Chapter 81
Conquering death.
Countless people throughout history have sought its ultimate secret.
Yet not a single soul has discovered the technique.
Since the appearance of dungeons in the world, a long time has passed, and only recently has the category of revival-type anomalous substances begun to be discussed, thanks to the few that have been found.
Originally, the tools to achieve the mystery of revival were extremely limited—treasured heirlooms guarded by ancient kings all their lives, items that drifted in from other worlds by chance, or the remains of legendary creatures that no longer exist in this world.
The conquest of death has long been regarded as a divine miracle.
That's why humans performing miracles has always been a major issue.
Ever since their existence became known, religious conflicts have never ceased.
A massive war that claimed ten million lives was even sparked by a single revival-type anomalous substance.
To prevent such tragedies from repeating, the Treaty of Rome was established.
According to the Treaty of Rome, the names and locations of revival-type anomalous substances scattered throughout the world are designated, and most have been sealed away. Those that can cause conflict are managed by the Dungeon Foundation headquarters of each nation.
Furthermore, under Article 5, Section 1 of the same treaty, individual ownership of revival-type anomalous substances is no longer permitted. All such substances are owned by the Dungeon Foundation, and if someone possesses one, it is considered only a loan from the Foundation.
Article 6, Section 2 of the same treaty permits the lending of revival-type anomalous substances only to the top-ranked A-rank explorer of each country and to S-rank explorers unaffiliated with any nation.
Their use is strictly limited to dungeon conquest. Outside of that, no matter who dies, overcoming death is not allowed. Even if a family member dies, conquering death must not be done for personal reasons. If that were allowed, chaos would erupt worldwide.
Of course, this is all just the official stance.
In reality, new revival-type anomalous substances are being discovered somewhere today, and some high-society glutton for greed will surely pay a fortune to obtain one.
The world is built atop countless exceptions.
And again, today, a new exception was made known.
Shirokko had witnessed a true miracle.
"Finger Man, don't tell me you used a revival skill... it actually existed...?"
He had performed a divine miracle with his own hands.
The sound of the world tilting echoed.
Finger Man, wearing his sunglasses, quietly fixed his eyes on Shirokko.
A chill shot down Shirokko's spine.
He felt an overwhelming aura radiating from Finger Man.
The air grew tense. Right now, this was the center of the world, and the being before him was its king, and Shirokko stood before him. A strange reverence welled up within him. And yet, the presence of an overwhelming powerhouse that could crush his heart made his knees want to buckle.
"...I see."
Shirokko pulled out a Toughness Enhancer from his coat and injected it into his neck.
In the next instant, he pulled the trigger.
"Gray Justice (Justitia de Grigio)——"
Finger Man was faster than the bullets.
His figure vanished. Shirokko's eyes widened in shock.
A moment later, Finger Man appeared right in front of him.
Finger Man gently grasped the barrel of 'Vermilion Dawn (Aurora de Vermilio)' with his palm. The metal crumpled and flattened with a squish. The anomalous substance was destroyed with ease.
The bullet exploded inside the chamber, the mechanism burst apart, and fragments scattered.
"Tch!"
(This guy... he's fast...!)
Finger Man opened his hand, reached out, and grabbed at Shirokko's face.
This was the deciding moment.
Shirokko went all out to evade.
(Skill activation—'Footwork Lv5' 'Evasion Lv4' 'Survivor Lv3' 'Inflation Lv2')
'Footwork Lv5': Increased evasion and agility
'Evasion Lv4': Increased evasion and reduces enemy accuracy by 20%
'Survivor Lv3': Increased evasion and HP recovery
'Inflation Lv2': Continuous speed boost
(Once Inflation kicks in, MP consumption becomes insane, but I've got no choice.)
Shirokko barely slipped out of Finger Man's grasp and managed to backstep to widen the distance.
('Vermilion Dawn (Aurora de Vermilio)' got wrecked, huh...)
Shirokko drew his spare Beretta 92s, which he had prepared for just such an occasion, from his 'Shita Chi Storage ver2.1' and gripped one in each hand. Dual-wielding the most beautiful guns in the world, loaded with reinforced 9mm×19mm explosive rounds. A single shot would turn flesh into fireworks.
