NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 17: I can no longer describe an opponent like this
It feels like I always end up facing these relatively troublesome enemies, and never get to encounter any ordinary small fry.
Thinking this, I couldn't help but glance around, checking to see if anyone else was present—
—No, it was just me and him.
Speaking of which, since I had been lying on my back earlier, I also caught sight of the strange phenomenon in the skies above the Empire.
The sky was becoming murky at a speed visible to the naked eye.
It wasn't like clear skies being covered by clouds; it was more like some nauseating, filthy substance was constantly multiplying.
It gave off a feeling that's hard to describe, as though all the filth and corruption in the world had been mixed together, rotting as it spread through the air.
Brownish gas seemed to be drifting out of it as well.
A terrible event was about to unfold. This foreboding sensation surged in my heart, warning me to stay on guard.
"Is that thing up there your doing?"
"What do you think?"
It was as if an endless tsunami of excrement was rising from the ground. And sure enough…
"Let me give you a firsthand experience of *Kamikitazawa's unique swampy storm!*"
In an instant, a torrential downpour cascaded from above, drenching everything it touched.
No, wait. This wasn't rain. The color was a pale yellow, and it reeked with an unbearable stench.
This… this was urine!?
"You'll all cower in fear while simultaneously basking in the filthy glory of Akashishi Henyo!"
The man, his body smeared with feces and drenched in the disgusting rain, stank even worse than before as he once again approached me.
Suppressing the nausea welling up inside, I drew the unusual blade that had felled countless formidable foes and the black short sword I had never used before.
I had scavenged this blade after killing that hooded man.
This short sword, forged from some kind of black material, seemed to contain an ominous power.
Let's test it out.
"I swear on the name of Tadokoro Kozo! I'll obliterate you here and now!"
The man began to sprint, charging at me with reckless momentum.
Wielding both swords, I slashed at him. He nimbly evaded my strikes and, closing the distance in an instant, delivered a powerful elbow strike—
"Man! *Mamba Iron Elbow!*"
The force of the blow was immense, and even I stumbled back a few steps.
The man who called himself Tadokoro Kozo didn't let up. Taking advantage of my unsteady posture, he leaped above me and used his entire body weight to slam down.
"Man! *Mamba Crash Landing!*"
I could only raise my swords to block, summoning all my strength to absorb the impact. His stamina seemed limitless. After his elbow strike and crash landing, he launched a series of follow-ups: a relentless assault of knee strikes, kicks, and headbutts that pushed me to my limits.
His martial arts were already exceptional, and the rain of filth only further hampered my performance.
"There's an opening!"
A single moment of misstep in my defense was all it took. He seized the opportunity, landing a vicious elbow strike squarely on my jaw.
A wave of dizziness hit me like a storm. Just as his next elbow strike was about to land, my thoughts drifted back to a certain day six years ago—