5.1
part 1
A dark moon shone down its paradoxical moonlight over the grayed-out world, illuminating the large, half-destroyed temple grounds and accentuating the frantic movements of the ghostly images while they scouted the place and gathered their wounded.
The monstrous woman tried to lash out against a ghost that wandered too close, only to have her limb pass harmlessly across their form. She growled loudly at this before throwing her head back in a scream of anger and frustration.
The sound boomed across the noiseless world, reaching an intensity it wouldn't have otherwise. The tiny fists scrunched my shirt around my shoulders; the little girl clinging on me trembled at the roar, but even then, she refuses to make a noise.
The monster buffed, letting out long streams of smoke from her nostrils. Her face seems to be able to achieve a surprising level of beauty, but now it was stretched and twisted into a bestial display of pure fury. It turned to our direction; her fierce, single-colored eyes promising long-suffering with a hate-filled glare. Her hooved feet dug deep into the cobbled floor in preparation for a rush.
Minotauron
Cardian of The Strength
Level 24.
I sighed, supporting the little girl on my back with a hand while tightening the grip over the handle of my baseball bat with another.
How the hell did I get myself into this again?
Oh yeah, I was training…
-0-0-0-
"Mana Bolt!"
The baseball-sized sphere of mana crossed the air in a brilliant flash of light. The noise it made when impacting the large tree was odd, like someone had put a normal 'thud' produced by two heavy objects hitting each other and put it through an electronic autotune. Nevertheless, the tree shook by the force of the magical impact, and a new hole appeared in its bark.
I swallowed my shame for having spoken such chuuni thing out loud and crossed the distance of my targeting range.
"… Can't believe this actually worked." I mumbled out loud, passing my hand over the two open holes in the wooden surface, the most recent one was notably bigger and deeper than the one on it's left.
Turns out saying the name of the spell out loud really does increase its performance.
I sighed, that was neat, but I don't know if I can handle Ranma's laugher if I go around declaring 'Mana Bolt!' on all my magical attacks. But since I was utterly alone here…
A lone slime was moving in the distance. By the oddly cheerful way it bounced over the place, there was no doubt this wasn't simple slime but actually a reincarnated salaryman learning his ropes.
"MANA BOLT!"
And the slime was no more, its dreams of Utopia dying with it.
Chuckling, I noticed the strength of the spell also increased if I put emotion behind the words; overall, it was an annoying quirk but could really make a difference in a pinch because it increased the power of the spell without any additional Mp cost.
Satisfying at the success of my small experiment, I turned toward the rock with the soda cans prompted on top, ready for the next one.
I started with something I've already tried; spells, or at least Mana Bolt, when triggered by the game system consisted of concentrating enough mana on one of my extremities, briefly manifesting it outside of my body to form a sphere, then launching it with a flex of my Will. This process was made automatic by the gamer system, and one of the first things I did was triggering a lot to pay attention to all the details it goes into it. Because let me tell you, reproducing what I did on that day without the rush of panic and adrenaline was not easy. It took an embarrassing amount of time to get it right.
But I've managed. I could make the entire process on my own now, which sacrificed the time and efficiency of the system for more control. The most common and easiest thing to do with this control was to pour more mana, or Mp, into the mix to increase the size and the damage of the thing, but that's just the obvious.
What I'm trying to do was to change the more… subtle aspects of it.
First came my most recent success, the change was in the intent behind the mana because, apparently, mana outside of the body without intent is hard as fuck to maintain, but I managed to imbue it with the intent of 'push' before shooting the sphere toward the soda can.
The can was sent flying way above the tree lines, getting lost among the forested area of this municipal park.
I smiled at this display; today was easier than yesterday, quite like training a muscle. I just had to shape my mana in a slightly different way. As for the result, I knew for a fact that the target itself doesn't receive direct damage from this version of spell alone, it's just blasted backward by a mighty rush of force, like a force push that starts as a brilliant ball of energy, or a banishing charm from harry potter… which only now I realize it's a better allegory: it's basically a poor man banishing charm.
In my opinion, the resulting effect different enough to be its own spell, but the system remains silent on this.
And like with every successful attempt of this particular brand of Mana Bolt, I'm reminded of that special time a short while ago where Ranma got in the way of one of my first attempts and was launched into a group of slimes. I got kicked for it, but it was by a very naked Ranma-chan, so it was worth it.
Moving on from my little banishing charm. Came my less successful attempt.
I activated the spell, this time turning the intent behind into 'kinetic'. I had to keep it simple because if I tried 'kineticenergy' it'd be like pushing a rock through a plastic straw. This way, the energy at last moved.
Remember what I said about being like a muscle? Yeah, 'kinetic' was like flexing a muscle that only existed in theory until yesterday, but now it had been proven and you're still trying to figure it nuances.
I got it, somewhat, I felt the mana shaping in a form too much like 'push' for my liking, but I did manage to bend it in a different way. The result was a ball of mana that, unlike all the others, was semi-solid and presumably would hit like a steel ball.
The targeting soda and a piece of the rock it was on exploded, producing a shower of shrapnel in all directions.
I blinked at that. It was much more successful than the other times I'd tried, but unfortunately, that level of success didn't hold on as I moved to the other targets.
Sighing at the partial and much smaller explosion of the last soda can, I finally lowered my hand and shook away the tingling feeling. It always gets like that when too much mana passes through.
And that's the end of my 'stable' arsenal of magic. I walked to a nearby bench and erased the illusion barrier. The usual noises of the nighttime, the cricketing of insects, the cries of noctournal birds, the distant sounds of cars and people all greeted me as the world went back to normal.
