Chapter 41

"You're right! It's not me..." He charges toward me. "But the law of nature will decide!" He hits the ground where I was, so hard that the concrete breaks and lifts under the weight of the impact.

What the..." I lose my balance but hang on and go over a concrete block. "Honestly, I thought a player who could control plants wouldn't be so strong!"

"Haven't you ever heard of those lotus seeds that sprouted after being extracted from ruins over a thousand years old? Or the weeds that grow through concrete? Plants are far more resilient than animals! And they're lending me their strength!" He said, shattering the concrete slabs into small pieces.

[BOOST] Without answering, I raise my hand towards him and charge my magic circuits, creating bluish flashes all around me, projecting a dozen swords above me and launching them like missiles in his direction. He shields his face with his arms in front. But each blow leaves only a few small cuts here and there on his armor.

(As I suspected, my blades will be of no use against such armor...)

Suddenly, I see a large root rush towards me and grab my gauntlet.

"I don't know what this gauntlet is for, but better get rid of it, the arm with it." The root begins to squeeze hard.

I make my gauntlet disappear and leap to the side to make it reappear immediately [BOOST].

(He can do that too huh, it's going to be complicated...)

I charge my circuit and, in a bluish flash, conjure up a dozen clones.

"I see... your magical abilities are going to make my job a lot harder! You've shown little use of your magic through the cameras, but now you're going all out. It's pretty well thought out, but poorly executed, you could barely scratch my armor. What do you intend to do, now that I know what you're capable of?"

"You talk too much for someone who's outnumbered." At my signal, my clones charge toward him, surrounding him.

The huge root that serves as he's tail sweeps away most of them, but it allows me to project a bow and sword that I transform into a steel arrow. I bend the bow, reinforcing it with the sword and my arms. [BOOST] Feeling the power building up inside me, I take a deep breath, then [BLOOD POINTER] breathes in the energy from the plants around me. Sensing this, my clone disengages, leaving the florist in front of me.

"What the?!" Seeing this, the florist panics.

I let go of the rope, setting off the arrow so hard that I fall. The florist has time to create a wooden shield, saving him from being pierced but sending him flying into the wall behind him, releasing a thick layer of smoke.

( Damn it... If only I'd finished All Might's training sooner, I could have destroyed his damned armor with my fist!)

The florist emerges from the smoke, limping slightly, the blow seems to have had more effect than I thought.

"It was a close call, but it looks like we're both getting tired fast, so it's time to call it a day."

Feeling the ground vibrate, I jump to narrowly dodge the roots trying to pierce me. I run across the reception room, dodging the various vegetation attacking me from all sides, when I'm caught off guard and find myself trapped, bound against my will in a wall of ivy.

Hearing loud footsteps, I turn my head to see the florist charging towards me, shoulder forward, ready to slam into me. I brace my body just before impact. The blow is so violent that I vomit, waltzing through the air and falling to the ground, unconscious.

*CLANG*

It's dark, I have no sensation except for the pain coursing through my body. Yet I can hear the powerful sound of a hammer striking hot metal.

*CLANG*

With each strike, something lights up in the distance, as if approaching.

"How much longer are you thinking of sleeping in my forge kid?" His voice sounds like mine.

*CLANG*

When I open my eyes, I find myself in a small room, tools everywhere, an extremely hot furnace and a man, crouched down, beating steel with his hammer. He works shirtless, very muscular, with a long sleeve protecting the arm that carries the hammer. And rather wide pants, with pockets on the right leg, and an iron plate below the knees down to the foot.

*CLANG*

"Why are you here? You still have things to accomplish, don't you?" He asks me, in a more composed tone than before.

*CLANG*

"I know. What about you? What are you doing here?" I ask, getting more and more used to the bright light of the oven.

*CLANG*

"What a question, I forge swords over and over again."

*CLANG*

"...For how long?"

