That's okay, you don't have to get upset. But don't let it get to you.

　The sun was setting and it was dimly lit.
　Facing Anko and Miroku, Second said upright and unmoving.

'It won't be long now,'

　His voice was calm.
　His words were the embodiment of himself. Unpretentious, unflappable, and supremely natural.


''......-.......''

　Cubero and Gloria winced.

　They could see it even from the side. The Second's, that extraordinary concentration.

　It is natural. The game for life. It's a game of life and death. "Come on and take it seriously" does not mean, "Put a stop to it. It's, "Kill me in a hurry.


　As a matter of fact, both Cubero and Gloria thought that the second was being falsely accused. They thought that there was no way they could resist against Anko and Miroku, who were both capable of doing things out of the ordinary.

　It's impossible no matter how you look at it. Two hair-raising monsters were attacking at the same time. It's truly a Herculean task to defeat them.


　But what did it matter, those who know him will say.

　It's a feat that has been tried so many times before, like breathing.


'Are you ready?'

Anytime.
Likewise.

　When Second asked, Anko returned with a string of eyes and a smile, and Miroku returned with meditation and a whisper.


''--Beginning!''

　At the command of Angolmore, the game begins.


'Let's go to ......!'

　The first to act was Miroku.
　《Flying Car Battoujutsu》, a battou attack powerful enough to accumulate.

''Ufu, I'm coming.''

　Next, Anko thrust her right hand out in front of her, letting out a laugh at the overflowing pleasure, in order to invoke the "Dark Summoning"...


!


　--on the verge, cancelled. Instant decision to make the shadow disappear (・・・・・).

　The Shadow of Death skill, blocks any attack for 3 seconds. Cool time is 300 seconds.

　The Second had a bow (...) in his hand before I knew it. And while ignoring the approaching Miroku, he activated the skill with a movement so faint that it was hard to tell when he shot it.

　What flew at Anko was a mere 《Infantry Archery》. If you duck it, it doesn't matter. But for some reason, Anko felt like she shouldn't duck ...... it.

　That decision was the right one. Instantly, a second arrow flies in. The angle of the first and second arrows is subtly adjusted, and they are designed to reach the anko almost simultaneously. If I had ducked, I would have been hit by this.


''Hm.''

　Second glanced at his watch and memorized the current time. It's the cool time management of the 《False Shadow》.

　In the meantime, Miroku was still accumulating his flying car and approaching.

　However, the second moved his gaze supremely calmly and took out ...... "fluorocarbon 16lb" while putting the bow away in his inventory.


...... Hmm.

　Second activated 《King General Thread Manipulation》, a skill that restrains targets within a 4 meter radius with a thread.

　Miroku senses the danger of that drifting thread, stops 4 meters before the target, and calmly looks for an opening for the Second.

　Miroku, who is all about [Battoujutsu], has no means of attacking from a distance. Hence, it could be said that it was the worst match with the long-reach [String Manipulation Technique].


''Ufu.''

　That's why it was so important to work with Anko.

　The two of them understood that.
　Indeed, they understood it.


''!

　Anko instantly moved behind the Second with the 《Darkness Transfer》 and activated the 《Claw Attack》.

　The next moment, Second turned around flatly and leisurely, as if to say that it was in harmony with the plan - he invoked the 《Silver General Shield Technique》.

　The Silver General of Shield is a skill of enhanced defense. And if you activate the skill in the 0.01 seconds before reaching the attack, which is 0.01 seconds shorter than normal, .......


''Howdy!

　Miroku shouts in surprise.

　Anko, who succeeded in the parry within a specific time period and received a moronic response effect riding on the counterattack effect of the "Silver General Shield Art", went down.

　The fact that ...... that downed the bakemono who caught that full-bodied drawn sword with his eyeball, that fact sent an unfathomable sense of dread down Miroku's spine, but now was not the time to be timid.

