The Tale of the Teapot Hero’s Revenge Chapter 4 - Water Bag

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Chapter 4

Water Bag

 

I shoved the tip of the sword into the mouth of the man who cried for help. He killed my family, my best friend, everyone in the village, and now he dared to ask for help.

"Aaahh!!"

"Shut up. Just die already."

I pushed the sword deeper and deeper into his throat. I felt something rip, and he fell silent. I must have stabbed him in a place I shouldn't have. When I withdrew the sword, his mouth spewed out red blood, staining the white snow.

"...I still have three more to take care of."

Strangely, I didn't feel anything. No sense of guilt. It’s like killing pests. I thrust the sword into the remaining three struggling figures as if it were an assembly line. I had to kill them, or they'd kill me. Besides, they brought this upon themselves.

"...Huh?"

After killing the last person, I felt a sense of unease.

"Someone's missing...?"

There were supposed to be five pursuers. I think he was called Galare, that platoon leader. That person was missing.

"...Hey, what the hell is this?"

I heard a voice from the slope above. Looking up, it was the surprised Galare.

"We were planning to surround and ambush you, so why is everyone wiped out?"

"Well? Maybe your subordinates are pathetic or maybe it's because I'm the Hero?"

"Heh, that's a harsh joke. At this rate, I'll get a severe scolding when I return. Damn it!"

He grumbled as he drew the sword at his waist. It was a double-edged sword, a type of knight's sword, and a bit longer than a one-handed sword.

"It's quite unlucky for me, but as long as I kill you, I should be fine. Die quietly for me."

He spat out those words and dashed down the slope. Uh oh, I might have gotten too cocky. I inadvertently provoked him with my bold words, but there's no way I could win in head-on fight. He's definitely strong. I'd have to find a similar terrain and set a trap again. For now, I make a U-turn to flee into the forest. I turned my back to him and ran.

"You think you can escape!" Galare said with an irritated tone, and swung his sword sideways.

What's he doing? We're still quite far apart. But that thought didn't last long. I saw an invisible blade flying towards my ankle.

"What, what is this!?"

I managed to jump and avoid it, but it caused me to lose balance upon landing. I struggled to maintain my posture, and during that time, I naturally stopped running.

"Oh, you move quite well."

He had approached right behind me. A sweeping blade swung towards me again. I bend down to evade it and jumped back to create distance.

"Kuh...!"

"I see, the Hero’s blessing. The more you kill, the stronger you become, huh? You killed five people, including Denil. However, you’re still far from my level."

Unfortunately, it's true. Hence, the enemy remained unfazed. As for me, I was doing my best just to avoid the invisible blades. Fighting was impossible. I had to escape once again...

"I told you, you're not getting away."

Galare circled in front of me as I tried to escape. If he's this fast...

"Why didn't you chase after me seriously earlier?"

The sword, swung diagonally upwards, grazed my left arm. A burning sensation, as if it had been scorched, ran through my upper arm, and something hot began to flow out.

"Ow...!"

"It's a simple, I'm kind."

It hurts, I'd been cut. What part was him being kind?

"If I take care of everything myself, my subordinates won't have any achievements, right? They might think I'm an annoying boss. I want them to have accomplishments. That's my kindness."

A thrust aimed at my leg. I tried to dodge it but couldn't fully evade it, and a wound ran across my thigh. It hurts.

"But well, unfortunately, all my subordinates have been wiped out. I don't have to hold back anymore."

The knight's sword was surrounded by a translucent haze. It's probably the same as the transparent blade he threw earlier. Once again, this time it came down diagonally from the upper left. It's fast, but I narrowly evaded it... or so I thought.

"I-Itaaahhh!!"

A deep wound ran through my left upper arm. Why? I dodged the blade, didn't I? It's incredibly painful, I felt like crying.

"What the hell is that?! This has been happening since earlier...!"

"Haven’t you heard of 'Renki' before? Well, it doesn't matter if you haven't. There's no point in lecturing someone who's about to die."

An unrelenting thrust was launched. No, my whole body hurts, and I couldn’t avoid it all. I was doing my best to avoid being hit at my vitals.

"Aaaahhhh!!"

The tip of the sword pierced my shoulder. It went through to the other side. Will my left arm still function? No, before that, could I get through this? It's impossible, right? I'd resist until the end though...

"Well, it's checkmate, Hero-sama."

"Damn it, damn it...!"

He grabbed my throat, and I was forced down. He strangled me, and I could only move my right hand.

"Let go, you... you bastard...!"

"Well well, still spirited, huh? Your spirit isn't broken yet?"

He grinned at me. I wanted to spit on him, but it would just make me look a sour loser. Instead, I need to find a way to break free...!

‘That's right, I can still move my right hand!’

If I thrust the sword I'm gripping in my right hand, I could kill him. Until a moment ago, there were no openings, and I couldn't land a strike, but now that he's strangling me…

"...Guh!"

I tried to move my right hand to thrust the sword into his back. But...

"Oops, should I let you do that?"

He effortlessly punched my wrist, causing me to drop the sword. I'd lost my weapon, and I was completely out of options.

"Heh, I could continue like this until your spirit is broken. But I'd better go back before I get scolded."

At close range, the maneuverability of the sword was poor, so he drew a short knife from his waist and pressed it against my neck.

"For the sake of our kingdom, die for us, Hero-sama!"

I wouldn't die without a fight. I tried to grab his wrist with my still functioning right hand to hold him back. But even so, his strength was superior. His cold blade gradually began to press against my neck.

‘No, I don't want to die here...!’

I was suddenly called a hero, endowed with strange abilities. In the end, without even understanding the reason, everything was taken away by the kingdom, and I was nearly killed. What is this? What use of boiling water for this situation? Show me its usefulness!

"Now, one final push..."

Pop.

Pop-pop-pop.

"...Huh?"

Galare, who had been triumphant, looked at his own hand in astonishment. After a moment of freezing in place...

"A-Ahyyyyaaaahhhhh!!"

He suddenly let out a pitiful scream. What's with this guy? Did he suddenly go crazy? ...No, it's his wrist. The enemy's wrist that my right hand was touching was inexplicably getting hotter.

"What, what have you done, you brat!!?"

Pow!

With a sound of something bursting, Galare pulled back his body, dropping the short knife, and fell on his rear. I didn't really understand, but I'm free now.

"What the hell is this?! What the hell just happened?!"

Steam rose from Galare's wrist as it boiled and popped. Blood, sweat, and the moisture packed within the flesh are all boiling together. Blisters like water balloons kept forming and bursting on his skin. Blood was gushing out from the ruptured skin, all while boiling.

"...Ah, I see. Sweat, tears, and blood, huh?"

Come to think of it, all of those things came out from inside the body. Did that mean the human body was like a water bag, filled with water?

"So, humans are water bags after all."

Well, if that's the case, it's easy. I just need to grab his head and make it boil. With that alone, this useless ability of mine was now a killing technique.

 

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