The Tale of the Teapot Hero’s Revenge Chapter 38 - When ice melts, it turns into water

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Chapter 38 - When ice melts, it turns into water

 

I was saved thanks to Mel-chan. Also because of her, I managed to take one of Tario’s arms. But I was still in a dire situation; if I let my guard down, I would be killed in an instant, and that hadn't changed.

"I won't get close to you anymore, won't play around... I'll kill you from a distance where you can't touch me, without fail."

"That's more than fine with me... You've been really creepy since earlier!"

"It's a shame. I won't be able to observe you up close as you die."

I tried to make a sarcastic remark, but Tario remained completely unfazed. I thought he would react if I provoked him, but he’s not that simple. It's the worst-case scenario that he didn’t want to come close to me, to be honest.

"Let's settle this."

A large number of icicles were created around Tario, floating in the air. They're homing icicles again, but the quantity was completely different from before. There must be about twenty of them.

"Icicle Storm!"

He motioned with his left arm, and all the icicles flew towards me. Melting them one by one would be quite a task. ...No, even if I melt them, what's the point?

(I can't lose heart... Right now, I have to do something about him!)

I started running to pick up my sword stuck in the ground. The icicles also bent their path towards me; they're still homing. I ran at full speed, picking the sword while performing a backflip, and I prepared to charge into the barrage. If I charge in there unarmed, I'd be full of holes for sure.

"Now, show me! Dance to your death!"

"Don't be so full of yourself!"

While avoiding the leading icicles, I made contact. First one, then two, three, touching several of them as numerous icicles brushed against my body. Right, left, flying, ducking, deflecting with my sword. If I stopped moving for even a moment, I was certain holes would start appearing in my body.

(Since cutting them only makes them multiply, I have no choice but to deflect them...!)

Within the barrage, I managed to touch about ten icicles. Upon my touch, the icicles instantly plummeted down and turned into mere water. At this rate, I might be able to annihilate them all with the next move. Then I'd think about a counterattack...

"Useless effort. Here comes ten more."

...Seriously? Tario created and launched the same number of icicles as before. Twenty in total, including the previous ten. They're all back as they were before. How ridiculous.

"You’re not holding back anymore, huh...!"

"I haven't held back. This is my full power. Unfortunately, I can only control up to twenty homing icicles at once."

Damn it, this time they split into ten each and come flying from the left and right, sandwiching me. They're harder to dodge than before, and even if I melt them, more will be added.

"That’s the limit of how many I can control with transmitted magic power at will. It requires considerable concentration. Sadly, I can't control more than twenty at a time. Pathetic, isn't it?"

I see, if I infused magic power, I could control them... That meant... The melted icicles were just water now; they no longer contained his magic power. Now, they contained my magic power. If he could do it, then I could too...

"This is the second wave, can you withstand it?"

Here it comes, a hellish onslaught from both sides. I had to get through this; otherwise, I wouldn't be able to kill Tario. My revenge would remain unfinished. I wouldn't let it end like this.

"I won't die... I won't diee!!"

I was moving purely on sheer determination. I held my breath, concentrated with all my might, and pushed my wounded body beyond its limits. Looking right and then left, passing through gaps, touching several icicles, and channeling my magic. Still, I couldn't avoid all of them completely, and my skin was torn multiple times; one icicle even pierced my left shoulder.

"Ah...!"

It's so painful that tears were about to flow from my eyes, and I felt like screaming. But if I showed pain and stopped moving, I'd die. I had to survive, with that thought alone I keep evading, evading, evading, until the final icicle pierced through my thigh, creating a large hole.

"Aaahhhh!!"

It's beyond painful. It felt hot, and my vision was flickering. Falling to the ground, a scream escaped my mouth involuntarily. I couldn't do it anymore; I couldn't move. I couldn't dodge his attacks anymore.

"Onee-san! That's enough. Let me...!"

"Hahaha, yes, you're a good girl, young lady. Once I'm done killing Hero Kirie, I'll thoroughly play with your right arm as a reward. But for now, please wait a little longer."

"There's no need for that..."

Mel-chan, I knew what you intend to do but right now, I was about to defeat him, so watch calmly.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean exactly what I said..."

"You're talking nonsense. With your feet crushed and your shoulder injured, you can't take a single step. What can you do in such a condition?"

"I can kill you... maybe?"

"Enough with the useless chatter. Die already. I won't ever forget the way you screamed in your final moments!!"

He created more icicles and with the avoided icicles, there’s a total of twenty coming at me. There's no way left to evade Tario's attacks. But...!

"Now, this time it's the real end, gobubobobo... gobbo!!?"

Just as he triumphed, Tario's head was completely enveloped in scalding water. It seemed his concentration had faltered; the icicles all stopped moving and fell to the ground.

"Gobba, gobobobo...?!"

"I don't understand what you're saying..."

Was my sword this heavy? Dragging my legs, I slowly approached Tario.

"...Ah, you don't know what happened, do you? It's simple, I just copied you."

A Homing Icicle could be freely controlled through infusing it with my own magic power. I thought I could do the same thing.

When the infused icicles melted, they turned into hot water filled with my magic power. While Tario was fixated on me, I tried to manipulate them, and it worked perfectly. Now all that's left was to quietly gather the water and form it into a large spherical shape, and at the right moment, I hit him from directly behind.

"So, now you have scalding water covering your face. Hey, did you think you won? Did you think it was your victory, and you felt triumphant?"

With the explanation finished, I finally reached Tario. He seemed to be in excruciating pain. His eyes widened, and he desperately tried to gasp for breath. Was his face so red because he couldn't breathe, or was it because it's hot? I hoped it's both. It meant he's suffering that much.

"Ngubububu... ngubuuuu!! Ngubuuu!!"

"I really don't understand what you’re saying."

Zbashu!!

I severed both his legs from the base. As he fell, I burst the scalding water ball to make sure he could scream.

"Now, let me hear it. Your desperate screams."

"Aghh, giiiaaaaahhhh!! Agyaah, hiaaaahhhhh!!"

"...Yeah, it's an ugly voice. I don't find it entertaining at all."

 

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