I like this park better than the one near my house. There were fewer people, less illumination, and much more vegetation, which meant more target practice. There was also a mount with a big temple built on top; I imagine it brings many visitors on the day, but at night it seemed pretty empty. I could see some of it if I crank my neck up.
Pity this place is far from my apartment, near the border of Nerima and Itabashi, really. I won't be able to come here every day; I only came here tonight because I was training my ID Create skill and wanted to see how much distance it could cover.
After my Mp refilled, I created another ID, immediately filling the place with slimes. I made short work of them before they could fuse and set off to work on the 'hard' part of my training.
Concentrating into the feeling of my mana, I reach towards it without the assistance of the gamer system, pulling it out to the outside so I could see the blue glow.
The thing about magic is… I don't know anything about magic.
I've managed to use my mana and create a spell on the heat of the moment; there is no instruction or feeling that can lead me to the next step. I'm doing my best breaking down what I can do to build something new. To use the proven knowledge of mana manipulation, intent imbuement, and effect of the will to test and stretch the limits of what I could do.
It was… not as easy as it sounded.
All the success I had was related to the spell I've created before, trying to build something from the ground up was met with failure each time. I had some plans for it; elements, shields, traps, maybe some binding magic, I tried to turn these ideas into intent but got nothing.
Internal Mana Control leveled up!
Well, not exactly nothing, all this playing around with magic, which for me consisted of experimentation with mana itself, as made my Internal Mana Control skill sky-rock, now earning the spot of my highest level skill at level 7.
… Ok, I suppose not all were failures, I did manage to modify my Mana Bolt a bit, even if not to the extent I wanted, but it's still some progress.
I lost track of time sitting here, trying to shape my mana in weird ways and imbue it with odd properties, the fact I was playing with freaking magic alone was enough to leave me a bit giggly, I drew strength from that.
All my attempts were met in frustration… but one, I guess.
I rolled around a physical ball of mana in my hands, wincing a bit from how rapidly it was eating through my Mp. This is a result of me exercising my Will in a different way; instead of willing the spell to shoot, I willed it to 'hold' instead. The thing then turned physical, well, kinda-physical.
I let the ball drop. It hit the ground and actually bounced. Though on the second bounce it blew up and took a portion of the ground with it, making me jerk upwards to avoid the ballistic floor pieces.
Ok, cool, delay reaction, I wonder if I could use that and… Ah!
I should erase this barrier. I don't know if the boss is called from time spend inside or the number of monsters killed, but I don't want to find out while I'm without my main tank and DPS.
The world gained color and noise again. I let out a sigh due to the relief I always feel when going back. The cold breeze danced over my slightly sweaty skin.
The sensation was so comfortable that I just sloped down on the bench and relaxed. It was pretty late now, maybe I should get going…
Mp first.
So I let my Mp refill while listening to the night's melody, after hours of magical workout, it was a quite transcendent experience.
Spiritual Senses leveled up!
Hum!?
The sudden level up was so surprising that I almost jumped to my feet. I still stood from the bench with my guard firmly up. Considering that the last time my spiritual senses leveled was against that satori, I felt somewhat justified.
Spiritual senses basically let me get a feel for the supernatural, but now I'm not feeling anything… Wait…
I closed my eyes and concentrated, trusting the fact that the system wouldn't react without reason. If there was a supernatural event or creature close by, I wanted to know.
There is! It's distant… it's blipping like a— movement. It's moving!
It's not coming towards me, though.
I felt the faint presence in the far distance, so faint I had to keep my eyes closed even when I turned to its rough direction, I felt— and then noticed the direction it was going; upward the park, maybe on the opposite edge of where I was going to the center and up—the temple.
When the presence reached what I assume was the temple's walls, it stopped.
For a few seconds, there was no sound, just a looming wave of silence, like the world was holding its breath.
Then, a giant dome-shaped form shimmered over the horizon; it was so faint I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. Just as quickly as it appeared, however, it broke.
I choked on air and flinched. A soft guff of wind passed across my body, a shockwave of something inexplicable.
Spiritual Senses leveled up!
Holy shit!
The supernatural presence was gone. It was completely overpowered by the absolute lighthouse that was the temple itself.
I can't even— I was there, right beside it all this time, and I didn't even realize it!
My mind began formulating an explanation for all of this, it was quite simple; the temple was supernatural, it was hidden by a barrier and so didn't trigger my Spiritual Senses, but then that thing, whatever it was, had taken that barrier down in what was most likely an invasion.
My mind raced on about the possibilities and details of such event. Who are they? What is this temple? How could it hide from my senses? Did they know about me? – All while I recovered to the sensorial overwhelm and got used to the feeling of the temple. It was like the first time I've entered an Illusion Barrier, only instead of having my senses flaring up in every direction, this was a single one with enormous intensity.
The air began carrying the distant sounds of fighting and shouting, and my body was moved before I realized, crossing the park's suspiciously dark walkways until I veered into the wide stairs to the temple.
You have entered the area of influence of the Temple of The Heavenly Oni; all good alignment creatures are blessed while inside its boundaries.
You received the Blessing of the Heavenly Oni!
+ 3 to all attributes.+ 20% to Hp and Mp regeneration
Ok, definitely supernatural!
I closed the popup and pushed past the last few steps towards the temple archway.
The place was downright majestic; with a vast open courtyard of white cobbled stones and a main hall that was just as imposing as it was beautiful, looming over the place, the rest of the buildings were arranged in the usual U formation, and I was sure there was more to see in the back.
