Chapter 27: Untitled

"Whew... definitely had a few too many tonight."

My name is Ryuga Norton. Apparently, I used to hold a fairly high-ranking position in the military... but these days, I’m just another faceless salaryman working for a corporation.

I say 'apparently' because I have no memory of those days. Word is I was kicked out after causing some kind of trouble, but since I don't remember any of it, it’s all ancient history to me. Whether I was framed or not, I don't really have the energy to go digging for the truth.

"Wait... was that a flash of light over there?"

In an instant, the landscape before my eyes was gouged out. The very foundation of the earth was exposed, and the shops that had lined the street were transformed into nothing but wreckage and memories.

"Well... this is bad."

I set my luggage and my worn-out jacket on the curb and immediately shifted into rescue mode. Just what the hell was happening in this town?

POV - Asuna

No more holding back.

"Accelerate, world of mine... Transcendent Acceleration: Tachy—"

The moment I reached for my eyepatch, my double kicked me. I was sent flying, the sound of the impact trailing behind my blurred form.

"Gack... Tachy..."

I tried again to uncover my eye, but she obstructed me at every turn, sending me tumbling across the ground like a rubber ball.

The Balancer began reading from the contents of a brown envelope she held.

"To activate your ability, you must remove that eyepatch. You use it to constantly store energy in the reactor within your left eye, releasing it only when necessary. Even your intervention in the 'curse of the mass-produced models'—a crime in itself—might have left both of your hands intact if you had simply used that eye."

This was what made her so troublesome. For the sake of passing an impartial judgment, she was provided with a dossier containing all the defendant's information. Fortunately, it didn't seem to mention that I was a reincarnated soul, but still...

"Shut up."

I fired off a shockwave to keep her at bay, but an identical attack surged from the shadows and neutralized it instantly.

"Mode Blue: Eternity."

Even the fissures in the ground, which felt as if they would stretch on forever, were perfectly matched by her. I was caught in a moment of stun and took a painful counter-hit.

"Urgh!"

"..."

"Why... you...!"

I clashed my light sword against hers, trying to find an opening in our duel, but—!

"What!?"

My energy blade was severed mid-way, and the skin of my shoulder was shallowly gouged.

"I lost on raw output. And of all things... you’re using Cleshuze!?"

Troublesome Point Part Two. To make the defendant understand the weight of their sins, she forces them to fight against what they perceive to be the strongest version of themselves.

"Dammit!"

I unleashed a relentless barrage of sharpened spatial blades, but they vanished the moment they touched her, stripped of all efficacy.

A strike grazed my right cheek, tearing a line all the way back to my ear.

The ability of Cleshuze was Trauma Dissolution. It burned everything it touched down to the atomic level. If I took a direct hit, I’d be dead instantly—no exaggeration. To counter it, I needed either an equal level of visualization or a legendary weapon imbued with the same 'trauma' attribute.

Excalibur, Gungnir, Longinus.

It was an overwhelming martial force rumored to be equal to the armaments known as divine artifacts. Facing a power worthy of being called a ritual tool for summoning the gods, I prepared myself for death.

"Just give up already. That delicious pancake shop is about to open for the day."

The Balancer jeered from the sidelines, her voice cutting through the air and piercing a nearby building. As the battle dragged on, my consciousness began to drift, sinking slowly into the abyss...

"You’re persistent."

"Haa... haa... haa..."

"If you give up, it will all be over much faster."

"Heh... sorry, but I’ve always been a fan of happy endings."

"Your very existence might be the reason that ending remains out of reach. We S-Class Exterminators are eternal beings; any one of us could end a major war in a single month. What happens after that? In a world where we no longer intervene, how will the gnats survive once there is no apex predator to grant them the scraps?"

"That’s just the difference in our perspectives. If you’re the one who seeks and enforces equality, then I’m the one who denies and guides a world that has slowly grown distorted. Both are undeniably the will of the world."

I looked down at my unresponsive limbs, one by one, and spoke with a gentle, enlightened tone.

"No one really knows if a sound is perfectly in tune. Even the musical scale was just decided by someone’s personal preference. It might have even dropped half an octave as it was passed down through the generations. But, whether it’s technically 'correct' or not, there is one thing—a single, unique, unchanging truth."

"And that is..."

Slowly, the view on my left side opened up as both of my eyes were exposed.

"Steady, honest hard work is the true height of human wisdom. Don't come in here and talk to me about 'noblesse oblige' when you just appeared out of thin air."

"What!? Since when!?"

"Did you forget? I appreciate you going out of your way to attack me. Now all I have to do is tear you apart, whether I have to shove my face into yours to do it or not."

"With that beam of light?"

In an instant, I visualized summoning replacement limbs to resurrect my form. It cost me one set of mass-produced arms and legs and a staggering amount of energy... but I provided all of that from my own reserves. My left eye was still at full capacity.

"Hey there, fake. Let’s settle this."

"..."

Thump... thump... Thump!

"Transcendent Acceleration: Tachyon!"

"---Tachyon!"