Chapter 269: What I Have Polished
* * *
"AAAAAHHHHH!!!"
The moment Emi closed in on Lairine in one breath, she started attacking Lairine, skillfully using both hands, both feet, and [Black Arms]!
Just as she brushed off the right fist, [Black Arms] came swinging down from above like a hammer.
"Hey!"
Lairine intercepts it by raising her left palm above her head.
The gap that naturally occurs.
Emi saw Lairine's left flank around her abdomen as unprotected.
She immediately strikes there with her right, left, and right fists.
Lairine, who busily moves her right hand to defend against all of them.
"Wait a minute!"
Lairine slams the [Black Arms] she caught with her left palm onto the ground, embedding it.
With that momentum, she catches and blocks Emi's roundhouse kick, which struck her left flank, with her left hand.
Normally, when a roundhouse kick is blocked, a gap occurs due to the structure of the human body.
However, Emi has [Black Arms]!
Emi, who was supporting her body by thrusting the other [Black Arms] that wasn't used for attacking into the ground behind her, turned her body sideways and remained floating in the air, launching consecutive stomps at Lairine!
Right, left, right, left, right, left, right!!
A terrifying sideways trampling attack at a tremendous speed assaults Lairine!
"Wha-, wait, wait!?"
Unfortunately, it's a speed that Lairine can fully deal with.
She skillfully catches all of them using both hands.
However, Lairine was gradually losing her composure mentally.
Reason one is that Emi's behavior, incorporating [Black Arms], is so tricky that it's unparalleled in human-to-human combat.
Reason two is that she is still confused, unable to understand the reason for Emi's anger that she showed earlier.
While blocking Emi's fierce attacks, who also blocked [Black Arms] flying from her blind spot without even looking and resumed punching with both arms after regaining her stance, Lairine shouted.
"Huh, Emi-chan! What do you mean!?"
Right fist, left fist, right fist simultaneously with left [Black Arms] from above, right foot, right [Black Arms] from the front, right fist, left fist, right fist, left fist!
While blocking everything!
"W-What you have 'inherited' is the 'techniques' of the 'Grim Reaper,' right!? Is it okay to use those black arms in this trial!?"
"Even these [Black Arms]!"
Emi shouts back without slowing down her attacks!
"My precious memories!"
Right fist!
"Treasures!"
Left fist!
"Life!"
Right fist, left fist, right fist!
"What I have 'inherited'!"
After a short pause, a full-power left fist!
Lairine blocked all of these as well.
Pa, pa, pa, pa, pa, paan!!
Emi's fists and Lairine's palms collide, and the tremendous impact reverberates through the surroundings.
"No way... I wasn't told that..."
"That's right, you weren't told."
Lairine mutters in a daze.
Emi, who once created distance and stopped while keeping her fists up.
"You didn't even try to listen. About how I've lived until now."
The wind blows.
"And with that, you call yourself a mother? ...Nonsense, ridiculous."
Hair flutters.
Lairine's face turned pale, and she staggered a little.
She was shocked by Emi's words.
Through Emi's words, she finally realized her own inadequacy and was dumbfounded.
She lacks the experience of having her inner self shaken so intensely.
Her current mental condition can be said to be the worst.
But, however.
Emi's fierce attacks start again, but even in a daze, Lairine still manages to defend against all of them.
The strength she has cultivated over the long 300 years.
An insurmountably high wall.
Even if her mental state is shaken, this wall remains unshakable.
Besides, on the day Lairine first fought Emi, she had already experienced combat using [Black Arms] once.
Although she may be a little flustered, she won't fall behind against a tactic she has seen once.
No matter how much mental agitation there is, her body moves on its own according to her experience and knowledge.
Therefore, Emi must make a new move to break through Lairine's still-solid defense.
A new move.
An Emi that Lairine doesn't know.
Is there such a thing?
...There is.
There is!
During this one month, Emi!
Has been deliberately showing Lairine only the training of her master's 'techniques'!
Of course, she was doing that without any negligence too!
However, that's not all!
What Emi has 'polished' is!