The back, where the sounds of fighting were louder, a trail of smoke had made an appearance somewhere along my run, I could already tell most of the action was happening there.
When I was about half of the way through the courtyard, a woman wearing a Miko attire hastily exited the main hall and started running towards the entrance, and by consequence towards me.
I hadn't even had time to blink before the door exploded behind her, and something came out. Something red and blue with hooves for feet's and a bigass pair of horns jutting out from its head.
"MINOTAURON!!" It roared as it projected the horns forwards, the bones extending before anyone could properly react, piercing the Miko's shoulders and making her let out a cry of agony.
I was shocked by the sudden display of violence, but I managed to see something falling from the Miko's arms and letting out a pained shriek as it hit the ground.
I crossed the distance towards it in two seconds, quickly sliding to a stop and gathering the trembling little girl into my arms.
The Miko let out a gasp when the horns piercing her body retreated. Blood gushed from her wounds as she fell to her knees and then to the ground. Reveling the monster standing behind her.
It was like a caricature of a female athlete, most of her body was covered by a thick, red fur, leaving only the area above the shoulders and a triangular patch around her bellybutton free to reveal a brilliant, light blue skin. Her face, crowned by auburn hair and massive horns, was remarkably feminine, save for her eyes, which gleamed with an alien, hard orange light, covering the entire organ in the color. Her lips curled to a bestial smile when she saw me alone with the girl, the skull-like armor around her holders and thighs rattled as she started to walk.
Until something blasted her on the back, making her yelp and snarl back.
"Begone, foul creature!!" Cried an elderly but firmly built priest coming in from the hall with a passé of similarly dressed priests murmuring a loud continuing mantra behind him. "Your kind is not allowed here!"
Saying that he hoisted his prayer beads and joined the procession, his voice adding palpable intensity to the mantra.
The woman creature, which to my increasing dismay, was looking more and more like some kind of cowgirl from hell, glowed from the priests' effort. With my Spiritual senses, but I could feel something gathering over and around her form, exerting an invisible pressure.
But whatever it was, it wasn't enough. The monster growled louder, actually ignoring their efforts to turn towards me, or, more precisely, the little girl.
There was the sound of something cutting the air at high speeds, and then the monster yelped again as a localized explosion blasted her to the side.
Spiritual Senses leveled up!
I blinked and caught the sight in the distance. Mikos were pouring from the buildings around us, some clearly injured and bleeding from the early fight. They were rushing to battle positions wielding bows and arrows. The projectiles carried a faint supernatural energy within them, it was not mana, but it felt similar. When set flying, they briefly gained a pink tunnel effect made from that energy, and then exploded on the target.
The volley of arrows was knocking the monster woman back, and it was growing more consistent as more Mikos got into position. Soon there were men and women in traditional clothes running across the courtyard to provide melee support.
It was… impressive, the way they moved with such coordinated efficiency. The mantra got louder, a circle of naginatas as put in place, and the arrows kept raining. They were pushing the monster away from us.
I looked down at the little girl in my arms. She had latched herself on my shirt with a pretty tight grip; I couldn't see much of her, save from a head full of black hair. She looked young; I wouldn't give her more than five.
"Him…Hime-sama…"
I looked up at the sound of the weak voice and immediately felt terrible. All that battle flare and the presence of the monster had made me forget about the dying Miko.
"Pleas… Please, t-take Hime-sama and… run away." The woman managed to wheeze out in a gurgling breath.
The horns probably caught her lungs, shit! I'm not a medic, and this is a bit beyond the first aid kit I keep in my inventory.
"Miko-san, don't speak, um, try to stay awake." I gathered the little girl— the 'hime' apparently— and raised her up, trying to think about something I could do about pierced lungs.
"P-please… Take her…" Her voice was getting weaker.
"Hey!" I shouted to the nearest group of warriors. "I need a healer- a medic, we got a wounded." I turned toward the Miko, holding the girl so she wouldn't see. "Don't worry, Miko-san. The rest are doing a good job. You should focus on staying alive."
"We can't… We can't… Defeat it…"
As soon as she said that, a roar broke through the night, followed by the sudden cries of pain and agony.
I saw people landing on the ground with sickening cracks, I saw the monster woman charge like a bull through the mass of bodies, the oversized horn snapping left and right to strike as many targets as possible. It was injured, clearly so, but the supernatural pressure over her body and the exploding arrows aren't doing enough to slow her down.
New Quest: Stop the villain!
A classic monster of the week is wreaking havoc; stop it by any means necessary!
Rewards:
1.000 exp.
Increases closeness with The Heavenly Oni.
????????????????????????
Failure:
Multiple deaths.
Multiple injuries.
Death
Accept/Refuse.
How the hell that thing could be considered a monster of the week!?
"H-Hurry!... Pl…Please… Sa…save her…" It was amazing how long this woman was holding on.
What she was asking was the best course of action; this girl was clearly important, and the monster was after her, the logical action then would be to put as much distance between them as humanly possible, while everybody else keeps it busy.
But if I do that…
Multiple deaths.
These people will die…
I…
… That's right. The quest wasn't to save the girl anyway, it was to defeat the monster.
Looks like a group of people is circling around the onslaught and coming towards us, finally. I stood up and met them mid-way.
"Here!" I said, pealing the little girl from my shirt and handing her to one of them. "Keep her safe. I'll do something about that thing!"
"Hime!? W-who are you-"
"No time!" I shouted as I turned around. I felt one of them grab the back of my shirt, but I ignored it and kept going, even with their desperate shouts behind me.
