Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest Vol. 10

by Ryo Shirakome

“Do you really think you’ll be able to stay by his side forever?”

  Defeated, Yue was unable to respond with a definitive “yes.” She could easily imagine that the thing she’d escaped in the past would find her once again in her future. And that thought terrified her. For the first time in ages, Yue just wanted to curl up in a ball and cry.

  To Yue, Hajime was the light. He’d cut through the darkness, illuminated her world, and given her warmth, kindness, and happiness. Being cut off from that would be the same as being dead. Yue’s copy gradually drew closer. Every footstep brought Yue one step closer to death. She looked up at the icy ceiling. Her crimson eyes stared back at her. They were the same color as Hajime’s mana, the color she loved so much. A second later, a smile spread across her face.

  “......”

  The copy came to a halt. A shadow of hesitation flitted across its face. Yue looked back down at it and said quietly, “Even if I disappear, he won’t be alone.”

  “No, you—”

  “Hajime has Shea... And Tio. And even though I hate to admit it, Kaori.”

  The copy stared blankly at Yue, its mouth still half-open. But a moment later, it realized what Yue was trying to say. It stared down at itself in utter disbelief. It could tell what was happening to its power.

  “In the end, Hajime Nagumo really is the center of your world, huh?”

  “Of course...”

  The copy wasn’t getting any weaker. But it wasn’t getting any stronger either. So, though Yue had been brought face to face with a shocking revelation, her resolve remained firm. It had been shaken for a moment, but now it was renewed.

  “You two really are birds of a feather.”

  The copy’s tone changed. Faced with the vampire princess’ overwhelming love, it no longer saw any need to copy Yue’s speech style. Instead, it looked up wearily and recalled how Hajime, too, had bragged about his love for Yue while overcoming his own trial.

  “I’m done questioning myself...”

  “So it seems. I’m out of memories to revive as well.”

  Their power was equal. The copy had no more memories to dredge up. Both sides gathered all of their mana. They poured everything they had into one final attack, Draconic Thunder. Two dragons, one wreathed in golden thunder while the other was wreathed in crimson, crashed into each other.

  “Regardless of what the future holds, if I lose here, I’ll never see Hajime again! So get lost!”

  “Ah!”

  Between the two, it was Yue’s dragon that was winning. After a fierce struggle, it opened its maw wide and swallowed the copy’s dragon whole. Then, it moved on to swallow the copy as well.

  As it disappeared, Yue’s copy watched Yue with an exasperated, and slightly worried, smile. With one final roar, Yue’s thunder dragon vanished, and with it, her copy. Part of the ice wall crumbled away, revealing a new path. However, Yue didn’t even look at it. She tottered unsteadily to the ice tree in the center of the room and stared at her reflection. Her resolve was as firm as always. But this fight had put new doubts in her mind.

  The vague unease they espoused spread through her heart like a faint haze, obscuring her thoughts. She desperately sifted through her memories, searching for a solution to her worries. If her copy hadn’t been able to provide an answer though, it meant that she just didn’t know. After all, everything it knew, she knew.

  But even so, Yue couldn’t help but search her memories. She felt compelled to. If there really was something her uncle had tried to protect her from in the past, and if that something was destined to find her in the future, then she needed to—

  “Yue-san!”

  “Ah, Shea?”

  Yue felt a strong hand on her shoulder and snapped out of her reverie. She looked up and saw Shea staring at her with a worried expression on her face. Shea’s sky-blue eyes met Yue’s, and Yue could see just how seriously Shea was worried about her. It seemed she’d been so deep in her memories that she’d spaced out. Past Shea, the path they were walking down came to a dead end. Yue hadn’t even noticed that. Realizing she’d failed to hide how shaken she was, Yue looked down guiltily.

  “Please, Yue-san. Tell me what happened.”

  Shea’s voice was quiet but sharp. She took her hands off Yue’s shoulders and grabbed her hands instead. Shea’s hands were warm and reassuring, reminding Yue that she wasn’t alone.

  “......”

  But even so, Yue couldn’t bring herself to speak. She didn’t know how to say what she wanted to say, or if she should say it at all. Her worries for the future were vague and unclear. She didn’t know how to explain them, and when she realized how vague they were she suddenly felt embarrassed about putting words to them. Yue took pride in being an older sister figure to Shea.

