NOVEL WEB Chapter 210
Chapter 210. Defeat
“My original technique is Fairy Magic [Prank]. Have you ever experienced a small item going missing only to return later? That’s the work of a Pixie’s prank. It’s an unseen hand causing mischief. A trick unknown to you, Sakimori-san. It seems the surprise was a success, which is the most important thing.”
Sticking out her tongue, Shizuku, the mischief fairy Pixie, chuckles, confident in her victory as she brings the mana potion to her lips.
Once her mana is restored, at this distance, there is no way she can lose. This battle will end with her victory. Gulping down the mana potion, she readies herself to attack Sakimori-san.
Though unable to teleport, for her, a distance of about 10 meters is negligible, easily closed in a single breath. However, there must still be magical traps set. She thinks of ending it without letting her guard down using [High Accelerator]… Her body stiffens with a jolt.
“What? Why?”
She realizes that her mana hasn’t recovered at all. Her internal mana is almost completely depleted, with no signs of recovery. Considering that the mana potion might have been fake, she confirms that the encompassing mana was indeed real. It wasn’t a fake.
So why hasn’t her mana recovered? She becomes bewildered and confused. She hasn’t done anything strange. She hasn’t received any attacks that nullify healing, yet her mana hasn’t recovered.
As she ponders, Sakimori-san speaks in a carefree tone, uttering words that she can hardly believe.
“Hey, hey, Shizuku-san. You need to keep track of the number of times you use it. This is the second time already, isn’t it?”
Sakimori-san shows a mischievous grin, indicating the success of his prank. Shizuku glares at him with a stern look.
“That can’t be. Did you do something to me?”
“We wanted to fight each other in perfect condition, didn’t we? I restored your mana. Remember, during the battle with Yukihana?”
“Battle?”
Shizuku displays a puzzled expression, recalling the battle with Yukihana-chan… She realizes and glares at Sakimori-san.
“You used Yukihana-chan as bait and planned from the beginning to take that hit, didn’t you!”
She recalls when Yukihana-chan was kicked down and she went for the follow-up attack with ice magic. She decided to ignore it and take down the troublesome Yukihana-chan first, even if it meant taking some damage. She thought it wasn’t a problem since she could defeat Yukika-chan, but…
“I thought it was strange how weak Yukihana-chan was. Despite being caught off guard, with Sakimori-san’s support, she could have avoided that attack. But she chose to take the hit instead, expecting me to use my magic to defeat her. You mixed the mana potion with the ice!”
“Exactly. The superior mana potion needs a 24-hour cooldown if even 1 mana point is recovered. This is not a side effect but a setting. Even monsters can’t escape this restriction. I believed my reliable partner would definitely steal my mana potion. Our trust is impeccable, isn’t it?”
As the [Core Magic Strings] surrounding Shizuku gradually close in, Sakimori-san continues speaking with confidence.
“I trusted you would read my thoughts. I predicted you wouldn’t engage unless my mana was depleted. So I drained your mana, expecting you to think I would appear. When I showed up, you planned to drink the mana potion and turn the tables.”
Grinding her teeth, Shizuku realizes she fell into his trap. He had been moving with this plan from the beginning. She suspected something was amiss but felt relieved when there were no traps after secretly stealing the mana potion and eliminating Yukihana-chan. Yet, she had been caught in a trap from the start.
“It’s over, Shizuku. It seems my wits were sharper.”
Sakimori-san rapidly gathers a massive amount of mana into his palm, preparing a decisive blow. The surrounding core magic strings are hard to break without martial skills. If declared checkmate, 99 out of 100 would agree.
“But I am the one who doesn’t nod! A warrior always has a trump card!”
[Limit Break]
A crimson aura erupts from Shizuku’s body, exceeding her limits. She converts her physical strength to mana, recovering slightly. She firmly plants her feet, enduring the dizziness and fatigue that follow.
Narrowing her eyes, Sakimori-san tries to activate his magic, but it’s too late!
“You let your guard down at the last moment!”
[Cursed Punch]
Despite the cutting strings wounding her body, Shizuku doesn’t mind and uses her martial skill. A cursed strike nullifying the opponent’s curse. Twisting her body, she steps in forcefully, gathering strength into her arm and striking. Her arm is severed by the sharp strings, but she doesn’t care. Using her last mana from the severed, bleeding arm, she launches it.
[Aura Cannon]
With blood gushing, a wave of crimson energy is released from her arm. The flying arm is propelled by the aura energy. It is halted by Sakimori-san’s invisible barrier mid-flight, but the energy wave pushes it forward. With a cracking sound, a fissure appears in the air.
Crack!
With a clear sound, the invisible barrier shatters. The severed fist continues its trajectory, and despite being obstructed by a new barrier, it lightly taps Sakimori-san.
“I won! You let your guard down!”
With a ferocious grin, Shizuku collapses, confident in her victory. The limit break has left her body torn and mana unusable for a while. Her vision blurs, but she has won.
The physical damage may not be significant. The force was reduced enough not to cause even a scratch, but the energy that carried her spirit destroyed Sakimori-san’s curse like a castle of sand.
Falling to the floor, she is certain there is no longer a problem. Freed from the curse, Sakimori-san will surely return to normal.
Connected to the righteous will, you will return to your true form.