I can't wait, the more I wait…
The monster woman was chucking one of the priests to the side when I set off towards her. I've been watching her since the fight started, the way her charged, the simple but effective battering rams she deployed, the way her horns seem to change size and sometimes shape to reach more people. I felt like I was starting to get used to her movements.
Battle eye leveled up!
I ran beside her but not directly behind her, I had to rely on my spiritual senses to dodge the occasional arrow, but they stopped flying as I got closer.
5 meters, 4 meters, 2!
The monster threw her head downwards, aiming the horn towards a fallen Miko when I finally put her at the range of my skill.
"ID CREATE!"
The horn strike broke the coble floor right underneath the now ghostly Miko, whose pale face blinked profusely by the sudden disappearance of the monster that was about to end her life.
"HORA!" I shouted as drew my baseball bat from my inventory like a sword and used my momentum to bring it down the monster's head. Unfortunately, the following vibrations told me she had the time to turn her head slightly around so I'd struck the horn rather than the cranium.
Whatever, I didn't stay to talk, I quickly continued on my way to create some distance.
Once I choose the place to make a stand, I turned fully around and gripped my bat with both hands, facing the rising monster.
… Ah, fuck! I just brought the overleveled thing to a 1v1, didn't I?
I'd better get some bonus exp for this!
There was a tiny, near impossible to hear whimper behind my back… and then I noticed the weight…
Looking back, I met the adorable yet tearful eyes of the temple's hime, who had latched herself on to my back of my shirt like a spider monkey.
"MINON!" The Minotaur woman cried.
… Oh hell.
-0-0-0-
With a roar, the monster charged towards me.
Yeah, no. I'm with a child, and I ain't Kenpachi; there is no way I'm fighting like this.
My opponent didn't care for the dilemma, of course; she continued her simple but devastating charge forwards, horns going for maximum piercing power.
I waited for her to get close, before lighting up my Mana Bolt. The sudden flash of light blinded her long enough for me to shoot a buffed version of a banishing blast in the middle of her torso, sending her flying backward until she bounced on the top of the Temple's entrance and fell down its long stairs.
Right, bought some time. Time for the smart move.
ID escape failed, disparity between levels is too high.
Fuck! Can't use it with enemies too strong inside the ID. Who designed that!? It's a death trap!
Ok, stop freaking out; you got a little girl that needs you.
I reached back and peeled the little hime away from my shirt, setting her on the ground while crouching in front of her. She immediately went for a hug.
"Now, kid, hey kid, listen to me!" I pushed her away gently but firmly, keeping my hands on her tiny shoulders.
This will probably bite me in the long run, but I sneak a peek of her name. "Ena-chan, right? Ena-chan, I need you to be brave ok." I said slowly, looking into her tearful eyes.
She was scared that much was obvious. Her whole body was trembling, head lowered with eyes firmly on the ground, cheek puffed by her apparent effort to not make a sound.
Angry roars echoed in the distance, making the girl flinch. The monster was coming.
"Did you live in that big house? Answer me, Ena-chan, focus on me." Slowly, she nodded, raising her eyes a little bit. "Have you ever played hide and seek in it?"
The crashing sounds were getting closer; I can imagine the monster breaking the steps of the temple's stair under her hooves as she rose. If we were lucky, the slope would slow her down.
"I want you to go into the house Ena-chan, find the best hiding spot you know of and stay there. When this is over, I'll come find you, ok?"
She gave me a hesitant nod. When she raised her eyes and I could see worry in them, a particular kind of worry that no kid should ever feel ever.
I try to give her a reassuring smile.
"Don't worry about me. Oni-chan here is gonna beat that monster up for sure! Just go. Go!"
Lingering just for a second, she turned away and ran towards the temple's main hall.
I let out a long breath as I rose to my feet. Clenching the handle of my baseball bat hard to stop the shaking. This thing, this situation, is what I trained for.
The monstrous woman roared as she reached the top of the stairs and immediately set off in a mad rush towards me.
She was like a bull in more ways than one. Her movements were direct and straightforward, and for what I've seen she can't really change directions while moving. So, while preparing for the worse, I tried the same strategy again.
She closed one eye as the bright of the Mana Bolt hit her face. To my surprise, her horns twisted and shoot downwards to the ground to act as an anchor in case of a second banishing spell, a worrisome sign of intelligence, but not one I didn't take into consideration.
"GARH!" She cried in surprise and pain as the overcharged Mana Bolt focusing on destruction rather than banishment hit her. Next, my Baseball Bat landed right on her face with all my strength behind it.
"Ah crap!" I cursed as I leaped out of the reach of the hands that had reacted instantly, hopping backward and sidewards to create distance and direct her away from the Main Hall.
Three default Mana Bolts confirmed what I'd discovered; the two that hit barely made her flinch, and the last she actually dodged.
My strength alone isn't enough to damage her, and I had to overcharge my Mana bolt to make her feel something. Most of my normal attacks aren't going to cut it.
"MINON!" She screamed as she charged.
Battle eye leveled up!
This was a very frustrating battle.
The monster herself it's very easy to read, and with the level of my Battle eye skill, I could basically predict her movements to some degree. The biggest problem was the horns, which could shapeshift to a certain extent, thus making its movement hard to read. But I didn't have any efficient way to damage her as overcharged Mana Bolts were heavy on the Mp consumption, and I can't afford to empty my Mp and lose my magic and the ability to focus as a result here.
She charged, I hopped to the right at the last second and delivered a bat to the back of her head. She charged, and I made her pause by lighting my Mana bolt and going in on the offensive for a brief second. She charged, and I managed to land one overcharged Mana bolt. She changed and dodged the next spell I tried.
