LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 14 - Serious
Mikoyuki’s menacing aura warned Kazuya of danger, causing him to leap backward.
He activated his power throughout his body, kicking off with immense force.
But—
“Hey… don’t run away.”
Mikoyuki chased after Kazuya, who had jumped into the air.
An invisible wall created a foothold for Mikoyuki. The fight between Kazuya and Mikoyuki shifted to a mid-air battle amidst the buildings.
Mikoyuki casually swung his arm towards the wind.
With a swoosh, Kazuya’s upper arm’s skin was torn.
“…Damn, is it an emission-type ability!?”
“No. That was a fluctuation of force—manipulating the wave of force generated when I swung my arm.”
Mikoyuki explained in response to Kazuya’s astonished voice. Kazuya’s skin, hardened by his ability, was an impenetrable shield. However, this attack easily shattered that defense.
Realizing that running away was disadvantageous, Kazuya shifted to an offensive stance.
He placed his foot on a building’s window and launched himself at Mikoyuki.
The impact shattered countless windows in the building.
Mikoyuki deflected Kazuya’s charge—there was a sound of Kazuya’s left arm breaking.
However, Kazuya was blown into the air. If he fell, it would be ideal.
“Whew—! Not yet!”
Kazuya placed his foot on a distant building wall and leaped again.
Mikoyuki deflected him again—seemingly putting Kazuya at a disadvantage.
No matter how much muscle fuel he had, as a human, he would inevitably tire.
But—
“Isn’t your left arm about to give out!!?”
Mikoyuki’s arm gave out first.
Due to repeated impacts, Mikoyuki’s left arm was swollen with bruises.
Mikoyuki hadn’t moved since earlier. He was just standing still in mid-air.
(I’m getting bored of this… Let’s finish it with this next strike.)
Kazuya leaped from building to building for his next attack.
As he gathered strength in his right arm, he aimed his fist at Mikoyuki.
Mikoyuki no longer had the power to deflect or counter it.
“The preparations are complete.”
Mikoyuki briefly glanced at the leaping Kazuya and raised his right arm.
“I declare—your attacks will never hit again.”
“…!?”
Mikoyuki’s statement filled Kazuya with dread. His instincts screamed that it was bad.
But Kazuya didn’t stop. He continued his charge.
Mikoyuki calmly raised his arm and lightly knocked on Kazuya’s forehead.
“Buh—!?”
The resulting power from the attack motion was immense.
Kazuya’s forehead caved in. He fell to the ground with great force.
As he stood up, rubbing his forehead amid the dust, Mikoyuki looked down at him.
The power difference was overwhelming.
“An enhancement-type…? No, that’s impossible…”
“It’s not enhancement. And this attack is—”
Kazuya, nose crushed and bleeding, tried to speak, but at that moment, purple electricity crackled around him.
In an instant, Kazuya’s body burst into flames. The fire, ignited from his clothes, quickly engulfed his body.
“Guh… Ugh…! Damn…!”
But Kazuya wasn’t foolish.
He rolled on the asphalt, desperately trying to extinguish the flames.
“It’s been a while since I felt such a thrill… It’s been a long time since I’ve faced someone so worthy…!”
As he stood up, Kazuya’s upper body was exposed. He had only been wearing a white T-shirt and a poncho.
Kazuya’s expression turned serious as he glared at Mikoyuki intently.
“You’re dangerous. I’ll change my mind. I won’t try to recruit you anymore. No more hospitality either.”
“That suits me just fine.”
“You’re strong… You might even surpass the boss.”
Kazuya’s words clearly conveyed hostility toward Mikoyuki.
The rising bloodlust made Mikoyuki take a step back.
“I’m smart. If I let you roam free, you’ll definitely become a threat to the boss. So, I have to kill you here and now.”
Kazuya tore off his tattered white T-shirt and crouched down.
His skin, red and blistered, caused him immense pain even from the wind.
But Kazuya slapped his legs and laughed excitedly.
“This is thrilling… In prison, I never had an equal to fight.”
Kazuya’s body swelled.
