Fate: Hero Simulator

[3rd POV]

"Touko, is your helper really that fast?"

Aoko watched as the figure vanished in a flash.

She had always been confident in her own stamina, but now she realized there was still a huge gap compared to a real runner.

"That's your helper, not mine."

Touko wasn't worried about him escaping.

This was her territory, and she knew it inside and out.

"Should we split up, kill him, and then settle our own matters?"

"I suppose that's the only option now."

Although their grudges hadn't been settled, the sisters were surprisingly united regarding matters of the Aozaki family.

But could Kyouya really escape?

...

Lost?

Kyouya wasn't exactly bad at finding his way, but his sense of direction was about average.

Mount Enzou wasn't a place he often visited, and this underground cavern was something most people in Fuyuki City didn't even know about.

It was only natural for a newcomer like him to get lost.

In this vast underground, Kyouya was nothing more than a complete outsider while Touko had a huge advantage.

She and the puppet could teleport freely within the underground cavern anywhere.

With such an overwhelming advantage, she figured it wouldn't take long to kill Kyouya.

Touko thought this way, but soon she realized her mistake.

"I can't land a hit? Does this guy have such a strong perception?"

She watched as her puppet's attacks were dodged again and again.

A regular high school student in a time of peace wouldn't have such abilities, but a high school student with cheats?

That's a different story.

Although Kyouya couldn't directly sense the puppet's intent to attack, Touko would inevitably reveal a killing intent when she controlled it to attack.

He could detect even the slightest disturbances in his surroundings, allowing him to react before danger reached him.

"There, huh?"

He sensed the source of the killing intent but deliberately avoided looking in that direction to prevent alerting the enemy.

It was clear that this was no longer a situation that could be resolved with just a few words.

If he wanted to survive, he had to be prepared to kill, not in a simulation, but in reality.

He pretended to flee in panic, but he was getting closer to Touko in a spiral pattern.

A puppeteer's puppet might be strong, but once the master was restrained, there wouldn't be much they could do.

He clenched a jewel in his hand, and as his magical power surged inside, he began to change the stone's internal structure, turning it into a grenade and then… he threw it.

"Boom~"

A massive explosion sounded, engulfing the spot where Touko had been hiding, but when the smoke cleared, there was no one in the smoke.

Instead, the puppet was closing in.

"She teleported? Magus really are a pain..."

After dealing with Sima Yi's cunning strategies before, Kyouya wasn't surprised by Touko's tricks.

The moment danger approached, she had used spatial transfer to evade the attack.

"Snap~"

He clapped his hands together and caught the sword with his bare hands, locking the blade in place and holding it in a deadlock with the puppet.

"It seems like you understand now—trying to kill me in this place isn't a practical option."

Touko's voice echoed from all directions, making it impossible to pinpoint her location.

However, this was meaningless to Kyouya who could sense the killing intent.

The body of the puppet started to transform, transforming into mercury-like blades that aimed at him.

He had no choice but to retreat immediately.

At the moment, Kyouya didn't have the speed to take her down in a single strike.

This means he couldn't leave unless he defeated the puppet in front of him.

Touko wasn't sure whether this puppet could defeat her sister, but dealing with a young magus should have been more than enough...

"Boom~"

A huge impact interrupted Touko's thoughts.

The source of the sound was Kyouya's fist, which made a loud noise when it clashed with the Holy Sword.

"A fist? That's impossible…"

"Of course, it's impossible. Even with a magic spell, a human body can't clash with a weapon like the Holy Sword. However, did you know? A sword can only damage in three places."

He infused his fist with mana and used Bajiquan, which Kirei personally taught him.

He created a huge hole in the puppet's chest with one punch.

Suddenly, the puppet vanished instantly.

That strike looked powerful, and it had not only caused damage but also rendered one of its defensive mystic codes completely useless.

"The sword tip. The two edges of the blade. If you avoid those, a sword is nothing more than a stick. And since this puppet fights with the 'Flowing Water Sword' technique… it must have also inherited its fatal flaw."

He still retained the memories from his time as Lloyd and could never forget the very technique he had once relied on to survive.

The true meaning behind it lies in building up power.

However, the battle awareness lingering within that sword was nothing more than rigid.

How could a "dead thing" ever manifest the true essence of "living water"?

That kind of fixed routine can be interrupted at critical points. If the flow isn't built up properly, the sword's greatest power won't be unleashed.

"You're the ones who refused to let me go. This is really unfortunate."

It wasn't clear if Kyouya was saying this "unfortunate" to himself or to Touko, who was hiding in the shadows.

The jewels floated around him one by one, ready to defend against any surprise attack as he charged toward her hiding spot.

The sharp edge of the sword appeared beside him, but Kyouya couldn't dodge it, and instead, he charged directly into the sword, forcing his way through.

Meanwhile, Touko, hidden nearby, tried to use Rune, but the floating jewels blocked her efforts.

This was Kyouya's first battle.

He couldn't afford to hold back.

To be continued...

...

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