MV – Chapter 137: Forneus and the Minor Villain

Lanpeach, having achieved [Divine Spirit Fusion] with Libra, transformed into a silver-haired, blue-eyed warrior. He could feel his power significantly increase after the fusion, causing him to grin mischievously with a minor villain’s smile. Honestly, it would look cooler if he didn’t smile.

Libra had skills equipped, making this the first public unveiling after all.

Libra – Current Slots 4

[Skill Slot: All Stats Doubled]
[Skill Slot: None]
[Skill Slot: None]
[Skill Slot: None]

Lanpeach had subtly equipped a stat-boosting skill, and his stats were instantly doubled.

[Fufufu, Libra the super support character, unlocking Soldier’s hidden potential! I’ll warn you now not to get too cocky! There’s a chance you’ll get caught off guard and absorbed or revert when time runs out!] (Libra)

Libra laughed proudly in Lanpeach’s mind, while also informing him of the fusion technique’s weakness, showing her support role.

[I completely agree. Taking them down swiftly and without letting your guard down is the right way and the proper way!] (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach, now filled with immense power, assumed his fighting stance with a confident smile. Chefei, a powerful demon, would likely sense Lanpeach’s new strength and be shaken…but something seemed off.

Chefei stared at him as though seeing something unbelievable, fear flashing across the grotesque fox face.

“W-Why didn’t you turn into a half-beast after using Elemental Fusion? How are you still in human form?” (Chefei)

“??? That’s a company secret.. Companies have been really strict about information leaks lately. Getting fired isn’t on my agenda.” (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach joked, but he remembered that everyone else had turned into half-beast forms as he reflected on Chefei’s words. Yet, he alone remained human. There must be some meaning behind this, judging by Chefei’s disturbed reaction.

“To think you actually succeeded… I absolutely must kill you now!” (Chefei)

Chefei began his attack despite his agitation. He had decided to go all out, moving in with a speed that far surpassed his earlier attacks.

“Too bad, I always intended to kill you from the start!” (Lanpeach)

But Lanpeach wasn’t about to lose either. His counterpunch was now incredibly fast, entering the realm of supersonic speed compared to earlier.

With each blow, the air between them crackled as they traded equally matched punches, sending small shockwaves. Chefei was now using both right punches and jabs, launching rapid combinations, while Lanpeach was leaving afterimages and struck back as if he had multiple arms.

“Kuh, you are awfully faster than before! Did you really fuse with a spirit?! Not a bluff?” (Chefei)

[Shadow Slash]

Chefei extended his claws while sweating profusely, coating them with demonic energy and unleashing a dark art. His jet-black claws carried a menacing power, appearing as if they could rot anything they touched. But due to his earlier panic, his attack was slightly off-balance.

Lanpeach narrowed his eyes, and he faced the attack head-on with an open palm.

[Spiral Parry]

The moment Chefei’s claws slashed down like a sickle, Lanpeach twisted his hand in a spiral motion, touching the claws and twisting them as if they were subjected to overwhelming force…and shattered.

“Guh, w-what was that?!” (Chefei)

Chefei recoiled in pain as his claws crumbled, and even his fingers were mangled by the backlash.

Lanpeach had merged Air Throw with Parry, deflecting and countering Chefei’s simplified, readable attack.

It was Lanpeach’s new skill, born from Libra’s superhuman calculation abilities. A skill beyond skills.

—Lanpeach frowned just as he was about to smugly follow up with another attack.

“Ugh?! Why am I taking damage?” (Lanpeach)

Glowing red blood flowed from his arm, surprising him with pain. He hadn’t even been touched, so why?

“Tch, that’s a troublesome skill he has.” (Chefei)

[Cursed Foxfire]

Chefei used his good hand to forcibly reset his mangled fingers and opened his fox-like mouth, releasing a flame of darkness.

A massive wave of dark flames filled the air, surging toward Lanpeach.  

Lanpeach stayed calm and raised his arm.

“I’ve already seen that move.” (Lanpeach)

[Spirit Gauntlets]

[Psychic Blade]

Lanpeach equipped the Spirit Gauntlets, and channeled a supernatural force into his arm, distorting space as he swung downward.

The space split with a sharp crack, and the dark flames were cleaved in two, vanishing as they fell away. The blade didn’t stop there, it grazed Chefei’s snout, leaving a small cut.