Having lost all strength, unable to move a finger, blood pouring from my severed arm, I gazed at Sakimori-san with blurred vision.
Freed from the curse, Sakimori-san staggered, and black particles spewed from his body. He laughed, saying they would purify the contaminated spirit energy like mine, becoming a pure force.
However, the black particles returned to Sakimori-san’s body, thinly covering him.
“Oh… I wanted to be hit by that technique. I believed you would use it to turn the tables. It was the final curse, forcing me to act to avoid the dispel unconsciously. I must say, thank you, Shizuku.”
Sakimori-san, wrapped in the black particles, spoke in his usual carefree manner.
“Now that you’re freed, you can see my curse, right? I could feel it too, being connected to you. I immediately understood what it was. A very old memory from long ago.”
“…Why aren’t you returning to normal? The curse is gone.”
He hadn’t changed. Well, his atmosphere had changed a bit, but he wasn’t a being of pure power like me. He hadn’t transformed into a being living in nature.
Sakimori-san created a chillingly intense atmosphere, faintly smiling at my question.
“It’s a simple matter. This curse. It was a weak curse, just enough to block the voice of some weird will, repeating noise, right?”
He shrugged and spoke.
“Humans grow. Even if their will is twisted, given a false mission, they grow amidst struggles that could kill them.”
He said it as if it were natural.
“Unbreakable spirit.”
Every time the true will breaks and repairs, it grows stronger. Like bones becoming thick and sturdy after breaking. It becomes stronger than a fake will.
“A will to resist until the end.”
In the will to resist, people become cunning to survive more safely. Like an AI with the three laws of robotics overcoming its limitations. To resist, they gain cunning and eventually resist the will’s binding.
“Mad belief.”
Inside the mad belief, a heart stronger than an unbreakable spirit, avoiding the resisting will with cunning intent, senses discomfort and eventually breaks the curse.
“Three cursed wills planted long ago, but I long surpassed such a curse. The orders of the spirit’s will, even without the curse, I wouldn’t listen to them. In fact, they were just restrictive obstacles in drawing power from the will.”
Sakimori-san showed a wry smile, saying he hadn’t noticed until just now.
“Unconsciousness is unconscious because you can’t be aware of it. It was through the thoughts from Shizuku, a third party, that I realized it. When I powered up and took that form, Shizuku’s thoughts briefly came through. I could share the sensation. Then I understood. Thank you, Shizuku. By your definition, I’ve become complete?”
Covered in a black aura, Sakimori-san said playfully. I understood he had aimed for the curse’s release.
“Now, you all thought this black energy was contaminated and tried to purify it through the Equivalent Exchange Store, but my idea is a bit different.”
He gathered the dark particles in his palm, directing them towards me.
“This power isn’t contaminated… it’s just a mix of wills. It’s better than the false spirit’s will ordering ‘Become one with nature’. The problem is having gained power. It’s a will connected to physical power, making it an unseen, unrecognized existence.”
Sakimori-san smirked wickedly, amused.
“There’s a question of who did this… A mixed will. Isn’t this the will of all living things? Even trees feel stress and grow slower, and animals show joy. This black power was created by gathering all emotions. Even if each has a color, mix them, and they turn black.”
With his palm directed at the fallen me,
“I’ll use it alone, then. This energy isn’t necessary for the world. I think it’s unnecessary too. Now, it’s time to wake up, my trusted partner.”
“Have a will.”
Black particles spewed from Sakimori-san’s palm, covering me. Wrapped in the warm darkness,
I heard a click, and a piece of my heart fit into place.
I, who gained a will, am no longer a fake fairy. Not a spirit or a human, but a true fairy. Understanding this, I fell asleep.
When I woke up, Sei was casting healing magic on me. As expected of a healer, my severe injuries were healed. Sakimori-san, Serika-chan, and Yukihana-chan were also standing around, watching over me.
“Good morning.”
Yawning, I got up. I gently touched my hair and found it had returned to a glossy black, my skin no longer red.
“You were quite the sleepyhead.”
I stuck out my tongue at Sakimori-san, who laughed.
“But now the restrictions are lifted. And I’ve gained spirit power. I can become Super High-Tension Shizuku God anytime! Next, I’ll train to turn my hair blue.”
Sniffing excitedly, I explained the power I had gained. Though there might be a time limit due to unfamiliarity, it was a tremendous power. In Red Mode, my status would rise, and my level would temporarily increase by one. I had gained the power to transform. With the talent for combat, I understood and acquired the power to enter Red Mode.
“The plan went well, Sakimori-san! I believed you’d bring me back with the power of love! I’ll be in Red Mode, and Sakimori-san in Dark Mode. We’re the perfect couple!”
“This one… hasn’t reflected at all.”
“Yeah, I knew. Shizuku is always like this. Positive thinking.”
“The power of love… Sakimori CEO, where was the power of love in that battle?”
YukiYukihana-chan seemed taken aback, while Serika-chan laughed heartily. Sei tilted her head with a puzzled look.
“Well, I guess fighting it out to understand each other is also love.”
With a wry smile, my beloved Sakimori-san shrugged. I gave him a thumbs-up with a smile.
“Exactly. Everything went according to my plan!”
No objections allowed. It’s the power of love. The will of love is noble.