　It's a good thing that you're able to have a good time with your friends. Anko's attack would be able to pop, but Miroku's attack would not be able to pop - everyone, even Miroku himself, thought so.


''Transformation.''

"G--


　Immediately after ...... the Transformation is activated.

　I'm not going to be the only one who's been in the market for a while.

　The invincibility period is eight seconds; after six seconds, he can move freely.


''...... .......''

　Both Anko and Miroku stood up in silence.

　They understood that there was no room for useless talk.

　Miroku amassed a powerful ranged attack, the Dragon King Battoujutsu, from the left, while Anko prepared the Dark Magic from the right.

　It's a formation with the intention of completely killing (・・・・・).

　After all, there was a little bit of tinkering. He had unconsciously cut corners, not wanting the Second to die.

　But I realized that this was no longer necessary.

　I used this transformation time, when the Second couldn't move, to prepare an attack that would not be easy to duck. Even if it's not a decisive blow, it's still an exorbitant pincer attack to the extent that it will be able to reduce HP to 1.


"!

　6 seconds passed. At the same time, the second threw the fluorocarbon 16lb in the direction of travel (・・・・) while putting the mithril buckler away in his inventory and began to prepare the "Dragon Horse Body Technique".

　This is a Dash Punch skill. In other words, the idea was to complete the preparations with two seconds of invincibility time remaining and move fast as the two of them attacked simultaneously, trying to avoid one of the attacks while crushing one of them.


'We've seen it through,'

　Miroku was sure of it. That it would not come towards him.

　Because the Dragon King Battoujutsu is a ranged attack. Although it can be evaded if it escapes outside of its range, it is an extremely strong skill against those who approach within its range.

　This led to the second "Silver General Shield Technique" that was used against Anko earlier. If all you had to do was play off Anko's "Claw Attack", then "Transformation" was all you needed. The reason for deliberately letting him eat the counterattack with the Silver General could be to earn damage and finish Anko off with the Dragon Horse here.

　Miroku instantly thought that far. Hence, having seen it out, he left his mouth.


'Fool!'


　Anko glares at Miroku with shooting eyes.

''

　At the end of the 8 seconds of invincibility, the second began a (・・・・・・・・) dash towards Miroku.

　Miroku's reaction is delayed for a moment, as he is upset by the unexpected, and his reaction is delayed for a moment. He activates the 《Ryuoh Battoujutsu》 as planned, but--


Ugh, upstairs?

　Just before reaching the range, Second punched the ground and jumped upward (...) and ducked.

　Battou is a horizontal slide of the sword, so to speak, and the 《Long King Battou Technique》 is a wide range attack in a horizontal direction. Therefore, the sky is a little thin.




　Miroku was horrified.


　Approaching Miroku from the air, Second was holding the Mithril Longsword he took out of his inventory.

　Then, while drawing a parabola and falling, he combined 《Ginshou Kenjutsu》 and 《Katsura Ma Kenjutsu》.

　A powerful single attack and a precision attack plus a rapid-fire skill. The second is aiming at the face, which is a vital point, without any mercy.


''I won't let him!


　It was a last-minute decision.

　As soon as Miroku finished his rigidity after using the Dragon King Battoujutsu, he released the Humanization Transformation.

　Immediately afterwards, Miroku changed his form from his human form to the form of Asura (Asura).


''Guh......!

　As a result, the second's precise and incomparable blow was dislodged from the head and stabbed into the abdomen.


'Nice,'

　Here, the second finally utters a few words.

　The method of removing the kryptonite seems to be to your liking.


...... goh, phew.

　Miroku, who was hit by a pretty good attack called Ginshou Katsurama Compound while transforming, fell backwards while decreasing his HP.


''Lord, please leave Anko alone.

　On the other hand, Anko cancelled the 《Dark Magic》 and sprinted to close the gap between them.

　If this is the case, Miroku will be able to get his hands on it, and that's when ...... Anko invoked the Dark Summoning.