Emi was convinced.
The trump card she had been continuously training while keeping it hidden from Lairine's eyes.
...Now is the time to use it!!
"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!"
While continuing to strike Lairine with both fists, Emi screamed.
She focused her fighting spirit.
Then, the next moment.
A change occurred in Emi's [Black Arms].
[Black Arms] are shaped to imitate human arms.
At the tips, there are five sharp fingers.
Ten fingers in total, including both left and right.
The base of those fingers, along with Emi's scream.
Split.
Split, split, split, split.
The splits finally reached the junction between [Black Arms] and Emi.
In other words, [Black Arms] have completely abandoned the shape of arms.
What is there now...
...are ten sharp-tipped tentacles extending from the shoulders of a beautiful girl!!
"Huh!? What!? ...Whaaaaaaaat!?"
Even Lairine, who had been skillfully fighting while being dumbfounded at the sight of Emi suddenly transforming into a different form, let out a cry of astonishment!
"W-W-What is that!? What is thaaaaat!?"
"[Black Tentacles]!!!"
Emi tersely tells the overly simple name of those tentacles and... simultaneously unleashes them towards Lairine!
The [Black Tentacles], retaining their rugged and hard appearance, assail Lairine from all directions!
They charge in with the momentum of sharp spears!
"Ah, ah, ahhhhh!!!"
[Black Tentacle] 1, [Black Tentacle] 2, right fist, [Black Tentacle] 3, [Black Tentacle] 4, left fist, right fist, [Black Tentacles] 5 and 6, [Black Tentacle] 7, left foot, [Black Tentacles] 8 and 9, right fist, left fist, [Black Tentacle] 10!
Lairine continues to parry Emi's attacks while being greatly flustered!
The number of strikes!
Emi's number of strikes is far too many!
The density of attacks is too high to be thought of as coming from one person!
Lairine, who had been fighting Emi without moving an inch from that spot until now, finally started to retreat gradually.
The [Black Tentacles] approach Lairine from all directions at almost the same timing.
By moving herself, she is slightly staggering their timing.
Of course, Lairine is strong.
So even if these [Black Tentacles] hit her body, she probably wouldn't suffer a single scratch.
If it were a fight to the death, Lairine would win.
...However, in this battle, there are rules.
If she receives even a single blow, Lairine loses at that point.
If she can't parry them all, she will be defeated.
In other words.
Emi will leave this island.
"N-No... No waaaaay!!"
Lairine, upon realizing that fact, forcibly blew away the inner turmoil that had been continuing and focused her fighting spirit.
For the first time today, fighting spirit ignites in her eyes!
No matter how much Emi hates her!
She still wants to be with Emi!
Parting ways here is absolutely unacceptable!
"HAAAAAAAHH!!"
Lairine stopped retreating.
Instead, she...
Started restraining the [Black Tentacles] that came attacking one after another by grasping them between her fingers!
"Mmph!?"
Growing tentacles and increasing the number of strikes.
A bizarre strategy that is almost impossible for anyone other than Emi.
A solution that probably wouldn't make sense to others just by hearing about it.
That is about to be broken through.
Cold sweat flows from Emi's forehead, and her mind is shaken.
The control precision of the [Black Tentacles] drops.
...Making the [Black Tentacles] even more restrained!
A vicious cycle!!
Pa-shi, pa-shin!!!
And finally.
Emi's movements stop.
The [Black Tentacles] are all caught between Lairine's fingers, their movements halted.
Not only that.
The impact sound just heard was the sound of Emi's both fists being caught.
Lairine has all ten [Black Tentacles] caught between her fingers, and on top of that, she is firmly grasping and restraining both of Emi's fists.
She forcibly achieved that with overwhelming arm strength.
And Emi is a girl, while Lairine is an adult woman.
The length of their legs and arms is different.
Even if Emi tries to kick from this state, it won't reach Lairine.
"Haa, haa, haa..."
Emi is breathing roughly with her mouth wide open.
She must be heavily exhausted.
A large amount of sweat is on her forehead, and her face is bright red.
