The story we started

It was almost as if he had experienced this feeling before.

【Bang bang bang——】

[A series of gunshots suddenly rang out in the clear sky of Niigata City, and the sound of the gunshots spread far away along the air currents in the sky.]

[After the gunshots, two figures fell from the sky and landed on the beach near the sea in Niigata City. The violent impact rolled up the seawater and sand, hitting the two struggling figures.]

[“Ahem! Zaimokuza!?”]

[Kousaka Kyosuke took off the helmet on his face, spit out the seawater mixed with sand that flowed into his mouth, and looked around vigilantly.]

[When he saw Zaimokuza being washed by the waves not far away, his pupils shrank, and he quickly ran over to help him up. ]

[“Hey! How are you?”]

[“Mr. Kosaka, my body——Ugh!”]

【Om—】

【Just as Zaimokuza was about to say something, the belt around his waist flashed a fierce golden light again, and a feeling of paralysis like electricity instantly spread throughout his body, causing his upper body, which had just been raised, to fall back into Kousaka Kyousuke's arms again, and he could only speak incoherently.】

【“My body is numb… numb…”】偳

[“Damn it! Why at this moment——!!!”]

[A whistling wind came from behind, and Kousaka Kyosuke's face changed. He immediately threw Zaimokuza far away, and quickly drew the Demon Slayer Great Sword on his back, turned around and slashed it horizontally.]

[The heavy sword edge collided with the two half-moon-shaped wind blades that flew at him. A terrifying force was transmitted from the hilt amid the flying sparks. Kousaka Kyousuke gritted his teeth and was pushed out by the force of the wind blades. His feet drew two splashing sand pillars on the beach.]

[“Aaaaaah!”]

[Shenxiong's roar sounded from his throat, and Kousaka Kyosuke gripped the hilt tightly, using the sword as a lever to push upward. ]

[The two wind blades that were originally in a stalemate were pushed upwards, drawing a twisted arc in the air, falling on the beach on both sides behind Kousaka Kyosuke, blasting out two huge pits.]

[“Damn it…”]

[The giant mantis slowly descended from the sky, flapping its wings. Kousaka Kyosuke shook his numb palms and glanced at the woodblock thrown under a bush out of the corner of his eye. His heart sank.]

[He had not expected that Zaimokuza's body would mutate again at this time, and this hidden problem erupted at a very inappropriate time, which could be said to have pushed the battle situation to a point that was extremely unfavorable to his side.]

[Zaimokuza's fighting power can now be basically ruled out, and the only one who can fight is himself. However, based on the short-term fight just now, Kousaka Kyousuke can be sure that he is definitely no match for No. 26 with his own strength.]

[So the best solution now is to retreat first, find a way to solve Zaimokuza's problem, and then come back to fight the opponent. 】

[Although the idea is good, the reality is that Kousaka Kyosuke has no choice but to continue fighting. ]

[Number 26 is completely different from the previously unable to move number 25. Not to mention the mobility that far exceeds his own, Kousaka Kyosuke saw clearly just now that the guy has already targeted the group of girls who are still in Niigata City.]

[Once they retreat, it will be obvious who will suffer.]

[Neither Kousaka Kyosuke nor Zaimokuza Yoshiki are the kind of people who would allow others to be implicated because of themselves. ]

[Garima's huge body landed on the beach, its wings stopped vibrating and stirred up a dust storm with sand. One of its compound eyes looked back and forth between Kousaka Kyosuke and Zaimokuza who had fallen to the ground in the distance, and finally locked onto Kousaka Kyosuke in front of it.]

[The mouthparts moved, and the sound it made was still as strange as chewing the tongue, but the rage contained in it was clearly revealed.]

[“Since you have chosen this place as your burial place, I will fulfill your wish, starting with you. GO!”]

[“I won’t let you die so easily. I swear in the name of Go-Garima-Ba, I will cut you into pieces from head to toe bit by bit!”]

[Garima's anger was justified, because one of its eyes was still oozing green blood, and a bowl-sized wound on the crystal tissue of the compound eye was particularly glaring and was slowly repairing.]

[That was the damage left by Kousaka Kyosuke's pistol attack just now. When he was tied up in the air, he was quick-witted and shot Garima's eyes with a bullet. No matter how strong the body's defense is, the eyes made of crystals are always the most vulnerable part.]

[The nerve-breaking bullet produced a series of explosions the moment it hit the compound eye. This special ammunition for Gurongi completely destroyed the neural network of Garima's eye. The severe pain made it scream loudly and subconsciously threw the two of them directly to the beach that just happened to fly below. This was also planned by Kousaka Kyousuke.]

