Chapter 526: The General Skeleton 2
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<This is... troublesome.>
Extra-sama muttered, inside my head.
<That General Tekigataa's defense is probably low, just like the other skeletons. If an attack lands, we can defeat him. But...>
...Those attacks don't land...
<Yes. Long-range attacks are completely blocked, and because of the difference in reach, we can't engage in close combat. To be honest... we're at an impasse.>
Extra-sama gives her incredibly negative assessment of the situation.
And sadly, I have no choice but to agree with her.
Right now, I'm just observing, with my fist clenched, keeping my distance from General Tekigataa.
I just can't... find any clues on how to beat this general skeleton.
"............"
My own incompetence, and the still-unpleasant mana of General Tekigataa, filling the surrounding space, stroking my whole body... it all irritates me.
But I can't just recklessly attack and expect to win.
What should I do?
What should I do...?
My impatience grows...!
『Gufufufufu! But you... are truly beautiful! Strong and beautiful! Ahh, this is the best!』
General Tekigataa, on the other hand, although he showed a hint of anger earlier, has now completely returned to his cheerful mood.
『I want to turn you into a doll... to seal that beauty forever, and add you to my collection...!』
Cheerfully, and creepily, he was writhing... and chattering about disgusting things.
"Don't screw with me!"
I fired [Stone Throwing] at him out of anger, but General Tekigataa easily deflects it with his greatsword.
『I'm not screwing with you. Beauty is often a fleeting brilliance. To capture that moment and extend it forever. As long as I exist, I will reject deterioration, and perfectly preserve beauty. I will not tolerate a single scratch. That is the power of my [Dollfication]... What do you think? It's a truly sublime special ability, isn't it?』
"............"
This time, I silently fired two [Stone Throwings].
General Tekigataa, again, deflected them with his greatsword.
And then, sighing, he said—
『Well, I can't use [Dollfication] in my current skeletal body...』
He muttered something that caught my attention.
"...What do you mean?"
I'm lacking information.
Information I need to defeat this general skeleton.
Then I have no choice but to continue the conversation.
I'll try to get as much information out of him as possible.
『To activate [Dollfication]... you need... a kiss! A kiss... filled with my love!』
But I immediately regretted continuing the conversation.
『My kiss, which fixes beauty forever! By pouring my love through my lips! I'll never forget the first time I made a 'doll'... when I was a fourteen-year-old boy! It was my girlfriend at the time! A truly active, beautiful girl...! Our hearts pounding, we secretly kissed... and I was surprised! She froze, still in that beautiful form! I... I immediately carried her to my room, where no one could see her! I was bewildered, saddened... gufufu, no, that's wrong, isn't it? It's not wrong! I was incredibly... incredibly excited! Because, because, because her beauty became eternal! She had been sublimated from a troublesome, living human, who cries and gets angry... into pure beauty! Do you understand!? You do, right!? Gufufufufu, this, this, amazingness!!』
Because the words that General Tekigataa is saying!
Are incredibly!
Disgusting!
"Raaaah!!"
I resume using [Stone Throwing]!
But again, they're all blocked!
General Tekigataa is unharmed!
『But I've become a skeleton, and lost my lips... In other words, I can't kiss anymore. I can no longer make your beauty eternal... I'm sorry...』
General Tekigataa, after blocking all my [Stone Throwings], slumped his shoulders, and said—
『So, how is it? Did you get any useful information? Gufufufufu!』
And then he grinned lewdly.
Think... think!
How do I defeat him!?
I glared at General Tekigataa.
He's just a big skeleton, seemingly standing there nonchalantly.
But he's been blocking all my attacks, from that posture, over and over again.
There are no openings.
And on top of that, the whole room is filled with his mana.
As long as I'm in this room, he's aware of every single movement I make.
Think... think!
Are there any weapons I can use to fight him!?
I looked around the room.
But there's nothing in this room.
It's just a large, empty hall, surrounded by stone walls.
