Surviving in a World Teeming with Monsters with the Useless Skill 【Everyday Items Master】! I Was Just Hunting Wild Animals with a Crowbar, So Why Is Everyone Screaming It's an S-Rank Monster? - 117

Chapter 117: The Smoldering Mad Bandersnatch

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When Shuuya awoke, no one was there.

“…What… No, that’s right.”

A brief moment of confusion. Then, he caught his breath.

“Nee-san was taken.”

What had happened just moments before. His sister, brainwashed by the Offspring. The twins and himself were killed. But the twins should have sustained lighter wounds than Shuuya. If they’d only had their hearts gouged out, they should have awakened before someone whose body had been mangled.

That assumption was crushed by the sound of approaching footsteps.

“…What is it?”

It wasn’t just footsteps drawing near. There was a dragging sound, like something heavy being pulled along.

Even Shuuya, sharp as he was, couldn’t immediately identify it. But then he recognized the breathing. A familiar rhythm. With that, and realizing the twins were absent, Shuuya sprang to his feet.

From the darkness, he emerged.

“Yo, Koufukuji.”

The only one Shuuya acknowledged as his equal.

“I’m here to kill you and take Luna back.”

The Everyday Items Master appeared, dragging the twins by a measuring tape.

“…You… Those twins, what did you do to them?”

“Huh? These two?”

The Everyday Items Master grinned maliciously.

“Can’t you tell just by looking? They’re dead, obviously.”

“-!”

Shuuya jumped back sharply, placing himself at his ideal fighting range. Then, with a katana in his right hand and a revolver in his left, he said.

“I’ll kill you.”

“What’s this, Koufukuji? You sound just like me when I lost everything.”

The Everyday Items Master—Monobe—let the tape fall, readying his crowbar and umbrella.

“Don’t mimic me just because you lost your family.”

“Die!”

Shuuya aimed his revolver at Monobe and muttered his routine.

“Two to the torso, one to the skull.”

【Triple Shot】

Three bullets fired almost simultaneously. With the benefit of Legendary Gunner skill, Shuuya’s revolver firing speed surpassed human limits. The triple shot was delivered in an astonishing 0.06 seconds. Ignoring reload, Shuuya could fire fifty rounds per second.

And yet, Monobe said.

“You think you can beat me with the same trick twice? Idiot.”

【Open Umbrella】

The raised umbrella deflected Shuuya’s bullets.

“Tch.”

Clicking his tongue, Shuuya dashed forward. A normal umbrella should have been crushed by a single shot. Yet Monobe’s deflected them with ease. Fine then. Shuuya closed the distance. He drove into the space before Monobe, who was fully focused on defense.

Then, forcefully, he tore the umbrella away with his sword.

“You’re more forceful than I thought.”

【Hook Set】

As if synchronizing with Shuuya’s attack, Monobe swung the crowbar. To that, Shuuya replied.

“The thicker the defense, the more brittle it is when breached.”

【Willow】

Shuuya deflected the crowbar with his blade, redirecting it. This was the principle of Yagyuu Shinkage-ryuu’s parrying technique that Shuuya had mastered. He named this defensive form simply: 『Willow』.

“Tch.”

Monobe clicked his tongue. The crowbar slid off the blade and struck the ground. His defense broken, his counter evaded, Monobe now had an opening.

“You thought you provoked my anger…”

And then…

“But it was you, Monobe, whose blade was swayed by rage.”

Shuuya struck with a blinding flash.

【Sudden Slash】

“Gaaah!”

『Sudden Slash』 A sword technique for close-range combat. If it was sheathing the blade and unleashing a wide sweep instantly, it was 『Iaido』. If it was repeated slashes, it was 『Thousand Blades』. But when aiming for a guaranteed hit, a movementless, unavoidable strike—that was 『Sudden Slash』.

The sheer force sent Monobe flying, rolling nearly ten meters across the ground. Shuuya returned his sword to its sheath, frowning.

“Drop the act. Something felt off in that strike. And…”

He narrowed his eyes.

“I saw you as my equal. I never expected this fight to end so easily.”

“…You ever get told you’ve got no sense of humor?”

Monobe stood. Spray painted across his abdomen. Had he dodged using the spray? There was no time to wonder. As he rose, Monobe tossed a kitchen knife in the air and struck its hilt with the crowbar.

【Nail Drive】

The knife flew straight at Shuuya. Calmly, he slashed at it with his blade.

【Parry】

He knocked the first knife away. Then, he realized another was flying right behind it on the same trajectory. Eyes widening, Shuuya understood. Monobe had executed a godlike technique. He had thrown two blades along the exact same path and the second blade had been hidden behind the first.

To his senses, it felt like a sudden, inexplicable increase in attacks.

“Tch.”

【Quick Shot】

Unable to intercept the second knife with his blade, Shuuya shot it down with the precise aim of his gun, but then he realized again. That incredible knife trick—was just a bluff.

Behind both knives, a measuring tape had slithered from his blind spot, coiling around his arm.

【Infinite Tape Measure】

“-!”

Sword and gun. Both bluffs had occupied Shuuya’s defenses. The tape wrapped around his arm with ease. Monobe leapt, reeling it in.

【Powerful Retraction】

He had already witnessed Monobe’s wire-like acrobatics using the tape. Still, this was absurd.

“You’re going way too far for a fight between humans!”

“Is that so?! Because…”

As Monobe flew toward him, his posture shifted into a rider kick. Fine, then. Shuuya readied his blade. If the enemy was flying toward him, he would slice them down. Like a moth to the flame.

At the moment Monobe entered his striking range, Shuuya stepped in and slashed. But at the last second, Monobe detached the tape and spun midair.

