"Ki~kikiki, what have you done, Oujian-kun? You have killed many of our troops in a single hit."
Without a single traces of fear nor panic, Kuru said to Oujian who has long since disappeared from his levitating spot. When everyone's eyes began searching for him, he was already behind Kuru, swinging his Excalibur.
"How bad of you, Oujian. Isn't it the rule to listen to someone until his speech ends?"
Lightly laughing toward him, Kuru took dagger from his storage-like spaces, and lightly brandishing it toward the Excalibur diversing it to the empty space direction. but the forces behind Excalibur didn't disappear completely as it continued slashing the air for a while before disappearing.
In the end, it cut off a portion of the ship, which has already begun its regeneration.
"God. Oujian, do you know how much platinum coins I spent on this dagger? You've ruined it! Pay me with that Treasure Orb of yours."
Oujian's attacks didn't end there. Upon predicting that the Excalibur will miss at some point, and the prediction going right, he have already prepared for Slayer to fire off the bullet to accurately blow Kuru's head.
"Ya'know, I don't really have much time to play with you. I haven't been able to see my wife for 3 years and I miss her so much."
*Bang*
Along with the gunfire's sound, Kuru's body suddenly leaped down-backward, his head almost falling to the floor. Making use of his body's motion, he raised his one side of leg to hit Oujian's chin whilst dodging the bullet.
Oujian who saw this, barely reacted as he used his right arm to swipes the leg to left, rotating Kuru's body which was mid-falling.
Then,
"Ricochet."
The bullet ricochet from the floor and Oujian's blade which has came back were now going toward Kuru's body which was in the rotating motion.
Kuru smiled as Oujian's power has grown since they last met. but he was the same. While rotating,
"Pseu-."
Kuru spouted a single word which gone uncompleted as his neck opened up a hole due from the bullet and his head split into 2 from the result of Excalibur smashing into his brain. Along with his corpse, an small rift opened up in the ship reaching down the sea was seen.
"What?"
Oujian mentioned in an surprised tone because of how easily he beat Kurur who had been bothering him for years since he find out about the Treasure Orb's existances.
Not to mention Kuru's flexibility in the battle from stealing many abilities from others, he easily had or was strong enough to dodge the sandwiching blow from before.
Yet, now he was lying there, dead. From only one of his original ability.
Thus with the lost of the Kuru's mercenary troops' leader, the battle ended up with easy win of Houshou Pirate Gang.
------
"It's raining?"
The surrounding was filled with everlasting blazing hell. In this place, nothing can easily enter, and if something entered, nothing can escape from it.
Nothing can enter it. Nor weather, nor clouds. it is a living hell for any humans as the moment they stepped in, they wouldn't last even 5 seconds inside it. Of course, that's for a normal human.
As this place; Abyss Purgatory, was also the birth of mythical legend, Asura who have took hold of an unnamed sword made by Hellanium and forged through Abyssal Flame.
The sky was pitch-black, the blazing flame continued to burn despite there existing no oxygen. It is unknown what resources it was consuming to keep its form.
This place was but a legends—a forgotten legend. Some have read of it in the book that it exists but no one know where it was, nor does such a places truly exists.
This never-changing places was now, undergoing an mysterious, yet interesting changes. a single droplets, twice, fourth, and millions of droplets has befallen to such places.
but such rain couldn't erase the blazing flame as the moment it got closer to the lands, it instantly evaporated. such an development occurred in the never-changing lands of Abyss Purgatory.
This millennium-in-a-single events has disturbed the entities in Abyss Purgatory.
Yes this feeling was similar to when Asura has fallen to Abyss Purgatory and began slaying the creatures left and right.
It felt like, the world has begun changing and it will affect their lives deeply.
------
"Ayame-chan, quickly, there!"
Kuro pointed toward the holes in the tree enough for both of them to enter.