"...Phew..."
On the other hand, Lairine exhaled a deep, deep breath of relief.
This time, it was indeed a close call.
A single line of sweat flows down her smiling cheek.
But this is the end.
Emi is firmly suppressed and can no longer move.
The journey is on hold.
"...Too bad, Emi-chan."
Lairine was convinced and was about to declare.
"This match, I..."
Win, she was going to say.
However.
After moving her mouth that far, she suddenly feels something off.
She stares intently at Emi's face.
Then, in Emi's eyes.
The flames are still burning.
The fighting spirit is still burning, isn't it!?
Emi hasn't given up yet!
But why!?
At this point, what can she possibly do!?
Lairine was confused.
To put it bluntly, Lairine was conceited and let her guard down.
If she wanted to win for sure.
The moment she forcibly suppressed Emi, she should have slammed her onto the ground or kicked her to inflict damage and make her lose consciousness.
Lairine could have done that.
But instead, she gave Emi time by trying to declare victory.
She gave her time...!
(Something...!)
It feels bad!
Intuitively sensing that, Lairine tries to cut off Emi's consciousness, but... her thought was a few moments too late!
At that time, Emi had her mouth wide open.
Why?
Was she amazed?
Was she surprised?
A yawn?
None of those.
It was a sign of an attack.
The true trump card she had kept hidden from Lairine during this one month.
The fruit of her newly polished efforts!
"What are you..."
Trying to do?
Lairine foolishly tried to ask that question, but it was interrupted midway.
Because halfway through.
From the back of Emi's mouth.
A thick, string-like object with a spear-like sharp tip, pitch-black and rugged... in other words, a [Black Tentacle]!
...Suddenly shot out!!
"!?"
The [Black Tentacle] stretches like a frog's tongue!
Lairine is currently suppressing Emi at close range.
And upon closer look, the tips of the [Black Tentacles] caught between her fingers have somehow coiled around Lairine's arms, restraining her instead.
In other words, she can't move!
She can't... dodge it!!
The[Black Tentacle] that stretched out straight hit Lairine's forehead without fail.
Due to the impact, Lairine was blown back in a posture as if falling backward and collapsed on the grassland on her back.
Overwhelming Lairine with the number of [Black Tentacles] and landing a single blow on her.
That was Emi's first goal in this battle.
Unfortunately, she couldn't achieve that, but she had also prepared a solution in case it didn't work out.
That is a surprise attack using [Black Tentacles] from inside her mouth.
[Black Tentacles] or [Black Arms] originate from Emi's shoulders.
Until now, they always have.
However, that was only because she was influenced by the image of the unique ability [Invisible Hand] from which [Black Arms] originated, and theoretically, they can be generated from anywhere on the body surface.
This was a fact that Extra-sama had actually seen through at a relatively early stage.
Emi took advantage of this.
Generate [Black Arms]... [Black Tentacles] inside the mouth.
And launch a surprise attack at close range.
This worked out beautifully.
Of course, training was necessary to generate [Black Tentacles] from places other than the shoulders, but it was easy to hide that training from Lairine.
After all, there is little conversation between Emi and Lairine.
By keeping her mouth shut, she could practice without being noticed, so Emi was able to train the generation and projection of [Black Tentacles] from inside her mouth to her heart's content.
After retracting the [Black Tentacle] that shot out from her mouth with a slurp, slurp, slurp, Emi calmly said.
"I win."
While blankly gazing at the blue sky filling her view.
Lairine had no choice but to admit.
"...I lost."
While watching the white clouds floating in the blue sky at the end of her gaze being carried away by the wind.
Lairine relaxed her whole body.
After exhaling deeply, deeply.
Once again.
As if biting down, she said.
"I... lost."
Question:
"My foster mother is too strong, and I can't land a single punch. What should I do?"
Answer 1:
"Grow tentacles and increase the number of strikes."
Answer 2:
"Launch a surprise attack by projecting tentacles from inside your mouth."
Arc 14, which has been long, is finally about to enter the epilogue.