Chapter 95 - Still, There is Hope (4)

I watched the Berserker climb onto the stage with a throbbing headache.

Even factoring in the speed of horses and camels, it was absurd that someone who departed later than us had arrived before us.

What was even more baffling was that the first thing she did upon arriving so quickly was participate in the arena.

And finally, it was utterly ridiculous that the very first match ticket we bought happened to be hers.

I had no idea where to even begin pointing out the flaws. Was this... was this probability...? Some forced narrative power determined to tie the Berserker to our party...?

"Even if she rode a mount... no, even using mounts, it should have been difficult for her to arrive faster than us."

"No, we didn't even see her pass by in the first place. If she took the main road, we definitely would have crossed paths."

I leaned back against my seat with a look of disgust. If I had known this would happen, I would have just claimed I had no intention of wasting time on entertainment and gone off to do something else.

But the Archmage had strictly urged me not to act alone. It was in preparation for an emergency—in case the seal failed to do its job—so it was hard to just ignore it.

He had even restricted my location and timeframe specifically for this city. No matter how much of a temperamental concept I had, flat-out ignoring that would be a bit...

"Well now, how mysterious."

No, no, thinking it over, it seemed like there was no reason for me to leave this place to begin with.

It wasn't like the Berserker was going to leap into the audience seating and pick a fight with me. In that case, shouldn't this level of coincidence be fine?

"Ahem. How she got here hardly matters. What's important is that we have no further reason to get involved with her..."

However, an anomaly occurred before the Archmage could even finish his sentence.

"Let the match begin—"

CRASH!

The moment the referee signaled the start of the match, the Berserker shot forward and subdued the Red-Tattooed Omar with a single blow.

The fact that Omar had her sword raised meant absolutely nothing.

The Berserker's fist shattered the sword and struck Omar's solar plexus. The body went flying and slammed into the arena wall, which was only a natural outcome.

"How utterly disappointing. Next!"

Her platinum blonde hair and the earring dangling from one ear caught the sunlight, gleaming with a metallic luster.

"... What was that just now?"

Was it because it ended so instantly? Even though the match had clearly been decided, the referee did not dare to open his mouth. The sparse audience was the same.

I could see everyone was so thoroughly stunned that they couldn't even utter a word.

"Did I not shout next, referee!"

"T-The winner! Berserk!"

"It's not Berserk, it's Berserker!!"

Of course, I wasn't all that surprised. It wasn't so much that I had guessed the Berserker's level of strength, but rather that I was vaguely thinking, 'Of course she'd win.'

After all, the Berserker was an official character in her own right. There was no way someone like that would lose to a mere extra who wasn't even a named character.

If an official character lost to an extra, the fans would instantly start theorizing if the extra had some hidden background setting, or they'd have to go complain to the story writer.

"And hurry up and bring out the next expert!"

Meanwhile, the Berserker was being stubborn. Once victory or defeat was decided, it was right to step down from the stage, yet she stood stiffly on the platform with no intention of retreating.

"Hurry! The Berserker hasn't even been properly entertained yet!"

And all while making unreasonable demands for a new opponent.

It was a tantrum that had no chance of working at Inoxar, where matches were scheduled by mutual agreement.

"... It was more anti-climactic than I expected, but I understand how things proceed here. It seems to be over, so let's head out."

"If the Inquisitor says so."

"Wow, I wonder if that person over there is even still alive. Her strength must be truly tremendous."

While the Berserker threw her tantrum like that, we prepared to leave.

The others were still frozen in shock, so our group, being the only ones moving, stood out quite a bit.

"...! You!"

That was our bad luck.

SWOOSH.

Something flew toward where we were. It was an attack aimed precisely at me, who was at the very back of the formation.

SMACK!

My right hand went up reflexively and snatched it out of the air. When I briefly lowered my eyes to check what had flown at me, I saw that it was a broken piece of a sword blade.

"Hah, strong as expected!"

"Demon Knight, are you all right!?"

"Boss, are you okay!?"

Leaving the fussing group be, I tossed the piece of metal onto the floor. My gaze turned straight toward the one who must have launched the blade fragment.

She must have kicked the blade to throw it, as one of her legs, which had been raised high, was slowly lowering back down.

"You aren't going to back down this time too, are you?"

"That reckless fool..."

'No, no, no!!! I literally just thought she wouldn't leap into the audience seating and pick a fight?! But what the hell is this development!! She just didn't physically invade the seating, she completely and blatantly picked a fight!'

'Was the Berserker always this unhinged of a character? Of course, looking at her scripts in the original work, she was a battle maniac who lived with her life on the line, but still...!'

I stared at the Berserker and stiffened my neck. I figured the veins were probably bulging, but since I had no way to see it myself, it was impossible to confirm.

'Should I kill her.'

'More importantly, how many times has she crossed the line now? Last time I was able to hold back under the pretext of the Archmage stopping me, but will that be possible this time too?'

