A magic sword appeared in Ryu's hand.

Bat: "What are you trying to do?!"

Ryu: "What? You wouldn't understand even if I told you. There are too many people who don't give up even after losing once, and they're too stubborn. I've decided to deal with you thoroughly until you understand that it's impossible to capture me. That's how I got Raioh and the others to understand."

(I see... so that's why the "Phantom of the Fiery Gale" and "Wind of the Night" groups gave up and left so easily...)

Bat: "I see... But aren't you being overconfident? There's still a chance I could win, right?"

Ryu: "Well, the possibility isn't zero. By the way, this is a pretty interesting bow."

Without realizing it, Ryu was holding the bow that Bat had been holding.

Bat: "Ah!! When did you?! Give it back!!"

Ryu: "Do you really think I'd give it back just because you asked?"

Bat: "Coward!"

Ryu: "Isn't sniping from a distance without even showing yourself cowardly? There are too many selfish people in this world. I've lost track of what 'cowardly' even means since coming here..."

Bat said nothing, just looking dejected. The truth was, without his magic bow, Bat's S-Rank abilities would be lost.

Ryu: "Just kidding. Here, I'll give it back. A bow like that is nothing but a nuisance to me."

Ryu tossed the bow back to Bat. Bat hastily caught it, relieved inside.

Ryu: "But that bow is quite interesting. It seems to have a variety of abilities. It can guide arrows to change their course, and it has penetration and defense nullification too?"

Bat: "...You have the [Appraisal] ability, too?"

Ryu: "I can do something similar. Alright, I want to try out the penetration and defense nullification. I'll take it. Mind shooting at me again?"

Bat: "Are you insane? An arrow fired from this bow can pierce anything! No matter how much confidence you have in your defense..."

Ryu: "I told you, a bow like that is nothing but a nuisance to me."

Bat: "...You won't understand until you experience it firsthand. You're the one who's overconfident."

Bat readied his bow and drew the string. Then, an arrow formed on the bow. Just drawing the string consumed the archer's magic to create an arrow. Ryu couldn't create an arrow when he drew the string. Perhaps he didn't know how to use it, or perhaps he had zero magic.

Bat imbued the arrow with [Absolute Penetration], [Defense Nullification], and [Paralysis], aiming for Ryu's shoulder and firing.

But the arrow stopped just before reaching Ryu's body, repelled by the dimensional barrier Ryu had set up.

Bat: "Impossible... It's supposed to be able to pierce through even magic barriers..."

Ryu: "As expected, the dimensional barrier is impenetrable."

Bat, frustrated, fired another arrow. This time, the moment the single arrow was released, it split into a hundred tiny arrows and attacked, but they were all repelled by the barrier.

Bat: "What about this?!"

Ryu: "Guided missiles?"

This time, the arrow split into five, each flying in a different direction. They then turned around and came back, attacking Ryu from left, right, behind, and above. He had considered the possibility that the barrier only covered the front, not the back or sides... but all the arrows were blocked by the barrier. Not a single one reached Ryu's body.

Ryu: "Alright, I think that's enough. I'd like to give you more time, but I need to head to the Royal Capital soon."

Bat: "The Royal Capital?"

Ryu: "Time for your punishment."

Ryu readied his magic sword, radiating killing intent.

Bat hurriedly jumped back and began to flee.

Bat, with his [High-Speed Movement] skill, was fast. He disappeared into the distance, occasionally firing arrows, but this time, smoke grenades seemed to be attached to the tips. In an instant, Ryu's surroundings were shrouded in smoke.

But no matter how fast he was, he couldn't move faster than teleportation. And the smoke screen was useless against Ryu's Divine Eye.

Ryu appeared using teleportation, blocking Bat's path as he ran.

But Ryu's carelessly swung magic sword missed. The enemy was a skilled fighter. Bat was faster than Ryu's swinging sword, and he dodged by changing direction.

Bat had mastered a style of fighting that compensated for his lack of close-range combat skills with his footwork. His countless experiences of evading danger and escaping with his amazing speed had made him very skilled.

Ryu, impressed by his quick reflexes and speed, gradually increased his [Acceleration].

Bat running, Ryu appearing in front of him and swinging his sword, missing every time. But Ryu's speed was gradually increasing. Finally, Ryu's magic sword caught Bat.

...It seemed to have caught him, but Bat's speed was slightly faster, and he managed to avoid it at the last moment. Bat barely managed to avoid being slashed, but...

...Ryu's sword had cut through the bow Bat was holding.

Ryu: "Ah... I'm sorry..."

For Ryu, it was just a minor mishap, but not for Bat.

Bat realized his bow had been destroyed. His running speed immediately slowed, and he finally stopped, trembling.

"My... brother's memento... Waaaaah!"

He wailed.

On closer inspection, he wasn't just crying; he had also wet himself.

Ryu was frozen in place, completely shocked.

After a while, Bat stopped crying, but he then sat down and wouldn't move.

Ryu tried to talk to him, but he didn't respond.

Bat seemed to be completely broken by the destruction of his bow.

Ryu: "It's not exactly what I had in mind, but I guess I succeeded in breaking his spirit."

However, he couldn't bear to leave Bat lying there like a broken person, so Ryu reluctantly raised his hand again.

Rewinding time.

But this time, instead of rewinding his body, he tried rewinding the time of the bow, restoring it to its pre-broken state.

He had never tried it before, but if he could rewind living beings, he should be able to rewind broken things.

As expected, the bow returned to its pre-broken state.

Seeing the bow back to its original form, a spark of life returned to Bat's eyes.

Bat: "Th...at...bow? Is it fixed?"

Ryu: "Yeah, it's back to normal."

Bat: "Back... to norm...al...?"

He was relieved. He started crying again, but this time, it was a quiet tear, not a wail.

But Ryu had felt something odd since earlier.

Ryu: "You... are you perhaps a woman?"

Moreover, he couldn't tell because she was hiding her face with a hat, but when he looked closely, he saw that her ears were pointed.

Ryu: "And an elf!!"

Bat: "Ah... I got caught..."

He had been completely tricked.

It seemed she had been using a transformation spell. Now, the spell had broken, and her feminine form was visible.

The elf girl turned to Ryu and said,

"I'm sorry. I lost. I promise I won't attack you again. Please forgive me..."

The elf girl put her hands on the ground and bowed her head.

----

To be continued...

Next time

The true identity of Bat, and the adventurer's guild in the Royal Capital.

Don't miss it!