The only ones here are me, him, and the body of the princess, turned into a doll...
I've already tried picking up stones from the floor, and they're useless as weapons.
What should I do?
What should I do!?
<...Emi, I'm sorry, but let's run away.>
Extra-sama, having given up, while I'm desperately racking my brains for a way to counterattack, said that.
<Fortunately, this is a battle we can escape from. That General Tekigataa won't be able to follow us, once we leave the fort.>
...Run away... ?
<We can get out if we break the stone wall. This is the second floor, but that height shouldn't matter to you, right? It should be easy to escape.>
Outside...
<You were 'rampaging to relieve stress', weren't you? Then you can just run away from an enemy you can't defeat, right? He's a master who has been training for five hundred years. There's no shame in running away.>
............
Run away... huh...
I stared at the princess's face.
The princess, frozen in a praying posture.
The princess, who has been asking for help, for five hundred years, unable to move an inch.
After staring at her face—
I—
"Ah."
I uttered a single word, and then—
Started running... at full speed... towards the stone wall next to me!
* * *
DO-GAAAAAN!!
A roar echoed.
Right before General Tekigataa's eyes—
The girl, who was fighting him—
Suddenly ignored him, and drop-kicked the wall—
And went outside.
『Sh-... She... ran away...?』
Even General Tekigataa was surprised by the girl's action, who had been burning with fighting spirit until a moment ago, and he stood there dumbfounded, his mouth agape.
What is she doing?
His mana doesn't reach outside the room.
It's out of his [Mana Detection] range.
So General Tekigataa couldn't understand the girl's intentions at all.
『Did she really... run away...?』
General Tekigataa muttered, his voice dark.
What those words contained were annoyance, that his fun battle had ended; loneliness, that he had lost someone to show off his five hundred years of achievements to; and despair, at the fact that his life in this fort would continue.
『How disappointing... How disappointing...』
General Tekigataa, muttering that, turned to look at his beautiful collection.
His collection, of course, is Princess Kawayuikko, whom he turned into a doll five hundred years ago, using his special ability.
The embodiment of beauty, that he never tires of looking at.
His emotional support.
His precious treasure...
General Tekigataa, to soothe his heart, took a step towards Kawayuikko's doll, to stroke it.
But—it was at that moment!
DO-GAAAAAN!!
The stone wall behind Kawayuikko... suddenly... was destroyed with a roar!
『!?』
General Tekigataa, startled by the sudden event, covered his skull with his hands, as if to protect his long-gone eyeballs!
Dust and dirt filled the room, blocking his vision!
But most of the dust and dirt was quickly cleared away by the wind blowing in from outside.
『W-What...!?』
And at that moment—
General Tekigataa, seeing the sight that appeared before him, was speechless!
Because!
Standing there is... the girl who just went outside!
It's Emi!
And what she's holding in her hand, like a club!
Is his precious treasure!
...Princess Kawayuikko, who was turned into a doll!!
"You said it, right?"
Emi, holding the doll's leg, swung it around, clearing away the remaining dust, and said—
"That your dolls 'don't deteriorate, and don't get a single scratch'."
『!!』
From Emi's words, General Tekigataa realized her intention!
But... but is that even possible!?
He's never even tried it!
How dare she even think of that!
Because she's his precious treasure!
But!
But!
But!
...His instincts screamed—that it's definitely possible!
And that this is bad!
"Then this princess... must be... the strongest... blunt weapon... in this place...!!"
Emi, saying that, swung the princess down... and slammed her onto the floor!
DO-GAAH!!
A roar echoed, and a large hole appeared on the floor!
But Princess Kawayuikko, in her praying posture... doesn't even have a single scratch on her!
Emi, confirming that, nodded in satisfaction, and then—
"You just kept saying 'Help me'. That's no good. You have to work too."
She said that to the silent princess.
"Now... behold... the power of the princessーーー!!!"
She swung the princess, and—
Started running... straight towards General Tekigataa!