He was trying to hit me in every way, shouting in anger. This demon was visibly furious with me and made it harder for me to get close. As I needed to buy time, I decided to change tactics.
"Explosive bullets!"
"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
I managed to hit the demon accurately in the chest.
My explosive bullets were loaded on my index finger. When they were ready, I pointed in the direction of the target and fired. It seemed to be having an effect, but it would be impossible to bring him down with just that.
I continued using this tactic of dodging and firing explosive bullets, but I knew that if I kept this up, I would eventually be hit.
'Come on, Izumi.'
The demon stopped abruptly and began to fill his lungs with air. I didn't understand what was happening, but I took the opportunity to fire an explosive bullet. However, this didn't stop him from continuing to fill his lungs, and I realized I would have to charge the explosive bullet for longer. That's when the demon unleashed his fire attack, and I finally understood the situation.
"Ah! Am I going to die?"
Ui's point of view
They were incredibly strong, managing to defeat that demon on their own. I could hardly believe it; for the first time, we had won a battle without anyone dying. I was happy, but as they say, happiness doesn't last long. It didn't take long for another demon to appear.
I still believed in victory, but maybe I had overestimated them. The demon was winning the fight, and I couldn't let my friends die. I ran toward the demon and delivered a powerful kick to its neck.
It might not look like it due to my stature, but I was incredibly strong, blessed from birth by the Goddess of Strength.
'Now I need to escape.'
I managed to disorient him, but my goal was to escape before the demon could counterattack. However, I wasn't fast enough, and I was hit by his attack, being thrown against the wall.
Despite the impact, I didn't suffer much damage because, in addition to strength, I also had high resistance. In the village, there were few who could defeat me in combat. I got up and went toward Max, while Idalme remained unconscious.
'The end of our village is near.'
I didn't believe in a victory against that, but Max gave us hope. How could I forget about him, the strongest man? I felt joy again and a glimmer of hope when Max spoke. At his request, I headed towards the village's exit in search of Izumi.
"I need to find him quickly!"
"Izumi!!!!" I shouted his name.
As I ran in search of Izumi, I shouted his name several times, but my voice didn't seem to reach him.
"Where is he?"
I was losing hope. I circled the entire village and couldn't find him. I fell to my knees and started crying.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for being weak. Ai, Mito, I'm sorry. I couldn't protect the village. I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
"Hey?"
I looked in the direction of the voice, and there he was, sitting with his arms resting on his legs, looking at me.
"You're so loud."
"Loud?"
Was he hearing me scream but ignoring it? I began to think that maybe the village leader was right. Maybe they really only cared about themselves. However, I had to tell him, no matter if he didn't want to go. Even if I had to beg, I would say it.
"Please… please, save our village!" I said, looking into his eyes, and tears began to flow.
"Lhiahahahahahahahaha!"
I didn't understand. Was he laughing at our situation? Was he really a demon? Doubts kept popping up in my head, but…
"Max needs your help. Please, help us!" I begged on my knees.
"Shut up and show me the way."
"Yes."
I was relieved and began to believe that he was different. I got up and started running.
"Please, follow me."
He didn't follow me, and I began to slow down, thinking he was just playing with my feelings.
"Speed Iz."
"Speed I…"
Before I could finish the sentence, I felt my body being moved, with someone holding my waist firmly. When I looked, it was Izumi, radiating a dark glow, smiling, which made my heart fall for him again.
I looked ahead and realized we were close to the demon, and in an instant, I was in the air. The feeling of tightness was no longer there, and when I looked ahead, I saw Izumi in front of a large flame, but he was no longer glowing.
"Brute force Iz!" He said while shining brightly once again.
"Second form. Kotxi flames!"
I was far away, but I could hear clearly because hearing was one of the blessings I had received. With this technique, he cut through the flames and struck the demon. After that, I fell to the ground.
"Ow!"
"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
For him to shout like that, it must have hurt a lot.
'Incredible!'
"What an interesting demon."
"Izumi?"
"What's up, Max? I can't believe you were going to die here."
"I admit, you saved everyone in the village, except me."
"Interesting. Now it's my turn."
"Please, Izumi, let me finish this demon."
"What?"
While they were talking, the demon began to regenerate.
"HAAAAAAAAAAA!"
"How long do you need?" Izumi spoke as he turned away from Max.
"Fifteen seconds."
"Pray he's not dead before those fifteen seconds are up."
Once again, Izumi shone and disappeared, but in an instant, he was back in front of the demon. His speed was so great that I could barely keep up with my eyes.
"Fall."
I didn't understand. Did he perform some action while moving at high speed? The demon began to fall, but it was clear that its limbs were no longer connected to its body.
"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
"Incredible!"
The demon began to regenerate, but Izumi did nothing. He just watched with a smile on his face and then sheathed his two swords. I didn't understand. I began to approach them slowly, and the demon was starting to get up.
"Speed Iz."
When I realized, Izumi was under the demon's chin and delivered a kick that made the demon look up at the sky.
"I'm ready!"
Max ran and jumped toward the demon's head, while Izumi fell to the ground with crossed arms.
'So cute!'
"Dynamite punch!" Max shouted as he struck the demon right in the face. He leaned on the demon's head and used it as a springboard to distance himself. Then, he clenched his fists.
"Explosive!"
The demon's head exploded into several pieces, resembling a fireworks display. I looked at Izumi, and he seemed surprised by what was happening. Perhaps he was happy that his friend had managed to defeat the demon. In the end, he said:
"Bloody hell!"