Klein once again evaded the Wraith's attack by using the paper doll substitute.
Bro, seriously, you've got a light cannon — why the hell did you start with melee?!
The teleportation ability that came with the paper doll sent Klein soaring into the air. With a flick of his left hand, several napkins shot down like throwing knives.
He soon noticed something peculiar — a possible hidden mechanic. Whenever there were flying objects, the phantom soldier would prioritize attacking them.
He deliberately made two of the napkins strike from opposite sides. As the phantom soldier swung both blades to intercept them — leaving itself wide open — Klein fired another shot.
The bullet struck the phantom's chest — with absolutely no effect.
"Damn, it really doesn't do any damage."
Landing on the ground, Klein tried using his Magician abilities to manipulate flames. Jets of fire erupted around the phantom soldier.
Amidst the swirling fire and flying napkins, Klein darted in and out of sight. As the phantom was distracted, he closed the distance.
Practically face-to-face, Klein fired directly into the slit of its visor.
The phantom tilted its head, dodging the bullet.
Dodged it? Wait, what? You're not even supposed to have dodge AI!
Just as Klein thought he'd found an exploit, the phantom followed up with a brutal knee strike.
The blow shattered the shield in front of Klein's body.
He tried to blink away through the flames — but suddenly noticed that the surrounding fire had turned indigo blue. He realized he could no longer teleport through it.
The phantom's blade slashed across his trench coat — not harming Klein, but tearing open his pocket. The paper dolls inside scattered into the air.
Klein's pupils contracted sharply. He'd misjudged — the opponent might look like just another in-game combat NPC, but it was actually thinking. It was analyzing his weaknesses.
No time to think. Klein slipped sideways, then suddenly dove backward, barely evading the phantom's next smooth combo.
With one hand on the ground, Klein spun his body like a gymnast, executing a Thomas flare–style kick. His leg whipped across the phantom's head as it lunged forward.
The kick triggered the critical effect of his "Blessing." An explosion burst out from his foot, blasting the phantom off-balance.
Klein pressed the attack, not giving it a chance to recover, and immediately raised his revolver.
The sixth chamber wasn't loaded with a bullet, but a purple bead — something Sairuis had given him earlier that day, saying he might need it at night.
At the time, Saires had handed him about ten of those purple beads and one blue bullet, along with instructions for use. Klein had been stunned — he could hardly believe something so small could have such terrifying destructive power.
Luckily, this was all happening in a dream — otherwise, there's no way he would've used such a valuable mystical item.
After all, Klein prided himself on being a thrifty man.
That bead was a ball of captured lightning. Once a conductor disrupted its balance, it would instantly release as a ball-shaped bolt of lightning.
With a thunderous crack — literally thunder — violet lightning exploded from the gun, engulfing both Klein and the phantom soldier.
ZAP!
"...That powerful?" That was Klein's last thought before his consciousness faded.
The next moment, Klein found himself once again aiming his gun at the unmoving phantom in front of him. He blinked, confused. The revolver in his hand looked perfectly fine — not even a scratch.
"…Did I just… respawn?"
He opened the revolver's cylinder — five bullets, all still there, except the one he'd used on the Aha puppet earlier.
"What the hell is this? Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice?"
[You have obtained "Primordial Black Hole." Each time you acquire a "Destruction" Blessing, your Strength increases slightly.]
"Huh?" Klein stared at the floating system message, mind racing.
So every time he got defeated, he earned one of these so-called "Blessings"? This was literally turning into a video game.
He thought for a moment, then casually fired another shot.
ZAP!
He instantly returned to the starting point.
[Please do not deliberately farm Blessings.]
"'Player'? Oh great, not even pretending anymore."
Lowering his gun, Klein sighed. He was officially playing a Souls-like now.
He walked up to the phantom soldier to examine it closely. For the first time, he noticed details he'd missed before — especially the twin light blades it wielded. Up close, they were truly beautiful, glittering with star-like sparks. He couldn't even tell what material they were made of.
Now that he knew he could reload from a save, his courage grew. Klein leaned in, carefully studying the phantom's gear for weak points.
"This…" he began to mutter.
ZAP!
He was back at the start again.
"What the—? Was my voice too loud? Did that just trigger a parry?!"
Klein quietly stepped back. He decided to wait for his buff — "Imperial Star Descends to Rule the Firmament" — to finish stacking over time before trying again.
———
Floating before a half-transparent screen in the air, Sairuis watched Klein fail over a dozen times in a row and couldn't help but smirk helplessly.
"You're this bad? The next part of the plot's going to be rough…"
He tapped the screen a few times, deciding to give Klein a little bit of assistance.
(End of Chapter)