“I guess we just see things differently, Koufukuji!”

“You’re the one with no damn common sense, Monobe!”

【Crowbar Warhammer】

【Parry】

Shuuya couldn’t deflect the full-weight crowbar blow with his usual 『Willow』. His blade was struck hard, and he staggered. Monobe landed, closing in.

“Man, you talk a lot! Were you the class representative in school or something, huh!?”

Swinging his weapon while spouting nonsense, Monobe was met with Shuuya’s reply.

“Wrong! I was on the beautification committee.”

Shuuya jumped back, regaining his calm during the momentary gap. He sheathed his sword, took a sharp breath, then stepped in with full force.

“Cleaning up trash was my specialty.”

【Iaido】

A fierce slash. Monobe met it with a crowbar swing—a likely counter. Shuuya subtly adjusted his angle to avoid his arm being caught. The crowbar passed through empty space, and his blade was on course to cleave Monobe in two—

【Crowbar Warhammer】

But the tip of the crowbar smashed Shuuya’s knee.

 “Gah!” 

Shuuya crumbled, his slash veering upward.

“Isn’t it great? Attacks that look like the same setup but do different things. That’s why people always call me cheap or trashy!”

Monobe flung another knife in the air. As it pointed toward Shuuya’s crushed knee, he stomped on the hilt.

“But if you can’t even read this level of cheap trick, you are the real trash!”

The knife drove into Shuuya’s knee. He screamed in pain.

What the hell is this guy?

Shuuya thought mid-to-close range was his domain. Up close: sword. Mid-range: gun. Beyond that, he yielded to his family members, specialists in those domains. But within that space, he thought he reigned supreme. But this guy…

He dominated Shuuya even at closer range. Worse yet, Monobe seemed to read ten steps ahead where Shuuya read two or three. He thought they were equals. Thought.

But now… It felt like they weren’t even in the same league. The confidence he had built up began to crumble.

“It’s the end. That was way too easy.”

With Shuuya’s knee shattered, Monobe’s knife closed in on his throat.

The end.

Death flashed through Shuuya’s mind. Utter defeat. Fear gripped him. If he died, the mission failed. There were no reinforcements. The others were dead. Shuuya was the final line. If he failed, the mission failed. The debt to his father, to his nation, would go unpaid. He would die as a useless talent.

He gritted his teeth. He could not let that happen. Staring down the knife digging into his skin, Shuuya pushed his thoughts to the edge. A veteran of countless battles, Shuuya caught a hint in Monobe’s words.

“With a knife, I’ll kill you.”

That meant the knife was the killing method.

Shuuya smirked.

“That was a slip. You shouldn’t have said that.”

The moment the blade touched his neck, Shuuya sliced through his own throat with his sword.

“What?!”

His head flew. Monobe was stunned. Even in midair, just a head, Shuuya felt relieved that his plan worked. Watching his hair scatter, he murmured to himself. 

“So much for my record of not losing my head after growing it this long.”

Among his family, Shuuya was most accustomed to bodily destruction. So he knew how to move a headless body. His body alone struck Monobe.

【Sudden Slash】

“-!”

Monobe couldn’t react in time. A horizontal slash. Defended too late with 【Open Umbrella】. But the late defense wasn’t enough—the blade sliced through Monobe’s side.

“Tch…Damn it…!”

Staggering, Monobe retreated. Shuuya’s body picked up his head and reattached it. He pulled out the knife in his knee. His father’s 『Song of Resurrection』 healed him. The severed head was restored. The knee wound vanished.

He was fully healed.

“The tables have turned, Monobe.”

“Change your name from Ashura to Dullahan, dammit!”

【Shukuchi】

Shuuya closed the distance instantly with footwork skill. Monobe was off-balance. Better than attacking would be shattering his defense with force.

【Iaido】

Blocked by the umbrella. But Monobe’s injuries and unstable footing weakened his defense. He was sent flying for real this time, rolling across the ground.

“You think I’ll lose to you!? Against someone who’s trying to steal someone’s family just for a job?!”

Even as he fell, Monobe sprayed through a lighter, unleashing a massive flamethrower. But it was a desperate counterattack. Shuuya dove through it.

“It’s not just a job! It’s a noble mission to protect the people! What about you!? How many lives has your personal grudge endangered!?”

【Thousand Blades】

Countless sword slashes scattered the flames. The fire clung to his blade, only empowering him.

“Tch…”

“What’s wrong, Monobe!? All defense now!?”

【Flame Blade】

The fire-wrapped sword sent slashes streaking through the air. By sheer chance, it became an airtight offense from Shuuya’s side. Shuuya, wreathed in flame, now looked like a monster as he charged Monobe.

Monobe gritted his teeth and fled. To his back, Shuuya once again aimed his revolver.

“Two to the torso. One to the skull.”

【Double Shot】

Two bullets exploded into Monobe’s body.

“I told you already.”

Monobe swung the crowbar behind him, neutralizing the shots. He spun around and threw something. It rolled across the ground—an alarm clock.

“The same trick won’t work twice!”

【Explosive Alarm Clock】

The thunderous sound and vibration startled Shuuya. He reflexively aimed.

Click.

Out of bullets. The chambers clicked emptily. A chill ran down his spine. He was going to lose. Not yet. He couldn’t die here! Shuuya clenched his teeth so hard they nearly cracked.

He slashed at the alarm clock with his sword. He scooped it into the air, flicking it to midair between him and Monobe.

“Koufukuji, you—”

“I’ll admit it. Monobe, you’re strong. Probably stronger than me. But…”

Shuuya cried out, desperate.

“Even so, I will complete my mission!”

The alarm clock exploded, blasting both Shuuya and Monobe away.

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