Chapter 93 - It’s Elaborate, Not Elongate

"Well, that's not very constructive. How about we try building each other up first?" I suggest casually.

I have to leap out of the way of a wild swing, taking a few extra steps back as soon as my feet touch the ground. "Guess not."

I inspect the Armor. Although I barely hurt it, that crash landing did some real damage to his shoulders, and he can't move his right arm properly. 'I can use that.'

[Last Regards Health: 27/101]

"Hmm… okay, this might do."

I ready my weapons and flex my body once. It cries out in resistance, but I ignore it as I face down the tall beast. "Remember, I gave you a chance to talk."

"You are one arrogant fucking mouse!"

"Hey! I prefer rats!" I retort, already closing the distance easily.

[Skill Skewer was activated.]

[Skill Lightning Blade was activated.]

[Skill Mana Blade was activated.]

[Skill Critical Sight+ was activated.]

The Mana circulating simply in my veins boils, threatening to burst once more out of their constrictions. The silver blade grew a few inches with a royal purple Mana, swirling threateningly. The golden one sparks with lightning, and lines the edges in the same Mana. I also feel my eye glowing brighter, more Mana passing through it.

My eyes lock onto the Critical Mark on a damaged part of his right shoulder. My tunnel vision doesn't draw me away from the Mana being collected from the core to the other fist, however, and I duck as the deep red projection of his fist flies over my head. "Elongated Punch!"

"Maybe you should elongate your move names a bit. Wait, that's elaborate, not elongate. Shit."

I curse myself under my breath as I plant my feet and jump off the ground to be face-to-faceplate with the monster. It growls, killing intent clearly emanating from it. 'Psycho,' I think almost subconsciously as I stab my left arm forward, pushing the blade through his cracked left eye socket. The secondary effect of Skewer activates, pulling the blade in further with a drill-like movement of my Mana.

"A-argh!" Last Regards calls out, jerking his neck back and taking the sword with him. It's a cry of surprise, not pain, as the left side of his vision is likely splintered. I use this opening on its left side to take the remaining sword in both hands, strengthening the Mana circulation within it.

"Falling Thunder!"

I bring the sword down with as much force as I can manage as gravity takes a hold on my body. I feel the sword clink around until finding a spot — the spot where the Critical Mark waits.

[Critical Mark has been hit. Dmg was adjusted to 500%.]

The force of the swing throws me around, and I fall awkwardly and painfully onto my shoulder, but a yelp and a loud crashing sound alert me that my plan worked.

"You asshole!" The Hollow Armor screams, lifting its remaining arm up into the air to crush me.

[Last Regards has activated Skill Smash!.]

I kick my foot out, clumsily rolling away from the blast radius as a giant metal hand digs easily through dirt, and what would have been flesh and bone had I been there. I sigh in relief and exhaustion, wincing at my shoulder. "Shit. I think that might be dislocated again," I mutter as I stare at my arm dangling limply. I wasn't a stranger to this, even in my past life, so I take a second to hold it up and simply… fall to my side.

Pop!

"Mmm. Lovely," I groan, flexing my left hand to ensure it's alright as I slowly stand back up. It was a Luke solution, and I didn't have time to wonder if I had the proper Strength needed to simply just pull it back in.

Last Regards finally frees his hand after being the one to bury it, facing me again. The sword still sticks out of his eye, looking tiny in comparison, but he's looking more and more ragged.

[Last Regards Health: 17/101]

[Note: Hollow Armor Health can not go below one unless the core is removed or destroyed.]

"…Great that you're telling me this now," I mutter to myself and swipe away the messages. I still had time to figure out a plan — while he was adapting quickly, the monster still had to get used to the new weight imbalance.

I swing my shoulder in circles a few times — it hurt like hell, but I could at least move it. "Alright. Closing time."

[Skill Skewer was activated.]

[Due to overuse and damage of Mana veins, Mana consumption will increase.]

[Mana: 55/131]

'It's one thing after another,' I think silently as I dash forward once more. The tall armor screeches, sounding more like a true monster and less like a man. "Elongated Punch! Elongated Punch! Elongated Punch!"