Battle eye leveled up!
To add insult, the Cowgirl was slowly wising up to my tactics. A battle of attrition where I wore down her remaining Hp wasn't possible anymore. Hell, I'd probably run out of breath sooner than her if this keeps up-
"MINON!"
She twisted her horn in the middle of the charge. I reacted with all I had but only managed to block it with my bat. It still buried in my side and sent me flying.
Shit.
I hit the ground and rolled, pushing through pain to use my bat to stop arrest my momentum, transferring the energy into propping me up- Yep, she's charging, she sure likes doing that.
I used her surprise for seeing me already up and running to send an overcharged Mana Bolt. At this distance she wouldn't be able to— The bitch jumped over it! She actually fucking jumped over it!
Thinking quickly, I shot a banishing Bolt while she was in the air and couldn't dodge, but I had to be fast, so I used the default mode, which only sent her to the other side of the courtyards rather than the other side of the park
My breathing was heavy, my body was uncomfortably hot and covered in sweat, my extremities were tingling due to Mana overuse, and my sides were killing me. But the fact I could move it relatively fine told me nothing was cracked— Also, my bat is fucking bent, fucking great!
I need to find another manner of attack. Because I'm gonna start losing ground soon.
And I was right on my prediction. My Battle eye still apparently also required a bit of Mp… or I was just getting exhausted. In any case it started failing on me. I was lucky the bitch didn't change or innovate her moves too much, but being unable to see the details resulted in a lot more hits getting inside my guard. And when those hits came from a minotaur… well.
I was sent flying again, god knows how many times that happened already. My body felt a giant bruise and my limbs were taking rather noodle-like qualities. I bounced on the broken stone floor and rolled until I hit a wall, spitting blood and a few teeth to the side.
Why the fuck was I fighting again? Shit, I shouldn't have done this. I should have attacked sneakily; that's the winning strategy right there, or better yet; I should have laid low, built up some more… Crap, why aren't I stronger… My game is broken; I should have gotten stronger faster…
I blinked, trying to focus the twin visions into one while I used the wall to push myself back up. Too many hits to the head… crap I had a plan, what was it? New move, maybe? That's why I've managed to coat my baseball bat with my mana; it didn't increase the attack, but it made it sturdier and less likely to break. No, no, something's missing. Just what…
There is nothing like a reminder of your pain to get your mind back on track. I was just pushing myself from the wall when a pair of horns speared both my sides, including my injured one, pinning me in place and making me cry out in agony.
"You' fucking Bitch!" I hissed through bloody teeth, failing to move the huge pieces of bone keeping me in place.
Keeping me in place and keeping her in place too.
I matched her hateful glare with my own. Raising my hand directly over her face and pulling all my Mp left into a desperate attack.
"Let's see how you like this—GARKKK!"
I could feel my everything being slurped by those fucking pieces of bones on my sides.
My energy, I realized. It was taking my energy. Both my Hp and what I still had left of Mp began to drop rapidly. The sensation was horrible, like feeling your blood or your guts, or something else vital spill out to the outside. It was cold traumatic and really fucking infuriating! I think I screamed. I don't know the exact reason though.
"FUCK YOU!" I snarled, forcing my body to move over the horrible sensations and putting my hand back up. If this whore wanted my Mp so badly, then I'm going to give it to her in the most face-blowing way possible.
A pebble hit the bitch's head on the side, doing absolutely nothing other than drawing attention.
There is a child… no, wait; there has always been a child. She was crouching over a crack in the courtyard's floor, on an area close to the main hall's entrance, trying to pick up another pebble that could fit her hand and she could lift. Once found, she brought it up.
"L-Leave him alone!" The girl shouted, throwing the pebble at the monster. It missed.
Like a big cat with a new toy, the Minotaur woman lost all interest she had in me and retreated her horns without finishing me up. With a satisfied "Minon…" It turned and began to stalk towards the girl.
The girl, I told her to hide, I…
I look up, seeing the monster walking towards the defenseless little girl with a sensual sway on her hips, savoring each step. The girl was drawing back, with a few small stones on her arms. She occasionally hurled towards the approaching monster missing most of the time.
This is… again, fuck! I remember. Once fucking again, I'm fucking helpless in the dirt, trying all my might to do something that would bring a miracle.
I surged from my place in the ground, taking three steps forwards before sagging to one knee, my bent bat hanging limp on my side.
Fuck! fuckkkkk! What the fuck I've been doing all this time!? All those quests, all that training, was to keep something exactly like this from ever happening again, to not leave the safety of people around me in the mercy of fucking luck—
…Training.
That's right; I've been training.
Suddenly, or maybe by reacting to a primal desire that wasn't quite a mental command yet, my status screen shows up, displaying the proud number 9 that I fought and bleed for besides my level, each of my cultivated attributes below, and finally, the points I had available.
90.
I'm so fucking stupid.
With laughter that was a bit too unhinged for polite society, I distributed my points. If I had the time or the right mind, I might have stopped to carefully consider my choices. But as I was now, I mostly went with what my instincts told me and greedily pushed +30 points to my primary physical attributes, bringing all of them to a healthy +40 numbers.
… I didn't run; I soared across the field. My bent baseball bat made supernaturally sturdy by the coat of raw mana crashed on the back of the monster head and drove her to the ground.
"HORA!"
Take that BITCH! Time and time again of shrugging off my attacks, making a mockery of all my struggle to the point for not even bothering to avoid them by the end. Now you feel it hãh!?
Her horns had sunk into the cobles while her face was flattened against the ground. Her arms moved in an effort to push herself up.
