I couldn’t do this unconsciously. I had to be fully aware. My arm swings and blade clashes surpassed my own voice. At this speed, mere countering would tear my arms off, so I strengthened them moment by moment to keep them attached.
By the time I started hearing sounds, I had already stopped the ape’s fall and was transitioning to my next move.
I threw both machetes upwards, spinning them like boomerangs. Then, I quickly bent my knees and jumped.
With the advantage in my favor, I now fought barehanded.
Had I gone mad?
But my brain said this was the optimal solution.
Later, I understood. It was a matter of range. With me standing on the ground and the horned ape suspended in mid-air, it could stab me before I could swing my sword.
I punched the exposed belly of the horned ape from below. Then I kicked it. I grabbed its claw before it could swipe at me, altering its trajectory.
My blows pushed the horned ape, creating distance. The machetes I threw came slicing through its back. It let out a muffled cry.
“Hey! You’ll die at this rate!”
When I raised my arms, I found the machetes’ hilts. As planned, I grabbed them firmly.
In mid-air, I locked eyes with the beast. It was much closer to death than I was.
–How’s this? Fun, right? But if this keeps up, it’ll be over soon.
In the brief moment before the horned ape fell, I unleashed a barrage of attacks.
For us, it was barely a moment. The horned ape escalated again to catch up with me. When I raised my level, it did too. It was natural.
Our speed kept increasing.
“… Hehe!”
I was ecstatic.
Even at the new height, it wasn’t enough. I craved more, thirsted even after satisfaction.
What I thought was a moment stretched out. Our enjoyment extended. At the same time, the danger to our lives increased exponentially.
There were still extraneous elements. Hazy information obstructing the smoothness of my body.
I shook it off.
My barehanded strikes added to the swordplay. The horned ape somehow kept up. Processing the increased information was also fun.
Again, I found something extraneous. I shook it off.
As we clashed, I began to verbalize what the overlapping visions meant.
These were possibilities. All movements were unconsciously calculated and visualized. They split and merged, providing conclusions.
Ah, yet another extraneous thing.
I could forget all of it.
Shaking it all off. Stop asking for my permission. It’s unnecessary, so I don’t need any of it.
I discarded everything.
My vision cleared completely. It was perfectly comfortable.
Not yet, still rising.
Beyond one ceiling, a vast sky awaited, offering even higher heights.
I could go. This could take me higher.
I could reach more dangerous heights. Dance closer to the edge of death. This isn’t enough.
You’ll come with me, right? No worries, you’re not human. With you, horned ape…
“… Huh?”
I landed and looked ahead.
The horned ape was kneeling.
It stood up immediately, but its movements were clearly lacking precision.
“Graaah!”
It seemed to retain the will to fight at first glance.
But it was too deliberate.
It bared its teeth and spread its shoulders to intimidate, trying to regain the powerful stance it had earlier.
It was clearly planning to flee.
I muttered to myself, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“Hey, don’t mess with me.”
Did it think such a pathetic act would work?
No, it didn’t.
I had high hopes for you. I believed in you.
I thought we could go anywhere together. We were doing well. We pushed each other higher, using each other as stepping stones, climbing ever higher. But now…
You were supposed to let me die.
“I’ve given up everything! What are you going to do about it?!”
But my overlapping vision, the calculations I made unconsciously, said the horned ape’s fear was more accurate than my expectations.
I was certain of victory.
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The moment the previous clash ended, the battle was decided.
Even if it could still fight for a while, no matter what path it took, I would win. There was no chance of losing. My brain saw through everything.
Even so, it was pathetic. The horned ape cowered before my rage.
Scared of a mere human enchanter, who has to risk his life to fight, someone like me.
“Don’t you dare get scared!”
What should I do?
I think of ways to regain that height.
I search for a method to recapture those moments when we pushed each other higher.
I think harder. Sparks fly in my brain.
Why would it give up?
It’s not human. It should be much heavier, faster, and stronger than me.
My accelerated brain examines every possibility, instantly completing the bloated process.
–No good. I can’t lose. I can’t even face danger.
I was certain of that conclusion. It was a strange feeling. The answer was clear, but the process wasn’t.
Only a few key elements were certain; everything else was dispersed like clouds. Was my brain processing things non-sequentially? Maybe the brain works in a system different from what I imagined?
It’s not logical thinking. It’s a series of flashes of insight.
As I continued to examine the options presented, I found one peculiar path.
It wasn’t the solution I wanted. But it stood out.
Is this the optimal solution for this battle?
Despite it being my own idea, I was confused. This path was completely different. It represented a paradigm shift.
What had been under consideration was the expansion of the range of imbuement magic.
Enhancing others is difficult.
This is because intruding into someone else’s consciousness is fraught with obstacles and consumes an enormous amount of magical power. It’s only when the other party actively accepts the magic that imbuement magic becomes practically usable. Therefore, when enhancing others, a declaration of consent is essential.
However, this is only to say that explicitly stating the target and the caster makes the enhancement easier. It doesn’t necessarily mean you have to follow a set phrase. The effectiveness varies, but often attitude and intent alone can be seen as a declaration of consent.
Everything is connected. Without this connection, there are many obstacles and a huge consumption of magical power, but it’s not that a declaration of consent divides imbuement magic into zero and one.
Conversely, this means that enhancement can be applied to anyone, regardless of effectiveness.
I see, that’s how it is.
I took a step towards the Horned Ape.
“I think we understood each other.”
We fought well. The ape indulged my farcical swordplay, and I indulged its whims.
It was almost like we had exchanged words. Perhaps our hearts communicated even more deeply than that.
Naturally, it felt like we were worthy rivals. The mutual longing, though it’s not pleasant to admit, might have been akin to lovers.
The Horned Ape sensed something. It was forced to choose between fleeing or counterattacking against the impending threat.
It chose a poorly executed counterattack.
“Hey, isn’t that—”
—A declaration of consent?
My senses were heightened. The flashes of insight I had accumulated unconsciously returned only the result to my awareness. Following the shortest path to victory indicated by my brain, I uttered the symbolic chant.
“[Stagnate]”
This was a feat only possible with an enhanced brain. Using the bridge between our minds as an entry point, I hammered in hundreds of symbolic chants per unit of time.
The Horned Ape, which was supposed to leap at me, completely froze in mid-air and collapsed to the ground.
The reverse enhancement was fully activated.
“…Heh.”
My throat involuntarily quivered with a chuckle.
This is the true essence of imbuement magic, a realm reached only by enhancing the brain to achieve overwhelming processing speed.
Forcing a meager exchange of blows to be interpreted as a willing response, I imposed the reverse enhancement.
This is nothing short of immensely powerful.
With just a few exchanges, I can make my opponent crawl on the ground? What is that?
Perhaps it’s the balance of the world. The innate weakness of imbuement magicians is because the strength they attain upon reaching this point is extraordinary?
It’s impossible to understand the true nature of this world. Facts are facts. That’s just how it is.
The match was completely decided. All that remained was to continue swinging the blade in my hand until the Horned Ape perished.
It was an anticlimactic ending. The ultimate skill of reverse enhancement was the exact opposite of my desire.
Even if I seek strong opponents in the future, this skill will never bring me joy.
I despair.
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That’s mindset of Demon King, who became bored with life after reaching the peak. Seems so out of place with Vim, yet makes sense?