"Almost immortal... Ah, now that you mention it..."
Godou agreed wholeheartedly, recalling his body clearly.
Despite facing those sorts of desperate crises where one would invariably think "I will probably die," no matter how many times, he had barely survived them all. I guess that's the kind of illogical beings we are.
"Since you'll resurrect anyway, there was no point in troubling a hospital, so I brought you here. And just as predicted, hospitalization was unnecessary."
Godou got up from bed to examine his body -- it was completely healthy without a single wound.
"In any case, you fought a divine king-class [Heretic God] immediately after rebirth as a god-slayer, and managed to get a draw. An outstanding performance award is a total bargain considering your labors."
This appeared to be Erica's distinct style of praise, but Godou shook his head in disagreement.
"No, I'm nowhere near that amazing. I think I owe the majority to Verethragna."
"What do you mean?"
"When Verethragna was lingering on Sardinia, that guy was seeking a worthy opponent for battle. Hence, the island's strongest god -- Melqart was revived."
I, seek nothing but defeat. Hence I arrive in search for a formidable foe.
Verethragna's arrogance but cheerful manner of speech was recalled from Godou's memory.
"Melqart manifested not because of me, but for the sake of fighting Verethragna. But since the original opponent disappeared, wouldn't it be natural for his fighting spirit and obsession with victory to be compromised? For someone inexperienced like me to find an opening, it feels like that's the cause. But it's just a feeling."
Unable to bear unworthy praise, Godou spoke out of such considerations.
However, Erica stared at Godou meaningfully and said:
"In just a few rounds of actual combat, for your instincts to have such a level of effect... That feeling of yours, has already surpassed the level of mortals."
"W-What do you mean by that?"
"Considering us mortal humans, whether a god of that level becomes stronger or weaker is completely irrelevant. Because, regardless of whether he is at peak condition or not, fighting equals death."
"..."
"Becoming king results in a body with this sort of disposition. Or rather, you require this kind of disposition to slay a god in the first place. This is equivalent to the 'chicken and egg' problem. There is no answer."
Erica nodded as if in admiration.
"Whatever. In any case, this incident is really over, so I can return to Japan without worries."
"Eh? You've already decided to return home, Godou!?"
"Of course. Didn't I mention that not too long ago?"
"Eh, yes. But it wasn't easy for you to become king and survive actual combat against gods. The option of staying behind in Europe, the center of magic, living as a Devil King is also--"
Uncharacteristically, Erica's speech displayed anxiety. It seemed like she was reluctant to part with Kusanagi Godou. To such a girl, Godou responded:
"No no. This kind of illogical power is better kept unused."
"...You're really unbelievable. Even if you're uninterested in a god-slaying authority, with no attachment to it at all, how should I put it? Your attitude towards power is quite easygoing."
"The power to fight or whatever, it's something that many people possess, right?"
Compared to a baseball team filled with fourth hitters, Godou preferred a team that deployed people in flexible strategies based on their strengths. He explained clearly:
"What's important is how a person chooses to use it. Based on this principle, I originally had no use for a power to battle gods. Since I have no use for it, I don't need it."
"That... I see, so that is why you received the ten incarnations..."
For some reason, Erica showed an expression of full agreement. Godou said to her:
"I never expected us to spend so much time together, but because of that, I must say goodbye now. You've taken so much care of me, Erica, if a chance arises in the future, I will definitely return the favor."
"Yes, I look forward to it. But Godou, if you're going back to Japan, why do you still plan on encountering me again?"
Finding something greatly amusing, Erica smiled.
"Isn't the eastern country of the rising sun quite far from the European continent?"
"Even if you say it's far, it's only half a day's flight, so it's not that far after all. If a friend is ever in need, and I can help in some way, I believe it is worth the time and expense to travel here."
"Right! This is precisely your manner of thinking!"
Godou was struck by a most precious sight at this time, Erica's innocent smile.
It was not a pretentious smile, nor an eerie devilish smile, nor a lioness' ferocious smile. This was an innocent, bright, cute smile that belonged to someone her age.
Godou instantly felt his heart beating intensely. To describe it as a sudden shock would not be wrong.
"Ah yes, by the way, even though it's only about Zamparini, that guy was found earlier. After Melqart blew him away, he was drifting in the sea."
"Really!? To think he actually survived!"
Godou yelled out loudly to disguise his quickened heartbeat.
In truth, it was not entirely acting. After all, the old man's survival was good news indeed.
"Making the most of all magic at his disposal, he drifted for an entire day on the stormy seas. When the storm subsided today, his dove familiar finally managed to fly back to the mansion and report his survival. A ship is currently going out to pick him up, and he'll probably be admitted to a hospital tonight."
"That's really good news. Are we going to visit him later?"
That night, Godou and Erica slept in the same room just like yesterday. As per their custom, they demarcated an invisible boundary and slept in the same bed.
The unfortunate Old Man Zamparini was sent from the harbor to the hospital, so he was not home tonight.
Hence, all said and done, it would have been fine to sleep in other rooms. However, Erica did not elect to do that, and for some unknown reason, neither did Godou object.