“Guh, this can’t be happening!” (Chefei)

Chefei attempted to retreat, stepping backward and trying to put distance between them. 

Lanpeach prepared for another attack, raising his hand for a knife strike and…

[Soldier! Look closely at your opponent!] (Libra)

[?! Oh, I see!] (Lanpeach)

Thanks to Libra’s warning, Lanpeach stopped his advance, spun around, and delivered a back kick.

His foot connected with a satisfying impact, sending Chefei, who had been trying to sneak up behind him, flying.

“Wa, my position again…!” (Chefei)

Chefei was stunned, but he still spun in midair and managed to land on the deck, bracing himself.

The Chefei that had been there before disappeared like smoke, and Lanpeach sighed as he watched.

“So, ‘beware of the shadows’, huh? I get it now. You can attack using your shadow, right? And there’s no shadow at your feet.” (Lanpeach)

Chefei’s shadow was nowhere to be found.

“At first, I thought the one with the shadow was the real you, but that copy had one too. So, you can control your own shadow, the Shadow Servant, huh? That attack of yours before also had the attack of your shadow, so I couldn’t block it, right?” (Lanpeach)

“…I should’ve taken out that rabbit earlier. Revealing the trick just makes you less likable.” (Chefei)

“My likability is always in the negatives, so no worries.” (Lanpeach)

Chefei gritted his teeth in frustration, glaring at Lanpeach, while Lanpeach nonchalantly admitted his sad reality.

[Hmhm, Mimi’s intel included this too. That disappearing like smoke, and being unharmed afterward!] (Libra)

Libra laughed loudly with an ‘uhaha’ in Lanpeach’s mind. She has been doing so for a while now. It is a bit annoying. It seems that’s how frustrated Libra was with her inability to provide enough support.

[We’ve identified what kind of demon this fox is. He’s an Evil Night Stalker, a demon who manipulates shadows like a doppelganger. It’s a highest rank version of the Night Stalker demon.] (Mira)

[Evil Night Stalker: Level 8]

Mira’s report confirmed the enemy’s abilities, and Lanpeach understood. A demon that hides in the shadows, and since she said highest, it must be able to control shadows as well.

[Gah! I knew that too! I was just about to say it! Soldier, the enemy’s name is Evil Night Stalker. He can use Shadow Shift, Shadow Substitution, and Shadow Follower. He’s a tough opponent, so be careful!] (Libra)

[And on top of that, he likely learned fox magic to keep his true form hidden. If his identity is exposed, his shadow abilities will be weakened after all.] (Mira)

[I get it, I get it. Just don’t argue in stereo. It’s noisy.] (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach frowned at their overlapping voices. He was listening just fine even without competing.

“But knowing my true identity doesn’t change anything. My advantage still stands! Forneus, assist me!” (Chefei)

“Kuoooon!”

The battleship at their feet cried like a steam whistle, and a thick fog enveloped the battlefield, completely obscuring Lanpeach’s sight. He couldn’t feel the presence of the other party at all. He couldn’t even feel mana, so this was no ordinary fog.

[Demon Fog]

[It’s Forneus’ ability. It’s not fully operational yet, so now’s the time to defeat them before it gets troublesome.] (Mira)

[Uhm, Forneus is one of the 72 pillars of Solomon, a Grand Duke of Hell. They say he commands an army of angels. Why does a Grand Duke of Hell command angels?] (Libra)

[Got it, and also, there’s no need to force yourself to compete with Mira here, alright?] (Lanpeach)

Libra-san tried to not lose to Mira. But there’s no need to read the flavor text, okay?

“Now the real fight begins!” (Chefei)

[Foxfire Arrows]

Several foxfire arrows shot through the fog, fast as beams of light, and on top of being sharp, he couldn’t feel their presence, so it was difficult to evade them.

Lanpeach zigzagged as he tried to evade, but several arrows still hit their mark.

“The attacks are too accurate. The enemy isn’t affected by the fog at all, is he?” (Lanpeach)

[Yeah. This fog seems to only affect you, Soldier.] (Libra)

[They really nailed it with calling it Demon Fog, didn’t they?] (Lanpeach)

With his shoulder grazed and his leg cut, pain seeped through Lanpeach’s body. The fog was so thick that he couldn’t sense even a trace of Chefei’s presence.