  Unfortunately for Yue, all of her hesitation strengthened Shea’s desire to know what was bothering her best friend. Shea no longer felt as though she could wait leisurely until Yue was ready to talk. Her sharp gaze made it clear that she was going to get the truth out of Yue one way or another. Realizing that she couldn’t deceive Shea any longer, Yue sighed. But even if she was resigned to explain herself, she still didn’t know how to articulate her worries.

  “I’m sorry, Shea... I haven’t really sorted out my feelings myself.”

  “So you can’t talk about what’s bothering you?”

  “Mmm... My fake said a lot of stuff about my past to me... Of course, that didn’t change my feelings about you or Hajime so I could clear the trial, but...I realized I might be remembering some things wrong. I want to sort everything out before I explain, so can you wait a little?”

  “I see...”

  Shea still wasn’t satisfied. And she showed no signs of letting go of Yue’s hands. Seeing how stubborn Shea was being, Yue smiled. Her smile was filled with love and trust for her best friend. You’ve grown strong, Shea.

  When they’d first met, Shea had been a crybaby and a scaredy-cat. A worthless rabbit who’d clung to Yue and Hajime for dear life. But she’d worked hard. Harder than anyone else. No matter how much she’d cried, no matter how pathetic she’d looked covered in mud and blood, she hadn’t once given up. Before Yue knew it, Shea’d grown so strong that she was the one protecting her. Shea’s cheerful, straightforward nature had saved Yue more times than she could count.

  I guess it’s not fair to keep thinking of you as a little sister, huh...? Yue extricated her hands from Shea’s and then grabbed them from the outside. She imparted her warmth to Shea, the same way she had moments before.

  “Yue-san?”

  Shea gave her a confused look. Yue looked up at her and chuckled. The indistinct fear that had settled within Yue’s heart had disappeared. In its place burned a powerful resolve. Yue’s expression grew resolute and she said, “Shea...”

  “Yeah, what is it, Yue-san?”

  Shea’s expression grew even more worried, but Yue didn’t flinch from her gaze. Her ruby-red eyes were filled with trust for her best friend.

  “If... something happens to me, take care of Hajime for me.”

  “......”

  Shea was speechless. Her eyes opened wide, and she stared at Yue, dumbfounded. Her reaction was only natural. This was the last thing she’d expected Yue to say. Still, Yue was confident Shea would smile reassuringly and say, “Of course, you can count on me!” However—

  “Are you fucking kidding me?”

  “Huh?”

  To Yue’s surprise, Shea’s voice was stone cold. Her expression turned flat, emotionless. But it seemed as though she was forcing herself to push down her emotions and look stoic. Yue was so surprised by Shea’s reaction that for a moment she forgot to breathe. But a moment later she renewed her resolve. Yue wasn’t joking about this. There was no one else she trusted enough to tell. And she needed Shea to accept her request.

  “I’m not... I’m saying this because I’m resolved.”

  “You’re resolved?”

  Shea grit her teeth together and narrowed her eyes. De
spite Shea’s withering glare, Yue didn’t shy away. Unable to keep her emotions in check, Shea’s facade of emotionlessness crumbled. Smack! A loud noise echoed through the tunnel.

  “Ah!?”

  Before Yue had any time to react, Shea slapped her. Or rather, Yue was so surprised that she couldn’t react. Never in her wildest dreams had Yue considered that Shea would respond to a heartfelt plea like this. Though Shea hadn’t used body strengthening to increase the force of her slap, she hadn’t held back either. Blinking in disbelief, Yue raised a hand to her cheek.

  “Shea?”

  “Please take that back.”

  “......”

  “Take back that crap about how you want me to take care of Hajime-san if something happens to you right now!”

  Shea’s face trembled in rage. She was seconds away from losing it completely. Yue’s eyes narrowed, her disbelief replaced with anger.

  “Are you saying my resolve, my faith in you is just crap?”

