He turned back to look at Airi, who was grimacing in pain while being squeezed; his hand grabbed the tentacle connected to the ground.
"It seems we need to take him down. Try to endure. We will help you afterward."
Kazuka rushed into the battle. Aoto glanced back, then focused on slashing the tentacles.
"Kazuka, slash these tentacles for me, open a path for me to throw the spear at him."
Kazuka nodded.
"Understood."
Suddenly, a mass of tentacles attacked from Aoto's left. He turned his head and swung the spear, but it seemed he wouldn't make it in time.
Whoosh!!!
Boom!!!
Ayaka's arrow flew in and exploded all the tentacles that were rushing in. They flew in small pieces to the ground, wriggling.
Aoto jumped back, his eyes still fixed on Takeshi, his voice loud:
"Thank you."
Ayaka: "Keep going."
Kazuka now manifested two energy blades on both hands. He continuously slashed the incoming tentacles. Normal slashes and energy slashes were thrown out repeatedly.
Aoto now merged the two energy spears together; the Guardian's arm went into a throwing stance. His shoulder lifted and tensed; his eyes shifted constantly following the movement of the tentacles.
"It's time."
Aoto gritted his teeth and threw the energy spear. Although the tentacles were being slashed by Kazuka, they continuously regrew. The spear flew through the gaps.
When it got close, the tentacles wove together to defend. But they hadn't gathered enough. And they were pierced through.
Stab!
Boom!!
Takeshi was hit by the energy spear and pinned against the wall; his stomach was pierced with a large hole.
Kazuka stood there, eyes wide with shock. He immediately turned his head, his voice questioning.
"Hey, why did you strike so hard?"
Aoto did not answer; he jerked his chin back. Before Kazuka could turn his head, he realized Takeshi's energy was different.
"What? The energy is different from before again."
He turned his head. Before his eyes, Takeshi looked very different.
Takeshi's body was covered entirely in a layer of black scales, making him blend into the darkness if there were no lights here.
Both eyes no longer had whites but only a gloomy and deadly black color. That gaze was soulless and colder than a corpse.
Behind his back was a strange black ring combined with red, with 5 sharp points sticking out, floating there. Two similar but smaller rings floated behind the backs of his hands.
Attached to his head were two half-rings with 3 sharp points sticking out like horns.
His thighs and stomach had strange patterns, resembling a skull.
The air around Takeshi also became denser, as if his very body was emitting energy that distorted space and oppressed the minds of others. The darkness where he stood seemed deeper, blacker, and unusually somber.
Takeshi raised his right hand; the tentacles swirled and transformed into a large sword.
The sword was a dull black, the blade wide. The crossguard had tentacles that were still moving eerily.
Takeshi then opened his mouth and smiled—not a smile of humor. It was a smile of delight. The mouth widened to his ears.
All three were in extreme panic and on high alert, looking at Takeshi in this new form.
Airi was now assisted by her sword; she erupted with energy.
Boom!
The tentacles flew everywhere. She held her sword and stepped forward, her gaze straight at Takeshi.
— "No need to say, it seems he is in some extremely powerful state."
Kazuka: — "What the hell? I feel the energy Takeshi is emitting is incredibly weird."
Aoto knew Airi had just escaped; he said:
"At this rate, it's not good. I feel we will find it very hard to win."
Airi: "But we still need to fight."
Kazuka nodded, but he was still quite panicked and swallowed hard.
"Understood."
Scene Change.
Velmuth was walking alongside Maia on a trail in a forest with green leaves and a gentle breeze making the leaves flutter.
Maia turned over and said:
"Is it okay for you to let them face that monster?"
Velmuth glanced over, then closed his eyes and smiled.
"You don't need to worry, there are 4 of them. They will be able to coordinate. And if not, then they die. Do you even have to ask that?"
Maia: "I see you are quite interested in that group; why would you let them die? And even leave."
Velmuth shrugged.
"If they die, they die. I felt interested only because I was surprised that a group traveling together has different races, and they seem close too."
"That's the reason. Like, if they are friends, they will understand each other. And if they understand each other, they can coordinate. I am creating an opportunity for them; I am that good."
Maia nodded.
"I see."
Velmuth: "Besides, I like being a king. Therefore, what I want right now is to become a king."
Maia was not at all surprised.
"That journey sounds quite long?"
Velmuth put his hands behind his head and interlaced them to support his head.
"That's what makes it a journey. Who would want the journey they look forward to to end?"
Maia: "Oh, I see. So when I help you become a king, will I get anything?"
Velmuth burst out laughing.
"Of course you will. You will be the person with the second-highest power."