He must be cautious. There’s no sign of him shouting something like “You are done for!” and charging at him. He’s probably planning to wear Lanpeach down little by little with those foxfire arrows. Once Lanpeach’s fusion with the spirit breaks, he won’t stand a chance.

The compatibility between Forneus and the Evil Night Stalker is too good. If Forneus were at full power, he’d probably be casting offensive magic as well.

Forneus, huh…

Lanpeach glanced at the deck, smirked slyly, and formed an evil little smile.

[I’ve got a great idea.] (Lanpeach)

Sending out a quick thought, Lanpeach clenched his fist and slammed it into the deck with full force. His fist sank deep into Forneus’s armor, and with a grunt, he pushed with all his strength.

“Uoooraaaah!”

[Size Difference Nullification]

[Air Throw]

Forneus’s massive hull tilted, flipped over like a toy, and was sent flying into the air.

Forneus flailed around in the air as if it had a consciousness, but the Air Throw had already activated, and a surge of power ran through its body. There was only a bit of damage. The deck only sustained a minor scratch.

But that scratch meant that the demonic barrier protecting Forneus had been destroyed, leaving it defenseless for a brief moment.

[Now, Tete!] (Lanpeach)

[Kyuuu! Lion Rabbit Cannon, fireeeeee!] 

Tete’s excited shout rang, and a beam of white light pierced through the mist, scattering it, and rained down from the heavens onto Forneus. 

The beam shot through Forneus’s hull with immense energy upon impact, splitting it in two. Unable to withstand it, Forneus finally exploded in a huge blast and fell from the sky.

“What?! You threw a battleship?! That’s insane!” (Chefei)

Chefei, who had been hovering in the air, stared at Lanpeach in disbelief, as if he were some kind of monster while the fog was disappearing.

“I’m well-versed in using skills.” (Lanpeach)

Revving up his thrusters, Lanpeach closed in on Chefei and began gathering psychic energy into a hand knife.

“Kuoh! You bastard, how dare you destroy one of our demon warships!” (Chefei)

Chefei retaliated with his own attacks, burning with rage.

[Shadow Rush]

Chefei unleashed a flurry of punches, alternating between middle and low kicks, along with feints that led to a high kick aimed at Lanpeach’s head.

His martial arts were well-honed, showing the fruits of years of effort and mastery.

But even a master couldn’t compare to Lanpeach, who had transcended human limits. Chefei stood no chance as long as their stats were nearly equal.

Lanpeach predicted Chefei’s moves, parried the punches, blocked the kicks, dodged the high kick with a sway, and avoided the feints with ease.

“It’s not over. Can you withstand the strength of two?” (Chefei)

[Shadow Servant]

Chefei split into two, intensifying his attacks even further.

“It makes no difference even if there are two of you. You can no longer keep up with me in hand-to-hand combat.” (Lanpeach)

Their high-speed battle sent shockwaves through the air as the fierce combat raged on, but none of Chefei’s attacks landed. Lanpeach easily deflected them and gradually broke the two Chefeis stances.

Lanpeach unleashed his full power once Chefei’s stance was completely broken. He crossed his arms and activated his skills.

[Instant]

[Blade Rush]

He aimed right behind him.

“What?! How did you know?!” (Chefei)

Behind him stood Chefei, claws raised in a fierce expression of shock. He had been pretending to be off-balance to lure Lanpeach into using his full-power attack, planning to strike from behind during the opening.

But the sword strike had already slashed across his body, causing him to stagger. Chefei had been preparing for a full-power attack of his own, so he was completely caught off guard and took the hit directly.

“The real one has small cuts on him. You didn’t heal from Mimi’s attack, did you?” (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach tapped his cheek a few times, indicating the wounds, and Chefei suddenly realized. Indeed, Mimi’s needles had left small cuts on Chefei, which he hadn’t bothered to heal. While minor and seemingly insignificant, those wounds hadn’t been replicated on his shadow clone.

“T-That damn rabbit… I should’ve been more careful with an ace like her…” (Chefei)

With a bitter smile, Chefei was sliced apart and fell toward the underground below.

“So that was a demon, huh? Looks like I’ve got a lot more to learn… It’s also a problem that [Instant] didn’t work.” (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach wiped the blood from his face and let out a deep sigh while watching the scene unfold.

And then, in the massive hole leading underground where Forneus fell, Forneus exploded, and flames raged as everything began to fade into nothing.

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