  “That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

  Shea’s sky-blue eyes stared deeply into Yue’s deep crimson ones. Both of them knew that neither of them would budge an inch. Why? Yue thought to herself. Why is she so mad? Why won’t she accept my trust in her? Sadness mingled with the anger burgeoning in Yue’s heart.

  At the same time, Shea also thought, Why? Why would you say something so sad? Shea and Yue glared silently at each other for a few minutes. Had anyone else in the party been present, they would have been dumbfounded. Shea and Yue were so close that no one would expect them to seriously get mad at each other.

  The first to make a move was Shea. She leaped back and hefted Drucken, resting it atop her shoulder.

  “It looks like words won’t convince you. I don’t know what that fake told you, but it’s pretty sad seeing the strongest vampire in the world reduced to this pathetic state. I guess I have to beat the cowardice out of you.”

  A spiral of light blue mana erupted skyward from Shea. Yue, who hadn’t been prepared for an actual fight, looked taken aback.

  “Shea... Wait—”

  Her words were interrupted by a full-power swing from Shea. Yue hurriedly backstepped, just barely avoiding Drucken. The ground where she’d been standing on exploded. Shards of ice shot everywhere as a massive crater formed in the floor. Though the ground instantly began to regenerate, the force of the blow proved that Shea was serious.

  “Shea... You’re taking this joke too far.”

  “Joke? Are you still half-asleep or something? Since you don’t seem to get it I’ll spell it out for you. I’m dead serious. Yue-san, unless you take back that crap you just said... I’m seriously gonna beat you up.”

  “Shea... Why?”

  “You seriously don’t understand? Unbelievable! The usual Yue-san, the Yue-san I know would never act so weak! Wake up dammniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!”

  Shea once again swung Drucken with all her might. It accelerated past the sound barrier, pushing a film of white in front of it. Yue used gravity magic to fall backward, just barely avoiding the hammer. Shea’s horizontal swing missed, and Drucken crashed into the wall, shattering it.

  Heedless of the damage she was causing, Shea fired off a series of swings. Each one possessed as much destructive force as a falling meteor. To make matters worse, the passageway was quite narrow. There was nowhere to run, and close-quarters combat had never been Yue’s specialty. It was only a matter of time before she was trapped. However, Yue was more annoyed than she was afraid of being cornered.

  “Cut it out already... Do you realize how much courage it took to gather this resolve!?”

  Yue walked into the storm of swings and cast Heavensfall. Gravity drove Drucken towards the floor, altering the trajectory of Shea’s swing. Yue then leaped off the hammer, which was stuck to the ground, flipped around in midair, and then cast Crystal Coffin directly above Shea. By the time she’d landed behind the bunny girl, Shea’s thighs were encased in ice. It reminded Shea of the time she’d trained with Yue to earn her right to join Hajime’s party. Back then, the same Crystal Coffin had been powerful enough to trap her in ice instantly, leaving her a sobbing mess.

  “You call this resolve!? Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

  But now, such a spell wasn’t enough to even slow her down. All it took was a single attack. Shea punched the ground, shattering the nearby floor along with the Crystal Coffin. Her fist packed more of a punch than a cannonball. Yue stumbled from the shockwaves sent out by Shea’s punch, a look of disbelief on her face. She was certain she’d put enough mana into the spell, yet Shea had shattered it easily. With a very unwomanly grunt, Shea lifted Drucken with brute force, fighting against the massive amount of gravity pressing down on it. She then pressed a trigger on the handle, transforming it into bombardment mode. Without hesitation, she fired a barrage of shotgun shells at Yue. The corridor was too narrow, leaving no room to dodge. Yue had no choice but to put up a barrier. A hail of exploding slugs slammed into the barrier, spreading shockwaves across its surface. For a moment, the corridor was filled with ripples of blue mana.

  “Shea! Cut it out al—”

  “That’s my line, Yue-san. Do you finally feel like taking back your words?”

  “Why...?”

  “Why? Do you really not know?”

  “......”

  The neverending barrage of explosive slugs started putting cracks in Yue’s barrier. She repaired them instantly, but the overwhelming pressure of the barrage kept her pinned in place. Though even if it hadn’t, Shea’s question had left Yue rooted to the spot. Yue stared at her best friend through her barrier and the sea of bullets. Why was her trust in Shea making Shea so mad? Unable to comprehend Shea’s actions, Yue knitted her brow in frustration.

