Magica Technica ～Sword Demon Rakshasa’s VRMMO Battle Record～

037: Blade that Slashes Ambitions

Translated by Dawn

037: Blade that Slashes Ambitions

I kicked the ground and charged toward the Demon Knight.

Swinging my blade aiming for his shoulder, but that attack was blocked by the raised black longsword.

It should be fast enough to not allow any reaction if facing an amateur, but apparently, he could handle it with ease.

After a moment of clashing swords, the Demon Knight deflected my Tachi and struck me with a horizontal slash.

“Shah!”

“Too naive.”

I jumped back, evading his attack while keeping my stance to strike along the centerline.

He dodged to the side to avoid my attack and countered with a downward slash, but my blade was intercepted by his longsword.

Nice reaction, but it was just a feint.

Slash Technique – Gentle Form, Blade Haze.

The blade flicked with just a wrist movement, changing direction in an instant to assault the Demon Knight.

His face had changed, making it hard to read his expression, but for a moment, the Count seemed to lose sight of my sword.

His reaction was slow, and my attack accurately struck his side.

However, the strike only left a small scratch on the Demon Knight’s armor.

“Hahaha, your attacks are lukewarm!”

“Tch…’Demon-Slaying Sword’!”

I evaded his strike, which seemed like a brush-off, and then cut through the ice spear that follows with the ‘Demon-Slaying Sword’.

It seemed that, unlike his son, he had a considerably sturdy body.

■Demon Knight

Type: Demon

Level: 20

Status: Normal

Attributes: Darkness, Ice

Combat Position: Ground

Upon using ‘Identification’, indeed, his level was quite high.

His stats must be impressive, and it would be difficult to defeat him with just regular attacks.

Well, there were many methods. He was certainly a skilled opponent, but to me, that was all he was.

Step Technique – Shukuchi.

I moved with a sliding step, and as I suddenly appeared in front of him, the Demon Knight’s movement slightly stiffened.

Even a slight hesitation was more than enough for me. At that moment, I unleashed my skill and attack with my blade.

“――’Life Sword’!”

“…Gaaahh!”

Slash Technique – Strong Style, Bamboo Splitting.

With increased power, I released the slash aiming for his shoulder, but he managed to defend himself by barely stopping my blade with his longsword.

The attack was strong enough that it could have been fatal, but it only left a shallow cut on the Demon Knight’s body.

It seemed he barely managed to retreat just before my strike. His quick response to realizing he couldn’t take it head-on was commendable, though I wouldn’t say it out loud.

Not chasing after the stumbling Demon Knight, I assessed the situation around me.

Kirara Kurage and the others were engaged in a semi-chaotic fight. Dealing with humans controlled by someone else was troublesome.

From my previous encounter with the Demon Knight, I knew that humans under his control could be returned to their senses.

Therefore, the knights were trying to capture rather than harm them, disabling their movements.

“Tch, we’re short on manpower…”

“Kuku. Why not go help them?”

“It’d be quicker to kill you. Spare me the talk and just die.”

Once again, I tried to strike, but then I clicked my tongue.

Smoke was rising faintly from the Demon Knight’s body. The source of this regeneration seemed to be the wound on his chest, which was gradually healing.

It appeared he possessed a regeneration ability similar to ‘HP Auto Recovery’.

He was a bothersome opponent, but his regeneration wasn’t that fast.

If I kept dealing damage, I should be able to overwhelm him. Deciding so, I repositioned my blade, and at that moment, the Demon Knight fiercely charged at me.

“Ooohhh!”

“….!”

Slash Technique – Gentle Form, Flowing Water.

I redirect the trajectory of the Demon Knight’s attack and countered with my own slash.

However, since I hadn’t used ‘Life Sword’ this time, my attack didn’t deal as much damage.

The problem was that Kirara Kurage and the others were busy dealing with the controlled humans, leaving them no time to heal me.

If I relied too much on ‘Life Sword’, it would put me at a disadvantage later.

But using ‘Sword of Plunder’, my recovery skill, wouldn’t deal significant damage either.

If I could target his weak points, it might be different, but it was challenging to hit them accurately, and I’d be better off finishing him off with ‘Life Sword’ if I manage to land it.

(Now, what should I do?)

Evading his horizontal slash, I closed the distance once more. My Tachi lightly scratched the Demon Knight’s shoulder.

I’d grasped the timing of his counterattack, and it was not difficult to hit him at that moment.

However, it was too short a window to deliver a fatal blow.

Using a secret technique might work, but there was not much room for that. It was a pity to resort to such measures against an opponent of this level, but I had no other choice.

Thinking it through, I took a deep breath—

“…!?”

Feeling a chill, I immediately jumped away from my position.

Just a moment later, an arrow was embedded in the spot where I stood.

Even without confirming the direction, it was evident that someone from the second floor of the mansion was aiming at me with a bow.

The troublesome part was that multiple arrows were being shot at me from different windows.

If I stayed in one place, there was no way to handle them.

“Tch… Damn it!”

“Hahaha! Don’t ignore me, outsider!”

“Shut up, you backwoods demon!”

I deflected the arrows with my Tachi as I dashed forward, but the Demon Knight continued to pursue me.

Stopping my feet would make me an easy target for sniping. I couldn’t afford to respond carelessly.

However, I couldn’t leave them unattended either. Some of the arrows were heading toward the knights too.

For now, they seem to be dealing with it, but they were already outnumbered to begin with. It wouldn’t be long before they get overwhelmed.

The reason they were not immediately overrun was that most of the arrows were directed at me.

It seemed that this Demon Knight was hell-bent on killing me.

Amidst this fierce onslaught—

“…Hahaha.”

