Challenge: The Fool with the Surname Okayamine

Chapter 85, The Incense Chapter: The End

"Ah ah ah ah ah--"

"You who stole Shido, die!"

Tohka, wielding the [Final Sword], slashed at Mei with the speed of a whirlwind!

"Ahhh!!!"

The sharp sword light drew a dazzling arc in the air, carrying boundless killing intent and power.

Faced with this sword, Ming did not hesitate at all. He simply turned his body slightly with minimal effort and dodged this extremely destructive blow.

As for the spot where they were originally standing, a huge crack appeared under that sword strike.

"Ah, what!"

As the blade missed its target, Tohka hesitated for a moment, while Mei seized the opportunity to attach his random domain to his hand and firmly grip the single-sided blade of the final sword, [Aosha Gong].

"Miss Tohka, I take back what I just said. I have no ill intentions towards you, but please don't put me in a difficult position. How about we each take a step back?"

Beneath the mask, Ming's tone was calmer, quite different from his cold expression when he was repairing his arm as if it had been severed.

"Hmph, none of you in the Mechanical Corps can be trusted. From the moment you took Shido from my side, I was determined to eliminate you and avenge him!"

Given that Tohka is difficult to communicate with, coupled with my own origami-like appearance and the slightly foolish boast I made before the fight, it's unlikely I'll be able to persuade her.

"Alright then, maybe you've been working as a nanny for too long? Since you can calmly talk about this..."

Ming muttered to himself, if meeting Sawa cured his emotional deficiencies, then joining Itsuka and donning the mask of gentleness cured his reluctance to talk to others.

With his other hand, he pressed down on his belt, generating magical currents in his hand, and swiftly struck Tohka in the abdomen with a palm strike.

Tohka was struck hard and flew backward, staggering several steps in the air before barely coming to a stop.

After Tohka regained her balance, she shouted angrily:

"That despicable fellow, he actually launched a sneak attack!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't really mean to hurt you."

"You bastard, who would believe that!"

Tohka raised the [Final Sword] once more. Purple, electric energy gathered at the tip of the sword, making it even stronger than the previous strike. Ming felt the power gradually being unleashed, capable of cutting through everything, and his pupils contracted beneath his mask.

He knew he would die after being severed... This was the answer Ming sensed. At that moment, the ticket to reach [her] side was right in front of him, and Ming admitted that he was momentarily tempted.

But reason tells her that this is completely different from the future that Shido described.

He silently channeled his spiritual energy into magic, driving the manifestation device. A mechanical composite bow materialized in his hand, and then Ming pulled the bowstring, producing a melodious sound, much like a fairy plucking the strings of her harp.

【A mournful melody resonates, dispelling demons】

As the music began, a large number of arrows constructed of pure white magic gathered behind him, and a single pure white arrow also materialized on the bowstring.

"Let me strike a pose a little longer. As fate would have it, I can keep doing this without any problems. Speaking of which, Shido should be here soon..."

Just as Tohka and Akira were ready to launch their attack, their auras rising steadily, a sharp scream suddenly rang out from the sky, instantly attracting the attention of the girl Tohka.

"Aa ...

The sound broke the silence of the battle. Tohka turned around and saw that Shido, who had just fallen in front of her, was now standing in front of her again.

Without the slightest hesitation, Tohka leaped into the air and jumped straight upwards.

She shouted loudly:

"Shido!"

Seeing this, Ming breathed a long sigh of relief. Although the opportunity to see Sawa was indeed hard to give up, he knew in his heart that his carefully planned scheme was not yet complete and was still missing several important parts.

"Ah, I think so."

Shido chuckled in response. Upon hearing Shido's definite answer, Tohka's tense heartstrings snapped instantly, and tears of joy streamed uncontrollably from the corners of her beautiful eyes.

"Tohka! What's going on?!"

Shido glanced at the large treasure in Tohka's hand, which was flashing red and occasionally crackling with lightning, and quickly spoke up to remind her.

"Huh? The control of [The Last Sword] has malfunctioned! We need to release it quickly."

Without a second thought, Tohka pointed her sword at the dilapidated mountain that, even with the current display device, at least a piece of land should be left as a replica.

"No! Absolutely not!"

"Then what do you suggest we do?! We've reached a critical point!"

"Hurry up, Shido, didn't you just tell me the only way to save the Spirits? Hurry up."

Kotori urged him on through the earpiece.

After much deliberation, Shido hesitated, his voice trembling, and remained silent...

"All you have to do is kiss."

Just then, in the midst of complete silence, a low, muffled sound suddenly came from not far away. This unexpected sound broke the surrounding tranquility, startling Shido and Tohka.

The two instinctively looked in the direction of the sound and saw a figure in a black military uniform standing there.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be an extremely vicious spirit—the [Flame Beast]! At this moment, it was standing on a small piece of the mountain.

Note: This was created by Ming using the [Divine Eclipse Chapter] as a precaution, and he had them transform into his appearance after he put on his spirit dress, in order to dispel Shido's doubts.

Seeing that [Flame Beast] Shido was hovering in the air beside him, quietly watching with his arms crossed, Ming pressed his belt, removed his helmet, and waved to him with a very kind expression.

Seeing this, Shido finally breathed a sigh of relief for some reason. Although he had recently heard Kotori say that Mei and Tohka had gotten into a fight and that he should stop them, it seemed that things weren't so bad after all...

Little did he know that if he had arrived any later, Mr. Ming, who was usually exceptionally kind to him, would have considered running away immediately.

Coming to his senses, Shido looked at Tohka in his arms, and before he could speak, she immediately kissed him.

The girl's clothes vanished into thin air after the kiss, and even the [Final Sword] she had been carrying disappeared. She landed naked with Shido.

Both of them looked at each other with a sense of relief, and Tohka finally asked Shido with great joy:

"Shido, can we go on a date again sometime?"

Shido smiled and replied:

"Of course!"

Then, they just looked at each other quietly, enjoying the beauty of the moment.

While Tohka and Shido were embracing, unnoticed by both them and Ratatosk, Ming was watching them with a sly grin, as if he knew exactly what was going on.

"I see. The [Final Sword] in a fit of extreme rage can sever my connection with space and with the point mass, and the one who will kill me in the future is Shido... I see!" Ming pondered carefully in his mind.

"...That's true. Compared to the uncontrollable Tohka who's protected by Tenka, the kind-hearted Shido is easier to manipulate. But...my future goals are definitely not limited to this. But what exactly are they?"

Ming watched Shido and Tohka embrace, tossed a large black object he had prepared beforehand to Shido, and silently turned to leave. As he walked, he mentally planned his next move.

"Wait a minute! Mr. Ming." Shido immediately pulled him forward.

"What's up, Shido? Is there something you need?"

"I hope you and Tohka can become friends," Shido said sincerely, looking at Mei. Mei paused for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"Hahahaha, Shido, you can really make me laugh sometimes. We even had a big fight before." Shido scratched his head, wanting to pull Ming along so he could get a good look at the kind-hearted Tohka.

"Don't pull me!"

"But Mr. Ming, Tohka didn't do it on purpose..."

"I know."

"Then turn around and look at her!"

Upon hearing Shido's outrageous statement, Ming almost couldn't resist the urge to take out the [Black Flame Demon] and whack him on the head with his cane.

"Hey, Shido, don't you think about what you're saying?! Tohka's spiritual power is sealed right now."

Shido was puzzled, completely unable to understand what Ming was talking about. He turned to look at Tohka and saw her squatting on the ground, holding only a piece of black cloth, looking at him pitifully.

"Ah! I'm so sorry, Mr. Ming, it's all my fault! And Tohka, someone help me..."