CH 34

Waffer was wagging his tail excitedly as we walked along this roadless path for three days.  Waffer’s tail  dangled limply when we finally arrived in front of the training ground.

“Hey, Ed. Is this the place?”

Well, I understood that feeling. After all, what we had in front of us was nothing but a natural stone wall.

“Sure, the Kuronuris around here are a little stronger, but not enough to bother coming all the way down here to fight them.”

“Haha, don’t be so hasty. I’ll open it now.”

“Open …?”

As Waffer tilted his head, I placed my hand on the stone wall and started examining its surface. Pretty sure it was around here… Oh, is this it? 

“Woahhhh!? What is this!?” Tia exclaimed.

“The wall is moving!?”

I inserted my finger into the small hole in the wall. Furthermore, I pushed the protrusion in further, the stone wall opened up with a sound. At the far end was a passageway that had obviously been maintained by human hands.

“The wall! The wall opened up!?” Waffer exclaimed.

“What is this? Hey, Ed, what’s this?” Tia asked.

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“Fufufu. Don’t be surprised yet. Come on, Tia, Waffer-san, please come inside.”

I bowed respectfully like a good butler, and two people with both puzzled and curious faces walked slowly in front of me. Of course, I followed right behind them, and after about a minute’s walk, we arrived at an open space.

“We’ve arrived! This is our secret training ground.”

“Ed, Ed! What the hell is this place! What kind of training can you do here?” Waffer asked.

“Don’t be in such a hurry, I’ll have it ready in no time.”

I calmed Waffer with my hand, who was shaking its tail so forcefully that it looked like it might break anytime, and made the necessary arrangements. On the other hand, Tia was looking around the room with her eyes full of curiosity… Well, there was nothing dangerous here.

“Here we go. Then, Waffer-san. Try crossing that line there. Tia, don’t step in the line, okay?　It’s not safe to get involved.”

“Here? I understand.”

Apart from Tia, who waved her hand without turning around, Waffer followed my words and crossed the line drawn on the floor. Then, a black line extended from a metal box enshrined in the back of the room and rose up in front of Waffer.

“Kuronuri? No!?”

Kuronuri’s figure trembled and shook, changing its figure into that of Waffer. The moment the transformation was complete, the Kuronuri Waffer attacked the real Waffer.

“Wafuu!? This is… strong and fast!!”

“That thing is a Mikagami. It is a kuronuri that copies the appearance and abilities of the enemy it confronts. I mean the last person that you can beat is only you. … How’s that? Isn’t this a great way to train?”

“Surely, this is great!”

Two Waffers were fighting fiercely in front of me. While I was watching the intense fight, Tia came up next to me, perhaps having finished examining the room.

“It’s an amazing Demonic beast … copying the appearance and power. Isn’t it a Kuronuri? Is this okay?”

“Hmm? What do you mean by okay?”

“I mean, if it’s as good as you are, that means there is a 50% chance of losing to it, right? It would be different if his opponent was a human being, but it’s a Kuronuri. Won’t it kill him if he loses?”

“Ah, that. For that… Oi, Waffer-san, I am sorry! But can you step outside of the line for a moment?”

“Wafu? I understand! Hahh!”

He bounced off the Black Waffer with a powerful palm strike and came back to us. Naturally, the black Waffer also chased after the black waffle, but it stopped just before the line.

“What?” Tia said, shocked.

“And, well, that’s how it goes. There is a limit to the length of the mimicry’s tentacles that the Mikagami can extend, which is just before this line. So, if it gets dangerous, you can basically get away by crossing the line. Oh, hi, Waffer-san. Thank you very much.”

“No problem! Then I’ll go back to my training!”

I thanked him, and Waffer jumped back over the line. Then the game resumed, which was worth watching, but unfortunately, I still had some explaining to do to Tia.

“There are other limitations, for example, Mikagami cannot attack at long range. To be precise, it can reproduce weapons that are used in close combat, such as … swords and spears, but it can’t reproduce shooting and throwing weapons like bows and gravel. I think it’s because a person can’t just detach a part of himself and launch it.”

“That’s true, I suppose. But then, what about magic?”

“Only humans can use magic in this world. Neither Chemonians nor Kuronuris can use magic. Moreover, each Mikagami only has one pseudo tentacle, so if more than one person is involved, they can easily attack the main body while one of them is attracting the tentacles. Why’s that? That’s because, though Mikagami is a fearsome and powerful enemy when confronted alone, but if more than two people attack it at once, it’s a more manageable foe. And even if you defeat that tentacle, unless you defeat the main body, the tentacle will revive again and again …Right? It’s the perfect training ground for Waffer-san, don’t you think?”

“So, that’s how it is. I’m convinced. … I’m just a little disappointed that it doesn’t seem to work for me.”

“It’s not impossible, but it doesn’t make much sense.”

Tia trained by sealing off her spirit magic the same way I trained for a situation where I would lose an arm or a leg. It was not meaningless in terms of being prepared for emergencies, but it was usually more meaningful to train to prevent them from happening.

“Oh, yes. Just to let you know, in case you are in trouble, try to cut the black line extending from the mimic tentacles rather than to cut the tentacles themselves. If you cut through it, the tentacles will stop moving. And the main unit is in the metal box by the wall. It’s protected so well that you can’t even accidentally knock it over, so basically it’s fine, but if you really attack it, it will probably break, so be careful.”

“I get it. Hmmm, I know it doesn’t mean much, but I still want to fight! Hey, hey, Waffer-san! After you beat it, will you let me fight the next one?”

“Alright! It’s more fun to be strong together than alone! Besides, it’s also training to see how others fight!”

“Yes! Then, it’s me next, and then Ed!”

“Oh, me too?”

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“That’s right! I know you can be serious if you fight against yourself, and I want to know how strong Ed really is!” Tia said.

“Ah, yes. I see. … Well, I’ll do my best.”

I subtly mumbled a few words while looking into Tia’s eyes, brimming with expectation.

It was obvious, but there was no way that a Kuronuri, who was incapable of using magic, could imitate the banishment skill, a fragment of God’s power. So, a normal fight would end with me winning even more one-sidedly than Tia. …

(No, I see. Sometimes it’s good to check my raw strength once in a while and work out, right?)

While there was nothing I could do about my physical body, I had accumulated countless skills and techniques over the past 100 years. It was not a bad idea to study and familiarize myself.

“Yoshi. If that’s the case, maybe I’ll show you something cool for a change?”

“What’s with you, Ed? I thought you looked reluctant, but now you’re ready to do it? Then, how about fighting other people’s Mikagami after you finish fighting with your own? Just a while ago, the black Waffer-san didn’t cross the line and disappeared, that means you can do it too, right?” Tia asked.

“Hmm? I can do it.”

“Oh, that’s good! Wafufu, I will prove that I am the strongest by knocking them (the Mikigamis) both off their feet!” Waffer said.

“Ara, I won’t lose either, you know? Hey, Ed?” Tia called out to me.

“Fufufu, let’s show him our level.”

I responded with a grin to the motivated duo. From that day on, the three of us began our hellish training.