—a smile of pure delight appeared on my face.

I was not really going to die, but it had been a while since I’d been on a battlefield where ‘death’ felt so close.

My consciousness sharpened. The unnecessary colors of the surroundings fade away, leaving only the flying arrows and the charging Demon Knight in my field of vision.

Using the tip of my blade, I deflected the arrows, causing them to collide and shoot down, buying a little time.

Then, I pivoted, lifting my armguard from the side position.

Slash Technique – Strong Style, Bell Tower.

The sudden counterattack caught the Demon Knight off guard, making his movements slightly slower.

My slash headed for his face and successfully sliced through his left eye.

It wasn’t enough power to pierce through his skull, but it should have at least blinded half of his vision.

The Demon Knight nearly lost his balance due to the unexpected retaliation but managed to evade my pursuit by diving forward.

If I had followed up with Descent, I could have finished him off by crossing swords with ‘Life Sword’, but there was no room for extravagance.

While repelling incoming arrows with my armguard, I dashed forward again, ultimately engaging the Demon Knight in a clash as we continued to move.

“Guh… Your movements just now…!?”

“It’s just a glimpse of the essence of Kudou Jintsuu’s style. You’d better watch carefully… I’d like to say that.”

The “expanded” sensation allowed me to perceive information from a wider area than my usual perception.

That sense picked up the approaching group’s presence.

Their direction, their number, and their coordinated movements—everything made it clear who they were.

With a sly grin, I revealed this fact.

“Looks like the hero has arrived late, huh?”

As I spoke, Christoph, leading the knights, appeared from the gate.

Clad in splendid yet functional armor and wielding his sword, the knight commander quickly assessed the situation and gave orders.

“All troops, advance! Support our allies!”

“Commander, it seems that everyone else is just being controlled!”

“I know! Secure them without causing harm!”

In response to my words, Christoph answered with a confident smile and ordered the knights to charge.

With this, we now had the numerical advantage. The disadvantageous situation was only the archers on the second floor, but that too would be resolved soon.

Most of the arrows were also directed toward the knights, but they didn’t seem to be significantly affected.

The situation had clearly shifted in our favor.

“Now, what will you do, Demon Knight? Surrender quietly?”

“Don’t hope for something like that.”

There was no denying his words. Ending the battle like this would be rather anticlimactic.

Especially since I had finally gotten into the groove after such a long time――

“Well, it’s become rather uninteresting, hasn’t it?”

“You’re much more demonic than I am!”

“Hah, don’t talk nonsense.”

I raised my Tachi. The Waki stance allowed me to hide its reach from the opponent.

In that stance, I approached the Demon Knight.

As the Count caught my movements, he swung down his longsword–

“――Call me Asura if you’re going to call me demonic.”

Slash Technique――Gentle Form, Flowing Water・Reverse Biting.

As the raised blade made contact, I twisted the tip of the Tachi toward the sky and then bring it back up.

My Tachi entangled the opponent’s sword and rotated, flinging away the black longsword.

Seeing the spinning blade in the air, the Demon Knight let out a gasp of astonishment.

But there was no time for further reaction.

“‘Life Sword’.”

And then, my Tachi, raised high, was swung down while enveloped in golden light.

The amplified blade deeply slashed the Demon Knight across his chest, and he fell backward, spewing green blood.

I could have cut him in half with Strong Style if I wanted to, but that would have resulted in instant death.

Although his time was limited in this condition, I should be able to get some information out of him.

Taking a deep breath, I pointed my blade at the fallen demon’s neck, sharpening my killing intent, and raised my voice.

“Now, answer me, demon. Why did you infiltrate among humans? What were you planning?”

“Kuh… Hehehe… Do you think I’ll answer, human?”

“…”

Well, I supposed he had no obligation to answer.

But at the very least, it was clear that he was acting hostile towards humanity.

I might not know the specific details, but I could make some educated guesses.

“That woman――Romperia, and ultimately all demons, aim for the annihilation of humanity. In that context, the indirect goal would be the destruction of nations.”

“…………”

Nations, as a collective entity of humanity, possessed high organizational power and military strength.

If their intention was to destroy humanity, then undoubtedly, nations would be a hindrance.

The fact that they went to such lengths to infiltrate among humans suggested that their attack was likely targeted at the nations.

“Did you try to undermine us from within? It’s a shame. Now that your tactics have been exposed, countering them will be easy.”

“Cough… Yes, you’re right.”

In response to my words, Demon Knight answered with a smile, a sneer directed at me.

“Clever humans… no, is it an animal instinct? Well, either way… I wonder what actions a demon whose hand has been crushed will take?”

“………. You.”

“I will imagine myself watching you all being trampled in hell… Farewell.”

The demon’s body swelled with a thud.

Seeing that, I immediately stepped back from the scene.

As expected, the swollen demon’s body bursts like a bubble the next moment, scattering greenish blood and flesh, and filling the air with a foul odor. With a sigh, I lowered my blade.

We gained some information, but extracting more from this type of enemy was still difficult.

“Your level has increased. Please allocate your stat points.>

<The skill level of ‘Katana’ has increased.>

<The skill level of ‘Enhancement Magic’ has increased.>

<The skill level of ‘HP Auto Recovery’ has increased.>

<The skill level of ‘Identification’ has increased.>

<The level of tame monster ‘Lumina’ has increased.>

It seemed that with the defeat of Demon Knight, the people under their control had also stopped moving like puppets on cut strings.

I confirmed that they were lying unconscious like dolls and finally sheathed my Tachi.

For now, I needed to report to the knight commander.

<Announcement of World Quest starting for all players currently logged in.>

—As I was about to leave, a voice resonated throughout the world.