[Whether it is a Gurongi or a human, the nerve distribution of the eyes is one of the most densely distributed locations in the entire body, so even with Garima's current recovery ability, it is very troublesome to repair it. The dull pain like a knife cutting further stimulates its madness. ]

【"hiss!!!"】

[With a snake-like cry, Garima's huge body immediately pounced on Kousaka Kyousuke at a speed that was inconsistent with its size, and its two sharp forelimbs chopped down Kousaka Kyousuke's head from top to bottom, vowing to behead him with one blow! ]

[In Kousaka Kyosuke's eyes, Garima, who was dozens of meters away a moment ago, appeared in front of him the next second, swinging his arms so fast that it was impossible to see with the naked eye. It was all thanks to the danger premonition he had developed in long-term battles that he was able to hold up his sword with both hands to block the inevitable trajectory of the slash before the blade approached him.]

[Too heavy! ]

[“Gu!”]

[When the two swords slashed at the demon slayer, sparks flew out like forging a steel furnace. The huge force pressed the blades down. Kousaka Kyosuke tried his best to resist, but the huge force still pressed him to his knees on the ground, and his feet and ankles were completely sunk into the sand.]

[GO's energy system is continuously supplying power to his armor, but even though the operating power has reached its limit under normal conditions, the two blades are still placed horizontally at different positions, which shows that Garima has surpassed α by a large margin with just ordinary power.]

[“Hold on, Kousaka-kun!”]

[Ebina, who was far away in the main control room, quickly tapped the keyboard to unlock the full load mode of the armor. It was not until the blue current flowed through his body and the restrictions were lifted and his power was greatly increased that Kousaka Kyosuke finally stood up. ]

[But even if all restrictions of the armor were removed, he could only be on par with the opponent and could not advance even a little bit.]

【"hateful!"】

[Kousaka Kyosuke almost bit his back teeth to pieces. Even though he was very unwilling in his heart, he still had to admit a reality.]

[Compared to the Gurongi in front of us, the current α armor is too weak and cannot be compared with the opponent at all. ]

[Although the version was just updated not long ago, it is obvious that the opponent's version update speed is faster. To use the game terminology, the current GO is like the main weapon of version 2.0, while the Gurongi that appeared is already the Chosen One of version 3.0. Even if the operating skills of both parties are equal, the opponent has formed an absolute crushing advantage over him purely by relying on the numbers. ]

[With only the current Gulkiller, it is no longer possible to threaten the current No. 26, or even the unconfirmed life forms that will appear next. If Kousaka Kyousuke still wants to continue fighting——]

[——Unless he can obtain weapons more powerful than the current α! ]

[This thought flashed through Kousaka Kyosuke's mind, and then the wind blades blooming on the blade interrupted his thoughts. Two huge wind blades directly chopped the whole person away. ]

【“Mr. Kosaka!”】

[Kousaka Kyosuke did not hold back at all and threw Zaimokuza to the edge of the beach. At this time, he was standing up and looking at Kousaka Kyosuke who was at an absolute disadvantage at the beginning of the battle and shouted anxiously. ]

[There is no way to win. Seeing the difference in strength between the two during the confrontation, Zaimokuza understood this fact just like Kousaka Kyousuke, and he grasped a ball of sand into his palm with all his strength.]

【"hateful……"】

【Zaimokuza was extremely upset at the moment. It shouldn't have been like this. It shouldn't have been that Kousaka Kyousuke had to face No. 26 alone to protect him. Instead, the two of them should have fought side by side.】

[Given the strength of Unconfirmed Lifeform No. 26, the chances of Kousaka Kyosuke winning alone are slim. The best way is for two people to work together to ensure a certain chance of winning, but no one expected an accident to occur at such a critical moment.]

【Feeling his paralyzed body at the moment, Zaimokuza reluctantly clenched his palms tightly, holding a handful of sand tightly in his palms.】

[But he is not a child after all, so after a moment of regret, Zaimokuza quickly calmed down and analyzed the current situation. ]

[Although Zaimokuza has always believed that as long as he and Kousaka Kyousuke are together, they will be able to fight any opponent, but the current situation is clear to him even if he is not good at analyzing the battle situation - even if he is included, the chances of the two of them winning are still overwhelmingly lower than the opponent. ]

[Number 26 is too strong, completely beyond the current combat power limit of the two of them. Even if they join forces, they can only protect themselves. It is a pipe dream to kill them.]

[Although Zaimokuza was reluctant to admit it, he knew very well that even his strongest almighty form, the Elemental Awakening Mode, could not kill the opponent. Even if the attack power could reach the standard, it was different from No. 25 who could only stand there as a target last time. The pair of wings behind the opponent were not for show.]

[Even if the two of them joined forces, this would be the result. Not to mention that now that Zaimokuza is missing, only Kousaka Kyousuke can hold on alone. If they continue to fight, defeat is only a matter of time.]

[Unless... Zaimokuza's palm touched the spiritual stone on his waist that was still flashing golden light at a fixed frequency, and he fell into silence.]