'Ah, shit. Entertaining her will only make the Berserker happy, so I want to hold it in if possible.'

"If you want to prove you are no coward, come down, warrior!"

'Hm. Including last time, that makes three stacks of calling me a coward. I let it pass twice, but three times probably won't fly, right?'

"Boss, Boss. You aren't going to fall for that weirdo's provocations, right?"

"Demon Knight, there is no need for you to entertain that ruffian..."

CRUNCH.

I slammed the True Two-hander I had been carrying on my back into the audience floor. It wasn't like I was going to kill the Berserker, so what need would I have to use this sword?

If I wasn't going to use it anyway, I might as well leave it behind in a badass way. My longsword had broken on the way here, so I had nothing else to leave behind.

"I will beat some manners into you."

"We're doomed..."

"Demon Knight?!"

'I'm sooooory. I'm sorry my concept is like this.'

Leaving my flustered companions behind, I drifted down to the stage. I could see the arena staff, who had been trying to drag the Berserker away by force, looking bewildered.

"U-Um, personal duels are not allowed..."

The announcer, who had been calm until earlier, also mouthed a warning. However, he was merely flapping his lips and did not take a firm stance.

It was understandable.

"Finally!"

The Berserker's eyes were currently rolling back in madness. And I, too, feigned the same state.

"A warrior of Norda is fair and square. Since you have discarded your sword, I shall not use a weapon either!"

'What is a human whose entire body is a weapon even talking about.'

I watched the Berserker throw aside her halberd and slowly caught my breath.

It was at least a relief that she was a Berserker and not a Weapon Master, one of the advancement branches for a fighter. That thought briefly crossed my mind before fading away.

"Here I come!"

Without any warning—no, she did shout it out, but she dashed forward at the exact same time—the Berserker violently threw a punch.

BAM!

'Is it for real that hitting empty air with a bare fist makes a sound like that?' Watching the arm that had passed right by the side of my head, I suppressed a feeling of slight dismay.

Instead, I reached out my hand.

GRAB!

The hand aimed at my solar plexus was caught. This was a bit unexpected, but it wasn't a major problem.

「Evasion Counter | A wise warrior can seize an opportunity from the enemy's attack.

Effect: Upon a successful evasion, there is a 30% chance to mark the enemy's opening」

Because recently, having nothing else to invest in, I had fully leveled the Evasion Counter skill tree as well. I had put it off since I could still launch an attack after dodging without necessarily needing the skill, but having leveled it, it proved quite useful when facing an opponent of equal footing.

Not that there were many opponents on equal footing like the Berserker, but anyway.

So, I used my shoulder just like that and rammed into the Berserker.

"Khah!"

'Ah, please don't laugh. It's creepy.'

I forced myself to ignore the sound of laughter coming from above. Then, with my other arm that was still free, I viciously uppercutted the Berserker's jaw.

Thanks to that, the Berserker's attempt to claw my back with the arm she had shot out in a straight line the very first time was rendered futile.

She stumbled back a couple of steps and broke into a grin. It was genuinely terrifying.

SMACK!

My foot kicked out at the Berserker. Showing that she still had the presence of mind to raise her guard even while stumbling, her arms crossed in an X shape took the hit instead. Scrape. The massive body dragged against the ground and was pushed back slightly.

It was about two steps.

"Good, this is good!"

The moment the force pushing her back weakened, she immediately began to charge. For a moment, I had the illusion that the wind surrounding her looked like white streaks.

And when the distance had narrowed significantly, the Berserker threw another punch.

I wasn't sure if she was just tough or if she simply didn't think deeply.

I lightly twisted my body to the side to evade, then crossed my arm to deliver a punch straight into the Berserker's face. Crunch. Judging by the sound of what seemed like a nose bone breaking, it was a clean hit.

"Heh."

However, the corners of her eyes, slightly visible from what my fist failed to cover, merely curled up into an expression of sheer madness.

GRAB!

The person who had taken a direct punch to the face grabbed my arm in reverse without a single tremor.

Honestly, I was scared, more so than at any other moment.

BAM!

More punches flew at me before I could even shake off my caught arm. Because of my posture, I was hit in the solar plexus instead of the face, and the force behind it was absolutely no joke.

Thanks to my pain perception level, most pain usually just ends as a mere sting, but oh man, this one actually felt like taking a light punch.

More than the moment of impact, the faint, dull ache that lingered afterward was what bothered me.

Scrape.

I was even pushed back by that force, so I planted my feet into the ground and barely managed to regain my balance. About three steps. That was the distance I had retreated.

"Now this is a fight!"

'Wow, I don't know if she intended it or if it's a coincidence, but that's really going to piss off my concept.'

I straightened my bent back, my lips trembling slightly. There was still a bit of discomfort lingering around my solar plexus, but judging from experience, it didn't feel like a bone was broken or anything.