*CLANG*

"A long, long time!" He puts down his hammer. "Those swords you're projecting..." Without any effort, his magic circuits light up and he creates in a torrent of flame one of the swords I can project. "Western swords mostly, eh? It's pretty well reproduced, the only problem is that they're empty when you project them, aren't they? You're not able to reach his level yet?"

I widen my eyes at his words, surprised at how much he knows about me... about us.

(Who is he...? He looks just like me, except he's in his late thirties... Is this him before...? No, then someone else?)

"Indeed, I'm still just a beginner."

Seeing me in a desperate position, he simply stares at me with his amber eyes, exactly the same as mine.

"Go back to where you came from. On the battlefield, every second counts!"

"I know that! But my blades barely manage to scratch his armor, with the shield he just added, I don't see how I could beat him!"

He remains silent for a few seconds, pondering my situation.

"Hmm? Tusks that can withstand sharp blades and are reinforced with magic? Now that's impressive!"

"It's not something to be taken lightly! It's my life at stake!"

"hey hey hey... We're back to the old story of spear versus shield! If your enemy has equipped himself with extra protection, it's because he didn't consider the armor to be enough, right? There can't be much missing to pierce it! Let's see..." He pauses, staring at the blade as if he could observe every atom making up the blade. "Why not sacrifice the lifespan of your blades?"

Without even needing to explain, the information scrolls through my brain, as if he were giving me his knowledge by thought.

"Who the hell are you?!" I stand up, my head reeling after so much knowledge rammed into my skull.

"Me?" He turns his gaze one last time, as all the rest plunge into darkness. "My name is Mu..."

When I open my eyes, he's gone. Instead, I find myself in the hotel lobby, with two of my last clones desperately stalling for time for myself.

I stand up slowly, the pain of the impact still felt throughout my body. Seeing me conscious again, he blows away the last clone with his fists and moves towards me.

"I'm going to give you a quick, painless death!"

(So I can do that sort of thing, reinforcing the blade is just a step then... On top of that, he also gave me another alternative if the blades really don't work... This guy...)

[BOOST] I activate my magic circuits and begin to project a blade.

"You'd have been better off staying down, it would have saved you a lot of suffering!" Said the florist, swinging his fist.

"Shut up..."

"What?!"

"I told you to shut up!"

The blade finally projects, and after a long effort and a lot of energy consumed, the blade is marked with fluid, water-like patterns.

"Damascus steel...?" The florist wonders.

"It's not for you to tell me when to die!"

[BOOST] I dash towards him, bringing my blade down. He protects himself with his shield, but what a surprise when he sees the shield fall, cut in two, and slash his arm.

"How is this possible!?" He steps back and throws the root at me.

I put my gauntlet forward, taking the blow, which causes me to slide a few meters, but the pain is minimal. I stare for a second at the hilt of the sword that's remained in my hand, then throw it away, disappearing in its turn.

(The blade broke off at one point, but with very good results...)

"Hey, florist, it's round two. So get ready." I start sucking in the energy around me.

He grimaces and follows up directly, sending the root straight at me to impale me with it. I dodge it, spinning around and speeding towards him.

When I'm close enough, he throws his right fist, which I deflect with my gauntlet and cover my right arm with a layer of energy, turning luminous white with a vapor-like trail. I strike at the ribs, cracking the armor on impact and taking the florist's breath away.

(Incredible, I didn't expect it to work so well.)

I feel vibrations in the ground and jump back, dodging roots emerging rapidly from the soil and chasing me.

(There are two types of magic, there's what we now call energy, chakra, ki etc... that's the magic we, as humans, produce.)

I create two swords and slice the roots, then overload them, creating cracks all over the blade, letting out flames.

(And then there's the magic generated by the planet, propagated by plants.)

I throw them at the florist, who is now wary, and try to deflect them to avoid being cut, but the blades explode on contact.

(Normally, today's humans can no longer use this magic, except with an item that allows it or an ability, which is my case with the Blood Pointer.)

