[Natural Fencing Lv.5]
CLINK!
CLINK!
CLINK!
Sparks flew all over the place, slightly illuminating the environment with each clash.
"You don't know how to use a sword, do you?" The man smiled as he lunged with his sword.
The boy was forced to retreat with a backward spin.
The man forcefully slammed the edge of his sword into the ground, cracking it fiercely.
Shinka gritted his teeth at the sight.
'His strength is greater than mine, and his sword skill... I don't stand a chance.' Shinka was in a completely disadvantageous situation.
CLINK!
The swords clashed once more, and the man looked at Shinka with an expression of confidence.
'Damn it, why did I get into this?! I should have assumed someone would take care of it. I should have just observed from a distance...' He couldn't help but be annoyed with himself.
'If I could use the Reinforcement skill consistently and not just when I need to run or attack, maybe I could do something... No. I'm overestimating myself. Even with that advantage, I couldn't win. This man is a monster!'
Thoughts churned in the young man's mind.
'I need to understand how he fights and improve my skill. Maybe then I could...!'
"I see what you're doing. Believe me, copying my style isn't something you can do simply, you know?"
Drops of sweat ran down Shinka's cheek.
CLINK!
With a thrust, the man broke through Shinka's guard.
'I'll lose if this continues!' The only option for survival had already settled in Shinka's mind.
'I have to run!'
Under the watchful gaze of the two girls who were awaiting Shinka's defeat in the battle, they were amazed by the spectacle unfolding.
With an agile movement of the man's sword, the sword in Shinka's left hand was snatched away.
If Shinka didn't want to lose his hand, he had to release his grip on the sword.
The boy's eye contracted at the scene.
From anyone's perspective, he was about to lose the fight, but that wasn't the case for him.
His body was enveloped in a blue light.
With an agile jump, Shinka kicked the man and rose several meters into the air as if he were a soccer ball.
'Between killing me and saving the two girls, which would you choose?'
With a simple touch, the sword began to spin, and when its edge pointed towards the girls...
BOOM!
A powerful kick sent the sword flying to the ground.
'W-Wait a minute... Since when do I value others' lives so little...?'
A cold feeling ran down his spine, worried that the man might not actually have stopped the sword.
WHOOSH!
In a microsecond, the man's figure disappeared.
CLINK!
His sword had averted the tragic fate of the girls.
"Are you both alright?" the man asked as he cut the halo of light binding the girls.
Both nodded, and the man turned his gaze back to the battlefield.
"That boy..."
Shinka had successfully fled.
He had left no trace.
"F-Father, we were humiliated!" Kaede shouted with tearful eyes.
"Ahh, alright, calm down. Explain to me in detail what happened."
. . .
"Shinka, you're pale! Is everything okay?" asked the boy's aunt.
"Everything's fine. Maybe I overdid it with food this morning." Shinka said with a silly laugh while scratching his head.
In his hands, he held his aunt's shopping bags, though they weren't the original ones. He had had to abandon them at the warehouse!
'I'd like to have the time to feel sad about my money, but...'
"Alright, we better go home. We don't want any accidents here."
Shinka simply nodded and they both left in the family car.
On the way, the aunt and nephew started to chat a bit, but it was abnormally quiet. Shinka was having one of those moments where he really had to dedicate all his cognitive abilities to a single task.
'Did I really... try to kill them...? No! I'm overthinking it. It was the most logical move. Besides, I knew that man would save them. Yes. That was it...'
'Come on, Shinka, don't get sidetracked! They saw my face. It won't be hard to find me with the sparse population of this place. Maybe it'll take them about five hours to check the town's records, but they'll definitely find me.'
Shinka's mind sank into a dark place.
He wasn't worried they would try to kill him again. In the end, he could become strong in a matter of hours, but what about normal people?
'Inevitably, if they know who I am, they'll know who my family is. They might try to kill my aunt and uncle, my grandmother, and even... my sister...'
He remembered the demonic appearance she had taken on, and immediately the crosses and attire worn by the people who had attacked him today came to mind.
'My sister, by her appearance, seems to be a demon. Those girls clearly said they wouldn't speak with demon worshipers, so they are a danger to Reya.'
Discreetly, Shinka clenched his fist in frustration.
He knew his sister was stronger than him, but would she be stronger than that man?
He doesn't know, but he does have an answer.
'My system allows me to oppose anyone who wants to. I just need to train.'
The boy glanced sideways at the sword on his back. No one could see it, only him, due to the Invisibility magic.
'I must... No... I need to hunt them first!' Shinka's eye glowed a deep blue tone.
[Item: Replica: Holy Sword Muramasa.]
[Durability: 1988990/2000000.]
[Affinity: Very Low.]
[Ability: Can capture mana and release it in slashing energy waves.]
[Hidden Ability: Negates demonic energy to a certain point. (Depends on affinity with the sword)]
Reading that, Shinka understood a few things about the world.
'Demons and Church members exist. That means angels consequently exist, and in turn, God too, so I guess supernatural beings possess unique power systems.'
Perhaps the picture was now a bit clearer.
'Perhaps, the idea that only I possess this system isn't so far-fetched...'
But something else was also clear.
'Somehow, power can be inherited or shared in some way, and if that's the case, then perhaps angels share their powers with exorcists.'
This thought left a big question in Shinka's mind.
'If that's the case, then, who inherited this power I possess to me?'
As Shinka knew, that was an answer he wouldn't get soon, so he dismissed that thought, and something bigger emerged.
'If I'm going to hunt the exorcists, then they can't be the only ones investigating.'
"Aunt, I feel much better now. So I'll go out with my friends after a while." Shinka mentioned as his aunt stopped the car in front of the house.
"Whatever you say, dear." His aunt seemed to have given up on trying to manage her nephew's occasional outings with his "friends."
"Just don't be late. Alright?" she said with authority.
. . .
In a clearing in what seemed like a small forest, stood Shinka Kusaka, holding a large white sword with golden details.
SLASH!
Shinka was repeating a simple action. Lifting and lowering the sword, making a cut through the air. Like typical Kendo training.
The edge of the sword glowed with an unnatural light coming from the sky.
Anyone would think that light was being emitted by the moon, but it wasn't.
Little by little, as Shinka trained with the sword, specks of blue light emerged from his body, rising to join the giant sphere of energy forming in the night sky.
Shinka's brow was furrowed as he swung the sword.
'My body hurts, but I can't stop... It's almost complete.'
[Natural Fencing Lv.20]
'Maybe this is suicide. Maybe I'm being too extreme... But even if I don't live to see tomorrow, I think my family won't pay the consequences.'
His hands trembled at the idea of dying, but images of his loved ones passed one by one through his mind.
'Maybe I should have brought a shovel.'
His attempt at self-regulation was worthless. He wasn't a blonde hunter with scarlet eyes.
He wasn't Kurapika, the last survivor of the Kurta clan.
He was just the simple human, Kusaka Shinka.