Will I End Up As a Hero or a Demon King (WN)

Chapter 139

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T/n: This chapter is chapter 135 in the raw. Enjoy~

Chapter 139 – Why

A mock fight with Rigal-sama.

The distance between us is about 10 meters.

I activate my Presence Detection to the fullest extent and then concentrate my magic power in my left hand as if to strike first.

“Wind, become countless whirlwinds and cut through with all your might!”

I don’t hold back my magic power.

I don’t think I can hold out that long.

So, I will go all out from the beginning.

I swing my arm sideways while holding my sword tightly, releasing invisible blades of wind toward Rigal-sama.

I don’t even know how many blades there are.

But I think the best thing to do would be to dodge to the left or right or up.

I’ll use that to my advantage and use Rush forward.

“Hmm. That’s a familiar way to activate magic. But…”

Rigal-sama did not avoid it.

While muttering to herself on the spot, she raised her hand and

“――It’s weak.”

As she swung down, the dust on the ground spread out in waves.

“(What? Was it dispersed? She used brute force to counter the wind magic!?)”

Although I was inwardly surprised at the unexpected situation, I thought it was possible to decide not to move from this spot and leave it to the magic resistance.

Then.

“(Rush)”

I didn’t dare say it out loud.

I didn’t want her to predict it with such words.

The distance between Rigal-sama and me quickly closes as I murmur the word Rush in my mind.

When I am close enough to swing my right hand, holding the sword in front of me, Rigal-sama’s gaze turns to the sword, looking somewhat surprised.

Therefore, I pour magic into each of my feet.

“Earth, grow large!”

“Hmm?”

Without pausing, I immediately begin to chant with the magic that I have concentrated on the other foot.

“Open a hole, wide!”

“Nuoo?!”

With my view blocked, I was a little worried whether I would be able to make a hole at the designated point.

But it was the same view I had seen just before.

Judging by Rigal-sama’s reaction, I’m sure her attention was drawn to the hole that suddenly appeared under her feet, just as I had expected.

That’s why I jumped over the mound of dirt I had made.

I thought I could do it with the Jump skill I had acquired.

Unlike the left and right sides, this side should be the least guarded.

Besides, all Rigal-sama has now is the skill called Holding Back―a skill that, judging by its name, should prevent her from accidentally killing me.

If she doesn’t have the Presence Detection skill, she won’t be able to notice my actions――

“(No, no, why is she suddenly so far away…?)”

When I jumped over the mound with the swords in my hands, there was no Rigal-sama, only a hole about one meter in diameter.

The presence of Rigal-sama that I had detected with Presence Detection was about 15 meters behind the mound, and I had not detected the movement in between, so from my perspective, it felt like she had warped there without me noticing.

“Hahahahaha! You’re really good at this! I couldn’t predict what would appear, so I left the area. I’d say I lost this one. But jumping over is a bad move. If you can’t control your air suspension, the time it takes for your attack to reach the target will be the slowest, right? Ideally, you should have launched an attack that could pierce through that mound of earth.”

“I see… As I thought, Rigal-sama really is a god of war. Amazing! Amazing! But how did you manage to move so far? You don’t have that kind of ability, do you?”

“Hmm? I just put all my strength into my legs and backed away from the spot, that’s all.”

“I-is that so…?”

Damn it!

Is that what you call an absolute difference in ability?

It’s clear from this whole sequence that this is not a problem that can be solved by skill or wisdom.

“Then I will proceed with the attack.”

“Nggh… I won’t lose!”

“Ah, that’s the spirit.”

At this point, my skin tingle.

I felt as if the air, or rather the atmosphere of the place, had changed.

“I am having a lot of fun right now. I pray that this moment will last as long as possible.”

“…Eh?!”

Hearing these words.

Seeing the expression on Rigal-sama’s face as she spoke.

I involuntarily shivered, and my body suddenly began to tremble.

“(W-what is that hunting look on her face…?)”

If this were a battlefield and Rigal-sama was an enemy.

I would have shamefully chosen to flee without hesitation.

Even though I knew I couldn’t escape, I would have run as fast as I could, like a scared rabbit, without thinking.

My breathing became irregular even though I wasn’t tired.

I look at the figure of Rigal-sama approaching me, but the strategy of what I should do now slips out of my head, and I go blank.

“If you don’t concentrate, you’ll die right away, you know?”

“!”

At that moment, Rigal-sama was right in front of me.

Was it one second? Two seconds? That I was worrying about unnecessary things?

It couldn’t have been that long, but…

“Ugiiiiiii!!!”

“Hmm… this level of power is still too much for you. Should I ease up a bit?”

As she muttered this, Rigal-sama’s finger, which was still pointing at me, was covered in blood, and I couldn’t believe it when I looked at my own stomach and saw blood.

“(Eh? Blood? Did she stab me with her finger? Me?)”

I was so shocked that I couldn’t help but step back as Rigal-sama approached me again.

“Fugu… the blood… it hurts… I can’t stand it…”

“Fool. Do you think the enemy will show you such warmth with such words? It is always your own strength and will that protects you―get up.”

What is this?

