Climb did not let his guard down and observed them.
“Cocco Doll-sama, it’s become a bit more difficult to take this guy with us. It looks like I have to finish this fight before his reinforcements come.”
“What the hell! Didn’t you say that you’re a member of the Six Arms? You can’t knock out a kid like him? You’re making your name cry, Devil of Illusions!”
“If you say it like that, then you’re putting me in a difficult position. Well, I’ll do my best but don’t forget that our victory lies in Cocco Doll-sama getting out of here safely.”
Climb maintained vigilance and glared at Succulent as he tried to figure out why he was called the Devil of Illusions. He wouldn’t get a nickname if it was completely at odds with his abilities. As such, if he could find its origin, then he could read at least a sliver of his opponent’s abilities. But unfortunately, he couldn’t tell anything from the man’s appearance or his equipment.
Even though he knew that he was at a disadvantage, Climb yelled to encourage himself.
“I am guarding this door. While I still stand, I will not allow you to escape!”
“We’ll know if that’s possible soon enough. When you fall pathetically to the floor, that is.”
Succulent slowly raised his sword.
Hmm?!
Climb doubted his eyes.
The sword was swaying. His eyes were not mistaken. Although that strange phenomenon quickly subsided, he had seen it clearly.
Some martial art—?
It probably had something to do with the reason he was called the Devil of Illusions. If so, it meant that his opponent had activated some power. Although he hadn’t let down his guard, he now had to be even more cautious.
Succulent closed in on him while raising his sword.
It could not be said to be the movements of someone who rivaled adamantium ranked adventurers. Rather, looking at his movements alone, it fell slightly short to Climb. He raised his sword to match the path of the swing and— felt a shiver that caused him to quickly retreat back.
At that instant, he felt a sharp pain in his side and was almost knocked away.
“Ugh!”
He staggered back just like that against the wall. He did not have the luxury to think about what just happened. Succulent was already in front of him.
His sword was raised like before. Climb raised his sword to protect his head and leapt towards his left side as if he was rolling headfirst.
Pain ran down his upper right arm.
He rolled using the momentum and as soon as he stood up, swung his sword without even looking.
The sword cut through air.
He realized that his opponent had no intention of giving chase and looked around while pressing down on his right arm. He saw Succulent run towards the door leading to the stairs while being wary of him.
Climb ignored Succulent who was about to open the door and directed his gaze at Cocco Doll. He deemed that if Succulent was in charge of Cocco Doll’s protection, this would be enough to keep him in check. His prediction was correct.
Succulent’s hand stopped abruptly. He then placed himself between Climb and Cocco Doll and clicked his tongue. His eyes moved to the door, Climb, and Cocco Doll in that order and his face grew twisted.
“He got me! I apologize but I’ll have to kill this brat right here.”
“What~? If we keep him alive then he’ll be a good card to use against that bitch.”
“I was mistaken because of him. I focused on the fact that he was guarding the door and… that was the reason why he babbled about guarding the door. This bastard… toying with me.”
…Alright, he fell for it! As I thought, they don’t seem to have any information about what’s happening outside. Now they won’t be able to run.
In a situation where Succulent was the only bodyguard, it was a foolish idea to run while leaving Climb alive and able to continue fighting. The reason was because they would be hit with a pincer attack should one of Climb’s allies be at the top of the stairs. For the same reason, he also couldn’t let Cocco Doll escape alone before he finished the battle with Climb.
Climb separating himself from the door after announcing that he would guard it and showing signs that he was aiming for Cocco Doll caused Succulent to fall for his bluff. He was now deeply entrenched in the thought that someone was on standby beyond the door and that they would use a pincer attack to capture Cocco doll alive. In order to escape safely, he should have determined that he had to first defeat Climb here.
Of course, this was because he did not know the situation outside. If he did, he would have simply opened the door and fled.
Having won his gamble, Climb received the rising killing intent and raised his sword.
“Haa…”
Climb endured the pain being transmitted from his side and upper right arm. Several of his bones might have been broken but he was lucky to still be able to move. No, if that pervert did not harbor any weird lust towards him, then Climb might have died to a single stroke of the sword. Even though he was wearing a chain shirt, it didn’t protect him from the slash completely
But what was that attack? Did he slash with an incredible speed? But it didn’t seem that way…
Gazef’s face rose to Climb’s mind.
Gazef Stronoff’s original martial art, ‘Sixfold Slash of Light’, was said to deliver six attacks at once. If so, perhaps he was using something similar, but not quite as powerful, a ‘Twofold Slash of Light’.
However, that meant that Succulent was using a bizarre technique where the first attack was normal speed and only the second attack was fast.
It doesn’t connect. I’d be able to deal with it somehow if I knew what kind of technique it was but… anyways, it’s dangerous to be on the defensive. Should I attack?”
Climb swallowed his saliva and ran in. His eyes switched from Succulent over to Cocco Doll, causing Succulent’s face to twist greatly.
A bodyguard won’t like it if you go for their target, even if it’s only a threat. I know that from experience.
Approach while doing everything that he himself would not enjoy.
Devil of Illusions; a devil that uses illusions… there’s a chance that the nickname itself is a deception but… it’s worth checking.