Chapter 0124: Because I Was Too Afraid of Death, I Maxed Out Defense
Hayashi vs. Heathcliff!
When this news spread, the Guardians—who had been in their respective floors adapting to their new bodies and powers—couldn't resist their curiosity and flocked to the training grounds to spectate.
"Tsk tsk, there really are a lot of people here. Losing would be quite embarrassing, wouldn't it?" Hayashi said while stretching his legs, speaking to Heathcliff standing beside him. "How about you put on an act later and pretend to be no match for me?"
Heathcliff glanced sideways at Hayashi and sneered, "I think you just want me to lower my guard so you can properly beat me up, don't you?"
Hayashi averted his gaze, continuing his warm-up exercises without changing expression. "How could that be? Am I that kind of person? You've got to trust me, Guild Leader."
Heathcliff frowned. "Stop calling me by that title—the game has been handed over to Rinko's management. The death game won't happen, and the Knights of the Blood Oath naturally won't exist either."
"Eh—"
Hayashi clicked his tongue in disappointment. "So we won't get to see the dashing Asuna? Tsk, though I suppose that's not bad either."
While the heroic Asuna was undoubtedly charming, that version of her had already been tempered by the shadow of the "death game"—essentially similar to "Misaka Mikoto after the Sisters incident," both representing "growth forms" forged through suffering.
Hayashi had to admit that part of Asuna and Misaka's appeal lay in their unyielding will to bloom despite adversity, but he didn't think deliberately subjecting them to suffering just to witness that will was "cool" at all—damn it, what kind of asshole would do something like that?
Don't give me that "no rainbow without rain" crap. Screw that—anyone who wants to experience storms can go ahead, but count me out!
Heathcliff gave Hayashi a sidelong glance. "But are you really not going to wear any equipment? The gap between naked gear and full equipment is huge."
"Pass on the gear." Hayashi waved his hand. "The divine-tier equipment brought from the game can basically only be used in this world. Outside here, it's just a model—I don't want to rely on that kind of thing."
Perhaps you could call it an extremely well-crafted model, but that doesn't change the fact that it's just a model.
Heathcliff twitched his eyebrows. Looking between his own fully armored self—clad in silver-white plate armor wielding a divine cross shield and one-handed sword—and Hayashi wearing just a casual T-shirt and shorts, he couldn't help feeling a strong sense of dissonance.
Though he'd like to strip off his gear like Hayashi, considering the actual combat power difference between them, Heathcliff not only kept his equipment on but tightened his armor further, as if only this could give him some comfort.
'Steady, Kayaba... damn it, Heathcliff!' He psych himself up. 'It's not like you've never sparred with Hayashi in-game before? Defensive counter tactics work well—don't forget your strengths!'
...
...
Soon, when Hayashi finished his warm-ups, he and Heathcliff formally took positions on opposite sides of the arena.
"Now, let the match between Hayashi and Heathcliff begin—" Hisako, acting as the host, raised her right hand and announced, "Countdown in three seconds. There are no restrictions, but please be mindful not to cause excessive damage. Repairs can be quite troublesome!"
"Three—"
"Two—"
"One—"
"Begin—"
The moment the word "begin" left her lips, Hayashi and Heathcliff simultaneously did the same thing.
Bend, charge!
"Thud—"
With a dull collision, Hayashi and Heathcliff's figures clashed together near Heathcliff's side at the center of the arena. After clearly seeing their positions, Heathcliff's pupils slightly contracted.
'Lost in speed—' He raised his shield to block Hayashi's elbow strike, thinking, 'Is it because the armor slows me down? No, it's not that simple...'
If it were just due to equipment, the positioning wouldn't be so skewed! Clearly, Hayashi's speed far surpassed his—something that was never evident in the game!
"Heathcliff... ah, this name is too long. I'll just call you Guild Leader." Hayashi pressed his right elbow against the leader's cross shield and said, "Friendly reminder: never, ever apply in-game common sense to reality. Otherwise... you might suffer a bit!"
Even in future society's immersive games, they're still just games. Most of the combat techniques Hayashi learned from the History's Strongest Disciple world couldn't be replicated in-game.
For example...
