Chapter 29: Severing Sin
White Armor draws out the latent potential of Amajiki, releasing every supernatural ability it has accumulated up to this point.
Because of this, it is not something that can be wielded freely at any moment. After use, one must once again accumulate supernatural abilities and the like.
The last time I used this power was during the final battle of my previous life.
And since arriving in this world, I had been using Amajiki’s abilities, but I had also been accumulating power at the same time—in case the day ever came when I would need to fight in earnest.
“—Impossible… A human can set foot in this realm?!”
Neville was receiving my oncoming blade, but his magical defenses were being stripped away before his very eyes.
When White Armor is released, the ability to devour supernatural powers cannot be used. It is a power specialized purely in the release of energy, after all.
However, the fighting spirit dwelling in the blade was incomparable to anything before. I was merely cleaving through my opponent’s magic head-on, nothing more.
“Come now—it will reach you soon—”
A single flash.
This time, I truly cut deep into his skin. Blood scattered, and Neville’s face twisted in pain, yet even so, he continued to wield his Water Spike Lines to keep me at bay.
Furthermore, by channeling electricity through the scattered water, he struck me with the discharged lightning, and on top of that, launched shards of ice from above.
Even though he had taken damage himself, the nerve to mount such a counterattack at this point was worthy of honest admiration.
But that alone would not stop me.
“—Is this all you have?”
I cut. The blade, dyed in pure white, did nothing but sever every supernatural ability in its path.
I felt a surge of exhilaration. It was because, ever since coming to this world, I had been hesitating to fight at full strength.
“Absurd! Absurd! This is not a realm that a human has any right to reach! What are you—?! Are you some Apostle of God?!”
“No. I am merely a samurai. Nothing more, nothing less.”
“Please do not make a fool of me. Through all my research, I know the limits of humanity. I swore to break through the Magical Threshold to surpass them. And yet—you claim to be that very pinnacle?!”
“The Magical Threshold, the limits of humanity—I have no interest in such things. I seek only to master the sword. That singular pursuit is all I have ever devoted my life to. The result of trampling upon others and sacrificing everything is what has become your limit.”
I pointed Amajiki at him.
Strength is a battle against oneself. But this man had abandoned that and sought it from others. He had sacrificed others for the sake of his own growth.
“You understand, don’t you? In the end, you gave up on making the effort.”
“Shut up, shut up! What could you possibly understand! True geniuses possess talent far beyond anything we have! There was no other way to surpass them!”
“…Yes. Talent is cruel. But that is no reason to stop striving. You were defeated the moment you stopped. The moment you began intoxicating yourself with counterfeit power, your growth ceased.”
“Shut up, shut up! You’re wrong! I… I…!”
He could do nothing but scream. I could not say I entirely failed to understand Neville’s feelings. I, too, had been without talent. But it was precisely because of that I was able to keep striving.
And what I reached at the end of that path was the strength I now possessed.
This man and I were alike. But at the crossroads where one decides how far to push one’s effort, a clear divergence had emerged.
I sought strength relentlessly within myself, while Neville sought it from without.
That difference was simply manifesting itself here, plainly and undeniably.
“Your sins, I shall sever here and now. Come—show me your trump card. If you wish to deny my conviction, then erase my very existence.”
“Heheh… Yes! I understand! I will kill you here and prove that my path was not wrong! The victor has always been the one who defines justice—!”
He compressed his magic. Countless crimson lines spread across Neville’s body, intertwining and weaving throughout him.
I simply took my stance with Amajiki, as I always did.
It was always the same. All I needed to do was—cut.
“—Dark Sphere Annihilation!!”
What appeared was a massive sphere, dyed in pitch black. It seemed to be imbued with an extraordinary amount of magical power.
“This is the culmination of all my research! The pinnacle of mind-interference magic, one that shatters the psyche of all who touch it! Moreover, it possesses the property of absorbing all forms of magic. Come—if you claim you can surpass this, then try!!”
The black sphere hurtled toward me, gathering speed as it closed the distance.
“Third Blade: Utsusemi.”
I unleashed one of my seven blades—the one that creates phantoms. The illusion I conjured in front of me collided with the black sphere and burst apart instantly. In that moment, I had already circled behind Neville.
“Did you think I couldn’t see through such a trivial technique?! I have your trump card completely figured out!!”
But Neville had already reacted. At the same time, the spell called Dark Sphere Annihilation was closing in from behind—but this, too, was exactly as I intended.
I released White Armor. Then I slashed through the sphere bearing down on me from behind and devoured it whole in an instant.
“—What?! Impossible—this level of magical density!”
By releasing White Armor, I had been able to create a state in which Amajiki held nothing. In this state, Amajiki could devour any supernatural ability in an instant. Activating White Armor had also been aimed at deliberately emptying Amajiki’s capacity.
And by closing the distance between the sphere and Neville, I could immediately transition into an attack—leaving Neville no opening to cast another spell.
Utsusemi had been nothing but a decoy.
“First Blade: Aoi.”
I unleashed Aoi—the fastest among my seven blades. It was the swiftest strike, activated by pushing one’s fighting spirit to its absolute peak.
Neville sank to the ground without even realizing he had been cut.
“Gah…!”
I had cleaved clean through his magical defenses and all. He had barely escaped being bisected at the torso, but it was undeniably a fatal wound. With an injury this severe, even healing magic could not hope to mend him.
I had struck Neville down with every ounce of killing intent in my body. That his body remained in one piece at all was remarkable.
“Neville. This is your defeat.”
“Ah… I see. So I have lost…”
Even in defeat, his expression held a strange serenity. He simply gazed up at the sky, dazed.
“So this is… a sword that reaches the realm of gods…”
“There is no such thing as the realm of gods. That is merely an illusion you see. My sword is still on its journey.”
“Heh… heheh… I see. I understand now. You and I… we see entirely different things… Had I reached your level, I would have been content to stop. But it is that insatiable pursuit of the sword that is the true source of your strength…”
“…Perhaps. Well, there is not much time left. Is there anything you wish to say at the end?”
In mere seconds, Neville would breathe his last. His breathing had grown shallow, and he could surely no longer see anything.
“I am glad I could fight you.”
“I see.”
Those were his final words. His breathing and pulse ceased. His pupils dilated fully—he had passed. I gently closed his eyes.
And so, with the mastermind slain, the incident of the Serial Killer came to its end.
[TN: I just wanted to put the finale in a separate post.]