Chapter 122: What Is This Skill Even For?!
Enmu didn't understand swordsmanship.
He had zero martial arts training, and his combat refinedness was effectively
non-existent. His past victories relied entirely on the supernatural mechanics
of his Blood Demon Art and his raw demonic build—crushing opponents with force
or trapping them in their own minds.
In his eyes, Natsuya's Nichirin Sword was currently a blur of afterimages. The
carefully controlled "flesh-walls" of the tunnel, which should have crushed a
normal human like a falling landslide, were being dismantled with surgical ease.
Too fast!
Enmu couldn't even track the trajectory of the strikes.
Wait... this Slayer... isn't he just a Rank 3? A Hei-rank?
A massive "Danger" flag flared in his mind. Before he could react, Natsuya had
already closed the gap by several paces. He was almost within melee range.
No! I can't let him into the 'Pocket'!
Driven by demonic survival instinct, Enmu bolted backward. At that exact
micro-second, a single spark from Natsuya's blazing forest-fire of slashes
drifted out. It landed gently on Enmu's right shoulder.
It looked like a floating ember, but it was a terminal hit.
SQUELCH!
A fountain of demonic blood erupted. Upon contact, the "spark" transformed into
a lethal upward diagonal slash, tearing through Enmu's shoulder and collarbone.
The demon's horizontal pupils shrank. If he hadn't retreated that exact frame...
His head and half his shoulder would be spinning in the air right now.
"As expected of a Lower Moon Two. Your hitbox recovery is top-tier," Natsuya
noted, offering a casual compliment to the Elite Mob. "You're significantly more
responsive than that Mukago girl."
Enmu skidded back several steps, his effeminate face a mask of shock and
paranoia.
Mukago? That coward who only knew how to run? She died to this brat?
"Hehe... I see why you're so confident. You're a new Hashira, aren't you?" Enmu
forced a twisted smile, trying to regain his composure. "How should I address
you, Sir Slayer?"
"Handbrake," Natsuya answered without a blink. "I am the 15th Generation
Successor of the Panasonic School: Matsushita Handbrake."
Who knows if these mobs have 'Name-Binding' or 'Death Note' mechanics? Always
use a burner name.
"Matsushita...?" Enmu felt like that name sounded like a household appliance
brand, but in the heat of the fight, he couldn't quite place the "Logical
Error."
Natsuya didn't give him time to browse the wiki. He revved his Breathing Style
and lunged.
Facing a "Hashira-tier" threat, Enmu stopped trying to use the flesh-walls.
Against a monster who was more demonic than the demons themselves, such gimmicks
were just a waste of MP.
But Enmu had survived for decades for a reason. He had escaped and even defeated
Hashira before. He had a truly "Unfair" mechanic.
His wrist twisted at a grotesque angle. His skin rippled, and a human mouth
split open on the back of his hand.
"SLEEP~"
The hand shrieked a high-frequency hypnotic command—a concentrated burst of
[Forced Faint Sleep].
Instantly, Natsuya's boots dragged against the floor. His eyes went white, the
"Focus" in his gaze vanishing like wiped oil paint. He fell asleep mid-charge.
Normal humans, Slayers, even the Hashira—no one could resist the frame-one
trigger of his sleep spell. To Enmu, direct combat power was secondary. As long
as he could force a "Sleep Status" for even a fraction of a second, he regained
the initiative. He could reset the match or prepare a finisher.
However, the sleep lasted less than a heartbeat.
The boy's pupils refocused with terrifying speed. His stance stabilized, and the
aura of Luminary Breathing surged even higher.
Enmu's reaction was instant. He understood the counter-play.
He's committing suicide in the dream the moment it triggers to force a 'Wake-Up'
command.
This kid... not only is he ruthless to others, he's a speed-runner on his own
life-bar?!
Enmu scrambled back, grabbing two comatose civilians from the floor and hurling
them at Natsuya as meat-shields. Natsuya blurred past them, his velocity not
dropping an inch.
"SLEEP!"
The hand on his wrist screamed again, spamming the single-target CC.
Let's see how many times you can kill yourself before the fear of death breaks
your spirit!
Natsuya's movement hitched. He staggered, looking like he was about to
collapse—but before Enmu could even move an arm, Natsuya was "Online" again.
Enmu went into a frenzy, spamming the spell regardless of the drain, creating a
literal wave of mental pressure.
"SLEEP! SLEEP! SLEEP!!"
Natsuya's movement became rhythmic and bizarre. Sprint... Close eyes... Wake
up/Burst... Hitch... Burst again...
From a distance, it looked like Natsuya was glitching between two dimensions.
With every "Wake-Up," his face grew slightly paler, but his distance from Enmu
was shrinking frame-by-frame.
But this was all according to Enmu's plan.
In his long career, he had fought "Self-Harm" specialists who tried this tactic.
But they always lost. Because under the high-frequency cycle of "Forced Sleep"
and "Traumatic Awakening," the human mind loses track of reality.
Enmu just had to slip a few "Realistic Dreams" into the rotation—dreams that
looked exactly like the tunnel. The Slayer would commit suicide in reality,
thinking they were still in the dream.
Drown in the uncertainty, swordsman. Cut your own throat for real.
Enmu's logic was sound. Against a normal Hashira, this "Gimmick-Check" had a
high win-rate.
But Natsuya was the ultimate outlier.
For Natsuya, there was a coordinate that could never be faked.
The System.
No matter how high-res the dream was, the System Menu and the HUD didn't exist
in the dream-server. In reality, no matter how dizzy he was, his loyal
"Tonz-chan" was always floating in his vision.
This fundamental "Cognitive Advantage" turned Enmu's boss fight into a futile
cinematic.
But as Natsuya closed in, Enmu felt a new sensation: Fear.
It wasn't just the boy's suicide-loop. It was the fact that every time he cast
the spell, it got harder to pull Natsuya under.
The first cast was like pulling a normal human into a dream. The next few were
like dragging a seasoned veteran. But now?
He was in a tug-of-war with a hawk that refused to close its eyes. The boy's
spirit was adapting, analyzing, and... learning his Blood Demon Art.
Just as Natsuya snapped out of another micro-nap, he noticed several new entries
in his Life Skill panel.
[Interrogation LV.0] (NEW)
- Summary: Obsession is the lock, fear is the key. The truth lies beyond the
tongue.
- Effect: Slightly increases the probability of a target leaking secrets under
pressure. (Likely acquired from mining the dream-intruder earlier).
[Hypnosis LV.0] (NEW)
- Summary: Not the intent of the mind, but the tide of the sea of
consciousness.
- Effect: Enhances mental-control effects and Resistance against them.
So because I have high IQ and this Lower Moon is giving me a high-intensity
'Demo' of the skill, the System thinks I'm a student? Natsuya mused.
The resistance buff was exactly what he needed.
Wait... there was one more.
[Suicide LV.2] (NEW)
- Summary: The blade turned inward, the fire passed on. Find the beginning in
the end; witness rebirth in the void.
- Effect: Drastically increases the success rate of self-termination and
reduces the pain penalty of death.
Even Natsuya went quiet for a second.
The skill had clearly proc'd because he'd killed himself dozens of times in the
last five minutes. And it had skipped straight to Level 2.
The proficiency gain for killing yourself must be huge, he thought.
But seriously... what the hell am I supposed to do with this skill?! Since when
is 'Suicide' a Life Skill, you stupid devs?!
☆☆☆
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