Chapter 15 — “Don’t Need Much Efforts”

Chapter 15 — “Don’t Need Much Efforts”

Lemon has been gasping for air. He had his hand down on his knees as he is trying to regain his strength. The loud thumping of the creature approaching him, as it makes a mockery of a war drum beats. Lemon watches the gigantic feet coming closer and closer. Closer and closer — until it reaches a certain distance.

Lemon jumped, slid between the ogre’s leg. It tried to slam its club down, but it was too late. With great precision, Lemon cut the ankle of the Ogre with his knife. He punctured it deep — deep enough that he felt a tight tension as he presses it down. Then, with all the strength in his arm and a yell, he pushes it through the Achilles’s heels. The creature falls to his knee, as it roars.

“Well, I didn’t expect that at all.” Shem’s expresses her mild amusement, as she sitting down on the stairway, watching the ogre failing to get up, “As expected from the top of the scums,”

Lemon falls to his knee as well, but his gaze has never moved from the perpetrator.

“Shit—“ he cursed between his prolonged rest.

“You must have undergone some hellish training. To think you can cut through a mythical creature’s tendon with raw power,” Shem’s petting the fox sitting on her lap.

“Don’t underestimate me.” Lemon begin to approach Shem again, one step at a time.

“Oh, I wouldn’t. Especially against the infamous Kuzumi Agency.” The fox jumps from her lap. She swiped the fur aside, as she gets up from her seating, “But are you?”

A hard object’s hitting the right of Lemon’s head, sending him flying again. His ears are now ringing, as his vision is blurrier than an old television. Through all the static he’s seeing, he can senses the same massive figure growling at him, limping one of his leg. It doesn’t take long for him to lose it all and hit the ground.

“Do you know that The Oni is said to be a general of hell? And being an officer of hell means that he got ridiculous amount of stamina and regeneration. I’m honestly baffled you got the gall to show your back to him. If it weren’t for me, your head would be reduced to pulp, and what’s left of you would be a mushy soup of guts. He’s pretty upset for you disrespecting him, you know?”

Shem strokes the massive arm of the Oni. It roars, shaking his whole body with tremendous power.

“There, there… It’s alright. I’m sure you got plenty more heads to bash down in hell,”

The Oni let out a terrible sigh — as if it couldn’t help but to listen to its ‘mom’. He dragged his club down the stairway, towards where the rest of the battlefield are.

“It’s been fun, big bro.” Shem let out a subtle smile, as he walks past through his lying, unconcious—

Lemon jumps, brandishing his knife to Shem’s neck. With a strike faster than he ever delivered, he slits her neck —

There is no tension. No pressure. Lemon’s knife passes through Shem’s neck without any problem. Like passing a thin air.

“Just as I thought.” Lemon can hear a voice behind ‘Shem’. The ‘true Shem’ appears out of thin air, solidifying herself with mist. The fox on her shoulder yelp — its eyes are glowing yellow, “There is a limit on your nullification condition as well,”

Lemon fell to the ground again. His knee has become dull to the pain of falling.

“L-Lime…” he stammered, “give her back…”

There’s a brief silence. Shem and her creatures look towards the long corridor of countless torii.

“Well, you better start looking for her now,” Shem’s smile rises, with a hint of nervousness, “And it seems you —”