That was enough.

I quietly watched my opponent wipe away her double nosebleed with the back of her hand, and the moment she lowered her hand, I dashed forward.

CRASH!

"Khah, yeah! That's how you should come at me!"

Fists aimed at fists and feet aimed at feet as a fierce slugfest began.

I hadn't engaged in close-quarters combat with a proper opponent very often, so my technique was somewhat sloppy, but it didn't escalate into a major problem.

Part of it was thanks to the Survival Instinct skill—the evasion path suggestion was the best—and part of it was thanks to Evasion Counter, but fundamentally, the Berserker was just far too tough.

Yup, perhaps she was trusting the sturdiness that came from her physique, as she took the hits just so she could land her own.

Of course, there was no denying that each and every strike she threw out like that was a threat to me. If I had it my way, I'd want to trade blows (deal damage while taking it) too, but her attacks hurt too much...

Even when I merely raised my guard, my bones felt a dull ache. I suppose you could say it felt roughly like receiving extracorporeal shockwave therapy.

Because of that, and partly to utilize my skills, I ultimately had no choice but to fight back with a focus on evasion.

Every rare time our bodies clashed, faint shockwaves rippled through the air, and the wind pressure kicked up clouds of dust.

Cracks slowly began to form in the ground.

"Good, this is very good!"

Seeing the stage turning into a complete mess, I felt even more sorry for the people who would have to clean it up later. But I've got my own problems to deal with right now, so I can't afford to be considerate.

SMACK!

Our fists crossed as we struck each other's faces. My fist landed dead center on the Berserker's face, while the Berserker's fist slightly missed, hitting around my cheek and jaw.

My lip split open, and blood flowed.

'S-Still, I won this damage trade...! My lip might be busted, but it's on the side with my scar, so it won't even be that noticeable. Most importantly, that side got a double nosebleed!'

'Usually, in these cases, the side that bleeds more is the loser, so anyway, I won! I won!'

"Aha, ahahaha!!"

'... No, I actually lost... What's the point of winning the damage trade when she's the one having the most fun.'

I checked my HP while watching her burst into mad laughter as if she were thoroughly enjoying herself. For a fistfight, I couldn't tell if it had depleted a lot or a little.

My limbs just ached.

"More, entertain me more—!"

CLATTER-RATTLE!

In that instant, a familiar yet unwelcome sound rang out. White and blue chains shot up from the ground, binding both of us.

It was a relief that they didn't wrap around my neck, at least.

"W-What is this!"

Though the Berserker had chains wrapped mercilessly around her neck as well.

"You..."

"Leave it at that. The staff are troubled."

'No, if you were going to stop us like this, couldn't you have done it earlier?'

I grumbled inwardly and glared at the Archmage. The Archmage met my gaze without flinching.

"Entertaining her any further here will only lower your own standard. Stop now and come up here."

'Wait, this is an unblockable move on par with calling me a coward.'

Still, being able to stop here was quite appealing. It just wasn't obvious because I was bundled up tightly, but I was definitely bruised all over my body.

"... Tsk."

Therefore, I decided to obediently follow his words.

Clicking my tongue once, I drew out more mana. The moment my mana became visible in the form of a haze, the chains shattered with a loud clang.

"...!"

The Berserker's eyes widened in surprise. But what did I care.

After breaking the chains, I lightly leaped up. The stage was at a lower elevation than the audience seating, but it wasn't a height I couldn't clear.

"Wait, where are you going! A victor has not yet been decided between us!"

As if trying to break the chains like I did, the Berserker twisted her entire body and shouted.

However, she failed to break them. With that, there was no longer any need to pay her mind.

I retrieved the sword I had stabbed into the ground earlier.

"Well now, what a surprising person. That Binding had a bit more effort put into it than yours, yet she is resisting it."

'... Ah, so it wasn't that I broke it because I was stronger than her, but rather that she was hit with a higher-intensity Binding?'

'Still, it's fine since others won't know that. I'll just look like the stronger one.'

"It looks like it will break soon, so let us hurry and leave."

"Demon Knight, are you all right?"

"Boss..."

The Archmage hastily urged us along, and Kimchi Dumpling worried over my body. Meat Dumpling... hmm. Right. I understood that look telling me to tone down my temper perfectly.

'But were you always like this? Aren't you supposed to have a worried look alongside Kimchi Dumpling?'

'It's true that my concept isn't acting its age, but this uncle's heart hurts...'

"Still, it seems there is one thing to be glad about."

'What, that Meat Dumpling is slowly losing his respect for me?'

"Though it was a small amount, you drew upon your mana and fought here, yet the seal remains perfectly intact. There are no abnormalities with you either. I believe we can be somewhat relieved regarding that. Though it will be a bit problematic if you do this again next time."

'... No wonder he only stopped us after watching everything unfold. He deliberately left us alone to test the seal!'