Chapter 83: The Two Who Are Definitively Different

I rushed vigorously at Zoak who had his jet-black sword readied and swung my sword.

It was a downward slash that used the energy of my whole body’s muscles. Zoak evaded it by shifting his body to the side. I then made a sweep with my blade to pursue him and went after his neck.

Right as my silver blade was about to cut his head off, his arms moved sharply and he parried my attack.

I tried to just push through with brute force, but he pushed back and held his ground while his expression twisted to one of joy.

「Hahaha, good! I can feel that you really want to do whatever it takes to kill me and save this woman!」

Not only are we fighting, but we are also killing each other as fellow human beings. I feel disgusted and can’t stand how he’s laughing like he’s enjoying this.

Because of his selfishness, he got the person I love involved and got her hurt. Just by thinking about that, an anger that’s like hot magma starts to surge out from deep inside my chest.

「So whatt?!」

In order to defeat the enemy in front of me, I will lightly pull back my sword that I couldn’t push through by force and move it to where I’m attacking next.

The motion of the attack is going to be as small as possible, but the speed will be faster than ever before.

My opponent isn’t protected by strong scales and hides like monsters are. If it’s this sword, average armor will probably get torn up like paper.

That’s why I don’t have to put any more strength into the attacks. I only have to use the smallest movements while I unleash high-speed attacks to deal fatal damage to him.

I started to fluidly unleash a chain of continuous strikes with that in mind. I kept on going for Zoak’s vitals such as his wrists, his sides, thighs, and neck in a straightforward manner.

However, Zoak is a pro in fighting vs humans. He understands exactly what I’m trying to do as he deflected everything with the jet-black sword he held in his hands.

From the expression on his face, I can see that he’s elated due to the battle, but the way he handled his sword was extremely calm.

I pretended to go for his arm, then I changed the trajectory mid-strike and slashed down at him.

Although his response was delayed from that, Zoak still guarded against it perfectly.

I expected him to do that, so I lightly pulled back my sword that I slashed down to unleash a sharp thrust at a spot that’s a little to the right of the center of his body.

「Haa!」

As I let out a short battle cry, I added in the energy from twisting my body and unleashed my fastest attack.

Not only is his body in a rigid state, but he also had to move his black sword into a horizontal position to block my downward slash. Since I’m aiming at the axis of his body, he will have a hard time avoiding it by waving his body as well.

「……Naive」

After I heard Zoak’s low voice, his jet-black sword moved as if it was following my silver blade.

Then, the thrust that was aimed at Zoak’s chest was deflected from the side with great force.

「Ughh!」

Due to the high amount of strength he put into that deflection, my stance ended up slightly crumbled.

「I’ll be coming for you now, alright?」

Zoak did not miss my opening. I could see a black glow coming at me in my field of vision. Although I acted half from intuition, I made use of my collapsed stance to twist my body.

Then, the next moment, a thin piece of skin was sliced off my neck as a dark and cold object passed by it.

*Vooh*, I heard the sound of air getting cut in my ears.

I feel something warm flow down from my lightly cut neck.

I judged that I mustn’t remain in this posture I’m in so I flung my body back to retreat.

By the time I assumed middle guard with my sword after immediately getting back up, Zoak was already closing in on me before my eyes.

His black sword descended upon me as if it was performing a dance.

I drew upon all the experiences I have to dodge, parry, and deflect Zoak’s attacks that had feints mixed in. However, he is extremely skilled in his sword arts; his line of sight, his hand movements, and his tempo were all highly sophisticated.

His way of fighting is the same as what I know, but his combat skills against other humans were far ahead of mine.

Due to his sword techniques that adapt based on his opponents, I could not defend and evade according to my predictions and my body was gradually becoming injured.

Of course, I’m not only defending either. I also made counterattacks to put a stop to his attacks, but they did not reach him.

My attacks weren’t hitting him, but his attacks were starting to injure me.

「……Take a look at your own body」

Zoak spoke to me after I took some distance between us. He sounded somewhat disappointed as if he was criticizing me.