She can keep dreaming!
I threw my bat up, feeling my back arch like a springboard, gathering every ounce of strength I had in preparation to bring it down.
"HORA! HORA!"
The impacts almost boomed, and the bitch definitely felt it by the gasp she let out, her whole body flinching for the sharp pain on her back.
Pain? Let what she caused to all those people!?
"HORA! HORA! HORA!"
"g-GAH!"
Oh so she can vocalize something other than her own stupid name like a fucking pokemon, I suppose she can give me her sad backstory now, and maybe the reason she tried to kidnap a little girl!
The cobbles exploded as one of her horns surged, twisting backward in an awkward angle—
"HORA!"
I broke through them, her unmovable horns that have been battering me this entire fight; her biggest defense and deadliest weapon. Not anymore.
I can fucking win this!
"HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA! HORA!"
Blunt weapon mastery leveled up!
Blunt weapon mastery leveled up!
Blunt weapon mastery leveled up!
New skill created: Club Mastery lvl 01.
Club Mastery leveled up!
I don't know long how long I stood there hammering my baseball bat into her form. I only stopped after my Mp ran out after the fragile coat of mana had frizzled out from my bat and it started to bend more and creak under the weight of the impacts, after my arms lost all strength and limped to my sides, my abused weapon dropping on to the floor.
The woman was a bloody mass of bruises and exposed bones by the time I finished. She couldn't do more than twitch and gurgle in her own blood. The force of the hits had dug a silhouette-eque crater of her form into the stones below, forming a large spiderweb of deep cracks that spread for meters from the center.
"C-Cleansing!" She croaked out to my surprise, I almost made to attack her again, but she busts in black flames before I could try.
Oh… ok.
Quest completed:
+ 1.000 exp.
Your closeness with The Heavenly Oni has increased
The Heavenly Oni has taken an interest in you
Bonus objective fulfilled: No deaths, a hero that strives saves everyone.
+ 500 exp.
Your closeness with The Heavenly Oni has increased
Bonus objective fulfilled: No matter what you do, save the loli!
+ 500 exp
???????????????????????
???????????????????????
Ah, what a long stream of messages. The hell's the heavenly oni though?
The world tilted as my legs sagged beneath me, dropping my ass on the floor.
I just got to… catch my breaths a little bit.
"… A-Ano?"
"Hum?" I looked to my side and— oh yeah, the kid.
"A-Are you ok, oni-chan?" She asked with a hesitant voice.
"Yeah." I croaked. Shit, my face was all blood and grime, not exactly the reassuring kind.
I wiped the best I could on my sleeves. When I look back, the girl has drawing her arms upon herself, looking unsure of what to do.
Ah… I didn't know what to say either.
"…Thank you." I decided.
"H-Hum?" She lifted her head.
"That rock. If you hadn't distracted her back then I'd be in a lot of trouble. You saved my life."
"Oh. Um, y-you're welcome."
Nodding at her, I closed my eyes, intending to take just a few minutes to refill my energies in this quiet, empty world. A second later, I felt the girl sitting at my side.
Then, to my surprise, she giggled.
"Oni-chan. You beat her up!"
… I smiled, it was not a pretty one as I was missing a few teeth, but it was the thought that counted.
"I sure did."
Title gained: Shounen Protector.
+ 3 to Str, Dex, End, Agi, Int, Wis, + 30 to Cha, Bonus to attacks and defense, and increase in exp gain when protecting someone. Double all effects when risking your life doing so.
-0-0-0-
My version of the Gamer might not be as broken as others, but there are some things about it that I love. Hp refilling and its relation to real wounds was one of them.
Broken bones popped back in place, swelling shrunk to non-existence, bloody cuts and purple bruises disappeared. My body could simply put itself back together by the mere act of resting.
It actually took less time to refill my way larger Hp bar than before. This was due to the bonus on Hp recovery that the monstrous jump of my physical attributes had provided me. Now my Hp recovery was comparable to my Mp's, which had been enhanced from the start due to my reincarnation trait. So if we count that, I'm actually a pretty well-balanced person now in relation to my status screen. Excerpt for Dex, really got to put that up to speed.
I felt a little giggly at this; by the level of strength I'd displayed early and the speed I'd managed to run, it seems I'm finally on my way to catch up to my martial artist friend. I can't wait to show him that I can crack concrete too now.
The only thing left from my early ordeal was phantom sensations and bloody clothes. I still want to crawl into a bed and sleep until the next ice age, but I don't feel I'm about to pass out at any moment anymore.
Better get the girl back home, the ghosts were getting pretty hectic.
"Ena!" I called her.
It was impressive how much the girl changed attitude in so little time. I'd figure she'd be a polite and sheltered hime type, having born in a large and mysterious temple and all. But as time passed and she got more relaxed around me, she started acting… well, like a kid really; curious, full of energy, not afraid to ask questions and explore. She was a bit too polite for a kid of her age, but beyond that, I wouldn't be able to pick her among a busy playground.
Currently, she was walking around the courtyard, jumping over the cracks, following the ghosts around, and occasionally trying to balance my broken baseball bat in her tiny hands while shouting 'Hora!'. That last one did things to my heart.
She responded to the call immediately, running towards me while carrying my bat, the tip bumping on the ground as she moved.
Come to think of it; this was the first time I had a good look at her. Without crazy cow women and head injuries, that is.
