Mushoku Tensei — Chapter 155 - Decisive Battle 3

The moment Aisha landed, the battle began.

I can't really follow close-quarters combat that well, but Aisha looked comfortable out there. Relaxed, even.

That said, comfortable or not, she didn't seem to have any way through the Fighting God Armor's defense.

"HAHAHAHAHA! I, who accepted this battle, have truly hit the jackpot! So many unknown powerhouses!"

Badigadi roared with laughter and threw another punch at Aisha.

She dodged it, then sheathed her sword with a mildly exasperated look.

Eris, standing beside me, seemed to spot the problem. She pulled her own sword from her hip and threw it toward Aisha.

"Aisha! Use this one!"

"Oh!"

Eris's sword.

A magic sword, if I remembered right. She'd told me about it once, called something like...

Finger-Breaker? I think that was the name.

Aisha caught it and went back at Badigadi.

Before, the sword had been the issue. Now I could see it clearly, Badigadi was taking damage.

Not much, though. Very limited.

After a few exchanges, Aisha jumped back like she'd gotten bored and called out:

"North God III! Time to prove your worth!"

Only then did I notice.

A man was walking toward the battlefield.

He carried a sword, and he walked with the bearing of a Hero, capital H, no irony intended.

That stride. That posture. And then, opening his mouth to match it:

"I am North God Kalman III, Alexander Ryback! I come here to challenge Fighting God Badigadi to a one-on-one duel!"

Badigadi turned his head and burst out laughing.

"I accept! You can fight together with this little girl!"

Aisha looked back at Badigadi with open contempt.

"No thanks~ You go one-on-one with the hero-obsessed lunatic over there. Teaming up with him would be embarrassing."

She leaped off the battlefield and jogged over to where I was standing.

"MUHAHAHAHAHA! Kalman III! One-on-one it is!"

"That suits me perfectly!"

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"Rudeus? What's the situation?"

Roxy and Sylphie came over, supporting Paul and Ghislaine between them.

Well... what's the situation...

I watched this Alexander guy. He seemed to be having a pretty good time out there.

"Right now? I'd say it's going fairly well."

That was my read.

Roxy nodded. Paul spoke, his voice a little thin.

"Your old man hasn't been this serious in a long time... Ruijerd's tribesmen, plus Ghislaine and me, the four of us barely scraped past that Water God. Then some monster came out of nowhere and hit me, and I didn't react at all..."

Ghislaine's voice carried a dry edge.

"Heh. You've definitely gotten old."

"What? I'm still young! Zenith and Lilia both say I'm in great shape!"

"They're just being kind."

"What did you say?!"

Alright, Paul was fine. He still had the energy to bicker with Ghislaine, that was a good sign.

Feeling easier, I turned to look at the area ahead where Sylphie and Roxy were tending to the others.

Ruijerd and his tribesmen seemed to be alright too.

"Brother~"

Aisha's voice. I turned, and she was already standing right beside me.

Aisha.

Her hair was longer. And...

Had she always looked this mature?

She was eighteen when she left, I think.

Now she was twenty-two.

She'd grown a little taller. Still about the same as when she first left, around Eris's height now, probably.

She stood in front of me, waiting.

After that one "Brother," she didn't move, didn't speak. Just looked at me.

"Uh... Aisha?"

She tilted her head and smiled. Said nothing.

Like she was waiting to see what I'd do.

Right. I still remembered.

That time we came back from the underground labyrinth. I hadn't hugged her, and the look on her face afterward.

So.

I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around her.

"Welcome back."

"Brother... I'm back...!"

She was happy. I could feel it.

I was happy too. My little sister, gone for years, was home.

The hug didn't last long, though.

Aisha pulled back and went to greet my wives, hugging each of them in turn. Paul was last.

Heh. Paul, who once tried to argue with me about whose daughters loved him more.

Forget my daughters. Even your own daughter loves me most.

Once the reunion settled, Aisha turned to Orsted.

"I can't kill him. He's too tough, and he self-repairs."

"Sealing him is sufficient. The Dragon King Sword can break through his defense. That sword in your hand is not enough."

"Understood. But I don't know the sealing method."

Orsted produced a scroll and unfurled it without ceremony.

A magic circle expanded across the ground beside the battlefield.

"To seal Badigadi, either make him concede willingly, or seal all six of his arms."

"Got it."

The exchange ended. Aisha turned to face me.

"Brother."

"Mm?"

I hadn't expected it.

Her tone was uncertain. Almost shy.

Her eyes drifted slightly as she spoke quickly, like she was forcing the words out before she could change her mind.

"After the fight... want to go on an adventure together...? I mean, nothing crazy! Just around the Ranoa Kingdom, picking up a few easy requests, enjoy the scenery, kill some monsters, help people if we feel like it... What do you think, Brother?"

In my past life, the films and dramas I'd watched had a rule about this.

Anyone who said something like that always ended up in an accident.

But Orsted was here. And Aisha was genuinely strong.

I was ready to nod.

Then the dream surfaced in my mind.

The one Hades Vita had created.