It’s probably because my body was getting slashed up by him, the armor I have on and the clothes I’m wearing underneath have been slightly torn open, and blood was flowing out from all over.

This fight is the complete opposite of the fight we had 2 years ago.

He did not defend against my attacks so cleanly 2 years ago. I was able to deal with his attacks without much stress as well.

The reason why the relationship of our power reversed is not only because I haven’t been training for more than half a year, a big part of it is probably the result of his continuous hard work.

I can understand that by just looking at how he controls his sword like it’s his own limb.

However, to Zoak, since training is the natural thing to do, he doesn’t seem very happy about the current reversed situation.

「Your attacks don’t reach me, and my attacks are mercilessly cutting up your body. This would not happen if you stayed the same as you were 2 years ago. This is what becomes of you after you spent your days as a villager」

He spoke in a kind of irritated voice.

「……」

I definitely got some regretful thoughts from those words, but I will not regret anything.

I was able to find true happiness because I came to this village, met some nice people, and got to spend the days with the person I love.

That’s why even if I lose to him here and die, I will not be ashamed of being a villager of Nordende.

I thought to myself from the depths of my heart as I looked at Flora who had lost consciousness from shock earlier.

Maybe Zoak found the look on my face unpleasant; he glared at me with cold eyes.

「……I thought you would become more inspired once I made you fully realize the power gap between us here, but it looks like I was wrong. Aldred, you seem to have become quite a big coward. Or is it that woman’s fault? I know many guys in the world thirst after women, but I never thought that you would be one of them」

After he spat out at me like that, he turned his eyes to Flora.

You can criticize me for retiring as an adventurer. As a fellow swordsman, I feel frustrated as well when I see how rusty I’ve become, but I can endure the criticism.

「Were you charmed by her sex appeal or something? Did you fall in love with her because she showed you kindness when you lost your goals in life? There are plenty of women like her in the capital as well, aren’t there? Abandoning the way of the sword for a woman like her is definitely a mistake――」

However, hearing the woman I love being mocked is the only thing I cannot stand.

You tainting Flora’s thoughts from 9 years ago, her life, and even her character with your words are just what I can’t allow.

「Do I have to kill this woman for you to return to the old you?」

On top of that, you’re saying you’re going to kill the person I love…?

「Fuck you, Zoak!」

After I spoke up in a remarkably grave and cold tone, my body closed in on him in front of his eyes.

The burning anger that I had at the beginning had already been blown away. The anger I feel right now is one that’s surprisingly cold. My head wasn’t controlled by just one emotion; I was thinking about how to kill him with a calm and clear head.

Shocked by my speed, Zoak quickly readied his sword.

But I did not care about that and just slashed at him head-on.

It’s an unnecessarily powerful strike that doesn’t follow the standard tactics in battles between humans. This is how I used my sword when I was up against strong monsters.

Naturally, that means my attack motion will be big, so Zoak will easily parry or dodge my attack with a side step.

However, that doesn’t bother me.

It just means that I should think of him as an agile humanoid type of monster. In the very first place, monsters that have totally different body structures and thought patterns will never move the way I predict anyway.

Without losing my cool, I moved my sword immediately after Zoak avoided the attack.

「What?!」

As he opened his right eye wide in surprise, a line ran across his cheek and red blood splashed out.

If I think about it calmly, this monster has many blind spots that normal people with a left eye wouldn’t have. There was something wrong with me to not be abusing that earlier.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

All living creatures have a weakness to them no matter what kind of organisms they are. Attacking those areas to bring the monster down is nothing to be ashamed of as an adventurer.

In short, it’s my fault for having a match against my opponent on their playing field.

I quickly dove my body at the space that is the blind spot of Zoak’s left eye.

Of course, after he realized that I got a grasp on his weakness, he used his sword to keep me out of his blind spots. It was a cleave to protect his distance. However, I was not scared by it, if anything, I jumped in to get closer to him. I bent my body in just the nick of time and sliced at his right thigh as we passed each other.

