Dropout Exorcist Part 1 Chapter 5

 Chapter 5: Joining the Fight

Shinya and Akane watched the fight unfold from a short distance away.

"We're totally out of the loop here, you know!"

"Yeah. But that oni's what they're after, so why not just let them do their thing?"

"That's not how this works! That oni's definitely going to get classified as Top Rank, you know! Just because he's got a spirit armament doesn't mean we know he can actually win!"

At Akane's words, Shinya thought that taking it down with just the two of them would probably be tough. Ryuki, as he was now, was probably stronger than the Ryuki he remembered. A spirit armament wasn't just a weapon; it was also an amplifier for spirit power. It amplified the already-high spirit power of a Six Houses practitioner. Barring an exceptional opponent, losing shouldn't have been on the table.

But the opponent in front of them was that exception. And besides...

(That oni, it's taking hits and everything, but instead of weakening, its malevolent energy just keeps getting stronger.)

Ryuki had probably noticed it too. The flow of the malevolent energy was off. From its forehead, hidden beneath its hair, ominous malevolent energy poured out, circulating through its entire body. That was what was strengthening it.

"Ugh, forget it! I can't just watch this! I'm going in too!"

Akane must have felt firsthand just how strong and abnormal the oni was. She'd apparently judged that Ryuki and the others alone couldn't handle it anymore and decided to join in.

"...Come, Flame Spear."

As spirit power condensed into Akane's right hand, flames appeared and blazed up fiercely. From within them, a single beautiful, crimson spear emerged. Its spearhead was a broad, razor-sharp blade.

The spear itself carried a beauty like some kind of jewel or work of art, and yet it was also a powerful weapon, polished and honed to its absolute limit, housing potent fire spirit power.

Akane's fire spirit armament. Her partner, condensing the might of overwhelming flame.

"I'm going. Shinya, wait here. That thing's a bit much even for you, no offense."

A switch flipped. The polished look vanished from Akane's expression, replaced by the face of a fighter.

"Got it. Be careful."

"Yeah. Make sure you watch closely."

She took one powerful step forward, closed the distance to the red-faced oni at high speed with her reinforced physical ability and drove the spear into its body.

"Haaaaah!!"

"Gruh!?"

The red-faced oni's body reeled under the sudden blow. At the same time, the spear bit into its flesh, dealing clear damage. At where the crimson spear's tip pierced through, a wound opened. Flame burst loose inside its body a heartbeat later.

"GOOOOOOOOH!?"

"How is it? How does my spear and fire taste?"

Pulling the spear back out and moving away, Akane asked the oni.

"Don't get in my way! This is my prey!"

"You lot alone can't take this thing down. Quit being stubborn and let me join in. Otherwise, you'll either let it get away, or worst case, you'll die."

It was a complete contrast to the Akane who'd been arguing with Ryuki moments before. She had said it without any emotion at all, just laying out the facts.

Whether Ryuki understood that too or not, he bit down hard on his lip.

"...Fine. But don't you dare get in my way."

"Sure. I'll do that. Coordinating properly would be tough anyway, so let's just each do our own thing."

Akane bent her knees right where she stood, dropped her hips, drew the spear back just slightly and thrust it forward at a speed which is too fast for the eye to follow.

In that instant, another spear made of flame shot out from the first and hurtled toward the red-faced oni. Unable to react in time, the red-faced oni took the flame spear dead-on.

The malevolent energy wrapped around its body was sliced through, set ablaze, and the flame carved even more wounds and burns into its flesh.

"...Still not enough, huh. Guess I really do need to drive the spear in directly for this to work."

Akane muttered, sounding irritated. The Hino clan's flames are specialized in offense. Akane's own case was no exception.

What's more, whatever her shortcomings might be from Shinya's point of view, she was a genuine powerhouse worthy of the Hino main house, a prodigy who could manifest a spirit armament of her own. On pure destructive power alone, she outstripped Ryuki entirely.

With a sharp motion, Akane extended her left hand to the side, and countless clumps of fire appeared behind her. They shifted shape, transforming into massive spears of flame, their form closer to swords than spearheads.

"Go."

With that short command, she pointed her left hand at the oni and all the flame spears launched at once. The oni tried to swat down the spears bearing down on it at high speed with its hand but the instant they touched its arm, they burst into a massive explosion.

"Gah!?"

Generating a fierce blast of heat and hot wind, the shockwave and flame of the explosion tore into the oni as if to erase it entirely.

"What are you standing around for!? Keep attacking without getting close!"

"Ngh! D-don't order me around!"

Ryuki and the others had been left momentarily stunned by the power of Akane's attack but her sharp scolding snapped them back into action.