She was tiny, but not small enough to be a toddler; I'm still maintaining my early guess of four or five, though it was most likely four. Her light blue yukata was dirty with grime and had a few tears here and there, but that has to be expected. She had a cute, round face with shoulder-length black hair styled in a neat hime-cut. Now, her eyes would raise a few eyebrows; they were of a captivating hazel color so dark that seems to shine red under certain lights — all and all a pretty normal kid.
The word floating above her head, though… gave me a hint about the reason why that minotaur woman was trying to take her.
Seishuuin Ena
Direct descended of the Amaterasu's bloodline.
Level 01
…T-That's a pretty scary-sounding title right there.
I don't want to think about the implication of that right now, in fact, it's better that I stay clear from anything with the name of the freaking Japanese sun goddess… Oh, fuck what in the world I get myself into?
"Oni-chan?" Asked little Ena with a cute tilt of her head.
"Right! Right, sorry. It's time—" Wait, Seishuuin Ena? Where have I heard this name?... I shook my head and focused on the now. "I gonna get you home now, Ena-chan."
"Oh, ok." The girl dutifully stepped beside me and took my hand, ready to be led back home.
So cute.
Before I could do anything, however, there was a thump of power.
Now what!?
A single, Ofuda talisman appeared suspended in the air in the middle of the courtyard. Four green lines shoot from its edges, crawling forwards before separating to twist and turn on new directions. Four more Ofudas appeared in a cardinal formation around the first, each productizing their own green lines that joined with the previous ones to take form and shape.
My eyes widened as they drew a geometric magical circle in the air. It's magic; it's gotta be—
The circle pulsed in a flash of light so bright it forced me to use my hand to protect my eyes. When it was over, and I blinked away the white dots. I saw a woman standing in the place where the circle was a second ago. Her Miko uniform and whip-like ponytail billowing on leftover energy her entrance produced.
My eyes met her green ones, and they pierced me like a spear.
New skill created: Detect Killing Intent lvl 01.
Thanks gamer, I sure as hell wouldn't have realized without you telling me. It's not like I had a flash of her ripping my heart out or anything!
"Kan!" She declared loudly, her voice ringing across the place like a church bell. "Jin! Zai! Bo! Sa! Gyo! Jin! Han! Nya! Ha! Ra!"
With each bellowing chant, she takes a step forward. Her words shaking the air itself like a blazing sun in the desert. I could literally see the light bending and trembling and rolling into itself like it was building something up. And it was, somewhere inside my mind I knew that. I could feel it with my supernatural senses. It was like watching a tsunami in the distance.
"Do! Sai! Yaku!!" She finished by circling her hands before her chest and pushing.
The whole world converged towards me.
… And passed through my form harmlessly… In fact, it was even… invigorating. The only reason I stepped back was because my legs were tense enough to snap in the first place, it was like the push of small wave on the beach.
"… Hah?" I mumbled, confused about the whole thing… then I noticed I could move again, and the woman was letting a relieved sigh.
So that was like a… purification shot? Like shining sunlight on a guy to check if he's a vampire?
"MAMA!" Ena suddenly shouted and rushed towards the woman.
"Oh, Ena!"
I blinked at the sight of the two meeting in a hug… yeah, ok, that makes sense, I've seen enough anime to accept this chain of events. Still… This woman just invaded my Illusion Barrier. I didn't even know this was possible!
As I got closer, I got this mysterious woman's name.
Seishuuin Shiori
Warder of The Heavenly Oni.
Level: ??
Second person whose level I can't see, eh? She is strong, that much it's obvious.
I respectfully stand to the side while mother and daughter finished their emotional meeting. In the end, the woman turned toward me.
"I heard of what'd happened from the others, but now I can see the full picture. Thank you very much for your assistance during this crisis." The woman bowed her head gracefully. "I am Seishuuin Shiori, the Jōkai Miko of this temple."
The Japanese part of my brain reacted to the bow, while I tried to keep my eyes forward and exclusively on her face. "I'm Ōe Hiroshi, Miko-sama, it's an honor."
She was the second person whose level I can't see, and just like the first one, she got a pair of mammoth-sized breasts that were very hard to not notice, and that's with a Miko uniform, which, despite the fetishes, were designed to be fairly modest.
Is this a trend? Are all huge-titted women badasses around here? I'm not complaining mind you. It's just something else to watch out for.
"What happened to the Ushi'onna?" She asked, hopefully not noticing my dipping eyes.
Ushi- Oh, cow woman.
I jutted my thumb backward; the place where the monster died still had a few black flames on it, though calling it flames was a bit of a stretch; they didn't produce any noise or heat, and the wind didn't affect them like they should. It was more like an illusion of flames really
The Seishuuin matriarch nodded, "Were you able to discern her species? Was she a Yokai, or perhaps an Akuma?" Her eyes flashed with a calculating light as she continued. "I don't want to imagine she was a demon from Makai, but by the way this night's unveiling it might very well be. So?"
… Yeah, talk about being caught unprepared. Yokai, Akuma, demons, as far as I knew, these words were synonyms, with 'Yokai' being the odd one out depending on the context. But she'd said it like they were all different things, and worse, considering the clusterfuck that would result in a mixture of the world of Taimanin and Ranma ½; that may very well be true.
As for now… I don't know her, so I don't want her realizing how much I do and don't know…
"I don't know what she was, and wasn't able to figure it out either, sorry." I answered with a half-truth; I'd managed to figure out she was a 'Cardian,' but I had no idea what that was.
The high-ranking Miko's green eyes gleamed. "Do you know the difference?"
What the… Crap, she's sharp!
Fortunately, she didn't press the subject. She just nodded and gestured to the area behind her, where my supernatural senses were picking a swirl of leftover energy from her invasion.
