17 The Morning Star Dreams Not (2/2)

Author Note:

College stuff.

Anyway, something typed with [this] is a skill or a technique (or it can be literally anything) the user ISN'T saying.

And anything typed with <this > is a skill or a technique the user IS saying/shouting.

My opinion after reading this chapter: I need to re-read one piece

---

Feeling the atmosphere that has frozen around I couldn't help but feel my entire body tense.

The death was anticipating my movement. However, the stares that make you feel akin to being looked by the abyss itself, froze my body like a deer in front of a predator.

"If you're not making moves, then I will gladly take the initiative," Kuro said out of kindness.

The next stuff that happened left my eyes agape, surprised, as I gained the sensation I'd never felt in the past.

When Kuro moved, I felt as if I was comfortably lying down on my bed like a person after a long day of training, the looming death that emerged from the sheer existence of my opponent, had vanished like it was never there in the first place.

Or rather, from my long experience of fighting with a merciless girl, I noticed that the deathly aura hadn't disappeared but rather was completely suppressed by Kuro, that even the remaining death itself was somewhat 'pleasant' to me right now.

The way Kuro moved was extraordinary. When I spar with Stella, I can 'see' the movement of 'air' and predict her movement to dodge it, even the same could be done with Ban, but when it comes to Kuro, his seemingly intense rush produces no disturbance to the world.

It was so bad that I felt like I would lose him if I shifted my focus out of him. At this moment, Kuro was in the state where he became one with the world, the state Grandpa Ban said to be the pinnacle of martial arts and the realm he aimed for when he was younger.

At this moment, a thought somehow came up in my mind, 'if this is not enough to defeat the enemy you're currently facing, then what is?'

Unable to react and unbeknownst to his movement, I barely sent out my arms in front to block Kuro's scarred knuckles.

Upon contact, I heard unwell sounds leaking out from the collision point as my body was sent flying backward, disrupting the fluttering leaves around us as a wave of shockwave spread.

Only when I landed on my feet to propel myself forward, could I finally stop the unbelievable power pushing me back.

"Haah... Haah..." I struggled to breathe with my legs weakly shivering as I searched for the huge tree with my blurry vision.

It took a while for my vision to restore gradually but the tree that was so large now became so small and so far.

A single blow from Kuro has sent me hundreds of meters away from the original spot.

Even now, Kuro remained in the same spot, in the same stance waiting for me.

Although I couldn't see his expression, his silhouette gave off an impression of something impossibly far, where no matter how much you extended your hand, you would never reach him.

It was a lonely figure whom no one could truly understand and the person itself knows this fact and embraces it.

Somewhere, I felt a sense of empathy with that silhouette as I gnashed my teeth in pain wrapped my forearms that had welled up purple with feathers, and flew toward his direction by fluttering the wings that had emerged from my back.

After a short time of flying, I returned to the original spot only to see Kuro who remained still, with a blank face as if uninterested in what was happening in the world.

Unable to understand what was able to make the person in front of me so strong, yet filled with helplessness, my eyes radiating with sunlight reflected the black itself. 

"Let's do it again!" I opened my mouth and said as if to shake the unnecessary distractions.

Agreeing to me, Kuro nodded and prepped his fist.

Instinctively understanding Kuro was going to send the same punch from before, I gulped my saliva, swearing to myself never to endure that kind of fist ever again.

Quickly spinning my mind, I compressed my feather into a ball, hovering next to my face. Then, I ran toward Kuro in fear of getting rushed upon again.

As our distance closed, so the heart that was beating became louder. Just before I entered the distance within Kuro's reach, I stopped at the spot by making feathers just below my feet and pushed myself upward with my own body and feathers. 

At the same time, the feathers that were compressed into a ball exploded, causing hundreds of feathers to fly out everywhere though as an attack it was futile as the feathers as if magnetized into Kuro's hand, were blocked.

However, the feathers caused by the release of compression were now everywhere within a 20m radius providing a good sight interruption as well as a footing for me.

'Although I don't know if obstructing his vision will do something, I'll just try out everything,' I thought to myself as I propelled myself with the feather around the sky and launched an attack from behind Kuro.

'Got him!!' I thought as I gave myself to the tiniest expectation to deal one damage against a Whitebeard-level boss.

"Interesting move," muttered Kuro as the corner of his mouth perked up.

The change in Kuro was something I couldn't perceive as I was behind him and was too focused on myself to make this move a success.

Motionless, Kuro spoke in a small voice.

<Black Hope: Gloom Damnation.>

In the next instance, a dark nebula began forming around Kuro as if to surround him, and after the creation of the strange phenomenon Kuro who was motionless until now, moved

In a blink of eyes, as if the time of 'his motion to send out a fist was erased' and only the result of him 'punched forward' remained, Kuro's stance changed to that of 'punched' despite his back facing me.

No contact was made. I was sure of that but as my fist was about to touch Kuro's back-head, I felt a strike from my side and due to the momentum behind that 'formless fist,' I was sent flying side-way as my body dug deep into the dirt.

I soon found out that I couldn't move my body upward. Not even the tip of my fingers.

The time continued awkwardly as the dark nebula surrounding us began to dissipate. 

By the time the world had regained its state, Kuro took a look at his wrist which sent out a hologram.

"Oops, it's the time already. Staying here furthermore will do you no good," the feminine-looking person opened his mouth as he covered me with darkness.

The moment the darkness disappeared, the bruises and injuries in my body disappeared. Confirming this fact, Kuro nodded and said to me.

"Sorry to suddenly summon you here, but I will have you return," Kuro said with an apologetic face, causing me to nod in confusion.

'Wait a minute, what was the purpose of physically abusing me?? Is he not going to tell me the deep philosophy behind this action like that shitty Old Man always does?' I thought.

'What an awkward person!!' I added, understanding the characteristics of Kuro who had few words and said only the important stuff.

I could feel Kuro's hurry as he took me to the portal room I was summoned with and he had a brief talk with Pekora, who had a serious look unbefitting of her face.

The two reached an agreement, they both nodded and the rabbit girl began preparing for the dimensional portal leading back to my original world.

"Just before you go, take this," Kuro said nonchalantly and threw me a small object and I caught it.

What stopped in my hand was a square object almost, if not, everyone here carried. Kuro briefly explained about it.

"It's a prototype made after Pekora awakened her power. It should help you out in your world," Kuro said.

"It's done, peko," the rabbit girl spoke out, looking at the object in my hand as she stabilized the portal in front of her.

"Are you really giving him that, peko?..." Pekora paused.

"Whatever, peko... good luck with your world, peko," the rabbit turned away shyly as she silently supported me.

At this moment, with the portal in my front, I widened my view of people and cherished my experiences today before bidding everyone farewell and finally stepping onto it.

"Bye-bye," I smiled at everyone as the portal began shadowing my body.

---

Like a dream ending, I opened my blurry eyes to the boundless ocean that knew no end.

However, the square object in my hand told me that what had happened was not a dream.

The morning star had welcomed its dawn after a short dream and the rest it had to do was face the reality until the dusk befalls...

"Ah, crap!! I have to go to the Long Ring Long Island but I don't know which direction it is!!" I couldn't help but shout 

[Hello, Mr. Heylail. I will be at your service.] The square object in my hand let out a dim light in synchronization with my shout.