'What is happening :\ our weather forecasting rune predicted wrong.(21)'
"It's not rare for our counterfeit weather forecaster to not work. I only understood the simplest way how it works. Not to mention, how complicatedly fantasy world this place is. Without a computer with some quantum technology or some bullshit in it, it wouldn't predict at 100% accuracy.(17)'
'Hmm... alright, let's bring tony someday... wait, where did the rune writing go?(21)'
'Gone to abyss. Perished into ash. Come on, admit it already at this point, rune writing is simplified programming.(17)'
"Ahhh~ because of the rain, my training got canceled."
Kuro complained after the both of them entered the hole in the tree. This tree was big enough for the child Ojou to lie down.
"You seems a bit happy, Kuro~♪"
The adorable Oni giggled after she heard Kuro 'complaining' how his trained was disturbed by the rain which has suddenly befallen without a warning.
"You-you've misunderstood! I truly feel sad that my training was disturbed!"
When Kuro made an excuse, Ayame has already lied down to the ground, with her heads on Kuro's lap due to an restricted spaces. She ignored Kuro's excuse as air-headed and own-paced she was. Knowing this, Kuro smiled bitterly and asked Ayame.
"Well, do you want to listen to story before we sleep like we always do?"
"Hmm... No. do you have anything new? I hate Malty. Hearing her bad deeds, it makes me so frustrated. So I want to listen to something new."
"Then... how about I sing a song for you?"
"Okay."
Ayame closed her eye while waiting for Kuro's voices to sound out.
'Crap. I am dumb. I have practiced some singing before but I've never actually singed in front of someone,(4)'
'Good luck me. I trust in you and your voices. I believe I wasn't a tone deaf in my life.(21)'
in fact, 21 was actually good at singing... although it was a little bit weird for an old-man like him singing idol song which Hololive Members sing in their singing stream.
"O-all right.. I am singing it. The title is Fire. Composed by Que-, composed by me..."
'Wait Kuro! That is a bad choic-(21)'
With a shaky voices, Kuro spoke the song title to Ayame who was peacefully closed her eyes. She nodded in agree to his choice. She never heard of him but she gained an strange that if it was him, it would be fine.
"Here I go."
[Party is over~♩]
an strangely calm tone sounded. Although there was no piano, it felt like the melody was playing inside the ear... only for Kuro.
in this world without a piano, it was impossible for Ayame to imagine it. Instead, she imagined an calm bard sounding along with Kuro's melody.
[But I still wanted to dances(Sore demo odori takatta)]
[The flame of passion, so strong I can't sleep - before I know it, one day....(Nemurenai kurai - jounetsu no hiwa itsushika, itsunohinika...)]
The expected calm sleepy voices was about to shatter and Ayame didn't notices the strangeness.
'Ah, crap. Kuro is in his switch.(17)'
'Even I know it. his expression is the same as mine when I sing Renai Circulation.(21)'
[I knew it from the start - one day the flame will go out(Hanakara Kidzuite iru - Homura wa i tsu ka ki eru.]
[Hey, I wasn't supposed to need anything(Ne, nani mo iranai hazu datta)]
[But still, I'm so serious(Nano mada, I'm so serious]
The fire has lit, and its blazed larger and larger, engulfing the entire world,
[Ah, there's still time(Ah, mada mani au)]
That fire garnered attentions. That firestorm sought for opportunities.
[Ah, just Burn it up Baby(Ah, tada burn it up, baby)]
That fire turned into flame, into blaze, to inferno. It's gets hotter and hotter. The inferno not only engulfed everything arounds it surrounding, it excited the crowds, it stimulated the adrenaline, it awoke the fighting spirits inside the every warriors' souls.
Kuro's pitch has reached as highest as possible and voice as loud as it can. The passion puts into this singing has turned into heat around Kuro. The sound of rain has long since erased by Kuro's passionate voices. It incinerated everything and will continues to.
"Shut up. I can't sleep."
Oh, by the way it also stimulated Ayame's anger.
"Ah, sorry..."
The fire has extinguished.