Emi vs. Arcus

Hello there, long time no see (it's been 1 day).

Arc 14, middle part 2, begins, but it ends quickly.

The area surrounding the town of Serelirin is mostly enclosed by the vast Mekena pastures, but of course, that isn't everything.

For example, to the northwest of the town, there is a small rocky mountain called Sakamene, where a currently defunct quarry is located.

Emi, Arcus, and Lairine, who had leaped out of the town of Serelirin, had now arrived at that old Sakamene quarry.

As for why they had come here, it was to fight.

Arcus had suggested that if it were a defunct quarry, they could fight with their full power without worrying about involving other people.

◇ ◇ ◇

Small clouds drifted across the pale blue sky.

Spreading out beneath that sky was the old Sakamene quarry.

There was no snow.

At most, a little lingered in the shadows of the rocks.

There in the old quarry, against a backdrop of sheer cliffs whose pale yellow rock had been laid bare by the quarrying, Emi and Arcus stood facing each other.

The distance between them was about 10 meters.

For them, it was a distance that could be closed in an instant.

Arcus wore a smile overflowing with confidence, looking completely composed.

In contrast, Emi was expressionless as always, making it impossible to tell what she was thinking.

And exactly halfway between the two stood Lairine, looking for all the world like a referee.

“Now then, Emi-chan, y'knooow. Your strength, see, I've heard aaall about it from that Martz guy, I haaave”

His golden armor gleaming in the afternoon sun, Arcus spoke to Emi in a friendly way.

“Martz? Baron? How do you know him?”

“Kaaaah! You call me ‘old man,’ but him you call ‘Baron,’ is thaaaaat it!? The difference in how you call us, it's enough to make me weeeep!! Just what's the difference between me and him, I wonder, huuuh!?”

Arcus made an exaggerated, theatrical show of pretending to cry.

“Smelly?”

“Wait, Emi-chan. That topic's right on the line where it hurts a little. Let's get back on track.”

Arcus cleared his throat with a gohon and put on a serious face.

“Ah, that Martz guy's my junior, y'seee. When I went to see him for the first time in a while, I heard about you, Emi-chan...... and I realized, too, that you, Emi-chan, were my nieeece......”

“............”

Emi listened intently to Arcus's story.

Lairine, still smiling, had her eyes closed.

She was probably sleeping because she had no interest in this exchange.

“So, anywaaay! Me, I've already heard all about this strength of yours from that Martz guy! You've fought battle after battle since then, too, so compared to when you were with Martz, even more! You've gotta have gotten stronger, riiight...... But then!!”

Arcus made a big sweeping motion with his right arm and flung open the cloak wrapped around it, basa!

This was what he considered a cool move!

The fact that this move had come out was proof that he was getting worked up!

“Me, ‘Golden’ Arcus, I'm a special-grade adventurer, I aaam! However talented a girl you may be, Emi-chan! Not yeeet, not to a little squirt like youuu! I just don't see myself losing, nooo waaay!!”

With that shout, Arcus grabbed a protrusion on the left breast of his armor and flipped it open, pakari!

Inside was...... a red, button-like, round...... switch!

“MAGIC ARMOR ‘SHINING’, ACTIVAAAATE!!!”

Screaming, Arcus pressed the button on his chest!

Then, the golden armor he was wearing...... began to shine brilliantly, just like the sun!

“!!”

Squinting her eyes, Emi leaped back by instinct, in spite of herself.

The moment that switch was pressed, the level of threat she felt from Arcus suddenly skyrocketed.

When she activated 【Magic Perception】, the reason became clear.

Arcus, as he was now, was cloaked in enough magic power to make even Emi think, ‘This will probably be a good fight’!

Emi's evaluation of Arcus—‘He's quite strong, but definitely weaker than me’—was overturned in an instant.

In spite of herself, cold sweat beaded on Emi's forehead.

“Guhhahahahaaaaaa! Well, surprised, are yaaaaa! This magic armor ‘Shining’ of mine is a ‘god-made relic’ I got by risking my life diving into a dungeon!! It absorbs sunlight, stores it, and then turns it into its user's power, one hell of a piece of gear, it iiiiis!!”

