“–50% of the divine emperor’s blessing”
A voice echoed, and the advantage started to turn into a disadvantage.
The chokehold I had been executing perfectly just now. That… the arm I had been choking with started to be forcibly removed by raw strength. I could see Shinzaki gripping my arm and moving it.
No technique involved, just raw power. I couldn’t help but smile wryly at the thought that the chokehold could be broken this way.
“…What a brute force, huh.”
“That’s my line, you know. Because, by raising this ability to 50%… I was finally able to surpass the raw physical ability. Amamori, are you really human?”
If I said I was actually a demon, would he accept and give up? No, I’m human.
Rather, I want to just throw those words right back at him.
The chokehold I applied just now was strong enough that a normal person’s neck bone would have snapped.
With this much power, I should be able to overwhelm him with raw strength. But that’s what I thought…
But no, I didn’t think that. Imagine, he came back at me with even greater raw strength, pushing back my expectations.
“Oh, an unexpected discovery!”
“…Ugh”
Seizing a slight opening, an elbow strike hit my side.
An unpleasant, bone-crushing sound.
At that moment, I realized my ribs were broken.
If that were all, it would be fine, but… if my internal organs were also damaged, it could be life-threatening.
I focused my consciousness inward. –Cough, blood rose from the back of my throat, and I grimaced.
Damn it, the bones have pierced my internal organs. No wonder it made such an unpleasant sound.
The intense pain that came a little late after the coughing of blood caused my strength to weaken slightly.
In that instant, Shinzaki escaped the restraint, and with a blooming smile, he turned to face me.
“Hey, how do you feel now? How do you feel, knowing that I’ve been holding back this whole time?”
“…Terrible. I feel like going to the infirmary.”
I actually felt like just escaping as is. Saying that, his smile deepened.
I wish the chokehold had worked.
But if it can be broken by raw strength, then his physical ability is beyond my expectations.
…Yeah. This might be the time. Thinking so, I dropped to my knees.
After a little thought, I concluded that there is no point in continuing to struggle any further.
Observing Shinzaki, I’ve now seen the bottom of his 50% ability. Plus, I’ve gotten a sense of his true capabilities. I’ll have the cooperators investigate the detailed information later.
…Ah, and as for rescuing Hoshina-san, I haven’t been concerned about that from the beginning.
If it’s about saving someone, I know a better-suited girl than me.
[Feel free to rely on me anytime!]
I wryly smiled, recalling the voice I had heard earlier.
I hadn’t even considered relying on others for a long time, but it’s just a matter of perspective.
It’s okay to push troublesome things onto others. Thinking that way, my heart feels considerably lighter.
So, that’s how it is. I’m leaving it to you all! Do your best from here on!
“W-Wait, Shinzaki-kun! A-Anymore and… Amamori-kun will die!”
The first to raise her voice was our class representative, Kurashiki Hotaru.
Probably, she judged this was the right time, just like me.
Even Kurashiki, who was thinking “It’ll be fine if I leave it to Amamori,” seemed to have realized that further continuation would endanger one of our lives.
Shinzaki should know that too. Nevertheless, he merely glanced at her anguished voice and continued walking towards me, smiling cheerfully.
“What are you talking about? Amamori. I said I’d kill you, didn’t I?”
“–Did you think I’d let you?”
A black sphere flew between us, and Shinzaki retreated in surprise.
He turned his gaze towards Class C… more precisely, towards Kurotsuki kanade, and his smile became tinged with displeasure.
“Eh, what? Interfering? That’s against the rules, right? I’ll kill you!”
“Try it if you can. …And, Shinzaki, you didn’t clearly state the rules. There was no provision in what you said that ‘others cannot intervene.'”
…As expected of Kurotsuki, he’s listening carefully.
If I were in his position, I’m sure I would have said something similar.
Thinking about that, I inwardly smiled, and a shadow fell over me.
Surprised, I looked up to see Hoshina-san’s figure.
“Ah, Amamori-kun…! Even so, I am the president of the Literature Club! So, rather than being protected, I have the obligation to protect my club members!”
“…Hoshina-san”
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You should stop, you’ll get killed.
I want to tell her that, but it’s probably useless, isn’t it?