I thought from the bottom of my heart.

But if I continued to crawl like this, I didn’t know what she would do to me.

I stood up, putting my knees under me out of fear, and braced my hands.

“Ugh… fuh… fuh…”

“That’s right. Show your will to fight. By doing so, the other person will start to think about other options than just trampling you.”

“Y-yes…”

“I’ll relax a little more…now let’s go.”

I can see it.

That’s what I thought at first.

As Rigal-sama said, she’s letting go of the power.

I can definitely see Rigal-sama flying toward me like a low-flying plane.

But what should I do?

A split-second decision.

It’s the result of my subconscious.

Out of the still strong fear, I choose the option to jump and avoid Rigal-sama. I make the choice.

Is that why―the voice I hear from behind makes my heart lose its will to fight and shrink.

“You’ve made another bad move, haven’t you? I won’t let you escape.”

Please spare me… I don’t want to be hurt…

“Ugh! Flight!”

Further and further away. Into the sky, where Rigal-sama’s hand cannot reach.

Thinking this, I desperately look up at the sky, flapping my hands as I fly.

And yet, for some reason, my ankle is being held.

As the words “Why?!” come out, my gaze shifts from the sky to my own feet.

I’m already about 20 meters in the air.

It’s not a height a person can do anything about.

“I’m impressed that you can use air control and Flight! But even a strong person can reach a certain height just by jumping, you know?”

My vision flips over in an instant.

“Guhhhhhh…!!!”

My poor air control is lost as my legs are violently pulled, and before I know it, I’m slammed onto the ground from behind.

A large amount of air escapes from my lungs, and I can’t even breathe in.

Can you say that the fact that I’m still alive after falling from that height is proof of my growth?

Right now, such things don’t matter, and the fear of ‘not wanting to die’ is polluting my heart.

“This is what happens when you turn your back on your enemy and run away halfway. What will you do next?

“Please forgive me…it hurts… I’m sorry…”

“Didn’t I just say that you are the one who has to protect yourself? Letting your enemy make that decision is like telling him to do whatever he wants, you know?”

“B-but…”

“But that is not good. If you keep doing that, you’ll just die… get up.”

Why?

As I feel the pain running through my body, I ask myself.

This was a mock battle to test my strength, and my opponent was Rigal-sama, so my life was guaranteed.

So why am I injured like this and still forced to fight?

I can’t understand it.

“(But if I stay like this, I’ll just die… will Rigal-sama kill me…?)”

Suddenly, unpleasant memories from my school days came back to me.

Even then, I couldn’t do anything about it; memories that I really didn’t want to remember but couldn’t forget.

Running away is useless.

Begging for forgiveness is useless.

So what can I do?

What is the way for me to be saved?

Is it to kill Rigal-sama, who is trying to kill me right here?

How the hell am I supposed to do that?

When I was shown the clear difference in our abilities, I felt fear that I couldn’t do it, and at the same time, anger began to grow inside me, “Why are you trying to kill me?”

“Why… why am I going through this…?”

Of course, I stood up.

“That’s right. That’s good.”

Maybe that’s why Rigal-sama’s voice sounded cheerful.

“Ugh… damn it! Damn it! Damn it!”

From the outside, it must have looked comical.

When I was knocked down, both of my swords were thrown out of my hands by the impact.

I was left with my bare hands.

Still, I ran toward Rigal-sama without a second thought, desperately reaching out to hit her.

Because of the height difference, I couldn’t even reach her face.

Still, I swung my fist while holding back my tears.

“Why? Why do you want to kill me? Why?!”

I didn’t get an answer.

All I got was my outstretched hand being lightly swatted away.

That’s why I jumped at Rigal-sama without thinking.

I don’t want to die.

I won’t let you kill me.

The two emotions were mixed together, and I thought that if I couldn’t reach her, I would just bite her.

I jumped onto her chest and tried to bite her hand when she reached out to pull me away.

But…

“Whoa, you have a skill that specializes in biting, right? I heard about it from Ria.”

Despite my feeble resistance, Rigal-sama’s hand covers my eyes, and I am left hanging in the air.

I struggle against the pain in my cheekbones and skull, but no matter how I reach out or move my legs, I am no match for Rigal-sama’s long arms, and I am unable to make contact.

The pain is so great that I can’t even speak.

And then…

I could see her pulling her other arm through the gap between her fingers.

“(Ahh… I’m being stabbed by her fingers again. I can’t take it anymore…)”

“Well, that’s the end of it. It was a really refreshing and fun time. Loki, don’t forget this pain, okay?”

It’s coming.

Although most of my vision was blocked, I somehow knew what was coming, probably because of my Presence Detection.

“D-d-don’t be ridiculous… Hardening…”

――Snap.

At that moment, I heard a sound as if something in my stomach had snapped.

“Huh? …Ha-hahahaha! That’s it! That’s it, Loki!”

At that moment, I felt an intense pain that seemed to pierce through my abdomen, and all I could taste in my mouth was the taste of iron.

As I was about to lose consciousness, the last thing I saw was Rigal-sama’s arm, which was red up to the elbow.

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