Attacks from a distance, keeping away from the oni. The oni's means of attack were limited. Its physical toughness and strength were tremendous but as long as no one got close, it wasn't much of a threat.

On rare occasions, some oni could use youjutsu, though few could wield a truly powerful form of it. And even if this one could, all they had to do was avoid giving it any opening.

Akane, too, wrapped her spear thrusts and downswings in fire spirit power from a distance, sending them flying to attack. Whenever the oni looked like it might move, she'd multiply her spears like before to pin it down, keeping it exposed to Ryuki and the others' attacks the whole time.

This way, they could crush the oni without taking any damage themselves.

(I'll just push this through as is. Sure, a Top Rank youma might be tough but we've got two spirit armament holders on our side and that oni still looks like it's being tossed around by its own power. Even if it takes a bit more time, I'll bring it down solidly.)

Akane approached the oni without a shred of carelessness or overconfidence. She wasn't wrong about anything, and it would hardly be an exaggeration to say she was taking the best, most optimal approach available.

If she'd made even a single miscalculation, though, it was this: the oni in front of her wasn't normal. She'd left the question of why it had grown so strong suddenly for later.

"GRRRRRRRRRR!!! GOOOOOOOOH!!!!!"

The oni screamed. Right after, a change came over it.

ThuDUMP!

The oni's whole body lurched, as if it had pulsed like a single heartbeat.

Malevolent energy poured from its forehead. An eerie black-purple light flared and its hair lifted away. There, embedded in its flesh, was a huge purple gem that was the size of a human fist.

"What is that?"

Everyone froze. Even Akane and Ryuki, who'd kept up their attacks, found themselves staring at the sight despite themselves.

"GOOOOOOOOH!"

Its once-red body darkened toward black, growing even more massive as it did. Its claws lengthened, and the fangs jutting from its mouth grew longer still.

A sudden transformation that was impossible. That was what everyone present had thought. In a single instant, the red-faced oni, which had carried Top Rank youma-class power, had powered up to Special Rank, the tier above it.

"GOOOOOOOOOH!"

It let loose its roar toward Akane and the others. The sound itself became a shockwave, tearing straight at them.

"Ngh!"

Akane and Ryuki instinctively thrust out the hand not holding their spirit armaments, throwing up a barrier of spirit power.

But that barrier was shattered without the slightest resistance.

"No way!? Kyaaaah!"

"Whoaaaaah!?"

The shockwave sent both of them flying backward. That last one hadn't been a simple roar. It had been a terrifying shockwave of destruction, loaded with malevolent energy. The other Mizunami practitioners present were sent flying too, helpless to resist, slamming into trees and losing consciousness.

(Don't tell me, it actually became Special Rank youma class? A high-ranking youma, second only to Sovereign and Super Rank... A monster even top-tier exorcists would struggle to bring down solo. You've got to be kidding me. I don't feel like I can win this at all.)

Akane's assessment was correct. It was only natural that she'd shrink back. Without question, what stood before her now was on the upper end even within Special Rank.

Akane and Ryuki were by no means weak. Even a Top Rank youma, something exorcists almost never encountered at all, was one that Akane or Ryuki could probably have brought down, depending on conditions, matchups, and whether they had allies at hand.

But what stood before them now was a monster of a caliber that made even the two of them, together, doubt they could win.

"You monster! Take everything I've got! Water Dragon Cataract Breaker!"

He condensed the whole of his spirit power into his water spirit armament and unleashed it. A vast quantity of water compressed together, transforming into the shape of one enormous dragon. The massive dragon spread its jaws wide and lunged at the red-faced oni.

But...

"GOAAAAAAAAAH!"

Along with the oni's growl, malevolent energy condensed into its right hand. It drew its right fist back to about its armpit, then thrust it straight out at the dragon.

A mass of black malevolent energy shot out and collided violently with the dragon. A thunderous boom and the sound of bursting water rang out. The mass of malevolent energy blew apart the water that made up the dragon, scattering it across the surroundings.

It didn't stop there, either. Even with most of its force spent, the mass of black malevolent energy came flying straight at Ryuki.

"Gohh!"

His defense didn't make it in time and the malevolent energy sent Ryuki's body flying through the air. He slammed onto the ground and lost consciousness. His body was convulsing, so he wasn't dead. But blood ran from his mouth, and his arms and legs bent at unnatural angles.

(Did that attack cancel out his? No, the oni's power was clearly greater. In terms of raw power per hit, I'm still ahead for now but its malevolent energy's barely dropped so it can pull that move again and again. ...Even with my Flame Spear amplifying my spirit power, in terms of total reserves, I'm losing. I can't see a path to victory.)