No, no. That was just a dream.

And at the end of it, Aisha had said, if there was ever a next time, she wouldn't do that.

But... what if...

What if Aisha really...

"Brother."

"Mm...? Ah. Yeah. Adventure together, once the fight's done. Don't get careless and take a hit, I'll come help you once my mana recovers."

"Got it! So that's a yes?"

"That's a yes."

"Yay!"

Aisha drew her sword and sprinted toward the battlefield.

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The battlefield.

"DAHHHHHH!"

North God III swung the Dragon King Sword with smooth, easy arcs, bringing it down on Badigadi.

"OOOOH!"

Badigadi caught the slash, then threw a diagonal punch in response.

North God III's stance nearly buckled, but, true to the North God Style, he used a terrifying sense of balance to twist his body mid-collapse and came right back at Badigadi.

Badigadi had seen it coming.

He let North God III spin in like a storm and miss clean. Then, in the gap of that missed strike, he used the leverage and landed a punch.

North God III's form shattered in an instant.

Just an instant, though.

His body lifted off the ground, sailed over Badigadi, and dropped back to the earth at a speed that had no business being possible.

Chaotic, bizarre movement.

But I recognized it.

One of the abilities of the magic sword, Dragon King Sword Kashakuto.

...Gravity manipulation.

Not like my magic. This genuinely controlled gravity.

My mana could only press down.

"MUHAHAHAHA!"

Badigadi kept laughing, absorbing cut after cut from North God III. You could still tell he was taking damage, though. Unlike when Aisha had first stepped in, this sword was clearly dealing real hurt.

Badigadi wasn't just tanking, either. He countered every time.

"Take thiiiiis!"

"GAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Honestly.

These two were making an absurd amount of noise.

Did they really have to yell like that?

I lifted the Arrogant Water Dragon King.

Some mana had come back, and there was still a bit left in reserve. I could step in and help.

But Aisha, who had marched over there full of confidence, was just watching from the side.

She seemed genuinely curious how this one would end.

While I was watching her back, North God III took a punch that sent him flying, I couldn't even track how far. He spun sideways through the air... and touched down lightly with a trajectory that ignored gravity entirely.

"Hah..."

Not a scratch on him, by the look of it.

The sword's doing.

That was when Aisha, who'd been watching in silence, finally spoke.

"Need help?"

"Don't need it...!"

Aisha dropped it. North God III started walking back toward Badigadi.

"Seems I held back too much. Time to get a little more serious..."

Hm.

That phrasing felt familiar.

Like something a guy would say after losing a 1v1 match and readying up for another game.

So he was a chuunibyou type too.

The fight resumed.

I'll give him this, North God III was genuinely strong. Whether it was the sword, or him, or both, I couldn't say. But holding his own against Badigadi in a physical exchange like this was no small thing.

Though it was also possible my earlier work on Badigadi had actually mattered. Orsted had said I'd done enough, after all.

"OOOH!"

"HAHAHAHA!"

North God III's slashes looked the same at first glance. They weren't. Each one had more force behind it.

I couldn't track the blade.

But I could track Badigadi's feet. Every parry drove him deeper into the ground.

So he really hadn't been serious before.

"Killing the Fighting God. That's enough to make a name for myself."

North God III settled into a stance, his center of gravity dropping low.

Something was coming.

He shifted from one hand to two.

"Right hand holds the sword... ugh... ah—"

He'd barely started speaking when Badigadi's fist drove into his abdomen.

Solid, full contact.

North God III had clearly been winding up some kind of finishing technique. The whole atmosphere had shifted just before. And Badigadi had felt it too, when he charged to interrupt, you could see the gravity pressing down on him.

The sword's ability.

But that gravity hadn't stopped him.

Not surprising, really. Even I needed a magic circle to amplify my gravity magic before I could hold Badigadi back. The sword was strong, but its gravity effect wasn't at the level of my arrays.

Still, the fact that even Badigadi had to move to stop it said something.

"Damn it... the Dragon King Sword's gravity can't stop him..."

North God III was flat on the ground. Still conscious, though.

Aisha walked over and looked down at him.

"See? Weak."

He didn't argue. Just started trying to get up.

"Stay down. Honestly — it's hard to believe your original target was Orsted."

"I'll recover from this in no time!"

"You're such a hassle."

"Regardless — do not interfere with my sacred duel! This is my battle for fame!"

"Both of you have regeneration. At that rate, when does it ever end? I'll take over."

"Get lost!"

Aisha smiled, pulled the sword out of his hand, and kicked him once for good measure.

"How rude."

And that was that. The duel between North God III and Badigadi ended with North God III's defeat.

Aisha turned the sword over in her grip.

"Oho~ I think I've got it. I understand how to use this."

"What?!"

North God III, just barely back on his feet, looked like the ground had dropped out from under him. He clearly couldn't believe she'd figured it out that fast.

Aisha didn't spare him another glance. She turned toward me, raised her hand, and shouted across the battlefield.

"Brother! Watch this! Just like the old days — when we used to adventure together!"

➤ Next: Decisive Battle IV