He layered skills on top of that.
(Skill activation—'Bullet Rain Lv6' 'Shooting Lv6' 'Precision Shot Lv4' 'Quickdraw Lv3' 'Fixed Damage Lv3' 'Urban Combat Lv2')
'Bullet Rain Lv6': Doubles bullet count
'Shooting Lv6': Increases ATK, rate of fire, DMG, and handling
'Precision Shot Lv4': Increases accuracy
'Quickdraw Lv3': Enhances handling
'Fixed Damage Lv3': Converts attacks into fixed damage
'Urban Combat Lv2': Increases ATK, reduces received DMG
"Shatter, Finger Man!"
The hammer roared. Gunpowder burst. The scent of smoke seared his skin.
Shirokko fired at an incredible rate, using the recoil to propel himself backward, instantly gaining distance. A divine feat, attacking and evading simultaneously.
A storm of amplified bullets, numbering in the thousands, pelted Finger Man.
Finger Man shielded his face and pushed forward head-on through the barrage.
He gradually broke into a run, then lunged forward with a deep step.
The moment Finger Man started running, the roof of the civic hall collapsed, the concrete ground peeled and flipped, streetlights were snapped, roadside trees were uprooted and flew skyward, high-rise windows began to shatter. A sonic boom ravaged the ground, painting a scene of catastrophe.
A tremendous gust of wind swept past Shirokko's face.
He lowered his stance and braced himself, trying not to be blown away.
"Huh? The hell was that... wait, Finger Man's gone... where'd he go?"
Shirokko startled, turning around in a panic.
Finger Man was standing about 200 meters away.
He was glancing around, seemingly bewildered.
"Huh? Shirokko's gone? Did he escape?"
"Chii chii chii! (Translation: You passed him, chii!)" "Gii! (Translation: You're going too fast, my master!)"
Hearing the Calamity ones, Finger Man realized he had overshot his target.
His eyes met Shirokko's, 200 meters away.
(Crap.)
Thinking that, Shirokko aimed the muzzle of his Beretta at Finger Man.
Another gust blew through. The next moment, Finger Man was standing right in front of Shirokko. Gripping both Beretta barrels with his hands, he slowly crushed them with a crunching sound.
Cold sweat poured from Shirokko's forehead.
He was moving at speeds literally too fast for the eye to follow.
Shirokko dropped the broken Berettas and pulled out another pair from his coat.
Using multi-skill activation and the recoil of the muzzle flash to his advantage, Shirokko fled at several dozen meters per second.
But he managed to escape for only three seconds.
No matter how much he varied his speed, he couldn't get away.
Finger Man lightly raised his fist.
(Tch, skill activation—'Footwork Lv5' 'Evasion Lv4' 'Survivor Lv3'——)
He couldn't dodge it.
Finger Man's fist smashed into Shirokko's face.
Shirokko activated the skill 'Equivalent Exchange DEF Lv5' to endure it.
Thanks to that, only a few front teeth were knocked out, his nose crushed, cheekbone deformed, and neck dislocated—damage minimized.
He was blown horizontally and slammed back into the civic hall.
Pushing aside the rubble, Shirokko, his face drenched in blood, looked toward the distant figure of Finger Man.
"You bastard, I'll use another 'Sacrifice Bullet' and——!"
Even Shirokko could see Finger Man calmly raise his arm.
——Snap
An explosion with 30 million ATK pushed Shirokko into certain annihilation. The resulting blast turned Chiba Civic Hall into a blast site, creating a crater over 100 meters in radius, reducing the surrounding area to scorched earth, and wiping everything out without a trace.
"Ah."
"Chii...... (Translation: In the end, you blew it all up, chii......)"
"Gii (Translation: It couldn't be helped.)"
"I just meant to add a little flair... wait, isn't that way too much power...? Weird, it's been like that since earlier..."
It was as if a chef had finished a dish by casually blowing away the entire town.
"Chii (Translation: Just a deranged terrorist, chii)"
The Calamity Beast looked exasperated and shrugged its shoulder.