Akane's face twisted in anguish. She ran through her options again and again, trying to work out the optimal way to fight, but the enemy's demonic power was simply too high. And even now, in this very instant, its malevolent energy kept recovering, climbing higher and higher.

(No, don't get weak-kneed. If I give up, it's over, right there. And if that happens, I'll just get killed, or eaten alive. And besides...)

She glanced toward Shinya. He was, as always, watching the youma without a flicker of change in his expression.

(Shinya's fine. Heh, seriously. Even in a situation like this, he's not scared at all. Guess he really does have nerve. Ah, wait, please don't tell me the punchline here is he's actually fainted standing up.)

Letting her mind wander around, she turned her gaze back to the red-faced oni.

(I'm the one who dragged him into this, so at the very least, I have to get Shinya out of here.)

Even if she couldn't win, she'd fight it out to the very last. Even in death, being eaten was out of the question. Even if it meant self-destructing, she wasn't handing this body over to some oni.

(Whew... Here I go, Akane.)

She steeled her resolve. Drawing in a deep breath, she raised her voice.

"Shinya! Leave this to me and run! I'll hold this thing off even if it kills me! You get word of this to the Hino clan!"

Even if she lost and died, as long as Shinya passed word to the Hino clan, her father and the main house would handle it. So then, she'd do what wouldn't leave any regrets behind.

(Ahh, if only there'd been a little more time, maybe I could have said what I haven't told him yet, what I wanted to tell him. Haha, guess this counts as a regret too.)

But if she told him that and then died, it might just leave Shinya with even worse feelings about it. And whatever answer she heard back, either way, she'd probably end up regretting it herself.

(Yeah, this is fine. This is how it should be.)

As long as she kept working as an exorcist, she never knew when she might lose her life, so she'd lived every day as fully as she could. The days since she'd met Shinya had been genuinely fun.

So...

(I am not letting Shinya die. Not him, not ever!)

With that resolve burning in her chest, she poured spirit power into her Flame Spear. Answering Akane's will, it blazed with a crimson glow.

Right at the very moment Akane was about to charge forward.

"Fgyaah!"

The instant she took her first step, Akane's nose smacked straight into something invisible and she let out a strange yelp as she fell flat on her backside.

"W-what is this!?"

Looking closer, a glowing spirit talisman floated in midair. And clumps of black malevolent energy kept crashing into it, over and over. Tracing the trajectory back to its source, she found the oni flicking its fingers like it was shooting marbles, launching those clumps of malevolent energy.

"Grown this much in this short a time and it's even picked up party tricks like that now. The key's got to be that gem-looking thing on its forehead."

Before she knew it, Shinya was standing right next to Akane. He was watching the oni, analyzing what made it so abnormal.

"Hey! Why aren't you running!? I told you to run!"

"Idiot. You think I could leave you behind and run off alone? Besides, you were planning to die, weren't you?"

"I wasn't planning to die. I just figured I couldn't win so I was thinking I'd self-destruct at the end and take it down with me."

"However you slice that, it sounds exactly like planning to die."

"S-shut up! More importantly, this spirit talisman..."

"Yeah. It's mine. I patched up the guys over there too. Left them unconscious, though."

As far as Shinya was concerned, it wouldn't do to be seen throwing his power around too openly just yet, especially while fighting a monster that even Akane and Ryuki couldn't take down. If the Mizunami side, Ryuki included, saw that (Akane aside), it could turn into a real headache down the line.

That said, having them actually die would be a problem too, so he'd healed them. In truth, he could have stepped in before they even got hurt. But being saved by a failure like him would probably rub them the wrong way so he'd just watched over things warmly instead. He'd healed them properly so there was no grounds for complaint.

"Shinya can use a defensive spirit art this powerful?"

"Also, I put up a fresh barrier around the whole area. Now no matter how much this thing rampages, there won't be any damage to the surroundings."

He'd built a barrier around the whole area, anchored on four spirit talismans. Now, whatever happened inside it, there'd be no damage to anywhere nearby.

Through the barrier, the surrounding area had shifted phase into another realm. The barrier arts exorcists used cut out a section of the world into another realm, creating an identical, separate world so as not to cause any damage at all to the original.

Shinya's version worked the same way but its strength and precision were on a completely different level and within the barrier he deployed, he could even suppress a youma's power to some degree. That said, against opponents Special Rank and above, it didn't seem to have much of an effect.

(...Besides, I had the feeling something was watching us too. Something or someone, was watching us.)