"Thud—"
The next moment, with a knee strike from Hayashi, the Guild Leader was shocked to find himself lifted off the ground. What followed was a relentless barrage of strikes—so fast and fluid that he could barely keep up, helplessly raising his shield in defense. He even felt like a helpless flower in a storm.
"Hiss... hah..."
Suddenly, Hayashi's breathing slowed dramatically. With his exhale, wisps of white mist escaped the corners of his mouth.
In an instant, the Guild Leader's sixth sense screamed a warning. Without thinking, he instinctively activated his strongest defensive skill.
A second? Half a second? No—perhaps a quarter or even an eighth of a second later, Hayashi's bulging right fist, muscles taut, slammed into the Guild Leader's golden-glowing shield like a cannonball. The wide-eyed leader could clearly see visible ripples spreading across his Holy Cross Barrier. At the point of impact, tiny cracks even began to form.
Even the Guild Leader's mind went blank at this sight—after all, his Holy Cross Barrier could withstand the impact of a high-speed train without so much as a ripple, let alone cracks!
What kind of monster are you!?
"Whew—"
Hayashi exhaled sharply, then took two steps back, shaking his right hand with a pained grimace. "Damn, that's way too hard! What kind of insane defense is this? Did you max out defense because you're scared of pain?"
The Guild Leader twitched his eyelid. "That's what I wanted to ask you. What kind of monster are you, to break through the Holy Cross Barrier's defense?"
His entire left arm was numb, trembling uncontrollably.
"Come on, you think that punch was just some random hit?" Hayashi shook his right hand, laughing bitterly. "That was a full-body power strike."
Although it couldn't be called Hayashi's strongest attack at this moment, it could at least rank within his top five.
"So this is the power you said couldn't be fully expressed in the game?"
"Mhm—" Hayashi nodded cheerfully and said, "After all, a game is just a game. Many martial arts techniques can't be replicated online."
The simplest manifestation was movement speed! In-game movement speed was merely simple numerical calculations.
"Martial arts, huh..."
The guild leader pondered for a few seconds, already considering whether he should learn some martial arts too—at least from their earlier spar, he clearly understood that while their in-game gap wasn't large, in reality, he was completely outmatched.
"Alright, alright, let's end the spar here." Hayashi waved his hand and asked, "What do you think?"
The guild leader nodded and said, "Let's stop here then. Continuing would be impolite."
...
...
When Hayashi emerged from the training grounds, Erina, Hisako, and Yunyun, who had been waiting on the sidelines, immediately approached him.
"Young master, that combo was so cool!" Hisako didn't hold back her praise, saying, "You might not have noticed it in the moment, but Heathcliff's legs were completely lifted off the ground!"
Erina also couldn't help but nod in agreement, adding, "Though his face was hidden behind his visor, you could clearly see his wide, stunned eyes through the gaps."
It was easy to imagine Heathcliff's expression—his big eyes filled with even bigger confusion as Hayashi's combo sent him floating mid-air.
"Ah, the guild leader isn't a dedicated combatant, after all." Hayashi didn't feel particularly proud or pleased. After spending a year and a half laying the foundation under Akisame Kōetsuji's training, plus continuous practice afterward, it would be downright pathetic if he couldn't overpower an ordinary person like the guild leader in terms of skill.
Hisako covered her mouth and giggled. "If he heard you say that, he'd definitely think you're looking down on him. Then he'd stay up all night watching combat videos, trying to redeem himself."
Hayashi twitched his lips and said, "Forget it. Most combat videos online are unreliable—oh, Yunyun! Though the guild leader's combat skills aren't great, his defense is seriously tough. You could ask him to help test your magic!"
Yunyun blinked, nervously gripping her staff. "R-Really? He won't get hurt?"
"Don't worry." Hayashi gave her a confident thumbs-up. "I've already tested it with my fists! It's ridiculously tough. That cross-shaped shell of his can tank a few super-tier spells without breaking a sweat!"
From this perspective, the guild leader's motto should probably be...
"Because I'm so afraid of dying, I maxed out defense!"?
No, no, I can't think like that, or the guild leader's image will... ahem!
Alright, I held back my laughter. How impressive of me!
Hayashi lifted his head to gaze at the blue sky outside the window, feeling the red scarf fluttering on his chest grow even brighter.
Thank you, guild leader. Don't stop now (keep developing that defense).