Volume 9 Chapter 34 The Black Beast
When he woke up, he found himself in a wooden mansion.
The floor seemed thicker than he imagined, and even when he stepped on it with all his force, it didn't make the slightest squeak.
The stone streets of the royal capital and the reinforced concrete streets of Earth are full of exoticism and aren't bad, but buildings like this are more fitting.
For Kougaru, who was born and raised deep in a forest where no one ever stops, the feeling beneath his feet was nostalgic.
The room is dark, but he can still see how spacious it is.
Kougaru was the only one who came to this room.
He has no way of knowing what happened to his other companions, but he has a good guess.
The only person who was called to this place was himself.
And there is also one person waiting there.
"So, you're my opponent?"
"My name is Shikin. I am a guide (grimoire)."
Sitting cross-legged on the floor was Shikin, the Grimoire that Yuusuke had cut down at Kouyajo.
However, that appearance is quite different from that time.
The robust physique has become thin, and the aura that attracted everyone's attention is no longer present.
The scars carved from the abdomen to the chest are too large and gruesome to be called mere cuts.
They are the marks of being crushed by a dragon's fang. Even though Yuusuke had no intention of killing, the fact that he is sitting here so naturally is nothing short of a miracle.
"Oh, I know you. I've seen you before."
"Sorry, I have no memory of that time."
"Cut it out. I'm not the kind of guy who would let someone off the hook just because they didn't intend to kill me."
With these words, Kougarou passed by Shikin and headed for the door at the back of the room.
In fact, Shikin's body was in a terrible state.
It was not just the wounds inflicted by Yuusuke. Shikin had incorporated a magic called "Mukyuuren (Infinite Forge)" by strongly suggesting the accumulated training in Senjutsu from the past into it.
The collapse of the self that occurs as a result of the unraveling of that implication.
Magic is the very form of one's soul.
Because it was a deception, the cost is immeasurable.
Even if left alone, Shikin's fate was to lose magic completely and perish in the not-so-distant future.
There is no longer a need to take action.
Without even looking back at the abandoned Shikin behind him, Kougarou continues towards the door. Intuitively judging that this door is what leads to the next.
Sitting in place, Shikin gives a dry laugh and speaks to Kougarou behind him.
"A farewell, huh. Your eyes seem unexpectedly dim-witted."
"Huh?"
Knowing it was a cheap provocation, Kougarou turns around.
——
And then, he was shocked by a certain fact.
In the moment he saw it, he "prepared" himself.
He was half-turned, hunched over, and holding his stick in both hands.
It was not a conscious decision. Seeing the figure of Shikin, who didn't even turn towards him, his body reacted faster than his brain.
"Ah, you're not naive enough to take on such a death-defying opponent?"
"..."
Shikin remained seated, facing the other person.
If he wanted to, he could easily crush vital points, whether it be the head or the neck.
However, he couldn't move.
Similar to the "Ultimate Dragon" that lived deep in the forest of Kougaru's homeland, it had an incomprehensible enormity.
Upon Shikin's emaciated back, Kougaru saw a demon.
"You..."
Those words contained not only anger towards being engulfed solely by his own ambition, but also astonishment towards the choice Shikin had made.
"Shall I guide you to the afterlife, you child of the other world?"
Shikin slowly stood up and faced Kougaru.
Why didn't he notice?
The person standing in front of him was Shikin, and yet, not Shikin.
From the moment the implication was unraveled, it seems that a dialogue has been ongoing. Without averting one's eyes from the sin of deceiving oneself, one continued to earnestly face one's own soul.
As a result, this was born.
"Do you have any guidance? Do I need a guide on this journey of certain death?"
"I have no such intention. If I can achieve my purpose, that's all that matters."
That's what Shikin said, laughing.
He is no longer human.
He has unleashed his 'Shinrei.'
'Distord Lord'—just as Larkan Mines manifested Shinrei in the battle with Yuusuke, Shikin also manifested Shinrei.
To fulfill the mission as a grimoire, using the perishing body as a vessel.
A 'Mukyuuren', compressed into that slender body, and existing for a thousand years.
It was not the figure that deceived oneself, like when Larkan fought against Yuusuke.
Truly, it is the culmination of the training of a man named Shikin, who has lived for a thousand years.
Kougaru smiled.
"My apologies. The guy with the most interesting face right now certainly won't die, right?"
"Am I making such a face? It's probably been a long time since I felt excited."
Shikin lightly spread his arms.
As if saying, "Come at me from anywhere," Kougaru deepened his smile even more.
"I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Kougaru Efitona. I'll leap over your thousand years with my legs."
"You should give it a try. The distance is a bit longer than you imagine."
There was no need for any more questions or answers.
Kougaru activated his magic and pierced through Shikin's chest faster than a blink, turning into a black flash.
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