  But when she got a better look at Shea’s expression, Yue gasped. Shea looked devastated. Yue was sad too, of course, but Shea looked far worse. Tears were welling up in her eyes, and though she was yelling, it was obvious Shea was more sad than angry. Yue’s words had cut deep.

  Shea pulled the trigger again, a loud click echoing through the corridor. But no bullets shot out. Shea had run out of ammo. In the silence that followed, Shea said sadly, “If you’re trying to entrust him to me, doesn’t that mean you don’t think you’ll be around in the future, Yue-san?”

  “Shea...”

  “Do you really think I’d accept a future like that? Do you really think I’d just say ‘Sure, leave it to me!?’ That I’d accept that bullshit request of yours!?”

  Finally, Yue understood the source of Shea’s anger. Yue had thought her request had been a way of conveying her trust in Shea. While it was true that Yue trusted Shea with her life, the way she’d phrased her request had been all wrong. Shea loved Yue. So it was only natural that a request predicated on Yue’s death wouldn’t be something Shea wanted to hear. Even if Yue had made that request out of faith.

  Shea would never accept a future where Yue died. Realizing how much she’d hurt Shea, Yue furrowed her brows. But even so, Yue couldn’t afford to take chances. What was she, really? Why had her uncle sealed her away? So long as she didn’t understand those two things—

  “I have to prepare for the worst...”

  Yue would never take back her words. It was at that moment that Shea completely snapped.

  “Like I give a fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!”

  “Ah!?”

  Screaming in frustration, Shea threw herself at Yue like a human cannonball. The sudden assault caused Yue to falter for a moment. That momentary hesitation was all the overpowered bunny girl needed. Shea drew Drucken back, then magnified its weight with gravity magic and strengthened herself to the utmost limit. Pouring all of her sadness and frustration into a single blow, she swung down.

  “Bwagh!?”

  Yue’s barrier shattered like glass, and the full force of Shea’s hammer hit her square in the chest. The air was blown out of her lungs as she was launched backward at unbelievable speed. But Shea didn’t stop there. She revolved w
ith the force of her own swing and continued charging toward Yue.

  “You don’t understand a damn thing, Yue-san!”

  She wound back like a pitcher and threw Drucken at Yue.

  “Ngh! Hallowed Ground!”

  The barrier formed around Yue just in time to block Drucken. However, the speed Shea had thrown it at had multiplied its destructive power. There was an explosion as Drucken plowed through the barrier, its speed unhindered. As Yue approached the dead-end they’d been walking toward, the wall started to dissolve. But it was dissolving too slow for either Yue or Shea’s fastball to pass through. Drucken’s impact sent out a shockwave that obliterated the nearby ice and sent Yue barreling through the newly-formed opening. Its energy finally spent, Drucken fell to the floor. At the same time, Yue hit the floor and slid across it. Once she stopped she got to one knee and stared at the collapsed wall worriedly. Just then—

  “Wh-What!?”

  “Wh-What just happened!?”

  Two confused voices called out. Specifically, Kaori and her copy. The two were locking swords. But both of them were so surprised by the sudden intrusion that they forgot their battle. Heedless of their surprise, Shea punched through the crumbling opening and walked into the room. Her ears and tail were stiff. She pulled back on Drucken’s handle, and the hammer returned to her. It landed atop the handle with a satisfying clang. Shea then swung it back and started tapping her shoulder with it.

  “Let me remind you what real resolve is supposed to look like, Yue-san! You better not underestimate this bunny girl!”

  Turning to Yue, Shea thrust Drucken out in front of her. She was too mad to care about her surroundings right now. This was the first serious fight either of them had had with a friend since being born. Kaori and her copy watched on in confusion, their battle all but forgotten.

  Let us turn back the clock a few minutes. Like everyone else, Kaori had found herself in an open room with an ice tree at the center and had been forced to fight her copy. A trial of this nature, where she’d been forced to face the ugliest sides of her, had been especially difficult considering her past. But she’d been prepared. After all, Kaori had known better than anyone just how many cracks her heart had.