Probably because of the stress immediately after the deadly battle, neither of them were able to sleep as they lay on the bed. They chatted sporadically, softly conversing with each other.
When night yielded to dawn, Kusanagi Godou welcomed the day of his return home.
Getting a ride from [Panormus], they arrived at a comprehensive hospital in Palermo city and met the rescued Walter Zamparini.
"Oh my, that was so careless of me. If another opportunity arises, please remember to call upon me. I will surely prove my worth next time!"
Reportedly, he was still quite haggard last night.
Residing in a hospital room far more luxurious than for other patients, the old man seemed completely unaware of smoking restrictions as he lit and puffed on a cigar, requesting for a chance to avenge his honor. Without any external injuries to recover from, he was looking a lot better.
His reason for hospitalization was supposedly pure exhaustion. Nevertheless, that concern also seemed quite redundant.
The sight of the vigorous old man made Godou smile wryly.
Afterwards, he went to the airport with Erica.
Somehow, they ran into Lucretia Zola who had just flown in from Sardinia.
"Who knew I would once again encounter you, whom has returned safely from the Mediterranean, ordained by fate to survive... Oh well, it seems like all sorts of unexpected things happened."
Unexpectedly pedestrian yet possessing sublime beauty, Lucretia exclaimed in surprise.
Recalling all sorts of "finished" matters, Godou stood stiffly in the airport lobby with an "Eh."
"That's right. This person has the ability to respond to changing circumstances with astounding swiftness. He can already be considered a full-fledged Devil King."
This comment instantly caused Erica to straighten her fa
ce and Lucretia to murmur "oh" softly.
Their gazes focused on a young man. A handsome blond with a tall and tightly sculpted physique.
He was dressed in a bright red shirt and white cotton pants. There was a Latin air of easygoing thoughtlessness about him. With a smile like the summer Mediterranean sun (or put differently, a foolish aura), he was walking over.
"It must be you. You're the seventh. Not bad, you're even younger than me back then!"
He suddenly spoke to Godou in a sweet voice that matched the handsome man's face quite well.
However, perhaps due to his shortcoming of frivolous airs, he did not seem like a lady-killer.
"It's been a while, Sir Salvatore... And your reason for coming to Sicily is?"
Somehow the name Erica used to address this young man sounded familiar.
"Ah, it's been a while, you must be Ellen Ivanovic, right? Oh my, actually I was still in Argentina until a few days ago."
Boldly getting names wrong, the young man continued unconcerned.
"I was suddenly informed that a [Heretic God] had appeared so I hastily made my way back to Europe. But then all transportation to Sardinia was stopped due to the heavy storm."
The young man called Salvatore seemed to be in his early twenties.
Godou noticed he had a cylinder slung over his shoulder. Its shape and size was large enough to carry a baseball bat, and it caused bone-chilling fear for seemingly no reason at all. Surely, something most dangerous was contained inside.
Zamparini's submachine gun could not compare in any way...
"I went to Sardinia as soon as the storm calmed down. I asked the local associations many questions, about the gods that had appeared and the god who was reassembled and reportedly defeated by the seventh. It seemed a shame to return just like that, so I came over here to meet my new kin."
The seventh. Kin. Those words could only mean one thing.
The instant Godou realized, Lucretia Zola greeted the young man reverently.
"Indeed. Then allow me to make introductions. This young man, Kusanagi Godou, is indeed the seventh to become king after you, the sixth. The god-slayer who slew warlord Verethragna and repelled the Phoenician divine king Melqart at Sicily."
"I see. I am Salvatore Doni. Let's get along well from now on!"
Paying half-hearted attention to Lucretia's introductions, Doni offered his greeting. Just as Godou hesitated over how to respond, Doni suddenly said something unexpected.
"So, I've got a minor suggestion, why don't you have a duel with me?"
"What?"
"Other than gods or our kin, there are no opponents we kings can fight seriously. I'm sure you'll soon find this fact troubling. So, how about a duel to commemorate our first meeting?"
Godou replied reflexively to this stupid proposal.
"I'm sorry, I don't really understand your joke. There's no time left, so please save your words for next time."
In the near future, Godou would come to regret concluding this encounter so hastily.
At the time, why did he waste respectful speech on that idiot... Educated in a sports environment since childhood, speaking to elders with politeness had become an ingrained habit. Nevertheless, this should really be adjusted based on the person...
Regardless, an unexpected meeting had occurred. It was time for the flight.
Sent off by Erica and Lucretia, as well as the young man named Doni, Godou started his return journey to Japan.
In actual fact, he had spent a total of ten days in Italy.
A period multiple times that of his initial plans.
Part 3
Godou experienced a turbulent ten days in Italy.
After returning home, Godou spent the remainder of his spring break purposelessly. After that, April arrived with his new life as a high school student. With that, things had basically ended in a daze.
That said, it was not as if he had done nothing.
Back when exams had ended and he was concerned that his body was getting out of shape, Godou had started jogging almost every day and doing stretching and other muscle training that did not require equipment. Thanks to that, he managed to maintain an energetic mental state after returning from Italy.