　I'm not going to be the only one who can do that. It is a large spear that is three meters long that spews out black flames with each swing.

　It was the weapon that the Second was most wary of. It was even said in Mevion, "If this is summoned, it's the end.

　However--


Forfeit.

'Oh, ala ......?'


　--The Gui Ma Yin Manipulation. A skill that allows you to manipulate a target that touches the thread for a certain amount of time.

　The 16lb of fluorocarbon is held in the hand of the second before you know it.


　That's right, it's the one I threw away when I activated the 【Long Horse Body Technique】.

　Basically, 【String Manipulation】 is weak to fire. It's not strong enough to withstand the black flames of the anko with its extraordinary firepower. Therefore, with the distance between him and the anko, it was reckless to use the thread to aim at something in the current situation.

　However, if that thread had already extended through the ground. The impossible becomes possible.


　The Second had read this development tens of seconds ago. No, he had expected it before the match started. It was only natural that he had taken measures against Anko's use of 《Dark Summoning》 at this time.



''Aha, lie ......, this is like .......''

　Anko, who had been manipulated by the Second and made to dump the Black Flame No Spear on the ground, muttered while trembling slightly.

　The rest of those words were what everyone here was thinking.


　--It's not as if there's a match.


　Anko was trembling with anger. Anger at his own foolishness in failing to live up to the Second's expectations.


''Nuh-uh!''

　Miroku roared and got up while spitting out blood.

　Taking full advantage of his three-sided, six-armed, over two-meter tall body, he prepared the 《Katsura Battoujutsu》 and pounced on Second.

　The Second rolled Anko down almost as soon as Miroku got up, then cancelled the Guillermo String Manipulation, took out the Missus Spear from his inventory and prepared the Flying Wheel Lance Technique.

　The 《Javeling Javelin Technique》 is a skill that allows you to charge in with your spear at the ready and make a thrust at the end. If it's a rush at Miroku, the second would be at a disadvantage against Anko, who picked up the Black Flame Spear after the collision. If it was a lunge at Anko, the only skill Anko could deal with in time after getting up was the Claw Attack, and Miroku had no way to attack from a distance, so the second one had the advantage.

　Here, he would head for Anko. As Miroku activated 《Katsura Battoujutsu》 while enduring the pain of the wound he received in his abdomen, his thoughts turned to--

No!

　I've realized. Second said coming this way.

　Miroku immediately cancelled Gui Ma in the air and activated the counter + defensive 《King General Battoujutsu》.

　Immediately after that, Second turned around and started to rush towards Miroku.

　As I thought, Miroku was convinced.

　There was another way for Anko to respond to the Flying Wheel Spear Technique.

　That was ...... 《Darkness Transformation》. If he became in wolf form, any physical attacks on Anko would be null and void.

''Now.''

　And just as Miroku had read, Anko got up from down and activated 《Dark Transformation》.

　Seeing this, Second thought he would stop his rush, but he went straight past Miroku and stopped as he turned around, canceled the Flying Wheel Jousting, and began to prepare for the Dragon Horse Jousting.

　In the meantime, Anko was steadily working on her transformation into a wolf form. In another four seconds, she would approach the Second with frightening speed and eat the Claw Attack.

　However, the Ryoma that Second was preparing was a physical attribute attack, even though it was a long-range attack by shockwave. It's not something that will work against the wolf-shaped anko.


''!

　Immediately after, Miroku and Anko renewed their awareness.


　The second has synergized the "Wind Attribute Type-2" and "Earth Attribute Type-Sanno" into the "Dragon Horse Lance Technique".


　That's right - 【Magic Spear Technique】.

　Moreover, I've been able to increase the range of Ryoma's long-range attack with the wind of the 弐ノ型 and raise its power with the earth that is easy to scatter. On top of that, by getting behind Miroku, he put Anko and Miroku in the same line of fire.