[The only way to defeat No. 26 now is to let Kuuga evolve again and gain even more powerful strength, enough to defeat it! ]

[There is one thing that Zaimokuza lied to Kousaka Kyousuke. ]

[That is, he has been able to barely control the power generated by the mutation in his body. Although he cannot guarantee that he can control it 100%, Zaimokuza is sure that once he uses this power, he may be able to undergo another transformation.]

[But every time he had this thought and wanted to put it into action, Zaimokuza felt as if he had lost control of his body. Every cell in his body seemed to be resisting his decision and screamed, abruptly stopping his actions.]

[Zaimokuza knew what was going on. It had nothing to do with his own will. It was his body that was stopping him. The sixth sense in the DNA passed down from ancient human ancestors was keen enough to realize the danger of this approach.]

[The human mind and body are actually separate at some level. There is a protective mechanism in the body that limits dangerous behaviors that may harm the human body. For example, a person who has been working late for several days may suddenly faint while walking. This is actually an emergency response made by the body itself to warn the owner of the impending failure.]

[Zaimokuza had had similar experiences many times during his adventures, but never before had the reaction been so intense. He could almost hear the body screaming to his brain.]

[——Once he uses this power, Zaimokuza Yoshiki may embark on a path from which he can never turn back.]

[It was as if such a voice sounded in Zaimokuza's ears, forcing him to give up this idea, and he had a vague intuition and fear that if he chose to use this power, the end that would greet him might be more terrifying than death! ]

[But, if I don’t use this power now…]

【boom--】

[The sound of the blades colliding interrupted Zaimokuza's thoughts. He looked up and saw that the knocked-away Kousaka Kyousuke stood up with his sword and rushed towards No. 26 again.]

[The charging figure did not hesitate at all. He knew clearly what the result would be if he continued to fight like this, but Kousaka Kyosuke still chose to fight to the bitter end.]

[His battle was never for himself, but for others, for those ordinary people on the street. Kousaka Kyosuke chose to devote everything he had without hesitation and joined this war that had nothing to do with him as an ordinary person.]

[Even though he was the only one left of the two people who were supposed to fight side by side, Kousaka Kyosuke still had no complaints, because in his heart, Zaimokuza Yoshiteru was actually an ordinary citizen who needed to be protected. ]

[He never said anything about this, but that figure from behind had already conveyed his determination to Zaimokuza.]

【“…”】

【Zaimokuza fell silent, his right hand gently clasped at his waist, a trace of confusion rising in his heart.】

[What should I do? ]

[“Just do it in your usual style.”]

【“——!?”】

[A familiar voice suddenly sounded behind him, and Zaimokuza's body instantly stiffened, his heart filled with disbelief.]

[He subconsciously wanted to turn his head to look, but a hand had already gently patted Zaimokuza's shoulder.]

【——Snap. 】

[The voice from long-lost memory rang in my ears. The touch of that hand was no different from before, just like the calm voice of this person.]

[“No need to hesitate, just follow your own heart and make the choice. That’s enough.”]

【“Zaimokuzu.”】

[A familiar aura appeared behind me, and it felt like an old friend had returned.]

Author's message:

PS: I am too busy today, and I have weekend classes tomorrow, so no update.

Chapter position: 189 / Chapter price: 32 / Word count: 6739 / Update time: 2023-07-23 17:53:45

9. Awakening Soul (6K)

[Zaimokuza lowered his head in a daze and looked at the beach in front of him.]

[He was the only shadow there, and the other shadows were the shadows of the trees. There were no other shadows.]

[But feeling the real touch and temperature on his shoulder, Zaimokuza's transformed face trembled slightly, and he murmured. ]

【"turn out to be……"】

【You are always here. 】

[The person behind him did not reply, but the world in front of him changed in an instant. The scene of Kousaka Kyosuke fighting with No. 26 in front of him was covered by the boundless white light, along with everything around him.]

[The hand on his shoulder also slipped off, and that calm voice finally sounded again behind him.]

[“Yes, I’ve always been here.”]

[Hikigaya Hachiman quietly looked at Zaimokuza who was half-kneeling with his back to him, and spoke softly. ]

[Zaimokuza's current appearance has somehow returned to the way it was in high school. The voice of his best friend behind him is weak but reverberates like thunder in this world and in Zaimokuza's heart.]

【“Didn’t I say that?”】

[“I will keep watching you until your story comes to an end.”]

[“…You still keep your promise.”]

[Zaimokuza, who had transformed back into a human, did not turn around, but reached out and rubbed the tip of his nose, feeling a strange soreness there.]

[“What about you?”]

[Hikigaya's eyes were fixed on Zaimokuza's back, and he asked in a calm voice.]

[“Your story hasn’t even come to an end yet, are you going to give up now?”]

[“Didn’t you tell me that you would write a story that would convince me? Or is this miserable state you are in just for me to see?”]