"I'll open another gate, please young man, take my daughter with you and leave this place."
"I can do that," I said, scratching the back of my head. Was going to do that anyway. "What about you."
"I must stay here—"
"What!? NO!" Ena cried out immediately.
"Shush child! You know… You know what my duties are."
"But you just came back! You can't be leaving again!" The girl protested while weakly shaking her mother's robes.
The woman sighed, casting a look upwards to the grayed-out skies and dark moon. "It can't be helped, Ena. I can't let this Ōmagatoki fester no matter how… odd it is. If let alone, it will draw Yokais and evil spirits that could threaten the safety of the innocent. I must purify it!"
"But… It's not FAIR!"
Meanwhile, I was pondering on the Woman's last sentence. She'd said Ōmagatoki, a word that I didn't even know existed. But the way she'd said it… It was like she was speaking about my Illusion Barrier.
And… it makes sense. I already knew natural Illusion Barriers existed; I almost died inside one during my first day of school, after all. It wouldn't be strange for other people, especially if they were some kind of a supernatural group, to find out about and even call them by a different name. But I couldn't help but notice she was implying that she would have to stay here a long time to, in her words, purify it.
Did she mean erase it; hell, I can do that with… oh.
Another one of the gamer conveniences then, better to keep it close to my chest for now.
"No, mama, no, please! please!!"
"Oh, child…"
Ena began to cry.
…
… Fuck.
"Miko-sama," I said, the Japanese part of my brain demanding I be respectful to the religious figure. "I can help you with that."
She spares me some of her attention, most were still on her weeping daughter.
"This is my burden to bear, getting my daughter to safety is—"
I snapped my fingers. Practiced had me doing pretty loudly. The motion carried my ID Erase skill behind it, though the act was mostly for flare and to show up to Ranma.
The entire world around us bulked and then broke down.
Not gonna lie, seeing this sexy Miko who quickly established herself as a badass to my eyes, gawking dumbly at me was pretty satisfying.
"Hime-sama—
"EHH! Seishuuin-sama too!?"
"Make way! make way!"
The thick crowd of priests and Mikos around us instantly lost their spectral appearance. The sudden appearance of their precious 'Hime' and their leader was met with joyful surprise and a rush of movement; most couldn't help but gather around them to express their relief.
Good, because this mass of moving bodies was just what I need to slip away unseen.
-0-0-0-
Course, one thing I hadn't taken on consideration was the fact that Seishuuin Shiori was a magical Miko whose level was high enough that I couldn't even read. So when I managed to make my way down the stairs and through the park, I found the woman sitting on a stone near the exit, waiting for me.
"That was most rude of you, young man, sneaking away like that." She said with an air of good-naturedly sternness that only a mother could do. No trace of the early shock left.
"Ah." Crap, what can I say? "Sorry? It was pretty crowded there, didn't want to get involved."
Cool greens eyes shimmered in the dark. "But you don't hesitate to get involved when others are in danger."
"Just trying to help."
"You did more than that." She got up from the stone and stepped close to me, so close I almost took a step back reflexively. "You are new." She said.
"Hum?" Was my dumb response. Do you know how hard it is to steer a teenager's brain away from lewd thoughts about the milf whose uniform is barely able to contain her bust? Very.
"Our side of the world… You've come to your powers fairly recently, maybe you encounter something that shouldn't exist or was able to do something incredible at a time of great need, or perhaps you simply wake up different." Her lips curled a bit. "Am I right?"
I let out a breath, finally winning against my hormones and raising my guard. "If you were, where does it place us?"
She let out a little laughter. "Right here, silly. So tense!"
I watched her take a business card from her sleeves; she handled it to me with both hands.
"This is an agency dedicated to helping people like you. Call them; set up a meeting with their representative, they can get you up to speed with the world you're teetering into. No strings attached."
Yeah… years of reading fiction and general common sense made me doubt that last part…
I sighed; maybe I was being a little bit too suspicions.
"Thank you," I said, taking the card.
"And of course, you can always come back to the temple. I'll receive you myself and will be more than happy to inform you about what you need to now. You are welcome here anytime." She smiled. "In fact. I insist."
I nodded. "I will think about it."
"My," She placed a hand on her cheek and tilted her head. "You don't need to be so guarded, you now?"
I open my mouth to respond. But then she slid close to me in a fluid movement. Her soft, curvaceous body molded to my side, the smell of lavender assaulted my senses, and a heated gush of air made contact to the skin of my neck. Before I could properly flinch, a pair of warm, cushioned lips planted a kiss on my cheek, very close to the corner of my mouth.
"Thank you for saving my daughter." She whispered.
And just like that, she was gone. And I don't mean with a blink or a blur; just… one moment she was pressed against me, and the next I was alone, my heart pumping on my chest, and my cheek warm and twitching.
Fucking… Sexy… distracting milf!
I shook my head; fuck, I caught her attention, didn't I? Knew I should have kept that last stunt to myself.
Well, no use crying over it now. Getting noticed by the supernatural scene was just a matter of time. At least I've managed to make a good impression. I mean, saving most of their people and rescuing the daughter of their leader who just happens to be from a divine lineage got to count for something, right?
Before I started my long walk towards my bed, I took a peek of the business card she showed me.
…
… I'm sure I heard the name 'History Compilation Committee' somewhere before, but I can't for the life of me remember where.
Ah, fuck it! I'm tired, hungry, dirty, and, because of that milf Miko's stunt, horny. I should just go to bed and worry about that tomorrow.
So I slid the card and my hand on my pockets and wandered off into the night.