Two weeks had passed since the new school term, and he found himself with too much free time.
Even passing time doing nothing would result in hunger, resulting in getting fat. Bored out of his mind, the idea of "I should start working jobs" suddenly occurred to him.
The simple explanation: Kusanagi Godou was a man.
"Since the root of human nature is animalistic and coarse, I can't continue this nervous mental state."
Hence, on a Thursday in late April.
After school, Godou made his way to a shop located in the Adachi special ward in Tokyo. Through an acquaintance of his grandfather, he had found a part time job entitled "assistant in an antique shop which collects broken junk that has been sleeping in old storerooms."
By the time he got off from work at 10:30pm, it was quite late at night.
On the way home, Godou found himself in trouble. Walking along the streets at night, he was surrounded by seven foreigners.
This occurred on a bridge crossing over a river in a residential zone.
Looking down from the steel-built bridge, one could see a river bank covered with flourishing weeds as well as a top class river which required no flattering descriptions of magnificence. Once Godou stepped foot on this bridge, he found four men in front and three more appeared behind him.
Blocked from advancing or retreating, Godou looked to find traffic and pedestrians absent.
"So... Can I help you? This seems to be our first meeting, right?"
Even though the mood was far from friendly, Godou asked gently.
The seven men were all tall and strongly built.
Funnily enough, they were all masked. The type which covered the eyes and the nose, reminiscent of masquerade balls except with more varied clothing.
Men in ordinary suits. Rough men in t-shirts and construction pants. Men in jackets.
Based on their complexion, one was black while the others were white.
The black guy was the most conspicuous and seemed quite dangerous. Standing at roughly 190cm, his weight was likely over 100kg. It was certainly believable to call him a heavyweight fighter.
Wearing a tank top, his bare shoulders were tattooed with poisonous spiders...
"Excuse me, I'm a bit unclear as to why I'm being treated this way."
This sinister group, were they the comrades of Italian magi?
Godou felt very uncomfortable from their tactic of surrounding a lone person, but he continued to speak politely.
When people look like they are itching for a fight, nothing good would come out of responding in kind. Godou tried to get out of the situation through gentle and peaceful measures, but the men began to take action without speaking a word.
"..."
The black man approached from the front and suddenly launched a right punch. This was clearly no amateur punch, proving Godou's earlier suspicions to be correct.
Fast and heavy, it was punch that flew towards his face in the shortest possible trajectory.
Godou managed to evade, most likely thanks to that body's constitution. The instant the man clenched his fist, a "switch" seemed to have opened inside Godou. Immediately, his focus became keen, allowing him to easily see the incoming punch--
Anyway, Godou evaded to the left first.
But the black man was clearly no amateur. Without withdrawing his extended fist, he grabbed at Godou's shoulder instead. Still recovering from his dodging posture, Godou was unable to evade this time.
He was caught.
Violently pulling Godou towards him, the black man sent a strong knee attack!
"Gah~!"
Struck in the stomach by that horrifying impact, Godou groaned.
Unable to bear the pain, he bent over and fell on his knees. Furthermore, the o
ther men took this as a signal to attack. The tragic group beating thus began.
The enemies were seven strong men well-trained in martial arts. Battered by their merciless punches and kicks, Godou felt intense pain and was thrown onto the asphalt of the road.
Even so, he continued to resist.
Godou attempted to use the [Bull], the incarnation for facing enemies far stronger than him, but it was no good. These guys -- big strong guys on a human level were nowhere enough.
Conditions were not fulfilled unless fighting a bearer of greater "strength." Godou continued to experience tangible pain.
Several minutes passed in this manner.
Due to the lateness at night, neither cars nor pedestrians passed by. It almost seemed as if people had been driven away by magic. Then Godou yelled out slowly.
"T-Treating someone like a punching bag... You guys, you have no sense of right or wrong!"
Hearing his angered voice, the team of seven men panted as they lowered their heads.
"Damn it, this monster..."
"I-Is this really an opponent beyond our so-called level..."
"Comrades, do not despair! If we fail this mission, there is no returning home for us!"
Speaking one after another, they made it sound like they were the victims instead.
Nevertheless, they were indeed out of options. It was true that Godou was injured all over, but he also remained unexpectedly lively. On the other hand, the attackers' hands and legs were hurting.
A man who had landed a left hook on Godou's face had his wrist twisted into a strange angle. His fist also seemed to have fractured. A man who had taken a low kick at Godou's shin also seemed to be in similar pain, nodding his head as he held his leg.
...A Campione's bones are harder than iron, Erica mentioned once.
If that was the case, haphazardly beating in an unarmed fashion on various bones -- the cranium, the cheek bones, the lower jaw, ribs, the thighs, the shins, etc, resulted in this.
However, Godou's bruises, scratches and internal hemorrhage were innumerable.
Only his bones did not break or shatter, muscles and tendons were fine, brain and internal organs needed no mentioning. And most important of all, the [Camel], which Godou could only use when suffering from severe injuries, was still unavailable.
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