I jump up and pass through the smoke, taking him by surprise, but he still has time to put his arms forward in the shape of a cross to protect himself. I hit his arms, cracking the armor and knocking him back.

(So with my Blood Pointer, I suck the energy out of his plants, weakening them and making them less durable, as well as sucking in a powerful fuel, the planet's magic, far more powerful than the energy we produce with our bodies.)

"That's enough!" The florist gets angry.

The ground begins to shake, as huge roots, more like giant trees, emerge from the ground, completely destroying the floor and hurling me into the air.

"Yes, that about sums it up. But it doesn't change the fact that the more you use this ability to suck up energy around you, the more you self-destruct, so please moderate your use of it." Ddraig grows impatient.

I project two swords in mid-air and overload one of them, firing it at the florist, while the other one plants itself next to him.

"I know, but I don't expect to live long anyway."

Staring at the blade, I connect with it and swap places, surprising the florist who is still in shock from the explosion. [BOOST] This time I use my gauntlet to strike his helmet, shattering it and causing his head to bleed. He reacts immediately and strikes with both fists, which I stop with both arms. I can feel my whole body trembling under the impact, digging into the root bark beneath my feet.

But I resist, turning my magic circuits all the way up, to project a supercharged sword over our heads. The florist looks up and jumps back to dodge. But I leave it suspended in the air and go after him. Surprised, he tries to hit me, but I stop him and make the sword appear in my hand.

"At close range?!" he can't believe it.

I hit him full force, the explosion pushing us both back. [BOOST] I struggle to my feet, but I know it's not over yet, as I watch him rise to his feet, his armor completely shattered here and there.

(He doesn't have enough energy left to reform his armor?)

"Ddraig, it's time to end this." I announce, pointing my gauntlet forward.

"Finally."

[EXPLOSION] All the accumulated power is released, creating a red and green aura around me. I charge towards him. Seeing this, in a last effort, the florist tries to block my path with various plants, but I cut them all down. Then he lifts himself up thanks to a tree growing underneath him. I project a sword made of Damascus steel and with one blow, cut the base of the tree in two, starting to topple it. But what the florist didn't see coming was the kunai I projected at the same time as the sword and sent in his direction. It ricocheted off his shattered armor, only now realizing it. I switch places with it, and meet his gaze, one of defeat. I throw out my left fist, my gauntlet glinting with a bright red and green light, and strike him with all my might, creating an explosion of energy, spreading across the room like waves, shattering windows and igniting all the vegetation present. The florist is propelled like a bullet towards the ground, crashing into what little concrete remains.

Seeing that the tree is about to topple over, I jump up and grab hold of the trunk with the claw of my gauntlet and climb down, then leap to avoid falling on a burning root.

I walk slowly towards him, feeling my strength leave me little by little. I project a blade just in case. A loud boom is heard behind me, the tree has fallen, breaking and rekindling the flames consuming the plants left by the florist. I can feel the heat at my back, and see the embers swirling around me. I stop in front of him, eyes wide open, shocked by his defeat.

"Hey, moron, you lost." I point the blade at his face.

"Gee..." His face returns to its serious, but calmer look. "I thought I could win easily... You put up a good fight, please finish me off!" He said, laying his head on the ground, accepting his situation.

"Pff, always thinking the decision is yours. Aren't you afraid to die?" The question may sound cynical coming from me.

"I've got heart problems, I wasn't going to be around much longer anyway!"

"I see, I'd hate for you to snap now so your heart will have to wait a while before letting go."

"What are you talking about?" He raises his head in surprise.

"This treasure hunt, I..."

My gauntlet suddenly disappears. A violent pain throughout my body cuts me off, I feel no strength left in my body and fall to my knees, holding on with my sword. My nose begins to bleed, and I vomit blood.

"Hey! Are you okay?!" The florist is surprised.

"No sudden moves, florist." Emerging from the shadows of the doors leading into the chambers, Rain points her sniper at his head. "Or I'll blow your head off!"