His face then shifted to a terrifyingly serious expression.
"And now, let's begin."
Scene Change.
Takeshi swung an energy strike—it was still his characteristic orange color, but the feeling it brought and its power were different.
The vertical slash flew with extreme speed toward where Kazuka and Aoto were standing.
Whoosh!!
The floor below was split in half.
Kazuka and Aoto (2 tharn Guardian) saw this and jumped in two different directions to avoid it. Aoto jumped to his left and was immediately approached by Takeshi while in mid-air.
Whoosh!!!!
Ayaka shot an arrow, but Takeshi's hand immediately reached out. The arrow was instantly pushed back and directed toward her.
But the arrow Ayaka used this time did not have interference energy. It immediately flew past her face and stabbed into the ground, creating an extremely deep hole.
Boom!
Takeshi swung his sword.
Airi stood behind; she reached out her hand.
— "Blood Chain... Blood Chain. Why haven't I been able to summon it until now? Is something wrong?"
Takeshi's sword descended. Aoto, with the protection of the Guardian, brought both hands together with the intent to clap the blade.
Aoto caught it, but the pressure from that strike sent him flying straight down into the ground, causing the earth to shatter.
He landed and immediately swung the sword behind him. It turned out Kazuka wanted to approach from behind but had been detected. He jumped up and avoided that slash.
"Blood Thunder Shadow Storm!!!"
Airi launched a strike; the technique was like a tornado flying toward Takeshi. Takeshi swung his sword and swept the attack into nothingness.
Airi rushed in.
Clang!!!
Two weapons collided.
Clang!!!
Thanks to the power added from the Blood Night Sword, Airi was able to slash through the energy surrounding Takeshi's sword. Without that sword, Airi's slash would not have been able to pierce the dense energy on Takeshi's sword. Takeshi, with his power, was more than capable.
Once again, the sound of metal colliding rang out, but stronger. Airi was face-to-face with Takeshi and looked into those soulless eyes.
— "The body has been taken over. Talking is probably useless."
Aoto threw a spear from afar; Takeshi ducked to dodge, then swept Airi's legs, making her fall to the ground.
"Aa."
Takeshi kicked Airi, sending her flying low and far away.
Aoto rushed in; the two spears on the Guardian's hands collided repeatedly with that sword.
Takeshi, as if sensing danger, turned his head back.
Kazuka was tensing his strength, teeth clenched, face contorted.
"2 parts energy."
Seizing the opportunity of distraction, Aoto used the two spears to strike down hard, but he was still alert, turned around, and jumped to his right.
Boom!!!
Kazuka shot off; the ground shattered. His body was wrapped in an extremely large and dense energy.
The jump immediately brought him close to Takeshi; the energy blade on his hand pointed forward—it was a thrust.
When the blade was just a bit away from Takeshi's face, Takeshi's hand had already opened and the palm was directed at Kazuka.
Kazuka did not understand what was happening; confusion was clear in his eyes. Kazuka was pushed back and slammed into the wall, causing it to shatter. It was as if he had just been pushed by an invisible force.
With such high push speed, Kazuka immediately spat out blood, his face grimacing.
"What the hell?"
All were surprised and panicked when Kazuka was immediately pushed away without being physically touched.
Takeshi directed his right hand toward Ayaka; she was immediately pulled toward Takeshi, her confused gaze immediately turning to a grimace of pain.
Takeshi choked Ayaka, making her only able to grip his hand and struggle.
Airi and Aoto rushed in at the same time.
Takeshi used his sword and immediately pierced through Ayaka.
Blood gushed from Ayaka's mouth, her eyes dazed as she looked at Takeshi.
Airi and Aoto were extremely shocked seeing this scene, but they did not stop and continued to charge.
Takeshi lifted his leg and kicked Ayaka toward Aoto; he caught Ayaka and jumped back.
Airi stopped, her gaze turning to the side, where Aoto laid Ayaka down and was using energy to heal her.
She gritted her teeth, looking at Takeshi.
"Are you still conscious, Takeshi? Please stop, everyone is a friend. Why are you doing this?"
Takeshi stood there without emotion, staring at Airi. Then suddenly, he let out a demonic smile.
Airi shuddered every time she saw this smile, not knowing what to say. She just stood watching and trying to stay on high alert.
A voice spoke up, deep and slow.
"Do you think this is still Takeshi?"
Airi opened her eyes wide in panic upon hearing "Takeshi"; she was very confused and truly shocked.
— "Am I hoping? Am I hoping for what the books say?"
— "When the body is taken, if the consciousness is strong enough, it can be controlled? But it seems it's not possible. Likely we will have to fight to the death here."