A flurry of red fists is released in my direction, honing in on me as I beeline for its right side. It's a lot easier for me to dodge the projections, as they aren't as fast as the Armor's normal punches, and much slower than the giant fiery ones that I was growing used to. With a dying pig squeal, it swings the mostly-limp arm back, trying to swing it upwards at me. "Dieeeee!"

[Last Regards has activated Skill MegaSuperAllOut Punch.]

Wind blasts into me, stopping my advance, as a beam of bloody Mana shoots straight for me, threatening to swallow me whole. I dash to the right, where he can't see me as well, and continue fighting heavy winds in order to get closer.

"This can't even be considered a punch! What the fuck, man?!"

Behind me, as the beam peters out, I hear a small "oof." 'Shit, the kid—'

I turn to look behind me, seeing Ro with half of his shirt seared off. His skin is still smoking, but other than a few deep cuts away from vital organs he seems fine. "That stung a bit."

"A bit?! What a weirdo."

I turn back to the Armor, who is hunched over, puffs of smoke suggesting exhaustion. 'It was a powerful Skill. Welp.'

I walk over, bringing my blade in a tight arc around my left shoulder. I deactivate Skewer, and…

[Skill Critical Sight+ was activated.]

"Overhead Reverse Crescent Slash."

I swing my sword up and over, bringing it down on a large crack in the remaining shoulder.

BAM!

The Critical Hit jaggedly cuts through, toppling the other arm onto the ground. With the shoulders gone, I can now easily see through the torso to the glowing red core. I'm about to reach in and grab it, when I realize the huffs have become a shuddery, nearly wheezing level of crying. "P-please… No more experiments… Just let me go…"

I pause, pulling back a bit. "What?"

The Hollow Armor sniffles, trying to shake the sword out of its socket. I reach over and yank it out, and it looks up at me with willowing wisps of red streaming down like tears. "Just leave me alone already, please… He's crazy, he keeps putting me through so much, all for the stupid Stringmaster… I wanted nothing to do with him even before he met whoever that man was."

Startled, I scoot closer. "Wait, are you talking about…" I think long and hard to remember what my Statscreen had told me. "Ray…keel?"

"Rakial, yeah. He was obsessed with me, said my muscles were big and strong and that he wanted to see how I did in be—"

"Oookay, but what was that about the Stringmaster?"

Pouting, the suit of armor gives a small huff as he repositions himself on his knees. "What are you asking all this for? Don't you work for him? I mean, that's why you're here, right? To test me out in the field, then 'decommission' me and send me back? This isn't my first rodeo, bruh. I can still feel everything when I'm in my heart. I can't see or hear, but I can feel the pain when he tinkers with it, and I can't stand it anymore. Just… Let me die."

I give the suit of armor a look. "You really think someone as cool as me would work for a creep like that? Hell no. Look, I was planning on keeping your cor… your heart, but if you really want, if you trade me some info on what our Rakey friend has said about the Stringmaster, I'll grant you your masochistic sweet release, alright?"

The Hollow Armor gives me a look of awe, and not at all a look of disgust at the amount of bullshit that just spewed from my lips. After a long few seconds, he stops judging me long enough to sigh and nod. "Fine. I'll tell you."

It was this moment when the red lizard boy himself peeked his head over my shoulder. "Done fighting? Can I have shiny thing now?"

I groan. "Answer is always going to be no. What's your issue, man?"

Ignoring my question, he points at the chest of the Armor. "I'll just take that one!" He cries, reaching for the hole where the arm of the poor guy used to be.

'My info!' I think, and instinctively react. "No!" I screech, grabbing both swords and activating two Critical Marks on his face.

BA-BAP!

With the extreme force of my rushed swings amplified to a total of 1,000-fold twice, the kid flies off past the mountain, and probably would have joined the stars had Vao not grabbed him by the leg, letting him fall to the ground once all the force of my blow had been exerted. The dazed boy looks goofily at the clouds, and Vao watches intently. He isn't hearing any of the conversation, so his look of curiosity pierces the air. Ignoring it, I turn back to the bewildered Armor, stabbing the swords into the ground and kneeling in front of it.

"Let's get this deal over with so we can get on with our life and soon-to-be-afterlife, eh?"