「Ugh!」

While he groaned out quietly, I put one hand on the ground and used that momentum to push myself back up.

At that moment, since the dagger Zoak threw was closing in on me, I lightly waved my sword to deflect it.

Without letting my opponent get a moment of rest, I began slashing at him again.

I waved my sword as if I was drawing an arc to his left eye that is his blind spot, then I repeatedly unleashed multiple attacks at his blind spot with feints mixed in.

Was he shaken by the monster fighting style that I suddenly changed to? It doesn’t matter what the answer is, since he cannot respond to my attacks.

Every time I swung my sword and got in a counterattack, Zoak’s body suffered a cut and red blood started to leak out.

「Ha……Hahaha! What is this?! You’re completely different from just a moment ago! It’s a different way of fighting from 2 years ago as well! So this is how the A-ranked adventurer Aldred fights! The man who specialized in combat against monsters and defeated the calamities known as dragons…! So this is how you really fight!」

Zoak yelled out in a voice that was dyed in excitement as our swords crossed.

I did not answer him. If I have the leisure to move my mouth, I should swing my sword a bit faster instead. I should be using that energy to fight.

There’s no reason for me to play along with him just because he’s talking to me.

I continue to swing my sword silently. High pitch sounds echoed in the forest as the silver sword and black sword that were dyed with each of our blood collided.

「A clash of our skills and experiences! Slash and be slashed! That’s it! This is the type of fight I wanted, Aldred!」

Blood was flowing down Zoak’s body, but even that is probably one of the things that make his excitement and joy rise. As if he was truly happy from the bottom of his heart, he came slashing at me as he showed his white teeth.

Maybe he had also begun to catch on to my style of fighting and the feints I’m doing; he gradually started to eat fewer and fewer attacks from me. And since I haven’t completely adapted to his fighting style against people either, I ate many slashes as well.

The battle between an assassin and a former adventurer has inevitably become an unsophisticated fight where we hack at each other’s bodies and shave each other’s life off just as he wanted.

Despite everything, Zoak was laughing like he was having fun. Me on the other hand, my expression was completely cold.

「「*haa*…*Haaah*……」」

Eventually, our bloody demonstration headed to its last scene.

Perhaps it’s because we have both bled too much that our movements became dull. Also, our breathing has gotten rough too.

「Kuahahahahah! So fun! This is so fun! Aldred! It’s the first time I’m having so much fun killing someone! Who knew fighting someone who is on the same level as me to the death feels this good!」

「……I couldn’t care less about something like that」

I muttered out in a cold tone towards Zoak who was laughing loudly.

I can’t understand him at all. To me, fighting is just something I do to stay alive. It is not something that can be called a purpose in life.

The purpose in life that I have right now is to live a peaceful life with people I care about in Nordende.

We’re both giving our all in the fight, but what moves us is definitively different.

「……The next move will be the last」

「……Yeah, that’s just what I want」

When I replied to him with a glare as I readied my sword, Zoak also readied his jet-black sword in response.

The sun that has been shining on us has already started to go down, and due to the trees’ shadows, it’s getting a bit dark.

The leaves of trees rustled.

As we stared at each other, a single leaf fell down between our gazes and disappeared from both of our sights.

With that as the signal, we charged at each other at the same time.

The silver blade and the jet-black blade that were swung seemed to move in slow motion.

Of the two single strikes that we both unleashed to reap the other person’s life, it was the silver blade’s attack that managed to reach faster and deeper.

A deep line ran across Zoak’s chest, then a large amount of blood spilled out as he fell on his back.

When I looked down at my side, there was a cut wound from the jet-black blade. Blood was gradually coming out, but the wound was not deep enough for it to be life-threatening. Although I can’t let my guard down considering how much blood I’ve lost in total……

While I grimaced from the pain that was coming from my entire body, I walked to the collapsed Zoak.

His surroundings were covered in quite an immense amount of blood, and his complexion was also turning pale. His sword had fallen out of his right hand, and he was looking up at the sky as he lay there in a “大” position with an empty look in his eyes.