She swallowed and her eyes watched Takeshi's mouth about to move.
"I... Will... Return."
"And you are the first lives to welcome me. I find that quite pleasant."
Having just finished speaking, he reached out his hand. The palm spread wide toward Airi. His smile immediately disappeared and returned to an expressionless face.
Airi knew it would be like Ayaka. She immediately turned and ran in a circle.
Whoosh!!!
He immediately sensed Kazuka's energy approaching from the left. He glanced over and reached his hand out.
Kazuka was rushing in; he saw Takeshi's hand reaching out. He immediately channeled more energy into his feet.
Boom!!!
The ground cracked. Kazuka shot off even faster; he continuously moved into corners, where there was shadow, and then reappeared. It kept repeating.
Takeshi was confused; his body and eyes constantly shifted following Kazuka's movements.
He clicked his tongue in annoyance.
Airi swung two energy slashes that flew in turn.
Boom!!
The ground shattered where Takeshi stood; he immediately disappeared. Airi's two slashes struck the wall.
Airi was confused; she immediately threw her sword.
Kazuka, while running, immediately felt something was wrong—a threat was very close.
Takeshi approached and threw an extremely powerful punch that sent Kazuka straight into the wall.
Boom!!!
Rocks flew everywhere.
He turned around, caught the sword Airi had thrown. Spinning once, he threw it back at Airi.
The sword flew past her face; she immediately grabbed the handle of the sword and charged up.
Both sides swung their swords at the same time; the sound of metal colliding.
Clang!!!
He reached out his left hand and pulled Airi toward him.
Airi was pulled in; she gritted her teeth, unable to do anything, just being pulled. Takeshi's right hand straightened, and energy formed a sharp point.
"Blood Burst Body!"
Airi was immediately wrapped in an extremely large red energy source. Takeshi threw a thrust, but the two energy sources seemed equal. They opposed each other for a moment; Takeshi knew he couldn't pierce through, so he stepped back and swung his sword.
A vertical slash with the intent to split Airi in two was launched. But Airi jumped to her left and threw out two slashes.
He swung his sword from right to left. The slash on the right arrived first and was cut through; the other slash was the same.
Airi stood observing what Takeshi's next action would be.
— "At this rate, it's not good, we need to coordinate. But if we are always being knocked away, how can we coordinate?"
— "Is his ability to pull in and push out? It's so annoying."
Takeshi immediately rushed in. Airi also rushed up so as not to lose the initiative.
Two slashes were thrown by Airi vertically. Takeshi swung his sword, wanting to slash them away.
Boom!!!
The first slash exploded. Smoke and dust flew blindly. Takeshi knew there was another slash; he immediately jumped to one side while inside the smoke.
Airi's slash cut through the smoke and struck the wall.
Unexpectedly, a series of blue energy spears were launched.
Boom! Boom! Boom.... Boom!
He continuously slashed the incoming spears and dodged, making them fly behind him.
Kazuka rushed in along with the spears, his right hand crossed over to the left to gain momentum for a slash.
Takeshi raised his sword to block.
Boom!!!
A small explosion occurred when the two weapons collided, making the place shake.
Takeshi jumped out of the smoke and landed; Airi immediately approached right beside Takeshi. Takeshi turned and swung his blade from top to bottom, wanting to block any further attacks from Airi.
Airi brought her sword out to defend. Thinking Airi would block, she suddenly let go of the sword.
Airi's Blood Night Sword was immediately slashed into the ground right next to Airi by Takeshi's sword.
Airi's right hand launched a palm strike, her left hand placed right behind the back of the hand to add force.
Takeshi could not react; it immediately struck his left chest. Blood sprayed from his mouth and he flew far away, slamming into the wall, making stones scatter.
Takeshi gritted his teeth, his right hand clutching his left chest.
Airi immediately knelt on the ground, breathing continuously.
"I created too much interference energy; now the energy inside me is too disordered."
Kazuka now seized the opportunity while Takeshi was having difficulty using energy. He approached very fast; Takeshi's eyes opened wide in surprise.
Takeshi's body was limp, unable to do anything. Kazuka, with an energy blade emitting terrifying power, immediately stabbed straight into Takeshi's stomach.
Though it was a bit difficult as the thrust had to hesitate a bit due to the scales, Kazuka finally successfully stabbed through Takeshi's stomach.
Blood sprayed from Takeshi's mouth onto Kazuka's face; Kazuka's determined gaze stared at Takeshi as he used his strength to pull the energy blade out of Takeshi's stomach.
Kazuka continued to raise his hand and prepared to launch the next strike.
Takeshi smirked.