[Duel Start]
Aight, let's see his skills, shall we?
"Ice cube summoning!"
Huh? Ice cube? And there we go—multiple ice cubes spawned in his hands.
"BWAHAHA!" I laughed maniacally. "Your gift is ice cubes? Really? What a funny guy you are. Now that I think about it, weren't you selling some kinda ice on the streets with your Oba-chan?"
"You…!"
Oh dear heavens, he's angry. I'm pretty sure one of Sun Tzu's lessons was to enrage your opponent so they won't fight properly or something like that. Let's test my new skill, shall we?
"Wrathkindler."
[You inflicted slight madness on your target.]
[Karma Gained: -5]
Oh shit, what the heck? Yeah, screw that minus 5. My friggin' karma is way lower than it should be.
"Wait, why am I feeling kinda angry? I know I'm already mad, but there's just this added feeling."
Oh, nicesu. Seems like my skill's effect is kicking in.
"But still, I can't forgive you for making fun of our business, Ice Cold Ice Cubes! Especially my grandma!"
Oh? What kinda stance is he making? Pretty sure that's a pitcher's stance. Don't tell me—he's about to throw that freaking ice cube at me?
"Behold this Ice Cube Pitch!"
Ah shit, I'm screwed. Now I remember—he was the ace of the baseball team that won the gold medal last year.
He straight-up threw the ice cube at me, exceeding 80 km/h. I knew I couldn't dodge it, so I just said:
"Fuck, I'm screwed."
There you go. The ice cube hit me like a punch in the gut. It hurts like hell, but I kept my composure. That 100 karma is mine to take, after all. No one's gonna die right here other than you, motherfucker!
"This is repayment for your pineapple pizza, Yuzuki. If you're watching, then behold my power! I will now summon the Excalibur!"
"Huh? You have the power of Excalibur? I'm pretty sure that's a strong weapon."
Oh, look at him fidgeting. Seems like he fell for my trap.
"Yes, I have the power of Excalibur. Now surrender yourself, you lowly human!"
"You think I'm dumb, don't you? Show me the Excalibur first."
Yes, you're one hell of a dumb motherfucker. Now that you've let your guard down, here's the Excalibur, bitch!
"Ecstasy Enchanter."
[You inflicted slight ecstasy on your target. Karma gained: -5.]
"Shaved ice… Yum."
I charged toward him while he indulged in some kind of shaved ice fantasy.
"Take this, mofo!"
Then boom! I punched his gut. It was enough to knock someone down since I hit a vital point.
[Remaining time: 2:01]
[Mizaki's HP: 56]
[Hoon's HP: 67]
ALRIGHT! I'm winning. I just have to wait for the time to run out and win with my remaining HP.
One minute passed, and he fucking woke up. Holy shit. I don't think I can win against him now.
[Remaining time: 59 seconds]
What should I do? Run? Hide? But where? I don't think I have any options. Well, shit. Good luck to me.
"I didn't want to reveal my skill, Ice Cube Barrage, since there are a lot of people watching. But I guess you'll be the first victim, Hoon."
What kinda fucking Ice Cube Barrage is he talking about? Anyway, I think it's an attack skill. I better dodge.
"Ice Cube Barrage!"
No way in hell I could dodge that. A magic circle—or whatever you might call it—appeared behind him, shooting multiple ice cubes at high speed. Shit. Should I just admit defeat? At least I won't get injured.
"Hey, hold on! I'll admit—" He stopped the skill.
He's fallen for my trap again. You think I would surrender, huh? No way in hell I'd lose a chance to get that 100!
"Joyweaver!"
[You induced slight happiness in your target. Karma gained: -5.]
"What's this feeling? Is this… joy? I haven't felt this for so long."
Hmph. Fell for it again, huh? You muscle-brained idiot.
"YOU CHEATING MOTHERFUCK—"
"You just noticed, huh? Also, thanks for the compliment."
[Time remaining: 0 seconds]
[DING! The winner of this match is Hoon Ravi.]
I won, huh? Getting hit by an ice cube has more of an effect than I thought. Ah, I'm feeling dizzy.
[Karma gained: 100.]
I woke up to find Sakura sitting beside me. She had fallen asleep. How long has she been guarding me?
"Hey, Sakura! Wake up!"
"Hoon! I'm glad you woke up. You've been unconscious for five hours now."
That ice cube pitch was more dangerous than I thought.
"Thanks for being here for me, Sakura. You've forgiven me, right? From the goblin incident?"
"Uh… not yet. I still feel betrayed. My feelings were hurt."
Yeah, figures. I think she wants me to do something. She's so easy to read. Or is it because of my gift?
"So, what do you want me to do?"
"Please give me a hug."
I sat up, even though my body was still aching, and hugged her.
"My, my. What a lovely couple we have here."
Hm? I think he's not from our school. Could he be one of the instructors' bodyguards? His hair was fiery red, like a symbol of fire. I'm pretty sure his passion is burning too. His outfit looked like something out of a fantasy—a robe I can't quite describe, paired with leather clothes and intricately designed pants.
"I'm Leopold, one of the instructor A's bodyguards. I came to check up on you, Hoon. It seems your unconsciousness wasn't due to Mizaki's skill—the ice cube—but rather the work of karma. You see, losing karma might seem fine at first, but if it accumulates, it can knock you unconscious. However, you can enhance your resistance to it. So, my question is: was it the work of losing karma?"
"Yes, it was."
I didn't fully understand what he was saying, but I'll have to be more careful about losing karma from now on, considering my gift's consequences.
"Hey, both of you are interesting. My gift is that I can create portals. I could make one to send you back to your original world. Do you want to come with me?"
That information was shocking. We could go back to our world? Escape this alternate dimension?
"What do you think, Hoon? Should we go? I'll only go if you want to."
But if I go back, would it still be fun? I don't want to feel bored again, and I'm already liking it here. With that, I made up my mind.
"Okay, Sakura. I've decided not to go."
"Okay, Hoon. I won't go either, Mr. Leopard."
"The name is Leopold, not Leopard! Alright, suit yourselves. Just come to me if you change your minds. We'd be illegally going back to your world, which, meh, is quite ruined by those invaders."
Huh? Invaders? Ruined? Seems like I might have to change my mind after all. But not yet. Not until I'm stronger.