Stubborn to a fault. Seeing her back, that word suddenly came to mind.
Eventually, Kurashiki and Kurotsuki appeared in front of me and Hoshina-san.
“Go ahead and interfere as you like. We don’t mind making the entire Class B our enemies.”
“…Haah, what’s that, it’s so uncool. Playing at friendship games as high school students? Someone acting for someone else, and then crying in gratitude? …Damn, it’s not even funny!”
But Shinzaki did not stop.
The overwhelming pressure, the presence of a powerful being. All the students in the room changed color in their faces.
The strength he felt when facing him was real.
Shinzaki was undoubtedly strong. He was on a different level compared to Kirido and Netsuhara, whom we had dealt with before.
After all, this opponent was the overlord who could unite an entire class. Comparing him to the previous pawns would be an insult. He was just that strong. Even regular students would have a hard time against him.
But, Shinzaki.
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. –And you should fight a king with another king.
“–You seem to be in a good mood.”
A chill ran down the spines of everyone present.
As Shinzaki hastily jumped back from the spot, a yellow lightning bolt shot through immediately after.
The lightning scorched the floor of the gymnasium.
The smell of the burnt wooden floor.
Standing in the blackened area was a young girl.
“Tch, a troublesome one has appeared…”
Shaking her black hair, the girl–Asahina Kasumi, stood before us.
Lightning continuously burned around her, and Asahina-san kept her sharp eyes fixed on Shinzaki.
“But isn’t your arrival a bit late? You were just silently watching him being bullied, weren’t you? That means you abandoned your comrades, right? Even if you try to act righteous now, isn’t that just hypocrisy?”
“Abandoning and believing are different. But… it’s difficult, isn’t it? To suppress your own heart and entrust someone else.”
Asahina-san then turned to look at me.
“Or Amamori-kun, should I have come to help earlier?”
“…Even earlier or later, you would have found a way to complain.”
The timing was just perfect.
Both with Kirido and now. You have never misjudged the timing to come to the rescue.
My words made the girl smile. She then proudly faced Shinzaki.
“I’m sorry, but I’ll have to stop you with all my might, Shinzaki-kun.”
I stretched the time to the limit, Kurashiki stirred up emotions, Kuromitsu held him back with words, but the sliver that would still not reach, I entrusted to Asahina Kasumi.
Asahina-san may have lacked in many aspects, but her strength was undoubtedly higher than anyone else.
If there was something usable, it should be used where it was needed.
Asahina Kasumi’s pure strength.
That was the ultimate trump card that Class 1-C possessed.
If not used here, then where else?
“If you’re coming, then come. But I’m strong, much stronger than you.”
“…Gah! That pisses me off!”
There was less than a minute left.
If Shinzaki was extraordinary, then she too was extraordinary.
The prodigy that no one had [stubbornly tried to fight] before.
Manipulating words, shrouding in smoke, exhausting all strategies to avoid combat.
Kirido never tried to raise a hand against Asahina until the very end.
Netsuhara exhausted all means of provocation to avoid fighting Asahina.
And Shinzaki too, must have sensed her [strength].
Faced with that strength, his feet had completely stopped.
“…Asahina, was it?”
“What’s wrong, Shinzaki-kun? I don’t mind if you attack me.”
He was smiling as he gazed at her, but the atmosphere was far from optimistic.
The air was tense, like two ferocious beasts staring each other down.
Glancing at the clock, there were only thirty seconds left until the designated time.
If Shinzaki unleashed his [true power], it would be more than enough time to kill the near-death me.
A rumbling sound was heard from somewhere.
The chatter and noise around them faded, and the gymnasium was enveloped in silence.
A heavy, dull, and eternal moment of confrontation.
In the midst of the suffocating tension.
–But Shinzaki’s answer was the opposite of what was expected.
“Nah, I’m done! It’s gotten boring, so I quit!”
He spat out the words with a refreshing smile.
Then, the bell signaling the end of the class rang, and our phones buzzed.
《Notice of End of Combat Request》
The combat request has been won!
Amamori Yūto VS Shinzaki Yasuhito
Amamori Yūto’s victory means that Hoshina Tsubomi will be transferred to Class 1-C from this time onward.
The message was displayed on our phones.
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