"Don't worry, I'm out of action for now, like your friend I guess."

Rain approaches us, looking around, stunned by the damage we've caused and trying to protect herself as best she can from the heat gusts.

"Damn, that hurt like hell..." I wipe the blood from my face.

"You need to take a breath..." Rain worries, then turns her gaze back to the florist. "If you rest for a while, your power will come back, right?"

"Still, you'd have to give me time!"

"Perfect! In that case, let's make a deal, Ichiro Hiragi!" Rain lowers her sniper.

"A deal?" He repeats, removing what's left of his armor.

"What do you know about this treasure hunt? Do you know how many bracelets are in this hotel?" Rain asks.

"There must be 24 of them, why?" Ichiro replies.

"Are you aware that the leader of the Eighth, that psychopath One, is taking part in the event?"

Hearing this, Ichiro's gaze changes completely, you can see the anger in his eyes.

"Are you sure about this?"

"I'm the analyst, my specialty is information exchange! Several players present in Shibuya sold me information on their competitors. It cost me a lot of money, but I gathered data on the participants to keep an eye on and on their supposed sigils! The first phase of the game is coming to an end, the strongest players have already collected most of the rings and they now know where to find a lot of them, so they're going to start killing each other! All three of us play solo. In our current state, we won't have enough strength left to resist One and his men when they swoop in to take all 24 bracelets. I can only see one way out of this." She turns her gaze to me.

"Form a temporary clan to resist the Eighth. Either we die each on our own, or we all survive together!" I say loud and clear.

Rain nods, then turns to the florist, who looks at me with interest. Then stares into space, pondering our proposal. After a few seconds, he sighs and smiles for the first time since we met.

"Very well, I accept your proposal, I don't think I really have a choice anyway."

"Perfect! That's done, now off to bed both of you, we need you to be on top form." Rain points back to where she came from.

"I don't know what's wrong with me lately, I'm completely drained!" I complain.

"That doesn't surprise me, you're not getting enough sleep!"

I'm in a classroom, with only Kyouda Hiroyuki for company, he had medium length light colored hair and darker eyebrows.

"You think so? I feel like doing nothing for a whole week."

"Cheer up, it's almost February break!"

"You bet, first there's a whole raft of controls..."

"Ha ha! Yeah, I forgot!"

"...By the way, I wanted to ask you something."

"Yes?"

"Why did you start playing Darwin's Game?"

"To pay for what I wanted! When I heard we could earn a bundle, I didn't hesitate! And then there's our promise..."

"Huh?"

"Yes! You know, when you get your driver's license, we agreed we'd take a ride on our bikes this summer!" A warm smile spreads across his face.

My eyes widen in surprise at his answer.

"Idiot, you didn't have to buy a 400cm³. You'd have told me, I could probably have gotten you the same jobs I do and saved up for a cheap used scooter."

"Sorry, buddy. At first I didn't want to get you involved, but you're the type to keep a cool head and get out of the worst situations! Remember when we got cornered by those shady guys in the arcade? You overpowered them with ease, and they ran off with their tails between their legs - a real class act! So I'm thinking that, unlike me, you might be able to..." He turns his head towards the windows.

Suddenly, my friend and the classroom are abruptly changed by the hotel ceiling. My senses come back to me, I'm lying in a bed, and my body, still numb from the fight, seems much better.

"You're having one of those heads, a nightmare?" I turn my head to see Rain sitting in an armchair, phone in hand and looking at me with mild concern.

"Yeah, you could say that." I reply, sitting down.

"I see..." I can see hesitation in her gaze, but she makes up her mind, standing up and pointing to her phone. "I didn't want to bother you with this as soon as you woke up, but I think you should be warned."

I take her phone to see the entire Shibuya district blocked off, barricaded by policemen, shinobi and heroes.

"Outside intervention?" I think aloud.