I can see that he could no longer move no matter how I look at him, but I will stay on alert as I question him with my sword in hand.

「……Where is Flora’s antidote?」

「……Ugh, *Cough*, cough*……In the pouch by my left hip……」

In response to my simple question, Zoak obediently told me where the antidote was.

Without losing track of the movement of his hands, I looked at the pouch that’s by the left side of his waist and got a feel of it.

Then, I found a small bottle in there that has a green liquid inside.

That’s probably the antidote.

However, is this really an antidote that will cure Flora?

What if it’s poison? What if he’s lying? A fear ran across my body just from thinking about that.

「……Aah, don’t be this riled up from just a light poison. Yet this the man who killed the dragon…the man who beat me?」

「W-what are you talking about?」

「……I told you, didn’t I? I was just using that woman to get you serious. There’s no such thing as the poison circulating and killing her. She’s just temporarily paralyzed and fatigued. That detoxifying medicine will be plenty enough to cure her」

「W-what?」

I was shocked at the truth that Zoak slowly told me.

In other words, Flora is not going to die from the poison circulating?! So basically, I was only dancing in the middle of Zoak’s palm so that he can get the fight he wanted?

Even so, it doesn’t mean that what he did can be forgiven, but if it’s the truth, I feel like it’s a bit anticlimactic.

「Hahaha, you really like that woman, don’t you? I never thought that you’d be this flustered just because she drank a light poison…」

Zoak laughed as if he found it funny as he lay there on his back.

It wasn’t the laugh of excitement he had earlier, but his authentic natural laugh.

While I felt embarrassed from being played by him, I walked towards the unconscious Flora who was bound to a tree with the bottle of antidote in my hand to check how she’s doing.

When I took a closer look, Flora’s expression has only worsened a little, so it’s unlikely for her to be critically injured. Even her shoulder where she was cut by the poisoned dagger feels like it was just the smallest cut that didn’t go deep.

Zoak is not like the thug or criminal trash around. Even when he kidnapped Flora to draw me out, he did not get the other villagers involved, and he did not try to use Flora as a shield to kill me either.

He also didn’t do anything like calling other people out to jump me, assassinate, or poison me.

He only wanted to fight me again when I’m serious just like he said.

When I consider all those things, I feel like I can believe him.

I untied Flora from the tree and held her in my arms.

Did her physical condition begin to crumble because of the poison? She felt slightly cold and sweaty, but her breathing is calm.

「Come on, Flora. It’s the antidote. Drink it」

Even when I brought the bottle close to her while I lightly tapped her cheek with my fingers, Flora did not respond.

Since it can’t be helped, I decided to put the antidote in my mouth and make her drink it with a mouth transfer.

「……Nnn」

When I pressed my lips on hers as if I was giving her a gentle kiss, Flora let out a faint sound.

She probably unconsciously remembered how we kiss when our lips touched. Since she opened her mouth a little, I let the antidote in my mouth flow into hers.

Then, slowly but surely, she drank the antidote.

「Nn, nnnmm」

Although she groaned out as if it tasted a little bitter.

I felt assured from the fact that she drank the antidote and let out a sigh of relief.

If nothing else, I can finally rest easy with that.

As I looked at Flora who is safe and sound, a smile started to form on my face.

Then, after I leaned her on a tree, I walked towards where Zoak fell.

I wonder if it’s because he has bled quite a lot, his complexion has worsened and he was breathing heavily.

I already understood it was going to be like this when I slashed him, but he can no longer be saved.

Even if a wizard like Kurune uses recovery magic on him, he has lost too much blood.

In the midst of his weak and hoarse breathing, he slowly spoke to me.

「……Hey, Aldred. Was I strong?」

「……Yeah, you’re the strongest one out of all of the swordsman I’ve fought so far」

When I gave him an honest answer, Zoak smiled contentedly.

「……I see」

After he left those words while looking satisfied, Zoak never said anything else nor did he take another breath.