Ever since this oni had shown up, he'd felt someone's gaze on them from somewhere. That was exactly why he'd deployed such a powerful barrier: to keep anyone from peering in at what was happening inside.

"Eh? B-but Shinya, weren't you supposed to be unable to use barrier arts this powerful? A-and besides, the spirit power I'm sensing off you right now is on a totally different level..."

Isn't this more than mine? No, isn't it on a scale that doesn't even compare to mine at all? That was the question running through her mind.

It felt to her like the spirit power coming off Shinya was even greater than that of her father or her uncle, the head of the Hino main house. Why hadn't she noticed until just now? Partly because Shinya had been deliberately suppressing his spirit power but also because he'd been concealing it with a spirit talisman.

"...'A man not seen for three days should be looked at with new eyes,' or so they say."

"But I saw you yesterday and the day before that too."

"Don't sweat the small stuff. And leave the rest to me."

"That's the small stuff!? I don't think that's small at all!? And more importantly, 'leave it to me'? Hey! Are you out of your mind!? That thing's got Special Rank power! Even me and him together couldn't do it and you can't even use offensive spirit arts!"

Just as Akane said, Shinya still couldn't use offensive spirit arts, even now. There was the option of attacking through spirit talismans but unfortunately, none of Shinya's talismans were built specifically for offense.

"Yeah. Can't use offensive spirit arts and this talisman's not suited for offense either. But I've got no intention of losing to something on that thing's level."

Shinya's presence shifted. The spirit power welling up from within him surged higher. He couldn't release it, sure but even so, Akane could feel that vast reservoir of spirit power.

At the same time, a number of spirit talismans rose up around Shinya.

Eight of them in total. Counting the four already forming the barrier, that made twelve spirit talismans altogether.

God-Forged Spirit armament (Artifact): The Twelve Star Talismans.

Something the god had made when Shinya crossed over to the other world, given form out of Shinya's own spirit power and which Shinya himself had since evolved further: a one-of-a-kind spirit talisman.

It wasn't actually derived from the twelve constellations or anything like that but it could store vast quantities of Shinya's own overwhelming spirit power and be operated remotely as well. It amplified effects like defense, barriers and healing too.

What's more, simply keeping one attached to his own body would automatically defend him against attacks, and it also had the effect of concealing his overwhelming spirit power.

A single one could block a tsuchigumo's attack with room to spare and could fully block even that empowered red-faced oni's attacks too. And against a bodiless opponent, simply having a talisman stick to it was enough to purify it.

On the flip side, its effect against beings with a physical body was weak. If something was possessing a human, it could forcibly tear the two apart even with a physical body involved but it didn't deal any real damage on its own. So while it worked fine against evil spirits and the like, it couldn't land an effective hit against something like a youma.

"If you can't use it to attack, how are you supposed to beat it!?"

Even Ryuki's attack had been canceled out entirely. There was a good chance even Akane's full-power attacks wouldn't get through. That was why Akane raised her voice and pressed Shinya for an answer.

"How, you ask? Like this."

In an instant, Shinya's figure vanished from where he stood.

"!?"

By the time Akane noticed, Shinya was already standing directly in front of the red-faced oni and leaping up, he drove his clenched fist into its face with everything he had.

"GUGAAH!?"

The oni let out a cry that sounded almost like a scream as its massive body tilted.

"Not done yet!"

One hit didn't end it. He drove both fists into its face and body, over and over again. Shinya's fists, condensed with spirit power, carried more destructive force than even Akane's Flame Spear attacks. With every punch that landed, the oni's face twisted in agony.

"Haah!"

Finally, he drove a brutal uppercut into the oni's jaw, this time aiming for the crown of its head before bringing his heel down, a so-called heel drop, driving the red-faced oni's face straight into the ground.

"How to beat it? Simple, isn't it? You just hit it with a physical attack loaded with spirit power, like this."

A simple, straightforward answer. Power up and hit it with physical force. That's all there was to it. Shinya couldn't release spirit power in any ordinary way but he could still condense it within his own body.

Gather a vast amount of spirit power into a fist or a foot and that alone was enough to turn it into an attack of overwhelming destructive power.

"GOOOOOOOH!"

But there was no way the red-faced oni would go down from just that. It had taken damage unlike anything before but it could still fight. It wasn't about to end at this level.

Against that red-faced oni, Shinya let his killing intent loose.

"!?"

"You will be perfect as a measuring stick. Let me use you to check exactly how far up the youma ladder I can deal with. Come at me."

One of the heroes who had saved another world. The man who bore the title of Guardian: Hoshimori Shinya. His power is unleashed now, aimed straight at the youma.