“I see. So the old man's an adventurer who relies on his armor.”

“Guhaha, cheap, cheaaap! Emi-chan, that's a cheap provocation, that iiis! I won't deny that side of it, but the reason I can make full use of this armor is precisely because I've got the skill!! Mastering superior equipment and superior technique to grow strong! That, right there, is what human strength is, y'knooow!!”

Dochari!

His armor rasping, Arcus took one step forward with his right foot.

Emi also lowered her center of gravity and readied her fists.

“Nooow! Emi-chan!!”

Taking another step forward with his other foot, Arcus folded his arms, planted himself there like a temple guardian statue, and shouted!

“AS MUCH AS YOU LIIIKE! HIT ME ALL YOU WAAANT!!!”

“............Huh?”

Emi let out a deflated sound in spite of herself.

“Hit you? Not fight?”

“Guhaha! Of course, y'knooow! Like there's any uncle who could punch the little niece he's trying to take in, nooo waaay!”

Arcus laughed boisterously, his shoulders shaking.

“And even so, I'll beat you! My defense ain't no joke, y'seee! If you can't get anywhere no matter how much you punch, then, Emi-chan, we'll call that your loss, fair enough, riiight!?”

“I see.”

Emi sighed.

In other words, this man was underestimating her.

To pull a stunt like this without even trying to properly gauge her strength...... his overconfidence was off the charts.

But, still.

“Well, even so, that's fine by me.”

Emi lowered her readied fists.

Then, she stared intently at Arcus.

“Hey, old man. I told you, didn't I? I hate your face.”

And then, she began to release an intense 【Intimidation】!

“Mu!?”

In an instant, cold sweat broke out all over Arcus's body!

This 【Intimidation】, this killing intent, was on a completely different level from what they had clashed with in the room earlier!

“Do you know why? Because you look like him. That trash of a man I still can't stop wanting to punch.”

“Mu, mumumu!!?”

Then, the amount of magic power cloaking Emi's body increased rapidly!

The excess magic power leaked outside her body...... becoming a murky black haze that began to drift around Emi!

“So, I'm going to punch you and enjoy it. I don't want to touch you, so with these.”

“Mu, mu, mumumuuuuuu!!!?”

With tremendous momentum, the murky black armor wrapped around Emi's body unraveled in a whirl, transforming into two giant, vicious arms extending from her shoulders!

It was 【Black Arms】!

“It'd sit badly with me if you actually died. So be careful.”

“No!? Hold, wai”

Only now did Arcus finally begin to panic, but it was too late!

Using one of those 【Black Arms】, Emi, with all her might...... punched Arcus!

“Gofaaa!!?”

No holding back!

The 【Black Arms】, launched at a speed invisible to the eye, struck Arcus's entire body—clad in the shining magic armor ‘Shining’—and blew him backward!

“AAAAAAAAAAAAH......!!?”

Letting out a ridiculous scream as he flew in a straight line, Arcus slammed into the quarry cliff with a tremendous boom, sank into the rock, and stopped moving.

“F...... for, real......?”

Embedded in the cliff, Arcus muttered those last words...... then rolled his eyes back and passed out.

Arcus's prized golden armor, the magic armor ‘Shining’, now cracked, flickered chika, chika a few times, then stopped working forever.

Byuooo......

A cold wind blew, swaying Emi's hair.

Now that the noisy old man was unconscious, the only thing echoing in the quarry was the sound of the wind.

And then.

Pachi, pachi, pachi.

Yes, the sound of quiet clapping.

Emi glanced toward the source of the sound.

Standing there was a beauty, yawning while her blonde hair fluttered in the wind.

“Fuwaaah...... mm, looks like it's ooover! That's one win, Emi-chan, congratulaaations!”

That beauty, Lairine, gave Emi a beaming smile of congratulations, then said:

“Sooo, neeext...... it's my tuuurn!”