"I doubt it, they mainly help civilians evacuate the area and calm down players who are a little too adventurous. Besides, trying to calm things down players in the middle of a game of Darwin's Game, especially with so much money to be made, doesn't seem like a good idea..."

"Indeed, they wouldn't dare intervene. If they arrest players without or with insufficient rings, it's certain death. But wait..."

"They're aware of it, I guess the game's creator has warned the whole of Japan about this event. In any case, it's best not to hang around near the borders of Shibuya, even if they accept players looking to escape, all of whom have several rings on them. That's what I'd have done if we weren't in the center of Shibuya."

"I see... It's probably for the best. But I can't help thinking they'll still try something..."

"It's quite plausible, after all, there's a group of criminals, it would be a shame not to take advantage of it. Anyway, you know the current situation. By the way, you've been getting messages."

I take my phone from the bedside table and see that I've indeed received many worried messages from Fuji-nee and my comrades, knowing that I'm in Shibuya. I try to answer them but no message comes through.

"People worrying?" Rain asks.

"Yes, it's so frustrating not being able to answer them..."

Then I see a message from Darwin's Game. I open it to see that it's Shuka.

"I'll be right there! Whoever has the fewest bracelets has a dare!"

(Of course, it's really just a game to her...)

"I've just received news from Shuka, she'll be joining us shortly."

"Very good."

Seeing that I've decided to get up, Rain looks at me insistently.

"Are you sure you're going to be okay? You barely slept three hours!"

"That'll do, more importantly, where's the florist?"

"He got up a little before you did, he's reforming the barricades on the ground floor! Fortunately, the Eighth haven't taken action yet..."

"Would you go get him? We still have some business to take care of."

"Come on! What's all the fuss?"

The man covered in protection who left me alive earlier in the afternoon is sitting on the floor, his hands tied behind his back. While I was alone with him, he was just looking at me and staring at the carpet, but he starts to get agitated when he sees Rain and the florist arrive.

"Ah right, you've teamed up! What are you going to do with me? Kill me? No need to get your hands dirty, just leave me tied up, without bracelets, I'll die at the end of the event!"

"I'll give you some." I approach him and place three bracelets in front of him.

"Tss... Monsieur plays the great lords?"

"Not at all, you spared me earlier, so I'm returning the favor."

"Seriously?"

"If you promise not to attack us, I'll untie you and give you back your gun."

"What are you doing to me? What's in the back of your head?"

"You're playing solo too, don't you want to join forces with us for the duration of the game?"

I don't know what he's thinking behind his helmet, but he seems to be staring at me.

"No thanks!" He replies. "If it was just you and the girl, fine, but no way would I work with that guy!" He turns his head towards the florist. "He was the one controlling my brain, I can tell at a glance! And I'm not about to forget the experience!"

"Hmm, that's understandable, you won't be able to convince him as long as I'm with you." The florist tells me.

"So it would seem, yes."

I pass behind the masked man and begin to undo his ties.

"Hey! I said I refuse your proposal!" He snarls.

"I heard you. But at least you don't seem to be our enemy."

"You're so naive!" He said, standing up with his hands free. "Well..."

"We left your machine gun and ammo by the elevators!" Warn Rain.

"Thank you very much!" The masked man raises his hand. "'Bye now, I won't try anything against you until the treasure hunt is over!" He turns to us before leaving.

"That's all we ask." I watch him go.

"In the end, our team is limited to three, plus Shuka. How many will be the Eighth, counting One?" Asks the florist.

"At least five, according to my sources, and given the size of their clan, there could well be three times as many." Rain briefs us.

"Wait a minute!" The masked man strides back towards us.

"What? You're already going back on your word?" Asks the florist, on the defensive.

"But no! You mentioned One of the Eighth! That bastard is taking part in the event?!" He asks loudly.

"Several players have claimed to have seen him. I'd be surprised if it was a case of mistaken identity, given the way he looks!" Rain explains.

