My blood welled so badly that I felt as if my whole entirety was burning.
My emotions, my soul, my everything at this moment.
The longing, the thirst, and my fighting spirit— all on fire.
“…Haha.”
What distress I was in.
My whole body was screaming, and if there were a limit, it would definitely have passed long ago.
All the danger signals were clearly lit.
I steadied my feet, disregarding the danger of the crisis I was in right now.
I was standing on this ground.
Why was that? Why was I standing here?
That was a given.
I already knew the answer to that question, I was more aware of it than anyone else.
I was afraid to no end… The sole feeling of “fear” enveloped me.
I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to achieve what I’d set my heart on, to let go of the longing I had.
I couldn’t not ignore all of the life-threatening cries that were going in and out of my brain even if I wanted to, and what I was more afraid of was dying without being able to become a “Star Slayer.”
“How… unbearable.”
I spent my days constantly swinging a stick, hoping to be a “Star Slayer.”
I would slay them someday.
But the repetitive act that I was doing towards a vague desire had somehow led to a small doubt that even I, myself, was unaware of.
To put it simply, it was far away.
My dream of being a “Star Slayer” was just so far away.
So far away from where I was standing now, that I was doubting if I will ever be able to reach it myself.
The way to do so didn’t exist.
There wasn’t any room for improvement for me to do so.
That’s why it was unbearable.
I encountered a wall, one that someone like me could overcome.
That, more than anything, was more unbearable than anything else.
“……”
He stares at me skeptically.
The ogre reflected in my eyes is a fighting maniac who sees the value of life in a fleeting glimpse of death, so he must have instinctively understood that our natures are completely different.
Despite that, I still laugh at him.
I was laughing as if I was having a good time, hence probably the reason why he finds me skeptical.
“It’s simple. I’m laughing because I’m having fun, so why are you wondering about something so obvious? Huh? HUUUH?!”
The exuberance took over, and I shouted as I pleased.
And in the meanwhile, the fierce battle continued.
And my eyes, narrowed like those of a cat’s, caught every strike from the ogre, sparks flying everywhere as I parried them all.
“…Kgh— Hahaha…”
The ogre’s mouth twisted into a smile and let out a giggle.
His face was painted with glee, hardly seeming to feel any pain, despite the fact that one of his eyes had been crushed and his right arm had been cut off.
He kept swinging, swinging, swinging his sword.
Our swords struck each other, slashing the atmosphere to shreds in all directions.
I was fighting for my life.
Despite the fact that we were killing each other, we were both laughing as if were fun and unbearable.
“I’m really glad it was you. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be here right now!”
I’d grown because I met you, Ogre.
I would gladly shout out and say that I was able to grow because of you.
I was sure that if it weren’t for this hardship, I wouldn’t have a sword in my hand.
It was you who gave me the chance.
So I will shout it out, and thank you.
I will thank you— and swing my sword in gratitude.
That would be the greatest return I could give you.
“In order to be a ‘Star Slayer,’ I must always keep challenging the walls that stand before me! And it was you, out of all others, who made me realize that!”
From the very day I saw that dream, I longed to be a swordsman.
I had a thirst that no one could understand, and I continued to train in a foolish way.
But it wasn’t good enough.
That level of training wasn’t good enough.
I lacked everything, nothing I had sufficed.
But there was one thing that I needed, and that was to keep pushing myself.
All I had to do was to break the wall down and exceed my own limits… and reach what I would normally have never reached.
…I wanted to prove that I was the strongest.
It was a word that seemed extremely cliched, but it was the heaviest thing that was weighing on my mind.
A word that had never been easy to achieve.
“That’s why—!!!”
I had already acknowledged it.
From the moment I saw him, my instincts had recognized it.
The ogre in front of me was superior.
A much higher being than me.
“That’s why… I’m going to surpass you and move on!”
***
***
I put my heart and soul into the wall that I had to overcome and distanced myself from the ogre.
We’d already crossed swords with each other dozens of times.
And no matter how stout I acted, no matter how much I tried to look good, the end was near at hand.
Both of us had long passed our limits.
But yet, we stubbornly continued to wield our swords.
“H- Haaah—”
I inhaled the chilling air as much as I could and took it into my lungs.
Then, I bent down and stared with my eyes, which had been getting used to the dark night, bloodshot, and exerted all my strength.
Sweat gushed out of me.
Knowing that there wouldn’t be a next time, I stood with only my willpower.
This would really be the last time.
No matter whether I cried or laughed, this would be it.
“CUT— THROUGH!!!”
A desire, a longing, and a hope.
With all of my thoughts and emotions, I began to close in again.
My right arm was still dangling down, therefore, my left arm was the only one I could rely on.
I took one step.
And the more steps I took, the more I felt as if my life was being drained away, so I pressed down hard on the ground.