His muscles, now fully unleashed, surpassed imagination.
Seeing the bulging muscles, Mikoyuki descended to the ground.
(If I take this head-on, it’s going to be bad.)
“Let me tell you something. About my ability—”
“Before that, I’ll crush you!”
Kazuya charged at Mikoyuki with a tremendous gust of wind.
“It’s been a while since I used this… Don’t break easily!—Muscle Supernova Muscle Big Bang!!”
The destructive right fist aimed at Mikoyuki.
But—
“I told you before—your attacks will no longer hit.”
At that moment, Kazuya’s movement stopped.
His clenched fist stopped in front of Mikoyuki’s face. Kazuya gritted his teeth and tried to move, but his body wouldn’t budge. Mikoyuki raised his right hand. Kazuya’s body was lifted by an unknown power.
“Hot…!? What did you do?”
“What, you ask? I merely stopped all particles around you.”
“…Huh?”
Kazuya’s confused voice echoed. Anyone who heard this would make the same sound. Mikoyuki calmly explained as he moved behind Kazuya.
With minimum caution, Mikoyuki glanced diagonally upwards.
“Let me disclose one thing about my ability.”
Listening to the distant sirens, Mikoyuki continued.
“That earlier attack was an application of vector manipulation. The earlier ignition was an amplification of weak electricity around you… And now, I’m stopping the ‘elementary particles’ around you. You said it was ‘hot,’ right? That’s the pain from ultra-low temperatures caused by stopping the particles. It’s quite tricky to stop everything except the mouth.”
Mikoyuki extended his left hand toward a burning car.
In an instant, the flames disappeared, leaving only the remains of the car.
“Do you think you’ve won…?”
Kazuya’s voice was low and groaning.
“I’m not being arrogant or complacent—there’s nothing you can do. I’ve won.”
As Mikoyuki declared, Kazuya began to laugh.
It wasn’t a laugh of resignation, but one that mocked the opponent.
Mikoyuki felt a chill from that laughter.
“Kakakaka…! You’re mistaken about one thing. You’ve won this fight, but you’ll die, Mikoyuki.”
“…You, don’t tell me!”
Kazuya’s laughter was that of a fool facing death.
Impulsively, Mikoyuki moved away. Kazuya opened his mouth wide—
“Collad Bomb, Banzai!!”
As he said this, a clicking sound was heard from somewhere. At that moment, an explosion erupted from Kazuya’s body.
The explosion’s power was tremendous, causing cracks in the surrounding buildings.
The ground was gouged out, and trees rustled. The roar, similar to a gong, reached far away.
“Mikoyuki…”
The residents who had evacuated far away flinched at the explosion sound.
Among them, Alicia prayed for the safety of her childhood friend as she watched the rising smoke.
Mikoyuki, closest to the center, crawled out from behind a wall a few seconds later.
Coughing, Mikoyuki looked at the center of the explosion. The ground was deeply gouged, and red flames continued to smolder.
“That was close… If I hadn’t focused on defense instead of evasion—”
He would have died. Kazuya’s body, at the center of the explosion, was charred black but somehow still breathing.
“Hah… Give me a break. If I hadn’t created a protective barrier around your body at the last moment, you would’ve died too.”
Mikoyuki sighed. In that instant, Mikoyuki released the stopped particles around Kazuya and created a dome-shaped barrier to contain the explosion. There were no others around the scene; no one else should have been caught in the blast.
“…Don’t die in front of me.”
The wind blew. Carrying ashes, the blue wind slowly ran across the summer sky.
In the distance, the sound of sirens echoed.
“…Hey, wasn’t that pretty intense?”
Nearby, two men stood.
At the scene where a single misstep could mean death, the men each held their smartphones, filming the entire incident.
“Y-Yeah… Let’s upload it to the internet! It’ll definitely go viral!”
…That day’s social media trends were dominated by a few terms.
‘A-class Criminal’
‘Kazuya Kyousaki Escape’
‘Mysterious Boy’
‘Cheat Ability User’
‘Mysterious Cheat Ability User’… and more.