"Ha ha ha... That's right! So that bastard's around... He's bound to come here, tempted by all the bracelets! I've changed my mind, let me join you!"

"Well what?"

The guy in the mask has just taken off his helmet and mask, and looks exactly like Hiroyuki, but older.

"Nothing, it's just that you look like someone I know." I'm a little surprised.

"I thought you'd look worse with a dirty face!" On the other hand, next to me, Rain doesn't hesitate to send out spikes.

He turns away pouting and starts to put his hood back on.

"Oh no, don't put your mask back on! I'm tired of talking to a skull!" I stop him just in time. "Getting back to what we decided, uh..."

"Ryuji! That's my name in the game. Where are the other three players who were being manipulated? Didn't you offer them an alliance?" He asks.

"With the injuries we inflicted on them, they wouldn't have been much use to us, so we released them with three bracelets each." Rain explains.

"Your good heart will get the better of you!" Ryuji teases, a smirk on his face.

"No, it's not worse, the more rings you have the more attention you get. In the end, we have 15 left. Six topazes, two peridots, two lapis lazuli, one ruby and two sapphires. 3800 points in all." I count the number of rings left on a round table. "As agreed, Ichiro will receive half the money earned and the three of us will split the rest."

"I'm not complaining, but it really doesn't bother you?" Asks the florist.

"No, that's what we decided."

"Me, I was your prisoner not so long ago so I have nothing to say about it." Ryuji quips. "We can always divide the bracelets we take from the Eighths equally!"

I turn my gaze to Rain, who has said nothing, concentrating on her phone.

"What is it, Rain? Something bothering you?" I ask her.

"...When I reread the game rules, I realized that the scoring system was weird!" She explains.

"Really? Into what?" I approach, followed by Ryuji, curious.

A few seconds go by, Rain rereading the rules over and over again.

"I don't see anything special..." I give up, not seeing the problem.

"Can you enlighten us?" Ryuji seems as lost as I am.

"I guess men aren't that interested in gems..." Rain turns her face towards us. "Let me explain: the value of topaz is far superior to that of lapis lazuli. So it shouldn't be at the bottom of the ranking! What's more, the four so-called 'precious' stones are, from most expensive to least, diamond, ruby, sapphire and emerald. While at first glance you might think that points are awarded according to the value of the gems, in fact the order is not respected at all!"

"The conceptuers must have made the scale on a whim, especially since in reality they're just scrap metal rings with a touch of paint!" Ryuji offers an explanation that doesn't seem to satisfy Rain.

"It's a plausible explanation... Except there's also something wrong with the way the rules are worded!"

We reread the rules again, but still nothing comes of it.

"What do you mean?" Ryuji and I ask.

"If no one has completed the game by the end of the allotted time, players with fewer than three bracelets in their possession will be game over..." Ichiro reads the rules aloud. "That's strange indeed."

"I think so too! It makes you wonder what finishing the game is all about!" Rain says.

"Well, you have to have found three rings, don't you?" Ryuji asks, counting the rings on the table just in case.

"In this lock, why talk about finishing the game and owning three bracelets in the same sentence? It's redundant!" Rain gets her head around the rules.

Suddenly, as I reread the rules and sentence structures over and over again, something clicked in my head.

"Now that you mention it, I too see something fishy in this text. Nowhere does it mention that the bracelets are Shibuya's hidden treasure."

The three of them look at me in surprise, not knowing how to react to what I've just said.

"It's really interesting, but right now we don't care." Ryuji cuts the silence. "We'd better think about how we're going to beat the Eighth!"

"Senji, your friend should be here any minute, right?" Asks Ichiro. "Better go down and welcome her, since I've barricaded the entrance and laid a few traps."

"Don't worry, I asked her to send me a message as soon as she got here." Just as I say this, my phone starts ringing, a message from Shuka. "Speak of the devil."

I open it to see a more than worrying message.

"What does 'help' mean? Is this a joke?"