Chapter 37

: The Course of an Advanced Psychological Battle
That was something that happened when Lex was walking down a hallway together with some subordinates.
A very strange phenomenon befell them while they were searching for the artifact.
Lex’s subordinate, who was walking ahead of him, suddenly vanished.

Hah?

Unable to comprehend what had just happened, Lex looks all around, but there is nothing that looks out of place.
The only thing that might be a clue is the sound of something cutting through air.
Shunn
, shunn
, there it is again.
And then.

……!

The subordinate next to him disappears.
But this time, he barely managed to see.
It is the figure of a teenage boy wearing the academy uniform, covered in blood.
He had knocked out that subordinate with the heel of his palm, then whisked that subordinate away.
Lex was only barely able to see all that by strengthening his eyes to the very limit and concentrating. That’s how fast it was.

Be careful, we’re under attack!

So shouting, Lex vigilantly scans his surroundings.

……Ah?

But he is immediately rendered dumbstruck.
The other subordinates who were supposed to have been following behind him are no longer there.
Before he knew it, he had apparently become the only person standing in that long hallway.
Then…… shunn
.
As soon as that sound reaches his ears, Lex protects his heart with everything ounce of his strength.

Kuh
……!

An enormous force slams into Lex’s arm.
Baki
.
Together with the hair-raising sound of snapping bone, Lex is blown backwards with great momentum.

Kuh
…… FUCKER!

But he manages to immediately get back on his feet and draw his sword.
However, there is no one in front of him.
Lex tsks.
With a single attack, his right arm, which had even been protected with magic, was broken.
If his guard had not made it in time, his heart would have been pulverized for sure.
Shunn
.
This time, Lex moves at the same time as the sound.
Relying on pure intuition, he swings his sword towards the presence at his back. The timing is perfect.
However.
This bastard…… he can go even faster?!
After his sword harmlessly flies behind the teenager, Lex immediately shifts to protecting his heart.

Agah
……!

But he loses his ribs in this exchange.
Lex allows himself to fly backward, trying to catch a clear look at the teenager while he slowly kills his momentum.
But there isn’t even an afterimage for him to see.

……Tsk.

Lex spits out some blood-stained saliva, then takes up a stance.
An enemy that he almost cannot see at all. Counterattacking is impossible. He is only single-sidedly taking a pounding.
Objectively speaking, there can be no worse predicament as this.
However…… he has safely overcome this level of predicament numerous times before.
He is Lex, one of the Named Children.

Seems you’re using a pretty useful artifact there.

So says Lex in a voice that his opponent can hear.
He’s figured out the secret.
Through only this amount of fighting, Lex has seen through what’s happening here.
The enemy’s movements has completely surpassed what a human can make. Which would mean that the other side must be borrowing an abnormal power.

At first glance, it might seem like I am at a disadvantage. But actually, you’re also pushing yourself quite hard, aren’t you?

To gain inhumanly speed would require a corresponding amount of sacrifice. The proof of this did not slip by Lex’s eyes.

Your uniform is already soaked with blood, isn’t it?

Indeed…… it is thanks to the bloodstained uniform that Lex was able to solve this mystery.
His enemy is using the power of an artifact to gain that inhuman speed. But the cost is that his body takes damage with each usage.
Judging from the amount of blood on the uniform, Lex determines that his enemy is close to reaching his limit. And if Lex can properly take advantage of that moment…… then he would win.
Able to strip his enemy naked with only a tiny piece of information…… this is Lex the Treacherous Player, one of the Named Children.

Based on my judgment, you only have two or three attacks left in you. That is your fucking limit!

So declares Lex with full confidence.
There is no response from his opponent. Ever since Lex had begun speaking, the other side had not done anything to him, choosing only to maintain silence.

So I hit the bullseye.

A corner of Lex’s lips curls upward in a smirk.
His victory is in sight.
However…… Lex’s current situation is not as good as he is making it sound.
Another way to rephrase what he just said is that he still has two or three almost invisible attacks that he needs to evade.

Heyyy, why’d you go silent?

That’s why Lex opts to put on a strong front.
He must not let his opponent see him faltering.
This fight…… is an advanced psychological battle.

Come get me, you chicken!

Shunn
.
At the same time as the sound, Lex evades relying only on intuition.
He tilts his upper body, shifting away from the trajectory of the incoming palm heel.
But.
So fast!?
He abruptly brings his left arm forward in a guard.

GAAHH!

With several snaps, his left arm is also broken.
Maintaining his grip on his sword through sheer willpower, Lex retreats.
But his enemy gives chase.
This enemy who had only been making burst attacks so far is giving chase.
This…… must mean that he is trying to finish up this fight!

COME AT ME, YOU FUCKER!!

Along with a roar, Lex pours everything he has into protecting his vitals.
His enemy is at his limit!
As long as he successfully endures this attack, it would be his victory!
Immediately after, the palm heel smashes into his abdomen.

Gahah
!! AAAAAaaaaahhh
!!

Lex is blown backwards while spewing blood out of his mouth.
He flies through a wall into a classroom, crashing into tables and chairs while tumbling to a stop.

Goho
, goho
……!

Clutching his stomach, Lex can’t help but to vomit up another mouthful of blood. His ribs have punctured several organs.
But…… he is still alive!
It seems that putting everything into defense had paid off.

He he……

Lex laughs with blood still on his lips, and looks up.
But what greets his eyes is……

Wh-, what is this……

The classroom is filled with innumerable corpses lying in a haphazard pile.
All of them are clad in black.
And each one of them bears only a single wound.
Could it be that all these Children were…… by himself?!
Katsu
, katsu
, katsu
.
Someone is coming down the hallway, his footsteps ringing out clearly and crisply.
Katsu
. Katsu
.
The footsteps stop before the door to the classroom.
Silence.
Lex realizes that his sword hand is sweating like crazy.
Kacha
.
The click of the door knob turning breaks the silence.
Then…… the door opens.
There is no one there.
But there is a shunn
 sound, at which Lex’s right arm is ripped off.
Shunn
.
Shunn
.
Shunn
.
Every time that sound rings out, Lex’s body loses a different part.

Ah, aa, aaH, aahh……

The final moment when the only part left, his head, is sent flying, Lex finally realizes that this enemy has no limits.

You…… were wonderful.

That is the last thing Lex hears the moment all life leaves him.