　It's an utterly shrewd blow. The phrase "always have more than one aim" is a second one, and this is exactly what it means when you stand around, not just to kill two birds with one stone, but to kill three or four birds with one stone.


Gu......!

　Miroku realized that he wouldn't be able to run to crush the second Ryoma in time now, so he cancelled the Golden General, moving wide to the side and taking evasive action. But the pain of his wounds prevented him from moving as much as he wanted.

　In the next moment, the second dragon horse was activated. The 《Earth Attribute, Sanno Type》 released by the shockwave and wind magic scattered like a cluster bullet and attacked Miroku and Anko.

　Miroku narrowly escapes a direct hit, but the aftermath knocks him off his feet and he goes down. Anko performs the Dark Transformation again, but--


Huh?

　《Synergy》 was a skill that put two magic arts on a single attack. Unlike Compound, it was a skill that possessed both spear technique attributes and sorcery attributes, although it was slightly less powerful.

　Therefore, Anko would eat the dragon horse's worth of attacks and go down.



''.........................''

　--I didn't think this situation was possible.


　I don't get it.

　Cubero and Gloria, who were watching the game, had to be in raptures.

　No, at times, they could have laughed. They were no longer laughing.

　And then, with their hearts beating painfully, they looked on, fascinated. The impossible, unbelievable, false reality that was now in front of me.


　Anko and Miroku, both falling down together: ......!

　The second, on the other hand, is unscathed. He hadn't received a single blow.

　The two of them understood that this was not a simple strength, even if they were in the position of spectators.

　If you only look at STR and AGI, Miroku might be better than him. Looking at the awkwardness of each and every skill, Anko was definitely better.

　Still, why is it so overwhelming?

　...... Technology. Technology in interpersonal combat. It's the one thing that makes them so different from each other.

　If it were a match between two samurai, Miroku would never be pushed to this level. If it was just a second of [Swordsmanship], [Archery] and [Magic], Anko wouldn't be pushed to this level.

The difference in skill in "anything goes" PvP, that's all.


　This man has now won eight titles.

　But he still has a long way to go.

　He's getting closer and closer. He is getting closer to his true form as the world's number one.

　And the inhabitants of this world are gradually becoming aware of it. The Second's story of true entertainment.



What...

　Second spoke in a quiet voice to Anko and Miroku, who were trying to recover from being down.

　His eyes were set and stagnant. It was as if they had come to this world.


'Are you licking it?'

　It was a small irritation.

　And most of all, to ...... myself, an emptiness.


'Are you licking it?' he asked.

My Lord, how dare you!
I'm so serious.

Then betray me. Please, ......, tell me what you mean by that.


　Second says as he dexterously tucks the mithril spear into his inventory without a glance.

　His inventory handling was once even touted as "nerve-racking".

　Recalling such old stories, Second's emptiness accelerates further.


　It seemed, for a moment, to be meaningless.

　What if this world could not become that world? For a brief moment, I feared that this world could not be that world.


Oh. Why am I doing this? This is ridiculous. When?　How long do we have to wait for this?　Hey. When do you get to be a part of it?　I'm--


　This was not the summit he was aiming for.

　Always, always, always, always, always below expectations.

　No, there have been a few times when his expectations have been betrayed for the better and his heart has been thrilled. But that was conditioned by the expectation of growth potential.

　The two people he expected the most didn't betray him after all, either.

　There is a great deal of growth potential. It's also at an unprecedentedly high level. It's a treasure trove, and once it's refined, it will be a different story.

　But even then, it's still not quite enough.

　When in the world will it arrive? It was a daunting thought for him.

　The difference is obvious. To put it bluntly, even if it took two people to get the current second, it would not be able to compete with the Seven of yesteryear.

　There are a number of opponents in the world where even those sevens are struggling.

　The top of that world. That is the single peak of the world that he tries to return to.


When will I become number one in the world?