Chapter 573 Soul Separation Technique
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
(Liz’s POV)
”Oh, over there!”
Kazumi, who darted out of the Safety Zone, pointed ahead to see Lilith’s back and… Hiroya engaging in battle with Gargantua?
”W-Wait, what?!”
I managed to catch up and stood frozen next to Kazumi… I couldn’t believe my eyes.
I definitely saw Hiroya and Gargantua fighting for a moment, but…
”Lilith! Why aren’t you stopping them?!”
Rena stepped forward and lunged at Lilith.
(If Rena is so furious… then Hiroya and Gargantua must really be fighting…)
It’s likely a high-speed battle in the S-rank domain.
Rena, also S-rank, should be able to see it.
”Hiro, are you in there?”
”By the way, there’s something about Hiro’s aura that feels intense.”
Aluda and Meluda, who caught up, are also straining their eyes to see ahead.
”Just like Lady Meluda said, I can smell Sir Hiroya’s scent. It’s incredibly tense and filled with excitement.”
When I turned around, Noo was hiding behind Simona and Asuka, looking frightened despite her tone.
”You guys can see it, right? What the heck is going on?”
”Hiroya is fighting. The opponent is──”
”Ah, it’s Gargantua.”
Simona and Asuka gazed ahead with tense expressions.
”GarGar is… fighting Big Brother Hiroya?”
”I can barely see it too. And both of them… are serious.”
Martina and Dorothy stared ahead in disbelief.
(I don’t know what happened, but… we have to stop them…!)
If they seriously fight… one of them could lose their life.
”No…! We just became friends… we just got close…”
Rena stopped Kazumi, who was staggering forward.
”It’s dangerous, Kazumi! You’ll get caught up in it!”
”But… why are they fighting?”
In Kazumi’s eyes, looking back at Rena, there were large tears.
”…Do not panic. Gargantua has its own circumstances, mainly── it turned its blade towards Hiroya. …And the master responded to it.”
Lilith, staring intently ahead, silenced our panicked voices with a firm tone.
”This is the path that Gargantua has discovered…”
”Are we really going to fight Hiroya!?”
I turned around and yelled at Asuka.
For some reason, I felt an urge to be enraged at her for staying calm in this situation.
”Yes. And this is Gargantua’s tragic ‘resolution’…”
”It is likely as Asuka says. And… in this battle between the two of them… this Lilith will not allow any interference from anyone.”
With Lilith’s unyielding words, we froze in place.
* * *
(Gargantua’s POV)
The drawing of the sword (katana) from a low stance.
It’s the basic form of Hiroya’s ‘Obu Muso Style.’
Caught completely off guard, I had no way to defend against that swift slash.
(Ah… I couldn’t convey all of my feelings…)
But if he could absorb even just the techniques I showed in this battle… I couldn’t help but pray for that.
Because I am very afraid that my own decisions and actions will turn out to be in vain.
(Well… Hiroya should be fine.)
As Yamikirimaru’s dark tip approaches, I feel incredibly clear-headed and experience a sense of fulfillment in my heart.
The boy swordsman, Shinji’s son, who is anticipated by the brave Party.
His skills are acknowledged as those of a mastering warrior.
With him and his companions, not only Lady Frejya but also Lady Lilith will likely be saved from the Great Labyrinth, and that vile Azradelius will be vanquished.
”I’ve entrusted it to you… Hiroya.”
I whisper only that and close my eyes.
To accept the ‘death’ that will come in the next moment.
──Swish!
A light impact runs through my head.
It seems that his slash was not aimed at my neck after all.
(Did he miss…?)
When I slowly opened my eyes.
──Whoosh!
Hiroya sheathes his katana, Yamikirimaru, and from beside him, slices through the sky vertically with Kamikirimaru.
──Clang…
And then, 2 objects dance between Hiroya, adult Hiroya, and me…and fall to the floor.
(This…is…my…horn?)
Apparently, with one slash of Yamikirimaru, Hiroya cut off my head horn, and Hiroya, looking back at it as it danced in the air, cleaved it in 2 with Kamikirimaru.
I glance down at my own horn, split in half and lying at my feet…and then I raise my gaze to the two figures before me.
”My victory. …Is that alright?”
”I got one of your horns. Definitely my win, right?”
Hiroya and adult Hiroya smile warmly at me, as always.
* * *
”Hiroya…2…?”
I was so focused on my battle with Hiroya that I didn’t notice the Liz Unit members gathering around.
From among them, Kazumi, Hiroya’s fiancée, walks slowly towards me.
”Wh…What’s going on?”
Even Leader Liz is dumbfounded.
Everyone else…just stands there in stunned silence.
”Ho ho ho. So, you’ve already learned to use it.”
Only Lady Lilith smiles contentedly.
”I see…Lilith, you taught Hiroya the Soul Splitting Technique?”
At Rena’s words, I remember.
(The technique used by the Purple Flame Demon Princess…)!
She divided herself into 2, one wielding magic and the other swordsmanship.
Hiroya probably used the same or a very similar technique.
”That’s right. It’s a very difficult technique, you know.”
”A technique that can only be used by a god or a being with power close to a god. Or…someone like the Purple Flame Demon Princess who has lived for a long time and has mastered magic…”
”Hiroya’s case is special, though.”
Lady Lilith answers Rena, who is rubbing her temples, with a crisp tone.
”My lord… because there originally exists a being called ‘Hiroya’ hidden within the soul upon reincarnation. It simply separated that and created a clone. But the problem is──”
Lady Lilith turned to Hiroya and gently caressed his cheek with affection.
”──I had to balance Hiroya’s power… with Hiroya’s strength.”
”…yet, lately it seems mostly Hiroya’s power… no way, could it be…”
Asuka’s eyes widened as if realizing something.
Seeing that, I too recognized the major misunderstanding I had.
(No way… it wasn’t that Hiroya lacked power… it was…)
”Asuka, that’s the ‘no way.’ Hiroya’s power has already surpassed Hiroya’s own power. …since that time in the Minotaur battle♡”
For some reason, Lady Lilith puffed out her chest as if feeling triumphant.
”I’m just part of Hiroya’s soul that isn’t optimized for this world, right? Therefore, when reincarnated into this world, the growth speed differs from ‘original Hiroya,’ who is properly optimized.”
”Well, age is a factor too. A 23-year-old Hiroya and an 11-year-old me, of course, the growth rate differs.”
It’s a bit strange hearing Hiroya and Hiroya continue to speak, but… I guess that’s how it is.
”It was against Gargantua, and since I gave it my all… it’s about time for my limit.”
Saying that, Hiroya waved lightly and disappeared.
Then, the neighboring Hiroya closed his eyes and gave a slight shudder before… opening them again.
”So, this is the ‘trump card’ that allows me to wield both Yamikirimaru and Kamikirimaru simultaneously. Sorry, everyone… for keeping quiet.”
”Hiroya has his pride… he didn’t want anyone to know that he was inferior in power to the real Hiroya♡”
In such astonishment, nobody spoke a word, and only Lady Lilith’s laughter echoed through the corridor.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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